The tail seemed to be flying towards me in slow-motion. I didn't see my life flash before my eyes, but that only meant I could experience the complete terror as that massive spikey bone, metal, and geared monstrosity aimed right for my fragile body. I desperately tried to pull out my sword and bring it up. I had been functioning as a wizard, so it didn't occur to me to have my sword out while I had my wand in hand.
The hit was powerful, and I flew back with a skid. It was only when I stopped about five feet back from where I started that I realized I hadn't been hit at all. The tail had stopped a foot before, and what I felt was just the wind backlash. Standing right in front of the tail was none other than Terra! She had stopped the tail with her hands and was now holding it with her small body. The tail was taller than she was, but she was able to keep it from moving an inch.
I stared in surprise for several moments as she continued to hold on to the tail, her mouth tight as she seemed to struggle against all odds.
"I'm going for it!" Carmine called out, backing up and beginning a chant that caused her to glow white. "Hold him down."
"Lydia!" I called, confirming that we were going with this plan.
The clockwork dragon wasn't truly being held down. Rather, he was stuck in his position. He was starting to struggle, trying to pull his tail away from Terra's grip, but he didn't seem to be able to do so. At this moment, he was half-turned and in an awkward position. I ordered Lydia to attack his side to distract him from his caught tail. Celeste flew in to support. Meanwhile, Miki began to cast a spell that seemed to make the air more solid, thus further slowing the dragon down.
It was pretty clear from the last attack that this guy was too powerful for us. He hadn't even depended on any skill yet. A single breath attack of his would probably be devastating. Rather, just like we feared going in, our best bet was to take control of the guardian and then have him destroy himself. Trying to fight him with only five people was simply not enough for a creature of this strength.
"Terra, can you hold on?" I asked worriedly.
"Mm!" She said, her voice sounding somewhat weak.
I immediately used Moderate Heal and Refresh on her. I also used Create Earth around her feet, where I could see the rock breaking. She looked down as she noticed earth covering her feet. This caused her to smile strangely. A moment later, dozens of earthly spikes rose from the ground. On each side of the tail, they stabbed into the dragon, holding him in place like a vice. Terra seemed to be pretty powerful with earth magic. Given her name and this dungeon type, I supposed that made a kind of sense.
"Keep holding!" Carmine cried out as her spell started to affect the dragon.
He seemed to feel his control being wrestled away. The dragon started to fight back. However, Terra's hold on his tail was incredibly strong, and with the other three girls attacking his front, he was in a difficult situation. I cast a few more healing spells, Mana Blasting the monster when I had the ability. Even though I wasn't useless with the sword, I didn't have the guts to attack its legs. The speed it was dancing around was something only Lydia could deal with.
Crraaaacck!
The earthly spires that kept the tail confined suddenly broke. The clockwork dragon seemed to change its motions suddenly. This would be the equivalent of a boss changing its attack pattern after being hurt a certain amount. It lifted its tail up and then slammed it down. Terra was like a rag doll. With a flick, she went flying. Without thinking I jumped and caught her, the pair off us slamming into a wall. She was like a rock slamming into my front, with the wall of rock behind me. Suffice it to say, the wind was completely ripped out of my lungs.
The other girls barely managed to escape as it started lashing around wildly, knocking over one of the pillars and causing rubble to fall from the already dilapidated dungeon. Just when I thought all hope was lost, a white glow suddenly exploded around the dragon, and the previously red eyes turned blue in color.
"I got it!" Carmine's voice cried out. "The dragon is under control!"
Taking a breath of relief through my aching lungs, I stood up, holding Terra in my arms. She blushed as she realized I had her in a princess carry. I was mostly just shaking my head at how heavy this little girl was. No, I needed to focus on the dragon. The danger wasn't gone yet. We still needed to make sure the dragon was destroyed!