Chapter 13
Smoke filled the air and blackened the clouds above Arcadia. The sun was beginning to set and the smog made the sun's orange glow look sickly and wrong. Jack and Archie circled in on the smoldering remains of the Arcadia governor's manor. "What the hell happened down there?"
It looks like some kind of explosion happened, Archie said. We should probably go have a look.
The duo landed right at the foot of the building and Jack dismounted and drew his sword. "Yusei!" he called. A lonely guard approached the gaping hole in the house and looked right at Jack.
"Your rider friends left some time ago," the guard said.
"Impossible," Jack said. "I would have passed them on their way back to the tower. Where could those three have gone?"
"Three? There were four of them."
"Four? There should have been two women and a man in blue. Who was the fourth?"
"A man with white hair and a black outfit who carried two swords."
"Kalin," Jack said, "so you went along too. You fool. You disobeyed the Dragonmaster. Where did they go?"
"Don't know, sir but Master Toby took off with them. Nobody left to be in charge now."
Jack slapped the man in the back of the head. "No one left in charge? Perfect, then. You can all follow me!"
"Why should I listen to you? My master's gone. He tried to kill all of us with these accursed amulets!" He held out one of the broken chains with a green gem. Jack took it and stuck it in his pocket. Then he grabbed the soldier by his collar and pulled his face within an inch of his.
"Listen up, you!" he hissed. "I don't care if you've lost all hope for your life. My friends are out there and hunting down your master! Why don't you try to remember where they went? If you'd like, I can have my friend here try to jog your memory!" Archie's big head leaned in close and growled at the man.
"I think I remember Master Toby say something about the capitol. Maybe you'll find them there."
"You think you remember?" Jack pressed. Archie let a small arc of fire escape his jaws.
"No! I remember! They definitely went to the capitol! Sayer went there earlier today!" Jack let go of the man and walked back toward his dragon.
"You're a man who knows how not to get roasted!" he said as he jumped back onto Archie. "Now gather your men! You're going to help me with a little project."
"I never should have signed up for this job," the guard muttered to himself.
The four dragons streamed across the sky carrying their riders. Toby rode with Misty and Eve. "Akiza!" Misty yelled. "Why are we in such a hurry?"
"Sayer knew we were coming for him!" Akiza replied. "He's making his move to usurp the throne!"
"Usurp the throne?" Yusei said. "How do you know that's what he's planning?"
"He's expressed his dislike of my family's rule for years. If he's going to the capitol, I can only assume the worst!"
Then let's get there faster! Stardust growled.
The dragons all sped up toward the capitol. Stardust was fastest and stayed out in front, with Rose and Eve behind him and Seeker acting as vanguard. They flew until the cityscape was visible on the horizon. Akiza breathed a sigh of relief until she saw what had happened. They were too late.
"The city!" Akiza gasped. "It's burning! No!" She looked down and saw what looked like soldiers marching down on the ground, but upon further inspection, she realized they were giant armored figures with long halberds. "Sayer's already conquered the city!"
That monster! Rose roared. I'll kill him!
"Come on, Rose! We have to find Mom and Dad!" Akiza and Rose sped off toward the keep.
"Akiza!" Yusei yelled. It was no use, however. She and Rose dove toward the castle.
"Yusei! We have to take care of these things down there!" Kalin yelled as he drew his twin swords. The riders could see people down below fleeing in terror from the big armored men. Yusei really didn't want Akiza running into the castle alone but he didn't really have a choice. He needed to help take out these walking suits of armor before they killed everyone in the city. Seeker dove at one of the automatons and Kalin slashed his blade across its arm. It came clean off. "Yes!" Kalin cried as he and Seeker came back up from the attack. The automaton picked its arm back up and reattached it as if nothing had happened. "Oh great!" he said. "What do we do now?"
Yusei pulled out his bow and knocked an arrow. He felt his mark glow. "Crimson Dragon, lend me your power to stop these creatures." Stardust circled around in the air and Yusei caught a glimpse of a spot on the armor. It was a green gem like the one Toby had been wearing, but it was reflecting red light. Yusei knew what that meant. The Crimson Dragon was showing him where to fire. He lined up his shot and released the string. Yusei's arrow flew downward and hit dead center in the gem on the automaton's neck. The life that animated the armor drained away and the suit fell to pieces.
