Another late night chapter by me. My sleep schedule is so messed up. I might as well be nocturnal at this point.

Chapter 21

Jason almost had no choice but to go with Ash on this little trip she was planning. If he did not, the guilt if anything were to happen to her while he was not there would more than likely kill him.

So, he found himself packing a backpack full of clothes late at night. And extra pairs of pants. They really needed to get him a saddle for Feuer. Pants were hard to come by when he did not have any money to replace them. After stuffing his final pair of pants in his backpack, Jason left his room headed outside.

He was quiet. A'ilarin had gone to bed an hour or two before he had started to pack. And if she knew that they were both disappearing for a couple of days, he was certain that she would beat both him and Ash to the point where flying around would be the last thing on their minds for days. So he moved through the house as quietly as he could and finally getting to the back door, closing it silently behind him.

When he arrived, both of their dragons were there and Ash looked mildly surprised that he actually decided to show up. But she did not say anything to him about it, keeping to her new cool persona she had donned over the last few days. She was currently packing her saddle and was already dressed in her riding pants. Yeah, the fancy ones with the extra leather padding in the places where it counted. Jason sighed. He needed a pair of those, too.

"Do you know how to shoot a gun?" Ash asked casually.

Jason cast her a glance as he adjusted his backpack on his shoulders. "Do I need to?" It seemed like a random question to him.

Ash did not answer right away. He heard the clicking of a handgun and turned to watch her inspect a gun that she apparently had hid on her person.

"Where we are going, I don't know how much control the Governments have in the area. We could be flying into an ambush or we could simply find a ghost town. It would be better to arrive armed and ready for anything. So do you know how to use a gun?" she explained.

Jason took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "No, I don't. All I know is a fair amount of martial arts and my magic. Using both at the same time would more than likely be enough for anyone."

Ash nodded and stuck the pistol back wherever she was able to hide it. "Any knowledge of knives?"

"Nope. Literally all hand to hand stuff with me."

Nodding, Ash let it go. She turned and walked into the barn, disappearing for a few moments. Upon her return, she came back with extra clips of ammunition and a belt of knives. She climbed on to Mercury's back and put away everything she had gathered.

There was one glaring factor that was bothering Jason.

"So don't we need food or something?"

Ash looked over at him and grinned for what felt like the first time in the past few days.

"The knives are for more than just throwing at enemies," she said. And that was the end of that.

She checked a few other minor things about her saddle, tugging on it here and there to make sure it was seated and tightened properly. She turned to Jason and nodded before Mercury leaped up into the air.

Jason scrambled onto Feuer's back, grumbling about being left behind again. Soon enough Feuer was high in the air following the glinting silver a dozen yards in front of them into the night.

They had been flying for a few hours now. Feuer was trailing a little bit closer to Mercury than when they had first started. Jason still had no idea where they were going, but from the way Ash had been acting before they had left, he was guessing it was an important place to her.

Jason was riding sideways on Feuer, trying to preserve his pants. He was leaning against his dragon's neck, almost lounging while they flew through the air. His relaxed position was nothing compared to what Ash was doing. She looked to be nearly asleep in the saddle, completely facing backwards with her feet propped up on the saddle bag that was situated behind her and her back against Mercury's neck.

The scroll that she had come down for in the library was safely put away in the saddle bag her feet were on. She had only opened it up once or twice to check their direction before telling Mercury to adjust his course.

They were flying south towards the tail end of a mountain range that ran its way northeast. Technically, these were just the foot hills, but they were still having to weave slightly in order to avoid running into anything. So basically, they were mountains.

Jason still had no idea where they were going or where they were currently. He came from the western part of the continent and this was as far east as he had ever been with or without Garrett, and certainly not this far south. He was at the end of his rope trying to figure out where they were going.

He reached out to Ash to finally ask her.

So, where the hell are you leading me to? Yeah, he finally broke down. Let curiosity kill that cat named Jason.

He watched as Ash looked back at him and battle with herself internally about if she really wanted to tell him or not. Eventually he saw her shoulders drop a fraction of the tension that she had been holding onto.

