by Unknown
“I agree,” he nodded to the lions who were already guarding the vanara. “We'll keep an eye on them.”
“Alright then,” I turned back to the naga man. “Show me where they've got Constantin and Rhiannon.”
“This way,” the naga smiled and we left the room, only to pull up short when Constantin and Rhiannon came down the hallway with the other members of Dark Horses.
“Well never mind then,” I chuckled. “I should have known you'd go after Constantin first,” I said to Rain.
“It's not over yet,” Rain said grimly. “We just slipped through the battle to make sure we got Constantin and Rhiannon out while we could.”
“Right,” I nodded and looked over to the freed nagas. “Let's go help your people free you.”
The nagas shouted as we rushed out to the battle with my Intare and the horse shifters. It was bright outside, with lightning, fire, and bursts of sun magic going off, and I had to take a moment to adjust to it. When my vision cleared, I saw that the battle was still going strong. The fight seemed to be going our way but a victor wasn't clear yet.
“I think it may be time for me to shift into full dragon form,” I cast a look towards my men and they growled in approval. “Alright, break up into two groups and come at our enemies from behind. I'm going to see what I can do from the sky. Nagas,” I turned to the waiting snake-shifters. “Go with the Intare, they'll help you get to your people.”
“Kadru!” One of them cried out joyously and pointed off to the right.
I followed the direction of his hand and saw her. She was magnificent, a giant king cobra, or should I say queen cobra? She was as big as my dragon form and she used her size to great advantage. As we watched, her tail lifted and fell, crushing four vanaras beneath it as she simultaneously bit the head off a riksha. She spit the head out and lifted herself up into the air before falling upon her enemies with a graceful fluidity.
“Oh wow,” I breathed. “I don't know why you guys are so impressed by my dragon when you have her.”
I stepped into an open space and shifted. The shiver of magic coasted over my skin as I stretched out into my dragon form, limbs lengthening and spine cracking with pleasure. I lifted my golden head and roared. My roar was echoed by both my lions and the nagas.
I leapt into the air with the confidence of the young and stupid. The thought of defeat never even entered my mind. That's what happens when I freed my dragon, her personality took over and a big part of her personality was cockiness. She simply couldn't conceive the possibility of death or defeat. Which is kind of ironic when you think about how dragons almost went extinct. Still, being that big and powerful gives you a bit of a god complex. Okay, maybe not the best choice of words.
Whatever the case, I went into the air without an ounce of fear and I began to make a significant dent in the enemy line. So it was particularly shocking when Hanuman suddenly turned towards me and cast a spear in my direction. A second later, a burning pain shot through my side and then I was falling rapidly towards the ground.
I fell into the trees, branches beating at me and breaking in quick succession. The pain intensified with the fall, the spear sinking further into me before snapping off mid-way. I rolled to my back and screamed, the agony shooting up my chest. I clawed at the spear, finally getting a grip around it and yanking it free. My head swam, making it difficult to focus on the wound and the temptation to just lay back and black out was almost overwhelming.
I mustered my focus and sent a breath of fire over my wounded side. I felt it start to heal but it had been exceptionally deep and was going to take another go. I took a deep breath but couldn't release it, I was just so tired. I laid my head back and stared up at the broken branches above me. They rustled like arms waved in warning. The sound of battle was far off, a mere echo of violence.
Then I recognized the feeling of lethargy within me. It was a dreamy haze that was overtaking my mind. A haze that I'd experienced before. Even the strength of my dragon's will couldn't overpower the drug drifting through my veins. Net. Hanuman must have laced the spear with it.
I sighed, feeling the fire dampen within me and realizing that I didn't really care. I felt like I was watching a movie, observing events that were happening to someone else. I casually concluded that if I'd merely been a dragon-sidhe, Hanuman's spear could have killed me even without the Net. All it would have taken was a stronger throw and the weapon, with its wooden shaft, would have pierced my heart. That would mean death for any fire fey.
