Chapter 27

Lian looked around uneasily. He stood at the base of the mountain. He had nothing but what would fit in his backpack. Vadanya stood next to him.

Lian glanced at her, "Are you gonna be okay with Flare, while I go talk to your brother?"

Vadanya nodded, "I can't breathe underwater, Lian."

"But I can make you an air bubble," Lian insisted.

Vadanya looked up at him, "I'll be alright."

Lian looked around, "What if my father comes?"

"He won't come into the mountain looking for you," Vadanya assured him, "He'll look in the ocean first."

Lian nodded tensely, "Okay." He looked around again, "Where's the entrance to Flare's caves?"

Vadanya shook her head, "I have no idea. I just know that Flare lives in this mountain."

Lian sighed. He wandered around the side of the mountain.

After another two days of searching he finally found the entrance to the cave, craftily hidden away in a waterfall.

Vadanya growled, "Dammit. I had to get wet after all."

Lian laughed, "That's why you wanted to stay in the mountain?"

Vadanya gave him a deadpan look, "You try waiting for fur to dry. Then you can laugh."

"Sorry," Lian apologized, despite the fact that he was still smirking. He stiffened when a loud scraping noise echoed down the tunnel to them. He swallowed nervously and continued on.

The tunnel opened up to a broad cavern, lit with an ambient orange glow that didn't seem to be coming from anywhere. The outer edges of the cavern across from them were not clearly visible to them. The Cavern itself had a few piles of treasure and random bits and bobs but was mostly filled with the large body of a dragon. It's scales shone like fire in the light.

Lian whistled, "Wow." He looked around in awe, "I don't think I've ever seen a cave so big."

"And there's more," Vadanya nodded in the direction of the wall of the cavern next to them. Three dark holes led to other parts of the cave complex.

The dragon lifted it's head and studied them. The dragon took human form. A young woman with short hot pink hair and brass colored eyes. Her skin had patches of red scales and her nails were red. She had a black leather jacket and black ankle boots. Her dress was bright orange and looked like it literally encased flowing lava.

She looked at Lian in surprise. But the surprise faded quickly, "You weren't who I thought you were." She walked closer and looked Lian over, "You certainly do look quite a bit like him though."

Lian cocked his head to the side, "O...kay?"

Flare laughed, "You sound like him too." She stepped back and looked him over again curiously, "What can I do for you, Little Human?"

"Well, I-I was just wondering...I was wondering if you would look after," He looked down at Vadanya, "Um...the fox here." He looked back to Flare.

Flare smiled, "I'd be more than happy to."

Lian relaxed, "Thanks. I'll be back in a bit."

Flare nodded, "Good luck to you, Little Human. I have a feeling you'll need it."

Lian chuckled nervously and shrugged, "Who knows?" He hugged Vadanya and then left back the way he had come. He looked around, "Now I guess I go to the bottom of the ocean again." He made his way back to the beach but made sure to stay within the forest until there wasn't any of it left. He raced across the sand and into the water.

The moment he touched the water the ocean leaped to life. It dragged him in and swallowed him whole. The water propelled him to where he wanted to go.

Lian was not used to it answering him like this but he also wasn't going to complain. It certainly made his job easier.

Just like the last time he'd been in the water, his way seem to be illuminated with a gentle white-blue light.

Eventually he returned to the circular structure of of stone slabs. Lian set his feet on the ocean floor and jogged over to where Jace laid, under his seal. The seal was much different from the last time he had seen it. Jace was still wrapped in golden chains.

Lian knelt down and touched the chains. He pulled away quickly, "Ow!" The chains' magical energy was burning hot and numbing. Very different from the gentle tingling he was used to. He shook his hand out, "Fine."

He touched the seal. The magical energy was powerful, crashing over him like a wave. But after the initial shock it was gentle, like a cool day, or a soft breeze, or the gentle lapping of a calm ocean on the sand.

Lian pulled away, "They're different energies. Different spells." He glanced back down at the chains, "Even when the seal breaks, the chains will still be here." His face hardened with determination, "I need Spell Breaker."

He commanded the water to propel him to the surface. He climbed out on the beach and sprinted back into the trees. Once he was deep enough into the forest that he would be safe, even if only momentarily. He closed his eyes and envisioned Ral's house in his head. "Please work. Please work. Please work," he whispered to himself. He felt the ground fall out from under him. His eyes flew opened and he screamed.

