Page 39 of Drakhana's Secret
A part of me wants to scream a warning at him. To tell him that more and on the way. But the last thing you need is to become distracted in the middle of a battle. That’s when mistakes are made.
Which is why I have to take it upon myself to help in stemming the tide. I land in the one spot where the fighting hasn’t reached yet. I plant my claws deep in the ground and call upon the powers of Mother Earth.
The whispers grow harsh in my head as I take in as much of the power as I can. I begin to grow into the large creature than I became when I defended the villages from the fire dragons that came to attack. I become a sight to behold.
Large horns curl out of my head and become like a crown. My wings expand and spikes grow out of the tip of my tail. Dark brown streaks rise from my usual smooth brown scales. I am a force of nature.
Beneath my claws, I call on the earth. I am lifted back into the sky, but I am not flying. Instead I’m building a pillar out of the ground. This will be my staging area. The one place where I can defend my people from all sides.
I will show my enemies what it truly means to go up against an earth dragon. The fire and ice clans have no idea what powers I still have not tapped. They will regret the moment they decided to attack my clan.
Twenty-Six
Gallant
In the heat of battle, your senses focus on only two things: Killing your enemy and staying alive while doing so. We’ve been fighting in small groups within the city before. On this day, the battle is much larger.
There are so many other things to take into consideration. Chief among them is avoiding the other side—who has a much larger force than your own—to overwhelm you. It’s like an avalanche. Once it starts, there’s no stopping it regardless of how much power you have.
And boy what amazing powers have been awakened in us. I have to be honest. In the beginning I had my doubts.
I know the earth dragons had powers beyond measure, but I never thought all that power can be unleashed all at once. I was skeptical at first. Especially since we’re entering into a fight where there is more of them and less of us.
Then each of our warriors started displaying abilities that was beyond my expectations. Only then did I start believing that we can actually do this. The fact that I can call upon shards of rock and fling them like projectiles at ice dragons is so cool.
I don’t even need to go into hand to hand combat. I can summon the earth beneath me and use it for anything. It can be a shield and a weapon all at the same time.
I use it to avoid the ice barrage that one dragon sends my way. Then, with a slapping motion of my hand, that same wall of earth becomes a wave that swallows my enemy whole. I even discovered that I can make spheres of mud, engulf a dragon with them, and when I close my fist it shrinks and crushes the dragon inside.
My elation seems to fuel my powers even more. I’ve created quicksand after quicksand, sinking ice dragons into them. My favorite will have to be when an ice dragon is currently spitting an ice wave. I create a sinkhole, the dragon falls in, and the idiot seals himself inside with his ice wave.
Once in a while, I miss a spear of ice and it cuts through my flesh. My arm has a few superficial wounds because of that carelessness. But I don’t mind. The sting reminds me that I’m still alive and I can take down more of these bastards.
I stomp my foot and the ground ripples. It knocks down several ice dragons at once. Then when they land on the ground, they are swallowed up, never to be seen or heard from ever again.
Yet, no matter how many of them we seem to take down, still more and more keep coming. I have a feeling the same is happening with Arthur over on the fire dragon side of the battle. It’s actually frustrating.
They are like roaches. You kill one and five more take his place. Which will last longer? Our powers or their onslaught?
Certainly, we can’t keep this up. We have our limits despite our powers. Our bodies can’t sustain this kind of struggle for long. We have to rest some time.
My arms are actually beginning to ache by the time I spot a new contingency of dragons on the ice side making a landing. These must be the reinforcements that Sapphire was talking about earlier. There’s no telling how many more are on the way. Damn it!
A rumble starts on the ground beneath my feet. At first, I think it’s one of my brethren harnessing a new power from Mother Earth. Then I hear a mighty roar and turn around.
My eyes grow wide. Sapphire is in the middle of transforming into a dragon goddess of epic proportions. Her crown of horns is magnificent.
She creates a pillar of earth for where she stands. It rises her into the air. Where she is perched gives her dominion over the battle.
“Glory to Sapphire!” the cry goes out, ragged and full of hope.
My brethren and I cheer as the ice dragons begin running in the opposite direction. This is it. Sapphire is going to end this battle once and for all and we are all saved.
Then two mighty roars rattle the air. I look to the ice side and spot the hulking form of Logan. Then I look to the fire side and see Rastus.
Holy fucking hell. The two behemoths are joining the fight. I’m rooted to the spot, unable to think properly as my knees shake. We’re clearly in trouble.
I didn’t think the two would show up. Both their mates are expecting hatchlings soon. Why would they take a chance and leave them to join this battle? Have we posed that large of a threat to them that they have to bring out the big guns?
