Nimrod: That's a flippin' d – d-dragon!!
Richard: A Fire Drake, actually.
Nimrod: A Fire Drake, actually – Nimrod mimicked Richard's way of speaking with the intent of mocking him.
Nimrod: What's the flippin' difference, you tin-head?!
Richard: I do not have time for your antics now, you idiot! I have never fought a Drake before... But I am aware of the stories... We may need to rely on your magic, Rache... And on Kohrr's overwhelming strength! Just be sure to jump out of the way as it attempts to crash into us!
Nimrod: Here it comes!
The Fire Drake flew towards them from a horizontal perspective and charged right through them, breaking their formation and scattering them throughout the top of the mountain. It was moving a lot faster than Richard had anticipated. It went high in the sky again and roared so loudly they could feel the shock down to their bones. Then it set its eyes on Richard.
Rachel was able to cast Protect on everyone right before being scattered. The Drake went for Richard while Nimrod tried to catch it off-guard with his Dive stomp attack. Before he could even touch the Drake, it simply swatted him with its tail sending Nimrod crashing to the ground. Nimrod was left stunned and out of commission.
Resuming its attack on Richard, it tried clawing him. Richard used his shield to block the attack. He blocked three attacks in a row when it seemed to get more irritated. It spat a Fireball at Richard, destroying his shield. The impact sent him flying several meters back, almost falling off the way they had climbed. Richard avoided sliding down the mountain by plunging his sword into the ground to anchor himself. His armor worked wonders in protecting him because otherwise, he would be so scraped up that he could have been in danger of bleeding out.
Richard realized that the Drake wasn't done with him yet. It was heading straight for him.
Richard: {This is not good! Wide open and unable to block...} – you could almost hear the Fire Drake laugh at that moment. It moved at great speed and caught Richard in its right clawy paw... It looked like it was going to eat him or take a bite out of him. Since he got separated from his sword, he had no way to counter the Drake's attack.
Fortunately, Rachel used Hold (** a spell that paralyzed the target momentarily**), and the Fire Drake started falling to the ground. When it hit the ground, the impact banged Richard pretty hard. Nimrod, who was suddenly back in the mix, flew in to get him out of harm's way even though he was suffering some nasty injuries.
Richard: Thank you...
Nimrod: Don't thank me yet... this ride ain't over till it's over!
As Rachel struggled to maintain the Hold spell on the Fire Drake, Kohrr ran toward the imposing beast and stood right in front of it. He put his hands on the ground in front of him and yelled:
Kohrr: MAGNITUDE... 7!
The ground shook with extreme violence, and it began to crumble. The Fire Drake was falling through the cracks as it struggled to break free from Hold. Before it fell completely, it freed itself from Rachel's spell. Rachel was almost collapsing due to the strain of holding the spell for so long against the brutal strength of the Fire Drake that never once stopped fighting back. It shot its Fire breath right at Kohrr just before being buried in rubble and falling through the ground.
The battle was over. Our heroes prevailed. But Kohrr and Richard were severely injured. Rachel was exhausted. And Nimrod was also hurt from receiving a full tail swat from the Fire Drake, added to the flame he was hit with once their encounter had begun. Rachel used Cure on Kohrr to help with his injuries first, then she proceeded to help the others, who were also pretty banged up. Rachel was sweating after she finished casting Cure on all of them.
Using magic constantly could be pretty draining, but Rachel was now stronger and more capable than before. Besides all that, she couldn't bear to see people she cared about injured or suffering. She inherited that trait from her mother, without a doubt.
Richard: Kohrr saved us. And so did you, Rache. But it would be best if you hurried into the Temple. This is as far as we can accompany you. You know I would go with you if I could... Please be careful.
Rachel: Don't worry, brother... I'll be fine. I'll make sure of it!
Nimrod: We'll be waiting for you right here – Kohrr looked at Rachel and nodded as Nimrod spoke.
Rachel: Right!
Rachel got up and took a deep breath. She walked into the Temple. From the outside, it didn't look like anything too special. But on the inside, it looked like a completely different place altogether. It almost felt like she was not in the Arkana anymore.
She was in a corridor as white as light itself. She couldn't see any ceiling. There were no walls on the sides either... at least not that she could see. And despite not seeing any monsters at the moment, which was a huge relief, she didn't think it was an excellent idea to let her guard down.
By the time they reached the top of the mountain, it was already nightfall. But inside the temple, it appeared to be clearer than day. She didn't see the sun, but there was no shortness of light.
Rachel kept walking through this long corridor until she saw the end of it, and the Staff of Zoe was inside a chamber. Before touching the Staff, the voice warning them from when they started the path on Mount Doom spoke to her.
"RACHEL PENDRAGON. YOUR TRIAL BEGINS NOW"
Rachel: Who are you? How do you know my name? And what do you mean by Trial?
