After almost drowning in an effort to not be burnt to a crisp, Jem stumbles upon much more than expected deep beneath the village scorched black. Left all by his lonesome, Russo is forced to hold his own against the fire breathing monstrosity engaging in fly by arsons.


Per usual, not a whole lot to say here. Sorry this chapter took so much longer than usual to push out! I like getting out at least one new addition a month, but hopefully this'll do.



Icon is © to  Cirotin

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Chapter 39

Water gushing in between the plates of his armor, Jem gasped at the sudden freezing sensation flowing over his body. Eyelids ripping open, he blearily made out a trail of bubbles floating up towards the surface. Grabbing towards them, he uselessly tried shoveling the precious supply of air back into his mouth. He kicked his legs furiously but unfortunately all that happened was the collie merely sank at a slower pace. “Great. I end up drowning trying not to be burned alive.” A twin trail of bubbles escaped from his nostrils as the fur attempted to relieve the growing pressure in his throat. “Maybe Russo was right…” Sinking deeper and deeper into the darkening depths, Jem’s mind desperately cycled through ideas.

Ditch the armor? Tch, this wasn’t something that came off easily. Shedding some pounds would certainly help, but he’d be waterlogged long before he could undo all of the straps. Let himself drown? …Okay, so technically that was an option but come on. Next. Grow? Not exactly an all too novel idea, but well… it might let him breach the surface faster and would probably make him strong enough to paddle up even with all this gear weighing him down. What did he have to lose? As the suffocating pressure spread up from his throat to his nose, a dull and rapidly fading warmth spread out towards his extremities. Arcing out to his fingers and toes, his arms and legs, along with the rest of him, bulged and swelled as the giant’s magic circulated out to his thickening digits. Padded toes burst out from his boots and his leggings crept up towards his knees. Shuddering, Jem panicked at how constrictive his armor had become. It was an easy enough inconvenience to overlook when on dry land but now… his growth had had the undesired effect of squeezing out his last few precious gasps of air that much faster. Kicking frantically, Jem’s swollen and powerful paws propelled him upward. “Faster faster faster faster faster.” The growing fur sank his nails into waterworn walls, tearing chunks of stone off in a desperate attempt to drag himself up. Extending an arm out above him, his fingers poked through some floating ice extending out from the walls. Air! Colder than holy hell, but AIR! Scrabbling at the walls, Jem gasped deeply the instant his lips broke the water’s surface.

Bracing his elbows against the smooth stone circling round him, the enlarged collie inhaled deeply. Or as deeply as he could with his armor wrapped awfully snug around his frame. Dipping his head down against his chest, his breath danced along the water’s surface. “Wait…” Exhaling, Jem watched intently as the mist flowed atop the water and was drawn away from him. Following its path, the giant’s eyes were drawn towards a small passageway. Disappearing inside its cavernous maw, his breath faded into the inky blackness. “…” Biting his tongue, Jem stuck his head inside. Grasping at the uneven masonry along the sides of the passage, he slowly shrank down once he was sure he had a good grip. Dragging himself inside while his imposing height dwindled down, he grunted once he pulled his body free of the water’s chilly embrace. “If I find any of those villagers down here, I’m not sure whether I should be relieved or furiously pissed off.” Water dripping down from his muzzle, the soaking wet canine left a trail of water and soggy pawprints as he ventured deeper inside.

“Dammit wou-. You scaly son of -. FUCK DAMMIT.” Able to blurt only the most succinct of sentences, Russo blinked back and forth across the ashen battlefield. Perched atop the smoldering embers of a home overlooking the well, the dragon actively thwarted Russo’s every attempt to approach the well. A belch of fire here, a torrential gust there; the winged reptile was quite good at forcing the mage to keep his distance. Stomping a foot against the ground, the human was beside himself. He hadn’t advanced any freaking closer in what felt like ages! Locking gazes with the dragon, Russo trepidatiously approached.

Narrowing its slitted eyes, the winged beast’s throat bulged. The pliant scales upon its neck spread apart as the dragon’s throat expanded, revealing traces of the muscular pink flesh hidden just beneath. Hard to say whether or not the dragon roared or hacked loudly, but the sound effects aren’t really all that important. Regardless of how it sounded, a massive orange fireball lurched forth from its mouth and honed in on Russo.

