Chapter 39: The Dragon Goes Fishing

    Doomwing found it amusing that the fish of the lake had chosen to gather around him. At first, they had kept their distance. He was a dragon, and they were fish. The possibilities were obvious. But he was no hatchling. He was a primordial dragon. What use were normal fish to him? He was far too large, and they were far too small.

    Only the bravest and most foolish fish had approached him. But when he had continued to ignore them, the other fish had soon joined them. Why? The fish were not particularly intelligent, but they had a crude sort of cunning. They had noticed that the fishing boats gave him a wide, wide berth, unwilling to risk rousing his ire.

    As strange it seemed, the fish were safest when they were next to him.

    That fact amused him, as did the plight of the fisherman who were torn between going after the schools of fish that clustered around him and staying as far away from him as possible. In the end, none were brave enough to approach, and so the fish were able to enjoy themselves without fear of being caught.

    He would be meeting with his subordinates later today, along with the prospective recruits. He had taken their measure using his construct, but there was something to be said about meeting them face to face. It was easy for a man or beast to contemplate betrayal when the consequences were not obvious. It was harder when those consequences were him, and he was there in the flesh.

    In the meantime, however, he found his mind drawn to those long ago days when fish such as these might have been worth his time.

    "This is a bad idea," Doomwing said. He was twenty feet long now. Alas, he had yet to fully cast aside his hatchling proportions. His wings were still too big, his tail was still not quite long enough, and he had yet to develop any of the frills, crests, horns, or cranial ridges that were common to older dragons.

    "It''ll be fine," Stormtooth replied. She was a tad larger than him, but she was very proud of her increasingly refined proportions. She looked more like a small adult dragon rather than a large hatchling. "There will be two of us, and sharks usually travel alone. We''ll have it outnumbered."

    "You''re talking about going after one of the giant sharks," Doomwing said. "Not a regular shark."

    "Well, yeah." Stormtooth nudged him with her snout and grinned. Her teeth were big and sharp and shiny. "Normal sharks don''t taste as good. We both know that. The best sharks are giant sharks. Besides, it''s not like we have to go after one of the huge ones. We can go after one of the smaller ones, you know, something about fifty feet long."

    "Fifty feet long? That''s longer than both of us put together." Doomwing flexed his wings nervously. "And giant sharks have magic too. Not to mention, it''ll probably be too big for us to carry out of the water. We''ll have to fight it underwater, and it''s a shark. They live underwater. We don''t."

    "If worse comes to worst, we can always just run away. What''s the shark going to do? Follow us into the sky?" Stormtooth sniggered. "We''ll be fine."

    "I guess" Doomwing nodded slowly. "But if it''s too strong, we should run away. We can always come back when we''re bigger."

    "Yeah, yeah. But that''s not going to happen." Stormtooth flared her wings as electricity crackled over her body. "We''re dragons. No stupid shark is going to beat us, even if it is a little bit bigger."

    They headed out over the open sea, their wings carrying them swiftly through the air until they reached a spot a few older dragons had told them about. Giant sharks were supposed to come here from time to time, drawn closer to the surface by whales, seals, and fish. It might have been easier to go after a lone whale, but whales rarely travelled alone. The last thing they needed was to find themselves fighting off a whole pod of the creatures.

    "Come on." Stormtooth peered down at the water. "I think I see one over there!"

    Without another word, she folded her wings and dove.

    "Wait!" Doomwing shouted. "Shouldn''t we check to see how big it is first?"

    But Stormtooth had already vanished beneath the waves, her streamlined form slicing easily through the water. Doomwing sighed and dove after her. Why was he friends with her again? Oh, right. She was actually really nice when she wasn''t doing something crazy.The source of this content nov(el)bi((n))

    The water was cold, but that was no problem for a dragon. His eyes had no trouble seeing either, and he took careful note of the fish and mammals that immediately moved to avoid him. He doubted any of them were looking for a fight, but it was better to be safe than sorry. A whale might not have a dragon''s teeth or claws, but some of them had fearsome horns, and their sheer size and weight meant they could do a lot of damage with a ramming attack.

    Looking around, it didn''t take him long to spot Stormtooth. The other dragon was swimming toward a large shark. The shark was perhaps forty feet in length, and Doomwing allowed himself to relax. Forty feet? That wasn''t so bad. They could handle a shark like that easily enough, and Stormtooth was right about how good giant sharks tasted. They were young dragons too, so eating the shark''s heart and other organs might even help to make them stronger.

    He used his wings, limbs, and tail to swim toward her. It was almost like flying underwater, albeit not nearly as fast. Yet just as he was about to reach her, she suddenly stopped.

    "What''s going on?" he asked. He was using magic to communicate. Stormtooth wasn''t good at magic, but even she could manage a communication spell when they were this close to each other. "Why did you stop?"

    She didn''t reply. Instead, she began to back away, wings beating furiously as something emerged from the darkness of the truly deep water below them. It was another giant shark and it was more than a hundred and fifty feet long. The shark she had been following was slower to notice the threat, and it cost the animal its life. With one massive bite, the larger of the two sharks ripped a chunk out of the smaller beast.

