Defiance: Dragonics & Runics Part I

by A. Wrighton

  Blythet crooned and snapped the air. She turned her massive emerald eyes to the sky. Kalyna sensed the tension too. Their pursuers were not far behind.

  “Go Kaly. Do as Alaister says… just this once.”

  “Be careful, Lan,” Kalyna said as she slid back into the shallow recess of the cavern closest to the cliff edge.

  “Always.” He stood and watched until Kalyna squirreled away into the gray shadows. Then, with an adjustment to his sword and sidearm, Lanthar mounted Blythet and passed his command. “Rise, Blythet. Find them.”

  Kalyna watched the beautiful Earth Beast soar up into the sky before gliding low and hugging the cliff tops. The faster Blythet flew, the quicker that the only indication of her presence was the brief shimmer of emerald scale against white snow at the edges of her flight pattern. Blythet patrolled silently, and in the moments Kalyna could not see the flash of green from Blythet’s wings, her heart grew tense and impatient. With each passing silent moment, she slid closer to the opening and further out of the shadows.

  She peered up into the nothingness of the sky as best she could. Nothing was there. A wash of relief hit that weakened her knees and loosened her limbs. Nothing. Kalyna was sure they had lost the tracking Dragonics. They were safe.

  And yet, no one came back for her.

  Everything remained silent.

  Kalyna tiptoed out of the opening, the silence bolstering her bravery until the shrieking roar of a Beast too high pitched and bright to be Blythet ripped the peacefulness apart. Kalyna clung to the cave wall, her fingers digging into the divots on the rock face.

  A flash of yellow sliced through the sky as Kalyna caught the angry glare of Callon gesturing for her to stay further in the shadows. Kalyna obeyed and pushed herself flush against the shadowed wall until she felt the weight of the darkness around her. She watched from the inky black as five dark bodies dove in rapid pursuit of Syralli and Callon.

  Her fingers dug deeper into the rocks, the coldness seeping into her core and heart as the bellows of engaging Dragons grew louder, more wrenching. Kalyna fought the urge to clench shut her eyes, and wish away the sounds and trouble, as she had done as a child. It had not worked then, and she knew it would not work now.

  Kalyna fought the urge to run and hide for there was nowhere, but the tiny cave, to run away to. She fought the urge to call out for Lanthar’s stern face or Alaister’s distanced protection. And, she fought the urge to be frightened. Slowly, Kalyna bade her eyes to widen and take all of the Cause – all of what she had become involved with – all of what she must somehow find a way to lead.

  The copper eyes obediently watched.

  The sky was alive with the colors of Fire and Water Beasts flying in patterns that mimicked disintegrating rainbows. The Beasts squared off in a swirl of flaming breaths and ice bolts as their Riders attempted to outmaneuver each other. None of the Dragons dared to get too close to one another and their dance of death appeared as a playful spat of equally matched and uncommitted opponents. It almost was pleasurable to watch, so long as none fell and death was absent entirely.

  Then, the winds shifted. Tempers changed.

  The Beasts grew bored with the futility of distanced spats. The restless Riders urged their Beasts closer until they could reach their opponent with blades. The sky rang with the metallic clanging of metal against metal and filled with the smell of wet, burnt scales.

  Kalyna’s ears hurt from the thunderous noise, but she stood transfixed – taking it all in. She needed to see what they looked like when they fought one another. Kalyna slinked closer to the exposed ledge admiring how each Dragon’s attack could be accepted or countered by another. Her mind raced with the possibilities – this was not like the canyon.

  Kalyna jumped back into the shadows as Callon swooshed by again with another dirty glare. Before she could scowl at his meddling, Kalyna was hypnotized by what she saw pursuing Callon.

  It was awful, beautifully so. Awe-inspiring.

  The Beast chasing Syralli was large and dark and unlike any Beast she had seen or Vylain described. It had wing claws and a double barbed, piercing tail. The behemoth sprinted after Syralli and caught her far above the cliffs, just as the yellow-orange and dark tiny spots of the Beasts were too hard for Kalyna to discern. In the freedom of the battlesky, Kalyna’s breath left her as she watched the yellow and black specks engage each other.

