The fireball struck the beast. Despite its scales, it felt the searing pain of the resulting explosion, and it whirled. Six hung on, her body flying out sideways as the monster turned towards Eleni and slashed at her with its claws. It struck the platform, tipping it, and Eleni tumbled off. She scrabbled to hang on, but with the staff still in one hand she wasn’t able to grab on, and fell.

She bounced off the monster’s side and tumbled to the ground. Six was about to let go of the creature and go after her, when Eleni surprised her by climbing on the beast herself. She drove the staff in between its scales, enraging it even more. Then the orb at the end started to glow again.

Six had only a moment to wonder what the Mog was up to before the monster turned and began scaling the side of the hotel. Its claws easily punctured the glass and steel, crunching loudly as it moved far more quickly than Six thought possible for such a huge animal. It was four stories up before she could even think about getting off. Now it was too late.

The thing climbed. Six held on as best she could, keeping an eye on Eleni, who was slowly making her way up towards Six. The surrounding buildings quickly retreated as the monster ascended the side of the Saturn, the flashing lights streaking by, making Six dizzy.

Six’s only advantage was that because Eleni was still holding on to the staff, she only had one hand for maneuvering on the monster’s back. The higher and faster it climbed, the more Eleni struggled, until finally she was forced to stay in one place, glaring up at Six with an expression of pure hatred, waiting for her chance.

Six too was barely hanging on. With each thud of the creature’s claws, she was shaken again. Her shoulder had gone past the point of hurting to become a throbbing knot of pure pain. The broken bones in her hand ground together with each thrust of the beast’s body, and she expected at any moment to simply fall from its back. If she did, she planned to take the Mog with her.

But that didn’t happen. Instead, the two of them clung to the monster as it climbed to the very top of the hotel, hundreds of feet above the Strip. Six waited for it to reach the top and settle on the roof. When it was within a few floors of the top, though, it stopped, clinging to the side. Six could feel it breathing, its sides moving in and out. She waited for it to start moving again, but it remained in place.

She looked down at Eleni. The Mog’s blond hair streamed in the wind that whipped around the hotel, hiding her face. Six wondered if she had somehow commanded the monster to stop or if it had done it of its own accord. The orb in Eleni’s staff wasn’t glowing, so Six didn’t know.