Dragon's Dogma - A Forgotten Tale of the Arisen and his Pawn Chapter 9: Reunion, a dragon's dogma fanfic

Chapter 9: Reunion

The time had come; he would face the Red Dragon at the tainted mountain and retrieve what was his. He had fought his way through all kinds of beasts to finally face the Red Dragon: Geo Saurian, Grim Goblins, Succubi, it didn't matter what stood in his way. The Red Dragon was no longer on his mind as it once was; his entire mind and body were focused on the fight but more importantly, he desperately wanted to return to her, he wanted to hold her once more.

He had woken up at the edge of the healing spring alone, searching for her wondering where she was. The promise was only one day but they had been in each other's arms for three, he didn't complain, the agreement was only for a day but he had been unable to part from her. He finally reached the conclusion that she went back to Gran Soren or the rift, with a little bit of luck if he survived this, he could be back in her arms in just a few days. He was now fighting a lot differently than before, he fought as any other day but the thought of her made every monster seem as petty as the last. Nothing would stand in his way, not even the Red Dragon would hinder him from seeing her again. There was hope for him now that she was waiting for him, he was sure of it.

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The temple inside the mountain where the Red Dragon resided was vast, but not big enough to hide a colossal of a Dragon. It didn't take him long to find his enemy emerging from the dark temple, its red scales were slowly revealed by the many holes of sunlight the temple bared, its red eyes glowed as deeply as burning coal, and the hint of his fiery breath could be seen even as it opened its mouth and called out to the Arisen.

"TELL ME DID YOU ENJOY YOUR MORTAL LIFE?"

"I did, and I will continue to enjoy it, I shall be taking back what you stole from me now if you don't mind"

"AMUSING, TRULY AMUSING" The Dragon ignored his threat and continued to speak.

"YOU FOUND WHAT YOU WERE LOOKING FOR BUT GAVE UP SOMETHING FAR MORE IMPORTANT, THE STUPIDITY OF MAN NEVER CEASES TO AMAZES ME"

"I have not given up anything, Dragon! I will reclaim my heart and live the mortal life I desire" The Dragons feet pounded the ground as it stomped towards the arrogant human.

"YOUR DESIRES DELUDE YOU, STOP AND PONDER ON YOUR ACTIONS HUMAN. YOU MADE THE DECISION TO COME FACE ME IN HOPE OF ACHIEVING SOMETHING GREATER. I AM YOUR ENEMY, I SHALL BURN EVERYTHING FROM THE NORTH TO THE SOUTH NOTHING SHALL BE LEFT STANDING BY THE TIME I AM FINISHED. IS THIS YOUR DESIRE?"

"No! I will slay you here and now to prevent any of that" The Red Dragon laughed at his threat.

"IT'S BEEN SO LONG SINCE ANY MORTAL HAS THREATENED ME. TRUTH, YOUR IDLE THREATS ARE NOT TOWARDS ME BUT TO YOURSELF." the Dragon was circling around him watching every move he made. He was anticipating his lunge or his breath, either way he was ready this time for the serpents strike.

"You speak nonsense, wyrm. You are the one threating the lands yet you tell me I am threating myself? How foolish" he could see his hot breath and the fire that came with it.

"FOOLISH!? IF THIS PUPPET DID NOT HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY, HE WOULD HAVE BEEN CRUSHED UNDERNEATH MY FOOT"

"Then why do you hesitate?"

"IMBECILE, IT IS NOT I WHO HESISTATES BUT YOU WHO DOES NOT MAKE A CHOICE."

"What nonsense do you speak? I told you have I not? I will slay you." He followed its head as it drew closer and its voice shuddered the great temple walls.

"AND THEN WHAT? GO BACK TO YOUR LOVING PAWN? LOOK AFTER YOUR OFFSPRINGS AS THEY ABANDON YOU AND DIE? WATCH THE WORLD BURN AGAIN? I AM NOT ASKING YOU WHAT YOUR DESIRES ARE I AM ASKING IF YOU WILL ABANDON YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES YOU PATHETIC MORTAL!" The Red Dragons voice made a few loose rocks in the temple tumble to the ground.

"The world? What do you know? I was tired of the world long ago; it abandoned me to a lonesome existence. I have suffered enough for it."

