Beliciosia's colossal red wings caught the sun's golden rays, casting large crimson shadows on the sea below. A strong sea breeze carried the tang of salt to our nostrils as we soared and the distant chorus of migrating birds created a symphony that was oddly soothing. All the while, the rhythmic motion of her wings beat a deep, resonating pulse that I could feel in my very bones.

  I had an idea of what Beliciosia had in mind for prey. She confirmed it a few minutes later when she asked, “Have you ever hunted leviathans?”

  I imitated the way she used the magic in the air to push her voice to me, despite the fact that we were flying a couple hundred miles per hour. “I’ve fought one, or something like one, but I’ve never hunted one.”

  Recalling my previous encounter, I told her of the fearsome creature I had once faced. The sensation of reliving that battle—the acrid smell of burning sails, the taste of salt-laden air, and the heart-pounding thrill of it all—made me almost nostalgic.

  Her initial response was dismissive. “That wasn’t a leviathan. That was a horror possessed giant squid.” She paused for a moment as I felt anger rise up within me. “Still, it was good that you were able to handle such a thing at the age you were then.”

  The pause that followed was charged, her intent clear. "Normally, I’d never consider someone of your age for leviathan hunting. It's a task reserved for dragons far older, and often done in groups. You need to understand that they are massive brutes beyond even the size of Draconis."

  I felt the implied challenge in her words. For once, though, I wasn’t going to let my pride push me into stupidity. I recognized a pattern in my behavior of doing just that in the past, but this time I felt I was being manipulated into it.

  Her veiled challenge was not lost on me. My instincts told me she was trying to goad me, to test my mettle. But this wasn't about pride or youthful brashness. There was something deeper at play here.

  "Then why bring me along? Is this dangerous?" I questioned, my tone hinting at my readiness to retreat to familiar ground if required.

  “Dangerous? Of course it is dangerous... that is the dragon way. As a species, we vacillate between extreme violence and extreme sloth. Our bonds help us to moderate both impulses, but they are still there.”

  “That isn’t an answer to my first question,” I snapped.

  I was fully prepared to turn back and fly back to my lair if need be. If she tried to push the issue, I wasn’t sure I could outfight her. My class levels would help, but I was still adjusting to this bigger body. I didn’t know how well my dragon disciple skills would translate over to my natural form.

  And I couldn’t count on an advantage in DKP to tip the scale in my favor. I couldn’t tell how old Beliciosia was, but she was definitely older than me. It was possible she could have collected many more DKP. It wasn’t like I could ask what level her bond was at.

  What I was confident of, though, was my ability to escape. I could survive deep underwater, something that the massive red would only be able to manage for a limited time. In fact, as a red, she would be less capable in the water than most other types of dragons. Amongst all true dragons, only the greatest—we blues—were able to breathe underwater.

  She snorted at my testy reply and said, “I’m bringing you for two reasons. First, I want to see what you’re capable of. With a wild dragon, their age category is generally sufficient to give me a good idea… but with your bond, I don’t know. I know you’ve been bonded for less than two years, but often the early growth is rather explosive.”

  “And the other reason?” I pressed.

  She said something, but I couldn’t make out what she’d said. She looked like she was choking on a cow she’d tried to swallow in one bite.

  “What was that?”

  “I said, because blues are particularly good at this. Don’t expect me to repeat it a third time.” She sounded begrudging—her voice halfway between embarrassment and a snarl.

  The wind howled in my ears, making it hard to catch her words, but her hesitation and the begrudging tone were clear as day. The ocean's vast expanse below us became a mere backdrop to the brewing tension between two apex predators.

  I couldn't help but smirk, "Wait... did a red just admit that a blue might be better at something? This is a day for the records."

  She snorted, a plume of fire and smoke escaping her nostrils, dissipating quickly in the ocean breeze. "Watch it, whelp. I've acknowledged nothing, except that there is a slight possibility you may be a tad bit useful. And that's a big maybe.”

  The wind must have shifted, because I had no problem hearing her mutter to herself, “It isn’t like I’m used to much in the way of help; the only other bonded dragons in the Clan are a green and a black."

  I rolled my eyes, allowing myself a low chuckle, which ended up sounding like a rumbling growl. I could definitely commiserate with her about the weakness of green and black dragons. "Alright. Alright. No need to get your panties in a twist… err, sorry—that human phrase doesn’t apply. I'll take the maybe.”

  It was my turn to mutter under my breath. “Modessa and her stupid euphemisms… or was that an idiom?”

  I raised my voice. “Maybe if you hang around me long enough, you’ll finally recognize the inherent superiority of blues. Trust me, it will set you free."

  Beliciosia glared at me but didn’t say another word. Although I was pretty sure that she mumbled something that sounded an awful lot like ‘dragon whelp’ under her breath.

  As we continued flying, the ocean began to churn violently beneath us. I caught sight of a dark shadowy figure beneath the waves, that dwarfed even Beliciosia's impressive shadow. Its massive form was likely an ancient behemoth, reminiscent of the leviathans she’d spoken of. But it was still distant, like a storm on the horizon. It promised a powerful encounter.

