Main Page Go to Short Stories Go back to Articles Go to Comics Go to Continued Series Go to Editorial Go to New Series

Show All | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Week 19 | Week 20 | Week 21 | Week 22 | Week 23 | Week 24 | Week 25 | Week 26 | Week 27 | Week 28 | Week 29 | Week 30 | Week 31 | Week 32 | Week 33 | Week 34 | Week 35 | Week 36 | Week 37 | Week 38 | Week 39 | Week 40 | Week 41 | Week 42 | Week 43 | Week 44 | Week 45 | Week 46 | Week 47 | Week 48 | Week 49 | Week 50 | Week 51 | Week 52 | Week 53 | Week 54 | Week 55 | Week 56 | Week 57 | Week 58 | Week 59 | Week 60 | Week 61 | Week 62 | Week 63 | Week 64 | Week 65 | Week 66 | Week 67 | Week 68 | Week 69 | Week 70 | Week 71 | Week 72 | Week 73 | Week 74 | Week 75 | Week 76 | Week 77 | Week 78 | Week 79 | Week 80 | Week 81 | Week 82 | Week 83 | Week 84 | Week 85 | Week 86 | Week 87 | Week 88 | Week 89 | Week 90 | Week 91 | Week 92 | Week 93 | Week 94 | Week 95 | Week 96 | Week 97 | Week 98 | Week 99 | Week 100 | Week 101 | Week 102 | Week 103 | Week 104 | Week 105 | Week 106 | Week 107 | Week 108 | Week 109 | Week 110 | Week 111 | Week 112 | Week 113 | Week 114 | Week 115 | Week 116 | Week 117 | Week 118 | Week 119 | Week 120 | Week 121 | Week 122 | Week 123 | Week 124 | Week 125 | Week 126 | Week 127 | Week 128 | Week 129 | Week 130 | Week 131 | Week 132 | Week 133 | Week 134 | Week 135 | Week 136 | Week 137 | Week 138 | Week 139 | Week 140 | Week 141 | Week 142 | Week 143 | Week 144 | Week 145 | Week 146 | Week 147 | Week 148 | Week 149

Neopia's Fill in the Blank News Source | 28th day of Running, Yr 26
The Neopian Times Week 88 > Continuing Series > Dragonmist: Part Eighteen

Dragonmist: Part Eighteen

by jenjen26785

Untitled Document Nothing.

     Not so much as a loud bang or change of the wind. FiskMerrick was still standing there in expectation as a small wisp of dust escaped the box and rose into the sky. He held the box upside down and shook it. Nothing. In a split second his bushy brows furrowed and his eyes burned with malice.

     The only sound that could be heard was the sound of Angel muffling hysterical laughter under her paw. "You idiot!" she chuckled. "There was never anything there! You did all that work for nothing, you super villain wannabe!" Secretly, however, she was experiencing mixed feelings of relief and disappointment. Relief that nothing had happened, of course. Who wouldn't be? But also a strange feeling of disappointment since her family had sacrificed themselves for … apparently nothing. Just a bit of dust and a dirty wooden box. Regardless, she kept the air of satisfaction so as not to show FiskMerrick she had a weakness.

     The Jetsam bared his teeth and launched a verbal attack on the Eyriess, brandishing his fin like a weapon. ~This is all your fault, you meddling little spuggie! What did you do with the real Dragonmist? Did you hide it? Tell me or I'll …~

     RRRRRRROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!

     FiskMerrick was cut short when an immense roaring split through the silence, causing a few of the on looking Darkgons to shiver. His pupils dilated in recognition as his mind was taken back to the first attack on the Kumlaas so many years ago.

     ~Feeralls!~ he roared. ~How are there Feerall Kougras still living in Denholm Valley?~ He almost choked on his own rage as he turned to Malkus. ~Vile! Assemble all the troops and get rid of them. Spryt and Burzwakh, stay here to guard the girl.~

     Angel hardly kept her focus off FiskMerrick whilst enormous Darkgons all around her raced to pile out of the ring of stone and onto the battlefield. The Grarrl and Korbat stood were they were, protecting Jen whose eyes were bulging with fright and looking to the stars. Within seconds the ring was empty, save a tied human, a Grarrl and a Korbat, and save an Eyriess and Jetsam, who were circling each other, ready for battle.

     Clouds darkened overhead, sweeping across the ring like a lethal fog, adding to the atmosphere as the two sized each other up. ~No matter,~ murmured FiskMerrick. ~The destruction of the very last of the Kumlaa Eyries will be reward enough.~ He reached into a sheath beside his belt and brought to light a glistening sword, scarred with years of battles. ~Now say your prayers, you …~

     "Stop!" yelled Angel, thinking fast. "If you do this, you know you'll be the least reputable super villain there is at the moment." He gave her a confused look. "I'll not fight you, FiskMerrick. Think about it. When you're sitting there, drinking coffee with your super villain buddies and talking about the highlights of your careers, is the fact that your finest moment was destroying a weapon-less, defenceless young Eyriess with a sword going to reflect well on you?"

