by Ryan Johnson
“NO!”
She tumbled to her knees, filled with tears.
Much to her sorrow, horror, and realization, Vaeludar was buried in the cave, along with the arm armor he was carrying.
A GREAT LOSS
M
arina was severely consumed with grieve. The one, who rescued her five years and whom loved, was buried in the cave. She kept calling his name but no avail. She, a Siren with the heart whose was like a Unicorn, couldn’t accept Vaeludar was gone. She dropped the Crystal Sword she couldn’t afford to hold.
The men around her could hear her crying loudly and stood beside her. It was no secret to show their love to another person. From their perspective, love between two different species was considered to be unnatural to the forces of nature. But what was to stop two different individuals from loving each other?
Love was greatly considered to be a gift from the gods, where two different people from two different worlds come together and proclaim their eternal spiritual bonding. Marina was a lover to Vaeludar, and she didn’t care if he was a hybrid of Vaeludar may have been or could have been. She didn’t love his appearance; she loved Vaeludar’s personality.
Vaeludar’s appearance defined of what he was, and his personality defined of who he was. Marina loved more of the who Vaeludar was than of what he was. Apparently, she would never have a future with him.
Flavius strolled over to the one sword Marina dropped and stood up with it. Now he was carrying the legendary blade Vaeludar had held in his own two hands. A magic weapon founded by Vaeludar was now in Flavius’s hands.
At first, when he tried to hold it, the sword was heavy. After a few short seconds, he lifted it with one hand. As Flavius was holding it, the blade had suddenly become old and rusty and lost its bright glow.
“Vaeludar,” he gasped. “You were powerful, but you couldn’t save yourself from a collapsing cave. Now I can’t believe you are gone. And you gave your life to save us, but only you have the power to potentially wipe out evil.”
Flavius had dropped the sword as he couldn’t bear the thought of losing Vaeludar. He fought back tears dripping from his eyes. Who he called a true brother, best friend and rival, and a hybrid he highly respected was buried beneath a roof of heavy rocks. He knew Vaeludar had strong skin as armor, but having that much weight of thousands or millions of boulders on top of him was something Flavius would think Vaeludar wouldn’t survive in.
Then Flavius grew angry and darted for Wonomi as he shouted, “You traitor!” In a quick move, Flavius heaved a heavy punch at the back of Wonomi.
Wonomi gave a big yelp of pain as Flavius heave a big blow to his head. Wonomi fell suddenly hard to the ground, lying on his front side. Pain stirred in his head from the blow he took and from landing hard on the ground.
This sudden attack drew the attention Galvin, Marina, and the White Knight of Charity. The three of them saw Flavius striking down on one of their own companions if he had no reason to strike. Even Marina was alarmed by Flavius’s sudden, unexpected and immediately stopped her crying.
“What in the name of the Three Gods was that for?” shouted Wonomi.
“It’ you who touched a weapon and brought down the cave upon us. Because of your decision, Vaeludar now lies buried underneath a pile of rocks.”
“Well, it’s not every day you see an axe empowered by magic power,” said Wonomi, standing up again as he was brushing away the dirt. “How could I have resisted for seeing someone that looked priceless? And I hate such petty weapons I carry. I mean, sometimes I need a priceless, magic weapon.”
“Priceless magic weapon? At what cost? Vaeludar is gone because of you. Living one life is the priceless thing a huge thing one human has. And through one selfish act, Vaeludar is no longer among the living.”
“Selfish? That is the best excuse you could come up with? Maybe if he had a bold heart instead of being of a softie, then he wouldn’t have to die. Then no wonder why he lived such an outsider life.”
This kind of talk made Flavius pulled out his sword. As he did, Wonomi reacted by drawing his sword. Two companions were having their swords pointing at each other’s heads. Both people, with their swords drawn, were ready for a fight to the death.
