Fourteen years ago.
Hana Kang stepped out of her "anxiety room." She had ran into it when the moon started to glow. She had been reading a book by the candlelight when she began to hear screaming. She looked outside to see only a bit of the moon. It was glowing. She felt something unnatural wash over her. Like an anxiety attack but worse. She felt cold, and her back began to hurt. She instinctively ran into her "anxiety room." A closet with no windows, and one door, which had a lock on it.
Hana sat in the dark room alone. She heard the screaming continue. Her house began to shake. She was frozen in fear. She was worried about her father, mother, and brother, Hyun-Ki. But she couldn't move. The screaming was getting louder. It sounded like the whole city was let"ting out a cry. Her house shook again, and this time she felt an enormous crash. So loud it shook the entire house. Hana had to stop herself from falling off the chair.
The screaming continued, but another sound started appearing. Something inhuman. A roar that sounded like an animal. The shaking continued.
Hana began to cry. She had no idea what was going on, and her anxiety only kept getting worse. Something was coming. Coming for her. There was nowhere safe anymore. The world was ending. Was this it? The rapture? Was she going to live? Would her family live?
The screaming was slowly but surely replaced entirely by the roars. Hana heard something flap outside her window. The shaking continued, but the screaming stopped. And then slowly… the shaking stopped too. The animal roaring continued.
Hana waited. Five minutes. Ten minutes. Fifteen minutes. She steeled herself and opened the door to the "anxiety room." Her room still looked the same. The candle was still lit. The book she was reading was still face down on the ground where she dropped it. She looked out the window. The moon had stopped glowing.
Suddenly, something large flew by her window. Hana fell backward in surprise, bumping into the wall behind her. What the hell was that? Another roar sounded, this time it was closer.
Hana ran to the staircase downstairs, but she stopped when she saw her brother's room. A massive hole was in it. His bed was gone, and there were scorch marks all around the room. Hyun-Ki was nowhere to be seen.
"HYUN-KI!?" Hana called out. No response. She ran down the stairs to try and find her parents. All she found was that the downstairs rooms were the same situation. Massive holes and scorch marks. Her mother and father were nowhere to be seen. Another roar sounded.
Hana ran to the door and opened it. Outside was a scene out of Hana's nightmares. Giant creatures with wings and tails were flying around, roaring. Hana couldn't see a single person. Only the… Dragons. Hana realized. Dragons were here.
Where had they come from? Had they killed everybody? What happened? Hana ran back into her house. "This is crazy this is crazy this is crazy…" She muttered. She ran up to her parent's room and threw open a drawer. She grabbed the rifle her father owned and loaded it. Another nearby roar sounded, this time, coming from her brother's room.
Hana crept towards the room, and waited outside the door. She heard movement from inside the room. "Hyun-Ki?" She called out. The room fell silent. Hana stepped into the doorway and jumped backward when she saw the orange dragon peering into the room through the massive hole. It had slightly curved horns and large wings. Hana aimed the gun and was about to fire when she noticed that the dragon was staring at her. It stayed in the air, examining the creature in front of it.
"C-can you talk?" Hana asked, her voice trembling. "Can y-you speak Jeoul?" The dragon kept staring at her. Hana looked into its eyes. They looked so familiar. Like she knew this thing, or had seen it before. She began racking her brain, wondering where she could have possibly seen it before. It remained staring. "D-do you know where Hyun-Ki is?" Hana asked it.
The dragon suddenly began roaring loudly, and snapping at Hana. She fired the gun at its head, but missed. The recoil sent her backwards a bit. She had never fired a gun before.
The dragon kept snapping, but couldn't reach Hana. Hana was frozen in fear. The orange dragon stopped roaring, and resumed just staring at her. It didn't do anything. Hana took a step towards it.
The dragon blasted fire towards Hana. She was engulfed in it. She fell to the ground, the flames burning away everything around her, including her. She felt her skin burning, her lungs began to burn. Her mouth felt like it was gone. The dragon snapped towards her again, and this time, caught her feet in between its teeth.
