Chapter 36) Blazing Sword
Around the three year anniversary of Aquelia, we found another town. It was scared, and disliked outsiders, but even at its most cynical, it wouldn't turn away a bunch of kids half-dead from the cold.
No one gave us anything, of course. There was too little to go around. But they didn't chase us away either, and didn't try to kill me when I managed to snag a blanket before them. That was enough.
Edessa was… surprisingly pretty. Situated in a valley between mountains, with grey stone buildings to blend into the background. Of course, for all its prettiness, it was still a ruin filled with dragons, and it was still an enemy headquarters.
"Hilda." At the voice, I glanced back and saw Aenir walk up. She looked completely at home… well, of course she did. This was her home. "The meeting is about to begin," she told me. I nodded, but looked back over the area below. "What are you thinking?"
"Hydra and Jahn," I whispered. My eyes darted about, hunting for any sign of them. "I'm wondering if they're here."
"I doubt it." She came to stand next to me. "Jahn will likely be guarding Hydra while his wounds recover. Wuotan did quite a number." I remembered all the blood raining down. "Would you like me to double check, though?"
"Would you mind?"
"Just give me a moment." She closed her eyes, and I could sense a pulse of power. "No, they aren't here." Good… "Would you like me to see if I sense anyone else I know?"
"Can you do that?"
"I can do a more general one, but it'll only give me impressions." She opened her eyes and smiled wryly. "Quintessence can be sensed, but…"
"You have to actively hunt for it. That's how Azure managed to slip by you." I thought of something. "If you're worried about Crimson, why not…?"
"I've thought about it." She shrugged. "But I opted against it. Despite my warnings and misgivings, it would be nice to trust him. He does a good job watching over everyone." She smiled slightly. "I would also hate to make poor Jasmine second guess herself, as Barigan does." Barigan and I hadn't talked about it, but I knew he felt guilty. He had been the one to suggest Azure come be my aid, after all. "If my suspicions increase, I shall check. But for now, I shan't."
"…Okay." I wasn't sure if I agreed. But some part of me wondered… "You mentioned Foresight?"
"Yes, though I've not really been able to see the future in a while." She made a face. "I blame Phoebe and Hartmut. It's damn near impossible to see anything but things 'set in stone' thanks to how their quintessence makes the world have too many futures."
"How can a quintessence alter the world anyway?"
"It's not necessarily the quintessence changing the world." She shook her head. "It's more… their quintessence shines brightly. Too brightly." She hummed a little in thought. "Those with Foresight see the 'most likely' future. Think of it as looking at a crossroads, one where hundreds of roads meet, but only 'one' has a light along the path. That one would be the most likely one, and so, Foresight will only show that 'one' path."
"But to continue the metaphor, their quintessence shines so brightly that it drowns out that 'light' and so, Foresight has no idea which to show you."
"Precisely." She laughed suddenly. "If you and Hartmut get around to having children, I wonder what sort of havoc your descendants will unleash on the world."
"C-can we save the teasing?!" My face went bright red. "Damn it, Aenir…"
"Hee, sorry, I had to." She continued laughing, muffling the sound with her hand. "I wonder though… will the child have Wuotan's blue eyes like yours, or Phoebe's amber eyes, like Hartmut?"
"That's not even…" Wait… "Phoebe has amber eyes?"
"Yes, Hartmut has his mother's eyes." How could she tell? He and Genevieve had the same eye color. "With draconic quintessence, most of the time, you can tell which quintessence was inherited by the eye color. Eyes are the windows to the soul, and quintessence is the essence of the soul, the life-force." She hummed a little in thought. "So, for instance, let's say your child inherits Hartmut's amber eyes. Now, since you are both half-dragons, the child would get a 'merge' of both of your quintessence, so the 'amber' would be attached to that quintessence instead of simply Hartmut's alone."
"Aenir."
