She was dead. That much she knew.
The last thing Claudia remembered was breathing her last breath. The world, her friends, everything around her evaporating into darkness.
She was gone.
She knew the risks when she chose to climb up that mountain. She had every reason to turn back, any rational person would. But she had lost far too many people in her life already. The family she thought she could hinge on had betrayed her trust. All she had left was the love of her friends and brother. They were her remaining strength.
But she failed them.
Her friends followed her, the very thing she hoped to avoid. She might as well have brought them to Lamia herself. Delivered their severed body parts on a platter. The poison seeped deeper and deeper into her body, strangling her heart and quickly shortening her breaths.
Now here she was, surrounded by the very darkness she fought so hard to escape from. Maybe her shadow self was right. Once you go dark you can never turn back.
It was all over.
Claudia curled up on the floor. Or at least, she assumed it was the floor. The ground was flat and hard beneath her feet but there was nothing there. There were no walls, no barriers, she could roam for as long and as far she wished, but there was no destination. Just miles and miles of emptiness.
There were no friends, no sunlight, no nature, not even palace walls. Nothing but the darkness Claudia hated with a burning passion.
Just as she was about to somberly accept her fate she felt a brisk wind kiss her cheek. It was cold at first but quickly warmed, like melted snow on the first dawn of spring. Claudia inhaled sharply and she could smell the trees again. She could smell the moist air of a cloudy sky, and hear the crashing of thunder above her head, as though the sky itself would split apart and swallow her whole.
An opening appeared before her, showing a beautiful landscape on a rainy day.
At first, Claudia thought it was a portal into the world of the living, but when she stretched out her hand to walk though she found herself repelled by an invisible force. On the other side, she could see the mountaintops, draped in shadow as the clouds blocked the sun. On a hill stood a man wielding a staff adorned with animal skulls and bones, feathers that she recognized belonged to Pegasi, perytons, phoenixes, thunderbirds, and griffins. Wrapped around the staff was the skeleton of a full-grown snake, its empty sockets staring back at her. Claudia shuddered and reeled back at the thought of it being near sweet Evie in place of the unfortunate reptile.
The man himself wore a tattered cape with dull armor, also adorned with bones and feathers. Around his waist was a belt tied with pouches. His hair was long and in his youth, it would have been a nice shade of raven, but now it was turning gray before her eyes. A single white streak began at his roots and trailed downwards to end at the very tip of his locks. His skin was light and his eyes were golden brown.
Claudia recognized him. It was Ziard. The first dark mage.
Viren used to entrance her with stories of how the great and wise Ziard brought about The Age of Enlightenment for humanity. As a child, Claudia would always picture Ziard as this wise and noble figure, not too different from how she perceived her father back then. Even old paintings and book illustrations depicted Ziard as tall, strong, and fit, almost like a fusion between a mage and a Knight.
But the expectation did not align with the reality. The real Ziard looked as if the hands of time were speeding up for him, though he couldn't have been any older than thirty. If not for his staff Claudia was sure he would collapse.
Can he see me? Claudia wondered. Is he here to bring me into the afterlife?
If he was Claudia would much rather stay in her dark abyss than go anywhere with him.
She gasped at the sound of thundering wing beats and from the clouds appeared a mighty dragon. His scales rippled with light as he flew, stars glimmered against his membranes and his silver mane seemed to create an ethereal glow. It was a fully grown celestial dragon. Much, much larger than Rayla's true form, but every bit as beautiful and majestic.
The world seemed to come alive when he touched the hill. The flowers around him blossomed and the sound of birds and griffons sung his name. But Ziard only scowled, as though repulsed by the fact that even nature itself recognized the king of the lands. For a moment, Claudia noticed the silver streak in Ziard's hair begin to glow. Its silver hues matching the aura of the dragon's mane.
"I kept true to my word, dear brother." said the dragon. His voice. It was so deep and grand, yet gentle and loving. Even with his immense size, capable of crushing armies, Claudia couldn't find it in herself to be afraid. She knew, in this dragon's presence, she was safe.
"Do not address to me as 'brother'," Ziard spat venomously. Claudia jerked back. How was it possible that she felt more uneasy around the small human mage and not the larger-than-life dragon?
"Is that why you summoned me here? To insult me even further?" The dragon asked, half insulted and half hurt.
"Spare me your overblown righteousness, Aragon!"
Claudia gasped. "Aragon?" She remembered that name. The name of the dragon king whose death brought upon the start of the war. Why was he addressing Ziard as 'brother'? Claudia ceased all further questions and instead listened in on their conversation. This wasn't a portal, after all, she was witnessing the events of the past.
"Ziard, I beg of you, turn away from this path. Surrender dark magic and you and your followers shall be welcomed into my court with open arms. It is our only path forward."
"It is a path backward! You just expect humans to go back to the way things were before we had magic. When we starved and struggled, helpless and pathetic!"
Aragon threw his head up and roared, his claws smashing the ground beneath him that the very mountain from which they stood trembled and shook. Even Claudia felt it.
"How dare you?! I who aided you to feed your children and grandchildren! Protected them from illness and decay. Housed you, loved you. When you were on death's door I gave you a second chance at life!"
Claudia inhaled a sharp breath and clenched her chest. What did... did she hear him right?
"I gave you everything and never once requested anything from you. I had my people care and look after yours. Why do you turn your back on me, brother? Why?!"
Claudia's lower lip quivered and a tear traveled down her right cheek... mirroring the very tear that trailed down Aragon's scaly face.
"That's all we are to you. Pets. Lesser beings for you to coddle." Ziard said.
"No. No, that's not true. Humans are capable of so many wonderful things, I have always believed that. Look at what we have accomplished already, and together we can create even more wondrous things. Ziard, don't do this. Don't break my heart."
Ziard jerked back and choked on air. His chest felt heavy and he fell on one knee, his free hand still clenching his staff for support. Aragon came in closer, lowering his head so that he was on level with Ziard.
"You feel what I feel. Draco does not wish to see us destroy each other. We were not meant to be enemies but to care for this world together. Ziard, please. Come home." Aragon's voice cracked, like a child pleading for his parents to stay.
Claudia knew that feeling. She felt the same when her mother left. Her pain and Aragon's were the same. Unfortunately, she knew how this story ended.
Ziard grunted as he stood back up, eyes burning with fury. "You are arrogant! You had the power to grant me your magic all along and yet you withheld it from me! Well now, I am the one with the hold on you. I will no longer yield!"
Aragon turned away. He couldn't look him in the eyes anymore. Ziard felt the dragon's heartbreak yet he fought the tears. He swallowed them hard and pushed them back, clenching his staff tighter until his fingers bled.
Aragon rose, his head now towering over Ziard like the tiny creature he was. Through his tears, Aragon spread open his wings, casting his shadow over where Ziard stood.
"Lay down your staff and surrender," Aragon demanded, yet even with his anger rising his sadness and the love he felt for his lifelong friend were still there, keeping him from doing something he would regret.
"Like I said. I no longer yield to you, beast."
Claudia gasped when Ziard pulled out a dagger and cut his wrist. Aragon roared in pain when a cut suddenly appeared on his wrist, matching Ziard's self-inflicted wound.
Ziard began to chant a dark incantation and his eyes glowed purple. Dark magic seeped into him, into his bones, and his soul. Aragon roared in pain and clenched his chest, which was now glowing purple. The dragon collapsed and a dark purple cloud emerged from Ziard's staff, forcing the dragon king to the ground.
"Ziard! Please!"