"THAT IS WHERE YOU ARE MISTAKEN! HUMANS CRAVE IMMORATALITY BECAUSE THEY DO NOT KNOW IT AND ONCE THEY ATTAIN IT THEY WISH TO THROW IT AWAY BECAUSE THEY CANNOT FATHOM THE KNOWLEDGE OR PAIN; THE GIFT OF THE COSMOS. YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED LIFE AND DEATH SO MANY TIMES AND NOT JUST YOUR OWN LIFE BUT THE LIFE OF OTHERS AS THEY SLIP AWAY FROM YOUR HANDS, AS THEY SPEAK THEIR LOVE FOR YOU, YOU SEE THEM AND SUFFER FOR THEM YET YOU HAVE NOT STOPPED PURSUING THE MORTAL LIFE."

"I do not want an immortal life anymore; I gave everything I had already"

"AND DOES THAT STRIP YOU OF YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES? I AM NOT ASKING FOR YOUR DESIRES YOU FOOLISH HUMAN! NO ONE FORCED YOUR HAND WHEN YOU MADE THAT DECISION. THE LIFE OF ONE DOES NOT COMPARE TO ALL"

"Enough! I did everything I could!"

"IT STILL ISNT ENOUGH"

"How do you even know what I suffered!? You aren't even old enough to admonish me you foolish slug" the Dragon got close to him again, staring at him with eyes that burned with a fire more deadly than its breath.

"WE ALL SUFFERED, THE DIFFERENCE IS THAT EVERYONE MADE THEIR OWN CHOICE AND ACCEPTED THAT OUTCOME. YOU DID NOT ACCEPT YOUR FATE TO DIE ON THE GROUND AS YOU SHOULD HAVE BUT RATHER SURRENDERED YOUR HUMANITY. AS DID MY MASTER" he looked back up to the Dragon in surprise.

"What did you say?" there was more to this Dragon than just destruction.

"Your master? That means he is still alive" now he was shouting with excitement.

"Where is your master? Tell me!" he had not been alone all this time, someone from the Great War was still alive. There was always a time where he would befriend a living being only to watch them die. It was a cruel fate, he would suffer with all kinds pain and agony but the pain of losing someone close to him was the worse pain of all; knowing that you will be alive when in fact you should be dead. Finally, a chance to meet a forgotten friend and if it turned out to be an enemy then a chance to free himself from his immortality, he would beat the Dragon senseless if it meant he could meet him.

"YOU THINK I WOULD I TELL YOU? YOU WHO CANNOT EVEN ACCEPT RESPONSIBILTY FOR HIS OWN ACTIONS? YOU THINK IF HE FREE'S YOU FROM YOUR CURSE YOU WILL RETURN TO A NORMAL LIFE? THE WORLD WILL FOREVER BE IN DANGER, SHOULD YOU DIE THEN YOU, YOUR LINEAGE, AND EVERYTHING ELSE YOU HOLD DEAR WOULD BURN ALONG THE REST OF THEM." The Dragon paused for a moment and got close to him again.

"OR WERE YOU THINKING THAT IT IS NOT YOUR PROBLEM ANYMORE?" the Dragon had read his mind, a million excuses were going through his head, including: "I have suffered enough", "It is not my responsibility", but none of his excuses were good enough for anything.

"WHAT ARE YOU THINKING NOW ARISEN? WERE YOU THINKING OF ABANDONING YOUR PAWN AS WELL?" Her image was in his mind now; she had not crossed his mind in the entire time he had spoken with the Dragon.

"DID YOU KNOW? SHE WAS SENT TO YOU IN THE FORM OF A BLESSING, TO EASE YOUR AILS OF IMMORTALITY, SHE IS HUMAN AND YET SHE IS NOT HUMAN SHE WOULD GIVE SOME RELIEF BUT DON'T MISUNDERSTAND SHE IS NOT A REMEDY NOR IS SHE A CURE FOR YOUR CURSE FOR THE CHOICES YOU HAVE MADE. I WILL NOT TELL YOU WHERE MY MASTER IS NOR WILL I GIVE YOU THE SATISFACTION OF HAVING A MORTAL LIFE. YOU MADE THAT CHOICE ON YOUR OWN AND WHETHER YOU WERE IGNORANT OF THE OUTCOME, YOU SHALL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR ALL OF YOUR ACTIONS YOU PATHETIC HUMAN"

His desire to kill the Dragon had extinguished, he was stuck and did not know what to do. The Dragon had never been a messenger of destruction he was a warning to not abandon the path he had chosen. It was his choice to make again.

