Ascension

by Selena IR Drake

  I quivered as the magic drained my energy, and watched in silent fury as the Dákun Daju quickly recovered from the magic I had hit them with. As much as I tried to hide it, Dimitri and the Dákun Daju realized just how weak I had become. They smirked maliciously as they closed in, and I knew that I had to end this soon.

  Xyleena!

  I flinched at the echoing shout from the back of my mind, a bit annoyed at myself that I had completely forgotten I was in possession of a dragon. I brought my hand up to brush against the jewel of Vortex, and felt the tingling creep through my fingertips. Before I had a chance to finish the summoning, Godilai and Luna struck a combination of rapid sweeps that would have left me without any limbs had Thera’s protective magic not been in place. I tried to retaliate with blows of my own, but I was too slow, and the evil trio laughed as they easily countered each strike. Before I knew it, they had disarmed me and forced me to my knees.

  Dimitri closed in for the kill, a look of absolute euphoria on his face. His blade flashed, catching the sunlight as he raised it higher and higher. Just as he began the downward swing, the whole island rumbled and the ground churned and shifted. Dimitri lost his footing and staggered back a ways before the upheaval laid him out flat on the ground with a violent shake. Godilai swore venomously as she too was jostled by the quake. I however, used the tremor to my advantage and kicked Luna’s kneecap as hard as I could. She screamed in pain as the joint over extended and she went face first into the dirt. I was on my feet and running faster than any of them could react.

  As I retreated for safety, I freed my new war fans from my hip sack. I had hoped to not break them in so soon, but with the loss of my old ones, I had no choice. I heard Dimitri’s roar even over the angry rumble of the ground, and spun around to reflect the spell he sent after me. Instead of reflecting the oncoming rush of razor-sharp wind, the tessens sent out an energy all their own. The energy cut right through the deadly spell and divided it into two parts, which flew harmlessly past me and crashed through the trees.

  I took off running again, hoping to get far enough away to summon Vortex before my enemies caught me again. The violent quake was finally receding and I was grateful for the calming, but regretted it at the same time. I had barely crossed a few meters before Godilai and Dimitri caught up to me. In a frenzy of flashing steel and limbs, the duo once again had me pinned with no hope of escape.

  “Die!” Dimitri shouted as he prepared to deal a finishing blow.

  A spiked chain wrapped around his blade and yanked it away. A heartbeat later, another body slammed into Godilai, sending her tumbling away from me. I scrambled to gather my tessens and swung at the new body only to be blocked by a sickle.

  “Take it easy!”

  I knew that voice. I lowered my tessen to reveal the face of the one who spoke. Her amber, wolfish eyes sparkled with amusement.

  “Freya?”

  The Wolf Demon smiled.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Saving your life.” She spun around me and launched her spiked chain at Dimitri.

  He barely managed to block it with a spell before Freya attacked again. While she was occupied with Dimitri, I faced Godilai.

  The look in her cyan eyes sent shivers down my spine. “You are going to pay for the cheap shot you caught Luna with.”

  I was about to respond when a flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye stole my attention. I jumped out of the way just in time to avoid being crushed by Luna’s enormous sword as she leapt out of nowhere. She was quick to recover from the failed attack—too quick for anyone with a hyper extended knee. Realizing she must have healed the wound, I backed away and brushed my fingers against the dragon amulet. The tingling sensation returned in an instant, but Luna and Godilai lashed out at me before I could finish the summoning again.

  Luna roared as she and spun around to strike again. I deflected Luna’s heavy sword with a spell. It ricocheted and struck Godilai’s shoulder, leaving a deep wound. She cried out in pain and fell back slightly.

  Before she could heal the wound, I landed a kick to her head and sent her sprawling across the ground. I was about to permanently remove her from the fight when the ground shook violently and knocked me off balance. A huge mound of earth surged upward, separating the fighters. With a load roar, the rocks and mud exploded outward, leaving a bronze dragon in their place.