So that was how the dragons died. So powerful and yet one well aimed spear could bring us down. Well not us, I was a little more than a dragon-sidhe and even had the spear pierced my heart, I would have had a chance of recovering through my god magic. As it was, the Net was preventing me from even wanting to heal myself. I knew it but couldn't seem to muster the energy to fight it. My eyes started to close but then I suddenly remembered the baby and they shot back open again. Concern for my child broke through the fog of Net when nothing else could.
One more try. I inhaled and breathed a length of fire that curled up into my wound and healed me instantly. Then I laid there panting, exhausted from the effort of both healing myself and battling the god drug. Until something caught my attention. There was a fight going on to my left. It sounded small, perhaps only two people, but it was intense.
I fluttered my eyes open and rolled my head to the side, peering through a large bush. Then I frowned and tried to get to my feet. Net pulsed through me, turning my already exhausted limbs to jelly, and I fell back down. I breathed deep and focused. My small victory against the drug had weakened it and with concentrated effort, I was finally able to struggle to my feet. I staggered forward and every step cost me dearly. I kept going though, because Ull was one of the fighters... and he was losing.
He must have fallen back into the jungle and become separated from the others. I don't know if Jambavant had somehow managed to separate him on purpose but he'd definitely made use of it. Culled from the herd, Ull made easier pickings and his bow had been overcome with a rush attack. Jambavant was sporting a few arrows in his bear hide but none of them were in fatal locations.
Then I saw Ull stagger under the weight of the massive bear. He fell to the jungle floor, where I lost sight of him. All I could see was Jambavant's paw rising and falling over and over. I screeched and found the energy to run towards them, crushing everything that stood in my way. Fear pushed my body forward faster and faster but when I reached them, it was too late.
Ull's head lay two feet away from his body, his beautiful blue eyes sightless and fading to dull as I watched. I roared and swung a claw at Jambavant, who had already been making his retreat. He wasn't fast enough but I was still recovering from the Net, so I merely scored his stomach instead of gutting him.
I breathed in deep, intending to burn him alive, when the child within me took over. The stress and drug had been too much and just as with Guirmean's child, my baby reacted to his mother's anxiety. The fire I'd been intending to release, manifested all on its own in a circle around Jambavant. But it didn't stop there. It burst upwards in a giant fountain of flame, so hot that it instantly reduced Jambavant to cinders.
Anger overtook me, the remaining traces of Net melting away under its intensity, and I looked out onto the battlefield with a new desire... to burn. I barely had the control to focus the attack, my fury was so overpowering. The ball of fire in my belly became an all consuming thing, my element overtaking all of my other magic. I stomped forward and the sounds of battle faded away completely. All that existed was the fire, the rising heat which only wanted one thing; revenge. With a mere thought, the flames appeared, burning all who I set my narrowed gaze upon. It was out of control, too consuming, and I finally regained enough sense to fight the child within me.
It flailed about suddenly and I realized that this had been too much for it in its unbalanced state. I should have made the choice, should have given it the security of a solid soul before I'd gon
e to war carrying it within me. Now it was paying the price for my indecision. It was burning itself out, like a comet entering the atmosphere.
I fell to the earth screaming, clutching at my belly as my wings folded in around us protectively. I had to choose now, give it the strength it needed, but I couldn't focus enough to reach within myself. I gasped and fought for control while my baby burned inside me and all I could think was; the child is Arach's. It was a dragon, a miracle for my race and kingdom, and it would die before it could take its first breath.
The pain became too much and I suddenly splintered away from my body, rising up out of myself as if my soul were attached to a chain and someone had pulled it out. I was shooting through the Aether then, so fast that I couldn't take it all in. I only had the barest glimmer of a feeling that I wasn't alone. Someone was leading me, helping me. Pulling on that chain.
“Alaric,” I whispered as I came to a stop within the Void.
