While the summons dealt with the Drakonian, Ashton took his time to focus on the gooey substance around them. At one glance, Ashton could tell it wasn't something natural and seemed to have a mind of its own.
Ashton's best guess what that whatever the slime was, it could suck the life out of anything that touched it by consuming the mana within them.
It didn't matter whether the thing latched on to it was alive or not. As long as it had mana, the slime could attack them. That was also why Dolos, an undead summon, was about to get absorbed by the goo had Celeste not intervened.
In the meantime, the battle raged on like never before.
Sven was the first to attack, darting forward with lightning-fast speed. He swung his sword at the Drakonian's leg, but it was like trying to cut through steel forged in the heart of the sun.
Celeste launched a volley of shadow bolts at the creature, but they bounced harmlessly off its scales.
Finally, Dolos charged forward, intending to take revenge for what the Drakonian did to him, his swords flashing in the dim light.
He slashed at the Drakonian's belly, but the creature twisted out of the way, its claws slashing at Dolos. The swordsman leapt back, narrowly avoiding the attack.
Suddenly, a roar echoed through the cave, and Ashton turned to see the massive Drakonian stumbling backwards. It seemed Atlas had had enough and headbutted the beast, pushing it backwards.
Atlas had now grown to match the Drakonian's height; hence his attack had had some effect on the creature. His fists were cackling with energy Ashton had never seen before.
"Looks like he learned a new skill." Ashton smiled. "I was planning to step in, but maybe, they got it after all."
Dolos charged at the creature, slamming his massive fists into its side. The Drakonian roared in anger and lashed out with its claws, catching Atlas across the chest.
Using the distraction, Sven jumped off Atlas's shoulder, his sword flashing in the dim light and leapt onto the Drakonian's back, his sword plunging into its reverse scale.
Dolos followed a similar manoeuvre and landed beside Sven, attacking the reverse scale again.
Meanwhile, Celeste and Atlas kept striking the creature from all sides. Most of their attacks were useless, but they still served the purpose of distracting the beast while Sven and Dolos did all the damage.
As the Drakonian roared in a fury, Atlas continued to pummel it with his massive fists. The creature staggered, its wings flapping wildly as it tried to regain balance. In the process, Sven got knocked off the creature's back.
"Not yet!" Sven yelled and launched himself back into the fight.
He sliced at the Drakonian's underbelly. Dolos followed suit, his twin blades whistling through the air as he landed several quick strikes on the reverse scale.
Celeste hung back, her eyes closed in concentration as she summoned tendrils of shadow to entangle the Drakonian's limbs, rendering it unable to dodge Atlas's punches or hurt Dolos or Sven.
The creature thrashed, trying to break free, but Celeste's hold only tightened. It let out a piercing screech that echoed through the cave, and for a moment, it seemed as though the fight was over.
But then the Drakonian's wings unfurled, and it began to rise into the air. Atlas jumped to try and grab it, but his massive frame was too slow.
The Drakonian was about to smash Dolos between its back and the cave wall when the undead jumped off the Drakonian's back.
The Drakonian soared upwards, its claws scraping against the cave walls as it tried to gain altitude. Sven and Dolos both leapt after it, but they were too late.
It was then Ashton noticed something weird. The slime didn't even try to attack the Drakonian. In fact, the goo retracted from where the Drakonian's feet touched.
Suddenly, there was a loud cracking noise, and the Drakonian let out a pained roar. Ashton had finally decided to join the fight as he flew right next to the Drakonian. The creature let out a deafening roar as it lunged towards him, its sharp teeth bared.
Ashton dodged the attack with ease, somersaulting in the air and coming down with a powerful strike from his sword. The Drakonian recoiled but quickly regained its footing and countered with a swipe of its massive claws.
Ashton narrowly avoided the blow, ducking and twisting in the air. He could feel the heat radiating off the Drakonian's scales as it roared in a fury, its eyes locked on him fiercely. He knew he couldn't afford to make any mistakes if he wanted to come out of this alive.
"Who am I kidding? That thing ain't killing me."
As the Drakonian prepared for another attack, Ashton launched towards the creature. The Drakonian was caught off guard by the sudden movement, and Ashton used the opportunity to strike. He plunged Balmond deep into the creature's side, eliciting a deafening roar of pain.
"Celeste, I hope you're ready!" Ashton roared as soon as Balmond hit the creature.
But the Drakonian wasn't finished yet. It reared up, lashing out with its claws and sending Ashton flying backwards. Ashton struggled to regain his balance in the air, his wings beating furiously as he fought to stay aloft.
As the Drakonian prepared for another attack, something weird happened. Not one or two, but thousands of shadowy tendrils shot out of the ground and wrapped themselves around the creature, slamming it back to the ground.
Without wasting a second, Sven charged forward, his sword blazing with energy as he attacked the Drakonian head-on.
Celeste summoned dark shadows that enveloped the creature's eyes, causing it to flail and roar in confusion. Dolos charged in from the side, striking the Drakonian with lightning-fast strikes from his sword.
Ashton swooped in from above, his sword gleaming in the cave's dim light as he landed a solid blow on the creature's head, causing it to roar in pain and fury. The Drakonian fought back with renewed vigour, lashing out with its wings and tail in a desperate attempt to defend itself.
The fight raged for hours, each side trading blows and struggling to gain the upper hand. The cave walls trembled with the force of the combatants' attacks, and the gooey substance that covered them seemed to writhe in anticipation.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the Drakonian let out one final, pitiful roar. Its body went limp, its massive wings falling uselessly to its sides. Ashton hovered in the air, watching as the creature breathed its last.
"Finally..."
Ashton slowly lowered himself to the ground, his wings folding back into his body as he landed. He felt a sense of exhaustion and relief wash over him, knowing that he had emerged victorious against such a formidable foe.
As he turned to his summons, he saw they, too, were weary from the battle. But their eyes showed a sense of pride as they regarded him, knowing that they had fought bravely and with great skill.
"Great job, guys," Ashton smiled towards them like a proud father. "I couldn't have done it without you-"
~ROAR~
Ashton and his summons just wanted to celebrate their victory over the Draconian when they heard a lot of roaring from the outside and saw something none had expected to see.
"You got to be kidding me!"
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