[Trigger Warning: This chapter depicts graphic and excessive violence against minors. You have been warned, a mild summary will be at the beginning of the next chapter outlining pertinent events.]
The silhouette of a dragon dives down from the sky and towards the lake.
"Puny mortals! You shall do well to sait my hunger!" The dragon roars as it dives toward the children playing by the water.
"DRAGON!!!" I shout as I run towards the lake with all my might, doing everything I can to push myself forward, launching myself with shockwave, blitzing with longstride...
But I realize that no matter what I do... I'm not going to make it...
The vitality suppressant status ailment is too strong...
I look on in horror as the pale blue dragon slams into the ground between me and the children, cutting them off from any chance of escape.
I feel my heart thumping wildly in my chest as I try and think of anything I can do to draw it away.
In a last-ditch effort, I begin forming ice spikes and desperately launching them at the dragon's wings, hoping that will distract it.
Though the beast simply swats my spikes away before returning its attention to the children.
"Be gone, Insect!" It bellows as it roars and approaches the children lunging forward with its mouth wide open, about to snap its jaws around Agni, who is frozen in place in fear.
It's then, out of the corner of my eye, I see a figure melt from out of the shadow as a small, lithe figure lunges out with an iron dagger slicing a deep gash into the dragon's left eye and driving it away from the kids with a fierce albeit surprisingly high pitched voice.
"Stay away from my family, you big, ugly lizard!" I hear Aventus shout in anger as he lands back on the ground after his successful surprise attack against the dragon.
"You pathetic worm!!! How dare you defy your gods!" The dragon roars before swiping a claw at Aventus.
Despite his speedy surprise attack, Aventus was no match for the dragon's strike, and I watch as the blow rips Aventus' right leg from his body and he is thrown to the side.
Smashing into a nearby tree with a resounding crack as he falls into the shrubbery below, not making a sound.
The sight of Aventus being crushed sends the children into a panic as they begin crying and wailing, drawing the dragon's attention back to them.
"Aventus!" I shout in disbelief but don't have time to check on him as I see the dragon preparing another attack on the children.
Rearing back on its hind legs, I can see the frost breath attack about to be spewed from its mouth towards the kids.
I throw up a rock wall just in front of the kids in the nick of time to take the brunt of the icy blast freezing the rock wall solid and enraging the dragon even more.
The beast turns its attention towards me, bellowing, "You annoying pest! How dare you stand between me and my meal! Die!"
I barely have enough warning to roll to the side before its tail comes smashing down where I once stood.
'Fuck! Why didn't I learn more long-range magic!' I think to myself as I'm left with just my ice spike to try and keep its attention, using longstride in my off-hand to boost my speed just enough to stay ahead of its wild attacks, thrown off by its wounded eye.
But at the rate, my magika is depleting, I won't be able to last much longer.
I stumble at another turn, causing me to lose concentration on longstride and tumble down, becoming an easy target for the beast's next attack.
"I have you now!" It bellows as it brings down a mighty claw toward me.
'Is this it? Am I to be done in after having accomplished so little? After watching my son get struck down? No! Not today! Not ever!' I feel the thoughts run through my head as I try and think of some way out of this mess.
I prepare to use the last of my magika to scorch the damned lizard in its other eye when out of nowhere, a monster clad in steel and wielding a dragon femur appears before me and takes the blow that would have surely ended me with my reduced health stat.
"Fear not, my Thane! For we are here!" Lydia shouts before knocking aside the dragon's claw, leaving its head wide open for the arrow that sails in from the side and strikes the dragon in its uninjured eye, completely blinding it.
"You insignificant insects, I will teach you to defy your gods!" The dragon roars before beginning to thrash about wildly, their attacks becoming unpredictable as everyone is driven back.
I see Inigo and Faendal with their bows drawn as they begin pelting the dragon with arrows aimed at its back and neck.
Lokir is the next to arrive from the main camp, followed by Gringar.
Lokir deftly dodges a strike from the dragon's hind leg before delivering a deep cut to its side.
Gringar moves to subdue the dragon's thrashing tail, catching it as it swings at him, I see his eyes go bloodshot as his muscles bulge, and for the briefest of moments, he's able to subdue the dragon's movements partially.
And that's all that is needed for Lydia to bring her giant club down on the dragon.
Though bloodied and disoriented, it's still not enough to end the dragon, and in a last-ditch attempt to survive, it begins furiously flapping its wings, not trying to fly but using the force of the wind generated from its wings to push us all back.
I quickly throw up a rock wall behind me to keep from being knocked back, but the force of the wind has me pinned to the wall behind the dragon.
As I see, everyone else gets pushed back several feet I'm left rooted in place at the rear of the dragon.