Murlonius’s face was unreadable as he struggled to maintain the course. Beside her, Coronos gripped his staff. His eyes were clouded as he stared at the empty space before him. Stillness surrounded him like an invisible shield and she felt magical energy gather. She would have been fascinated with what he was doing were she not so terrified.
The only light came from the wildly swinging lantern and the flashes of lightning that snaked across the sky. The waves rose up trying to smash the boat in two. Above her the raven struggled against the wind, refusing to leave her side and she prayed he would not.
‘Keteth does not want you to reach your destination, for there he will lose you,’ Murlonius said. ‘It seems it’s not to the Uncharted Lands that we go, but to Frayon. This boat is moved by fate and destiny, I but steer it.’
Asaph and Coronos looked at each other in bafflement. As Issa watched, deep lines began to appear on the boatman’s face and his hands became old and wrinkled once more as he spoke.
‘We are close now, but soon I will no longer be with you. Keteth will do all he can to prevent me reaching the shore, he knows I have, but a short time to get there.’ Asaph looked from Coronos to the boatman. Murlonius shrugged. ‘There is nothing I can do, such is my curse.’
Coronos began to chant in a low monotonous voice, barely audible in the howling wind. His eyes were far away, and every now and then there came a spark of light around him. Calm settled on the boat and the waves around them ceased their crashing. Sweat formed on the old man’s brow and his chanting quickened.
Issa glanced from Coronos back to Murlonius. He had grown even older and it seemed a corpse rowed the boat for his back was bent double and his knuckles were draped in wrinkled, veiny flesh. The boat pitched violently and Coronos’ chanting faltered.
‘We should turn back,’ she gasped.
‘There is no turning back,’ Asaph said. ‘We couldn’t if we wanted to, not even with Murlonius.’
Murlonius lifted his hood over his skeletal features and his sorrow-filled eyes beheld her. His form wavered and became indistinct until he disappeared altogether. The boat was no longer ornately carved but simply constructed of basic timber, and there was no lantern to light their way. Any protection that Murlonius and his boat had offered was gone.
Keteth loomed beneath the boat, the water sliding off his slick bulbous body as he lifted them high into the air. The hull heaved and cracked, and then they were falling. Issa screamed as the boat slid fast down the beast’s back and into the ocean. The force of the impact knocked the breath from her. A crack snaked across the hull, swiftly followed by another, and the boat splintered apart.
She was hurled forwards as Asaph and Coronos were thrown backwards, leaving each to cling to their own bit of wreckage. Asaph lunged towards her, but a wave drove him back forcing them apart.
She struggled to pull herself out of the water, the sharp wood piercing her hands with splinters. Despite her efforts, the wreckage was sinking. Soon it only kept her head and shoulders above the waves. Her bleeding hands stung with sea salt. It was all she could do just to keep her head above the water.
She looked for the others. Coronos was in the distance, waist high in water upon a bigger piece of wreckage. He held aloft a glowing white orb and was speaking words of power that made the air tingle with energy. Asaph shouted to him from further away, dived into the water, and a wave lost them from view.
‘Issa’, the White Beast whispered, the word was a caress. She could not tell if it was spoken aloud or in her own mind. She shook her head and tried to shut out his voice. ‘Why do you run from me? Issa, come to me, there is no other who can understand you like I do. I can bring you peace… I can give you power.’
‘How can you?’ she gasped and immediately choked on sea water. ‘What do you know of power?’
‘Issa… I can save you from the darkness that hunts you, it hunts me too. Let us fight it, together.’
The wreckage she clung to finally slipped beneath the surface, and she was forced to let go or sink with it. ‘Don’t sink,’ she sobbed, shaking with fear. Her limbs were leaden objects struggling against the swell of a freezing ocean. Asaph’s cloak, once a welcome gift, was dragging her under, and she grappled with the knot. A wave crashed over her and dragged her down. The knot finally came loose and she let it go. She fought to find the surface for what seemed like hours, her lungs burning for air. In the swell, she could not tell which way was up or down.
