Chapter 1

Those unfulfilled with life consume what makes them happy, only to be met with short lived happiness. Sometimes it is much more fulfilling to contribute to others’ lives, bringing much more fulfillment to not only their life, but also your own.

~oOo~

Trevor stood on the roof of the Voutneth Academy looking out over Drake Town. April had finally come and in true Michigan fashion, the snow was finally starting to melt. While Trevor was a dragon that didn’t mind the cold, he really did enjoy spring. The birds returned, the beautiful insects like butterflies were coming back, and the griffins had laid their eggs and were tending to them until they hatched. 

Trevor never expected griffins to lay brightly colored eggs, it was quite a sight when he returned to the stables one morning and there were colorful eggs in each griffiness’ stall. Malice had explained that the eggs told what color griffin would hatch from the egg. Snowflake had only white eggs, Roselia had a mix of pink and green, Midnight had some very dark indigo eggs, the yellow griffiness they had on loan had all yellow eggs, a few with gold speckling on them, and Stephanie had two blue eggs and a single purple egg with gold speckling. This season was fruitful, they had a few royal griffins due to arrive in June. And that wasn’t all that they were expecting...

“Trevor?” a sweet voice spoke. Trevor turned to smile at Vatuna. His girlfriend. His mate. His eyes betrayed him as they landed on Vatuna’s swollen middle. Just a few months ago, the night after their battle with Wrath, Trevor and Vatuna had a night of passion and it gave them quite the gift. They were starting a family. “What are you doing up here?” Vatuna asked.

“Just thinking about stuff,” Trevor said, approaching Vatuna to pull her into a hug.

“Oh? Like what?” Vatuna asked with a giggle.

“I guess with spring finally coming has me thinking about all the new arrivals coming soon,” Trevor admitted, looking down at Vatuna’s small bump. It was crazy to see, only two months in and she was already sporting a bump.

Trevor had asked a lot of questions when Vatuna started to show a couple weeks back. He learned that due to the magic in their bodies, dragons could have varying gestation times. It was all guessing games as to when Vatuna would have their baby, Trevor couldn’t wait.

“The birds, the griffins, the insects, us?” Vatuna smiled.

“Yeah. All of it. I honestly never thought that I would be at this point in my life though. Brenda, Aya, David, and I have almost been here for a year and...well...” Trevor blushed a bit.

“You’re finally getting settled into a dragon’s life, Trevor. It’s good to see you embracing it,” Vatuna said, resting a hand over Trevor’s heart. Trevor brought his hand up to hold Vatuna’s over his heart.

Trevor couldn’t wait to be able to see his mother again. Being away from Evanna has been hard on all of them and he wanted to tell her about his exciting adventures, the battles he’s faced, and how amazing Vatuna was. And the fact she was going to be a grandma soon. Trevor hoped she would be excited for him. She was very supportive of them since it had only been her and his siblings since his father left. He wasn’t sure about this instance though.

“I just hope everything works out,” Trevor mused. Vatuna hummed and nodded.

“I can understand the concern, but you’ve really adjusted well. From everything you’ve told me, being raised as a human, you’ve accepted dragon life very well. The way you move, train, and fight is like a dragon. You’ve come so far.”

“Yeah... I have, haven’t I?” Trevor smiled and leaned down to kiss her sweetly. They smile at each other once the kiss breaks.

“You know there are other perks to being a dragon,” Vatuna brought up.

“Yeah? Such as?”

“You don’t need a machine to hear your fledgling’s heart.”

Trevor’s eyes went wide. “Really?”

Vatuna nodded. “Mhmm. Close your eyes, let your dragon senses take over. Breathe slowly and quietly. If you listen closely, you’ll hear your heartbeat, mine, and a fluttering thrumming.”

Trevor closed his eyes, slowed his breathing, and bowed his head, listening. He could hear his heart first. Then another rhythmic beat close to him. Vatuna’s heart no doubt. And she was right, he heard what was almost described as a fluttering beat.

Their child’s heart.

Trevor’s eyes flashed open and he looked up at Vatuna, jaw dropped and amazed. “Wow... and to think it was that simple. I remember when my mom was pregnant with David. The way the sound of his heart came through the doppler, it was so weird. It didn’t even sound real.” Trevor said.

“Human machines can only replicate so much and it either exaggerates the sound or distorts it so much that it doesn’t even seem real,” Vatuna explained. “It’s best to use your own senses to experience something so beautiful.” Trevor smiled and rested a hand on Vatuna’s belly, rubbing it with his thumb.

“Guess even after ten months of learning how to be a dragon I still learn more every day,” Trevor chuckled. “I’m just glad I can stay in the air when flying now.” Vatuna hummed.

“You struggled a lot, didn’t you?” She asked.

“I was a football player before I knew I was a dragon. So my body type was hard on my wings. Speaking of flying, what are we gonna do to teach our kid how to fly?”

“Dragons usually learn on their own how to fly. But it won’t be hard, they’ll figure it out with some time.” Trevor smiled.

“Well, that’s good. I struggled to fly, I don’t want our baby to struggle,” Trevor said.

“I can understand that. Have you thought of any names yet?” Trevor was caught off guard. He never actually thought about names.

“I... haven’t really thought about any but... I like the name Felix,” Trevor admitted. Vatuna smiled.

"That's a cute name. What if we have a girl, though?" She asked. Trevor hummed.

"Not sure, maybe Lilith," he guessed with a shrug.

“There will be time to think of names before they arrive. Just judging by my size alone, there’s plenty of time,” Vatuna said with a giggle.

Their little bubble was interrupted by the sound of three pairs of wings beating the air as a cyan dragon, a white dragon, and an ocean blue dragon ascended in the air and hovered a few yards from the roof. Trevor’s siblings, Brenda, Aya, and David. Trevor grinned and watched them.

“Hey, Trevor! We’re gonna go fly around above the forest! Come with us!” David called.

“Yeah we haven’t had much time together in a while, come on!” Brenda encouraged.

Trevor looked to Vatuna, almost pleading. Vatuna just laughed. “I can’t say no to you, go fly with your family,” she told him. “Just stay out of trouble!” Trevor beamed and kissed her.

“Love you, Vati!” Trevor graced and hurried to the edge of the roof. “One of you better catch me if I can’t do this!” he called, jumping from the roof.

Trevor’s body glowed ocean blue before being enveloped by light. His body grew and shifted before the light disappeared and revealed the clear scales of his Water-Ice Dragon form. Trevor spread his wings and gave them a few powerful flaps, catching himself on the wind as he led his siblings to the outskirts of the academy and Drake. Brenda, Aya, and David followed behind him.

“Ha ha! Man, I’ve missed this!” Trevor laughed, smiling over at Brenda. Aya and David flew ahead of them, doing various acrobatic displays and having fun with it. Trevor watched them with a smile. “Can you believe it’s almost been a year?” He asked Brenda.

“It really is hard to believe. And we’ve seen so much. We’ve gone to the Underworld and fought Hell Dragons and extinct dragons. We took down the Dragon Hunters. We’ve fought an army of demons and undead, and took down Agony, Lust, and Wrath. We’re just yearlings and we’ve seen so much,” Brenda said.

“Not only that, I’m gonna be a dad. It’s crazy that only a few months after meeting someone, we’re having a baby together,” Trevor looked down at the forest below them. He tilted his head and smiled as he thought about it. He looked back up at Brenda. “So what about you and Ractor? I saw you two getting a little friendlier recently,” Trevor hinted.

“Trevor!” Brenda exclaimed. If she could blush right now, she would be, Trevor knew it too. “I don’t know, he just... he’s so polite. Almost too polite. Like he’s afraid to do anything. Do you think it’s a dragon thing?” Brenda asked.

“Maybe, who knows? I could ask Vatuna,” Trevor offered.

“Thank you, Trevor. I really appreciate it.”

“No problem, Brenda.” Trevor and Brenda exchanged smiles.

