by Kyle West
The Xenofold’s power was a torrent flowing through me, a river of fire I could barely control. All my hairs stood on end, while Valance and the other sword-bearing High Priest hung back, hesitating for the first time.
The power demanded to be released. I screamed as I lashed out at the other priests, some of whom were deadly close to killing my friends. The psychic energy simultaneously connected with seven minds, all of them tethered to my own. Those minds struggled against those unseen leashes, and seven streams of consciousness flowed through my mind as if they were my own. I heard vile whispers and curses, could see Odium’s dark visage pushing back at me. I felt as if the inside of my skull were aflame.
A scream ripped itself from my throat as I pushed, hard, against the minds battling with my own. I had full control, but I didn’t know how long it would last. The first thing I did was open all their hands to drop the knives. I used what remained of my power to cut at the tethers holding my own friends immobile. One last burst of energy and Silence was broken. I blinked, completely dazed, my vision fading in and of darkness. The ringing of steel and cries of pain seemed to come from another world. I was aware, dimly, of my friends surrounding me, fighting to protect me.
Suddenly, clarity returned, and I was met with Valance’s gloating smile as he pressed in close. I feebly reached for the Xenofold, but I couldn’t grasp its power. I felt the power, but it just passed through, like fine sand falling through fingers.
“This is the end for you, Elekim,” he said. “To think, you might have been more powerful than even me in the new world to come.” He clicked his tongue chidingly. “No matter.”
He brought the blade down, which I feebly parried aside. His next strike would land home, and there was nothing I could do about it. Everyone seemed to be occupied with their own battles. If I couldn’t stop him . . .
“Hey.”
Valance quickly spun around. It was Shara. Valance cried out in anger, and I felt the Xenofold come to life within me, even as Shara joined the battle. My friends were pulling me into the bond they shared. Reinvigorated, I raised my sword and instantly cut down the older priest, who was too focused on Isaru to pay attention to me. Blood pooled his red robes where I stabbed him in the gut.
I pulled the blade free and hurried to help my friends, only to find that my assistance wasn’t needed. The only priest left standing was Valance, while the others held up their hands in surrender.
We had two choices, as I saw it. Take revenge and kill them all or use them to ensure we got out of this place alive. As satisfying as the former would have been, we had a bigger battle to fight. Valance and the High Priests of Colonia would have to receive their comeuppance another day.
“Lay down your sword, Valance,” I said. “It’s over.”
He nodded, letting go of his sword with a clatter to the floor, and raised his hands above his head like the rest.
“Tell them to open the door,” I said. “Tell them, or all of you die.”
Valance waited a moment, his breaths labored, before calling out. “Unbar the door. Open it.”
As commanded, the door was unbarred and opened, revealing several Peacemakers watching helplessly as we held their leaders hostage. From out in the hall came the sounds of shouting and panic. The dragons were on the attack.
“He controls us, now,” Valance said, wiping a trickle of blood from his lip.
“Disavow him,” I said.
He shook his head. “It’s too late for that.”
Before I could respond, his body began shaking. Similarly, the other priests started shaking as well. The same thing was happening to them as had happened to Seeker Haris. Odium no longer had a use for them, as they had failed in killing me. They gave high, inhuman screams, their shrieks penetrating and shaking me to my core as their bodies convulsed madly, as their ligaments tore from the strain. The Peacemakers looked on in shock and were completely distracted.
We would get no other chance. I grabbed hold of Isaru and Isa, both nearby, and pushed them toward the door, while Shara and Fiona got the message and followed. The soldiers didn’t offer any resistance, but I stayed beside them, ready to defend my friends should they care to avenge their dying leaders. Thankfully, it seemed as if they didn’t.
The High Priests’ screams followed us out into the banquet hall, which was now completely abandoned, with dishes in disarray, chairs askew, and tables toppled.
The entry hall was a chaos of soldiers. I knew there was little time before word spread about the High Priests. Of course, they would blame us for their deaths and not realize that we had been the victims. We had a few minutes, at most, to get out of here without fighting. We ran through the Bastion, straight for the front doors, taking advantage of the confusion to reach the courtyard, which was nothing less than a battlefield.
Dead soldiers lay on the stones while others cowered in the corners. Dragons swooped down, picking off any who stood alone. In the sky above, Elekai dragons fought against the Colonian Dragonriders.
To me, Flame.
I reached out to find him, and in an instant, he was diving down toward the courtyard, with the dragons of my friends following close behind. As soon as all had landed, we mounted and took to the sky, joining the battle above.
I was still weak from the fight, but enough of me had recovered from the shared power of our bond to the Xenofold. If the Colonians weren’t going to volunteer their dragons, then we would have to take them by force.
I made Flame fly high above the battle, so I could survey everything below me. I waited as the Xenofold’s power was marshaled, until it was enough to grab hold of each dragon and connect them to the Xenofold, gifting them with the minds denied to them by birth. This draw of power was coming mostly from my friends, though I was the one directing its flow. The dragons we turned were told to fly away from the battle, even with their riders on them, as I ordered the Elekai dragons below to just defend themselves and avoid the fighting if they could.