Ziard ignored him and with a wave of his hand he spoke his command; Traeh lluf ruoy em evig
Aragon screamed. His body was on fire, burning from the inside out. His bones cracked and his wings felt as heavy as stone. His eyes glowed purple as the dark smoke forced itself down his throat. The dragon king's hind began to solidify, turning to stone.
"NO!" Claudia shouted. She tried running towards Aragon, briefly forgetting about the invisible wall keeping her out. "STOP IT! STOP! PLEASE!"
She pounded her fists just like she did to the door of the closet Viren pushed her in. This time, no potion could help her now. Her strikes were in vain, there was no getting through the invisible wall. Even if she could get through what made her think she could just change the past? Nobody wielded such power. Not even the most skilled dark mage. Even now, in death, Claudia was helpless.
Ziard watched with wicked glee as the dragon he once loved cried and begged for mercy. The beast's cries were like music to his ears. The purple cloud pulled out of the dragon's mouth, holding a glowing white spear. As the spell reached Aragon's head, jaws open wide as though he were about to breath fire, his last tear escaped his eye and traveled down his now petrified face.
Claudia punched the invisible wall one more time before collapsing to the ground in soul-crushing defeat, "No! No... I'm sorry..." she wept. She wasn't sure what she was apologizing for. That she couldn't do anything? Or that this ever happened to begin with?
Ziard stared with greedy delight as he held out his hand, clenching his prize. "At last. The dragon heart is mine! I'm free!"
"ARAGON!" A voice cried out from the clouds. Another celestial dragon appeared, a female. She practically collapsed on the ground when she saw her husband's petrified corpse
"NOOOOO!"
Her roars thundered throughout the land, creating ripples in the grass and the skies boomed, as though the heavens too were mourning alongside her. The dragon raised a shaking claw to her husband's face then hugged his neck.
"Aragon... my love."
Claudia couldn't bear to watch and yet she couldn't will herself to look away. Her chest felt heavy and she heaved with every breath. She clenched her chest tight, a familiar pain nailing her to the floor. It was the pain of losing a loved one, and the unquenchable hunger of wishing for them to come back by any means.
Though this feeling was not unfamiliar to Claudia, this time it was fresh, as though right then and there she had just lost her mother all over again. For a moment, Claudia herself was in the dragon queen's place. Their breathing and sobs in perfect unison, right down to the pattern of when and where their tears landed.
"It's over, Queen Mairead," Ziard said, boastfully holding the dragon heart with his hand like a trophy. "The era of the Tuatha De Dannan is over."
The Queen hissed and Claudia could feel the dragon queen's rage rising. Her tears seemed to have just evaporated into mist. The dragon queen spread open her wings, shielding her stoned husband from the mage's sight.
"No. Your era is over." Her voice was low and ominous. Ziard choked on-air at her words.
Unlike her husband, Claudia did not feel safe in the dragon queen's presence. She felt what all humans have been feeling towards dragons for generations.
Fear.
Ziard cursed his own trembling hands until he remembered that he was now in possession of Aragon's heart, which glowed in the palm of his hand. Just as he was about to recite another spell, Queen Mairead swung her massive tail and tossed Ziard into the air. He screamed as the heart flew out of his hand, which the queen snatched up with her claws.
Ziard tumbled down the mountain then stopped with a loud thump. Blood dripped from his lower lip and he clenched his rib cage, the crimson liquid seeping through his clothes. The earth quaked when the dragon queen landed before him, her husband's heart carefully cradled in her claw.
Ziard limped as he stood up. He felt a warm sensation against his waist and, in a patch of white energy, his bleeding stopped. He looked up and saw strings of light seeping through the opening between the queen's claws.
"You will pay for what you've done!" The Queen roared.
"You forget Your Majesty," Ziard, grinned, wording the last part as though it were an insult, "So long as the heart lives, so will I. And you wouldn't dare destroy the last remaining piece of your husband, now would you?"
Mairead's grip on her husband's heart tightened. She hated that Ziard was right. She wouldn't dare harm her husband's heart. Her husband showed Ziard mercy and he repaid him by ending his life. Mairead, no matter how much she wanted to kill Ziard in an act of cold vengeance, refused to dishonor the spirit of her husband's compassion.
"For the sake of my husband, I shall spare your life." The queen's voice boomed that the whole world stood still just to hear her. "You may keep your dark magic, but let it be a cruel reminder of the day you and many others like you were no longer welcomed in Tir Na Nog. No longer welcome in Xadia."
"You have no right! Xadia is our home!" Ziard shouted like a spoiled child.
"A home you will destroy with your arrogance and greed! If you and your followers do not leave by midsummer's end you will leave me no choice but to lay waste to your kind!"
"You wouldn't dare!" Ziard clenched his grip on his staff, taking a bold step towards the dragon queen. "You'd destroy the very city your husband worked so hard to build? Destroy innocent people! Children!"
Mairead was disgusted by Ziard's words. He, who just murdered her husband—his best friend—was chastising her about being the murderous monster? How far have humans fallen? The very creatures that shared their creativity and ingenuity with the fae folk who in turn shared their natural resources to construct a city that would have been the very symbol of their homeland. Their once beautiful paradise was crumbling as more humans began adopting the abomination that was dark magic. Faeries found dead, their bodies mangled and severed, their very souls ripped out of them, all to feed this man's ego.
"I will ask you again. Leave Xadia or face the fury of my wrath!"
Ziard reached for his pockets and pouches for a spell to subdue the dragon, but Mairead snatched the human in her claws. She roared at Ziard's face, his nostrils burning with the stench of her breath. The pompous dark mage trembled in fear when the dragon queen opened her massive jaws and her teeth came crashing down on him.
A burst of dark and purple magic struck her on her left eye, temporarily blinding her. Mairead whipped her head, dropping Ziard and he crawled away like a coward. The claw holding her husband's heart was closed tight. A group of dark mages ambushed her, each with their staffs made out of various faerie bones. One was crafted out of the spine of a dryad, another was adorned with the severed hooves of a centaur, and one wore the skeleton head of a Phoenix as though it were a crown. Mairead's left eye was burnt, but with her remaining good eye, she gasped.
She recognized some of these humans. Once wise and noble shamans, teachers, and doctors that were masters in their crafts had been reduced to murders. Their priceless bejeweled rings and crowns were replaced by bones and buzzard feathers. Their once shimmering cloaks were now dull, gray, and ragged. Their eyes, once so beautiful, were now pitch black. Premature gray hairs streaked their locks, and purple veins encircled their necks and wrists.
"Leave him be, demon!" One of the mages shouted while another pulled Ziard back up to his feet. Mairead should have tried harder to reason with them, but even if she did she was already convinced that they were far too gone to try and save now.
Even with her vision partly clouded, Mairead attacked. She swiped her tail, breathed fire in every direction, and slashed at the humans she once considered her friends. The one with the phoenix crown crushed a tiny phoenix egg in her hand and gained the ability of fire. Forming a lasso, she aimed for Mairead's closed claw. She wasn't aware of the dragon heart inside but suspected the dragon queen must have been hiding something valuable.
Ziard aided her, casting a spell of his own by absorbing the energy from a flock of perytons flying overhead. The beautiful creatures screeched in pain as their entire bodies, feathers, antlers, and all, were absorbed into Ziard's staff. His eyes turned black again and with a mighty roar, he pierced the earth with the tip of his staff. The ground beneath Mairead tore open and her foot sunk in. The mages aimed for her wings, turning one of them to stone. The stoned wing slammed to the ground where it shattered to pieces. The dragon roared in pain, alerting the nearby sylphs, undine, dryads, harpies, centaurs, satyrs, and dwarfs nearby. A dwarf working in the nearby mines for energy crystals lifted his hat and climbed up a tree. His heart dropped at the sight before him.
