Fire and Ash (Rise of the Dragons Trilogy Book 1)

by N. R. Hairston

  Edward stumbled back, hitting the ground. His eyes were wide, face full of panic. He pointed from Reid to me. “You have the power of the dragon. Yangos do not possess such power. How did you get it?” His breath was labored, and he looked like he would pass out at any moment.

  The power of the dragon? What in the world did that mean?

  Chapter 11

  I swallowed hard and tried to explain. “We got these powers from the portal hop, remember?”

  He jumped up, a look of disbelief on his face. “But the portal hop does not give you the power of the dragon. The Yango don’t either.” He seemed at a loss for what to say after that.

  Reid and I shared an uneasy look. “Look,” Reid said. “We don’t know much about any of this. We’re not even sure how we ended up here.”

  He came to his feet, and we started to walk again. “I focused on the word ‘help,’ and it brought us to your world, to you I believe.” I wanted him to understand that we were doing the best we could without any real clue how any of this worked. It was frustrating walking in blind like this, but I was determined not to stop until we had a better understanding of what we were dealing with.

  The hill we came to next was steep, and down below I could see houses and roads. Edward looked over the rows of houses and buildings, “Maybe I am to help you, and you are to help me. Maybe it goes both ways.”

  I’d been thinking the same thing. “Well, you’ve already told us a bunch we didn’t know. Like the name of the people we’re dealing with and how better to work the porter.” I still felt like I needed a few lessons about that, and hoped to talk to him more about it when he wasn’t in such an excited state. “Also, you gave us a name for this power. I don’t know how I feel being called a dragon.”

  Edward looked down the steep incline. “Can either of you levitate?”

  Reid grunted, an amused look on his face. I felt the same. The fact that this was even a serious question was a lot to bear. “I can’t.” He tilted his head to the side, and his eyes went soft when he looked at me. “But I think she can.”

  “I can a little,” I said, eyeing the twenty feet drop. “But I don’t have enough control over it to trust it at this far a distance.”

  Edward nodded. “I think you need jobs.”

  Reid’s lip quirked while I just stared. “How long do you think we’re going to be here?” I asked Edward.

  He held his arms out and motioned us forward. “I’m going to have to carry you down.”

  I didn’t move. I wanted him to answer my question because I didn’t plan on being here any longer than I had to.

  “If you’re going to be traveling from world to world looking for Yango, you’re going to need money that converts. You can earn that here. That way if you need to eat, buy new clothes, simply want to go to a picture in motion, you can do so. You may also need lodgings some nights. Best to have money to pay for these things, especially if you get separated from your porter, or find yourself unable to use it.”

  It made sense, but the thought of being stuck in a strange universe without the aid of my porter left a sour taste in my mouth.

  Edward let out a weary breath. “Can we go now, please.”

  Reid went to his left and me to his right. His grip was tight, and I held onto his shirt as he lifted us in the air. I’d been practicing at home, but I found it worked better when I was completely consumed with the fire.

  Edward took it easy with us, as I’d expected a quick drop to the bottom. Instead, he went slow, taking his time and moving at a speed that didn’t even ruffle my hair. It almost felt as if I was floating, much like when I was in my kitchen practicing.

  Finally, we touched on solid ground. A small tingle went through me at the excitement of seeing an alternate universe for the first time. The first world didn’t count, as that had only been snow and ice.

  The streets were dark brown and seemed to be made of a hard wood like structure. I doubted it was actually wood, as they shined and gleamed as if freshly polished and I saw no water damage on them.

  It was different, and I let my eyes explore a little more. Most of the houses were made of a material I didn’t recognize. It wasn’t brick, nor was it wood, or vinyl siding. No, these houses were smooth, solid, and straight. It wasn’t concrete, and it almost looked as if it would be soft to the touch.

  “Hemp,” Reid helpfully supplied. “These houses are made of hemp.”

  I didn’t know what hemp was, but apparently Reid did. The houses lined either side of the street, and I noticed that most were brown or beige, with a few black and a deep yellow.

  The yards had no grass, and I looked back at the rolling hills covered with the stuff, amazed at how different each world could be. Colorful pebbles made up most of the front yards. Some had silver and black pebbles designed in circles and triangles. Others had blue and red pebbles, in the shape of ducks and cats. The sidewalks mostly were brown and seemed to be made of the same material as the street.

  It was cooler here on the street, but the sun still beat down on us, and I found myself wiping sweat every couple of seconds.

  The people looked no different from Reid and myself, and I saw some sitting on their front porches, glasses of liquid in their hands as they talked and laughed with their loved ones. Others walked up and down the brown sidewalk, huddled together in groups talking and laughing.

  None paid us any mind, but something in my chest warmed, seeing these people going about their everyday life like this.

  “I live just over here.” Edward let us to a house with sea blue and green pebbles for a yard. Designs of fish and turtles were mostly what we saw here. His sidewalk was a chestnut color, and his house, like the others on his street, was made of hemp.

