It was lunch time and the students were eating. Gao was eating with his friends Baku Kuguru and Tasuku.

"And this was how we beat the other team during the match," Tasuku concluded a story about his basketball match.

Kuguru smiled and replied, "I remember seeing that match. It was rather impressive to see your throw toward the net. If you missed it, we would have lost the match."

Tasuku chuckled nervously as he scratched the back of his head as he replied, "It was all teamwork. If Shin didn't manage to pass around the other team and passing it to me, we would have lost."

"That's true," Baku nodded before continuing eating.

Tasuku looked around him and asked, "Do you think he'll be back again?"

Gao smiled and replied, "He won't be back. If he tries, he'll have to get through me."

"That's our Gao," Baku replied.

Tasuku felt suddenly something cold behind him. He turned around and saw nothing.

"What is it?" Gao asked curiously.

Tasuku still felt something cold. He felt as if something had malevolent intention toward him. He learned from Jackknife that he should trust his instinct when it told him that something was wrong. He didn't want to involve his friends in this, thinking it was one of those who came from another world, "Nothing. I thought I heard something, but I was wrong."

"You can tell us if something is troubling you. You're our friends," Gao replied, showing his thumbs up.

Tasuku smiled and replied, "I will tell you if there's something wrong."

Hiding near the four children was Drum. He watched them and immediately recognised Tasuku when he saw him. He hid behind the ventilation system and breathed loudly, "It's him...Tasuku is the one who helped Findar the 100th to defeat me. I can't believe he's Gao's friends. This is getting complicated," he put his hand on the metal plates of his forehead and said, "How can I tell them that Tasuku is teaming up with the enemy?"

He didn't say anything else and watched them until lunchtime was over.

The rest of the day went fast for Tasuku. When school day was over, the boy smiled and stood up. He walked toward the exit and was excited to tell his day to Jackknife.

"I wonder what I should prepare for supper? Maybe I should make steaks. He likes them with potatoes," Tasuku said.

He turned the corridor and heard something behind him.

"I'm sorry, but you won't return home for supper. Sha. Sha. Sha," a voice said behind him.

Tasuku felt malevolence behind him. The boy turned around and saw Gallows, in his chibi form, raising his skeletal claws toward him. He took a spellcard, but the dark monster slapped it out of his hand.

"Nice try Tasuku. Sha. Sha. Sha. But I'll have to take you with me," Gallows said as his eyes grinned toward the boy.

"What do you want?" Tasuku asked while he took a few steps back.

Gallows grabbed the arms of the boy and lift him, "A bait to attract the bounty on Findar's head. Sha. Sha. Sha. Sha."

Tasuku gasped loudly as the iris of his eyes expended before he whispered, "No...Jack."

Chapter 19: The Horrible Test Of Jackknife Part 1

Jackknife watched the television as usual and laughed, "This dragon will never cease to be funny," he looked at the clock and saw it was 17h. He frowned and said, "Tasuku is late and it's Monday. He comes later only Tuesday and Friday. Something must happen to him."

He stood up and was about to fly outside and search for him when the doorbell rang. He looked at the door and walked closer and stood in front of the door. He said nothing and waited for them to leave. He knew it was risky to come out because there was a window pointing toward the direction he flew outside.

"Jackknife. I know you are here," a female voice told him with some monotony in it.

Jackknife didn't reply, he wasn't dump to speak now.

"Fine. Findar the 100th, a dragon who is searched for treason by the Dragon world and currently living with Tasuku. Is that clear enough?" she asked again.

Jackknife sighted and knew being silent meant nothing, "What do you want?"

"I brought a message from Gallows. It concerns Tasuku," she said.

"Tasuku?" Jackknife yelled surprised. His heart beat strongly when he heard the name. He yelled with concern, "What is the message?"

A piece of paper slipped under the door and saw Tasuku chained in mid-air.

"Tasuku! What did you do to him?" Jackknife furiously yelled.

"I did nothing to him. I do not agree with Gallows and my friend had no choice, but to obey him. Gallows wants you to come at the school and fight him. If you refuse to come, he won't hesitate to kill Tasuku. After all, he didn't hesitate to try to murder a little girl because she was with a dragon after you," she said.

Jackknife heard her walking away. Jackknife looked at the picture and his fingers trembled, "Tasuku...I'm going to save you."

He dashed outside and flew toward the school.

Gallows clapped his hands together and laughed after he heard Shido telling him what Sofia said.