"Complicated, sorry." She smiled sheepishly. "It's simply… when that child has a child… if the child inherited amber eyes, then they likely also inherited the quintessence." She laughed a little. "Or, rather, they inherited the quintessence, so they also have amber eyes." My head was spinning. "Following that scenario, so long as the quintessence is inherited, then even your descendents a thousand years later would still inherit Hartmut's amber eyes, despite all logic dictating that it should have been bred out of the line."
"And it could only function as 'amber-eyed child parents another amber-eyed child'." We were so far off-topic, but now I just wanted to make sure I understood.
"Precisely, as a non-amber-eyed child of the line would not have inherited the quintessence."
"Right…" My head was definitely spinning. "But, Hartmut and Genevieve have the same eye color."
"Oh, amber eyes aren't that rare in the east. Dragons don't necessarily have 'special' eye colors. Yours are blue, and you got them from Wuotan, but hundreds of people have blue eyes." She shrugged. "Now, will that be the case in a thousand years? Who knows? I've seen many hair and eye colors over the years. But even if amber eyes become rare in the future…"
"Given the scenario, you could identify a descendant of Hartmut by amber eyes." I gave her a look. "What was the point of telling me all of that?"
"…I got distracted." She said it so innocently that I just facepalmed. "Sorry! It was fun!" She clapped her hands. "Besides, it helps me for when I give those lessons to my own children. I haven't even told them about Draconic Awakening yet. Too young." She sighed. "I had hoped Nergal was here, but there's no sign. I will have to keep searching."
"You miss them."
"Dearly." She stroked my hair. "But I won't leave through the Gate until this war ends. As soon as it is, though… I will go see them. It's been much too long in my eyes."
"Aenir, I thought you were supposed to be getting Hilda for the meeting!" Both of us turned to see Roland and Athos walking up. Roland was waving, laughing softly. "The meeting is waiting for the tactician," he teased. Aenir's face reddened with a blush and I snickered. "So, what were you talking about?"
"I was just getting some lessons," I answered. I had a teasing remark on the tip of my tongue, but I glanced at Athos, and saw how tense he was. Afraid. The last time I had seen him so uneasy, we had been ambushed during the scouting mission. I had almost died. So, it was hard to just… "Roland."
"Yeeees?" He turned towards me with a grin, but it faltered when he saw how serious I was. "What is it?"
"This will be the first battle with Durandel. You've practiced with it, but this is the first time you'll be fighting dragons with it, and swinging with a killing intent." I narrowed my eyes. "Be careful, and let me know immediately if something is wrong."
Roland only sighed as he nodded, but I saw the look of relief in Athos's face. I knew I wasn't the only one.
I wanted to ask, but there was no time. The battle for Edessa, and humanity's first strike against dragons in eight years, began now.
It was clear who had an advantage in the battle right from the start: the northerners. Jasmine's pegasus knights thrived as the wind kicked up snow into their faces. Barigan and some of his cavalry, those who came from the north with him, easily utilized the snow to make sharp turned, and could judge when a river was iced over enough to hold cavalry in a heartbeat. When you took into account that they were finally, finally, taking back their home? It was clear who had the highest kill counts. Actually, based on the carnage, it was rather clear you had the highest kill count period: Jasmine. To be fair, Excalibur was a very vicious tome. Its wind blades bit deep.
"I think we've got them good and riled now," I murmured, watching the battle from a cliff. Aenir and Crimson were standing next to me. "Let's move on to the next step." I turned to Crimson. "Get Fiona for me." He nodded and ran off, slipping in the snow. "Still think it'll work, Aenir?"
"I agreed back during the meeting," she reminded me. I mostly remembered how much everyone had freaked out when I suggested it. "We'll be fine."
"I hope so." If this went wrong, things were going to go very bad, very fast. "They're moving…"
"Yes." Both of us waited for our army to continue falling back, luring the enemy out of formation. I saw some bodies remain, and assumed they were dead. If they weren't, they were about to be, and I could do nothing about it…
"Hilda." Fiona appeared at my side. Her hands were sooty, likely from her fire sword. She had actually been fighting this time. "Everyone is behind the designated line," she informed me. I nodded and looked up, hunting for a spot. "I'm dancing Fala's might. We're getting one shot." Yes, I knew that.
