Chapter 375: Date Night
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Chapter 375: Date Night
Ozzy looked up at the nearly inflated dragon. One more huff and puff should fill it up. The heat and air pressure were rising, and it was getting hard to force more hot smoke into it. Rolly had just come up from below and said Ben was looking at the last door, but everyone else was out. Hopefully, they could leave soon; this place was taking its toll on everyone. It wasn't just the loss of mana. He was still over half. The horrible feeling as it was sucked out of you added a level of mental trauma. And if it affected him this way, with the ability of a contract worker to shrug off mental trauma, how the hell did anyone else handle it? No wonder the inmates in this prison were all nearly insane. Without Granny, it would have been much harder to rescue them. The Hags were a strange family but good people. All three had volunteered to come on this hell ride. Jenny was holding her line with a happy smile on her face, but it was almost time for another pulse.
"How are you holding up, Jenny?"
Jenny laughed, showing her sharp, iron teeth. It was a joyous laugh that sent a tingle down Ozzy's spine. "Oh, I'm holding up just fine. It hurts terribly every time the tower glows, but it will be over soon, and I want to see what happens. I thrive on chaos, and this place is full to the brim. And more is on the way; I can feel it in my bones. Something terrible is about to happen. So don't worry about little Jenny; just make sure you can keep up."
Ozzy was pondering her words with a sinking feeling in his gut, and only a few seconds later, the howling of the wind was swept away by an ear-shattering roar from high above them. It rolled on and on, punctuated with lesser rumbles and growls. Jenny was laughing and shaking her fist at the sky. Ozzy felt the roar carve through nearly all of his mental protection, and he had a sudden urge to save himself by diving off the tower. Squirmie flew to Rolly, who changed to his human form and wrapped her in his arms as she shivered uncontrollably. Ozzy had never seen the bug act that way.
Rolly looked worried for her, but then he smiled at Ozzy as he realized what was in the clouds above them. "A dragon! A BIG dragon. It's an Ancient Ice Drake, from what he's saying. Probably came down with the winter storms."
"You can understand him?"
"Oh, sure. I learned Draconic while in Tartarus, but a lot of it is similar to the language of dragons in the earlier games, and it's not far from Duckish, in any case. He's boasting about his accomplishments. The usual things: How many knights he's killed, the size of his hoard, and his sexual prowess."
Ozzy looked up at the balloon and vowed to visit the halflings he'd bought it from and have a long talk with them. "Please tell me that thing isn't attracted to the balloon we need to escape on!"
"Sorry, but he's really happy to see her. He keeps mentioning how cute her tail is. This is going to cause a problem. As soon as we move the balloon higher, he'll think she's accepted his amorous offer and will dive down to us, ready to begin the honeymoon. Normally, we'd be safe here for a few days. Dragon mating rituals can be long and convoluted. He's going to brag about how good a lover he is, trying to impress her and wait for her to signal that she's ready for some hot dragon love."
"And he won't be happy to find out his new girlfriend is inflatable and has some little stowaways under her belly."
Rolly grinned. "Oh, not at all. That's a horrible insult to a dragon of his lineage. I mean, he'd eat us no matter what, but now he'll be so pissed that he takes his time chewing so he can prolong the screams."
The discussion was interrupted by Ben and the last prisoner running up the ramps. The old man raised his arms and jumped up and down when he saw the dragon.
"AMAZING! It even sounds like a real dragon! You've outdone yourself, Benjamin. I was so happy to hear that you had applied my conjectures on the subject of using expanding gasses to defy gravity. But to see that you went the extra mile to animate the balloon and add a realistic dragon roar is the attention to detail that separates the apprentice from the master. Well done, nephew!"
Rolly and Ozzy couldn't help but laugh at the look on Ben's face.
"While I appreciate the compliments, Uncle Damien, I have to point out one small detail." Another roar came from above, making Ben's point for him.
Before anyone could argue, the next pulse went off. Damien took a hammer from the seemingly empty satchel and hit a hard blow to the top of the machinery that controlled the mana circulating through the tower. The brittle crystals and glass shattered, and nearly every piece fell apart, to be sucked into the satchel, which Damien quickly closed. Bright flashes of blue mana began flashing from all over the tower. He ran and jumped into the gondola, storing the satchel and hammer in the hefty bag.