“This again…” Pulling down his hood, the mage threw his shoulder forward, putting all his weight behind it. Slamming into the molten orb, it passed over his crimson cloak harmlessly, leaving it sparkling in the pale winter sun. Tossing back his hood, Russo fanned himself and wiped away the beads of sweat pouring down his face. Yes, the new cloak was absolutely amazing at repelling any and all fire attacks, no denying that. But it didn’t do jack squat about the ambient heat! Fire could no longer hurt him, but it could still sure as hell bake him. “No use wasting magic trying to dodge something that can’t even hurt me…”

Growling, the dragon’s claws sank deep into what remained of the home’s skeletal framework.

Holding out his right hand, arcs of electricity jumped between Russo’s fingers. Circling round from one digit to the next, a weak current stretched out from his index finger to his thumb and then back to his pinky. The circuit complete, the lightning in his palm crackled loudly and grew in intensity. Flicking his fingers, a thunderous echo boomed out. Rocketing forward, a bolt slammed into the boards the dragon rested upon and blew them to splinters.

Plopping down to the ground, the dragon landed awkwardly on its chest. Long neck whipping down and smacking into the ground, a rumble could be heard as the rest of the house collapsed around the dragon.

Smirking, Russo teleported as close as he could to the well before his window of opportunity passed. “Jem! JEM!” Kneeling down by the gap in the stones Jem had made during his charge, the human poked his head down into it. There was no sign of his furry friend. Before he even had a chance to contemplate grieving, an ear shattering roar snapped Russo to attention.

A steady white hot flame billowed up from the dragon’s resting place, the debris cluttered upon it turning to molten ash while everything in the immediate vicinity spontaneously combusted. Spreading out its wings, the infuriated reptile sent the refuse that had collapsed upon and around it sky high.

“Ahhhh!” Leaping back, Russo screeched as the first volley of the molten bombardment flattened the well. Scrambling to his feet, the mage worriedly turned his eyes to to skies. Currents of air wafted between his fingers, growing in size and strength until a layer of air surrounded his hands. Drawing in the ash raining down around him, the air became smoky and black. Wisps of smoke trailed down from his gloves. Pointing an open palm towards a descending comet, a black whorl of smoke shot out towards it. Exploding into a dazzle of flames immediately upon contact, the burst of air merely pushed the raining debris off course. It was the best the mage could hope for at this point. Teleporting was far too risky given the unnverving likelihood of reappearing right where a comet was about to make its meteoropic landing. Narrowly sidestepping one hazard after another, Russo fell into a pace and easily dodged the remainder of the attack.

Snorting angrily, the scales around the dragon’s nostrils seethed, a broiling steam wafting up from where one scale pressed against the next. Tilting its head from side to side, it scanned what remained of the settlement. Stone and scorched earth. Flapping its great wings, the reptile rose slowly into the air. “You are infuriatingly difficult to kill, you know that?” It rumbled from up on high.

“Oh, so you can speak?” Glaring up at the winged monstrosity, Russo crammed as much contempt and disdain as possible into his tone.

“Wasting my breath on someone so far beneath me is hardly ever worth the effort. But you…”

“Not the biggest fan of the cloak and the blink spell, are ya?” Snickering, the mage shot the dragon a middle finger. He received an ear curdling roar in response.

“Are you really in a position to be taunting me so?” Baring his teeth, a noxious and scalding hot liquid dripped down from its gums. “You’re far too weak to slay me and worse yet, too stupid to realize I’ve been insulting you at every step.”

Wait. So all those roars weren’t just for intimidation and show? Oh what the hell. “Pfft. Not like you are either. You’ve gotten how many hits in on me? None. Whereas I’ve dropped a fucking house on you.”

Kicking up the intensity, the dragon flapped its wings harder and harder, whipping up a fierce wind that blew back the human’s hair and cloak.

“Let me guess. This is the part where you leave in a big huff, swearing to come back and finish the job at an unspecified time and date.”

Snorting at the human, the dragon belched out one last stream of fire before turning tail.