"Good. Everything is going according to plan. Now...It is time for you to use the five dimensional spellcards," Gallows told Shido.

Shido was currently sitting on a chair, in an isolated room in the secret part of the school. He looked at Gallows who flew closer to him, "Are you sure it's...safe?"

Gallows put his finger on his mouth and grumbled before replying, "Nope."

"Then I'm going to die if I use that spell!" Shido yelled.

Gallows put his hands on the boy's shoulder and stopped him from standing up, "Hopefully you won't. As already I told you, I checked and I know you have enough energy to survive the spell. If you died, the spell wouldn't work and everything would have been for nothing. There is low probability that you die."

"It's still too much!" Shido yelled.

Gallows sighted and replied, "Choose then. Either I kill you and use Sofia, who would surely die, or take the risk," he took the five spellcards and put them on the right hand of Shido, "You're choice?"

Shido felt he literally had to pick his poison. He closed the hand on the cards. He looked at them and saw them painted with darkness. The cards were divided in five parts of a darkness dungeon. He put them on the ground at the five circles drew around him and sat on the chair.

"Once you'll activate the spell, I'll give the shape to the dimensional dungeon. Since I'm going to only have one visitor, it will be the less taxing one. A linear dungeon of darkness," Gallows explained.

Shido nodded and activated the five spell cards. Gallows flew next to the boy and concentrated to give the shape to the dungeon.

"Findar the 100th will have a nasty surprise. Once he's dead, I'll bring his head to the blue hair boy. I'm sure he'll like it," Gallows said.

Jackknife reached the school and looked around if there were any humans or hunters after him. The darkness started to cover the sky as the evening came.

"I cannot get caught. Tasuku needs me," he whispered.

He flew toward the backdoor of the school. He landed there and turned into his miniform to enter in there. He put his claw on the handle and hesitated.

"Something is wrong. My instinct is telling me that I'm going into a trap," Jackknife closed his eyes and said, "Nevertheless. I won't turn my back on you."

He entered in the trap, ready to rescue Tasuku. He wasn't aware, but two others were following him.

It was Rouga and Cerberus.

"Looks like our target enter in the school," Rouga said.

Cerberus sniffed the air and replied, "Yes...but something is wrong with the school. There's something in the air that I don't like."

Rouga grumbled and replied, "A trap for the dragon. Someone is after your bounty."

Cerberus grunted, "No one except me will obtain the head of Findar."

They tried to enter in the school, but it was locked.

Sorry. But you aren't invited for this party. Sha. Sha. Sha.

They grumbled until Rouga smiled, "If we can't enter the easy way, we'll just find another way."

Cerberus nodded and they searched another way.

Jackknife was back in his original form and walked through a long and black corridor. Black torch were burning around him and making some weird light that illuminated his way in a strange way.

Welcome in my domain Findar. I hope you'll enjoy the preparation I made for you. If you reach the end of the domain and survive, you will find Tasuku alive. Sha. Sha. Sha. Sha.

Jackknife grunted loudly and opened his wings. He dashed toward the long corridor when a sound resonated near him. He used his wings to break his advance and an axe cut just in front of him. Just one second later and he would have been killed.

"I have to fly slowly. This place must have many more traps," Jackknife commented.

He flew slower and scanned his surroundings. The black walls around him showed nothing that could serve as a trap, but the dragon felt some magic out of it.

"This is obviously not his school. It looks like a dungeon...except it has nothing around me except some hidden traps. The only way this could happen is with a Dimensional spellcards and-" Jackknife understood what the voice said by domain. "He wants me to be injured or die in this fight. If I survive, I'll be weaker."

Jackknife heard a sound and turned his head to the left. He saw an axe coming out of the wall. He used his head and the axe bounced on the helmet. Jackknife heard the sound echoing in his head. He shook it and continued forward.

"No matter what you have in my way, nothing will stop me," Jackknife said with determination.

He continued forward.

Tasuku was tangled against a wall by black chains holding him. He tried to break them, but they were too solid. He eventually stopped when exhaustion overtook him. He sighted and looked around. He was in a large room with black wall, a dark purple ground with the symbol of the Dark Dragon world. When he tried to look to the roof, he saw nothing.

"It seems you finally realised you cannot escape your predicament my tool. Sha. Sha. Sha," a voice cruelly giggled.

Tasuku looked in front of him and said, "Release me Gallows and let Jack go!"