"I AM THE GUARDIAN OF THE STAFF OF ZOE. AND TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT I LET YOU TAKE IT; YOU MUST ANSWER MY QUESTIONS TRUTHFULLY"
Rachel: I understand. But where are you? I can hear your voice echoing from all around me, but I can't see you...
"FAIL TO BE TRUTHFUL, AND I SHALL MAKE SURE DOOM BEFALLS YOU"
Rachel: {I see Meg's warning was as severe as one can be...} I'm ready.
"RACHEL PENDRAGON. WHY ARE YOU HERE?"
Rachel: That is simple. My friends and I need to prepare for an upcoming battle against the forces of evil. If we had the Staff of Zoe, we would have a greater chance to prevail against our enemies.
"I WILL RE-STATE THE QUESTION" "WHY ARE YOU HERE"
Rachel: Because... I'm the only White Wizard on our team...?
"THERE IS NO DECEIT IN YOUR WORDS… AND YET YOU STILL MANAGE TO AVOID ANSWERING THE QUESTION"
Rachel: I don't understand... – Rachel paused to think about what was being asked. She remembered her late mother. She died while Rachel was still just a baby... not long after she had been born. But her father, King Uther, told her many stories about her... She was selfless and always went out of her way to help others. Her mother was also a White mage and a mighty one. It's the reason she wanted to be a White mage in the first place… so she could be just like her mother. She felt that she needed to honor the memory that her father had instilled in her.
Rachel: I'm here because of the path that I've chosen. One that I believe would make my mother proud. I am here to honor her legacy as one who protected those she loved... So, I will always do my best... give my all... and being here is just another step in this journey.
"VERY WELL" "NOW ANSWER THIS... "
Rachel had a determined look on her face. She had forgotten the fear she had felt before. She was even ready to risk her own life if it were necessary to succeed.
"WHAT MAKES YOU SO SURE THAT YOU ARE ON A RIGHTEOUS PATH?"
Rachel: I'm sorry... Could you clarify? What do you mean exactly?
"HOW DO YOU KNOW PREVENTING THE COMING OF ADRAMELLECH TO YOUR WORLD IS THE RIGHTEOUS PATH?" "IS IT NOT POSSIBLE THAT IT IS THE WILL OF THE ONE FOR THIS WORLD TO BE DESTROYED, AND THIS FIEND IS ONLY AN INSTRUMENT OF HIS WRATH?"
Rachel didn't know what to say to that...
Rachel: When you say The One... You mean God, don't you?
"I DO"
Rachel: To be perfectly honest, I had not thought about it from that perspective. I do believe in righteousness and justice. But thinking a group of people that would massacre the innocent to achieve their objectives is just? I'm sorry, but I can't agree with that point of view. They are not just nor righteous... they are cruel, and from what I've seen, they even revel in the process of inflicting pain on others... not caring if those they bring suffering and death to are innocent people or not. That cannot be the will of The One! I won't believe it... not for one second!
"WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HIS WILL, RACHEL PENDRAGON?"
Rachel: It would be hubris to say that I know... I don't. But... I believe that he wants what's best for the Arkana.
"YOU ARE CORRECT, RACHEL PENDRAGON" "YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE ONE'S WILL"
Hearing those words made her feeling of uneasiness return. Her heart was pounding out of her chest. She was sweating a lot, and she even got a dry throat.
"I WILL ALLOW YOU TO COLLECT THE STAFF AND USE ITS POWER. YOU HAVE CONVINCED ME OF THE PURITY OF YOUR HEART"
Rachel: Thank you!
"HOWEVER..."
The moment she heard that, however, was very frightening.
"... YOU MUST UNDERSTAND THAT HUMANS ARE UNABLE TO WITHSTAND THE POWER OF THE STAFF TO ITS FULLEST"
"IF YOU EXTRACT TOO MUCH POWER FROM IT, YOU SHALL RECEIVE ITS CURSE"
Rachel: "For every gift of power, there is a price to pay"... – Rachel remembered what Meg had read in the Ancient Library – Could you tell me what that curse is?
"THE STAFF IS YOURS"
"USE IT WISELY"
There was a very bright light that momentarily blinded her. And when she could open her eyes again and see, she was outside the temple, with the Staff of Zoe in her hands.
Richard: Hey, Rache! What happened? You went in for like five seconds; then you appeared outside…
Rachel: What do you mean? I was in there for at least an hour! No... More like two hours...
Nimrod: Nah… I'm pretty sure Sir tin-man here's right… You were in there for like five seconds!
Rachel: Well, that's interesting… it appears that time flows very differently inside there… the temple could be a gateway to another dimension!
Richard: To another dimension? Where? Which dimension?