She saw him in the darkness then, a white monstrosity rising up from the depths towards her. She froze, her heart pounding like a drum, lungs ready to explode. She tried to look away but could not. Black eyes ensnared her. He smiled revealing a blood red mouth lined with hundreds of needle teeth glistening in the gloom.
Issa burst through the surface gasping, every cell in her body screamed for air. As she rasped and coughed, she saw another monster move towards her. This one was not white and deformed but covered in huge golden scales that shone like the sun. It was as big as Keteth but sleek and long. Huge wings folded close against its body as it snaked with uncanny ease through the water.
Briefly, it raised its awesome reptilian head and blinked eyes the colour of sapphires. It looked like the same dragon she’d seen in the ring. The ring grew warm on her finger, the only warm thing in her whole body.
It was Keteth who reached her first, a tentacle of pure muscle wound about her waist. He raised the tentacle, lifting her high into the air as if to show to the world his prize. She struggled to loosen the slippery white flesh that made her own skin crawl. Keteth sunk back into the water dragging her with him. Down and down they went where the pressure was crushing and it was completely dark. Yet still deeper he dived until the surface was far away. There was nothing she could do.
It was from beneath them that the golden serpent struck, surging into Keteth with such force that they hurtled back towards the surface. The crushing pressure went and her lungs filled again with the compressed air of her last breath. Keteth’s grip loosened in the struggle and she managed to wriggle free. All that she thought of was air, breathe, air. It was with the helpful push of a long golden tail that she shot towards the surface once more.
She gulped again that sweet life-giving air, but her strength was gone, her limbs spent. She tried to focus on the raven circling just above her, but her mind was growing foggy and the raven was a blur in her vision. She began to sink again, unable to keep herself afloat.
A dozen purple lights appeared out of nowhere and darted around her like fireflies. Were they real or was she delirious? She blinked, trying to see them in the blur of the sea, but the salt stung her eyes and she was forced to shut them.
Magic moved and warmth flowed into her body. All at once she could breathe, though she was still far from the surface. She felt herself being dragged at a great speed through the water. Every time she tried to see what had her all she could make out between blinks were purple lights and long sleek fish-like bodies.
Issa was drowning and Asaph could not reach her. It was the fear of losing her after so much that made him do what he thought he would never be able to do, he called the dragon within. He focused his mind and channelled his emotions into a pinpoint of intense rage. The dragon within stirred, raised its golden head and a surge of ancient power flooded through him. The dragon engulfed him.
He drove into Keteth, his claws tearing into white flesh and his fangs closed on a thick tentacle. Keteth screamed a terrible gurgling sound, and blood spewed around them. He writhed in a furied agony, struggling to be free of the dragon that was forcing them all upwards.
Asaph saw Issa wriggle free, and with a flick of his tail pushed her towards the surface. Keteth was strong, almost unstoppable, as he fought to reclaim his prize. With all his strength Asaph heaved his bulk through the water, placing himself between Keteth and Issa. They struggled and rolled, locked in a vicious battle, turning the sea dark red with their blood.
Magic shone in rays of silvery-purpl
e all around them. Asaph did not recognise the magic as Keteth’s or Coronos’, this was a wilder almost purer force. The source of it emerged from the gloom. Brilliant purple lights flashed and whirled beneath him in a beautiful light display and Asaph was mesmerised by them.
Keteth was too furious to notice and his teeth sunk into Asaph’s side, piercing through thick golden scales. Pain bolted through him and he forgot the purple lights. He screamed bubbles of fire and soot as Keteth wrenched and bit again. Each bite brought with it a searing burning sting.
Poison, his mind told him. The beast’s fangs carried poison and soon it was flowing into his veins. His limbs started to stiffen in paralysis. Keteth’s corrupt mind touched his own, filling his thoughts with maddening voices and shadows.
Asaph focused on the lights again and amongst them, he saw her, his beloved Issa, deathly-faced and unconscious. He looked upon her limp lifeless form and howled a despairing bout of fiery bubbles. The lights were magical beings, not fish. Their silver wing-like fins spread out around them and their intelligent minds pressed upon his.
‘Fear not for her, brother. We have watched for her coming with the rising of the dark moon,’ they said, and then were gone, and Issa along with them.
