by Eric Vall
Along the river’s course I could see the remains of an ancient aqueduct system that linked up to the city. The aqueducts lay shattered in giant heaps of stone, but I wondered if there was any way they could be fixed and brought up to their former glory. The people of Hatra couldn’t keep watering their farms with buckets of water. If the problem was the weight and size of the aqueducts, then it would be no problem for me to do all the heavy lifting.
Slowly, the sun rose over the horizon and painted pale rays of sunlight over the ruined city. The growing light dappled over the broken buildings and the shattered walls in a soft mosaic. I imagined how beautiful the city must have been when it was still whole, with grand glass windows and jeweled domes of silver.
Hatra grew in size as I came closer, and I realized that there was a minor problem I hadn’t considered.
I didn’t know how to land.
Granted, I had crash landed earlier into that cave, but that was the product of timing and luck. I couldn’t crash land into Hatra, even if the city was already in ruins and another destroyed building wouldn’t be anything to cry over.
“Ok, just imagine you have a parachute,” I muttered to myself as I flew over the city. “Your wings are your parachute.”
I flew in a circle in front of the exterior walls and imagined a landing strip underneath me. My heart thudded in my chest as I wondered just how I was going to get back on solid ground without crash landing.
The scent of purity filled the air, and I turned my head in the direction of the walls. At the foot of one of the ruined towers stood the three Elders of Hatra, the swordswoman, and the priestess. They all watched me, and I could feel a prick of anxiety in the back of my head.
“Come on, you’ve sky dived a bunch of times,” I grumbled to myself. That was a lie, but there was no one who could call me out on it. “This is just like it, you can do it in your sleep.”
I flew lower and lower until my claws began to dig up the ground underneath me. I slowed the movements of my wings, but I somehow managed to flip myself and ended up somersaulting into the ground. A deep trench was carved out behind me, but thankfully I didn’t break any of my bones either due to my healing magic or my draconic strength and endurance.
When I skidded to a stop, I lifted my head wearily and caught sight of the Elders, Laika, and Alyona walking toward me.
“You won’t believe the night I just had,” I laughed nervously from the trench I had made with my clumsy landing.
Chapter 9
“You might need to work on that landing.” Julia serenely fanned herself as she stepped closer to the trench I had made. “That was a bit rough, if I do say so myself.”
Beside her, Ruslan snickered, and Moskal looked down at me with concern in his eyes.
“Yeah, no shit,” I grumbled as I stretched out my neck and shook my head. “I’ll get better, though. Nowhere else to go but up.”
“So you can fly, or rather crash.” Laika eyed the long trench with amusement.
“Listen here,” I mock growled at her as I shifted into my human form, “this’ll be the first and last time that happens.”
“Of course.” Laika turned her head away as her shoulders shook from repressed laughter. “I’ll make sure to remember those words.”
I narrowed my eyes at the wolf. I had the inkling that she would never let me live it down if I crashed in the future and she found out about it. Thankfully, she hadn’t seen my aborted takeoffs from earlier in the night when I had first tried to fly. The wolf-girl would have been bursting with laughter at my expense.
“You aren’t hurt, are you?” Alyona knelt on the edge of the trench and peered down at me with concern in her pretty face as the light of the early dawn illuminated her features. “I was worried when you didn’t come back to the infirmary.”
“Don’t worry about me,” I replied as I climbed out of the trench and shaded my eyes from the rising sun. “I’m a big dragon who can take care of himself.”
I winked at the priestess and helped her up. Her hand remained clasped tightly in mine, and a soft smile spread across my face.
“I’m sure you are,” Alyone murmured softly as her eyes darted down to my crotch for the merest of moments.
A smirk crossed my face as I puffed out my chest. The priestess hadn’t forgotten our almost tryst from earlier, and it looked like she hadn’t changed her mind about it, either.
“Is that how you ended up in this ditch?” Laika looked down the length of the hundred foot trench with raised eyebrows.
