by Dreagen
“Is that right?” VayRonx said, turning his entire body and lowering his head down to the man. “Then tell me what exactly you did mean. What is the other version of this scenario that does not result in complete and total failure?”
BaRone now felt his heart sink, for he knew he had made a grave mistake questioning his friend and mentor’s judgment. VayRonx had always been selfless, putting the tribe before everything else. Grief and anger had gotten the best of him, and now was making him suggest things that would probably bring about more harm than good to anyone. “I’m sorry,” he said at last, looking down. “I was wrong to question you…I won’t be so selfish as to ask for forgiveness.”
VayRonx turned his head to the side slightly and regarded him with one eye. He peered through the man’s very essence to the wounded flame within. With a low rumble from deep within his throat, VayRonx lifted his head back high above the forest floor and gazed out to the search party. “Trust is a heavy burden to bear.” BaRone looked up. “However, for the one who must give it, it can be agonizing. Right now KyVina is back in KaNar leading our tribe in rebuilding our home. It is my responsibility as alpha to fulfill that role; however, a situation has arisen that requires me to pass the responsibility on to another.”
“KyVina is your Beta, your second-in-command,” said BaRone. “You may as well be there yourself if you left her in charge.”
“I agree. However, not a moment goes by where I do not worry if something is going wrong or if things could be going better if I were there.”
“But why? KaNar is home to all of us, so any one of us would naturally feel the desire to want to do more to help. Why not just place your trust in her without worry?”
“For the same reason you cannot do so with me. You blame yourself for what happened.”
The words fell upon BaRone like huge stones, crushing him beneath their massive weight. Deep down he had known that he held himself responsible for what had happened to DiNiya, but hearing the words spoken aloud brought it out to the surface. “I…I should have saved her.”
“How?”
“I should have done…something.”
“What?”
A long, expectant moment passed between them.
“You were forced to face a situation that you were not prepared to deal with, and as such, paid a terrible price. That is why she was taken, BaRone. Not because you were inept and cowardly, but because there is someone out there who wanted to take what was most important to you, and there was nothing you could have done to stop them.”
“But she was my little girl!”
“And she still is. And she is also why you did the only thing you felt would stand any real chance of getting her back alive: putting your trust in me.”
BaRone could feel the other’s eyes on him now, watching him silently. “You’re right,” he said, pushing his fur back and out of his face. “I know no one is more capable of saving my daughter’s life. But still…it just doesn’t feel like enough. None of this does. I can’t help but feel like there’s still something else that I’m not doing, something else that will make all the difference in the world.”
“And it will always feel that way until she is back in your arms. Now sit yourself down and rest. You’ll need all your strength if you are going to stand any chance of saving DiNiya.” With that, VayRonx turned and lowered his body to a squatting position, like an enormous bird, and closed his eyes.
BaRone watched his friend sit in absolute silence except for the deep breathing. “Thank you, old friend,” he said, placing a hand on VayRonx’s side before slumping down and leaning against him. He gazed up to the colorful sky beyond the patchy canopy, observing the thick cumulus clouds silently creeping across it. All around him he heard the sounds of the forest, Avian DyVorians singing through trees, insects, and the distant calls of herds. Maintaining his skyward gaze, he saw a CyTorian far up circling lazily, seemingly a world away yet being able to see so much more of this one. Fatigue crept into his muscles and then slithered upward behind his eyes. “DiNiya,” he whispered as his eyes closed, and he succumbed to his mind and body’s craving for rest.
DiNiya felt her body floating through the air. No longer bound to the physical world, she drifted silently, a cool breeze whistling in her ears. Opening her eyes, she saw she was soaring through a sea of clouds at dusk, their deep orange and red hues looking like great stone reliefs that she could walk upon. But I can’t really walk on clouds, nor can I really fly…but then…how am I…? Her thoughts were interrupted by something moving behind the large mountain of a cumulus cloud rising up hundreds of meters in front of her. It was like a grand structure carved by the winds that reached to the very top of the heavens. What is that? A dark shape moved from just within it—something alive, something stalking her from within the clouds, always just out of sight but always close and drawing nearer.
