Fire Dragon Worm

"Gods," a Silver Blood Army soldier muttered involuntarily the instant he saw the monster slowly raise its head. "What is that?"

Its segmented body was wrapped in rock-like armor as it squirmed out of the ruins like enormous worms. Yet these creatures had lizard-like heads, their dense teeth grinding together like blades and producing a sound that made one's head feel ready to split.

Blood-red flames burned where their eyes should have been. It was bizarre, yet to Lonzell and the others, it possessed a strange sort of beauty.

Rey, protected between his older brothers, immediately thought of a creature he had read about before. But before he could speak, the monsters suddenly accelerated.

"Unsullied, form ranks!" Silver Scorpion roared as he lowered his visor. The Unsullied in the company moved in perfect unison into a horizontal line, hurling their javelins at the speeding worm-like monsters.

Without wasting a moment, Aslan Longdell and Amos Fezer immediately gathered the surviving Silver Blood Army soldiers and raised their battle axes to cover the Unsullied's javelin throw.

"Don't get drawn into a fight." Lonzell stepped into the formation. "Everyone, retreat inland." He had just activated a Blood Magic he had mastered. Its effect was simple: it allowed him to judge danger by sensing the fluctuations of blood outside his body. This magic, which he had named Bloodline Sense, along with another Blood Magic he constantly maintained—Blood of Prophecy, which judged danger through changes in his own blood temperature—were vital means of preserving his life.

Though the fluid flowing from those worm monsters was as hot as lava, it was still blood in essence. Naturally, he could sense it.

Amor, the butler known as "Longwing Dragon" and charged with guarding them at close range, raised his long-handled battle axe. At seven feet tall, roughly 2.1 meters, he stood like a giant, his gaze fixed on the worm monsters at all times.

The first wave of javelins had been quite effective. Several worm monsters were pinned directly to the ruins and the ground, seemingly realizing that the strange things before them were not easy prey. Though more worm monsters continued crawling toward them, they slowed considerably. Only a few larger ones continued closing in.

The javelins soon lost their effectiveness. The stone armor covering the worm monsters was smoother and tougher than expected.

The largest worm monster evaded the Unsullied's final volley of javelins and suddenly opened its mouth. A huge mass of blood-red flame blasted toward the ranked Unsullied. Several smaller worm monsters swiftly swam through the flames, intending to break through the formation after the larger beast burned the Unsullied to death.

Unfortunately for them, they were disappointed. The Unsullied's armor gave off a faint silver-red glow. Though the blood-red flames engulfed their bodies, they could not inflict any meaningful damage.

Malach, the red priest who had been preparing beside Lonzell all along, finally finished. The tattoos on his face burned like flames. The red priest spread his arms and gave a gentle push. The torrent of fire abruptly stopped, then burned back in the opposite direction. Several nearby smaller worm monsters were set ablaze directly, rolling wildly across the ground.

Silver Scorpion raised his spear and jerked his head, signaling the Unsullied to thrust. The Unsullied raised their spears as one and lunged. Their silver-red glowing spears cleanly pierced the worms' rocky armor, followed immediately by the chopping blows of the Silver Blood Army's battle axes. Several serpent-like worm monsters that had rushed forward were cleaved in two, their lava-like blood splashing across the ground and raising clouds of black smoke.

The worm monsters rolled in agony, but the Unsullied's spears held them firmly in place. Lynn and Ago stepped forward at the same time. Lynn struck at the body, Ago at the head. The longsword and arakh fell almost simultaneously, followed by the silent sweep of Black-Skirt Widow.

As if sensing approaching danger, the worm monster rolled across the ground. It paid no heed to the other worm monsters nearby, spewing mouthful after mouthful of flame in every direction as though it cost nothing.

Then it abruptly stopped.

Ago's sharp arakh split open the tough armor of the worm monster's lizard head, and Lonzell's Valyrian steel sword dealt the final blow.

The worm monster's lizard head dropped lifelessly to the ground.

Using the Unsullied formation as cover, everyone swiftly withdrew. In the distance, more and more monsters roughly the same size as the one they had just fought raised their heads.

Farther away, a colossal shape like a mountain range seemed to be slowly writhing as well.

Lonzell focused, clenched his hand, and activated the magic he had left within everyone's blood. "Spread out! Regroup behind the hills!" With that, he and Valar wordlessly split up, each leading a group toward the hills behind them. The red priest did not hesitate either, sweeping out a great wave of fire to cover the retreating party.

The mountain-sized figure finally lifted its head. It looked around in confusion, then opened its mouth, revealing a throat like a dark-red sun.

It was a worm monster magnified countless times over. Blackened flames burned atop its enormous lizard head. Compared to a single breath from it, the worm monsters they had just faced were as laughable as candles before a volcano.

A vast stretch of ruins was instantly ignited by the blackened flames. Countless worm monsters writhed in agony amid the blaze before turning to ash.

The colossal beast shook its head in confusion, then lay back down where it had been.

Only then did the group cautiously raise their heads from behind the hills.

