Chapter 55 – Threat
Valéria extended her hand toward the multi-elemental spear floating peacefully above the edge of the magma pool. However, before her fingers could touch the artifact, a rift of atmospheric pressure snapped in the air.
— Watch out! — Kaelen yelled.
His three-second premonition barely had time to sound the alarm of imminent danger. Driven by instinct, Kaelen grabbed Valéria's arm and Akra's waist, pulling them both to his side. In the meantime, a colossal shadow cut through space at a terrifying speed, barely leaving any room between them and the shadow.
When the dust and thin heat dissipated at the edge of the chamber, the weapon was no longer there. In its place, a man with stern features and an imposing aura floated inches off the ground, wielding the ancestral spear with absolute ease. A suffocating pressure — infinitely denser and more oppressive than anything they had felt before the Dragon-Turtle — collapsed over the cavern, making Akra's legs tremble and the air feel heavy as lead.
The floating man raised his gaze, locking fiery eyes onto the three intruders with a mix of curiosity and disdain.
— What are you doing here? — asked the figure, his voice echoing with a metallic resonance that seemed to distort the very space around them. — This was supposed to be Lady Belantri's nest... Children shouldn't wander into other people's homes like this.
Before Kaelen could formulate a response or organize his thoughts, an invisible wave of chaotic energy exploded from the being in front of him. In that exact instant, Kaelen's vision was violently shattered: his premonition didn't fail, but instead of showing a single probable path, five different and simultaneous futures collided against his mind all at once. He saw himself being incinerated, saw Valéria charging in vain, saw the cavern collapse, and saw the man smiling in every reality.
An excruciating headache, sharp as a blade driven into his temples, made Kaelen stagger backward, bringing a hand to his forehead as cold sweat mixed with the heat of the magma.
— Space and time... He distorted the environment... — thought Kaelen, gritting his teeth to endure the dizziness and mental overload.
Beside him, Valéria tightened her grip on her weapon, her body tense with survival instinct, while Akra, though frightened by the crushing pressure, growled softly with her gauntlets sparking. No one in the room dared to move. They stood before not merely a formidable opponent, but a true ancestral dragon in human form.
— A curious group we have here: a human child with a strange soul, a tigress, and an aberrant dragonoid... — observed the mysterious man, his gaze sweeping over each of them. — Tell me, children, were you the ones who killed Belantri?
The pressure exerted by the figure weighed upon the environment like a lead anvil. Kaelen gritted his teeth, battling the severe dizziness and residual headache caused by the temporal distortion that was still fragmenting his thoughts into multiple simultaneous futures.
Keeping his countenance as firm as possible — and using the mechanical bracelet to regulate the hot air around him —, the young inventor assessed the individual's words. The mention of "Lady Belantri" and the phrase "human child with a strange soul" confirmed the worst: they were not dealing with a simple noble or subterranean monster, but rather an ancestral draconic entity.
Taking a subtle step forward to position himself slightly in front of Valéria and Akra, Kaelen replied in a voice as calm and controlled as he could muster:
— If by "Lady Belantri" you mean the colossal Fire Dragon-Turtle that made its nest in this magma chamber... yes, we were the ones who defeated her. The creature had blocked the natural ventilation systems, caused toxic gas buildup, and threatened to collapse the galleries and the entire mountain over thousands of subterranean inhabitants. We only came to solve a crisis that threatened innocents.
Beside him, Valéria kept her spear firm, attentive to every micro-gesture of the floating man, while Akra swallowed hard, feeling the weight of that frightening presence and keeping her gauntlets active, but without daring to attack rashly.
The man let out a short, dry laugh that vibrated in the air with the metallic echo of a true dragon, amused by the human boy's audacity. He gave a subtle spin to the multi-elemental spear in his hands, making the veins of blue flames, golden sparks, and frost shine intensely before dissipating the glow with a mere thought.
— You are brave — commented the dragon disguised as a man, in a tone blending amusement and reluctant respect. — Not every group of children has the ability to kill a dragon. To pull it off, you truly impressed me. And you know this spear isn't ideal for this tigress, at least not yet... Lastly, I would like to know: what are you going to do with the eggs?
The dragon's eyes drifted slowly from the group, locking for a moment toward the nest carved into the rock, where three gigantic eggs with translucent shells pulsed with a faint crimson glow. An enigmatic smile appeared on his lips as he turned back to face Kaelen:
— Tell me... What do you intend to do with Belantri's eggs? Do you plan to destroy them, sell them to greedy surface nobles, or raise them?
