Chapter 263: A Burning Descent (1/2)
As the farm house collapsed in on itself, wreathed in the intense inferno of dragon fire, Mike sighed and glanced over at Selene. ”Welp, that was a bit of a bust.”
”Are you sure there wasn't something worth saving in there?” She asked, a little annoyed. ”Even if the boss wasn't going to talk, there could have been documents, or ledgers, or something.”
”Already asked the other members we captured. You know, the ones I threatened to let Red eat. According to them, this was only meant to be a temporary safe house while they tried to kidnap Sera. Their main base of operations in the region is located in the city, near the docks. I'll be heading there next, but I have a sneaking suspicion I won't find much. The Cabal seems to be good at covering its tracks.”
”Whatever. Then I assume this particular mission is at an end?” The vampire asked with arms folded, irritation still present in her body posture.
[I guess she's angry about me basically wasting her time?]
”That's right. As soon as we're done torching this place, I'll take you back to Almirn and let you resume your usual duties. I still have some business to take care of over the next couple of weeks, so I may have to call on you to handle a few things from time to time, but you should be in the clear in the short term. Anyway, you did a good job here. Because of your efforts, we got the chance to remove this particular blight from the capital.”
Sounding slightly mollified, Selene shot back. ”I know you are just trying to get on my good side, but I appreciate the sentiment anyway. Speaking of which, when are we getting out of here? I'm craving some real blood. Living off the small animals I managed to catch around here has been very depressing.”
Mike chuckled. ”Soon, I just want to make sure that the fire is controlled before I...”
He trailed off as he detected the appearance of a massive source of hostility. The range of his detection had increased since his breakthrough, and it was now a bit more accurate, so he could instantly tell that a powerful creature was descending from above very, very quickly.
Grabbing Selene, he sent a mental warning to Red while taking to the air with a blast of magic. A veritable mountain seemed to slam into the ground where he'd been standing mere seconds ago, creating a shockwave of dirt that extinguished the farmhouse's fire and threatened to knock Mike out of the sky.
Righting himself and then taking a moment to calm his disoriented vampire familiar, who had only just started to shriek cry out in alarm, Mike surveyed the new arrival, using Appraise as soon as the bulky creature became visible.
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Murthinax
Age: 4352
Race: Greater Flame Dragon
Class: Lord of Fire
Title: Sovereign of Stonebirth
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[...This is a bit troubling.]
Murthinax looked very similar to Red, only on a much larger scale. In fact he was so big that he might have trouble fitting inside a football stadium, if he were to appear on Earth. Red's bus-sized body was so completely dwarfed by the new arrival, that he looked like a small pet by comparison.
”Enslaving my kindred carries a heavy price, human!” The dragon roared, causing the air to vibrate with the unseen force of his voice. ”Even the Dragonknights never dared to bind a Flame Dragon, but I am merciful, release my kin from bondage and I shall spare your life.”
It took a moment for Mike to realize that he was talking about Red. ”Um...I think you are mistaken about something, your...uh...lordship.”
This didn't seem to amuse the powerful creature, ”Do not think to offer excuses, whelp. Your ancestors were still clawing in the dirt...what?”
For the first time since his arrival Murthinax turned his burning gaze away from Mike, focusing on Red, who was now sitting in front of him, making an impassioned plea. They were too far away for his words to be heard, but the meaning came across shortly.
”You are a summoned creature? I thought that technique was lost...I see.”
Looking back at Mike, the dragon called out again. ”Come here, human. It seems that we have much to discuss.”
By now, the hostility he'd been detecting since Murthinax's arrival had faded, so he figured it was probably safe to descend. Landing next to Red, he let Selene continue to hide behind him, a look of abject terror on her face, which was understandable considering her proximity to the colossal beast.
The Greater Flame Dragon stared at him for a few moments, taking in great gusts of air as if sampling his scent. Finally, he spoke again in a voice that was far too loud to be listened to comfortably. ”You are quite young for a Tier 4 mage, but I suppose that make's sense considering your other titles. However, that doesn't matter right now. Is it true you brought this one,” he gestured at Red, ”into existence using your magic?”
Mike took a moment to let his ears stop ringing. ”Its true. Although it was really more of a fluke, to be honest.”
”And could you recreate this 'fluke' if you needed to?”
He thought about it for a moment. With his newfound understanding of Summoning Magic, he was fairly certain he could figure out the chant he'd used to summon Red in the first place, and perhaps even improve on it in a few ways.
”I believe so, but it would require some experimentation.”
The massive dragon looked at him for a few seconds before rearing up and laughing. It was a concussive, volcanic affair that forced Mike to create a mana shield around himself and Selene as fire rained down on them. ”HAHA! Finally! Human, do you have any idea what this means?!”
”...No?”
”It means that I need not be the last of my kind!”
Mike staggered for a moment as the ground shook with the dragon's excitement. ”I wasn't aware that Flame Dragons were in danger of going extinct.”
Murthinax's demeanor changed in an instant, becoming far more subdued. ”It is a long story. One that I have no intention of sharing at this time. Just know that I have not encountered another living member of my species for several centuries. Regardless, that has changed now. Tell me human, how difficult would it be to create more like dragons like my cousin here?”
”Hmm, that's hard to say since I've yet to perfect the method, but I can probably manage to summon a few a year, once I get that ironed out.”
”HA! Excellent!” The dragon exclaimed happily. ”Do they need to be bound to you like this one is?”
”At first, I think? But I'm pretty sure I can release them after they've finished manifesting.” He replied uncertainly. What he'd said felt right, but he hadn't really put any thought into it before now.
”However, that doesn't mean I'm going to do so just because you asked.”
The air seemed to thicken as Murthinax regarded him again, and rumbled in a deep, almost subsonic, voice, ”Oh?”
Not letting the sliver of unease he felt enter his voice, Mike replied calmly. ”Summoning a small army of dragons is a time and energy consuming process, and I've yet to hear what I would be getting out of this deal. Surely you didn't think I would work for free.”
The tension increased as the massive creature stared at him for a moment longer, before it finally relented. ”That is...fair. Very well, what is it that you desire?”
Mike hesitated. He honestly didn't know what a creature like the Greater Flame Dragon could give him.
[Well, he's a dragon, so he's probably got some treasure stashed somewhere, but that feels like a bit of a waste. Some kind of magical boon maybe? Wasn't there that story about a dragon heart a while back? Not sure what I'd do with one, but...Argh! Whatever, I'll just throw it back into his court.]
”Thank you for the offer, but I feel that a wise and honorable dragon like yourself would know best what he could give someone like me.”
The dragon chuckled, sending forth another stream of lava which needed to be avoided carefully.