She instinctively pulled away from that which was unknown to her, and to her surprise, her body banked left. Wait, can I actually fly? She pushed her body to her right, and just as before, it followed her commands and moved accordingly. A broad smile spread across her face as she held her arms back tight against her body and pushed herself forward faster. DiNiya let out a shrill cry of joy, spinning in great loops through the beautiful crimson sky. Arching her body downward, she dove straight through a thick cloud, shooting out from the top and leaving a trail of wispy clouds behind her as she continued to tear through the air free of all restraint. However, it was while climbing in altitude that she noticed the dark shadow moving upward perpendicular to her within the clouds, matching her speed effortlessly.
“You want a race?” DiNiya declared with a grin. “You’ve got one!” She quickly veered to the left and took off at an incredible speed, cutting through the clouds like a sword through water. Feeling oddly sure of herself, she ventured a glance back to verify that she had indeed left her mystery stalker far behind, only to see it was directly behind her—still out of sight in the clouds, but now close enough she could make out the pretense of a form. Trying to discern what she was actually seeing, she was struck with a pang of panic, and she picked up speed to escape what she now felt was less a curious observer than a pursuer.
Faster and faster she pushed herself before she heard a deep and powerful sound behind her, one that sent chills down her spine. Too afraid to look back this time, she banked and shot straight up. Higher and higher she climbed, all the while feeling something just below her. She punched through a cloud and was immediately shrouded in a dense red mist that provided zero visibility. Consumed by the cumulus titan, she began to panic as every second went by with no sight of the sky beyond until eventually she broke free and beheld what she at first thought was the sun, but soon realized was much too bright. Shielding her eyes, she came to a stop and tried to make out the source of the brilliant white light. Squinting hard for a moment, she thought she saw something moving, something else alive. However, darkness obscured it as the entire sky turned to dark grey and rumbled with thunder. It was then that she heard it again, the same terrifying sound from before that sent her careening through the sky to escape the dark shadow. She looked down and was stricken with a crippling sense of dread as the enormous dark cloud below took the form of a TyRanx’s head with two glowing red eyes. DiNiya’s lips parted and released a horrified scream as the huge dark jaws opened and raced up towards her.
She awoke with a gasp as her body jerked up, and she found herself staring at seemingly nothing, or rather it only appeared that way for everything was shrouded in a dense fog.
“I trust you had a pleasant sleep,” came an unpleasantly familiar voice.
DiNiya immediately realized she was still clasped within the grasp of a clawed hand, and looked up to see LemaRes staring forward.
“I actually thought I had finally woken up,” DiNiya muttered, adjusting uncomfortably.
“A most curious choice of words,” LemaRes replied, glancing down.
DiNiya met her stare and
felt as if there was some sort of silent understanding that passed through them.
“In any case, it’s good that you’re awake.”
“Why’s that?” DiNiya asked.
“Because we’re here,” LemaRes tucked her wings back and swooped down, breaking free of the mist, where they were greeted by the warm glow of the falling sun. The scene was one of intense natural beauty. Red stone peaks with sparse vegetation dotted the land, while the sea lay just beyond, shimmering red and orange from the dying light. With three strong flaps, LemaRes reduced her speed and glided silently through the great stone formations. At such a close range, DiNiya could see what appeared to be carved reliefs of DyVorians etched in the stone. The carvings were ancient, dating back to a time long before EeNara came to be what it is today. They rounded one of the large peaks on their left and were immediately greeted by a sight that rose up in front of them like an ominous titan.
“The tower,” DiNiya said in a hushed tone.
“One of four just like it spread out in all four corners of EeNara,” LemaRes explained. “It is an incredible sight, is it not? The power they once possessed—the ability to bestow life anew to a world marred by savagery.”
