He turned over his hand and opened it, allowing her hand to fall into his. For a moment, they shared happiness together as they forgot about the dragon attacks and the prophecy. His clothing began to turn a blend of yellow and white as his emotions were displayed on his enchanted uniform.
Suddenly, a loud explosion erupted from the east and startled both of them.
“What was that?” Aili wondered.
They stood up and walked several paces away from the cliff.
“I do not know,” he said.
She then realized Leith was absent. “Where is my brother?”
“He has gone to warn Ardara.”
“Then we must go. He may have been hurt in that explosion.” She took off toward the east, but she did not go far. She stopped when she did not hear Faolan following her and turned around with a questioning expression.
He gave her a peculiar look. “Do you hear that?”
“Hear what?” She listened.
“That!” he exclaimed. “It sounds as if someone is yelling.”
He took a few steps toward the northwest and looked around as he tried to discern where the sound was originating. He stopped a dozen paces from the gorge’s edge and listened. A few moments passed as he desperately attempted to hear the distant sound again.
He turned back to her and shook his head. “I guess it was nothing.”
As Faolan spoke those words, her eyes expanded, and a large shadow passed over them. He turned just in time to witness the dragon rising out of the gorge and ascending straight up into the sky. The screaming he had heard rang from the dragon’s direction.
“There! It is coming from him!” she shouted.
“Who? The dragon?” Faolan wondered.
“No, the dwarf holding on to its back,” she clarified as she pointed at the armored warrior.
Faolan searched and located the small figure clinging to the dragon’s back. “What is that foolish dwarf doing?”
The dragon descended back over the gorge and flew in circles as it tried to shake the small warrior from its back. It turned and headed straight toward Faolan and Aili. They both could see the dwarf striking the dragon’s shoulder with a large battle-ax. Crazed laughter could be heard from the dwarf as the dragon approached them.
“Faolan, we should move away from the cliff,” Aili warned and took a step back.
He did not respond.
“Faolan, it is coming straight for us! We need to move,” she cried out.
At that moment, the world distorted, and an eerie silence surrounded her. Faolan’s appearance changed dramatically, and her heart skipped a beat in frightening remembrance of the familiar vision. The length of his Shadow Guardian uniform was no longer mixed shades of green, yellow, and white. His clothes now had a pure white background and were overlaid with a startling pattern of blood-red vines and sharp thorns. The vines curved erratically and twisted in a mangled chaos. He also wore two massive white wings, which extended to their full length as they hovered motionless on either side of him. The scene before her was almost peaceful, save for the terror in her heart.
Aili’s attention gravitated toward the dragon, whose wings barely moved, yet somehow it remained suspended in the sky. The world around her slowed to a near halt. The winds had been blowing a moment earlier, but she could no longer feel the wind’s cooling embrace, and the scattered weeds no longer moved. She switched her gaze to Faolan once more, and as if on cue, his head slowly rotated. He glanced backward over his left shoulder with only his left eye, which was engulfed in a bright white light. Her fear was overwhelming as she felt his gaze pierce her soul.
Faolan spoke dreadful words, which rang ominously in the air. “The first’s key has been found. Should the seal be pierced, Verdunmull shall bleed.”
The vision faded after his last word, and all was as it had been prior to it. The dragon raced in their direction, and the weeds swayed under the wind’s will. Faolan stood with his back to Aili, and his uniform was mixed shades of green, yellow, and white once more.
“Faolan!” she shouted as her legs shook with fright.
“What?” he questioned as he turned around and looked at her with a dazed expression.
“Watch out!” she screamed. She pointed at the dragon as it swooped down toward the cliff, and its jaws opened wide.
