A Fight with a Horror Dragon
General Summary
Arthur Dawnbringer's memories
This story starts off after I and my good friends from Ardanyan had killed a Horror in the kaer beneath the city of Ayodhya, that the Theran's at the time were occupying with their dreadnought. My friend Ragnaros had just been reincarnated into one of the beings we later found out belonged to the tribes of the living woodlands.
We had just finished off a horror and sanctified the ground where it was slain, dispelling its evil from the world when we heard footsteps of an army ring throughout the kaer, and down into the now hollowed grounds where we were resting. We started trying to sneak away, towards the exit we had found before. I was given a chameleon ring as a loan from Dave, and we started removing evidence that we had ever ventured down and slayed the horror before the Theran's arrived.
Now I never figured out why, but the Therans kept following us through the tunnels, and we were left with a choice, to fight or to run towards the exit and maybe find a place to hide out in the field. We started running with all our might to avoid the group tracking us, when we heard them increase their pace.
When we closed in on the exit, Hauflin managed to have an elemental block off the path behind us. Which he thought would give us more time to find a good hiding spot, or a path to leave the area undetected. But that was not to be, as we arrived at the exit we heard and then saw a fleet of Theran airships that was patrolling the sky and land with spotlights. We saw Theran scouts pour out from the city, to comb the landscape with a fine brush.
We did of course attempt to first sneak towards a trench in the earth that would have led us to a forest so we might have made an escape. Dave in an attempt to make me less noticeable managed to smear me with mud containing reflective crystals. And when the light passed over us, I shone like a star. And the chase was once again afoot. The airships above fired their guns at us while the scouts charged our location. We dived into the trench to avoid being firebombed from up high, while the scouts followed us down into the trench, catching up with us.
So, at this point I thought, well at least there is no way for it to get worse now. And you know what, that should not have been thought. For you see in the southern sky a green light shined through the clouds. Then I quickly understood what the light was, because it was Vestrivian in his horror corrupted form that was descending on us. I picked up Dave who was exhausted from all the running and started running while the Hauflin was flying next to me and Ragnaros. Ragnaros also ran for all his might alongside us when I yelled out who was descending on us. From above the skies Vestrivian descended, in all his corrupted frightening form. He was making a straight for us.
Before us was a hill of mud and earth. A place we could take cover from Vestrivian's first attack. Then from the east a small little airship landed at high speed behind the mound. For a second all hope was lost as Dave thought it was the Therans. But no, it was Swiftfoot, he had come to our rescue.
We desperately climbed the hill, to get out of range before dragon fire burned us. It was just when we reached the top of the hill the fire landed. I tossed Dave from my hands so he would land safely out of the fire. Ragnaros managed to leap out of the way and down the hill when the fire landed but I and Hauflin were scorched in the fire. We survived with nasty burns, but we were alive. I used my magical arts to cast air walk on myself before I tied a rope around Ragnaros and I picked up Dave and carried him aboard Swiftfoot's ship. Hauflin tied the other end of the rope to the ship. When Ragnaros failed to climb on board but was still connected to the ship Swiftfoot took off with full speed away from the dragon. Hauflin landed next to me and Dave, asking if we should pull Ragnaros up. We did not have the time to pull him up as Vestrivian was already upon us.
The airship flew upwards, leaving Ragnaros dangling from beneath. With Vestrivian chasing us snapping with his teeth. At this point Ragnaros started throwing his sword, The Bonesaw, at said dragon while still dangling from behind the ship. I think The Bonesaw was hoping to behead the dragon, adding it to his legend.
Swiftfoot dodged and weaved, while Dave and I shot sanctified ballista bolts at Vestrivian trying to slow him down, but instead just making him angrier as the holy energy impacted him. We had a couple of close calls in the beginning, but it seemed as if the dragon was slowly gaining on us.
In the north, a blue light shot down on Vestrivian. For you see Icewing arrived, to our aid was perhaps a question for another time, but at least there to fight Vestrivian. Now I could speak a lot about our future and past stories with Icewing but let us say we had more positive dealings with him than negative. Yes, I know it sounds silly, but we liked him a lot better than Vestrivian.