     "Mmmmph," squealed Jen through her gag from behind.

     FiskMerrick ignored her and thought about this for a moment, and then threw his sword to the side. ~Alright then. Now we're equal. We'll end it here and now, Angel.~

     "MMMMMMPH!" she screamed again, shattering the climatic build-up of tension.

     ~Oh for the love of … what do you want?~ roared FiskMerrick, glaring at the human.

     "MMMMMMMMMPH!!!!" she shrieked in a panic, nudging her head towards the sky.

     All present looked up at the same time, and were met with a awesome sight. The clouds had descended, dancing and spinning, twisting and turning around to create a spout of fog, which continued to swirl in a marbled haze of grey tones and hues. The dust cloud that had escaped from the Dragonmist seemed to have hovered in mid air and stopped, and was now draining all the life out of everything around them. Animals had left their homes long ago. What little plant life that remained was dead or dying. The general horizon was just a mesh of subtle grey undertones, save what little of the scarlet sky was peeking through the clouds. And at the centre point of this whole ordeal - about thirty or so feet from the ground - a pair of invisible eyelids stirred from their long sleep and sprang open, revealing blood-red eyes which looked mercilessly upon the small assembly of Neopets below them.

     For the first time, Angel realised the full intensity of the shock her owner received when she first looked into the candle in Retsinis and saw this very monster. "A spirit," she whispered to no one, feeling the awesome unscrupulousness seeping from those wicked eyes. "The Dragonmist was an evil spirit all along. No wonder my family, the Kumlaas, were willing to sacrifice themselves for it. And I released it …" Her eyes drifted to the Yellow Jetsam, his lower jaw jutting in triumph, and they screwed up in hatred. "… no - he released it."

     With split second timing FiskMerrick sprang at the Eyriess, his teeth bared horribly. Angel reacted instinctively, dodging out of the way and coming to rest a few feet away. FiskMerrick kept going and slammed against a rock with a crunch. ~Speed won't do you much use here, child,~ he mumbled, spitting out a tooth.

     "Seems to be doing fine."

     ~You're so naïve.~ He gave her a nasty grin. ~Where are your little friends, Angel? Abandon you, did they? Like your robot buddy did on the mountain, Spryt tells me. You should have less faith in your friends, Angel. They only hold you back.~

     She fluffed her feathers derisively and felt her fists clench. "My friends are the most precious things in the world to me, FiskMerrick. They would never let me down."

     The Jetsam took another swing at her. She spun on her heel, quickly avoiding it. ~Oh but they already have. That there Kougra brother of yours led us right to your front door.~

     "Liar!"

     ~What, didn't you know?~ he mocked before thrusting his head forwards in another strike.

~*~*~*~

Outside of the ring of stones, the long-sought fight between the Feeralls and Darkgons was well underway. Tooth versus claw, strength versus speed, the war was waging between the good and the evil. And Rincham was proving himself a worthy opponent on the battlefield.

     The Darkgons were taken completely by surprise when the Kougra entered, his face matted with loathing. All they usually saw of him was a flurry of spots, a humming snarl, then the pain in their side, and then they were knocked unconscious. The months of lab training were paying off remarkably. Even some of the Feeralls slunk back from him when his combing gaze met theirs.

     And all the while the Dragonmist continued to swirl above their heads, sapping all the life from Denholm Valley.

~*~*~*~

     ~Get up!~

     After lengthy minutes of dodging FiskMerrick's blows, stamina had finally caught up with Angel. She had collapsed, her legs void of strength, with the added fact that she'd had no food or sleep in days. Not a single muscle in her body responded when she tried to lift herself from the dirt, and FiskMerrick was getting restless.

     ~Get up, darnit! Don't tell me a high-and-mighty Kumlaa can't take a few punches from little ol' me!~ He launched another stone into the air, and it hit her side with a dull thump.

     It was no use. She was out of it. Exhausted. Beaten. Paralysed and with no alternative than to just lie there and take the punches. Grey clouds swirled around, and the mocking red eyes of the Dragonmist narrowed upon her still form. Her mind went back to her friends. 'Shining_Safyre,' she thought. 'You were always good for a laugh. You'll go very far in this world … just not with me to cheer you on. Angle8285 - you're a role model to Neopians everywhere. You'll find someone to replace me soon enough. Rincham. My brother. Whatever you did, I'll forgive you. I wish I could tell you that in person. *Bleeper* - I now understand why you ran from me when we were about to come here. I can still here your little voice …'

     "BLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!"