Lian landed on Ral's roof and tumbled off it, yelping as he did so. He hit the ground on his back and groaned. He cursed and sat up, "I'm getting sick of falling out of the sky!" He got to his feet, stumbled sideways, and returned to stand in front of Ral's door.

Lian swallowed and stared at Ral's door, "Please answer. Please don't be angry with me." He held his hand up to knock on the door but hesitated. He gritted his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut. He pounded on the door, "Ral!"

The door flew open. Ral stood in front of him, staring at him in surprise, "Water Boy." He grinned, "You're alright!"

Lian swallowed again, "Um...sorry for pounding on your door. I-I um-I wasn't sure if you'd want to see me again. After...what happened."

"Of course I'd want to see you again!" Ral insisted, "I'm just glad you're alright. What's up?"

"I was wondering if you had Spell Breaker. Ravnica is the last place I remember having it so…?" Lian studied Ral hopefully.

"Of course I do," Ral nodded, "C'mon in."

Lian walked in and leaned against the table. There wasn't anywhere to sit. The house was more of a mess than the last time he had seen it. He glanced at Ral, "Do you ever clean your house?"

"I do sometimes," Ral shrugged, "No real reason to. I'm rarely ever not working."

Lian shrugged, "Okay."

Ral grabbed something for the two of them to drink, "Not that I mind the unexpected company but what are you doing here, Water Boy?"

Lian took a deep breath. "Well. Jace is held to the bottom of the ocean with chains," he explained, "and the chains are separate from the seal. So the seal will break, but if those chains are still there he won't be able to get free automatically." He lowered his gaze and studied the ground. He looked back to Ral and calmly declared, "I'm going to destroy the chains."

Ral's eyes widened. He grinned broadly, "Well then. You're going to need a little bit more than just Spell Breaker." He excitedly led Lian into the back of the house.

Lian followed him curiously, "I'm gonna need more than just Spell Breaker?"

Ral nodded, "Think of it this way, Water Boy." He dropped a gun-like weapon into Lian's arms, "You've officially sided against your father. And now that you have, he's not going to hold back when he tries to destroy you." There was a rotating revolver section that contained cartridges. The cartridges would be pulled out and pushed in when they lined up with the side of the gun.

Lian nodded, "Oh yeah." He pulled one of the cartridges out and looked it over, "There are three sections of it?"

Ral nodded, "This thing shoots off spells." He turned and rummaged through a pile of random projects, some completed, some half done. He glanced at Lian over his shoulder, "Each cartridge holds a specific type of spell. Each section holds a specific spell." He pulled out a belt that had a side pouch on either side of it, "Here it is!" He handed it to Lian, "Basically, you replace the cartridges, put them into one of these two pouches. The cartridge will recharge. You activate one section of the cartridge with a handful of these keys." Ral pulled up a panel just beneath the revolver section of the gun, "And you can shoot off fireballs or magical nets that'll block off someone else's access to Mana. And pretty much everything in between."

Lian whistled, "Wow."

"Probably not powerful enough to have any real effect on your father," Ral admitted, "But at the very least it'll buy you enough time to get away."

Lian nodded, "Yep!" He cocked his head to the side, "Vadanya said you were her friend?"

Ral laughed, "You could say that. Yeah." He patted Lian's shoulder, "Long story, Water Boy. I'll tell it to you when you come back."

Ral led Lian out of the room and picked Spell Breaker up off the table, "I turned it into a bracer. That way you can't drop it again." He handed it to Lian.

Lian nodded, "What happens if it gets damaged?"

"You can fix it," Ral responded simply, "You made it in the first place."

Lian looked at Ral uncertainly, "Okay." He put the bracer on to his right arm.

Ral nodded, "That's the spirit. C'mon, Water Boy. Let's go outside and fire that thing off a couple of times. So you can get the hang of it."

Lian nodded, "Okay." He followed Ral outside.

Ral taught him how to load the cartridges and how to activate the spells. Ral also shows him the laser point and the scope. The laser was invisible to anyone that wasn't looking through the scope. Lian was also warned there was a small chance the gun could explode so he wanted to watch it's temperature. If the outside of the gun started to feel warm then it needed to be put away.

"It can be a...bit volatile," Ral shrugged apologetically.

Lian grinned, "That's nothing new."

Ral smiled at him, "Alright. You're all set, Water Boy. Enjoy your adventure. Tell me all about it when you get back."

Lian hesitated but nodded, "I will!"