The Beginning of the End

Drifting, floating in an endless void of nothing. The being known as Argonath Belzenlock had never had a good concept of the passage of time. As an immortal being, days and years all seemed to mix together, passing by too quickly for him to care. Yet here? In this space between dimensions? Time dragged on leaving him alone with naught but his thoughts. He contemplated his defeat as he drifted through these blind eternities. The final battle against Lorasil and his champions played out in his mind, every action he took and their responses (or vice versa). How he could have done things differently. The irony in that he, the God of War, was defeated in battle by mere mortal champions of the God of Peace and then banished from his own universe. A universe that he had very nearly finished conquering.

True, he had forced the God of Peace to fight. Had been such a thorn in Lorasil’s side that the blundering braggart had been forced to rally others behind his banner to do battle against Argonath. It was perhaps the most beautiful thing the Blackblade had ever witnessed, rivaled only by the moment before his banishment. His legendary blade pierced through the broken God’s chest, his other clawed hand wrapped around their throat. The fear in the pitiful God’s eyes could have been the best moment of the Arbiter of the Damned’s life. If it were not for the fact that they quickly changed to hope, as the blasted golden magic enveloped the Steelheart. In all his musings and rage he could not fathom how he lost in what should have been his moment of triumph.

It was this rage, turned cool and calculated that brought him to the current moment. Unseen by the great destroyer a fluctuation, a mere ripple not unlike a stone hitting calm waters rushed out through this world between worlds. Spreading out from one end of the bleed to the other where it eventually came in contact with the Forgotten One. This strange energy enveloped him causing Argonath to no longer be in this endless void. The next moment a crackling, almost molten colored portal would open up, scorching the asphalt before closing behind the once noble God. A freak accident, a multiversal mix up, someone or something shaking the glass a bit too hard, or perhaps Lord Belzenlock’s own rage and power. Whatever the case may be he was no longer trapped in the dark eternity that was the nothingness between dimensions.

Standing within the streets of the Las Vegas strip was a tall bald middle aged man with ashen skin and yellow streaked black eyes. Although not the strangest sight to be seen in the city of vices, even the surrounding mortals took notice of the nearly seven foot tall man wearing full plate armor adorned with (dragon)bone spikes so dark it seemed to suck in the light around him. Not to mention the giant two handed sword, not unlike the Claymores of this world, that hung nestled in its sheath across his back.

The denizens of Vegas took in this new arrival, some stopping to take pictures as they assumed he was some new attraction while others ran in fright assuming a less than welcoming meta had come to ruin their vacation. While they made their choices Argonath contemplated his surroundings. It was obviously nighttime based off of the strange almost starless sky above him, but this place was full of different colored lights. The buildings were massive, and the mortals wore such strange clothes. None of them were armed with any weapons that he could see either. Was this the doings of Lorasil? Had he succeeded in bringing back peace and ‘prosperity’ to the world of Geinus? Or was Argonath on another plane of existence? “You. Mortal, tell me where I currently am.” Said mortal was, simply put, a surfer bro. Long blond hair, blue eyes, a neon green button down collared shirt that had the top three or four buttons undone, khaki shorts, and flip flops. “Uhh you’re like in Vegas maaaan. But with that sick looking armor of yours, you probably wanna head on down to medieval times. Also, dude, my name is Ken not mortal like be respectful”

This retort caused the God of Destruction to raise an eyebrow, he must truly be in a different universe or his legend had long since been forgotten if this mere mortal had the gall to talk back to him in such a manner. “I am no man. I am Lord Argonath Belzenlock, and I will conquer this Las Vegas just as I have conquered my own world. Your death will herald my arrival. Weep, and savor your life as it has led you to this moment. Ken.” He replied to the surfer bro before calling upon his magic and speaking a single word, lost to all the scholars of Gienus and with its utterance Ken dropped dead. The effect was immediate. The onlookers who thought it was a gag or advertising for some new casino or show started running and screaming in terror as the God removed his sword from its sheath. “All will kneel before Argonath.” He stated loudly but calmly. This new world was ripe for the taking, and conquer it he would.