Cupping his hands around his mouth, Russo yelled out at the departing monster. “Called it!” Chuckling at the sound of one last frustrated roar, the mage kept a close eye on the beast. It drifted on towards a mountain on the horizon, its base surrounded by a dense forest. Wiping beads of sweat off his brow, the human cringed when singed clumps of hair clung to his gloves. Rustling his hair, he found to his disdain that it was noticeably shorter than it was a couple hours ago. Locks of hair that once draped over his ears now barely brushed against the top of them. Dammit. He actually liked letting it grow out in the winter.

Turning his attention towards the demolished well, he let out a sigh upon approach. A molten slab made up of equal parts wall and flooring burned brightly atop where it once stood. It would be hours before it cooled enough for him to even inch it off the hole in the ground. “He’s… probably fine. Hopefully.” Pacing around it, Russo mulled over how to proceed.
He could *try* to teleport inside the well itself. It wasn’t like he had to have a line of sight to blink to and fro, just a clear mental picture of where he would be and what he would see. A now pitch black hole in the ground wasn’t a lot to work with. Closing his eyes would be just as useful. “Hmph, and not like there’s anyone around to chew out about this fool’s errand.” Wiped clean of nearly every piece of architecture, the flattened village took no time for his eyes to glance over. “It’s not like I’d leave without him but…” Pulling his lips down into a frown, the mage shoved his hands into his pockets. “There’s gotta be something better to do than sit around worrying…” Plopping down beside the wreckage, Russo huddled close to it for warmth. Pulling up his hood, the human pressed his molars against the inside of his cheek. Aside from the gashes in the ground from the dragon’s dives, only two pairs of footprints could be made out in the muck and ash.

Tapping a finger against a thigh, Jem surveyed the narrow tunnel. Padded toes scrunched against the rubble beside it; still chalky and coarse. This had been hastily dug out, and recently. “And judging from the mess still littered about inside…” Looked like this corridor under the well had been where this digger exited out to. No different than the other two he’d already passed by. Rolling a fragment of stone underneath the sole of a paw, the collie weighed his options. He turned his head and gazed further on down the corridor. Even in the poor light, he could still make out a handful of tunnels dotting the sides of the walls. Given the pattern so far, it was certain that the rest of them had been constructed with the same intent. Peering inside, his eyes squinted in the low light. “But just where do you begin?”

Stooping down, Jem erfed upon entry. His broad thick shoulders were too wide to push through. Scooching into it sideways yielded negligibly better results. His muscular legs and thighs barely squeezed inside. “I can’t even get any smaller than this!” Sliding along, he grimaced at the sound of his chest plate scraping up against the rock. “I just got that too. From Russo even.” Whining softly, nicks and scratches accumulated on his armor and his person with every sidestep. Chalk and dust matted to his wet fur, giving him reason to hack and wheeze as the fine particles wreaked havoc on his lungs.

“Almost… there…” Ascending a primitive set of stairs carved into the bedrock, the poor collie’s back screamed at him. Spinal discs bending out of shape and muscles pulled taut, the perpetually hunched posture required to squeeze through this place was eating away at Jem’s mind and stamina. “Why didn’t I look to see if there was a bigger one first?” He moaned aloud. Still, at least now there was an end in sight. At the top of the stairs was a wooden door, loosely fit into its stone frame. Extending an arm out towards it, he pushed it open and collapsed onto the other side. He found himself in what looked to be a cellar. Wooden were shelves lined with crumpled flowers and herbs left out to dry. Oh and what’s this?

Sparkles of dust waxed brightly off a philter of… something, nestled behind the stems and leaves of some dandelions. Pulling it towards him, a couple dried dandelions came along for the ride, softly dropping to the floor. Their sickly yellow petals exploded off the flowers and came to rest atop and around the collie’s paws. Digging the tip of a clawed finger into the cork sealing it tight, Jem yanked it out and sniffed at the odors wafting out. Sniffing and snuffing at the contents a couple more times, he held it up above his head and sloshed around its contents. Okay… so it was a reddish something that smelled faintly of… hell if I know. Pushing the cork back into the neck of the philter, he placed it back where he found it. Kicking up the faded petals with his footfalls, the fur’s attention was drawn towards them as they came to rest upon the shattered remnants of a ladder. The two legs remained held together by a couple rungs at one end, but towards the center they showed signs of cracks and rot. Towards the other end it became clear that someone had fallen through. Judging by the moldy splinters littered about, it shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise.