I waited until I felt a surge of strength before bringing my hand overheard and focusing. Fire spin around my arm, converging into a fireball above my head. The heat was enough to melt the snow at my feet, and the ice crystals on the pine trees.
Aiming carefully, I threw the fireball towards the nearby mountain, hitting high up. One explosion led to a rumble. The rumble led to some slipping snow. The slipping snow led to an avalanche.
Normally, that would be a thing to run from, but we had Aenir. Aenir, Queen of the Ice Dragons, ruler of the mountains here. A little avalanche was not beyond her control, and she kept the snow from hitting our forces, and sped it up so that the fleeing dragons and half-dragons were devoured before they could get away.
Of course, some managed to escape anyway, but that's what we had an army for. More specifically, that's what we had Hartmut, Sacae, and Roland for.
While I still had Fiona's Fala might strengthening me, I threw fire down and carved out a path for the army to charge through the snow. As soon as that was done, though, I collapsed, panting and just barely able to keep from falling on my face. My hands were shaking so badly.
"Easy." Fiona crouched next to me, and passed me some water. It took me a couple of tries to take it from her. "See now why Aenir insisted you be away from the main army, and that you not participate in the fight unless you had to?" she asked. I nodded, guzzling the water fast enough to choke. "Dry you out?"
"I'll get back to you on that," I rasped. At least the water and choking had helped clear my head enough for me to see again. I was sweating like I had fought for four candlemarks, though. I was definitely going to bed early tonight. "How is it going?"
"See for yourself." She pointed down, and I crawled to the edge so I could look down without having to stand up. "Aenir, you good with continuing to control the ice?" There was some sort of murmur. "Okay."
If there was more, I didn't hear. Instead, I was focused completely on the battle below. Hartmut, Sacae, and Roland were tearing through the dragons. The others followed, easily, but my attention was on Roland. It was… strange. Yes, he had experience with the wyrmslayer, but how was it that he could strike the dragon's heart every time? Every time. That shouldn't be… and he kept moving away from the others, even though he was normally good at…
Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.
I slid off the cliff, ignoring the bruising rocks and teeth-rattling landing. My vision blackened for a heartbeat, but I shook it off and ran towards him, edging the battlefield to avoid having to dodge.
"Roland!" I called as soon as I was close enough. But he didn't answer me. Just kept killing the dragons. "Roland?" No answer, so I kept running for him. "Rol-"
"Don't come near!" he finally snapped. As I stumbled to a stop, he glanced back and I saw very real fear in his eyes. "I can't control it. The blade moves me." What was…? "Don't come near. I don't know if it'll differentiate between you and them!" Why would it…? "Ah, It won't let me let go… my arms are blistered…" Yes, it was a blade of fire, a blazing sword…
Maybe that was why. Maybe, in harnessing the power of flames, it took on the destructive force of fire. The fire that fed and fed until there was nothing left. The fire that scorched everything in its path, without care.
It was 'raw' fire. We were fools for thinking it could be controlled.
"Just hang on," I whispered. I could think of nothing else, but he managed a strained smile before he was off into the fight again. "Archers and mages!" I stepped back a bit, yelling as loud as I could. It put me at risk, but… "Support Roland from afar! No one get close!" This was all I could do for right now. I had to get back to Aenir and ask what to do. "Cover him and…!" My voice died as I saw something that terrified me. "Josephine, I said support from afar!" She was really high up, though, and far away. Maybe she couldn't hear me. With all the noise, she honestly might not be able to hear me and, thus, completely ignored my order to fly for Roland as Durandel continued to drag him into the thick of everything. "Josephine!" I ran towards her and Roland, hurling ropes of fire to drag enemy half-dragons out of my way. I ducked under dragons and swung under their heads, focused on trying to get close.