Argonath's sudden, unannounced arrival in the middle of the social media age meant for a brief few seconds, onlookers were stopping in their tracks, taking photos and videos. Cameras flashed to illuminate the black armor that seemed far too unnaturally dark. Alot of people were comparing him to the Lich King, or perhaps to Sauron. Such was this world's ways. He was treated as a sight, especially as local surfer/vlogger personality Ken was plastering his face all over the internet with his go pro.

The mood changed from curiosity to terror as the dark lord set the tone. Ken had suddenly... keeled over and very obviously died on the spot, his go-pro on a stick lying on the ground, still streaming the horrendous attack. The crowd that formed around Argonath immediately dispersed, though a few brave ones documented him from afar. Such things sent shockwaves through the internet and in particular, was felt by heroes who leveraged the technology to widen their reach.
= = = =

At a Casino some distance away...

June, the Dragon Girl, was taking her mother out for a vacation in Vegas in America, a well earned respite from the winter cold in Seoul. They avoided the casinos and settled on a strip mall carrying lots of goods and after a round of shopping, were sitting down to have shawarma.

The mood had changed when people were even more fixed to their phones than usual. People actually stopped to watch what was happening, before the recognizable panic were on their faces. People were now in evacuation mode, to put as much distance as possible between them and the dangers of a superpowered battle.

Her mother, Ja-yeon, looked around worriedly, and recognized what was happening. She looked at her daughter who was taking one big sip of her iced tea. "Ja-eun! we're on vacation!"

June stood up from her table, handing her now folded up Shawarma to her mother. "It's okay Mom. Looks like I gotta go to work. Take a cab and go to the hotel lobby. If the fight gets close, keep going."

June gives her mother a hug. "Stay safe." they both say. Junes clothes transform into her battle dress, carrying her great white shark colors and the korean flag on her right arm. She lifts off and flies towards the trouble, passing news of the attack on to local authorities.

= = = =

In about 10 minutes the local police would be arriving on the scene, attempting to stall Argonath to let civilians flee. As per police procedure in these matters, he's given the usual ultimate to surrender or be fired upon.  "DROP YOUR WEAPON!" "HANDS IN THE AIR" "WE WILL SHOOT!"

And then shortly thereafter, a sight would be beheld in the sky - the arrival of a Hero, Dragon Girl, surveying what carnage has been inflicted thus far, and landing to meet the threat face to face. June's impression of the black clad warrior left little to the imagination. "... Alright, dark lord Sauron. If you're looking for the one ring, it's not here, so you better leave right now."

The mortals of this new world were just as feeble as the one in his world but they were far less intelligent here. He expected the running and screaming not for some of the fools to actually stick around and watch. Of course that could have been that they were too stunned by his glory and power that their feeble minds simply shut down in awe. Realistically however he noted that the ones that stated were pointing different metal devices towards his direction, possible weapons were his thought. What they did though he was unsure of and would not know until they were used or he was able to get his hands upon them. Something easily done, rasing his left hand as he held his sword in one hand, the first row of onlookers would be frozen as Belzenlock cast his cone of cold spell. A snap freeze of wintery ice shot out from his palm in a sixty foot cone.Those that survived or were not in the area of effect, now new it best to stick around and watch the action."Run mortals. Run to your metal buildings and hide behind your champions. Soon you will all Kneel before Argonath.”

Speaking of ‘champions’ as he was about to make his way into one of the very brightly colored metal buildings, sounds he had never heard before would distract and surround him. Sirens from police vehicles made their way onto the strip, forming a perimeter around the Dark God. The strange new town guards emerged from their horseless chariots and shouted for him to get down on his knees, drop his weapon, put his hands in the air, or they would fire upon him. He saw no bows, no crossbows, no ballista or cannons so that had to mean the short metal pipes in their hands were weapons of some sort. Interesting. He had to know what they did and if they would be useful in his conquest of this world and his old one. “Me kneel to you? No mortal guards. It is you who will surrender to me.”

A glowing orange and red orb the size of a baseball would form in his hand before flying out towards the cop cars. The police that were smart enough to expect something dived out of the way but most were not so lucky. Upon landing in the intended location the ball of fire would explode taking with it everything in a ten foot radius while also setting the vehicles off in a spectacular chain of explosions. Leaving only Argonath,and a few of the cops still standing, surrounded by a ring of burning metal and corpses. “Can you not see how pointless it is to resist? I am power. I am a God.” He seemingly had more to say but humanity was nothing if not stubborn and a very motivated cop fired a shotgun blast into Argonath’s unprotected head. Only for the pellets from the two shells to do no damage to the fallen God and for his attention to divert to the attacker.