"…THE CHOICE IS YOUR'S ALONE" The Red Dragon stood across from him awaiting his decision. He had not made a move, his dilemma stood as firmly as ever. His thoughts were on her and everything he had sacrificed; to this point it was not for glory or fame, if he so wanted such luxury then without a doubt he would have obtained it. The pact of immortality made him responsible for all the chaos and destruction that would occur, and not just to the ones he knew but to everyone else as well; a curse that would never let him go and his chance to free himself was standing across from him. If he slayed the Dragon then the many would be saved but he would never find a chance like this again but if he got rid of his immortality then he would finally find the peace he desired letting humanity perish. His thoughts were on her again, then the Great War, and to the point where he was falling from the sky towards the ground. He was falling, in his mind he was falling again.

He drew his weapon faster than the blink of an eye and threw it near the pillars where the Dragon stood, allowing it to buy some time for him and topple the pillars on top of the Dragon, making it scream in rage.

"HAA SO YOU HAVE MADE YOUR DECISION, VERY WELL STAND AND FIGHT AGAINST ME" he drew his spare weapon and dropped his heavy armor and bags allowing him to run faster through the temple corridors. The pillars and boulders in the temple would slow the Dragons advance but it would be up to him to find a way to bring it down. He dashed through the narrow halls of the temple as mountains of rubble came crashing down behind him, he would take his cover behind the enormous stones as he saw the flames coming at him from the Dragons mouth. He needed to get to higher ground so he could get a better strike at his head or at least an open chance to get at its heart. His view shifted to the large boulders; once the Dragon got closer the boulders would come loose enough to come down on the mountain slope. The Dragons mobility would be hindered thanks to the temple being inside the mountain, he just needed to bide his time and strike carefully.

The Dragon charged with full force inside the temple but his wings and body were getting caught in the temple halls, like a fox trying to get at a rabbit in its hole, it did not suspect him to be waiting at the end of the temple halls when the loose concrete and mountain rubble came down on its head thanks to a large blow given when he struck it at the edge. The Dragon was buried under tons of rubble; he jumped at its open parts and delivered a few blows that shattered some of the Dragons scales exposing its blood in the open. The Dragons thunderous roar sent concrete flying everywhere, it was in a rage as its body slammed the closed walls of the temple making him lose his balance and drop under a cover of broken boulders. The Dragon pushed with a mighty blow toward the ceiling exposing the morning sun into the temple and allowing it to spread its wings and fly off into the sky.

He got up from under the rubble and ran outside one of the temple exits; the exit was a bridge and a wall that linked one of the temples to the other on the far side of the mountain. He could run across the wall to the other side but knew the Dragon was in the air, he would be exposed to its attack should it decide to come after him.

"It may be better to lure the Dragon back into the temple giving me a chance to strike at its head" his thoughts on how to take down a Dragon came scrambling to his head. In the distance he could see the far side of the temple where the wall served as a bridge connecting the two; each under its own mountain. The far side temple looked more like a fort compared to the one he was at, the temple he was at looked more like a place of reverence; a memorial to the past glories. In the distance he could see that the other would serve as a better shield against the Dragons breath and if the Dragon let down his guard he might have a chance of luring it in and finishing the job.

He would do it; he decided to make a run for the other temple. The Dragon was still in the sky but he did not see it, he knew now how to sense him, being close to the Dragon allowed him to pinpoint its location thanks to his stolen heart. It must have been above the clouds, doubtful it could spot him but he was sure it could sense him as well. Without giving it a second thought he sprinted towards the temple at full speed, the Dragon was nowhere in sight but as he got closer to the temple he could feel the Dragons approach from the sky, getting closer with every step he took.

Sprinting towards the temple at full force his senses became acute at the approaching Dragon diving at its foe. He didn't even need to look up to see its descending body making its way toward him. The Dragons claws were pointed at him like a hawk about to catch its prey; he had miscalculated, he wasn't going to make the run all the way, the Dragon would catch him before he made it to the next temple. In a final attempt to redeem his actions, he ran towards the edge of the wall right before the Dragon made its landing sending an impact of broken concrete everywhere. He made it just in time leaving him hanging off the wall with his weapon drawn and stuck to the wall. The Dragon flew down in the direction it thought he had jumped but was too late to notice him letting go of the wall and dropping alongside the Dragons descent towards the earth.

He had made it, this time it was the Dragon who was careless, it didn't notice him until a sharp blade had pierced its armor, piercing its scales sending a stinging pain through its back.

He had escaped death for a moment but the velocity with which the Dragon fell and the exact time he had stuck his blade in its back was something too miraculous to ignore. It was a familiar feeling he had not noticed until now, he thought back to the time when he had first faced the Cyclops; she had been fighting by his side the entire time. Without thinking any further another figure was by his side at the Dragons back, he did not notice that someone else had dropped with him.

