Well Done

Something, no several somethings streaked through the night startling both Jerimai and Dorothy. From the center of the settlement's yard, the boulders D had clustered up launched into the air as the dragon drifted close. They didn't streak directly towards it but spread out in a cluster over the settlement. Then exploded sending shockwaves and stone shrapnel in all directions. D had altered them to fill the core with a sphere of water, the wards first launched them skyward and then almost instantly evaporated the water inside. Causing them to explode with released pressure. Eirlog was caught off guard but not particularly hurt by the attack. It might have been enough to shred a flock of Skrags but against a dragon, it was but a minor annoyance.

Still, the grip on D had lessened slightly, not enough for them to escape. Not normally. But the moment they weakened their grip he let his body transform back to his smaller human form. Even as the coils of the dragon tried to snap around him he slipped free. Eirlog snarled and billowed forth another stream of emerald flame. D though free of the crushing weight sucked in a breath of air and responded with a breath attack of his own. The resulting explosion sent him rocketing to the ground to smash into the roof of the house.

Jeremiah and Dorothy both turned around to see D laying in a pile of rubble. His shirt was shredded but shockingly enough he looked unharmed. "Boy!" Jeremiah pulled Dorothy into the house as the dragon overhead shrieked in rage and swept the entire settlement with emerald flames.

"Sword." D pulled himself out of the rubble as the house around them started to crackle from the flames ignited on the outside. Jeremiah started to say something then just began undoing his bardic's buckles. D took the weapon and drew it from the sheath to take a close look at it. Blood Steel was aptly named. Unlike normal metal, it wasn't dug up and refined. It was harvested from the blood of a monster known as a Prinic. Lamprey-like creatures that burrowed through the stone of a mountainous region of the Sa'dali deserts. They devoured earth and ore equally. A tribe of the region goes on a great hunt every decade to capture the monsters and drain vast amounts of their blood before releasing them back into the wilds. Then the blood is boiled and refined into workable metal.

Beyond simply being incredibly light and strong it was one of the few shapable metals that were also permanent catalysts. Enchantments could be added to a weapon greatly increasing its power, but normally required a skilled enchanter. Even a blank unenchanted blood steel weapon was worth a small fortune. D already knew the sword wasn't enchanted, he had seen it enough to know that. He had already thought of a dozen different enchants he planned to add when it was his. None of them would make it a weapon capable of killing the dragon he faced now. Already he turned part of his mind to coming up with something. He just had to buy time until it was ready.

Overhead the ceiling groaned as the dragon landed on it. Their narrow snout stuck into the hole D crashed through. Emerald flames flickered and everyone realized at once what was coming. Jeremiah grabbed his daughter to drag her out even though there was no way they would escape in time. Both were knocked down as D tackled them. Dark veined wings spread to cover them just as the flames washed over them.

Dorothy looked up able to see D grimace in pain as the flames ate at his delicate wings. Jeremiah tried to pull his daughter closer to further shield her forcing her face to look down. Her already wide eyes dilated at what they saw. Growing from under D's left arm out of the side of his rib cage was another smaller arm. The hand was clawed with long pointed nails that were currently rapidly scratching symbols into her father's sword held near his chest.

"Run." D's hot breath tickled the back of her neck sending a shiver down her spine. Then he stood up and pushed them out of the door. He seemed to grow in height as he thrust the sword up through the sagging ceiling. There was an angry roar and the sound of flapping wings as the dragon took flight. Jeremiah dragged Dorothy with him to the main gate and started spinning the wheel to raise the bar. Dorothy looked back and watched as the monster D had become leapt up before crashing down on the sagging porch. Then taking flight towards the dragon.

"Dad! D… D he… A monster?" Dorothy couldn't tear her eyes off the two dark scale covered monsters fighting in mid air. One a gigantic eight winged snake the other a manlike creature with wings growing from the balls of his shoulders wielding her father's prized sword.

"Magic girl. He is using magic." Jeremiah grunted as he cranked the wheel for all he was worth.

Soon enough the bar was raised and the two slipped into the moonless night beyond the walls illuminated by their settlement burning. Normally heading into the swamp wastes at night would be madness. But with a dragon at their backs and D having slaughtered all the monsters it seemed far safer.

D had learned his lesson and avoided getting too close to the dragon. He darted in and slashed at it. Then fell back avoiding its attempt to constrict him. He let himself drop like a rock and crashed down into the barn with the panicked goats. They took one look at him, let out a high pitched almost human scream, and fainted.

D's new third arm resumed its rapid scratching. Carving the runes of words into the metal with a harsh scratching sound. D knew what was being done but not the fine details, it was odd splitting his mind like this but there was no time to sit and ponder. Not while fighting. Sensing danger he turned and smashed his way through the sidewall of the barn just as the dragon came crashing down. Using its full bulk to crush the building and bury the crying goats in the burning rubble.

Eirlog launched forward faster than D expected. He managed to get the sword between them at the last moment. The dragon's snout smacked into the metal and carried him back to crash into the sidewall of the main house. Then it turned upwards rising into the air, the inertia of its rush keeping him pinned to its snout. Eirlog opened its mouth more, flames licking at the back of the dragon's throat. D prepared to counter with his own breath when instead of flames sound emerged from the dragon's mouth. Short harsh words in a tongue D had never heard before. Four spears of coper colored light lanced into D's back and pierced his wings. The breath D had started to draw was blasted from his chest as just air and Eirlog flicked his head sending them flying away like an annoying insect. Before D could right himself with his still healing wings, the dragon's tail snapped into him like a whip and sent him crashing to the ground below. He hit the hard packed dirt of the settlement's yard and skidded to blast through the burning wall of the storage building.

Eirlog dropped down in a pile of coils on the smaller building bringing the entire burning shed down to encase D. "I think I'll have you well done!" Eirlog hissed.