Draconic Testament

by Zac Atie

  “So... You opened the portal.” Zaxxarius said.

  “Yes.” Sancterus said.

  “I see...” Zaxxarius said.

  “Keep that to yourself, though.” Sancterus said. “You must learn to be discreet. Much like you must be discreet about the Equilibrium. If you made wild claims, you’d be untrustworthy. It’s a myth to most people, and the people of Metholi are shaky right now.”

  “Don't worry. I will.” Zaxxarius said.

  “There’s not that much else to tell... or to ask.” Sancterus said.

  “So... That’s it?” Zaxxarius asked.

  “Meeting the real you was... nice.” Sancterus said. “I had made illusions in the past... but that’s all they are... Illusions. In the future, when this is all over... I want you to come back here. Talk to me again. But only then. There is more for you to know.”

  “Like what?” Zaxxarius asked.

  “The truth.” Sancterus said. “You’re not ready for the truth. It would change you... as it changed me.” Sancterus sighed. “You know, it’s funny. I thought my father was foolish for getting himself nearly killed for love, and having everyone fight for him. I'm amazed I even went to the effort that I did, while he sat in his castle... but I admired that. I promised myself I wouldn’t let that happen to me. Good job I did there. My father closed the portal in order to save the universe from a terrible danger, a danger in which you’ll find out about. But... until then... Until then, do as best you can to be a great Overlord. Serve your people. I grant you my vote.” Sancterus said. He reached his hand out to Zaxxarius’ shoulder, then stopped. “I would rather you not see my memories.” Sancterus said. “You’ll have your own burdens to bear. Just remember. You’re far more special than you know.” Sancterus put his hand away. “Congratulations...”

  “Thank you... father.” Zaxxarius said. Then he looked out to the crashing waves, as the world around him began to shimmer. As he began to fade, words echoed in his head, from Sancterus. ‘Forgive him, Zaxxarius.’ He said. ‘Forgive Draynar. You and him... You’re two sides of a coin. Remember this. It will make sense, in time.’ Then, the world vanished.

  There was nothing. Darkness. Again, he heard a voice in his head, but it wasn’t Sancterus. It was another voice, a voice not easily forgotten. Ultimali’s. “In the name of Horizon, Dusk, and Dawn, thee who looketh unto the Monolith shall see naught but sorrow, pride, pain and power. We bequeath the magic of the Overlord to thou who protects thy brethren, leader of the followers of your House and the Draconic Testament. Breathe the furious fires and magic unto your foes, and bask in the undying power of the Dragons.” Ultimali said. “Sorrow, Pride, Pain, and Power. These are thy weapons. Use them with honour.” Then Magic flowed into him. Lots of power, flowing into him, at rapid pace. He felt incredibly hot, and eventually, the magic began to hurt. His Brain felt as if it was being crushed, as many memories flown into his head, but he couldn’t remember them. He couldn’t remember any of them. He envisioned the final moments of Duty again, seeing nothing but Ultimali’s fingers click, before his eyes liquefied along with the rest of his body. He watched as the gun on the battleship slowly charged up, and Xita smiling as it fired off it’s round. He remembered war, battles, fighting, and politics. So many memories crashing through his mind, and getting lost. He closed his eyes, and for a short while, he could see almost the entire population of Cazria, through flashes of Hollowsight. Eventually, the magic began to slow, and the blood in his body began to cool down. He felt light... and eventually, he woke again.

  Chapter Sixteen – Adventure

  Zaxxarius Elric

  Zaxxarius fell to the ground, dizzy from his ordeal inside the Monolith. His mind was blank, and numb. He couldn’t think of anything for a short while. He hear shouting, as someone ran up towards him from behind. He tried to turn and lash out at the sudden noise, but he fell over backwards pathetically. A face appeared in his vision... a human... then a devil? No, it was a Cazrian, he remembers where he is now. Battleships in the sky hummed as he lay there, squinting as his vision began to normalise. His mind turned back to normality, and he knew where he was again. “You alright, prince?” Vander asked. “Come on, Zaxxarius Von Elric! You’re ok!”

  “He’s fine.” Abaddon said. “You know what this means.”

  “My father...” Zaxxarius said. “He accepted me...”

  “Hahah! Hey, that’s great!” Vander said, sitting him up.

  “I'm alright... I'm alright.” Zaxxarius said, as Vander helped him to his feet.

  “You’re an Overlord... After 16 years, we finally have another Overlord of Metholi... There’s much to be done.” Abaddon said.

