by Unknown
Rexajon let out a glass-shaking roar. His tail materialized and he turned to slap the golem into the corner of the car.
“Rexajon, someone will see you!” Solana cried.
“Don't worry, Princess,” Rexajon assured as he transformed fully into his dragon body, stalking towards the nearest person, the teen. "They're all golems." Before the teen could react, he took a deep breath and blew fire at her the blew so hot that her skin melted away on impact.
He blew fire until her glamour collapsed and she melted into her true form: a pile of mud. Then, he blew more fire until the mud evaporated into dirt. He stopped and used his magic to smother out the remaining fire. One down. Two to go.
“Rexajon!” Solana cried from behind him.
He turned quickly to see Solana barely fending off both the doctor and the green golem. She successfully kicked the green golem away with enough strength to stun him, leaving herself with just the doctor to focus on. Good. Even without her magic, Solana was a dragon in her own right. The golem was built stronger than the average human, but so was Solana. She matched every kick, punch, and every time the doctor thought he had the advantage, the way Solana fought showed him that he was sorely mistaken. She would not go down easily.
Rexajon focused on the other creature. He tackled the frog golem and let out another roar. The golem fault back. Using its strong legs, it kicked Rexajon with enough strength to launch him at the large window of the train car. The glass shattered from the suddenness of his sharp scales hitting against it.
He grunted and used his arms to catch himself before he fell backward. The golem wasted no time.
It jumped to its feet, dashed at him at full speed, and jumped into the air to send him another powerful kick.
Rexajon reacted quickly. He ducked to dodge the attack. The golem could not stop in time. It let out a croak as it continued out of the window. Rexajon watched with satisfaction from the safety of the train as it plummeted from a staggering height at a staggering speed. One left.
Afraid of being seen now that the window was broke, he returned to his human form as he turned to Solana and the doctor. Solana was still putting up an incredible fight, but he could tell that she was starting to tire. “Mind if I cut in, Princess?”
“I thought you'd never ask,” Solana retorted breathlessly.
They traded spots, and Rexajon effortlessly caught the doctor's fist in his hand. He smirked and breathed smoke out of his nose in a show of intimidation.
Golems were not intelligent creatures, but this one at least knew certain death when it stared directly at it. It looked at Rexajon, then to Solana by the window.
In one quick move, it broke off its arm, leaving it in Rexajon's hand and rushed towards Solana. It grabbed Solana with its remaining arm and jumped out of the broken window.
Solana screamed and reached for Rexajon, but they were gone in an instant.
“Princess!” Rexajon cried in horror. He tossed the discarded arm aside and ran to the window. He could see them quickly falling towards the ground, but there was no way his magic would reach her in time.
There was only one thing to do. At that moment, he did not care about the consequences of his actions. He did not care what happened to them after this heat of the moment decision. He only cared about saving his princess.
He jumped out of the window with as much power as his legs could muster. He dived towards them.
His sharp eyes could tell that Solana was unconscious, probably from shock. Even if he caught her on his back, she would not be able to hold on. He would have to catch her in his hands. His hands were much smaller than his back. It would be a harder task, but he would have to pull it off. He had no choice.
As he dived closer to her falling body, he transformed into his dragon form and arched his wings to improve his aerodynamics.
He gritted his teeth. He had one shot at this.
He outstretched his arms as far as they could go. Closer. Closer. He had to hurry—the ground was getting dangerously close!
He grabbed her dainty wrist first and breathed a premature sigh of relief. He pulled her to his chest protectively. Just as they approached the ground, he gave a forceful push of his wings, launching them back into the sky.
He let out another sigh of relief. He was safe. More importantly, his princess was safe. He looked in the direction of the train. It was speeding off, but he made no effort to catch it. He had more than his fair share of public transportation for the time being.
He was out in the open now. There was nothing he could do to change that. He decided to just fly the rest of the distance himself.
