Dear Rival

by Robin White

"No, not really. It's more likely that you still haven't learned to be patient. That will break your neck one day soon, cub."

  "It won't and don't call me cub! I'm not a baby!"

  The dragon knights laughed as Kero pulled Dyvn close like a child, ignoring the litany of curses coming from Dyvn. Valtiel couldn't understand what was so amusing about their antics. Dragon knights were just a bunch of children, it seemed, albeit children with enough power to down trees with a single, well-placed blow.

  Valtiel was so distracted, he didn't notice Etoille and Avalon's approach until he heard the water splash quietly as they slid gracefully into the pool. He nodded at them, having calmed down from their earlier antics, and the two offered idle apologies.

  Yet another marked contrast between the elves and the dragon knights: frost elves didn't show affection openly, whereas the dragon knights never left out an opportunity to bond in a way. In their own way, Valtiel suspected all three of them envied the little group of dragon knights.

  "What are you thinking about, Valtiel?"

  Valtiel glanced up at Avalon, shrugging his shoulders lightly. "I don't know; it's all a mess. Hasn't been a too good day for me."

  Etoille smirked at Valtiel before glancing at Kero. Rolling his eyes, Valtiel looked away, although ignoring Etoille seemed to just encourage him, and Etoille slipped closer and loosely wrapped an arm around Valtiel.

  "Admit it, Valtiel, you are thinking about it."

  "Whatever you mean, Etoille, I most certainly am not."

  "Don't lie, your thoughts always seem to circle around to Kero of late. I think you are attracted to him, but don't want to admit it."

  Huffing in annoyance, Valtiel shook his head just to feel Avalon on his other side. They had become much more familiar in the last few months, which he blamed entirely on the dragon knights' influence. He didn't want flirtatious friends, but it seemed as if this mingling of cultures was inherently changing how his friends acted.

  Yes, he was thinking about Kero, but he refused to admit that to his friends. Kero's constant presence made it impossible not to think of him, so it was expected Valtiel would be concerned.

  As Valtiel's silence continued, Etoille and Avalon eventually grew bored of teasing him.

  "Valtiel, have you never imagined what a dragon knight might be like in … different situations?" Etoille asked, his curiosity plainly showing.

  Valtiel shook his head, disgusted by the mere thought. Really, what had gotten into Etoille that he was even considering such a thing?

  "The question isn't fully without reason, Valtiel." Avalon leaned back, looking all too thoughtful. "I mean, you were the first one to duel with Kero, and you watch him almost all the time. "

  Valtiel nodded faintly, but refused to elaborate. Finally giving in to his unwillingness to talk, Avalon changed the subject. "It seems so strange, being allies with the dragon knights."

  He let Avalon and Etoille carry the conversation while he watched the dragon knights. They were sitting in silence, apparently meditating. He might have initially opposed the prospect of the dragon knights as allies, but even Valtiel had to admit that some of their qualities charmed him: discipline, responsibility, and a healthy sense of justice, none of which he had ever found in humans before.

  Kero and Dyvn seemed to be quite close, as they acted as if they were brothers. It probably wasn't too far off, actually, seeing as once a human became a dragon knight, that was all he ever knew. They also resembled each other greatly, though that could have been said about many the frost elves—or any other elven tribe.

  Leaning back, Valtiel let his gaze drift over the small group of dragon knights. Kero was the one with the most scars and most likely the oldest amongst them. He was teasing Dyvn, who was flushed in either embarrassment or anger, though it was hard to be sure. Valtiel knew it wasn't from the heat of the hot spring, as the dragon knights seemed to radiate heat as a side effect of their ability to breathe fire, a gift of the dragon's spirit that was fused with their soul.

  The extent of Valtiel's knowledge on dragon knights was greater than most would have expected, given his refusal to acknowledge them as equals. Wary of their new allies, he had researched the strange order, including their rituals and traditions. It hadn't been easy to find, but Valtiel had been persistent enough to unearth a great deal of information on the topic.

