“I can tell you, but it will have to be somewhere private.”
“Okay, we will talk in the Sky Dome which is protected by magic. Only Guardians and us are allowed in there,” said Evey.
“I will also go find Adria and Axcel, they deserve to know, especially Adria.”
As we walked, I wondered who this Adria. She sounded important to Alexander and them. Finally my curiosity got the best of me and I was forced to ask.
“Who is Adria?” I asked.
“Alex didn’t talk about her?” asked Ilean.
“We didn’t really have ample opportunity to talk about personal things.”
“I would have thought he would have at least mentioned her.”
“She is special to him?” I asked, and then wondering why I would ask such a question.
“They are childhood friends; they come from the same orphanage”
“She also happens to be a Natural so she is part of the Guardians. She was one of the original two,” said Evey.
“Yeah, and Lord Shadow seems to have taken an immense liking to her. He trained her even before she became a Guardian, which is why she can use magic none of us can, even if it’s only for a short while,” said Ilean.
When we reached the Sky Dome, there stood a boy and a girl. Even before I could see the boy’s face I knew he was the son of Lord Sebastian of the House of Dextra, that red hair was distinguishable anywhere. The girl had brown hair and even from a distance you could tell she was very beautiful. She must have been popular with the young men in the academy.
“Hello, my name is Adria and this is Axcel,” she said, “You must be Princess Keren from the Harmony of Elution.”
I merely nodded in return. She was a little bit above the average height for a human woman and was surprisingly polite. That is not to say Ilean and Evey were not but Adria was trying to be as correct as possible.
“She has something important to tell us but will only do so in private, which is why we came up here,” said Ilean.
“Alright then, let us head to the main chamber,” said Adria, walking towards the far end of the Sky Dome.
The Note
I always hate when I am forced to write about things that inconvenience me. It was a huge reminder I wasn’t going to be free of all these Nobles and military commanders. For the last two hours I had been approached by several of the ones present and formally introduced to them as Alexander Kerm, the Dragon Knight as well as Alexander Laiks, the House of Time Noble. However to my surprise many of the houses were in decline, evidenced by their growing reliance on minor branch families to maintain their standing. This was made clear enough by what little some of them controlled, such as the House of Storm, who were originally granted control of the boarder forces of the Empire but had to release full control after a major skirmish killed Lady Stansa’s elder sons and husband. I remembered even the caretakers in the orphanage talked about it. Now its commanders were from all the Noble Houses based in western section of the empire.
Bringing myself back to reality, I was now talking to the head of the House of Darkness the last half hour. After his affirmation I was his grandson during the meeting I was skeptical at best, although his logic was more or less sound, Ilean was a perfect example of Nobles who have separate traits to that of their parents, a fact which I pointed out.
“Every rule has an exception and once in a generation is enough of breaking the rules,” he had said.
Although he wasn’t fully aware of it, I am the embodiment of broken rules. A son of the most powerful Noble house, the only known survivor of having a Reaper sealed in my eyes, a Dragon Knight, and the receiver of the Dragon Heart which belonged to the former leader of the ancient dragons who held great distaste for humans, although he didn’t seem to dislike us anymore. One more broken rule wasn’t so far-fetched. Still the idea of knowing who my father was interested me a lot.
“As I was saying, if I am correct and my eldest son, Robert was your father, I would be your grandfather, something that I would consider an honor.”
“And it would bring me a great amount of happiness to know part of my family Lord Siegfried. I would like to hear more about Robert,” I said, taking care not to get my hopes too high.
“Please, no need to call me lord, we are family after all Alex. Now, where to start with Robert. As I said, he had black hair. It was-
“Sorry to interrupt Siegfried but I need to speak to Alex privately,” interrupted Lord Vicis.
“Of course Lord Vicis,” he said, as Vicis dragged me into an adjacent room followed by Master and Lord Lux. She closed the door and then looked at us.
“So, you know don’t you,” she said without looking at any of us directly. Master and Lord Lux were confused by her statement but I knew she was talking to me.
“Yes, I know a good part of the story,” I said, trying to keep my voice even.
“And? I assume you have questions,” she said quietly.
“Yes I do. Is he my father?” I asked.
“Yes he is.”
“That wasn’t part of the deal you made with Andraxsccl. Why did you keep it from me knowing who my parents were?”
“I believed it would keep you away from the corruption that has swept the Nobles. The lower houses are keen on gaining more power, others like the House of Storm are filled with blood lust, while others like the house of Light have secluded themselves from all affairs, and the House of Forest is content with just existing even at the expense of the rest. So I chose to keep you away from all of that.”
“Which one of the twins was my mother?”
“Aline Laiks was your mother. I would describe her to you but you already know what she looks like don’t you. Andraxsccl showed you.”
“Yes he did. He showed me her final moments on this earth. You know, you stood idly and watched. The Great Mighty Lord Vicis frozen with fear,” I said with anger.
“I don’t know what you are talking about but watch your tongue boy,” said Lord Lux. “She might not act like it, but she is the current Time Lord and one of the High Dragon Lords.
