As Hot as Geyser (Part 1)

…

"I am Zeugen, the Steam Dragon!" the dragon declared before continuing into absorbing the remaining mist again. Slowly, Marco and Sean can see their surroundings again as the dragon progresses absorbing the mist.

The dread of darkness remains while the fog dissolves. What also remains in there are dead trees of the forest that dried out because of the dense mist. The dragon finally accomplishes in a matter of seconds.

"What are you trying to do by sucking back all of your mist?" Sean asked.

"Geh, with ze mist gone, zee shalt be able to witness vat lies beyond 'tis mist," Zeugen replied gently. "Have a look."

Marco and Sean took a sight into the sky. They're surprised to see that there's a gigantic magical barrier covering the forest. "T-Those are…"

"Oopopopop, zee art not allowed to see it for too long,' Zeugen stated. "What are you trying to tell us by showing that?" Marco asked.

"Of course… to make a reason," Zeugen replied gently. The dragon lowers his body slightly and then a gas sizzling noise is heard afterwards. Within seconds, the dragon lets out all of the mist it absorbed again into the wilderness. Marco and Sean quickly took cover behind a big rock about twice their size to prevent getting exposed directly to the mist heat.

Sean speaks while covering his nose and mouth, "Reasoning us with such sightings will not change our view to you, Dragonian. You've trapped us in these mists. I'm afraid your attempt has failed,"

The dragon groans slightly, "I see thy hath ze false idea, ja…? I hath no intention of reasoning with thy humans from ze start, unfortunately. As 'twas mine attempt to create an acceptable reason for me to slaughter zee."

"What?!" Marco shouted. "Is that so, huh?" Sean knew that talking won't do any good for them anymore. Sean pulled his sword out and chants a holy elemental spell.

"In our rule, killing innocent humans art absolutely false, unforgivable and prohibited by our Prinz. Unless if there wast a human or any other mortals witnessing our work, then in 'zat very moment, we shalt kill them. By giving zee a chance to see ze magic barrier, in which wast mine work, I canst allow mine self to kill those witnesses. In other words, zee," Zeugen explained while getting back up and stances ready to fight. His dragon eyes glimmers menacingly in green, depicting one of the nature's elements: Wind.

"As expected of you Dragonians… you are only big bad meanies. My father and mother lost their lives because of you assholes!"

Sean glared at his partner. After words like that, he expects nothing but to see a pair of vengeful eyes. But what he saw is but a pair of spirited eyes, unexpectedly. Marco might be swearing to the dragon, but he held himself from being consumed by anger. Even so, there are some emotions that couldn't be blocked forever, that are his inner true self emotions.

The feeling of loss and faced with the ones who might have been the one who caused him to feel such losses. In his thought says, the race which ended his father and mother's life is in front of him, he will not lose grasp from them. Marco's eyes are sharp as his spirit. He's prepared to fight.

However, Zeugen views his manner as an attempt to revenge. "With those eyes, zee must prepare at least two graves. One for thou, andst one for your ally," Zeugen implies. "Anger… hast been a faulty in humanity's civilization."

Zeugen stomped the ground, in which caused a magic circle appearing from the ground.

"Let's go, Sean. Let's put an end to this dragon!" Marco declared loudly while looking at the vanguard. His eyes felt assuring, now is the time to strike! Sean nods and holds his sword high.

"The mist dragon—No, the Steam Dragon, Zeugen, I and my partner shall defeat you!"

"COME!"

Suddenly, a powerful blast of wind pummeled the two quite far, breaking some trees behind them. The rock that stood near them broke apart as the powerful wind pressured it.

Sean caught a tree branch and holds, "Marco!" Sean called. "I'm fine!" Marco answered not far from his position. "Shite, dude, the wind blast might've been from his foot stomp earlier," said Marco. "As expected from a Dragonian…, tsk!" said Sean in irritated.

"Calling himself a damned Steam Dragon is a dumb move," he thought in his mind. Marco, who was standing on a dead tree branch also thought the same, "By telling us that very name, his opponents will know outright that his wind has the property of a geyser. But…"

"…How are we going to get close to him?!"

…

..

.

*THUMP* *THUMP*

The dragon moves closer to the two slowly, "Vat ist ze matter? Can't hold out?" he taunted. Zeugen thoughts, "Only one human I shouldst be mattering as he hast Holy element with him. Ze other boy… I won't have to matter. I canst kill him with mine steam wind."

Sean drops himself and rolled as he let himself go from the tree branch. He held his sword still, trying to figure the best method to get close and pierce the dragon's belly and if he's lucky, the dragon's neck.