The young guardian spun back around and faced the dragon. His mind clicked back into reality, but his body froze at the sight of the looming beast. His widening eyes were fixated on the dragon, and as its head crossed over the cliff edge, he bore witness to an unparalleled sight. A deep gash opened along the dragon’s throat from left to right. Blood exploded from the dragon’s neck, painting the ground red, and a sudden rush of wind surrounded Faolan. The dragon reacted to the sourceless wound and craned its head skyward, expanding the wound above him and spraying him with blood as the beast flew over his head by mere inches. The young guardian shielded his eyes with his arms and fell to the ground as the beast grazed him.
“Faolan!” Aili screamed and rushed toward him.
He landed hard and hit his head, becoming dazed from the blow. Heaviness dragged at his clothing now as his garments were laden with dragon’s blood. The young guardian rolled over and attempted to steady his sight. A pair of soft hands grabbed his arm and tried to help him back to his feet.
“Hurry, Faolan. It is coming back!” Aili cried out.
She used all her might to assist him to his feet. He held his head with one hand as his sight became clear again.
Aili screamed at the top of her lungs.
The young guardian lifted his eyes and saw the dragon racing toward them with drooling jaws opening wide. A trail of blood coated the ground as it flew low toward them. The beast was close, and they had no time to move or find safety.
“I am sorry, Aili,” he whispered.
She wrapped her arms around him and embraced him tightly as they braced for impact. Faolan watched as the dragon roared and approached.
Suddenly, a few dozen yards in front of the young guardian, the stranger with the odd clothing who had been following them appeared. The enigma stood with absolute tranquility and rotated his body halfway between Faolan and the dragon. His hat twisted toward them while his sword arm lifted straight at the approaching dragon’s chest.
The beast lifted its head at the unexpected individual’s appearance and tried to alter its course, but it was too late, and it had no time to adjust its trajectory. The large creature slammed chest first into Waremasu, and the long blade slipped without resistance into the dragon’s chest, piercing its heart. Blade and arm entered the creature’s thoracic cavity, yet the stranger did not waver or strain under the massive impact. The stranger’s tranquility remained unaltered as the beast writhed in pain and roared from the life-draining wound.
The mysterious being’s eerie gaze turned away from Faolan as he slipped his sword out of the dying beast. He stepped away and flicked his sword out to the side in order to whip the blood off his blade. Then he sheathed his katana and began walking toward Faolan and Aili, the dragon’s blood draining from his right sleeve. The clean white coloration returned as the red staining drained, and a stream of blood flowed to the grass below.
The dragon’s massive head slammed to the ground as its life faded away. The threat had been removed, and the scene was covered in an uncomfortable silence. The events that had just occurred had no rational explanation in the young guardian’s eye.
Aili opened her eyes and relaxed when she felt no impact or pain from the dragon’s attack. She looked in its direction, dumbfounded by what she saw and unable to understand what had just happened.
“Faolan, who is he? And why is the dragon dead?” she wondered.
“I am not sure who he is,” Faolan confessed, “but he killed the dragon.”
“Are we safe?” she asked.
He shook his head. “I do not believe so.”
Waremasu neared and showed no sign of acknowledgment. They watched as h
is right hand grabbed the hilt of his katana, and the cold steel produced a chilling sound as its entire length slid out of its sheath. Aili stepped back in apprehension and slipped behind Faolan’s protective nature.
The young guardian stepped forward in defense. “What is the meaning of this?”
Waremasu maneuvered his blade forward and used the sword’s cold steel to carve large letters into the parched soil. You must be more careful.
“What?”
The stranger’s blade wrote in the dirt again. I have saved you twice.
Faolan did not understand. “The dragon was not the first?”
Waremasu shook his head, and his blade rose to point in the direction of the destroyed rope bridge.
Faolan glanced back with an angled look of confusion.
Waremasu wrote on the ground. Twice.
“You saved us before as well?” Faolan asked.
The conical hat tilted forward in affirmation.
Faolan did remember feeling an odd sensation around his ankle right before they stopped falling, much as if someone had grabbed him.
“Who are you?” he wondered.
Waremasu wrote, Friend.
“You wish to do us no harm?” Faolan asked in suspicion.
