The captain took a few slow steps toward me.
I tensed, every muscle ready for anything.
Then, without warning, he bolted towards me. One hand reached for the hilt of his sword as he crossed the ground with terrifying speed.
Steel flashed. I barely twisted out of the way as his blade sliced the air where my head had just been.
Its tip passed just a few inches away from my eyes.
He was fast. Too fast. This wasn't a normal man.
As I landed, he chuckled.
"So, you're the monster that caused such a stir."
He eyed me, circling casually, like I was just an animal in a cage.
"Makes sense," he said. "Dragons are rare. Still… I did see one skulking through the forest a while back…"
His eyes narrowed. Then his lips curled.
"Wait. Don't tell me... are you that same little hatchling I carved up before?"
A jolt of fury surged through me as the memory of him, standing over me, mocking me while I bled.
I growled low and clenched my claws.
"It is you, isn't it?" he said with a smirk. "Guess the first round didn't leave enough scars."
"And I didn't expect that you would have reached Mana Transcendence."
"What? What's Mana Transcendence, is he referring to this new form I have?" I thought, "there is so much I don't know, but I can't dwell on it right now."
I pushed off the ground and dashed toward him, claws raised.
He wasn't the only one who could move fast.
He dodged, but not entirely. My claw tore through the side of his jacket. He struck back instantly, his blade flashing as I twisted away. A shallow cut opened on my arm.
It wasn't deep, but there was an awful burning sensation.
I winced, gripping the spot. "This is just like before… when he ambushed me."
The captain didn't let up. He surged forward, blade swinging.
"Best to dodge for now," I thought, weaving back as he unleashed a rapid flurry of strikes.
Steel hissed through the air. Each swing forced me a step farther from the main battle.
"He's trying to isolate me," I realized. "He wants to finish me before the villagers even notice."
Not a bad plan. But I wasn't going to let it happen.
"What's wrong?" the captain taunted, his voice smug. "Afraid of a little pain?"
He grinned cruelly. "I can't blame you for retreating. As everything I cut feels like it's being burned alive."
He raised his sword lazily. "Still, running isn't very dragon lik-"
I lunged before he could finish speaking.
I attacked, first with a claw slash, it was obvious. And he dodged.
But it was just a feint.
I quickly twisted and lashed out with my tail. It inflicted a shallow cut on his arm and tore through his sleeve.
He grimaced in pain. "Don't you know it's rude to interrupt people while they're talking." He said angrily.
Almost instantly after, he launched another barrage of strikes. This time, I didn't just dodge-
I met him head-on.
Our blows clashed. I clawed; he slashed. Sparks and scales flew.
I managed to land one hit, but he landed three. Each one a burning reminder of the damage I was taking.
I leapt back, breathing heavily.
"Is the pain getting to you already?" the captain said, barely winded. "That's a shame. Most of my fights end with my opponent passing out from the pain before I even get to kill them."
He chuckled darkly, eyes glinting with malice.
"I was sure blessed with a great ability," he said with a psychopathic grin.
"So, this pain didn't just come from his sword, it must be an ability, like my Presence Suppression." I thought, "But it's not like it matters much right now."
I clenched my jaw and charged again.
He dodged, but his movements had become just slightly predictable.
When he raised his sword high, I knew what was coming. He'd aim for my right side again.
I pulled back, and instead, swung with my left.
My claws raked across his chest. Not too deep… but enough to cause some real pain.
He staggered, exhaling sharply. Then his expression changed.
"Enough playing around," he said coldly. "I don't have time for this."
His blade ignited.
A pillar of flame erupted along the edge of the sword, white-hot and surging with unnatural intensity.
From where I stood, I could feel the heat clawing at the air.
It didn't burn him. Not even a bit.
I took a step back. Something had changed.
His posture. His presence.
Before, I could tell my blows had done some damage. And he'd been cautious of my attacks.
But now he was overflowing with power. And the wounds I'd left behind no longer seemed to matter.
"I wasn't expecting to use this ability today," he said with a wicked grin. "But I don't mind the practice."
In a blur, he moved.
He dashed toward me, faster than before. It was like a streak of fire was shooting towards me.
I raised my claw to meet him, but he ducked low and slipped past me on the left.
Steel sliced across my side.
A burning arc of pain flared across my ribs, searing straight through scale and flesh. I staggered, one hand going to the wound. Blood trickled through my claws.
I groaned. That cut had gone deep, and it burned like fire had been poured under my skin.
"I can't take many more of those..." I thought.
He attacked again, from a different angle. I dashed backward, but even with the distance, I wasn't fast enough.
His sword glided through my scales again, leaving a shallow cut, but the pain was still overwhelming.
I gritted my teeth as his assault continued. One slash. Then another. Small, precise cuts that didn't aim to kill, but to wear me down.
Each strike sent fresh agony blooming through my body.
"How can I fight this?" I thought, heart racing. "How can I possibly stop someone this fast… with this kind of power?"
My muscles screamed. My breath grew heavier. I pulled back faster now, slipping between tree roots and rocks, trying to break his rhythm.
But he kept coming. Effortlessly landing strike after strike with ease.
I roared, frustration and pain boiling up inside me. "Had the situation always been this hopeless?!"
My claws dug into the dirt as I clenched my fists. "Am I really doomed just to fail?"
"No!" I thought internally with determination.
Failure meant death. Not just mine, but Aurora, her father and the entire village.
That wasn't an option.
The captain charged again, drawing his sword back. But this time I didn't retreat.
I rushed in as well, not fully knowing what I was going to do.
Almost instinctively, my body moved before I could think.
And then Presence Suppression, activated.
The captain's eyes flickered, as his focus slipped.
His sword missed me.
