With a roar of fury, another blast of fire hit the boulder. Even protected from the flames as they were, the group of apprentice heroes still cringed from the sudden rise in heat. Tendrils of flame licked around the edges of the massive stone, filling the air of the cave with the twin smells of sulfur and phosphorous. Scorch marks marred the stone walls of the drake’s den, while the bones of animals-what they hoped were animals- littered the ground. Rachel Kalos, however, did not give the flames or her surroundings a second thought. Her sturdy leather jerkin was warmed slightly by the heat and the laces of her rawhide boots smoked but that was it. She brushed a few stones from her short hair as she rose from her crouch. Even after three years, Rachel still was not used to having short hair, but it made life much easier as a Beast Tamer at the Heroes Academy.

Al’tun, her chimera, let out a low growl, wrapping his snake-tail more tightly around her legs. His feather and fur body shimmered in the light of the flames, giving him an ethereal look. Rachel reached down and stroked the creature’s golden mane while pleased chirps came from Al’tun’s beak. The rest of the wolf sized animal was a mix of lion and snake, topped with a pair of scaly wyvern’s wings folded along his back. Al’tun was the first creature she tamed, and he was still her favorite. Though she would never tell her others that.

“Ok now, who can tell me what that was?” Professor Saroc said once the flames had disappeared. The old man huddled over his cane, you could hardly tell where man ended and wood began. Adamir Saroc was a living legend, a Battlemage who had saved the world from destruction nearly a dozen times, earning the rank of “World Protector” faster than anyone in history. From the Doom of Delatant, to the armies of General Mirien, whenever something had threatened the world, he had been there to stop it. Now he, and the rest of the professors at the Heroes Academy, trained the next generation.

Professor Saroc’s eyes, magnified by his spectacles, flitted from one student to another as he waited for an answer. “Anyone know what that was? You could very well face this during the Trials tomorrow.”

Rachel looked around her at the three other apprentice heroes, each of them with a pensive look on their faces. Ezah Jeule, an apprentice Acrobat, sat crouched on a rock fingering one of the many daggers she carried with her. Her deep purple and black outfit would have been tough to spot on a dark night. In the light of the seemingly never ending flames however, she stood out like a hobgoblin at a ball.

Jerome Blaze, currently one of the few Paladin of their rank, leaned on his sword, polished armor gleaming from the light of the fires. His dark hair seemed to glisten in the firelight, while his teeth, flashed in a smile towards Rachel, seemed to have a light of their own. Rachel had to make a conscious effort to keep breathing. No one had the right to look that good. All of the girls-and some of the guys-in the Academy swooned when the tall paladin walked past.

Next to Jerome stood Alexia Morgana. Her heavy Elemantist’s robes were covered in odd geometric shapes and signs. Even though it was fabric, the signs seemed cold, devoid of emotion. Much like the girl wearing them. It had been prophesized that Alexia would be the savior of the world one day, though Rachel couldn’t imagine any world saved by her being a fun place. Alexia stood apart from the group, keeping a careful distance between herself and the others throughout the day.

“It was Flaming Breath,” Alexia said, her cool voice breaking into Rachel’s thoughts.

Rachel smiled to herself at Alexia’s mistake.

“No Alexia,” Professor Saroc said, a note of weariness in his voice. “Can anyone tell me why that’s wrong?”

Rachel’s smile disappeared as she tried to meld with one of the rocks around her. The other students did the same. No one wanted to be the one to correct Alexia. She thought of every suggestion as a personal attack and any correction an insult. Because of that prophecy, few of the instructors were willing to be strict with her. This, along with Alexia’s advanced knowledge and remarkably short temper, allowed her to effectively display her displeasure.

“Rachel! You’re a Beast Tamer; maybe you’d be able to shed some light on this mystery.”

Rachel broke out in a cold sweat despite the heat. “Ummm, it’s because…”

“Speak up, girl!” Professor Saroc said, smacking his cane into the stones around him. “I know you know this one. We had a discussion about it last week.”

Rachel tried her best to ignore the glare Alexia was sending her.

“It’s not Flaming Breath. That’s only used by wyverns and fire-lizards. We’re in a drake’s den, so that was probably Inferno.”

“Good! Good!” the professor called out, beaming at Rachel. His scowl returned as he rounded on the other apprentices. “You could all stand to learn something from Ms. Kalos. She is right; that was Inferno. It’s about twice as powerful as Flaming Breath. That’s enough of a difference to counter a simple Resist Flames spell or charm, leaving your grumpkin cooked.”