  Syralli reared back as the massive dark Beast approached, outstretching her arms and legs. The black Beast mimicked Syralli’s moves and locked their talons onto each other in an organic crash of bone and scales. Both Riders flattened against their saddles on impact. Syralli pitched her head back and screamed a vicious cry. The brilliant yellow and orange Beast arched her back and then dove, pulling the dark Dragon down from the clouds into a death spiral.

  Vylain had told Kalyna of the death spiral but had refused to show her. It was now clear why he had denied her that lesson. It was too fast – too hard for any to control. Vylain said Callon possessed a wish for an early death in his love of attacking with death spirals and he was right. It was a deadly game of cowardice. The Rider had to quickly account for the speed, his grip, and his breathing, in addition to commanding his Beast when to release – if the over zealous creature listened at all.

  Kalyna watched in horrified awe as Syralli grappled with the dark Beast and released a torrent of flames over his chest scales. Enraged with battle lust, Syralli was in hyper drive. Insatiable. Volatile.

  The dark Dragon she had ensnared kept glancing to the enlarging ground but Syralli had yet to notice or buck out of the spiral. Kalyna whispered Syralli the commands herself as the ground grew nearer knowing that with Callon, Syralli always waited one second past the last.

  It had been two.

  As Syralli flexed her shoulders to dislodge, the massive black tail of her opponent latched onto hers. His talons overtook her own.

  Kalyna saw it – the glimmer of victory in the dark Dragon’s eyes. Syralli no longer had control; the black Beast did.

  Alaister’s panicked shout came from across the battlesky. Jaxin darted for an intercept that would come too late. Callon lurched his head up from his hunched position and noticed the ground. He barked at Syralli.

  Her feral whimper was reply enough.

  Callon shed his stirrups and dropped his swords. They clattered to the ground beside Kalyna within seconds of their release.

  Syralli tensed and struggled to disentangle her tail but quickly recognized that the strength of the black giant was far greater than her own. She screamed and burst a spew of fire onto the Beast’s chest, burning Callon’s skin with radiant heat. The black giant roared and shucked his load. His wings opened in time to catch the updraft and soar above the rocks.

  Syralli rolled trying to protect her wings from impact. In the moment before Syralli hit the rocks, Kalyna swore that the yellow beauty glanced back at Callon as if offering a weak apology. The crunch of bone, scales, and earth shook Kalyna to her core.

  Slowly, Syralli shuddered and steadied herself. She rolled to pick her body off the shattered ground. Her low chortle echoed in the cavern as her fluttering emerald eyes glanced to the sky. Above Syralli, the white spread of Allanox’s wings descended with a triumphant roar. With a final tremor of strength, Syralli limped to the cliff ledge and took wing despite her bleeding body. Drystan and Allanox eagerly followed Syralli unaware that, beneath her departing shadow, she had left her Rider on the ground below.

  Still.

  Quiet.

  “Callon?”

  “Kaly….”

  Kalyna bolted from the cave entrance, but his shaky voice halted her progress.

  “Kaly… stay there. Doc’ll come back. I’m fine.”

  “Gavasti!”

  “Stay, Kaly.”

  “Fine.” Kalyna turned back, glancing to the sky in her retreat. Allanox’s white shape did not reappear nor did another white shape appear. There were no white Beasts anywhere within sight. No med
ics. No help.

  A Beast’s shadow flitted past behind her. Squinting, Kalyna saw the Beast highlighted against the sun. The Dragon was large and black. Large, black, and with a snarl that rumbled through the rocks Kalyna braced against. The Rider had come back. Kalyna scanned the sky for Syralli’s yellow hide, but she was gone. Callon was defenseless and alone.

  The black Dragon released a low-pitched snarl as it swooped towards Callon’s fallen body, a boulder between its claws. Kalyna stammered at his approach. She was certain the massive Beast was an Earth, and Earth Dragons were not supposed to willingly fight Fires. They were not supposed to be able to fly that fast or fight that well mid-air. But the Dark Beast defied conventions as it wielded a boulder as large as Syralli’s chest and equally as heavy, like it was a cuggle or frillic berry. The primal zest of the Beast’s approach unnerved.