The conical hat shook in denial.
“Can you speak?” Aili asked as she was not sure if the man was trying to hide his voice or if he was mute.
Waremasu lied with a shake of his hat.
Faolan had begun wondering what else the man had done without their knowledge as his abilities seemed unnatural.
“Did you cut the dragon’s throat?” he questioned.
Waremasu did not answer; instead, he evaded the guardian’s question and wrote in the dirt: Do you remember?
“Remember what?” Faolan was unsure what the stranger meant.
Waremasu wrote, Do you remember me?
He was still uncertain about the stranger’s question, but he shook his head in answer as he realized his vision could not see through the darkness surrounding the being’s face.
The angel gave no further explanation but brushed away the words in the dirt with his foot and wrote in their place, Where are you traveling?
“After we aid the dwarfs, we shall be heading to the Tri-Peaks,” Faolan said.
Aili whispered into his ear. “Are you sure we should be telling him that information? What if he is lying?”
Waremasu shook his head at Faolan’s statement and wrote, Find the First Seal.
“How do you know about the seal?” Faolan asked.
Waremasu did not answer.
“We know it is north of here, but do you know its exact location?”
The stranger stepped to the side and drew a picture in the dirt. First, he drew a curving line heading toward the northeast followed by a depiction of three mountains standing side by side, placed on the southwestern edge of the line. Then he drew a large circle to the north of the three mountains. Finally, at the northeastern end of the curving line, he drew mountains and an arrow pointing to a small circle with the letter S in the middle of it.
“The Niyere Mountains,” Aili whispered.
“What?“ Faolan looked at her.
“Drey’kan land is northeast of the Tri-Peaks, and past that are the Niyere Mountains,” Aili said.
“Why are you helping us?” Faolan asked the stranger.
The man wrote on the ground again: Friend.
“But I do not know you.” Faolan shook his head.
Waremasu sheathed his katana, and his arm disappeared beneath the cloak once again. The stranger turned and began walking away without any words of formality or explanation of his statement.
“Where are you going?” Faolan shouted at the departing enigma.
Only silence was given in return as the being left them.
“Do you believe he is one of the dark wizards from the far south? One of the Falcarna?” Aili asked.
“I do not know.” Faolan shook his head. “His abilities are similar to nothing I have seen before.”
Many of the individual’s eerie characteristics left Faolan mystified: the endless darkness enshrouding his face, the unfamiliar clothing and sword, the inability to speak, and his unnatural abilities. The only indication of the man’s actual physical being had been the unblemished hand wielding the katana.
“Yes!” A dwarven roar erupted from the dragon’s direction, and a hearty laugh rolled on the air as an auburn-haired dwarf triumphantly stood up on top of the dead dragon. He lifted his large battle-ax into the sky and roared like a bear.
Aili and Faolan watched the burly dwarf congratulate himself. They moved toward the formidable little warrior.
“Hello!” Faolan yelled up to the dwarf.
The heavy armor clanked as the small soldier quickly rotated to the new potential adversary. “Who goes there?”
“Whoa! It is OK. We are not here to fight you.” Faolan lifted his hands up to help deescalate the fiery ax wielder.
The dwarf eyed them for a moment and slowly lowered his ax. “Aye, smart you are.” The dwarf heartily laughed. “I just killed a dragon! An elf cannot best me now.”
Aili glanced at Faolan with a raised eyebrow and whispered, “A bit of pride in that one.”
The dwarf climbed down from the dead dragon’s back and walked over to the couple. His heavy battle-ax remained in one of his bulky fists. The warrior glanced over the two outsiders with speculating eyes as he inspected them for battle-worthy items such as armor, weapons, or magical talismans. The pair looked rather weak in his opinion, and he lowered his guard with little concern.
“What are your names?” the dwarf asked when he stopped before them.
“My name is Faolan, and this is Aili. What is yours?”
“Ehreion Hammerforge is me name. What brings you here?”
