Jake was stumped when Peltmans and the others marched in his direction.

They had found him somehow, and were even willing to attack him in the forest? Something was wrong here!

A high-pitched scream tore through the silence. Swirling to the direction the sound came from, Jake tensed. His previous hubris melted away, and without another moment of hesitation, he tried summoning the power of ice. Pain washed over him, and he buckled, his body cramping in an arch. It felt as if he was drawing in liquid fire, and he released his hold. The mana muscle in his body, something he hadn't paid much attention to in a long time, send out waves of pain.

Through the haze, he caught shouting and the sound of battle. He thought he heard someone shout his name, followed by a startled yell. With barely a rustling from the leaves, something breached through the plants and slammed into him. He took a step back to stop from tipping over, his cramped muscles finally responding. The collision had shaken something loose, and the pain receded, leaving a nasty headache behind.

"..J..ake... fle..ee..."

Next to him lay Tergin, mangled and with blood streaming out of his ears, nose, and mouth. Three long lashes went from the side of his face across his chest, bleeding profusely. Tergin's dark eyes were unfocused, looking at nothing.

With a shuddered breath, Jake reached for the Kobold. He needed to get him away!

A shiver ran through the green body, followed by a long hiss. Tergin stopped moving, his form unnaturally still.

"No... Tergin?" Jake stared at him in disbelief. He expected a sign, something that showed the other was still alive, faking it.

A soft, deep chuckle came from the forest, and a green figure walked out of the jungle. Bald and wrinkly, rolls of fat rippled around its neck, arms, and waist. Two deep, emerald eyes seemed to glow from the inside as they stared at Jake.

"What the matter, little snake? Did friend die? Awww me so sad..."

The figure moved closer, and as its head passed level with a branch far above Jake's reach, he gasped. The thing was huge! It was taller than any Orc, and under the fat were muscles that seemed more in place on a bodybuilder. Although it spoke slow, its movements were fluid and almost graceful and spoke of danger.

Hatred and anger surged through Jake, pushing him to attack. The image of Tergin was the only thing that held him back, and even then, barely.

Troll. The word surfaced, unbidden, and he knew it was from some hereditary memory. With it came a sense of caution, danger, and loathing. And the faint knowledge that Troll's were a sign of something worse. With a groan, he stepped back.

The Troll grinned at him, a wicked sneer on his face.

Another voice, familiar and hateful, came from behind. "Nowhere to run? Stupid lizard!"

Peltmans stood behind him, and from all around came dozens of slight movements and flashes of green skin from between the blue and purple leaves. Spear points were poking out, aimed at him.

How did they get this close without me noticing?

Behind him, the Troll laughed and pounded forward, shouting at him. "Backstab!"

Jake jumped aside, suppressing another urge to clash with the monstrous thing. What he needed was space to spread his wings! Next to him, the open logging area beckoned. Only a few trees and bushes separated him from it, that and high pitched goblin squealing.

He ran for it, barrelling through the bushes and getting ready to fly up as soon as possible.

"Attack!"

Rustling and swishing followed Peltmans roar as dozens of sharpened sticks flew towards him from all sides. Jake tried to change course, sliding through the mud. It helped a bit, and most spears shot passed him, but not all. A spear hit his flank like a body blow. Not enough to wound, but it might leave a bruise under his scales.

More and more blows followed it, striking him all over, but he wasn't worried about those. He zigzagged forward, keeping his wings folded and as much out of the barrage as he could. If he wanted to get out, he needed them whole.

A deep and rumbling chuckle and the loud pounding of feet came from behind, spurring him on.

His snout exited the shadows cast by the giant tree's when a spear pierced his left-wing. Fear and anger made him jump forward, and he forced his wings open, trying to remove the pin. He felt it yield, and his wings sprang open.

"NOW!" A loud sonorous female voice commanded.

Jake dropped to the ground. He couldn't say why, but he did, and as he did, he felt something slice across his back into his raised wings. A shock ran through him, and his head flung around like a snake hit by electricity. In a glimpse, he saw a grey, vaguely familiar figure stand at the edge of the jungle. Next to it stood something else, something small yet fearsome. It was the last he saw.

Cracking and tearing, blind pain as if someone ripped his ears from his head, his arms from his body caused him to scream. He scrambled forward, and something limply fell on his back. The pain made it hard to think, and all he wanted was to get away, hide, and nurse his wounds. Running forward, away from the thing that hurt him, Jake's mind hid from the pain, letting his dragonic instincts take over.

There was a familiar glitter in the corner of its eye, and turned its head as it loped across the muddy area.

The sea, blue and beautiful, sprawled in the distance and it called, no, sang to him! He charged towards it, the flopping things on his back, slowing it down. Yelling and screaming came from those in pursuit, but on the open ground, it was faster.

The closer he came to the sea, the weaker the shouting became, and when his talons touched the sand, the roaring of the sea drowned out all other sounds. Splashing into the water, the rush of energy only increased its desire to flee, and it dove down.

Fish and purple crustaceans scattered, while the large tortoises further away fled as he propelled through the sea towards its depths. Blanketed by the increasing influx of energy and the sensation of safety, the last vestiges of Jake's conscious mind drifted away as he shot further and further into the depths of the boundless ocean.

-

Halfway to the sea, a group of Goblins stood chattering to each other until Peltmans roar silenced them. The large Orc seemed small beside the Troll. They waited for the two figures that were walking towards them.