Hana was dragged out, still burning. The dragon flapped his wings and put out the flames, and then bent down with its giant reptilian face and took a bite.
. . .
"Swordfish. Hey! Swordfish!"
Swordfish looked up at Barley. He had started to tire and was beginning to dip downward in the sky. It was night now, and the Camaelists had been flying since Camael gave the order to attack Paisland. Swordfish hadn't gone through the military training that the others had, so he was beginning to falter earlier than them.
"Are you okay?" Barley asked. "Yeah… I'm fine." Swordfish said, bringing himself up to Barley's height. "I'm just… tired that's all." Swordfish found it interesting how Barley and some of the other Camaelists appeared as nice dragons. Maybe they were, they just believed humanity needed to be destroyed. Maybe some dragons, like Barley, could switch sides.
No. That's wishful thinking. Swordfish told himself. You can't go around thinking like that. The world isn't as good and full of hope like the stories and scrolls say it is.
Suddenly, a Grasswing flew ahead to the front of the troops. "THERE'S AN INJURED DRAGONET!" She yelled. Some dragons who looked like medics followed the Grasswing towards the back of the large group of dragons. Swordfish watched the medics go to the back, and then resumed his tiresome flying.
Swordfish was beginning to wonder how he and Blizzard were going to get out of this situation, when Blizzard came flying up to him. "Swordfish." She whispered. "It's Vine. She's here." Swordfish looked at Blizzard. "Where?" He asked urgently. "She's the injured dragonet." Blizzard responded.
Swordfish followed Blizzard back to the dragonet the medics were helping. It was Vine. She had a bandage wrapped around her head, covering her eye. The spot where her eye had been was bloodstained. She saw Swordfish and Blizzard and gave a weak smile.
"Alright Vine, where did you come from?" One of the medics asked. "I… was attacked by a human… I managed to kill her but she took… out my… eye." Vine said in a trembling voice. "Okay, maybe someone should escort you back." Said the Icewing medic. "No!" Vine said loudly. "I mean… uh… I want to see Paisland. I've always wanted to go." Swordfish was impressed at Vine's ability to lie like this.
"Well… if you really want to go we can give you some Parashaki." Said the Icewing. "What's that?" Vine asked weakly. "A stimulant of sorts. Found in the more southern countries. It was originally used to cure poisoned plants." The medic reached into her bag and withdrew a bottle of green liquid. "Hey Fateweaver, could you heat up this Parashaki?" Asked the Icewing to a nearby Nightwing. Fateweaver flew down and grabbed a branch off of a nearby tree. He came back up and set the end of the branch on fire, and stuck it inside the bottle of Parashaki. The liquid began bubbling and the Icewing put it underneath Vine's face.
The bottle released a green gas that enveloped Vine's face. She began coughing. "It should relieve the pain as well as give you a 'high' that will allow you to get to Paisland." Said the Icewing. "I don't know why you want to go there so badly, it's really nothing special. I don't know why Camael is ordering such a large-scale attack."
Swordfish, Blizzard, and Vine eventually began flying together, Vine becoming hyperactive as the Parashaki did its work. She flew in loops and rambled sometimes. From her drugged ramblings, Swordfish was able to piece together what happened to her with General Stone.
"So… you tried to kill him?" Blizzard asked Vine quietly. "On purpose?" "Yes." Vine replied, her voice shaking. "There was no other way." Swordfish thought back to the Vine he found dying in the Void. The same Vine who couldn't even get herself to attack the Skywing soldier. "Did you… use venom?" Swordfish asked.
Vine looked at Swordfish. "No. I will never use that on a living creature." She said. Swordfish noticed that her eyes had a greenish tint to them, probably from the Parashaki.
