“Can you stop it?” It was a plea more than a question.
“Given your reaction when I approach, I fear for your life if I were to take it. As it is, you’re at risk just by being here.”
“Then why give it to me in the first place?!”
“I didn’t. It was stolen from me. And, as you so vehemently insisted, your grandfather was the one who gave it to you.”
“He would never have done so of his own accord,” I insisted. “He wouldn’t hurt me. He loves me!”
“The two are not mutually exclusive. It is often those we love that we hurt the most; whether we mean to or not.” Her eyes softened, and I got the feeling that she spoke from experience.
“Whether your grandfather knew what it was he possessed, I cannot say. As for the thief who sold it to him, that I can answer not only the who, but the why. That is, if you care to know it.”
“It has to do with what you said earlier, about my destiny, doesn’t it?”
She nodded, flicking her tail in unison.
“Then I suppose you’ll tell me whether I care to know or not,” I replied curtly. I was growing tired of this back and forth, and my irritation only fed my suspicion that I was being toyed with.
“Like a game of cat and mouse,” The Darkness—Anhedonia—whatever it was, affirmed my suspicions. The dragon was merely playing with her food. Perhaps I could run — The sound of one of Nova’s hoof stomping against the stone floor brought me back to my senses. Without knowing, I had stood up as if to leave. The beast leaned into me, preventing me from making a choice that would have surely ended in my own demise.
“You have to fight it, or you will surely perish,” Fiora warned. “I cannot take his burden from you and spare your life. Nor can I chance releasing you under his control. Anhedonia cannot be set free.”
There it was then, the truth. The dragon was biding her time, deciding whether I could fulfill whatever purpose she had yet to reveal to me. If I failed her test, I would die. But if I passed, then what? What kind of quest would await me? What doom had I marched myself into? I said nothing, as I sat back down. The Deyanian laid beside me and rested her head in my lap. The voice of the Darkness was still. I ran my hands absentmindedly through her mane as I waited to hear my fate.
Chapter Seven
“The elven Prince came to me, not long before you approached the age of Awakening, seeking Anhedonia.” She began. “I cannot say that I was not tempted, at first." She stretched her wings and adjusted the way her weight was distributed on her pile of treasure. Gold coins clinked against her scales as she did so, and more than a handful rolled down the massive pile. I watched her eye them as they landed between us. Smoke rose from her nostrils and the tip of her spear-headed tail flicking back and forth, curling in on itself and then out again like a whip.
"Not all Mystics get along" a voice echoed in my mind. This time it was not painful, nor tainted with the voice of Anhedonia. It was a more like a passing thought, something I knew meant more, but that I couldn't hold on to. It fluttered away as quickly as it came.
I knew better than to reach for the gold.
"Tempted to seek my revenge. It wasn't that long ago, after all, that your ancestors held me captive. Used me to do their bidding. Shackled and beat me."
So that is where her scars came from. I looked her over solemnly. Around her neck, ankles, and tail the scales were dull and grey. Part of me ached for her, nearly as much as it feared her. At least my captors had been kind. At least in their mind, they were doing what was best for me. For all of us.
And how had I responded to their kindness? I had lashed out in anger and run away. It would probably serve me right if the dragon ate me.
“But even the promise of revenge was not enough to make me forget my oath,” Fiora continued. “I was sworn to guard Anhedonia until the end of his days—or mine. Whichever comes first.” She chuckled to herself. “Ah. But we both know who it will be. I am no ‘spring chicken’ as they say.”
I wondered who exactly “they” were. I had certainly never heard the saying myself. Fiora seemed to have retreated into herself, and she was quiet a long while. Puffing smoke rings out her nostrils once more. I sat silently until I couldn’t stand it any longer.
“To whom did you make such an oath? Was it the Professor? Why would a dragon swear allegiance to an elf?”
“That, is a story for another day.” She said. It was a warning. “What matters is that the oath was made, and I had no intention of breaking it. But he is not easily dismissed; that one.”
“You mean Cazlyn’s father?”
Fiora nodded, “Cain. He is stubborn, and quick to anger. It has gotten him, and those he loved, into a lot of trouble.”
“Why did he want Anhedonia?”
“Because he was sure that The Darkness would stop you.”
“Stop me?” From what? My mind swam as it tried to piece things together. There were too many layers to sift through on my own.
“It is no secret, I think, that your father’s people have their own plans for you.” The way she said it made it sound much more sinister. I shuddered.
“T-they want me to rule, someday.” I tried to keep my voice steady.
“They want more than that, child, and we both know it.” She leaned in slowly, watching me. The shrill noise filled my ears slowly as if in warning. If she moved any closer, I was sure I would pass out again. Still, I did my best not to flinch, locking eyes with her instead. She held my gaze for what felt like an eternity.
“They want what’s in your head,” she nodded slightly before pulling away. I had passed the test. “Knowledge they have long forgotten. Secrets that were intentionally hidden from them.”
“Hidden?”
“Surely you’re familiar with what Ludlum took from the elves?”