The nearly seven foot tall armored goliath slowly stalked towards his attacker, bullet after bullet, shotgun shell after shotgun shell dinging helplessly off his armor or pelting into his unprotected head for no effect. Upon reaching striking distance in a last ditch effort the ‘super cop’ threw a punch at the dark lord, only for the first to be caught, broken with a crunch, and then dropped as he grabbed the cop by the throat and lifted him up into the air. “You fought valiantly mortal guard. But now you die knowing your death served me.” The snap of their neck was echoed by the arrival of something, or someone else. Landing not too far in front of the Steelheart was a young mortal female. She called him some other name and told him there was no ring here? Was this ring important to this world? Powerful in some way? He cared not.

“I am not this Sauron. I am Lord Argonath Belzenlock. God, and conqueror. You would be wise to surrender and join me young champion. Or die like the rest of your people here.” He enunceated this ‘threat’ by flinging the cops corpse to the side, and then widening his arms out to the side to showcase the destruction that had already commenced before her timely arrival. If her flying in and telling him to leave was any que it showed that this world too had its champions. Which would make conquering it all the better. He could destroy the people’s hope by either turning, breaking, or killing their champions. The idols they cowered behind would soon know his destruction or they would kneel. Perhaps even both; and it started with this young upstart.

"Astropath Balzack? Is that some kind of stupid MMO name?" June decided to be snippy, if only to keep her rage in check. Argonath had emerged unannounced, completely out of nowhere, and starting a killing spree. She approached the would-be dark lord with no fear, a menacing walk.

"Let's get something straight Balzack. This is earth. This world is not yours to conquer. And there's more like me -alot more - who won't give you an inch of ground." She activated her barrier generators, a brief shimmer of blue energy hinting a layer of protection. Her eyes also very briefly glanced over to one of the police cars out of the way, its owners long since fled. The machine's engine revs up on her command.

"You turn your Tin Canned behind back through whatever hell you crawled out from, because I'm coming closer to beat your ass to a pulp... and throw you back!" and that was a dragon girl promise, as June puts herself into charge range, the ground around her erupts as she launches at Argonath, her hand leading to strike, to be followed up by a rising heel kick. The police car also accelerates towards him as he's distracted, to serve as a secondary attack.

This mortal champion. No, this petulant child dared to mock him? To mispronounce his name and tell him what he could not do? If he wasn’t so enraged by her comments he would be impressed by the guts it took to stand up to him. Even if he didn’t understand some of the insults it was quite obvious she was trying to insult him, to demean him. To whittle down his outer shell and force him to act irrationally, make mistakes and throw him off. A lesser foe would have easily succumbed to such tactics. Argonath was no such lesser foe. He was the God of War, he knew every tactic that had ever been conceived upon his own world and soon he would know all the ones that existed in this world. Adding them to his arsenal. It was how he was able to notice the slight shifts in her posture; the minute activation of some blue field around her body (possibly mage armor?) the movement of her eyes tracking something behind him.

He shifted his body sideways as she made to launch herself towards him, drawing his two handed sword into a defensive position. Yet it was not her he was worried about, no it was the attack from behind. In his change of position he was able to witness the horseless carriage that was flying out towards him. Bringing his sword up in an arc he easily cleaved through the vehicle thus severing it into two different pieces. Pieces that due to trajectory and inertia went sailing past Argonath and his current opponent. However, he was not fast enough to react to the strike to his face. A blow that surprisingly the fallen god felt as it cracked into his unprotected head. An attack that would certainly leave a nasty bruise. His arms that were still extended, curved upwards having just sliced the car, however were in perfect position to block the kick as her heel struck against his armor.

No damage was dealt to the Steelheart from the kick but the force of it was enough to send him skidding backwards a couple of inches. “Impressive mortal. You are stronger than you appear. But you fight dishonorably. A pity you have to die.” He informed, eyes flashing red momentarily as he casts his hold person spell targeting the ‘hero’. Whether or not the spell took hold his sword, the legendary Blackblade, would come streaking down towards her for two quick strikes. The first moving in such a way to cleave her in two, quite like the car, while the second was more of a bladed backhand intending to strike with the flat side of the blade against her head. The first a very lethal attack, wanting to see what she could or could not endure. The second was more of an attack meant to cause pain and brain damage, to slow them down and send the mortal flying.