The moon overhead shone down on the army of dragons flying to Paisland. It hit Swordfish how much had happened, how much Swordfish's life had changed. Did he seem different? Had he changed like Vine had? Swordfish didn't think he had. Had this world done something to Vine? Had living in a war torn world for two months really make her change so much?
Suddenly, screams and roars pierced through the night. Swordfish turned and looked at the left side of the army and saw that dragons had begun attacking the Camaelists. Old Monarchy. Swordfish realized. The Camaelists turned and began attacking their attackers.
The three dragonets remained where they were as the Old Monarchy soldiers began attacking. "They won't know we're not really Camaelists." Swordfish said quietly. "They might try to kill us." "Do we help Old Monarchy?" Vine asked. "They're outnumbered." "No." Blizzard said. "This is our chance to slip away and get to Paisland first. But we need to go. Now." The dragonets began flying again, continuing the direction they had been going in. Swordfish couldn't help but imagining Barley getting killed by Old Monarchy.
The dragonets continued flying away, but Swordfish looked back one last time and saw Camael, not participating in the battle. He remained in the sky, watching the whole thing in front of him. The Seawing suddenly snapped his head around and made eye contact with Swordfish. Swordfish felt an uneasy feeling wash over him again.
The battle raged on, but Camael remained staring at the dragonets, before eventually turning back around. Swordfish was still feeling the chills long after Camael turned back around. Something about him reminded Swordfish of the unnatural feeling of the Void, and when he faced Adnachiel. "Hey, does Camael… make you feel weird?" Swordfish asked the other two. "Yes." They said in unison. "I don't know what it is, but he like makes me feel scared. Like, more than I would normally be." Vine said. "Like, Stone and Wraith appeared scarier than him. They did scarier things. But Camael just makes me feel…" "Like you're just going to crumple and die." Blizzard finished. Vine nodded. Swordfish could see pale green begin to flutter through her scales. "Like it's unhealthy to look at him." Blizzard said.
Swordfish revisited the image of Camael that Anthony painted. What is going on here? Can Camael… change forms? How could he do that? Swordfish suddenly remembered something with a jolt. That time Abyss had visited Swordfish when he came to this world. When he told Swordfish he had to take the chance. Abyss had appeared as… a dragon. A Seawing that looked like Swordfish's father. Just like Camael. Abyss had shapeshifted back into his… regular form later. Was that something… all demons could do?
"What did Camael look like to you two?" Swordfish asked. "What do you mean?" Vine asked. "Like, what tribe was he from?" Swordfish clarified. "Icewing." Blizzard said. "What are you talking about? He was a Rockwing. He looked like Stone. I kept getting the two confused." Vine said. "I thought he was a Seawing." Swordfish said slowly. "He… looked like my father."
Swordfish looked Blizzard in the eyes. "Did he look like anyone you know?" Swordfish asked, his panic rising. He had struck an awful thought. Blizzard paused for a moment, like she was struggling to say the next word. "He… almost looked… like Frost." She finally said.
"So… he appeared as different dragons entirely to all of us?" Vine asked. He took the form of somebody we fear. Swordfish realized. "Maybe… it's something animus enchanted?" Blizzard theorized. "We haven't come across a single animus or enchanted object once." Swordfish said. "It seems… like they don't even exist yet."
"So what's going on?" Vine asked. Swordfish rested upon his theory. It would be bad. It would be really, really bad if it were true. "What if…" Swordfish said slowly. "Camael… is a demon?"
Vine and Blizzard fell silent. Swordfish knew why. If this was true, that would mean the Camaelists were being led by a demon. A demon seemingly bent on exterminating humans. But why? What would he have to gain from that?
"But… why?" Vine asked after more silence, reflecting Swordfish's own thoughts. "Why would he be doing that?" "I don't know… but Abyss could shapeshift. He did when he visited me once." Swordfish said. "So… you think other demons can do the same?" Blizzard asked, a worried look in her eyes. "I don't know. But… I don't have any other explanation as to why he appeared as different dragons to each of us." Swordfish said.