"Damn you, Whipper. You promised me this would kill him!" Peltmans glared at the smaller figure but avoided looking into the pitch-black eyes.

"It would have if you had followed the directions I gave you." A smooth voice responded with barely any emotion in it.

Peltmans growled but just stared at the other, inspecting the dark green skin strung taut across a well-defined face and muscles. The curved ears reminded of elves, but for the tufts of dark hair sticking out from them. As he compared the agile muscles with his own, his glare increased, and he inched forward, his posture lowering.

The Fiend snorted and shook her head. "Stop it, you two. You've already angered the Insectoids enough to make them leave! If you fight against each other, we will be too weak when more of those dragons show up."

It seemed the Orc would ignore her words for a short moment, but then he sniffed and straightened up again.

"That was Anthony's fault, " he growled before turning back to the sea. "We need to destroy those Kobolds before the Dragon's return. Gather every Orc and Goblin. We are going to exterminate those reptilian scum."

With a grunt, Peltmans jogged towards the town, the Troll following him, making surprisingly little noise as it moved.

When they were out of earshot, Whipper turned towards Tess, his motions sharp and quick.

"You are sure about what you told me? If we do this and you're wrong, we will have no safe place here."

Tess glared back with eyes almost as black as his and nodded. "If we gather a bit more energy, I can create the portal to the populated regions of this world. Between what I've absorbed from the deaths of those Goblins and Kobolds and the slaughter of the Insectoids, one more battle should be enough."

Whipper nodded, desire gleaming in his eyes as he stared across the water. "Good. These ridiculous backwater islands are no place for the likes of me!" With another grin, he turned towards the remains of the town.

Tess didn't move right away, staring after the other, her lips curving into a slight smile. Then she followed him.

From the top of one of the trees far behind them, a pair of reptilian eyes followed them before disappearing.

--

Melissa stood next to Bolyr, barely believing what she had just heard. The others were just as stunned as they stared at the sole Antracii that had returned.

She heard Bolyr swallow next to her before the other carefully asked the question she wanted answering just as much.

"You are sure Jake got away, alright?"

The green and blue Antracii nodded, ignoring Bert, who was bandaging one of his arms. "I saw him jump in the water and disappear. But something was weird. He moved and acted oddly."

Mellisa got a bad feeling when she saw Bolyr and Gria share a knowing look. But it would have to wait. Instead, she took a step closer to the Antracii warrior.

"How far are the Goblins, and how many are there?"

"A few hundred Goblins, a dozen Orcs, a Fiend and a..." He shivered while a fearful look crossed his face. "Diadr."

Gasps and shouted questions came from the gathered Antracii, and Bolyr cursed before shouting for silence.

Next to Mellisa, Helen and Bert shuffled, looking around uncomfortable. They still didn't know the dragonic language, and Mellisa quickly translated. When they heard, both Helen and Bert seemed.

"You should have started with that!" Bolyr roared, glaring at the warrior.

The Antracii warrior lowered its head, a look of fear and guilt on it.

"What are Diadr?" Mellisa asked in resignation.

"Mutated Orcs," Gria answered, silencing Bolyr with a sharp look. "Before the Dragons came to this world, other species called it home. We don't know a lot about them, but we do know they were incredibly magical—one of those species warred with Goblin tribes, who desired them for their good looks. They had offspring, horrid creatures with gruesome magic that let them drain the lifeforce from anything they touched. Over the years, the other races killed them, but once in a while, one appears."

Mellisa quickly translated what she heard and then shook her head in wonder. "That doesn't seem too bad? We can just shoot the thing with arrows or throw rocks or magic at it?"

Bolyr laughed flatly. "No. Magic doesn't work around them, and they inherited their ancestor's quick movement. Hitting one with an arrow is supposedly near impossible."

Silence reigned for a moment before Bolyr walked away, a severe expression on his face as he began shouting orders. He appointed scouts around the edge of the jungle, one in the top of the tree and some in the water. As he moved towards the side of the island, Mellisa stepped beside Gria.

"How do we kill that Diadr?"

"The only known way is to corner and overwhelm it. But that will cost dozens of lives."

Mellisa absently translated it and was about to ask another question when Helen's soft and scared voice came from behind her.

"Can't we trap it?"

Mellisa turned towards Helen, who had been standing with Bert, observing the happenings quietly. Blinking in surprise, she shrugged and translated the question.

Gria shook her head, a thoughtful look across her face. "They are careful, and from the stories, they stay far from the battlefield. I can't remember a single story where one was killed easily."

After Melissa translated, everyone fell silent; the only sounds the distanced shouting of Bolyr.

Helen was the first to break the silence. "But... he was human until shortly, right? He won't have much combat experience and only has his new instincts, which must be as confusing for him as they are to us."

Gria stared at Helen in confusion after Melissa translated. "What do you mean? Are you telling me he can't fight?"

"I don't know, but in our world, most people can't."

Gria just stared at her in stunned silence. "How do you survive?" she finally asked in disbelief.

Melissa shook her head. "That's not important right now. Helen is right. The Driadr probably can't fight, and even if he could, he won't have any experience in this jungle. Not like your warriors."

Bert stepped forward with a questioning look on his face. "Can't we just send in assassins?"

A nasty grin spread across Gria's face, and she nodded at Melissa. "I need to talk to Bolyr, get your people ready for a fight. Find me after."

Gria turned and trotted away, and Melissa shook her head. "Get them ready to fight, she says! And how am I supposed to do that?"