Path of Dragons-Chapter 56Book 9: : Obstacles

The attack came out of nowhere.

One second, Elijah was leading the pack along the path, and the next, a monster of ash and coals loomed over him. The thing was at least twenty feet tall, with six limbs and a face wreathed in smoke, but Elijah didn’t hesitate to respond. He leapt forward, scythe flashing. It sliced through burning coals until it struck something harder, jarring his arms with the impact.

The monster burst into a corona of white-hot flames.

The dogs ignored it, lancing in and yelping as they bit at the creature’s legs. Each attack came with a spurt of fire as ash and coals erupted like miniature volcanoes. Elijah could feel the dogs’ pain, but he didn’t dare cast any spells. Not so long as they remained upon one of the bridges.

So, instead of healing, he threw himself forward and attacked with immense fury. His scythe lashed out multiple times a second, and with every movement, his ethera threatened to escape his grip. He kept it in hand, though, and gradually, he whittled the monster down. None of the dogs hesitated to join the fight, and even Oscar leaped upon its back and hacked into it with his hatchets.

After only a minute or two, the thing fell to pieces, its ashes scattering on the chamber’s hot wind. It left a brittle skeleton of obsidian bones behind. Elijah grabbed a few of them and stored them into the Arcane Loop.

Despite feeding many of his meals to the dogs over the past six weeks, he still hadn’t cleared much room. But there was just enough for a little loot.

He stood there, breathing hard as he keenly felt the pain of his wounds.

“No healing. No spells,” he whispered, almost as if the volume of his voice would ruin the stillness in his ethereal channels. “Not until we reach safety.”

Oscar nodded, and the dogs let out a collective whimper that broke Elijah’s heart. Still, the only comfort he could offer was to keep going. So, he hunched his shoulders, gripped his scythe, and returned to the path before him.

The crystal was hot underfoot, and he suspected that if a vanilla human had set foot in the chamber, they would have been roasted alive. But for Elijah, the environment was only mildly uncomfortable. For that, he owed thanks to his high attributes and the protection of Aegis of the Elements. In addition, his Mantle of the Chimera had boosted his Regeneration by a significant degree.

Neither the dogs nor Oscar had such advantages.

In fact, other than his weapons, Oscar wasn’t wearing any real equipment at all. Which didn’t make a lot of sense. He’d obviously run plenty of towers. That was the only way he could have become so powerful. And he’d gotten rewards from the Trial of Primacy as well. So, there was probably a story there, though Elijah couldn’t figure out what that might be.

As they went along, Elijah considered adopting the Shape of the Master. The cindrandir form gave him significant resistance to fire, and what’s more, it would have also afforded him significantly increased attributes. However, the time for him to employ that shape was long past. If he cast it now, he would be roasted alive, his resistances be damned.

Besides, it was better to keep his heals available. Even if they wouldn’t save anyone – he knew that – their availability was still a comfort. A hollow one, certainly, but a comfort nonetheless.

After the first few turns, they were attacked by another monster of coal and ash, but this time, Elijah was ready for it. What’s more, he saw that it had come from inside the crystal bridge itself, which was more than a little worrisome.

Still, he had no issues dispatching the creature even before the dogs managed to join the fight.

The same couldn’t be said for the next attack, which came from above. A bat with wings of fire swooped in, attempting to snatch Escobar – who was the smallest of the dogs – in its claws. The chihuahua bounded out of the way just in time to avoid that fate, and Oscar pounced on the airborne monster.

His hatchet sliced through the air with an audible hiss before embedding in the creature’s slight body. The attack didn’t kill the thing, but it did wound it enough that it gave the rest of the pack a chance to finish it off.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the last fire bat they were forced to deal with. Indeed, the things grew more numerous as the group slowly ascended the collection of bridges and ramps. At first, they seemed like little more than pests – easily dealt with but annoying. However, when the numbers increased, they became a much more potent threat.

Fortunately, the pack knew how to work together. And Elijah slid into the group like he’d been born for it. It was like he’d finally found his place in the world.

He knew it was an illusion, though. A mirage created by the circumstances and his attunement. But that didn’t make it any less powerful.

The other set of enemies they encountered were a species of red toad whose eyes glowed like embers. They were also the size of horses, which was a terrifying thing indeed. Fortunately, killing them wasn’t difficult because they weren’t particularly fast. Still, the things’ sticky tongues came with a tout of fire, so battling the toads wasn’t without danger of its own.

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The group managed it, though, and eventually, they reached the end of the line. Elijah had half expected to find their way barred by a more powerful version of one of the monsters they’d fought along the way, but to his surprise, the way was entirely clear. Only a door stood in their way.

Elijah kicked it down, then tumbled through the opening, his scythe at the ready.

But there was nothing. Just a small chamber made of the same black, pumice-like rock as the previous tunnel far below. More importantly, he could let his ethera return to normal. Even as the dogs and Oscar came through the door behind him, he relaxed. It was like finally taking a breath after denying himself for hours, and as his ethera circled through his body, he let out a long sigh of relief.

That exhalation was echoed by Oscar and the dogs, most of which sank to their stomachs in exhaustion. That was when Elijah remembered their injuries, and after only a moment, he let loose with his heals.