Dragon Girl resumed her fighting stance after her attack, unprepared for the attack of magic, like an unseen, invisible force binding her movements. She was unable to defend herself from attacks from the magical sword.

However, her defenses were many and layered, hard won through experience and battle. Relying solely on her Dragon Skin was an exploitable weakness, especially with those with magical attack- so her energy shield bore the brunt, the power of technology messily interacting with the mystical energies of his sword. The shield burns through a quarter of its power reserve to repel this attack, potentially sending the weapon out of Argonath's grip if it could catch him unaware, or at least unbalance him.

The magic may not have obeyed normal physical laws, but neither did Dragon Girl truly. the ground was ripped up where she was brute forcing against the confines of the spell, until she snapped her arm free and deployed a mundane flashbang countermeasure. Her armor, programmed when that grenade deployed, instantly covered her head to protect her.

If this worked, DG's next move would be to keep Argonath from his weapon, and take it to asphalt. A superhero suplex would work, jump high up to disorient him, then to deliver a vicious ground and pound to his face. This opponent was no doubt of high caliber, and now she focused on going all out, delivering blows that would send earth breaking shockwaves into the street and nearby buildings, attacks that would turn lesser foes into pink mist.

Whatever magic her shield contained it was strong enough to survive both the first and even repelled the second attack. Sending the force of it back at Argonath himself and done in such a way that his hand unclenched. The legendary Blackblade, although perfectly fine, was sent rocketing out of the hand of its owner and twisting end over end before striking down into the ground, cutting through the asphalt like butter before coming to a stop only a little before the hilt. If only to add insult to injury before the God of War was even able to react the female mortal dropped yet another trick. She broke free of the spell much quicker than he anticipated and dropped a small spherical device onto the ground. It exploded in a blinding fashion temporarily disorienting the God of Fire.

In most cases a bright flash of light wouldn’t have been enough to stop this immortal being; but this was no normal flash of light and it was also quickly followed up by an interesting tactic. A suplex from a being stronger than his current form. When he landed the earth shook from the force and weight, while the asphalt beneath him cracked. In most cases armor protected one from taking damage but full plate armor was not meant to bend in such a way. The blacksteel plates dug into his skin at odd places and his head bent at a strange angle before his body bounced once, finally stopping to lay flat on the ground face down. His ‘mortal’ form bruised and broken he let out a sadistic chuckle as he attempted to move to push himself up before he felt a force slam down into the top of his head. Slamming it back down into the ground with yet another resounding crack.

Golden ichor leaking out of his mouth he spit it out, a deep bellowing and broken laugh. Clenching his fist together an immobile, invisible, cube-­shaped prison composed of magical force would spring into existence centered on Dragon Girl while pushing Argonath out of its vicinity. This of course was his most powerful conjuration/enchantment spell, entitled Forcecage. It was a solid box 20 feet on every side, creating a solid barrier that prevented any matter from passing through it and blocking any spells cast into or out from the area. Just like the mortal champions armor this cage would deal back any damage she dealt to the cage, and should hold her long enough for Argonath to recover. As he did not expect it to hold her forever. No; he would be most disappointed in the champions of this new world if it did.

Slowly making his way back up to his feet he looked on into the forcecage and summoned his Blade back to his hands. Using it as a crutch of sorts as his body started to glow a bright molten orange and black. The ground around them that was already cracked and broken started to melt from the intense heat before it started to crawl up Argonath’s body, encasing him in a sort of molten asphalt cocoon. Hardening quickly before all the excess was expelled outward in all directions. Standing now where the Blackblade previously stood was his new form. A ten foot tall winged demonic creature. His glowing red eyes bore into the mortal champion, waiting patiently with his arms crossed over his chest for her to break free of the magical prison. “Come mortal. Show me your true might. Break free of your bonds and give in to your rage. Prove to Argonath that this world is worth your defending.” As his gravelly voice spoke out the challenge his aura of rebellion would leak out attempting to weasel its way into Dragon Girl’s mind.