“King Kvaran requested aid. We have come from Lesley under orders from King Zael to assist the mighty dwarfs,” Faolan said.
Ehreion chuckled in response.
“Elves aiding dwarfs?” The dwarf shook his head and blinked in disbelief. “Have not heard that one before. You are funny, and I like you. Where are you headed?”
The young guardian started off slowly in his reply as he was not quite sure why the dwarf thought what he had said was funny. “After helping the dwarfs, we plan to head to the north for urgent elven concerns that King Zael has requested assistance in resolving.”
The dwarf stepped forward with a stern expression. “I do not know what business you have north of the Scar, but those are Drey’kan lands. As a word of warning, no dwarf has ever gone that way before and returned. It would be safer to jump off that cliff than to head north into their territory.”
Faolan heard the serious emphasis in the dwarf’s voice and wondered, “Do you know of a way through their lands or anyone able to help us?”
Ehreion shook his head. “No, and none would help even if you asked. It is rare for one to lay eyes on a Drey’kan and live to talk about it. They are unforgiving and do not care for our kind.”
The guardian understood the dwarf’s words of caution, but he knew they would have to travel in that direction if they were to stop the Initiate. They had no choice in the matter and would have to find a way through to the First Seal. Perhaps Caedmon would know of a safe route through the Drey’kan lands. He was sure to have had dealings with them in the past.
Aili interjected when she remembered, “My brother! We must go to Ardara!”
Faolan looked at her, wide eyed. “Oh no.” He glanced back at the dwarf, startled. “We must go, Ehreion. Ardara is under siege by dragons. Will you accompany us?”
Ehreion laughed heartily as his eyes became crazed.
“Of course, elf! I am a dragon slayer now.” The heavily armored warrior motioned to the dead dragon beside them. “So it is you who shall be accompanying me, and you better keep up. I plan on joining the battle before it is over.” Ehreion threw his battle-ax over his shoulder and sprinted off toward th
e east without waiting to hear affirmation from either of them.
“We should go find Leith,” Aili urged. She pulled Faolan by the hand, and they followed the battle-hardened dwarf.
While Faolan was concerned with the dragon attacks, a distant fear was growing within him as unexplained events unraveled around him. He was not sure who the stranger was, but the individual implied they had history and had asked if he remembered, raising more questions for him to answer. Beyond that, new concerns of encountering the Drey’kan again surfaced. He sighed and let those thoughts go, refocusing on the events currently unfolding before them.
Faolan and Aili raced after Ehreion and quickly traversed the short distance to Ardara. They maneuvered through buildings and down roads as they searched for Leith or signs of dragons. Scorch marks could be seen on some buildings, and several were missing parts of their roofs. When the first dragon came into view, Ehreion ran headlong into peril with his crazed battle lust. Faolan ran after the reckless dwarf in hopes of aiding the warrior.
Aili did not follow them as she caught sight of Leith down a separate and intersecting road. She sprinted toward her brother, concerned for his safety.
Faolan hesitated when he glanced back and saw Aili running in a different direction. He did not know what to do, though he could tell Leith was in danger. A second dragon was chasing Leith, and a number of dwarven warriors were struggling to chase after it and bring it down. Aili screamed Leith’s name and ran desperately toward her brother. Faolan looked back at Ehreion and then again at Aili. He figured Ehreion could probably take care of himself after riding a dragon like a horse. The young guardian ran after Aili and toward the chaos surrounding the second dragon and the healer.
Leith sprinted as fast as he could away from the dragon as many dwarven warriors traded off between attacking the dragon and retreating. It was an odd tactic and appeared unplanned, but it seemed to be working. All Faolan could think was how crazy the dwarfs appeared, scrambling around the scene. It was somewhat comical, actually. The dragon they were fighting was unusually aggressive for a Greenback. Greenbacks were not supposed to be such a bloodthirsty species as they were usually trophy or gold hoarders. Something must have riled them up before their raid.
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