“Enough!” grunted Galvin. The giant man heaved down his big sword and broke himself between the two men ready to have a metal brawl. “All of you! We all knew the risks of taking this journey. We knew there would be dangers. We all knew there was a very strong possibility of death. When the king himself asked us to go on the journey, we knew the great risks and dangers we would face.”
“And this was very likely it would be a one-way trip for all or few of us,” said Wonomi. Wonomi withdrew his sword and sheathed it. “At least, we’re still living.”
“What about Vaeludar?” asked Flavius.
“What about the hybrid?” asked Wonomi. “There is no way for him to have survived the rocks collapsing in the cave. We came what we set out to do, retrieve what we came for, and it now still lies in the hands of a hybrid buried beneath the rubble. So we go back south.”
“What do you mean head back south?” asked Flavius, holding his sword by the hilt and ready to draw it out again.
“We were given the briefing about the hybrid and his power to wield some certain artifacts that can boost his strength and stamina. With him not being among us and the only one who to wield these magic artifacts and a magic sword, what other options do we have?”
“I can’t think of any,” said Galvin.
“I can see a few coming to mind,” said Flavius.
Suddenly, an arrow had flown between Flavius and Wonomi and Galvin. The three turned and saw Marina holding up her bow; she had dared to come close to killing from one of her companions she saw insulting to Vaeludar.
“Shut up! All of you!” The Siren’s eye were flaring with anger and a willingness to have her teeth to bite on someone’s neck and release a poison venom into her prey’s body. She seemed to be about to let out a lot of anger, through her bow and arrows. “The one who taught me to love is gone. His power was nothing. Our power as a team was nothing.”
Marina’s eyes were dripping tears; she couldn’t bare who losing the one who saved her life and showed a good heart of saving of what people would think to be a monster. Vaeludar was the one who gave her life, but through that act of kindness he display when he rescued her five years prior, she couldn’t seem to take a life.
“Well, what are we going to do now?” asked Galvin. “It’s obvious the hybrid’s not coming out anytime. Wonomi was the one who buried him in the rocks. Now nothing is left but that blue sword he carried.”
“Well, I suggest we regroup,” said Wonomi. “We traveled with other people and a Griffin. I came with my brother and I am not going back without him. But the biggest question: what about her?”
The men looked at the girl Vaeludar traveled with: the princess turned into a White Knight. They didn’t seem to round suspicion about her. They saw him walking along with a small girl, who came back without the hybrid. Now they saw Vaeludar found another female companion he just met and traveled with.
“What about me?” she asked. “I’m just happened to be a brief traveling companion, as you people are. He came waltzing into a broken castle and dragged me out from my ill-fated home.”
“And you are sure you’re a White Knight?” asked Wonomi.
“I am pretty sure I am, otherwise an ordinary human wouldn’t be able to live a thousand years after the fall of a kingdom,” said the girl.
“How about this: we go back to the village and tell the others what happen,” said Flavius. “We have no food supplies with us. And our other companions are there as well.” Then he strolled over and picked up the Crystal Sword with ease. The first time he tried to carry it, it was heavy; now he picked it up with great ease. “They’re going need to be told of what happened.”
“What village?” asked Charity.
Flavius told her of the village and a sacrifice Vaeludar had stopped in front of a dragon statue that was worshiped as the Crystal Dragon.
“I know you have been trapped in a castle for a thousand years,” finishing Flavius. “But being a White Knight, we could use your help. We could try to kill those witches before they absorb the youths of children who never seen the sun or the moon before. It is all clouds here, and they are no sun or moon here. We need your help.”
“How can I help?” Charity protested. “I’m just a single White Knight with no other knights.”
“We have this,” said Flavius, holding up the Crystal Sword. “The Crystal Sword is believed to be a gift from the gods. You are the White Knight of Charity; a White Knight is only chosen by the Crystal Dragon or the Demigod Valverno. And a White Knight that holds brief powers of the Crystal Dragon.
