Angering the Dragon

That night, no one slept soundly, even though they had all agreed to get as much rest as they could. Berus, of course, was the only one that stayed awake throughout the night, and sat outside to watch out for the dragon. He didn’t dare to play around with his lightning bolt even though some part of him definitely did want to.

So he only had Ki-Rai for company, and she wanted to wait even less than he did.

“Ehehe, this is soooo boring,” she said. “Just get the dragon here now! Then we can fight it properly!”

“That’s not how this works, and you know it,” he sighed.

“Oh, you’re no fun,” she shot back. “You’re always soooo boring.”

“Hey, I thought you liked my fighting.”
“It’s not bloody enough. Try actually hurting Phorok for once, would you? Ehehe…”

“Never.”
“That’s what I mean! You don’t know anything! You’re a machine, made for war! Blood! Torture!”

“Are you simply a curse, trying to egg me on, then?”

“No, of course not.” She crossed her arms. “Why would you even say so? I told you, I’m as real a person as you are.”
“Then treat me like one.”
“Only if you treat me like one.”
He let out a long sigh. “I’m trying, Ki-Rai. Really, I am. I just don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Tell me, please.”

“Fight more. Give me control. Show me blood.”

“You know I can’t do that. Not right now. Isn’t it enough if we just… talk?”
“Nope! You don’t even know what it’s like, being like this.” She giggled, but it didn’t sound earnest. There was a sadness in her eyes that usually wasn’t there. She looked… almost serious. “You can decided with whom to speak, and what to do. I’m just… here. If I had control, I would do what I want, I would fight, I would live! But like this? I can only watch. I can’t do anything. I can only talk to you, and only if you want to talk with me. I can… easily be forgotten. That hurts.”

Saying that so clearly hurt Berus as well. “I’m sorry, Ki-Rai. I really didn’t mean to,” he said softly.

“But you still did it,” she pointed out. “And if I behave in a way you don’t like, you can just… close me off. That’s not fair. I have no control in this situation.”

“What should I do, then?” If he could do something, he would. But right now, he had no idea how that could look like.

“I don’t know! Give me control! Let me feel the joy of a body!”

“I can’t. You know I can’t do that.”

“Oh, but you could. You just don’t trust me to give that control back to you.”

“Well, I would have to convince Mikkah to revert her modifications, and…”
“Excuses. All excuses.” She glared at him. “I truly hope you will never find yourself in my position.”

“Ki-Rai…”

“Don’t talk to me. Just go away.”

With that, she vanished to some place he didn’t have access to. And with that, Berus was alone for the night, with no one to talk to but himself.

He still didn’t understand. Maybe he thought of this too much in terms of an online friendship? It felt like that to him, at least. He could check in on her whenever he wanted to, but sometimes real life (or a dragon fight) got in the way and he… forgot. Of course, that wasn’t right. Absolutely not. It wasn’t like he wanted to hurt her, not after all they had gone through together. But sometimes it felt like they were just too different. He just couldn’t give her control.

But her anger was justified. He just didn’t know what to do with it.

He let out a sigh that vanished in the inky-black air. He would figure it out, sooner or later. Right now, he just had to endure the night, and hope his comrades could rest.

***

When the sun rose, their plan was set in motion. Berus heard Phorok rise first, and when he did, he joined him in to make breakfast for them. It was the smell of fresh eggs and soft steamed vegetables that finally rose both Iuria and Mikkah. Just as expected, Mikkah donned her elven regalia, and her posture was even more correct than usual. As if she wanted to prove that she was powerful. And she was, just not that much when it came to fighting.

They all ate without making conversation. Usually, they would chat about whatever their plans were for the day, but today they all had the same goal. It was not the silence of blissful eating, but instead, a sour anticipation weighed them down. Berus was happy he didn’t have to to try and force some food down.

His mana reserves looked good. Especially after he had to sit alone with his thoughts, his mana regenerated a little faster than usual. Apparently, it really was his suffering that refined the mana that ran through his body. He shuddered at the thought.

Then I’ll prefer some slightly less efficient mana regeneration, he thought.