Kaelen felt the gravity of the question. The headache caused by the temporal distortion was slowly subsiding, allowing him to organize his thoughts. He kept his tone firm and measured:
— We have no intention of destroying innocent lives, much less profiting from them by handing them over to unscrupulous nobles who only know how to exploit the underground. We came to solve a crisis, not to commit slaughter. If those eggs belong to this chamber and can hatch new life, our goal is to ensure they are protected from anyone who might want to use them as a weapon. But I would like to know: what is your connection to Lady Belantri to care so much about their fate?
A faint, amused smile crossed the man's lips as he waved one of his free hands, as if dismissing the matter as irrelevant.
— Ah... I almost forgot the formalities. My name is Roun — he introduced himself, in a casual tone that contrasted absurdly with the crushing draconic pressure emanating from his presence.
Roun adjusted his grip on the multi-elemental spear for a moment before continuing, narrowing his fiery eyes toward the trio:
— Don't worry, I don't care that you killed Lady Belantri. After all, she was quite stubborn, and for a long time I kept warning her not to interfere in this area and to abandon this nest... But females are temperamental and sentimental; they never listen. However, since you answered me with good sense and intend to keep the eggs safe... allow me to propose a small test.
The atmosphere in the magma chamber hardened instantly. Kaelen felt the lingering effects of the temporal distortion settle in his mind, but his three-second premonition was already flashing red in alert, indicating that any wrong choice here could be catastrophic.
Valéria planted her feet firmly on the basalt, her thermal protection ring glowing discreetly against the heat, and Akra tensed her muscles, her electrified gauntlets ready to discharge sparks.
— A test? — Kaelen repeated, his voice remaining cold and analytical, assessing the true dragon in front of him. — What kind of test does a true dragon demand of children who have just emerged from an exhausting fight? We will agree or not depending on the terms. What is it about, Roun?
Roun let out a deep, amused laugh that echoed off the basalt walls of the magma cavern.
— Children, calm down. I am not unreasonable, however much you think you just came out of a fight and are tired... — he said, lightly raising his free hand.
In that exact instant, a complex geometric formation of glowing runes traced itself in the air around Roun. Three other smaller formations appeared instantly under the feet of Kaelen, Valéria, and Akra. A wave of pure, warm, and invigorating energy washed over the bodies of the three. The accumulated fatigue from the battle against the Dragon-Turtle evaporated, muscle aches disappeared, and Kaelen's mental exhaustion was completely wiped away, leaving them at the peak of their physical and arcane conditions.
Roun broke into a broad smile, clearly fascinated. For a creature living for thousands of years, seeing that peculiar group of youngsters with such potential was entertainment infinitely more valuable than the company of a thousand ordinary dragons or dragonets.
— The test is simple — Roun continued, adjusting his posture and keeping the ancestral spear supported in just one hand. — You have ten minutes to manage to make me move from this spot, force me to retreat, or make me defend using both arms. I will use only one arm... If you succeed, I will fix up this spear for the tigress and give you a generous bonus afterward. Sound good? — he challenged, with a glint of pure excitement in his fiery eyes.
Kaelen felt his mind clear completely with the instant healing. His three-second premonition returned to crystal-clear operation, but upon peering into the immediate future, the possible scenarios all showed the same thing: an impassable wall of absolute power. Still, the proposal was clear and the reward undeniable.
Beside him, Valéria twirled her current spear, feeling the invigorating energy surge through her muscles, and looked at Kaelen with determination. Akra clapped her gauntlets together, emitting electrical sparks of pure excitement:
— Did master hear that?! Only one arm! Akra is going to give the best shock ever!
Kaelen took a step forward, adjusting the wind bracelet, and stared at the True Fire Dragon with gravity:
— Ten minutes, using only one arm, with the right to weapon upgrades and a bonus? Challenge accepted, Roun. Valéria, Akra, get ready! We won't hold anything back!
The smile on Roun's lips remained amused and relaxed as he supported his body weight on only one leg, casually holding the multi-elemental spear in a single arm.
— You can start whenever you like... — invited the ancestral dragon, lightly raising an eyebrow with a challenging air. — Just a tip: we have a natural magic barrier around us. So try your best to break through it...
At that very instant, Kaelen felt the invisible weight of that aura through his three-second premonition. It was not merely a common arcane shield generated by spellcraft; it was the very dimensional pressure and intrinsic barrier of a True Dragon's flesh and soul, distorting the space around him and rendering any direct approach an almost impossible task.
