Page 22 of Double Dragon


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“You can’t stop us, and neither will the barrier.”

“The barrier was formed by ancient magic. It will stand fast, and I am far wiser than the two of you shall ever be. But let us not fight here. You claim that our ancestors forced us to lose some of our instinctive spirit? I will show you just how much of a dragon I can be.” He said this and transformed, leaping into the air and flying away. Thomas and William glared at each other.

“I know he was behind all this,” Thomas said.

“It is our chance now to get vengeance upon him,” William growled. I looked at them, unsure, but I knew there was no way I could talk them out of this. This was a conflict that had been brewing over generations, and I was no one to stop it.

Thomas and William shifted before my eyes, becoming the majestic, awe-inspiring creatures of myth. The fear I had felt when they first appeared to me like this had completely vanished, but I feared for their Uncle, because I was sure that nothing would stop these two dragons from tearing him apart.

I climbed on Thomas’ back once more as we rose through the mountains. I found it odd that their uncle would have left the confines of the chambers, for the close quarters would have given him an advantage against two foes. Perhaps he was so arrogant he didn’t think Thomas and William would pose a threat, but if he truly thought that then it would be his downfall.

We raced through the air and I slipped off Thomas’ back when we reached the top. The torches remained lit, illuminated the great pit below me, and I was filled with vertigo when I looked down. I pressed my hand against Thomas’ flank and whispered good fortune to them, hating the fact that I was helpless in this conflict. I moved to the entrance of the cave and put my hand against the rocky surface as Thomas and William went out to meet their uncle in battle.

He was waiting for them, a crimson force in the sky. Behind him in the distance I could see the roiling storm, and I was intrigued by his brief mention of the barrier, implying that it was something artificial. There must have been some ancient magic keeping it encircling the island, hiding it from the outside world.

Thomas and William, the black and green dragons, moved in harmony, mirroring each others’ movements as they streaked towards their uncle, putting their wings flat against their bodies to make themselves more aerodynamic. My heart caught in my throat as I watched them fly into battle, not least because I knew that if they failed, I would be lost here with no way to get back down to the ground. I had to hope and pray that they emerged triumphant.

I had seen men fight before, but this was something else entirely. The dragons met upon the battlefield of their own making and hovered in the air. From this vantage point I could see that their uncle was a far bigger dragon than either of them, and it made me worry that my earlier confidence in them had been misplaced. The red dragon had gnarled skin and his roar made the air tremble. He batted his wings and flew higher, and opened with a flow of furious breath. The air sparked with crimson flame and the other two dragons only just managed to evade it in time. They were split up either side of the flame, and this seemed to have been their uncle’s intention as he quickly banked to the left and chased after William, barreling into him. I gasped and held my hand to my mouth as I watched the great scarlet wings envelop William, the sharp claws raking William’s body as their uncle jabbed his head towards him, trying to clamp his mighty jaws around William’s neck. William managed to twist out of the way of his maw, but he was unable to avoid the claws. I saw scales fall from him like snowflakes, glittering in the air, followed by drops of blood. I winced for him, felt his pain, and I cheered when he used his legs to push his uncle away, kicking him back and getting ready for an attack of his own.

The plume of fire had dissipated and left behind it fading mist. I dreaded to think of either of them being caught in its wake, having seen the damage the flame could do. While William had been attacked, Thomas had been obscured from my vision as the sky had been lit by fire, but now I saw him bursting through the smoke, hurtling towards their uncle. Thomas slammed into his back and made him howl. He twisted his body and used his wing to give his uncle a dragon’s slap across the face, which only seemed to make his uncle more enraged.

His uncle turned around to face Thomas and let out a bloodcurdling roar, which made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. I watched, fraught with tension, as Thomas was attacked in much the same way as William had been, but this time their uncle was more successful as his jaw clamped around Thomas’ shoulder, the teeth sinking into the flesh. I saw Thomas’ body buckle and heard the echo of a whimper as a chunk of flesh was torn from him. More scales fell like rain, but now it was William’s turn to come to his brothers’ aid. I clenched my fist as he put his teeth against his uncle’s leg and dragged him down, using all his strength to pull him away from Thomas. Their uncle yelped in pain, letting go of Thomas in the process. He was taken down through the air, although he quickly twisted his body and used his superior strength to fling William up and smash him with his tail. William was buffeted by the impact, but as soon as one of them was turned away, the other attack.

