Haunted King

FORTY-ONE | my fire

Melody stared wide eyed at the glowing screen. A story screen faded in and so did a unique opening song she had never heard before. She watched as a grand palace zoomed into frame. It went past the vast gardens and the winding trails. Like an ancient fairytale a portrait of a happily married couple holding a small child centered in the screen. The child had black hair like the darkest night and eyes as green as a forest in spring. Then in bold white cursive two words swirled and flowed onto the screen like an angel was writing it themself.

"Lost Angel."

•••

Gabriel kept a safe distance from the red eyed creature as they incanted various large attack spells. It only took a few seconds before Calum noticed the high levels of magic energy in the air. "Fire!" Gabriel ordered. The magicians shot their spells and aimed them towards the dragon.

The dragon flapped his large wings and soared up into the sky but the spells followed him. As Calum was chased the group of magicians prepared another round. Only half of the previous attacks had made a hit while the others were blown away by Calum's fire.

Christopher stared up at the new addition to the battle. A part of him felt relieved. He grabbed at the grass and slowly hoisted himself to a tree. He leaned back and tried to catch his breath. He knew if he died Melody would also be in danger. So he gathered his energy piece by piece.

Calum didn't wait for the magicians to finish. He darted straight for them, a ball of fire building within his mouth. "Get down!" Gabriel shouted, but he knew they would be too late. He drew the sword from his hilt and laced it with mana.

With a boom sparks burst and dissipated in the whirl of smoke and mana. Gabriel had cut through the flames. The two men paused for only a moment before the clangs of metal on scale resonated through the forest. In a blue light Calum and Gabriel danced through the air. Their movements completely contrasted. While Calum relished in his openings in this fight, Gabriel was constantly aware of the movements of his body.

Gabriel swung his body around the ball of fire and sliced down on the scaled face of the dragon. The momentum pushed them both far away from each other in the air. Calum was momentarily stunned but his composure returned with a hint of cockiness. He touched the scar that crossed his eye and smiled. "So you are Melody's replacement lover," the dragon's voice was laced with a malicious energy.

Gabriel's body shivered but he stilled his mind. He refused to falter now. "Keep her name out of your mouth," he warned. Calum glanced at the shivering magicians in the distance. "Don't tell me you planned on winning this fight with just a few puny wizards?" He laughed.

Gabriel shook his head, "I planned on separating your head from your neck with my very own hands." Calum laughed again, "don't think I will go easy on you just because Melody favors you. You may still be sane but that won't last long." He smirked, "she has that effect on men."

Before Gabriel could respond a ball of fire fell down from the sky and nearly landed right on top of him. It was only because of his keen instincts that he moved out of the way in time. Then another ball of fire. Then another. Gabriel looked up to the sky and realized that the red in the clouds was fire raining down all around him. Calum's maniacal laughter echoed through the air. "There is one big difference between the two of us little king!"

His body shrank back to his human form. His eyes were the color of the purest blood. "I am not afraid of death, I worship it."