“Yes,” he stood before me as a man. It was the first time I'd seen him as such. Our original meeting had been through Aradia and I'd only been able to glimpse the power he was made of. Now I was able to see the form he'd chosen for himself, even if it was only an image, not an actual body.
He was tall and muscled but not overly so. His hair was midnight black with the sparkle of stars within it and his eyes were a shifting opalescent mist. His face was rounded and kind, with a firm chin that gave strength to the kindness and a pert nose which betrayed his mischievous side. His wide lips parted in a smile as he opened his arms to give me a hug.
“You look good,” I joked as I went forward and hugged him. A sharp jolt of energy went through me as we touched and I shivered.
“Thank you,” he nodded as he pulled away. “You looked like you needed some help back there.”
“Are you trying to tell me you didn't plan this?” I narrowed my eyes on him.
“Not this exactly,” he grinned a little. “A new path has presented itself in a most timely fashion. We must discuss your child.”
“My child!” I blinked in amazement. How had I forgotten the reason I'd been in trouble in the first place? “I need to go back right now!”
“Your child is in stasis without your souls inside your body,” he waved away my concern. “And time flows differently here, do not concern yourself with it or the battle.”
“Alright but make it snappy,” I calmed a little. “What did you want to talk about?”
“It's special, you know,” his eyes sparkled as he grinned.
“Well, I kinda figured, I smirked. “At least I know who the father is now.”
“Did you ever really doubt it?” He lifted one of his dark brows.
“I guess not,” I sighed, “but there was always the chance that it could have been fathered by one of the others.”
“No, there wasn't,” he chuckled. “This baby was meant to be and it was meant to be fathered by Arach. It was even meant to avenge its own death.”
“Now you're talking in riddles,” I frowned, “and I don't like hearing about its death before it's even begun its life.”
“Not like that,” he shook his head and then waved a hand out behind him. “You've come here to make a choice but the choice isn't really yours, Vervain. The child within you has half of a fey essence already and when you give him your fey essence, he will be one hundred percent dragon-sidhe.”
“He?” I lifted a brow.
“Yes,” another saucy smile. “Congratulations, it's a boy.”
“Arach will love that,” I smirked.
“Ah, but there is a chance to make him even more than that,” Al looked pointedly behind him and shock rushed through me when I saw Ull standing there, looking at me with a bit of confusion.
“Ull?” I looked back at Alaric.
“Like I said,” Alaric shrugged. “The choice isn't really yours.”
“You mean?” I looked at Ull again. “But my child is fey.”
“So is Aradia,” Alaric shrugged. “Don't you want him to have as much power as you can give him? A god soul and a fey essence will give him both elemental and god magic. He will also become another bridge between the gods and the fey. If you wanted to, you could even give him a human soul as well. Make him a trinity being like yourself.”
“No,” I gasped. “I'd never want that for my child. Pulled in three different directions? No.”
“I kind of thought you'd say that,” Alaric laughed. “So give him just the two souls.”
“But Ull,” I met my friend's eyes again.
“Who better?” Alaric shrugged. “Would you prefer a complete stranger?”
“I don't know,” I frowned. “I guess not.”
“Then why don't you go ask him what he'd prefer,” he jerked his head in Ull's direction.
I walked over to Ull in a daze and when I was finally standing before him, it was he who embraced me and brought me out of it.
“Vervain,” he laughed. “Why am I not surprised to see you here?”
“Ull,” it suddenly became clear to me, the choice I was meant to offer him. “I've come to make you an offer.”
“An offer eh?” He lifted a thick, blonde brow.
“You know I could find you a new body and bring you back,” I began but before I was even finished, he was shaking his head.
“I've lived a long time, V,” he sighed. “I'm tired. I think it's time for a fresh start. We gods don't get to experience that anymore. We've extended our lives to the point where we've almost become as stagnant as the fey. I don't want to be stagnant anymore. Kaitlin was right, death is a necessary part of life. Being here has opened my eyes. Life is meant to be a cycle and it's about time for me to start a new one.”
