A burst of fiery breath races across the rocky terrain and narrowly misses Kaleidoscope as she gracefully pirouettes. Fingers slashing through the air, she retaliates with a blast of her own spell. Lightning strikes in rapid succession, electricity cracking against the hardened scales of the mythical creature. The attack is ineffective, and the beast’s health remains in the green.

The juvenile dragon paws at the ground. Sharpened claws cut through solid rock, and leathery wings stretch wide as the creature rears up to strike. Flickering firelight from mounted torches glints off the silvery scales of the exposed underbelly.

Noodles parries the swipe of razor claws with his Amethyst blade – its twin securely strapped to his back.

Thanks to the opening provided by Noodles, Fangmaster leaps into the fray, slashing at the unprotected belly of the beast, and the dragon’s health depletes rapidly into the yellow.

[September 27, 2014: 16:19]

Guild Chat

[Fangmaster] kills urs man

[Noodles] how much xp til u lvl up, princess?

[Kaleidoscope] 2743 until I hit lvl 70

The dragon throws back its head and roars. The sound echoes through the cave, stones trembling, and bits of rock dust rain down from the ceiling.

A single drop of water from the tip of a stalactite lands on Noodles bare shoulder and rolls down the taut muscles of his back.

A second ball of fire erupts from the dragon’s mouth and rushes through the narrow tunnel of the beast’s cavern home. Noodles launches directly into the path, shielding Kaleidoscope with his body when she fails to react to the oncoming attack. The flames lick his bare tan skin, but his health diminishes less than a few notches.

Guild Chat

[Noodles] afk much?

Private Chat [Noodles]

[Kaleidoscope] My mother just called.

[Noodles] everything ok?

[Kaleidoscope] I don’t know. I didn’t pick up.

Guild Chat

[Fangmaster] a little help here

Fangmaster pivots, swinging his sword to slash the broad chest of the dragon. The beast snorts and swipes at the feral warrior. Without Noodles to draw focus, razor-sharp claws slice Fangmaster across the torso. He tumbles across the ground and slams into the cave wall. His health dips dangerously into the yellow.

Fingers slashing through the air, Kaleidoscope fires off a spell. A pillar of fire spouts from beneath the behemoth dragon like a geyser. The attack is oddly successful, and the health bar emblazoned above the dragon’s head shrinks into the red zone, flashing like a beacon.

Noodles charges forward to draw fire, but the dragon shifts to the feral staggering to his feet. Before Kaleidoscope could summon the power to heal the wounded feral, the dragon’s fiery breath engulfs Fangmaster.

When the smoke clears, Fangmaster’s health flickers and fades, and the feral warrior falls. On the stony ground littered with the debris of battle, Fangmaster’s slain body flickers and shatters into pieces that glitter faintly in the dark of the cave, then fade. Left behind in a neat pile are the contents of his pack. Mostly food; a few crystals and ore for basic crafting and smelting.

Guild Chat

[Fangmaster] **** u

[Fangmaster] do ur ****ing job

[Fangmaster] ur 2 busy shielding kalei to be the ****in tank

[Fangmaster] god forbid the princess breaks a nail

[Fangmaster] im never raiding wit u again u ****in cocksucker

[Fate] That type of language is completely uncalled for.

Fingers pressed to her lips, Kaleidoscope conjures a final fireball that fills the width of the cave and engulfs the head of the dragon. A roar echoes off the stone walls. Rocks and debris tremble. The last of the dragon’s health depletes, and the bar that hangs over its head blinks, then vanishes. With one final flap of its wings, the dragon freezes mid-flap and shatters. Shards like glass glitter and fade.

Caught in the crossfire of Kaleidoscope’s finishing attack, Noodles’ health briefly flickers, but the points missing are scarcely a noticeable blip in the glowing green bar. Twirling his sword with a flourish, Noodles sheaths his blade.

You have defeated Ember’s offspring and rescued the stolen treasure she guards. Return the Jade Amulet to Master Kin in the Gin Temple to complete your quest.

[TheArtfulShadow] you know he didn’t mean that

[Noodles] thats so not cool, man

[Noodles] i didnt mean to leave ya hangin’

[TheArtfulShadow] i shut his laptop. let him cool off.

[Fate] Your blatant favouritism weakens the team

[Noodles] i don’t favour kalei

[TheArtfulShadow] i think he just broke something. i’ll be back in a minute.