  Cursing, Callon tried to push off the ground only to realize that while his legs responded, his back hurt too badly to stand and his left arm hung useless and disjointed at his side. His rich blue eyes fell on Kalyna’s and showed what he rarely admitted.

  Defeat.

  Kalyna stared back rigid. Frozen. She shut her eyes and silenced her panicked breathing. Slowly, she found her center.

  Callon shook his head at her focus. He knew what her shut eyes and relaxed hands meant. A twinge of guilt hit him. For all his talk, Callon knew Kalyna’s life was worth far more than his, but he was grateful for her stubbornness. He knew she would not listen, no matter what he said. She never did.

  Kalyna burst from the cave and ran. Ten strides and she was beside Callon – exposed. She looked down at him, a glint of lavender in her eyes that struck fear deep into his core. It was unnatural. Unkempt. Uncontrolled.

  “Kaly…”

  Closing her eyes, Kalyna closed her mind to Callon’s weakening pleas. She stood tall, eyes shut, palms open, and heartbeat eased.

  Two breaths.

  One breath.

  Which person Alaister called for across the battlesky, she did not know, but when she heard his cry, her heart hardened. She would not be stopped. She belonged to no one. She would do what she saw fit.

  No one could tell her otherwise.

  Not Alaister, who pushed Jaxin on faster.

  Not Lanthar, who doubled back for an intercept.

  Not Callon, who struggled to grab her ankle.

  No one.

  Kalyna opened her eyes and stared down the black Beast. Her smile dared him to strike, dared him to release the stone. With a gleeful shriek of acceptance, the black Beast obliged and hurled the boulder.

  A deep breath.

  Kalyna focused on the combination and possibilities of Runes running through her head. She strained to find her focus – her solution. Order. Control. Kalyna waited for the rush of air the boulder would bring. As a breeze grew and the boulder’s shadow covered her and Callon, Kalyna’s eyes flashed black.

  The air around her stirred and shuddered. The boulder lurched backwards, stopped completely, and then crashed into the ground. With the sealing of her fist, the boulder collapsed into dust.

  Her eyes glowed green.

  The black Dragon circled back as its Rider shouted indistinctly at the failure of his mark unaware that the failed boulder could only be attributed to Kalyna and not his Beast.

  A sneer crept across her pale face. Kalyna would happily correct his errant assumption.

  The Rider halted his Beast and summoned two others to his side. They stared at each other in silence until a command ordered the trio to dive.

  Kalyna’s smile grew.

  “Kaly….”’

  She heard Callon refused to acknowledge him. She could not have listened now anyway. It was beyond the point of return. Her heart pulsated with the surge of Runes as her hands flexed in the aftermath of their use. Sweat beads formed on her skin as chills rushed through her. She glanced at the expanse they took up. Her movements slowed, the air around her growing stronger and faster. Her hair whipped behind her as the air swirled about the two of them. Kalyna shut her eyes once more and pooled her thoughts. Her energies surged as she allowed herself to feel what it was like to not be dictated to.

  No restrictions.

  No hiding.

  No rules.

  Decisions without hesitation or fear. The rush of freedom flowed through her. Kalyna’s Rune powers swelled and with a joyous gasp, she allowed them to wield her. Her arms tingled with warmth and her stomach tightened. With a quick pivot, Kalyna stood over Callon’s broken body and straightened her arms.

  Her eyes gleamed violent gold then shimmered into red.

  Her smile grew eerily wide and parted as a swirl of heat, wind, and flame materialized. Kalyna bolstered and commanded the elements into a firestorm orb that swirled around her and Callon shielding them from onslaught. Satisfied with the density and expanse of the firestorm, Kalyna quirked her head and turned her attention back to the approaching Dragons.

  Those beside the Dark Rider hesitated. He did too. He looked down. The fire was real; the radiant heat simmering onto his skin proved it. The firestorm orb swelled and grew, glowing first blue, then purple. Its beauty was hypnotic and strangely soothing. When he finally looked away, the Dark Rider noticed that all Riders, despite allegiance, were staring at the spectacle.

  Impossible.

