by C D Muller
When Ashur gave the command, the first two enlistees immediately took their first sip. Selena closed her eyes as a few tears trickled down her face. Without a moment’s hesitation, she took a sip from the goblet.
The black liquid tasted vile as soon as it touched her lips. It reeked of decay.
Selena pulled it away from her lips. Nothing happened.
“Hey, we’re okay,” one of the young men commented.
Ashur did not respond but instead gave them a malevolent smirk.
Not a moment later, the other two bent over, holding their stomachs as their eyes rolled into the back of their head.
Selena panicked but she began to feel ill too. The taste started coming back up and all of a sudden, she hunched over and threw up. She cried out in excruciating pain.
“And so it begins,” Ashur said coldly.
Every muscle in Selena’s body cringed and ached. She fell to her knees, holding herself as she started vomiting blood.
Selena’s vision became blurry and her hearing was distorted. All of her worst fears surrounded her; all she could see was darkness. She sensed a dark presence while hearing a loud shriek inside her head. Selena immediately cupped her hands around her ears as the scream inside her head grew. She felt Death stalking her, and her fear grew when she saw she was sitting in her own blood. Selena tried calling out for help, but the words would not come out. She felt that she was going to die.
Her body trembled from the pain and she fainted in the puddle of her own blood.
Chapter 17:
Selena heard some sort of ringing in her ears. She tried forcing her eyes open, but the light hurt her vision.
“No… please…no more…” Selena breathed out as she still felt pain. Her heart was racing and beating hard against her chest.
Selena opened her eyes again and saw that Ashur stood off in the corner, with his arms crossed behind his back. One of the other soldiers recovered well, but the second did not stir.
“Brother!” he shouted and shook his shoulders.
Selena sat up and clutched her chest. Her throat felt swollen as she struggled to breathe. However, her body eventually healed itself as the seconds pressed on.
“Brother! No, please! Wake up!” the other soldier cried out, but Selena knew that he was already gone. His eyes were deprived of life.
Ashur shook his head but did not say a word. Instead, he waved his hand and the dead body levitated from the ground.
“No! You can’t take him! The Air Force was our only chance for a new life! We had nothing back home!” the older brother shouted and attempted to get to Ashur but Selena grabbed his arms to keep him away.
“He will receive an honorable funeral,” Ashur whispered and, as he opened the door, there stood two cloaked figures as if they were waiting.
“We just finished burying the others,” one of them barked.
“We have one more,” Ashur said sadly.
The initiate broke free of Selena’s grasp and fell to his hands and knees as he continued to sob. She looked at him in pain and understanding. She placed a hand on his shoulder as Ashur walked out with the body. The two mourned in silence.
Ashur returned shortly later with a new visitor: a tall, young man with jet black hair. He was fully dressed in uniform that consisted of a blue continental army coat, a white waistcoat, and black pants. Many medals were fastened to his coat that marked his high rank within the Air Force.
He gave a quick salute to both Selena and the new recruit. They returned the same gesture.
“These are the two that passed the initiation?” he asked as his eyes scanned over them.
Ashur nodded and turned to them.
“Introduce yourselves to your general,” he ordered.
Selena swallowed hard but nodded.
“Andric Liongod at your service,” she promptly answered and gave him a bow.
The other new soldier did not respond at first, but Selena gave him a slight nudge.
“Erik Bjornson,” he said quietly.
“Bjornson, I’ve heard of you. Your father was an honorable man. I am General Araneus of the Imperial Air Force. It is an honor to have you join us today,” the General said with a bow.
“My brother and I came here after our home was destroyed,” Erik said softly. He tried to say more but no words came out.
“I understand. Your brother will receive the same honor as those who have died fighting to protect the Empire. Ashur, have they recited the oath?”
“Not yet, General,” Ashur swallowed.
“Then I will start.” Araneus placed his right hand over his heart and raised his left. Selena and Erik did the same.
“Repeat after me,” he began, “Upon my honor, I do solemnly swear fealty to the Empress, and obedience to the officers of the Air Force.”
Selena’s lips trembled as they repeated the words. She and Thor were finally and officially being enlisted.
“That I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same. May the Divines judge me and strike me down if I fail. Long live the Empire!”
* * * *
The streets of Alfheim were deserted, for everyone went to bed for the night. The lampposts on every intersection were lit, casting shadows on the ground and the side of the buildings they stood in front of. Footsteps that clacked against the pavement echoed through the air as the Empress walked down the street with ease. She turned a corner and saw Neith Anahita walking in her direction with her fox mask covering her face.
She lifted her mask when she saw the Empress.
“My Lady,” she said in surprise, and bowed her head in respect. The Empress bowed her head in turn.
“Were you followed?”
“No,” Neith answered.
“Good. Everything is going according to plan,” the Empress whispered, “I don’t think that Vidar suspects a thing.”
“I won’t lie, I was a little uneasy when you first suggested it,” Neith began, “I thought that Vidar would have seen right through it, especially since she already had a dragon of her own.”
