Chapter 35: Battle in Fire
Heat shimmered around its limbs, distorting the air as if it carried a furnace within its bones. Jagged dorsal ridges ran from its hunched shoulders to the whip thick tail, which dragged across the sand with a searing hiss, leaving scorched furrows in its wake. Its legs were bowed and muscled, ending in talons like molten iron, each claw gouging half moon craters with every step.
Its head was wedge shaped and brutish, eyes like burning coals sunk deep in ridged sockets, unblinking and cruel. From its half open mouth, thin threads of smoke curled, followed by a low, guttural hiss that scraped across the arena like the groan of shifting earth. When it opened its jaws wider, a line of glowing orange spit dripped to the sand and hissed on contact, leaving a blackened stain behind.
The crowd shifted uneasily, the mood darkening. This wasn’t just a beast, it was a walking ember pile, a creature forged in the belly of the earth.
Zephyr felt the heat from across the pit and instinctively stepped back..Star’s wings twitched beside him, already tensed but excited. This was the Ash Scale Monitor, and it had come to burn.
Crowd tittered; odds chalked eight-to-one now. The sound of slate sticks scraped harshly as the scribes updated the boards, drawing mocking snorts from nearby gamblers. Coins clinked in open palms. A few spectators jeered from the lower rows.
"A hatchling against that furnace-lizard? I’ll take that bet!" Guy number one comment.
"Poor kid’s gonna get melted with his tiny beast." Guy number two comments.
"Should’ve bought marshmallows and watched ’em roast!" Guy number three comment.
The laughter grew, sharp and dismissive, as Zephyr stepped forward. High above, hawkers shouted over the buzz, waving tokens for sale, adjusting prices in real-time. The Hollowback nickname had stuck like tar, and now it dripped with irony in the mouths of doubters. But it’s a good thing, people will never doubt Star as a dragon species. There is also a risk, if he showed too much power people will raise questions. It’s a double edged situation.