Tilting his head back, he eyed the outline of a hatch in the ceiling. A soft red glow spilled through cracks that formed a crude rectangle. Doubling in size, the bloated and muscular collie pressed the palms of both hands against the ceiling. “Hmm… still had to reach a bit.” Fumbling with the straps on his armor, he slid of his chest piece and the plating that reached down to his wrists. Bending his knees, the sleeves of his undershirt and legs of his pants tore apart while he swelled further. Barely reaching down to his midriff or down to his knees, the collie’s strained clothing couldn’t survive much more of this growiness. Pressing both hands against the ceiling once more, he smirked when he felt it give way. “So they had escape routes all set up from the start.” The lumber the collie pressed up on creaked loudly as it began to crack. “I mean… I should be glad that they’re safe…” Splinters trickled down onto Jem’s cheeks and forearms. He could feel the weight of some sort of rubble being pushed up with it. “But still. Luring people here under false premises with the naïve hope that they can vanquish way more than they bargained for?” Thrusting his toned furry arms upward, collapsed rafters toppled out into the ashen streets while a chunk of the floor burst up into the air. “Jackasses.” Plucking up his armor between two huge padded fingers, the giant gently reached up through the hole and set it on the ground before climbing up through it. A flash of blue light illuminated the cellar the instant Jem dug his thick fingers into what remained of the level above him. Recoiling his hand back down to his side, the collie padded back towards the entrance to the tunnels.

Embers popped and crackled noisily above. A chill wind blew down, brushing up frigidly against Jem’s dirty and matted fur. Sinking his teeth into his lips, he remained deathly silent while his eyes watered. Hesitant to rub at them, he blinked furiously in an attempt to flush the ashen irritants.

Footsteps sounded above. They alternated between the soft crunch of black snow and the loud creaking of floorboards and beams giving way. Coming to an abrupt halt, the hissing of the fires raging through the former village were all that could be heard once more.

“Please be Russo please be Russo please be Russo.” Why wouldn’t it be Russo? He was practically the only other person above ground last he checked. The human wouldn’t give two shits if the collie climbed out from beneath a ravaged home a good ten feet taller than normal. Still though... Augh no no no no no, “Dammit I’ve been getting way too lax with this lately!” Even if Russo was perfectly fine with knowing Jem could switch sizes, that wasn’t any legitimate reason for the collie to actually do so! The sound of his own heart pounding resonated in the fur’s ears, drowning out all other noise. Well, everything except the clanking of armor.

Running his fingers over the chest piece, Russo worriedly tapped at the scratches and nicks that had accumulated on its dull surface. None of those had been there this morning.Taking a couple steps back, he worriedly eyed the gaping hole in the ground. The planks of wood surrounding it were bent upward at sharp and jutting angles; something had smashed it out from underneath.“That dragon better have been the only thing those jackoffs failed to tell us about...” he mumbled under his breath. The mage kicked some rubble into the hole from afar, mindful of the couple second delay before a clattering sound registered in his ears. “J-Jem?” A relieved sigh echoed up in response. “I... think that’s a good sign?”

Slumping down against the door, the collie heaved out a stale breath. “Hey Russo.”

“You alright?” No longer fearful of what he might find, the human dared to venture closer. Wiping the grime from his cheeks, Russo leaned over and peered down into the hole.

Looking over his arms and mane, Jem smirked wryly. A coarse layer of dust had coated the canine’s fur and stray pebbles could be seen caught up in damp knots of matted hair. That’ll be a pain in the ass to brush out. “Shouldn’t I be the one asking that? You were the one left alone with a dragon.”

“The fact I’m here shouting down at you should speak volumes. It boiled down to me being too tough to hit, and that scaly bastard being too tough to hurt. I made a freaking house cave in on him and he just shook it off like a hangover.”

