“Sorry I’m late. Someone told me to bring steak?”
He paused as he scanned the room. His eyes met Zaviana’s. They bulged. A wide grin split his face.
“Zavi?” he asked.
“Devarius,” she choked out.
She jumped up from her seat and rushed over to meet him. Her arms wrapped around his neck to embrace him in a hug so hard that he gagged for breath. She reluctantly let go of her death grip.
“Is it really you?” he asked, his eyes watering.
“It is me.”
Everyone stared at the two of them for a long moment, until someone in the room cleared their throat.
Devarius shook his head. “Sorry … everyone, this is my sister.”
Several gasps filled the air, and then smiles filled everyone’s face.
Devarius made everyone shift seats until he could sit by his sister. The two looked at each other for a long moment.
“All right. Zaviana, would you mind telling us what this is all about? What danger it is that we face?” Tynaer asked.
Zaviana looked away from her brother and nodded. “The empire has learned where the resistance has been hiding.”
Devarius’ eyes bulged. “They’re coming here?”
Zaviana shook her head. “No. They don’t know where this is. I don’t even know where this is. But they learned about Saefron.”
“How?” Tynaer asked.
“It’s a bit of a long story. I’ll need to fill you in on a little background about me.” Zaviana looked around the room. “As all of you now know, I am Devarius’ sister. The Dragonia Empire came to our farm when Devarius was young and I was almost a woman. They killed our parents and my older brother. We couldn’t afford taxes that year. After a hard freeze, most of our crops had died, and we barely had enough food for ourselves. That didn’t matter to the empire. They left Devarius, probably to tell the tale about what happens when you don’t pay the empire taxes. But they took me. One of the dragonriders took a liking to me.”
Devarius snarled.
Zaviana’s eyes lowered. “What he would have done with me … I do not know. I don’t imagine I would have got away easily, or at all. However, someone else found me. He saw the dragonriders and how they treated me, how I was their prisoner. And before they could take advantage of me, he came to my rescue. He killed the dragonrider. The other fled and the remaining dragon went crazy, burning up some of the village before flying away.”
“Who saved you?” Devarius asked.
“A man by the name of Derkas.”
Devarius tilted his head. “The mercenary?”
Zaviana’s cheeks reddened. “Yes. He wasn’t well known at the time, but he was on a quest for someone who betrayed the emperor. He was on his way to find the resistance and give them information.”
Tynaer nodded. “Yes. He caught the man, and because of him, we had to wait many more years until we could stand a chance to fight back.”
Zaviana dipped her head. “I know. I was traveling with him during this journey. I disagreed with him. I told him the empire was corrupt, and they deserved to fall. He agreed, but refused to give up the chance for the money. He said we could run away from it all and live like a queen and king …”
“He fell for you?” Devarius asked.
Zaviana nodded. “And I for him. When he captured the runaway, he brought him back to the emperor. He had me hide. He was worried the empire would try to take me again. He received his bounty, but when he returned, I was gone. The empire had found me.”
The room was silent as they watched her, waiting for the conclusion of her story.
“I was brought before the emperor. They had seen me traveling with the mercenary, and saw what I could do. I was a special prisoner of the emperor’s and he studied me. For years I was in Dragonia as a slave.”
Devarius wiped a tear from his eye. “Why was the emperor so intrigued by you?”
“Because of my abilities.”
“What abilities?” Devarius asked.
Zaviana looked around the room and studied each person. They all watched her closely. She held out her hand, and a small ball of ice formed in her palm. Blue frost sizzled from it as she placed it on the table.
“Magic?” Devarius asked.
“Yes, though it wasn’t this advanced when I was his prisoner.”
“How did you escape?” Devarius asked.
“One day, I was set free. To my surprise, Derkas was the one awaiting me. He ransomed my freedom. In exchange for my freedom, he told the emperor the location of the resistance. He’s the one who found Saefron.”
“That no-good—” Tynaer mumbled.
“He’s a scoundrel, I know that. But twice he saved me from the empire. If he hadn’t told them, I would still be a prisoner.”
“Well, if for nothing else, I am thankful to him for that,” Devarius said.
“What do we do?” Tynaer asked.
“We gather all the wyverns and all the warriors, and we make haste to reach Saefron,” Devarius said.
“What if we’re too late?” Tynaer asked.
“We have to try. I for one cannot sit back and let them die,” Devarius said.
Tynaer shook his head. “Nor can I. I’m just worried that we’re not ready.”
“If we keep waiting, we’ll never be ready,” a young man across from Devarius said.
“Agreed,” Devarius said. “At least if we can make it to Saefron before the attack, we’ll be able to prepare the defense.”
“If we make it before the attack,” Tynaer grumbled.
“Have faith, Captain.”
Tynaer took a deep inhalation of breath through his nose. He closed his eyes and tilted his head back. “Have it your way, Devarius.”
Devarius grinned.
“We’ll leave in the morning,” Tynaer said.
19
Naveen waved her arms around in a circle, distorting the air. Her purple dragonscale necklace dangled loose now, which seemed to amplify her power. Air from all around her funneled toward her hands as she collected it. She could see the air particles as easily with her eyes open as when she closed them now. Once enough was collected, she released her power. A blast of wind crushed into the small metal bucket over a hundred paces away. It sprang into the air, up higher than any building before it spiraled down.
