The Achievement Junkie

"How much further?"

Shouting back to Sterfen and the others, King Wilheim replied, "We're almost there! Give it a few more hours and we'll see the campgrounds."

Snow and wind buffeted the party's faces as they raced on the backs of the giant Glacier Wyrms. Like he had long ago, Dradich led his fellow wyrms while everyone road on his back.

Dawn was almost breaking and everyone was anxious to reach their destination. That's when an alarming call reached King Wilheim via contact crystal.

"Sir! We need help!"

"What's wrong?!" questioned Wilheim. "Calm down and--"

"There are dragons, sir!" the military captain stated, not wasting any breath. "Their army is approaching from the side as well! We'll die if--"

"Sterfen!" Wilheim worriedly shouted and looked to the real man in charge.

"What's wrong?" Sterfen asked, understanding that something urgent was taking place.

"Dragons are on the battlefield! If we don't hurry, then…"

Not paying much attention to King Wilheim's further ramblings, Sterfen immediately contacted Moranti, 'Moranti! We need to reach our battlefield now, or it'll be too late. Moranti?'

'Give me a moment… Where do I open it?'

'The Desert Tundra, large enough for Glacier Wyrms.'

A reply didn't come, replaced with a thirty-second pause. Sterfen then understood that the same scenario may be taking place elsewhere or the holy gods had laid a larger trap than he had anticipated.

But after those thirty seconds, a spatial rift appeared not even one hundred meters in front of Dradich.

The lead wyrm barreled into the rift, having already experienced travel in such a fashion. Those wyrms behind Dradich did the same without hesitation or question.

On the other side of the rift, the party found themselves in a strange place. The world was covered in sand, yet it was cold to the touch and soft blue in color, getting colder and looking more like grains of snow as the sand got closer to Aazoon. Overhead, the sun shone brightly but was covered by the thinnest cloud cover, allowing the area to remain quite well-lit yet at a constant cool temperature in part to the cold sand. It felt strange to those entering the Desert Tundra for the first time, as if such a place shouldn't exist.

But no one's attention was on the weather. Their eyes were all focused on the not-too-distant battle taking place.

On the side with the most snow-like sand was a large army of thousands. Amidst that army were three monstrous dragons, spewing lava from their mouths and leaving the army in ruins. Half of Aazoon's forces had already been wiped out and the even larger, allied army on Maldor's side hadn't even reached them yet.

"Bowzer, I hate to ask you this but take on the largest dragon," Sterfen ordered within a second of spotting the battle. "He's lv. 87. Can you take him?"

Not answering verbally, Bowzer leaped from Dradich's back and rushed toward the battle at top speed. The lv. 81 Hell-flame Fox howled as he formed his newly upgraded flame body. His flames were now half white and half black, occasionally turning more black than white. Now standing at seventy meters in height, Bowzer jumped through the battlefield and instantly drew the attention of the three Magma Dragons.

The Magma Dragon's had dark, dull scales that appeared to be made of hardened magma. When they spotted the raging fox, they roared and rushed toward the fox. Magma could be seen oozing and dripping from between their scales as they grew angrier and more enraged.

Bowzer paid no attention to the other two Magma Dragons rushing him, focusing on the fifty-meter tall Magma Dragon that Sterfen had pointed out.

Both of the slightly smaller dragons charged Bowzer but were suddenly swatted to the side. They both snarled and looked to see what had caused their fall only to grow quiet and let more lava fall from their bodies in silent anger.

"Lunara! How dare you attack mere mortals!"

Hearing the familiar, disdainful voice, Lunara rolled her eyes. "You call that an attack? If you want me to attack them, then that can be arranged."

Descending from the sky, Naparn kept his smug glare on her while Bowzer continued his charge. "So, you brought Dragas along? I'm surprised to see you two working together."

"What's wrong with old friends making up?" Dragas stated as she joined the other two gods in the air over the battlefield. "Sorry Naparn, but just because I'm single doesn't mean I'm desperate and hateful. Even if I was, I would turn you down again in a heartbeat."

Ignoring that comment, Naparn asked, "So, where's Sterfen hiding now? Does he plan to play chicken like he always does?"

"He's twice the man you've ever dreamt of becoming," stated Lunara.

"You say that yet his fighting style is so cowardly? He can only show his face when no one is ready to face him. Sure, I'll admit he's an intimidating foe while I'm unarmed, but which god isn't?" Naparn joked. "Never has he accepted a proper duel or battle, so I have no reason to respect his fighting abilities, only his stealth skills."

"Are we just going to stand here and bicker all day or will you leave peacefully?" Lunara questioned, having heard enough slander about her husband.

"Oh, I'm so scared… Whatever will I do against two lv. 93's and a coward?" mocked Naparn. "Maybe if Kori was still a god, then I'd be worried. But against you three? I guess I'll have to teach you to respect your superiors!"

Withdrawing his sword, Naparn roared at the two women before him. His form took to a hybrid between a human and a Magma Dragon. Black, charred scales covered his body and his face squared off as his jaw became that of a dragon. Two wings and a tail sprouted from Naparns back, proving that, despite his playful tone, the Molten God was taking the fight seriously right out the gate.

Lunara acted similarly, taking to her hybrid form, which was almost identical to Maura's transformation but as a fully matured beauty. Her tail and ice-cold scales were polar opposites to Naparn's. And though she had no wings, Lunara's neck grew longer and two more heads formed while her limbs grew longer also.

Dragas also transformed, not wanting to be left out. Her body didn't grow larger or more bestial, but her appearance still changed quite a bit. Turning pale green, Dragas's skin and feint veins mimicked a leaf while taking in the sun's rays more abundantly. As her hair became emerald green, matching her lips and eyes, Dragas assumed her hybrid form of a human and a dryad.