[lotusblossom] you’re so in love -swoon

[Noodles] -facepalm

Kaleidoscope’s boots crunch in the rubble as she jogs to collect the dropped treasure: 4500 gold coins, dragon scales, twelve enchantment rubies, and a black hooded cloak with silver trim.

Would you like to wear Dragon Slayer’s Cloak of Impenetrability? 

[Yes] [No]

Kaleidoscope’s plain black cloak disappears, replaced by the newly earned Dragon Slayer’s cloak. It shimmered faintly in the flickering torchlight that made the shadows dance. Three strides away lay the pile of Fangmaster’s belongings. Her cloak unfurling behind her on approach, Kaleidoscope gathers her guildmate’s lost loot while Noodles follows her lead and collects his own portion of the treasure.

[Noodles] spiffy threads babe

[Kaleidoscope] Kill reward. Check out the stats.

[Dragon Slayer’s Cloak of Impenetrability]

[Fate] Impressive physical defence boost.

[Kaleidoscope] My last cloak only had a 20% growth rate.

[PrettyPinkPegasus] hey s! my mom baked fresh cookies.

[TheArtfulShadow] back. if you could collect his pack for him… he regenerated in singer

[Kaleidoscope] Already done. TTYL.

Guild chat is [off]

Together, Kaleidoscope and Noodles follow the winding maze of tunnels in search of a safe passage to the surface. Their immediate path is lit by the eerie glow of the flickering bluish flames that light the torches as they progress. Ahead lies only darkness.

From the stalactite crusted ceiling, a dark shadow swoops at their heads, talons extended. Noodles is quick to block the attack with his bare arm. The tapered claws that drip with poison rip into the tan skin, and the feral warrior’s swift counter falls short as his body falls slack.

Private Chat [Noodles]

[Kaleidoscope] Why aren’t you attacking?

Gathering silver mist in the palm of her hand, tendrils of magic winding around her fingers, Kaleidoscope launches her lightning attack with the slash of her arm. The flash of three rapid strikes briefly bathes the Nix Razor Bat in sharp light, and a piercing shriek echoes off the stone walls. Its leathery wings beat irregularly as it fumbles to recover.

[Noodles] im paralyzed

[Noodles] y the **** did u turn ur chat off

While drawing her bow, Kaleidoscope dodge rolls to the right as the bat shoots towards her, talons flashing in the low light cast by the flame burning at the tip of an arrow. The stone wall of the cave pressed to her back, Kaleidoscope releases the tension in her bow, and the arrow flies. It strikes true, but the bat’s health still hovers in the upper yellow. Barely a dent.

[Kaleidoscope] Is Pegasus still babbling?

[Noodles] yup

[Kaleidoscope] Do I have to elaborate?

Before Kaleidoscope fires the second flaming arrow drawn, Noodles draws his blade and cleaves the bat in two. The health rapidly depletes, and the bat shatters, shards twinkling in the dark.

[Noodles] whoops. meant to give u the kill

[Kaleidoscope] Moron.

[Kaleidoscope] I’ll be on late tomorrow. My brother wants to have dinner.

Weapons stowed, Kaleidoscope and Noodles continue their journey once the dropped treasure of gold coins is collected. Ahead, a faint glow signals their exit, and slowly, the tunnel lightens as they trudge forward.

[Noodles] ur brother sounds prety cool

[Noodles] i mean, he’s payin for ur skool, rite?

[Kaleidoscope] For now. A scholarship would be preferable.

[Noodles] i still cant belive tey just cut u off

[Kaleidoscope] Well, I upset their grand design for my life when I switched majors.

[Noodles] thts stupid

[Noodles] come here

A large, muscular arm slings around Kaleidoscope’s slender shoulders, and Noodles leads the elven mage out of the shadows of the cave into the glow of the evening stars. The night sky stretches out before them, thousands of twinkling lights like fireflies, illuminating the sleepy town of Ciaran nestled at the base of the Greystone Mountain where the rocky outcrop they stood atop rested.

[Kaleidoscope] I still find it odd that the game includes semi-intimate interactions between characters.

[Noodles] engineers r overrated

[Kaleidoscope] Not when you’re asian.

[Noodles] woah things make so much mor sense now

[Noodles] ru good at math

[Kaleidoscope] Not particularly.

[Noodles] defyin sterotyps

[Noodles] i like it

[Kaleidoscope] I don’t even know where to begin correcting that. ^

A shooting star streaked across the dark sky, a brilliant flash over the horizon, and as suddenly, gone.