I twisted low, and with a quick slash, I tore across his shoulder, drawing blood.
He didn't cry out; in fact, it seemed like it didn't even affect him. But he still stopped moving.
"So that's your ability, huh?" he muttered, eyes narrowing.
Then, eagerly he said, "Well then, let's see just how much it actually helps!"
He lunged again, faster this time. I met him head-on.
Presence Suppression.
I dodged by inches. His blade scraped the air beside my snout. But he leapt backward before my counter could land.
This was going to be a tricky fight. But I'd managed to even the field.
Then came the real storm.
The captain charged again. Then again.
Strike. Miss. Strike. Miss.
Every time, I dodged with Presence Suppression, but I couldn't counter. His momentum was relentless; it was like an avalanche of fire and steel.
I was forced to create distance, panting. "He's already starting to adapt to my ability."
If he just kept swinging nonstop, it wouldn't matter how many times I dodged.
I needed an opening.
"Fine then… I'll just make one somehow."
As he charged yet again, I activated Presence Suppression and dropped low, snatching a nearby rock the size of a clenched fist.
He didn't notice me grab it.
He was too busy charging in, with his now blood covered blade drawn, his eyes were locked on my chest.
Right where he wanted to cut.
I waited, just until he had entered the attack radius.
"Now!"
I leapt back, pushing off the earth with everything I had.
With one burst, I moved fifteen feet before he could realize.
I put my strength into my right arm and threw it.
The rock left my claw like a baseball, but with the power of a cannon ball, it whistled through the air, headed directly at his face.
His eyes widened. He tilted just in time to avoid it, the stone grazing past his ear.
But it was too late.
I had reactivated Presence Suppression.
And was already directly in front of him.
I twisted midair. And my tail sliced through the air like a blade. Then...
WHAM!
It smashed into his side with a bone-jarring crunch.
The captain was launched backward, crashing into a tree with a dull thud.
The bark split. He collapsed to the ground on hands and knees, coughing violently. Blood hit the dirt.
He pushed himself up slowly. His breathing ragged.
"That…" he spat blood, "was a dirty trick."
Then something changed in his voice. His cocky and cold attitude was now replaced with a new tone of genuine anger.
"It's time to end this." He rose to his full height, sword dragging across the ground.
"I didn't think I'd have to do this… but you've left me no choice."
Once again, flames exploded from the captain, but this time, it wasn't just his sword.
It was his entire body.
The fire cloaked him like living armor, writhing, burning, feeding on the air around him. The ground beneath his feet blackened.
And the heat, was unbearable and suffocating.
"Before, I was only using a fraction of my flame," he said, his voice smooth and deadly.
"But now, you'll taste its full power."
Then he moved fast. Blindingly fast.
His form blurred for a second, but I could still track just barely.
He was on me in a blink, flame trailing in his wake like a burning ribbon.
I had no time to react.
I triggered Presence Suppression instinctively...
but it wasn't enough.
His blade slashed deep into my shoulder. The impact was pure hot agony.
My flesh sizzled.
Smoke rose from the wound. I could smell my own burnt scales.
And that… was just the beginning.
I panicked. My body moved on its own, ran to put as much space between us as I could.
But he didn't chase.
I glanced back.
He raised his sword and slashed the air.
A wave of fire launched toward me like a crescent blade.
It struck my back, and I roared in pain.
Fire clung to me like it wanted to burrow through to the bone.
I staggered, but I forced myself to turn and face him.
I had to try something, to fight back.
I drew in a breath, deeper than I ever had before as he started to fire another flame.
He swung.
And I exhaled, unleashed a torrent of fire.
The two forces collided midair, flames raging and twisting violently between us. The blaze scorched the earth and grass turned to ash.
For a split second… I thought I had stopped him and felt a bit of relief.
But then, He burst through the flames.
Sword raised.
With all my strength I tried to dodge his strikes.
I couldn't avoid every hit, but Presence Suppression minimized the damage.
But my reward for that, was dozens of shallow cuts across my chest and arms.
My nerves lit up like they were being struck by lightning.
My body howled in protest. My thoughts blurred.
But I kept moving. Staggering. Retreating. Just doing anything I could to resist the outcome I dreaded.
Until with one dash.
He closed the distance between us instantly.
I swung wildly, claws slicing the air, but he ducked low.
Fire licked my scales as my hand passed through his flames.
Then his leg drove into my stomach. THUMP.
I was airborne for a moment.
Then I slammed into the dirt with a heavy, crunching impact.
My limbs twitched. I tried to rise, but my body gave out.
I dropped to my knees, chest heaving, vision blurring.
I was burning… inside and out. My body was at its limit.
I looked up.
The captain was walking toward me, with slow deliberate steps.
"You weren't bad for a wild beast," he said with a smirk, raising his sword.
"But you should've just stayed hidden in the forest."
Time seemed to slow.
I could see the blade above me, feel the pressure of its weight even before it fell. There was no dodging it. No escaping.
This was it.
Images of my short time in this new world flashed in front of my eyes.
The small camp I'd built in the woods. My first shelter. My first fire. It wasn't much, but I was a bit proud of what I'd accomplished.
Then I saw the shed I stayed in, and the food I was given.
It was the first and only kindness I'd ever been shown in this world.
And then… Aurora.
Her voice. The trust she had in me, despite my appearance and the warmth in her eyes.
I smiled faintly, until the weight of everything hit me again.
And that smile crumbled.
Only two words echoed in my mind: I'm sorry.
"I'm sorry I couldn't save you."
A single tear rolled down my face. I guess dragons could cry after all.
Then, a sharp pulse of information hit my mind.
Another ability. That I didn't know I had.
But it was too late.
The captain's sword was already coming down. A line of fire carved through the air, racing straight for me.