     'wait a minute…'

     Angel prised her eyes open and peered into the shadows. A small figure with brilliant blue eyes was crouching there, staring out at the scene in horror.

     "*Bleeper*?" she whispered. And he came forward. But it wasn't *Bleeper*. Well, it was, and wasn't. He had fused with two others to create an Ultra Mega Bot 2000, and Angel recognised the other two as Rincham's Neotrak 'R2' and Aren's Ultra Pinceron 'Sid'. Angel smiled weakly as she glanced at the Petpet, skimming across *Bleeper*'s telltale gouge across his yellow paintwork to make sure it was him.

     The Jetsam hadn't seen the Ultra Mega Bot 2000. Rather he was connecting a lightning beam together, ready to move in for the kill. He spun round and grinned, a look of pure evil on his face.

     ~I forgot to thank you for leading me right to the Dragonmist, Angel,~ he half-whispered in a voice blemished with spite. ~Now I'm just going to put you out of your misery. That way you can tell your family that you failed personally.~

     Slowly, he lifted the beam to shoulder level. And fired.

     Those few seconds it took for him to do so felt like hours, and Angel thought everything was in slow motion. The activation of the trigger. The flicker of movement as *Bleeper* and his friends skidded towards her. The clang of springs as they leapt into the air in front of her. And the sudden crunch of metal as the beam hit their body. The robot froze for a fraction of a second, hovering in mid air, and - with a sickening rasp of twisting iron - exploded. Shattered shards of metal spun from the point of impact, covering Angel in a haze of smoke, and when the smoke cleared all that was left was a powdered mound of circuits and components. Angel gasped as she watched a blue LED topple from the mound to her feet, flicker, and die.

     FiskMerrick snarled and pointed the beam at her to fire again. But nothing happened. ~Out of ammo,~ he muttered. ~Cheap junk. Oh well. You win some, you lose some. Now who was that rude creature who interrupted my vengeance?~

     He turned round slowly, a smug grin splitting his face horribly … and was met with a pawful of talons that whacked his face. The force of the blow rocked him back, and after a long and meaningful glare he put his fin to his cheek. Four red stripes glistened where she had hit.

     ~Now what was that for?~ he barked. ~Good riddance to bad rubbish, that's what I say.~

     Angel was fuming. Despite her paralysis and sudden deficit of any strength, she had summoned some kind of force from somewhere to bring herself to her feet and cuff him roughly across the cheek. Her gentle hazel eyes were burning with awoken hatred and her stance was ready-for-action. She held her head down and glared at him, her beak hooked and talons outstretched. "That 'rubbish' was the best friend I ever had. That's twice he's laid down his life for me."

     FiskMerrick's eyes widened slightly, caught off-guard by the sudden and deliberate venom that tinted her voice in a calypso of rancour. He laughed cruelly. ~What? What did he fight against first? A snail?!~

     Burzwakh shuffled his feet awkwardly.

     Then Angel gave him a smile. It was a new smile. Not one that radiated gentleness and good humour like she normally did, but one of deliberate and intentional mischief. Like an imp. And she launched herself at him.

     The two pets fought like never before. Now the Yellow Jetsam was lacking any weapons, and Angel never had any to begin with, so it was down to pure strength to see which was the victor.

     Slash after slash, blow after blow, they fought intensely with amazing power that Burzwakh, Sprytar and Jen could only stand and stare, despite the spirit looming above them, from which a pair of muscular arms had just burst. Words cannot describe how powerfully they fought until they came to a stalemate, when they stood several metres from each other, beaten and bruised. FiskMerrick was a picture of malevolence - his face twisted with pain and revulsion, his scales dulled and void of their brightness. Angel, however bruised she looked, remained thoughtful. There was a nagging sensation in the back of her mind that told her she was forgetting something. Something was more important than getting her revenge on the monster that had destroyed her family. Her eyes flickered. But what?

     A fork of lightning ripped across the sky and she looked towards the Heavens. There it was. The Dragonmist. Blinded with rage, she couldn't see any alternative than to fight FiskMerrick. Now she could clear her mind, and see that the only way to halt his plan was to destroy the Dragonmist! Her breathing rate increased dramatically. It was a huge risk. She could lose her life.

     "If Aren, the Kumlaas and even *Bleeper* were prepared to forfeit, so am I," she spoke out loud, fluffing out her main proudly as if relishing her last moments in Neopia.

     ~What?!~

     Angel smiled, tipped an invisible hat, and pounced into the air.

