Chronicles From the End of an Age

The Dance of Steel - 37Yrs BTA

VOTE ON NEXT STORY BELOW!!!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"And for the final battle of tonight... well, you all know him. He's fast! He's strong! He remains near the top of the leader boards with a close to one hundred percent success rate! He's the shining star! The metal prodigy! I give you... Kyral, the Steel Dancer!"

Kyral took a deep breath as he began to walk forward. His claws sunk into the soft and beaten sand. The silver shell on his shimmered and rippled in the light. The pale-yellow scales of his legs and underbelly had been polished to near golden, highlighting the many scars on his limbs and neck. The metal covering his folded wings chimed softly as he slowly opened them with a grin, reveling in the roar of the crowd as it washed down into the entry tunnel.

As he walked out into the light the roaring only grew greater, escalating the excitement roiling around inside him. He reared on his hind legs, letting out his only metallic roar that sounded like a gong echoing again and again. The arena before him welcomed him with the scent of freshly spilled blood. The brown sand was tousled and messy, evidence of the previous battle. The steel and stone walls surrounding the arena were rugged and cracked with evidence of powerful elemental attacks in several small boulders, as well as dragon steel and shards of opal-like crystal scattered in the sand.

Atop the wall were hundreds of spectators. The shining metal shells of other metal dragons. The dark green and brown of earth dragons. The opal glimmer of crystal dragons. There was even the dark ocean blue of several water dragons visiting the earthen nation. There were also several hired life dragons that made it a lot easier to heal any serious injuries... if they made it in time. As he looked upon the cheering and roaring crowd Kyral closed his eyes, allowing himself to bask in their attention for but a moment. The thrum of his beating heart, the rush of adrenaline, the preparation for battle. It made him feel alive.

"And tonight, Kyral faces not one, not two, but six other dragons, all of which are fighting for a reward of one thousand ounces of gold! The only thing standing in their way is our competitor. Let us see if tonight he is able to uphold his title, and face down these challengers," the announcer continued, speaking through a long trumpet built by human hands, allowing his voice to echo through the thronging crowd.

Behind Kyral a gate made from dragon steel fell down over the tunnel he had just come from. Ahead of him, from a tunnel on the opposite side of the arena, walked his six opponents. Three earth dragons, two crystal, and one metal. All of them except the female crystal dragon were larger than him. The largest of which was an earth drake who was nearly double Kyral's size. Kyral guessed that the earth drake had to be over a century old, which was strange considering that many of the competitors who were lured by the promise of glory the arena brought were rather young. He was only thirteen years old himself.

But size didn't matter when you had power, and as Kyral looked upon his opponents he felt himself smile. They wouldn't stand a chance against him. He sat back calmly on his haunches, his metal shell beginning to ripple and contort against his body, like a living creature begging to be let free. Rarely did he get to fight more than three opponents. That night would be a treat.

"Fighter's, take your positions!" The announcer called.

Kyral didn't move, but the others began to stalk toward him, spreading out in order to attack from all sides. The metal dragon, a dragoness who was maybe a decade or two older than him, let her shell grow down her body until it encased her entirely. Her yellow eyes became red, and her mouth contorted in a snarl.

The lone metal drake watched them carefully, feeling his excitement rise, his tail flicking to and fro uncontrollably. There was no fear in him as his gaze flickered from one dragon to another. He couldn't help the smile that began to spread across his face.