  They had formed centuries ago, a group of solitary men coming together when a war had gripped all of Ythrasia a millennium ago. Living like monks, those original men had not resembled the warriors of today, though they had carried a piece of the dragon's spirit as well. They had changed over the course of a war that had annihilated several cultures, leaving only ruins and scattered documents as a testament to their existence.

  Eventually, the war had subsided, and the remaining nations of the giant continent had agreed it had been a pointless travesty, bringing the people nothing but suffering and loss. The only refusal to a universal treaty had come from a tribe of barbaric humans, backed by several other human groups and, surprisingly, the swamp elves. They all vanished in the years following the war, but they had left the seed for the next threat to Ythrasia's peace. Those that Valtiel and his compatriots currently faced were merely the first small wave.

  Even after the war, the dragon knights maintained their new way of life. A barrier was erected across the continent where all the bloodthirsty tribes lived, separating them from the rest of Ythrasia by a massive wall. Someone had to make sure the wall would lock the humans and swamp elves away from those who wanted to live in peace, so the dragon knights created a fortress near the barrier and lived there to this very day, opening it to the elves as they joined forces to hold the wall against this new threat.

  Valtiel admitted that he had been impressed to find such a story behind this gigantic fortress. Built so close to the wall, it was the first target of any attack, which seemed to be the dragon knights intentions, even if it brought many risks. They might have been defeated had they simply stood on their own, but the inhabitants of Ythrasia had learned well from its past. The frost elves, realizing the threat, had acknowledged their best option was an alliance with the dragon knights.

  Originally, Valtiel, and nearly the whole of his tribe, had been against the alliance. But now, he couldn't count how many shadow creatures had been slaughtered in the past few months. Hundreds? Thousands? No one could say for certain, but they all knew the number was devastatingly high. The shadows were sneaky and sturdy, constantly getting past the wall and approaching the fortress. The thought that more powerful shadows could follow made Valtiel's insides clench. As much as he wished it were different, he was glad for their allies.

  Shaking his head, Valtiel tried to think of something else. For example, Kero was alone at the pool now, the other dragon knights having retreated for the night. Valtiel noticed the somewhat tired melancholy in Kero's eyes. So the Dragon Knights had their little worries, too, he mused.

  While Avalon and Etoille were caught in serious debate over some battle they'd recently seen, Valtiel found himself leaving their little pool and approaching Kero. He was grateful his friends were too distracted to notice. Kero smiled as Valtiel neared, nodding in greeting and gesturing for Valtiel to join him. Sitting, Valtiel didn't bother to test the waters; it was obvious the temperature was far above what a frost elf would find comfortable, but typical for a dragon knight.

  "Greetings, Valtiel. It has been quite the day today, I would claim."

  "I didn't think it was any different from the others," Valtiel said dismissively.

  "That might be," Kero agreed, seemingly amused. "But then, it's been quite a month."

  Valtiel shrugged, holding his hand over the steaming pool. He couldn't have bathed in such water, yet Kero seemed to be perfectly fine with letting his legs hang into the pool. Kero seemed quite content in the boiling water. "I couldn't help but wonder about you and the other dragon knights. It seems very strange that you show affection so openly."

  "It
may be unusual to you, but to us it's completely natural. We are taught to respect each other, and to openly show what we feel to avoid misunderstandings."

  The silence carried on until Kero finally asked. "I'm curious now, why did you come over to me? You seemed to be happy in your cooler pool."

  "I don't know myself," Valtiel replied, surprised at his own honesty.

  Kero laughed at that reply, shaking his head. "You are strange," he said, though his tone was friendly and sounded... almost fond. "I suppose I'm just as strange to you." Valtiel merely nodded.

  "Do you enjoy being here?" Kero eventually asked.

  Glancing at Kero, Valtiel shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose it's better than waiting in our village for the bulwark to fall."

  Kero grinned, shaking his head. The thought of the wall being overrun no doubt seemed ludicrous and impossible to him, but he at least appeared to understand Valtiel. Waiting would had been a strain, causing naught by anxiety, while actively defending their land gave them something to hold on to.