To his surprise, the large dragonfly doubled in size, and the Shepherd copied its form. The two bugs flew to the top of the dragon to help lift and control it, their wings beating fast like propellers. Jenny dived into the bag, even though she longed to stay for the main part of the show. Hopefully, it would be horrific. Then, Granny could take the memories from her sleeping friends and give them to her. Hags didn't waste good nightmares.
Ozzy was barely holding the balloon down. "Ready to take off whenever you are, Captain."
Damien was holding the cord to the neck. "Good of you to volunteer to stay. Wait for my command; the timing of this has to be perfect....just a bit more...NOW!"
Ozzy shrunk to his six-foot size and leaped aboard the gondola, which began to rise. Damien laughed. "Oh, I do so love a good improv!" He pulled the cord going to the ja of the dragon as they rose into the air. The jaws opened, and hot air was forced through a series of baffles, resulting in a sound that resembled a loud moan more than a roar. The Ice Drake roared in reply from high overhead and dove down to meet his betrothed. The balloon's tail lifted high in the air, and the head turned and winked.
Ozzy stared in horror at the descending dragon, realizing what that sound was. "A mating lure? The fething halflings added a mating lure? Are they insane?"
Damien nodded in appreciation. "I know! Such craftsmanship! We need to order another dozen. But first, Ben, release the aft valve, and everyone, please hold on tight."
The drake was nearly on them as Ben pulled the cord, opening the deflation valve. Superheated air jetted out the back of the dragon, glowing in the night air and sending yet another mating signal to the excited dragon swooping down on them. It also shot the balloon straight ahead and out of his path. The huge bulk of the Ancient Ice Drake impacted the top of the tower as it came in for a forced landing, shattering the stones of the top floor. It roared playfully at the balloon as it pulled one leg after another from the broken floor.
Rolly called down. "He said he loves a woman who plays hard to get."
Ozzy had many sarcastic replies he wanted to make but was too busy breathing hot smoke into the rapidly deflating balloon as it jetted further from the tower. His furnace was dropping low, and he was out of bacon, but he huffed and puffed as hard as he could. On top of the balloon, Rolly and Squirmie added what they could to the velocity of the balloon,
Damien yelled to Ben. "Close that valve! Five seconds...4..3..2..1... 0..."
"Where is the Kaboom? There was supposed to be an earthshattering kaboom!"
Damien scowled in frustration. "Oh, damn me for a novice! Cataclysmite doesn't explode from vibrations at temperatures below -50 degrees Fahrenheit! It needs a fuse or spark! The damned Drake must have frozen all the traps when he got close. His aura froze everything solid, and I should have taken that into account. Well, that's disappointing. I was sure I solved the conundrum, but that Drake is still there and about to flap his way over here, however clumsily. My turns over, who's next?"
Ben was staring at the tower's base, seeing a building blue glow. "I'm next." He snapped his fingers.
The next pulse was generated by the mana rift at the tower's base and raced around it, spiraling to the top. Without the machinery to control the surge and nowhere to go, the burst of wild mana exploded in every direction, annoying the Ice Drake, who was finding it difficult to fly away from the tower. The uncontrolled magic condensed and caused random effects. A swarm of hornets appeared, along with a rainbow and a large acidic slime. One of those effects was a small fireball that manifested in Vladimir's cell, setting off the explosive traps on his door. The chain reaction followed down the entire tower, cell by cell. The explosive force mixed with the pulse of uncontrolled mana, creating a chain reaction that raced down to the mana rift. Deep in the ground, runic formations built over the centuries to contain and control the rift were rent asunder, and what had been a small tear in reality tore and heaved until it became a huge fissure that released a torrent of wild magic. The area for miles around glowed blue as a spear of wild magic poured from the uncontrolled rift into the rapidly crumbling tower.
All of this happened in the split second after Ben snapped his fingers. As the shockwave hit them, the balloon was sent hurtling through the air, spinning end over end, with all aboard hanging on for dear life. The tower glowed brightly as the sun as it exploded, sending shattered stone straight up through the air, before the debris crashed back down and most of it was absorbed by the rift. No one in the balloon saw what happened to the dragon, but from his scream of frustration, he knew that date night wasn't going to turn out like he planned.
