Chapter 22 The Dragon King
The Fire Mountain slept. For three days the travelers remained within the dragon's domain. For the first time since Nebelheim, no enemies pursued them. No shadow wolves. No corpse puppets. No mysterious figures watching from distant hills. Only fire. Stone. And peace. Toivo should have known it would not last. Nothing ever remained peaceful around Moon.
The warning came shortly after sunset. The dragon lifted his enormous head from atop his treasure hoard. Golden eyes narrowed. The mountain trembled. A low growl echoed through the cavern.
Every fairy surrounding Moon instantly became alert. Thousands of tiny lights froze in midair. Anri, who had been sleeping curled within Moon's silver robes, suddenly opened his blue eyes.
Moon stood. His expression darkened. Kev immediately transformed into his human form. Pale skin. Short red hair. Crimson eyes. For once, he was not smiling.
Gret rose from beside the campfire and reached for his greataxe. Toivo grabbed Frostfang.
The dragon slowly unfolded his wings.
"What is it?" Gret asked.
The dragon's voice rumbled like distant thunder.
"Guests."
The mountain shook again. This time harder. Far above them, something exploded. Stone rained from the ceiling.
The dragon's eyes became slits. Then he growled.
"Oh."
Moon sighed quietly.
Toivo did not like that sigh.
Not one bit.
The dragon's voice dropped into something dangerous.
"They came anyway."
Far above them someone laughed.
The sound echoed through the volcano. Cheerful. Playful. Wrong.
Toivo immediately recognized it.
Matias. The Laughing Reaper. The laughter bounced through the tunnels. Closer. Closer. Closer.
Then another presence appeared. Silent. Heavy. Watching.
Moon's expression became unreadable.
The dragon noticed.
"So it's him."
Moon nodded once.
The temperature inside the mountain dropped. Not from cold. From tension.
Then
BOOM.
An entire section of the cavern wall exploded inward. Fire erupted. Stone shattered. Lava splashed across the cavern floor. A colossal figure emerged from the smoke. The Blood Wraith. The shadow warrior. The man who looked disturbingly similar to Toivo. Long black cloak. Azuran sword. Face partially hidden behind a dark mask. Silver eyes.
The same eyes Toivo saw whenever he looked into still water. The resemblance remained impossible. The Blood Wraith stepped into the cavern. Behind him danced Matias. The Jester spun across falling debris as though walking through a theater stage. His enormous scythe rested across his shoulders. His white mask grinned eternally.
"Found you."
The bells hanging from his costume jingled softly.
Moon looked entirely unimpressed.
"You damaged the mountain."
The dragon immediately became furious. The volcano shook. Lava surged. Gold shifted. The cavern trembled beneath a roar powerful enough to shake the heavens.
The dragon stood. His true size unfolded.
Toivo stared.
Even after seeing him before the sight remained unbelievable. The dragon expanded. Growing larger. Larger. Larger. Until his head nearly touched the cavern ceiling. Golden scales gleamed like molten suns.
Massive wings spread across the treasure chamber. His horns resembled ancient towers. His eyes burned brighter than lava. The entire mountain seemed to awaken around him.
The dragon's voice became a living earthquake.
"YOU DARE ENTER MY DOMAIN?"
The shockwave alone threw debris across the cavern.
Matias actually stopped smiling. For several seconds. That alone was impressive.
The Blood Wraith slowly looked upward. Even he seemed cautious.
The dragon's nostrils released streams of black smoke.
Moon sighed softly.
"Please don't destroy the mountain."
The dragon looked offended.
"They started it."
Matias laughed.
"Oh, I like him."
The dragon immediately inhaled. Everyone recognized what was about to happen.
Moon covered Anri's eyes.
Toivo dove behind a pile of treasure.
Kev vanished into shadows.
Gret grabbed a boulder.
The Blood Wraith raised his sword. Too late. The dragon unleashed hell. Black fire erupted from his jaws. Not ordinary fire. Ancient dragonfire.
The flames consumed the entire cavern. Gold melted. Stone vaporized. Air exploded.
Matias disappeared beneath the inferno. The Blood Wraith vanished into darkness. The blast continued for nearly ten seconds. When it finally ended half the cavern was gone.
Toivo slowly stood.
"..."
Gret stared.
"..."
Kev whistled.
Moon remained completely unsurprised. The dragon looked satisfied. Smoke drifted through the chamber.
Then laughter echoed again. Matias emerged from the shadows. His costume was burned. His mask cracked. Yet he still laughed.
"Oh, that's new."
The dragon narrowed his eyes. The Blood Wraith emerged beside him. Completely unharmed. Moon's expression changed. Just slightly.
The dragon noticed.
"So they survived."
Moon nodded.
The dragon looked annoyed. Then interested.
The Blood Wraith stared directly at Moon. Not at anyone else. Only Moon.
The look in his eyes carried something strange. Something painful. Something familiar. Moon looked away first.
Toivo noticed. The Blood Wraith noticed too. Neither looked happy.
Matias casually twirled his scythe.
"We don't actually want a fight."
Nobody believed him.
"Mostly."
Still nobody believed him.
The dragon's tail smashed through an entire mountain column.
"I do."
Matias sighed dramatically.
"You dragons are always so emotional."
The dragon unleashed another blast of fire.
Matias fled. The chase immediately resumed.
For the next several minutes absolute chaos followed. Dragonfire. Shadow magic. Flying treasure. Exploding lava. Collapsing tunnels. Laughing maniacs.
Even Moon looked tired. Finally the Blood Wraith stepped backward. Matias landed beside him. The Jester looked upward. The volcano itself seemed moments away from erupting.
"Perhaps another day."
The dragon growled.
"Run."
Matias grinned.
"We were already leaving."
The Blood Wraith said nothing. His silver eyes remained fixed upon Moon. For several moments neither moved. Neither spoke. Something ancient passed between them. Something none of the others understood. Then shadows swallowed both intruders.
The cavern became silent. Gone. The Jester. The Blood Wraith. Vanished. Only drifting darkness remained.
The dragon stood motionless.
Then finally snorted.
"Cowards."
Moon sat down.
Anri climbed back onto his shoulder.
The fairies resumed circling him.
Toivo stared toward the darkness where the Blood Wraith had disappeared.
Moon remained silent.
Far too silent.
The dragon noticed.
His ancient eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
But he said nothing.
Not yet.
Outside the mountain, storms gathered above the northern horizon.
And somewhere beyond those distant lands
the White King had begun to awaken.
The hunt was no longer approaching.
It had arrived.
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