novelraw Chapter 61
Chapter 61
Whoosh.
The sound of rushing air appeared beside Aiden. He didn't need to look; it was undoubtedly Bianca, that foolish dragon, catching up.
He scanned the earth below. The cacti forest was a no-go. The five-star Sand-Wyrm was too great a threat. It seemed the river was his only option. He hoped he might encounter the herd of Thunder-horn Rams again. They would make for excellent bait; the desert beasts would surely be interested.
WHOOSH!
With a powerful beat of his great red wings, Aiden accelerated once more.
The journey to the river was short by flight. Soon, the rushing waters came into view. Aiden's gaze swept the banks. Disappointingly, they were empty.
But then— a flash of white in one of the pits he had dug. A fish?
He tucked his wings slightly, banking into a dive toward the riverbank. His claws touched down first. The moment his body stabilized, there was a great splash.
SPLASH!
A large fish launched itself from the pit, a silver arc in the air.
PLOP!
With another splash, it landed in the main river and vanished instantly.
“???”
Aiden's maw opened, and a torrent of red fire poured into the now-empty pit.
HISSSSSS!
A great cloud of steam billowed upwards. After venting his frustration, he spread his wings and launched himself back into the sky. He never wanted to see another one of those damned fish again.
Bianca and Azure tilted their heads in unison, watching the red figure flee the scene of his embarrassment. He's angry, isn't he? A grin split Bianca's white maw. Spreading their wings, the two wyrmlings gave chase.
The riverbank had yielded no bait. Aiden's slitted pupils scanned the terrain. To the right of the canyon was the territory of a five-star sand worm; that was out. It seemed they had no choice but to circle the nearby area. Surely there was some form of life near the river. He had to hope so.
They flew aimlessly for half a day.
Damn it all! There's nothing!
Tucking his wings, Aiden dove toward a low mountain peak below. As he neared the ground, he flared his wings, his speed dropping in an instant. His claws touched down softly, and his wings folded slowly at his sides.
Whoosh. Whoosh.
Two more gusts of wind announced the arrival of the others.
He walked to the edge of a cliff and looked down. Sand. Nothing but damned sand. This whole cursed sub-plane… Aiden's frustration began to boil over, his control slipping. The tell-tale flicker of ruby fire manifested above his brow.
His blatant agitation was so obvious that even Bianca noticed. She immediately sat down, planting her rear on the ground, tucking her hind legs, and lifting her foreclaws in a perfect, obedient posture.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
The fiery Crown had just begun to take shape when Aiden's red pupils suddenly constricted.
Down below, on the sands, a pack of black magical beasts was chasing its prey. The unlucky creature was a Manticore of the intermediate-tier, identifiable by its thick, dark carapace and the lion-like head fringed with a mane of dull gold fur. Its pursuers were old acquaintances.
A pack of Aridells.
A predatory grin split Aiden's maw. The half-formed Crown above his head instantly dissipated. Without even lifting his head, he spoke.
“Prepare to hunt.”
Aow? Hunt? Where? Bianca lifted her white head.
Azure immediately padded forward to the cliff's edge, her blue head peering down. Below, the pack of Aridells was harrying the Manticore, not with direct attacks, but by flanking it, nipping at it, forcing it to run in a panic. They were wearing it down.
Seeing Azure stretch her neck to look, Bianca instantly understood. She scrambled forward, flopping down on her belly at the cliff's edge.
The result was a picturesque scene: three hatchlings—one red, one white, one blue—lying in a row, their claws gripping the stone as they craned their necks to watch the drama unfold below.
The moment Bianca recognized the pack as Aridells, a shameful stream of drool began to leak from her maw. It's so good to see these doggies again. Her white, slitted pupils were practically glowing.
“Aiden! Aiden! Are we hunting them?” Her voice, a clear girlish treble, was filled with excitement.
Aiden glanced to his left. Bianca's gaze was completely fixed on the Aridells below, drool dripping steadily from her white snout. This one, he thought with dry amusement, is a true canine connoisseur.
“Hunt them.”
“Okay, I'll go first!”
Targeting a single Aridfell, Bianca's white wings flared, and she launched herself from the cliff in an instant.
Watching her reckless dive, Aiden and Azure sighed in unison. It was only to be expected. They exchanged a glance, and Aiden spread his own wings. One blue and one red, they followed her down.
On the ground, the largest Aridfell, the pack leader, skidded to a halt. It threw its great head back, its eyes fixed on the descending shapes. It had identified the attacker: an intermediate-tier flying magical beast.
Bianca locked her sights on a single Aridfell and dove. The creature below her was oblivious, its red eyes focused entirely on the Manticore. Its claws scrabbled at the sand, making feinting attacks, looking for an opening. Just then, a shadow fell over it.
The Aridfell was enveloped in darkness.
But before Bianca could strike, a black shape shot out from the side, slamming into her and sending both of them tumbling across the sand.
CRASH!
“AOW!” an enraged draconic roar echoed across the desert. These damned vile breeds!
Bianca's maw snapped open, lunging to bite the creature before her. But a black paw lashed out, slapping her hard across the side of the head and sending her reeling.
“AOW!”
Hearing the furious roar from below, Aiden knew Bianca had already botched it. He flared his wings, halting his descent fifty yards from the ground. This altitude is sufficient.
His gaze swept over the pack. Twelve Aridells. More than enough for bait.Two crimson rings of power materialized before his snout.
“Burst,” he commanded, his young voice cold and impassive.
BOOM!
“Burst.”
BOOM!
“Burst.”
BOOM!
Five blasts later, nine of the common Aridells and the Manticore were blasted into oblivion, their forms reduced to charred husks. As he watched the blackened bodies fall, a thought occurred to Aiden. This, perhaps, is what a great mage ought to do. He considered his past battles, all brutish charges and physical combat. So inelegant.
The three surviving Aridells fled in terror. Aiden watched them go with no intention of giving chase.
A blue streak shot past him. Azure flashed over the heads of the fleeing creatures. All three stumbled and fell at the same instant, their heads separating from their bodies. The cuts were perfectly clean. Red blood slowly soaked into the sand.
The battle was over. It had ended with breathtaking speed. Ten Aridells and one Manticore, their lives extinguished with barely a struggle.
“AOW!” Bianca's roar came again.
Aiden followed the sound. A cloud of sand was being kicked into the air. She's still fighting?
He descended, landing softly on the sand and raising his long, red neck to watch the spectacle.
Whoosh.
A blue shape landed beside him, also settling in to watch.
“Aow! You don't have to help me!” Bianca's voice bellowed from within the dust cloud. “I can handle this damned vile breed myself!”
Aiden and Azure glanced at each other. The same unspoken message passed between their eyes.
Are you going to help her?