As could be expected of June, whose solution was punching everything, she punched the force cage with a moderate force and was knocked down for her trouble. Seeing as that didn't work, she had to think of something else. She had no counterplay to magical spells. Except maybe a try to get under Argonath's skin.

"...Magic spells again? what's the matter? Know you can't take me in hand to hand? Why don't we find out? Or are you that scared of me, huh?" it was stupid, sure, but anything was worth trying, to keep the guy here and wait for her allies to respond.

= = = =

NEVADA EMERGENCY RESPONSE HQ

Not so far away, in a secure compound, Colonel Atreus Riley, the go-to man for action against superpowered occurrences, took his seat in the command room. Staff were monitoring the situation best they could, studying local security footage but more importantly- a live feed from Dragon Girl herself, which had been abruptly cut when she was trapped in the cage. Riley went to work in no time. "Alright talk to me, who do we got on the ground?"

"...We've got Dragon Girl on scene sir. She has a body cam feed we've accessed since she made contact with the bogey. So far we've got key words: magical, fire based, occult, magic spells, extreme strength and endurance. We're tagging him as Dark Lord of Fire." the Adjutant closest to Riley said.

"...Sound the task forces on the ground. Any weapon below level 8 is off the table. We'll have to see to support options." he paused, then briefed the crew further. "And get me the teams on the ground on comms. Now."

= = =

A short distance from the combat zone, black dressed operatives carrying heavy guns and binoculars find a vantage point on a nearby roof, barely 300 meters away. As the sniper set up his Barret rifle, his partner reports in. "This is ground team we've got visual on Dragon Girl, she's no longer responding to our communications."

Riley was able to pick up their visual feed on the main screen. He was familiar with magic. "that barrier he got her in, probably cut her signal once she got caught in it."

The ground team zoomed in closer and noticed June was standing sideways, trying to taunt Argonath, if only to keep his attention. Behind her back she was repeating hand signs, in hopes someone would pick up on it.

Again the spotter team reported. "We've got hand signals from Dragon Girl as she's engaging the target. She's calling in for... a water drop."

Colonel Riley considered the request. Aside from the increasing temperature at the battle site, DG was a sound ally, who fought using all the advantages she could get. "Call the tankers. Make a water delivery on site. If this sucker's gonna make it hot, Dragon Girl could be in big trouble."

= = =

The DC-10 tanker plane, ordinarily dispatched to fight forest fires, was in the air during the crisis. Flying at a considerable altitude, they arrive at the battle site just as the temperature begins to spike. The pilot descends to just above a thousand feet, and drops his hundreds of gallons of water directly over Argonath. Hopefully this was going do something.

If Argonath knew the significance of rolling his eyes, he would have. They thought to tempt him into a confrontation that benefited the little hero (or so they assumed) and put him at a disadvantage? No. He was the God of War. He knew such tactics and tricks of the trade. If the foolish mortal couldn’t break free from the cage themselves then that was not his problem. They would have to be content with watching as their ‘Las Vegas’ fell around them. As the world was destroyed and turned into ashes at his feet. In fact. That was not quite a bad idea, and it was one that brought a smile to his demonic face. He turned away from the cage, his back facing the mortal as he raised his hands up out at his side. “Truly? You try and tempt me to make a mistake by taunting me? You are no mortal champion. You are nothing more than a petulant child with illusions of grandeur.”

He paused as he spoke, walking towards the center of the street. Chains made of fire formed in his hands, torching the ground that followed in his wake as he walked. A pulse of almost imperceptible energy shot out from his very being all around him and everything it touched from cars, to light posts, to buildings started to crumble and turn to ash. “Gaze upon my glory as I destroy this city you so desperately tried to protect. Know that your failure brought this about. All this could have been avoided had you simply knelt.” While he walked and periodically let out a pulse of destructive energy his fire whips were grabbing support beams, poles for street lights or billboards, tearing them down and just causing as much mayhem as he could. And when the pedestrians who had stuck around behind police lines, or were unable to get away, got within range they too would get swept up in his Incite Rebellion aura. poles for street lights or billboards tearing them down and just causing as much mayhem as he could; and when the pedestrians who had stuck around behind police lines, or were unable to get away, got within range they too would be swept up in his Incite Rebellion aura.