  Beliciosia seemed to notice my distraction. "Eye on the prize, Nico. This is not just a sightseeing trip. You should think of this as a test."

  Something about the word ‘test’ stuck in my mind. I remembered my last encounter with Edgar and the way Cassandra had questioned me before agreeing to become my minion. That was fine, though. There was no test that a red could ever devise which a blue couldn’t handle.

  I bristled. "I've faced more than my fair share of battles. This won't be any different."

  "We’ll just have to see, won’t we? Talk is cheap. Action is the currency in which we dragons trade,” she retorted with a smirk of her own.

  I didn’t bother to respond, as it would have only fed her smirk. She was right about one thing—dragons were about action. To prove her point, she dove down till she was flying only a few feet over the surface of the waves.

  Competitiveness didn’t matter then, though, because my senses were suddenly screaming danger as a powerful surge from below sent those waves crashing upwards. From the frothy waters emerged a Leviathan.

  It was an awe-inducing sight; its gargantuan maw was filled with rows of sharp teeth, its six mighty leg-fins propelled it effortlessly through the water, and its tough, snapping turtle-like carapace glistening in the sun. I could only imagine that this was what would have resulted if a giant crocodile, massive snapping turtle, and colossal snake had bred—and their progeny had fed on growth potions for a year or twenty.

  I cast Identify reflexively.

  Adult Leviathan Danger Level: Catastrophic

  HP: 22,300/22,300

  That was all the information that I got from my spell before the monster sank back beneath the sea’s dark surface, sending a huge splash of water in all directions.

  "Well,” Beliciosia growled, “are you going to get in there, or do I have to do all the work?”

  "Right… never send a red to do a blue’s job,” I quipped back, the adrenaline pumping through my veins,

  “As if…” was her only reply, followed by another snort of flame and smoke.

  We circled overhead, aligning our strategies silently. It was time to face the true challenge of the deep. The leviathan, sensing powerful adversaries, roared, sending tremors through the water and air.

  This was going to be a battle to remember.

  Beliciosia made the first move, diving down once again with her wings tucked in tight, piercing the sky like a scarlet comet. As she neared the water, she unleashed a torrent of fire, turning the sea's surface into a boiling cauldron. Steam clouded the area as saltwater boiled under the fiery onslaught. The leviathan was close enough to the surface that I saw its body twist and buck as the boiling water made its way into every orifice of its body.

  I took this as my cue, diving deep into the ocean. The cold embrace of the water surrounded me, but I felt at home. The water was but a second sky for a blue like me. I surged forward, kicking powerfully with my legs and using my wings to sweep me forward. More than that, though, I willed the water to move me.

  As I had told Cami more than once, dragons are the masters of this world. All of Ileria bends to our will, to my will.

  The leviathan's eyes glowed with a bioluminescent light as it struggled to open them after the damage inflicted by the boiling water. As I streaked past it, my claws bit into its skin, but that skin was every bit as tough as a dragon scales and likely thicker. All I could do was open a series of shallow cuts. They released blood into the water, but nothing more.

  I darted between its massive fins, using my agility to my advantage.

  The creature retaliated, swinging one of its enormous leg-fins and creating a current that threatened to throw me off course. I willed the sea to shift me under and around the current. It was then that I felt a pulse of magic—different from mine—resonating through the water.

  It was Beliciosia, sending a surge of heated water towards the beast, causing it to recoil and redirecting its attention. She used some type of Fire Column spell which seemed to be able to work underwater. It was a good thing to learn about her capabilities.

  Taking the opportunity, I tapped into my Dragon Disciple abilities. The rapid growth I had experienced over the past few weeks left me feeling at odds with my own body, but a dragon disciple was all about controlling their body. I twisted perfectly in the water and executed a tail smash against the leviathan’s belly—where it was less armored.

  I had no illusions about my ability to cause it serious harm with blunt force; I only wanted to anger it. Besides, I wasn’t yet ready to reveal my more powerful attacks. Surging up toward the surface, my wings unfurled as I broke free of the water’s hold and clawed into the air. I took off, rapidly gaining altitude as the leviathan broke the surface.

  Its wide open mouth lunged for me, but my partner in this hunt was ready and waiting. Beliciosia gave the monster a kiss—of fire. Great gouts of flame spewed from her mouth in a concentrated stream of white-hot fire that shot down the monster’s throat. Its body thrashed in mid-air as its insides burned.

  The leviathan, wounded but far from defeated, retaliated with a vengeance. When it fell back down into the water, it opened its maw wide once again and let loose a strange sonic attack. Strangely, the sonic waves traveled underwater and never came close to touching either of us.

  I looked at Beliciosia to see if she knew why it would make such a pointless attack. Her jaw locked in a grim expression until she noticed my gaze. With a grim smirk she said, “Now this gets fun, blue. She’s calling for help.”