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Chapter 375: Date Night
Ozzy looked up at the nearly inflated dragon. One more huff and puff should fill it up. The heat and air pressure were rising, and it was getting hard to force more hot smoke into it. Rolly had just come up from below and said Ben was looking at the last door, but everyone else was out. Hopefully, they could leave soon; this place was taking its toll on everyone. It wasn't just the loss of mana. He was still over half. The horrible feeling as it was sucked out of you added a level of mental trauma. And if it affected him this way, with the ability of a contract worker to shrug off mental trauma, how the hell did anyone else handle it? No wonder the inmates in this prison were all nearly insane. Without Granny, it would have been much harder to rescue them. The Hags were a strange family but good people. All three had volunteered to come on this hell ride. Jenny was holding her line with a happy smile on her face, but it was almost time for another pulse.
"How are you holding up, Jenny?"
Jenny laughed, showing her sharp, iron teeth. It was a joyous laugh that sent a tingle down Ozzy's spine. "Oh, I'm holding up just fine. It hurts terribly every time the tower glows, but it will be over soon, and I want to see what happens. I thrive on chaos, and this place is full to the brim. And more is on the way; I can feel it in my bones. Something terrible is about to happen. So don't worry about little Jenny; just make sure you can keep up."
Ozzy was pondering her words with a sinking feeling in his gut, and only a few seconds later, the howling of the wind was swept away by an ear-shattering roar from high above them. It rolled on and on, punctuated with lesser rumbles and growls. Jenny was laughing and shaking her fist at the sky. Ozzy felt the roar carve through nearly all of his mental protection, and he had a sudden urge to save himself by diving off the tower. Squirmie flew to Rolly, who changed to his human form and wrapped her in his arms as she shivered uncontrollably. Ozzy had never seen the bug act that way.
Rolly looked worried for her, but then he smiled at Ozzy as he realized what was in the clouds above them. "A dragon! A BIG dragon. It's an Ancient Ice Drake, from what he's saying. Probably came down with the winter storms."
"You can understand him?"
"Oh, sure. I learned Draconic while in Tartarus, but a lot of it is similar to the language of dragons in the earlier games, and it's not far from Duckish, in any case. He's boasting about his accomplishments. The usual things: How many knights he's killed, the size of his hoard, and his sexual prowess."
Ozzy looked up at the balloon and vowed to visit the halflings he'd bought it from and have a long talk with them. "Please tell me that thing isn't attracted to the balloon we need to escape on!"
"Sorry, but he's really happy to see her. He keeps mentioning how cute her tail is. This is going to cause a problem. As soon as we move the balloon higher, he'll think she's accepted his amorous offer and will dive down to us, ready to begin the honeymoon. Normally, we'd be safe here for a few days. Dragon mating rituals can be long and convoluted. He's going to brag about how good a lover he is, trying to impress her and wait for her to signal that she's ready for some hot dragon love."
"And he won't be happy to find out his new girlfriend is inflatable and has some little stowaways under her belly."
Rolly grinned. "Oh, not at all. That's a horrible insult to a dragon of his lineage. I mean, he'd eat us no matter what, but now he'll be so pissed that he takes his time chewing so he can prolong the screams."
The discussion was interrupted by Ben and the last prisoner running up the ramps. The old man raised his arms and jumped up and down when he saw the dragon.
"AMAZING! It even sounds like a real dragon! You've outdone yourself, Benjamin. I was so happy to hear that you had applied my conjectures on the subject of using expanding gasses to defy gravity. But to see that you went the extra mile to animate the balloon and add a realistic dragon roar is the attention to detail that separates the apprentice from the master. Well done, nephew!"
Rolly and Ozzy couldn't help but laugh at the look on Ben's face.
"While I appreciate the compliments, Uncle Damien, I have to point out one small detail." Another roar came from above, making Ben's point for him.
Before anyone could argue, the next pulse went off. Damien took a hammer from the seemingly empty satchel and hit a hard blow to the top of the machinery that controlled the mana circulating through the tower. The brittle crystals and glass shattered, and nearly every piece fell apart, to be sucked into the satchel, which Damien quickly closed. Bright flashes of blue mana began flashing from all over the tower. He ran and jumped into the gondola, storing the satchel and hammer in the hefty bag.
