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Page 147
"It does exist." Casalos nodded in confirmation. "It's a world created by mind flayers. In fact, this dungeon mirrors Waterdeep on the surface, and I suspect the mind flayers have been gathering information about Waterdeep in some way."
"This is indeed an important discovery," Fiona Milon said after a moment's thought, "but how do you intend to use this information?"
Casalos's eyes gleamed: "I should have kept this enormous secret from those two ancient dragons, but unfortunately, their control over Waterdeep exceeded my expectations, and they still received the news... The ancient dragons' greed and arrogance are their greatest weaknesses—they will think this is a new territory they can monopolize, a city without my interference, full of wealth waiting to be plundered."
"But if they actually go to the Leyline Maze and find the copy of Waterdeep, wouldn't that in turn strengthen their power?"
"They can't find the real treasure because there's no physical treasure there at all." Casalos clicked his iron beak. "The mind flayers' 'mental world' is just an illusion, but for the Atheros, who are no longer proficient in or even rarely use psionic energy, it's real. More importantly, the Leyline Maze is the mind flayers' lair, a place fraught with danger. Even ancient dragons would face enormous risks if they rashly ventured in."
"You mean...?"
"A win-win situation," Casalos finished. "Either they'll become suspicious of each other, fighting amongst themselves for the so-called 'treasure'; or they'll battle the mind flayers, resulting in mutual destruction; or, best of all—they'll be severely wounded by the mind flayers, and we'll gain an opportunity to eliminate a potential threat to Waterdeep. In any case, it's a situation that benefits us."
Fiona Milon nodded thoughtfully: "So, what exactly do we need to do?"
Casalos pondered for a moment: "Vicaritura and Khiltevsky have both planted numerous spies around us—and with my leniency, they now believe they've hidden themselves very well. Now is their time to shine. We just need to 'accidentally' leak this information at the right moment, and those two old guys will think they've got our secret..."
The following day, Casalos summoned several of its most "trusted" non-half-dragon subordinates to the dragon's lair for a meeting. It was certain that at least one of these subordinates was an informant of the ancient dragons—but it was neither sure nor did it need to be sure who it was.
"I have confirmed the situation on the seventeenth level of the Leyline Lair," Casalos, who was leading the meeting in human form, said in a low voice, seemingly engaged in serious discussion but actually trying to give his hidden spies a clear indication of the situation. "There is indeed a complete replica of Waterdeep there, containing a vast amount of treasures and wealth from surface cities."
Fiona Milon, following the pre-arranged script, asked, "What are your plans for dealing with these treasures?"
"Let's not leave for now." Casalos feigned deep thought. "I can't leave Waterdeep right now, and the mind flayers in the Ley Line Maze are not to be underestimated. Once I've dealt with these two ancient dragons, I'll personally go and collect those treasures—a complete replica of Waterdeep could double my treasury!"
"But are you sure the treasure there is safe?" asked a Drow advisor—a spy planted by Vicaritulal—with a barely perceptible glint of greed in his eyes.
"Of course," Casalos replied confidently. "Mind flayers only care about psionic energy; they have no interest in gold or silver. Besides, almost no one knows that place exists." It paused, then added, "This matter needs to be kept absolutely secret. Don't mention it to anyone at that time, including Piergellen and the Watchers."
Less than half a day after the meeting ended, Casalos monitored the suspicious Drow advisor as he quietly left Waterdeep and headed towards Vikaritular's temporary lair. At the same time, his surveillance agents reported that one of Ksiltevis's confidants—a servant who frequently visited the dragon's lair—was hurrying towards the commercial district, Ksiltevis's residence.
"They've all taken the bait," Casalos said to Fiona Milon. "Now, all we need to do is wait and see, and prepare for the second step."
"What's the second step?" Fiona Milon asked curiously.
"Let's unite our own forces," Casalos replied. "Go and inform the chrome dragon Loris and the cobalt dragon Azukmizes; I want to discuss something important with them."
Soon after, two young anacondas arrived at Casaloz's dragon nest.
"How's the situation? Have the attitudes of the other young dragons changed?" Casalos went straight to the point.
Loris's dark green scales gleamed metallically in the dim firelight of the dragon's lair: "Things have changed a lot. Of the twelve chromium dragons that were once loyal to Vicariturar, five have begun to waver. They've seen Vicariturar's arrogant attitude and his stinginess in sharing important intelligence with his own subordinates, and they've begun to doubt whether he truly cares about the future of the Atheros."