“It’s still very risky, but she and Thor are safe now. I want you to watch her, to make sure that she does not get into any trouble,” the Empress said quietly.
Neith bowed her head.
“Of course, my Lady.”
“I also want you to keep her and the dragon isolated,” the Empress said in a dark tone, “by doing so, she will remain focused on her studies.”
The Empress turned her back to Neith, with her hands clasped together behind her.
“My Lady, if I may ask,” Neith began, interrupting the Empress from her thoughts, “what happens if Selena encounters some…difficulties?”
“What do you mean?” the Empress asked.
“What if she’s involved in some sort of fight with one of the other soldiers? They’ve been growing restless lately and causing trouble. Do you remember what happened at the Three Claws Lodge last week? We had to send them all to the infirmary ward!”
The Empress looked down and shook her head.
“I don’t want anyone to rescue her. She needs to learn to face her battles alone.”
* * * *
Selena trembled as she and Erik followed Araneus up the tower’s steps towards their barracks. It was a horrifying thought to know that she was that close to having experienced death, to feel its sudden, cold embrace.
“Since you two are my last recruits, you two are assigned to each other as a bunker buddy,” Araneus began to explain, “what this means is that you will watch out and support each other. You will be assigned to share a bunker with each other. It’s up to you who wants to sleep on the top or bottom, I don’t care. I’m sure that Ashur explained this as well but you will be required to get up and be fully dressed in your uniform by four in the morning. I will be going over this tomorrow with everyone but I will tell you now. Any footgear will be displayed in a perfect, imaginary line under your bed. You will also hang your laundry bag a certain way at the foot of you
r bed so that way we can keep the mildew problem to a minimum. You will have your own chest assigned to your bunker with your own set of keys to keep your gear locked and secure. You won’t believe how many of my recruits in the past have gotten into trouble for leaving their things unsecured! I want you two to get in the habit now of keeping your belongings locked up.”
Selena and Erik exchanged glances with each other and nodded.
Araneus opened up the door on top and the three of them entered a long, narrow hallway that stretched into a giant square that hugged the outskirts of the Hinterlands.
“Our training facility is hard to see from the outside, as we are more hidden in the forest,” Araneus explained.
The walked past a window to their left that gave them a better view.
Surrounding a rectangular-shaped training field bigger than the size of two districts of Alfheim was a group of brick buildings formed around its perimeter. She saw a few obstacle courses such as a shooting range and a rock wall with ropes dangling down.
“Basic training will be the hardest nine weeks of your lives, but I will make a fine soldier out of you two. You can either like or hate me, but you will obey me and your trainers. After basic training, you will be assigned a dragon, obviously with the exception of Andric,” Araneus barked.
Selena and Erik nodded, but Araneus stopped and spun around.
“You will always answer, ‘Yes sir!’ when anyone above your rank talks to you!” he yelled.
Selena attempted to nod again but immediately stopped.
“Yes sir,” she muttered.
“I can’t hear you!” Araneus roared again.
“Yes sir!” both she and Erik yelled.
“That’s better. I know you two are new here, but you will learn,” Araneus said more calmly.
Selena caught on quickly.
“Yes sir!” they yelled in unison.
Araneus smiled and turned back around and led them down the rows of endless doors towards the end of the corridor.
He pulled out a key from his robes to unlock their prepared room and let them inside.
There was a bunk bed with small, lumpy mattresses. Clean, folded linens on top. A locked chest sat in front of the bed. Its key sat on top of a pile of neatly folded assigned garments on a small dresser in the corner. It was a small and cold room with wood boards that squeaked with each step. The moon shone through the small window beside the bed.
“This is your key. When you are not in your room, I expect this door to be locked at all times. You only get one copy. Entrust one person to keep it safe. When the Pyre strikes four, I expect the two of you ready and down on the training field with your fellow recruits,” Araneus ordered.
“Yes sir!”
They bid each other farewell before he handed off the key to Erik and closed the door.
“Do you want to hold onto our key?” Erik asked sadly.
She did not answer, but held out her hand to accept responsibility. Without another exchange of words, he hastily climbed up the bunk’s ladder and collapsed onto his newly claimed bed.
Selena fell onto her bed as well and lazily slipped off her boots and buried her face into the soft pillow to try to hide her tears.
She felt the crumbling of paper in her robes and realized that she still carried the scroll that the Empress gave her earlier. She quickly pulled it out and unrolled it.
“Dear Selena,” she read to herself, “Don’t worry. I helped you get enrolled into the Air Force so you and Thor can be safe and be together. Unfortunately, I could not say anything during our first meeting. It’s too risky in case someone were to hear. Keep your head low and follow what your officers tell you and you will be fine. There is some good news that I’ve ordered Neith to share with Rahim as well. Your caretaker, Chaliss, is alive and is being looked after by Loki in Nuvak. Even if you feel hopeless or lost, just remember that you have allies all around you, even in the most unexpected of places.”