     Outside the circle of stone, the wind rushed past her face, drowning out the infuriated roaring of FiskMerrick. Another ten metres, and the thick cloud almost overwhelmed her. Twenty metres into the air and she felt as though the feathers were being ripped from her wings with the force of the wind, screaming at her with banshee-like howls. But she persevered. And within seconds she could see its eyes. Those slanted, blood-red eyes caught sight of her and glanced upwards. She had flown higher than she thought. But no matter. The higher the better. She felt a sudden sensation as though someone had just slipped a stone into her hand. But no matter. Her mind was playing tricks on her again. She suddenly felt as though she wasn't alone, as though there was someone holding her up there like a puppet. But no matter. She'd never been on the brink of death before - maybe this was normal.

     All that was left was to let go. Let go of the single updraught that held her suspended in the evening sky and fall down to the Dragonmist. Let go of her time. She knew in her heart it was the only thing to do. So she folded her outspread, silver-tipped wings, narrowed her body to be more aerodynamic, and plummeted towards the behemoth.

     The sensation she felt when diving through the thick mist was akin to the feeling she felt when swimming through water, against the tide. Strange forces were pushing her back, forcing her to retreat, but she only went faster. It was a surprise for her when she hit the Dragonmist itself. Not exactly pleasant, but more unexpected. Like every inch and cell on her body was tingling. But no pain. She thought there would be much more pain than there was. Nonetheless she was not in control any more. She fell helplessly and ungainly as a pigeon. Fell all the way down to the side of the mountain, just within the circle of stone, where she landed with a thud amongst a pile of dust.

     She groaned and opened one eye feebly. She was lying on her side amidst the twisted metal shards that remained of *Bleeper*, Sid and R2. To her right lay a dull, shattered: the box that had contained the Dragonmist, the once-powerful evil spirit. Her eye ached. Her paw was numb and clenched. She lifted her bleary-eyes to gaze up and witness the Dragonmist's last moments. It just stayed their, unmoving, staring at the gaping hole in its side with eyes that glowed with shock. Then, with a holler that pealed through the atmosphere, it threw its head back and detonated with a flash of pure white light that dazzled her. And as she watched, something caught her eye. Three small licks of flame - one a dull white, one scarlet and one a brilliant green - rose into the air and bounced along the horizon. But nothing else mattered now.

     Although the sound of the Dragonmist's howl was still ringing in her ears, and a bright and thin mist was clouding her vision, Angel felt suddenly content. She'd done it. She'd destroyed the Dragonmist. Now she could go to her family and tell them that she had fulfilled her duty.

     She willingly let her eyelids droop.

     This isn't so bad, she thought. Not too bad at all. I can think of a lot worse.

     And she let go.

 

To be continued...

Author's Note:

Talk about a cliffhanger. Tune in next week to find out what happens.

I love to know the audience's opinions on my stories, so if you have any compliments, criticisms, whatnot, send 'em on in!

Previous Episodes

Dragonmist: Part One

Dragonmist: Part Two

Dragonmist: Part Three

Dragonmist: Part Four

Dragonmist: Part Five

Dragonmist: Part Six

Dragonmist: Part Seven

Dragonmist: Part Eight

Dragonmist: Part Nine

Dragonmist: Part Ten

Dragonmist: Part Eleven

Dragonmist: Part Twelve

Dragonmist: Part Thirteen

Dragonmist: Part Fourteen

Dragonmist: Part Fifteen

Dragonmist: Part Sixteen

Dragonmist: Part Seventeen

Dragonmist: Part Seventeen

Dragonmist: Part Nineteen

Week 88 Related Links

Pain In the Piano
"You amaze me again, bond-sister," Devlin said with a smile. "But what is particularly amazing is that you have never been taught."

by terrabondayle



Search :
Other Stories

An Unusual Client, An Unusual Case: Part One
 I was wandering around Faerieland, wondering what to do next, when I felt it. Someone with a lot of power was pulling me toward Jhudora's Cloud.

by moonsunangel


The Ghost of Cotton Island: Part One
 "Enjoy Cotton Island, while you still can," said the Chia forlornly. The four friends their eyebrows and exchanged confused expressions before leaving.

by too_kule


Year 8: Part One
Felicia settled into her small area, just a little box-like area with a desk, chair and two stacks of paper. One was incoming, the other outgoing.

by child_dragon


The Terrible Two: Part Two
Tia felt like everything was set on fast forward. "All right. I think I've got everything under control," Tia reassured the overprotective mother.

by bqueen6430


The Reality of Dreams: Part Two
After a while, Kiddo turned to me with a question. "What were you working on in your lab, anyway?"

by sabreur


Neopets | Main | Articles | Editorial
Short Stories | Comics | New Series | Continued Series | Search