I had heard the story. All children had. Just when my mother’s people were ready to surrender, the journal of an old elven ruler containing information about the Mystic races had been found. It was the foundation of their education system.
“I have not been schooled in the way of my mother’s people.”
“Aye. It doesn’t mean you don’t carry it just the same.”
Of course. If I had gone through the Awakening on schedule, they’d have had access to the journal through the passing of memory on my human side. That is, if I inherited those memories. It was a big if. No one could be sure how it would work in a hybrid. Something still didn’t sit right.
“Why would they go to such trouble over me, when Mother could give them the same information?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
I shook my head.
“Because she can’t. None of them can. None of them have the true story.” She laughed, “Do you honestly think Ludlum would allow his people that sort of knowledge? That much power? No, he gave just enough of the truth to be convincing, and a lot of lies which have cost many lives.”
“Then how would they expect me to help them at all?!”
“This is not the first time that they have meddled in the affairs of your family. The knowledge they seek was not from the stolen journal, but information gathered by your grandmother when she worked for the Alliance.”
I gasped. I didn’t know much about my grandmother. Only that she had died when Mother was very young. I suppose it wasn’t too much of a stretch to think that she would be part of the Alliance herself. After all, grandfather was.
Grandfather!
“Why would grandfather give me this?” I demanded, holding the necklace away from my chest by its chain. I was done listening to stories. I wanted answers.
“Because he is a fool, of course!” Fiora’s teeth clashed together as she spoke, setting off sparks. “The idiot Prince stole it from me and sold it to him. Heaven knows what he got in exchange. Something equally dangerous, I fear.”
What Cazlyn’s father got in exchange was of little concern to me right now.
; “It doesn’t make sense,” I said. “Why would Cain care about what the Alliance was planning?”
“They intended to use you to expose the weaknesses of the Dark Breeds,” she said as if that should make everything fall into place.
“So? That seems like something you’d be more concerned with.”
Nova snorted at me in warning. I was treading dangerous ground.
“Yes, well. You know what they say about those who assume?” Fiora raised an eyebrow.
I swallowed hard, shaking my head.
“That they are feeble-minded.”
My face grew hot. Feeble-minded my behind!
A rush of imagery filled my mind. Stars on a clear night, the smell of grass after the rain. “Calm. Be still.” Nova was right. The last thing either of us needed was for me to lose my temper and get us both roasted.
“I was not raised with the rest of my flight.” She let out a heavy sigh. “I was hand-raised, from a whelp, by the Professor. He had hopes that they would take me in, once I was strong enough, but…” she left the rest unsaid. “Naturally I have little care for those that I have never known.”
More like those who cast her out, I thought better than to say so out loud.
“The elf, on the other hand. He has a stake in what happens to the Dark breeds because of her.”
I blinked and found myself somewhere else. A dark room. A woman stood in its center. When she turned around…
“Thana,” I said aloud, opening my eyes. I was back in the cave. Or rather, I had never left. It was an odd feeling, recalling something on my own. I wasn’t quite sure how I had summoned the memory. Perhaps it was because it was one I had seen before. One that Anhedonia had shown me.
“So, you know of her, then?”
“Yes.” I said. “And no. I’ve seen her, once. In a memory. One the Darkness showed me.”
“Thana. Previously Leora, Wife of Cain.”
“She is one of the Changed,” I beat Fiora to the punch. She bowed her head in affirmation.
It was true, then. The vision I had was not just a dream, but a memory. Cazlyn’s heritage was flawed, just as much as mine. I couldn’t help but feel slightly vindicated. The thought made my face flush with shame.
“The Alliance plans to force the hand of the Dark Breeds. Make them fight against their will. Naturally the Prince has no desire to put his beloved through more trauma.”
“But why won’t they fight? If everyone’s way of life is threatened, what does it matter that you’re not exactly on the same side? The enemy of my enemy is my friend, and the like?”
“It is less about what is between the Alliance and the Dark breeds, and more about fear,” The dragon said solemnly. “The Alliance fears the unknown—whether they could stand against Ludlum’s men on their own. But the others, they fear what they already know. A thing that other Mystics cannot understand.”
“What do you mean?”
“Remember that the Amasai are four. Four burdens, and four guardians. The one you bear—”
“Anhedonia. What of the others?” It was as if pieces to a puzzle were falling into place in my mind.
“Imari. Anger. Guarded by the Professor’s best pupil. I believe you know her as High Priestess.”
Eoma. Memories of the Priestess flashed through my mind. The way she flinched sometimes when we spoke. The flash of red in her eyes. If Anhedonia was able to affect me from within his prison, then it made sense that the Priestess would also feel the effects of the burden she carried.
Suddenly her brazenness made sense. I wondered if that was why she was so revered, so feared, among her people. Not only was she in possession of The Gift, and advisor to the King, but she held in her possession one of the most dangerous weapons known to her people.
“Avadari. Greed. The professors most foolish placement, if you ask me,” Fiora continued. “That one, was placed into the care of the human king.”