“Alone or not, you carry powers the dragon god has given you. You may have been lonely, but now you have us. We may not White Knights, but we are a team. We may not be able to take on the Dragons, but we can kill those witches and at least the Piper.
“By not doing this, it would be an insult to my foster brother who I know gave his life to save us. Even though this sword chose Vaeludar as its master, it would ever refuse to be used by a White Knight.”
Flavius held out the hilt to Charity; he was giving a divine weapon to a celestial being thought to have been chosen by the gods to wield such power.
“Now is the time to prove yourself a White Knight,” said Flavius. “Are you a defender of this island or are you a princess with no kingdom? Which is your current title?”
Charity was being put to the test: was she a White Knight, someone exclusively chosen by the Crystal Dragon himself or was she a princess of nothing?
“I…I can’t believe this.” The White Knight of Charity was hesitant to take the sword in her own hands.
“Vaeludar saved you, and now you can repay him by saving the village. We’ll slay the witches who tried to take a sister of mine. Vaeludar was there to save her. Now who and what are you: a princess or a White Knight?”
“I… I am no longer a princess. The Ice Dragon drove my people away and kept me prisoner. I have nothing else to lose, but my pride as a White Knight.”
The girl walked over and grabbed the hilt and a hard gush of wind rolled on her hair. Her robe turned into armor; the same armor the White Knight of Trust’s ghost wore but thinner. She was indeed the White Knight of Charity she turned to be.
She held the Crystal Sword up high. Charity could feel the power of the Crystal Sword running through her veins.
“It seems the sword had chosen its new master to hold,” said Wonomi.
“Since of seems to be a new leader established, should we get going?” asked Galvin.
“Yes, we will get going,” said Charity. “Now since Vaeludar is gone, we should get going and see—”
“My time had arrived to form the Five-Headed Dragon,” said an evil ghostly voice.
A vast shadow, fire-waving cloud appeared above the collapsed cave.
“It’s you,” gasped Charity, “The Ghost of Shadow King Lusìvar!”
Marina, Charity, Flavius, and Galvin jumped back from Lusìvar’s ghost form.
“You may have the Crystal Sword now, White Knight, but you don’t have its full power. Only the one chosen to be its master had its full power. But by then it will be too late, the witches have already arrived the village and I am going there myself.
“The Earth Dragon and the Water Dragon are on their way now. The buried Ice Dragon is already there. The other two Dragons are also going to be there. This is one battle you can’t win. Without the hybrid and the armor he holds, there will be no escape for any. I will rise again as the Five-Headed Dragon.”
The shadowy cloud disappeared into the cloudy sky.
“Now there is no time to spare,” said Charity. “Let’s go.”
She ran with the others behind her while Marina wiped away her tears, gave a kiss goodbye at the collapsed entrance to the cave, and ran after the others.
THE FIVE-HEADED DRAGON
T
he group stopped at the same spot they first saw the village from. The village was crowded by its people in its single walkway. The dragon statue stood by itself, with the three hooded witches and the Fluting Piper standing in front of the statue. A fourth hooded figure stood right next to the three witches. And nine girls young as Naìra were floating in the air.
“Oh, no,” said Marina. “We’re too late.”
“No, we’re not,” said Flavius, drawing his sword. “Vaeludar gave his life to save us. Now we shall do the same for this village. We must try to kill the witches before the five Dragons come. But we need the Griffin and Monico first.”
“I’ll fetch Monico,” said Wonomi, dashing quickly.
“I’ll get the Griffin,” said Marina.
Marina and Wonomi went running to go find their comrades so they could have a chance to save the village there. They came back running if they had seen an angry Minotaur. Soon enough, Monico was running and Flarefur was flying toward the group. They looked stunned at the site of the White Knight of Charity.
Everyone was reunited, but Vaeludar was absent.
“What’s going on here?” asked Monico.
“No time to explain you guys,” said Flavius. “We need to kill those witches before they take the youths of those girls.”