"The Queen! The Queen is in danger!" He blew into his ram-horn to alert his brothers and sisters. Faeries of all shapes and sizes scurried in all directions, leading the animals to safety. The humans that had not chosen to join Ziard's ways heard the noise. They turned to their faerie and dragon friends and rushed to warn the other villages.
"Ziard has gone too far!" Said a human man, his centaur companion nodded in agreement. He offered him his hand and hoisted him onto his back. The two rode off, blowing into their respected horns as they galloped ahead.
Mairead's neck burned as the mages brought her down with dark magic lassos made of nothing but smoke and cloud. The sensation and the smell of her fallen subjects burned her nostrils that she almost couldn't think straight. At long last, her stubborn claws opened and her husband's heart flew out. Ziard caught it in mid-air, coughing from the effort. Dark magic had drained his strength, but with this dragon heart, he could regain it. It didn't occur to him that the more energy he lost with dark magic the more he would need to retain it. This would ultimately become the cycle that never ended.
"Aragon!" Mairead shouted. Ziard held the dragon heart and with a spell, he infused it with dark magic. The heart hardened like a stone and attached itself to Ziard's staff, becoming a gaudy purple gemstone. Ziard breathed in the power as it coursed through him in the form of purple fire. He laughed maniacally, frightened his followers.
"Finally! Xadia belongs to us!" Ziard proclaimed.
From above, a band of Pegasi, perytons, thunderbirds, griffins, and hippogriffs appeared. Riding on their backs were a variety of humans and faeries, from dwarves to elves, fauns, satyrs, trolls, goblins, undines, jinn, and dryads. Alongside them flew sylphs, harpies, and dryads that were born with insect-like wings such as those of butterflies, dragonflies, etc.
From below, came a herd of centaurs in full armor wielding swords and bows and arrows. Humans and other land faeries rode on unicorns, stags, horses, massive felines like panthers, lions, and tigers, even wolves, some of which had wings. Creatures like the Minotaur and other animal-headed faeries like wolf-folk, bat-folk, bear-folk, rat-folk, lizard-folk, and fox-folk, unleashed their ear-piercing battle calls and swung their axes, swords, and spears as they charged.
Mairead broke free of her dark magic bindings but with only one wing she could not fly. She gasped for air, her energy-draining, but this was more due to heartbreak than dark magic. Her husband's heart was gone, now used as a weapon by a mad-man.
Claudia stepped away from the portal, as though she were afraid one of their swords would swing in her direction. All she could see were weapons clashing, dark spells taking shape, and crimson liquid being spilled from both sides, staining the once green grass. Around the blood-stained spots, the grass around it appeared to wither, even the flowers dried up and crumbled.
Two groups of people, once joined together in friendship and trust, were now fighting each other in cold blood, tarnishing their once beautiful world. As valiant as the Xadian armies were, they were no match for the dark magic, killing at worst and wounding at best. The faeries' human allies were forced to flee and take their injured brothers and sisters out of the battlefield.
Ziard stood on the remains of the dragon queen's wing. "You see?! Watch how these faeries and dragons yield before our might! We humans have been humble for far too long. It is time we took back what is rightfully ours. And those who dare challenge us will meet their end!"
Once the battle was over, Ziard stood victorious. His face and clothes stained with blood as Mairead mourned the loss of so many of her subjects, their corpses being worn by the dark mages as trophies.
Mairead roared and when the rest of the dragons arrived, there was no going back now. They lay waste to the city that was once home to so many humans. Just as Ziard predicted, even children were lost in the fire. This act of vengeance, fueled by a queen's broken heart, ignited the mistrust amongst humans and faeries. More fights emerged and with it more killing and more humans converting toward Ziard's side. While not everyone embraced dark magic, they agreed that the faeries and dragons could no longer be trusted.
By midsummer's end, all of the dragons gathered up the humans and banished them to the west, away from the dragon and faerie lands. Some humans tried begging for forgiveness and some merciful faeries pleaded with the dragon council to let them stay in their homeland. But nothing could change the unanimous decision of the dragon council. Their time to protect both humans and faeries was over. Now they would only look after their kind, while humans can wallow in their greed.
The portal closed, but by then Claudia couldn't even feel her legs. She just witnessed the history of their world before her very eyes. Rayla was right, it did use to be as close to a paradise as one could get... but one selfish act took it all away.
"Why, Ziard?" Claudia whispered, hanging her head, her hair draped over both sides of her face. "Why wasn't his love enough for you?"
Claudia kept her head down, not bothering to look up when she saw her shadow outstretch before her due to the bright light radiated from behind, warming her cold back. The light into the afterlife, she presumed. She didn't care who came to take her. She just wanted all of this to end.
Claudia gasped when she felt a warm and very real hand on her shoulder. A woman's hand. Claudia finally looked up to see the woman. Her skin radiated like the purest pearl in the sun against the warm sand. Her hair was styled up in her signature messy bun and her clothes stained with dirt and leaves. Her green eyes, identical to Claudia's, sparkled with the wisdom that could only come with age and experience.
"Mom?"
"Hello, sweetie."
Claudia couldn't believe it. Her mother, Rebeca, was here. She found the will to stand again and held her mother in a bone-crushing embrace. She still smelled of tulips, manure, and dirty dishes.
"Mom, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I didn't realize—"
"Shush, honey it's okay." She said, wiping the tears from her daughter's eyes. "You don't have to keep blaming yourself. You have more courage than your father or Ziard ever had. Loving someone is one thing, but loving someone selflessly is what makes all the difference. And you showed that today."
"Are they okay?"
"Yes, sweetheart. They're all okay. And you will be too."
"What do you mean? Mom?" Her mother kissed Claudia's forehead and in a wisp of smoke, she was gone. "Mom! Mom, where are you?" Claudia reached out to grab her mother, but she was gone. She felt a gust of wind blow from behind her and when she looked up she saw the outline of a massive dragon. The sun radiating from behind it, its wings stretched out before tucking inwards.
Claudia choked on a gasp and the dragon stepped closer towards her. But, despite his massive size, Claudia didn't feel the need to run or hide. It was a strange mixture of both calm and frightened.
The outline of the dragon became more clear the longer Claudia stared back at him. She saw bright beams of light on his chest and head, forming the pattern she had seen many times in the night sky.
Before she could speak his name aloud the dragon sunk his claws into the ground, leaving very deep marks. Claudia felt a scorching pain in her chest, as though claws were tearing at her skin instead of the ground. The dragon scratched the ground again and Claudia fell to her knees as another row of claw marks scratched her. It hurt, yet there something oddly soothing about it. Like removing a thorn from one's finger or rubbing aloe over a deep wound. The stinging and throbbing were all part of the healing process.
This dragon was not safe... but, she could also tell... that he was good.
The scratches became light and she felt something beating against her chest. The dragon unleashed a mighty roar and it was then when she woke up.
Claudia gasped for air and the first face she saw was that of her worried brother, wearing his still torn and worn Katolis uniform, minus the armor.
"Claudia, it's okay. I'm here."
"Soren? Where... where am I?"
"We're still in the village. You passed out when you came down from the mountain."
Claudia's eyes squinted at the sunlight peering through the window. When she tried to sit up she felt a shockwave of pain and clenched her chest.