Trying to at least make a half-effort to remain some semblance of discreet, he flew above the clouds to provide cover.
Solana eventually stirred in his arms. He looked down at her. “You're awake.” “What happened?” she asked groggily. “Why are we flying? What if you're seen?”
Rexajon sighed and lifted his arms so she could climb on his back. “I have good news and bad news, my princess.”
“The bad news?”
“I had to transform in the open to save you. I don't know if I was seen. I hope not, but as you know, we were beside a train. It is highly possible that I was seen by humans.”
“And the good news?”
“You're not dead.”
Solana chuckled. “Thank you for that, by the way,” she offered. “As for humans seeing us, we'll deal with it as it comes. Even if they saw a dragon, there's no way anyone could connect it to us. We'll be okay. Let's keep focusing on the mission.”
“Agreed, Princess.”
Rexajon continued his flight until he spotted the circle of upright rocks through the clouds. He hovered above it for a moment, trying to figure out a way to land without being seen. There were no tourists—it was too early for that, but there were still guards and employees all over the premises.
"Short-range teleportation?" Solana suggested, answering his unspoken question.
Rexajon chuckled. “Brilliant,” he complimented. “You're more than ready to handle the magic you are about to receive.”
His body glowed softly and he closed his eyes. “Yeourtian,” he whispered. By the time he was done with the spell, they were safely hidden in the tall grass in the field beside their destination.
Rexajon returned to his human form, then looked backward at Solana. "Are you alright?"
Solana let go of him, dropping to the ground. She nodded. “Yes,” she replied. “Thanks to you.”
Rexajon offered her a smile. "Let's go find that orb, shall we? It smells like cow manure over here."
Solana nodded. Hand in hand, they ran across the field and jumped the fence.
They walked until the giant stones towered over them. A small fence protected the rocks against rough tourists, which mean they were five feet short of where they needed to be. Solana crossed her arms, trying to survey the situation and figure out a way to find the orb without attracting too much attention to themselves. She glanced at Rexajon. “Where do you think it is?” she asked.
Rexajon sighed and shrugged. “I can't even guess,” he admitted. “These poles have not been cultivated since Earth's beginning. They give off no magical signature at all.”
Solana frowned. But that was not true. They did give off a magical signature. That was how they found it in the first place. Rexajon was at a loss because he could see magical signatures without trying. Solana did not have that luxury, so she knew to be a bit more creative. “Rexajon,” she said quickly. “I need a map of Stonehenge, please.”
Rexajon took a moment to follow her train of thought but soon caught on to her plan. He traced the
outline in the air and a holographic map appeared. They stood close to shield the map from view.
“Just like before—show me all the energy sources.”
The yellow dots appeared on the screen. Without being told, Rexajon started deleting, first the humans, then the plants and animals, until only three yellow dots remained. "Good," Solan
a said as she studied the map.
She pointed at the two yellow dots close to each other. "If these two are us, then that," she pointed at another dot. "That has to be it, right?"
Rexajon beamed with pride. Once again, Solana showed that her intelligence and deductive reasoning shined well beyond her years. “And this is right over...,” he pointed to their left. “There.”
Together they jogged over to the corresponding rock and found themselves beside a sign, complete with engraved letters that stated that the archway was recently restored and not allowed to be touched.
Oh, Solana was going to break a few hearts. “I want that rock turned to pebbles,” she said, sending a look at Rexajon.
“As you wish, my princess,” Rexajon agreed. His hand glowed with magic. “Lawuert.”
The largest rock suddenly shattered. In a quick move, Rexajon shielded Solana from the falling pieces. Once he was confident that the dust settled, he stepped aside and looked backward to survey the damage.
They could spot the orb immediately. A normal human would see a ball of glass. They, however, saw the orb as it truly was: a ball of active energy, giving off a faint glow.
“Just one touch, right?” Solana verified.
Rexajon nodded. “Just one touch.”