We are going to my old home, she said. She turned her head to watch as Mercury soared by another mountain top. There is something that I need to do there.

Was this the thing that you asked A'ilarin about doing and she told you no?

Ash immediately tensed back up again. He could feel the electricity in the air. Gods, please do not hit him with lightning this high in the air. Feuer would not be able to handle that either.

If you really must know, yes it was. Are you going to try to stop me now? she challenged.

Jason shook his head, knowing that she was looking for what his reaction would be. I have no idea where I am on this godforsaken continent and you have the only map between all of us.

He could hear the snort she made at his response. You make it sound like I'm holding you hostage for this trip.

Eh, technically. Anything stupid you do, I'll get blamed for letting you do it, and so I might as well do the stupid thing with you. Inwardly, he was ecstatic that Ash sounded a little more like herself with that last comment. Unfortunately, her tone was still pretty cold, but the words were what told him she was slowly coming back.

This isn't a stupid idea. I am going to do the right thing, regardless of A'ilarin's worries, she huffed.

Jason sighed himself, and looked forward as Feuer turned to avoid another mountain, watching as the dragon made it look like he was lazily floating through the air. She cares for you, and has raised you for twelve years. Don't start the teenage rebellion now.

Ash just shook her head and did not answer.

Another hour and they were finally through the mountains. At some point Jason was sure that he had fallen asleep. He trusted Feuer to not drop him. When they were on the run, they had flown through the dark almost every night, only catching rest during the day. Jason would sleep on the dragon's back during those long flights, and watch over him in return while on the ground.

Ash apparently thought he was asleep because she had reached out to him mentally to wake him up once they came across a valley. By now, the sun had started to rise and they could begin to see what was in store for them once they were on the ground.

It was a wasteland.

Both of the teens stared down at the ground with grim expressions. Jason noticed that Ash readied her pistol, loading a bullet into the chamber. He had only seen her hold one, but she held it with such confidence that he need not worry about her being actually able to use the weapon. Jason checked the amount of magic he had in reserves. If he was conservative, he would have enough to last for two days of continual use.

They slowly circled around the valley, watching to see if there was anyone actually still living in the town. When no one came out to the sound of dragon wings in the air, they felt safe enough to land just outside the town. Landing in the center of town was too much risk, even if the town was deserted.

At this point, Ash had all but turned into a glacier. She jumped off of Mercury before he had even situated himself on the ground and was off to the town. Jason was not too far behind, dropping his backpack on the ground as he chased after her.

As he got closer and closer to the town, Jason realized what they saw in the air was nothing compared to what was actually on the ground.

The town might as well have been made out of skeletons and ash. The buildings were gray, the soot bleached from the sunlight. Debris was everywhere, he had to keep a constant eye on the ground or else he would trip. Windows were blackened from the heat that had decimated this town. The wind picked up and stirred the ash and dirt along the streets. Bones littered the sidewalks and streets, looking as if they were immolated where they had been standing. He tried to ignore some of the bones that cracked under his feet as they ran, he could see Ash was struggling with the same problem in front of him. Everything had been picked clean over the years.

It was completely silent besides their panting as they ran through the town. They reached the center of town when Ash suddenly stopped. Jason stopped next to her, raising his hands to rest behind his head as he caught his breath.

Ash was beside herself. How could a group of people who were dedicated to protecting its citizens do this? What did these people do to deserve being burned alive?

She started to hyperventilate, too many how's and why's rushing through her head. The wind swirled around them, creating dust devils in its wake. Jason laid a hand on her shoulder and turned her to him. His face showed nothing but the grief she must have been showing herself, his eyebrows crinkled in a worried fashion and his mouth was turned down slightly at the corners. He understood why she wanted to come here. And that was enough for her to gather herself.

She nodded her thanks and turned back to the town. She vaguely remembered half of the buildings that were still standing. They were in the city center right now, a place she hardly every came to when she had lived here. Turning in a full circle as she gained her bearings and tried to remember which direction her house was. Jason remained quiet, knowing that today was going to be very hard for her.

