7 Vaporized

"We're from a guild called Point Blank," Bauph explained. "It's a new guild, and honestly besides the guild leader, we're the only guild members."

Xujen raised an eyebrow. "A guild with a skeleton crew, huh? And what do you want from me?"

"We want — no, need — you to join," Curt said. "There's a big guild tournament that's going to happen in three months. We need more fighters though, a total of ten to be exact. Our guild leader apparently thinks you have to be a part of this."

"Tournament?"

"Yeah. Supposedly all the big shots are going to join. Grand prize is a pretty penny and a ticket to the Star City."

Xujen only took a few seconds to ponder their proposal before he answered, "I'll join your guild."

Curt and Bauph gazed at him flabbergast. The two of them simultaneously asked, "What?"

Xujen casually shrugged as he sat back down and picked up the bowl of soup again. "It sounds interesting — the tournament that is. I wouldn't mind getting a chance to fight some of the continent's best. There's only one problem."

Curt had a bad feeling about this.

"As you can see, my sword is gone. I'll join your guild, but I can't fight without it."

"Not even if we got you a replacement?" Bauph asked.

Xujen was shaking his head before Bauph could even finish his sentence. "No. I will wield no other sword."

"Well, do you know where it is?"

Xujen nodded.

"Then how is this a problem?" Bauph said impatiently. Curt didn't blame him. They spent the greater part of the day trudging up a mountain, only to get ambushed by yetis.

"This blizzard that's been going on for so long, don't you find it strange?" Xujen began, ignoring Bauph rolling his eyes. "The source of the blizzard and the location of my sword, it is one and the same."

Curt waved his hand, also impatiently. "Get to the point. Bauph and I have gone through a lot today."

"I assume you've heard that I am a hero to the Tu'ban for slaying the ice dragon that plagued them. That is only partly true. I did stop the ice dragon's rampage, but it is not dead."

"Oh boy," Curt said. "I knew I had a bad feeling about this. Your sword's with the dragon or something?"

"It is."

"And you want us to go fetch it for you?"

Xujen nodded again. "But do not worry, for I will also be coming. My sword's long absence is beginning to make me uneasy."

Curt sighed. Bauph sighed. They didn't take several days and walking through a blizzard to turn back now. "We'll help," Bauph said.

"Excellent. Then let us be off," Xujen said. He finished the last of his soup in one gulp, set down the bowl, and stood back up.

Curt groaned as he ventured back out into the cold. The warmth of the yurt invited him back inside, but he resisted the temptation. But it was close. Xujen, on the other hand, didn't seem bothered at all by the cold. If anything, he seemed a bit refreshed, like it was a cool, relieving breeze blowing past rather than a freezing blizzard gale.

The trio passed by the chief who was on his way back to his yurt.

"Xujen? Heading out already?" The chief asked, looking disappointed.

"Yes, I'll be finishing what I started here, and then the blizzard will finally be over," Xujen replied. "Thank you for your hospitality. I will miss the food here."

The chief frowned. "You're always welcome back here. Once you get your sword back, we should spar." The chief grinned at the idea. "It's been some years since I last saw combat, but I won't disappoint. You can trust me on that. Take care, Xujen."

"I will look forward to that day. Take care, Bunta."

"Sure you don't need me to rally up some guys to help you out?" Chief Bunta looked over Curt and Bauph. "No offense, but your guild mates look pretty weak."

"We'll be fine. I wouldn't call them my guild mates if they couldn't handle this."

Curt sighed inwardly. So this was a test. If they pass, Xujen will hopefully keep his word and join the guild. If they failed, well, they'd probably be dead and Xujen wouldn't have to worry about anything. He patted the revolvers by his side; fire should be good against something like an ice dragon, right?

---

No one bothered to make smalltalk along the way, given that the howling winds would've made every word a shout. It was difficult enough to try and keep up with Xujen, who seemed to traverse the deep snow like it wasn't there at all. Curt wondered if the man even had normal blood running through his veins. If he were in sandals in this weather, Curt was sure he'd have lost the whole foot to the cold.

Curt took another step forward, cursing at the cold, and the blizzard dissipated. No, that wasn't accurate. It would be better to say they seemed to have crossed some sort of magical threshold. Curt glanced behind him. The white flurry of snow made it obvious the blizzard was still going on just a step behind him.