  Valtiel then noticed Etoille and Avalon several pools away, laughing and making obvious, embarrassing gestures in his direction. He glared at them. He hadn't been aware that they watching him. There wasn't a chance in hell Valtiel would give them the satisfaction of seeing him talking to Kero—or any other dragon knight for that matter.

  "Is something wrong?" Kero sounded confused, as he clearly didn't understand the gestures Etoille and Avalon were making.

  "It's nothing, really. I should retreat for the night." Without waiting for Kero's response,Valtiel stood and left the hot springs.

  Puzzled, Kero waved after Valtiel, shaking his head about his sudden change of mood. Sometimes he wished he could understand the frost elves better. As it was, their actions occasionally gave him a headache when he did attempt to understand. Dismissing Valtiel's odd behavior to think on later, Kero lowered himself into the steaming water. He would relax for a short time before retiring for the night.

  *~*~*

  Etoille sighed low in disappointment as Valtiel left, and Avalon shrugged lightly. "We could resort to trickery?" Avalon suggested, causing Etoille to shake his head in disbelief.

  "That could only go wrong, Avalon. We can't force Valtiel onto Kero. That would only serve to get both of them angry."

  While it was undoubtedly true, Avalon couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. He had been waiting for Valtiel to see beyond the differences that lie between him and Kero, but it seemed he was still not ready for that. It was a shame, but Avalon was sure there would be future opportunities for the two men to get to know each other.

  "Remind me, why are we trying to get the two of them to notice each other in the first place? It would be easier to grab Kero for ourselves."

  Etoille's face stretched into a sneer. "Let's just say it would be nice to see a change in Valtiel's attitude toward us. Sucumbing to a human might bring him down a notch. Though, if he really is attracted to Kero, it might backfire on us..."

  *~*~*

  The night air was crisp with the cold of early winter. Every now and then he liked to come outside at night to walk along the inner wall and enjoy the stars glittering above Ythrasia. In this part of the continent, the sight was especially fantastic, as the sky tended to be quite clear, with a blanket of stars shimmering like a chest full of radiant gems. He smiled to himself, leaning against the pinnacles. The whole of the dragon knights fortress seemed to radiate heat, not from sunlight but from a secret the dragon knights kept to that very day.

  Kero loved to stand with his hands on the warm stone, head craned back to watch the jet black sky and its many glistening stars. To him, their fight against the shadows seemed like a drawn-out training session rather than a serious war. It kept him from worrying about day-to-day life overmuch; he knew that eventually the war would consume him, one way or the other.

  Looking up at the sound of steps, Kero smiled to himself as Valtiel came into sight. He found Valtiel endlessly fascinating, as his actions and reactions seemed to endlessly change, and Kero couldn't help watching him. He had to admit that he was curious about Valtiel, maybe simply to spite Valtiel's prickly, unfriendly demeanor.

  To his surprise, Valtiel soon joined him, leaning against a pinnacle in the same manner as Kero. They didn't make eye contact, but Kero felt with certainty that Valtiel had come to speak with him and not to simply ask questions about the dragon knights' behavior. Kero waited, watching the sky patiently. There was no need to hurry right then, after all.

  "I had hoped to find you alone," Valtiel said eventually, for lack of anything better to say.

  "May I ask why you would want to talk to me?"

  "I don't quite know myself. I should be focused on a matter of importance, but apparently I want to find out more about you. As much as possible.

  Kero chuckled, shrugging to indicate he didn't mind Valtiel's interest—or the idea that Valtiel preferred to not think about him. If Valtiel was seeking him out for conversation instead of duels, Kero was sure he would enjoy the change. He found it rather amusing to find one of the frost elves interested in him. That it was Valtiel only made it more intriguing. He supposed it did make a kind of sense, as Valtiel had been the first to challenge Kero. What Valtiel wanted from him, however, was a mystery.

  "What shall I tell you about myself, then?"

  Valtiel tilted his head to one side, thinking it through. He knew quite a lot about the dragon knights in general; he thought he might like to know how the current dragon knights lived. It was simply another way to understand them. "I want to know about your life. What shaped you and made you into a dragon knight?"