“After the night I had, you’d be sprawled out in a ditch, too.” I frowned as I thought of the crimson dragon living so close to Hatra.
“Speaking of which, you do smell a bit singed and like river water.” Ruslan wrinkled his nose as he squinted at me. “What happened?”
“Did you know there’s a psychotic dragon in the nearby canyon?” I asked blandly as I remembered the dragon’s threats while she hunted me down. “Crimson scales and way bigger than me?”
“Yes,” Ruslan replied without a single hint of hesitation.
My eyebrow twitched.
“And you didn’t think to mention it to the guy with wings?” I motioned in the direction of the canyons. “She almost ripped my head off and flambéed me just because I flew over the canyon!”
“Flambé?” Julia echoed with a confused frown as she closed her fan and tapped it against her cheek.
“Cooking technique from my world,” I replied absently. “Cover the food with booze and set it on fire.”
Aunt Emma had set fire to our kitchen several times when she had been learning how to flambé.
“Sounds like a delicious way to go,” Julia muttered and glanced at Moskal.
“Death by fire and angry dragon.” I motioned again in the direction of the canyon. “Ridiculously close to Hatra. Not delicious at all. Why are you all so calm?”
“We didn’t think you’d go off flying in the night without telling anyone,” Moskal said apologetically. “The dragon has always been there, since before Hatra was destroyed. She doesn’t leave that canyon and will only attack if her territory is encroached upon.”
I blinked as my anger cooled a bit.
“That’s fair … I guess.” I let go of Alyona’s hand and stepped away to shake the dirt from my hair. “This is on me. I probably should have asked about the area before I went flying around. I just couldn’t sleep, so I wanted to test out my wings a little.”
As I dusted the dirt off my clothes, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck and my arms stand up straight.
Someone was approaching us.
Laika stiffened next to me as she apparently felt it, too.
“How odd,” Julia commented casually as she snapped open her fan. “That presence simply appeared just now.”
“A cultivator, then.” Moskal stretched and opened his mouth in a wide yawn.
“Right after we found the library.” Ruslan tapped his claws on his leg as he stared into the direction of the approaching presence. “What intriguing timing for this new arrival.”
“No one mention the library,” I murmured as I kept watch for whoever was coming this way.
“Laika, was anyone coming from your Guild?” Alyona stepped closer to me as she looked at the swordswoman.
“None,” Laika growled out as she stepped in front of us and hid Alyona from view. “They would have sent a message to me through the gorget.”
I focused on the presence, and the information about it popped up for me.
Classification: Human.
Condition: Rest and food recommended.
Priority: None.
Status: Fatigued due to travel.
Well, he didn’t seem like a threat just from that information. Even so, my instincts hadn’t lied to me yet, and Laika’s instincts were on the same page as mine.
A moment later, a blond man walked around one of the collapsed towers. He was dressed in dark green robes and carried a leather satchel over his shoulder.
Even from a distance, I could see that he was an attractive man. If we had been back on Earth, I was pretty sure he’d be on the cover of magazines.
Delight spread over his face when he caught sight of us, and he picked up his pace to reach us.
“Hello, traveller, who might you be?” Julia fanned herself gently as she studied the newcomer without a hint of her previous suspicion.
There was dust all along the ivy embroidered hem of his long robes, and mud was caked around his boots and the pants he had tucked into them. His dark blond hair was tied up into a high tail, messy bangs fell over his eyes, and a green jade pendant in the shape of a leaf was dangling from the leather cord that tied up his hair.
“I’m Olivier,” he introduced himself. “I’ve been researching the ruins in Rahma.” He paused and pushed back the messy dark blond bangs that covered his green eyes. “It took me some time to travel around the canyon, but I’ve made it here.”
I frowned as I tried to remember if I had seen him while I had been flying. While I had been distracted by the situation with the crimson dragon, I hadn’t noticed anyone on foot when I headed back to Hatra. Then again, I supposed most people would try to hide from dragons. There were probably other routes around the canyon, too.