"Tsk, Marco!" he shouted. "Go around!" he yelled out twice while waving his hand around. "Roger that, Sean!" Marco acknowledged and free runs on those tree branches.

"Where dost zee think zee going, ah?" Zeugen reeled his shining eyes to focus on Marco.

"Hey!" *SHINE* *SWOOSH*

"Ow! What the," Zeugen suddenly got hit by a shining arrow on the side of his dragon head. "T-This is… Arrows of Light?" said Zeugen remembering the name of the spell casted on him. "It's not that painful?" the dragon wondered.

*STOMP* *STOMP*

Zeugen turned at Sean again. "Huh, it appears I hath mistaken zee as powerful Holy Elementalist." He said. The dragon flaps his wings and howls deafeningly. The mist around him shoves off by his wings, but soon refilled again as he was still excreting steam mist.

Soon, three magic circles appeared almost instantaneously, aimed right at Sean. "Zee shalt learn to not challenge greater beings!"

"Wind Spears!"

Three visible spears made out of highly pressurized wind rushes quickly to Sean. The vanguard retaliates with a resembling magic.

"Holy Spears!"

Two, no, four spears appeared beside him within seconds and launched immediately to deviate the wind spears casted by the dragon. One of Sean's spears fails to deflect the incoming spear that approaches fast like a missile. But thanks to his greater numbers, he successfully destroyed the incoming magic attack.

Sean took his sword which was pierced to the ground and rampages forth, fast. "I must aim for his neck…!"

*SLAASH!*

His sword deflected by Zeugen's claws, "So fast!" Sean reflexed as the claw hit his blade. The dragon's arm power is quite powerful, but Sean defended his grounds. "Futile efforts, human knight, zee knowest that going close to me ist a folly action, ja?"

"Let's see about that, you lizard bastard! HIYA!" *KTANG!*

The dragon and the vanguard knight clashes. Sean meticulously deflects every claw charge by Zeugen, while avoiding the dragon's tail swish.

"Impressive endurance, but it shalt naught stood for long!" Zeugen then rams the vanguard with his big head, knocking him into a short distance. Sean crashed onto the soil, causing minor injuries on his body.

"Prepare thyself!" said Zeugen loudly. The steam dragon then draws breath intensely. Zeugen absolutely believes that he wins at this very moment. But…

Sean suddenly flinches to Zeugen and screams out loud, "NOW! Marco!"

Within seconds, a flashing thunder appeared from the shroud of mist and forests. The yellow thunderous yet blinding flash shocked the dragon, as Marco plunges himself into him and grabs the dragon right from behind his neck and delivers a high volt shock. "Shocker Hands!"

"W-Wait a minute--

*ZZAAAP!*

"AARGH!"

Marco then steadily held his foot on the dragon's skin surface and casted:

"Thunder Step!" and blasted away in a speed of light towards Sean's position. His leap caused a jolt effect again on the dragon, damaging Zeugen further.

Zeugen receives an ample damage, but it's not enough to stop him. "Grrgh… how did zat human pulled zat off?" Zeugen wonders while holding in the shock pain. "UMPF?!" Zeugen's glimmering eyes shuddered as he realilzed…

…the holy arrow is still stuck onto the side of his head!

Thanks to the lone arrow stuck onto his skin, it gives enough lighting to show where the dragon is albeit in silhouette. Sean redirected the dragon's attention to him completely to make sure he doesn't take out the arrow from his head.

"Grrah!" Zeugen quickly pulls the arrow from his head. He nudges himself for not realizing it. The reason was that the arrow was planted at a point where the chances are that he might not realize it.

"Thank goodness that dragon is a stupid arsed lizard. Or else… our joint attack won't hit him," said Sean while getting up.

Zeugen roars, seconds later, a huge amount of mist is excreting from his body. "These art no mere simple mist anymore. By turning up ze heat, I shalt melt thy skin down to ze bone!"

"Geyser Splash!"

Marco grabs Sean and tries to avoid the gas attack. "Owowowow! Hot, hot, hot!" said Marco as he slightly got exposed to Zeugen's magic attack.

"Marco, your skin…!"Sean stated in shock as he looked at Marco. "Huh?" Marco realized his skin surface scalds because of the heat. "You, you too, dude!"

Of course, Sean, too, receives the same damage. "Damnations!" Sean proceeds to grab his sword, "Yeouch!" he let go of his sword. It is too hot for him to properly grab the sword.

"Gahahahaha! Thoust weapons shalt be rendered useless in 'tis battle. Now… how art zee going to fight?"

The situation turned much into dire. The night skies can no longer be seen, they're completely shrouded by the mist. Not only that, the mist itself rises in temperature, making them suffocate and damage them slowly.

The battle takes into a new phase!