They flew in comfortable silence watching Aya and David fly about. Though Trevor’s content smile seemed to drop a bit and he looked down at the forest below them. Brenda looked over at Trevor and noticed his frown.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. Trevor looked up at her.

“What? Oh... it’s nothing to worry about. Not really,” Trevor denied.

“Trevor... come on. It’s me. We would always talk about our worries.” Trevor exhaled.

“Okay, okay. I guess I’m just... Worried.” Brenda watched him gather his thoughts.

“Worried about what exactly?” she pressed.

“I guess... just all of this really,” Trevor started. He watched Aya and David fly around together for a moment before he continued. “Is it even smart to imprison the Council in the same place? And what happens if we defeat all of them? The seals on them didn’t hold, we don’t know what seal is on Rakasa and if it’ll weaken without their help,” Trevor said.

“Wow... that’s a lot to worry about,” Brenda realized. Trevor exhaled heavily.

“I know. I’m gonna be a dad soon and I’m just worried about bringing a kid into a world we already lost. If Rakasa wins... it’s over. For all of us.”

“Trevor, Kathey and the Compass Dragons won’t let that happen! They won’t give up the fight against the Council and Rakasa!” Brenda encouraged. “They didn’t stop fighting against Deathbore, and look where that went!”

“He only switched to their side because he had to team up with the Gods against a greater evil,” Trevor huffed. He looked over at Aya and David, noticing they had started listening in on their conversation.

“You can’t give up, Trevor,” Aya said.

“Yeah. The fight isn’t over yet. Even if Rakasa comes back, the fight isn’t over,” David chimed in. Trevor smiled at his siblings.

“Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it. All we can do is keep fighting and not lose hope. As long as we have the Compass Dragons and the team, we can’t lose hope,” Trevor said.

~oOo~

Kathey typed away on her computer, seeing the various classes her students were finishing up with and those that would be away for the summer. Just over a month left before summer. While Voutneth stayed open for summer, the classes would be cut in half, the days acting as half days so students could still enjoy summer. Kathey’s days in a human school had given her at least some tools about running a school. That and the leadership skills she was taught under Zoymey.

There was a knock on her office door and Kathey looked up. “Come in!” She called.

Dryber opened the door and poked his head in. “Ms. Royals, there’s a naga here requesting to see you, he says he knows you,” Dryber said.

“Let him in,” Kathey said, leaning back in her chair. Dryber moved aside and allowed the naga to step in.

The aquatic creature had royal blue scales and wore plate armor. On his back was a shield and at his hip a longsword.

The naga brought his fist up to his opposite shoulder and bowed his head in respect. "My liege, I have come as requested." He said.

"General Reys." Kathey greeted and stood. "Welcome to the Voutneth Academy."

Chapter 2

"I'm so grateful you were able to come." Kathey said, offering a chair for Reys to sit. The naga general slithered over and sat down.

"It was the least I could do after receiving a scroll from Sylark," Reys said.

“They didn’t give you any grief about leaving, did they?” Kathey asked, leaning back in her chair.

“Hardly. With how high my status is, I left my best man in charge while I was away,” Reys replied. “You requested my assistance against the Council, correct?”

“Yes, it’s become quite the task.” Kathey stood and moved to the window to look outside.

“Who have you captured so far?” Reys asked.

“Agony, Lust, and Wrath. We have no idea who to expect next. If they keep to their pattern, the next Council member will execute their plan any day now. If they haven’t already started, that is.” Kathey leaned against the wall and crossed her arms. “Nothing seems out of the ordinary yet. Student attendance is nearly perfect, my team is still all present, and there hasn’t been any unusual behavior from anyone.”

Reys hummed in thought and crossed his own arms. “What seems to be their pattern?” he asked.

“It seems like every two months they attack. Agony got us in October around Halloween, Lust got us in December about a week before Christmas, and Wrath got us in the middle of February. We’re already halfway through April and still nothing.” Kathey returned to her chair and sat down. “I just have this feeling that whoever is attacking next is planning something big.”

“It certainly sounds like it. Who still remains of the Council?” Reys asked.

“Greed, Gluttony, Sloth, Pride, and Envy,” Kathey listed off. Reys nodded in thought.

“Well, based on knowledge of the sins themselves, my understanding is this; Envy would act compulsively should he attack on his own. Pride wouldn’t bother coming to anyone, he would draw his enemies to him. Sloth is too lazy to do anything himself-”

“-Herself,” Kathey corrected.

“Whatever,” Reys replied in a serious tone. “Those things care only about themselves. Gluttony is much more concerned with food and Greed is a hoarder so you would certainly know if he was around to take something of worth. I would conclude that Greed or Envy are the likely culprits at the moment, unless something comes up soon.”

“We’ll just have to wait and see what happens in the next few days, I suppose,” Kathey huffed. Her computer beeped and she looked at the screen before moving the mouse and clicked a few things. She exhaled slowly and clicked once more. “I apologize, I have to cut this short.” She stood from her chair.

Reys stood as well and slithered alongside her. “What seems to be the problem, my liege?” he asked.

“There’s a problem in the kitchen, something about a supply shortage,” Kathey explained. “Our deliveries seem to be off schedule which is unusual for them. Usually they at least send a note if shipments are late. I’ve had no alert at all the last few days that there were supposed to be deliveries.”

“Where do the supplies come from?” Reys asked as they navigated the hallways.

“It’s a farm town west of here. They grow their own crops and raise their animals ethically,” Kathey said. “It’s the highest quality that we rely on heavily. My parents arranged the alliance so the academy can receive the best quality food.”

“That is concerning that there hasn’t been any notice from them,” Reys mused. They reached the kitchen and it was a bustle of rushed activity and slight panic.

They reach the kitchen and it’s a bustle of activity and slight panic. “We don’t have enough meat!” One cook exclaimed.

“We’re almost out of refreshments, too,” Another said, staring into the walk-in fridge.

“I didn’t think it was this bad...” Kathey grimaced. She exhaled and composed herself. “Alright listen up!” She yelled and everyone froze, looking over at her. She pointed to two of the cooks. “You two, hit the markets, see if any of the Dragoso residents brought any meat today,” Kathey ordered.

“Orcs and Rukmar enjoy their meats. Look for those, Rukmar have more game than farm raised, but they do hunt boar,” Reys informed them. “Any Nagas probably brought fish as well.”

“Thanks!” One said and the two hurried out.

“Any chance I can ask you to head to Orrumai and get fruit for juices? I know some Earth fruits have been traded to Dragoso,” Kathey asked Reys.

“Of course. I can ask the Elves to bring crops and breads as well,” Reys said. “This is a dire situation that requires as much help as possible.”

“Thank you, Reys. I greatly appreciate it,” Kathey said, resting a hand on his arm.

“Of course, my liege,” Reys graced, fist to his shoulder before he slithered out.

At least some ends would be covered for the day. But it wouldn’t last long, Kathey needed to act fast. She couldn’t sit on the lack of deliveries, the team needed to get the jump on the situation. And if she was right...

The Council was behind this.

~oOo~

“You can’t be serious...” Malice gaped.

“I am,” Kathey retorted.

“Who would even bother with such a small town in the middle of nowhere? They don’t even have internet!” Malice exclaimed.

Kathey had called a meeting with Malice, Sylark, and Zoymey in her office about the farm town and possibly investigating. For once they weren’t agreeing with her on the idea of heading out to it.

“I have to agree with Malice, for once,” Sylark said.

“That’s a first!” Malice chuckled.

“Quiet. For a small town, how could the Council even know about it and know that we have ties to it? It is too suspicious,” Sylark said.

“Or that’s what they want us to think which makes investigating even more important,” Kathey argued. Zoymey braced his hands on one of the chairs and exhaled.

“They’ve never been this clever before, Kathey,” Zoymey pointed out.

“Or we were just smarter than they were for once, but this time they didn’t hit the academy directly,” Kathey started. “Agony made a direct threat and had a spy infiltrate. Lust had Carmilla lure males away from here and kidnapped them. And Wrath used his rage to enhance it in everyone at the academy to cause massive chaos. If we didn’t catch onto it, we never would’ve known it was them.”