The dogs – and Oscar – were far more injured than he’d thought, but that was because his perception had been entirely crippled by stilling his ethera. But now that he could sense them fully, his heart ached with the severity of their burns. So, he spent the next few hours soothing their wounds until, at last, they were back to normal.

He got a few enthusiastic licks to the face from a very excited Escobar for his trouble.

But once that was done and everyone had taken the time to rest, recover, and eat, Elijah stood up and joined Oscar at the other end of the short chamber. The other man had been there for quite a while.

“What do you think?” Elijah asked.

“There’s something on the other side of this door.”

“You sure?”

“I feel it.”

“Any ideas what it is?” Elijah asked. He was willing to trust Oscar’s judgement on the matter. For all his tendency toward introversion, the pack leader’s intuition was sharp. Routinely, he’d proven that he possessed superhuman instincts. Perhaps it was a trait or a skill. Elijah wasn’t certain. But what he had discovered was that Oscar was worth trusting.

In this case, though, Oscar just shook his head. “It’s different than a monster. Bigger. But it’s a singular threat. I don’t know how else to describe it.”

Elijah frowned.

“You think it’s the end of the challenge?” he asked.

Oscar gave a subtle shrug of his shoulders. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

Elijah squatted, then scratched his beard. Thankfully, the lava and the fires hadn’t denuded him, which was a nice change of pace. The last few times he’d been burned alive – either by acid or fire – he’d ended up as bald as the day he was born.

“I think this whole thing has been preparation,” he said after giving it some thought. “If it is the boss on the other side of this door, I’m pretty sure we’re going to have to use some of the skills we’ve learned so far.”

“That makes sense,” Oscar agreed, bending down to scratch Freddy behind the ears. He hadn’t been so lucky as Elijah, and large patches of the dog’s coat were missing. “We need to be prepared to do what’s necessary.”

“I agree.”

The dogs all barked, making their agreement known as well.

So, Elijah stood, stretched for a few minutes, then asked, “Are we ready to see what’s what?” ƒreewebɳovel.com

Oscar nodded, and the dogs took on a more serious demeanor. It was a subtle shift, but it was enough to convey their readiness well enough.

Elijah rolled his shoulders, then pushed the door – which was little more than a slab of stone – open. When he stepped through, he was surprised to see that they’d reached the top of the floating mountain. Twin suns looked down on them, bathing the area in bright light.

The space itself was filled with jagged black pillars of pumice, though Elijah could feel something powerful only a hundred yards away. Whatever it was, it radiated enough ethera that he knew it was on the verge of demigod status. Perhaps as strong as the leviathan, but somehow more restrained. Like the difference between a person and a guardian.

That put Elijah’s guard up.

“Keep your heads on a swivel. Something dangerous is up there.”

With that, he stalked forward, already shifting forms. When he did, the enemy moved, and so quickly that Elijah never even had a chance to react before he felt something pierce his side.

Even as burning fire erupted inside of him, he threw himself away. Meanwhile, the dogs leaped into action, rushing the attacker. Elijah rolled aside as a series of yelps filled the air.

When he rose, all he saw were wounded animals. Their wounds weren’t any more serious than Elijah’s, but they were clearly in pain.

Elijah resisted the urge to heal them. They weren’t in danger of dying, and he’d already made the connection between his actions and drawing the attention of the enemy, which once again loomed in the center of the space. The situation was just like the bridges, though possibly deadlier. Whatever the enemy was, it could feel when they activated abilities.

And it had the speed to react.

Thankfully, Elijah was ready for that kind of a fight, because he had shifted into the Shape of the Master. That helped ease some of the pain of the fire burning through him, though he’d already stilled his ethera, banishing the foreign ethera that came with it. Clearly, the dogs and Oscar were well on their way to doing the same.

In his cindrandir form, Elijah said, “Wait to strike. I’ll get its attention. When it’s distracted, hit it with everything you have.”

Oscar nodded, and he and the dogs fanned out, clearly ready to surround the enemy. Meanwhile, Elijah flitted forward, his oversized scythe at the ready. He ducked around the pillars of porous stone, and after a few moments, caught sight of his foe.

And it was not what he’d expected.

Slim and wearing what could only be called courtier’s attire, the creature had elven features. However, he was also more than eight feet tall, and his flesh was made of glowing orange crystal. His eyes were hidden behind a simple white cloth.

Elijah glanced to the monster’s hip, where a thin rapier was sheathed. Even from thirty yards away, he could feel the power in that weapon, and he knew instinctively that it was responsible for the wound he’d just received.

The message was clear, though. This was a creature that used speed and technique, which meant that Elijah was at a distinct disadvantage. However, he hoped he could counter that through sheer attributes and the traits associated with the Shape of the Master.

So, it was with that in mind that he stepped forward. When he came within shouting distance of the creature, it said, “So. You have come to challenge me in my own lair. Do you believe yourself the match of the Flamewrought Duelist? Do you truly think yourself so skilled, little cindrandir? You may bring as many allies as you wish, but you will always be found wanting.”

With that, the duelist drew his rapier with a flourish and said, “Come at me, then. Prove yourself worthy or die trying. I await your attack, clever beast.”

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