Wraith returned to the Raptor only to come face to face with a completely ticked off Dragaunus.
"You told me the mage was dead," the Saurian overlord snarled as smoke curled from his nostrils. "How is she not dead!?"
"I don't know, my lord," Wraith replied as soothingly as he could since he was still a bit shaken from nearly getting eaten. "There was no way an antidote would have worked. She was too far gone."
"Well, she either has a twin or the poison failed," Dragaunus growled angrily just before he blasted a drone behind the wizard.
"It's the same mage, but I don't understand how she survived," Wraith replied, trying not to let his worry show at the obvious signs of his lord's displeasure if the multiple piles of robot pieces were anything to go by.
"You promised me the phoenix," Dragaunus hissed. "I want it and I want it now!"
"And you shall have it, my lord," Wraith quickly assured the larger Saurian. "I have one feather left."
"And that's how many chances you have left," Dragaunus warned the wizard with a growl. "Either bring me the head of that mage or I'll be taking yours."
"Yes, my lord," Wraith quickly replied, bowing in subservience to the powerful lizard before him.
With that, Wraith swiftly disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Dragaunus let out a displeased snarl and shot another drone to smithereens before stomping off of the Raptor's bridge. As soon as the coast was clear, Chameleon crawled out of his hiding space and started to clean up the twisted, burnt pieces of metal.
"Maybe next time you'll listen to the little guy," he grumbled to himself. "Would have saved ourselves a lot of time and trouble."
He knew full that well if he told anyone he had known the mage had survived now, they'd be picking up pieces of him. He was crazy, not stupid. Better to let that sleeping dragon lie.
"NO!" Ruby cried out in fear.
Black Death easily threw the smaller dragon off of her and spun around, ready to end the fool that would dare challenge her. In the blink of an eye, the red dragon was encased in a protective bubble that Black Death's teeth bounced off of. Before either dragon could move, the bubble slid across the ground, leaving a deep furrow in the dirt, taking the smaller dragon with it and landing in the hole with the ducks and humans. It wasn't a graceful landing and the dragon was on his side, but at least he was out of range of the black beast above them.
With a scream of pure fury, the black dragon let loose her fiery breath once more into the hole. Fortunately for those down there, a shield stopped most of the flames. Black Death was beyond furious as she tried to dig her way past the shield protecting her meal.
"Was bringing him down here really a good idea?" Wildwing demanded of Ruby as everyone tried to make room for the large body that was now occupying most of the pit.
"What choice did I have?" Ruby snapped back, trying to ignore the mother of all headaches she was starting to get from all of the magic she was using. "If I left him up there, she would have killed him and become even stronger and I couldn't protect him and us at the same time."
Ruby looked at the space they were in and sighed. The kids were in the dead center of the hole, still protected by their magic bubble. The dragon was taking up a good amount of space around them and the ducks and Raleigh were crammed into what little space was left over. Amazingly enough, the children weren't freaking out about the dragon that was now sharing space with them.
"Is it just me or is it starting to get really warm in here?" Nosedive asked.
"It is," Ruby replied as she squeezed her way around, trying to get to the head of the dragon. "I can't do anything about it right now though."
"If the temperature keeps rising at, you know, the rate it's going, we're all going to be roasted alive!" Tanya stated worriedly as she stared at the omni-tool on her wrist.
"We need to defeat that dragon and get these kids out of here," Wildwing stated.
The team captain pointed at the black Elemental who was furiously digging, though it appeared that the shield over the top of the hole was expanding with the increasing size. The red dragon let out a snort as Ruby squeezed past the others.
Thank you for stating the obvious, the dragon grumbled as he righted himself and he tried to make his flames as small as possible.
"How do we know this dragon isn't going to eat us?" Raleigh nervously questioned.
"Because he isn't evil," Ruby replied as she finally reached the red beast. "What did you think you were doing?"
I was trying to land, the dragon sheepishly responded as he pushed his snout into her torso and she immediately started to caress the head that was nearly as long as she was tall.
"Land?" the mage questioned and then she noticed his forelimbs. "When did you get wings? How did you get wings?"
I woke up with them, the beast answered, closing his eyes with a contented sigh. I think I got them from the harpy I ate.
"You did what!?" Ruby nearly snarled as she glared at the large beast. "Why in the world did you do that? Do you have any idea would could happen from eating a dark Elemental?"
But she was trying to steal you away, the dragon whined while he gave her a beseeching look and rubbed his head against her, nearly knocking her over.