It was her; she was by his side this entire time. He knew she had a lot of tricks he wasn't aware of but to not even be able to detect her presence she was indeed a very special pawn. No time to question her disobedience, they both crossed eyes to meet each other's glances with one proposition in mind "We shall slay the Dragon".

The Dragon had not sensed the pawns presence, but only realized she was there when both of them had landed on its back. Trying to shake them loose at high speeds in the sky was futile, no matter how fast it flew it could not shake them, so instead he headed into the cliffs to crash in the rocks, even if it could not shake them off it would slam them off.

She already knew what he was thinking before he could open his mouth, she may have been in trouble later on but to see each other again was well worth the angry argument later. They both knew what came next; water is a fire Dragon's foe and worse still is ice; for it acts like fire when going into the Dragons body, "Ice boon".

Using his strength with the incoming wind, he plunged his weapon deep into the Dragons body, its insides felt the ice enchanted weapon in a very painful disturbance, making the Dragon lose its balance and control over the air as it spiraled towards the ground.

The entire party had plummeted towards the ground but only the Dragon had suffered a major blow with the weapon and the fall. She had anticipated that moment of impact and had made their landing a light one. They were both on the ground now, and even though they both had millions of private words to share with each other it would have to wait until their duty was done. They set their minds back towards the matter at hand and were beginning their fast approach on the writhing Dragon trying to recover from the pain of an ice blade in its body. They didn't waste any time, the Dragon was in pain and vulnerable, she had already begun weaving her next enchantment while he charged the Dragon, weapon in hand and ready to aim at its heart.

The Dragon recovered faster than they anticipated, the spiraling ice came at it with full force but the Dragon was no stranger to magic it weaved its own spell allowing it to shield itself with a tower of fire at the last moment and avoiding the incoming attack. Its mistake was that it did not see the running human that had reached it in the time it had weaved its spell and again struck it down with another blow to its body almost touching its heart with his ice tipped weapon. This time the Dragon, spat out its fire along with its blood. A few more inches and its life would have been forfeit; the Dragon was ancient with knowledge of many spells of the world but it was dealing with two very powerful warriors that weren't about to surrender their own lives. It would prove to be a challenge indeed.

He was disappointed in himself, he had rushed out of the way when the Dragon spat its fire on him but managed to go under its front leg and out of its vision to avoid the incoming fire, if he could have mustered a bit more strength the Dragons heart would have been his. The Dragons rage made him alert to other things that might slam into him; he was too busy trying to dodge the force of the Dragons tail or the huge foot trying to stomp on him while it recovered from the pain. The incantation from the sorceress was nearly complete, if he could just distract the Dragon long enough for her to execute it then victory would be theirs. They were both working in unison, reading each other's thoughts as each attack from the Dragon came as fiercely and deadly with each strike. He had managed to scale the Dragon while its tail tried to slam into him but it was also making its way to the sorceress that was nearly finished enchanting her spell. The Dragon knew it was running out of time and with the last of its strength took to the skies to try a tactical retreat and separate the two.

It was already in the sky when the spell of burning rocks came crashing down upon it, one had struck its wing and another had grazed its body but it still managed to climb into the sky avoiding the rest of them. It climbed, higher and higher it climbed into the sky taking him on the back of its tail waiting for his puny lungs to burst and give in to the atmosphere. The Dragon did not have the energy to slam into the ground again but it was sure it could kill him in the sky, away from the sorceress he would be a helpless bird falling back down and an easy prey for it to catch.

He had let go, the Dragon noticed he had let go before critical levels could be reached and the human was descending rapidly towards the ground again. It mattered not, the Dragon would turn and chase it, devouring it before he could hit the ground; the battle would be the Dragons victory as it always was.

He fell fast, but the Dragon was faster with its wings and heavy body. He might have had a long head start towards the ground but the Dragon was a master of the sky, and he would soon become its meal. He fell through the air and through the clouds at a high speed, and he saw the Dragon as it came towards him spewing fire in its mouth with no hesitation to devour him. The Dragon saw him as he turned around and looked back into the sky, as if the air and clouds had become a perfect bed for him and now he was just waiting for the Dragon to come for him. Had he given up? Was he not going to panic and squirm as he was devoured? The thoughts crossed the Dragons mind but soon realized he was anticipating the Dragon to come after him. He must have been but a few feet away when the Dragon was just about to take him in its mighty jaws; the Dragon saw his smile come across his face and knew it had lost this battle.

"MAELSTROM"

She had commanded the winds to use him as a strong recoil into the skies. He drew his weapon at the exact moment when he felt the winds push him up with the force of a cannon and plunged his weapon deep into the beast chest, breaking its rib cage and puncturing its vitals along with its heart.