"Careful," Soren placed his hand behind her back for support.
Claudia noticed her arm and chest were covered in white bandages and she was wearing a plain white shirt with short sleeves. Her chest felt heavy but she could still feel and hear the beating of her heart.
"What happened?" She asked. Her memory was still a bit foggy. "The last thing I was remember was..." she gasped, "Was... was I—?"
"Don't think about that, right now," Soren said, trying his best to soothe her. Her eyes were wide with worry and confusion. A lot has happened in the past twenty-four hours, and he wasn't sure if Claudia was in the right state of mind to process all of the details if he told her.
"The important thing is that you're okay now." Soren cupped his sister's face, he looked as if he were on the brink of tears. Claudia decided not to ask any further questions. From the looks of it, her brother had been through enough already.
She heard the sound of children laughing from outside her window. Sure enough, a group of kids ran and played in the p snow that glistened in the sunlight like patches of diamond dust.
Wait, sunlight? Claudia thought. Looking up she was nearly blinded by the brightness. The mist that once shrouded the village was now gone. It wasn't a dream. Lamia had been defeated. The people were free at long last. Her efforts weren't for nothing after all.
"Are you hungry?" Soren asked.
Claudia felt her stomach rumble. "Maybe a little."
"I'll go bring you something. Don't go climbing any more mountains, okay."
Claudia chuckled and nodded. Once Soren left Claudia leaned her head back against the pillow and took in slow, deep breaths. Letting the revelations of everything that happened in the past twenty-four hours settle in. Something about the world around her seemed... different. And not just because the curse was lifted.
All of a sudden she noticed herself taking in every minor detail that she never would have noticed before. The scent of the medicine and herbs coming from the cabinets inside the infirmary she was in. The stench of Soren's morning breath when she woke up and the dried-up bloodstains that were edged on the surface of her skin. Even the scent of freshly baked bread and roasted duck coming from the houses nearby. It was almost as if she was experiencing being alive for the first time.
So many thoughts tangled up with one another she almost dismissed it all as nothing but a wild dream. But her mother... she was real. The visions of the past...
I gave you a second chance at life!
Claudia placed her hand over her heart. It sang to her, like a wordless song. Old and ancient yet familiar. She noticed something sparkle in the window. Focusing on it she saw her reflecting on the transparent glass and almost jumped at the sight of a lock of her hair now entirely white.
Just like Ziard's.
(~)
This wasn't the first time Rayla had woken up in a hospital bed. Thankfully this time she had all of her memories intact. As she sat upright she felt an ache in her chest. Like Claudia, she too was wrapped in bandages. Her wings were absent but she could manifest them at any time. It made laying in bed a lot easier. She carefully stretched the neckline of her shirt to see the bandage. She peeled it off, revealing it was completely healed. All that remained was the blue scar across her left side. Right above her heart.
Great Aunt Lujanne's quarters were fit for a queen. Or in her as, the aunt of a king. The older celestial dragon's room was surrounded by beautiful flowers and indoor trees where tiny wisps flittered freely, their natural light made the blue and aquamarine tones glow during any hour of the day. Princess Rhiannon stood before Lujanne's indoor garden, a small circled space that once was a fountain, now used by Lujanne to care for her 'children. Rhiannon held a flicker of blue fire in her right palm, her left hand shielding it from an invisible wind.
"Remember your intent," Lujanne instructed as she circled her niece, her heels clicking against the glass floor. "You control the flames. They do not control you."
Rhiannon cupped the fire with both hands. Once she was confident the flames were hot enough she blew into it as though she were blowing away flakes of snow into the open air. The fire dispersed into tiny particles which seeped into the soil, wrapping around the dormant seeds. The combination of the fire's warmth and nurturing embrace of earth magic made the seeds grow quicker, sprouting a collection of multicolored flowers. The decorative spiraling patterns on their petals gave off a very faint glow, the magic settling for a couple of moments before dimming. Rhiannon inhaled and exhaled slowly, straightening her posture and slightly tilting her chin up with pride.
"Beautifully done," Lujanne said. Her niece gracefully bowed her head.
"Yes. Wonderful use of your talents and your time." A voice spoke, punctured by sarcasm.
Rhiannon flinched. Her ears perked up like a cat's and her wings tucked inwards against her back, her slender tail curling around her ankles when the guest emerged from the fainted shadows of the nearby hall. The stained glass dorm above created specks of rainbow lights that bounced off of Lady Siveth's starlight hair.
"You're supposed to be teaching the princess how to harness her dragon flame and instead you're having her do lawn work."
"Well, my little darlings have been looking a tad dry lately and she does have a very delicate touch," Lujanne said, unmoved by her first niece's steely glare.
"Right, right, because that's what we want to think of when it comes to our future queen. Delicate."
Rhiannon found her courage and spoke, "Aunt Siveth, what's the big deal? I've been training all morning."
"Need I remind you, once again, of the potential threats we are currently facing, young lady?"
Nyx, who was lounging on a tree branch muttered, "Brace yourselves. Here comes the lecture."
Siveth growled at the SkyWing, baring her teeth. Nyx let out a tiny "eep!" sound and shifted into a raven and flew into the higher branches.
"Don't you think you're exaggerating?" Rhiannon said, "There haven't been any human threats lately."
"All the more reason to stay vigilant." Siveth said, clenching the hilt of the sword around her waist, "The last time we were overconfident we lost a very close friend and Xadia lost one of its leaders."
Both Rhiannon and Lujanne dropped their heads in respect to the fallen Magma Titan king, Sol Regan. Rhiannon was only a child when it happened so she didn't understand the weight of the loss back then. She had only ever met the king once so her memories of him were very vague and short. Though she had heard a lot of stories about his exploits. Stories were her way of understanding the history and soul of her world, both Xadia and the lands beyond it.
Siveth's eyes seemed to soften as she continued, "I'm only trying to prepare you for what's to come, Rhiannon. Tir Na Nog is our last stronghold in the break of a full-blown human attack, and you are its heir. You'll eighteen soon, you can't risk slacking off."
Rhiannon bowed her head, tucking her hands behind her back. "Yes, Aunt Siveth." She said somberly.
Siveth sighed. She knew she was being a bit harsh. Her impulsiveness was one of her most stubborn flaws. Though with that impulsiveness also came self-awareness.
"One more hour," she said. A tiny smile tugged on her face when her niece's eyes lit up. "But then it's back to the training hall." She flipped her hair from her shoulder and walked out of the room. Rhiannon allowed herself to breathe normally again and loosen her stiff muscles.
Nyx shifted back into her Dragonoid form, sitting back on the branch as though it were a lounge chair, nestling her elbow on her knee. "Is it just me or does she seem... bossier than normal?"
Lujanne tucked a strand of hair behind Rhiannon's flickering ear. "Don't be too hard on her, Stardust. You know how she gets when she doesn't have her mid-morning ambrosia cakes."
"I just wish she would get off my back!" Rhiannon exclaimed, stomping her way towards one of her great-aunt's indoor fountains. The sound of the trickling waters cooled down her temper.
The princess normally detested being near or in water, but the sparkling liquid that naturally came from the Andromeda lake of Tir Na Nog outside of Lujanne's tower was an exception. The water shined like silver, nurturing the plants and animals. Tiny fish swam in the fountain, some flipping out and traveling down the artificial waterfall which went from the open window down to the lake below. Unicorns and Pegasi sipped the liquid while the castle staff of undines, dryads, fauns, kitsunes, and centaurs tended the gardens and harvested the gold and silver apples.