It was however during this mayhem and destruction that something unexpected happened. Hundreds of gallons of water fell from the sky. The water landed with a splash, and then when coming in contact with Argonath’s flames a kind of snap hiss. The magical fire of the chains quickly went from fire to magma before the molten rock solidified. The streets, and other such objects that had caught fire all would undergo similar quick transformations while Argonath himself was nearly drowned and swept away by the sudden appearance of what amounted to a small pool. Except for the simple fact that he could fly. His wings were not just for show and he took to the skies, flying high above the displaced water. Not knowing where the sudden attack came from his eyes flared and big glowing orbs of flame would appear in his hands. “Water? This is your attempt to stop me mortal? I am disappointed. Perhaps you are not good enough to serve me afterall.”

Dragon Girl seethed and breathed rapidly, she knew Argonath was doing something on her mentally. Beyond the destruction he was causing, it was taking all her willpower to stop from going Dragon prematurely; no, she needed an edge. She continues signing subtly, seeing Argonath hadn't caught on to what she was doing. He wasn't buying the trash talk, but he was paying attention.

"You think you are this world's first attempted conqueror? No, you're just another incident. When this day ends, nobody will remember you Algorath. you'll just be a date and a location."

Still, the water drop was a welcome relief. That means a spotter team was tracking her. She signed another request, this time to attempt to disable Argonath directly. June also remembered there were golf courses nearby, those had water.


= = = =

The spotter reported on Dragon Girl's signs. "Dragon Girl requesting Eyes Out. Repeat, Dragon Girl requesting Eyes Out."

Riley didn't take long to respond to the request. "Use the foam cement round. Blind the bogey, then get out of there. You're going to get his attention." Riley turned to his comms team. "And get another tanker ready to drop on my command!"

the Spotter confirms the order, retrieving the round from the special shot bag, the veterans keeping their cool as chaos descended all around them. Their foreheads, whole bodies were beginning to be drenched with sweat. "Foam cement order confirmed."

"Roger that, loading foam-cement ordinance. taking the shot." The sniper was also sweating profusely. Even at this distance he could feel the heat, and the edges of his mind the first effects of the rebellion aura. Distance was their literal only advantage.

He took a deep breathe, adjusted his crosshairs, and lined up for a headshot. Argonath being stationary was their only chance for a hit. He exhaled. And he squeezed the trigger.

The round arrived at Argonath a second later, intended to strike his general head area. The round detonates the chemicals upon impact, a rapidly expanding sticky black goop designed to hinder and restrain, but most importantly take his sight.

= = = =

Once the sniper team made their shot, DG could finally relent and let herself morph, hoping her Dragon form would be enough to pop the cage. June fully intended to grab Argonath by her jaws, a harmful prospect in itself, and toss him towards a nearby golf course where there would be water in this water forsaken city.

It may have been a mistake on his part but with his arrogance, he had long since stopped listening to what the mortal trapped in the forcecage was saying. They were not strong enough to break free, they were no true threat and thus did not warrant his notice. Nothing more than an insect trapped in a cup that refused to admit defeat, but instead of running around or ramming into the boundaries it attempted speech and yelled nonsense. He was focused on destroying this city, turning the people into mindless fools with naught on their mind but rage. So, it was of no surprise that while he was flying in the air above the buildings with the two balls of fireball in his hands that he was blindsided by the bullet.

Not only had he never experienced weapons that fired ammunition smaller than those used in slings but also faster than he could even track. The bullet impacted his face, right between the eyes and although he felt nothing from this attack it did have the intended effect. The black goo like substance quickly spread out and formed a ball around his head effectively cutting off his line of sight. Enraged, the forgotten one let out a bellowing roar and un-aimed he let loose both fireballs. The first heading in the direction in front of him to where he thought this strange attack had come from while the second one went shooting back down towards where the mortal ‘champion’ and the forcecage were. There was no tactical reason for either of these attacks, simply lashing out after being blinded for the second time in this fight.

