"So, where to next?" Zenith asked, leaning carelessly over the side of his Dragon captain and staring in wonder at the glistening ocean below.
"I don't know yet," Madison hummed, scanning the horizon with her eyes. "But we need a ship, so maybe we should steal one." She grinned.
"A lone Dragon and a Swordsman steal a ship from pirates?" He laughed, before noticing that she wasn't joking at all. "Well, you're the captain," he sighed, noticing a large ship sailing out in the distance. "Hey, what about that one?" He asked, pointing towards the dark wood battleship.
"That's perfect!" She smiled. "We shall call him the Thundershock."
"You can't name it yet, we need to steal it first." Zenith sighed, checking that he had his sword while Madison changed her course and flew towards the ship. While they were gliding seamlessly over the water though, a fated ally could be found living atop the very ship they were hurtling towards.
"Hey, it's ok." A gentle voice called out, stirring awake the hungry animal that sat within an icy cold cage at the bottom of the ship. "I've brought you food," the Angel smiled, reaching out a well cooked stew towards the hungry beast. Instantly, the animal scoffed it down, licking every last morsel out of the wooden bowl before pushing it back towards the Angel, hoping for something more.
"I'm sorry buddy, but that's all I can get for you. I'll try to get you more, but I have to feed the others too." He sighed, reaching his hand slowly into the cage and gently petting the winged wolf's ears. "I'll be back soon," he said, pulling his hand away and slowly standing up from the ground, holding the bowl to his chest and walking off as quickly as possible. As soon as he turned the corner at the end of the hallway though, he bumped into a large berley man who almost knocked him clean off of his feet, thankfully though, he had his wings to balance him.
"Elez, what the hell are you doing down here with these beasts?" His captain asked, glaring at the Angel boy with a cold and unforgiving stare.
"I-I was just checking that they all had water, sir. We don't want them to die on us." Elez muttered, looking down at the stain covered floor and hiding the bowl behind his back.
"Oh really?" His captain hummed, grabbing onto Elez's soft brown hair and slamming the boy into a wall nearby, causing him to drop the wooden bowl and watch as it bounced and clattered against the ground. "You were wasting food on them again!? Weren't you?!" Valen yelled loudly, deafening Elez for a few moments before a powerful punch struck the side of the Angel boy's head. Dizziness consumed his body as he collapsed to the wooden floor below, causing a hollar of angry noise to erupt from the humans and animals which Elez had been feeding.
"Silence!" Valen yelled, turning his massive body towards the cages and approaching the closest one. He reached his hand down and snapped one of the many bars, before dragging a young child away from their mother while they screamed and cried for help. "This is what will happen to anyone who defies my order-" he began, but before he could inflict any damage onto the young child, Elez snapped open his wings and flew over towards him, punching his captain directly in the nose and causing him to stumble back and hit the floor.
"It's ok, I've got you." Elez said, picking up the child and carefully handing them back to their mother, before the cold hand of death gripped tightly onto the back of his neck.
"Prepare to die," Valen hissed, locking his grip around Elez's neck as he turned and slammed his head directly into the bars of the cage. This time, Elez was unable to recover, as his body fell limp and his eyes rolled closed, signalling to Valen that he was no longer able to fight back. The captain smiled with a devilish grin as he tossed the Angel boy over his shoulder, looking out at the many caged prisoners. "Don't worry, you'll all be seeing him soon - when we toss you into the sea as well." He laughed, walking out of the room as blood dripped to the floor in time with his steps, the blood itself leaking from a wound on Elez's forehead.
"Men! Prepare the anchor for drowning!" Valen yelled, stepping out onto the deck and smiling at his loyal crew. Instantly, they did as they were told, dragging the anchor up onto the deck and preparing some rope in order to secure their kill. The moment they all saw Elez though, a few of the men hesitated.
"Sir, are you sure you want to kill him? He's one of your best fighters." A shipmate questioned, before noticing the blood that dripped from his captain's broken nose.
"The boy assaulted me and wasted food on useless beasts. He will be killed for his disobedience." Valen ordered, tossing Elez to the floor and looking up at his crew. "What are you waiting for?! Tie him up and throw him overboard!!" He yelled, causing the entire crew to panic and do as they were told, securing Elez to the anchor just as he began to regain his consciousness.
"W-wait! I can be useful to you!" Elez pleaded, attempting to struggle and escape the ropes that he was bound by.
"You've already wasted enough of my time." Valen growled, lifting the anchor up with brute strength alone and tossing it effortlessly over the side of the ship. The crew stood and watched in shock and horror, before cheering shakily as soon as their captain stared back at them all with a death glare.
Meanwhile, Elez was quickly sinking, struggling to breath as the pressure of the ocean began crushing his lungs, all while his wings were soaked with water and only dragged his body down faster. Moments before he lost all hope though, the anchor halted it's assault towards the ground, and slowly began to rise towards the surface of the water. Elez painfully opened his eyes to try and look out at his saviour, only to see the glistening crystal blue eyes of a Dragon staring back at him.
Before Elez could make any form of a reaction though, his eyes rolled closed and his mouth gently hung open, his entire body finally feeling the strain of being drowned. Barely a few moments after he fell unconscious though, his figure was dragged out of the water by Madison, who gripped the anchor in her jaws and flew effortlessly out of the ocean, landing boldly atop the deck of Valen's ship. Soon, she let out a thunderous Dragon roar, moments after placing Elez softly to the ground, but the sound she created ripped fear into the heart of every crewman that stood witness.
"My name is Zenith Rix! And we have come to commandeer your vessel!" Zenith yelled, smiling happily as he stood atop Madison's head and looked down upon the shocked faces of the crew.
"That man has tamed a Dragon!" One of them screamed, running away and leaping over the side of the ship. "He must be with the King!" Another shipmate yelled, causing others to follow their lead as they rushed to leap over the side. Of course, it was only natural for them to believe that Zenith worked for the King, since the King himself had tamed a Dragon, but it was funny to know how wrong they were to assume that.
"You cowards!" Valen yelled. "Get back here and fight with me! We shall slay this Dragon with ease!" He ordered, causing most of the crew to freeze up and turn back to their captain. They didn't want to fight, but facing their captain's wrath was a much more frightening affair than death.
"Then so be it!" Zenith said, drawing his sword and leaping down onto the deck. "I shall slay you alone while my Dragon deals with your crew!"