Chapter 1: TAIL (Part 1)

Warm air whipped around Namaari's face, tousling her hair, as she gripped the reins on her serlot, Chaiya, moving in concert with the powerful animal. If she never had to set foot in the desert of Tail again it would be too soon. There had been too many oppressively scorching hot days and freezing cold nights out here for her to count. Not to mention the sand seemed to permeate everywhere. She was certain that she would be finding it tucked away in places for many months to come.

But it will all be worth it. She had to tell herself that.

A slight glimmer on the ground caught her eye as they bounded past. After hours of riding with the sun reflecting off the sand, she wasn't sure she had actually seen it at first, convinced her mind had imagined it. But just to be sure she pulled Chaiya to a halt before urging her back more slowly in the direction of where she had thought she had seen it.

Her eyes narrowed, Namaari scanned the ground until she spotted it. Immediately she hopped down off Chaiya and walked over, keeping her face neutral and trying to keep her pace steady, peripherally aware of the other Fang warriors watching her. Crouching low, she reached down with her left hand and picked up the familiar object, using the thumb on her right hand to wipe off the excess sand that had clung to the intricate engravings. She tossed her hair to the side and brought it closer to her face to get a better look. Not that she needed to. She knew exactly what this was.

Namaari released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She'd recognize this piece of jewelry anywhere even after only laying eyes on it for maybe a few hours over six years ago. Raya's hair ring.

Weeks in the desert and finally some concrete proof that it was indeed Raya out here.

When the dragon scroll was stolen a couple months ago Namaari could hardly believe it. There was only one person who would have the nerve to sneak into Fang's archives for that particular scroll. She distinctly remembered when General Atitaya informed her of the theft. It had felt as though her whole world had shifted. She had been convinced that Raya had been turned to stone, if not on that day six years ago, then surely at some point shortly after.

There had been many a sleepless night for Namaari in the last six years over what had happened, even if she had no idea what her mother had been planning. She had grieved, believing the girl who had changed her life in just a few short hours was gone. The idea that the girl- a woman now- had survived the Druun all this time had caused a flurry of emotions she hadn't been prepared for.

Once she had gathered herself, Namaari had insisted to her mother that she be the one to go and track down the culprit. She attempted to justify the risk of going outside of the protection of Fang's walls to retrieve a scroll of very little value by rationalizing that the thief may be plotting something against Fang.

Of course, the real reason Namaari seized this opportunity was to see Raya again, alive and well; as well as can be expected after spending six years alone in a dystopian hellscape. Based on Chief Virana's knowing gaze that pierced through the fiercest warriors, she knew Namaari's true intent. But Namaari could care less. She had to find Raya, explain to her what really happened. After that, well, she hadn't thought that far ahead.

Ultimately, her mother acquiesced with the caveat that Namaari bring a small band of warriors with her on this mission, lecturing her (once again) on making what she referred to as, 'emotional decisions.' It was a phrase that never failed to raise Namaari's ire, but she hid it from her mother, refusing to prove her point.

It had also been the phrase her mother used to justify exploiting her and her instant friendship with Raya that day six years ago. And maybe she was right. After meeting Raya she never would have betrayed her. Chief Virana knew this and used her own daughter to get to the dragon gem. Namaari would never forgive her but she was determined to fix Fang's mistake, even if it was not her own.

Grasping the ring securely in her fist, Namaari straightened up and strode purposely over to the edge of the canyon. Below, in the distance, she could follow the path of the river, more akin to a stream now, leading to what appeared to be a shipwreck. This must be the river's end that the dragon scroll spoke of and where Raya was seeking Sisudatu.

Namaari could hardly believe she was this close to Raya after all this time. After six years of wondering what had happened to the woman, not a day going by without thinking of those warm brown eyes. Eyes that had looked at her with kindness she had not seen before or since.

The sound of Lieutenant Wahn's cocky voice broke through her thoughts of the Heart princess.

"Princess Namaari, the Tail lands are infested with Druun. Benja's daughter is as good as stone out here," he snickered in derision of their mission while glancing around the barren landscape, "Retrieving some useless dragon scroll isn't worth the risk."

Namaari saw red. How dare he question her? How dare he speak of Raya?

In the blink of an eye, Namaari had spun around, hooked her hand around the back of his neck and thrusted her foot forward, tripping him and throwing him face-first into the sand in one smooth motion. He fell hard and Namaari stood over him, challenging him to retaliate.

"Anyone else want to question why we're out here?" she asked carefully keeping her voice free from the emotions swirling inside her chest, her hands curled into loose fists at her sides in a silent challenge for anyone else who dared insubordination. The three others, as well as their serlots, looked at her apprehensively, not daring to speak up.