Selena’s heart raced with joy. Chaliss was alive and is safe! She smiled and knew that Rahim would be happy once he heard the news as well. She wiped her tears away, but jolted when she heard Thor’s words ring inside her head.
I heard about the initiation and I was extremely worried. I heard that someone died and I lost contact with you for a bit. I almost flew into a rage but then I felt your consciousness again.
I am well now, just more or less recovering. It was terrifying, I thought I was about to die. I didn’t see the other two recruits who were there too react as badly as I did for some reason.
It doesn’t matter, the point is you’re alive.
Selena shuddered slightly with the next question she wanted to ask him.
What would you have done if I did? Would you have moved on to another?
No. I would probably lose my mind and commit suicide. I heard from here that if a soldier falls in battle, they kill the dragon too, and vice versa. It’s so that they can still be together, even in the afterlife.
I couldn’t imagine my life without you either. Honestly, I would gladly accept that honor if anything were to happen.
She did not hear him respond at first, but instead she heard a tap on the windowpane. Thor hovered outside.
“Thor?” she whispered before jumping out of bed and opened it.
I thought you were supposed to remain at the docks?
I don’t like talking about death. I wanted to be near you. Was he one of the other late initiates as well?
Er… yes. He’s my new bunker buddy.
I’m not supposed to be here, but I really wanted to make sure that you were all right. I didn’t think that they would have told me anything if something happened to you, but I would have known.
She nodded a little and shared with him the good news that the Empress shared with her.
That is so wonderful! I feel relieved and I’m sure that you do as well.
Apparently she seems to have everything planned underneath the Council’s nose.
I’m not surprised. They are doing what they can to take control and she’s trying to fight back.
Selena nodded.
Would it be all right if we went flying together this evening? Surely for our first night here they would not immediately restrict us.
She heard Thor chuckle, and he held out his talons to help her onto his saddle.
He took her high through the skies above the barracks and across Alfheim. Selena had missed the air blowing through her face, the feeling of being weightless in the sky.
It feels like it’s been forever since we’ve flown together! Thor said ecstatically.
But we were flying together earlier!
But we weren’t restricted before!
I’m not sure how we’re going to get through the next nine weeks of basic training then, she said with a giggle.
He flapped his wings harder and flew higher. Selena spread out her arms and closed her eyes, pretending that she was the one who was flying. She looked up at the crescent moon above her that made Alfheim glisten in the night.
Thor made a sharp turn to dodge one of the buildings and began heading for the Pyre. Just as Selena saw it, she was filled with despair.
Thor flew above the giant clock tower but stopped abruptly. Selena almost fell off his saddle when she saw a red flash zip in front of her.
What was that?
Thor growled with contempt.
That was Azrael and his dragon. I had the misfortune of meeting him.
Selena turned around and saw a black-haired boy riding on a golden dragon. The boy’s expression seemed unfeeling and full of hatred. His skin was extremely pale and glistened in the moonlight. His black hair covered his ears and his thick eyebrows rested over his cold, icy eyes. Over his right eye was a scar in a crescent shape. Around the boy’s neck was a necklace of a beast with seven heads and ten horns, the Angel of Death.
His dragon seemed to wear the same expression. Its scales were a golden color while its horns and wing membranes were s
ilver. Its underbelly, however, was brown.
It puffed out black smoke from its nostrils. Unlike Thor’s, the dragon’s tail was covered with spikes, and its eyes were the color of ruby red.
His dragon goes by the name of Doragon.
When the boy turned his direction toward Selena, his lips curved into a malevolent sneer.
He looks familiar. It can’t be him.
How many others do you see with that same scar?
“So, you’re one of the last-minute recruits?” he said with a loud laugh.
“We don’t know you, nor do we care to know you,” Selena announced. Her gut feeling was telling her that he may be the same person they encountered at the Grand Exchange, but she tried to dismiss it. If it was him, why would he be out in the open instead of in disguise?
He looked slightly offended.
“I’m surprised by you. I thought that you would have at least learned some manners after spending some time here, if you’re planning on hiding within the Air Force that is,” he said again with a malicious grin.
What is he talking about?
It is him. He knows who we are.
Thor, let’s get out of here and report this to General Araneus, Selena said in a terrified tone. She tightened her grip on Thor’s reins and faced in the other direction.
“Going so soon?”
Azrael snapped the reins to his dragon and he and Doragon raced past them once again. Thor dove towards the ground and landed in the shadows, trying to hide from Azrael. However, Doragon landed near Thor. The two of them jumped off their saddles while staying beside their dragons.
“Congratulations on passing the initiation,” Azrael mocked, “I'm surprised that you didn't die like all the others. I was really looking forward to being invited to another funeral.”
“We don’t want any trouble,” Selena said, “we’ll just be on our way.”
“I don’t think so. I’m not done with you yet.” Azrael pulled up his sleeves. “After all, you know who I am and I can’t allow you to leave here to tell on me. But if word were to slip out about you and Thor...”