After they each had their breakfast, they got to working. While Mikkah and Iuria took their packed bags with them into the safe room inside the closet, Phorok and Berus went outside. They walked over to the magical stones, and finally, it was Berus’ turn to activate his spell.

“Then let’s see if we can get the dragon to come out,” he muttered.

He was in his combat menu, but Ki-Rai was missing, which surprised him. He was sure that she wouldn’t want to miss this fight. Maybe he had hurt her more than he thought he did?

But he didn’t have the time now to go searching for her. In his hand, the lightning bolt already sparked. He only needed to point it close to the hole in the barrier, and cast it.

Even when the spell rumbled, and their world lit up for a moment, Phorok at his side remained calm. He was as calm as ever, but maybe he was simply better at hiding the uneasy feeling that was definitely present in Berus.

This fight would be dangerous, even under the best circumstances. He couldn’t afford to make a single mistake.

He cast another lightning bolt, and after a moment or two, another.

“That should be enough,” Phorok huffed. “If this doesn’t get its attention, we’ll try another day.”
Berus nodded. He didn’t know what would be worse, to fight now or later. But he didn’t have to make that choice as finally, out of the forest, the now all-too-familiar rumble of the dragon could be heard. The trees bent as the dragon rushed towards the magical barrier, more enraged than they had ever seen it.

Berus cast another lightning bolt close to the hole in the barrier just to direct the dragon there instead of right at them. Above them, dark clouds gathered once more, and the air was pungent with the scent of sulfur.

“Get ready,” Phorok said.

“Sure.”

They spread out, and continued to watch the dragon closely. It roared, and swiped with its claws against the barrier, again and again. Just when it grew tired, Berus cast another lightning bolt, aggravating it once more.

“Ki-Rai?” he muttered.

But she wasn’t there.

“I have no mana sight right now,” he said to Phorok. “Sorry, but I can’t tell you what the status is right now.”
“That doesn’t matter. If the barrier breaks, we will know. Just keep doing what you’re doing.”

“Alright.”

Everything inside of him screamed to run away. It was so different from his usual raids. Sure, there was always the danger of them wiping, but they woudl respawn. Here, he doubted that it would work like that.

The air was as hot as if they were inside of a volcano. Everything about the dragon screamed rage, the way it roared at them, and how it attacked the barrier. But there was an eerie calm in Berus. He just had to keep directing the dragon to attack the barrier, and everything would be fine.

The barrier was strong, but the dragon was stronger. Even though touching the barrier must hurt it, it stood on the invisible dome, attacking it over and over again. Berus tried to keep it as aggressive as he could, but his mana reserves were rapidly dwindling.

“I only have two or three more spells in me,” he reported.

“Use them, but use them wisely,” Phorok said.

He had stood at attention ever since the dragon erupted from the forest, and ever since he never let his guard down. He watched everything with his dark eyes.

Berus, on the other hand, grew impatient. Just how strong was this barrier that even a dragon had so much trouble with it? He fired another lightning bolt. Then, another.

With each spell he cast, his body strained. The machine grew heavy, exhausted from the lack of fuel. The barrier had to shatter soon. It had to.

The dragon kept attacking the barrier, but it felt like nothing was happening. They just kept watching it attack, with the heat around them growing more and more.

“This is getting too dangerous,” Phorok said. “Stop it.”
“But we’re close to breaking that barrier!”
“Are we?”

Berus stopped. He didn’t know, actually.

“That’s what I thought. I don’t like the heat. I’ll get the two out and to the other side,” Phorok huffed.

“Sounds like a plan. I’ll stay here.”

“Good.”

Phorok ran toward the house, while Berus watched and waited. He had one more spell he could cast with no problem, but his regeneration was less than stellar, even though he felt tormented on the inside. The dragon was in such a rage didn’t didn’t stop attacking, it’s roars shaking the ground.

The barrier broke with a high-pitched, shattering noise. Suddenly, Berus could feel the magic erupt all around him, as if he had ascended from a deep dive too soon. The stones lost their golden luster, and the purple color faded into a grey. He was sure the barrier was gone.

The dragon let out a triumphant roar, and fire rained down onto the house.