The frost dragon harbored a hatred for Saruman no less than what he felt for Sauron.
It launched relentless attacks, continuously breathing extre cold to freeze and tornt the wizard in vengeance.
Having lost his evil dragon mount, Saruman struggled on the frozen ground, defending himself with a wolveskin cloak that whipped around him in the frigid wind.
He wielded his staff to cast a light shield for protection and shouted through chattering teeth, "Glam, we can talk!"
Though the light shield blocked much of the frost dragon's chill, the biting cold still seeped through, frosting Saruman's hair and beard white with ice crystals.
Saruman tried to negotiate, but the frost dragon had no interest in words and sought only to vent its centuries-long fury.
It lunged directly at Saruman to bite, jaws gaping wide enough to swallow him whole.
Seeing the dragon's madness, Saruman's face darkened. He cast a massive fireball directly into the dragon's open maw.
The fireball exploded violently inside the dragon's throat, creating billowing steam and mist that blocked its mouth, causing the great beast to cough and choke on the scalding vapor.
Injured and further enraged, the frost dragon intensified its assault with blind fury.
Saruman fought back fiercely with shockwaves and crackling lightning, repelling and striking at the massive dragon with everything he had.
Neither could gain an advantage. Their fierce battle devastated the surrounding landscape—trees splintered, rocks shattered, and entire hills collapsed under the force of their conflict.
The broad, rushing Anduin River froze solid under the dragon's cold breath, transforming from flowing water to solid ice in seconds. The sumr heat vanished, replaced by arctic winter with swirling blizzards that cut visibility to nothing.
As Saruman and the frost dragon clashed in their titanic struggle, Dunlendings, Rohirrim, Smaug, and the others watched as observers, wisely staying clear of the destruction.
anwhile, the black misty energy mass slowly reford into Kael's solid body, coalescing from shadow into flesh once more.
Seeing Kael restored, Brog rushed forward anxiously, "Lord Kael, are you alright?"
Kael smiled lightly, still catching his breath, "I'm fine. Actually, I gained so unexpected strength from that."
His finger flickered, transforming briefly into black misty energy before returning to normal.
Brog, King Théngel, and the nearby warriors stared in awe at Kael's transformation, eyes wide with wonder and a touch of fear.
The black energy returned to normal fingers as Kael willed it.
Kael's smile grew. Facing life and death, he had unexpectedly triggered his Obscurus form to escape certain doom.
After gaining the Obscurus talent in childhood at Hildórien, Kael had felt rapid magic growth but noticed no other significant changes, eventually dismissing it as unimportant—until now, when it had saved his life.
Obscurus, as explained in the magical world, is a dark magical force created when young wizards suppress their magic excessively. It takes form as formless black mist, destructive and uncontrolled.
Wizards hosting an Obscurus are called Obscurials—mostly young wizards forced to live among non-magical people who fear and reject magic.
Due to societal rejection and fear, these children suppress their magic to hide it, causing unstable and destructive dark power to build within them—the Obscurus. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ novel⸺fire
An Obscurus damages the environnt and life around the host, but it also consus them from within. Few Obscurials survive beyond age ten, which is why the magical world treats them with such caution and pity.
However, Kael viewed Obscurus differently—as symbolic of a wizard evolving to a higher level through elental body transformation, transcending normal magical limitations.
In Obscurus form, Kael felt his body beco pure magic energy without physical form—immune to physical attacks and highly resistant to typical magical assaults that would kill an ordinary wizard.
This was similar to adult Obscurial Credence, who survived severe attacks and resurrected from residual Obscurus energy alone, demonstrating its incredible power and resilience.
Obscurus is thus extraordinarily strong, which attracted the attention and attempted control of the first Dark Lord Grindelwald decades ago.
The Obscurials' major problem is unstable magic—once emotionally triggered, they lose control and wreak indiscriminate havoc on everything around them.
Additionally, their bodies are gradually consud by the Obscurus energy itself, leading inevitably to death.
Kael noticed that unlike other Obscurials, his Obscurus form did not cause irrationality or magic instability. He experienced only difficulty controlling the vast power, like trying to hold back a flood with his bare hands.