  We - as the remnants of humanity - go there, to a planet which now bears my father's name, to live on... and live strong. Two hundred and ninety-seven light-years from Earth, a new chapter in human history waits to be written.

  – FROM “SHIP’S LOG: HAVEN” AS SPOKEN BY NORALANI ITHNEZ

  I stared in awe at the dragon before me. Her scales were brown and bronze but shifted to gold in the light. Ivory horns protruded from her skull and curved forward slightly. A spiked frill guarded her neck, and long, sweeping spines covered her back and tail.

  Her great wings were flared, and she hissed at Dimitri. Without warning, Kkaia flicked her tail, sending large chunks of earth in his direction. Luna was barely quick enough, shoving him aside to take the hit. She cried out as a spike of stone impaled her just below her ribs on her right side. Godilai swore and rushed to her comrade’s side. Dimitri took a quick assessment of the situation and ordered the remnants of his team to come to him. As he helped Godilai gather Luna, he glared at me.

  “This isn’t over.”

  Kkaia snarled at him and sunk her talons into the earth in preparation to launch herself after him. He quickly uttered a string of words and a thick, black cloud immediately descended on the whole area. I heard a young voice recite two words, and then there was silence. Minutes later, a voice I recognized at Thera’s rang out.

  “Nevoa cäipe!”

  At her command, the black cloud rolled away. I quickly searched my surroundings for any sign of Dimitri or his team, but found nary a sign of them.

  I sighed in relief. “They’re gone.” Teka was suddenly beside me, weapons raised against Freya. The Wolf Demon chose to ignore her.

  “See, Kkaia? I was right,” Freya said, thumping Kkaia on the side.

  The dragon snorted and folded her wings.

  “Who is this…woman?” Teka asked, looking to me for an answer.

  Freya! Vortex shouted in the back of my head.

  I could feel his happiness surging through me, and I could not help but laugh. “Well, Freya’s not an enemy, so you can lower your weapons. Aside from that, I’m not really sure.”

  Teka faced me “You know her name and say she’s not an enemy, but you’re not sure about anything else?”

  “I have no idea what she is doing here or how she even got here to begin with.”

  Freya laughed. “Simple. This is my island.”

  Kkaia snorted again and sat on her haunches. “Oh, hush! It was my home long before it was yours.”

  “How so?” Teka finally relaxed enough to lower her guard.

  “It is a long story,” said Freya. “All you need to know right now is that Agasei exterminated most of my clan when he discovered this island was the… Well, it was important. What remained of my clan never returned here.”

  “Freya!” Thera landed in a rush and ran up to the Wolf Demon, catching her in a tight hug. The embrace was returned with equal enthusiasm. “Oh! It is so good to see you again. How have you been?”

  “Wait a second!” Teka furiously shouted.

  I looked at the demi-Feykin in shock at her outburst. Freya and Thera broke their hug to gape at her as well.

  “How do you know her?”

  “Remember? I told you Freya and Amorez stayed in Thorna for many, many years.” Thera laughed at Teka’s dumbstruck expression.

  “Speaking of Amorez…” I said suddenly. “Where in the names of the Five Souls is she?”

  “Do not fret over her, Xyleena. She is fine,” Kkaia answered, lowering her head so she could speak to me eye to eye.

  I sighed.

  Amorez is on her
own mission, Vortex explained.

  “Zamora is Amorez, right?”

  I watched as Freya slowly nodded.

  I shook my head. “Figures.”

  “Don’t be upset, Xy,” Freya said.

  She stepped past Teka to offer her hand to help me up. I sighed and allowed her to help me to my feet.

  “There is something I don’t understand. How did you escape the Temple after Dimitri attacked the festival?”

  “Amorez, Zhealocera, and I managed to warp off the island before he had taken complete control of it,” Freya explained. “Zhealocera returned by herself shortly afterward to see if you had been captured. I cannot say for sure what happened in the Temple since the attack, but she relayed to us that you had not been found. Therefore, I came here, hoping that I had not missed the opportunity to catch up to you. When I discovered Kkaia was still here, I knew you were on your way…especially after the idiot showed up.”

