Chapter ７: Dragonbreath

3 January 5555
Rubyworth Forest
[Zach McCarthy]

“Whoa, Paladin. I smell dragonbreath,” said Zach to his pearl-coloured horse, and dismounted.

His darkened silver armor sparkled in the light rays which penetrated the Rubyworth forest canopy. Zach, the supreme commander of the Knights of Azurlantis, was also a fearsome dragonslayer. No dragon has ever managed to overpower his abilities, his deep hatred for them usually the driving force behind his victories.

He took a few steps away from his horse. His blood suddenly started to surge as the lucid, incredibly rancid scent of dragonbreath filled his nostrils. Paladin recognized this just as well as his master, continuously stomping the ground hard. Zach shut down his visor, he could hear the slight brushes in the trees, he doubted it to be merely the wind. His right hand clenched onto his broadsword. A mist started to come in, visibility was scarce. He had no choice but to rely on his sense of smell to trace down his beastly target.

He then noticed a dark figure, standing behind a couple of trees about twenty paces away. It was a man, his back was facing Zach. Zach’s eyes squinted behind the viewing holes behind his visor. The man was motionless, had no sign of company and did not have any belongings whatsoever. He was shrouded in mist, which only made him look like a ghost.

“Hey! You over there! Get out of here this instant! There’s a dragon lurking around here somewhere!” warned Zach from where he stood.

The man mysteriously refused to budge. Zach was furious. Who would be sane enough to stand alone in the middle of the woods, in the thick fog, with the manifest presence of a dragon? He dashed towards the man.

Suddenly there was a loud smash and a tree came toppling down on Zach. He quickly dodged out of the way as the tree trunk came collapsing to the forest floor with a giant thud. Zach’s hearing saved him once more. He was merely an arm’s length away from the man when the tree fell between them.

A thunderous roar, followed by a mighty gust of wind stormed towards Zach. In a blink of an eye, the mist had cleared, and there it stood. A massive, sable-scaled dragon with huge, dagger-like teeth grunted at Zach. Its forelegs were the size of tree-stumps and it was standing on its enormous hind legs, towering about three times the height of a man. Within seconds, the dragon’s jaws opened up and plummeted towards the dragonslayer.

As quick as lightning, Zach got up on his legs and swished his sword in the air, wounding the dragon’s snout. His eyes blazed in fury as he charged towards the beast, landing quick blows at its feet. The dragon lashed his blows away with a quick swipe of its spiked tail. It then heaved hard and exhaled a deadly ball of fire which exploded at Zach. His suit was instantly enveloped in flames but was extinguished within seconds. He leaped towards the dragon’s torso and unleashed a ferocity of slashes with all his might.

The dragon bellowed in pain as it flinched, erasing its underestimation of its target. Paladin suddenly came hurdling in and Zach leaped onto his steed. He charged at his victim at full speed, with the intention of beheading it with a final blow of his sword.

Suddenly, tendrils of cackling green energy bolted out of nowhere and entwined onto Paladin’s hooves. The horse neighed in extreme shock and anguish, it collapsed onto the ground, bringing its rider down with it. The green energy cackled with sparks and chained onto Zach’s fists and legs, rendering him with immobility. He screeched in excruciating pain as the chains of energy burnt through his armor, sizzling into his flesh.

The dragon growled at Zach as he struggled to free himself from the spell. He noticed the man he saw earlier emerged from behind the dragon. The man was cloaked, his eyes remained hidden in the shade of his hood. He smiled at Zach.

“I’ve got you now, dragonslayer. It’s time you receive retribution for your inhumane ways.”