  His was a rich dark brown, and from the front, it looked to be one story. Other houses were two and three. The windows had no frames on them and were made of the same material as the houses. It looked like someone had just come in and cut out a round shape, and voila you have a window. I was sure they must have had some way to close them, because from where I stood I saw nothing that would protect from rain or the unwanted.

  We sat on the porch, which matched the house in color and design. “This is nice,” I said, still a little amazed at it all.

  Reid had elected to stand in front of us by the steps. “You know, you never said what you needed our help with. Everyone here seems happy enough.” As if to prove his point, the innocent laughter of children playing down the street reached our ears and put a smile on my face.

  Edward’s nostrils flared with anger. “We are the protected! Out there.” He pointed to his right. “Things are not like they are here. The Yango take what they want, leaving nothing but despair and misery in their wake.”

  “So how did some of you end up in here, and others out there?” I asked.

  He shook his head, a sad smile on his face. “Geography. The shield dividing us is ten miles long. Only three families on Vilion have the power to put up walls of protection. One lives on my street, the other three roads over. So we who live near are under their protection.”

  “And the third?”

  He let out a chuckle of disbelief. “Is out there, protecting no house but his own.”

  My eyes narrowed at that, I mean, talk about only caring about your own self-interest.

  Reid walked down the sidewalk, looking to where Edward had pointed. “So how can we help?”

  Edward blinked as if he thought the answer would have been obvious. “You have the power of the dragon. You can fight them, stop them.”

  Chapter 12

  My eyes bulged, thinking back to the things I’d seen Kyla and Brad do. “We know nothing about these powers we have. How can we do anything? That’s why we’re here, remember, to find out just what it is we’re dealing with.”

  Edward came to his feet. “You have the power of the dragon!”

  “That we know nothing about.” Reid’s voice was calm and reasonable. “Tell us about the Yango
. What do you have that they want?”

  “Food,” he answered without hesitation.

  My brows rose to my hairline. “They eat you?” I asked, stunned at this new development.

  Both Reid and Edward looked at me as if I’d grown a second head. At this point, it wouldn’t even surprise me.

  “The Yango do not eat other beings.” Edward looked dismayed and shook his head as if to clear it of my nonsense. “The Yango are unique in that no one but Yango can live in their world.”

  A young couple walked by. A little girl of about three floated beside them, while the father had his hand out, keeping a small baby levitated in the air as the child kicked its little feet and squealed in delight.

  “The new-age baby stroller,” I said, causing a small smile to form on Reid’s lips.

  Edward waited until they were out of hearing range. “Nothing grows on Yango. No plant life, no animal life, nothing can survive there but Yango. The air is said to be made up of thick toxins and poisons. No one who goes there lives past the time it takes them to step off the portal. No one understands why it’s like this.”

  “If you wear a mask?” I asked because hazmat crews wore protective gear every day that insulated them from toxic gasses and fumes.

  “Even the protective layers here can’t save you from the atmosphere of their world.”

  I thought about that. “So how do they eat?”

  His eyes turned to incredulous slits. “Is it not obvious? They come to whatever world they choose, take what they want, and then leave.”

  “What about the interworld alliance? They let them do this?”

  His smile was bitter. “As long as worlds such as yours are not hurt, they don’t care if we rip each other to pieces. As long as the balance between powerful and nonpowerful worlds are kept, the alliance is indifferent to it all.”

  “Is there a reason that you don’t band together and fight them?” Reid asked, looking as confused as I felt. I didn’t understand why they didn’t stand up to the Yango. If his world was full of powerful people, then it seemed like they could drive the Yango back if they tried.

  Edward’s eyes misted over. “I am the only surviving member of my family because of that decision.” He took a deep breath, then looked away.

  I caught Reid’s eye, and we both turned, giving him a moment to compose himself before turning back around.

  “Out there Vilion’s are crushed by Yango. While we inside the shield stay safe.”

  “Why don’t you help?”

  His hands twitched at his sides, his face taking on a tortured look. “I’m trying to be smart about this. I cannot help if I am no longer breathing.” He stood. “Come on, I’ll show you what I mean.”

  He wrapped his arms around us again, then lifted us high in the sky. This time he went a little faster, and the wind rippled through my hair and under my clothes, making them flap around me.

  We came to a row of white chairs, suspended in midair. I saw nothing that was keeping them there and figured maybe this was commonplace on his world. Edward sat in the middle chair while making sure Reid and myself were secure on either side of him before he let us go.

  I looked down and gasped at the destroyed city below. From this high up, it was hard to make out any specific details, but I could see the blue electric light of the Yango flashing everywhere. I could also hear horror-filled screams, and loud booms as buildings shook, and people fell.

  “It wasn’t always like this,” Edward said, eyes sad as he looked at the chaos below. “The Yango have a material native only to their world called yang. We use it to help make our building materials stronger and in products like beds, houses, appliances, and other stuff. The Yango would trade the yang for food.”

  “So what changed?” I asked, looking at the destruction below and wishing I could help. The screams echoed through my ears, and I closed my eyes, not understanding how people here knew this was happening and did nothing to stop it.