“Neat,” Fraeyn said.
Naveen beamed. “That was fun.”
“Do it again.”
She shook her head. “I want to conserve my strength. This is still new and it uses a lot of energy. Besides, it’s your turn.”
“Are you sure I can do this?” he asked.
Naveen nodded. “Definitely. All it takes is practice.”
“I don’t know …”
“Well, I do. You need to have more faith in yourself.”
Fraeyn looked down at his feet.
Naveen sprinted toward the fallen tin can. She set it back on the tree stump and egged him on. He motioned for her to step further out of the way. Naveen knew he was nervous about his power, especially since they’d learned he could channel fire. Her ability, air, seemed a little less dangerous. He touched his necklace, closed his eyes, and brought his hands in front of him. The air around him distorted. She noticed the air around her grow colder, as if he were draining what little heat surrounded them. She wondered if that were true, and if so, if he’d use less energy in the summer.
Fraeyn’s hands glowed red, and the air in front of him turned a translucent orange. He opened his eyes, and Naveen could have sworn they appeared red as well. The fireball flew from his hands. His mouth dropped as it smashed into the tin can. A blinding light flashed through the air. Naveen had to close her eyes. When she opened them, the tin can was gone. She glanced up to the sky, but didn’t see it there either. Stunned, she tiptoed to where the tree stump had been. Her eyes bulged when she realized not only was the tin can gone, but so was the tree stump. In its place was a hole, with a pile of melted metal at the bottom.
Fraeyn stepped by her side. He gasped when he looked at the hole. “Did I do that?”
“It appears so …” Naveen whispered.
Smoke filled the air from the hole. The two of them stepped back. They couldn’t believe their eyes.
“Unbelieva—”
A noise came from behind them, startling them. Naveen turned around first, then tackled Fraeyn to the ground before he could protest. A sword filled the air where they had both stood. Several men approached them. She rolled, feeling for her scabbard. It wasn’t there. She’d left her weapon back in Saefron.
Naveen rolled as another sword strike came toward her. She regretted leaving her weapon behind, but she hadn’t thought they’d be in danger so close to Saefron. Apparently, she’d been wrong.
Fraeyn rolled out of the way of a sword slamming toward his head. He felt at his belt and unsheathed a dagger. The next sword angling toward him, he blocked with the small dagger. Rolling toward the warrior, he swept his leg into the man’s feet. The warrior fell. Fraeyn rolled on top of him, slamming his dagger into the man’s chestplate. He let go of his weapon and grabbed the dying warrior’s sword by his side.
Naveen got to her knees, then ducked as another sword swung toward her neck. Once it passed, she got to her feet and slammed her hands into the chest of the warrior. Air slammed with her. She hadn’t intentionally channeled air, but it came. It wasn’t as powerful as normal, but she was thankful it was there. The man flew backward over ten feet. She stood and took in her surroundings.
Four warriors stood, each with swords raised in front of them. One warrior lay on the ground at Fraeyn’s feet. There were five empire warriors this close. Were there others? Naveen looked around. She couldn’t see anyone else. Perhaps they were a scouting party, but why did they come after her and Fraeyn? Maybe they thought they were easy prey. After all, she wasn’t even armed. At least, as far as they knew.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
One of the warrior’s smiled through his t-visor. “We’ve come to end resistance scum like you.”
“Can you not see the corruption of the empire?” she asked.
He snarled. “The empire is not corrupt. You are the ones rebelling against them. You are the traitors. The empire has been nothing but fair.”
Naveen scoffed.
The man rushed at her.
Naveen brought all the air she’d been collecting to her hands. They turned purple as the energy left her, slamming into the chest of the man. He flew backward over a hundred feet, skipping against the ground all the while.
The remaining three warriors glanced at each other nervously.
Naveen reached down to grab the weapon the warrior had left behind during his flight. She didn’t wait for the men to rush her; she stepped forward, slashing the weapon in the air. Fraeyn followed her lead, attacking the man in front of him.
Her weapon danced in the air, balancing perfectly between the two warriors who fought her. She glanced to see Fraeyn only fighting one. Naveen wondered if two attacked her because they thought she was the weaker of the two. She’d have to prove them wrong.
Naveen’s weapon swung from left to right, first blocking one warrior, then the other. She didn’t have much time for any elegant moves, not that she knew many, when she battled two warriors. Most of her parries were overhand, and it was tiring her quickly. She kept her left leg in front of the other, knees slightly bent, and shoulders steady. Naveen dared not slip in her stance—to do so could cost her life.
Her attackers increased their speed, and they made effort to sync their attacks to make it impossible for her to block.
Her foot slipped. She closed her eyes and dropped to the ground. Two swords crisscrossed in the air where her head had been. When her bottom hit the ground, she pulled energy from the air around her and directed it to the head of the warrior at her right. It slammed into him, jerking his neck backward. A snap filled the air as he crumpled to the ground. Naveen rolled, held her hand out, and pushed the air near her to push the warrior’s sword to her grasp. With two swords in her possession, she brought them each over her shoulder, crossing her arms, then slammed them together at the standing warrior’s knees. He yelled out in pain as he crumpled to the ground. She stood, then plunged one of the swords into his chest.
