by Eric Vall
I focused on the beast as I pulled back the bowstring, and then I released the arrow into the air. The fiery projectile soared across the cavern and plunged into the beast’s gut mid-flight, right in the middle of the slash I’d carved into its torso. The monster screeched as its wings faltered, and its body dropped just low enough for me to finish the job.
I yanked the Sword of Healing from my belt with a metallic ring before I thrust the blade up into the beast’s chest and twisted. I quickly jumped back as a torrent of orange and yellow blood poured from the wound, and the creature landed on the island with a thud.
More rivulets of lava ran down its wings, and I carefully avoided the puddle of molten liquid that had begun to form underneath its limp body.
Then a familiar sight flashed before my eyes.
Predation: Activated
Ability: Lava magic
Okay, that was badass.
“Is it dead?” Naomi asked from the tunnel.
I gently pressed my boot against the beast’s oily body and shoved it over to its back. Its black eyes were clearly lifeless, and it showed no response as I moved it around.
“Pretty sure,” I confirmed before I rubbed my jaw in thought. “Now, how do I get it back over there?”
I could potentially put the body in my spatial storage, but I didn’t want any of the nasty remains contaminating everything else I had stowed away. I looked over the slick skin of the hellish beast as I considered my options, but I had some doubts about my ability to simply carry it and jump over the lava pit again.
Wait, the lava pit.
Didn’t I just assimilate lava magic? Maybe I could use it to move the creature. It had to be similar to my stone magic… at least, I hoped so.
“You look like you have an idea,” Nike chuckled.
“Yeah, but you guys should probably stand back,” I replied with a grimace. “I really don’t know what I’m doing here.”
They all took several steps away from the cavern back into the tunnel, and I focused my energy on the lava.
I think you’re right, Miraya murmured from within my head. Just focus on the lava like you do on the stone or the water.
“Sounds easy enough,” I mused as I closed my eyes and pictured the lava that surrounded me.
Then I opened my eyes, and a wave of lava had already begun to creep over the edge of the island I stood on. I pushed the molten liquid underneath the beast’s body and eased it forward. The creature slowly drifted with the lava like a boat on the sea, and I guided the lava toward the tunnel before I called it back into the pit and left the beast’s body on the sandy entrance.
“It worked!” Naomi cheered and clapped her hands.
“You can move lava?” Rebecca’s eyes were wide as I jumped across the pit and landed next to the beast.
“Since I killed that thing, yep,” I answered with a grin. “Being a dragon is so fucking cool.”
“Yeah, it is!” Aaliyah purred as she licked her fangs, and her long, golden tail swished around in the air behind her with excitement.
“So, I guess we need to take this thing back to the Mahigans,” Laika said with a wary eye on the beast. “What do we tell them?”
“I had no choice but to kill it.” I shrugged. “As for what it is, I can’t answer that.”
“Me, either,” Alyona mused as she examined the creature. “It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. I don’t even remember reading about something like this. A flying beast that can control lava is quite unique.”
“I wonder how many times dragons were blamed for something one of these bastards did,” I grunted.
“I have a feeling this is a one-of-a-kind creature, brother,” Nike replied in a low voice. “It feels… wrong. I don’t know how else to explain it.”
“I know what you mean,” Laika agreed, and her wolf ears flattened against her head. “It doesn’t belong here.”
“Do you think it escaped the Breach?” I wondered as I furrowed my brow. “That’s the only way something from another world should have gotten through. We closed all the other rifts.”
“It seems entirely possible,” Alyona agreed. “Which means we need to get back to Hatra, so we can continue on our path to close it.”
“Absolutely.” I nodded my head and glanced at the hellish creature. “Anyone have some rope?”
“Psh, we have magic,” Naomi scoffed.
