Topaz

by Ai Meléndez

  “I’m leaving. Today. Right now. I’ve never wanted to be a merchant and I finally got my chance to find my real destiny. So, I’m leaving.” He was resolute. Though, now that he was saying it, he realized he would miss them. They were his family, after all, and for all of his time considering leaving, the reality could have only been felt once it wasn’t just in his mind.

  “You’re just going to leave, like that, alone?” Sirah, his mother, asked after everyone had been silent for several moments.

  “No, I have a travelling partner,” Mahnii said with a sigh.

  At that moment, Celeste poked her head in the door. “So… are ya ready yet?”

  “Who is that?” Sirah’s tone changed from worried to that of a protective parent.

  Mahnii scowled. “I told you to wait outside.” There went the notion of avoiding explaining further. He moved toward Celeste and the door.

  “You’re traveling alone with a woman?” His mother was following him.

  “Don’t worry, Mom, nothing happened. She’s travelling, presented the opportunity, so I’m taking it. That’s all. Okay?” He tried to smile reassuringly. “Here, I brought the goods you needed. I just wanted to make sure I said goodbye so you wouldn’t worry. My mind’s made up.”

  His mother sighed, gripping him in a hug. “Just take the goods with you, then. You’ll need them.”

  His sister’s fists were on her hips and his father slapped him on the back. As soon as Sirah backed off, Siris whispered, “Not bad,” and grinned. “Take this with you,” he added, tucking a small pouch that jingled softly into Mahnii’s vest.

  Mahnii’s lips thinned, but there was no point reiterating that nothing happened, since his father clearly already had other ideas.

  “Well, just don’t forget to visit when you’re coming back through,” Yohri said finally, dropping her arms.

  Mahnii grinned at her, then moved outside. “Alright, let’s go,” he said to Celeste. He waved at his family as they set off. Finally, he was free.

  Chapter 2

  Mahnii hardly looked back once they left his home. The terrain changed from flatlands to hill country with gently rising green slopes over the course of the first days travelling together with Celeste.

  In the distance, mountains rose against the horizon. Some were dark shadows and others were covered by swirling clouds.

  At first, Mahnii didn’t talk much. He was used to silently listening to his family’s banter and trying to tune them out.

  Celeste seemed like a child the way she was gawking at the landscape. The villages were scattered, often several days apart on foot.

  She was constantly pointing to trinkets and common goods, asking Mahnii what they were.

  The only exception to her antics was when they passed a dragon shrine. They were also scattered across the landscape, often separate from villages, though the town centers featured enormous statues and fountains carved into the shape of a dragon.

  Each time they passed a dragon shrine or statue, Celeste would stare in bewilderment, watching the local people pray and give offerings.

  At first, Mahnii ignored it, though he did find her behavior odd.

  Finally, he felt he should learn more about her past. How could she be that clueless to the world and yet desire to conquer it? “So… what exactly is your plan for becoming a world conqueror?” he asked.

  “Well, I’m gonna travel to all tha realms an’ prove ta them I’m tha best, strongest, an’ most powerfulest of anyone!” She beamed at him, saying it with such certainty he wondered if she might actually do it.

  “But why is that so important to you?” he pressed.

  “Cause I gotta prove I’m tha best even if I am a dwarf giant,” she said matter-of-factly.

  ‘A dwarf what?’ Should he tell her that dwarf giants didn’t exist? Maybe asking about her past should wait. He brushed it aside. As long as he was away from home, he supposed what was actually happening didn’t matter. Aside from being in a life-risking situation, of course.

  The sun was beaming down through the scattered puffy clouds above. It was mid-afternoon, he guessed, and they were in need of more supplies.

  “Oh, good! Another village,” Celeste shouted, pointing to the clear forms of wood and brick in the distance.

  Mahnii ducked to the side. ‘Alright but you don’t have to shout. I’m right beside you.’ He kept his irritation to himself.

  As they neared the village, two enormous dragon statues stood on either side of the road. One peered down on passers-by and the other gazed skyward. Celeste stared at them as she moved past as if the one peering down might come alive. As soon as they passed the statues, Celeste stopped, her focus turning to Mahnii.