  “First thing to do is sleep, though.” Zaxxarius said. Laer and Tyria approached.

  “I’ll drop by later.” Laer said. Vander’s eyebrows raised.

  “Rather bold, aren’t you?” He said.

  “I didn’t actually mean like that, that’ll come another day.” Laer chuckled.

  “I think we’d better hurry up and find Zaxxarius a Bride, before he does something he regrets.” Tyria sighed. “The council are your advisors, but I’d say that you should probably consider Kirall’s offer.”

  “Yeah, yeah, tell me later. I'm exhausted.” Zaxxarius said.

  “How does it feel?” Vander asked. “Do you remember anything juicy?”

  “No.” Zaxxarius said. “I feel like I’ve had a massive hangover... But I do feel stronger.”

  “It will likely come as second nature.” Laer said.

  “Yeah...” Zaxxarius said.

  “What time is it?” Vander asked. Laer looked at her watch.

  “23:00. Almost night time.” Laer said.

  “Humans sleep for a pretty short period of time.” Vander said. “6-12 hours at most.”

  “I don’t know about earth, but here it’s 29 hours a day.” Laer said.

  “I don’t care. I'm tired.” Zaxxarius moaned.

  “Well, let’s get you back to the manor where your friend is. That will be our temporary spot.” Abaddon said.

  Zaxxarius walked like a zombie back to his manor. He was exhausted from his ordeal, and from the sounds of it, he hadn’t been in the Monolith for very long. About 20 minutes. All the same, the process was trying. He wasn’t sure how long he was going to sleep, if he’d wake up while everyone else was going to bed, or in the middle of sleeping. Whatever the case, he felt like he would go into a coma when he hit the pillow. They got to his room, and he sprawled out all over his bed. “Well, this is where I get off.” Laer said. “That was fun. See you.”

  “By your leave, your grace. Congratulations on your success.” Tyria said. With that, the two women left back to the council. “Laer is surprisingly nice to you, isn’t she?” Vander said.

  “It’s obvious what she wants.” Abaddon huffs. “She knows she could be entitled to being queen, so she’s trying to take advantage of your young desires.”

  “Zaxxarius acts like he’s celibate most of the time, so it’ll be alright.” Vander said.

  “Shut up, Vander.” Zaxxarius said. “Laer seems ok, if a bit bloodthirsty, but I wouldn’t do anything with her.”

  “Is there anything else before we leave you?” Abaddon asked.

  “Make sure Yaevinn’s alright.” Zaxxarius said.

  “Alright.” Abaddon said, leaving. “I’ll speak to you when you wake. The servants around the house switch, so they’re available all day and night. They know who you are.” With that, Abaddon left.

  “Anything you want to talk about?” Vander asked.

  “Talia...” Zaxxarius said.

  “Again?” Vander asked. “Talia was a human girl. She’d never like this sort of life, besides, your family has had quite a history with snatching women from other planets. I’d strongly advise you don’t do that.”

  “I didn’t mean that...” Zaxxarius said. “Do you mind if I send you to go check on her, later?”

  “I’ve already told you she’s moving...” Vander
said. “But alright. I will...”

  “Thank you.” Zaxxarius said. “As long as she’s alright, she’ll get over me...”

  “And you over her.” Vander said. “You have to.”

  “I know.” Zaxxarius said. “Thanks Vander. Now, I gotta sleep.” Vander did the ‘Vance’.

  “As you wish, your highness.” Vander chuckled, then he turned.

  “Wait.” Zaxxarius said. Vander turned around, curious. Zaxxarius stood up. “Come here.”

  “Err...” Vander said, cautiously, walking over to Zaxxarius. Zaxxarius went to him, and whispered in his ear, asking a certain favour and instructions. “No way.” Vander said. “No, I thought-“

  “I can’t!” Zaxxarius said, backing away. “I just can’t, it’s too much. I’ll never be able to move on!”

  “You’re an Overlord! You can’t just get yourself killed! Any idea of what would happen?” Vander said.

  “Shh!” Zaxxarius hissed. Vander sighed. “The only reason I’ve stayed this long was for extra power. Not to mention the memories... But...” He wanted Vander to say something, preferably to agree with him, but he said nothing, just scowled. “Look. This place is really cool, it is. I got you, Yaevinn, Abaddon, the Council! I have people who love me, people who need my help, lots of new technology, a world to explore, not to mention a huge HQ battleship to myself!” Zaxxarius exclaimed. “But you know what wouldn’t be cool? Going through with all that and leaving Veronica to die. No, I can’t. The guilt would be the death of me.”

