by Bri Sailor
“Do not fear. Dö rös xëär. You are my priestess. Ih dë’gihëdë ihr i’höü. You have done well, my child.” Whispered a dark voice.
“Yes I have.” Cried Lusha. “Their souls were mine! But that bitch—’’
“All is not lost, nih skihgd. The truth was hidden within their souls!”
Lusha thought about it a moment. An evil smile played across her face. And she began to laugh maniacally.
“Ailana! You tricky devil! So that’s who it is! I should have known you would pull something like this! Your prophecy was all lies!”
Lusha stood up and threw open the doors to her sanctuary. She strode past her throne, past the dragon statue, and past her cowering priests and out of the temple. She tipped her head back and stared at the stars. Lifting her arms she created a whirlwind around her. Saebic came running outside.
“I see it now, Ailana!” Lusha’s voice echoed through the mountains. “I see what you have been hiding! Well no more! I will strike them down and I will rule the realms!”
The earth quaked in fear as Lusha’s evil laugh was carried on the wind.
#
Ehren sat impatiently at Cora’s bedside. Atreyis and Ky were eerily silent as they sat and held their aching heads. Iyara sat on the bed and stroked the priestess’s leg while Taryn, Riker and Doan stood helplessly in the corner. Joslette began to pace. The sun was just beginning to rise. Cora had been out cold for hours. The ordeal had taken so much out of her that it nearly killed her, but the queen wasn’t about to tell anyone that detail, it would only upset them more. Everyone was already fearful. She didn’t need them frantic as well. Cora moaned and stirred to life. Ehren nearly jumped on the bed to her side. He held her close.
“I thought I’d lost you.” He tearfully breathed into her neck.
Cora smiled softly and whispered back. “Never.”
Atreyis jumped on the bed and joined the hug. “Thank the Goddess you’re alright!”
Cora hugged her back. “Same to you.”
Ehren and Atreyis leaned back to give the priestess some air.
“What happened out there?” blurted Taryn.
Ky and Atreyis looked at each other. Cora sat up.
“I think I know. I could see it.” She looked Atreyis and Ky in the eye. “You two don’t realize what you really went through, do you?”
“A fight with an extremely powerful demon?” ventured Atreyis.
Ky shook her head. “That was no demon.”
Riker looked like he was going to burst with anticipation. “Would you tell us already?”
Atreyis looked around the room. “I was dead asleep in my room when I began having this nightmare. Only it was…real. I woke up in a forest. All the trees were dead and the sky was blood red. I had no idea where I was.”
“Same.” Added Ky. “I heard a deep growling sound and could tell something was after me. So I ran.”
Atreyis nodded in agreement. “I saw a temple off in the distance and ran for it. It looked like it was made out of black glass.”
“At least you could see where you were going.” Said Ky. “I just ran until it practically jumped out at me.”
“I made it inside. And saw an image on the floor. Everything was so white.” Atreyis rubbed her head.
“You saw it too?” asked Ky. “Was it a woman crying tears of blood with four dragon skeletons and a white one?”
The princess nodded. “Yes. I think it was the Goddess. I remember it being so cold. I walked to the back of the temple and saw a wall that looked like it was made of living glass and color. When I touched it, it was like water.”
Cora’s ears perked up.
“Yes!” exclaimed Ky. “That was so strange! I saw images flash through it too! I saw my mother staring at the Seal. Some sort of cavern or cave. And…” she trailed off as her whole body shivered.
“A never-ending staircase down into an infinite blackness.” Finished Atreyis.
They both locked eyes and remembered the fear as they looked into the black. Cora suddenly climbed out of bed and began wringing her hands.
Atreyis continued. “I heard a roar and turned around and saw this…dragon. It had sickly yellow eyes and its flesh was decaying from its bones.”
“I saw it too!” exclaimed Ehren.
“It was so strange. Something clicked inside of me.” Said Atreyis in awe. “Whatever fear I had was burned away. I began fighting back.”
“I did something similar.” lied Ky.
They sat in silence a moment. Ehren looked rapidly back and forth between the two of them.
“Are you not going to talk about what you two were doing?” he threw his hands in the air.
Ky and Atreyis looked at the prince quizzically. He rolled his eyes.
“Your eyes were golden like Cora’s and I saw the two of you flying!” he exclaimed. “With wings!”
All eyes were on the two girls. They exchanged knowing looks.
“You’re lucky I killed those things when I did.” He added. “Had it not been for Cora giving me those spears, who knows what would have happened. You two were just hovering in the air!”
Ky cleared her throat. “It’s more than that, Ehren. I felt something.”
“Me too.” Added Atreyis. “There was some sort of connection between us even though we couldn’t see each other. I could feel it.”