  Sure enough, as the leviathan dove deep, a swarm of sea creatures caused the surrounding seas to churn as they headed this way. Sharks, whales, squid… all types of sea life came at the leviathan’s call. Rather than seeing this as a challenge, though, I was excited for the opportunity. Since the leviathan dove deep into the depths to recover, I knew I’d have at least a moment to slay these lesser beasts and farm some DKP.

  I dove back down into the thrashing swarm of sea animals and unleashed a flurry of blows. I released an acidic breath attack, which I had gained from the black wyrmling. It was diluted by the water but was still enough to eat away at their eyes, gills, and other tender anatomy.

  This left the blinded creatures open to raking attacks from my claws, a sweep of my tail, and bites that chomped most in half with a single attack. The ocean around me turned into a frenzied, tempestuous flurry of movement and fury. Blood and foam swirled together in a macabre dance, illuminating the water above me with a lurid red glow.

  The collective anger of the sea was palpable. Every snap of my jaw, every swipe of my claw, resonated with the raw power my dragon lineage granted me. The monster sharks who answered the Leviathan’s call went crazy. Soon I fought amidst a feeding frenzy as the beasts of the sea lost themselves in primal fury and hunger.

  Amidst this chaos, a particularly massive squid lunged at me. Its tentacles, lined with razor-sharp suckers, stretched out like harbingers of doom, seeking to ensnare and drag me into its embrace. With a calculated twist, I evaded its initial strike, but felt the powerful suction in the grip of multiple arms try to ensnare me.

  I would have grinned if I hadn’t been underwater. Instead, I activated Shocking Aura. The electrical current pulsed along my body and into the squid, shriveling those tentacles and paralyzing it so that the other beasts involved in the feeding frenzy soon snapped it up.

  Above me, it seemed Beliciosia wasn’t idle. She circled, raining fire onto larger targets like the massive whales when they surfaced, watching them twist and writhe as the boiling sea scalded them. The air filled with steam and the sharp tang of cooking flesh, melding with the briny stink of the sea.

  Every now and then, her claws would snatch a shark out of the water, lifting it skywards, only to release it to fall with a splash into the water, half-charred and lifeless. Still, I only had minimal time or mental space to spend watching what she was up to.

  I had turned the sea into my own personal obstacle course. I was trying to execute some of my monk techniques while in dragon form. Rapid Movement was a passive, but I felt it with how I was able to move quickly from target to target. Stunning Fist seemed to work perfectly with my claw attacks as did Flurry of Blows.

  Adapting to my new size, even as well as my class abilities worked in this form, I still took minor cuts and wounds when a soft spot around my still hardening scales was hit. None of them were serious enough for me to bother with employing healing magic or even Make Me Whole, but they did release some of my blood into the water. This only made it harder for my foes when I triggered My Body Poisons the World.

  Despite our efforts, the swarm of great sea creatures seemed never-ending. Every creature I took down seemed to be replaced by two more. It wasn’t just their numbers, though, the creatures fought with a fervor and ferocity driven by the Leviathan’s call.

  As I bit a massive barracuda in two, my sense of danger picked up a shift in the waters. The Leviathan, sensing the plight of its minions, was on the move again, surging upwards with tremendous speed. The water around me rippled with its ascent, pushing me away with a force akin to a mini-tidal wave.

  Before it reached us, Beliciosia and I reacted as though we had practiced this before. Both of us triggered Dragon Fear. The frenzied beasts around me began to lose their minds as the competing forces pushed their tiny minds beyond their limits. Then, to really drive the point home, I used my Ventriloquism ability.

  Nothing about the ability said I couldn’t use it under water. When they heard the roar of a dragon under the water, a host of various sea beasts lost their minds and darted away—straight into the path of the Leviathan.

  Of course, that meant that they took the brunt of the wave of force the monster sent at us. Many of their small bodies couldn’t stand the blast of pressure and were literally pulped before my eyes. The water, already filled with acid and poisoned blood churned so red that it blinded both my eyes and my nose.

  Preparing myself, I allowed the current to carry me. Spinning, I regained my stance, preparing for the looming showdown. As the gargantuan beast emerged from the murky red haze, its form was even more terrifying. Large chunks of its skin hung loose from charred sections of its body and its eyes blazed with bioluminescent rage.

  There was also a cunning in those eyes, an intelligence that said it was learning and adapting. A spike of fear—no… caution would be the appropriate word here as Dragons almost never felt fear—surged through me and I turned towards the surface, willing the water to push me upwards.

  Once again, I flew up into the sky and blasted free of the ocean. My wings caught the air and carried me up high. The monster trailing me burst forth, following me. Beliciosia, sensing its emergence, dove once again. Her descent this time was even more rapid than before, a red streak against the azure backdrop.

  But the leviathan was ready this time. As she unleashed her fiery breath, it countered with a stream of high-pressured water from its maw, the two elements clashing mid-air and creating a misty explosion that left both combatants obscured in a foggy haze.