Nugst's chest began to glow — a deep, seething crimson pulsing beneath scales black as obsidian.
The air around the dragon rippled, bending from the heat gathering in its throat.
Every instinct in Altleno screamed at him to run, but his legs refused to move.
He could feel it — that power.
If the dragon released that breath, the entire forest would vanish in fire and ash.
The village. The people. Everything.
Altleno's heart pounded. Think, think!
He looked around, searching desperately for anything — anything — that could help.
His eyes fell on the shattered remnants of the trade carriages, scattered like bones among the trees. Splintered wood, torn rope, broken iron wheels.
Without hesitation, he lunged forward, grabbing a length of cracked timber still slick with pitch. His fingers burned from the heat of the dragon's growing flame.
"Come on," he muttered under his breath, voice shaking. "Come on, move!"
Nugst's eyes narrowed, the red glow reflecting in its slit pupils.
The ground trembled as it inhaled, the fire behind its teeth roaring to life — a sun ready to consume the world.
Altleno roared back — part fury, part terror — and hurled the first plank with every ounce of strength he had. The wood spun through the air, catching the light like a streak of gold before slamming into the dragon's snout.
The impact did little.
But it startled Nugst — the glow dimming for half a second, the dragon's head jerking slightly to the side.
Altleno didn't stop.
He snatched another plank, then another, throwing them as fast as his hands could move. Each one shattered uselessly against the dragon's scales, sparks flying like tiny stars in the inferno's breath.
"Come on! Look at me, not the village!" he shouted, voice raw.
The dragon's enormous head turned fully toward him now, the glow building once more — fury replacing confusion.
The ground cracked beneath Altleno's feet. Heat seared his face. He could barely breathe.
Then, one of the planks hit differently.
The jagged edge struck near the dragon's eye — a narrow gap between two thick scales. A sliver of red blood, faint but real, hissed as it hit the hot ground.
Nugst froze. The fire in its mouth flickered. Its gaze locked onto Altleno, no longer indifferent — now furious.
A guttural snarl ripped through the forest, shaking trees and shattering glass in the village below. The dragon stomped forward, each step leaving a crater in the soil.
Altleno stumbled back, heart racing, eyes wide.
"Great," he gasped. "Now it's angry…"
The dragon's wings spread wide, blotting out the sun.
Its roar split the sky — not just sound, but power — and the air itself seemed to bend under it.
Still, Altleno stood his ground. The broken planks lay scattered at his feet, the smell of smoke filling his lungs.
If this was his end, he would not meet it running.
He clenched his fists, aura beginning to shimmer faintly around him — the same dark energy that had once terrified even monsters.
"Then come," he whispered, eyes burning with defiance.
"Let's see whose fire burns brighter."