by Dreagen
The morning stretched on, and soon the sun was at its highest point, beaming down through the sepia-tinted sky. As was agreed, the six of them made their way out into the fields near the rock formations that had served as Rex and LyCora’s battleground and more recently as his training space. To their surprise, VayRonx, KyVina, BaRone, TarFor, VyKia, and VoRenna were already present.
“Ah, there you are,” VayRonx said as he turned his head in their direction.
“Sorry if we kept you waiting,” EeNox said.
“No, no. It’s quite all right. In truth we arrived early to discuss how we would proceed.”
“How about just giving it to us straight?” Rex said as he crossed his arms.
“Spoken like a true TyRanx,” he said as he regarded him with what, for the first time, could be considered awe.
Rex furrowed his brow and dropped his arms to his side. “About that…”
“Mother, what’s going on?” LyCora asked. “Am I to understand that you know something about this and that you’ve kept it from me all these years?”
“Yes, LyCora,” VoRenna replied solemnly. “You would be correct indeed.”
“All right,” said Rex. “So the secret’s out that you have a secret. Now it’s time to tell us what that is, and more importantly, what are we?”
“It has to do with your parents,” VoRenna began. “Or rather, the ones who are not present here today.”
“Go on,” Rex urged.
“Twenty years ago, a relic from the war was found deep in the mountains of ClyVen, buried within EeNara. As best we could tell it was some sort of facility created by the DraGons.”
“Really?” ShinGaru said with a look of intense curiosity. “What kind of facility?”
“A laboratory of some sort. We stumbled upon it when the tribes in that region reported a strange energy signature being put out from this one section of the mountain.”
“Wait. So they contacted the outside for help?” LyCora said, sounding more than a little surprised. “I’ve never heard of anyone from ClyVen doing that.”
“Nor had many others,” BaRone said, finally speaking up. “So the capital dispatched a scientific team to ClyVen to investigate. The expedition was being led by a botanist named SeroFiya, who had been studying the organic communing technology left behind by the DraGons from the war, which KaNar now uses.”
“Wait a minute,” DiNiya suddenly exclaimed. “SeroFiya?”
“You mean…” EeNox added.
“Yes,” BaRone replied with a nod. “Your mother.”
The two of them looked at one another with shocked expressions and almost desperation. This was the first they had heard any of this.
“She and two other botanists named MeNoris and VyNasia had been leaders in their field and felt that they could push the interface technology to a level equal to the DraGons themselves. They were convinced that if they could find one of their facilities still intact that they would have the breakthrough they had been searching for.”
“So my parents were indeed involved,” ShinGaru said with a smile as he wiped a tear from his eye.
“ShinGaru,” DiNiya said as she gently placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“I’m all right,” he said, patting it gently. “It’s just good to hear something of them outside of official reports. Please continue.”
“Very well,” BaRone said with a gentle nod in his direction. “With the help of a biologist named TorKross—your father, AnaSaya—they made their way north, eventually stopping here in KaNar for provisions.” BaRone paused and looked at his two children. “That was when I first saw her, your mother. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. I convinced VayRonx to let me suggest to them they needed a guide, someone who had been to ClyVen.”
EeNox could not help but smile. “So you managed to sly your way into their party?”
“Hardly,” said VayRonx. “SeroFiya told him point blank that one of the tribes had already delegated the task to one of their own upon their arrival.”
“So you were shot down?” EeNox asked, sounding almost disappointed.
“Well, when you put it that way…” BaRone began but quickly trailed off.
Deciding to step in, VayRonx said, “In the end, I explained to them that I could not in good conscience allow them to continue on to ClyVen without at least loaning them one of my best trackers to ensure their trip there went smoothly, and that they were free to discard him should they choose upon arrival.”
“That’s a bit harsh,” EeNox said with a frown.
“It was all I needed,” his father replied with a broad smile. “By the time we arrived in ClyVen, I had successfully charmed my way onto your mother’s team as a permanent member. Still, it was nothing compared to how she worked her way into my heart. She was unlike anyone I had ever met. Kind, funny, a brilliant mind—which she underscored every chance she got—and a fearsome resolve that I have not seen since. She was truly one of a kind. By the time we reached the summit of the ClyVen Mountains…I knew I was in love with her.”
Now DiNiya and EeNox both felt tears falling from their eyes as they drew close to one another, their bond forged ever stronger with the now more complete image of the woman who brought them into the world.
“You said one of the tribes from the region had sent someone to guide them once there,” LyCora said, stepping forward. “Which tribe?”
“The Black Frost Tribe,” VoRenna answered. “My tribe.”
LyCora sighed as a suspicion that had long since troubled her was confirmed. “So it was you then.”
“Correct,” she replied with a nod.
“And that’s why you never went back. Raising a SaVarian child meant turning your back on your tribe.”
“It was my decision to make and no one else’s,” she said with resolute authority before casting a more sympathetic gaze to the blue-eyed girl. “And one I have never regretted.” LyCora smiled.
