Warning: Negotiations In Progress

A few kilometers of ocean pulled back hundreds of meters out to shore.

Locust sized drones buzzed over the collapsed warehouse. They snapped pictures of bodies, structure damage, and burnt-out vehicles. Large drones on four rotors filmed Zenobia’s journey. They surveyed the tide holding like gelatin. They snapped pictures in various spectrums of Jorseph flying along the edge of a tensely restrained wall.

The yellow dragon flapped his wings steadily as he surveyed the scene from high above the warehouse. This shallow tide wasn’t a force of nature originating in the deep. However, there would be more than enough carnage for media sensation. The people here would be begging for the world government to contain magic items for generations.

Drone footage broadcast directly to his phone. He scrolled through pictures until he reached footage of Zenobia atop her water spout. Six drones shot footage from fresh angles, then automatically uploaded it to their servers. A toothy grin formed as he squeezed the phone.

One of the drone feeds became static, his grin faded. He dialed the local headquarters, “Stop losing the video capable drones. We don’t have an unlimited supply. If this disaster is not well documented because of technical ineptitude, there will be direct personal accountability. That’s all.”

Small drones, barely audible, buzzed past. They would snap pictures while remaining invisible. That’s why he called them invisible dragons.

He took a deep breath, flapped his wings slightly faster, and then mumbled, “I’d really rather not have to record this myself.”

Zenobia continued towards the refinery.

A large eastern dragon flew to her from the tensed ocean. He checked his binoculars. The moon provided just enough light to see it cross behind the acrid smoke. He could make out a dim figure floating towards the water element. His vision strained until he saw the outline of a book.

A direct message went to Grabby: Once you establish Avelina is safely returned, report immediately for debriefing.

The imp would know what to do.

-----

Reverberations of light rippled across the ethereal scrolls. Miniature drones flew against the spell only to bounce away. They continued snapping pictures, then flew elsewhere. The continuation of miniscule flashes made Jorseph’s slitted eyes tense.

Below, the drone swarm buzzed around Zenobia. The larger drones ascended high, but the multitude of miniatures harassed in proximity. Spikes from her pedestal shot through a fraction. The injured drones fell to meet the crabs and gasping fish. More came, so Zenobia let them be and kept moving with the refinery in her sights

Lilly’s silhouette nodded to Jorseph, “I’m going to try reasoning with her.”

She descended with a trail of letters flowing from her book. The inky silhouette twirled to Zenobia’s side.

A bubble in the center of the water spout contained a dragon. Drones snapped pictures whenever the water allowed some visibility. Lilly guessed it was Zenobia’s wielder, but felt his presence fading. She flew behind Zenobia. The mop raised, but Lilly’s hand gripped the handle and pulled back.

A gentle embrace wrapped Zenobia, yet Lilly kept a firm hold of the handle, “Zenobia, what are you doing? Please tell me this wasn’t you.”

Zenobia craned her neck. A salty waterfall cascaded onto a figure made of ink. Half of Lilly’s form dissolved under the glow of a neon eye.

Lilly pushed back to recompose her form. Her wielder continued to shrink. It felt like he was getting heavier, like she’d soon have to carry him. The seventh set of lower limbs atrophied while shrinking back into his body.

Zenobia halted, then jerked around to confront her. Hair whished like a whip that sliced Lilly’s secondary form in half. Ink bled from severed symbols and broken paragraphs. The body remerged in a reduced state.

“Oh look, it’s Lilly, my fakest friend. The one who betrayed me because I was too much competition. But she couldn’t even do that right because here she is in my exile!”

“What are you talking about? I would never-”

Zenobia’s secondary form doubled in size, “Liar! I saw you refuse to defend me when Cheryl and Xasha badmouthed. I saw what you whispered. I saw you talking to that imp about dragging me away. The person I trusted the most in the whole entire world saw me as an obstacle. Do you know how that feels? But maybe I’m kind of proud. I never thought a stick in the mud like you could be competitive, let alone an evil witch.”

Lilly clutched her chest as her scripts faded, “Zen, where is this even coming from? None of that happened.”

“None of what happened Lilly? Is this a math equation now. Does everything cancel out? Am I hurting your precious feelings? Are we having a happy study session? Are you going to cry? It doesn’t matter. I cried so hard that I control the sea. Thanks for that, I guess.”

Jorseph punched the barrier with his claws. He could feel it weakening. A little more, he thought, and he could escape to bite that water witch, “Don’t let her talk to you like that! Lilly is a good dragon- thing- book- person!”

Lilly composed. Text solidified. She tried reaching out with a hug. The salty water from Zenobia’s shoulders burned. It corroded Lilly’s hands to inky stubs until she recoiled.

Zenobia laughed, “And so the truth is told. You never wanted to hug me. You never wanted to care. You never wanted to be my friend. You just used me the same way I used you. That’s right. I said it. I used you. I made you do my assignments; I roped you into being my campaign manager; I forced you to tutor me so I’d ace the math tests. You were willing to live in my shadow and do my dirty work, that’s the only reason I ever tolerated you. I even flirted with Zak because I knew how you felt.”

Lilly clutched her chest, “I thought you were different.”

“What, are you crying over it? That’s just pathetic.”

“I hated being around people. I thought everyone was shallow, fake, just pretending to nice. But I thought you were different. I practically worshipped you!”

The gurgling water spout whispered to itself. Crabs struggled to find water below. 

Frantic repeated readings of recited incantation began. The opening of the spellbook in a light rain made Lilly tense. Gravitational orbs floated in the invisible prison. The scrolls' glowing outline appeared whenever an orb brushed them.

“So, is that your master?" Zenobia shifted her attention and pointed at the large dragon slamming an invisible cage. "He’s pathetic. My master was strong and still got destroyed by a better dragon. I pulled him through a tunnel of sharp stones and he survived it. He’s still feeding me power even now. Your master is drawing your power. What do you think you’ll accomplish with a pathetic master like that?”

“He’s not my master. He’s my friend.”

The mop was cradled by Zenobia's head, “That’s so sweet! He’s your little friend!”

“Zenobia, please come with us. We can talk about anything as much as you want. You can say whatever you need to say. I won’t hold it against you.”

“I don’t associate with villains!”

“You’re going to hurt people! Calm down and get your head straight!”

The light rain became a steady drizzle. Zenobia burst out laughing, “I don’t see any people here. I see a world full of dragons. Evil dragons. And as the heroine of this world, it’s my sworn duty to slay them all!”

“I won’t let you. I can’t let you. You need to come your senses.”

The rain pulled into Zenobia’s open palm. It swirled into an ever-larger orb that glowed the same shade as her eye, “Senses? Senses? I’m in my element! I’ve already come to my senses. I know what we are. You always were a bit slow, but you’ll recognize it soon enough. I’m going to give us our happy ending. I’m going to save this world and get us home- even if we can never be friends again. I’ll still fix it all, even for you. Because I’ve always had to fix everything myself.”

The swirling ball of rain glowed bright. It arced back over Zenobia’s liquid limb. She aimed it at Jorseph.

“Do you think dragons know how to play dodge ball?”

“Zen no!”