Azukmizes nodded. "The situation is better with the Cobalt Dragons. The few that were wavering before are now inclined to support you. They say that rather than choosing two selfish Ancient Dragons, they'd rather follow a young Iron Dragon who can lead them in battle."
"Very good." Casalos nodded in satisfaction. "Now, I need you to do one thing—approach each of the young dragons individually and tell them that I will be hosting a 'Damara Companions Gathering' in the open area at the foot of Deepwater Mountain. The date is set for three days from now."
"The Damara Companions?" Loris asked, somewhat confused. "What exactly do they do?"
"It's simple, just get together and reminisce about the days we fought together in Damara," Casalos explained. "Prepare some food, tell battle stories, sing war songs—you all know what I mean. The key is, only invite the dragons who participated in the Battle of Damara."
Azukmizes immediately understood Casalos's intention: "This way, those two ancient dragons are excluded, since they weren't even present in the Battle of Damara. This will not only bring us young dragons closer together, but also highlight the absence of the ancient dragons."
"Smart." Casalos nodded slightly. "More importantly, although the ancient dragons are excluded, they will definitely send dragons to monitor the situation. They will see the cohesion among the younger dragons and feel threatened."
Three days later, on a wide grassland at the foot of Deepwater Mountain, more than twenty young ferromon gathered together. Among them were chromium dragons, nickel dragons, cobalt dragons, and tungsten dragons. The dragon groups, which had originally been divided into several factions because they followed different ancient dragons, now put aside their differences and sat together.
"Do you remember how Casaloz led us to break through the demon army's encirclement in Damara?" a young chrome dragon shouted. "Without his command, we would have been the demons' meal long ago."
"It wasn't just about command," Niellong Lanmuloyk continued. "In the most critical moment, it was Casaloz who led the charge, using his own body to shield us from the Balrog's attack. I still clearly remember that several of its scales were charred."
"And what about those ancient dragons who claim to be our leaders?" Cobalt Dragon Azukmizes sneered. "Where are they hiding? What were they doing while we were fighting desperately on the front lines?"
As soon as the words were spoken, the entire gathering fell silent. Every dragon was pondering the question, and the answer was obvious—the ancient dragons had never appeared on the battlefield of Damara.
"I'm not trying to stir up trouble," Azukmizes continued, his tone sincere. "I just feel that the leader of the Atheros should be someone willing to face danger with us, not a dragon who hides in a safe place and issues orders."
These words resonated with many. More dragons began to recount their experiences in Damara and how Casaloz had helped them through the ordeal. The atmosphere grew increasingly lively, and the young dragons began to sing war songs passed down from the Battle of Damara.
Casalos appeared at the gathering at just the right time. Instead of giving a passionate speech, it calmly joined the dragons, exchanging a few words with each one and asking about their well-being, just like an old friend who cares about his comrades.
"I'm so glad to see you all safe and sound." Casalos stood at the center of the dragons, his voice calm yet powerful. "The Battle of Damara is a shared memory, a glory forged with our blood and courage. Whatever happens in the future, this camaraderie will forever be etched in my heart."
The brief speech was met with enthusiastic applause. As Casalos reached the edge of the gathering, Fiona Milon crept closer: "Vikaritura and the men of Ksiltevis are here, watching from a distance."
"Very good." Casalos nodded. "Let them watch to their hearts' content. Tomorrow, the real show begins."
Sure enough, less than two days later, shocking news spread throughout Waterdeep—Vicaritura and the men of Khiltevsky had clashed fiercely at the entrance to the Leyline Maze. According to witnesses, both sides seemed to be searching for something important and were fighting each other to be the first to get there.
Even more shockingly, the two ancient dragons simultaneously ordered their followers to seal off different entrances to the Ley Line City, refusing to yield to each other. This plunged Waterdeep into a state of tension, with ordinary citizens beginning to worry that the conflict between the two dragons would spill over into the surface cities.
Casalos showed no surprise upon hearing the news. It had long anticipated this outcome—the ancient dragons' greed and arrogance made them intolerant of anyone else coveting their "treasure."
"Things are progressing even more smoothly than expected," Casalos told Fiona Milon. "The two ancient dragons have begun to openly confront each other, and have completely forgotten their common 'enemy'—me."
"And what's next?" Fiona Milon asked.