“We can’t just blindly run from the academy on a wild goose chase, Kathey!” Malice exclaimed.

“Then we split up the team. Vatuna can’t be in the field anymore anyway. We’ll talk with everyone and discuss who stays and who goes,” Kathey said.

Zoymey shook his head. “Fine, if it proves that this is pointless, then fine,” He conceded.

“It’s not pointless!” Kathey snapped.

“So you believe,” Sylark said. Kathey snarled in frustration as Sylark, Malice, and Zoymey walked out.

“Fools...” Kathey huffed. She hoped she wasn’t wrong.

~oOo~

Trevor flew along with his siblings, following behind Anna. He looked pretty concerned considering Kathey had come up to them pretty wired before ordering them to fly with her. Trevor and Brenda glanced at each other before Trevor flapped his wings to catch up to Anna and fly beside her.

“So... how come Malice, Sylark, and Zoymey aren’t here? Or the rest of the team for that matter?” Trevor asked.

“The boys don’t think this trip is worth taking. I do. So we’re only a scouting team until it’s necessary to bring everyone in,” Anna explained without looking at Trevor.

“They didn’t agree with you?” Brenda questioned and Anna exhaled heavily.

“Apparently. And I honestly don’t know why,” Anna said.

“You can read minds and you have no clue why they disagree with us checking out the town?” Trevor asked.

“They thought it was pointless. The town is so isolated in the middle of nowhere, they don’t think the Council would even bother with it,” Anna explained.

“Guess we’ll find out if they’re right or not,” Brenda said.

The flight was long, but they soon caught sight of buildings in the distance. And something out of a horror movie. The ground was tainted with dark red with dead animals everywhere, a lot of crows and vultures, and no sign of people.

“What the hell happened...” Trevor gaped, looking around.

“Nothing good. I knew something was up,” Anna breathed, leading the group down to the ground. Anna immediately sniffed the ground and snorted, rubbing at her muzzle. “It’s blood.”

“Blood? How? It looks like it fell from the sky!” Trevor exclaimed, standing by an awning where the ground was left alone under it. It truly did look like blood had fallen from the sky.

Aya dug at the ground and frowned before looking up. “It’s hard. It can’t be dug up at all,” She informed them. Anna looked at her before looking down to scratch at the ground.

“This isn’t any normal blood... we need the team,” Anna concluded. She went tense suddenly when they heard metal clatter inside one of the houses.

Trevor looked over towards the house as well, the corner of his mouth opening as he grit his teeth.

David slinked over to the house quietly, using his small size to his advantage and peeked into a window. He looked around before there was a muffled thump and he yelped suddenly as he fell backwards. He scrambled to his feet and flew over to Trevor to hide behind him.

“What happened?” Trevor asked.

“Someone’s in there. They hit the window with a broom,” David panted softly and looked up at Trevor. “Sorry... old habits I guess.” He stood and moved out from behind Trevor.

“It’s instinct too. You’re still young enough to have those instincts to hide behind the adult dragons,” Anna informed him before heading up to the house. “Hello? Excuse me? I’m Headmistress Royals of the Voutneth Academy in Drake. Can we speak?” She called towards the house.

It was a few minutes before the door of the house opened and an elderly man peeked out of the house. “Headmistress?” He asked and Anna nodded.

“What happened here, shaman?” Anna asked, concerned. The shaman stepped out onto his porch with his broom and sighed.

“I wish I could tell you, Ms. Royals. Everything was fine for a while and then one day I woke up and everyone had left. The ground was tainted with dark magic and the animals and crops died. No note, no word of mouth, nothing,” the shaman explained, shaking his head. “I-I’m at a loss to be quite honest.”

Anna exhaled and looked around before turning away from the house, sitting on her haunches. “Okay... blood from the sky. Dead crops and dead animals. Tainted land... tainted blood. Hardened blood,” Anna mumbled to herself. She stood and headed across the town. Trevor and his siblings watched her.

“I can never follow her train of thought when she gets like this,” Brenda whispered, sitting back.

“Nobody can, it’s ridiculous. She’s just all over the place,” Trevor chuckled.

“We need the others,” Anna said suddenly. “I know who’s behind this.”

~oOo~

“Well, it’s hard to admit, but I will say I was wrong,” Zoymey said, looking around at the state of the town.

“You better admit it, Zoymey. I told you something was up, none of you wanted to listen,” Anna snapped. “I don’t act unless I think it’s important, you all know this!” Malice, Sylark, and Zoymey looked guilty. “I thought you three had my back on these things, after everything I went through when I was young.”

“Anna we have to be guarded at this point, we cannot act rash,” Sylark tried to explain.

“Uh huh,” Anna huffed. “Anyway, I know who’s behind this whole situation. The clues are all here.”

“The blood and dead animals and dead crops?” Malice asked and Anna nodded.

“Isn’t that Fel Dragon blood?” Zoymey asked, scratching the tainted ground.

Anna sighed and nodded. “It’s Gluttony.”

Chapter 3

“You honestly think Gluttony would even bother doing anything?” Zoymey asked.

“We don’t know him personally, Zoymey. Gluttony is a Fel Dragon, this is his magic. It’s all related to food; shipments, crops, animals,” Anna said, looking around. “He probably took what was left and cursed the town so they couldn’t rebuild. Might’ve even taken the townsfolk too.”

“So what now?” Trevor asked, approaching. “There’s not really much we can do here unless Gluttony left the key to his portal here, right?”

“Lust and Wrath used birds, so Gluttony would have one too,” Malice agreed, looking around at the flocks of birds feeding on the dead animals. “Question is which one would it be? There’s dozens here.”

“The cockiest one will be Gluttony’s bird. The Council’s birds have no fear of dragons,” Anna explained and pounced at one of the flocks, the birds flying off immediately.

“Better than nothing, I guess,” Trevor mused and stalked over towards another group before pouncing at them. The flock took off, making Trevor shield his face with his wing before he looked up at the sky, watching the birds circle around. “Is this even effective? We don’t exactly chase birds much to begin with.”

“Unless you count the griffins when they don’t want to go in,” Aya joked nearby and Trevor snorted.

“Got that right,” he chuckled. Something scratched at Trevor’s back and he grunted a snort before looking back to see what had gotten him. 

A vulture was ascending away from Trevor, circling around him. Trevor watched the bird with his eyes narrowed, waiting. The vulture dove at Trevor again and he immediately flapped his wings to blow it off course. “There!” Trevor shouted.

In a flash of yellow, Malice took off, chasing after the vulture that taunted them. He snapped at it a few times before getting annoyed and shooting lightning at it. The vulture spasmed before falling to the ground. Right as it hit, it exploded in a small poof of orange smoke. A spark appeared and an orange and black portal appeared, swirling as it waited for the team to enter.

The team stood before it and Anna looked over at Zoymey. “Believe me now?” She huffed.

“I suppose this is enough evidence. Should we send for the rest of the team?” Zoymey asked.

“No, we can’t wait and risk the portal closing on us and losing our only chance of dealing with Gluttony. Let’s go,” Anna said and stepped through. Trevor and his siblings approached as well.

“Are we really doing this with only eight of us?” Trevor asked Zoymey.

“I guess we are,” Zoymey exhaled. He looked at Trevor. “You can leave if you want. I know your values are different from ours.”

“You mean Vatuna?” Trevor asked. Zoymey nodded and Trevor looked at the ground. He shook his head and looked back up at Zoymey. “No, I’m needed here. As a member of this team, I need to help.”

Zoymey nodded once before looking at the portal and stepping through it. Malice and Sylark followed after him with Trevor, Brenda, Aya, and David last.

~oOo~

The group stepped out of the portal and appeared in what looked like a very old temple of sorts that was overgrown with vegetation and definitely worn out in places. The stone ceilings had holes in them and rubble below the holes. The room they were in was round with a doorway leading further into the temple.