To his surprise, the large dragonfly doubled in size, and the Shepherd copied its form. The two bugs flew to the top of the dragon to help lift and control it, their wings beating fast like propellers. Jenny dived into the bag, even though she longed to stay for the main part of the show. Hopefully, it would be horrific. Then, Granny could take the memories from her sleeping friends and give them to her. Hags didn't waste good nightmares.
Ozzy was barely holding the balloon down. "Ready to take off whenever you are, Captain."
Damien was holding the cord to the neck. "Good of you to volunteer to stay. Wait for my command; the timing of this has to be perfect....just a bit more...NOW!"
Ozzy shrunk to his six-foot size and leaped aboard the gondola, which began to rise. Damien laughed. "Oh, I do so love a good improv!" He pulled the cord going to the ja of the dragon as they rose into the air. The jaws opened, and hot air was forced through a series of baffles, resulting in a sound that resembled a loud moan more than a roar. The Ice Drake roared in reply from high overhead and dove down to meet his betrothed. The balloon's tail lifted high in the air, and the head turned and winked.
Ozzy stared in horror at the descending dragon, realizing what that sound was. "A mating lure? The fething halflings added a mating lure? Are they insane?"
Damien nodded in appreciation. "I know! Such craftsmanship! We need to order another dozen. But first, Ben, release the aft valve, and everyone, please hold on tight."
The drake was nearly on them as Ben pulled the cord, opening the deflation valve. Superheated air jetted out the back of the dragon, glowing in the night air and sending yet another mating signal to the excited dragon swooping down on them. It also shot the balloon straight ahead and out of his path. The huge bulk of the Ancient Ice Drake impacted the top of the tower as it came in for a forced landing, shattering the stones of the top floor. It roared playfully at the balloon as it pulled one leg after another from the broken floor.
Rolly called down. "He said he loves a woman who plays hard to get."
Ozzy had many sarcastic replies he wanted to make but was too busy breathing hot smoke into the rapidly deflating balloon as it jetted further from the tower. His furnace was dropping low, and he was out of bacon, but he huffed and puffed as hard as he could. On top of the balloon, Rolly and Squirmie added what they could to the velocity of the balloon,
Damien yelled to Ben. "Close that valve! Five seconds...4..3..2..1... 0..."
"Where is the Kaboom? There was supposed to be an earthshattering kaboom!"
Damien scowled in frustration. "Oh, damn me for a novice! Cataclysmite doesn't explode from vibrations at temperatures below -50 degrees Fahrenheit! It needs a fuse or spark! The damned Drake must have frozen all the traps when he got close. His aura froze everything solid, and I should have taken that into account. Well, that's disappointing. I was sure I solved the conundrum, but that Drake is still there and about to flap his way over here, however clumsily. My turns over, who's next?"
Ben was staring at the tower's base, seeing a building blue glow. "I'm next." He snapped his fingers.
The next pulse was generated by the mana rift at the tower's base and raced around it, spiraling to the top. Without the machinery to control the surge and nowhere to go, the burst of wild mana exploded in every direction, annoying the Ice Drake, who was finding it difficult to fly away from the tower. The uncontrolled magic condensed and caused random effects. A swarm of hornets appeared, along with a rainbow and a large acidic slime. One of those effects was a small fireball that manifested in Vladimir's cell, setting off the explosive traps on his door. The chain reaction followed down the entire tower, cell by cell. The explosive force mixed with the pulse of uncontrolled mana, creating a chain reaction that raced down to the mana rift. Deep in the ground, runic formations built over the centuries to contain and control the rift were rent asunder, and what had been a small tear in reality tore and heaved until it became a huge fissure that released a torrent of wild magic. The area for miles around glowed blue as a spear of wild magic poured from the uncontrolled rift into the rapidly crumbling tower.
All of this happened in the split second after Ben snapped his fingers. As the shockwave hit them, the balloon was sent hurtling through the air, spinning end over end, with all aboard hanging on for dear life. The tower glowed brightly as the sun as it exploded, sending shattered stone straight up through the air, before the debris crashed back down and most of it was absorbed by the rift. No one in the balloon saw what happened to the dragon, but from his scream of frustration, he knew that date night wasn't going to turn out like he planned.