“King Ludlum?” I demanded. “Was he mad?! Who in their right mind would give him that sort of power?”
“Remember, your mother’s people were not always at odds with Mystics. Your ancestors came bearing the mantle of peace, at least at first. The Professor underestimated Ludlum’s weakness. It was not long before greed overtook him.”
“So, the war was his fault then, the Professors?”
“In a way, you could say that. Many blamed him after the fact. He sought to make amends for his misdeed, but it only solidified the fate of all our people, in the end.”
“How so?”
“The fourth burden. Fear. That one, the Professor placed in the care of his brother. Some might say that in doing so he sealed the fate of the Kingdoms.”
I was no expert in dragon facial expressions, but I had been watching her long enough to detect the sorrow in her eyes. Whether it was for love of the Professor, or the burden of guarding the embodiment of sorrow itself I wasn’t sure. Perhaps a mixture of both.
“You see the Professor’s brother was the King. Your great-grandfather.”
“The one who made the journal?” I asked, in awe. The Burdens were woven more deeply in history than I could have ever imagined.
“The very same. It is easy, in retrospect, to see how foolish it was. How it put the entire kingdom at risk. Some might even argue that, without Metuza’s influence the journal would never have been.” She waved a claw dismissively, “Not that such musings change anything.”
“Ludlum’s men got ahold of his journal,” I finished the story for her. “The records he kept of all the races.”
“Yes,” her voice was deep. It seemed to have aged in the short amount of time we had been sitting together. “But that was not all. Hidden with the records was the fourth Amasai. Haven’t you wondered why death has not claimed him? He has lived far beyond the norm for your people.”
“They say he is favored by the Gods,” I said.
“Preserved by their pets is more like it.”
“Because of the King.”
“He left his burden unguarded, though in truth he had little choice.”
I knew better than to contradict her but couldn’t help but wonder at the hypocrisy of it all. She must have sensed my doubt because she answered the question that I hadn’t dared to ask.
“He was dying. He had no choice. Knowing his own kind were preparing his execution…there was no one left that he could trust.”
“What about you?! Or Eoma? Any of the others could have taken it and then we wouldn’t be in this mess!”
“How powerful it must feel, to see life through the eyes of youthful ignorance.” It was not a compliment. “Surely you know by now the Amasai must remain separated. Even within their prisons, they feed off one another. No, there was no one else who could have taken it.” The last part was spoken more to herself than to me.
“But if Eoma carries one…”
“Then they surely set each other off. Played off of your weaknesses. For her it would masquerade as anger. And for you.” She waved a claw dismissively. “You can’t say you didn’t feel the effects. After all, you ran away, didn’t you?”
I wanted to believe that I had fled of my own free will. That there was something inside me that had drawn a line between right and wrong and refused to cross it. But I couldn’t. At least, not with any certainty.
Foolish girl. My eyes stung with tears. It may have been the memory of the Darkness’s voice echoing in my mind, but this time the thought was my own. I ducked my head down to hide my shame and ran my fingers through Nova’s mane.
Fiora’s voice softened, “It is a lot to ask of any child, to bear such a burden.” I got the feeling that I wasn’t the only one she was referring to. How old had she been when the Professor decided her fate? I had more sense than to ask.
Nova whinnied. I patted her head, reassuring her, but it wasn’t me she was addressing.
“Yes, you’re right,” Fiora answered. “That is more than enough for today
. The Prince will be back before long with a new kill. I suggest you get some rest. Tomorrow we start your new training.”
“Training for what?”
“My dear I thought you’d have guessed it by now,” There was a glimmer in her eye that was almost mischievous. “Training to save the world.”
Chapter Eight
Oddly enough, I slept better that night than I had since leaving my home. Nova remained close, and the warmth of her body against mine brought comfort, chasing away the visions brought on by Anhedonia. Instead, as I slept, I dreamt of becoming a hero. I reckon that every lonely outcast child dreams of someday becoming something great. I was near enough to the age of outgrowing such fantasies that the idea terrified me, but not so near that I wasn’t also intrigued.
I’d expected to be trained in combat, like a great warrior. I envisioned myself clad in leather armor, sword and shield in hand as I worked my way through an obstacle course in the woods, leaping through fire and dodging arrows. Nova ran at my side, warning me of upcoming dangers as her mane billowed in the wind behind her.
The reality was not nearly as glamorous.
I woke reluctantly, fighting off the heavy feeling that told me to roll over and go back to sleep. Harsh whispers from the back of the cave convinced me otherwise.
“—rescue the boy, or all will be lost.”
“Playing with the Master’s toys again? I thought only those with the gift could see the future in the stone. I don’t recall it being a gift bestowed upon lizards.”
“This is the way it will be Cain, or so help me—”
“Fine. Have it your way. But it will be nothing but trouble, and when the time comes, know that I will do what is necessary with or without your blessing.”
Cain was back! I fought to keep my breath steady so as not to give myself away. I couldn’t be certain what they were fighting over, but I suspected it had something to do with me, and I was sure that talk would cease if they knew I’d awoken.
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