  The Dark Rider turned to shout commands to his wingmen. They did not hear his call. They remained transfixed on the swirling torrent of fire and wind below. The Dark Rider looked back to the orb just in time to see a bolt hurl out of the firestorm towards him. The blue flames had been built up to a massive size and then thrown.

  Commanded.

  Dominated.

  A Runic.

  In the fleeting moment between the bolt bursting out of the orb and it hitting the trio, the Dark Rider found a peaceful smile. A heartbeat later, he and the other Riders banked. The dark Beast on his left sprayed a plume of water keeping the approaching streak of fire at bay.

  As his Beast leveled, the Dark Rider stood in his stirrups and yelled to the sky of transfixed Riders. “Cease fire! Enough! Stand down Third Dredth! Stand down!”

  Kalyna withheld a second bolt gathered in her hands, untrusting but inquisitive. She tracked their descent with her armed hand raised and her eyes aglow in a fearsome red. The Dark Rider ordered his men to move slowly. Calmly. While he had no intention of hurting anyone further, he could not wager that the Runic would feel the same way.

  The dark Beast landed, allowing its Dark Rider to hop onto the narrow ledge, kicking up a small clap of dust in the process. He straightened slowly, his eyes remaining on the orb. With a quick adjustment of the deep violet cloak draped squarely across his back, he strode forward well aware that if his Beast’s appearance had not already startled, his certainly would. None would have ever seen him or any like him before – not in person. And, from afar and perhaps even a bit closer, he’d look like any other Soleran, but his pale features and dark accents made him and his Riders freakishly uncommon, if nothing else.

  The Dark Rider stopped and admired the primal energy at its rawest state. From the ground, it was apparent the woman, flaxen hair framing red, glowing eyes, was the Runic – not the Rider. He had expected as much. He stepped as close to the firestorm wall as he could bear and smartly bowed low. He rose and saluted with the olden Soleran Dragonic salute.

  She flinched.

  “Where is your Commander, Milady? My men and I – we yield.”

  She disintegrated the firebolt in her hands, but the swirling firestorm remained. She pursed her lips, scanning him and then his wingman that approached. Her curiosity flattered and intrigued.

  “My name is Nylan,” he said barely loud enough for Kalyna to hear.

  “Kalyna,” she muttered flatly. She winced under Callon’s pinch, but she did not regret her disclosure. It was just a name and there was something more pressing at hand. Her face showed more confusion than any other emotion. They had ample opportunity to flee, but
they remained. They had landed and he had addressed her – bowed – saluted in a fashion that had not been used over twenty cycles ago, because over twenty cycles earlier, the Soleran Dragonics were disbanded.

  The glow in her eyes dulled as Kalyna winced at the subduction of her strength. She knew she would not be able to hold the orb up forever and something about the Dark Rider’s attentive gaze made her realize he was more than willing to wait. He wanted to talk – to her.

  “I mean you no harm,” he said as he tracked Kalyna’s glance behind her. “Or him any further.”

  Kalyna fought the urge to smack his cockiness away. They were the ones who had yielded. Not her. She urged the firestorm back to its original strength and looked behind her. On the backside of the orb, three forms skirted the perimeter, swords drawn.

  Nylan watched the two men on the left look to the man on the right. He smiled at their tell of who their leader was — it very much suited the man approaching from the right. Covered in soot from his seat behind a Fire Beast, Nylan stared in awe at the taller man and the strength and respect he commanded. Nylan bowed, but received no response.

  “Callon?” Alaister asked, his eyes on Nylan.

  “Not dead, yet.”

  “Kal.”

  Kalyna jerked her head towards Alaister and caught his nod. She instantly released the orb. The air temperature dropped with the extinguishing of the flaming wind and all nearby shivered. Before Nylan had a chance to see Kalyna unhindered by flame and wind, Alaister stood in front of her with his two men on either side and beckoned Drystan and Kyren, the Second Dredth’s medic, to Callon’s side.

  “I am Alaister Paine, Commander of the Rogue Dragonics. Who in Udlast are you?”

  Nylan contained a smile at their protection of Kalyna and he again performed the Soleran Dragonic salute, which caught Alaister’s eye, but rendered no reply.