Gallows laughed loudly and replied, "I'll be an idiot if I listen to that. I am just here to make sure you won't escape. Sha. Sha. Also, this is where I shall kill Findar the 100th...If he managed to survive the traps and deadly tools hidden in his linear path. Sha. Sha. Sha. Sha."

"He will overcome any of your traps and kill you!" Tasuku replied furiously, trying to free himself again.

"Once this is over. I shall bring his head to you. You'll be able to apology for being a weight on his shoulder. If he didn't know, he wouldn't die like that. Sha. Sha. Sha!" Gallows said before turning in his real form and waiting, "Now for the waiting game."

Tasuku tried escaping the chains once again when he saw his spellcards were near him on the ground, probably to taught him and mentally torture him even more than now.

Jackknife saw a door in front of him. He saw it was made of white bones with holes in it while the handle was a skull.

"Those holes probably had some spikes in it...Clearly spikes in it or arrows. I have to obtain the door without getting hit by any of those," Jackknife thought out loud.

He turned into his chibi form and moved his hand closer of the door. He stopped there and watched position of the holes and sighted. He took a position that looked like ballet with one leg as high as it was possible for a mini dragon. He moved his tail around itself.

"This...is humiliating," he commented before putting the hand on the handle.

Arrows came out of the holes and passed around his body without any hitting him. He opened the door and walked inside before turning back to his real form.

"Now that's behind me, I have to continue," Jackknife said as he opened his wings and flew forward.

He continued when a scythe passed near him and also cut his head. He stopped and watched the scythes passing forward.

"Another trap. This is really bad," Jackknife said. He watched the scythes passing in front of him, "I survived a lot of battle, so those scythes means nothing for me."

He expanded his wings and waited for the right moment. He synchronized with the scythes and passed through them. He evaded all of them until the last one passed near him. He gasped and flexed his body. It wasn't enough and it slashed through his stomach. The wound wasn't that deep because of his solid scales, but it was deep enough to make him bleed. Jackknife felt on the ground and rolled until he stopped. He covered his wound and waited a minute before it closed.

"Urgh...I cannot let this stop me. I'll save you my friend. No matter what," Jackknife said as he stood up and continued flying forward.

Meanwhile Rouga and Cerberus were at the front entrance of the school.

"What makes you think we can enter in here Rouga?" Cerberus doubtfully asked.

Rouga chuckled and took out a spellcard, "Because...There is always more than one entrance," the card shined and the boy said, "Eyes of the Wolf."

The door started to wave and revealed a door made of bone.

"Good thinking. The spell reveals some secret. A spell that creates any kinds of fortress always has a secret door," Cerberus said. He smirked, "And the best part is that whoever caused it...Isn't aware of our entrance."

"Nothing has one entrance," Rouga concluded as they entered in the domain of Gallows.

Jackknife grunted painfully when an arrow pierced his left arm. He continued until he reached the door and landed. He took the arrow and took it out of his arm.

"Urgh...I'm almost there. I can only be almost here. We'll be back home soon Tasuku," Jackknife painfully said.

His nose picked the scent of Tasuku behind the door, but also another scent. He knew his enemy was there, but he had to enter in there.

He saw Tasuku chained against a wall. He yelled, "Tasuku!"

The boy looked at him and yelled, "Jack! Look out!"

Jackknife looked over him and saw Gallows in his real form cracking his bones.

"I am impress you passed the trap with minimal damage on you, but you will not survive me. It's a one on one fight! Sha! Sha! Sha! Sha!" Gallows laughed loudly, "Against me. The smallest wound could be fatal for you!"

"Tasuku. Are you hurt?" Jackknife asked, ignoring Gallows threats.

"I'm fine. Sadly, it's not your case Jack," Tasuku replied, seeing his friend's wound.

"Hey! Don't ignore me!" Gallows yelled.

"I was so worried Tasuku. Do not worry, we are going home soon," Jackknife said with a smile.

"Hey!" Gallows yelled again.

"I'm not worried Jack. You told me you defeated some who were more vicious before," Tasuku added.

"Enough!" Gallows shouted before charging toward Jackknife.

The green dragon jumped to the left and spun around himself. He hit the face of Gallows with his tail and flew against the wall, but stopped before crashing.

"Gallows. I've fought longer than you. It is you who should get wounded, or you'll die by my own fang!" Jackknife furiously shouted.

Gallows grumbled and commented, "I can't lose...I need that reward."

AC: This is the end of chapter 19.

Final part at chapter 20.

Chapter 21: The True From Drum.