  “Okay… I jus’ don’ get it. What’s with tha dragons? They’re… everywhere.”

  His mouth fell open. “Are you serious right now? What, did you grow up in a cave? How do you not know this? It’s part of our entire history.”

  Celeste frowned. “I grew up a giant in tha mountains. Giants don’t care about tha outside world.”

  Mahnii tried not to laugh. At least that answered part of her thinking she was a dwarf giant, but there was no way. Still, he didn’t point that out, and so much more about her made sense to him. No wonder she was such a clueless muscle-head.

  They were entering the marketplace. “Get yer goods here,” someone was shouting.

  “Eee!” a woman was squealing, darting away from a man with red cheeks, clearly drunk, who was chasing her.

  “Did you hear? Ru-Kai was spotted just this morning coming this way,” a young man was sharing excitedly with one of the shop owners, an older fellow.

  “We’re blessed to be living in his territories… our people thrive because of him,” the old man responded.

  “Well I hear there’s a festival going on near Melka in his honor.”

  “There’s no way I’ll be able to go. My bones are too old now. You’re a traveler, eh?” said the old man.

  The young man chuckled. “Perhaps I’ll bring you a souvenir if I come back through here. Or perhaps Ru-Kai will even bestow me with a gift.”

  Celeste had stopped, staring at the two conversing men.

  “Come on,” Mahnii said, grasping her arm and pulling her along.

  “But, I want ta listen. Who is Ru-Kai? Why’s he such a big deal?”

  Mahnii sighed heavily. “Okay, look. Remember the statues we passed on our way in?”

  She just nodded, crossing her arms.

  “Long ago, three dragons came to our world. Before, the land was united. One big mass. When the dragons first arrived, there was an enormous fight and the lands were divided. There are three continents, so each part of the land was taken by a dragon.”

  “This… everything around you right now is part of the land of Ru-Kai, one of the three dragons. When they came, the sun was dark and the world was in chaos. The dragons brought light, magic, and order and taught those of our world how to survive. They’re viewed as gods.” He paused.

  Celeste just stared at him, blinking slowly.

  “So, the three dragons are Ru-Kai, Kami-Shi, and Cel-Lok. No one has seen Cel-Lok in so long people actually think she’s dead. Kami-Shi doesn’t get out much but he still manages to be loved by his people by hosting them at his castle for festivities. Ru-Kai is the only one who actually cares, so you should be glad we’re part of his realm. Ru-Kai is known for visiting villages, helping with crops, and supporting his people so they can thrive.”

  “I still don’ get the big deal with tha dragons. I’ve killed one, ya know, with my bare hands.” Celeste beamed as she finished her statement.

  “No, they’re not like the dragons that hide in caves and mountains here. They came from another realm. They even have human forms and enormous capabilities. In fact, they’re known to some as bringers of magic.”

  “Ooh,” Celeste said, finally seeming to understand. “Wow! Well since we’re travellin’, maybe we’ll see ‘im?” Celeste mused. “In f
act, I’ll challenge ‘im to a duel! If I’m gonna be conqueror, I’m gonna beat each o’ those dragons.”

  “Shhh! Would you not say that where everyone can hear you?” Mahnii glanced around to see if anyone had heard or was even paying attention.

  Celeste ignored his comment, resuming her pace forward. “Soon, I’ll be known as a god,” she said.

  Mahnii sighed again. He had no idea how to deal with her at the moment, so instead he focused on getting their needed supplies.

  Everyone in town was talking about Ru-Kai being spotted and about the festival in the neighboring village, Melka.

  It was difficult to keep moving when Celeste wanted to stop and listen to every conversation.

  “Let’s go ta Melka,” Celeste exclaimed as they were finally eating dinner.

  “What?” Mahnii hadn’t much been paying attention.

  “I’m gonna find this Ru-Kai. He’s tha first step in my conquering the world.” She beamed.