"They have a weakness!" Yusei yelled. "Cut the green gem at their neck!"
Kalin and Misty both went to work. "Misty!" Toby said to his big sister, "I can help too! I've got enough power to take a couple of these things out!"
"No, Toby! I'm not putting you in harm's way!"
"Misty, please. I'm not doing any good up here and I want to help. I've got throwing knives that work with my powers!"
"Where did you get those?"
"Blister gave them to me just in case," Toby said.
"Fine," Misty conceded, "but only throw when I tell you to, okay?"
"Got it. Thank you, Misty."
Akiza landed in the courtyard of her castle, the same place where she had first met Yusei. Now the sky had been blackened, and all she could think about was stopping Sayer and rescuing her parents. Sayer, however, was not so foolish as to leave the grounds unguarded. Six automatons ran her way armed to kill her. "Rose, you know what to do."
That I do, Rose replied. She took a mighty breath and spit purple fire at each of Sayer's minions. They all fell to the ground, burnt to a crisp. Let's go find him, Rose then said.
Akiza drew her sword. Never in her whole life did she think she would be fearful to enter her own home, but here she was, armed and ready to take on the villain who had stolen her home from her. She then turned her eyes to the starry sky. She saw the bright red one shine brighter than all the others, even through the smog from the burning city. "Crimson Dragon?" she felt her mark warm and realized that it was glowing. "You give Yusei and Stardust strength. Now I ask you to give us strength to save my home and my family."
Akiza heard a voice in the back of her mind. My child, you need not strength nor power from me. You have those gifts within yourself and have since you were born. The bond you share with your dragon partner is more powerful than any gift I could grant. Go forth and achieve your desire, my child. I am always with you.
"Thank you, Crimson Dragon," she said. "Rose, we need to open a direct path to Sayer. This means we'll have to burn our way through the keep to get to him. You'll have to use your dragon breath to blast through the walls to get to the throne room. That's where he'll be."
Are you sure, Akiza? Burning through our own home?
"We have to," she said. "It's the only way for both of us to reach him."
I will not leave you alone in this. I will be with you every step of the way.
"Thank you, Rose," Akiza readied her sword to strike at Sayer when the chance came along. That man had caused way too much trouble. "Let's go!" Rose let a stream of purple fire escape her maw and watched as the keep doors flew off their hinges, leaving a space wide enough for Rose to fly through. Rose kicked off the ground and let loose a constant stream of fire right ahead of her to keep opening up the path.
Sayer heard the castle walls shake. "Ah, the riders have arrived." The wall directly in front of him burst open and Rose flew through. She saw Sayer and went directly for him. He was ready however, and as her fiery breath approached him, he waved his hand and reflected it right back at her. The shock knocked Akiza off Rose's back, but she recovered quickly and charged Sayer with her sword. Sayer lifted his other hand and suddenly, Akiza could no longer move.
"Sayer!" she yelled. "Where's my family?"
"Princess Akiza, I would welcome you back to your home, but I'm afraid it is no longer yours."
"You-"
"Just look at what I have done here," Sayer laughed. "In no more than a few seconds, both you and your dragon have been subdued by my incredible power. There is no hope for you." He lifted his hand and Akiza could feel her limbs go limp and her body being lifted into the air.
"Why are you doing this?" she asked, feeling so helpless.
"For revenge on the dragons, mostly. They are nothing more than titans of destruction. I simply wish to make the land safe by ending their existence. And thanks to my lovely new artifacts, I can do just that."
"You mean the Mastery Orb," Akiza said.
"So you know about it, do you?" Sayer reached into his pocket and pulled out the emerald orb. "They say only a brilliant mind can control its awesome power, otherwise, its user will become a true monster."
"Wait, you haven't used it yet?" Akiza asked shocked.