Tir Na Nog resided in the very heart of Xadia, surrounded by a body of freshwater only accessible through boats and canoes with a magical natural mist that formed around its borders. It resided in between the seven highest mountains in Xadia, close to where one could see the sun rising to the east and the moon setting to the west. Faeries of all kinds from all of the five kingdoms lived there, surrounded by trees of silver that grew the juiciest gold and silver apples, and where one could see the stars no matter what time of day it was. Rainbows arched over waterfalls and the air always smelled of lavender.
"I train my butt off every day and she still treats me like a hatchling!" Rhiannon complained, "I don't see her giving the younger guards a hard time."
Nyx gave a casual shrug before taking a bite out of one of the golden apples from the tree she was sitting on. "True." She said while chewing. "Though, to be fair none of them are the crown princess." She wiped the apple juice from her mouth with her wrist.
"Nobody asked you, Naimi." Rhiannon said with an annoyed scoff. Nyx hissed in response.
Lujanne has Rhiannon's shoulder a firm but compassionate squeeze."But she is right. You know the world holds you to a higher standard."
Rhiannon sighed, tucking her fingers into the water and letting the tiny fish suck on her fingers, "I wish they didn't."
Lujanne chuckled. "Ah, there it is. The "Princess life is so hard and boring and I want to have fun!" phase. I remember when I went through it. Did some crazy things. Though, we don't talk about them."
"Thank you, Lady—J!" Nyx said, giving the elder dragon a salute. The less she knew about the old dragon's teenage life the better.
"It's not that!" Rhiannon laughed and shook her head, pulling her hand from the fountain and drying it against her leg. "It's just, I don't know if I want to continue all of this fighting."
Nyx rolled her eyes."Oh, boy. Here we go again." She whispered before taking another bite of her apple.
"I mean, all every other ruler before me has done is hold up the fort and only attack when necessary. But nothing ever changes. If anything, things seem to be getting worse. People are still living in constant fear and tensions between us and the human kingdoms isn't improving anytime soon."
Lujanne stroked her chin. "I see. You don't want to keep repeating the same pattern as your predecessors. A very noble ambition."
"More like a delusional one," Nyx muttered, earning a glare from the princess. "What? You think you can reason with the humans? Good luck. Braver dragons than you have tried, Princess. All it's ever done was have their heads mounted onto a wall."
"So am I just supposed to stay cooped up in this castle while my people live in fear for the rest of their lives? That's no way to live."
"Sweetheart, we've been living like this for generations. It's just the way the world is. You learn to live with it." Nyx tossed the apple core to the window and turned around, curling in her wings for her afternoon nap.
Rhiannon turned to her aunt. "Aunt Lujanne, you're the sage of Tir Na Nog. Isn't there some way that we can...?" Rhiannon couldn't think of a way to finish that question.
Lujanne regretfully shook her head. Her normal, vibrant aura being snuffed out like a worn-out flame.
"You know my powers don't work that way, Rhiannon. I'm not a fortune-teller. I might be able to see things that are to come, but it must always be by Draco's will, not my own."
Rhiannon should have expected as much. Not even the great Draco himself could give her a direct answer. She had been told her entire life that His time was not her own. But how long must she wait? Sensing her grief, Lujanne lifted the princess's chin. The elder dragon smiled, her eyes sparkling like starlight and her dimples defined.
Rhiannon heard the sound of children laughing. A group of little dragons were playing war games, where one was the human and the other was the dragon hero. Sure, they looked fun now, but war was not a game, nor did it end with everyone laughing and sharing snacks.
"I just wish things could change."
"Well, how would you change things? How would you go about breaking the cycle?"
Rhiannon stared at herself in the reflective waters. Her image was partly distorted by the fish swimming about. This was a question she was often asked whenever the topic was brought up, and she blushed in humiliation because she could never give a confident answer. She heard stories about the DragonHeart prophecy, but very few dragons and faeries believed in it nowadays. And she had little proof that it was outside of a few scrolls and old books. For all she knew, it could have been written down by some hopeful poet dreaming of a better future. She ultimately decided that if she wanted a better future she would need to go out there and make it happen. The only problem was...
"I... I don't know." There it was. The same answer seemed to just pop into her head the second the question was asked. Her ears flickered in irritation. What kind of queen could she be if she didn't even know how to end a war? How could she know if this war could even end?
Lujanne hummed in understanding and pulled her niece close, soothing her worries by softly stroking her hair. "Even if I could tell you every detail, some futures aren't set in stone. Your choices have a say in what you become. It's all a matter of making the right ones."
"How will I know which are the right ones?"
"Whenever you feel in doubt, just look up. Always keep looking up."
It would take a chance encounter and a bump on the head before Rhiannon would finally have an answer to that age-old question. The sound of children—human children, no different from dragon children—laughing and playing alongside their parents was the kind of future she wanted to see. This was how they could end the war. This right here was the answer she had been trying to find.
The door opened and Rayla's eyes lit up when she saw it was Callum, holding a plate of smoked sausages, almost scorched. Her favorite.
"Hey." Callum greeted.
"Hey."
Callum put the plate on the table and sat on the corner of the bed. "How are you feeling?"
Rayla tugged on his scarf and pulled him in for a kiss. Callum quickly melted into it and pulled her close, her fingers ruffling the hairs at the nape of his neck. It was this dorky human prince with faerie blood who helped her realize that she wasn't a traitor to her kind for having sympathy towards humans. Knowing him made her realize they weren't so different after all, and that they were a lot stronger together than they ever were apart. That a world that once seemed so far could be possible.
After their lips parted their foreheads met. "So, pretty good?" Callum said.
Rayla laughed. "You're cute." She was startled by the sound of children laughing. By her window she noticed that Ezran, of all people, was happily chatting with the kids, offering the younger ones a ride on Zym's back while one very hyperactive little girl kept squeezing Bait as if he were a glowing, scaly teddy bear.
"The whole village is celebrating," Callum said.
"They should." Rayla said, "How's Claudia?"
"Soren said she woke up. He's bringing her breakfast."
Rayla sighed in relief but she could feel his curious eyes zeroing in on the place where she was bandaged before. She could already hear his sweet voice asking the question that was no doubt buzzing around in his head ever since they came down from the mountain.
"What exactly did you do? Claudia was..." Callum stopped. He has the will to say the word aloud. Claudia was dead in his arms and she just miraculously came back to life, but only after Rayla had deliberately cut herself. His skin crawled at the sight of the woman he loved being in such pain, yet she pushed through it all to save the life of their best friend. But the moment Claudia opened her eyes again, Callum could see the pain disappear from Rayla's eyes.
"Callum," Rayla began, "Do you remember the story of Ziard?"
"The first dark mage? Yeah, Claudia's mentioned him a couple of times before. Why?" He conveniently left out the part that he killed one of Rayla's ancestors in cold blood.
"Well, there's... a little more to the story than you think."
Callum's brows knitted together curiously. He listened attentively as she explained.
"In the isle of Tir Na Nog, there is a great library. One that stores all the secrets and events of Xadia's past. One day, I guess I was feeling extremely curious or I was just bored, I snuck in and started reading the ancient scrolls. I stumbled upon the ones dating back to antiquity. I was told stories about Ziard and how his dark magic divided the world. But what I didn't know was that he was once a friend of King Aragon, my ancestor."
Callum's eyes widened at this news, his mouth partly opening in surprise but he kept his silence, allowing Rayla to continue.
