I tapped the "Tactical" tab on my phone, and a holographic blueprint projected into the center of the room, bathing our assembled faces in shifting patterns of blue light as the 3D model rotated slowly, showing the precise positioning and energy flow of the maneuver."It's called the Rainbow Beam: Spectrum-Shatter," I explained, grinning like a madman as the hologram demonstrated the formation, little animated figures representing each of us moving into position. "When we stand in a 'V-Formation' and synchronize our mana-frequencies through the suits, we create a resonance loop that amplifies exponentially with each added color. With the 2x boost from the Chef’th feast, that loop won't just hit the dragon, it’ll rewrite its molecular structure from 'Mythological Terror' to 'Gravel' faster than you can say 'clearance sale'.""You want us to... pose?" Jeon asked, looking at the diagram with deep, professional skepticism, one eyebrow raised so high it nearly disappeared into his emerald

The messages started from a few days ago—few days of me thinking Kylan was just busy with his restaurant, maybe testing new recipes, maybe dealing with his own interdimensional nonsense. Three days of silence on my end because I hadn't checked the chat.But the chat had been screaming.Kylan The Chef: Dude…are you alive?Kylan The Chef: ARTHUR MAN! YOU OK?Kylan The Chef: Did you die? If you died I'm going to be so annoyed I put my good wine in thisKylan The Chef: It's been 4 hours are you fighting the snakeKylan The Chef: 12 hoursKylan The Chef: I'm going to assume you're dead and eat this myselfKylan The Chef: I didn't eat it myselfKylan The Chef: I waitedKylan The Chef: I'm a good friendKylan The Chef: ARTHUR IT'S BEEN TWO DAYSKylan The Chef: I've made three more batchesKylan The Chef: My kitchen smells like heaven and I'm starting to resent youKylan The Chef: My invisible wife says I've been staring at the chat window for 6 hoursKylan The Chef: She's worried about meKy

And I was still standing there, in my stupid red leather Power Ranger suit, laughing like a maniac, because Shannon was still running and the Wyrm's heads were still bonking into each other and somehow, despite the petrification and the fire and the end-of-the-world energy, the funniest thing in the entire universe was watching a dwarf outrun an apocalypse."MASTER ART—" Shannon skidded to a halt behind me, her boots leaving smoke trails on the stone, her beard finally settling down now that she'd stopped moving. She was panting so hard I thought she might pass out. "MASTER ART, I HATE YOU, I HATE YOU SO MUCH, I WAS RUNNING FOR MY*LIFE AND YOU WERE LAUGHING—""You were so fast—" I wheezed."I WAS MOTIVATED!""YOUR BEARD—""MY BEARD IS TRAUMATIZED!"Behind us, Ellene's voice cut through the banter like a whip. "ENOUGH! Shannon, get behind the line! Everyone else, FORMATION IS ACTIVE! Lord Merchant, please stop laughing and take your position!"I looked at the Wyrm.It had finally untan

"FORMATION!" Ellene bellowed, sliding down the Wyrm's back and landing hard on the stones beside me. "NOW, ARTHUR! NOW!"I raised my hand.The team snapped into the V.Rufus and Eto were still punching the tail. "GO! GO! WE'LL KEEP IT DISTRACTED!""YOU'RE GOING TO GET EATEN!""PROBABLY! BUT IT WON'T BE TODAY!"The mana built.Faster this time. Cleaner. The practice, the snacks, the Red Bulls, the stupid humid leather suits—it all came together. The rainbow light between our visors wasn't jagged this time. It was smooth. A perfect arc of liquid color that hummed with the frequency of seven idiots who had finally, finally gotten their act together.The Wyrm's three heads lunged.All at once. Three sets of jaws, wide open, coming straight for us."SPECTRUM... SHATTER!"The mana beam fired. Not over the Wyrm's head.Through it.The rainbow lance hit the middle head square in the face—right between the eyes, right where Elsa had cracked the scales. The light didn't stop there. It traveled

Louder cheers. The baby was still crying, but now it was crying *enthusiastically*."But let us not forget—" Ellene paused, squinted at something in the distance, and then continued, "—let us not forget that victory is not just about strength. It is about community. It is about standing together. It is about—""Is that a hot dog cart?" someone in the crowd shouted.Ellene blinked. "I... yes. There is a hot dog cart.""CAN I HAVE A HOT DOG?""I... we're in the middle of a speech—""BUT I SURVIVED THE DRAGON AND I'M HUNGRY!"A ripple of agreement went through the crowd. People started shuffling toward Greg's Mystery Meat Tubes. Ellene's speech—which had been building toward something profound about sacrifice and resilience and the indomitable Gothic spirit—dissolved into chaos as half the crowd decided that hot dogs were more important than rhetoric.Ellene stared at the empty space where her audience used to be.Then she turned to me."Master Arthur.""Yes?""I hate your Kingdom.""It'