The lizard mage twirled a clawed finger in the air, and a black coil of magical binding swirled into being and wrapped around the beast’s oily body. Then the body was lifted up from the sandy tunnel floor, and Naomi grabbed the other end of the rope and tugged it along behind her. For some reason, it reminded me of a macabre version of a child holding a balloon as we traipsed out of the tunnel and back into the blue desert, and I bit back a dark chuckle.
When we arrived on the edge of the Mahigan village, several of the wolf citizens gawked at our entrance with the beast floating behind us.
“What is that?”
“It wasn’t a dragon?”
“The dragon slayed the creature!”
The horrified and confused whispers soon turned into cheers and excitement as they realized we’d killed the beast who had destroyed half their village. By the time we made it to the Elders’ hut, Tunkay, Elesh, and a few other gray-furred wolves stood on the long patio with their hungry eyes on the creature.
I stepped to the front of the group and offered a quick bow to Tunkay as I motioned for Naomi to bring the beast to him.
“I apologize I couldn’t capture the beast alive,” I said. “He was resistant to many of my usual tricks, and I had to ensure he didn’t attack you or anyone else again. I hope you understand.”
“It’s not a dragon,” Tunkay responded as he walked past me and eyed the creature above him. “What is it?”
“That is something we still have to figure out,” I explained. “I’d like to take a piece back to Hatra for our history maven to try and answer that.”
“Of course,” he agreed without looking at me. “I just… I can’t believe it wasn’t a dragon.”
“I told you it wasn’t,” I retorted. “Our ancestors don’t define who we are now.”
“A wise assessment,” Elesh said as he tapped his claws on the top of his wooden staff. “One that we should have considered in our previous determinations.”
“Yeah, you should have,” I grunted. “You lost several men on the battlefield with us because no one thought to ask questions first.”
“Indeed,” he agreed with a frown. “Tunkay listened to the advice of the Elders, and we were wrong. For that, I humbly apologize.”
“As do I,” Tunkay added as he finally turned to face me. “I knew nothing of you or your mate, and yet, I chose to attack. It was wrong.”
“Yes, it was,” I growled before I stared deep into the wolf’s pale-yellow eyes. “And it won’t happen again. You will not put my family in danger because of a misplaced desire for revenge.”
“Of course, my lord,” the Alpha answered and dropped his eyes in defeat. “We must repay you for your efforts.”
“A reward!” Elesh declared and slammed his staff down with excitement. “Yes, we shall show our humility with a reward!”
“That isn’t necessary,” I replied as I waved my hands. “We just need--”
The words caught in my throat as one of the guards appeared in the doorway of the hut with a large bag. A familiar feeling pulled me closer, and my eyes lit up as the guard opened the bag to reveal the reward.
Gold and jewels nearly tumbled to the ground when the bag was opened, and I huffed as I grabbed the sack to keep its contents inside. The guard reached down to help me, and I released a feral growl when his clawed fingers came closer to the bag of my treasure.
“The reward is to your liking?” Elesh chuckled as I dragged the sack away from the guards and tucked it into my spatial storage. “I’ve always heard dragons love gold.”
“We do,” I confirmed and cleared
my throat. “Thank you. Now, I think we can remove one of the beast’s talons for our history maven, and then you may do what you wish with the rest.”
“I got it,” Aaliyah said as she extended one of her own long, sharp claws.
Naomi pulled the beast down to the ground and released her magical rope. It disappeared with a snap, and the lioness knelt next to the lifeless body and began to slice at the skin of its toe until she triumphantly held up a black talon.
“That should be enough for Emma,” Alyona murmured. “Let’s get back.”
“Thank you again for slaying the beast,” Tunkay grunted. “Our village will always remember the kind dragon lord.”
“Oh, one more thing.” I leaned in close to the Mahigan. “You should really teach the younger boys how to treat your females. If I hear of any of the young women in your village being mistreated, I’ll be back. And then you’ll feel the true wrath of a dragon.”