  “Alright.” Vander sighed.

  “Really?” Zaxxarius said.

  “Yes, but this’ll be the last im going to let you go to earth.” Vander said. “... You ARE coming back, aren’t you?”

  “Of course!” Zaxxarius said.

  “We’re also going to seal the damn portal when you come back, alright?” Vander asked.

  “Yes, of course.” Zaxxarius said.

  “...Abaddon isn’t going to like this.” Vander said.

  “He’s not going to know till I’m gone, right?” Zaxxarius asked.

  “Right...” Vander said. “I’ll go get it done...” Vander left. He didn’t like the plan, but he had been Zaxxarius’ friend for the longest time. Turning his back on him when he came for help wouldn’t be cool for him. Zaxxarius stretched on his comfortable bed. His arms clicked gently, and satisfaction erupted all over his body, then he relaxed and endured the headache that soon came after. It was worth it. Then, he drifted off to sleep... Although, his dreams were of the Ocean again. He didn’t mind. He could feel the full relaxation of sleep here, coupled with a calming view. The feeling of sleep was far more relaxing here than it was at the Haven, because there was more Mana in the air. He could understand why Xelphan loved sleeping so much, after all those long days of war and ruling.

  Zaxxarius woke up, slowly. His exhaustion was actually genuine, so he had to get rest, even if Veronica was in trouble, otherwise he wouldn’t be able to help her properly. Zaxxarius felt a hair on his mouth, blonde, likely come from him, his hair part of the legendary trend of blonde haired Elrics. He effortlessly grabbed the hair and pulled it out, looking at it. It reminded him of when Veronica kissed him, in the woods outside Split. She kissed him goodnight, after he saved both of their lives. That was when she had finally opened up to him for good. She practically confessed her love that day. “Veronica.” Zaxxarius whispered to himself. “Be ok. Please.” He got up out of bed, stretching, then looked at the bundle of clothes by his door. He moved slowly, so not to make any noise, but the manor didn’t have any creaky floorboards. The floor was carpet over stone, and the stone felt hollow. Obviously, houses were built differently here. He picked up the bundle of clothes and looked at them. They were his clothes, his own human clothes. A sleeveless trench coat, vest, boots, jeans. He had the feeling this was going to be the last he saw of them... such a thought brought a sad, nostalgic sigh. These were seen as commoner clothes, and if Cazria is anything like the movies of nobility he’s seen, it’s that nobles are never to mingle with, or in, anything of lower stature than him. He was going to have to get used to royalty. It was so out of nowhere for him. He felt like he’d only been in Cazria a few minutes, and yet he’s the most important thing in Metholi! He changed into the clothes. There was one more thing Vander left. An Arcana. He smiled as he picked it up. This Arcana had a longer blade. He gave it a couple of swings, without igniting it. He felt... better with it. Like he had done this before. Was this the memories in effect? But, he couldn’t remember anything. “I suppose this is like Abaddon said.” Zaxxarius thought. “Second nature...” He put the Arcana in a bag, so not to draw attention to himself on the streets of both Cazria and Earth, and left. He wondered where Abaddon was... through the Mithril walls, he could see nothing. He exited into the hallway, which was illuminated by small lights on the ceiling of the hallway. He snuck out the private manor, making as little noise as possible. It was night-time, dark, and beautiful. The night sky was riddled with stars, like Earth’s was, and it had beautiful streaks of purple through the air. The streaks were slowly changing, morphing, getting bigger and smaller in some areas. He wondered what it was. He decided he’d wonder another time, as getting caught would likely be bad. He snuck off into the streets, receiving weird looks from some of the people still going around in the dark. He didn’t know the streets, but it was obvious where he was supposed to be going. The tower was huge, it was impossible not to see it. Lights made it hard to look at for two long, not to mention the searchlights that the battleships had, which made it look like some sort of odd disco. Nevertheless, the tower was far from reach. Quite a bit of walking would need to be done to get there. A few times, he was turned around, heading back towards the manor instead of the Tower. The roads were complicated to walk on, and he was constantly stared at for his choice of clothing, and the fact that his appearance was very much human. People moved out of his way, and seemed to fear him. Some even thought he was Luca of the Children of Blight, praising him as they passed. Eventually, he found a beautiful park, though it didn’t look as if it was made for citizens to simply walk their dogs. There was a large fountain in the middle of the park, which flowed water ever so slowly, unlike the mini fountains at the corners of the park. The park looked very important, and there was writing in Metholian writing along the gates, giving it a grand appearance. Zaxxarius could not read Cazrian, but as he looked at it more intently words popped into his head. “The Unveiling Fountain...” Zaxxarius said. “I can read Metholian... how?” Then it struck him. The Overlord’s memories. The second nature was kicking in when he looked at the writing. He wanted to back this up by checking somewhere for writing in Metholian. He saw a billboard, far away, but he could still read it. Advertisement for hair-gel with complicated and boring name.