I saw Josephine swoop close to Roland to protect him from a dragon's claw coming for his back. I saw Durandel suddenly wrap itself in flames, and swing towards the right, dragging Roland's arm with it. I saw Roland yell as he tried to fight against Durandel, to bring it back under control, but he was too tired.
I saw Durandel strike through Josephine to kill the dragon. I watched it bite deep into her and her wyvern, flames erupting from the injuries as she fell, drying out the blood that tumbled out of the wound.
"JOSEPHINE!" I wasn't sure who yelled louder: Roland or me. I made it to her just as she hit the ground. A metallic 'thud' made me turn and I saw Durandel on the ground. Roland hovered over Josephine, gathering her up in his arms. It let him let go at last…
I looked around the area, and saw that most of the enemy was dead. So, I ran for them, slipping in the snow. I briefly checked her wyvern, and found it beyond dead; the inside was a charred mess that fell apart at a touch. Barely checking the urge to throw up, I turned my attention to Josephine and Roland, kneeling next to them as the battle finished up around us.
"Healer!" Roland was yelling. Tears streamed down his face. "We need a healer!" But I bit my lip as I saw Josephine's injuries. She was still breathing, but that wouldn't be long. The strike had hit heart and lung, and had burned them based on the smell. "That… that staff Elimine has…!"
"It's with Martin," I whispered. I coughed, choking back a sob. This was just… "To make it so that Ely could use it more than once in a fight, Martin held onto it when we split." It wasn't here. The strongest thing we had was the 'Recover' staff and, even then, I was not sure if…
"Roland…?" My heart stopped as Josephine suddenly whimpered and shifted, clouded eyes fluttered open. "Are you… okay?" she asked. Her smile was so, so sweet. She had to be in so much pain, and yet… no, maybe she wasn't. Maybe she was too far gone to be in pain anymore. "Are you…?"
"I'm fine!" Roland sobbed. His voice cracked. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry!"
"It's okay…" She looked so relieved. "I'm so glad…" She tried to lift her arm, but couldn't only move her shoulder. I grabbed her hand, and she squeezed it, giving me a brilliant smile. "Roland, I…" She shook her head. "No, forget that now…" I almost wondered, but then realized. She was going to confess, but chose against it. Because she didn't want it hanging over him. Because the confession of a dying woman would be nothing but a chain. "Just… end the war… please…"
"I… I will!" He was crying so much. "I promise! We'll end it! So… so…!"
"Good…" Her eyes closed. "Good…" She was still smiling. "Everyone… be… happy…"
The hand in mine went lax. Roland screamed two heartbeats later.
Somewhere in the haze, a sound caught my attention. No, two sounds. A footstep, and something falling. I looked up and saw the source of both was the same. Hartmut. He had walked up and, in his shock, let the Sword of Seals slip from his hands.
He just stared, like he couldn't process what he was seeing, even as the others in the group joined us. Jasmine collapsed to her knees, screaming. Barigan knelt next to her, holding her tightly. Ely covered her mouth, eyes wide; her staff lay useless at her feet. Bramimond held onto his, but it was only because he had clenched his fists at his side. Hanon and Sacae both whispered something, hands clasped, and I thought they might be praying. Athos watched us all a short distance away, biting his lip. The rest of the camp, though, was cheering. After all, we won. My plan had worked. The enemy was dead, with minimal deaths on our side. But it was not a victory I wanted. Not one bit.
I just… stayed where I was, trying to figure out what to do. My mind was completely blank, though. I just… couldn't think…
"I'm sorry…" Roland whimpered. He looked right at Hartmut with broken eyes that just kept crying. "I'm sorry…" His voice was soft, raspy. I thought he might have strained his throat from his earlier scream. "I should have listened… I should have been more careful…" Hartmut suddenly tensed, and I was on my feet, ready to stop him. "I'm sorry…" No matter how angry he was, punching Roland wasn't going to make either of them feel better. "I'm so, so sorry, Hartmut…"
Hartmut moved, arm pulled back for a punch. But it wasn't aimed at Roland. No, it was aimed for Athos, and it caught him straight in the face, knocking him flat on his back. None of the rest of us moved. None of this was making any sort of sense.