"Together they were in the process of building a grand city called Elarion. It was supposed to be a shining beacon of unity and progress amongst humans and faeries. But one day, Ziard injured himself very badly and was on the brink of death. Healers from all around tried their best but there was nothing they could do. Aragon refused to let his best friend die, so he did the only thing he could do to save him."
Rayla pressed her palm against her heart. When she spoke again, for a moment Callum could have sworn he could hear thousands of years of past dragons speaking in unison with Rayla, their voices echoing through time and space as she recited an ancient phrase.
"Leath mo chroí, chun tú a dhéanamh slán,"
"What does that mean?" Callum asked.
"In the ancient Xadian language it means Half of my heart... to make you whole." She said. Callum gasped. "By sharing a dragon heart they were forever bound to one another. But what Aragon didn't realize was that Ziard had long since grown envious of dragons and their magic. He started to believe humans were lesser beings, by comparison, nothing more than pets. With half of Aragon's magic now within him, it didn't take long for Ziard to realize that by absorbing the magic from others he could gain access to their magic just as he did with Aragon's."
"That's how he discovered dark magic," Callum concluded, stunned still. What was supposed to be an act of selfless love was contorted into something vicious and greedy. It was, un-ironically... heartbreaking.
Rayla continued, "He managed to gather a small but very devoted group of followers who believed in his cause and confronted Aragon. Ziard claimed the dragon king hid the secrets of magic from humans all to keep them under his control. Aragon tried to reason with Ziard, but he refused to return home with him. With his dark magic, Ziard took what was left of Aragon's heart by force and destroyed him. Queen Mairead said she would spare humanity so long as they left Xadia forever. Elarion was the first city to be destroyed once the war started."
Callum was silent, absorbing everything Rayla just told him. He already knew the meat of the story, of Ziard and his war against the dragons but... he had no idea that he and the dragon king were once friends. Or that dark magic was born because a dragon was merely trying to save his dying friend. That was the part that gave Callum a long pause.
"I don't believe it," Callum said, choking on his words. "How could Ziard do that to his friend?"
"I've been asking myself that for years," Rayla said. "The heart of a celestial dragon is the most powerful thing in the world. By itself, it can hold tremendous power. For good or for evil. Only those of royal bloodline can share half of their heart with another. But it hasn't been done it in centuries."
"Until..." Callum looked at her, eyes wide when it all clicked in his brain. Rayla nodded.
(~)
Claudia heaved as she wet her face on the sink. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, unable to look away from the white streak in her hair. The plate of food Soren had left her was untouched. Claudia tugged on the silver streak. It felt so different compared with the rest of her hair. As though a part of her was now a part of somebody else. She wondered if Rayla was experiencing the same feeling. She looked at her trembling wet hands, her fingers already getting pruny. Her vision was a bit blurry and when she blinked for a moment she thought she saw Callum, reaching for her hand. Claudia gasped and backed away. She blinked again and saw her own reflection.
(~)
"Rayla, what's wrong?" Callum asked. For a moment, Rayla's eyes turned green and in her mind's eye, she saw the face of a frightened Claudia. The image disappeared after she blinked.
"Oh, no."
"What is it?" Callum asked. Rayla pulled the covers off of her and hurried out the door. Her legs were still asleep and she nearly tripped when she reached the hall. Callum rushed to her side and helped her stand up straight. She pointed forward and Callum let her lead, walking by her side as support in case she fell again.
When they reached Claudia's door, Rayla didn't bother to knock. The mage and dragon princes stared at each other in stunned silence. Reading the tension in the room, Callum told Rayla he'd wait outside and closed the door behind him. The two girls had a lot to talk about.
Claudia was scared, Rayla could feel it. The silver streak in her hair was shimmering.
"Claudia, just calm down."
"Rayla... please don't tell me you..."
Rayla was silent before giving a small nod. "It was the only way I could save you."
Claudia didn't say anything. Her eyes searched the room until she stopped at a knife on her plate. Rayla followed the mage's gaze.
"Claudia, don't!"
Claudia ignored her and reached for the knife. Rayla froze when Claudia kneeled before her, offering the knife.
"Please. Take it back." Claudia's hand trembled and her legs gave way to the weight of her grief. She hung her head and she didn't even have the strength to hold up the knife. The metal made a clanging sound when it touched the floor. "I don't deserve it."
Rayla gently shook her head, "No, Claudia. Don't say that." she kneeled in front of her friend and pulled her into a hug, permitting Claudia to cry on her shoulder. Her arms were limp on her sides.
"I know why you've been acting weird lately." Rayla said, surprising Claudia, "Why you haven't slept. And you're wrong. I wouldn't have held it against you, and neither would have Callum."
Claudia knew what Rayla was talking about. About the shadow that kept plaguing her every thought, awake or asleep.
"You have to put that behind you, Clauds."
Claudia shook her head, her vision blinded by the tears. "I can't. No matter what I do I can still see her."
"Can you see her now?"
Claudia paused. She closed her eyes and waited for her shadow self to appear. To manifest and start breathing down her neck, whispering lies into her ears, her shinny black eyes staring gleefully as she watched Claudia slowly go mad.
She never appeared. The only shadow Claudia could see was her own, stretched out on the floor hugging Rayla's. Claudia raised her hand and the shadow mimicked her. It was just a shadow. Not a demon haunting her. The demon was gone. She was finally gone.
Her crying sedated and despite her stuffy nose, Claudia breathed in the cold air of the room, mixing with the spices, the heat of the eggs on her plate, and the sound of children laughing outside. The world seemed to grow brighter, more alive than ever before. And... she felt as if a heavyweight was lifted off of her. She remembered the dragon from her dream, the way its claws seemed to strip away every ache, every wound... everything she felt ashamed of.
You don't have to keep blaming yourself. Her mother's words echoed in her head. You have more courage than your father or Ziard ever had.
Claudia finally found the feeling in her arms and hugged Rayla back. "I'm sorry. I was so scared that I'd..."
"It's okay. It's over."
Claudia wiped her tears and exhaled a heavy, long sigh. "But, are you sure about this?" her hand rested on her chest, feeling to the pulse against her palm. "The last time a dragon shared their heart with someone it—"
"That only happened because Ziard was already turning to darkness by the time Aragon shared his heart. But every time you were tempted you turned away."
"But I wasn't always like that. I keep wondering if things had been different if you guys were never... that maybe I could have... I could have turned out..."
"It doesn't matter who you used to be. When I first came to Katolis my original plan was to take revenge for my father. If I can be forgiven for my mistakes you can too. I just wish you had told us what was going on from the start. Maybe then you wouldn't have gotten so loony in the head."
Claudia couldn't help but laugh at Rayla's snarky quip and she rubbed the tears from her eyes with her palm.
"You never have to deal with this of stuff alone, Claudia. You're my best friend, and starting today... we're sisters."
Claudia sobbed again, but this time they were tears of joy and relief. Rayla didn't need to do the things she did, neither for Claudia herself, for Harrow, or any human. Yet, she chose to anyway. She choose to love instead of hate and now, because of that love, Claudia was free. Both of the dark magic bondage and from Ziard and her father's mistakes.
She was finally free.
Claudia hugged Rayla tight. Her friend. Her sister. "Thank you." Her eyes flew open and she backed away, "Wait! Does this mean I'm gonna start growing scales and breath fire?"
Rayla shook her head and flickered her wrist. "Nah, you're good. Thought ya might grow a sixth toe,"
"What?!"
