Not a Game

Bracing herself, Sam pumped as much Levia as she could into the spell. The rainbow beam struck the shields with a sizzling impact and a boom that rattled her skull. She stumbled, feeling like she'd been punched in the sternum.

'No, get it together!' Sam ground her teeth together until her entire jaw ached. The dragon's power poured over her in a crushing wave, making her Levia flicker like a candle in the wind. But she wouldn't give up, not as long as she could still reach her Levia. Not as long as Ryllis' power blazed alongside hers.

Except it wasn't enough. Horror stole her breath when the shield began to waver, its lines flickering and blurring. She tried summoning more Levia, but it was too late.

The shield shattered, raining down mint green sparks. Scarlet ones joined it when Meg's shield broke too.

Now nothing blocked the dragon's attack. The beam of light swept across the floor, engulfing fighters who couldn't get away in time. Their screams shredded Sam's heart.

'Move!' She had to get out of the way, but all her muscles had frozen.

Someone yanked on her arm. Meg? Not fast enough. Rainbow light flooded her vision, swirling like an aurora.

Then something huge and heavy barreled into her, knocking her to the floor. Sam couldn't get the breath to scream. Large hands pushed at her shoulders, sending her sliding into the wall.

Her head banged against the stones so hard stars flashed in her vision. The world lurched around her in a sickening blur.

By the time her head stopped spinning, the dragon's Levia no longer throbbed in the air. A deathly silence had fallen.

Coughing, Sam hauled herself up by the elbows and cracked her eyes open. The first thing she saw was the dragon crouched at the back of the hall. A line of tall, jagged crystals stretched across the ground in front of it, just like the ones on its back.

Wait. Some of the crystals looked kind of strange. They seemed to have heads and limbs, like...like statues.

The blood rushed in Sam's ears. 'Don't look,' her mind screamed, but her eyes wouldn't stop moving. Some of the statues were contorted in writhing poses, while others looked like they had frozen in the middle of running.

Finally, her eyes landed on the one closest to her.

Even encased in crystal, Sam recognized the burly build instantly. He was hunched over, hair hanging in a curtain around his face, hands still outstretched. Because the last thing he had done was shove her out of the way.

"No." Sam could barely force her voice out of her throat. "No, no."

Her vision blurred; the hall swooped around her. When it cleared, the crystal statue of Ivo was still there.

Tears stung the corners of her eyes. Something unbearably tight and painful clenched in her chest. Because of her...because of her....

The tears pricked harder, but Sam furiously wiped them away, sucked in as deep a breath as she could manage, and hauled herself to her feet. Meg, already upright, turned toward her with a horrible mix of worry and terror in her eyes.

"Sam...," she said, but didn't seem to know how to finish.

Armor clattered in front of Sam. Ryllis. "So you're fine. Get it together, the dragon's going to attack."

Sure enough, the dragon had drawn its head back and tensed its front legs. Sam's heart pounded harder. That was right. She couldn't lose her focus, no matter how much she wanted to curl up in a ball and cry like a baby.

No running away. This wasn't a game; Ivo's sacrifice had made that more than clear. He and the other crystallized prisoners would never be able to escape this hellhole, but the fight wasn't over. There were still floors to climb, prisoners to free.

And a dragon to defeat.

Sam slapped her cheeks, then opened her mouth. Her voice came out not as a sob, but a raw scream. "Ryllis! Let's go!"

Ryllis' Levia blazed inside her, just as furious. Maybe they didn't have some crazy powerful crystallizing beam. But they had this, their determination to win.

And it'd be more than enough.

While the remaining fighters scattered, Ryllis charged straight at the dragon. It lunged for her, jaws open wide. But before it could catch her, Ryllis kicked off with her heel against the dragon's snout and somersaulted a graceful arc in the air, landing on the back of the dragon's neck.

Perfect. But too early to celebrate just yet. As Ryllis raised her spear, Sam cast a sharpening spell on the blade.

Then Ryllis' Levia flared, startling Sam. The next thing she knew, flames burst around the glowing green speartip.

Ryllis drove the blazing spear into the dragon's neck, easily piercing the scales. The dragon screeched.

Before it could shake her off, Ryllis yanked her spear out and jumped to the side. As she soared through the air, she pointed her spear and fire blasted from the tip and struck the dragon's neck.

Ryllis landed in a crouch in front of Sam, spear extended. The dragon roared and thrashed, stomping its feet so hard the entire floor trembled. Smoke curled from the burn on the side of its neck, while iridescent blood dripped from the wound behind its head.

Sam's heart pounded. Ryllis' latest attacks had really hurt it.

Ryllis' Levia surged again, licking at her insides like a wildfire. She leaped back into the air, speartip ablaze.

But the dragon wasn't going to take it sitting down. Snarling, it swiped out its tail.

Sam quickly cast a shield spell, but it only slowed the dragon's momentum. The tail kept swinging, the sharp crystals at its tip aimed directly at Ryllis' stomach.

Still, the shield had bought her some time. Ryllis swept out her spear and the tip clattered against a crystal, driving the tail off course. Smoke plumed into the air. But the impact knocked the spear out of Ryllis' hands, and she went tumbling to the floor.

"Ryllis!" Sam screamed, lurching forward. Too late – with a clatter of armor, Ryllis hit the floor on all fours.

Metal clanged several yards away – her spear. The dragon rounded upon it, an evil glint in its orange eyes, and lifted a massive foot.

Gasping, Ryllis lunged for it. But her exhaustion throbbed through their contract, and Sam knew she'd never make it in time.

A flash of gray. Just before the dragon's foot slammed into the floor, Lodo dove out from under it, gripping Ryllis' spear in his mouth.

He landed in front of her and deposited the spear on the floor. Ryllis nodded. "Thanks."

She picked the spear up and climbed back to her feet. Lodo darted away to join the other fighters, but Sam couldn't take her eyes off Ryllis. Tired as she was, she kept trying to stand. When her Levia flared once more, Sam's panic broke over.

"Wait!" she shouted.

Ryllis threw her a sharp glare. "What is it?"

"You're almost completely spent. I don't know if it's a good idea to keep using your elemental powers…."

"Got no choice," Ryllis rasped. "My fire's doing the most damage."

She was right, Sam realized with a sinking feeling. "But still – it's – it's not fair for you to do everything on your own. I'm your wizard, so let me help."

"Just cast your strengthening spells." Ryllis turned back around, lifting her spear.

Would that really be enough? Ryllis would still be doing most of the work. Maybe she was used to it, but –

"I'll cast the elemental spell," Sam burst out. "That way you can do an even stronger attack, right?"