Fia's heart might as well have stopped right at that moment. The two dragons would not stand a chance against the Dragon Slayer who had already decimated an entire clan.

Remember, Viliant said. The same rules of the arena apply. I guarantee this prince will turn the fight into a spectacle. It needs to last just long enough to entertain—maximize the impact of his message.

She did not see how that was supposed to make her feel any better. Now that her ribcage was reconstructed, she could stand. All four knees were knocking together. I don't want him to torture us!

He's going to underestimate us, Viliant said. Don't worry. I'll hold him at bay. What I need you to do is climb to the top of the cage and make a hole.

The wire mesh was markedly thinner compared to the bars of their cell. Fia could probably get it hot enough to rip through the metal, if only she had any fire left in her belly. Fear paralyzed her. She would die this day. The hopelessness of their situation served to extinguish her flames prematurely.

Her claws fumbled together meekly as she whimpered, I don't understand how you're not falling into despair at a time like this…. As soon as she said the word, her attention flashed up to him.

Of course, Viliant would despair. That bleak emotion was the source of a shadow dragon's power.

Fia took a deep breath to calm herself. She offered a nod to Viliant; they could do this. Her friend had lived his life surviving against stacked odds.

The Dragon Slayer stood like an imposing statue in the room. His eyes did not blink, nor did his shoulders rise and fall with his breath. The prince stared at them with a subtle smile as they were corralled into the arena.

The healer stood off to the side, hands folded and eyes downcast. Since he could not speak to them in a friendly manner like he usually did, he opted not to say anything at all. He did not even look at them.

The doors opened before Fia and Viliant, dragging across the ground with monumental weight. The clamor of the crowd now lifted to its full volume. Briefly, they shared a glance with each other.

Let's do what we always do, Viliant said.

The announcer bellowed his usual line. "Enter Umbra Caligo and Favilla the dragons!"

The dragons split ways, each running to one side. As if timed together, they rose onto their hind legs and roared. Fia practiced her fire, but only a lick of embers came out. Oh no….

The sheer number of humans drowned them out in a unified cheer. Unlike a normal tournament day, many people screamed hostilities and booed at them. Everyone who attended today was eager for the dragons to die.

Pull yourself together, Viliant said to her. Now's not the time to let your emotions control you.

I know! I know! she snapped. This was the worst possible time for her fire to fail.

The gates on the far side of the arena opened. "Enter His Royal Highness, Prince Marcellus, the Dragon Slayer!"

Each step of the prince held weight as he walked into the coliseum. His eyes did not grace their presence. Instead he turned to focus on his people.

"Dragons." A sweeping hand gestured out to them. Before Fia and Viliant could make a move, two of his orbs appeared at their feet and glued them in place.

Out of shock, Fia thrashed her immovable limbs. Her wings flapped, and she reared her head whilst screeching.

"These savage creatures thought they could dominate mankind for eternity, but we stand at the turn of an era. We are the Kingdom of Syene—a stronghold against the dragon menace—the first human nation to win independence from the draconic tyrants. We hear the plight of our brethren! Every human village will be liberated to our gracious rule, and the dragons shall serve us!"

The crowd boomed joyously. It was quite the speech to pander to human ears. Fia was left mortified. On the tranquil island of her people, she never knew that such volatile societies existed beyond its shores.

"I present to you today two dragons: Umbra Caligo, the last of the Dagonir Clan and Favilla, the first of the Carlinoa Clan."

A harsh gasp raced down her throat. How do they know where I'm from? Her stomach twisted into a knot, and she started to think that perhaps it was not a coincidence that a baby dragon had been kidnapped from her island.

"With this fight, we will eliminate the Dagonir Clan!" the Dragon Slayer bellowed. "And, begin our war on Carlinoa!"

The audience roared. The horrific swell crashed over Fia's ears, and she imagined an army that loud showing up on her island's shores. "No…. No, no, no!" She tried to free herself from the magnet below her. Her head thrashed either way as though she tried to wake up from a nightmare.

Fia! Viliant yelled in her head.

A few crystal tears hung from her eyes. When she blinked, they steamed away from the sheer heat that emanated from her body.

Are you angry?

Yeah. She was furious.

Use it.

The enemy of the two dragons turned to them. Surely, the prince could have heightened the gravitational pull at their feet and killed them where they stood. Instead, he released them and brandished his scepter. Just as Viliant said, the Dragon Slayer must make an exhibition of his victims first.