Chapter 375: Date NightOzzy looked up at the nearly inflated dragon. One more huff and puff should fill it up. The heat and air pressure were rising, and it was getting hard to force more hot smoke into it. Rolly had just come up from below and said Ben was looking at the last door, but everyone else was out. Hopefully, they could leave soon; this place was taking its toll on everyone. It wasn't just the loss of mana. He was still over half. The horrible feeling as it was sucked out of you added a level of mental trauma. And if it affected him this way, with the ability of a contract worker to shrug off mental trauma, how the hell did anyone else handle it? No wonder the inmates in this prison were all nearly insane. Without Granny, it would have been much harder to rescue them. The Hags were a strange family but good people. All three had volunteered to come on this hell ride. Jenny was holding her line with a happy smile on her face, but it was almost time for another pulse."How are you holding up, Jenny?"Jenny laughed, showing her sharp, iron teeth. It was a joyous laugh that sent a tingle down Ozzy's spine. "Oh, I'm holding up just fine. It hurts terribly every time the tower glows, but it will be over soon, and I want to see what happens. I thrive on chaos, and this place is full to the brim. And more is on the way; I can feel it in my bones. Something terrible is about to happen. So don't worry about little Jenny; just make sure you can keep up."Ozzy was pondering her words with a sinking feeling in his gut, and only a few seconds later, the howling of the wind was swept away by an ear-shattering roar from high above them. It rolled on and on, punctuated with lesser rumbles and growls. Jenny was laughing and shaking her fist at the sky. Ozzy felt the roar carve through nearly all of his mental protection, and he had a sudden urge to save himself by diving off the tower. Squirmie flew to Rolly, who changed to his human form and wrapped her in his arms as she shivered uncontrollably. Ozzy had never seen the bug act that way.Rolly looked worried for her, but then he smiled at Ozzy as he realized what was in the clouds above them. "A dragon! A BIG dragon. It's an Ancient Ice Drake, from what he's saying. Probably came down with the winter storms.""You can understand him?""Oh, sure. I learned Draconic while in Tartarus, but a lot of it is similar to the language of dragons in the earlier games, and it's not far from Duckish, in any case. He's boasting about his accomplishments. The usual things: How many knights he's killed, the size of his hoard, and his sexual prowess."Ozzy looked up at the balloon and vowed to visit the halflings he'd bought it from and have a long talk with them. "Please tell me that thing isn't attracted to the balloon we need to escape on!""Sorry, but he's really happy to see her. He keeps mentioning how cute her tail is. This is going to cause a problem. As soon as we move the balloon higher, he'll think she's accepted his amorous offer and will dive down to us, ready to begin the honeymoon. Normally, we'd be safe here for a few days. Dragon mating rituals can be long and convoluted. He's going to brag about how good a lover he is, trying to impress her and wait for her to signal that she's ready for some hot dragon love.""And he won't be happy to find out his new girlfriend is inflatable and has some little stowaways under her belly."Rolly grinned. "Oh, not at all. That's a horrible insult to a dragon of his lineage. I mean, he'd eat us no matter what, but now he'll be so pissed that he takes his time chewing so he can prolong the screams."The discussion was interrupted by Ben and the last prisoner running up the ramps. The old man raised his arms and jumped up and down when he saw the dragon. "AMAZING! It even sounds like a real dragon! You've outdone yourself, Benjamin. I was so happy to hear that you had applied my conjectures on the subject of using expanding gasses to defy gravity. But to see that you went the extra mile to animate the balloon and add a realistic dragon roar is the attention to detail that separates the apprentice from the master. Well done, nephew!"Rolly and Ozzy couldn't help but laugh at the look on Ben's face. "While I appreciate the compliments, Uncle Damien, I have to point out one small detail." Another roar came from above, making Ben's point for him.Before anyone could argue, the next pulse went off. Damien took a hammer from the seemingly empty satchel and hit a hard blow to the top of the machinery that controlled the mana circulating through the tower. The brittle crystals and glass shattered, and nearly every piece fell apart, to be sucked into the satchel, which Damien quickly closed. Bright flashes of blue mana began flashing from all over the tower. He ran and jumped into the gondola, storing the satchel and hammer in the hefty bag.To his