“Wait, how did you even end up down there? Last I saw you took a bit of an impromptu dip.” Groaning beneath his feet, the planks began to flake and splinter in the ambient heat.

“There’s a network of tunnels underneath the place; one of the offshoots led me right up here. We’ve been set up.” Clearly these people needed help, but still... the way they went about trying to get it rubbed his fur the wrong way. Grinding his teeth, his canines clacked together loudly. “Betcha every other house is the same.”

“I take it that some of those tunnels emptied out to the well then?”

Stepping into the rays of light poking down into the hole, embers raining down all the while, Jem nodded at his human companion.

“Figures. Not like them to risk getting barbequed just to slake their thirst.” Mouthing off some creative curses to himself, the mage looked around in disappointment. If any buildings actually had remained standing, he would have burned them down himself. “Need a hand getting out of there?” Blinking down besides the collie, Russo looked over his friend worriedly. A heavy weight gnawed at his chest upon gazing at the collie’s faded form. “Come on, let’s go home.”

Tail wagging pitifully from side to side, Jem let out a heavy sigh. “Even though they don’t deserve it, we should still help them.” His eyes drifted towards Russo hesitantly.

Slouching forward, the human snorted in a mixture of disgust and exasperation.

Patting him on the back, the warrior rocked him back and forth. “You know it’s the right thing to do. Now, granted,” a subdued anger leaked through his tone as he scrunched his brows, “I’m sure some... less than professional behavior would be excused on our end given the circumstances.”

“So what’s the plan of attack then?” Biting at the edge of his lip, there was no point arguing with the collie when he committed himself to the role of the moral compass. Darn him and his good influence.

“I have a pretty good idea of where all the locals are holed up. Couldn’t hurt to see if they know much, if anything at all, about our pest. Where it came from, why it’s attacking...” That and it was a perfect opportunity to chew them out. “At the very least we should see if it’s even possible for us to take this thing down.”

Scratching at his neck, Russo let out a sigh. “...Suppose I could go and scope out the mountain nearby. Scales made a bead for the base of it after our fight came to a conclusive draw.” Sublty cocking his head to the side, the mage paused to ponder. “Hold on, why am I bummed I fought a dragon to a draw? Holy hell, I should be thrilled I even walked away from that.” Augh. Chatting it up with a god on a distressingly regular basis was just killing his sense of accomplishment and wonder. Most everything starts seeming kind of paltry in comparison when you start shooting the shit, however unwillingly, with a guy like Dark.

“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.” Twiddling his toes against the top of a paw, the collie was secretly hoping the human would keep him company.

“Nah... You’re a better people person anyway. You’ll be able to get more out of them than my threats or vigorous swearing ever could.”

Letting his shoulders slump, Jem’s eyes drifted down towards his paws. “Mind grabbing my armor for me before you head out?” A flash of blue light forced the collie to shield his eyes. Keeping his hands up, he waited until another blue burst dully washed over his eyelids to lower them. “Thanks.” Bidding the mage a half-hearted goodbye, Jem slung back on his equipment. Inhaling and exhaling deeply, the warrior stared blankly at the door leading back down long after Russo had left. “...Fuck it.”

Padding towards the shelves, Jem dragged the bottle off of where he’d found it and ripped the cork off. Tilting his head back, he emptied the reddish something contents down his throat. He drew in air through his nostrils, his lips never parting from its glass neck. His throat bulged and receded with every swallow. An audible pop brushed against his ears when he pulled the empty bottle away from his muzzle. Red Wine. A little dry and way way way too bitter. Smacking his lips, he shoved the curved glass container back onto another musty shelf. A streak of dust coated against its shiny surface. “Probably would have been faster just dropping down the well again...” Jem grunted as he forced himself back between the narrow crevices leading back down into the tunnels.

With every shuffle of Russo’s feet, moist clumps of leaves sailed into the air. Kicking up a particularly large patch, the dead leaves rustled upon liftoff. They splatted noisily against the trunk of tree a couple feet ahead. Peeling off the tree’s bark, they left a brown, blob shaped, stain. “Should have known there wouldn’t even be any roads out here.” Weaving back and forth between the crowded trees had become a proper pain in the ass. The mage shook his boots every couple of steps, grimacing at the mass of decomposing plant matter clinging to his feet.