Had he reacted calmly and rationally in the face of this danger as he usually would have, the goo would have simply been undone at his touch. Allowing him that quick moment to witness the mortal show her true scales. He however did not as he was accustomed to this world and thus it was how he ended up being snapped up in the maw of the young dragon. Her teeth crunched down into his hard rock like godly form penetrating but not breaking the surface. It was then that he knew had it been anything more than a grab and fling she might have been able to truly damage him. However, now that he was free and knew that this world had dragons or some approximation of it, he willed his body to stop mid air, not allowing the throw to send him where it was intended.

Suspended in the air, his wings flapping slowly behind him his hands reached up to touch the black goo like substance. This served two purposes, as it allowed him to instinctively understand this new weapon and how it was used as well as disintegrated it down to nothing. His glowing red eyes bore into the dark gray dragon that was now flying towards him and he grinned watching as they came; his Blackblade once more in his hand. “Come little dragon. It is time you met your maker.” A fireball would shoot out at them as he readied his blade. When the gray scaled dragon got within range he’d swing it upwards at them in no particular area. Intending instead to test the scales of this dragon and hopefully cut through them like butter. It had been quite some time since he faced another dragon and he had to admit he was excited to do so once more. Perhaps they’d even force him to reveal his final form. Only time would tell.

Ground troops on scene were piling into their transports and hitting top speeds to keep up with the fight. At the very least, June managed to stop Argonath from burning down Las Vegas.

From inside one of the Armored cars, a communication officer relays the action. "Dragon Girl has assume her dragon form. Repeat, Dragon Girl is now in dragon form. Communication is now suspended. Colonel Riley, what's your play?"

The Colonel again, needed mere seconds to answer. "Tell the ground troops to shine all their spotlights on the guy. Maximum intensity. Put the goddamn sun in his eyes."

" ... understood." The task force asked no further questions, and did what they're told. They spread out and drove to locations where they could sight the fight.

"Sir, with respect, but if Dragon Girl fights him she might also get blinded?" The comms guy at HQ questioned the call.

Riley looked at his comms guys. It was a fair assessment, but he had the advantage of experience fighting with June. "I don't know if that guy can fight blind... but not everyone here knows, Dragon Girl's been killing giant monsters at the bottom of the pitch black ocean since I met her. She's one of the few heroes I know who can blind-fight."

= = = =

Dragon June encircled Argonath, waiting for an opportune time to strike. Flying was actually her least agile mode of movement, and was eager to minimize air time. Once Argonath unleashed a powerful fireball, June had to shield herself with her wings.

DG needed a moment to catch her breath, landing on a casino rooftop, smashing into a water tank for relief, roaring in agony at her weakness. What would've utterly destroyed a lesser being, gave her wings a bad sunburn - but she was in luck, as a circling DC-10 tanker was nearby. With a word from HQ they dumped their cargo this time on June, giving her momentary relief.

Once the powerful, 2000-lumen spotlights from the taskforce vehicles were turned onto Argonath, June kicked off into the air once more. She spotted the golf course's water course below, and rushed him to try and take this fight into her element. The light was no problem either- June still had her heightened smell, and of course, her electroreception sense.

This time she'd use a powerful tail slap, her denticled scales providing an extra edge to the force of her physical attack. If it goes to the water, June could end this fight. emphasis on "if".

The fireball he sent at the young gray scaled dragon was effective. More effective than he would have first thought as they didn’t continue to fly towards him so he could strike them down. Instead they dropped down on top of a building and crashed into a giant chest that seemed to store water in it. Purposefully as well. That caught Argonath’s attention as it gave the impression that she was healed or at least invigorated by being in water. That was something to take note of and not allow to happen if he could. He would not want to see what this young dragon could do in the water. His suspicion was only further confirmed when yet another chest was dropped from the sky above Argonath on top of the gray dragon.

The flying metal beast that dropped it however would fare nowhere near as well as their ally. With a snarl he let fly a chain of fire to wrap around the metal beast and pulled it down towards him with a mighty heave. From far above them at starling speeds the flying metal beast raced down towards them as it was pulled by the arbiter of the damned, its intended target being that of the gray scaled dragon. However his plan was once more thrown off by a sudden blindness. This time it was by many bright lights being shined directly into his face. Not wanting the lights to be in his eyes anymore, and deciding it was finally time to deal with the pesty mortal intruders and their technology mixed with magic he dropped.