"Please don't do that again," Ruby sighed as she found that special spot behind his jaw hinge and gave it a good scratching. "I would be so sad if you turned out like that black monster out there."
"Speaking of her, how are we going to get out of here and not get turned into crispy critters?" Duke inquired. "Getting turned into a briquette wasn't on my list of things to do today."
"Is the gnome still here?" Ruby asked.
I'm here, the small Elemental said as he came out from behind Grin.
"How were you going to get the kids away from Wraith?" the blue beaked hen questioned.
We made a cavern a little ways away, the gnome. It's still there. We could all fit except for him.
The earth Elemental pointed at the dragon and Ruby knew if she wasn't distracting the beast with her scratching, he probably would have been upset.
I wouldn't go anyways, the dragon softly grumbled, his eyes were closed again. Earth can smother fire.
"Too bad we can't bury that black monster and put her out," Mallory huffed and Ruby gasped as she stared at the weapons specialist.
"Mallory, you're a genius," Ruby stated as she turned back to the gnome. "Black Death wouldn't perchance be above the cavern, would she?"
Unfortunately, no, the small man sighed in regret.
"Could you make another one?" Ruby questioned.
Of course, the small Elemental answered. But it will take some time.
"What are you planning?" Wildwing inquired.
Ruby looked up briefly; her eyes glowed for just a moment before looking back at the team captain. Wildwing glanced above them and saw that the shield had taken on a darker color. It was almost like looking through smoked glass.
"What did you do?" the drake demanded.
You can hide from me, but I know you're still down there, Black Death snarled. I will get to you and I will kill you all.
"I made it so she can't hear or see us," Ruby answered. "If we can drop her into a cavern big enough to hold her and keep her there for a while, we should be able to get the kids loaded onto the Aerowing."
"The problem with that idea is that the Aerowing is back where we landed it," Wildwing pointed out. "How long do you think she'll stay buried? And how do we get the kids on the Aerowing while they're in that bubble?"
"She won't stay buried long, but I plan to bring the Aerowing here first," Ruby responded. "As for the kids, I'll figure out how to get them to bring the shield down."
"You can do that?" the drake asked incredulously. "Bring the Aerowing here, that is?"
"No, but your brother can," the mage replied.
"How do you intend to get him there?" the team captain inquired, worried what she might have planned for his little brother. "There's no way he could out run that thing. And don't even think of putting him on another unicorn."
"Ummmm…" Ruby hesitated to reply as a unicorn was what she had planned on.
Would he be willing to ride a different Elemental? The gnome asked. One that doesn't have to travel above ground?
"Like what?" Wildwing demanded of the small being.
Her, the earth Elemental replied, pointing to a spot behind the goalie.
Everyone turned to see what the gnome was gesturing towards and saw the head of an earth dragon sticking out of the side of the pit. There was no hole for the beast to fit through; her head was just sticking straight out of the dirt and rocks.
"That's not, you know, possible!" Tanya exploded, truly upset with what she was seeing.
"What's not possible?" Wildwing asked.
"Two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time," the blond hen huffed.
"Yet, there she is," Ruby pointed out as she leaned against the fire dragon next to her.
"You can't change the laws of physics!" Tanya nearly yelled.
"You're right, you can't," the mage replied with a nod. "But magic can bend those rules."
"But – but…" the tech sputtered.
"Listen, we can discuss magic and physics some other time," Ruby interrupted. "Right now, we need to get a move on. I may be good with shields, but even I can't keep it up forever."
"You're right," the team captain stated as he stepped up to his brother. "We don't have time to waste. You willing to do this, baby brother?"
"Sure," Nosedive replied, sounding a bit nervous. "What could possibly go wrong?"
I will keep him safe, a soft female voice stated as the earth dragon moved into the already crowded space.
"Not to state the obvious, but how's Dive gonna breathe underground?" Duke questioned.
He must ride on my neck, under my mantle, the large earth Elemental stated.
The wyrm raised a large ruff at the back of her head that had been lying flat before. It had blended so well to her neck, that no one knew it was even there until she raised it. She moved as close to Nosedive as she could, given the space constraints.
Come, time grows short, the brown and gray beast said.
"Dive," Wildwing started as he grabbed his brother's wing.
"I'll be fine, Wing," the smaller drake assured his worried sibling.
Wildwing let Nosedive go, his heart in his throat as he watched his only living relative step up to the large earth Elemental. The dragon brought her head down until it was almost touching the ground and Nosedive climbed onto the neck of the creature. As soon as he was in position, the dragon lowered her mantle, completely covering the duck. The wyrm made a U turn that shouldn't have been possible for anything with a spine and disappeared into the wall, leaving no trace that she had ever been there.