  “Is there a particular reason you were looking for her?” Teka asked. “Aside from just seeing if she was alive and well?”

  “Xy is the Dragon Keeper. Without her the Dragons of Light will never be found, and the Dark Keeper will rise to power once again.”

  “Couldn’t Amorez find them?” Thera asked, leaning on her staff.

  “She knows not where her twelve were hidden,” Kkaia whispered sadly. “And we dragons cannot find our brothers and sisters the way our Keeper can.”

  “So now that you have found me, what do you want?” I asked.

  Freya quirked an eyebrow at me. “I mostly just wanted to see if you were alive. But now that I know you are, and on a quest to free the dragons, I can help you.”

  “Help me how?”

  “A clansman of mine resides in Zadún. I believe he will be very helpful in this venture you are on.”

  “What skills can he bring to the table to help us?” Teka asked, crossing her arms.

  “He is a Fox Demon– quick, agile, resourceful, and deadly. I taught him how to fight, and he is very capable of handling himself against your Dákun Daju and Feykin opponents,” Freya said over her shoulder to Teka.

  “I like him already.” Teka muttered sarcastically and rolled her eyes.

  I sighed. “I guess we can take a slight detour and stop at Zadún while we translate the next part of the riddle.”

  Freya faced me. “Riddle?”

  “Yeah. The ‘Riddle of the Twelve’ is the key to the Dragons of Light. Apparently I wrote it years ago, but something happened, and I lost my memory.”

  “That explains why Amorez and I couldn’t find you,” Freya said thoughtfully.

  I nodded in agreement.

  “So…Zadún is almost straight north,” Teka announced. “And since it is summer, the ice shelf that usually surrounds Arctica will be melted. That means we can be there within two weeks or so.” She clicked her tongue and started for the rowboats.

  “While en route maybe you can fill me in on some details.”

  Freya nodded. “I can try. I was on the Sorcerers’ Isle for most of the last three centuries, so I can’t fill in all the blanks for you.”

  “Something is better than nothing,” I muttered.

  “Maybe you can fill me in on what happened to you that made you disappear.”

  I shook my head in agreement, and then glanced up at Kkaia. “Were you going to swim with the ship or rest in the eye with Vortex?”

  “You have obtained Vortex already?” Kkaia sounded excited.

  I nodded and watched as golden energy crackled around her. An instant later, she levitated and melted into bits of earth. These bits swarmed around me before shooting into the dragon eye. A bronze jewel filled in one of the empty slots of the amulet.

  His wings beat like roaring thunder, stirring the air into great, quivering waves. His scaly hide glimmered in the suns' light like a million sapphires thrown upwards into a midday sky. Ivory talons and a crest of horns of lengths greater than any man was tall gave the beast a ferocious look. But his eyes... his eyes, though burning like hot fire, seemed as friendly and welcoming as a babe's. He was intimidating, but absolutely spectacular to behold!

  – FROM “MY MYSTICAL ADVENTURES, VOL VII” BY DAHM THE BARD

  Dimitri sighed. It had been just over two weeks since their embarrassing retreat from the Shaking Isle. They had struggled to keep Luna alive long enough to seek an expert healer. Though Pox was great with small wounds, she had been unable to help Luna. The spike meant to end his life had embedded itself deep within Luna, and there was no way for the young Feykin to heal her.

  They had rushed Luna to the healer in Zadún, hoping against hope that something could be done. The healer took one glance at the wound and faced Dimitri with a grim expression. There was no way to save Luna.

  The healer had given her some kind of herbal mix before leaving the room. Godilai sat at Luna’s side, holding her hand. It was the most emotion Dimitri had ever seen either Dákun Daju show.

  Luna closed her eyes and took a ragged breath. “I…I want…”

  “Shh, Luna-Sortim,” Godilai whispered. A tear slowly rolled down her cheek.

  “Please…kill her. Kill the Dragon…Keeper.” Luna finally exhaled and remained very still.