Letting go of the chain connected to the now free falling and burning plane Dis Pater dropped like a meteor towards the earth. Perhaps the only thing that saved him from being smacked by the tail of Dragon Girl was this action. She was not forgotten in his mind as to forget about an enemy was akin to suicide but this war god had something else on his mind currently. Slamming into one of the horseless carriages with a satisfying crash, Argonath unleashed an inferno of fire. The mortal soldiers had barely any time to react before they were burnt to a crisp and he was moving on to the next vehicle. Within a matter of seconds the vehicles the task force were driving and the spotlights on top of them were nothing more than bent, broken, and burning wrecks. The people inside of them fared no better.

Casualty reports began to come in once Argonath paid the task force his attention. Agents were flatlining left and right on the monitors, and those few who escaped were falling back.

"...Send in the attack drones. Have them hold within range until the second sortie group gets there."

A comms officer made an important notification."Sir, NORAD is on the line. They are moving the Hyperion Orbital Ion Cannon over Vegas. If the situation hasn't been resolved..."

"...Tell them we hold out until Dragon Girl can't." Riley looked at the feed desperately. "Come on June. Put this sucker down."

= = =

Even in dragon form, June saw the damage Argonath was dealing to her human allies. Brave souls, but foolish. she thought, a bit more detached as her mind had taken an alien aspect. Seeing her chance as the warlord was distracted, June began charging up her breath just as she flew past another wide building- so that once she was ontop of Argonath, she'd unleash the chill of the coldest winter on the dark conquerer, a devastating freezing breath that would not only target him but the environment around, making it a favorable battle ground if only temporarily.

These mortals were nothing more than flies to be swatted. It was as simple here as it was back in his own dimension to kill them. In fact one might even say it was easier here as there were only humans. None of the sturdier mortal races like orcs, goliaths, or even loxodons. Sure, in all his years he had never met a race so stubborn as humanity but they were nothing special. They fell just as easily as the rest and the vehicles (as he had come in contact with them and as they were used as weapons of war he now knew what they were and how they operated) were hardly an issue either. However, the design of these vehicles and their purpose was ingenious and when ,not if, he returns to his universe to conquer it as well he knew they would be a great asset.

He had just about finished decimating all the troops and began to inspect their weaponry, the metal pipe shaped objects, when he heard the dragon approach. The flap of their wings prompted him to turn just in time to witness the ice-y breath that for many would mean certain death. He was unable to speak out a word before he was encased in ice. Argonath, the Steelheart along with the area around him was flash frozen. What had been a hot vegas night, and a rather green golf course had been turned into an icy winter wonderland. Or, at least something that would have fitted in better in Canada or the North Pole. ‘Ah, so that is their breath weapon. Interesting. I had them pegged for an aquatic dragon but this is so much better.’ The God of Fire thought to themselves as they were frozen in ice.

A predicament that was at most a minor setback. With how hot their internal body temperature ran as well as the hardened exterior of their skin they were in no true trouble of succumbing to the freezing temperatures, and could break out fairly easily. But it did at least give the young dragon enough time to perhaps get a swipe in before using his control of fire and simple innate strength to burst out of the frozen statue. “Impressive young one. If I were anyone else that might have stopped them.” He informed as the ground around his feet melted from the intense heat he was now giving off to help combat the subzero temperatures. “But now, it is my turn.”

As he spoke that final word a few things would happen. First at speeds approaching what scientists on planet earth would dub Mach 3 or around 2,300mph the would be conqueror rushed behind the Dragon a fist raised into the air as chains made of fire would shoot out from the ground hoping to ensnare the young dragon and bind her to the ground. If successful he would jump and land upon her scaly back before plunging his sword into her hide. A stab wound that was not intended to kill but cause massive and debilitating pain. He had decided he would not kill this young dragon. No, he would let them grow, let them fester this loss and seek revenge. Or, give them one last chance to join him. “Kneel young one. I will end this pain. I could teach you so much. You could unlock your true potential under my guidance.” He would beckon them.

If however the chains were not successful in strapping the gray dragon down his approach would change in accordance with their actions. A fireball had seemed effective last time, so he would shoot one out aiming for their midsection while he got in close in melee range. Attempting to grab their tail and using his speed and momentum fling the beast down into the earth as far as they could go. Upon the crash, or not,  he would of course land and then give the same speech.