  Edward pursed his lips. “All Yango are not like this. The Alliance has millions of trained soldiers at its disposal. They won’t lift a finger to help though. Instead, they issued a warning to the gatekeepers of Yango. Get the unruly under control, or they will release the army on them.”

  “Wait a minute.” I wasn’t sure I understood. “Instead of stopping the ones doing the pillaging, they turned on the lawmakers who can’t stop it?”

  Edward shrugged. “Leadership starts at the top. It’s what they always say. Anyway, each Yango family had a representative. They can represent anywhere from ten to fifty families. They used to come and bring materials, pebbles, the stone to make jewels, and the other things Yango used to trade. They might make exchanges for five families here, then go to the next world and do five more, and so on until all their orders were filled.”

  “So, if a family falls on hard times, and they still need to eat...” Reid let the words trail off.

  “Then this happens,” Edward said, pointing down below. “But some of the Yango want to keep their supplies, and still eat our food. They don’t want to trade, just take. As more started to do this, others began to wonder why they should have to give up their goods if their neighbors did not.”

  I thought of Brad and Melinda, who’d said they taken to robbing and hoped this wasn’t what they’d meant. I shuddered to think that I’d had a hand in setting them free again.

  Then I thought of Kyla and realized she was part of the group trying to stop this. I closed my eyes. What had I done? I’d backed the wrong Yango, and now others would pay with their lives. Still, Brad and Melinda had said they’d only robbed, not killed, but that still didn’t make it any better. “Do all Yango have super-healing abilities like Brad?” If so we were really in trouble.

  Edward shook his head. “Just like here, each person’s ability is different. Some here have rapid-healing abilities. I don’t.” He shrugged.

  I thought that over as the noise below grew even louder. “So how can we help?”

  Edward looked at me as if I should already know the answer to that question. “You have the power of the dragon.” That’s all the warning I got before he put a hand on my back and shoved me off the seat, sending me into a free fall toward the ground.

  Chapter 13

  My breath caught in my throat, my arms flapping around me. My legs went sideways, and fear ripped through me as I just knew this was the end.

  I tried to use my levitation to steady me, but I couldn’t make it work. Tears choked my throat, and I wondered if Edward was watching.

  I tried again to make my levitation work, focusing on staying upright and not falling. Then I felt it. Something I’d never felt before. The skin on my back tore away, but not in a painful way, more like a parting, an opening. Something hard fluttered against my back, then I heard the flap of wings.

  From the corner of my eye, I could see beautiful dark purple wings circling around me. It took me a moment to realize that they were my own.

  I blinked, startled, but knew it was something to file away for later, because right now, the wings were trying to raise me up, yet somehow, I kept falling. I was still in danger. I hadn’t even known I’d had wings, much less knew how to use them.

  “Don’t fight it. Let the wings guide you.” I turned to the right and saw Reid floating beside me, only there were no wings on his back.

  I started to fall again, and he caught me, lifting me up. “You have to do this,” he said sternly. “Stop fighting and let them guide you.”

  How was he doing this with no wings, and what was he doing beside me? “Did he push you too?” That Edward would get a strong talking to when we made it back up top.

  Reid shook his head, the effect strange from so high up. “When you fell, I jumped. The same way I control the fire is the same way I’m keeping myself from falling now. That’s how I know you can do this,” he said firmly.

  I stopped struggling, and the wings gently lifted me up. I turned my body to the right, and the wings flapped that w
ay as well. I then went to the left, and the wings followed there too.

  “They’re beautiful,” Reid said, still floating beside me.

  They were beautiful, and long too, about eight feet or so. How had I not felt these here? I didn’t understand.

  Reid started to say something else when electric blue light flew past our heads, barely missing us both. What the? We hovered about six feet off the ground, and I looked down to see two Yango standing, hands out as if to attack again.

  Around them, people cowered and tried to run away, as two more Yango appeared and began setting people and buildings alike on fire.

  I watched horrified as people were cut down for no other reason than they’d stood up to tyrants trying to take over their land. Anger flared in me like hot molten rock, and I knew I couldn’t just stand by and watch.

  They weren’t here for food. They probably had countless worlds they could get that from. They were here to destroy, to send a message to any who dared stand up to them. They enjoyed this, that much was clear, and I wasn’t willing to watch another second of it.

  Not caring about the consequences, I took off below, heading for the first two who’d attacked us. They saw me coming, and both opened their hands to launch attacks.

  Twin blasts of electricity shot toward me and, still in the air, I dipped and dodged, making sure I wasn’t hit. Brad had healed naturally. I wasn’t so sure I would be as lucky.

  “I’m going to try and snatch their power,” Reid said beside me.

  Before I could tell him what a bad idea I thought that was, more electricity came toward us, this time headed straight for my chest.

  Reid held out his hand, and it changed direction. He pulled it to him, and I watched, horrified, as it went up his arm, then covered his whole body.

  The sound of it popping and sizzling as it electrocuted him over and over again crushed my soul and made me go weak. Wings flapping, I went to him, trying to break through the force field, but he held up a hand warning me away.