"It's time to intervene." A resolute glint flashed in Casalos's eyes. "I will summon the high-ranking officials of Waterdeep and representatives of the major powers to announce my decision."
That afternoon, Casalos summoned high-ranking officials and representatives of major powers in Waterdeep, including the young Atherons who were still hesitant.
"I understand everyone's concerns," Casalos said, sitting at the head of the conference table in human form, his voice calm and firm. "But rest assured, I will not allow two ancient dragons vying for power to destroy this city."
"What do you plan to do?" a nobleman asked worriedly. "They are ancient dragons; how can you possibly stop them by yourself?"
"Indeed, they are ancient dragons, and I am but a young iron dragon," Casalos admitted. "But I believe that true strength is not measured by age or size. Today, I will prove that to you all."
He stood up and looked around: "I have extended an invitation to the two ancient dragons to meet tomorrow at noon on the plains outside the city. I will present them with a suggestion in person. I ask that you all be present as witnesses."
That evening, the entire city of Waterdeep was speculating about Casalos's plans. Some said he would plead for reconciliation, others said he would propose a partition plan, but no one guessed his true intentions.
The following day at noon, a large crowd gathered on the plains outside the city. Two ancient dragons flew in from the east and west respectively, their massive bodies exuding a menacing aura. Vicaritura's chrome-green scales shimmered with a metallic sheen in the sunlight; it was nearly forty meters long, with a wingspan of an astonishing sixty meters. Ksiltevis, on the other hand, had dark blue scales, and its slightly slender frame made it appear less robust than Vicaritura, but it also radiated a suffocating pressure.
Casalos was already waiting in the center of the plain. It did not transform, but remained in its dragon form—a young iron dragon about twenty-five meters long, which appeared somewhat small in front of the two ancient dragons.
"Vikaritura, Ksiltevis." Casalos raised his head, looking directly at the two ancient dragons, his voice loud and firm, "Thank you both for gracing us with your presence."
"Enough nonsense, Casalos," Vicaritur scoffed. "Speak, what do you want from us?"
"Are you here to admit defeat and surrender?" Khirtevis sneered. "If so, I suggest you leave Deepwater Territory immediately to avoid unnecessary suffering."
Casalos remained unmoved, instead revealing a slight smile: "Quite the opposite. I've come to challenge you both."
This statement caused an uproar. A surprised murmur arose from the crowd, and even the two ancient dragons were stunned, clearly not expecting Casalos to be so audacious.
"What did you say?" Vikaritular asked incredulously, "You're challenging us?"
"Indeed." Casalos's tone grew increasingly resolute. "I, Casalos, in the name of Landis the Weigher, hereby make a wager: I challenge the two of you, one against two. If I win, you shall leave behind all your followers and, according to prophecy, honor me as the new Supreme Dragon. Those who do not wish to do so may leave Waterdeep and never return. If I lose, I shall relinquish the rule of Waterdeep to you."
58. Air combat?
Three colossal dragons circled above the plains outside Waterdeep, maintaining an altitude of approximately five hundred meters. Vicaritulal and Ksiltevis occupied the east and west flanks respectively, forming a standard two-dragon coordinated formation to encircle Casalos. The massive bodies of the two ancient dragons cast moving shadows in the air, and each flap of their wings, spanning over eighty meters, created a whistling sound.
Casalos maintained a steady hover, gliding using the most efficient thermals. It maintained altitude with minimal wing adjustments, appearing effortless. In contrast, while the two ancient dragons had also begun learning and imitating this flight method, their minds were almost entirely dominated by inertia, making it difficult for them to correct their instincts. They had to frequently flap their wings to maintain stability.
The probing began. Vicariturar leaned inward first, reducing its circling radius, attempting to approach Casalos. At the same time, it released the dragon's might that belonged to an ancient dragon, as if time itself had frozen, a pressure that made the air stagnate, pressing forward like an invisible mountain.
Khirtevis, working in perfect harmony, applied pressure from the other side. The two ancient dragon auras converged in the air, forming a gradually contracting pressure field, attempting to trap Casalos within it.
Casalos calmly increased his flight altitude, similarly unleashing his imposing presence. To the surprise of the two ancient dragons, this pressure emanating from the young dragon was not instantly crushed; instead, it tore through their encirclement like a sharp wedge.
