Saints Can't Slay a Calamity

“I think this is a perfect spot for lunch!”

The climb to the peak began on a trail lined with towering pine trees, but as they ascended, the lush greenery faded into scorched trunks and boulders gouged with large claw marks. Now, near the top of the mountain, the thin, cold air stood still. No birds chirped on withered branches, and the faint scent of old ash drifted throughout.

“Maria, this is a literal dead zone,” Thomas groaned.

“Which is exactly why we need to keep our spirits up,” Maria said. She sat on a nearby rock. It was strangely warm to the touch. She carefully unwrapped the sandwiches.

“Fine… but I expect two then,” Thomas said.

“One for you.” She handed one to Thomas, who looked at her blankly. “And one for you.” Another sandwich went to Kaelan. The dark-cloaked man had been in quiet focus, scanning their surroundings.

“And you?” he asked.

“Oh… right!” She took another from her pack.

Before she could even take a bite, the ground beneath trembled. It started as a low, deep vibration that shook the pebbles on the trail, but it quickly escalated. A violent tremor formed cracks along the path, and a heavy warm gust bended weakened trees.

Maria almost shed a tear as she watched the sandwiches topple onto the dirt.

“Oh, no…” She pouted. “The food…”

Kaelan lunged forward as an enormous shadow darkened the sun overhead.

“Get down!”

A sound that shattered the mountain's silence soon swallowed his voice. A fierce roar that left Maria’s ears ringing. The sound vibrated through the very marrow of her bones.

Maria raised her head. The Calamity Dragon descended.

“E-Emergency plan number two!” Thomas shouted, but his words only reached deaf ears.

Thick, dark scales covered most of the dragon. The scales almost morphed into black, but under the pale mountain sun, they shone with a deep violet luster. Its wings kicked up a hot gale of ash that stung Maria’s face.

Kaelan winced, drawing an arm across his line of sight.

It was a colossal beast; the full residents of the chapel could comfortably fit on its back. But when directly faced by such a presence, Maria held no such childhood delusions of riding a dragon.

Her chest tightened, and she struggled to catch her breath. Before she could even take a step back, Kaelan’s dark cloak swept in front of her. He drew his daggers and locked his body in place.

Thomas, who stood to the side, pointed his silver staff forward. “Fine, then… Plan C!” Past his own pale face, he recited a chant and manifested a barrier of fire.

Maria shut her eyes and took a deep breath. On exhaling, her hands ceased trembling. Her eyes locked onto the dragon while images of those she cared about, those in need, flashed through her mind.

It dissipated the tightness in her chest, and any lingering fear seemed like a distant memory.

With a simple, deep inhale from the great dragon, the barrier of fire became no more. Instead, a growing heat intensified as its stomach bulged.

Thomas stood with mouth agape, but his carefully crafted plans stopped escaping his lips.

Maria smirked. It was not the time nor the place, but the corners of her mouth curled before she realized. “Maybe using fire magic against a fire-breathing dragon wasn’t the wisest thing to do.”

Does he not always pride himself on his brilliant mind? She almost chuckled. But her statement was enough to ease some of the tension.

Her golden mana seeped out with a pressure that matched the dragon’s own until growing beyond it.

Thomas took a step back, though it no longer seemed like it was because of the dragon’s imminent threat. Maria smiled when Kaelan defied the terror in front, and the growing presence standing to his back.

Finally, the dragon released its breath. Just as Maria uttered a silent prayer, a fierce streak of flame shot toward them.

Kaelan tightened his grip but didn’t budge from its path.

The flames deflected to the sides against a radiant barrier. Intense heat crashed against it, radiating to the three within, yet the barrier never cracked.

“Maria…” Words finally escaped Thomas’ lips.

Once the flames dissipated, the dragon’s striking gold-slitted eyes widened. It staggered back and released another piercing roar.

“Huh?” Maria tilted her head.

It was a subtle thing. But she could tell. The same way she could tell when a child at the chapel hid a scraped knee or a bruised elbow.

The dragon shifted its weight. Just enough to know it favored a side and didn’t want to put more weight on a certain leg. Once it lifted a massive paw to strike, she got her confirmation. Maria’s barrier parried the strike with a clang, and the dragon’s eyes widened even further. Its roar morphed into a shriek.

“...You’re hurt.” Maria stepped forward past Kaelan and the barrier.

“Maria? What are you—?”

She gave Kaelan a gentle smile. It seemed to reassure him.

But as the dragon raised its massive paw once more, he tightened the grip on his daggers again and readied a lunging stance.

Maria frowned at the dragon. “I won’t be able to help you if you don’t sit still.” This time, Maria truly focused her mana. The difference was noticeable. More palpable.

The dragon hung its paw in the air while Maria clasped her hands and chanted a deep prayer.

A golden magic circle formed from her extended arms. It flickered and spun and grew in size. Great chains with a divine aura shot out with a rattle. They extended toward the dragon in every direction and subdued the beast between its trembling roars.

“T-That’s new…” Kaelan said with a blank face while Maria inspected the beast that now lay on its side.

Her doubts had been right. Something was embedded on its left paw. “What is that?”

A large splinter? It was a dark thing; it radiated a strange unease and veined within the dragon’s skin.

Kaelan squinted. “A sword?”

Thomas took a few hesitant steps forward. “Corruption… That sword is blighted.” His eyes narrowed. “It’s miasmic… Demonic steel.”

“How the hell did it end up all the way out here in a dragon’s foot?”

“Good question. A demon wouldn’t part from their weapon. Not wilfully. They’d rather die of shame.” Thomas rubbed his chin. “Some great warrior’s prize, perhaps. But it’s also a valuable thing. The highest of nobles or a daring, renowned merchant might come to have one in their possession.”

The dragon’s shriek drowned his words.

“Stop being such a crybaby; this is for your own good!” Maria tugged on the dark, radiating sword.

A strange sensation filled her on first touch. It stung, but more than that, it was as if it sapped the energy right out of her. But she pulled with all her might as if lodged in a stone. A purifying spell enveloped the weapon in light, erasing the dark veins that extended into the dragon’s paw.

“H-Hey careful, Maria!” Thomas called out. “That thing’s miasmic. It’s naturally potent against divine properties.”

“It’s fine. Just one… more…” With a final grunt, she freed the sword and was sent flying backward, but Kaelan caught her fall.

The sword crumbled away in a glow.

“You okay?” He grabbed her hands. They quivered, reddened, and blistered.

She shut them and quickly stood. “I’m fine, I’m fine.”

“You say that…”

As soon as she let go of Kaelan’s shoulder, she almost fell to her knees. Kaelan caught her once more.

“Sorry…”

“Don’t worry. You can use me as support.”

Maria chuckled as she leaned against his broad back. “You make for ‌surprisingly excellent support.”

“Thanks, I try.”

A heavy groan from the side called their attention. Maria’s radiant chains dissolved into golden mana that drifted away in the cold air. With heavy steps, the dragon stood tall once more.

“Well, I guess you helped the dragon, Maria,” Thomas said. “Not quite sure how we will fare, though.”

“Any more of those emergency plans of yours?” Kaelan put Maria on his back.

She clasped her arms around him. There was a warmth there that wasn’t before.

No, that wasn’t quite right. It had always been there, but it lay buried and was finally radiating out. It fought against the cold mountain peak, under the looming shadow of a Great Calamity Dragon.