This was a golden moment for our escape, it was as if the gods had created this moment to ensure our safe return. However, not all things go to a god's design. Hauflin changed himself into a large air elemental and had decided to join the fray to assist Icewing. Seeing this I myself asked to be brought within melee range of Vestrivian. We tied a rope between me and Hauflin's air elemental form. Hauflin then summoned a large lightning elemental to assist in combat with Vestrivian, and I used my aura of justice to strengthen everyone on the ship, Ragnaros and the elemental included against the evil dragon horror. Then I let myself be pulled along by Hauflin as he crashed into Vestrivian attempting to do some damage to him. The elemental struck with lightning just barley getting through Vestrivian thick scales.
As my friend Hauflin hit the dragon, I activated my ability to smite evil on the dragon and used the spell known as fire of entanglement on him as well, just to at least make it easier for Icewing to hit him. I attempted to break through Vestrivian's scales with my battle axe of course, but they were simply too hard. I felt the spell only being active for a short moment, but it was enough to bring Vestrivian's full attention to me.
Vestrivian hated being trapped. He did not like being tethered to a single spot while engaging another dragon. First, he tried to claw me away. When that did not slay me, he turned his head and hit me with the full force of his fire. These two attacks brought me close to death's door. Somewhere I would find myself many times in this fight.
Icewing struck the entangled Vestrivian, but I and Hauflin could tell that even he had a hard time breaking through Vestrivian's hard scales. I can tell you now that only twice did we ever see him break through Vestrivian's corrupted scales.
So, I and Hauflin were making a nuisance of ourselves to make Vestrivian concentrate on us, instead of on Icewing who had gotten very badly hurt by a single attack from Vestrivian. Perhaps we might have stopped Vestrivian from outright killing Icewing at one point, but that is something we will never know.
Dave was firing the Ballista from the ship while it was still in range and Ragnaros kept throwing The Bonesaw at the dragon fight, where the Bonesaw would never hit one of the dragons, but always return to Ragnaros hand. We think he forgot to climb onto the ship in favour of being closer to hurl The Bonesaw towards the fight.
Now I said he never hit one of the dragons, but he decently hit Haulin one time. It was one of the few times Hauflin ever took anything in stride but simply decided to hand me the Bonesaw to try and hit Vestrivian with it.
Now just as I grabbed The Bonesaw, Icewing used his Breath in an attempt to hurt Vestrivian, but instead managed to hit me unawares. It was only after I had been electrocuted by Icewing that he noticed us. I think it was a big shock to him as he used a moment to berate us for not running away.
At this time, while I was still holding onto The Bonesaw and was badly hurt, Vestrivian decided to bite down on me. I took the bite in stride and stuck The Bonesaw into his mouth, hitting a soft spot in Vestrivian's defence. It did not seem like he liked the taste of holy energy going off in his mouth. He spat me out and bathed me in fire to get rid of the taste.
This was my closest brush with death. I had to use most of my holy energy just to survive, but I did survive even if I was a very scorched piece of armour dangling on a druid turned air elemental at that moment. For a moment there I felt some holy entity say, Ouch It really seems like Karma wants Arthur to die. But I did not die, so I think that was only a hallucination.
Now Hauflin have done a much better job than me at hurting Vestrivian, so he decided to drag me back to the ship that was getting away from the fight. After he dropped me off, he cut the rope and flew back to once again join the fight.
Now as I was being flown back to the ship, Ragnaros finally decided to climb aboard and shoot the Bonesaw from the ballista, using Dave's aiming skills to have a better chance hitting Vestrivian.
Now when Ragnaros saw we were getting outside of the effective range to hurt Vestrivian, he decided to intimidate Swiftfoot to bring us closer. He succeeded and Swiftfoot turned the ship and let it drop back well into range of Vestrivian's fire breath. So, while I was unaware, healing myself from my wounds, we had gone from fleeing the fight to the whole ship being scorched in Vestrivian's green flames.
