Pinned to the ground, I gasped for air, looking up at her smirking face. A wicked glint danced in her eyes. "Alright, you've got me," I conceded, "Could you please let me go now?" Her response was a slow shake of her head. "I don't believe I will," she retorted, leaning in close, her claws digging into my neck.

"Perceive me as your enemy," she said in a low, menacing voice. "That's what landed you in this position. Now, you're at my mercy. As an enemy, I won't hesitate to finish you off." She relished the fear in my eyes, her words chilling me to the bone. "I'll enjoy every moment of your suffering, growing stronger with every passing second. And then, when someone comes along...” Her voice trailed off as she glanced into the distance.

Following her gaze, I spotted a spear suspended mid-air, summoned by her elemental abilities. It was a typical spear, save for the gleaming, razor-sharp metal tip that caught the sun's rays. She turned back to me, a cruel smile playing on her lips. "Then, in the blink of an eye..." she began, flicking her wrist and sending the spear hurtling toward my head while keeping me pinned to the ground.

I tried to yell out, "Wait!" but her grip on my throat was too strong. I could feel warm blood trickling down my neck, choking me. The spear shot through the air, closing the gap in an instant. As it was about to pierce my skull, I made a desperate attempt to free myself and dodge the spear. In that moment, I transformed into a cloud of dark smoke, sometimes light, sometimes dark. I couldn't see anything, but I quickly reformed in a different spot that I had glimpsed before disappearing.

Frantically, I checked my body, relieved to find myself intact. I was still a dragon; with no signs of the wounds she had inflicted on me. Astonishingly, I had healed completely in less than a second. I taunted her, "Nice try. But now it's my turn." She didn't respond but looked eager for another round. I didn't want to hurt her. I could withstand her attacks and heal myself, but she couldn't. Any injury could leave a scar if not treated quickly with a crystal.

My dark element allowed me to dissolve into a thick black smoke and reappear elsewhere. It was akin to teleporting, and it worked even in broad daylight. I kept her off balance, shifting my stance and goading her into making a move. Annoyed, she snapped, "Come on, attack already! I want to kick your ass again."

Seizing the opportunity, I dashed behind her, trapping her in the same hold she had used against me earlier. I whispered in her ear, "You're quite a fighter for a queen, you know that?" She squirmed in vain, feeling my grip tighten around her. "One way or another, I had to secure my legacy," she spat back. I smirked, "So, what should I do with you now?"

She was silent for a moment, but I could sense her plotting. She tried to distract me, saying, "I don't know, finish me?" As she said that, she launched another spear using her wind element from behind me, aiming for my head. Her element was annoying, but I heard the whoosh of the spear as it sliced through the air. I was about to release her and dodge, but then I realized that if she missed me, she would hit herself.

The spear was on a collision course with her head. I quickly reached out and grabbed the spear, barely stopping it from piercing her skull. She gasped and shut her eyes, bracing for the worst. Then she felt the spear stop and opened her eyes, seeing how close she had come to a certain, brutal death. I had saved her, and she was speechless.

I said sarcastically, "Congratulations on nearly killing yourself, Freya. If you wanted to die so badly, you could’ve just asked." Of course, she hadn't meant to and had merely miscalculated her move. I tossed the spear aside and let her go. She rose from the ground, still stunned by the near-death experience. I broke the silence, stating, "An enemy wouldn’t have done that, you know?"

She glared at me defiantly, as if ready for a third round. "You don’t have to tell me that," she retorted, "But what if I do this?" She shot another wind-propelled spear at me, and again, my reflexes were quicker than hers. I caught it with ease and threw it back at her.

She attempted one of her moves once more, manipulating the air and dust to obscure my vision. But I was familiar with her trick. I remained immobile, tuning my ears to the sound of her approach. Sure enough, she came from behind. I snatched her mid-air and slammed her to the ground with a swift sweep of my wing.

Yet, she was not defeated. She wriggled free, striking my chest with her hind legs before darting back into the dusty haze. This time, she hurled it in my direction. I conjured a barrier of fire around me, keeping the dust at bay. She tried to breach the fiery wall and succeeded, but not in the way she expected. I spun around, anticipating her attack from my rear where she thought I would be vulnerable. But instead of finding me there, she faced me head-on.

To signal that I had had enough of this game, I summoned an ice spear and aimed it at her, threatening to unleash it. This was my warning to her: any further aggression would be met with a force she could not withstand. The next move was hers to make, and I watched her intently, ready for whatever she might throw my way.

In a stern voice, I ordered, “Halt. This is no longer a jest.” Ignoring my warning, she lunged, attempting to push the spear away from her chest. My speed and strength prevailed. I twisted the weapon, driving it deep into one of her wings. Her scream of agony echoed in the air, and I couldn't resist taunting her. “What now? Shall I end your misery? Have you developed a taste for pain?” She retorted, “I've seen worse than this,” before snapping the spear's shaft and freeing herself from its tip.

With a gust of wind, she summoned a crystal to her side. Almost immediately, she healed her wound and prepared for a new assault. The sky darkened; a storm brewed overhead. I wondered if this was her doing or if the kingdom was under siege. Regardless, I didn't waste time questioning her. I braced myself for her next move.

She took to the air, and I followed. She reached for the clouds, and I pursued, slowed by her wind elemental abilities. Then the storm unleashed its fury. A bolt of lightning struck me with blinding speed. I couldn't dodge it in midair, even though a hit while flying should have been impossible. The electric shock coursed through my body, but it didn't kill me. Instead, it sent me plummeting to the ground.

