Act II: Adolescence
Chapter 6: Temple of Flame
Party: Ryu, Nina, Lance, James, Leah
The following day saw the party out of Riverine before the sun was fully visible over the spikes of the mountains they were heading toward. Not long into the trip, the bend of the river allowed them to cross and then head in a more southeast direction - more directly at the smoking peak that they were bound for. The monsters that populated the area were still the same ones that prowled around Tuntar, so the party continued to have no trouble with the encounters.
The volcano was a day-and-a-half from Riverine, looming above them shortly before the sun beat from directly overhead. Having reached the foot of the mountain, the party stopped, unsure of how to continue. "We've reached the end of my knowledge," Ryu said, "from here on, I'm just guessing." He figured he should preface with that just in case they circled the mountain for the rest of the afternoon.
He needn't have worried, however, as there was a cave opening just around the bend on the north side of the mountain. From the opening came hot air pushing itself out into the cooler air of the transition from summer into autumn. Looking inside the cave, Ryu could see veins of orange-red pulsing among the brown rock. It was certainly hot enough to warrant the Fire Temple being built there. He waved the rest of the party inside. There was enough time, he hoped, to complete the tasks that were set before him.
Inside the mountain, it was obvious that the group dynamic had changed slightly. Ryu now led the way and made the decisions. Leah had the rear, James and Lance were just in front of her, while Nina led the small group that followed Ryu through the cavern. The monsters changed drastically, though that was expected due to the incredible difference in climate. The monsters were all fire-based, from bats that were forever on fire to red drakes that even wielded sabers. They gave the party more trouble than those that had accosted them outside on the plain, but not enough to require either Nina or Ryu's transformation.
Ryu led the party over shifting rocks, across dangerous passages that had molten rock streaming around on the floor. One particular cavern was rather large, including a pool of magma and shifting rock islands. Nina, thankfully, could fly at this point, and was able to see the pattern that the rock islands made and how to effectively cross them. The rest of the party followed her instructions faithfully, and they found themselves safely to the other side of the large cavern.
Unfortunately, there was something waiting for them there. It did not make itself known immediately, but once all of the party was ready to move on into the next chamber, the door was suddenly blocked by a lizard. A red lizard. On fire.
"A salamander," Nina breathed, before the lizard showed more agility than Ryu thought it had in jumping toward the party at an alarming speed. All of them rolled out of the way, bringing their weaponry to bear for the battle. The creature had over-jumped and landed in the magma below, but none of them relaxed. All of them knew that the magma would only heal, not hurt, a salamander.
Sure enough, the salamander jumped out suddenly right at Nina, who was forced to dodge again. She didn't do a very good job of it, ending up with a torn sleeve that immediately caught fire. James cast Sphere, a water spell, on the creature which made it hiss in obvious pain, though the fire flared hotter to dry its owner off. It had the desired effect though, Nina was given the opportunity to Heal herself and douse the flames trying to eat away at her shirt. Ryu cast Aura, and though it had an effect, it wasn't all that powerful against the creature.
Leah, not being inclined to magic, moved in and tried to skewer the creature. Though she moved in with power, grace and accuracy, she wasn't able to get a very good bead on the creature in time, and ended up only wounding it further. The fire flared again, giving the lizard another burst of strength, and it launched itself at Leah and James, managing only to catch James's stave on fire for a moment before a Douse spell put it out. Leah smacked the creature hard with the business end of her partisan, but unfortunately it landed back in the magma. When it launched itself out again, it was ready and raring to go.
A bright white light blasted through the large cavern, whiting out the vision of all of those in it. As the light faded, where Ryu had stood before the light had appeared in the first place was a white dome that managed to glow with a golden hue. As it faded, a dragon was where Ryu had been standing. It flexed its claws and shook its head, preparing itself for an attack. The salamander obliged, charging the apparent newcomer, but was caught in mid-air by the deceptively dexterous claws. Ryu slashed across the salamander's body with his free claw, but threw the creature against the wall when it bit into the claw that had held it fast.
With Ryu's cry of pain, the world went white once again, but this time upon fading, there was a wren, which called up powerful wind gusts that plastered the salamander against the wall. As much as it tried to escape the bonds of air created by the wren's magical wings, it could not. Ryu, using the chance, breathed in, calling to himself pure power. James took the opportunity to cast another Sphere, while Lance threw another javelin/lance at the creature, the thrown weapon sticking out of the creature as it howled in pain and defiance. Then the breath of the dragon was upon him, and only a few moments later the salamander was no more.
The change back into their original forms wasn't nearly as showy as changing into the forms in the first place, but it still happened to be impressive. Ryu was favoring his left hand, it having been bitten when it was in claw form. A quick Heal fixed matters there. Nina stretched her wings a bit, letting them out of the folded position that she normally kept them in. Since they were on the run and couldn't afford to be recognized, she had been wearing a large hooded cloak that gave her enough space to fit her wings inside if she kept them folded.
