Who Lies in the End?

Ch 44: 15 "Please come back to me."

art by: saterise

The village was still in a panic when they left after Redne. George insisted that he go after the dragon with Sapnap refusing to be left behind. They decided Ranboo should join in hopes he could calm Redne and they brought Fundy for the extra hands.

After all, they weren't just capturing a dragon, but they were rescuing Dream and Punz. The absurdity of the situation was the only thing to lighten George's mood as they searched the expansive ground. The hours were long and the journey was stressful.

All George could hope was that Dream was smart enough to keep himself and Punz alive. He knew the outlaw must've been terrified facing the newly hatched dragon, if his reaction to recalling the memory was any indication. George remembered how Dream fell silent as he relayed his End adventure. He remembered how Dream's breath sped up and his hands fidgeted with nervous energy. He remembered how his yells fell on deaf ears as Dream was encased in a green glow.... then the room brimmed with anxious power.

The feeling made George's blood curdle and he was more afraid at that moment than he would ever like to admit. Never before had he witnessed such unbridled magic; what was worse was that he knew Dream could do more. He just hoped Dream could keep a level enough head to stay alive.

When the small group had finally arrived in the dark oak forest and found the missing males, his heart soared. It was inconvenient that they were so far up the tree, especially if Dream says Punz wasn't doing well. They had to act fast before they lost someone.

"Fundy, do you have any Potions of Healing?" George asked as the group huddled together. They could all feel the violet glare that Redne was watching them with.

The fox-kin nodded, "I have a couple, so if we can get them to Punz, then he should be fine. One problem though: how do we get past the dragon?"

Sapnap poked Ranboo's shoulder, "Can't you like, talk to it or something?"

The ender-kin glanced up at the dragon before leveling Sapnap with a frustrated look, "It's an Ender dragon, not an enderman. I can see what I can do, but I can't make any promises."

"Any suggestions to maybe distract it?" George asked, "If we could, maybe Fundy could climb up and heal the others."

Ranboo locked eyes with Redne, only looking away when she growled, "I can feel her emotions, in a weird way. She's on edge, but in a protective way? It's hard to read. I'm afraid if we get too close she'd bolt, and it's likely she'd take Dream and Punz with her."

"Isn't Dream a master escape artist? Why hasn't he done anything, yet?" Sapnap shifted as he blocked a skeleton's arrow before Fundy shot it down with his own.

George sighed, "That's what I'm nervous about. Dream is good, but if he hasn't been able to do something now, then something must be wrong."

Ranboo glanced back to check up on the dragon, only to curse under his breath, "Problem, big problem!"

This time, the whole group glanced up, but it was past the dragon that the real threat lingered. Two phantoms circled the branch that Dream and Punz once sat on, but they were now dangling off the edge, only being held on by Dream. Moments passed and Funday and Sapnap were already trying to climb the tall oak. Ranboo was watching Redne, trying to predict her actions. George watched, wide-eyed as a phantom swooped down at attacked the only thing keep Dream safe.

He watched them fall.

Panic rose in him and his indecision on what to do boiled down to a desperate shout, "DREAM!"

Powerful wing beats shook the sturdy oak as Redne took to the skies. Her lethal body cut through the shadows as she closed the distance between herself and the falling duo. They landed on her back, but George watched in horror as Dream began to glow green.