Chapter Twenty-Four: The Calvary's Here

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Roman ran through the village as fast as he could. He shoved his way through the waves of civilians surrounding him. They were all screaming in terror as buildings went up in flames. They were collapsing, causing smoke to fill the air and debris to hit the ground.

A large piece of a cottage fell in front of the prince, making him cough furiously as he inhaled the smoke. He shook out his head and blinked away the tears in his eyes. He had to get to the forest.

His feet hit grass as he broke free of the village. There was only a stretch of field between him and the trees. His lungs were aching and his legs were protesting against him, but he kept running. His blood was filled with too much adrenaline for him to care about the pain or soreness he'd feel later.

The air was clear under the trees, but he could still hear the roars of the Lava Surfer. Roman kept running. He tried to remember the path he'd taken with Virgil. He needed to find the clearing where Dante was. The Lightning Glider was his only chance to help the stable boy. He hoped that Dante was capable of subduing or killing the beast, or that he could at least get Virgil to safety; of course, he had no idea if the Lightning Glider would even trust him enough, but he was willing to take that risk.

Roman wove through the trees, panting as he looked around. The flicker of sunlight caught his eye. Turning, he saw the clearing not too far away. He charged toward the clearing, bursting out of the trees with a gasp.

The Lightning Glider was nowhere to be seen. He looked around desperately, but was soon knocked off his feet. Dante pinned him against the ground. He growled suspiciously as he glared down at him. "Dante! It's me!" he cried, raising his hands. The Lightning Glider tilted his head and sniffed him. "It's me, Roman! I'm Virgil's friend, remember?"

Dante blinked and then cooed, blowing a little puff of air on his face. Roman smiled in relief as he climbed off of him. "Okay, good, but you have to help me! Virgil's in danger!"

The Lightning Glider growled, his eyes widening at his words. The prince was about to ask him to fly him back to Virgil, but Dante grabbed his suit in his gear and yanked him onto his back. Roman yelped, wrapping his arms around the dragon's neck. Dante roared and kicked off the ground.

"Oh god, oh god," Roman gasped, feeling his heart pounding as the ground grew further away. "You've got me, right?"

Dante looked over his shoulder and huffed to say yes. The Lightning Glider pumped his wings and accelerated to full speed. The prince could barely see because of the wind in his eyes. The Lava Surfer was standing on the beach, stalking toward the cliff. As they soared over it, Roman spotted Virgil and his dragon against the rocks.

"There!" he pointed. Dante growled and curved his wings, diving toward the beast.

Virgil looked up at the Lava Surfer. It was swirling in his vision but he could see it coming toward them. He felt despair wash over him. There was nothing he could do.

Movement caught his gaze, making his head loll to the right to look. He thought he could see Roman riding Dante and flying toward the beast, but surely that was trick of his imagination; he was dying after all, it was likely a hallucination.

However, they flew closer and closer and then Dante spat a bolt of lightning right at the Lava Surfer's face. Roman was on his back and was holding up his sword with a determined look on his face.

The Lava Surfer stumbled from the impact of the lightning, allowing Dante and Roman to land on the sand between it and Ara. The Lightning Glider let out a roar.

"Come on, let's see what you've got," Roman muttered, patting Dante's neck.

He leaped into the air as the Lava Surfer sent its head back toward them. He twisted and turned, dodging fire as it flew passed. Roman kept a grip on his neck, but looked for some way to kill the beast. He thought back to when Virgil had subdued it. He'd pinched the soft muscle between his jaw and neck. If he stabbed him there, perhaps it would be enough to kill him.

"Dante, get me in close then keep him distracted!" he instructed the Lightning Glider.

He nodded and swooped down toward the Lava Surfer. As they got over his shoulders, Roman jumped off of Dante. He landed on the Lava Surfer's thick scales, digging his sword between them to keep from sliding off. The beast howled and began to buck him off, but Dante flew around and engaged with his face. The Lava Surfer had to fend him off rather than worry about Roman.

The prince began to climb up the dragon's neck. His heart was pounding, but all he could think about was saving Virgil. He got up to the horns and grabbed a hold of one like he'd seen the stable boy do.

He took a deep breath and then let himself hang from the horn. He dangled over the sand far below, his sword in his free hand. Roman shook out his head and focused on the task at hand. Sweat dripped down his forehead as he found the soft spot.

Roman thrust the sword into the dragon's neck, cause it to screech and buck. He whistles to Dante, who swooped under him as he let go of the horn. The Lava Surfer howled and whimpered until the massive creature collapsed to the ground, it's scarlet blood soaking the sand.

The Lightning Glider landed on the grass, allowing the prince to jump down. He gazed at the monstrous Lava Surfer lying limp on the beach for a moment, but then turned, seeing Virgil laying against Ara.

"Virgil!" he cried, rushing to his side.

The stable boy's vision was going black as the adrenaline stopped being able to keep him awake. He could just barely make out a figure and a voice.

"No, no, no, don't you dare die on me, you promised," Roman stammered, placing pressure on the wound to his abdomen. "I've got you, please, just stay with me- MEDIC!! I NEED A MEDIC OVER HERE NOW! Please Virge, just hold on-"

Virgil blacked out, but before unconsciousness took him, he felt his fingers intertwine with the prince's; he held on.

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