Currently traversing through a forest stripped bare, Russo’s gaze was primarily cast upward; ever focused on the mountain summit hidden behind the branches arching out like veins into the sky. An hour’s walk had already gotten him this far. The base could be only another half hour or so off at this pace. “Not that I’m complaining,” he thought aloud. The forest had an unnerving... quiet to it, and he was eager to escape it. Some chirps here or a rustling there of a bird hopping through the undergrowth would have been expected, welcomed even! At the very least a sign of life that wasn’t the winged fire breathing monstrosity kind. Squinting his eyes, Russo mumbled to himself while his cloak swayed to and fro. All he got was the hollow whistling of the wind.

Shaking at the branches and whipping up the leaves, bits of blades and stems whirled around him. Wind nipping at his ears, Russo continued to resist the urge to pull up his hood. The human had placed a premium on his peripheral vision, regardless of the cost to his comfort.

A sense of paranoia set in as he became painfully aware he was about the only source of noise in the forest. It made him feel dangerously exposed. Visible. He was practically broadcasting his position every time he kicked at the ground or so much as rustled the leaves. Regardless of the subtlety of his approach, in time Russo found himself standing before the mouth of a cave carved into the rocky base of a the mountain, only a hundred or so feet away from the treeline. Stalactites hung down like teeth from the top of the curved entrance. “If that doesn’t scream ‘dragon lair,’ then I don’t know what does.” Hmm... would it be worth checking if that blowhard actually was in there? Feh. Not like they had committed to anything.

Snapping to attention, Russo’s eyes darted towards the entrance. Tumultuous rumbles echoed out from it. “Awesome. Looks like I’ll be finding out anyway.” Skittering back towards the treeline, the mage wrapped his cloak around himself tight. His furrowed brows flattened out after the winged reptile had crawled clear of the cave’s entrance. Pointing at it from afar, Russo interrupted whatever spiel it had in store. “Why aren’t you red?”

Blinking multiple times, the not red dragon stared down dumbly at the human it had heard trudging in from miles off. “Pardon?”

“Why aren’t you red.” Its voice sounded different too. More... feminine.

Her head swiveled from side to side, drinking in the sight of the sparkling mica scales plated on her chest. Rearing her neck back, she gazed at him dismissively. “Well answer me this: Why are you colored like a waxing peach?”

Scratching at his cheek, an imperceptibly thin layer of oil and dead skin scraped off onto his glove. “Because I just... am?” Though now that he thought about it, that might have been the handiwork of some first degree burns too.

“There’s your answer.” Her thick club of a tail sliding back and forth along the ground, the dragoness still wasn’t quite sure how to react.

Draping his arms down against his sides, Russo looked over the reptile from head to tail once more. “You’re not red.”

She knew mortals were rather dimwitted but Jesus Christmas. “How very observant of you. You’re right. I’m not.”

“You’re grey. Why are you grey.”

“We just went over this.” She let out a frustrated sigh, streams of magic wafting off her forked tongue. “And I am not grey. It’s mica.”

“That’s a color?” Stepping back, Russo tried maintaining his distance when the dragon stomped towards him. Dumbfounded, the mage’s mind sputtered out. So not only did those assholes not mention it was a dragon abiding by a scorched earth policy, but they also left out that more than one dragon was to blame? What the fuck. Bapping the back of his head against a tree, Russo found himself pressed back against its trunk. The dragon’s snout hovered a foot before him.

“Since you won’t cut to the chase, I will. What are you doing here? Come to slay me? Come to accuse me of crimes I didn’t commit?” Shoving her nose against his stomach, those massive pearl eyes of hers peeled him away.

“Hold on hold on hold on, I was under the impression I was the one who was supposed to be thoroughly confused here.” Ever so gently, Russo placed his hands upon her snout and guided it to the side. The dragoness promptly shoved it back into place, pinning the human between scale and lumber.

“You’re still wanting an explanation. Right.” Taking in as deep a breath as was permitted, the mage met the dragoness’ glare. “You... wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with repeatedly razing a nearby village to the ground, would you?”

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