As the dragon descended, its wings blotted out the burning sun. Not that Theo had time to enjoy the sudden shade. Let alone wonder what the hell a dragon was doing here, or where exactly 'here' might even be.

He staggered backward, but his foot caught on a crack in the ground. It sent him sprawling, hitting the hard-packed earth with an impact that jarred his tailbone and raised a cloud of dust.

Things only got worse when an unearthly shriek pierced the air. The wind picked up, blasting dust into his face. He couldn't see anything, could only hear that shriek growing louder and louder. Instinctively he flung his arms over his head, though he knew it wouldn't provide any kind of defense.

Then the shriek stopped. A metallic clang followed, and suddenly the shade vanished and scorching sunlight poured over Theo once more.

Blinking watery eyes, he lifted his head. The dragon had soared back toward the sky, arcing above the sun.

And he wasn't alone. A man stood in front of him, sunlight gleaming off his armor. His azure cape flapped in the wind, while long pale hair streaked from beneath his helmet. One arm was raised, holding up a shield; the other hand gripped a sword inlaid with shining blue crystals.

A knight?

The knight turned toward him, piercing him with eyes as clear and blue as the crystals on his sword. "Are you all right?"

Theo couldn't speak. All he could do was nod like a bobblehead, and even then he wasn't sure it was the truth. None of this was all right. He'd stepped onto a glowing diagram just like the ones he always doodled and entered some wasteland where knights fought dragons. Not even his dreams had ever gotten this deranged.

"Sir Zenith! Look out!" another voice shouted. Other people were here? No time to wonder before the knight took off, leaping gracefully into the air to meet the plummeting dragon. Insane, no human could make that jump. And was he going to fight that enormous monster with just a sword and shield?

Yet incredibly, the knight - Sir Zenith? - successfully landed upon the dragon's back, crouching behind its head. The dragon shrieked again, twisting its head and snapping its jaws furiously at the knight. Each of its teeth was half as long as Sir Zenith's sword and looked just as sharp, but from this angle it couldn't reach its target. He brought his sword down with a tremendous swing and Theo held his breath, expecting to see a spurt of blood or worse -

But the sword clanged off the dragon's coal-black hide as if it had struck solid iron, raising a shower of sparks. That wasn't all; the scales beneath Sir Zenith sharpened into spikes, forcing him to jump off the dragon. With a great flap of its wings, the dragon shot the spikes at the knight like a volley of arrows.

Sir Zenith twisted midair, angling his shield. Then something even more insane happened - a circle of scarlet light flared above the shield, just like the circle that had brought Theo here. The spikes slowed down as they passed through the circle and bounced harmlessly off the shield.

Sir Zenith backflipped, astonishingly graceful despite the armor, and landed on his feet on the ground. A woman ran up to meet him, and it was then that Theo realized this place wasn't just a featureless wasteland. Broken structures littered the landscape, like ruined versions of the flying city in his dreams. If that wasn't weird enough, trees sprouted randomly amidst the ruins, along with park benches and stretches of wrought-iron fence and even an odd street lamp or two.

Theo rubbed his eyes but the bizarre image didn't vanish. And he didn't have time to wonder about it. The woman exchanged a few words with Sir Zenith before he took off again, leaping from ruin to ruin to reach the dragon.

Someone else came dashing toward Theo. Before he could figure out what was happening, the person grabbed him by the arm, yanked him upright, and dragged him behind the cover of a ruin.

Still not letting go, the person spun to face Theo. A boy, shorter than him, with black hair and deep blue eyes. No armor, but still dressed bizarrely in a frilly shirt and cravat and a rapier clenched in his free hand.

"What the hell were you doing, sitting out in the open and gawking like an idiot?"

The insult hit Theo like a punch to the head. It was the last thing he'd expected from someone who looked so refined.

Without waiting for an answer, the boy kept barraging him with accusing questions. "Who are you? How did you find this arena? What family are you from? Or are you acting on your own? Where's your familiar?"

"I - uh - I don't know what you're talking about - "

The dragon's shriek cut him off. Peering past the shelter, he saw the dragon writhing in the air like a snake, flinging spikes down at Sir Zenith. The knight jumped and dodged, using his shield and sword to block and cut down the ones he couldn't escape, and he wasn't alone. Theo blinked, hard: a giant gray-and-black cat was with him, slashing at the spikes with its claws. Trails of scarlet light followed each swipe.

When a spike flew directly at Sir Zenith's head, Theo opened his mouth to shout a warning - only for another red diagram to appear above him and slow the spike's trajectory. Sir Zenith easily whirled out of the way and knocked it aside with his shield.

The woman from earlier stood a safe distance from the fight, but a scarlet circle glowed beneath her feet, casting garish highlights upon her auburn hair. When he saw it, the warmth inside Theo stirred.

Before he could wonder about it, the boy spoke up. "Dammit, it's no use. Meg can't support both of them forever...I have to...." The rapier shook in his hand. "But first things first. Answer my questions."

He glared at Theo, but Theo couldn't begin to answer him. "I don't know, I really don't know what's going on...."

"Don't play dumb. You entered this arena for a reason."

"Arena? Is - is that what this place is called?" To Theo's embarrassment, his voice climbed to a trembling squeak. "I really - I had no idea - I just saw the, um, circle glowing in the park, and, um, next thing I knew I was here?"

The boy narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about? You are a wizard, aren't you?"

"Huh? A what?" This had to be a dream. Just longer and more vivid than his usual ones.

"You - look out!" The next thing he knew, the boy grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him to the ground. Just as a spike tore through the wall, shattering the already broken building like glass, and plunged quivering into the ground. It was huge, almost half Theo's size.

Theo's heart raced madly. If that had hit him - no, he didn't want to think about it. His dreams had always been serene, peaceful, even. Never had he felt that he was in real danger before.

Gasping for breath, the boy rose to his feet. Not for long. A sudden gust sent him stumbling and knocked Theo flat, followed by a massive shadow descending upon them.

The dragon loomed above, its wings spread so wide they seemed to block the entire sky. It tilted its head down, fixing them with eyes blacker than its scales and festering with malevolence.

The boy stiffened and raised his rapier, but Theo couldn't imagine that slender blade dealing any kind of damage to the dragon's iron hide. Yet he remained upright, bravely facing the dragon, while Theo lay cowering on the ground.

Well, of course. He didn't have a weapon or special powers, let alone any idea of what was actually going on. He was as helpless as a baby.

It always had been like that. He didn't even have the guts to sing in public; asking him to take on a spike-flinging dragon had to be somebody's idea of a sick joke.

The dragon flapped its wings faster and faster, buffeting them with waves of icy wind. Through watering eyes, Theo saw the spikes on its belly slowly rise and extend....

"Get back, my liege!" A streak of blue. Zenith landed in front of them, shield raised. Not a moment too soon, for the dragon flapped one last time before unleashing the spikes.