“I always heard they were some form of terrible weapon.”
“I suppose they would seem that way to you. After all, civilization can only prosper once it has rid itself of the beasts at its gates.”
The tower itself was made of dark ore, which contrasted sharply against the surrounding geology, giving it a menacing appearance. To DiNiya, it looked like the immense body of a monster that died long ago, a relic of a behemoth that once stood as a mighty symbol of power but now was a fallen giant decaying in the shadow of its former glory.
As they drew closer, she could see nearly two hundred DraGons perched on various places on the tower, watching them approach. She soon began to fear that they would actually collide with the tower itself, but LemaRes banked upward and scaled its full height. Seconds later, they reached the top, a large platform some one hundred meters in diameter. In its center was a smaller platform with four spires in each corner. LemaRes came to a hover several meters from it and landed with a flap of her wings. To DiNiya’s surprise, she was immediately set down. Looking frantically all around her, she saw that the platform was in fact much larger than it appeared from the air. “I had heard stories of this place,” she said, still taking everything in. “I saw this tower once a long time ago from afar when I was very young.” She began taking tentative steps away from the DraGon before stopping and glancing back apprehensively. “I never thought I would walk upon it, though.”
LemaRes chuckled. “By all means,” she said, motioning with a hand that she was free to move about.
DiNiya walked slowly to the far end with the enormous setting sun dominating the horizon. One foot after another, she drew closer and closer until she reached the edge and looked down at the rolling waves that crashed against the rocky shore some one thousand meters below. Vertigo grabbed hold of her by the neck and she felt as if she would suddenly be pulled right over the edge. Taking several frantic steps back, she gripped her chest and breathed heavily. Behind her, LemaRes watched her with an almost perverse curiosity.
To anyone else, they would have seen a small, frightened girl standing before them, but not LemaRes. Rather, she saw the dark silhouette of a monster. As she watched the outline of DiNiya against the sun, a memory crept to the forefront of her mind, and soon the shadow began to grow larger, changing shape, a pair of shadowy jaws parting wide and coming closer, coming for her. A sudden cry ripped through the air and brought her back to reality, while seemingly bringing about a dead silence in the air. LemaRes, of course, knew who it was. It was he who she had brought the girl here for. It was he she would do anything for.
DiNiya, having heard the same sound, also recognized it and began to tremble in place. Without taking her eyes off the edge, she backed away slowly, nervously, a feeling of dread taking hold of her. Then, from beyond the edge, he appeared, silhouetted against the now crimson sun with four enormous wings, a grand mane, decadent golden armor, and burning with a flame of the same brilliant hue. “DayKar,” she breathed. The enormous DraGon landed with a heavy thud on the platform in front of her, sending a rumbling tremor beneath her feet. “You’re…you’re alive!”
His lips curled back into a grin, revealing rows of fearsome teeth. “Surprise.”
“But we saw you die!” DayKar just laughed boisterously. Feeling almost offended, she asked, “What the hell is so funny, you monster?”
The DraGon’s laughter subsided as he lowered his huge head down to her level and whispered like he was sharing a dark secret. “You and the others are not the only fallen who have managed to rise from the ashes, AmaRanthine.” Pulling his head back slightly, he fixed her with a piercing stare, as if seeing through some clever deception.
“AmaRanthine?”
“The name given to those who have returned from that place forbidden to all living flames: oblivion.”
“Why have I been brought here?”
DayKar reared back, rising up on his hind legs and crossing his arms. This close, DiNiya could see that any injury he sustained was now covered by thick armor. All except the deep wound on his face that now served as a reminder of his battle with Rex.
“You, my dear,” he said at last, breaking the silence, “are here because you are the key to all that was, is, and will be.”
DiNiya looked at him as fear and confusion welled up inside her. “This doesn’t make any sense…none of this makes any sense!” She dropped to her knees, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the sides of her head. “I was a fool to think this nightmare was over!”