surprise, the large dragonfly doubled in size, and the Shepherd copied its form. The two bugs flew to the top of the dragon to help lift and control it, their wings beating fast like propellers. Jenny dived into the bag, even though she longed to stay for the main part of the show. Hopefully, it would be horrific. Then, Granny could take the memories from her sleeping friends and give them to her. Hags didn't waste good nightmares.Ozzy was barely holding the balloon down. "Ready to take off whenever you are, Captain."Damien was holding the cord to the neck. "Good of you to volunteer to stay. Wait for my command; the timing of this has to be perfect....just a bit more...NOW!"Ozzy shrunk to his six-foot size and leaped aboard the gondola, which began to rise. Damien laughed. "Oh, I do so love a good improv!" He pulled the cord going to the ja of the dragon as they rose into the air. The jaws opened, and hot air was forced through a series of baffles, resulting in a sound that resembled a loud moan more than a roar. The Ice Drake roared in reply from high overhead and dove down to meet his betrothed. The balloon's tail lifted high in the air, and the head turned and winked.Ozzy stared in horror at the descending dragon, realizing what that sound was. "A mating lure? The fething halflings added a mating lure? Are they insane?"Damien nodded in appreciation. "I know! Such craftsmanship! We need to order another dozen. But first, Ben, release the aft valve, and everyone, please hold on tight."The drake was nearly on them as Ben pulled the cord, opening the deflation valve. Superheated air jetted out the back of the dragon, glowing in the night air and sending yet another mating signal to the excited dragon swooping down on them. It also shot the balloon straight ahead and out of his path. The huge bulk of the Ancient Ice Drake impacted the top of the tower as it came in for a forced landing, shattering the stones of the top floor. It roared playfully at the balloon as it pulled one leg after another from the broken floor.Rolly called down. "He said he loves a woman who plays hard to get."Ozzy had many sarcastic replies he wanted to make but was too busy breathing hot smoke into the rapidly deflating balloon as it jetted further from the tower. His furnace was dropping low, and he was out of bacon, but he huffed and puffed as hard as he could. On top of the balloon, Rolly and Squirmie added what they could to the velocity of the balloon, Damien yelled to Ben. "Close that valve! Five seconds...4..3..2..1... 0...""Where is the Kaboom? There was supposed to be an earthshattering kaboom!" Damien scowled in frustration. "Oh, damn me for a novice! Cataclysmite doesn't explode from vibrations at temperatures below -50 degrees Fahrenheit! It needs a fuse or spark! The damned Drake must have frozen all the traps when he got close. His aura froze everything solid, and I should have taken that into account. Well, that's disappointing. I was sure I solved the conundrum, but that Drake is still there and about to flap his way over here, however clumsily. My turns over, who's next?"Ben was staring at the tower's base, seeing a building blue glow. "I'm next." He snapped his fingers.The next pulse was generated by the mana rift at the tower's base and raced around it, spiraling to the top. Without the machinery to control the surge and nowhere to go, the burst of wild mana exploded in every direction, annoying the Ice Drake, who was finding it difficult to fly away from the tower. The uncontrolled magic condensed and caused random effects. A swarm of hornets appeared, along with a rainbow and a large acidic slime. One of those effects was a small fireball that manifested in Vladimir's cell, setting off the explosive traps on his door. The chain reaction followed down the entire tower, cell by cell. The explosive force mixed with the pulse of uncontrolled mana, creating a chain reaction that raced down to the mana rift. Deep in the ground, runic formations built over the centuries to contain and control the rift were rent asunder, and what had been a small tear in reality tore and heaved until it became a huge fissure that released a torrent of wild magic. The area for miles around glowed blue as a spear of wild magic poured from the uncontrolled rift into the rapidly crumbling tower.All of this happened in the split second after Ben snapped his fingers. As the shockwave hit them, the balloon was sent hurtling through the air, spinning end over end, with all aboard hanging on for dear life. The tower glowed brightly as the sun as it exploded, sending shattered stone straight up through the air, before the debris crashed back down and most of it was absorbed by the rift. No one in the balloon saw what happened to the dragon, but from his scream of frustration, he knew that date night wasn't going to turn out like he planned.