Solana nodded slowly and stepped towards it. "Cover me." She swung one foot across the small fence, then the other. She stepped over the crumbled rocks until she reached the orb. She kneeled and touched it.
As soon as she made contact with the orb, its glow brightened. It fed off Solana's magical energy, then sent a soft pulse throughout the area.
She looked at Rexajon. “I think it worked,” she breathed with an amazed smile.
“How do you feel?”
“Powerful,” she replied as she stood again. “I feel great—I can see it! There's some wavy energy thing all around you! It's red!”
Rexajon smiled and held out a hand to help her over the fence. “Congratulation, Princess. You can see magical signatures now. Yours is orange, by the way.”
Solana looked around excitedly. It was as though she was seeing the world for the first time. Her fingers tingled with power. She felt like she could—.
“Hey, there, calm down,” Rexajon warned, pulling her out of her thoughts with a hand on her shoulder. “You're starting to grow a tail.”
Solana blushed and looked behind her to see the faint outline of a small tail starting to form. She focused and it disappeared. She smiled again and looked back at Rexajon. “I have magic,” she grinned.
Rexajon chuckled. “You've always had magic,” he reminded her. “And you've only unlocked a small fraction of it. Just imagine how you'll feel once you cultivate all four orbs.”
“When can we go to the next one?”
“Soon,” Rexajon replied. “But we'll discuss it back in Wisconsin. We've attracted enough attention to ourselves here. We need to return home, where you can practice your magic safely.”
“But I thought it wasn't safe to go back.”
“I've changed my mind. I'll explain why later. Come, let's get out of here.” He took her hand in his and readied himself to perform the spell to teleport home.
“Wait!” Solana said quickly. “Let me do it!”
Rexajon looked at her apprehensively. “Next time,” he offered. “For now, I prefer all my insides
exactly where they are—on the inside.” He ignored the miffed look she gave him and teleported them home.
Chapter Four
Solana crawled into her bed. Teleporting made it hard to keep up with the time difference, but she knew she had to try her best to maintain her normal schedule. It did not help that she was not sleepy in the slightest. Thanks for her newfound magic, she had energy for days.
She looked at her hand, then produced a flame. She grinned. In all her magic(less) lessons, neither Kuri nor Rexajon mentioned how great having magic felt. She finally filled the gaping hole that seemed to be missing in her identity for so long. Now, all she had to do was make her way to the other orbs, save Kuri, and save Wizteria. Easy peasy.
Her flame suddenly flared. She yelped and moved her hand away from her face before the fire could lick it. She quickly shook her hand to put the fire out and effectively caught her bed on fire in her haste. “Oh, no, no, no!” she hissed under her breath. She jumped out of her bed.
Great. Now her hand was on fire and her bed was burning to ash. “Rexajon!” she called, a little panic in her voice. “Rexajon, are you awake?!”
Rexajon groaned loudly from the next room over. He jogged over to her room. “Princess, this better be—whoa!” Without even asking, he could figure out what happened. He quickly used his magic to douse the flames and restore her bed. He shot a glare at Solana.
Solana gave him a bashful smile and shrugged. “I can explain?”
Rexajon huffed and crossed his arms. “I'm starting to see why your father took away your powers.”
Solana groaned. “Give me a break, Rexajon,” she pouted. “It's my first day with powers in fourteen years.”
“I know,” Rexajon growled as he grabbed her flaming hand. “Which means you should probably not use fire spells until you get used to them again.” He absorbed her excess magic until the flames died out. "This house's properties keep the enemy from detecting your magic, but it only works if you don't burn the place down."
“About that,” Solana said as she pulled her hand away. “Why did we come back here? I thought it wasn't safe to be here.”
“It isn't,” Rexajon agreed, looking her over for burns. “But nowhere is safe. The fiasco on the train confirmed that. The enemy knows who we are and somehow knows where we are, even if we're on a different continent. At least we have the home field advantage here. We just have to stay alert and stay focused on our mission in the meantime and deal with enemies as they come.”
