The missing Piece (Kalak)

[Wave]

"Didn't you... Didn't you fire a bolt directly at her? As she stood in the way?". He couldn't quite recall what happened. The orb briefly flashed as he lost control over it for a second.
"You might want to... leave". He had no idea how long he could hold the power.

[Kalak8538]

Ready to answer, the flash cut the half-dragon off. Was the mercenary really losing control of that magic so quickly? No, it was the dragon's magic he was trying to control. It was a lot, almost his full power's worth of energy in the orb before him. It amazed even the half dragon what he was capable of during his frenzies.

Now, the mercenary he considered his enemy told him to flee. He really was unpredictable. If he lost control, he would almost certainly die. If he was to die either way, why would he not just release it and take out his adversary as well? Why was he giving him the chance to flee when he received no quarter himself? The dragon had no choice but to respect him.

The half dragon sighed, knowing what he had to do. Moving around the orb, he positioned himself between it and his weakened rival, his back turned toward him. "I can't believe I'm doing this..." he muttered.

"Let it go." he said louder with a growl, not looking back for a second. Electric power began coursing through his body again. Hopefully, the energy and the scales would shield them both from the blast. His dexterous dragon-like feet gripped the earth for support as he awaited the blast.

[Wave]

Ray tried to figure out if he could drain the orb without loosing control over it.
The dragon caught him completely off guard as he offered to take the blast, causing the orb to flash again. "You ca-... damn"
It really was his only way to get out of this.

A faint purple shimmer started to surround the dragon, a shield that would direct some of the impacts energy to Ray, but hopefully not enough to kill him.
He detonated the orb, trying to direct the blast away from both of them. It didn't do much as the energy trapped in the field ripped it apart.

[Kalak8538]

The blast must have taken only a few seconds. However, it felt much longer than that. The half dragon's scales were harder than most armors, and fared much better that expected in the blast. Whilst bracing, he covered the parts of himself that were more human.

It was a brutal explosion. He slid ever so slightly, almost completely losing grip and balance. The energy needed to help deflect the force also took its toll on him. At least he had help. Without that small amount of assistance, the outcome may have been different.

Once it was all over, the half dragon unbraced himself. Looking around, he saw the trees were broken and splintered. There was a small crater as well, just under where the orb had detonated. He stood tall, impressed with himself for taking such a blast. He did not move, he could not. He had no energy to do so. His knees were somewhat shaking, but he refused to lose his stance. He was defenseless now, and he hated that. The last thing he would do was fall before the mercenary, and show his weakness.

[Wave]

The shield did it's job better than Ray expected, actually deflecting more of the blast than anticipated, but he still felt enough of the blast to leave him shacking.

"Impressive...", he said quietly. Talking already seemed to demanding.
"But why...?"

[Kalak8538]

The half dragon's legs buckled, and he fell to one knee. He needed a minute before he could muster the strength to speak. "I don't know... Maybe... Maybe I wasn't satisfied... with you killing yourself... halfway through our fight."

The words were rough in his throat, and he let out some coughs.

"I'm going... to pass out soon... When... When I wake up... you are not going to be here... Under... Understand?"

[Wave]

Ray couldn't even move. Leaving would be a real challenge now.
"Sorry... That won't... work"

He wouldn't pass out, he just needed some time to recover.

[Kalak8538]

The dragon knew what was coming. He was completely drained, in a way he had never been before. He hated it, but there was no fighting it. Once he was out, he was completely vulnerable.

"You have... some time." he said in response.

With that, he fell flat on his face. His body was completely limp on the forest floor. There was one more thing to add before he lost total consciousness.

"Stay away from that village... It's a war zone by now. If I ever see you again, you... you will... die..."

With those last words, everything went black.

[Wave]

"I doubt it", Ray replied with a smile. He didn't care if the dragon still noticed it or not.
There was nothing for Ray to do other than staying awake. One of the bandits could still come back.
He'd probably even be more rested than the dragon when he would wake up.

[Kalak8538]

In time, three of the bandits returned and happened on the scene. What had exactly transpired was a mystery to them. Both the dragon and the armored mercenary were still there. With his armor on, it was unknown if the mysterious warrior was still alive or not.