“Which brings me to the second part of my offer,” I swallowed hard. “I happen to have a fresh start waiting back there, inside myself.”
He frowned a moment before comprehension seemed to dawn and his eyes widened.
“Are you saying you want me to become your son?”
“You wouldn't have your memories,” I said. “It would still be a fresh start but one that you chose. You would also be born fey.”
“But my soul is Atlantean,” he frowned.
“And it will remain so,” I nodded, “but it will be bonded to the elemental essence already within my child.”
“Won't that be a sort of death for your child?” He was back to frowning.
“Not at all,” Alaric was suddenly beside us. “Fey essences are a little different than souls. There's no personalty to them until they come forth into the world and awaken. Until then, they are a piece of the element, waiting to be formed into consciousness. When a fey dies, he reverts to this element and disperses among it, losing that consciousness. You would actually be giving her child a chance for eternal life. Even if it dies, if you die, you will be born again... with your elemental essence attached to you for safekeeping.”
“Whoa,” he and I both whispered.
“See, you two are perfect for each other,” Alaric laughed.
“And you do owe me a mother,” Ull's eyes had gone soft. “I think you'd do a better job than she did.”
“I would be honored to be your mother,” I whispered.
“Just one more thing,” he went serious. “Kaitlin. Would you tell her what happened? Go and see her, let her know that I'm beginning again and that I'll carry my love for her into my next life.”
“Oh, Ull,” I sighed and shook my head. “Are you sure that would be best for her? Maybe it would be better to just tell her you died and let her move on.”
“I love her,” he protested, “And I know my love is strong enough to stay with me.”
“And then what?” I asked gently. “She waits for you to grow up? You're asking a lot of a human woman.”
“Yeah,” he frowned. “Maybe you're right but don't you think she deserves to know? Shouldn't it be her choice?”
“Fine,” I gave in. “I'll go and see her. How do I even find her?”
; “Dad will help you,” he grinned brightly. “He's met her.” Then Ull grabbed and hugged me tight.
“Keep holding onto her,” Alaric wrapped himself around the both of us. “This ride is going to get a little bumpy.”
Then we were hurtling back through the Aether. I felt myself shooting down into my body but Ull's soul was attached to me and when I sank into my physical shell, he came with me. With Alaric's guidance, I led him into the waiting form of my child. As soon as Ull's soul was absorbed, the baby stopped its thrashing and settled. The fire absorbed back into its tiny body and with it, I sent a piece of my Fire essence. His feyness was made complete and a feeling of peace washed over me but it didn't last for long.
My magic lifted inside me, the three points of its trinity glowing brighter than the rest of my star. I concentrated on it, trying to understand what was happening. The star began to spin slowly, stopping on each point for a moment. The pauses gave me clear images of my three magics and I finally saw what was needed of me.
Another choice.
I needed to choose a magic for Ull, or at least a magic that would influence him. If I didn't, he'd be influenced by all three and become unbalanced. Without a human soul, he wouldn't be able to hold so many magics and it could result in his death.
So I considered what would be best for his life. Hopefully, Arach and I would live for a very long time but if we didn't, he'd be expected to lead the fire fey. For that, he'd need strength and compassion. I smiled as the answer became obvious. There was no more powerful magic than Love and that particular magic came bundled with Lust, Victory, and War. All good things for a king to have control of.
I touched the star, making a clear choice, and the point representing my Love magic started to glow even brighter. It's glow radiated down to my womb, where it illuminated my child. The light seemed to sink into him and subside. Then my star calmed as well, its light fading to a warm glow as my consciousness lifted back to reality.
I opened my eyes to find the battle over, our enemy vanquished, and my men standing over me with anxious expressions. I sighed and shifted back to human, pulling my long hair around me for modesty. Azrael came forward and pulled the cape from his shoulders. He swung the soft material over me and helped me stand.