The professor chuckled at his joke as another wave of flames hit their rocky cover. “Now, knowing that, how would defeat a drake, hmm? Yes, Ezah?”

The acrobat stood up, back arching as she stretched her long limbs. “I would sneak up behind it while it slept and stab it in the back,” she demonstrated, her blade moving faster than Rachel could see. “I’d slip my blade in-between its spine before it could blink. Instant death.”

“While good in theory, that plan would leave you as lunch. Drakes have hides nearly immune to being pierced. Your knife would find its mark only half the time at best. If you missed, well, no more Ezah.”

“What about a mirrored shield?” Jerome asked. “They reflect back magical attacks, and Inferno counts as one. Even if a drake uses it right?”

Saroc bobbed his bald head. “You are correct my good paladin. The only problem is that a mirrored shield strong enough to counter Inferno would cost around ten thousand gelden. Not exactly a common tool. Any other suggestions?”

“Well,” Rachel began, but stopped when she felt the other’s eyes on her.

“Come on Ms. Kalos, go on,” urged Saroc. “What is your idea?”

“What about a chimera?” she continued after a moment’s thought. “Like Jerome said, Inferno is still a magic based attack, and with chimeras’ natural magic resistance the drake would hardly be able to touch it. The only thing Al’tun would have to fear would be getting knocked out of the cave!”

Professor Saroc’s smile lit up the old man’s face. “Good! Very good Rachel. The battle would take a while, but yes, that would work!”

“Hrmph,” Alexia said, stalking away from the group and out of their protective cover. “Most of us don’t have the time to play with pets. Not when the world is at stake. I’ll show you how to defeat a drake properly.”

“Alexia, don’t!” Rachel called out.

The Beast Tamer rushed out from behind the rocks, quickly followed by the other apprentices. They called out to Alexia, but she paid them no mind. The Elemantist strode down the tunnel, her robes fanning out behind her as she marched towards the drake.

For a heartbeat, Rachel was caught up in the beauty of the creature. She had never seen a drake before, at least not out of a book, and it was breath taking. The drake was big, not as big as a full dragon, but still as big as a house at least. A pair of great wings lay folded over the body, while its long neck curved gracefully as it directed its attention to each of them in turn. The most spectacular part, the part that truly caught Rachel’s eye were the scales. Each one glowed like a miniature ember, so that the drake looked like it was made out of thousands of constantly shifting points of light. They sent out radiant light filling the whole cavern with a luminous fire like glow. It was enough to make Rachel wonder why anyone would want to fight one of these magnificent creatures. That is until, with a roar, it opened its mouth preparing another Inferno.

“Watch out!” Rachel called, but Alexia ignored her.

The drake lowered its head, staring down at the small Elemantist as Alexia approached. Halfway to the drake she stopped, staring up at the beast before her. Even from this distance, Rachel could see the Inferno starting to form in the drake’s mouth. A miasma of twisting and turning flames took shape while, with agonizingly slow care, Alexia raised her spread hands over her head.

Rachel tightened her grip on Al’tun’s mane. What was Alexia doing? Just because some old prophecy said she was going to save the world it didn’t mean she was invincible. If she was caught in the drakes blast Alexia would be…

“Permafrost!”

Alexia’s yell cut through Rachel’s thoughts. The girl dropped her hands to ground, faster even than Ezah could twirl a blade. As her palms touched the stony ground a white light shot out, blinding Rachel.

In heartbeat, Rachel went from sweating in the heat, to being colder than she had ever known before. It felt as if even her memories of warmth had been frozen. All of the heat in her seemed to have been sucked out, replaced with ice. When Rachel finally blinked away the after-image of the spell, she couldn’t help but gasp.

Where once had been steaming and smoking rocks, just a few degrees shy of melting, now there was ice. Everything around her, the rocks, the walls of the cave, even parts of her hair had frozen solid. Huge ice crystals jutted out from the ground around Alexia where the steam had been flash frozen. That was nothing though, compared to the drake. Where it stood, there was now a solid block of ice. Rachel could faintly see some of its ember-scales glowing deep within. One by one, they faded into nothingness.

Alexia rose from her crouch, her soft leather boots crunching over the frozen ground as she stalked past the group.

“That’s how you defeat a drake.”