Chapter 7
"How have they flanked us so quickly?" Tahmores called to his captain.
"Sir, I suggest we keep our voices down." The captain was visibly trembling from fear.
Niko could remember the feeling of hatred. It was a trance; a weakened state where the creatures could amplify feeling of dread or anger. In that state of emotional terror, nothing could be real. Everything was almost fake. An imitation of betrayal and false friendship. Niko hated the feeling. He found it ironic that he hated hatred.
The reverberating noise, like the one from the portal, was heard. Except this time, it was much deeper and heavier. Like his insides were shaking.
The party, including Marina and Castiel, doubled over. Some fell off their horses.
"What-?" Niko seemed to be the only one unaffected from the invisible threat. He jumped off his horse and caught Marina before she tumbled to the ground. She was cold to touch and screaming, trying to hold herself.
Next to fall was Castiel. Then Tahmores. Only Niko was capacitated enough to stand. He laid Marina down and drew his own weapon.
"Leave us!" He shouted to them. As the Iracibris turned, he averted his gaze. Niko could feel the dark purple burning into him.
"Halt." An old voice spoke. It was the voice from the first night.
"You?"
"I see. So you understand me?"
"Well, you're speaking Latin, aren't you?"
"No. I am not."
"What?" Forgetting himself, he looked to the creature.
The stare was engulfing, but there was no anger. He could feel darkness surrounding him, transporting him to the darkest point of the world.
It was like a vision. It was hazy and misty, but still clear. Through darkness, Niko could sense crystals burning. Purple crystals, like that of the eyes in which he stared. No longer was he looking at the Iracibris, but at deeper eyes. They went on for thousands of years, and the anger grew inside Niko.
The picture before him refined itself. Sleek, black scales shone in the darkness with help from the crystals. An overbearing silence was broken by thought.
"You must help me." The thought pierced in Niko mind as the anger melted into sorrow.
"Who are you?"
"I am the Dragon of the End."
"Why would I help you?"
"You must free me. It is your destiny."
"Destiny?"
"You must free me." The voice repeated.
"Why?"
"You must free me." The voice said again and again, fading as the darkness crept through Niko's eyes.
"No, wait!" Niko reached out to the diminishing light, but he could not grasp it. It ran away, farther from sight until finally being extinguished by the everlasting black.
The trance broke. Niko was standing. He was where they encountered the Iracibris, but he had moved. From his vantage point, he could see his friends sitting up. All of them were staring. Why?
"Niko." Marina looked horrified. Agast.
In his hand was his longsword. The tip dripped murky blood. The bodies of the Iracibris were slain around him. He was panting. Had he killed them?
"How?" Tahmores walked to Niko. Marina and Castiel joined him.
"I…" How was a good question that Niko had no answer. Marina withdrew a handkerchief from her pocket. She dapped at Niko's face. When she removed it, the once white cloth was black with blood.
"We should go." Castiel suggested. Everyone complied, and as they returned to their appropriate horses, Castiel took the eyes of all Iracibris.
Niko gave him a vapid eye.
"Very handy to have around. Never really know, do we?" Castiel responded.
The sun began to rise three hours after, and not a word had been said to Niko. Some of Tahmores' men whispered amongst themselves about him. They rode at a distance, and trotted ahead when they fell within five feet of Niko. Castiel and Marina travelled beside him, though. He didn't mention the dragon.
A small cottage came to view with help of the gold dawning beams.
"I must return to my troops," Tahmores bid farewell, "until we meet again, Princess." He and his men cantered off through the dead woods out of sight.
The three were, once again, on their own. They dismounted and Marina knocked on the door. Slowly, it creaked open and they entered. The cottage was musty, but homey. It was clean, and a mist in the morning air hadn't quite yet settled.
"It has been a while, child." An old woman cooed.
"Lady Anca, I need the truth. About my brother; my family."
"I knew you would return. Please, come closer, children." Lady Anca was in an oak rocking chair. She sat completely still. They wandered and surrounded the table.
"Tell me why you gave me the ring. Please." Marina begged.
Lady Anca sighed and stood, "This was meant to be. You needed to bring back the Warrior."
"The Warrior?"
"You." She turned her gaze to Niko. "Yes. You are to bring about everlasting peace and cut Aleron from his throne."
"If you hadn't sent me to Earth, Aleron wouldn't have taken the throne."
"No. He had secret plans; to murder you, your sister, and your parents."
"Murder my family?"
She nodded, "Your brother is pure evil."
Castiel was looking down, avoiding any eye contact.
"You were aware?" Lady Anca asked.
"Yes." He answered.
"And you, Niko. You are to bring about his downfall, or his rise."
"His rise?" Niko felt betrayed by himself, almost. Why would he help a terrible man?
"You, and only you, are able bring his demise. But, you also have the power to help him. The choice is yours and yours alone."
"I would never turn sides, I'm with Marina and Castiel."
Anca took his hand, "You have had the vision."
"How did you-?"
"I have too. The Dragon of the End has ties to you, Niko."
"The Dragon of the End?" Marina was shocked, "You've had visions of it? And what is the Warrior?"
"I don't know! I don't know who the dragon is, I don't know what the Warrior is, I just don't know, okay?!" Niko blew up at her. He immediately regretted it.
She sighed, "I'm sorry."
"No, Marina I-"
"I'm sorry I got you caught in this trap, I'm sorry I didn't listen to you, and I'm sorry you have to go through this. Castiel, I apologize for not listening to you. You were right. Aleron needs to be stopped. But first, I want to know what Niko has to do with the dragon and the warrior."
Lady Anca began, "Long ago, an Earthman, only a teenager, set foot in our world. His methods are still unknown to this day, but I suspect it was a rip. A crack between our dimensions. A man from our world, a simple farm boy, found the Earthman scared to the bone. He had been wandering in this world for three days in the woods. The farm boy brought him to the king, your ancestor Marina. That king was a wicked and cruel man. The only reason the farm boy brought the Earthman to him was he wanted to make a plea to the princess.
"The princess was a kind and gentle maiden who wanted to help her people. She was not of royal birth; the queen had found the child abandoned as a baby. The king and queen raised her as their own. The king, her father, only desired the harvest of men, not their problems. Before, he had heard of an old prophecy of the Dragon of the End and the Warrior overthrowing a wicked king. Years ago, he slaughtered all the dragons in hopes to slay the Dragon of the End, but he could not find the mythical creature.
"He did not care for the Earthman, and thought him a threat. He locked him away, but the princess would not have it. She abandoned her title and helped the Earthman and the farm boy escape her father. After a year, the Dragon of the End came to them. The dragon taught them skills which could not be described. He tutored them, and showed them a way to Earth.
"But the dragon would not let them go freely. He asked in return, help. Help for the Warrior, the farm boy, to kill the king. The farm boy refused, for he did not believe in violence. The dragon apologized and told them he had the wrong son because you see, the farm boy was a descendent of the dragon. The dragon's blood pumped through his veins.
"As the three were attempting to flee to Earth, the king's men found them. In a bloody battle, he imprisoned the dragon with the use of five rings. As for the Earthman, he was the only one able to escape to Earth, and it is said that being his only regret. The princess and the farm boy ran, as fast as they could. They retreated to a nearby kingdom. Years later, they had a son. The farm boy had a vision the night of his birth, of the Dragon of the End telling him that his son was the Warrior. He was terrified for his child, so he hid him away with the magic he learned from the dragon. He sent him to Earth, a place of no magic or kings, and thought he would be safe. The child's name was Nikolaos."