"Kidding!" Rayla laughed.
"Aww. That would have been cool. At least I've got this cute new skunk stripe," Claudia said, tugging on the silver strand of hair and compared it to Rayla's. "Twinsies!"
The door opened and Callum poked his head. Evie was curled around his shoulder. "Hey. Everything good in here?"
"Yeah, we're good," Rayla said as she got up from the floor and offered her hand to Claudia, pulling her up.
Claudia opened her arms, "Get in here, Sparky!"
Callum laughed in relief and rushed in to hug her. A few tears and sobs escaped him but he didn't care. He was just so happy to have her here, alive and well. "If you ever scare me like that again I will hunt you down and end you myself!"
"Awwww! Love you too, Cal." her beloved snake sprite fluttered above her head and peppered her with snake kisses. "Evie! Good girl, give mommy some kisses!"
Ezran entered the room and giggled with glee as he rushed to join in the celebration. The three teenagers and young future king laughed and hugged, even Bait was grinning from ear to ear. Zym galloped and pranced around them. Soren and Nyx were the last two to walk in.
"Are we having a party in here?" Soren asked. Claudia laughed and pulled her brother in for a great big bear hug. He noticed she was a lot stronger than normal, any tighter and she could probably crack a rib. But he didn't care. His little sister was up and about again, but best of all, she was alive.
After Callum had explained what happened Soren almost felt as if his own heart would fail him. When he saw that Claudia was breathing, albeit unconscious when they arrived, laid on the back of a dragon Soren was understandably startled and instinctively reached for his sword at the sight of the beast, but one good look into her lavender eyes and he knew this was his dear friend Rayla. He should have guessed as much when Callum jumped in front of him, wings spread out in an attempt to shield the dragon from the knight's blade.
He made a mental note to talk about that latter. Right now, he relished having his sister in his arms.
Nyx leaned against the doorframe, smiling. "Welcome back, Midnight."
(~)
After breakfast, a nurse came in to check on Claudia. She carefully removed the bandages and was stunned to see that the wound was completely healed. Not a sight of blood, or any infections to be seen. The medicine they had wasn't anywhere near miracle elixirs if there were such things, but the girl's cut was perfectly clean. The only thing out of place was that the straight scar across her heart was a deep blue, resembling more of a tattoo than an actual wound.
The nurse checked Claudia's temperature and her pulse. "Looks like you've made a full recovery. You're as healthy as a horse."
"Thank you," Claudia said, pulling her sleeve over her shoulder once the nurse was done inspecting her. She studied her new mark. She couldn't believe that Rayla had willingly tortured herself to save her. Ziard might have mistreated his gift, but she made a vow never to do that.
"We managed to get most of the bloodstains out of your clothes," said the nurse, gathering a folded mold of black and gave it to Claudia. The mage froze as she stared at her attire. It smelled great, like soap and clean water and the blackness helped in hiding what was left of the bloodstains. Claudia felt there was something ironically tragic behind that statement.
"Is something wrong?" The nurse asked worriedly.
"No, no. It's just..." Claudia wasn't sure how to word it. What could she say without sounding rude? Looking at her clothes now they almost looked as if they wouldn't fit her anymore. Size-wise, sure but personality-wise... not really. She used to love black because she was told it emphasizes strength and confidence, plus it was very slimming. Now, she would give anything for a bit of color. Evie fluttered beside her shoulder, hissing in concern.
"I used to wear this back in Katolis," Claudia said.
"Katolis?"
"My father was the high mage."
"Oh," the nurse replied. She should have known. This attire was what dark mages normally wore and this poor girl barely escaped one with her life. "Wait here." The nurse hurried out and returned a few minutes later with a rectangle-shaped box and placed it next to Claudia's bed. Inside were neatly folded clothes. Judging by the attire, they were meant to be worn by young women. "These clothes have been gathering dust for ages. I've grown much too big for them and the attire isn't suited for this climate anyways."
Claudia poked around the clothes until she found one that caught her eye. It was a very old shirt, with one sleeve torn off and the other barely hanging on. It wasn't the fanciest thing she had ever seen but the color was what drew her in. She also noticed a purple vest over a white shirt with puffy sleeves. Its color-coordinated was very lovely with the green shirt.
"Thank you."
"No, thank you. Because you and your friends our children can finally look forward to a new day."
Claudia's eyes burned with tears. She could still hear the children laughing outside her window. All her life her father would say that humanity needed to be strong and unyielding in the face of imposing threats. But, maybe there was far more strength in kindness than there ever was in just fighting.
(~)
Ezran was more than happy to share Zym with the village kids. They each took turns riding on the alicorn, though due to his young age he could only carry one child at a time. Callum was impressed with how Ezran was handling the unruly kids, who couldn't have been any younger than he was.
"Okay, one at a time. Remember, Zym is still a baby. He can only carry one of you at a time. And don't kick his sides too much, okay. It throws him off balance."
Callum watched wholesomely as he captured the moment in his sketchbook. Nyx hovered over his shoulder. The prince sat on the third stair which led to the doors of the infirmary, while Nyx was leaning casually against the wall. She was just relieved to be out in all of her dragon glory and not have an angry mob come after her. It felt a bit... unsettling being surrounded by so many humans not eager to slay her. She kept looking over her shoulder just to make sure some random stranger wasn't looking at her funny.
"Nyx, will you relax," Callum said, looking up at his fellow sky elemental. "Look around, you see anyone around here ready to cage a dragon?"
Nope. All she saw were a bunch of sugary, happy smiles. "Sorry if I'm not used to being out in the open with a bunch of humans just casually walking by. I'm still getting used to being around you blokes."
Callum rolled his eyes. "You know, you don't have to keep pretending that you don't like us. We already like you just fine."
Nyx blew a raspberry from the corner of her mouth, folding her arms, and shrunk her head into her risen shoulders. This guy could be just as intuitive as the princess. Only, unlike her, she understood a little something called 'personal boundaries' but this kid? It was like he made it his mission to try and reach out to people. With the princess, Midnight, Blondie, and herself. It was annoying... but, she had to admit, it was kind of nice to know that they didn't mind tolerating her. Not that she would ever admit it out loud.
"Yeah well... j—just keep playing with your doodles, or whatever it is you do."
Callum causally shrugged, smiling knowingly. He darkened one of the lines of his new drawing, adding the details of the patterns on Ezran's shirt until he heard his girlfriend's happy voice.
"And how are you feeling today, good-looking?"
Callum blushed but then adjusted his messy bangs, trying to emulate some semblance of boyish charm, "Better now that you're—" Callum's enthusiasm was squashed once he realized to whom she was referring. His brows narrowed, forming a straight line below his forehead. "—you're talking to your tail. Wait! You're tail?!"
Rayla giggled at her bait-and-switch joke. Indeed, she was referring to her tail and used Callum's hidden ego to her advantage. Callum was a nice guy, but she knew more than he led on half of the time. She jumped over the stairs Callum was sitting on, her wings, horns and yes her tail, were in full display. The nurses were kind enough to trim and sow up the torn bits of her once long sleeves and she was now sporting a pair of twin cuffs around her wrists.
"What do you think? I should warn you, I haven't exactly been keeping schedule with my usual wing-ups so they might be a little on the hefty side." Rayla flapped her wings a couple of times to showcase this. For Callum, they looked the same as they always did. Beautiful and strong, just like her.
Callum scoffed and flicked his wrist, "Please. You look every bit as beautiful as the day I meet you."
