16 Dragon Slayer

Samantha quickly checks for a pulse on Donovan. "Good it's there but it's faint." She said. "Now tell me what happened!"

[What do I say?!] Zell thought to himself, beginning to panic. "He took me to the woods and a spell backfired on him." Zell said in a lie.

"That old goat." Samantha snarled. "Always causing trouble with his experimental magic."

Zell's charisma had done it again, and Samantha believed his story.

"Well, I suppose that you passed his test if he took you to the forest." Samantha said, and if not, I will still say you did for your skill in bringing him back to us after he blew himself up."

"Thank you." Zell said.

"That being said, you have passed the two most difficult tests I have ever given." Samantha said. "Would you mind telling me just what are you hiding?"

"It was just luck, that's all." Zell said in an attempt to evade.

"Just lucky you dodged all of the best warrior in the kingdom's attacks?" Samantha questioned. "Just lucky that you have enough mana to cast such a spell as transportation magic and not be unconscious afterwards? There are only a handful of mages in all the kingdom with that ability. But when you do it, it was just lucky."

"I ugh…" Zell started.

"Tell me the truth young Neuval, what are you hiding?!" Samantha demanded.

The floor flew open, and a small girl stood in the doorway. "Brother, are you not finished with your exams yet?" Rose yelled. "I am ready to go home! I have already been placed at the highest level for my exceptional ability."

"How about we finish this later?" Zell asked Samantha.

"That's fine, I have no option but to pass you and place you in my class." Samantha added. "You will be in the same class as your sister, and you will tell me what you are hiding."

"Ugh." Donovan moaned, causing Samantha to turn her attention back to the old man.

"I will see you both in class tomorrow." Samantha said. "Now leave me, I must attend to this old idiot."

Zell walked over to his sister and the two left together.

"How did you get into the same class as me brother?" Rose asked.

"It has been quite the day." Zell sighed.

Rose was suspicious of her brother; he had never shown much drive at home. She wondered what could have caused him to put forth so much effort. "I thought for sure you would have failed and disappointed father again." She said. "I suppose you are not completely useless."

"Thanks?" Zell said questionably. "Glad I could meet your expectations I guess."

"Do try and keep up with me brother." Rose said. "For I am the hero of legend, and my path shall be fast paced and fraught with dangers your puny intellect could not even fathom."

"Isn't this just the sweetest thing?" A dark figure said as they walked out from behind the tree line. "The young hero and her nothing of a brother walking home together after school. How utterly sweet, makes me want to vomit."

Rose pulled a small sword from her hip and got into an attack stance. "Don't worry brother, I will protect you from this fiend."

"Oh, that's just adorable!" The man laughed. "This tiny infant of a human thinks she has the might to best me. Oh, that just makes this trip oh so worth it."

"Who are you and what do you want?" Zell said.

"I am Xalrend," the man said with a bow. "I am but a humble elder dragon come to check the skills of humanity's dear hero."

"Enough of this banter!" Rose yelled. "Prepare to die fiend!" She charged at Xalrend, to which he easily batted her away with a smooth effortless motion. She landed face down in the dirt at his feet.

"My, what a worthless hero." Xalrend laughed. "So, boy, do you wish to save your dear sister? If the hero of humanity could not stop me, what hope would you have?" He reached down and picked Rose up by her neck with one arm. With the other he formed a claw upon his index finger. He then used the claw to pierce her shoulder. As he did blood splatter out onto the ground.

"Stop it!" Zell yelled. "Put her down!" Seeing his sister get stabbed caused flashes of memories to well up from inside of him, he saw bloody bodies of his past. [This must be my previous life. I still feel disconnected to it, but I feel the rage of my soul. I feel the anger instead of the sorrow.]

"Oh, and are you going to do something about it?!" Xalrend asked. "You know boy I have been alive for millennia and in that time, I have achieved a level beyond the comprehension of you humans. I have ascended to godhood! Yes, I am the god dragon king! I am at level forty thousand!"

"Tell me." Zell said with a seething rage in his voice. "At forty thousand can you still read your status screen?"

"Of course!" Xalrend asked. "All of my stats are in the tens of thousands.

Zell smiled, his anger bubbling up inside of him. "Good, that means I'm stronger." He said.

"Oh, come now, enough bluster." Xalrend said. "I know only the hero of the humans could be a threat to me and my kind. Allow me to show you what it is to be powerful." Xalrend tossed Rose onto the ground and charged at Zell in an instant. He threw a punch directly at Zell's head. To his surprise Zell caught it.

Zell began to squeeze the dragon's fist, slowly crushing it in his tiny hand. Xalrend could feel his bones snapping.

"What the devil are you?!" Xalrend yelled. "No human is this strong! Not now, not ever!"

"Oh?" Zell asked. With a quick motion he ripped the arm from Xalrend's socket. "Nobody told me that." Zell tossed Xalrend's arm behind him.

Xalrend fell backwards and landed on the ground. He was grabbing his wound trying to staunch the bleeding. "This, this isn't possible!"

Zell started slowly walking towards his enemy. "Tell me why you came to attack my sister?" He said.

Xalrend moved backwards on the ground in an attempt to evade Zell. "I was just bored." He shouted.

"Bored?" Zell said, the rage bubbling more and more to the surface. "So, you weren't ordered by the demon lord to attack her?"

"How do you know about the demon lord?!" Xalrend asked. "He has not made his presence known to any humans!"

"I ask, you answer." Zell said. "This is not a two-way street."

"I've got to get out of here!" Xalrend formed his wings upon his back and began to take off. Zell moved with lightning speed to disappear from sight and then reappear behind Xalrend. Zell grabbed both of his wings and ripped them out in a single motion.

"Ah!" Xalrend cried out in pain and rolled back to face his attacker once more. Zell was now covered Xalrend's blood, having been sprayed by each detached limb.

"Trying to leave before you answer my question?" Zell asked. "That is very impolite."

"I'm sorry!" Xalrend cried. "No, he did not send me!"

"Are you sure?!" Zell asked loudly.

"Yes!" Xalrend said. "He gave orders that none were to touch the hero until he gave the order, but I didn't agree with his plan and acted on my own! I thought she was too much of a threat to keep alive. I had no idea you were the true hero."

"That's good to hear." Zell said. "Sadly though, I can't have you reporting any of this to the demon lord. Zell punched a hole into Xalrend's chest with such force that the bone and organs turned to dust. The air pressure from the punch made a ten-foot crater on the ground behind Xalrend's corpse.

"Brother?!" Rose had regained consciousness mid-way through the fight and witnessed her brother's overwhelming might. "Is that really you?"