Now, inside the volcano, her forcing her wings to remain hidden like that was unnecessary, and she was taking the opportunity to stretch them out to their full span, which was easily four, maybe even five paces across. After Ryu and Nina had checked each other over, knowing each others' transformations better than the humans in the party, they nodded to the rest of them that they were ready to continue on. After rounding the corner of the passage that led off from the large cavern, they found themselves facing a steel door.
The door was quite out of place. In the middle of red and brown rock, a gray metal door stood out like a sore thumb. Centered on the door was painted a symbol of a single perfect candle flame. The red flame was of a completely different color than the red of the surrounding rock, being bright and obviously powerful. The sight of the door brought the entire party to a stop.
"I think, I think this is the Fire Temple," Ryu said, stepping forward toward the door. When he did, the door opened to reveal a man in white robes who then closed the door behind him. He was an older man, though his features were still sharp. His hair had succumbed to gray, however, and this made him look significantly older than his face seemed to indicate.
"Not exactly, young Dragon, you have already completed the Fire Temple's tasks for you. You stand at the threshold of the Fire Shrine. None of your companions, as none of them are Dragons, may proceed further." At this point, he bowed with his hands together at Nina. "I'm sorry, Miss Wyndian, but only Phoenix and Dragon may enter here." Nina seemed taken aback at this. James and Lance had been expecting such a greeting, and as such were unsurprised by their dismissal. In fact, they were already setting up bedrolls and making sure there was a place for the princess that would be soft for the night.
Leah reacted differently. "Why not?" Her tone was not disrespectful, but she certainly seemed disappointed at this news.
The priest looked at her. Kindly, he said, "This is the Shrine of Agni. Only His race, the Phoenix Clan, and the Stewards of the Gods, the Dragon Clan, may enter."
Leah subsided, though she could be heard muttering. Ryu continued toward the door, but a soft voice behind him made him pause. "Good luck, Ryu." He turned around.
Nina was looking at him, obviously worried. Ryu smiled at her. "I'll be fine. Really." He then turned and walked through the door that the priest held open for him. Then it was closed behind him, cutting him off from his companions.
The shrine was white. The walls shined as light streamed in from overhead, a completely different light than the red glow of the magma from the Temple. The room was square, with a dais in the center that was about as high as Ryu's knees. On it stood three figures. The closest, and centered, was a woman about the age of the priest that had let Ryu in and clothed the same as well. Her hair was brown and came down to where Ryu guessed her waist was, though it was impossible to tell through her robes. She smiled kindly down at him.
Both of the figures behind the female priest were not quite corporeal. The one to the woman's right was a man in red robes. Flames flickered up and down the fabric of his garment, though this seemed to not faze him. He was nearly see-through, so it was obvious that he wasn't quite there at all. His expression was hard, but not angry. His arms were folded in front of him and his stance was obviously aggressive… but his eyes were merely watchful.
The other figure was even less corporeal than the hard-faced fire man. It seemed unfortunate that he had the kinder face and the more neutral stance. His robes were without color, as well as his skin… In fact, he was so translucent that no color really touched him at all, just his outlines were clearly visible.
The woman spoke first. "Who enters Agni's Shrine?"
Ryu walked up to the dais when he was addressed. The male priest remained at the steel door, which looked just as out of place on this side as it did on the other. "I do. Ryu Gensu of the Dragon Clan."
The incorporeal one smiled at this pronouncement, while the kind-of corporeal one did not have an outward reaction. "Welcome, young Dragon, to your Test of Fire," the woman said, her voice echoing off the pristine walls of the chamber. "…but unfortunately there are no set speeches or rites to explain to you the situation that we find ourselves in." The man in red remained impassive, but the colorless one was frowning.
"Normally, I would be introducing you to a Phoenix that would be your… shall we say, partner… for the Test that you will be facing. Unfortunately, the Phoenix that should be here is not, for whatever reason, and so we find ourselves… lacking an element of your test." She stepped down from the dais to be on a level with Ryu, but she remained a hint taller than he was. "Not that we aren't excited to see you. You're the first adolescent pilgrim we've received at this shrine for nearly three years."
The colorless one spoke quietly, but with a power that carried his voice to the corners of the room regardless of the volume with which it was delivered. "So what I have been hearing in prayers is true, then? The town of Ness is no more?"
Ryu nodded, finding that his emotions were threatening to get the better of him. He clamped down on his control. "Yes. As far as I know, no one who was in the town during the attack survived. I only remained because I was out on my childhood pilgrimage… if you can call it that… to the Cliffs."
The two priests looked stricken, but the two on the dais were unsurprised. The male was the first to recover. "My Lord, is that why our replacements have not arrived, as well as why young Ryu is the first pilgrim to reach here in quite a long time?"
The colorless one nodded gravely. "I had little confirmation, other than a few prayers from survivors." Ryu looked at him in askance, and he smiled. "Yes, Ryu, survivors. You were not the only Dragon who was in the protected area that survived that day. I'm afraid we may have lost a couple since that day, but there are plenty that have made their way to various places around the world… notifying the Dragons that were outside of Ness at the time. The Clan is hardly dead, my boy."