Rayla blushed, adorably tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear. "Awww! That was so corny but also really sweet so I don't have the heart to make fun of it."
Nyx stuck out her tongue and she could feel the food she ate that morning making a comeback up her throat.
"And now that I have my full powers back I can finally do this,"
Callum screamed when he felt something tie around his ankle, pull him forward, flip him in the air, and land flat on his back, all in a couple of seconds. Callum blinked in surprise, blowing his bangs away from his line of vision. Rayla towered over him, smiling cockily as her tail flicked.
"Sweep the leg! With no hands." Rayla did cute little 'Jazz hands' at Callum's face. No wonder she was so happy to have her tail again. That wing was as strong as a whip and twice as fast.
"If I weren't weirdly attracted to you right now I'd be kinda mad," Callum said, raising a coy eyebrow which made Rayla giggle. That was the final straw for Nyx,
"Ugh! That's it, I'm out!" Nyx turned around to make her exit but was blocked by a pair of broad shoulders and chest. "Oh, sorry I—B-Blondie?" She stepped back and blinked a couple of times to make sure she wasn't seeing things.
Ezran finished giving another kid a ride on Zym and he, Calum, and Rayla turned their attention towards Soren. He had traded his torn-ups, armor-less uniform for a hat that appeared to be a lain white shirt underneath a blue long sleeves vest with a high collar, black belt with an iron buckle, gray-brown pants, black boots, and matching black gloves. He no longer looked like a young knight of Katolis but instead a dashing adventure.
Nyx quickly stepped back, trying not to be too quick, and prayed to the stars that no day noticed the tiny 'eep" sound that slipped out of her lips as she tried not to stare at Soren's new look.
"Soren? I didn't know you went shopping," Callum said, feeling a tiny bit insulted he wasn't invited. After traveling in the dirt and mud for days, they all finally got a good shower and home-cooked meals, courtesy of the villagers' generosity. So a day of searching for new clothes would have been nice too.
"Oh, Sean gave me some of his old clothes," Soren said, nervously scratching the back of his neck. He felt always naked without his uniform. Losing the armor was tragic enough. "Does it look that bad? I didn't say anything cause I didn't wanna be rude."
"Are you kiddin'?" Rayla said, puncturing the last word with a scoff. "You've never looked snazzier."
"Or cleaner," Callum said, nodding in agreement.
Ezran formed a square shape with his fingers and looked through the hole, curling Soren to get a good look at the different angles. "Yeah, doesn't he look good, Bait?"
Bait just croaked nonchalantly.
"Um, thanks, Bait. I think." Soren then noticed Nyx was trying to look at anywhere but him. "Nyx? What do you think?" Not even Soren could believe he was asking her, but a part of him did want to hear what she thought.
Nyx sucked in her lips. What was she supposed to say? She couldn't say he looked hot, the others would never let her live it down. And if she told him... oh, boy.
"It's... nice." She said, trying and failing to stop her voice from cracking. "Like the frog said,"
"Since when can you speak glow toad?" Ezran asked, tilting his head innocently.
Rayla stepped closer to Soren and hid the left corner of her mouth with her palm, as though she were about to tell him a secret, "Trust me, coming from Nyx that is huge praise."
"Stop telling people what I mean!" Nyx hissed and growled with her claws sprouting out and her wing feathers ruffling. The blush on her face was undeniable.
"Wow. Thanks, Nyx." Soren said, but what surprised Ezran and Callum the most was that Soren was... shy when he said it. He scratched the back of his neck, his eyes looking at his feet, toes shuffling the snow, and he was blushing! Callum had never seen Soren blush like that, not even when he was around Rayla. It was like all of the blood was rushing to his face. The cherry on top was watching him trying so hard to keep his tiny smile from growing any bigger.
Nyx straightened her posture, swallowing a tiny gulp. "Yeah, sure. Whatever." She glanced at him and she could feel her lips slightly curling up into a smile. Soren smiled back.
"What I miss?" Claudia stepped out of the infirmary, with her satchel and Evie on her shoulder. Everyone else gasped at the mage's wardrobe change. She was now wearing the sleeveless green shirt and purple vest the kindly nurse gifted her and a pair of black bellow the shoulder gloves with the fingers cut off, proudly showcasing her purple manicure. The only thing that didn't change were her pants, belt, and boots. Another added touch, other than her new skunk stripe, was that the green leaf-shaped eyeshadow.
"What?"
"Did everybody go shopping for new clothes and not invite me?" Callum exclaimed, dropping and dangling his arms to his sides in disappointment. Rayla playfully rolled her eyes and patted her boyfriend on the head.
"Oh, one of the nurses had some old clothes lying around. I've been meaning to upgrade my wardrobe anyway. The raven feather shoulder pads are sooo three seasons ago. Do you guys like it?"
"You look great, Clauds." Rayla said. The green and purple coloring suited her friend well.
"Yeah," Callum nodded in agreement. "Where'd you get the eyeshadow?"
"I found some crumpled-up leaf powder stuffed at the bottom of my bag, added a few sprits of cold water."
"Nice." The couple said in unison. Leave to Claudia to add some flair to her clothing. This is the same girl who dyed her tips purple.
"Thanks." Claudia then gasped when she saw her brother. "Oh. My. Gosh! Soren, what—how did—you look... not stupid!"
Soren's eyes narrowed and his shoulders hunched. "And she's back." Claudia laughed it off and ran up to her brother, nearly tackling him with a hug. Soren shrugged off his annoyance and hugged her back, as tight as he could but also careful since she just bit out of the infirmary.
Ezran hugged Claudia's waist and she got down on her knees to give the young prince a proper embrace. Nyx stayed in her spot, smiling softly at the little reunion. Her feathers stood on end when Claudia turned to her, as though expecting a hug as well.
"What? What are you looking at me for?"
"I just wanted to say thanks," Claudia said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
"For what?"
"I don't know if it was from the poison or the high altitude, but I kind of remember you watching over my frail body saying "Everything's going to be okay" in a very concerned voice."
"Don't forget she also cried!" Callum said, cupping his hand around his mouth to amplify his statement.
"Shut up!" Nyx hissed, then turned to Claudia's hopeful eyes. Nyx's two-colored eyes briefly shifted towards Soren, who smiled warmly. Wordlessly saying his thanks for caring for his baby sister. Knowing that there was no escaping it, Nyx gave in. She groaned in exhaustion.
"If I let you hug me will you quit being weird?" The SkyWing froze when the mage just attacked her with her friendship hug.
"No promises!" Claudia said with a squeal.
Nyx could see her claws begging to come out as her half-clenching hands hovered above the human's back. Nyx sighed, releasing her pent-up annoyance, and returned the hug. A soft smile on her face.
The rest of the group, mainly Callum Rayla, Ezran, Zym, and Bait all went, "Awwwww!"
"Shut. Up."
(~)
Leath mo chroí, chun tú a dhéanamh slán, Is supposed to be Gaelic. I say "supposed" because I used Google translate so please, feel free to correct me. Thank you.
In case it wasn't obvious by now, my faith is an integral part of who I am and my stories, which are extensions of myself, reflect that. Ever since I first saw The Chronicles of Narnia (I actually saw the movies before the books) and learned more about C.S. Lewis and his journey it cemented my journey as a storyteller. I always loved stories but Christ is the center of everything I write and imagine. Every single one of my stories is a tribute to Him and what He did for me, for all of us, on the cross.
Thank you all for supporting this story and may you all have a very Happy Easter and Passover.
1 Peter 1:3:
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."