Namaari was a hard ass but she knew that had been a bit of an uncharacteristically strong reaction even for her. She strode back to Chaiya, stepping around Lieutenant Wahn who had yet to pick himself off the ground in his humiliation.

Before mounting her serlot once more, Namaari pulled a bit of leather string out of her saddle bag and securely tied one end. She opened her hand and took a moment to appreciate the golden ring once again before sliding the leather through the ring, creating a slipknot. She slipped the makeshift necklace over her head and clenched it for just a second before tucking it the neckline of her tank top.

After the incident with Wahn and knowing how close they were to Raya now, Namaari made a quick decision.

"Wait here and rest. I'm going to scout ahead," she ordered them.

If any of them disagreed with her decision they said nothing, merely dismounted their serlots, as Namaari and Chaiya made their way down into the canyon alone.

"Good girl, Chaiya," Namaari patted her serlot's neck, as she slid off her back, landing on the hard ground with a light thud. The dried-out land allowed for no footprints, no ability to track Raya's path.

However, soon there was a rather large giveaway that the other princess was nearby in the form of her trusty TukTuk on his back, legs flailing in the sky as he tried in vain to right himself. Namaari almost didn't recognize the creature at first. The last time she had seen him was in Heart temple and at that time he was barely the size of Raya's palm. Namaari could see the makeshift saddle pinned between his large shell and the ground.

So that's how she's been getting around so quickly, Namaari mused to herself. It was pretty ingenious.

There was no sign of the Heart princess though. Which was somewhat concerning. How did her TukTuk end up like this? Alone and on his back? Namaari was certain Raya wouldn't intentionally leave her trusted friend like this.

Not wanting to startle the creature, Namaari stepped cautiously up to him, making her presence known.

"Hey there," she called to him, stepping into his limited field of vision, and making sure he could see her empty, weaponless hands. His large russet eyes flicked over to hers before going wide in surprise. He began making a deep grumbling sound, swinging his legs with renewed vigor to try to flip himself over.

"I'm not going to hurt you," she tried to assure him as she got close. He didn't seem angry or afraid, but almost anxious to see her. But she couldn't be sure.

Namaari assessed the situation, seeing the only way to flip him as lifting him up near his head. It was not going to be easy, but she also couldn't just leave him like this. "I'm going to lift you up, okay?" Namaari warned him, he stared up at her and seemed to settle, so she grasped the edge of one of the plates of his shell near his head.

Bending her knees and lifting, Namaari was able to lift him easily at first but the higher she lifted him the harder it became. She gritted her teeth, her muscles straining as she struggled to adjust her grip when she almost had him vertical. She had to plant her feet as she put her full weight against his shell.

"Get away from my TukTuk!"

The shout startled her, but it worked out in her favor because it startled TukTuk too and luckily it was the last push she needed to get him flipped over. The great fur bug flopped onto his stomach and, with the sudden loss of counterpressure, Namaari stumbled forward into the back of his shell.

Namaari righted herself in time to see the familiar woman running towards her.

Raya.

Namaari's breath caught in her throat at the sight of the Heart princess. How different she looked from the 12-year-old girl she had met all those years ago but also unmistakable. And beautiful.

As much as she wanted to, Namaari didn't have time to reminisce because of the appearance of the creature behind the Heart princess.

Trailing Raya was a bright blue dragon with a flowing mane of purples, greens, and blues…

Immediately, Namaari fell to her knees, lowering her head in respect and lifting her hands in the traditional circle. Her heart was racing and her breathing uneven with emotion at laying eyes on the princess of Heart as well as the legendary dragon.

Namaari stayed there for a moment and then dared to open her eyes and lift her head just in time to see Raya's fist coming right at her face.

Pain exploded in her jaw and the force of the blow sent her sprawling onto her back. She barely had time to lift herself up on her elbows before the point of a familiar kalis sword halted her from moving further. Following the path of the wavy blade up to the hand covered in a wrist guard to an arm partially obscured by a red cape to the livid features of the woman's face.

Namaari's mouth filled with the copper taste of her own blood, but she didn't care. The girl she had been so drawn to all those years ago had transformed into an equally intriguing woman. Gone were the rounded features of her youth, replaced by the soft lines of adulthood. Again, as much as Namaari wanted to continue staring, refamiliarizing herself with the beauty of the Heart princess, the sword pointed under her chin required her immediate attention.

"You found her," Namaari spoke with wonder.

The dragon standing behind Raya anxiously played with her tail as she watched their tense interaction, but giving her an awkward wave at Namaari's words, and a "Hey there."

"I did," Raya bit out, "no thanks to you."

She guessed she deserved that. She should have tried harder to find the Heart princess. If she had known Raya was out here alone all this time...

When Namaari had no reply, Raya reached into her pocket and pulled out a scroll. Namaari recognized it right away, even before the Heart princess threw it at her. It landed noiselessly on her stomach but Namaari made no move to remove it, the other woman's sword giving her very little latitude.