"Should we tell someone like Seilbrenner?" Vine asked. "There's a chance he won't believe us." Blizzard said quickly. "I think only Anthony is going to believe us."
"So what do we do?" Vine asked. "We can't just keep something like this to ourselves." "Well, what else are we going to do? It's not like many other dragons or people are aware of what's going on. We're completely alone in knowing about the demons." Swordfish said.
"Why don't we focus on what's ahead?" Blizzard said. "We can't do anything with that right now. We need to get to Paisland first." Vine nodded. Swordfish stared up into the night sky, and at the one singular moon of this world.
. . .
Michael stared at the sunrise in the distance. They had crossed into Dieautel a while ago, and the Dieautish coastline was nearing. Once they got to the fishing villages, they could take a boat to Paisland. Vulture and Rattlesnake could fly while the boat brought Michael, Anthony, and Marie to the island.
Michael couldn't really believe it. He might be the one to retrieve the Relics of Hamza. Something that had been sought by empires, kingdoms, and men and women throughout time, and he, Michael Bridger, might be one of the ones who finds them.
As the group entered the seacoast village, Michael began noticing more men and women on horses. More dragons flying above the trees. More Old Monarchy troops. "Hey!" He said to the others, but they had already noticed the reinforcements. "Word must have gotten out that Black Star knows." Marie said. Vulture exhaled loudly in relief. "I was worried we were going to have to go get them all alone." He said. "Me too." Anthony said quietly.
The people who lived in the houses were groggily coming out of their houses to see what was going on. Michael saw children looking out their windows, pointing at the entourage of soldiers. A basset hound came out of an alley to greet the soldiers. Michael saw Rattlesnake bend down to smile at the dog, which wagged its tail.
"Why are dogs afraid of other large animals, but not of us?" Vulture asked. "We should be the most terrifying thing of all." "We don't really know." Anthony replied. "For as long as dragons have been around, dogs have treated them like humans. You know, until they meet one that isn't friendly."
The soldiers got to the docks. A pair of fishermen were on their boat, about to set out. They stopped and stared at the mass of soldiers marching through their town. "L'enfer?" One asked, bewildered.
The soldiers all stopped as a group of commanders and other leaders stepped ahead of them. Michael was able to pick out Seilbrenner in the group, his blonde hair blowing backward in the sea breeze. He also recognized Asha Wirnman of the Committee of Public Safety, the woman who had tried to execute the dragonets back when everyone thought they were Camaelists. Michael caught Vulture looking at Asha with disdain.
A man stepped forward, the symbols on his uniform marking him as another commander. "For those of you who do not know me, I am a commander from the Dieautish navy. My name is Jacob Meltzer. You are going to go on dragonback to Paisland, enter the temple Pancho Urbina left directions to, split into teams, find the Relics of Hamza, collect them, and bring them to us. They will then be used to win this war."
The crowd of Old Monarchy soldiers exploded into noise. The sounds of disbelief, shock, excitement, anxiety, joy, everything. Michael had forgotten that the relics hadn't been public information.
Michael couldn't join in with the other soldiers. Polar, Vine, Swordfish, Blizzard, and the others who had gone on patrol yesterday morning weren't here, and he couldn't help but wonder what had happened to them. He hadn't seen them since two nights ago. Michael wasn't normally a worrier, but he didn't have such a good feeling about this. Like… something awful had happened.
"We have received reports of Black Star soldiers coming here soon. Black Star naval ships have been seen sailing towards the island. We are limited on time to get the relics." Commander Meltzer said, showing no anxiety in his voice. "Split into groups, and seek them out. Once you have collected all three, return to command as fast as you can. We will end the fighting. We will force Camael and Axton Lloyd into a form of surrender."
There was the electricity of excitement and worry between the soldiers as the humans climbed onto dragon's backs. Michael saw Marie run over towards a Seawing. It was Azure, Gabi's friend. The two hadn't seen each other since Gabi's death.
