The Icy Quest

Chapter 20

"You'll get it eventually," Pozhar encouraged as Pagoniá once again failed to replicate what she had seen the adult team do to move the iceberg.

"Yeah," Tilepátheia agreed with a laugh. "You only need about a million more years of practice."

"That was not helpful, Tilepátheia. We are supposed to be encouraging her," Pozhar accused, sending a glare in Tilepátheia's direction.

"What? I was just being realistic," Tilepátheia snapped back, shrugging her shoulders.

"Why do you contradict everything I say when you only contradict most of what Pagoniá says?" Pozhar asked. "What's your problem?"

"That's for me to know and you to not find out," Tilepátheia replied, tossing her head.

Most of the time Pozhar and Tilepátheia's arguing annoyed Pagoniá. But at this moment, she was actually enjoying watching them bicker like siblings. Sometimes they could be just as much entertainment as a television drama.

However, the sound of shouting coming from the deck of the ship quickly put an end to their squabble. "DRAGON!" they heard someone yell.

Alarmed, Pagoniá unobtrusively opened the door of the shipping container just wide enough for her to squeeze her body out, hoping to draw as little attention to herself as possible. Pozhar and Tilepátheia followed her lead. Pagoniá immediately spotted a fire dragon flying over the ship. With enormous spikes all over its back and head and scales as large as dinner plates, the dragon was a terrifying yet magnificent sight. On its back was a fire person clutching the dragon's largest spike. He was cackling maniacally, as if he knew he had uncovered some secret plot of the ice people and was ready to make them pay for allowing themselves to be discovered. The dragon quickly swooped down and with a blast of flames from its mouth, set a pile of wooden crates stacked at the back of the ship on fire.

"Oh no," Pagoniá gulped. "This is bad."

At that moment, a huge blue dragon emerged from the sea and slammed into the fire dragon, crushing the fire person rider and knocking his body into the ocean below. Unlike the fire dragon, this dragon was more streamlined. It had webbed talons and fins across its sides. It also had what looked like burn scars crisscrossing its neck.

"It's a water dragon!" Pozhar cried with relief. "They're indigenous to the Atlantic Ocean."

"Why do you think it's attacking the fire dragon? Can you read its mind?" Pagoniá asked, looking at Tilepátheia.

"Of course not. I don't speak dragon. But it doesn't take a mind reader to know that that dragon is mad," Tilepátheia responded. "Those look like burn scars on its neck. Maybe it has a score to settle with fire dragons."

The water dragon had caught the fire dragon off guard with its initial assault. However, the fight wasn't over yet. The fire dragon retaliated by shooting a stream of flame at the water dragon. Its blast illuminated the whole ship even in the fading light of the evening. The water dragon responded by unleashing a fierce jet of water at the fire dragon. Then the two dragons collided in midair once again. As they broke away from the contact, both of them had blood flowing down their sides. The water dragon shot another jet of water at the same moment the fire dragon blasted with more fire. The water and fire collided and transformed into a huge cloud of steam. The water dragon quickly released yet another shot of water which ended up dousing the fire on the ship.

Pagoniá had been so caught up in the events unfolding before her eyes that she hadn't been aware of Pozhar and Tilepátheia talking quietly next to her. As she turned her attention back to them, she overheard enough of their conversation to realize that they were betting on the outcome of the dragon fight.

"You guys are ridiculous," she told them, shaking her head.

She looked back to see the fire dragon making another charge at the water dragon. Once again, they collided in midair. When they broke apart, the water dragon swooped down into the ocean and reemerged looking refreshed and stronger than it had just moments before. Pagoniá concluded that it had to be drawing healing and power from the water.

In contrast, the fire dragon was breathing heavily, and blood was flowing from wounds all over its body. It was clearly weakening. As if recognizing the weakness of the fire dragon, the water dragon charged one final time. It knocked the fire dragon out of the sky and into the water. The fire dragon thrashed in panic but was unable to break free from the ocean's grip. It sank beneath the waves, never to be seen again.

"Haha!" Tilepátheia exclaimed. "I win! Hand over your money."

"Darn it!" Pozhar grumbled, handing over a ten-dollar bill. "I thought for sure the fire dragon would last at least a little bit longer. They are pretty fierce, you know."

"I'm sorry," Tilepátheia apologized. "For not betting more money on the outcome."

They retreated stealthily back into the shipping container where Tilepátheia proceeded to gloat.

---

So, they were being followed. What's gonna happen when they get to the weapon? Comment and vote!