"Wow, okay, something tells me you're not besties," Sisu commented, her eyes darting between them. Even if she had been able to find her voice, Namaari would not have known what to say. In a different world, maybe they could have been friends. Maybe she was being naïve but Namaari still hoped things could be different. She was still having a hard time with the mixture of guilt and relief swirling through her at seeing Raya.

"Sisu, meet the back-stabbing binturi who broke the world," Raya practically spat, fire burning in her dark eyes. Namaari wasn't sure what she had been expecting when she actually caught up to Raya but she would take a sword to the throat just to see her alive.

"Raya, I-," she began but the mere mention of her name seemed to infuriate the woman before her. Raya interrupted her with a borderline snarl,

"No!"

Namaari had not realized there was space for Raya's sword to come any closer to her throat but somehow there was, grazing the hollow there. She was certain if she swallowed the tip would pierce the sensitive skin there. But if nothing else she had to warn her about the others.

"No," Raya said more calmly, but the tone was even more deafening than her shout, "Don't."

"Please, listen to me," Namaari pleaded, not heeding her warning, and while Raya's face said listening to her was literally the last thing she wanted to do, she remained silent while Namaari continued, "There are four Fang warriors with me. You need to leave now. If they see you have Sisu with you then Chief Virana will send the entire royal army after you."

Namaari felt foolish. In her need to find Raya she had unintentionally put her in danger. She had never even considered what would happen when she found the other woman. Not allowing herself to hope it was even possible. But now she had several Fang warriors who were under Chief Virana's orders to retrieve Raya and the scroll and a livid Heart princess who wanted to hear none of it. She wasn't sure how to fix this but she had to make sure the others didn't find them here. She could figure out what to do next once Raya and Sisu were safely away.

"Yea, that sounds bad." Sisu's rough voice interjected. They had somehow almost forgotten about her. "We should probably make like a river and rush right out of here."

They both stared at her, but the sacred dragon just grinned at her own joke, looking to them for a laugh. None was forthcoming, the tension still so high between the two women.

"Princess Namaari?"

The deep male voice caught both of them off guard and they both whipped their heads to the sound.

Namaari couldn't believe it. He had followed her. Wahn had had the nerve to disobey her orders, once again, and follow her. And now he had his crossbow trained right at Raya. To his credit, from their current positions he must think he was rescuing her from "Benja's daughter."

But it was then that his line of sight shifted towards the blue dragon standing behind them both, his eyes going wide in shock and awe.

It's too late, was the thought that flashed across Namaari's brain.

"Stand down. Lieutenant Wahn," Namaari ordered from the ground, but at his words Raya had swung her sword to point in his direction. Noticing this, Namaari took the opportunity to hop to her feet, getting ready to step in front of Raya and Sisu protectively- she had to keep them safe no matter what- but everything happened so quickly after that.

Raya cocked her arm back to swing her kalis into its whip form at the intruder, but Wahn's finger was already squeezing the trigger.

It's true what they say. Time really does seem to slow down in times of crisis, each moment passing with excruciating clarity. Namaari saw what was about to happen and her instincts completely took over.

Lunging forward, she used both hands to shove Raya out of the path of the bolt. She had just enough momentum to clear the Heart princess but not enough to get herself out of harm's way. She could feel the force of the bolt tear through her flesh and the muscles of her deltoid.

The pain did not immediately register to Namaari, looking around her as everything returned to normal speed. Almost in unison, Chaiya and Sisu bounded forward and bared their teeth at Wahn, effectively terrifying him enough to drop the crossbow and scamper away.

Meanwhile, Raya had managed to catch herself before she fell, still holding her sword but now it was lowered with no one to point it at anymore. The Heart princess was taking heaving breaths, her brows seemingly furrowed in confusion as she tried to process what just happened. The fact that the Princess of Fang was going against her own warriors probably wasn't making a whole lot of sense to Raya right now.

"Are you all right?" Namaari asked her, breathing heavily from the jolt of adrenaline that had just shot through her veins. The other woman gave her an odd look that Namaari had difficulty deciphering but maybe that was because she was starting to feel a little lightheaded. But it was no longer a look of hatred which was progress.

"I'm- ah-I'm fine. But you- you have…," Raya seemed to have difficulty finding words, her eyes darting down to Namaari's arm and then back up again.

"Oh, yea, wow, that doesn't look good," Sisu deadpanned, nodding empathically in agreement.

Then she noticed that they were all staring at her, more specifically a point down and right. Namaari followed their line of sight to her arm.

The sight of the bolt sticking out of her arm somehow broke the spell that Namaari's brain had conjured to protect her. White, hot pain coursed from her shoulder down to the tips of her fingers, causing every movement, every slight shift of her muscles to be extremely painful.