Everyone looked around at the state the area was in. “Looks like it’s been lived in for a while...” Malice mused, sniffing a pile of rubble. A small stone dropped from the ceiling into the rubble Malice sniffed and he snorted, pulling back a bit and looking up.

“Stay sharp, we don’t know what to expect,” Anna said and started for the doorway. The rest of the team followed behind her, keeping an eye on their surroundings.

“So Gluttony... What is he?” Brenda asked.

“A dwarven Fel Dragon. A temple made of stone makes sense for him, honestly. Though I don’t know what forces he could possibly have within these walls,” Anna said. She stopped short when she heard a yowl in the distance.

“Sounds like a feline, not anything I’ve heard though,” Malice said.

“A large beast by the sound of it,” Sylark chimed in.

“Shh!” Anna hissed at them. Trevor snickered and Anna narrowed her eyes at him as well. “Keep moving,” She said after a moment.

They made it through the hallway and came to a strangely shaped room with holes in the ceiling as well. A pile of rubble appeared to be caked in something that once looked molten, but it was hardened now.

“What the hell happened here?” Trevor wondered, looking at the pile. Zoymey went over to the pile and dug his claws into it, picking up the dust that remained in his hand and looked at it. “It’s magma...” He looked up at the hole. “It came through the ceiling, look. See it hanging from the edges of the hole?”

“What could even cause damage like that?” Trevor asked.

“Something large and powerful,” Zoymey replied.

“Think it’s similar to that giant spider Wrath had?” Trevor questioned.

“I certainly hope not, that thing was huge,” Brenda said and shuddered. “You know, I wonder about Lust though. We didn’t have to deal with any giant monster at her castle.”

“I wouldn’t even question it,” Trevor said. “The spider was bad enough!”

“I’ll talk to Severik about that, see if he knows anything,” Malice offered. Trevor nodded and they looked to Anna where she waited for them.

“Let’s go. We don’t want to waste time,” Anna encouraged. 

They continued on through the room and to the next that could only be described as a rather wide hallway with pillars holding up what remained of the roof. At the end of the hallway stood a dragon. Though he stood at attention, like a soldier. His head was held high, shoulders squared, wings folded. The dragon’s scales were splashed in blue, purple, pink and white all over his body, not like any of the colors Trevor had seen before. What stood out on this dragon, however, was that his front left leg wasn’t natural. It was pure metal, cut right at the shoulder. There was an image of a stein engraved on the shoulder of the metal leg.

“Hello?” Anna greeted cautiously. The dragon at the end of the room snorted and looked at her.

“Your presence is required before the Master of the Hall,” The dragon stated, waiting for them to approach. Anna took a step forward, but Zoymey spoke up.

“Wait, are you really about to listen to him?” Zoymey asked in a hushed voice. Anna looked back at him.

“I can’t get a read on him,” Anna replied. They all looked at Sylark who shook his head.

“Blank,” he reported. Zoymey exhaled heavily with a slight growl in his throat.

“Fine...” Zoymey gave in and they approached the dragon. “What even is he? I’ve never seen a breed like him before.”

The dragon turned and led them through the doorway, paying them no mind at all now.

“He seems... almost familiar,” Anna admitted. “I can’t place it though.”

“Maybe someone you knew as a fledgling?” Malice suggested. Anna shook her head.

“I don’t know, I was taken from the castle really young, I don’t remember much.”

“The Pink and Moon War?” Trevor asked. Anna nodded.

“They wanted to protect Eshala and I. Even though the Moon Dragons managed to get Eshala,” Anna explained.

The group comes to what looked like two sets of staircases leading upwards. The dragon leading them turned to face the group. “You are not allowed magic. Return to your other forms,” He ordered. A few of them scoffed.

“Thanks, but we’ll stay like this,” Brenda snorted.

“That was not... a request!” The dragon roared, wings flaring open as everyone was hit with an immense amount of pain in their bodies. So much so they were all reduced to their human forms. Luckily they had geared up and grabbed their weapons before leaving the academy.

“Gah! I knew you were... ngh... suspicious!” Sylark snarled, drawing one of his blades. A strange stone head floated over Sylark and red magic fell over him, freezing him in place.

“What in Kaylano’s name...” Kathey grunted, panting from the pain.

“If you cannot behave, you will be forced to behave. Insubordination will not be tolerated,” The dragon hissed. Everyone exchanged looks before the dragon started up one of the sets of stairs. “Move.”

“Regretting it yet?” Zoymey asked Kathey who huffed.

“Regret or not, Gluttony needs to be stopped. The whole Council does. And frankly, I don’t see us getting out of here yet, do you?” She looked back at Zoymey with a raised eyebrow.

“Deathbore’s portal?” Malice suggested.

“No magic usage,” Kathey reminded him.

“Right...”

“Honestly, do you ever use your brain?” Sylark spoke from his prison that floated along with them.

“Yes!” Malice snapped.

“Boys, enough,” Kathey scolded them as they reached the top of the stairs. 

The group had come to what looked like a fighting arena with various odd looking dwarves seated in bleachers surrounding the arena. At the head of the arena itself sat a large table with various foods and a few barrels with spouts on them. Alcohol no doubt. Sitting at the table chewing on a turkey leg was a very fat dwarf with a rather short ginger beard and matching short hair. He wore gold and dark red armor accented with some red and silver undergarments spilling from the armor. His gullet spilled out over his waistband and had gravy on it.

“Well finally! Took you idiots long enough!” He bellowed before downing a stein of mead. “Bored out of my mind here waiting for you lot to show up!”

Trevor’s brow furrowed before he glanced at his siblings, confused. Then he looked at Kathey. “That’s Gluttony?” Trevor asked, pointing at the dwarf who belched loudly.

“You want to take a guess?” Kathey asked, looking back at Trevor. “Yes, that’s Gluttony.”

“You best mind yourselves. I’m being generous and not killing you lot immediately. Instead, you’re entertaining me for my meal,” Gluttony told them, standing up on his throne. “Nebula, return to your place at my side.”

“Nebula?” Kathey questioned as the dragon that had been their escort flapped his wings and flew over to sit beside Gluttony’s throne.

“What, you’ve never witnessed the raw embodiment of space that is the Nebula Dragon? Honestly, you call yourself one of royal blood yet you don’t know who it is you see before you?” Gluttony questioned before he laughed loudly, head back and fists on his hips. “You’ll know soon enough I think. If you don’t die.” Gluttony chuckled and held his arms up. 

“Dwarves of Gluttony!” The whole crowd cheered. “Witness before you the Compass Dragons in the flesh! The fools who imprisoned Agony!” The crowd booed. “Put Lust in her place! ” More booing. “Extinguished the rage that was Wrath!” Gluttony held a hand to his ear to listen to the jeers of his audience. “But today! Today you will witness the end of Anna Dragon and her sorry excuses for team mates!” The crowd cheered excitedly. “And we will witness first hand just how much they lack. She has brought us yearlings! Yearlings! To face the arena!”

“I don’t like the sound of this,” David spoke timidly. Trevor pushed David behind his body, protecting him.

“Do we play his game?” Zoymey asked Kathey.

“We have to, there’s too many here to face on our own without our abilities,” Kathey replied, looking around. There had to be hundreds of dwarven men in the stands. They stood no chance at all. “We can’t be careless, we play Gluttony’s game and give him the show he wants.” She turned to Trevor and his siblings. “Listen to me, just try your hardest, all of you. Trevor, I know you have Vatuna to worry about. If anything happens to you, I swear we’ll take care of her if something happens.”

Trevor’s breath hitched, but he exhaled to compose himself and nodded. “Thank you, Kathey,” He said.

“Let’s see... who shall we have first?” Gluttony asked himself, tapping his chin. His eyes scanned the team before landing on Trevor. “You.” He pointed at Trevor.

“Shit...”

Chapter 4

Trevor stood in the middle of the arena, looking up at Gluttony. The rest of the team was off to the side, waiting and watching. Trevor had his sword in hand and his shield on his other arm, waiting. What was Gluttony planning on doing? He wanted entertainment, sure. But what kind of entertainment?

