"Though she's young, she possesses vast magical talent. The boy shows promising tactical skills—and he carries a strange magical weapon. And the other…a diamond among gold. Not only does he wield a formidable tool, but he can transform into a fire spirit—a high-ranking one at that. I've never seen nor heard of a spirit halfling before. And that green token... the boy simply grabbed it—then he transformed on the spot. So many variables. I simply cannot contain myself."
A sinister laugh echoed through the obsidian halls. "Haaa…" The figure in the shadowed alcove straightened, robes swirling like living smoke. "Grim."
From the darkness, a gargoyle swooped down on leathery wings. "Yes, my lord?"
"Collect every token that resembles ths one," The man commanded while the crystal orb display the Omnitrix token, voice low and hungry. "Also capture those three children for me."
The gargoyle saluted, claws clicking against stone. "At once, my lord." With a beat of wings, it vanished into the night.
They huddled around a sputtering campfire deep inside a rain-soaked cavern. Outside, droplets drummed on rock like distant drums, and steam curled from damp crevices. Ben was still happy over his acquired gold. His eyes gleamed like a treasure-hungry fox. Fred poked at the embers, face tight with frustration.
"Gwen's spells got stronger after the Goblin raid," Ben remarked, tossing a stick into the flames to watch it sizzle. "And I've got Heatblast on unlocked now." He puffed out his chest, grinning at Fred. "Guess I'm the better gamer afterall."
Fred bristled. "Well it's true that my transformations and magic are currently inaccessible. Until I unlock something… I'm currently the weakest but that doesn't I'm worse than you at this game."
Ben waved a hand dismissively. "You can tell yourself that."
Fred rolled out a glowing game map on a flat stone. A shimmering line traced their path south. "Anyway. We're close to the Drake's den. Just past the Whispering Pines and..."
Before Fred could finish his sentence, the cavern shuddered with a bone-rattling screech, followed by thunderous footsteps.
Gwen's eyes snapped open. "Guys… Please tell me that was just lightning stricking a tree"
A single, monstrous amber eye peered through the cave's mouth, its pupil contracting scanning the inside.
The monster then lifted it's head followed by swiping it's tail inside the cave, rain-slick rocks framing a cavern entrance collapsed. A silhouette of enormous jaws looms.
Gwen's hands flash violet as she conjures a mana shield, the light staining her determined face.
Ben's body ripples with heat energy. With a roar, he morphs into Heatblast—flames coiling around his torso like living armor.
The monster's blazing tail lashes out, the tip crashing into the cave walls with a thunderous crash, sending boulders tumbling in a cloud of spray-dampened dust. A single boulder topples, sealing the cave entrance in rubble.
The clearing beyond, freshly exposed, shows the Drake—a T-rex–sized monster with obsidian scales, each plate gleaming like black glass. Rain drips in rivulets from its ridged back.
Heatblast hurls a concentrated flame bolt at its abdomen. The fire bathes its side in orange glow—yet the Drake barely flinches, its leathery hide steaming as droplets hiss on contact.
"Okay, this is tougher than I thought," Ben pantomimed.
The Drake's tail whips through the air, slapping Heatblast across the clearing. He sails into a cluster of ferns with a crunch, flames sputtering out.
Gwen leaps onto a shattered boulder—crack!—and channels her mana into a single, precise bolt. "Take this—" she cries, launching a mana missile at the Drake's cavernous eyes. The bolt arcs in slow motion, dripping violet sparks. It strikes true as the dust settles.
The Drake roars, rearing its head back. Water-sprayed scales glint as it shakes off the blow. Yet no blood, only a ripple of anger. Gwen muttered, eyes blazing with concern. "It's not enough!"
Fred meanwhile retreated into the forest, rain-slick branches hiding him overhead. He settles into a sniper's perch on a sturdy pine limb, plasma rifle trained on the Drake's flank.
His first shot echoes like a cannon: PEW-WHUMP! A slug of ionized plasma punches into the Drake's side, charring scales in a circular bruise that glows eerie purple.
The Drake's scales crackle around the wound, a bloom of violet seeping into the black hide.
The beast roars in fury, shaking rain-laden branches loose in a shower of water and splinters.
Fred's voice crackles through the forest. "Guys my gun seems to be the most effective weapon against it. So you two will draw its attention so I can line up shots!"
Heatblast snarls, reigniting his fists. He charged, fists engulfed in flame—two blazing knuckles aimed at the Drake's leg plates. Sparks fly as he cracks its knee joint, but the Drake shakes him off, each step earth-shaking.
Gwen flicks her wrist. The ground beneath the Drake's feet blooms with slick ice runes—an enchanted frost that spreads like spilled mercury. The Drake's claws skid, smoke curling as heated scales meet frost. It teeters, roaring in rage.
Fred emerges from the pines, plasma rifle thudding as he shifts fire across the Drake's flank—rapid-fire bolts chipping armor plating. Each hit turns a pale bruise to vivid purple, then black when he smashes it again.
He breathes hard, knuckles whitening on the grip. "Twenty shots," he mutters. "Twenty hits."
With each impact, the Drake's hide shifts: purple bruises collect, then deep red veins pulsing like molten magma. The creature now greatly bruised went on a frenzy, it's scales turning Scarlett—a beast on the edge of death now went berserk.
Gwen's spells started falter as exhaustion hit the team; heatblast's flames sputtered.
In a final burst, the Drake lunges with jaw and claws, an avalanche of destruction. Gwen fired a desperate mana barrage, each orb splintering against the jaws. Heatblast hurled himself at the beast's flank, fists blazing, and Fred leaped from a fallen pine, sliding to a kneel with perfect aim.
Fred's finger squeezes the trigger. A plasma lance spools up, then fires a single, silent shot to the Drake's neck—where Fred had struck twice before.
Impact lines flared as the bolt pierced the fleshy hide. Blood hisses and steamed; the creature shuddered, with it's head whipping. With a final, rattling exhalation, the Drake's legs buckled. It collapses in a ground-rending thud, the earth trembling beneath its massive body.
In the aftermath, the clearing fell silent. Steam rising from smashed ferns; fireflies danced in the cooling rain. Heatblast reverts to Ben, panting as he fell tothe ground resting from the long battle. Gwen sank to her knees. Fred strode forward, to join the two.
As the creature's body dissipated into pixels fading away, an iron chest dropped along with a bunch of gold coins.
Fred wiped rain from his brow. "I better store this in my inventory, we'll open it later. It doesn't feel safe here. We find better shelter."
From the wet underbrush, a woman's soft voice murmured:
"What a good suggestion that is."
Before they could spin around, the world went black.