“But what of her real parents?” AnaSaya asked, prompting LyCora to give her a wicked glare. “I’m sorry, I meant her biological parents.”
“It’s all right, child,” VoRenna assured her. “No offense was taken. LyCora, your SaVarian mother and father were RyNevia and WesNor of the RoVak Tribe. RyNevia was its alpha, and upon hearing of their purpose in ClyVen, insisted that she and her mate go with them to assess any possible danger to their tribe. Reluctantly, the research team agreed, and they joined their ranks.”
“So…my mother, I mean, RyNevia,” LyCora quickly corrected, “was an alpha.”
“Indeed, and do not feel ashamed to call her you mother. She was very brave, just like your father. They would be so proud if they could see the talented and strong young woman you have grown into.”
“But they didn’t,” Rex chimed in after having chosen to remain silent for a time. He had learned some time ago that the best way to acquire information from others was to simply let them talk. People were always more forthcoming when they felt in control of the conversation. Still, it was often necessary to steer it in the direction he wanted from time to time.
“No, they did not,” VoRenna replied, looking in his direction. “They…I’m sorry to say, but they met with an unfortunate end.”
“What do you mean?” DiNiya asked.
“Before she can answer that question,” BaRone interjected. “Before any of us can, you first need to know what they found in ClyVen.”
“And that would be?” Rex asked.
The adults all looked at one another before BaRone continued. “There was indeed something held over from the war deep inside one of the mountains.” He shook his head as he recalled the day. “Just as they had hoped, it was a laboratory of some kind. They were beside themselves with excitement. Especially SeroFiya. I had no idea what I was seeing, but they explained it as some sort of conversion facility.”
“Conversion?” ShinGaru asked. “What kind of conversion?”
With a smile he said, “She could have explained it
to you far better, but as I can remember, it was something to do with taking a living thing’s flame and transferring it into the body of another.”
“Flame transference?” ShinGaru exclaimed with a wide-eyed expression. “But that’s only a theory! It’s never been done, not even attempted! The physics of it alone are damn near beyond comprehension!”
“Funny, she said something similar upon discovering this. In any case, the DraGons seemed to have figured it out. On top of that, the lab was still functioning—at a minimum capacity, of course—but running nonetheless.”
“That’s incredible. Actual DraGon tech in the world today. The things we could learn from it.”
“And learn we did,” VoRenna said. “Not only had the entire facility been created for the purpose of flame transference, but whoever created it had gone forward with the experiment, yet failed to complete it.”
“So you’re saying you found some kind of record of an actual trial run?” ShinGaru asked.
“More than that. We found actual extracted flames, six in all, being kept in some form of stasis within the root system of an ancient tree apparently grown for this particular purpose.”
“You said six?” Rex asked.
“That’s right. The next seven years were spent going over and cataloging all research material stored in the tree’s database. It proved difficult at first because it had been designed to respond only to the scientist who had grown it and presumably ran the experiment. I was charged with the task of breaking its pre-existing parameters and making it so the research team could commune with it directly.”
“I assume you managed, right?” LyCora asked.
“It took a bit of doing, but yes, in the end I was successful, and soon the researchers began compiling enormous amounts of data on the nature of the tree’s physical and flame makeup.”
“I remember seeing the way SeroFiya’s face would light every day when they would discover something new,” BaRone said, smiling over what were, for him, fond memories. “Still, the primary concern was everyone’s safety. Keeping the six flames in stasis was crucial, for no one knew if they would attach themselves to a host like a parasite or simply return to the cosmos like flames do naturally when the living form dies.”
“Wait one moment,” EeNox interrupted. “How exactly did this DraGon or whoever even manage to…how should I put it, ‘extract’ these flames in the first place? Wouldn’t the act alone kill whoever they belonged to?”
“A valid question, and one the team asked themselves,” VoRenna explained. “However, because so much of the data was encrypted in a way they had never before seen, there was much of the actual experiment that remained a mystery.”
“Were there any bodies?” AnaSaya asked with a look of curiosity. “Something that may have pointed to the identities of who the flames were when they were alive?”
“None, though we were unable to penetrate very deep into the entire facility, so it is quite possible that such remains could have been buried further in.”
“All right,” Rex said, dropping his arms and looking back and forth between BaRone and VoRenna. “You explained the who and the what, now tell us about the how?”
“The how?” VoRenna repeated.
“How we came to be.”
“Ah, yes, I suppose that would be the next logical question.”
“Wait,” BaRone interrupted. “Before we say any more, there is something you must know. Understand that what happened was beyond our control. Everything we were doing was. We had no idea at the time, but were playing with forces beyond anything that anyone alive had ever dealt with. Still, despite all that we lost, we have no regrets…I have no regrets.”
“Father, please,” DiNiya urged. “No matter what it is, we are your children and we love you. So please…tell us.”