The real concern was the half dragon. The scales on his wrists and neck made it impossible to check a pulse. Upon further inspection, it was clear that he was still breathing. It took two of the three men to collect him and carry him off.

[Wave]

Ray watched the 3 bandits without moving. It probably was for the best that they didn't get close to him.
He watched them trying to carry the dragon with amusement, contemplating if he should follow them or not. He decided against it. Going without resting would be a mistake, especially after what happened now.

[Kalak8538]

The half dragon awoke in town. Still a bit dizzy, he sat up to take in his surroundings. By the looks of things, the battle had been a bit harder fought than was expected.

"Sir, you're awake!" said one of the bandits.

The dragon gripped his head. He was still not one hundred percent yet.
"I take it we won... How did the battle go?"

"What do you mean WE?" the bandit retorted in an annoyed tone. "If you were here, we would not have lost so many men! But you were off fighting that sellsword."

The half dragon snapped back with a fanged scowl, causing the bandit to recoil. It did not mean the bandit was wrong, however. Without him, it must have been a tough battle for the bandit hoard. After an apology for his rudeness, the bandit continued.

"The villagers aren't to happy with us. Without the girl, it's just a random bandit raid to them. To make things worse, we don't have many men left. If Adela sends a counterattack, we won't stand a chance..."

The dragon sighed. That mercenary had done more damage than he probably knew. The only hope now was to gather reinforcements.

"Let me worry about that..." he started. "Send word out. This village will become a haven for those wronged by Adela. Soon, criminals from all around will flock here, and we will have an army all our own. We will not have to worry about the military."

The bandit nodded and left, leaving the dragon to rest and regain his strength.

[Wave]

After a while, Ray got back up. Actually feeling rested was something you could really miss.
But he had another problem now: He had no idea where to go. Going back to the village seemed like a bad idea, but the only option at the same time.
He couldn't just go without any idea where, that was one problem of being blind, but going back seemed like a bad idea for two reason: The dragon and his bandits probably want him dead and he basically just failed a job fairly hard, making finding another rather unlikely.

With no other idea, he started to go back in the direction of the village, but approached carefully to see if he could figure out the current situation from a distance.

[Kalak8538]

With his strength completely recovered, the half-dragon took the time to inspect the village. The citizens were confined to the buildings, mainly the houses and the church. This was good. He had never been interested in unnecessary killing. As long as they did not interfere or resist, there was no need to kill any of the townspeople.

The wall of logs that had already been standing was adequate enough, but the bandits saw it fit to reinforce them as much as possible. The entrances were all barricaded with lumber, stone, and carpentry scavenged from around the village. It was a veritable fortress, all that was needed was more men to man it. The half-dragon's role would be more difficult now.

His thoughts wandered to the mercenary. Being carried away, he had no idea what had become of him. If he still lived, it would have been a shame if he came back to the village now. He continued his rounds, thinking ahead for the counterattack that was to come. Hopefully, some more would come from elsewhere in Adela, hoping to fight against the nation that had wronged them.

[Wave]

Rays options didn't exactly look promising.
Going back to the village seemed like a bad idea, especially if the dragon stuck to his word.
But he hated the idea of just aimlessly wandering of just as much.
He'd have to see if there was still a chance. And he still had the option of leaving...

[Kalak8538]

Now with the village mapped out in his head, the dragon climbed the rampart. He would survey the surrounding area, half planning and half anticipating the battle ahead. The area was heavily wooded, offering both advantages and disadvantages.

His intention was not to stay, but to stay long enough to make sure the town could be held against attack. He continued walking the circumference of the town, mapping the landscape.

[Wave]

Ray noticed the dragon on the villages wall and played with the idea of confronting him right there, but forgot about it fairly quickly.
He didn't like just standing around, but he preferred to stay hidden and alive then being dead.

[Kalak8538]

Nightfall was almost upon them now, and the dragon retired to one of the emptied houses. The bandits would keep watch, and he could rest. His body was still sore, perhaps he had not completely recovered from the explosion. A good night's sleep was needed now. He lay down and stared at the ceiling, waiting for sleep to come.