After saving the life of everyone on the ship with a well-timed burst of holy energy, I begged Swiftfoot to ignore Ragnaros and just fly away from this fight. Hauflin was worried that the ship with all the cool cats onboard was on fire but thought us competent enough to deal with the flames ourselves and kept attacking Vestrivian.
Let us say that the Hauflin got annoyed when he noticed that the flames on the ship were not being put out by anybody. Now why did nobody else put out the flames? Well you see while the ship was on fire, something happened. You see Icewing finally managed to break through Vestrivian's scales and send him flying towards the ground looking like he was unconscious. So, I asked Lochost if it was a good Idea to jump off the ship to strike Vestrivian down with my holy axe. Well Lochost forgot that I am not good with sarcasm. So, when he said Yes, you totally should. I jumped off the ledge and Lochost panicked.
Ragnaros decided not to attempt to put out the flames but instead to reload the Ballista with The Bonesaw again. Aiming it toward Vestrivian, Dave decided to fire the ballista instead of putting out the flames. The Bonesaw was sent flying past both myself and Hauflin, but it was quite far off from Vestrivian.
So, there I was rising towards the falling and dying Vestrivian. When he opened his eyes and started to fly again. He then smacked Icewing around really hard. The beating Icewing got was enough to make me run back to the ship, grab onto the rope that Ragnaros was dangling from before, and just try to climb back onto the airship that was speeding away.
Hauflin seeing our silliness decided he had to fly back to the ship, turn into a large fire elemental to grab the flames, scolding us for everything. He then took the flames and sent them right back at Vestrivian. Once again entering the fight.
Then Icewing's second hit in this whole fight managed to push Vestrivian into state resembling dying again, but we knew he was able to regenerate now, so our Hauflin the druid decided to try something. Something new. Something way, way unexpected. Something nobody expected. He landed on Vestrivian while he was dying. Hauflin cast reincarnation on the dying Vestrivian, who was instantly reincarnated on the spot into a blood elf. I kid you not; Hauflin reincarnated the horror corrupted dragon into a blood elf. Who was now falling towards his death.
So, the corrupted dragon Vestrivian had been reincarnated into a bloodelf, separating the horror from the dragon soul. A bloodelf that was now falling quickly toward the ground.
I held my breath, concentrating on the falling elf.
Before the elf hit the ground, he tried to cast dimensional door, but I who had kept my concentration on him noticed he was trying to do something to avoid his fate. I stretched out my arm and did the ritual to dispel magic, and for a moment It felt like a great power of good stretched though me into my dispel magic, stopping the reincarnated Vestrivian from casting dimensional door to save his life.
Hauflin seeing that Vestrivian tried to escape his first meeting with the ground in his new body, decided to expedite Vestrivian's reunion with the ground. And then it was over, Vestrivian hit the ground making a bloodelf shaped hole in the rock beneath.
He had gone and turned into a fine mist in the hole he had created on impact, and both Icewing and Hauflin went full out with lighting to just be sure. Afterwards Hauflin left behind a couple of earth elemental's to cover up the impact site and the body from the approaching Theran army.
We regrouped on Swiftfoots airship, flying away from the approaching Therans. Icewing flew alongside us commenting that he had no idea what was going to happen, because of the reincarnation effect on the horror corrupted Vestrivian. He was quite confused with what was going to happen, usually when Vestrivian is slain he just comes back.
I asked lochost about what happens. After dealing with tech support and some general intel, we figured out that Vestrivian's soul had gone onto possess a Theran marshal that was stationed on the victory dreadnought. Moreover, the horror part that possessed Vestrivian was separated from him and kind of had gone and done its own thing.
Therefore, instead of having a horror dragon there was now a Horror and and a dragon soul on the loose. Best case is they are weaker now that they are separated without a body. I might have kept checking the group for evil just to be sure none of us was possessed.
However, with Vestrivian's body destroyed in the reincarnation, we hope it will take a while before it manages to return to dragon form, if ever. I was rather terrified about where the horror went but we guess it will show up again as it was not banished, just very, very weakened.