Three portals appeared around Trevor and he took his stance as two smaller feline creatures and a massive one emerged. The smaller ones yowled and the larger one roared.

“Prowlers and a Stalker?” Kathey questioned with her mouth open. This wasn’t good...

Trevor exhaled before he charged at one of the Prowlers, slicing it with his blade, only to be hit by a heavy force, the other Prowler having body slammed him. The Stalker ran right at Trevor and swiped its claws at Trevor, knocking him a few yards away. Trevor rolled to a stop and he groaned, before pushing himself up, panting. The Prowlers charged at him, ready to attack again.

Trevor brought up his shield to block their blows, feeling bruises forming on his arm as he took the blows and the Stalker headbutted him, launching him into the air before it jumped up and clawed Trevor, slamming him to the ground and pinning him.

“Enough!” Gluttony’s voice bellowed across the arena. The Stalker stepped off of Trevor and stalked off with the Prowlers following it. “Ugh... useless! You’re absolutely boring to watch!” Gluttony waved off. “Go, before I change my mind about sparing you,” Gluttony ordered and Trevor struggled to his feet, limping to his siblings.

Brenda ran out to Trevor and helped him sit by the wall. “Are you okay?” She asked.

“Guess I’m not as good as I thought...” Trevor panted.

“You’re good enough for us, Trevor,” Aya assured him. Trevor smiled through his panting.

“Thanks.”

“Next!” Gluttony shouted and Brenda was dragged away from them by another floating stone head.

“Okay, okay! Let me go! I’ll go! I’ll go!” Brenda insisted. She was released in the middle of the arena, stumbling a bit, but she caught herself and drew her dual blades, waiting.

“Let’s make this interesting. Warriors!” Gluttony called. From behind him ran four living stone statues holding hammers. Brenda tensed up a bit as the stone men jogged down the stairs and into the arena. They surrounded Brenda with their hammers poised and ready. They all watched her and waited.

Brenda looked between the four warriors before she sprang into action. She jumped onto the first one, slicing its head. The warrior swung its hammer at her, but missed as she jumped off it onto the second warrior, stabbing it right in the face. The warrior flailed and fell over as she pushed off its head to jump onto the next one. Brenda dug her blades into the back of the third warrior’s back and jumped to the fourth, knocking it down with her weight alone before he jumped away as a hammer came close to hitting her.

“Yeah, Brenda! Kick their butts!” David yelled.

“Looks like I’m the better fighter, Trev!” Brenda exclaimed with a smug look.

“Don’t get beaten up too badly, else I’ll be prettier than you!” Trevor responded with a chuckle. Brenda barked a laugh in response and charged at the warriors again. 

She sliced the first warrior’s chest, ducked a swing from the second warrior, and turned to slice the third and fourth warriors. The second warrior spun and jumped at Brenda, kicking her with both feet and hitting the ground itself. Brenda launched away a few feet and rolled to a stop.

“Jeez, are the swords okay?” Trevor snorted as Brenda got up.

“Shut up...” Brenda huffed. Her entire body went rigid and from her mouth launched ice spikes that hit all four of the warriors, knocking them all off their feet.

“I thought we couldn’t use magic!” Kathey shouted at Gluttony who chewed on a roll.

“I made it interesting! Now shut it, Dragon!” Gluttony snapped. Kathey growled and looked back at Brenda and the warriors. Brenda’s hands started to glow and a feral grin appeared on her face as her hands transformed into dragon hands. She dropped her blades and ran at the warriors as they got to their feet.

Brenda jumped onto the second warrior, clawing it in the face and jumping to the third one and taking a chunk of stone out of its shoulder. She jumped to the fourth warrior, landing on its hammer. The warrior swung its hammer, launching her off and right into the first warrior. The warrior grabbed Brenda and slammed her into the ground, pinning her.

“Brenda!” Trevor, Aya, and David exclaimed together.

“Finish her!” Gluttony ordered, giddy.

Brenda strained against the pressure, digging her claws into the warrior’s arm. The strained sound in her throat became a snarl and she spit ice right into the warrior’s face, causing it to release her and stumble backwards after being blinded. Brenda rolled her feet and launched herself at the others. She froze the second warrior’s feet to the ground before turning and encasing the third’s hammer in ice, making the weapon drop to the ground, too heavy to carry. Brenda ran at the fourth, jumping onto it and kicking it down. As soon as it hit the ground, she froze its hand to the ground. Brenda hurried over to her blades, somersaulting and picking them up. She got to her feet and got into a battle stance.

The first warrior smashed the ice around its head and picked up its hammer. It broke the ice around the second’s feet, the ice around the third’s hammer, and the ice holding the fourth’s hand to the ground. The warriors recovered and watched Brenda for a moment before charging at her. Brenda’s blades were surrounded in ice and she ran at the warriors as well.

The first warrior swung its hammer at Brenda. She ducked and sliced its leg, making it drop to one knee. Brenda jumped and sliced the second’s face, making ice form on it. She pushed off of the second warrior and drove her blade into the eye of the third warrior. She jumped to the fourth warrior, only to take a punch to the ribs from it.

“Gah!” Brenda cried out as she was launched away. She slid to a stop and held her side. “Shit...” she panted.

“Stop! Come on, hasn't she done enough?” Trevor shouted at Gluttony. Nebula snarled at him from his spot next to Gluttony’s throne. Gluttony was too focused on the fight to have even heard Trevor. Trevor looked back at Brenda, tense like he was about to jump into the ring again.

“Don’t do it,” Zoymey warned, a hand on Trevor’s chest. “You piss him off, we’re all dead. We can’t face his men without our powers. Only Brenda has some access right now.” Trevor held up his hand and concentrated. Nothing... Zoymey was right. He needed to let Brenda do this on her own.

“Dammit...” Trevor huffed. He watched Brenda get to her feet, still holding her side. “Kick their asses, Bee!” He yelled.

Brenda snarled and her dragon wings appeared. She flapped them and charged right at the warrior that punched her, stabbing it right in the chest. The first and third warriors run to their companion’s aid and hit Brenda’s wings with their hammers. The second warrior grabbed Brenda, ripping her from its companion and throwing her right at a wall. Brenda hit it hard and her wings vanished. She dropped to the ground with a grunt, getting to one knee at least and panting. The fourth warrior yanked her blade from its chest and tossed it aside. The warriors all start to approach Brenda, ready to take her out.

Brenda’s remaining blade started to glow. She glanced at it before she pushed herself to her feet and jumped right at the third warrior, driving her blade right into its head, the glow from her blade flashing before the light in the warrior went out and its entire body was encased in ice. The warrior’s body fell backwards, Brenda falling with it and landing on her feet. Two of the warriors grabbed her suddenly and pinned her to the ground. The remaining warrior held its hammer, approaching slowly, looking down at Brenda.

“Brenda!” Trevor shouted. The warrior’s hammer came down, only to stop mere inches from Brenda’s chest. At his table, Gluttony had his hand up, glowing dark red. He laughed gleefully at the sight and waved his hand. The warriors released Brenda and walked off.

“I suppose the yearlings have some fight in them, the female especially!” Gluttony laughed. Aya and David hurried over to Brenda to help her up and to the sidelines.

“Are you okay?” Trevor asked as the trio approached. Brenda was pretty beaten up and holding her side again.

“Could be worse... my ribs might be broken.” Brenda huffed.

“Have Sereph look at you once we’re done here,” Kathey told Brenda who nodded. Trevor helped her sit against the wall and he collapsed next to her, still worn out from his own battle.

“Wonder what he has planned next,” Trevor mused. Brenda leaned and laid her head on Trevor’s shoulder. Trevor wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “You did good.”

“Thanks... gymnastics paid off,” she said with a breathy laugh. Trevor chuckled in his throat.

“Yeah, football didn’t in this case.”

“You were up against tiger sized cats and a beast three times the size of the griffins, you did your best.”