A grunt echoed to her left. She turned to see Fraeyn on the ground. Naveen tensed, gripped her remaining sword tight, and prepared to help. Before she could take two steps, the air grew cold, and flames protruded from Fraeyn’s fingertips. The flames covered the remaining warrior, and he shrieked as he was being burned alive.
Naveen tiptoed toward Fraeyn. He looked to her, his eyes still blazing red.
“Fraeyn? It’s me. Naveen.”
His eyes lost their red hue, becoming hazel once more. He closed his eyes, his breath coming in gasps.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
He held out his left arm. A deep gash crossed his forearm, blood oozing out of it. Naveen’s eyes widened. She dropped to the ground in front of him. Reaching under her leather armor, she ripped some of her cloth underclothes. She closed her eyes and searched the wound. Using the air, she removed as much dirt as she could from his cut, then she opened her eyes and wrapped the cloth around it. She tied it as tight as she could.
“We need to get you back to Saefron.”
He nodded, trembling. Naveen helped him to his feet. She glanced down at the warrior he’d defeated. His armor was still intact, but his flesh was gone, only bones remaining. She cringed and looked away.
She studied the bodies around them. Four warriors lay dead. She’d stabbed two and broken the neck of the third with air, and the fourth had been burned alive by Fraeyn. Her eyes bulged. Four. She glanced around, searching for the fifth warrior. He was nowhere to be found. She remembered tossing him over a hundred feet away with air. He wasn’t where she’d left him. She guided Fraeyn to the spot where he’d been and looked to the ground. The grass was pressed down. He’d been there.
“The fifth warrior is gone,” she whispered.
“What?” he asked.
“There were five who attacked us. I see only four bodies.”
“Where did the other go?” Fraeyn asked.
“I don’t know. Come, we’ve got to get back into Saefron and tell the others the empire is here.”
20
Zaviana watched as crate after crate was brought onto the ships. Besides the one she had traveled on, there were four more ships. It was enough to load a few thousand warriors on, and a lot of supplies. She noticed the men were extra careful with the small crates.
“What’s in those crates?” Zaviana asked her brother.
Devarius looked at the crates being loaded onto the ships and smiled. “Those, my sister, are my latest experiment.”
Zaviana wrinkled her nose.
“What?” he asked.
“You were never an alchemist. In fact, if I remember correctly, the few potions you tried to make didn’t go so well.”
Devarius shrunk into his shoulders. “I told Ma I was sorry.”
“Sorry? You burned down the barn. Twice.”
He smiled. “I helped rebuild it.”
Zaviana shook her head. “All right. I’ll bite. What’s in the crates? What is your latest, entirely safe, experiment?”
Devarius grinned. “If you haven’t noticed, not all of these wyverns are the same. There are a few distinct colors.”
“Yes, I noticed that. Purple, red, blue, green, and gold.”
“Also black.”
Zaviana raised an eyebrow. “Black?”
“We’ve only seen two black wyverns. And neither has approached us, so we are unsure of their abilities.”
“Abilities?”
“Not all wyverns breathe fire, sister.”
“I saw a few in the skies, one seemed to breathe ice.”
Devarius nodded. “Yes. Each color holds a certain element. I’m not sure why, but I’ve been able to
study them. We have ice wyverns, fire, acid, lightning, and wind.”
“Wind?” she asked.
“A wind wyvern is the one who blew you to the island.”
“Oh, yes … I remember that unpleasant experience.”
Devarius grinned. “Sorry. Make sure you’re seated on the ship journey back. The wind wyverns are going to be blowing the ships forward.”
Zaviana’s eyes bulged.
“It cuts a three-day trip to one.”
“One?” she whispered.
Devarius nodded.
“You’re avoiding my question.”
“Right. Well, I’ve learned why each wyvern has a certain element. There is a small hole in the bottom of their uvula that excretes liquid. When that liquid mixes with their breath, either hot, cold, or electric, it creates the element.”
“Do I need to ask why you were so close to their uvula? Inside a mouth full of teeth?”
“You need not ask, no.”
“I thought not.”
“Well, anyway, as it turns out, if you gently massage the uvula, oil drips out of it.”
“Massage their uvula? Devarius … you did not?”
He shrugged. “That’s beside the point. What matters is, you can collect their oil.”
“And why are you telling me all this?” she asked.
He shrugged. “You asked.”
Her eyebrows met her hairline. “Wait. Are you telling me those crates—”
“Are full of vials of wyvern oil.”
“What does the oil do?”
“Well, a small drop of the fire oil creates a massive flame. A small drop of ice oil will freeze anything it touches. The acid oil will eat through anything it touches. And the lightning oil is shocking.” He raised his eyebrows several times.
Zaviana rolled her eyes at the pun. “What about the wind?”
He crunched his lips together and shifted them from side to side. “They don’t have oil. The wind wyverns just have incredible lungs.”
Dragonia- Dragonia Empire series Box Set Page 27