“Shouldn't we be looking for the next orb instead of sitting around?”
“I've never been to Hawaii, have you?” Solana shook her head.
“Then we can't teleport there,” Rexajon explained. “Our flight leaves out tomorrow morning. Until then, we'll try to continue our daily routine and not draw attention to ourselves. Understand?”
Solana nodded.
Rexajon's eyes softened. “Good,” he said, ruffling her hair. “Now try to sleep. We have school in a few hours. If you need anything, I'm staying in the room right next door.”
Solana nodded again. “Good night.”
“Good night, my princess.”
* * *
It seemed almost dreamlike. Just a few hours ago, she was destroying a national heritage site in Europe. Now, Solana was back at school. She sat in her homeroom class, glancing at the clock on the wall at every chance she got. The sooner the day passed, the sooner she would be able to catch a plane and head to beautiful Hawaii.
She chuckled at the irony. Yesterday, her biggest worry was having a date to the Spring Fling. Now, she was a true dragon, complete with (some) of her magic and a mission. She smiled softly. She hoped she could be a princess her kingdom could be proud of.
Her smile faded slightly. She felt eyes on her. She left her thoughts to see multiple students sneaking glances at her. They whispered among themselves.
She frowned. They were talking about her. She was never close to anyone at her school, Rexajon made sure of that, but she never found herself the center of whispers like she was right now. She did not like it.
She shifted in her seat uncomfortably and scanned the faces of the kids that happened to glance at her for clues. She tried to listen to their conversations, but they ceased once she started to catch on.
The bell rang. The students stayed in their seats. They all seemed to focus on her. She gave one more sweeping confused look over the class, then stood. She left the room.
“That was weird...,” she mumbled.
Deciding to shake it off, she continued to her locker. To her surprise, she did not have to dodge anyone in the halls like
normally. They all seemed to jump out of her way, as though touching her would poison them. The confusion returned in full force, but she would have to save her pressing questions about what was going on for Rexajon. Luckily, they shared the same first period.
She hurried to her locker and put in her combination. She pulled out her textbook and binder and closed it back.
“Oh, Solana! I caught you!”
She lifted her head to see Tyler jogging her way. Her mind flashed back to the hurtful things he said about her when he thought she could not hear. Her eyes narrowed. “Tyler.”
Tyler either did not notice the malice directed at him or ignore it. He smiled a handsome smile.
“And your bodyguard isn't in sight. Score.”
Her fingers tightened around her binder. “No, he's not,” she said. Thank goodness he was not. She wanted to hear what he had the nerve to say. Besides, she could handle this herself.
“Thank goodness, right?” Tyler laughed. “He's a killjoy, right? I mean, I just wanted to ask you to the dance.”
“Don't insult Rexajon,” she warned. “Why would I want to go to the dance with you?”
Tyler's smile faltered. That question caught him off guard. Just the day before yesterday, she was
putty in his hand. Why was she behaving so coldly now? He took a step back. “What's your problem?
Why wouldn't you want to go to the dance with me? Do you think I haven't noticed you making googly eyes at me all year long? You should be jumping at this opportunity!"
Solana scoffed. "Opportunity? You think highly of yourself, don't you? Let me burst that bubble for you. Rexajon stopped you from insulting me with your invitation because I'm far out of your league. I deserve to be treated like royalty—every girl here does—and you are incapable of doing that because you're nothing but a selfish jerk."
“Are you saying—.”
“I'm saying no,” Solana said simply. “No, I will not go to the dance with you. No, I don't want to hang out with you. No, I don't want anything to do with you. No.”
Tyler scowled. “That loser of a brother got to you, didn't he? What's wrong with you two?!” Solana growled dangerously. “Don't insult Rexajon!” she roared. In the process, she effectively caught the attention of every student in the hallway. Her eyes broke through the color spell and returned to their original amber color. They glowed with power.