“It’s you.” Iyara whispered from the corner, all eyes were on her.
“What do you mean?” asked Taryn.
“Can’t you see it?” Iyara walked over to them. “I’ve heard the stories. How Lusha was going after the Aznurro twins. Heard rumors of a prophecy. But it was not you and your brother that were affected tonight. My guess is that this isn’t the first time that something has happened to the two of you.”
Atreyis and Ky looked at each other in confusion.
“She’s right.” Said Cora. “That night. With the invisible flames. Ky was the first affected, then Atreyis. Followed by everyone else. And when the Goddess appeared to me she told me to protect ‘them’. I always assumed that she meant Ehren and Atreyis.”
“What? She couldn’t just tell you who she meant?” snorted Riker.
“No.” said Cora. “I believe that if we knew too soon, it would have given it away. We needed to be kept in the dark a little longer so that Lusha would be as well.”
“Well she obviously knows by now.” Stated Doan.
“Most likely.” Quipped Joslette. “I would say that it was her who attacked you.”
“How?” asked Ehren. “Can she even do that?”
Cora nodded. “Yes. I believe so. Remember. Just as all Descended are tied to the Seal, so are their powers. Lusha is bound to it just as much as you are, but differently. I’m not even sure I even know how.”
“So what do we do now?” asked Atreyis. “If she can attack us once she can do it again.”
“Not if we use a protection spell.” Said Joslette. “You simply wear a talisman and it should do the trick. I know how to make them.”
“I can help you.” Offered Cora. “We must get started.”
Ky stood up. “This doesn’t change a thing though. We keep looking for the crystals. The danger remains the same. We leave today. She must know by now where we are. We can’t risk her forces attacking the already weakened city. We must move quickly.”
“At least we know now who we must really protect.” Quipped Riker.
Ehren shot him a look and Taryn elbowed him in the ribs. Ky made eye contact with Iyara. The girl looked down at the ground and walked out. The warrior went after her. She grabbed her arm.
“We can’t just leave things like this.” Said Ky softly.
Iyara smiled softly. “It’s okay.”
Ky shook her head. “No it isn’t. I’m not going to leave you like that again. I can’t do that to you.”
Iyara brushed her hand on Ky’s face. “I’m serious. It’s okay. We both have changed so much. Neither one of us is who we were. They only exist i
n a memory. A happy memory.”
Ky squeezed her eyes shut. “I’m so sorry. Please forgive me. If I could take it all back—’’
Iyara kissed her softly on the lips. “You are forgiven. This is what was meant to be. I understand now.”
She took a step back and looked into sad gray eyes. “Even if I could go back in time and get to keep you, you wouldn’t be mine forever. One way or another we would find ourselves here, at this crossroad. You were meant for far greater things than I could ever imagine for you.”
Iyara smiled as tears formed in Ky’s eyes. “You need to unburden yourself of this guilt. It is no longer your burden to bear.”
A single tear escaped. Iyara wiped it away as her own tears trickled down her cheek. Ky grabbed her hands in hers and kissed them.
“I still love you.” She whispered.
“I know.” Iyara whispered back. “But our time has passed. I see the way she looks at you. And the way you look at her. Though you may not be aware of it.”
Ky’s brow furrowed as she searched the familiar emerald eyes. Iyara enveloped her in a hug.
“My place is here. After what I witnessed I know that now.” She smiled and stepped back, looking into soft gray eyes. “But you have yet to find yours. And it’s not here. Please don’t confuse love with obligation. And don’t let your guilt keep you here any longer. I won’t let you free me from prison, only to have you take my place in another.”
Ky sniffed and kissed Iyara’s forehead. “Thank you for showing me what love truly is. I had never known it until I met you. I know my obligation that is owed to the world, but I will always carry your love within me. It’s the only thing that kept me sane for so long. Who knows what monstrous potential lay dormant within me that only needs the right spark to ignite into a terrible blaze.”
Iyara smiled and shook her head. “Not monstrous. Powerful.” She nodded towards the room. “And your spark is waiting for you. She’s just as lost as you are. Together, you can find your way.”
Ky put her forehead against Iyara’s. The two stood there frozen in time, knowing that once they moved, their lives would never be the same.
Chapter 16
Ehren bowed deeply. “My queen, on behalf of my father, King Toran, and the Aznurro people, I propose an alliance between our two kingdoms. The time for divisions between the kingdoms has come to a much needed end. Horgath was a mere symptom of the evil that is threatening our lands. We must prepare for whatever the witch is planning.”
The ever regal Joslette sat proudly on her mahogany throne. Her silver crown of amethyst jewels shone brightly as the sun lit up the throne room. The palace was filled with joyous people as they witnessed their queen’s proud coronation. Joslette blushed some. It had been years since she had been treated with such formality and proper courtly decorum.