“We have bad news, Flavius,” warned Monico. “I am going to hate myself for this: they have your sister… again.”
“What?” exclaimed Flavius, lowering his sword.
“Don’t let your emotions get the batter of you,” cheered Charity. “We have a village to save. Griffin, can you take me to them?”
“Yes… I can,” said the Griffin, hesitant. “Who are you?”
“This is a White Knight,” stated Marina.
The Griffin was dumbfounded at the sound of “White Knight.” He remembered seeing a ghost of a White Knight, but never expected to see another one with flesh-and-blood.
“Get on then,” said Flarefur, lowering his belly to the ground.
Charity got on the Griffin’s back as did Marina; she took notice that the witches and the hooded figure were wearing golden, chrysoberyl gems on their foreheads.
“I’ll be coming with because I see chrysoberyl gems on them,” said Marina. “A Siren’s singing stone: spiritual stones that only belong to a Siren. I can tell they murdered my own people. This now has become a personal mission.”
“Let’s go then,” said Charity.
The Griffin went up and flew far high in the air. At the furthest height, the flying trio saw a red mist coming from the ground. The Fluting Piper was playing his flute with a chanting, hypnotizing tone. The witches and the hooded figure were chanting. Their singing made the red mist go into the crowd.
Flarefur was flying towards them at a high flying speed but not fast as Vaeludar’s flying speed. Marina and Charity jumped onto two witches and stopped their singing. Marina slammed her shoulder into the ugliest witch’s face. Charity slammed the Crystal Sword into the witch in the eye.
The witches blasted magic spells at the two young girls.
Marina used her singing voice and sung hard from her heart and lungs. Green sparks sparkled her body and formed around her and Charity; it formed into a magical barrier protecting both of them.
“That will protect us,” said Marina.
“Not from within,” said the witch Marina jumped on. She lifted up her hand and Marina was pushed, by a windy power, all the way to the dragon statue. She collapsed back into the barrier with grave injuries.
Charity drew the Crystal Sword up to slay her fallen opponent.
The witch, who blew Marina to the dragon statue, sent out a magic blast from her hands.
Charity blocked with the sword but she didn’t see the other witch skillfully knocking her to the ground. She stumbled to the ground,
but she still clutched the Crystal Sword.
The magical barrier suddenly vanished.
“Well, lookie what we got here,” said the witch Charity jumped on. “A White Knight and a Siren. How fortunate for us to meet the last ones ever. With their powers and singing abilities, we will be able to stay alive for another two thousand years.”
The three witches and the fourth one circled around the female companions and removed their hoods, revealing how young they looked. They had long, colorful hair, brown freckles, oval faces, and blue eyes. They all looked the same in appearance and age.
For the fourth one, she was wrench and old looking. She looked like the ugliest of them all. “You ladies had your turn of taking youths,” she said. “Now it was my turn to take from these girls, starting with that thousand-year-old princess.”
“Not today,” shouted Charity, sending out a light spark at the ugly lady, who was pushed off the platform with the Crystal Sword. She got back up and swung the sword at the witches who jumped back.
“She holds the Crystal Sword,” one of the witches hissed.
“Where is that hybrid?” asked the second witch.
“He sent us while getting that armor artifact,” Marina lied.
The three witches burst into laughter. The three young-looking witches stared at a fractured Marina. “We know when someone or thing lies,” they stated. “It appears he is trapped in the cave. Only that dreadful weapon made it out alive, if it is even alive.”
“You know what that means, ladies,” said the most freckled witch. “The hybrid is dead! With him out of the way and no other hybrid specimen in our way, we can finally use his little non-sister for our own now.”
A floating, glowing girl from above soared down to the witches and the two fighting girls. It happened to be none other than Naìra, kidnapped for a third time.
“Now we can…”
“Let her go,” shouted Flavius, running from the crowd with Galvin, Wonomi, and Monico running behind him with swords, axes, and spears drawn. The four charging men swung with their greatest might at the witches.