Kaelen took a deep breath, organizing the tactical plan in his mind, now perfectly lucid thanks to Roun's healing. He looked at his two companions, who were already assuming combat stances on the basalt platform.
— Valéria! Akra! — Kaelen commanded firmly, his voice cutting through the sound of crackling magma. — His natural barrier absorbs direct impacts! We won't attempt pure brute force! Valéria, use your speed and combine fire magic with thrusts at blind spots to test the barrier's density! Akra, use your draconic mobility and electric arcs to try to ionize the air around him and create a micro-fissure in the spatial pressure! I will provide support with telekinesis and use the exact moment to break his balance!
— Understood! — Valéria exclaimed, crouched and ready to pounce, her spear glowing with the enchantment of frost and flames.
— Akra will show what she's capable of! — shouted the dragonoid, making her tempered steel claws spark with pure electricity.
— On my mark... now! — yelled Kaelen.
Valéria shot across the rock like a fireball, covering the distance in the blink of an eye and delivering a blinding thrust against Roun's left flank, while Akra leaped in an aerial arc from the right, discharging a high-voltage electrical beam directly against the dragon's aura. Simultaneously, Kaelen extended his hands, firing a telekinetic pulse combined with cryokinesis to freeze the ground beneath Roun's feet and attempt to dislodge the millenary giant from his static stance.
In the exact millisecond the basalt floor was struck by cryokinesis and ice, Roun merely exhaled a light breath. The heat emanating from his body made the rock glow again, evaporating the ice in a fraction of a second.
Looking directly at Kaelen with an ironic smile, Roun commented:
— Cold needs to be stronger than that to have any effect, you know? Although I like fire, some ice ladies are quite... attentive... so naturally I can handle a bit of cold — joked the millenary dragon, before his eyes shone with genuine curiosity. — I just find it curious... it's been a long time since I've seen this situation, elements acting without mana. I think the last time was about 100,000 years ago, I don't remember clearly... But keep going, it's refreshing.
Then, Roun's fiery gaze drifted to the tigress, who had delivered her rapid thrust against the natural barrier.
— Good dexterity, but you lack strength — Roun evaluated calmly, as the young woman's spear struck the shield, creating a few thin cracks that sealed almost instantly.
Finally, the dragon turned toward Akra's electrical assault. Roun broke into a nostalgic smile:
— It's been so long since I last saw such an energetic aberrant... But for you to stand up to a duchess of that element, you still need to grow and properly control your polymorphy.
Before the dragonoid's blow could hit its target, Roun's left arm — until then entirely human — distorted and transmuted in the blink of an eye, coating itself in crimson scales and titanic claws. With a simple, fluid motion, he intercepted Akra's attack effortlessly and, with a precise flick to the little girl's forehead, sent her flying spinning backward, landing on her butt on the ground without a single scratch, merely dizzy from the disproportionate force.
Only a few seconds of the ten-minute limit had passed, and the group had already felt firsthand the insurmountable scale of facing a True Dragon.
Roun kept his arm partially transformed in crimson scales, casually resting on the multi-elemental spear. He blinked his fiery eyes with a genuinely intrigued air upon seeing the group fall back for a moment after the counter-attack, letting out a soft laugh that reverberated through the magma cavern's air.
— Have you stopped already? Won't you try anymore? — teased the millenary dragon, offering a relaxed smile. — There's still plenty of time, you know? Your imaginary timer has barely started ticking...
Akra shook her head, landing on her knees with her gauntlets still giving off small electrical sparks, and looked at Roun with a mixture of indignation and defiance in her yellow eyes:
— Akra hasn't given up! The monster... I mean, sir is cheating! Akra is going to give a triple shock now!
Valéria rose quickly, wiping sweat from her forehead and readjusting her grip on her spear. The impact against Roun's natural barrier had demanded much of her muscles, but the invigorating energy provided by the dragon's runes kept her body agile. She exchanged a quick glance with Kaelen, seeking to read in her fiancé's eyes what the next step of the strategy would be, since brute force and pure speed had proven useless.
Kaelen felt his brain working at maximum capacity. Through his three-second premonition, he spied dozens of future branches. Direct physical attempts continued to result in absolute failure: Roun was too fast, too strong, and his natural barrier dissipated any energy applied in a conventional way.
— He isn't fighting seriously; he's testing our limits and our creativity — Kaelen analyzed quickly, feeling pure adrenaline rush through his veins. — If he wants to see what we're capable of without traditional mana, we need to use the environment, physics, and the synergetic overload of our gifts together, not in separate attacks.