"You knew!" Hartmut bellowed, advancing on Athos menacingly. His eyes blazed with fury, and his voice was so loud that I actually glanced at the mountains, wondering if we would trigger a second avalanche from it alone. "You knew what was going to happen! That's why you kept insisting!" Athos sat up, rubbing his reddening cheek, and did not reply. "But you kept it vague! Instead of telling us, you kept it vague, and for all the 'warnings', my sister is dead!" His voice cracked. From sorrow or rage, I wasn't sure. "She's dead because of you!" He moved to punch Athos, again, but this time I caught his arm. To my relief, he didn't fight me. "Are we your friends or are we your pawns?! Do you actually care, or do you only care about moving us to 'proper squares'?!"
"Hartmut," I whispered, leaning into his side. He didn't reply. "Come on." He followed me when I tugged. "Come on. Come with me." Carefully yet quickly, I dragged him away from the group, going into a small, empty house out of sight from the others. There was some snow inside, but that didn't matter. I just thought I had to get him away from everyone.
As soon as we crossed the threshold, something broke inside him and he all but collapsed in tears. "Why…?" he sobbed. I looked around and tugged him over to the bed in the corner, sitting him down on it. "Why her?!" I moved to go find some sort of cloth or blanket, but instead, he clung to me, pressing his face against my stomach to muffle his crying. "If someone had to die…" 'Why could it not be me?' I heard the words loud and clear. The little boy who was scared to be alone just lost a piece of his world. And me, the little girl who was scared to be alone, who had lost pieces of her world? I had no idea what to do or say.
"I love you." My words were soft as I hugged him tightly, running my fingers through his hair. "I love you." It hurt, to know that he wished he were dead now, even if I could completely understand. "I love you." I just wish I knew how to help him.
But I didn't. So, I kept repeating the words. Over and over again. I said them until he had cried himself out, and I said them as he tugged me down next to him, and kissed me desperately and repeatedly.
I repeated them until he fell asleep, praying that, at least, he could hold onto the words as a lifeline. It was all I could think of.
People
· Hilda/Hildegard, Dread Lord, High General and Tactician (me)
o Awakened half dragon (fire). Brown hair, blue eyed, 19 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Daggers (S), Swords (A), Axes (C), 'Tomes' (-); Wields the Chakram; don't actually know tomes, I just control fire now.
· Ely/Elimine, Saint, Head Healer
o My best friend. Blonde hair, blue eyed, 18 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Light magic (S), Staves (S)
· Martin, Blacksmith, Head Craftsman
o My big brother. Red hair, green eyed, 20 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Axes (C), Swords (D)
· Alice, Unknown Class
o My big sister, the mom of the group. Black hair, red eyed, 19 years old.
o Wielded Tomes and Lances.
o A survivor of Aquelia, wife to Martin, mother of Emma and Lori. I think she's three months pregnant, but I'm not too sure. Skilled painter.
o Stayed behind due to pregnancy, and to care for the orphan kids we had taken in. We only communicate through letters now.
· Mika, Swordfighter, Deceased
o My big little brother. Green hair, brown eyed, 19 years old.
o A survivor of Aquelia. Talented swordsman taught by his mother. Though he did not believe much in their protection, he still prayed to Father Sky and Mother Earth in the end, to protect us.
o His nephew, Vash, stays with Alice.
· Maron, Sniper, Discharged
o My little sister. Blonde hair, grey eyed, 17 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Bows (S)
· Sheryl, Mage, Deceased
o My baby sister. Blonde hair, gold eyed, 16 years old.
o A survivor of Aquelia. Specialized in thunder magic. Forgot everything but birthdays. Always ready with a smile and a laugh. Dearly wanted us to be happy.
o Her niece, Kim, stays with Alice.
