The brink of death

CHAPTER NINE

Hazel's POV




Riven cocked his head back. It was like the dragon was stalking his prey, and seemed to be sickly enjoying it. Riven looked like he was about to set Christain on fire!

At that exact moment I ran from the forest. I had to protect Christain no matter what the cost. I threw my body over Christains on the floor without hesitation. I kneeled down over him and protected him with my own body. I barely glanced at Christain’s body before Riven let out his final attack.

In the last second before Riven’s attack, I held Christains body tight and protected him with my own. 

I would never hesitate to protect Christain. I loved him. 

I could feel the searing pain in my chest, like a thousand hot needles piercing my skin with every breath I took. My vision was blurred, and I could barely see the blood-soaked ground beneath me. Next to me lay Christain, barely clinging to life. His body was battered and broken, his face contorted in pain. I had put myself in harm's way to protect him, but it seemed that I had only made things worse.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Riven's heavy footsteps as he retreated into the forest. I knew that I couldn't let him get away, not after what he had done to us. I gritted my teeth and pushed myself up, fighting through the pain as I stumbled towards Riven's trail.

The forest was a blur of greens and browns, and I could feel the blood pounding in my head with every step I took. But I didn't give up, I pushed forward with all my might, fueled by a fierce determination to avenge Christain's injuries.

As I finally caught up to Riven, I could see that he too was struggling to keep going. His breathing was ragged, and his movements were slow and unsteady. It dawned on me then that my wounds had hurt him just as badly as his attacks had hurt me.

As we stumbled towards the Styx River, Riven began to call out to someone. His voice was rough and hoarse, and I could feel my anger growing with each word he uttered. I knew that I had to stop him, no matter the cost.

I charged at Riven with everything I had, slamming into him with all my force. He was caught off guard and toppled to the ground with a thud. We grappled on the riverbank, our bodies a tangle of limbs and blood.

My heart was pounding in my chest as I fought with everything I had. I was consumed by a blinding rage, a need for revenge that left me with tunnel vision. But despite my best efforts, it was Riven who emerged victorious. He overpowered me and left me lying on the ground, gasping for air.

As I lay there, defeated and alone, my mind raced with thoughts of Christain. I realized then that my obsession with revenge had nearly cost me everything. And yet, the most baffling thing was that Riven too seemed to be on the brink of death. How was it possible that my injuries had hurt him as badly as his attacks had hurt me? The answer eluded me, but one thing was clear: I had to find a way to make things right.

My vision was blurry and my body felt heavy. I could feel my energy draining away, leaving me weak and vulnerable. Riven's angry roar echoed through the air, and I could hear the pain and desperation in his voice.

"Maximus!" he called out again, his voice weaker this time. I could sense that he was on the brink of collapse, just like me.

My own body was shutting down, and I struggled to stay conscious. I knew that I was running out of time, and that I had to act quickly if I wanted to survive.

But then, everything went black. I felt myself slipping away, my consciousness fading as I fell into a deep coma.

The last thing I remembered was the sight of Riven, his body covered in blood and his voice growing weaker by the second. I knew that we were both on the brink of death, and that our fate was uncertain.

As I drifted off into oblivion, I couldn't help but wonder what would happen to us next.

Riven’s POV

As I lay down in the Styx River, I couldn't help but think back to all the times I had tried to kill that little girl Hazel.

Each time I tried, I had suffered the same brutal experience as her, feeling her pain and her emotions.

I had come to understand that there was some sort of special connection between us, one that caused our emotional and physical experiences to be shared.

In other words, if Hazel dies, I will die.

This girl was so dumb. She had defended another man’s life with her own, and a weak man too.

The fight with Christain had been too easy. He was a bad warrior.

Well, he had potential, but he was just an annoying kid with a temper. I would have killed him if it wasn’t for Hazel protecting him. 

The realization that Hazel and I were connected made me angry, and I cursed the fact that I now had a weakness.

I had important things to do, and I couldn't be held back by a mere girl.

I was a dragon, one of the most powerful dragons in the whole world. I have a mission to fulfill. I couldn’t be held back by some weak girl from the middle earth. I was invincible.

As I thought about this, I felt a dull pain in my chest, my large chest that had just been injured.

“Maximus!” I said angrily as I struggled with the pain in my chest.  

“Come to me Maximus!” I said again, my energy was draining rapidly form my injuries. 

Finally, at the bottom of the Styx River, a huge dragon slowly came to life. It had about a hundred heads and looked like a hill. I watched it quietly. 

Luckily, my loyal servant and best friend Maxiumus appeared. 

“Took you long enough.” I said to him quietly. Maximus helped me lay down on the ground and tried to heal me. 

“What the heck happened to you?” He said back to me, his eyes were wide as he saw my injuries. Maximus knelt down before me.  

I asked him many questions, and learned that the barrier between the Dragon World and Middle-earth had not been broken, and that the dragons still lived in the darkness.

“That is troubling news. What can we do about it?” I asked him. 

“You tell me.” Maximus said, wrapping up my wounds and caring to them. I thought about this for a few moments, then thought of a plan.  

“I have a plan. I want you to help me find the weapon that was lost in the world by the War God of Dragon Slaying. If we can retrieve it, we can release the seal on the heart of the Dragon Vein and break the barrier.”

“I understand, my lord. Let me begin the search for the weapon at once.” Maximus said to me. 

“Thank you, Maximus. I know that I can rely on you.” I said to him with a smile. 

“It is my honor to serve you, my lord. I will not let you down.” Maximus said to me with the same smile. 

“May the gods be with us on our quest.” I said to him, Maximus helping me up. 

“Thank you, my lord. We will not fail.” He said to me. 

“But who is that?” Maximus asked me. You can tell he's been holding it up for a long time.

I looked over to see the annoying little girl Hazel crumpled on the floor. 

“Oh she’s no one.” I said, casting her aside, we had more important things to do. 

“Well we can’t leave her here my lord!” Maximus said.

I rolled my eyes. Even when she was unconscious she was still annoying. 

“Fine, fine, I’ll transport her back to her lover boy.” I said, snapping my fingers and transporting Hazel back to her annoying crush on middle earth. 

“Now let’s go.” I said to Maximus. “Oh, and I need you to find a cure quickly, and slip it to that girl.” My expression seemed to stiffen.

Maximus nodded hesitantly in surprise.

I made my way to the place where I had once fought the War God of Dragon Slaying. As I approached, the memories of that battle flooded back to me. I remembered the fierce fighting, the smell of blood and smoke, and the sound of clashing swords.