Vicaritur's pupils contracted slightly. It sensed the peculiar quality of Casaloz's dragon aura—it wasn't merely intimidation, but carried something more fundamental. As an ancient dragon that had lived for three thousand years, it vaguely felt a sense of déjà vu, like... like the feeling it had when facing Chassa's true form during the Holy Land War?
"Impossible!" Vicaritur immediately dismissed the idea. Even the Supreme Dragon hadn't managed to touch that threshold uniquely sacred; this brat had merely gotten lucky and somehow acquired a sliver of power—it's said it killed two Saints in Waterdeep? It must have stolen it from them!
The three-headed dragon continued its aerial dance, constantly adjusting its relative positions. Each approach was a test, each pull away a gathering of power. The audience on the ground could only see three figures tracing complex paths in the sky, but could hardly comprehend the danger lurking within.
"What a boring performance," Kelben Black Staff commented expressionlessly from the stands. "Those two stupid dragons are still playing their probing tricks, completely unaware of what they're facing."
Elminster sat beside him, equally indifferent: "The arrogance of the ancient dragons will be their downfall. I witnessed the battle between Casalos and Grommash Hellscream; that red dragon was far stronger than those two, and what happened?"
"In the end, they were routed and fled in disarray," Kelburn chimed in, a hint of schadenfreude in his voice. "But I do hope they can hold out a little longer, ideally until both sides are severely injured."
"You're dreaming," Elminster sneered. "Given the strength Casalos has displayed, these two ancient dragons wouldn't even be worthy of injuring it."
The conversation between the two archmages was overheard by the nearby nobles, causing a flurry of whispers. But they quickly lost interest in the discussion, as the situation in the sky suddenly changed.
Vicariturar seemed to have lost patience. It accelerated suddenly, closing the distance to Casalos with a rapid dive. The instant it entered effective firing range, it opened its massive maw, spewing out a torrent of icy blue gas. It was the Chromium Dragon's unique extreme cold breath, its temperature freezing most of the clouds in the sky in an instant.
Almost simultaneously, Ksiltevis launched an attack from another angle. The dark green acid mist, like the sigh of death, corroded even the air in its path, causing it to hiss. The nickel dragon's strong acid breath had a terrible corrosive effect on metals, making it the nemesis of the iron dragon's metal scales.
The two dragon breaths formed a perfect crossfire, sealing off all of Casalos's escape routes. This was a meticulously designed attack by the ancient dragons, who were confident that this strike would severely injure or even kill their opponent.
However, Casaloz's reaction exceeded their expectations. Faced with an inevitable attack, it did not choose to withstand it or use magic defense, but instead took a deep breath and exhaled its dragon breath.
The young dragon's breath appeared slender and insignificant compared to the ancient dragon's sky-saturating breath. Intense arcs of electricity crackled within its fiery red exhalation, but the truly terrifying aspect wasn't the temperature or the current, but the destructive power it contained. When the three breaths met in mid-air, the magical power within the extreme cold and acid mist was instantly decomposed, transforming into harmless elemental particles that dissipated into the air, leaving only harmless frost and ordinary acid mist mixed together, falling as acid rain.
"What is this?" Khirtevis stared in shock, his eyes wide.
Vicaritular was equally astonished. Their attacks, powerful enough to burn cities and destroy states, were so easily neutralized by a young dragon?
What infuriated them even more was that Casalos immediately distanced itself after neutralizing the attack, giving them no chance to get close. Whenever the two ancient dragons tried to flank it, it always found the best angle to break through, slipping away from the encirclement like a slippery eel.
"Damn brat!" Vikaritular roared, beginning to cast spells. As an ancient dragon, its spellcasting ability had reached legendary level. Several ice spells formed around it, preparing for a saturation bombardment.
Ksiltevis was not to be outdone, its body shimmering with dark green magical light. Acid mist, corrosive rays, and poisonous nova—a series of vicious spells were poised to be unleashed.
The two ancient dragons believed they had figured out Casaloz's tactics—this cunning little brat only relied on his agility and mobility for guerrilla warfare, and dared not confront them head-on. In that case, they would bombard him with a deluge of spells and see where he could hide!
"The real battle has begun," Razor Fang said to the young dragons around him from another high platform. "Watch closely; this is how dragons should fight."
Fiona Milon stood to the side, nodding slightly. She knew Casalos better than any dragon and knew what was about to happen.