The wolf’s eyes widened as big as dinner plates when I stepped back and motioned for my group to follow me out of the village. I could practically feel his stare burn holes in my back, but I didn’t turn. He’d gotten the message.
We walked down the path away from the Elders’ hut, and Alyona opened a portal that would take us back into Hatra. As soon as we walked through the magical doorway, we stepped into our city and breathed a collective sigh of relief. While dealing with the Mahigans and their weird lava beast hadn’t been as difficult as I thought it would be, I was still glad to be home and get back on track to close the Breach.
I’m glad we’re home, too, Miraya sighed.
“Let’s go let everyone know we’re safe,” I announced as I headed for the Lunar Palace.
But as we walked toward the domed building, I realized the city was quiet. There were no citizens roaming the streets, no voices or scents or anything hovered in the air.
“You don’t think…” Aaliyah trailed off as we looked around the empty city.
“We need to check the bunker before we start getting too worried,” I grunted and stormed toward the center of the city where Ruslan said the bunker had been completed.
Before I could try to find the entrance to the bunker, I noticed a shadow pass over on the road ahead of us. I looked up to find Valerra flying lazily overhead with her golden eyes trained on me and a mischievous smile on her face.
“My lord, how kind of you to join us,” she chuckled as she swooped lower over our heads. “Have you slayed the mysterious dragon?”
“It wasn’t a dragon,” I scoffed. “It was a… well, we don’t know what it was, but I need to talk to Emma about it. Did you leave everyone in the bunker since this morning?”
It was well into the afternoon, and while I knew Valerra wasn’t fond of “human dealings,” it was very unlike her to simply leave everyone there until we got back.
“I went in there to tell them what happened,” the lady dragon explained as she circled overhead. “They didn’t trust the wolves any more than I did, so we agreed they would stay underground until you returned.”
“That makes sense,” Laika agreed. “The Mahigans are, ah, certainly different from other races we’ve met.”
“Well, let’s get everyone out, and then we can discuss what needs to happen next,” I decided.
“Of course.” Valerra nodded and flew further down the path until she reached a statue of a fox Demi-Human. “You’ll have to push the button. I’ve kept watch from above since you left.”
The statue seemed to resemble my father, and I chuckled as Valerra pointed to it with a clawed finger. I looked closer and realized there was a slight indentation in the stone between the fox’s feet, so I gently pressed down on the spot with my boot, and I heard a loud creaking sound as the ground to my right shook and rumbled.
Then a thin line appeared in the dirt before it opened wider and wider to reveal a staircase underground. Within seconds, Pyotr emerged with Ruslan and Julia right behind him. Ravi and the dryads climbed the stairs next, and the rest of Hatra’s citizens soon flowed out of the bunker in droves.
“Holy hell,” I muttered. “You really fit everyone in there?”
“Yep!” Ruslan said with a note of pride. “It took a few months, but we made sure it was big enough.”
“Impressive,” I laughed. “If you’re ready, we’ll go back to the palace. I need to show Emma something.”
I led everyone back to the Lunar Palace, where Valerra had just landed and taken her human form. She rushed inside and scurried up the steps to her chambers, and I knew she’d been struggling with the desire to stay next to the eggs while we’d been dealing with the Mahigans.
A few minutes later, Emma came down the stairs and hurried over to give me a hug.
“I’m so glad you’re alright,” she breathed against my chest. “I was worried.”
“You don’t have to worry about me,” I replied and pulled her close. “I’m a pretty tough dragon. And guess what?”
“What?” Emma looked up with a concerned expression.
“I have lava magic now,” I answered with a grin.
“Of course, you do,” she chuckled as she pulled away and hugged everyone else. “So, was it a dragon?”
“No,” I replied and shook my head. “Which is what I need to talk to you about. I need your help.”
“How in the world would I be able to help?” Emma furrowed her brow in confusion. “I’m even newer here than you are.”
“By touching this,” Aaliyah answered as she held out the black talon.