"What kind of monster was that?" Valar stared at the still-burning ruins, fear lingering in his voice. Lonzell, meanwhile, thought of much more.

Neither Valar nor Rey knew that he had once seen a living dragon. He had not been very old then. His mother was still alive, and Rey had not yet been born, but he was already studying under his father and learning to manage the family's affairs.

Back then, he had seen a dragon somewhat similar to the monster they had encountered today. It had the same slender neck, the same head filled with sharp teeth, and the same incomparably powerful flames. But that blood-red dragon possessed true beauty, rather than the grotesque, twisted beauty of the worm monsters.

Blood Wyrm Caraxes, companion and mount of Prince Daemon Targaryen of the Land of Sunset.

At the time, the prince had been in serious conflict with his brother, Viserys I of the Targaryen family. Dissatisfied, the prince joined forces with Sea Snake Corlys Velaryon to gather troops, conquering cities and territories amid the chaos of the Stepstones while occasionally visiting the Free Cities to accept tribute from their governors.

His father had been no exception. In the name of a Valantis noble and Princess Senira, he invited the prince to his estate and presented him with vast wealth, along with two hundred elite soldiers.

Lonzell did not know what his father had discussed in secret with Prince Daemon. In any case, when the prince departed, he had been exceptionally kind to him. He had personally instructed Lonzell in swordsmanship and shown him the Valyrian steel sword Dark Sister.

It truly was an exquisite, gorgeous slender sword, far more beautiful than his own Black-Skirt Widow.

Later, his mother died not long after giving birth to Rey. Prince Daemon personally came on dragonback to offer condolences. Yet not long after returning to King's Landing, Prince Daemon—whose relationship with Viserys I had briefly eased—fell out once more with the court officials and the king. He was permanently exiled by the king. During those disheartened years, the prince frequently visited the Valaerys family estate and enjoyed their hospitality, until he married Lady Laena Velaryon and settled in Pentos after their wedding. His father had even sent Prince Daemon a wedding gift.

Later, Prince Daemon and Lady Laena visited Valantis together and stayed at the Valaerys family estate. However, Lonzell had not seen Caraxes on that occasion, nor had he seen Lady Laena's Vhagar, the greatest dragon in the world.

Of course, the estate that had once hosted dragons and a prince had since been sold.

Lonzell suspected that the secret agreement between his father and Prince Daemon had something to do with dragons. After all, his ultimate goal was to obtain dragons and fulfill the family's long-cherished wish. But he also understood that the Targaryen family, which monopolized dragons, would never allow outsiders—well, outsiders not close to them—to possess dragons. Though the most extreme Jaehaerys I was already dead, the Velaryon family still possessed dragons. He could not take that risk.

Yet the prophecy showed that he had to return to Westeros. As a blood mage who wielded supernatural power, Lonzell understood one truth deeply: on the game board where the gods played, mortals were forever nothing but pieces. Even if he defied a destined fate, it would inevitably come to pass in another form.

Unless he could make use of that destined fate and leap up to slap the gods hard across the face.

All he could do was hope that whatever his father had buried years ago would prove effective.

He was not entirely unprepared either. If this expedition succeeded in obtaining a dragon, or dragon eggs that could be hatched, then his backup plan would also be set in motion.

I hope everything goes smoothly.

Just as he was lost in thought, an Unsullied suddenly fell stiffly backward. Silver Scorpion immediately raised his spear, separating everyone from the fallen man. "Don't get close."

Silver Scorpion remembered that during the battle, this soldier had been bitten by a worm monster just before it died.

The Unsullied made no sound as his flesh rotted away, releasing smoke like charred ash. Lonzell tried to activate Blood Magic to save him, only to discover that there was no blood left inside his body.

There was only boiling fire, with countless particles rising and falling beneath his skin.

Bang.

A pustule burst open, revealing a plump, miniature worm monster.

The red priest Malach immediately extended his hand and clenched it tightly. Flames surged within the Unsullied's body, burning the worms beneath the swelling pustules until they screeched madly.

"These are Fire Dragon Worms!" Rey cried. "I read about them in a book! They're Fire Dragon Worms!"

Lonzell immediately realized what they were.

Fire Dragon Worms were mysterious creatures recorded in Valyrian history. They usually lived underground or within volcanoes, could breathe fire, and grew larger the longer they lived. After the destruction of the Freehold, scholars who insisted that dragons were magical creations believed that dragons might have originated from these creatures.

"But shouldn't Fire Dragon Worms dwell inside volcanoes or underground?" Lynn asked in confusion.

"Look." Hofa, the golden-eyed youth, tugged at Lynn's armor and gestured for them to look beyond the hills.

"Is that... a dragon?" Lonzell's eyes widened at once.

Beyond the hills lay another incomparably vast ruin, filled with toppled buildings, cracked earth, thick black mist, and rivers like molten lava.

Beside a collapsed tower in the ruins, they could vaguely make out the skeleton of a dragon wrapped in rubble.

Only then did everyone notice what was strange about the ruins.

There seemed to be many relatively recent things within them, gathered around that dragon skeleton.

"We may have found what we were looking for."

Valar murmured.