Kaelen stepped forward, adjusting the mechanical wind bracelet to generate an airflow that dissipated the surrounding smoke, and faced Roun with a challenging, analytical smile.
— We are only warming up, Roun — Kaelen replied, his firm voice cutting through the sound of magma. — You told us to strive to breach your natural barrier, but you didn't specify whether the attack had to come from the outside in.
Without losing a second, Kaelen extended his hands and focused his telekinesis and cryokinesis not on Roun's barrier, but on the sulfurous vapors and suspended water microparticles remaining in the cavern's heated air around the dragon.
— Valéria! Akra! Now! — Kaelen commanded. — Valéria, throw pure fire into my air condensation! Akra, discharge all electricity into the ionized particles! We are going to create an instant thermal and electrical expansion right in the blind spots of his spatial pressure!
Valéria understood the plan in the same moment. With a feline leap, she jumped toward Roun's left flank, spinning her spear and unleashing a torrent of concentrated flames right where Kaelen had condensed the moisture. In parallel, Akra squealed with excitement, leaping from the right side and discharging a massive beam of continuous electrical current straight into the same cloud of vapor and compressed air.
The sudden combination of extreme cold, explosive heat, and high voltage generated without the use of traditional mana provoked an acoustic and thermal micro-rupture — a shockwave of pressure and light cracking right against Roun's natural barrier.
A glint of sincere satisfaction and excitement lit up Roun's fiery eyes. The thermal and electrical shockwave generated by the combined physics of the three had managed to momentarily shatter the first layer of spatial pressure, revealing the exact fissure Kaelen had calculated.
Roun let out a deep, infectious laugh that vibrated through the entire cavern:
— See? You managed to find a breach! — praised the millenary dragon, beaming a wide smile. — But it would be very boring if the game ended now. In any case, congratulations, because you are on the right path.
Without showing the slightest effort — not even needing to adjust the multi-elemental spear still resting on his single human-draconic arm —, Roun snapped the fingers of his free hand. In that instant, a dense, swirling wall of pure flames rose around him, blocking direct vision and consuming the pressure of the shockwave.
As the flames crackled, Roun took advantage of the moment to give a real practical lesson to the youngsters, keeping an educational and playful tone:
— Don't forget a fundamental rule of combat: the greater the mana capacity in a shield, the harder it is, but it also becomes easier to see where it fragments and loses stability. The real problem is that a powerful mage will always have at their disposal a wall or barrier of some element, and usually they are quite... annoying... as they always invent a new spell just to keep bothering their opponent in the middle of a fight.
Through the veil of fire, Roun's imposing silhouette remained motionless in the same position, waiting to see what would be the next strike from that group which had managed to entertain him as he hadn't experienced in millennia.
Kaelen closed his eyes, absorbing every word of the precious tip given by the dragon. His mind, free of exhaustion thanks to the healing, processed the information quickly: if the flame shield had visible fragmentation points due to high energy density, it meant they could use an opposing attack frequency to tear the barrier from the inside out, instead of hitting it head-on.
— Valéria! Akra! He gave us the key! — Kaelen communicated quickly, mapping out the new tactical plan in his premonition. — His wall of fire is dense, but it has structural flaws where energy concentrates too heavily. Valéria, use your ice and the edge of your blade to land a surgical cut right on the lower seam of the flame! Akra, send a cutting electric pulse to destabilize the flow! I will open a telekinetic channel through the center!
A genuine and deep shock crossed Roun's face. The millenary dragon's fiery eyes widened slightly in pure astonishment upon seeing the surgical and coordinated attack shatter the structure of his flame shield.
Before the combined blow could touch his skin, space around Roun distorted with a sharp snap. In the blink of an eye, the dragon moved at a speed defying physics: in an instant, he reached out his arms and grabbed Valéria by her armor collar with one hand and Akra by her hood with the other, immobilizing both perfectly in mid-air, while the multi-elemental spear floated majestically at his side, held in suspension by pure arcane will.
Roun released a long sigh of surprise mixed with contagious joy, dispelling the wall of flames with a mere wave.
— Incredible... Truly, congratulations to you. You managed to force me to use my other hand and move from my spot — Roun admitted, beaming a wide, satisfied smile. — The test is over! And you passed with flying colors. Now, we can discuss what you will want as a reward.
With a quick gesture, Roun pointed to the floating multi-elemental spear. The weapon flew instantly to the palm of his hand. The dragon closed his fist and channeled his energy: ancient, complex runes sprouted around the artifact, spinning at high speed until fusing into the blade. Then, a single luminous rune detached and shot against Valéria's palm, marking her skin before disappearing.