· Roland, Hero, Blade General
o From the south originally. Blue hair, blue eyed, 18 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Swords (S), Axes (B); Wields the Regal Blade.
· Hartmut, Great Lord
o Half-dragon (divine). Former prince of the Eastern Kingdom. Blonde hair, amber eyed, 19 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Swords (S), Axes (E); Wields the Sword of Seals.
· Hanon, Huntress, Leader of the Nomad Fighters
o Plainswoman of the Kutolah tribe. Green hair, green eyed, 17 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Bows (A), Swords (A)
· Sacae, Blade Lord
o Plainsman forced to give up his tribe. Green hair, green eyed, 17 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Swords (S), Bows (S); Wields the Sol Katti and Rienfleche
· Barigan, Paladin, Cavalry General
o From Edessa, to the north. Purple hair, green eyed, 19 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Lances (S), Swords (A), Axes (D); Wields Rex Hasta
· Durban, Berserker, Axe General
o From the Western Isles. Brown hair, brown eyed, 20 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Axes (S); Wields Basilikos
· Jasmine, Dark Flier, Pegasus General
o From the north, and maybe from Edessa. Brown hair, purple eyed, 18 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Tomes (S) with a specialty in wind magic, Lances (C); Wields Excalibur
· **Josephine, Revenant Knight, Deceased
o Former princess of the Eastern Kingdom. Blonde hair, purple eyed, 21 years old.
· Delrin, Bow Knight, Commander of the Army
o Former Dragon Commander of the East. Green hair, blue eyed, 27 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Bow (S), Swords (S)
· Marius, Armored Knight, Deceased
o From the city near Aquelia, former Dragon Knight. Brown hair, brown eyed, 31 years old.
o Gave a bad first impression, but kind underneath it all. Unfailing fair to his soldiers. Gave me his Dragon Pendant in a silent plea for me to help lead the army to victory and peace.
o Lost his wife and daughter in Aquelia, and is survived by his daughter.
· Genevieve, Sage, Mage Lieutenant
o Former princess of the Eastern Kingdom. Blonde hair, amber eyed, 16 years old
o Weapons (and ranks): Tomes (S) with a specialty in fire, Staves (C)
· Athos, Sage, Mage General
o From a nameless oasis city in the desert. Silver hair, blue eyed, 18 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Tomes (S) with a specialty in fire, Staves (B)
· Bramimond, Druid, Shaman General
o From the east, son of the former High Priest of the Shrine of Shields. Blonde hair, green eyed, 19 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Elder magic (S); Staves (A); Wields Gespenst
· Fiona, Dancer
o Half dragon (divine), Princess of the Divine Dragons. Pink hair, green eyed, 1500 years old (dragon equivalent of 18).
o Unlike Hartmut and me, she is capable of transforming into a dragon, but does not because she cannot keep sanity long. Has the Dancer's Gift.
· Elijah, Paladin, Discharged
o From the south. Red hair, blue eyed, 17 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Sword (S), Lances (B), Axes (E)
· Aenir, Bard
o Queen of the Ice Dragons. Ice-blue hair, red eyes. Very old.
o Has the Bardic Gift, and the ability to manipulate ice.
· Crimson, Mage Fighter, My sole aide
o From a city near Aquelia. Black hair, blue eyed, 20 years old.
o Weapons (and ranks): Tomes (S) specializing in fire magic, Swords (A)
Author's note: There's a reason why Roland did his best to warn Eliwood, and that was because the price he paid was the woman he loved, Josephine. Unlike Eliwood, though, he never got to confess, or learn that his feelings were, in fact, requited. Your choice if that's 'better' or 'worse'. If Hartmut's reaction and words seem familiar, Katri said similar things, and also punched Athos for the death of someone, in Tactician's Testimony. Also, have some more magical biology lessons.
Next Chapter – Edessa (Counting epilogues, there are 18 chapters left, btw)