CHAPTER IV
The dragon raged fire from it's mouth and lunged at the Dragoons. Falorgeant and Clarielle took to the air, dodging the dragon's initial attack. Both elezen roared furiously as they hurled themselves onto the dragon's back to connect flesh with steel. The attacks failed as the Dragoons are swiped away in opposite directions from the wyrm's wings. Slamming his back against the wall of the mountain, Falorgeant fell face first as momentum took over. Clarielle, however, was lucky enough to catch herself on the ground after flying mid-air.
Falorgeant spat, stood up, and swung his weapon as he leaped into the sky once more. His cool demeanor helped his attack to become more focused and he brought his spear down like a comet. The bladed tip sunk deep into the dragon's back and the beast bellowed in pain and fury. It shook, stomping from side to side as it attempted to dislodge the Dragoon from it's back. Clarielle sprinted forward and using the beast's distraction to her advantage, she slid beneath the dragon and sunk her own weapon into it's soft under belly. The dragon buckled, spitting fire from it's mouth while it swayed from side to side. One spear into the back and the other into the belly.
Though skilled they were against dragons, the unpredictability of a beast entangled in pain and anger still managed to prolong their victory. Falorgeant ripped his weapon free just as the dragon succeeded in bucking him off; the creature surrounding itself in flames as Calarielle rolled out from beneath it. The wounds it suffered had weakened it immensely, leaving it little choice between fleeing and fighting. As the two Dragoons approached the wounded beast, they easily dodged the sloppy flames that poured from its mouth. Clarielle rushed it, calling its attention as she swung at the talons slamming down towards her. With the distraction in play, Falorgeant closed the distance between him and the dragon, making one last leap towards their victory. Aiming his spear onto the beast's head, he descended with such speed that once the weapon punctured into the dragon's skull, it sunk through and came out from underneath the dragon's lower jaw. The ground shook on the impact of the dragon’s demise and as the blood gushed from it’s lifeless body, Falorgeant yanked his weapon free.
The Dragoons are a living demonstration of those skilled in the slaying of wyrms. This was truly the might of Ishgard's arsenal and a spear point against the Dravanian Horde. The fight only lasted a matter of minutes and already the beast's body began to stiffen in the freezing temperature.
The Dragoons had turned their backs to what they deemed as a mere nuisance. Grabbing both of their cloaks from the ground, Falorgeant handed Clarielle hers before placing on his own to cover himself from the snow. The fabric also hid the dripping blood that had splattered over his armor during the fight.
Falorgeant returned his concentration back to the brother's kill, walking towards the corpse once more as he inspected the area in which it laid.
"There has to be more indicators. There are no bodies here at all."
Clarielle was now kneeling over, examining the head. "Not that I care, Falorgeant, but this one did not claim clean strikes. It must had been quite the battle."
Falorgeant couldn't help but slightly grin at the woman's statement. "Tell me, do you see anything else?"
"Only pieces of scattered armor. It must have been theirs as well."
"So are these tracks."
"Tracks? Where?"
Falorgeant pointed to footprints where the snow hardly covered, underneath a towering rock formation. What made them stand out wasn't the tracks sunk into the snow but the dried color of maroon.
"So they were injured. Noticed how one pair of prints have no other indication of a footprint but rather, more droppings of blood? Whoever this belonged to, I can say for certain, was dragging his feet."
For a period, both elezen continued to follow the tracks until it finally disappeared into the white snow. They stopped and stared west as to where the trail leads into an open canyon.
"Western Coerthas? Why would they..."
Clarielle paused and turned to Falorgeant with a slightly confused look on her face.
"If they were injured, they could've made their way back to Ishgard for aid. Why west?"
For a long moment, Falorgeant said nothing as he took the woman's words into his own cycling thoughts. His eyes widen and his tone was softer than usual.
"Because that's where they came from. Perhaps..."
The male Dragoon gazed quietly into the distant opening of the canyon where the hills and snow were less harsh and the skies were clearer.
"... they may have gone home."