A blood-curdling howl cut through the water as Keteth whirled to face him, furious for the loss of his prize. Now Issa was gone Asaph feared for his own life. The poison was as lead in his veins, and his mind could no longer think to fight. A huge tentacle cracked down upon his skull and his vision blurred.
Another blow strengthened by magic sent static convulsions down Asaph’s body, loosening his grip. Keteth jerked free and coiled his tentacles around his neck and torso. He tightened them into a crushing embrace and began to drag Asaph down into the darkness.
Asaph’s consciousness wavered and his lungs began to burn. He tried to break free, but his muscles were paralysed by poison. From the surface far above he felt the familiar signature of Coronos’ magic moving, searching for him, and he called to it with his mind. The magic reached down in white rays of light and engulfed him.
There came a rushing sound. Suddenly he was wrenched free from Keteth’s coils, then spinning through grey and white clouds. He gasped in lungfuls of sweet life-giving air. Magic crackled and lightning flashed. He was astonished to see Coronos in the centre of the maelstrom, calmly holding the glowing white orb. His eyes were closed and he was speaking words of magic.
Solid ground appeared beneath him. The dragon form disappeared, and he curled up into a ball of poisonous pain.
Chapter 20
A Secret Revealed
ASAPH could not have killed Keteth, he knew that for certain, and the knowledge plagued him as he dozed, reliving the battle over and again in his mind. He opened his eyes.
The sky was filled with heavy, racing clouds and the ground was hard and lumpy beneath him, but he welcomed its solidness after so long in the ocean. It wasn’t cold, but a deathly chill ate into his bones. He tried to sit up, but his vision blurred and waves of pain radiated out from the wounds covering his body.
‘Do not move, my son, or you’ll undo the bindings,’ Coronos said, and placed his own cloak over Asaph’s shivering body. ‘You have no idea how happy I am to see you awake. Rest whilst I cook.’
But Asaph could not relax, his mind was filled with thoughts of her. Behind closed lids, he could still see her limp pale form floating in the darkness.
‘Issa,’ he whispered aloud as if by speaking her name he could reach her.
Coronos squeezed his shoulder. ‘The Wykiry came, Asaph, they won’t harm her.’ Asaph detected wonder in his voice and thought of those strange silvery beings surrounding her until a dreamless sleep slipped over him.
An hour or so later the smell of food drifted down into Asaph’s slumber and he awoke with a rumbling belly. The wind had dropped and the clouds were white and no longer racing across the sky. He struggled against the pain to sit up and took in his surroundings. They were a little way inland, beside the mouth of a very wide, fast-flowing river bordered on both sides by thick forest.
‘Where in Maioria are we? This is not Kuapoh land,’ Asaph said, looking around at the cool damp place. The trees were not filled with fruit, and some had thin needles for leaves.
‘Indeed,’ Coronos raised his eyebrows. ‘I am certain this is Frayon, and that river is the Arin Flow - the widest and longest river in Frayon. It runs from its source within the great city of Carvon hundreds of miles to the east.’
‘Frayon? The Old World?’ Asaph asked excitedly, forgetting his aching body.
‘Yes. I thought we were to return where we left off, but it seems the goddess has other plans for us. In truth, I am not disappointed to be here. We’ve been here all day. Luckily I had some strength left to help you with the orb, such were your wounds.
‘Where’s Issa? Is she here?’ Asaph started to get up, but the pain drove him back down.
‘Stay still and rest, Asaph,’ Coronos scolded. ‘She is not close, but the Wykiry will have taken her to safety.’
Asaph tried to relax, but his stomach was in knots and Coronos’ words were not much comfort. He knew little about the Wykiry, only that they were once gentle magical beings now cursed to live in the sea.
‘Luckily we still have our packs, but all the rolls were soaked through with sea water, though still good enough to put in a stew. I found some healthy blue seaweed,’ Coronos said as he passed him a steaming pot. Inside was a peculiar blue colour. ‘It’s not the tastiest meal, but it’s rich and nutritious, and with the few spices I have and the herbs I could forage, it really isn’t too bad.’