My heart lifted as the brothers worked in tandem to attack their uncle. I shouldn’t have been surprised at how efficient they were. They had lived together all their lives and worked in complete unison, having an almost telepathic understanding. It made what happened between their uncle and their father sadder, for I could not imagine two people who shared their connection turning on each other, betraying each others’ trust.

The brothers were relentless. As soon as one of them was batted away the other attacked, and they struck at different parts of the red dragon’s body. William attacked his tail, and then Thomas smashed his head, William rose and butted into the red dragon’s flank, while now Thomas whipped his tail across the back. The red dragon was twisting and turning, but he was always a moment too late; even though he could anticipate the attack the younger dragons were too swift for him.

Elation filled my heart. Their triumph seemed certain now, and I was glad that their uncle’s confidence had been misplaced. The brothers were too strong and agile for him, and it had been a mistake for him to bring them out into the open air. I was sure that it was only a matter of time as William and Thomas went in for another attack, this time at the same time. They had their legs spread out like an eagle, ready to slash at the red

dragon’s body and claw until they reached the innards. I smiled as I watched what I thought was going to be the finishing blow, only to be dismayed as the red dragon beat his mighty wings and caused enough gust to push Thomas and William back. This momentary delay was all the red dragon needed to rear his head back and let out another stream of ugly fire.

I reeled back in shock, anxiety swimming in my stomach for I was sure that the brothers couldn’t have dodged the blast, but they had, and I clapped my hands together as I saw them either side of the fire. It had been one last gamble by the red dragon, and it had failed. It was only a matter of time now…but I was wrong. It wasn’t his last gamble at all. The red dragon flew like a spear through the fire. The flames licked his body, but he didn’t seem to be affected by it at all. He was focused on one thing and one thing only, his new target; me.

His ugly, gnarled face scowled at me as he bat his wings and surged towards me, just like the snake had earlier. I stepped back, knowing that there was nowhere for me to run. Fear crawled down my spine and I can’t describe the horror I felt in that moment, seeing this impossible creature bearing down on me, the fire still hanging in the air behind him. He seemed to dwarf everything else with his size. He was so huge. He filled my vision and I cowered, turning my head away, knowing there was nothing I could do to stop the inevitable. He roared and I saw the abyss in his throat, and then a soft glow. I knew death was but moments away. My flesh would be seared from my bones, and I would be turned to ash, another soul claimed by this forsaken place.

But then, I felt a rush of air sweep past me and then a blaze of heat. I turned as a dragon crashed to the ground beside me. This time it was William who had saved me rather than Thomas. I shrieked as I saw the red dragon still bearing down on me, rearing back for another attack. I glanced over at William. The green dragon was on the floor, flames licking his body, smoke rising from his charred scales. It was a miracle he was still alive.

The air tasted like ash and my eyes watered from brimstone and smoke. I was sure this was the closest I would come to hell. I stood up, wanting to die defiantly. I planted my feet squarely and looked up at the monstrous sight before me, at the fangs and the beady eyes, the sheer hatred that bristled all over his body. The red dragon studied me for a brief moment, and then ran his slimy tongue over his jaws. Saliva dripped down from his grey tongue and he opened his jaws, but this time there was no fire burning inside him and I realized that he wasn’t going to try and burn me to death, he was going to snap my body in half and eat me. I almost threw up as his jaw jerked forward, and his fetid breath suffocated me, but his jaws snapped together inches before my face.

He was pulled back by Thomas. The black dragon had rushed in and dragged the red dragon back, using all his strength to destabilize him. The red dragon was shocked, but regained his composure quickly. He spread out his wings and dug his claws into the rock, still trying to snap at me. Through his trunks of legs, I could see Thomas snapping and biting and slashing at the red dragon’s titanic body, and eventually he succeeded in biting off a chunk of his tail. The red dragon yelped in pain, a terrible sound that was like the choir of a thousand demons, and then turned to deal with his nephew, but the red dragon couldn’t account for the rage that fueled Thomas.