    The smaller shark thrashed and tried to use magic to heal itself only for the larger shark to finish it off in brutal fashion. Yet even as the massive shark swam through the cloud of blood its kill left behind, its beady eyes locked onto Stormtooth and Doomwing. The smaller shark might have sated its hunger, but even a shark of its size could benefit from consuming a pair of hatchlings.

    "Run!" Stormtooth hissed. "Go!"

    Doomwing turned and began to flee for the surface only for the water around him to thicken and harden. It was magic! The giant shark was using magic to slow them down! Desperately, he tried to use his own magic to clear the way, but the shark barely seemed to care. Instead, it closed in, tail thrashing, mouth wide open, ready to devour him whole.

    "We can''t get away," Stormtooth shouted. "We have to fight!"

    Doomwing knew she was right, and the urge to point out that he''d warned her about this exact possibility was almost overwhelming. But now was not the time. "Fine!" His mind whirled as the shark closed in. "We can''t fight it head on. It''s too big. We need to avoid its mouth, grab on, and hit it as much as we can!"

    "Okay!" Stormtooth nodded. "You''re usually right about stuff like this. Watch out. Here it comes!"

    Doomwing stopped trying to dispel the magic that was thickening the water and instead layered every speed enhancement magic he could think of on himself and Stormtooth. It was tempting to make them more durable, but he doubted that any magic he knew would allow them to survive even a single bite from the monster in front of them.

    "Dodge!" he shouted. "We have to dodge!"

    The shark closed the distance, and Doomwing flung himself to the side. The shark''s jaws snapped shut, only inches from his wings, and he turned and latched onto its side with his claws. Rather than dig into flesh, his claws skittered off the thick, armoured plates that covered the shark''s body.

    Younger giant sharks had scales, but the older and larger ones had armoured plates that made it easier for them to survive close combat against the savage creatures of the deep. He bit back a curse. If he couldn''t grab on, the shark would simply turn around and attack him again. He had to hold on!

    Finally, his claws found purchase on an oddly shaped plate as he found himself dangling off the shark almost halfway down its body. He looked up and saw Stormtooth a little closer to the shark''s head. She had managed to avoid the shark''s jaws as well although the scales on her side were broken. It must have managed to strike her with its fins or the side of its head.

    "I''m fine!" Stormtooth growled. "Let''s kill this thing!"

    There was a flash of light, and then electricity erupted from her mouth as she spewed a bolt of lightning straight into the shark''s side. That should have ended the battle and against a normal shark, it would have. But this was a giant shark, and it had magic of its own. The shark''s body gleamed, and Stormtooth''s electricity petered out.

    "What?" She snarled. "This thing has magic to defend against lightning? Why would it even have that?"

    "I doubt you''re the first opponent to try use lightning underwater," Doomwing said. "Keep trying!"

    Rising higher, the Lord of the Tides seemed to realise that the waters of the world would no longer be able to help him. Instead, he called to the clouds and the storm, to the birthright his father, a fool of a tempest dragon, had given him. Lightning flashed, rain poured down, and the wind howled. Even with Stormbringer there, the storm would not clear, and once again, the Lord of the Tides writhed in Ashheart''s grasp, close to breaking free.

    "Take us above the storm!" Doomwing had cried. "Take us above the clouds and the rain and the lightning!"

    "He is too heavy!" Ashheart boomed from within his armour. "I I cannot lift him quickly enough."

    That was when Dreamsong had returned. She had been felled earlier in the battle, and Doomwing had feared her dead. But she was there, wings tattered and barely capable of flight. She sang, and a dream became real. Wings wide enough to span the skies formed, attaching themselves to Ashheart''s volcanic armour.

    Their slow ascent became a heady climb, and Doomwing continued to claw his way up the Lord of the Tides''s body. Higher they went, above the storm, above the thunder, the clouds, and the rain, higher until the world curved below them and the air grew truly thin. Chains of dream and hope flared to life and added their strength to Ashheart''s.

    The Lord of the Tides broke them one after another, and with each broken chain, Dreamsong spat blood. She was no longer able to fly under her own power. Instead, she clung to Ashheart''s titanic armour, bleeding magic and blood into the cold air that seemed just shy of the stars.

    How many had given their lives to get them this far? Aurai and the braves elves and dwarves of the sky had all perished, as had many of their other allies. But now, at last, the Lord of the Tides was away from the waters and storms he commanded. He was no longer at full strength. This was their best perhaps only chance to slay him.

    But how?

    The great ancient runes that Doomwing knew could not be used so easily against a foe who was still struggling so mightily, nor was the Lord of the Tides undefended against such attacks. At best, they might break even, but how then should they slay him without runes or magic?

    A slow smile crossed Doomwing''s lips.

    He knew how.

