From atop Coral, Evan enjoyed the blast of wind from the water spout. The narrow cylinder spiraled up from the churning ocean and reached the brewing clouds above. It was easily the width of a large building and as high as a large skyscraper.
Evan drew on his reserves and cheered as he created another waterspout. It shot up from the ocean like a monster coming alive and wiggled back and forth before connecting with the thick clouds overhead.
The structures were beautiful, like neat strands of silk that stretched from the waters to the heavens. However, Evan knew that up close they’d be anything but pretty.
His little creations were chaos incarnate. They were destruction ready to pounce on an enemy. Now he merely had to wait for said villain to materialize. Then it would be go time.
Chapter Fifty-Five
Lunis, Sophia, and Simi all waited on the village’s far perimeter until Wilder informed his dragon that the coast was clear. As Sophia had suspected, all the dragonriders left due to the sudden commotion of the waterspouts.
She had to admit that they were pretty impressive as they rose through the air and could be seen from a fair distance away. One of the most important parts—other than they attracted the Rogue Riders' attention—was that the diversion didn’t harm the island, which belonged to the meek villagers who had been through enough.
At first, Sophia had considered having Evan create a tsunami or something similar. That would attract attention from the center of the island and be a danger the demon dragonriders couldn’t ignore, but when the tsunami fell, it would wipe out the island and potentially the neighboring ones.
Sophia hoped that when the time came, the waterspouts simply dissipated—well, after taking out a demon dragonrider or three or four.
“Wilder says that all the guards are gone. They’ve flown off toward the edge of the island to investigate the waterspouts,” Simi relayed from beside Sophia and Lunis, where they waited in the trees.
“Okay, then let’s not waste any time.” Sophia was anxious to set eyes on Wilder and ensure that he was all right.
Simi led the way as they snaked through the overgrown forest. Although flying would be the fastest, most direct route to Wilder in the village center, it would also make them known to the Rogue Riders hopefully flying in the opposite direction. Sophia could have cloaked them, but she was aware that reserving her magic was important, not knowing what obstacles they faced up ahead.
Thankfully the dragons could use a compartment spell to move through the forest and around the trees, which cleared the space more quickly.
Sophia remembered the lay of the land from when they’d spied on that kid Tanner, who’d bullied the natives. They weren’t far from the center of the village, but the place was different than she remembered. Many of the huts and structures had been disassembled, and much of the enclave appeared to lay in ruins.
Sophia suspected that many of the natives hadn’t waited and had already evacuated from the island. In the haste to get away from the evil dragonriders, they’d probably packed their stuff roughly and left behind anything they didn’t require.
Still, she expected to see a few faces as they ran through the forest, but it appeared abandoned. It must have been close to the three-day mark that Tanner had given them to clear out. Sophia had lost track of time with everything going on.
Smoke wafted through the air as they neared the center of the village. At first, Sophia feared that the Rogue Riders had set fire to the place for whatever demented reasons they had. However, when they came to the clearing where Wilder was held, Sophia realized it was worse than that.
Tall walls of fire surrounded the pit where Wilder was imprisoned and posed a huge obstacle to getting him out quickly. Things just got more complicated.
Chapter Fifty-Six
The poop herders showed up right on time, having gotten the e-vite that Evan sent them via the skies. He cackled when the three dragonriders came into view, flying up over the jungle on the island—spotting him right away.
Evan leaned low on Coral, feeling the adrenaline of the moment. Yes, they outnumbered him. Yes, the Rogue Riders were unpredictable. But also, he knew for a fact that these infant dragonriders had never met Evan MacIntosh before. They’d never met anyone like him, and that was going to be their downfall because no one fought like him, with such gusto.
“Hey, look, the diaper wearers are here!” Evan cheered and created another waterspout with ease. There was one for each of them. “Wouldn’t want anyone to be left out.”
The demon dragonriders raced forward at the sight of him but didn’t move with the ease that one witnessed when watching a Dragon Elite fly. Evan could understand since they wouldn’t have had anyone to learn from. These guys had all taken to flying on their dragons alone, not having the expertise of Mahkah, who learned from the elders before him—handing down the secrets of the dragonriders.
“This is going to be easier than I thought,” Evan chortled as he leaned to the side and wove around his constructions, hollering with glee as he did.
It was evident from the expressions on the Rogue Riders’ faces that they hadn’t expected a dragonrider to be able to create waterspouts. He couldn’t blame them. It was quite the feat and had required a ton of magic. But now that he’d raised the towering pillars, all he had to do was use them to take out his enemies, which wouldn’t be that hard based on how they moved.
“Dude, you do know how to ride that dragon, don’t you?” Evan asked as he streaked past the closest rider on a gray dragon.
The guy grimaced with his teeth clenched. “Let’s get him!”
“Going to have to catch me first,” Evan teased as he dipped low and threw his head back like he was going to do a stunt. In actuality, he was showing off, and it appeared to only anger the three Rogue Riders more.
They raced after him, leaning unsteadily on their dragons.
“Man, you all make riding a dragon look difficult,” Evan insulted. “If you had any experience at all, then you’d know it’s supposed to be fun. Not look like a chore!”
The largest of the three riders on a green dragon lifted his hand as he narrowed his eyes. Although Evan wasn’t that worried about the guy on the gray or the other, there was something about the green rider that gave him pause.
Then the bright flash of lightning streaked through the air and nearly blinded Evan from the proximity. He only had a moment to react, knowing exactly what was coming next.
Evan dove toward the ocean’s surface and tried to get as far from the sky as possible as the deafening clap of thunder echoed overhead. It echoed in his head, vibrating his very skull.
He shook off the assault and got his bearings. So the green dragon had the element of lightning. That was sort of impressive, but the guy was still learning how to hone his skill because he could have used the electricity to strike Evan and Coral down. Instead, he’d used it to overwhelm their senses.
However, he wasn’t going to underestimate the Rogue Rider because the desperate look in the man’s eyes told Evan that this guy wouldn’t stop until he had brought him down.
Therefore, Evan flicked his finger at the first waterspout, which was closest to the gray dragon. “Time to make things fun! It’s bath time, baby!”