“You are many things, DiNiya, but a fool is not one of them. Then again, you always were hardest on yourself.”
DiNiya looked up at him with bewildered eyes. His voice had been one she had heard a thousand times since she was a small child, and one that had always brought her comfort. But now to see it coming from such an unfathomable beast, this DraGon was beyond surreal.
“Fear not, though, for the age of confusion and backwards thinking is at an end. Soon you will be made to see the truth of things, as your people once were and will be made to again. You just need to have a little faith.”
22
THRESHOLD OF OBLIVION
The night came and went, giving way to morning before eventually the midday sun loomed high overhead, partially concealed by sepia-colored clouds that floated lazily by. Rex and the others spent half the night traversing the great plains before succumbing to exhaustion. Luckily, EeNox had spotted a burrow, which they all crowded in together and slept the rest of the night and most of the morning. Rex had found it odd at first that such a thing would have even been there and felt that they were bizarrely lucky to have found shelter of any kind in a land so wide open. EeNox quickly explained, however, that predators made them frequently to hide in to ambush herds that came through grazing or migrating.
Regardless, they had slept much longer than they had intended, and now had to make up for lost time by tearing across the countryside at double the pace, something they knew they would probably pay the price for later on when it came time to stop for the night.
“How much farther?” Rex asked EeNox, who currently led the way.
“I’m not sure,” he called back. “We would have probably reached the next village by midafternoon had we gotten moving at dawn, but now, well, I really can’t say for sure.”
“Great.”
“Let me remind you that you were the one who insisted we keep going even after dark,” LyCora said.
Rex, being in no mood for complaining, called back, “Guess I was just trying to stall on having to hear you snore like a BorMax all night.”
LyCora looked stunned. “I do not snore like a BorMax!” she fired back hotly.
“No kidding,” EeNox laughed. “I’ve never heard anything make sounds like that!”
“Sh
ut up, EeNox! I’m surprised you even noticed, with how you were clinging to my leg the whole night!”
EeNox blushed and turned his attention back to what lay in front of him.
“Well, I slept soundly,” ShinGaru said cheerfully.
“Ohh, me too,” AnaSaya added happily. “Thank you once again for letting me rest my head on your shoulder. I hope it wasn’t too uncomfortable for you.”
“Not at all.”
“There, you see?” said Rex condescendingly. “If you two weren’t so at odds with each other even in your damn sleep, then you wouldn’t have been gurgling like someone was holding your head underwater, or dry humping someone’s leg all night.”
ShinGaru and AnaSaya laughed, while EeNox and LyCora lowered their gaze, and saw to it that they did not make eye contact with one another for some time.
Rex, who had spent the night sleeping in a cross-legged position with his arms folded in front of him, had surprisingly not seen EliCia or the dark titan. Rather, he dreamt of his father, and the days when he would take him to the museum where he would be allowed to roam its extensive archive of fossils. Those were happy moments buried in bad times. Rex looked back on them now fondly, happy to be able to remember them once again. Lamenting the loss of his father still proved difficult, however, and he wondered if he truly ever would be able to move past it. Regardless, now was not the time for him to dwell on what he could not undo. His father was gone, killed by the very same thing that took the first person he would have ever called “friend.”
They continued on silently for a time, the natural beauty and vastness of their surroundings lulling them into an almost transitory state. Several times they spotted herds grazing off in the distance. Sentries would at first glance up in their direction, but quickly realizing they were not a predator, would go back to eating and looking elsewhere for danger. It was not until they came upon a herd of what Rex recognized to be this world’s equivalent of eotriceratops that they ran into their first bit of trouble on their journey. They had paid the herd little attention, half expecting them to ignore them like the others. However, the wind blew against their backs, and almost immediately they heard a bellowing call coming from the herd. Startled by the sound, they all looked over and saw one of the sentries with his head raised in the air, sounding off.