  Godilai nodded and placed a kiss on Luna’s brow. “I will, meo sortim. I promise. In your name I will kill her.” Godilai took a knife from her belt and held it to her arm.

  Dimitri left the room. He knew the Dákun Daju ritual for honoring the dead– an hour of bloodletting. He had done the same when his mother died. It was something best handled in private. So he would leave Godilai alone with her grief.

  Vincent and Pox approached him as he walked toward the exit of the small clinic. Dimitri could tell they were eager to hear about Luna’s condition. He simply shook his head and continued walking. Vincent and Pox hung back, neither daring to follow him in his current mood.

  Dimitri pushed the door aside and walked into the frigid night air. He shivered as he reached for the knife on his belt. He unsheathed it and held it to his arm. In one fluid motion, he dragged the blade over his flesh and watched as his blood flowed unabated.

  He walked on, letting droplets of blood splatter on the frosted cobblestones. When he felt the flow cease, he took the knife to the wound. Again and again he repeated the process until the hour had passed. He put his knife back in its sheath and looked around.

  He had wandered into a shabby-looking part of Zadún. Several buildings looked as though they had seen much better days. They were unkempt with windows shattered, walls falling apart, doors hanging askew and tough plants overgrown about them.

  There was one building, however, that had lights on and merry music blaring from within. Dimitri read the sign out front: Thief’s Paradise. He snickered and stepped inside.

  A scantily clad bar wench with voluptuous curves met him at the door. She attached herself to Dimitri’s arm and walked with him as she spoke. “Ye come for drink or pleasure, sir?”

  “Drink,” he answered flatly.

  She frowned in disappointment and escorted him to the bar. While he took a seat, she dodged rowdy customers and scurried back to the door.

  “What’s your poison?” the bartender called out.

  Dimitri blinked at the sight of him. The bartender was a Demon with rich, amber eyes and fox-like ears half hidden in an unruly mane of lavender and jet-black hair.

  Dimitri cleared his throat. “Lescan yellow ale.”

  The bartender shot him a rather bored look before he turned to pour the drink. Moments later a large mug was set on the counter. “Five even, man.”

  “What?” Dimitri blinked.

  The Demon rolled his eyes. “Oi! Five bits for the drink.”

  “Oh.” Dimitri quickly dropped the coins in the bartender’s clawed hand.

  The Demon clicked his tongue and walked to a livelier group at the other end of the counter. Dimitri stared at the wound on his arm as he sipped the ale.

  “Hey, Kitfox! Fix me
up with another round!” A man with a strange accent took a stool at the bar not far from where Dimitri sat. Dimitri studied the man out of the corner of his eye. He was tall for a Hume, and dark skinned. A forest-green coat that fell to the tops of his knee-high leather boots and tight leather breeches made up his outfit, which was accented with several sashes and leather belts which holstered pistols and sheathed a fancy rapier. A triangular-shaped hat sat atop the man’s head, and a ribbon held his long blonde hair in a neat tail.

  The Demon bartender waved in acknowledgement and poured the drink. The glass was then sent sliding down the bar to the waiting hand of the patron.

  “Thanks, mate!”

  “Yeah! Yeah!” Kitfox turned his back on the dull end of the bar.

  “Bloody Demons,” muttered the blonde man.

  “I heard that!” Kitfox shouted over his shoulder.

  Dimitri snorted.

  “Well, at least your kind is better than those Dákun Daju bas– ”

  “Watch it.” Dimitri growled.

  The blonde-haired man quickly met his gaze and winced. “Sorry, mate. Thought you were Hume.”

  “You thought wrong.” Dimitri took a long draft from his ale.

  “That explains a few things,” Kitfox said as he walked over.

  Dimitri glared at him through a veil of black bangs.

  “You reek of blood.”

  “Got a problem with that?”

  Kitfox snorted. “Not if you like smelling like fresh bait to other Demon clans. It’ll be fun watching them tear you apart and eat you.” The Demon smiled, revealing extremely sharp fangs.