Fia, go. Viliant charged recklessly towards the enemy.

She dashed to the side of the arena and hopped onto the nearest links of the cage. As the only one who could create an escape route, she would burn through the metal as quickly as possible. Then, she would help Viliant escape.

The Dragon Slayer leveled the jewel of his scepter into an even line with Viliant. An orb materialized behind him. Despite the fact that his legs were running his fastest, his body was slowly drawn backwards.

Fia's heart raced as if she were the one sprinting like that. Flames exploded from her maw and heated the wired mesh. While she waited for the metal to heat up, she could not resist watching Viliant from the corner of her eyes.

A second, sheeny sphere materialized at the tip of the Dragon Slayer's scepter.

Viliant relinquished his attempts to fight the gravitational pull. Letting his claws go, he flung backwards and just barely skirted beneath the underside of the orb. The momentum carried him safely behind it where he replanted his feet.

The launched orb collided with the stationary one. They merged into a single mass which was now set into motion.

As it neared Viliant, he leaped to the side and twisted in an eloquent arc. The orb helped swing him around as well, allowing him to evade it and dig his talons back into the dirt. Every time that he moved like that, he was drawn closer than before.

Luckily, the orb kept going until another force stopped it. It lost its sway over Viliant as it drifted farther away. The Dragon Slayer dismissed his spell before it could crash through the cage. He leveled a new attack.

Already charging on the offensive, Viliant had no time to dodge. One claw was enveloped in shadows. This darkness soon consumed his entire physical form, giving true meaning to his identity as shadow dragon.

While her fire had been affected by gravity, the absence of light had no substance. By enveloping himself in the shadows, this quality extended to Viliant. He was unaffected by the gravity spell for a brief period of time. Like a ghost, he haunted the Dragon Slayer and lurched through his body.

This was the first time where Viliant had chosen to utilize his element in the arena. The element of surprise made this attack all the more devastating, and the shadow magic caused an affliction on the heart.

Clutching his chest, the Dragon Slayer dropped down onto one knee.

The crowd grew quiet, aside from their disquieted whispers.

This was Viliant's best opportunity to attack, so he slashed forth with an unmodified claw.

The prince parried the blow with the rod of his scepter. Some loose strands of his ebony hair drooped on either side of his eyes. When he lifted his head to look at Viliant, all fury befell the man's face.

Meanwhile, Fia's flames burned their hottest. The metal had already turned a scorching red color. Her jaws opened wide to take a sizable bite of the metal. Screech! The sound of metal ripped in her ears, and a section of the cage came off in her jaws.

I did it! she called to Viliant. Get up here!

No, he replied sternly. One way or another, I'm going to finish this.

I'm not leaving you here! she barked at him. While she waited for him, Fia was eager to get a second taste of the open air. She plucked the metal debris from her mouth and held it in her claws. Fia tried to stick her head through the hole, but her snout smacked against an invisible barrier instead. Ow…. Oh no! Out of panic, she wailed, Viliant! The magic barrier…. I forgot about it!

The banshee had been deflected when it rammed into the metal cage with enough force to bust through. The dragons had no way to get past this.

As her heart sank, Fia's grip around the metal slackened. The junk fell near the Dragon Slayer and clattered against the ground. This unfortunately drew his attention upwards. He took aim at Fia with the scepter and shot an orb straight to the sky.

Move! Viliant screamed in her mind.

Fia jumped and kept her wings folded. The wind breezed past her scales as she dropped from the top of the arena's cage. However, she did not jump far enough to take into account the orb's pull. As they passed each other, its dense material grazed her shoulder—ripping through scales, flesh, and bone in the process. A shriek of agony tore from her lungs.

While Fia had meant to spread her wings and catch herself in the descent, her body now tumbled in the air. She struck the ground on her back and hacked. Her right shoulder had been mostly destroyed, leaving to wonder how long she had till she would bleed out.

On her back like this, she could watch the gravitational orb fly through the magical barrier and shatter it. Iridescent fragments fluttered through the sky until they ultimately dissipated. Fia now stared up at a gap of the open sky.

You okay? Prodding her mind, Viliant tested to see that she was alive and not paralyzed.