Despite the magical barrage from the two ancient dragons, Casalos still didn't choose to engage them head-on. It constantly shifted position with dazzling maneuverability, sometimes climbing vertically, sometimes spiraling down, sometimes rolling to evade. Every movement was precise to the millimeter, always managing to escape the killing range just as the spells were about to hit.
"You bastard!" Vicaritur roared in exasperation, "All you do is hide like a flea?"
Casalos remained silent, continuing with its own tactics. Occasionally, when a spell couldn't be dodged, it would use its Disintegrating Dragon Breath to dismantle it. This seemingly passive approach only emboldened the two ancient dragons…
The battle lasted a full half hour, the sky littered with the remnants of magical explosions. Casalos was unscathed, though his flight path clearly showed signs of stamina depletion. In contrast, the two ancient dragons remained at their peak strength.
"That damned little brat!" Ksiltevis's dragon roar carried a hint of smugness that even humans could easily detect. "Looks like it's nearing its limit."
"Two ancient dragons haven't even managed to defeat a single juvenile dragon in all this time," Vicaritulal's eyes flashed with a fierce light. "If this gets out, we'll be utterly humiliated!"
"unless……"
The two ancient dragons exchanged a glance and suddenly changed tactics. Instead of launching ranged attacks, they attacked Casalos from both sides, launching their first encirclement assault to resolve the battle and eliminate this troublesome opponent through fierce melee combat.
The physical strength of the ancient dragon is overwhelming; once Casaroz is captured, this farce should be over.
On the ground, the old dragons who had followed the Primordial Dragon even began to get excited.
"See that? This is a real dragon battle!" an elderly chrome dragon said proudly. "That little iron dragon brat only knows how to run away. Let's see where it can run to now!"
Various obsequious dragon roars rose and fell, shaking the plains and city walls, as if victory was already within reach.
However, the dragons who had lived in Waterdeep for a long time looked at them as if they were fools.
"These idiots," Rake shook his head. "They think Casalos is running away?"
Loris couldn't help but laugh: "I wonder what their expressions would be if they knew Casalos was just testing them."
Azukmizes narrowed his eyes: "The show's about to begin. I bet those two ancient dragons will be on their knees in less than five minutes."
Fiona Milon calmly replied, "Five minutes? You're overestimating them. I bet three minutes."
Amidst the dragons' heated discussion, the battle situation in the sky changed once again.
Faced with the close-range pounce of the two ancient dragons, Casalos stopped dodging for the first time.
It hovered in the air, calmly watching the two enormous creatures charging menacingly. Its unhurried demeanor was as if it were observing two ignorant and arrogant children.
"Finally stopped running?" Vicaritur grinned maliciously, his sharp claws already reaching for Casalos.
Just then, Casalos moved. It gently folded its wings back, stretched its neck and tail up and down, and suspended its body in the air, its dragon form changing instantly.
The silvery-white scales seemed to turn transparent, revealing the molten metal flowing beneath. Then, the entire dragon began to transform into a pure elemental form. This was not a druid's elemental transformation spell, but true elementalization—transforming its form from flesh and blood into an elemental being.
"Elementalization?!" both ancient dragons exclaimed in surprise.
They had lived for thousands of years and witnessed countless powerful beings, but they had never seen a dragon achieve this level of power. Elementalization meant completely breaking free from the limitations of the physical body and acquiring the characteristics of an elemental being.
But what shocked them even more was yet to come. Just as Casalos completed his elemental transformation, a massive vortex of fire formed in the sky. Emerging from the vortex was a colossal fire elemental over twenty meters tall, its body engulfed in white-hot flames. This was no ordinary fire elemental; it was a fire elemental elder, a powerful being from the fire elemental plane, whose strength rivaled that of certain ancient dragons.
"As agreed, I have arrived," the fire elemental elder said in a booming elemental language.
Casalos did not respond, but instead flew directly towards the Fire Elemental Elder. The two elemental beings met in mid-air and then merged together in an incredible way.
When the fusion was complete, a colossal dragon composed entirely of flames appeared in the sky. This fire dragon was even larger than the two ancient dragons, with a wingspan of hundreds of meters, and each breath caused the temperature within a radius of hundreds of meters to rise sharply.
"This...this is impossible!" For the first time, fear appeared in Vicariturar's voice.
Ksiltevis stopped mid-air, too afraid to move forward.
The fire dragon slowly turned its head, its eyes, composed entirely of flame, fixed on the two ancient dragons. It didn't speak, but simply flapped its wings slightly.