“Should the need ever arise, Quinmor shall come to Aznurro’s aid. I can’t even begin to repay you all for what you have done for me and my people.” She smiled graciously.
“We thank you, Your Highness. We shall lead your forces to victory over Incta. We shall free Horgath’s prisoners.” Atreyis held her head high.
The queen bowed her head towards them. “With Ailana’s help you will help restore peace to my people, Princess. Prince Ehren, I want you to lead two squadrons of men. Do not engage unless you absolutely must. Those that remain there are still my people. I don’t want my first act as their ruler to be stained with blood. My legacy will be one of peace and diplomacy. Enough blood has been spilled in the past twenty years to last an age.”
The prince bowed curtly. “As you command, Your Highness.”
#
“Let me go, you bastards!” yelled a furious female voice.
A resounding boom echoed in the dark stone. A man with short black hair sat despondently in the corner of his cell. His face was dirty and covered in grime and blood. Burns and scars from whips crisscrossed over his entire body, a living testament to the torture he had endured. His chains clinked as he leaned his head against the cold stone wall and his starved body shivered. The rest of the prisoners began yelling at the female.
“Be quiet!”
“Someone shut her up!”
“Ailana damn you and the Mälgrav take you!” cursed the woman, her words dripping with venom.
Vex sighed heavily and yelled back. “Give it up. Your threats won’t make a difference. They are out there and you are still in here.”
“Never! Until the moment they try and take my last breath, I shall never stop!” the woman threw herself at the iron door of her cell. “Damn the witch who cursed this door! Nothing made by man can stop those that hold pure dragon blood in their veins.”
Another boom. Vex stood up and trudged over to his door and peered out of the small square opening at the cell across from his. The wild light brown hairs from her braided head were only just visible through the opening in her door.
“I have been in this hell hole for weeks, and not a day goes by that I don’t hear your infernal yelling. As one damned soul to another, I beg of you, please, allow me the grace of suffering in silence.” Begged the defeated man.
“Listen to the man!” yelled one of the prisoners.
Small, strong hands gripped the bars of the opening of the other cell. The woman pulled herself up and came eye to eye with Vex. Her young, boyish looks belied what loomed beneath the surface. Her brown eyes glowed a fierce, bright green. She narrowed them at him.
“As long as there is breath in me I will never stop until I see the ground soaked red in their blood.” She growled.
Vex felt his chest tighten and his heart sink. “What did they take from you?”
The girl let go of the bars and sank to the hard dirt floor and pulled at her chains. She had been avoiding that question for a very long time. She knew the path it would lead her down if she allowed it. She choked back the bile of her rage. The anger and hatred ate away inside of her. It’s never good to cage a wild animal for so long.
“Where should I begin? My family? My people? My heritage?” she said spitefully.
Vex bowed his head. “I am sorry for your losses, Xaemoan. Pardon the assumption, but it’s been some years since I have seen eyes glow with such a fierceness as yours.”
“I thank you.” She took a deep breath. “One day Xaemox will rise again and we will rid this world of the stench that is the Khennán people.”
“I understand your feelings, but your revenge lies not with the Khenná. They have been torn apart and held captive by the same force that attacked your people. The Black Army legions. Their true leader is not King Ultrek but the vile demon Lusha. A witch who had taken a noble man and twisted him into a mindless puppet to serve her own demented purpose.” Vex’s voice was rising. “I saw her evil far too late. I grieve for those who died needlessly by my blade.”
The girl’s ears perked up and her face hardened.
“I tried to convince those that led by my side that we were no longer fighting to restore our broken kingdom, but destroying the world for her evil. We were better off when the tribes kept the warring amongst themselves.” Continued Vex, he cleared his throat. “When my King’s ancestor had taken the throne back by force they thought it was a sign that one day our kingdom would rule over all as it had done thousands of years ago, or so that is what we have been told. These supposed legends had been uncovered coincidentally when Lusha first arrived at Ultrek’s side.”
The girl was nearly foaming at the mouth as she tried to restrain herself. “You were a part of all of this?”
The shamed general could hear the disdain and hatred in her voice. “I was a fool preoccupied with glory and riches. I know now that there is nothing that I could ever say or do to receive forgiveness from anyone, nor do I deserve it.”
The girl pulled herself up to the bars again. “Consider it a mercy that you are in that cell and that they have managed to keep me in mine. Soulless devils like yourself don’t deserve to live.”
“You’re right.”
She blinked. He agreed with her? Her brow furrowed. “Who are you?”
He half-heartedly puffed out his chest and lifted his chin.
“Vexander. General and third-in-command of the Black Army. Well, formerly. They don’t look too kindly on deserters who pull together a rebel army of fellow deserters and dissenters.”