“We don’t have much to offer, but you’re welcome here.” Ruslan stepped forward and placed his hand on Julia’s shoulder. “I don’t know what will interest you here anyway, buildings collapse every day. There’s probably nothing left intact.”
Ruslan’s words didn’t deter the traveling scholar. In fact, he seemed to be cheered by the knowledge that the city was still collapsing.
“That just means fewer holes for me to dig,” Olivier responded cheerfully as he adjusted the satchel he carried.
“We shall see,” Julia murmured behind her fan.
“I’m Ruslan.” Ruslan nodded to the two other Elders next to him. “These two are Julia and Moskal. We’re the Elders of Hatra.”
“I’m Evan.” My fingers twitched against my leg as the hair on the back of my neck continued to prickle.
“And I am Laika,” the swordswoman spoke firmly.
I could see the slight bristling of her tail from the corner of my eye. She was just as uncomfortable as I was in his presence.
“You’re from the Blue Tree Guild, right?” Olivier’s eyes widened as he stared at the embroidered gorget Laika wore. “Are you on a mission out here?”
“If I were, I would not be at liberty to discuss it,” Laika responded swiftly, and her tail swished. “Guild matters and regulations, I hope you can understand.”
“Of course,” Olivier replied cheerfully. “I never thought I’d meet a Blue Tree Guild member, though, especially all the way out here. This is a bit exciting for me.”
My lips twitched upward. If he had seen the dragon or stone giants, he would be even more excited. So much so he would hopefully run away and take his unsettling presence with him.
“Quite so,” Julia murmured again behind her fan as she eyed the traveler.
“A priestess?” Awe filled Olivier’s voice when he caught sight of Alyona behind Laika. “How rare to find one so far away from temples and masters.”
“Is it?” Alyona’s voice was cool as she spoke. “The duty of a priestess is to help her people. If that means forsaking a life in the temple, then so be it.”
“Such words of wisdom for one so young. Tell me your name, priestess.” Olivier was undeterred by the coldness of Alyona’s tone, and he stepped toward her.
“I am Alyona.” The priestess lifted her chin and took a step forward with her hands clasped behind her.
Her hands trembled, and my heart lurched. Could Alyona be feeling that unsettling presence as well?
I stepped forward and placed my hand on her bare shoulder.
“I have heard of another Alyona, but you cannot be that child,” the traveler said as he set his satchel on the ground.
“Another Alyona?” I repeated curiously.
“It’s a common name,” Alyona replied, and she was the picture of calm as she eyed Olivier.
“But none so famous as the heir to the Seat of the White Jade Sect, but she’s supposed to be in the Cave of One Thousand Sages cultivating her spiritual energy.” Olivier sat down on the satchel, and a wide smile crossed his face. “I’ve heard her beauty is comparable to that of the Moon Princess who established Hatra, and her hair is as white as the moons, save for two braids of pitch black that frame her face.”
My curiosity was piqued, and I wondered what this princess was like.
“To be in the presence of the heir is a high honor that a traveling priestess can only dream of being blessed with.” Alyona shook her hair, and the jade flower of her hairpin gleamed with the morning light. “The heir has no time for any trifling matters a traveling priestess would speak of. Her duty is to remain in the Cave of One Thousand Sages. ”
Alyona straightened under my hand, and I got the impression that she had recited this many times already.
“Yes, quite a pity,” Olivier sighed and glanced away. “A great tragedy in my opinion.”
I shared a glance with Laika and stepped in front of Alyona. Then Laika latched onto the priestess and pulled her away from us toward Hatra.
“Her duty is to be trapped in a cave?” I asked Olivier to draw his attention to me, and I didn’t have to fake the curiosity in my voice. “What kind of life is that?”
It sounded like a very pitiful existence, the way that the White Jade Sect’s Alyona lived. I couldn’t even begin to imagine the type of life she must have led and would continue to lead.