I will get the others and start on another cavern, the gnome stated just before he disappeared through the floor.
"Ok, now we wait," Wildwing told no one, the tension he was feeling was obvious in his voice.
Ruby felt just as worried as the large white drake and that confused her. She had full faith in the dragon to get Nosedive to the Aerowing safely. So, why was she concerned that she'd never see him again?
"You wait, I have work to do," Ruby stated.
The mage shook those strange feelings off as best she could and moved over to where Raleigh was kneeling on the ground next to the shield the kids had made. Gipsy was on the other side, crying and trying to push her way out. Raleigh was talking calmly to her, assuring her that everything was going to be ok.
"Hi, Gipsy," Ruby gently greeted as she got on her knees next to the girl's father.
"Ducky," Gipsy whined with a sniff, tears leaving streaks down her dirty little face. "Want out."
"I'm going to try and get you out," Ruby assured the child. "Do you know who started the shield?"
"Shield?" Gipsy asked in confusion.
"This invisible wall," the mage clarified as she put her hand against the barrier. "Do you know who started it?"
"Tony and Tina did," Gipsy answered as she pointed off to the left.
"Can you show me where they are?" Ruby questioned. "I'd like to talk to them."
"I tried to do that, but they won't listen," Gipsy replied.
"Can you please just show me which ones they are?" the blue beaked hen reiterated.
"Ok," the girl said as she moved off.
Gipsy had to walk behind the kids holding hands, but it wasn't hard for Ruby to follow her. A moment later, the child stopped by a couple of kids and there was no doubt that they were related, twins if Ruby had to hazard a guess. They were facing where Wraith had been, so it wasn't too big of a surprise that they were the ones who started the shield.
"Thank you, Gipsy," Ruby said as she crawled over the fire dragon's tail and one of his hind legs. "Why don't you go wait with your daddy?"
The girl didn't need to be told twice as she went back to her father. Ruby put her hands on the shield and tried to merge her magic with it. Unfortunately, the magic was too raw for her to get a hold of and it sent a powerful jolt up her wings.
"What are you trying to do?" Wildwing inquired from not too far away, not daring to get any closer to the fiery beast she was next to.
"I was hoping that I could take control of the shield, but there's too much raw magic," Ruby stated as she shook feeling back into her wings.
"What do you mean?" the drake questioned.
"When a mage first gains his or her powers, the magic can be wild and unpredictable," the mage explained. "With practice and instruction, the mage will learn to control how much of the magical energy to use for a task. Right now, these kids are using all of the magic they can muster. It's like they're trying to use a fire hose with the water turned on full blast. I could bring the magic under control if I had the time and I wasn't maintaining another shield."
I could destroy it, the dragon offered, his head hovering over the ducks on his long neck.
"No," the tired hen said as she shook her head. "The backlash could kill the kids."
"What happens if we just let them be?" Wildwing asked.
"Without knowing how to control the power, it will eventually burn them out," Ruby told him.
"And that would be bad?" he pressed.
"It would leave them burnt out husks," she replied worriedly. "They'd be alive, but their minds would be nothing more than vegetables."
"Ok, that's bad," Wildwing agreed.
"Very," Ruby said. "I'm going to try and give these seven their first magic lesson."
Wildwing took the hint and backed up to give her room. He watched in fascination as the mage's eyes started to glow as she talked quietly to the two adolescents before her. The amount of energy she and the kids were putting off was starting to make his feathers stand on end.
He knew he should be freaked out by her display of power, but he was starting to get used to it. In fact, he was more concerned that the phoenix might get loose, killing Ruby, then him and his team getting zapped. That worried him.
The large white drake intensely watched as Ruby softly talked to the kids. Nothing was happening and he was beginning to wonder how they were going to get the kids onto the Aerowing if they couldn't get the shield down. He was on the verge of interrupting the mage when the kids, Tony and Tina, slowly turned to look at the red duck.
Wildwing could see some of the tension leave the mage's shoulders. She continued to talk to the boy and girl and it appeared that they were paying attention to her, though there were no emotions on their young faces. The goalie wondered how much longer it was going to take.
After what seemed like an hour, but was probably less than fifteen minutes, the twins slowly blinked. When they opened their eyes again, their eyes were no longer glowing a blinding white, but a bright blue. A few minutes later, one by one, the other five kids slowly closed and opened their eyes, all going through the same color change.
Then, with no warning, Ruby and the seven pre-teens collapsed.