By the time the Dragonguard started to realize what was happening, it was too late. My friends were now drawing as much power as they physically could. Nothing could stop the avalanche now that it had begun. It was more power than I had ever felt in my life, and hardly a drop of it was through me. The dragons were instantly converted to our side, whatever mental barriers they had disintegrated in an instant.
Within minutes, every dragon below was given a name, a mind, a personality. For the first time, they were individuals. For the first time, they were everything a dragon was supposed to be.
Like us, they were part of the Xenofold.
Chapter 13
We flew until we were out of the city, an army of dragons almost three hundred strong. Things were far from perfect, however. The Dragonguard themselves clung desperately to their mounts, having no idea why they no longer obeyed. I still wasn’t sure what to do with them. Combined with the dragons left behind with Lord Harrow, we would have over five hundred dragons when including the Annajen and Makai Dragonriders as well, a number that seemed inconceivable. As high as that number was, it still paled in comparison to Odium’s numbers, which, if the High Priests of Colonia were to be believed, was thousands of dragons.
But that couldn’t be my focus right now. The riders had to be dealt with, in one way or another.
I waited until we were several miles away from Colonia. The entire army of dragons glided down until we landed on the same large mesa they rested on before going into the city.
I landed Flame near where the Colonians’ dragons had settled down. As soon as they were on the ground, they dismounted and drew their swords, their faces stern and brave. From the way they stood, with resolute faces, most young and strong, they believed this would be their last stand.
“You may command your dragons to kill us,” one brave rider said, “and we may be defeated. I promise you this, Elekai. We won’t die easily.”
I recognized him to be the same one I had passed on my way into Colonia. I also took him t
o be their leader, from the way the others gathered behind him, swords at the ready.
“I hope not,” I said. “I hope all of you live for many years more.”
They went quiet at this and looked completely confused. I couldn’t help but smile at the reaction.
“I will need help – all of your help. Join me. Help me fight against Odium. Don’t fight for those old men.” They were dead, anyway, but I could break that piece of news to them later. “Fight for someone who actually cares enough to lead you into a battle worth fighting. A battle for our very existence, a battle for saving the entire world.”
“Why should we help you?” the same rider asked, his bright blue eyes flashing angrily. “You possessed our beasts with madness. Whatever Elekai devilry you did, undo it. At once!”
“She did nothing but awaken their senses for the first time in their lives,” Isa said, hotly. “They are one with the Xenofold, now. As it should be.”
The rider didn’t have a response for this. I doubted he even knew what the Xenofold was.
“You have two options, as I see it,” I said. “Join me in my fight against Odium of the Dark, who will destroy us all if we do nothing. Or return to your homes, waiting for the end. Without your dragons. They will be more than happy to fight for Elekim. They understand what will happen if we stand by and do nothing.”
Several of the dragons snorted and stamped their feet at this, while their riders looked up at them nervously.
I tried to meet all their eyes one by one – an impossible task, since there were about a hundred of them. I knew there was no way all of them could even hear me, with the wind as it was. But the ones who were closest would carry my message to the rest. And even when they heard my message, I knew there was little hope they would even listen. I had just stolen their dragons, after all, from their perspective. Why should they listen to me?
“Two things I know for sure,” one of the other riders said, this one older with graying hair. “I could not command my dragon now if my life depended on it, and I wouldn’t be separated from Highwind for anything. If the dragon goes with you, but I do not, then I would lose myself.”
Several of the other riders were nodding their heads. I hadn’t expected any to be willing to follow me, but it wasn’t about following me. It was about their dragons, with whom some of these men had shared a bond for many years.
“How long have you known Highwind?” I asked.
“More than ten years now,” the rider said. “I wouldn’t abandon him for anything.”
“You don’t have to,” I said. I looked around at the other riders. “None of you do. If I could only have your dragons speak to you, then you would know the truth. You would know why we fight, and you would lend your lances without a second thought.” I pointed my chin back in the direction of Colonia. “That chaos in the Red Bastion was started by the High Priests trying to kill us, when they invited us here to discuss our alliance and plan against the Radaskim. They proved faithless. I know you feel that we’ve stolen what is rightfully yours, but we can’t win this fight against Odium unless we have your dragons. And if we had you as well, then you would be most welcome. The lances of Colonia are feared, even by the Elekai. Don’t use them to support the corrupt men who rule you. Take your lances, take your dragons, and fight for us in the only fight that’ll ever truly matter in your lives!”
“They said that you are of Odium,” the older man said, his face a mask of skepticism.
“I fight against him,” I said. “The Elekai are people just like you, just trying to survive the coming storm. And the storm is coming.”
“Our options, then,” the older man said, “are to come with you and the dragons you stole from us, or to walk home on our own two legs.”
“That’s the way it seems now, yes,” I said. “But come with me, and I promise, you will understand the reason for our fight, the reason for my actions.” I paused to consider my next words. “Up here, the Colonians can’t reach us. I’ll give you an hour to think about it, but I want your answer no later than that.”