~oOo~

Gluttony watched the group for a moment, a crescent roll held at his mouth, but not actively eating it. It merely sat just inside his lips. His eyes land on Kathey, watching her. What the hell made these kids so special to her? They were just students at her Academy that she brought into the team. Why? Why did she care for them this much?

Gluttony knew about what happened with Agony, Lust, and Wrath. She dragged these kids with her to all of her missions. Why, though? Gluttony was starting to question it now. Did they have some sort of special power that Gluttony had yet to see? Were they stronger than they seemed? The oldest didn’t last against the Stalker and Prowlers, but the female, Brenda as they called her, she held her own against four Construct Warriors. She even killed one of them and that wasn’t an easy thing to do.

Gluttony bit the roll before throwing it at Malice, hitting him square in the back of the head. “Oy! Ya tall git!” Gluttony yelled.

“Ugh... was that necessary?” Malice asked, rubbing his head where the bread hit him and looking back at Gluttony.

“Aye, it was. Ya got five minutes then you’re next in the ring,” Gluttony said.

“What, being generous all of a sudden?” Malice asked with a grin. Gluttony grit his teeth and threw a turkey leg at Malice who dodged it easily and laughed. “Yeah yeah, I got it, short stack.” Gluttony practically growled and sat in his chair again, glaring at the group.

“Nebula, prep the Champion and the Hulk,” Gluttony ordered.

“Yes, Master Gluttony,” Nebula turned and headed to where the Warriors came from earlier.

Gluttony drank from his stein. “Mark my words, Compass Dragons, you won’t know what you’ve gotten yourselves into,” He said to himself.

~oOo~

Malice stood in the center of the arena, sheathed blade in hand and waiting. Gluttony sat with his arms crossed and staring down at Malice.

“Why is he just sitting there?” Trevor asked.

“He’s waiting for something. The question is what is he waiting for,” Kathey replied, watching Gluttony.

Out of nowhere, they could all hear rumbling, like something big was running. Gluttony looked back and grinned as a large construct lept over his chair and landed in the arena before Malice. The crowd cheered as the Construct Champion straightened up.

“Let the Champion’s strength reign over you, Dragon of the East! Your rule ends here!” Gluttony yelled.

Malice smirked and got into a stance. “We’ll see.”

Chapter 5

The Champion stood, staring at Malice, waiting. Malice too, stared, watching the stone construct, observing its body before he ran forward. The Champion revved its spinning mace arm and struck at Malice. Malice dodged the blow and unsheathed his blade to strike the Champion’s arm before he dropped to his knees, sliding to slice its leg.

“Kick his ass, Malice!” Trevor called from the sidelines. Malice grinned and looked back at the Champion as it recovered from the blows and faced Malice.

The Champion ran at Malice, mace arm spinning. It struck at Malice again, but missed. Malice jumped onto the arm and ran up it. The Champion reached to grab at Malice, missing its grab and Malice sliced it right in the face. The Champion groaned and grabbed Malice’s leg, hurling him away and into the wall.

“Gh!” Malice grunted, he fell to the ground as did his blade and sheath. He landed on one knee and he squinted up at the Champion.

“Malice!” Kathey shouted.

The Champion swung to punch Malice. Malice rolled out of the way and snarled at the stone construct as it faced him. He was without his blade now, he needed to grab it. Malice ran right at the Champion, dropping to slide between its legs and grab his blade just as the Champion reached for him. Malice stabbed it right in the hand. The Champion roared and backhanded Malice, causing him to go flying and slide to a stop close to the team.

“Well, lads, shall we ‘ave a bit of fun?” Gluttony asked, holding a hand to his ear to listen to the audience cheer. Ever the gluttons for a good time. “Right! Magic it is, Dragon o’ the East!” Gluttony yelled.

“Malice,” Kathey spoke up as Malice got to his feet. “Break it out, you won’t win otherwise.”

“Yeah, I got it, Kathey,” Malice replied, regaining his composure and facing the Champion.

Malice ran at the Champion, dodging another hit. He grabbed his blade from its hand and ran up its arm again. The Champion reached for Malice again. Malice jumped onto the arm reaching at him and drove his blade into its chest. He used the leverage to bring his leg up.

Electricity crackled and surged from his foot as he kicked the stone construct square in the head, causing a loud thunderclap to echo through the arena. The Champion stumbled from the blow and Malice pulled his blade from it, dropping to the ground. The Champion shook its head before facing Malice, only to have its entire stone jaw drop from its head. The entire audience gasped and Gluttony sat up a little more in his chair, hands gripping the armrests as he watched with bated breath.

The Champion roared and ran at Malice. Malice smirked and his sword surged with electricity and he sliced at the Champion when it got close enough. The stone construct revved its mace arm and backhanded Malice with it. Malice was launched away a few feet before he slid along the ground. He brought himself up to slide on one knee and he grit his teeth.

“That’s it, I’m done playing nice,” Malice snarled. He had his magic, he wasn’t going down. The Champion was.

Malice ran at the Champion, feeling his lightning building up in his belly. Malice opened his mouth and released a bolt of lightning, staggering the Champion. With it distracted, Malice jumped and went past the stone construct’s torso just under its arm. His blade sliced the Champion’s torso as he went past. Malice landed and stood slowly, bringing his blade up to the sheath and rejoining the two. As the blade settled into the sheath, electricity exploded from the core of the Champion, causing it to spasm from the charge.

The glow from the Champion stopped suddenly and the stone parts came tumbling down, leaving nothing but a pile of rubble.

The team cheered nearby.

“Alright, Malice!”

“Woo! Go Malice!”

Malice shrugged and smirked. “It was nothing, honestly,” He said and jogged over to the group.

“I believe that is the most I have ever seen you do, Malice,” Sylark chuckled.

“Yeah well, I had to do what had to be done,” Malice said and collapsed against the wall to relax.

“And back to your ways, I see,” Sylark noted. Malice hummed in agreement.

~oOo~

Gluttony watched the Champion fall into rubble and Malice return to his friends. His jaw hung open as he stared at the pile of rubble before he snarled.

“Wot in Rakasa’s bloody name was that!?” Gluttony questioned. The Champion was never easily beaten and that kick Malice did. Where did it even come from? Thunder Dragons were never known to be strong fighters!

“Master, perhaps I should deal with them myself?” Nebula suggested.

“Shut it!” Gluttony snapped and Nebula bowed his head and went silent. Gluttony looked around at the audience. They were worked up and excited about the fights. Gluttony couldn’t just stop everything now, not when everyone was pumped and raring for more. “Dragon o’ the West!” Gluttony shouted, standing on his chair.

“What, you want me next?” Zoymey asked, looking over at Gluttony.

“Go!” Gluttony pointed to the middle of the arena. Zoymey shrugged and grabbed his axe before he headed to the middle. “Bah, you’ll get yer chance, Nebula. I got something special planned.” Gluttony sat in his chair again, eyes on Kathey. “Soon enough, wee Dragon. Yer strength will run out and Master Rakasa can return. And there’s nothin’ ye can do about it.”

~oOo~

Gluttony sat in his chair, arms crossed and looking rather bored. Zoymey stood in the middle of the arena, waiting for his opponent. His allies stood on the sidelines with baited breath.

“Each stone man just got bigger. Can they get any bigger?” Trevor asked.

“You’d be surprised, Trevor,” Kathey replied, eyes set on Zoymey. Zoymey glanced over at them for just a moment before looking back at Gluttony.

“Well?” Zoymey questioned. “What am I fighting? It’s taking a while.”

“Shut yer gob! It’s comin’!” Gluttony snapped. Zoymey simply chuckled and shook his head, amused at how annoyed Gluttony sounded.

The ground rumbled under their feet. Zoymey looked down at the ground and smirked before he gripped his axe and looked up.

Behind Gluttony came a massive stone construct. Even in dragon form the construct would be bigger for sure. But Zoymey wasn’t small by any means. He wouldn’t give up easily.

“Let's see 'ow ye do against The Hulk!” Gluttony announced. He grabbed a turkey leg and tore into it immediately. The Hulk dropped into the arena and roared at Zoymey.