— With this, not only can you store the spear in a pocket dimensional space and summon it to your hand whenever you wish, but the artifact will recognize only your control — Roun explained, handing the revamped weapon to the tigress. — Just don't forget to train hard, because for now you can't use even one-hundredth of its true power.
Next, Roun turned his amused gaze to Kaelen.
— And you, strange child... is there anything you desire? Although I reckon items focused on pure mana won't help you much... — the dragon murmured, thrusting his right arm directly into an invisible rift in the air, as though snapping his fingers inside another dimension. When he pulled his arm back, he held a metallic bracelet adorned with dense arcane runes and tossed it toward Kaelen.
Kaelen caught it in mid-air, feeling the weight and cold texture of the metal.
— It's quite similar to that wind bracelet you're already wearing — Roun said, winking an eye. — Except this one emits and stabilizes the elements of earth, wind, space, and time. An ancient friend of mine gave me this as a gift after she ate an annoying lich that was causing headaches in her territory. It will be useful to stabilize your perceptual distortions.
Before Kaelen could offer thanks, Roun's gaze fixed on the little dragonoid. Akra felt her entire body freeze in an ancestral chill; in a second, the air around her grew heavy to the point of making her tremble, and her small body was pulled by the vacuum until floating right before Roun's face. The dragon's eyes turned into golden reptilian slits, emanating the absolute authority of his race.
Without Akra being able to dodge, Roun lightly pricked his own finger with a claw, extracting a brilliant drop of primordial true dragon blood, making her swallow the drop before gently letting her drop back to the ground.
— You have fascinating draconic potential, but you are too dispersed — Roun commented, stowing his claw as Akra wobbled dizzily. — You will likely take a few years to fully digest and assimilate this blood, but it will accelerate your evolution and your polymorph control.
Finally, Roun stretched out his scaled arm, plucked a single bright crimson scale from his own skin with a flawless motion, and tossed it to Kaelen.
— Now, the final favor in exchange for the bonus — Roun said in a more serious tone, pointing his head toward the nest with Belantri's three eggs. — I need you to take these three eggs to the capital city of the heteromorphs. When you arrive there, simply show this scale of mine at the entrance; no one dares disobey or bother anyone carrying a piece of me. And so... is there anything else you want to ask?
Roun leaned back casually against a volcanic rock ledge, crossing his scaled arms and looking at the trio with a genuinely intrigued and slightly amused air. Seeing that the youths remained silent after so many extraordinary revelations and rewards, he raised an eyebrow, waiting for something more.
— Nothing else? No questions about the world, about the ancients... or perhaps whether there's anyone else out there with abilities similar to yours, kid? — Roun teased, letting out a short laugh and leaving the question hanging in the air, as if genuinely surprised Kaelen hadn't touched on the topic. — Well then... if your curiosity has been satisfied, I have better things to do than stand around chatting with children in the middle of magma.
Saying this, Roun rose with impressive lightness. With a simple swipe of his claws, he tore the space before him, opening a colossal rift that functioned as a glowing portal to the peak of the volcanic mountains where he resided, right near the capital city of the heteromorphs.
— Take care of the eggs, bring glory to your names, and enjoy the gifts. Until next time... Oh, and the next time you meet me, we can talk about another one like you who lived on this planet, but many millennia ago — Roun bid farewell with an enigmatic smile, stepping through the dimensional portal before the group could process the weight of that revelation, causing the rift to snap shut immediately afterward with a muffled pop.
The cavern plunged into absolute silence.
Valéria looked down at her hand, where the glowing rune had integrated seamlessly, and in the blink of an eye, the multi-elemental spear turned into a beam of light that retreated into a pocket dimension. The tigress turned to Kaelen, her blue eyes wide with astonishment, not only at the power of the artifact, but thinking deeply about the dragon's words.
Beside them, Akra shook her head, feeling a tingling heat spread through her stomach and scales — the first sign that the drop of primordial true dragon blood was beginning to settle into her core.
— Master... — Akra began, her voice a bit dizzy as she steadied herself on her feet. — He... he opened a portal straight there so easily! And... what he said at the end... about someone like master existing millennia ago... what do you think he meant by that?
Kaelen stowed the new elemental bracelet — immediately feeling the subtle stabilization the artifact provided against perceptual distortions — and tightly gripped Roun's crimson scale between his fingers. The mention of another being with abilities similar to his who had existed eras ago sparked a deep alarm in his mind, blending curiosity and caution. He looked at his two companions, assessing the weight of that mission and the absurd twist the expedition had just taken.