‘If I cannot feed myself, then I would rather be dead,’ Asaph said, putting a hand up in protest as Coronos bent to help him.
Coronos sighed and stood up again. Asaph winked at him then grimaced as he tried to raise the pot to his mouth. He tried not to splutter. It was certainly pungently nutritious, but after another mouthful, he grew a taste for it and finished the lot. As soon as he was done his wounds complained with a vengeance, forcing him to lie back down.
Coronos seated himself by the fire, and stuffed lintel weed into his long pipe. He lit it and puffed until thick tendrils of smoke rose above him. Asaph noticed the worry on the older man’s face. It was clear that Coronos knew what he knew, that an unholy poison infected his wounds.
‘You cannot heal these wounds,’ Asaph said. It was a fact he did not want to admit to. Coronos gave a so-so nod but said nothing. A while later the older man spoke, taking Asaph by surprise.
‘So you truly are a Dragon Lord. I had always suspected as much, but now we have the truth of it. How long have you known of your gift?’ Coronos asked, searching his face. ‘It seems you have kept this a secret from me. I would be lying if I said I was not saddened by your silence.’
Asaph closed his eyes wondering what to say. He knew by reason alone that he could not have kept his gift a secret forever, but he did not feel ready to talk about it and took a long time to reply.
‘I’ve known there was something different about me ever since I was young. The other children did not have this… gift, and the abilities that come with it.’
‘Of all the things to keep from me, you should not have hidden this,’ Coronos said, the raw hurt in his quiet voice made Asaph flinch. ‘Especially not now, not in these times,’ he added, shaking his head.
Asaph sighed, feeling like a child whose guilty secret had been discovered. ‘I was afraid to speak of my dragon self, afraid of what it made me; huge, powerful, terrifying… and a damned shape-shifter. I was afraid of what others would do if they found out. You know how the Kuapoh are about shape-shifters, and how they deal with them. So I kept it secret. And what of these times?’ He raised his voice.
‘These times of which you speak are the only times I have ever known. I have never known peace, not in my life or in myself, and I shall never know it. Not unless we are in our homelands and she is with me. I would not even have become the drag
on had she not needed me so.’ His voice shook with emotion. He closed his eyes, drained by his own outburst. But despite the guilt, relief washed over him, his long-held secret was out. Finally, he had revealed that which he most feared to the one closest to him.
‘I’m deeply sorry for your… isolation,’ Coronos said in gentler words and his shoulders slumped. ‘Forgive me for straining you, especially now when you are weak. I just want to help. I could have helped you bear the burden. Being a Dragon Lord is no small thing, and certainly nothing to be ashamed of.
‘Perhaps it was indeed a wise thing to keep it secret, for no one knows who is watching… or what. Baelthrom’s spies are everywhere. It’s clear to me that no Dragon Lord exists, for none were spared. None save you, and only because we fled with Feygriene’s blessing. You are the last Dragon Lord, Asaph.’
Coronos’ words were like a lead weight upon Asaph’s mind. I’m the last Dragon Lord? Could it really be? Could Baelthrom really have captured all the Dragon Lords? Forced all of them to consume the Black Drink and turned them into Dromoorai? Asaph felt the Recollection open like a book before him, the pages flickering back and forth in some unseen wind until he looked upon an image he did not want to see.
He spoke aloud of what he saw in a quiet voice. ‘The human part becomes the Dromoorai, massive, mindless, soulless - dragon riders made in Baelthrom’s image.’ He stared at the image of his once brother or sister, the tripartite helmet, the triangular eyes glowing all colours, the heavy black iron armour. He looked to the monster lumbering at its side.
‘The dragon becomes the Dread Dragon upon which it rides, bigger than a Dragon Lord and far more terrifying. It knows only to hunt and feed its insatiable appetite.’ Asaph stared at his brethren that had become his hated enemy.
After a long time Coronos spoke, his voice taut with worry.
‘Keteth now knows a Dragon Lord lives, and soon so will Baelthrom. The Immortal Lord and his minions will hunt us down, Asaph, he will not let us live. He cannot let an heir to the throne of Drax survive.’
Night Goddess (The Goddess Prophecies Book 1) Page 20