"My dear princess, the orb is dangerous, and I'm not going to use it on myself. You see, part of being a diviner is knowing absolutely everything you can. I know that the orb holds many more secrets. It doesn't just act as an amplifier for human power, it can also amplify magic a hundred-fold! While I was waiting for you to arrive, I prepared a ritual to devour the souls of dragons. The Mastery Orb will amplify this magic until it spreads across the world, killing all dragons forever! All I need to complete this ritual is the soul of a living dragon," Sayer's eyes turned to Rose unconscious on the floor, "and you have brought me one on a platter!"
"NO!" Akiza yelled. "You can't!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, sweet princess, but your best friend will have to die."
"NO!" Akiza shut her eyes as tight as she could.
"Oh, it won't be so bad. After I'm king, you could become my queen. I promise you we would have a good life togeth..." He stopped. Akiza opened her eyes and looked right at him.
Sayer had an arrow in his chest.
"Wha..." he gasped. Akiza felt his psychic grip on her loosen and she fell to the ground. Sayer staggered back and fell back onto the throne.
Akiza looked back to the big hole in the wall and saw Yusei holding his bow with the string slackened after just firing it. "Yusei!" she cried. She got up and ran to him. Yusei threw his bow down on the floor and embraced her when she reached him. "Thank you," she said with tears in her eyes.
"When I saw you and Rose break in to the keep, I followed you. When I saw Sayer holding you up, I shot him while he was distracted," Yusei said.
"Rose!" Akiza yelled. She let go of Yusei and ran toward her dragon. Rose still lay on the floor. "Please be okay," she pleaded.
"Here, let me," Yusei said, kneeling down beside her. He reached his hand under Rose's neck. "I can feel her breathing, Akiza. She'll be fine."
"Oh, thank goodness," she sighed.
"Argh!" came a cry from a few meters away. Yusei and Akiza whirled their heads around as Sayer stood back up. "You think you've beaten me? Hardly."
"Give up now, Sayer," Yusei yelled. "You're finished!"
"I may not be able to complete my ritual," he laughed, "but I still have this." He lifted the Mastery Orb up above his head. "If I can't complete the ritual, then I'll become the most powerful being in the world and then kill every dragon in existence myself! Orb, grant me the power to crush my enemies!" The orb glowed and Sayer glowed with it. "Ah, the power. I can feel it coursing trough my veins! I am the bane of dragons! RAAAAAAHHHH!"
"What's happening to him?" Akiza asked.
"I have absolutely no idea," Yusei replied.
Sayer's body twisted and warped while floating in the air. Yusei could see his skeleton start to morph and grow. He sprouted wings and his legs fused together into a bony tail. His hands grew giant claws and his head sprouted two bony protrusions off the side of his head. Sayer had grown so much that he was bigger than most dragons, and Yusei recognized what he was seeing. "That's the monster from my nightmare!" he exclaimed. His mark began to glow.
RAAAAAHHHH! I HAVE BECOME MORE POWERFUL THAN ANYTHING! I AM INVINCIBLE! DRAGONKIND WILL PERISH BEFORE MY MIGHT AND I WILL CREATE A NEW KINGDOM WITH MYSELF AT ITS APEX!
"Akiza!" Yusei got her attention, "You and Rose need to get out of here now!" Akiza stood frozen in terror, her gaze transfixed on Sayer's new and monstrous form.
AH, IT WOULD SEEM THE PRINCESS IS MARVELED BY MY POWER. DO NOT FEAR, MY DEAR. Sayer's clawed hand reached out toward Akiza. Yusei drew his sword and stepped in its way.
"You're not getting her," he said flatly.
YOU THINK YOU ALONE HAVE POWER ENOUGH TO STOP ME FROM TAKING WHAT I WANT, LITTLE WARRIOR? Sayer knocked Yusei aside and reached out with his other hand and grabbed Akiza.
"AHHH! YUSEI! HELP ME!" she screamed.
"HOLD ON!" he yelled.
HA HA HA! LOOK AT YOU HELPLESS DOWN THERE, RIDER! IF YOU VALUE THE LIFE OF YOUR COMPANION, THEN DO NOT INTERFERE. I WILL SPARE HER WHEN ALL DRAGONS ARE DEAD. He looked right at Akiza with his red eyes. AND FOR YOU, MY DEAR, AS A SPECIAL TREAT, I'LL SAVE YOUR DRAGON FOR LAST. With that, Sayer flew upward and blasted a hole in the roof of the keep with some sort of magic fire spewing from his mouth. He flew upward and out of Yusei's sight, Akiza still clutched in his claw.