“Ohhh,” my aunt exhaled and stepped forward to take the claw into her hand. “Oh, my God.”
Her eyes fluttered as her ability to read an object’s history activated. She mumbled a few words under her breath, and then she gasped with fear.
“Aunt Emma!” I grabbed her arm.
“I’m okay,” she panted. “It’s just… so dark.”
“What’s dark?” I pressed.
“The beast,” she murmured and took a shaky breath. “It was created from darkness and brought to life by fire. It lived a tortured life, and in the end, it was grateful you ended it.”
“Was it the only one of its kind?” I wondered.
“It was forged alone,” Emma confirmed before she finally opened her eyes and looked at me with horror. “It had an even darker master.”
“Master?” Alyona echoed and gently touched my aunt’s other arm. “Who?”
“I can’t see him,” Emma groaned. “He’s powerful, but he stays hidden. His face is always hidden by shadows, but this beast and many other creatures bow to him.”
“Who could it be?” Naomi paced back and forth with worry.
“I wish I knew,” my aunt replied as she dropped the talon to the floor with a rattle. “But I know I don’t want to touch that thing anymore.”
“Fair enough,” I said as I picked it up and slipped it into my spatial storage. “Thank you for doing that.”
“You’re welcome,” she sighed and looked over at Ravi. “You look like you’re about to burst at the seams.”
“I don’t know what that means,” the phoenix chirped with a grin. “But I know I found something while we were waiting for everyone to get back.”
“What is it?” My curiosity was piqued, and we all turned to face my orange-haired lover.
“Well, we were talking about who you’d bond with to gain the power of the Noble Spirits, right?” she began. “Okay, so I found this book last night, but I didn’t get to tell you about it because, well, this morning was crazy, you know. Anyway, it talks about bloodline abilities, and I think it confirms Alyona’s theory about bonding with a female descendant of the noble who holds the sword.”
Ravi pulled a small book from the pocket of her robe and flipped through the pages before she handed it to the princess. Alyona read through it, and a wide smile broke over her porcelain face.
“You’re right,” my wife declared.
“Well, you were right already,” Ravi insisted as her pale face
darkened with a pink blush.
“I was guessing,” Alyona pointed out. “You found the facts, and it’s written, which means we can use it as proof in the cities we visit.”
“Great idea,” I agreed. “We’re already having to convince them to bond with me, and having the information in a text will certainly help. Good job, Ravi.”
“Thank you,” the phoenix murmured as her blush deepened, and her gaze dropped to the floor.
“This is all great news, but I still don’t know who you can bond with in Leyte.” Nike frowned and began to pace back and forth. “What if my grandfather had no other children? Or if they’re only boys?”
“We’ll just have to figure that out, brother,” I assured him as I placed a hand on his shoulder to stop his pacing. “The gods have faith in our plan, so we need to have it, too.”
“Alright,” the noble agreed, though the frown didn’t leave his face.
“Besides, your grandfather may know something we don’t,” I added. “Maybe he has a sister who has the power in her bloodline.”
“You want to bond with my great-aunt?” Nike asked doubtfully.
“If I have to,” I countered with a grin. “I’m not biased. Older women are wise, you know.”
“Evan!” my aunt admonished me.
“Wiser means more experienced,” Polina giggled.
“More experienced is a lot more fun.” Trina waggled her eyebrows, and Marina batted her lashes.
Nike groaned, and we all laughed before I waved my hands to settle everyone down.
“We have enough time to get there before dinner,” I said. “We should get going.”
“I’m going to stay here with Valerra and the eggs,” Emma decided. “If that’s alright with her.”
“I don’t think she’ll mind,” I agreed. “The more eyes to protect them, the better. And I like you staying somewhere safer. I don’t know what or who we’ll encounter next, especially if creatures are escaping the Breach.”
“Then I’ll stay.” She nodded and headed for the stairs.
“Looks like it’s time to go home,” Nike announced.
