The flashing brightness allowed the dragon to wrest control back for a moment while Luke struggled to hold on to consciousness. Once he'd found the way back to his own senses, though, he took control back again. It was far easier this time. With the monster's mana channels not having returned to their normal paths, perhaps the monster just wasn't as strong, Luke mused.

  Something or someone shouted at him. He blinked and realized the dragon was in free fall, hurtling toward the ground.

  "Release me, human, or we are both doomed!"

  Pulling on its mana channels, Luke righted them somewhat, but the damn beast was right. It wasn't enough. The wind whipped and screamed around him, and the dragon joined in.

  Gathering his wits about him, it was time for a gamble.

  "I'll release you!" Luke shouted at the top of his voice, "If you take me to Naxaramus!"

  "You are mad!" the dragon roared, having heard him. "Father will not allow it!"

  "Would you rather die?"

  Even as they fell, the dragon had to ponder that question for a brief moment before responding. "I will carry you to father, so that he may burn you to cinders for your insolence!"

  Well, that was about as good a promise as Luke was liable to get. Pulling back his threads of mana, Luke relinquished control of the dragon. Keeping his attention on what the monster did next, he saw the spellweave form as it beat its wings, righting them just in time before they both crashed into the forest near the town. The spell wasn't the same one used by the mages, but the differences were minor. Luke wished he had a notebook to draw the weave in, but knew he could neither write as he was, holding on to the dragon for dear life, nor could he hope to copy the intricate pattern of threads that made up the weave. Still, he knew he would remember it.

  True to its word, the dragon set course for Naxaramus, the monster it had referred to as its father. The Dread Dragon had released several more spells in the meantime, and even the keep itself was set aflame. Monsters milled outside and on the wall, but the undead scourge had not yet made its way through the human defenders.

  Luke saw no sign of Integrated. In the far distance, the portal shone like a beacon.

  Luke: "On my way to Nax now. How are you doing in the keep?"

  Hannah: "It wasn't hard to talk the mages into diverting some of their spell power into a barrier."

  Luke: "They're going to need to put all their power into a barrier when I say 'when'."

  Luke: "And they'll have to pull their troops back too, so they're inside the barrier."

  Hannah: "I'll try to tell them, but Luke, what are you planning to do? I couldn't even break its skin."

  They were drawing close to Naxaramus now, and the dragon Luke rode climbed even higher to put them both above their destination.

  Luke: "I'm completing a delivery from the US government."

  Hannah: "The nuke??? What? That won't work! Normal weapons, remember?"

  Luke: "It'll work."

  Hannah: "Then what? You're not walking away from an exploding nuke, Luke!"

  Luke: "Haven't thought that far ahead. Don't worry, I don't intend to die just yet."

  Hannah: "Think this through. It's better if we retreat."

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  Luke: "No, it's not. Naxaramus, other dragons, Archfiends, Skeletal Archons, and everything else. Chicago will be dust in a day if they decide to pass through to Earth."

  Luke: "Here I go. Make sure they're ready!"

  Hannah: "Luke!"

  Luke: "Oh, and don't forget to catch me after."

  There it was. His idea out in the open. Perhaps it was madness, this plan, but he did think it would work. Mundane weapons didn't damage monsters, true, but there was nothing mundane about a goddamn nuclear warhead. Also, with it gone from his inventory, perhaps the government would get off his back, too.

  "Father is displeased."

  Luke moved to the dragon's side, one limb at a time, like an ice climber whose picks were made out of mana. Peering down, he saw fire hurtling their way. The dragon he rode banked to the side to avoid the worst of it, but it still scorched its wing. It screeched in pain and tumbled downward. A moment later, it smashed into Naxaramus before rolling, almost crushing Luke, before tipping over the side.

  Reaching out with Threads of Mana, Luke pushed the thread as far as it would go, thankful he'd spent so much time working on their reach. It wasn't more than two feet, but it was enough. Weavestep brought him from the smaller dragon to its father. Once again, he stood with both feet on the back of The Dread Dragon Naxaramus, right near the right wing where he'd made that first cut.

  This time, the dragon did not ignore him. As many small balls of fire launched in his direction from thin air, burning holes in his cloak and forcing Luke to divert attention to healing himself again and again, messages came pouring in.

  Mateo: "Luke, my friend! The portal you spoke of is on the news! Are you still in there? The military is outside. A few Integrated lost their lives inside, and two more died back outside when a monster passed through. Something called an Archon!"

  Penny: "Shit, Luke, I mean. A friend texted me about the dungeon thingie. Maybe I should've come? Looks like a shitshow, huh? HUH? Hellooooo? I've had a few, but I'll come save you, you know? Hello, hello, taste my lightning storm! That kind of thing, no? Luke?"

  Ken: "Luke. Are you there?"

  Ray: "I'll kill you if you die."

  Curtis: "You're not dying, are you?"

  Liza: "Please be careful. The news said you are inside the portal."

  Lee: "I hope you fucking die in there."

  Johanson: "The DIA needs a report on what to expect from that dungeon, if you don't mind."

  Nymh: "Report!"

  Milla: "You're on the news again. The DIA teams are preparing to enter that dungeon."

  Martin: "The guild sent a party, and they lost a few people. One of them said they saw you in there. They didn't, right? That would be a breach of contract."

  He answered the ones asking if they should join him, telling them to stay the hell away, then waved the messages away. This was not the time for conversation.

  Having survived the latest onslaught of fire, Luke got to work. Threads of Mana with Needle of Life was a tool for precise, small incisions. Cutting a big enough hole for what he intended was strenuous work, and before he was done, the robe he'd been overjoyed to find hung in tatters on his shoulders, having been burned beyond recognition. That applied to his skin as well. Some fire, he'd been able to repel or destroy with Threads of Mana, but not all of it, and he bore the marks to show it. Large swaths of skin stung with terrible burns that he hadn't had time to heal. Even his hair was singed and his shoes half-melted. Still, he cut away at the scaled hide.

  In a brief moment of clarity, he sensed healing mana lingering in his mana channels, rather than dissipating. The moment he spotted it, however, it vanished like a frightened animal.

  Naxaramus performed the same maneuvers as the smaller dragon, banking this way and that, rolling in the air, and reaching out, trying to grab him. It didn't reach. The Dread Dragon couldn't get him off, and its most powerful spells didn't seem to work, since Luke kept himself out of its line of sight. He was doing it, he was really doing it. Just a little more, and the hole would be big enough.

  Of course, he had to go and jinx himself.

  A beam of brilliant fire erupted from Luke's side, burrowing through from behind in an instant. Before Luke's mind comprehended what he was seeing, the horrific attack moved right, searing through him and threatening to cut him in two.

  The Healer's Moment froze time.

  Threads of Mana destroyed the spell.

  Weaver's Renewal restored Luke's midsection.

  Weaver's Perception told him where Leslie the Solarian stood. Just a few steps behind him.

  Luke pushed the horror of almost having died to the side as cold rage filled him. Preparing for when time resumed, he focused. The Solarian might have a higher level and even more experience in fighting other Integrated, but Luke had every tool he needed to put the world right.

  Reaching into Leslie with Threads of Mana would not work with that barrier active, and he doubted he'd even be able to unravel that beam without The Healer's Moment to aid him. Still, Luke knew how this would end.

  Time resumed.

  Luke propelled himself backwards, pushing off with Threads of Mana for extra speed. Spinning in the air, just like Hiroki taught him, he brought out the Tempered Staff. As the rotation made him face his opponent, he was gratified to, at last, see an expression on the Solarian's face. Shock and surprise.