“With pleasure,” Zoymey smirked before he charged forward. The Hulk swung one of its clubbed hands right at Zoymey. Zoymey brought his axe up to block the hit, his feet sliding against the ground, but he held his footing and stared down the Hulk, teeth bared.

Zoymey pulled his axe away and swung it right into the Hulk’s arm, causing it to groan and pull away. It brought its club up and backhanded Zoymey away from it. Zoymey is thrown a few feet and he lands hard, his axe clattering nearby.

“Zoymey!” Trevor cried. Zoymey spat blood from his mouth and got to his feet, growling low in his throat. He ran to his axe, grabbing it and charging right at the Hulk. He swung his axe, lodging it in the ground and using the momentum to launch himself over it, head over heels. The axe came loose from the ground and he went flying to the Hulk’s head. Zoymey’s axe struck true, lodging into the stone.

The construct roared and grabbed Zoymey, pulling the axe from its head and throwing both away, holding its head where the axe had been. Zoymey hit the ground and skidded across it. He used his axe to stop himself and he stood, panting heavily. He got to his feet and snarled before charging at the Hulk again. He swings his axe, landing a hit on the construct’s leg, allowing him to use the momentum to spin around for another blow.

The Hulk moved to kick Zoymey. Zoymey brought his axe up to block the blow. Zoymey was pushed back a few feet and the Hulk brought its head down and headbutted the axe, recoiling from the blow and stumbling back.

“Oi, Dragon o’ the West! I’m snoozing here! Do somethin’!” Gluttony yelled.

“Then give me more to work with!” Zoymey snapped.

“Fine, ya uncreative git,” Gluttony said and snapped his fingers.

Zoymey looked at his hands as they began to glow green. He looked at the Hulk and grinned before the glow surrounded his entire body. Zoymey’s body grew in size, morphing and shifting until the glow vanished. Zoymey stood in his dragon form and roared at the Hulk before pouncing right on the construct. The Hulk swung a club at Zoymey, missing the Earth Dragon and Zoymey dug his claws into the stone. Zoymey’s clubbed tail came down and bludgeoned the Hulk right in the knee, making it fall.

“Woo! Go Zoymey!” Brenda cheered.

Zoymey launched off of the Hulk and turned his head to it, releasing a green cone of pure force, his Earth Shot, knocking the Hulk from its upright position entirely. Zoymey ran at the construct, ready to finish it off. The Hulk swung a clubbed arm at Zoymey, putting him off course. Zoymey jumped to the side to avoid getting hit, shooting another cone at the construct and flapping his wings, launching himself into the air and right onto the Hulk.

The Hulk turned over onto its back, swinging at Zoymey in the process. Zoymey flapped his wings to hover above the construct and shot it in the face. He landed on the Hulk’s chest as it attempted to recover from the blast. Zoymey dug his claws into the stone, holding himself in place. He channeled his magic, teeth bared as he watched the stone start to violently shake. Zoymey pushed off the Hulk with his back legs, grabbing onto its head and yanking the stone from the whole construct.

The glowing eyes in the head faded and the rest of the construct went still before crumbling into rubble. Zoymey panted as he watched the Hulk be reduced to nothing, his magic fading from his own body and his head dropped with a strained cry. His body began to glow green and he reverted back to his human form, down on one knee and still panting.

The team and the audience cheered with vigor. Zoymey managed a smirk as he panted and got to his feet, clenching his fists and raising his arms above his head, looking around at the audience. His eyes stopped on Gluttony and he gave the dwarf a smug look. His arms dropped and he huffed through his nose. “Top that, Gluttony,” Zoymey said and headed to the sidelines.

Trevor held up a hand to Zoymey. Zoymey gripped his hand and accepted high fives from Aya and David. “I guess that’s why you’re the Compass Dragons’ second,” Trevor mused.

“Well, that and I was the firstborn between the four of us,” Zoymey chuckled.

Gluttony was fuming now that his Champion and his Hulk were defeated. “NO!” Gluttony shouted, throwing his stein of ale right at Nebula who moved his head to the side to allow the cup to clatter on the ground harmlessly. “These damn dragons!” Gluttony snarled.

“Master Gluttony, perhaps I should deal with them?” Nebula suggested. Gluttony looked back at Nebula, his teeth pressed together hard. He relaxed his jaw and chewed his lip instead, looking at the group.

“No... not all of them,” Gluttony said and he snapped his fingers. Kathey felt herself restrained before being dragged to the middle of the arena. “Dwarves of Gluttony! Time for the battle you’ve been waiting for!” Gluttony announced. He pointed at Nebula before pointing to the arena.

Nebula got to his feet and flapped his wings, launching himself over Gluttony’s chair and table and landing before Kathey in the arena. Kathey drew her sword and shield and got into a stance quickly, staring Nebula down. Nebula slowly rose his head and opened his eyes.

“Let the game begin, Anna.”

Chapter 6

Nebula charged forward, his jaws snapped at Kathey only to have his nose bounce off of her shield. He turned and struck Kathey with his tail. Kathey grunted as his tail hit her shoulder and knocked her off balance. Nebula turned back, ready to bite her. Kathey swung her shield to deflect his attempt and drove her elbow into his chest to stun his airways.

Nebula stumbled back and coughed. He looked back at Kathey with his teeth bared as a low growl escaped his throat. Kathey straightened up and watched Nebula carefully, ready for his next move.

Nebula charged forward with a flap of his wings and swiped his claws at Kathey. Kathey brought her shield up to deflect the blow and she swung her sword into Nebula’s shoulder. Nebula let out a grunt and tossed his head to headbutt Kathey away from him. Kathey was launched away from him and landed a few yards away.

Kathey rolled to her feet and charged at Nebula, sword out and ready to strike him again. She swung her blade upwards and nicked the scales on Nebula’s chest. Nebula snarled and flashed his metal claws before he swiped at Kathey. The metal of his claws ripped right through Kathey’s metal armor on her thigh, right to her flesh. Blood started to seep out of the gashes in her armor and she dropped to one knee.

“You will not win this fight, Anna. I will not let my master down,” Nebula snarled as his nostrils flared. Kathey got to her feet and panted, watching Nebula.

“I don’t like to kill, but if you give me no choice, you won’t walk out of here alive,” Kathey warned.

“I’d like to see you try!” Nebula roared and ran at Kathey. Kathey brandished her sword and ran at Nebula. Nebula snapped at Kathey again in an attempt to bite her. Kathey dropped out of his range and brought her sword up to slice Nebula’s wing. The blade sliced right through the thick membrane of his wing. Nebula roared and jumped away from Kathey. He opened his wing to inspect the damage and spotted purple blood dripping from his wing. “You little-!” Nebula fumed.

Nebula inhaled deeply before he opened his mouth and released a swirling blast of red, yellow, and blue right at Kathey. Kathey’s eyes went wide and she brought up her shield to block the breath element’s blast. It took two hands to keep herself from being overpowered until Nebula ran out of breath. Nebula closed his mouth and charged at Kathey again.

Kathey dropped her shield and brought her sword up, the hilt of the blade struck true right into Nebula’s chest. The thick metal was enough to get through his scales and caused him to recoil from the hit. Nebula panted heavily as he watched Kathey.

Nebula’s body suddenly started to glow. His body became smaller and shifted until it reverted to human. The glow disappeared and Nebula stood before Kathey in his human form. Kathey’s sword fell from her hand and she gasped before she stumbled back.

Nicholas Alaster Sheppard, former captain of the Royal Dragon Guard, stood before Kathey. No wonder he seemed familiar. Before the guard converted to being all Water Dragons, they had a Nebula Dragon captain, Nash.

“Nash? Wh- but... what happened to you?” Kathey questioned. She looked into his eyes, they were black orbs. Nash was still under Gluttony’s control. Of course he was...

A mace dropped into the arena from above Nash and landed next to him. He lifted the weapon into his hands and charged at Kathey. He swung the mace and launched Kathey a few feet away. Kathey rolled to a stop and groaned before she pushed herself up to her hands and knees.