I snapped at him, “No, you hold your tongue Lord Lux. I am only a boy when it suits you, I stopped being one the moment she convinced Andraxsccl to give me his Dragon Heart, saving my life in exchange for his.”
“What…” He was taken aback by that, he struggled to formulate his words correctly until he managed to clear his mind enough to talk. “Vicis, what is this nonsense he is talking about, Andraxsccl passed into the void by his own free will. Vaurion told us so, he had grown tired…”
“He passed into the void by his own free will, but Vaurion never told us how exactly. And from Zetzu account of what happened during Vaurion’s meeting with Alex, he knew right away Alex had Andraxsccl’s heart. Thanos and Petra also said the same thing,” said Master.
“You have been hiding things from us Vicis, have you become like the humans, always lying to each other?” snared Lord Lux.
“I did what I had to. Unlike me, you are not cursed with the responsibility of finding a path to a future where we all don’t die.”
“That is no excuse to-
It was at that moment Vicis used a silencing spell on the three of us. She reached into the back of her dress and pulled out a piece of paper which looked to be quite old and stained with red dots. With great care she opened it and showed us what it said.
In barely readable letters it said
Vicis, with this message I have broken every rule we worked so hard to enforce but our extinction is at hand. Alexandria lies in ruins, Varna was lost four year ago and now Thanos and his army has breached the final line of defense of Zulia. Andraxsccl and Shadow fought Thanos on his opening attack on Alexandria... I can still remember Shadow’s last breathe. It has haunted me in the days that have followed. I also have meet Thanos in battle and as you can tell I am barely able to write this message to you. So many have died, the Dragon Knights are gone, the Sentinels, the last humans left gave their lives defend
ing this city, few dragons remain and with the death of Vaurion yesterday the last of the Ancient Dragons, they have gone extinct as well and we will soon follow. Instead of fighting this hopeless battle I am sending you the key to saving us all with the last of my strength. It’s a human boy. In my time he was murdered by Thanos while he was a young child along with the rest of elder children of the three ruling Noble Houses but he showed so much promise even as a small child. Vaurion and I are convinced, given the proper tools he will be the key to our salvation. Find him and make sure he follows the path.
Hope lives in Alexander Laiks
The last of the time dragons, Vicis
“I sent this message to myself three hundred years before Alex would be born so I could prepare myself for what would come. I saved you from the corruption of being a Noble in this era and death at the hands of Thanos.”
“Any of those things could still happen Vicis; you have based your actions for the last three hundred years on a piece of paper with only an outcome and vague details… Have you gone mad?” shouted Lord Lux, finally losing his cool and breaking her spell.
“Does that mean you are responsible for the absence of Dragon Knight Candidates Vicis?” Asked Master
“It had to be done.”
“You didn’t…” I asked scared of the answer.
“No, I merely delayed all of their awakenings. As you might have noticed already Alex by those two you met.”
“How could you do such a thing Vicis? You have placed every living thing which doesn’t obey Thanos in mortal danger by starving humanity of its best fighters,” said Master.
“As I said, I only froze their magical powers. Now that I have removed my influence over them a great number of people will be able to form deals. Quite a few of them will have magical training from either the academies or being soldiers, which will make them effective fighters without the extensive training required.”
“You who preach restraint are suggesting we give such powers to a large group of humans. Humans who have not been trained to wield this gift, they won’t be disciplined or versatile in combat just overpowered brutes,” barked Lord Lux, and I agreed with what he was say. Dragon deals make you very powerful but if you don’t know how to use this power or are constrained by the regular uses of combat magic you will basically just be making normal fire balls, powerful, rock melting balls of fire but still just a fire ball. Not the complex magic trained Dragon Knights were supposed to employ.
“At this point power is power regardless of the wrapping. I had two choices. I could ignore the letter or believe it. I choose to believe it and that has brought us to this point, arguing about it is pointless,” she said fiercely.
“She is right you know. You won’t solve anything by fighting,” said a voice stepping from the shadows.
I turned to face the person who spoke and during my turning motion I had summoned a darkness sword onto my hand so when I finished turning it was at the speaker’s throat.
“Oh please, as if such a weak weapon would work on me,” he said grabbing it and shattering the blade.
“Considering the enemies you will be facing soon you should at least know how to use Vaben.”
“What are you doing here Rafurious?” questioned Vicis.
“Can I not visit one of my daughters?”
“No, you cannot,” she replied.
“Well never mind that, how are you doing Shadow, after your little run in with Thanos?”
“Alive as you can see Rafurious,” Shadow replied dryly.
They all feel silent. He had called Vicis one of his daughters which meant he must be an ancient dragon. And also very powerful if from him came the time dragons. Although I wasn’t sure how you got an Elution or Varna dragon from an Ancient one.
“Since you don’t seem too keen as to know the reason of my visit I will just tell you. I came here to give you a warning. Thanos has offered all ancient dragons a deal. In exchange for our help or neutrality, he will leave us alone after he finishes his conquest of the human, elfish, and Dwarf lands. Those who oppose him, naturally, get destroyed with the two legged species.”