  “Right…” Mahnii murmured, taking a bite of turkey leg followed by a swig of ale. “And what makes you think he’ll actually duel with you?”

  “Mahnii, yer such a feather. Where’s yer sense of fun, hmm?” Her face was inching too close for comfort again.

  He scowled, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. “I grew up in a shop my whole life, okay? Sure I always dreamed of doing something else… or anything else, really. But not blood and gore!”

  She laughed. “Well then maybe I won’ kill ‘im.”

  Mahnii decided to drop it. There was no way she was going to understand. Really, it was his fault for following after her so gung ho. But she had been his only opportunity to leave home.

  “Done,” Celeste shouted, grabbing Mahnii’s arm and dragging him out of the tavern.

  “Aah,” Mahnii scrambled to get his feet under him. “Alright, I’m coming.” He attempted to fall into pace beside her as she moved quickly past the market and back onto the road.

  She really was hell bent on this whole dueling a dragon thing.

  This was the reason he was tagging along with her as opposed to going his own way. For one, where else would he go? And for another, someone had to look out for her. There was no way she’d really make it with how clueless she was.

  Chapter 3

  As they made their way closer to Melka, Mahnii couldn’t help secretly hoping they wouldn’t run into Ru-Kai. He could only imagine all of the terrible ways Celeste’s insane determination to battle him would end.

  The village itself was still at least several days away, so Mahnii insisted on taking breaks and setting up camp at the first hint of night.

  They were probably in the least dangerous of the realms, and he already knew Celeste wouldn’t be worried about thugs, but regardless, he wanted to stall as much as possible.

  Under normal circumstances, he might actually want to meet Ru-Kai. As a boy, he had imagined the dragon-god visiting his village and telling him of some great destiny in which he would never see his dreary home again, and more importantly, that he would be someone of importance.

  Of course, that had never come, but he still held the memory fondly.

  He wasn’t entirely ungrateful Celeste had come along. He just didn’t want to end up dead as a result.

  “Ugh!” Celeste said when Mahnii suggested they make camp as soon as the sun was setting. “What’s with you?”

  She propped her fists on her hips, staring at him with her mouth turned downward.

  “I wanna make it ta Melka before Ru-Kai’s moved on. What be scaring ya, Mahnii? I can protect ya, ya know.”

  Mahnii glanced at her and sighed heavily. “Alright, fine. I’ll admit it. I am not eager about you getting into a duel with a dragon-god. Okay?”

  She rolled her eyes. “How else ‘m I s’pposed to become a conqueror, hmm?”

  “Whatever, let’s just make camp, and then you can call it for tomorrow, okay?” Mahnii attempted his most charming smile, hoping to persuade her.

  She stared at him a moment, then her shoulders dropped. “Fine. I’m gonna go hunt us some dinner.” And with that she stalked off.

  Mahnii focused on building a fire. By the time he was drifting to sleep, Celeste still hadn’t returned. He decided he could eat whatever she managed to find when he awoke.

  ·-`*´-·

  The next morning, Mahnii groaned as his shoulder was roughly shaken. He rubbed his eyes, observing Celeste and the remains of a cooked deer. Oh good, she’d found something decent.

  “C’mon, let’s get going,” she said.

  He just groaned again, getting to his feet and grabbing the deer meat before moving after her at a sluggish pace.

  As they couldn’t seem to discuss anything at the moment without arguing over differences in opinion, they were silent.

  The sun was making its way to its peak when Celeste stopped, her eyes narrowing and hand slipping toward her hammer.

  “What?” Mahnii whispered, looking around.

  Her gaze was focused on a hill nearby where two figures were slowly coming into view.

  Their paths were going to intersect.

  Celeste stepped forward, and Mahnii got the impression she was ready to attack if there was any indication she would need to.

  As they got closer it became clear, at least on first appearance, that the two strangers weren’t hostile, although they were intimidating. For one, neither were brandishing weapons, and for another, they were walking at a leisurely pace. However, even from this distance, Mahnii could make out their serious expressions.

  They were clearly related. One was a man, the other a woman, though their features were almost identical.