With a heavy sigh, he spoke the words he always knew he would one day be forced to but knew would never be prepared to. “The team was communing with the tree in an effort to unlock several encrypted logs left by the lead scientist, when there was a sudden overload in the system. We don’t know exactly why it happened, but we suspect it was due to the tree being so old and no longer able to handle a communion with so many flames at once. In any case, several of the key systems went down, including the containment field keeping the flames in stasis. Something happened, we don’t know what, but somehow they, the flames that is, they…”
Seeing BaRone was finding it difficult to express himself, VoRenna mercifully stepped in. “As we feared if they were ever released, the flames bonded with hosts, but to our surprise it was not in the way SeroFiya had theorized. We do not know why, but they had bonded only with the females that were present.”
“TarFor and I were both there that day, providing extra security for the team after some aggressive advances from one of the neighboring tribes,” VyKia explained. “I can’t remember everything perfectly, but I recall feeling something…incredible, like a will other than my own was burning its way into me. It was terrifying at first. My head was filled with feelings that I could not understand. It felt as if the whole of my being was being rewritten, when all of a sudden it was gone…like nothing had happened.”
“It was apparently the same for the other women,” TarFor said. “We quickly evacuated the facility and immediately sent word to KaNar for rescue. We managed to make it down the mountain in one piece and found several CyTorians dispatched from KaNar awaiting us.”
“I awoke back in KaNar three days later with only fragments of what had transpired,” VyKia said. “My memories were all mixed up, out of order.”
“It was the same for all of those who had been afflicted,” KyVina said, speaking up for the first time since they had all come together. “We had our healers do their best to diagnose them, but the results were conclusive. Aside from an extreme case of fatigue, and a minor case of shellshock, there was nothing wrong with them.”
“But you said that they had been in some sort of an accident,” EeNox protested. “How could they not have been hurt?”
“And what of the flames?” AnaSaya asked.
“Well,” BaRone said, looking at the others, “That’s where things get truly interesting. After the incident in ClyVen, the Guild decided to cease any and all work on the laboratory. Your mother was not happy, believe me, even going as far as to file a motion to overturn the Guild’s ruling, but in the end it stood.”
“So did she and the others return to the capital?” DiNiya asked.
Her father shook his head. “No. In fact, she would never see the capital again, for by that point your cunning father had managed to woo said beauty, and the result was the two of us forged anew as mates and she with child. Two, in fact!” EeNox and DiNiya exchanged quick glances. “Nine months later, you two were born. I had the honor of naming you, my son, while your mother reserved the right to bestow our beautiful baby girl with one.”
“Three days later, you were born, AnaSaya,” VyKia said, smiling affectionately at her daughter. “You father was unfortunately away at sea but rushed home once he received word of your birth.”
“LyCora,” VoRenna said as she regarded the young blue flame. “You were born around the same time.”
“But how did I come to be in your care?” LyCora asked. “What happened to my biological parents, and why would you of all people take me in—a SaVarian?”
“Well…that has to do with him.”
“LyCora followed her mother’s gaze where, to her surprise, it landed on Rex, who had remained silent this entire time, but now unfolded his arms. “I was wondering when you would get to that. I couldn’t help but notice all of you dancing around the issue of me.”
“There is a reason for that,” BaRone declared.
“Is there now? Well, then, I believe now would be the time to clue me in on what that is. Who were my parents?”
“Do you remember that there was a mysterious energy signature coming from the lab which tipped us off to its existence in the first place?�
� Rex nodded. “Well, it turned out that the majority of the trickle of power the lab was still producing was being funneled into a secret chamber. That was the energy source we were detecting.”
“Secret chamber?” he repeated, cocking his head to the side. “What was in it?”
“You.”
“What?” he asked, startled.
“Or rather it would grow into you. You see, we found a tank being fed with what we later learned was a type of embryonic fluid through the roots of the tree. Inside was a tiny embryo. We had no idea what it was growing into until about three cycles later, when SeroFiya positively identified it as a SaVarian. It seemed to be the remains of an experiment that began long ago. Probably during the war.”
“But wait,” DiNiya protested. “How could he have been from so long ago? You said you only found an embryo.”
“We can’t be sure, but we believe it had been growing at such a slow rate due to the tiny amount of power the lab had been running off of over the centuries. But when the team began communing with the tree, powering it to reactivate more of the systems, they must have inadvertently reactivated the growth process.”
“So let me get this straight,” said Rex in a voice that borderline on shock and anger. “You’re saying I never had parents?”
“I’m afraid not, Rex. You were not born but rather created. By whom, though…we really don’t know.”
Rex staggered backwards. He felt as if someone had just taken the wind out from beneath his wings, and his head began to spin. “How…how can this be real? Any of it?”
“I am sorry, Rex,” VayRonx said. “Do not blame any of them, for it rests solely with me.”
“I don’t understand…”
“It was my decision to keep the truth from all of you, and furthermore, it was my order to have you all kept apart.”
“Why, though?” Rex shouted. “Why was I sent so far away? Why maroon me on Earth?” He fought back his seething rage. “Why did you abandon me?”