  “Daring to brave the Unveiling Fountain?” A voice from behind him said. He turned, and his heart leapt. It was a Domini. This was the first time he had seen one close-up, but he had seen them before in the streets, though, nowhere near as many as the other Aliens. He didn’t blame them. He knew that people were often categorized in with other people sharing their race, he highly doubted it was any different in Cazria. On Earth, humans discern people from their Nationality or race. In Cazria, there was far more of a variety. The Domini had caused a war in Zolka, the DomiCazrian war, and there was also another war going on now. He didn’t have much of the details, but the Domini had taken areas in Zolka, and were simply defending them. Two wars, they had been the antagonists of, and one of them resulted in the deaths of the dragons. It was obvious they were the most infamous race in the Universe, especially since the Dragons told the Cazrians to ignore them. “Oh. Hello.” Zaxxarius said. He looked at the Domini’s tail... It was very intimidating, and although it didn’t look like one, all Zaxxarius could picture in his head when looking at his tail was a scorpion’s tail, and how deadly the poison in it was. Though, a Domini’s poison is one of searing pain. Most Domini have their poison sacs removed
as a child, due to obvious reasons. This man unsettled Zaxxarius. He smiled, a lot. For no reason, and it wasn’t a happy smile, it was more of a disturbed, forced smile. It didn’t look right. “Not often we see humans around here... I wonder, who are you?” The Domini said. Zaxxarius had to think about that question.

  “I can’t say, I’m sorry.” As he had no idea what else to say.

  “Sounds secret.” The Domini said. “Which makes it awfully bold of you to be walking around the streets of Trinity... but ahh, no matter.” The Domini turned towards the park ,and looked at it. “Beautiful, isn’t it? They had to make it beautiful; but believe it or not, a lot of heartbreak has happened here.”

  “How come?” Zaxxarius asked.

  “Because of what this place is.” The Domini said. “It’s supposed to be a haven for couples who get together and confess their love. When the couple confess their love, or want to marry, this is often a place they would visit. Not because the place looks like a nice honeymoon site, no... It’s because of that Fountain, and it’s waters.” He said.

  “What’s so special about it?” Zaxxarius asked.

  “Many marriages take place here, and they make their vows in front of the water. The water is no ordinary water, mind you, and it’s no religious sect. It’s impressive magic. When one peers into the water, their reflection shows the one that they love, that they desire. Often, it’s never who they think it is. It’s often another woman or man, and that ends badly...” He said. “Hohoho, Malevolent is it not?”

  “It sounds rather practical actually.” Zaxxarius said. “Before a marriage, I’d say a couple should visit this place. If anyone else but their spouse is reflected in the waters, then ditch them for someone who cares deeply for you.”

  “Yes, that’s the idea.” The Domini said, in a mellow voice. “Though, what if love for another comes after the marriage? It’s not an emotion easily controlled, is it?” Zaxxarius thought on that for a couple of seconds. The Domini was right. “Duty, who was a monster, was said to have first turned insane when he suspected his wife to be of cheating. He dragged her here, and took her before the waters. Nobody knows who was reflected in the waters, but Duty ended up becoming so irate with rage that he drowned her.” Zaxxarius shuddered. This place really did feel like a subtle, sinister evil. “I was revealed to my first love here, to my increased embarrassment and shame. The devil lured me here, and I peered into the waters with her. Her reflection was of another, but mine was of her. The shock on her face was... unique. I had no idea what it was all about until she explained to me, shakily. Then, I wanted to drown myself in the pool, and suck the water into my lungs.” He chuckled. He had a rather odd sense of humour. “Believe it or not, but after that, I took every opportunity to come here. I’d peer into the water, to see her face again... then, I’d hide, and wait for couples to come. Believe it or not, an ever so heartless Domini like me actually loved either outcome that came of peering into the waters. Every chance I had, I’d come here.”