  Kero didn't think about that questions for long. Valtiel observed him while he talked about the beginning of his training, how difficult it had been to get used to the shard of the dragon's spirit now merged with his soul. Kero retold several stories about training, guard duty, and moving up in the ranks. In every story, there seemed to be some scar involved in the telling. Valtiel still found it strange that Kero would choose to keep any of his scars rather than allowing them to fully heal.

  "I don't understand that. How can you choose to keep such a scar? Any scar?"

  "They are connected to strong memories. Keepsakes, in a sense; warnings and reminders and rewards for a battle well fought. In every case, they are each a symbol for an important event in my life."

  Valtiel considered this for a moment. "How old are you? It's obvious you are quite experienced, even in comparison to the other dragon knights."

  "That's a good question," Kero said with some amusement. "We don't track our ages, so I'm not truly sure of the number. I suppose I am at least 200 years old, but that is only a rough guess; I could be older, but certainly not younger."

  "Impressive. Is your lifespan so extended because of the dragon?"

  Kero nodded, looking a little dreamy as he turned around to lean his back against the warm stone of the pinnacles. "Dragons are potentially immortal, as they are incarnated magic. The magic responds to our souls, giving them more force."

  Valtiel nodded faintly, letting his gaze drift along Kero's body without consciously thinking about it. "Is there a limit to a dragon knight's age?"

  With a smile, Kero nodded. "Of course. Like every life, ours end with death. Some die after only a few decades and others manage a whole millennium. Depending on our luck and fate, it's sooner or later."

  Valtiel couldn't quite imagine it. The dragon knights appeared much too human to him, yet there was something decidedly otherworldly about them. Oddly, realizing how fragile Kero's life was made Valtiel's gut twist with inexplicable anxiety.

  "It's strange," Valtiel said, pushing the strange feeling away. "You don't seem vulnerable to death."

  "That's what it looks like on the outside, Valtiel. Even with the dragon magic infusing us, our bodies are destined to falter at some point, to wither and fade into nothingness."

  "You make it sound almost harmless."

  "It is harmles
s, Valtiel. Death is nature's way to make room for something new."

  "I would hate to think of myself as some sort of obstacle."

  "We aren't obstacles by any means. Just part of something bigger that our minds can't grasp fully."

  Valtiel shook his head, but he felt quite pleased. Knowing the dragon knights indeed had time to gain experience, more than any normal human lifetime would allow, was almost reassuring. Perhaps time would cure the stupidity of humankind. Perhaps their alliance was not so ill-chosen after all.

  Admitting, to the possibility of Kero—and the other dragon knights—being worthy allies turned Valtiel's thoughts strangely. Valtiel couldn't understand the strange fluttering sensation in his stomach, but he quickly realized it was focused on Kero, strengthening as Valtiel gazed at him. No, Valtiel assured himself, it was merely the moment confusing him, and he was tired. Nothing more.

  But he couldn't stop himself from watching Kero; in the pale moonlight, his hair was glowing in a strange silver tone, and even his skin seemed radiant. Determined to sort himself out, Valtiel blocked out everything else, focusing his attention on Kero. What was it that drew his attention to Kero so effortlessly, over and over again? He no longer felt guilty about it, or strange, merely—oddly satisfied. As if he needed to watch Kero.

  A tiny voice in the back of his mind scolded him for showing such interest in Kero, but he had decided to disregard it. Be it conscience, guilt, or envy, he appeared to like Kero, not necessarily as a friend, but certainly as a worthy rival. Kero was strong, direct, and constantly seemed to have a sense of ease about him, as if nothing could truly bother him or make him sad.

  "If you know that you might die any day, why do you still seem as if nothing can affect you?"

  "That's one of the many things our masters teach us. Though we may face horrible death at any moment, we should be sure to enjoy ourselves every day of our life."

  "Isn't that dangerous, living as if you are ignorant to your mortality?"

  "We aren't ignorant, Valtiel. We are aware of our mortality, but we don't let it control our lives. No dragon knight worries about 'what if'."