  They both had a sun-kissed complexion with white hair, grey only at the roots, trimmed on the sides of their heads and styled with long tufts on top. Both of them were tall, towering over Celeste, and also a bit taller than Mahnii. Their eyes were also the same: a brilliant golden color.

  Both were dressed oddly, that is in comparison to anyone he’d seen before. The woman wore some kind of body suit across her slim but curved figure with a skirt flaring out at the bottom and the man was dressed in pants without any covering over his muscular, defined torso.

  Both parties stopped as they got close enough to speak comfortably. Celeste’s eyes were hard and narrow and she kept toying with the handle of her hammer, clearly un-phased by their height. She also stood directly in their way so they couldn’t pass.

  “Uh… hi,” said Mahnii.

  The two strangers looked at each other and then back at Mahnii and Celeste.

  “Let us go our way and no harm will come yours,” said the woman.

  Celeste’s mouth curved upward in an arrogant sort of smirk. “No harm our way?” she laughed, placing her hammer beside her on the road as if it were a mere staff or play-thing, making the earth underneath shake slightly. “Tha both of ya should be prayin’ fo’ mercy from me.”

  ‘Oh great,’ Mahnii shifted. Why did Celeste have to be so aggressive?

  “So you have a giant hammer? Wow,” the woman’s tone was mocking. “Our magic could destroy your hammer in seconds.”

  “Ya could try.” Celeste lifted her hammer off the ground slightly to demonstrate her strength.

  Mahnii glanced back and forth, and then inched his way between them. “How about we have no fighting and just say, ‘Hello, nice to see you, be on our way now.’ That sounds perfect.” He smiled toward the other woman and glared at Celeste.

  The woman ignored him, a glimmer rising in her own eyes. “How strong, exactly, are you?”

  Celeste grinned. “Wanna see?” She turned toward a large boulder a few feet away from the side of the road. “Watch this.” As if the hammer were only a small stick, Celeste swung it over her head and smashed the boulder into tiny chunks of rock and pebble.

  Even Mahnii was surprised. “What was the point of that?” he asked, glancing between Celeste and the strangers.

  “I’m Shim, and this is my brother, Kah,” said the woman.
“We’ve been looking for someone… strong, to help us.”

  Mahnii couldn’t help raising a brow at her statement.

  “Oh, tha’s me,” beamed Celeste.

  ‘She really is so… naive!’ Mahnii just waited for Shim to finish her explanation.

  “We are after a certain weapon, only found in the palace of Kami-Shi, and specially guarded by him as well. We can get in. We just can’t get the weapon. So we are in need of some help. Will you come?”

  Celeste shouldered her hammer. “Well I was on tha way ta challenge Ru-Kai to a duel, but I guess I could do that after beatin’ Kami-Shi. Duelin’ a dragon is all tha same ta me. Doesn’ matter which one comes first.”

  Mahnii attempted to keep his composure, a slight twitch irritating one of his eyes. ‘You’ve got to be joking.’

  As soon as the thought was gone, Mahnii let it go. Surely she’d find out the hard way soon enough.

  He decided to view it as a chance to see more of the world and besides, he realized he wasn’t going to be the one getting hurt.

  “Alright. Let’s go, then,” said Shim, taking charge. Just like that, they were on a new path.

  “So, what’s so important about this weapon?” asked Mahnii.

  Shim smiled at him. “You won’t tell anyone,” she said. It wasn’t even a question. Who did she think she was?

  Outwardly, Mahnii just shrugged and nodded. “Who would I tell?”

  “It’s a magic enhancing weapon, said to make its wielder undefeatable,” she whispered. “It’ll make me the most powerful Necromancer alive. It’s called the Staff of Naul.”

  Mahnii had no idea how to respond.

  Was she crazy? Necromancy was forbidden in Kami-Shi’s realm. Or really in any realm that he knew of. If you were caught, it would mean execution. What made her think that Kami-Shi would let her walk away alive with such a weapon? That was if this plan even worked and they got it in the first place.

  Were all women insane? First Celeste and now Shim.