“And, how many have joined his cause?” asked Vicis.
“Only one that I know of thus far.”
“And who would that deranged fool be?” asked Lord Lux
“You are talking to him,” replied Rafurious.
“How does that not surprise me,” said Vicis with a tone of indifference.
“Life has been boring, perhaps this conflict will give it a spark again,” he said.
“You still live for fighting Rafurious. I thought you might have found a different path by now,” said Master.
“And you still chase after revenge Shadow, not exactly all that different from being fond of conflict. If you crave revenge long enough it will someday become all you know. Thanos fell down that path and now he stands on the verge of something truly interesting. So perhaps you might make an interesting discovery like his.”
“You would follow a mad dragon in his quest for destruction Rafurious?” asked Vicis.
“I follow my own quest, there is beauty in destruction and there is beauty in the breakdown which has overcome Thanos. You just cannot see it. Plus, this idea of resurrecting the dead seems to have a valid basis.”
“You came to warn us, now leave before Thanos insanity spreads from you,” said Lord Lux.
“Wait,” I said, hoping to get something useful out of this deranged dragon. “What is Thanos really planning?”
“He is planning exactly what he told you. To revive his beloved Valceria and create a world free of all things he believes to be corrupting.”
“And how does he plan to do so?”
“To harvest every single human, elf and dwarf for his ritual. After all one must pay the price for bringing back a soul. Apparently the spirits of the dead aren’t content with just one soul in exchange for Valceria’s soul.”
“What does he need the Dragon Hearts for?” I asked.
“To sustain the initial ritual, something of that magnitude could not possibly be achieved with only his magic. It is hard to maintain a spell for the duration of a war. Picture it as a giant soul catching web for the dead.”
“Will killing him stop the Irkanians?” asked Vicis.
“Ah my daughter, always going for the root of the problem. Yes, he created them; their continuing life is attached to his. Should he die, they die with him.”
“What do you mean he created them?” I asked.
“I do not know what I mean. I am only telling you what I know. There is a difference,” he said before vanishing without a warning.
After he vanished we looked at each other for a moment. We had learned of a way to stop all Irkanians once and for all. It gave us hope no matter how small it was. Now all that remained was finding a way to kill Thanos.
“You will be heading to Blackstorm Keep sooner than expected Alex,” said Vicis, without looking at me, “and from now on all you will be learning from us three.”
“Vicis you can’t be thinking of-” tried Master before being cut off.
“No I am not thinking about it. I have already made up my mind, and if he says yes there is nothing you can do about it.”
“I might dislike him Vicis but remember what happened last time. He is a remarkable boy but it is too soon, he won’t be able to control it,” said Lord Lux.
“He won’t need to control it, just use a small part of it for his fight against Thanos.”
“Why must he fight alone? We can all fight him,” pleaded Master.
I was starting to wonder the same thing. I might have been strong but I wasn’t up to par with any of them, but I was still curious as to what Vicis wanted to teach me. So I asked her.
“I want to teach you how to control time,” was the straight forward answer.
“As in, form a deal with you?” I asked stupidly, time magic was the only kind of magic which could never be learned unless it came from a deal with a
time dragon.
“Yes, I will teach you the most basic and rudimentary aspects of time magic. However they come at a great personal price so you must promise me you will terminate our deal after Thanos is dead,” she said in a very serious voice, which was rare for her. Even now she had maintained calm.
“You can do that? Cancel a deal?”
“Time magic is not like the rest Alex, I am sure you are aware of that. It can’t be taught like the other elements. This one can only be gifted. By which I release all of my powers over time to you. Of course I don’t lose my magical strength, I just become unable to access the flow of time. You will be able to do so but I will not.”
This was why Master and Lord Lux were making such a big deal over it.
“Is that why you are so against it Master?” I asked, just wanting to be sure.
“It’s not that I am against it Alex but-” he was interrupted by Lord Lux.
“Time is fluid, it moves and reacts to any sort of touch you might have on it. It’s ever changing and it is also infinite. Nothing can endure the rigors of time eternal. Given enough time even the largest of mountain can crumble away into nothingness, it grinds the hardest stones and metal to dust, and slays even immortals like the Ancient Dragons. The same is true for you, by exposing yourself to time, you will crumble away if you are not careful. A simple curious thought of what the future could be like and you could find yourself centuries away or stopping time for yourself and allow the world to pass you by. Or perhaps just wondering what you would look like in the future,” he said, taking a pause, “In the case of the last person to be granted a time pact, he pushed the clock back 5 seconds in order to save a dragon. Normally it would be impossible for a Dragon Knight to do such a thing as he doesn’t have enough magic but as you are connected to your future self you have at your disposal all the future magic you would eventually have. Five seconds was all it took to consume all the magic he would ever use. And then he simply vanished,” finished Lord Lux, looking away from us as he walked out of the room.
Time Of The Knights (The Dragon Knight Order Series Book 2) Page 12