"We're here," Xujen said. "The eye of the storm,where the dragon and my sword dwells." Xujen pointed straight ahead, and Curt had to do a double take.

What he initially thought of as a hill of snow and icicles was actually the dragon's head. Its head was easily the size of the Tu'ban chief's yurt, and the rest of its body was now apparent to him. The dragon was practically the size of a small mountain, and the sharp icicles were actually a part of the dragon itself. And Curt realized why it was so easy to miss — the dragon was encased in ice, and completely, deathly, still.

"Is it dead?" Bauph asked first, taking a wary step forward. "I thought you said you didn't kill it?"

"I didn't," Xujen said. He approached the dragon without hesitation, making a beeline for its head. "I merely froze the dragon here with my sword. The moment the sword is removed however, the dragon will once again be free to move." He stopped in front of the dragon's forehead, where Curt had to squint to see the thin sword sticking straight out of it.

"We couldn't kill it before you pull that out?" Bauph asked.

"The ice surrounding it is harder than steel. If you can pierce through that and its scales to reach its heart, please show me."

Bauph sighed. "Guess that means we have to do this the hard way. I've heard how tough dragon scales could be. Your sword must be something special to have even gotten stuck in one."

Curt hadn't seen any swords that looked like that back up where he was from or even in Endyre. Its sleek, ice blue blade looked almost too thin to be used as a weapon. Only one side of the sword was bladed, and the hilt was wrapped with what appeared to be a black bandage decorated with strange symbols.

Xujen looked at the sword fondly as he gripped the hilt. "How I've missed you, Shrieking Vapor." Turning toward Bauph and Curt, he asked, "Are you two ready?"

"Whoa hang on, don't pull that out yet," Bauph replied quickly. "Let me prepare my miracles first. Curt, I can bless you as well, so get over here." Once Curt was close enough, Bauph began rapidly chant the same prayers Curt had heard when they were attacked by yetis. Curt felt a surge of warmth and vigor flow through his body as each chant was done. By the end of it, he felt like he could take almost anything on. Maybe even an ice dragon. But at the very least, all the energy the cold trek through the blizzard sapped felt returned.

"Okay," Curt said, revolvers out and pointed at the dragon's snout. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Which, just for the record, means not at all. Because I sure as hell haven't fought a dragon before."

"Same goes for me," Bauph said. "I always considered myself reasonable enough to have never faced down a dragon before, but I guess that's changing." A spear manifested in one of his hands and he was poised to throw it.

Xujen smiled. "Good to know you two don't back down from a challenge. Very well, let us begin!" With a single stroke, Xujen pulled the sword out.

The ground shook, and the tremors knocked Bauph and Curt off balance as they struggled to keep their footing in the snow. The ice dragon's body began to rumble, and large sheets of ice fell off of it as it rose. At its full height, Curt couldn't even reach its knees.

Hate-filled eyes scanned its surroundings. Upon sighting Xujen, who stood rather calmly under its head, it roared with fury. Curt had to force himself not to flinch, seeing that Xujen didn't even seem to care that a mountain-sized dragon was before him. The ice dragon raised a large claw, then swiped it down faster than Curt thought it could toward Xujen.

Curt fired several bullets towards the dragon's face as Bauph threw a spear directed at the dragon's claw. Most of the bullets ricocheted off the cerulean scales, but one managed to hit the dragon in an eye, sending out a small plume of flame. The dragon screamed in pain, and Bauph's spear buried into the palm of the dragon. It reeled back, half-blind, and the remaining eye looked bloodshot as it glared down at its foes.

Xujen looked up at the ice dragon, finally moving from his spot as he placed his right foot forward. "You were a worthy foe, but your misdeeds to the residents of this mountain cannot be overlooked. Do not fear your own death, for your strength will not be forgotten by my blade."

Xujen's sword gave off a soft glimmer. A single slash, then back to the sheath. Xujen turned around, the dragon frozen in place, its hateful visage staring down at them. He ambled casually toward Curt and Bauph, who still had weapons pointed at the dragon.

"Thanks for the opening," Xujen said with a small smile. "Let us take our leave. I need to register for your guild, don't I?"

The dragon behind him shattered as diamond dust fell from where it once stood. Curt let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He had some questions. A lot of questions. But no complaints; Curt was happy to still be alive. And getting to someplace warmer first seemed like a good idea.