Chapter 5: The Escape
No one knows how they'll react in crisis until it happens. Hardened soldiers break down at their first real taste of death. Sheltered children become monsters. Heroes turn coward. Until the moment hits, you never know.
Dan yanked me into his car. "Stay calm. We need to figure this out before you do anything drastic," he whispered.
I couldn't move. The infinity symbol's outline was darkening, its border thickening almost imperceptibly. My mind raced too fast to grasp any single thought.
The windows started shaking. People stumbled and fell as tremors rippled through the street. An earthquake? They're never this strong here. The shaking intensified, metal groaning in protest. Glass shattered as an ear-piercing roar echoed off buildings. Dan jumped out, calling to me.
"Jace..." His panicked cry cut through the chaos. I sat frozen, wondering how this day could get worse. "JACE!" He pointed past a liquor store.
I climbed out, avoiding broken glass. Looking where Dan pointed, terror and awe struck in equal measure.
Black scales gleamed on an elegant, serpentine body. Light danced across its lithe form. Wings dark as night spread in majestic display. Blood-red eyes surveyed its domain with malice. Its massive tail swayed, brushing aside cars like dead leaves.
"Dan, please tell me this is a dream. Because if not, that's a dragon and humanity is absolutely fucked."
"Don't think you're dreaming buddy. And that does indeed look like a dragon." His calm seemed oddly out of place.
We stood transfixed. Like watching a car crash - you know you shouldn't look, know someone's hurt or dead, but can't tear your eyes away. The longer you stare into the abyss, the deeper it pulls you. And so we stared into the abyss of what could only be a Black Dragon.
The stories have it wrong. Dragons aren't just aggressive beasts breathing fire at knights. For one thing, they sleep. A lot.
"Is... is that thing sleeping? In the middle of an intersection?"
That earth-shaking roar had been a yawn. A yawn that shattered glass and sent everyone within earshot running. Everyone except Dan and me, standing in shocked stupor.
"Call your guild. I don't want to be here when it wakes up," I said. "If we're lucky, it'll just leave."
"Y-yeah." He sent messages rapid-fire. "New plan - meet at my place. It's walking distance and I don't want to drive through all this glass." Looking at the glittering street, I couldn't argue.
The infinity symbol was half-filled now. "Hey Dan, got more bad news." I showed him my arm. "I think this spreads through exposure to magic. That tattoo barely moved after your power hit me. But that single yawn filled it halfway. No way this stays contained. It's going to spread like wildfire."
Fear clawed at my mind. Nothing would ever be the same. Hell, I didn't even know what THIS was. The world might be ending. Mystical creatures, magic, a game that was anything but - it was too much. I wanted to run. Just run and never look back. Find somewhere with no one around. But that wouldn't save me. Once everyone realized what was happening, nowhere would be safe.
***
Pushing down the panic, I forced myself to think. I could break down later. Right now, we needed to understand what was happening and prepare. If everyone was getting magic, trust would become a luxury. People always looked out for themselves first. Myself included.
"Lead the way," I told Dan. Walking down the empty street, I noticed something odd about the air - thicker somehow, like climbing stairs without getting winded.
Moving through the business district, we saw a steep rise in foot traffic and cars. Oddly, everyone seemed to be heading toward us. Shouldn't they be running AWAY from the sleeping dragon?
The commercial area gave way to suburban homes and green lawns. The crowds thinned as we got further from the dragon, like people were being drawn there. I recognized Dan's neighborhood - he still lived where we grew up. Cookie-cutter houses with just enough personality to seem distinct.
Dan slowed. Ahead, behind a well-trimmed hedge, metal glinted and branches rustled.
"We're almost there, but I don't like that. Street's been empty five minutes. Let's take it slow," he said between heavy breaths.
We crept around the hedge. Steel flashed toward my face. Dan shoved me down, taking position in front. He extended his hand toward something out of a nightmare.
A goblin. Leather armor, rusted longsword. Its green, warted face was leathery from sun exposure. Long ears showed old battle scars. Red eyes gleamed with hatred. My heart stopped - we were going to die. Neither of us knew how to fight, let alone against an armed monster.
Dan stood between me and the goblin. "I won't let you hurt him," he growled. Power radiated from him, pushing the grass flat. Wind swirled, throwing the goblin off balance. Dan's hand dropped.
"Kneel," he commanded. The word carried a father's fury protecting his child. Its weight crushed me to the ground. The goblin took a knee, struggling against the pressure.
Fighting back, it lunged with the sword. The creature managed one step before the blade lay useless on the ground. Dan seized the weapon. "I am sorry," he said softly. "I do this not out of malice or spite, but simply out of Obligation."
The word hung in the air too long, like it had gained substance. Pressure coalesced around the blade with an echoing sigh. Without ceremony, Dan swung. Blood washed over us as steel met neck. The goblin's eyes turned gray in the afternoon sun.
I watched in awe as Dan adjusted to his power instantly, even taking a life. Then he dropped to all fours and vomited.
He trembled in the hedge's shadow. He hadn't adjusted at all - he'd just done what needed doing. And it nearly broke him.
Trying to stand, I realized I was soaked in goblin blood. As I braced against the earth, sharp pain shot through my wrist.
I screamed. Rolling in agony, I watched the infinity symbol fill with deep crimson light. My mind shifted and the world went black.