"AKIZA!" Yusei yelled. This was bad. He had to get her back. But what to do now? Rose hadn't yet awoken and Yusei was getting worried. He lifted his arm and called Stardust with his mark. Stardust appeared over the hole in the roof and dove down to land next to him.
What happened here? Stardust asked.
"Sayer happened. He used the Mastery Orb and turned into a giant green psychic serpent or something. You need to get Rose out of here and somewhere safe."
What happened to her? Stardust sounded frantic. I will kill Sayer.
"Stardust, relax. She's okay. She's breathing fine. She'll wake up soon. Be patient."
Wait, if she's here, where's Akiza?
"Sayer's got her."
Wait, then why are you so calm?
"Because getting angry isn't going to do us any good! Look, we need to regroup before we go after Sayer. Get Rose outside. I'm going to find Akiza's parents."
As Yusei ran past some rubble down to a lower level of the castle, Stardust did his best to lift Rose on to his back. You're heavy, you know that? he said to her.
And you're pesky. Did you know that?
Rose! You're awake! You gave me a good scare. Are you all right?
Where's Akiza?
She's been taken hostage by Sayer. Yusei's working on a plan to get her back.
I'm fine to walk, Stardust. You can put me down.
Not a chance. You're still beat up from that fight. Plus, I like carrying you.
Rose couldn't really respond to that. So instead, she laid her head down over Stardust's shoulder and closed her eyes. You'd better not let me die, she finally said.
Not a chance. Stardust carried her to the courtyard and laid her down. Here, I can do something to help ease the pain. Stardust placed his hands on Rose's wings and let his energy flow through him and into her.
What are you doing? Rose asked. She could feel some of her pain lessening.
I told you. I'm easing your pain.
How?
By taking some of it on myself.
What? No! Stop it right now!
Quit being so stubborn! I want to help you. Please let me.
Why? Why do you want to help me?
Because I...don't want to lose you.
Rose was speechless. Stardust was always kind but here he was actually sacrificing his own vitality for her sake. Don't worry, Stardust said. Just relax and don't move much. You'll be fine. Rose didn't want to submit to just lying there to recover, but lying against Stardust was rather relaxing. She nuzzled her snout against his shoulder, finding a niche for her head to lie while she rested.
Thank you, she said to him before falling asleep.
Yusei reached the dungeons and called out, "Hello?"
He heard a reply, "Who's there?" Yusei ran toward the voice. It sounded familiar. Maybe it was the king. He ran as fast as he could and found a cage with the king and queen both standing at the bars, looking to see who it was.
"Yusei Fudo, your majesties. We met months ago when Akiza joined the Order. Just stand back and I'll have you out of here." The monarchs stepped back and Yusei drew his sword and cut clean through the lock. The door squeaked loudly as it flung open.
The queen threw herself at Yusei, hugging him very tightly. "Oh, thank you, Sir Fudo," she cried.
"Yes, thank you," the king added. "We didn't know how long we would be in there. Sayer's powers overwhelmed us both."
"Well, he's gone," Yusei said, "for now."
"Oh, thank heavens," the queen sighed. "Where is my daughter?"
"She's..." Yusei paused. Should he really tell them?
"What is it?" the king asked. "Spit it out, man!"
"She's not...dead, is she?" the queen stammered.
"No! She's alive," Yusei said. "Sayer captured her and escaped."
"Well then what are you waiting around here for?" the king demanded. "Go rescue her!"
"I will do my best," Yusei said. "But I need to get you to safety first."
"Nonsense, boy!" the king said. "I have enough skill to bypass any non-magical danger. You go rescue my daughter."
"Yes, sir." Yusei turned around and headed back up the stairs.
"What do you think, dear?" the queen asked her husband.
"He is a fine man, that one. Driven to protect our Akiza at any cost, even if that cost is his own life."
"I agree, and I think Akiza is very lucky to have him."
Okay, I lied. The next chapter will be the finale of Part I.