Mm. I think so. The tip of her tail flicked and confirmed that nothing had broken in her spinal column. To keep herself from collapsing in pain, Fia had to hobble on three legs when she got up.

Then run. Get out of here!

In her critically wounded state, Fia's temper ran out. I said I'm not leaving without you! she shrieked in his mind.

All fury lit across her mana system. The magical circuits overflowed to the point where a fiery light manifested around her. Sparks flew off her scales, then bursts of flames flared out from beneath them.

Surging with power, she was inspired to rise up on her hind legs. More than that, her hind feet lifted off the ground as a vortex of flames developed beneath her. Her anger and passion melded into one, allowing Fia's magical power to break beyond the boundary.

A stunned look fell over Viliant's eyes before his tail quickly curled in a content smile. He used this as his opportunity to make a dash for the edge of the arena. Viliant began to climb, safely out of range of her fury.

A massive firestorm enveloped the arena with Fia at its heart alongside the Dragon Slayer. The heat was so intense that she shut her scaly lids in order to protect her eyes. Her bloody shoulder, unshielded by scales, was cauterized in a mostly painless process for the fire dragoness.

The hazy forms of Fia and the Dragon Slayer could be seen through the flames. Sizable streaks were torn through her wall of fire with ease. The gravity mage employed a dozen tiny orbs on all sides to suck in her flames and protect himself.

Even his magic could not halt her assault completely. His cape was licked with embers by the time that her rage had ceased. The soft, human skin had been burned. The man was still standing, however. His injuries would not stall him for long.

The power was leaving her body rapidly. Her muscles grew weak as though she might faint any second.

Now's our chance, Viliant called to her. Let's go!

Driven by his voice, she scurried up the cage as quickly as she could manage in a three-legged lope. When she reached the top, she hopped through the hole in the cage and joined Viliant in the fresh air.

He tried hopping down the cage, figuring that his only means of escape was by running away. Fia had another idea in mind.

Let's fly! By fly, she meant glide. She leaped from the top of the cage and landed on Viliant's back. From there, she spread her wings wide and struggled to stay aloft with the larger dragon in tow.

Her frantic thoughts began to calm enough for Fia to realize how fast her heart raced. The air breezed by them tranquilly, indifferent to the urgency of their quest. I think we did it, Viliant—

Look out!

The Dragon Slayer had defied gravity and floated through the hole in the cage after them. His scepter aimed for Fia and gathered his energy into a tiny point.

The shot careened much faster than the others, but it luckily had less mass behind it. The orb zipped through Fia's left wing, earning her another hole to mirror the one in the right. The sudden force rocked Fia to the side. Unable to restore her balance with Viliant in her arms, her wings folded and they fell together.

"Ah!" they hollered together. Chins tucked, the dragons protected their necks the best they could and squeezed their eyes shut.

A building caught their fall. The damaged shingles shifted beneath them as they pushed themselves up.

Viliant ran ahead first, but he stalled when she lagged behind. Come on, Fia! We need to keep moving.

Can't… hold on. Her body was utterly wiped from the fire which she had unleashed. She tried her best to take a few, wavering steps closer to Viliant.

He rushed forward and caught her with a shoulder before she could collapse. Naturally, Fia's wing draped over Viliant's back while she curled her head up against him. His neck was extended in full, desperate as he looked around for some way out of this.

Fia could hardly walk even with Viliant there to support her weight. We'll find some place to hide, he admitted once taking into account her state.

Thank you. Delirious as she was, Fia still knew that it would be easier to leave her behind.

Viliant helped her down from the rooftop and found a dark alley where they could lurk. The shadows parted to welcome them, then reformed to conceal them without a trace.

I think we'll be safe for now, he said. To keep Fia from instantly dropping to the ground, Viliant helped ease her down gently. He lay immediately at her side, acting as a means to reassure the quaking dragoness.

Her breaths came out in clipped gasps. Even if they had truly escaped the coliseum at long last, it hardly mattered anymore. The Carlinoa Clan had become the next target in the humans' warpath. Viliant, she moaned. What are we going to do? My people….

Won't become like mine, he said harshly. You are the only one who knows about this plan. You can make it back to Carlinoa first and warn them! You have to, Fia. This is your burden.

Her tears became steam, merging with the surrounding murk. Since the shadows would harbor them for now, Fia gave way to her exhaustion and slept.