    He threw all of his magic into an assault meant to break the Lord of the Tides''s defences. It just barely worked, even with help from Dreamsong and Ashheart. The others were trying to fly up to lend their own aid, but the forces of their enemy were keeping them occupied. Not even Dawnscale, the best flier amongst them, could break free of the endless swarms that had thrown their lot in with the Lord of the Tides.

    "You are out of magic and runes," the Lord of the Tides had taunted as his great body contorted, on the verge of breaking free. "Without them, how will you kill me, dragon?" All of his runes and magic had been dispelled, but he could tell that Doomwing had no others left to throw at him. In a contest of pure physical might, the Lord of the Tides would eventually win.

    Doomwing had not bothered to reply with words. Instead, he had heaved himself up at the Lord of the Tides''s head in a desperate, awkward leap. He just barely managed to grab hold, and he reached deep within himself for what was left of his flames and telekinesis.

    A needle of flame.

    He dragged in a deep, deep breath, and then unleashed a needle-thin beam of heat as bright and devastating as the sun. It struck the head of the Lord of the Tides and the scales there held.

    The Lord of the Tides had laughed. "It is hopeless, dragon! You cannot kill me! My scales were tempered in the depths of the sea! They are a gift from my mother and father! No flame can pierce them!"

    Doomwing roared, and the flames grew hotter and narrower still but still, the scales refused to give.

    "Doomwing!" Ashheart bellowed. "I cannot hold him much longer!"

    Dreamsong gave a wordless cry of distress as her remaining chains began to snap, and the ethereal wings she had gifted Ashheart''s armour began to fray.

    A needle wasn''t enough

    But what about a drill?

    Doomwing''s head threatened to split in half from the strain of trying to control his flames and telekinesis while so badly injured. He took the needle of flame and made it spin, faster and faster and faster until he could scarcely perceive the speed of each rotation.

    The scales that had held firm against every attack so far finally began to give way, glowing first white and then cracking as the needle-thin drill forced its way through.

    The Lord of the Tides screamed in true pain and disbelief, and Ashheart could barely hold him still. Dreamsong let her chains snap and instead lashed out with a frantic mental attack. The Lord of the Tides fought the intrusion, and Doomwing pressed his attack. Down the drill of fire went, down and down until at last there was no more scale or bone before it and only the vulnerable brain beneath.

    The monster''s roar turned into a keening wail, and Doomwing poured every last ounce of flame he held within his body into the end the needle and then let go.

    A star bloomed to life inside the Lord of the Tides''s skull.

    But even as he died, the Lord of the Tides would not let them go unscathed. Doomwing felt their enemy''s magical circulatory system begin to come apart a suicide attack.

    "We have to get clear!" Doomwing shouted. "We have "

    And a second, even larger, star filled the sky as the Lord of the Tides exploded.

    Doomwing''s jaw clenched at the memory. He had lost consciousness and awakened again as they fell to earth, pummelled by pieces of Ashheart''s ruined armour. He had shielded himself with his wings at the last moment, and both of them had been burned away, leaving only stumps behind. Dreamsong was in a similar state but still unconscious. He had seen Dawnscale rising quickly, angling toward them, and he had dredged up whatever telekinesis he could to shove Dreamsong at her. She would catch her.

    And then he had seen Ashheart. His friend was in an even worst state than him. His wings were both gone, just like Doomwing, but his limbs were scarcely any better. Great gashes and burns covered the rest of his body, and it seemed impossible that he could still be alive. Ashheart must have tried to shield Doomwing and Dreamsong with his armour at the last moment, and he had paid the price for it.

    The armour itself was gone, reduced to a storm of meteors plummeting back to the ground around them.

    Doomwing had forced out the very dregs of his magic, heedless of the damage he was causing to his soul and magical circulatory system both would heal in time, but not if he was dead and cast the strongest runes he could upon himself and Ashheart. He had hoped to stop their fall entirely, but all he could managed was to slow their descent slightly.

    But that had bought the others the time they needed to arrive as the Lord of the Tides''s forces either fled or were cut down as the shock of his defeat swept over them. Doomwing had allowed himself to be carried down to the ground where Dawnscale had set about healing the worst of their injuries, only stopping when he had warned her to be careful of exhausting herself. She was their best healer. She would not be able to help any of them if she collapsed.

    It had taken him some time to fully heal from his injuries even with all the help he had received but he had healed in the end, and as bittersweet as their victory had been, it was still a victory.

    Movement caught his attention, and he returned to the present, leaving his memories aside. His subordinates and the prospective recruits had been taken for a ride upon the sky ship. Now, though, the sky ship was coming to land in the waters nearby, so they could enjoy a dinner on the water and speak with Doomwing.

    He shook himself, startling the fish and sending waves rippling across the lake. Enough of memories. There was no changing the past. It was time to look to the future. Although perhaps when he had the chance, he would go hunt down a giant shark.

    He could leave half of the heart on the beach to honour the friends and allies he''d lost over the years. Sentimental, perhaps, but only a fool forgot the past and the lessons, both sweet and bitter, that it taught.