City of Black Iron

The Acacia Everburning Highlands. Across this plateau, flames sprouted thick as weeds, magma surged through fissures in the ground, and clouds of blistering steam roiled over the earth. A deadly forbidden zone for creatures of the Material Plane, it was nonetheless a paradise for the native beings of the Elemental Plane of Fire. Yet in one expanse of the Acacia Everburning Highlands stood a city of considerable scale: the City of Black Iron. Within its walls, the Shrine of Scorching Atonement—where Imix, the Prince of Evil Fire, was worshipped as a deity—and the temple dedicated to Kossuth, the Lord of Flames, made plain the masters of this domain: the efreet. "Lord of Flames above..." "By Imix..." "How could a dragon be so gigantic? When did we ever provoke such a monster?" At this moment, the efreet officers and soldiers standing atop the black iron ramparts gazed into the distance, their expressions exceptionally grim, edged with mounting terror. On the distant horizon, a dim silhouette beat its wings through the sweltering air, churning up flurries of ash. "The Genie-Devouring Dragon." A heavy voice rang out, followed by steady, forceful footfalls. The soldiers on the wall parted one after another as a tall, burly efreeti strode forth, surrounded by a retinue. He was the Emir of the City of Black Iron—Maciej Galan. Unlike Hamid, he was no pampered scion bearing noble blood in name alone, but a battle-hardened warrior who had only recently been recalled from the front lines. He had once been an honored Kapikulu—a member of the Sultan's household guard. He wore a gilded, patterned face-veil helmet with a leather neck guard draped behind it, its crest bearing a massive plume—a feather of a phoenix. In his hand he held a crescent-curved shamshir, its edge razor-sharp and its blade shimmering with a steady magical radiance. Hearing Maciej's words, the efreet atop the walls were instantly seized with panic, and a flurry of anxious voices erupted. "I-it's him!" "That's the Genie-Devouring Dragon! He really exists!" "They say that terrifying dragon devoured thirteen emirs and thousands of efreet! He was sent by the Prince of Sacred Fire to punish us!" "Silence!" Maciej's face darkened with fury. He struck his bronze shield with his shamshir, producing a sharp, resounding clang. The efreeti soldiers fell silent at once, quietly listening to their emir's rebuke. "By the Lord of Flames, you cowardly sheep! Cowing in terror before a mere dragon! "From what I know, that dragon merely allied with those fire dwarf mongrels, sneaked into the city through underhanded tricks, wrecked half the City of Pig Iron, and killed that useless Hamid. "This talk of a 'Genie-Devouring Dragon' is nothing but wild rumors! He is no invincible foe!" Maciej raised his shamshir high, the gleaming silver blade catching the firelight. *Swish—* He slashed the shamshir through the air with a sudden sweep, leaving behind a brilliant arc of blazing light. "We are the noble efreet! The natural masters of the Elemental Plane of Fire! It has always been us who pillage and destroy others, inspiring terror in every living thing! "Never has there been any reason for other beings to make us tremble!" Maciej pointed the tip of his blade toward the distant, hazy shadow. "Soldiers—for the Great Sultan, defend the City of Black Iron, and slay that reptile in the sky!" The efreet were by nature a fanatical, warlike, and fiercely proud race. Roused by Maciej's rallying cry, their fighting spirit surged back into life. "For the Sultan!" "Defend the City of Black Iron!" "No one can defeat the efreet on the Elemental Plane of Fire!" On the ramparts, the efreet strained to turn their winches, loading long bolts forged of black metal into the ballistas and aiming high into the sky, ready for battle. Beneath the walls, other efreet unlatched cages to release monstrous beasts, which belched clouds of scalding steam and let out low, guttural roars. With a simple wave of Maciej's hand, a terrifyingly massive flame drake clad in brass barding swooped down. "Fight for the Great Sultan!" The efreeti noble roared and vaulted onto its back, followed into the air by over a hundred similarly mounted efreeti cavalrymen. Unlike Maciej, however, most of these soldiers wore uniforms of salamander-wool or silk, brandished bronze lances nearly ten meters long, and bore riveted, leather-covered shields. To the vast efreet empire, the City of Pig Iron had been merely a frontier outpost—whereas the City of Black Iron was a military stronghold of considerable importance. Several thousand meters away, the red dragon flapped his wings again, whipping up gusts of hot wind laden with ash and sparks. Cassius narrowed his eyes slightly, a look of genuine amusement gleaming within his pale-golden slitted pupils. "Interesting... "Magical ballistas, elemental behemoths, efreeti cavalry... Even the current imperial elite would likely struggle to triumph over an efreet force like this. "And this isn't even their finest vanguard, just a garrison defending a city. Truly formidable strength. "Too bad... they ran into me." Cassius beat his wings with greater force, lifting his colossal draconic frame higher into the air. Then he threw back his head and let out a deafening roar. *Roar—* *Boom!* Thunder cracked like the splitting of heavens. The clouds of steam in the sky instantly coalesced, and lightning—an element utterly alien to the Elemental Plane of Fire—flashed within the churning dark clouds. Driven by immense power, the dense storm clouds rapidly expanded, soon sweeping over the City of Black Iron. Amidst those clouds, a colossal silhouette darted and circled. *Boom!* *Boom! Boom!* Bolts of lightning crashed down, striking several efreet atop the ramparts dead where they stood and reducing them to wisps of primordial flame. "It's lightning!" "Quick! Get out of the way!" "Lord of Flames above... What in the world is that?" "Curse it, shoot that dragon down!" The efreeti soldiers grew frantic. Spurred by the mortal threat, they clumsily aimed their ballistas toward the sky. Devastatingly potent bolts trailed plumes of fire as they shot straight into the cloud layer, yet none could find their mark. *Boom!* Thunder crashed again, and a terrifying aura rolled outward. A suffocating pressure settled like an invisible boulder upon the hearts of the efreet. Down on the ground, the monstrous beasts that had just been released trembled violently, their iron chains rattling and clattering. These beasts, normally wild and vicious, now let out terrified yelps like newborn cubs, cowering and scurrying back into their cages within the city. *Boom! Boom!* Several more bolts of lightning struck down. The massive shadow loomed in and out of view behind the storm clouds, striking visceral fear into every living creature present—and the efreeti emir was no exception. *Awoo—* Beneath the efreeti noble, his flame drake shook from head to tail, while most of its kin had already fainted clean away, crashing to the ground. "Hold on, my old friend... "He's merely a red dragon. Akria, we once faced an ancient gold dragon together. This is nothing." Maciej stroked the back of the flame drake's neck, murmuring softly. Yet when he raised his head to gaze at the colossal silhouette shifting in the clouds, and at the lightning surging through the black canopy, his expression turned grim and heavy. "How can this be... "By the Lord of Flames, he is clearly a red dragon..." The battle-hardened efreeti noble gripped the shamshir bestowed upon him by the Sultan, his entire body wound tight with tension.