The red dragon had wounded William and tried to kill me. He’d gone after the things that Thomas loved most in all the world, and there was no way Thomas was going to stand for that. The red dragon tried to attack, but Thomas was a whirling maelstrom of claws and jaws and tail, attacking the red dragon with everything he had. He slammed the red dragon into the side of the mountain with such force that it shook, and I was knocked off my feet. I watched them twist and snarl together, turning around like a whirlwind, both of them trying to gain the upper hand, just one opening that would give them the advantage they needed to cause the other grievous harm. Their necks twisted as they sought to avoid each others’ breath attacks. They were so close that any fire would have consumed both of them, but in time it seemed as though the red dragon was willing to take that risk. He opened his great maw once again, ready to let fly a smoking stream of hellfire and I prepared myself for the sight of another dragon being burned, and from such close quarters that I couldn’t imagine it being anything other than fatal.

I should have had more faith in Thomas. He had been studying the dragon, of course, and knew that this was going to happen. As soon as the red dragon opened his jaw and that glow of fire appeared Thomas broke free of his grasp and slashed across his throat, opening a great gash from which a river of blood flowed out. The red dragon wanted to scream again, but it came out as a gurgle, and the fire dimmed. A look of surprise came across his face and then he attacked with vengeance. The two dragons looked as though they were dancing, as they twirled through the air and disappeared from view. I ran out to the edge, craning my neck out as far as I dared to try and keep sight of them, but they moved around the mountain, and when I looked down I was afraid of falling.

I retreated inside and went to tend to William’s body. I was glad to see that he was still breathing, but his eyes were closed and he whimpered. The scales were tender where they had been burned. He had managed to adjust the aim of his uncle so that the flames hit harmlessly against the rocks and avoided me, but he had caught the tail end of the breath and it had licked his body.

The mountain rocked as the dragons continued to fight outside, barreling into the side of the mountain. I could imagine how the battle was going, and while Thomas had dealt a wound to his uncle, I envisioned that it only served to enrage the older dragon. Despite Thomas having neutralized the breath attack, the red dragon was still strong, and could still put up a determined resistance.

They smashed against the mountain so I could tell their position, and they were coming back around to my view. I rushed to the edge, wanting to see them again. Sometimes they went a long few moments without crashing into the mountain and I worried that something had happened to the both of them, but then they came back. I saw their shadows first and my heart filled with fear, worried that the red dragon had gained the upper hand. But I was relieved to see Thomas looking strong, while the red dragon looked tattered. There were holes in his wings and his scales dripped with metallic-looking blood. He looked groggy, and he was fighting purely on instinct now, swiping with what little breath he had left. Thomas grabbed him in his claws and smashed him against the mountain again. The red dragon’s skull cracked and Thomas held one of his wings in his claws, using all his strength to pull at it. There was a sickening crack of bone and cartilage as the wing was torn away. Thomas was filled with fury and knocked the red dragon into the cavern. He looked utterly defeated, but Thomas wasn’t ready to end the battle yet. He dragged the red dragon back outside with his teeth, and flung him into the air. With only one functioning wing, the red dragon couldn’t hope to save himself. He twirled helplessly through the air as Thomas flew out and followed his trajectory as gravity claimed him. I watched as Thomas opened his mouth and let fly a stream of his own fire, which encapsulated the red dragon and made him a smoking fireball that fell to the ground, crashing to his doom.

It was over. The dragon had been defeated. We were safe, we were alive, and their father had been avenged. Thomas hovered in the air a few moments, watching his uncle plunge to his doom, and then turned and flew back into the cavern, transforming back into a man as he landed.

18

Thomas rushed over to me and held me tightly. I was trembling with so many emotions I have no idea how I even managed to stay standing, all I know is that I loved being in his arms. I felt safe, as though no harm could ever come to me as long as he was around, and I was also in awe of his display of strength.

We sank to the floor as he held me. He kissed me all over. I was a mess of hair and whimpers, but I kissed him back eagerly.

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