Ryu's heart swelled in his chest and began beating faster than he had known possible. Others had survived? That was great news! But why hadn't he heard anything from them? Had none of them thought to go to Wyndia like he did? No other Dragon Ascents had arrived in Wyndia when he did, and he was certainly not the only underage Dragon in Ness when it was attacked. Surely… but maybe he was the only child who had survived the day.
The colorless one's face folded into a look of concern. "Do not concern yourself with such thoughts." Ryu's shock at the figure's ability to see into his mind showed on his face to the point that it was obvious even to the priests that he hadn't really expected it. "Yes, I see your thoughts, young Dragon, since you are in a place where the world is thin. I can also hear any prayer you make no matter where you are, as long as your thoughts are gathered toward me. You have been an invaluable well of information about the attack and the news in Wyndia these past three years."
"Lord Ladon," Ryu breathed. He hadn't expected his God to be present for his testing! Ryu bowed deeply to the God that had been responsible for the creation of his Clan.
Ladon bowed back to him. "I am proud of you for making it this far. Before we administer the test to you, though a slightly altered test, I need to tell you where your next destination is. I know of your limitations in route due to the presence of the Princess of Wyndia in your companions; do not worry that I will lead you in a route that would be inconvenient for her.
"The next Shrine is Donarah's, the Shrine of Lightning. Her shrine lies in the Bleak Forest. Where exactly it lies is something that you must find out for yourself." Ladon then smiled. "You should have no trouble, considering what you have accomplished so far. I will see you again when you arrive at that Shrine, and there I will tell you what you need to know about the Shrine you shall visit after that."
Ryu nodded, internalizing the information. Another test… not that he was terribly surprised. "Now, however," the man in red spoke for the first time, "you must complete the Test of Fire. You will face one of my incarnations… though I will not choose the incarnation I normally choose, as you do not have a companion for this Test."
Ryu, given all that had happened so far, was reasonably sure as to who he would be fighting, and he swallowed the lump in his throat before responding. "I am ready, Lord Agni."
Agni smiled, though it was a calculating and dark smile. "We shall see about that, won't we?" A white light bathed the chamber, washing out all vision for a moment. When the light cleared and it was possible to see again, the dais no longer had two figures on it. Instead, there was just a red dragon atop it. It roared a challenge directly at Ryu, and the female priest stepped back so that it was just Ryu facing the deity.
Ryu stepped up onto the dais drawing his sword and preparing himself for the battle against Wyvern. Once he was set and on the dais, the battle began. Diving, the red beast flung out sharp claws in an attempt to catch Ryu off-guard. The attempt was partially successful, as Ryu felt a sharp pain in his arm as he tried to leap clear of the attack. The pain was only increasing, so Ryu gave up all pretense of completing the test without the use of his dragon form and transformed in mid-air. He landed in dragon form, eyes fierce and claws flexing.
Wyvern roared a challenge from the other side of the dais, which the Dragon returned with full vigor. The two beasts charged across the intervening distance and met with a loud crunch, attempting to get the upper hand – claw – on the other. Ryu's bites were unable to find purchase in the hard scales of his adversary, while Wyvern was too slow to capture the Dragon with his powerful jaws or claws. Ryu managed to break the stalemate first, using his tail to slap one of Wyvern's hind legs from beneath him. Ryu pulled in a breath and let his power release from his mouth.
Wyvern was struck by the breath attack, but though it was obvious that the breath had greatly affected his stamina, there was no look of defeat or surrender in the red eyes. Having escaped from the breath attack, Wyvern flapped his wings to lift himself off into the air, breathing in and channeling his own power into his breath. Ryu had only a moment to heal and prepare a defense before scathing flame and powerful heat was raining on him from above. He gritted his teeth, able to take the attack, but it was extremely painful, and that made it hard to force himself through it.
All at once, the breath attack was over and Ryu seized the chance to recover before Wyvern returned to the ground to renew the conflict once again. This time, Ryu was fending off claws that were powered up with the same power of Fire that had been released in the breath attack, and the claws were all the more potent for this addition. It became a huge advantage that Ryu was dodging a grand majority of the attacks leveled against him. Unfortunately, even though Ryu was striking more often than Wyvern was, he was hitting his adversary with far less force than the few hits that he did sustain contained.
It finally came down to a question of endurance, in which Ryu apparently had the slight edge, for before he collapsed from exhaustion, reverting back into his humanoid form, the Wyvern collapsed and began to fade away. When the beast's form was gone, Agni's form was standing where it had fallen, with Ladon's just behind him. Agni was… smiling, if still stern. "Congratulations, young Ryu," he said. "For your troubles, you will be able to channel my power, and with that power, use the form just used against you. Well done." Ryu felt a vague impression that power was flowing into him, but his body couldn't take any more stress, and he fainted there on the dais, having successfully completed the task set for him in the Fire Shrine.