For some reason she had not believed that the bolt had actually lodged itself into her arm. She had thought it had just grazed over, leaving a gash or something, but to see the bolt protruding from her torn skin was more than a little surreal.

Namaari knew what she had to do. She didn't know if she could get the right angle to yank it out with the way it was, but she had to try. Wahn's aim was true that was for sure. By Namaari's calculations, based on her height of her shoulder in comparison to Raya, it would have ripped straight through her neck.

Pushing that thought from her head, Namaari reached up with her left hand, testing to see if she could even reach the shaft of the bolt and get a grip on it. Turns out she could but the movement proved to be excruciating. Gritting her teeth, she could not help the grunt of pain that escaped her. Showing weakness was almost as painful as the wound itself.

At some point Raya had sheathed her sword and was now approaching her cautiously. Namaari could feel the sweat beading on her forehead from the pain now and her vision was getting blurry around the edges. She could still make out the Heart princess's face contorted with conflicted emotions and her eyes focused on the injury. Probably debating if she and Sisu should just hop on TukTuk and roll away, leaving her there. After all, Raya still believed she had been the reason her father was stone. Why would she help a, 'back stabbing binturi'? Which is why she was surprised by Raya's next words.

"Let me see it," Raya ordered gently, stepping close enough to touch her. Namaari forced herself to stay put despite the urge to jerk her wound out of the Heart Princess's reach. And yet, at the same time she had craved this closeness with the other woman since the day she had met her, if only under different circumstances.

"We have to get this out," Raya told her, her hands still hovering, unsure.

"I've got it," Namaari replied quickly, bracing herself. She needed to do this and fast.

Raya looked as though she was going to protest but before she could say anything Namaari took a deep breath and reached around with her left hand again. In order to prevent the pain from becoming too much, this time instead of just grasping the bolt, Namaari grabbed it and pulled it out in one smooth motion.

She released the breath she had been holding in what sounded almost like a low, guttural growl. With her eyes closed, Namaari just stood for a moment, allowing her heart rate to slow and her breathing to steady.

"Hey."

Raya's voice was close again and Namaari slid her eyes open to see the Heart princess, her brow furrowed and holding up some bandages now.

"May I?" She stayed still as Raya leaned closer to the wound to see the depth. Reaching out a tentative hand, Raya's fingers gently touched the skin around it, blood beginning to slide down her arm. Namaari's heart had begun to race, the feeling of Raya's skin on hers something she never thought she'd feel again.

"You should keep moving. Lieutenant Wahn will return with the others looking for-," Namaari inhaled sharply in pain as Raya pressed the clean fabric to the wound, stemming the blood flow, then breathing out and finishing, "Sisu."

"This looks like it might need a couple stitches," Raya said simply and Namaari raised her gaze to see Raya staring back at her intently. She couldn't read the emotions behind those eyes and they didn't have time to pick it apart right now.

"You need to get to Tail's gem piece before they do," Namaari replied, the way Raya's eyebrows shot up in surprise told her that she guessed their mission correctly. Sensing this was her window of opportunity Namaari continued, "I can help you, if you'll allow me."

Her arm was beginning to throb with pain, but she never broke Raya's gaze. The other woman looked away, seeming to weigh her options and take stock of their situation. She was probably still trying to reconcile whether to trust someone she had spent hating since she was twelve. After a few moments she spoke.

"Can you ride like that?" Raya asked her doubtfully, eyeing her serlot who had taken to pacing anxiously back and forth.

"Uhm guys," Sisu tried to interject, but she barely registered as Raya worked swiftly to finish tying the bandage securely around Namaari's arm.

"Probably not as quickly as your TukTuk right now but I'll manage," she replied, doing her best to keep her breathing even through the pain. She could see that Raya was trying to be as careful as possible but there was no avoiding it. She was well trained in riding one handed but usually that entailed having a spear or some other weapon in her other hand, not injured.

"Ladies," Sisu chirped again.

Raya seemed lost in thought, trying to figure the logistics out of getting to the Tail chief's hideout quickly and stealthily with a bright blue dragon and two princesses, one of them injured and infamous around the lands for, "breaking the world."

"Okay, people!" Sisu yelled, making herself glow to get their attention. "I don't mean to interrupt the party planning committee but look!"

They both followed her line of sight, and sure enough, the tell-tale dust of the Fang warriors riding this way in the distance was clear across the flat lands.

Raya and Sisu mounted TukTuk- the dragon a little clumsily, trying to figure out what to do with her extra length; the saddle wasn't exactly designed for two people much less a dragon.

Despite Namaari's injury she was able to hop up on her serlot with minimal effort, holding the reins in her left hand while she rested her right arm loosely over her thigh to keep from straining her muscles.

Raya glanced over her shoulder down at her and then they were off.