Despite her anger towards him, she appreciated it. Maybe after today, she would finally forgive him.

A gut feeling told her to head towards the outskirts of town in the west. Ash began to walk in that direction, ignoring the buildings and bones as they passed. There would be time for recognizing the buildings and saying her apologies for the people of the town later. For now there was something she had to make sure of.

As if in a trance, Ash meandered through the town's streets, Jason following wearily behind. He was keeping an eye out for anything that seemed out of the ordinary for a ghost town. Things were too quiet.

Eventually they found the suburbs of the town, and still Ash moved farther and farther outside of town. Coming to an intersection she did not quite remember, Ash paused and looked around. For now she had been able to lock out all of the thoughts running circles in her head, now was not the time to let things get the better of her. Recognizing something farther down the street to her left, she moved in that direction until she came upon a driveway that still had a car parked outside of it.

That…that was her father's car. This was her house. Breaking into a sprint, Ash ran into the house. Her heart was beating so hard she could feel it in her toes. She moved through her childhood home with a certainty she did not think she would have for being away for so long. Finding a closed door, she barged in and came upon a seen she hoped she would never find. In the back of her mind, it bothered her how intact the doors were in her house. Was every house like this?

Before her lay a pile of fire scorched bones belonging to three bodies, black and cracked as the left over logs from a campfire. Two smaller sets were gathered around a larger one.

They were siblings and mother, judging by the shape of the hips of the larger grouping of bones. They had been hugging each other for comfort as they faced the fires the Governments had punished them with.

Ash felt the bile and anger rise in her throat. Swallowing, she knelt down and ran a hand across the smallest skull. It had belonged to her sister. She had been barely two years old when Ash had left. She had just been learning to crawl. The tears gathered in Ash's eyes, blurring her vision as she continued to stroke the skull as if she were lulling a baby to sleep in its crib.

Jason walked in after a moment, Ash had lost him briefly when she had run into the house.

"Ash…?" he said hesitantly, not wanting to startle her and cause her to move anything out of place.

"This was them. This was my family…" she said in a stronger voice than she thought she should have been able to manage. Since when did she sound so cold? Why did she sound like this?

"A-are you sure?" Jason watched her carefully, looking for any sign of another panic attack when she had first found out about the deaths of her family.

Ash merely nodded. "This right here was my sister." She was still stroking the same skull. "She had just turned two the week before I ran away. Her name was Ivy. She was the sweetest little thing, I remember her having the brightest smile in the family."

She turned and lifted her other hand to gingerly touch the next largest skull. Her brother.

"Here's my brother. He was called Jerimiah, and my parents always called him Jerry. He hated it. But somehow I was able to get away with calling him Jer." Ash laughed grimly. "Maybe that's I decided I would nickname Mercury 'Mer', one more connection from home that I could keep." He had only been three, almost four when she ranaway.

She wiped her hands on her jeans before she rubbed them both down her face, unintentionally streaking soot down her cheeks. Ash stood up and looked down upon her three long gone family members. Jason had stood in the doorway of the room, silently listening to her as she talked about each of her siblings. It was strange how calm she was being through all of this.

"In the middle is my mom," she continued. "I was never really that close to her. She always shooed me away from my siblings. I never really understood why until just after A'ilarin had taken me in. Somehow my mom had picked up on the fact that I was different, that I had the potential to be a Rider. That I could be someone who was a part of a group that was still shunned by society. How could she have known that when I was barely five?" Ash shook her head, not wanting to talk any more about her mother.

Something in farther into the room caught her. Making her gently over to it, Ash finally let the tears she had been holding fall. It was a pile of dog bones. From the way they were arranged, it looked like her dog had been cowering in the corner before he had met his end.

"Poor Beaux…I'm so sorry…" She wondered why the finding of her dog was the one thing to make her crumble. The walls she had built to keep everything in were slowly falling down.

Taking a shaky breath, Ash turned back to Jason. His own eyes were bright as he was fighting to hold back his own tears. Tears that were for her. Tears that were sharing in her own grief.