* * *
We waited as they conferred quietly, the sun lowering in the western sky all the while. They debated with muted whispers as much as shouting. Many pointed and stared at me angrily, while others seemed to be trying to convince the others that there might be truth in what I was saying.
At least, that was what I figured they were talking about. For all I knew, they were discussing how best to kill us, weighing their chances against our dragons.
After about an hour passed, I was about to be approached by the middle-aged captain, who I figured to be their leader. He offered his hand with a grim expression.
“Captain Dailyn,” he said gruffly. “We’ve decided.”
I watched him carefully and waited for him to continue.
“Though it might be our deaths, we of the Dragonguard promise to accompany you to the Red Wild long enough to determine the truth of your words. We would never be parted from our mounts, and we don’t mean to see you take them while we walk home. But we promise no more than that.”
It only took me a moment to think about it. “That’s fair.”
“We want control of our dragons,” he said. “As it was before.”
“That’s impossible,” I said. “The dragons will only bear you if they consent to bear you. The only reason they would do that is if I ask them to, and they sense no ill will from you or your men.”
“Ill will?” Captain Dailyn asked, unbelieving. “I would never do anything to harm my dragon. Nor would any of my men.”
“I am Elekim, head of all the Elekai,” I said. “All who are Elekai answer to me, and that includes dragons. I have the power to give life in the Xenofold, and to take it away.” I reached my mind toward the captain’s dragon, who came forward to nuzzle his large head against my hand. “I gave them life in the Xenofold, as every dragon has a right to. If you cannot accept that new life, then these dragons will never let you ride them again. They consider that ill will.” I watched Dailyn for a reaction. “Do you understand that?”
The captain swallowed, and somehow, some way, recognized the truth of these words. He thought then for a long while.
“We will come with you, then,” he said, his face reddening. “If the dragons will consent to fly us.”
That would have to do for now. It was much more than what I had hoped for. “I’m sure they will, Captain Dailyn. We have a long flight ahead of us. Will the men follow you if you command them to do so?”
He nodded. “They will. But if I fly after you, many would consider it treason. But do not make the mistake of thinking that I’m following you. Elekim is queen of the Elekai, but not of the Colonians. I’m going down this path because it is where Highwind is going. And I suspect there may be some truth in what you’re saying.”
“I understand, and that’s completely fair,” I said. “I only ask for a chance to prove myself to you and your men. Can I have that much?”
Captain Dailyn’s lips tightened, but in the end, he nodded. “I will explain the situation to the men, and then we’ll follow you. And I suppose, over the coming days, I will see you prove yourself. Or not.”
“Your men have nothing to fear from me, Captain. What I fear more than anything is if we fight amongst each other instead of the enemy. I hope you feel the same way, or at the very least, come to feel that way soon.”
“Perhaps so, Elekim,” Captain Dailyn said. “Perhaps so.”
Chapter 14
When we flew over the border of the Red Wild, it felt as if I’d returned home. The Xenofold’s presence became strong again, covering me like a familiar blanket. By contrast, the Dragonguard couldn’t hide their fear as they stared wide-eyed at the passing landscape. For all their lives, they had been told that the Red Wild was a place of evil. Such misconceptions couldn’t be undone in a single day, or even in a single week. Convincing Captain Dailyn and his riders to come this far was an accomplishment, but it meant nothing if they
weren’t willing to help us in the end.
We flew on for a few more hours. I let Flame lead the way toward Lord Harrow’s camp. Soon, the light of campfires illumined the ground below. The dragons landed well to the west of the army and went off in search of forage.
Captain Dailyn watched with a troubled expression as his dragon, which had once been wholly his, wandered off with the others.
“Can you still hear his thoughts?” I asked. I wasn’t even sure the captain could do that in the first place, but by his answer, I saw that he could.
“There’s only silence now,” he said. He reached into his jacket, and took out a vial of bright, pink liquid that could be nothing other than Aether. “This formed the bond. But that bond is no longer there.”
It was as I had suspected, then. Like the Hunters, like many of the Colonian priests, the members of the Dragonguard took Aether to tether their dragons’ minds to their own. Now connected to the Xenofold, forming such a bond would be impossible for them.
“Will you still be using that,” I asked, nodding toward the Aether, “now that you will no longer need it?”
He looked at it, considering. “You know, I haven’t thought about that yet. I’ve been taking this since I first started as a junior guard at sixteen.” He chuckled. “I’m thirty-one, now. It was necessary to control the dragons, they told us, and I suppose they were right. And it does feel good to use. Makes you powerful, makes you fight harder.” He shook his head. “What do we have to fight for, now?”
“Aether is a dangerous drug. You know that it was developed here, right?”
Dailyn looked at the vial as if seeing it for the first time. “That . . . doesn’t surprise me. This seems something like the Elekai would make.”
Several of the riders, by this point, had gathered around me, along with my friends.
“Aether is Odium’s tool,” I said. “He uses it to control people.”
“I haven’t felt anything of that nature,” he said. “Just power. I could stop now and be no worse for it.”