“Fight!” Nash commanded. Kathey looked up at him, tears in her eyes.

“How could you? You protected my family and instead you... you go to them?” Kathey gestured to Gluttony who sat giddy in his seat. She pushed herself to her feet. “You know me, Nash!” Nash kicked Kathey square in the stomach which sent her to the ground again.

“FIGHT!” Nash roared. Kathey panted heavily while she watched him.

“No,” Kathey refused.

“I said fight!” Nash ordered and swung his mace down to hit the ground next to her. Kathey flinched but otherwise did not move. Nash snarled. “Fine, I’ll kill you!” He shouted and brought his mace up again. He swung down, only to have Zoymey’s axe block the blow. Nash looked up and his eyes met Zoymey’s.

Zoymey shoved Nash’s mace away from Kathey. Nash stumbled back and snarled at Zoymey. His arms were suddenly grabbed by Trevor and Malice and he was pinned to the ground. “Get off me!” Nash struggled against Malice and Trevor. Zoymey helped Kathey to her feet and she closed her eyes.

~oOo~

Kathey and Nash stood across from each other, a meeting of the minds. Nash looked around at the misty emptiness that surrounded them.

“Nicholas,” Kathey said. Nash looked down at Kathey, brows furrowed. “This is not who you are. You are stronger than Gluttony. You are Captain Nash, we all held you close to our hearts. Please... fight back.”

~oOo~

Nash went still under Trevor and Malice. Kathey opened her eyes and watched them, waiting. Nash slowly opened his eyes and returned a rich blue gaze to Kathey.

“Anna...” Nash breathed. Trevor and Malice released Nash and he looked at his metal arm. “Gods above what the hell did I get into?” He questioned. Kathey smirked and held a hand to Nash.

“The Council, that’s what,” Kathey said and Nash chuckled before he took her hand and got to his feet.

“That’ll do it,” Nash said and looked up at Gluttony who was now fuming.

“Damn all of you! Enough of this play! Call Nakhiir!” Gluttony ordered.

“Nakhiir?” Kathey asked and looked up at Nash. The former captain swallowed and exhaled.

“It’s uh...” Nash started. However, before he could say anything, a large shadow passed above them. Brenda, Aya, and David hurried over to the group, weapons drawn and ready. Gluttony released Sylark and he hurried over to the group, having grabbed Kathey’s sword on the way over and he tossed it to her.

A massive creature screeched above them before down swooped a bat like beast with a body covered in flame. The beast flew down right at the group.

“Watch out!” Nash shouted and everyone jumped out of the way as the bat landed. “That’s Nakhiir!”

“Thanks for the heads up that it was a damn giant fire bat!” Trevor snapped.

Nakhiir swiped his wings in an attempt to knock everyone down. Malice backflipped away from the swipe and ran at Nakhiir. He jumped onto Zoymey’s back and jumped up, his foot striking Nakhiir in the head with an explosion of electricity. Nakhiir screeched as Malice landed and it inhaled deeply. Kathey and Sylark got to their feet and immediately channeled their magic, bringing up a massive ice wall just as Nakhiir exhaled fire at the group.

“How are we supposed to beat something this big? The giant spider was killed by Wrath himself! I don’t see Gluttony doing that for us!” Brenda questioned.

“Old fashioned way!” Trevor exclaimed and he charged out from behind the ice wall, his blade coated in ice. He ducked as Nakhiir swiped his clawed wing at him and Trevor drove his blade into the bat’s wing. Malice unsheathed his own blade and sliced it into Nakhiir’s other wing. Nakhiir screeched from the pain.

Kathey took the chance to rush out from behind the ice wall with Zoymey right behind her. Kathey summoned a stream of water and doused Nakhiir. The water was enough to put out some of the flames on the bat’s body. Zoymey ran past Kathey and swung his axe into Nakhiir’s head. Nakhiir’s head was wretched to the side where Malice jumped up and kicked him in the head, causing it to wretch the other way again.

Sylark ran out from behind the ice wall and ran straight to Zoymey. Zoymey held his axe out and allowed Sylark to jump onto it. Zoymey swung his axe and launched Sylark above Nakhiir. Sylark drove his ice-covered blades into Nakhiir’s back and planted himself on the bat. Nakhiir screeched and twisted his head in an attempt to bite Sylark. Nakhiir stepped forward, unaware of Trevor still under him. Trevor brought his shield up over his head and braced his feet as well as he could. The strength Nakhiir had was enough to knock Trevor back towards the ice wall. Trevor dropped to somersault away from Nakhiir and duck behind the ice wall.

“You okay?” Brenda asked. Trevor panted and looked around the edge of the wall at Nakhiir before he pulled back again and nodded.

“Yeah, I’m good,” Trevor confirmed, his head falling back against the ice wall. “This thing is insane.”

“Tell me about it, we barely lasted against the spider,” Brenda replied. She glanced up a bit before she looked back at Trevor. “We can’t leave them to fight that thing alone.” Trevor shifted to look around the wall again.

Nakhiir leaned down to snap at Malice. Kathey hurried over to block the bite with her shield while Sylark blasted Nakhiir’s head with ice and Zoymey shot the bat’s leg with his Earth Shot. Nakhiir lost his footing and dropped to the ground. This was the perfect chance.

“Aya, let’s go!” Trevor shouted and rushed from behind the wall. Without a second thought, Aya followed after him and the two drove their blades into Nakhiir’s wing. Nakhiir threw his head up and screeched. He shook his body enough to throw Sylark from his back. He stood and knocked Kathey and Malice away with his other wing. Nakhiir looked down at Zoymey before snapping his jaws at the man, throwing Zoymey back just from the sheer force of his attempt. He swiped his other wing at Trevor and Aya. Trevor grabbed Aya as the two were launched away from Nakhiir and to the ice wall.

“Trevor! Aya!” Brenda cried and hurried over to where they had stopped with David behind her.

“Are you guys okay?” David asked. Trevor released Aya and got to his feet. He helped her stand as well.

“Yeah, I think so,” Trevor said and looked at Aya, who nodded. Trevor looked over at Nakhiir and watched as his body became ablaze again, the ice on his head melted now and his energy regained. “This isn’t going to work...” Trevor exhaled.

“What are we going to do?” Aya asked.

“We can try that new move we had been working on and see if that does anything,” Trevor suggested.

“Do you think that’s a good idea? We haven’t perfected it yet, it could backfire,” Brenda worried. Trevor looked over at the Compass Dragons working to recover from Nakhiir’s attacks before he looked over at Nash who was still hidden behind the ice wall. Nash had blood soaking his clothes, he was in no state to help them fight especially with the toll Gluttony took on him from controlling him.

“We have to try,” Trevor said and turned to face his siblings. “We have to.”

David nodded. “Yeah, let’s try. We’ll do some serious damage to it if we can do it.”

Brenda chewed her lip, hesitant but she nodded anyway. “Okay.”

“I’ll do my best,” Aya said.

Weapons sheathed, the siblings arrange themselves into a circle facing each other. Aya held her hands out to summon a small blizzard contained in an orb shape. Brenda summoned ice spikes in her hands and held them to the blizzard. The spikes swirled about with the snow, so far so good. David brings his hands up to create a ball of water before he separates it into a bunch of water drops. He wills the drops to Aya’s blizzard and the drops join with the snow and ice.

“It’s working!” Aya exclaimed quietly. The four turn to face Nakhiir who watched them. Aya spread her arms wide as the orb rose above them. Trevor reached in front of him over Aya’s head and directly at the orb. The orb started to grow in size, larger and larger until it was big enough to surround Nakhiir. Trevor drew his arm back and hurled the orb towards Nakhiir. They watched as the swirling snow, ice, and water surrounded Nakhiir.

The bat screeched as he was pelted with snow, ice, and water. His fire went out and his body began to solidify until finally, he went still. The magic disappeared and there stood a rocky formation of Nakhiir.

The massive fire bat was defeated.