This differed from typical Obscurials, likely due to their troubled emotional states and traumatic origins.
Most Obscurials lived in magic-fearing environnts with suppression born of trauma, neglect, and isolation. This fostered negative emotions that made their Obscurus uncontrolled and violent.
Thus, Obscurus itself lacks any innate moral attributes—its nature depends entirely on the host's personality and emotional state.
Most Obscurials do not survive beyond ten because their young bodies simply cannot endure the Obscurus energy coursing through them, ultimately collapsing under the strain.
Obscurus is magic energy twisted and altered by forced suppression. Most young wizards avoid developing it by regularly releasing their magic through wand use and proper magical education.
Those born as Obscurials suppress their magic forcibly in hostile environnts, accumulating dangerous energy until reaching a critical point where it erupts in destruction.
Kael's body, nourished since childhood by Hildórien's Entwash water and resembling elven qualities in strength and resilience, had been further transford during Philosopher's Stone creation. This allowed him to endure Obscurus energy safely where others would perish.
Additionally, Kael possessed the golden cup that continuously healed and strengthened his body with each use. Hence, Obscurus did not threaten him in the short term unless grossly overused.
Still, prolonged Obscurus use would intensify the damage, eventually threatening even his enhanced body.
So Kael could not sustain Obscurus form arbitrarily or indefinitely without consequences.
Nevertheless, Obscurus had dramatically transford Kael's power and given him a trump card few could match.
Turning his attention to the fierce battle between the frost dragon and Saruman, especially noting Saruman's tattered and frozen cloak, Kael felt a distinct touch of satisfaction.
The frost dragon, having survived from the ancient War of Wrath, was truly formidable—Kael's Obscurus form had only managed to sever one wing, causing injury but no fatal harm to the ancient beast.
Powered by its gigantic size and primordial strength, the frost dragon pressed against Saruman with overwhelming physical force.
Its chilling breath could freeze magic itself. Even Saruman's Fiendfyre and crackling lightning attacks froze instantly upon contact with that supernatural cold.
Saruman, despite appearing disadvantaged, remained cautious—half his considerable power remained guarded against Kael's possible sneak attacks from behind.
Saruman had already begun planning his retreat. He knew this mission had largely failed—his entire force of winged evil dragons was lost, the frost dragon had broken free from Sauron's control, and the Nazgûl had been sent back to Mordor in shaful defeat.
Alone, he could not possibly reclaim Isengard from Kael's forces.
Yet the frost dragon attacked him with crazed fury, biting at him relentlessly like a rabid beast, while Kael stood nearby watching intently for any opening. Saruman found himself thoroughly on the defensive.
When Saruman cast yet another light shield to block the frost dragon's freezing breath,
Kael apparated silently behind him and instantly cast without hesitation, "Avada Kedavra!"
The sickly green light shot forward like a lance of death.
Anticipating the curse through battle instinct, Saruman raised ice blocks ford by the frost dragon's previous attacks, positioning them between himself and the deadly curse just in ti.
The Killing Curse struck the ice barrier and shattered it into glittering fragnts.
Facing coordinated attacks from both front and back, Saruman's weathered face darkened with fury and calculation.
He glanced deeply at Kael with eyes full of hatred, then raised his staff high and summoned a fierce tornado. The whirling vortex spun violently, engulfing rocks, ice chunks, splintered trees, and everything not anchored to the ground.
Kael braced himself, thinking Saruman would attack with the tornado as a weapon.
But unexpectedly, Saruman walked directly into the tornado himself, allowing the magical vortex to sweep him rapidly into the sky like a leaf caught in a storm.
Without any chance to intercept, the tornado carried Saruman swiftly eastward toward distant Mordor.
Leaving both Kael and the frost dragon behind in frustrated rage.
Seeing his hated foe escape, the frost dragon roared in primal anger, trying desperately to take wing in pursuit.
But the ancient beast soon realized with bitter clarity that one wing had been brutally torn away.
It turned and stared vigilantly at Kael, eyes burning with new fury.
"Though you freed from Sauron's cursed control, you also took my ability to fly. For that cri, you will die the sa!"
Without further warning, it breathed devastating icy breath directly at Kael.
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