“The heir was born with a body and soul on the cusp of the second stage.” Olivier looked between and me the three Elders excitedly. “Can you imagine that? A newborn infant with a celestial body and all that power would have an unstable soul foundation.”
A part of my senses kept a watch on the path that Laika and Alyona took, and I internally nodded with approval when I realized that they were headed toward the underground library.
I’d keep the traveler away from there and encourage him to leave quickly.
“Why would the soul be unstable?” I furrowed my brow as I wondered why so much power would be dangerous for a powerful if young body.
“Because even the most talented of cultivators would need a hundred years to force their way to the nascent soul realm.” Julia snapped her fan closed again and tapped it against her cheek. “The poor child was cursed from the moment of her birth. She was a baby, unprepared to handle the weight of that power.”
“And the youngest nascent soul cultivator in history was the infant successor to the White Jade Sect Seat.” Olivier looked up at the sky and sighed.
“A hundred years just to reach the first stage?” I shook my head at the thought and wondered just how far along the path the Elders were if it took a hundred years for the first stage. “That’s insane.”
“All of that power and might in a child who didn’t even understand the concept of energy flow.” Olivier’s gaze snapped to mine, and his dark green eyes seemed filled with pity. “Even if she’s a genius as they say she is, it’ll take at least a hundred years inside of that cave for her soul to stabilize.”
“What’ll happen if her soul doesn’t stabilize?” I tilted my head to the side as I wondered if I would be able to heal cultivators with unstable souls. “Will she die?”
“Other cultivators can forcefully steal her celestial body and power, taking it for themselves and forcing their own power to rise.” Olivier ticked off the reasons on his fingers. “Can you imagine the kind of calamity that would be brought upon this land if someone did that? Well, there’s still another possibility that’s more frightening.”
“Something worse than killing the heir?” I blinked at the thought.
“The gods prefer a much crueler story.” Julia turned and walked away to Hatra. “I cannot see a happy ending for that child if she’s forced to live in that cave.”
“Th
e heir could fall into insanity and depravity with the merest tip of the scales at any moment,” Olivier spoke bitterly and rubbed his face. “If you ask me, that’s the real reason she’s cloistered away in Cave of One Thousand Sages.”
“You think they’re scared of her?” I replied as I thought of the way that the people of Hatra hadn’t been scared of me, and they’d known me for less time.
The heir hadn’t asked to be born the way she had been and be locked away. I wouldn’t blame her if she wanted to run away from all of this.
“It’s the only option that makes sense to me.” Olivier shrugged as he looked at me. “The Sect Leader supposedly dotes on her, but if he did, would he force her into that cave?”
Olivier spoke smoothly, and I could have found myself agreeing if it wasn’t for one thing. Sometimes the people who loved and cared for you had to do so even through the times you just wanted to be free to do what you wanted. I thought of all the children I’d seen living their lives in hospitals because that was the safest place for them to be with their autoimmune diseases.
“Come,” Moskal spoke suddenly. “Let us get you some food and a bed. You must be starved.”
“You have no idea.” Olivier smiled and stood with his hand wrapped around the straps of his leather satchel.
I studied Olivier as we walked toward Hatra. The man seemed harmless enough on the surface, but there was something off about him. I was suspicious about the scholar, but it had only been Laika, Alyona, and myself who reacted badly to him. He had touched upon what appeared to be a sore topic with Alyona, but had been nothing but respectful with the Elders and myself. Olivier had given me no real reason for me to argue with the Elders against his entrance into Hatra other than making my hair stand on end.
A part of me wanted to argue anyway, but the Elders were the rulers here, and I was new in Hatra.
But that didn’t mean I couldn’t ask some questions of the suspicious scholar.
“You said you’re studying the ruins in Rahma, right?” I crossed my arms behind my head as I matched my pace to Olivier’s. “Why? There has to be something safer to do.”