Ash cast her gaze to the ground, taking a moment to gather herself. This was not the place for all the crying she wanted to do she could do that when they made their way to a cave that was not too far from here she had found on the map.

Jason spoke first. "Come on, let's look around for your dad. Believe it or not, you'll feel a little bit better after seeing him." His voice was quiet and laden with sadness. Ash knew why. He had never found Garrett's body, only Nova's skull.

Nodding, she moved past him and down the hallway. Whenever her father had been home, he was always in his study. When she came to the one room in the house she had never stepped foot in, she stopped at the closed door. How was she supposed to just walk in there? The whole time she had lived here, she never once saw the inside of this room. She felt Jason lay a hand on her shoulder, silently encouraging her.

Taking a deep breath, she reached out and opened the door. It fell over off of its hinges instead of swinging. It did not even make a crash, instead just a loud whoompf as it fell on the blanket of ashes on the floor. Inside was piles of ashes, mostly from the books and papers he had used for his research. Stepping onto the door as she made her way inside, Ash looked around. Nothing stood out to her. No body, no scattering of bones.

If he was not in this room, then he was not home.

Ash's eyes widened with realization, her heart rate increasing once more. If her father had not been home when the Governments had destroyed this town, which meant he had been at the lab that day. He had not been home! Did that mean he was still alive?

Ash spun around and stared at Jason with wide eyes. He had noticed that lack of findings in this room as well and his eyes were narrowed with suspicion.

"Something's not right," he said. "I think we need to leave."

Ash nodded in agreement. "Let's go back to where we landed then."

"Now where is all the fun in that?"

Alrighty. So cliffhangers are a thing.

I know you all must be super bored with a clear antagonist for this story besides some ambiguous entity that is continuously mentioned throughout this thing. That is changing next chapter! Woohoo!

Let me know what you think in review!

Wolf-M: I'm sorry, but you are in for a long-winded response. You were the only person to review last chapter, so I think you deserve a full response.

If I am being completely honest, I forgot about the Silver Hand and I never personally liked half of the terminology from the actual books. I always found myself looking up the meanings in the back of each book just so I could understand what was being or said or just the meaning of the word. No offense against Paolini, his books are beautifully written, but that just isn't my style and it made it hard for me to really enjoy the reading. But I do appreciate the thought. :)

Anyways, about Riders looking more and more elf-like? I feel ashamed that I forgot about that as well.. I haven't read these books in YEARS and I simply don't have the time to devote to reading them again anymore. So I'm sorry. If you were to look on my profile, you can basically see my reasoning for why none of the other races have been mentioned. I want to do my characters justice and writing them as a different species would be out of my league right now. Either way, I left a lot of wiggle room unintentionally for the descriptions of my characters, so it may or may not come into play later on, I'm not sure yet. Right now, I sorta have them becoming more dragon-like rather than elf-like. (i.e. slightly pointed canines, better senses, hunter instincts, that sorta thing) I like the idea, so I'm pretty sure I'll find a way to fit it in. Thanks for the reminder about it. :)

But about the whole races deal, I do not want to bastardize Paolini's work by doing so. It can be argued that I am already doing that by not including a lot of other elements into this story, but I really enjoy my creative freedom. I literally have this story labeled as it is because that was where I drew my inspiration, and I wanted to give credit to the Inheritance Cycle for that reason. I'm sorry if that bothers anyone or if that is a really childish way to think about it, but it is what I believe.

So drawing this huge response to a close.. I'm really glad that this has given you ideas about your own potential story! I'd be happy to help with anything.

P.S. I'm pretty much gushed at my phone when I read your review about being addicted to this story in my email. Again, my thanks!

P.S.S. I hope you understand the decisions I made before posting this story. In all honesty, I wanted to, but I don't believe in my abilities enough to bother trying. Maybe another story in the future?

Welp, that review was like 400+ words. I really hope that explains my position about this story.

Please leave a review, pm me, or idk.. message me on tumblr? (see in profile)

Anyways, until next time!

Mogey