As I fell, I lost all my senses. My eyes felt as if they'd burned away; my ears were filled with silence. My skin was numb and raw, pain was all that remained. I transformed into a white cloud, or so it seemed when I regained partial vision after healing and resuming my shape. I lay on the ground, stunned and battered, but still alive and ready to fight again, ignoring the damage and the pain.

The storm raged above me, a swirling mass of dark clouds and fierce winds. I knew she was behind it, manipulating it with her power. Somewhere in the eye of the storm, she was waiting for me. I sensed her preparing another lightning bolt, ready to strike me down. I had no time to waste. Dodging was not an option. I had to face her head-on.

I soared into the storm, my wings flapping against the gale. Despite my efforts to tear apart the clouds with my wind element, she held them together with her will. I caught a glimpse of her face - a flash of anger and contempt. She shouted something, but the thunder drowned out her words. I yelled back, “Don’t even think about it!” and charged at her, conjuring ice shards around me. It was a predictable move, but I did it deliberately. I had a plan.

She unleashed another lightning bolt, aiming for my head. She missed by a hair, but the blast was deafening. It made me lose my concentration for a split second, causing some of my shards to hit me on the shoulders. They cut through my flesh, but not my wings. I could still fly. I formed a spear of ice in my hand and held it in front of me, ready to impale her. She hovered in the air, defiant and unafraid, in a clear spot in the storm, surrounded by her element. I was almost within reach of her when she summoned one more lightning bolt. It was weaker than the others, barely charged at all, but it hit me, and it hit her too. We were too close to each other. The shock was too much for me. I blacked out, falling to the ground like a stone.

When I regained consciousness, the smell of smoke filled my nostrils. It wasn’t from the storm, but from my charred scales. I groaned and opened my eyes. My vision was blurry, but I saw a shape that resembled Freya. I crawled toward her, leaving a trail of blood behind me. I summoned another spear of ice, ready for her if she tried anything. But she didn’t move. She was unconscious. I checked her breathing and her pulse. Nothing. She was dead.

Panic surged through me. She had killed herself with her own attack. I grabbed the health crystals we had in the arena and used them to heal her wounds. They mended her body, but they didn’t revive her spirit. I remembered what I had seen during the training sessions. The thunder dragon had brought his opponent back from the brink of death with his electricity element. I had to do the same thing, but there was one problem: I didn’t know how to use that element.

But I had to try anyway.

I generated static with my wind element, creating sparks around me. I tried to charge myself up, then focused the energy on my palms. Without knowing what I was doing, I touched the ground on two opposite sides of her while still charging up.

It worked.

She gasped for air, and her heart started beating again.

I breathed a sigh of relief and said, “Come on, wake up. Please.”

She opened her eyes after a few minutes and looked at me with confusion and fear. I held her close to me and lifted her head from the ground. The sight of her terrible condition filled me with dread. I waited for any sign of movement or a voice. Then, faintly, I heard her whisper my name. “Nox?”

Relief flooded through me as I held her close. “Thank God, you’re still alive! It’s me. Don’t worry, you’re fine. I’m here.” I cradled her in my arms, feeling her weak pulse.

She made no attempt to get up but lay limp on the ground. “Come on, stand up. The battle is over,” I urged her gently.

She groaned. “I’m exhausted.”

“I can imagine. So am I. Come on, one last little effort, let’s get back to the palace.” I tried to lift her, but she resisted.

She looked at me with confusion in her eyes. “What happened?”

I sighed. “You hit yourself with a lightning bolt from a storm you just made. Actually, you hit both of us.”

She blinked, then gave a feeble laugh. “Ahaha, woops.”

I smiled, despite myself. I wanted to lighten the mood and make her forget the pain. Maybe she learned a lesson from this. “Next time, if you have to do it, make sure to not hit both of us but just me, eheh.”

She rolled her eyes. “Suuuure, I won’t.” She sounded drunk, but it was probably just exhaustion.

“Please, get up. Let’s get to the palace and put you to rest,” I pleaded.

She looked at me with a pleading expression of her own. “Could you carry me there, please?”

I was about to protest, but then Solara appeared out of nowhere. She gasped when she saw Freya’s condition. “Is everyone okay? I saw the storm, Freya. Was that you?”

Freya nodded weakly. “Yeees…”

“She also hit and killed herself with lightning. Thanks to me, I was there to bring her back to life,” I added sarcastically.

Solara shook her head. “Oh Freya, this is the third time you do this. Please be careful!”

I stared at her in disbelief. “Third time? She controlled it like she had always been doing it!”

Freya didn’t answer. She closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Solara said softly, “Ok, maybe we should bring her back to the palace.” She helped me lift Freya, and we carried her back to the palace, back to the royal chamber. We laid her down gently on the bed, as if she were a precious treasure.

“Thank you again for the help, Solara,” I said gratefully.

“You’re welcome. Please take care of her! Have a nice evening!” She said and left.

It was still afternoon. It wasn’t evening yet. I could have left too, but I decided to stay in the palace. I asked the guards to keep everyone away from the chamber so no one would disturb her.

Around the palace, I resumed my duties and went to the throne room. We didn’t have many visitors that day, luckily. I had to make decisions now without her, but I knew what she would choose, so I acted like her. I was the new king, after all.