where you are!” A mighty voice reaches me from below, filling the whole Factory and resonating from the walls.
The dragons freeze in place again.
And I feel the first spark of hope. “Brank’ox! Watch out! Dragooons!”
Then I see him, a powerful figure climbing the maze of alien construction, faster than should be possible.
But still, I can see we’re in deep, deep trouble, he and I. These dragons are still tense, but they must soon realize that they are many and we are only two.
What the hell do I do? The dragons are already starting to move faster, some coming towards me and some moving further down, towards Brank’ox.
There’s a sudden movement down there, like a flourish.
And the dragons freeze again.
For a split second. Then there’s a cacophony of excited hissing, like in a pit of huge snakes. The dragons forget about me and seem to focus on something far down.
I see it too, now. It’s that mysterious white light way down at the bottom. And above it – yeah, that’s not fool’s gold. That’s real gold.
Realizing this might be my only chance, I start to climb back up.
I’ve gotten maybe a full two feet up when I’m caught in thin, hard arms with cold, scaly skin.
“Hello, little nymph,” the dragon hisses in my ear. “I didn’t know you were coming back.”
I go crazy with panic, kicking and screaming and trying to punch Isualic the Old in his splotchy green face. But he’s a wily one and easily avoids all my attempts to strike him.
“So lively,” he chuckles in my ear. “I will have some fun with you later. But now, you and I have more important things to do, yes?”
He holds me securely and starts climbing down, in a direction that will take us no closer to Brank’ox.
“Brank’ox!” I yell. “Here!”
He spots me and immediately changes his own direction, powerfully throwing himself from beam to beam like a chimp in an Earth jungle. But he’s pretty far away, and before he can reach us, Isualic has taken me to the level below the caveman.
“I do believe there’s gold in this tainted place,” Isualic whispers, clearly excited. “The competition for it is very great. But I have you to help me.”
All the dragons are making their way down towards the gold, most of them already beneath us. The air is thick with their excitement and expectation.
Brank’ox is above us, but climbing down fast. He knows the structure better than Isualic, and the slayer is gaining on us.
I still want to writhe and kick and scream, but if Isualic falls, then I fall with him and that will be that. I can’t distract him too much.
Not yet, anyway.
Some of the first dragons are fighting beneath us. It’s really just a scuffle, but the pent-up tension in all these horrors is tangible.
I’m starting to realize what Brank’ox’s idea is. It’s the same one he had before – collect gold, get the dragons to fight over it, hope that only one of them is left, and then risk his life to kill or injure that one so much that it leaves the planet without laying waste to everything first.
It’s a good plan. But ridiculously dangerous. And that’s if it doesn’t backfire. Now that Brank’ox has been forced to show himself prematurely, his plan is not going to work.
“After all,” Isualic hisses with tense excitement, “you owe me. I begged you in the woods that first time. I begged you. To no avail.”
“You begged for something else,” I manage. “But you weren’t being sincere. You abducted me without me realizing it.”
“Abducted? We were just taking a quick stroll in the pleasant woods. But you can make up for it now. I want that gold, little nymph.”
Brank’ox is getting closer fast, quietly making his way down like a freaking gymnast. He’ll soon be here.
I don’t remember this part of the Factory being here. There’s a small, primitive hut that looks newly built. And there’s my backpack! Just a few feet away.
But Isualic is holding me so firmly, it might as well be in Africa. I won’t be able to get it.
“Brank’ox,” I yell. “Get my backpack! There!”
He immediately makes his way over to it, drops down, gets the pack, and draws his sword, walking closer. “Let her go, Isualic. You know it hurts when my blade hits you.”
“Fake slayers should be careful when addressing their superiors,” Isualic seethes. “But you may yet redeem yourself. I have your female. Now tell me: is there more gold than that