Suddenly, screams sounded from some of the civilians. The crowd turned in the direction of the screams and saw three dragonets flying towards the crowd. "THEY DON'T HAVE ARMBANDS! CAMAELISTS!" Someone yelled, but Michael recognized the three. "STOP!" He yelled. "THEY'RE ON OUR SIDE!" But dragonback soldiers quickly flew up to the dragonets, guns pointed and teeth bared.
The three didn't put up a fight, and were brought to command by the soldiers. "What are you three doing here?" Seilbrenner asked surprised. "The Camaelists are coming." Swordfish replied to him. "We escaped from them to get here. They know."
Commander Meltzer turned and faced the crowd almost instantly. "THE CAMAELISTS ARE COMING, AS WELL AS BLACK STAR! ALL SQUADRONS, HEAD TO PAISLAND NOW!" The soldiers let out the Old Monarchy battle cry. The sound echoed through the small village as the humans climbed onto the backs of dragons, and set off toward the sleepy island in the distance.
Michael couldn't pay attention though, he could only think about how Polar hadn't come with them, and an awful thought dawned upon him.
. . .
Swordfish could only listen as Blizzard explained to Michael and the others that Polar had been killed. Swordfish didn't know how he expected Polar's old friends to react. He had foreseen that Marie might cry, but she didn't. She turned and fell silent, facing Paisland as the Old Monarchy forces drew closer. Instead, Michael was the one to cry. It wasn't intense sobbing, but Swordfish saw tears trickle down his face. "When I went into the military, Polar was the first one to talk to me. I hadn't really ever talked to a dragon before. But she was friendly. She helped me get to my feet and stand against the Camaelists. She was strong, physically, but most importantly, mentally. She helped make me the man I am today." He said, a few breaks in his voice.
Anthony silently cried on Rattlesnake's back. Swordfish could tell she wanted to comfort her friend, but she couldn't at the moment.
"Wraith." Michael suddenly said, clenching his fist. "That traitor. I'll make him pay. I'll kill him. It's the least I can do." Swordfish remembered the Aniwing Camaelist general, how he was always surrounded by soldiers and his terrifying preaching about the end of humanity, and dragons assuming control. Would killing him make a difference? Just how much authority did Wraith have?
As the dragons landed on Paisland, the fog was starting to dissipate, and the shapes of ships in the distance could be seen. Black Star was coming. "We will have to enter Chene Mountain, and then split up within the tunnels inside." Seilbrenner announced to the soldiers. "Follow us to get to the mountain, but we need to move fast."
When the soldiers arrived at the mountain, they were led down to a large cave opening in the side of the mountain. It looked like any old cave, but there was a small stone plaque into the cave wall just inside of it. The plaque read, "TEMPLVM PROPHETAE." "What language is that?" Vine asked Marie. "Looks like old Valkskyan." Marie said.
Swordfish took a look up at the mountain, and then back up at the sky. This world was going to change. Would it be for the better? Would gathering these relics save humanity from extinction? Swordfish didn't know.
The soldiers began breaking up into groups. The tunnels were large enough to fit even some of the bigger dragons, so nobody would be left behind thankfully. Swordfish met up with the other dragonets, Anthony, Marie, Michael, and Azure. "So… shall we go in?" Azure asked. The other soldiers were breaking up into groups and heading into the tunnel. "I guess so." Rattlesnake said.
The tunnels were old and in disrepair. It seemed like nobody had stepped foot in there for hundreds of years. The passages snaked and spun around, leaving Swordfish confused most of the time. "What do you think of this plan?" Vulture suddenly asked the group. "Do you think that getting these relics is really a good idea? What if they're stolen? What would we do then?" There was silence as they kept going down the tunnel, the three torches they had made beforehand being their only light.
"There's no other way." Anthony said quietly. "If we don't take this chance… sooner or later… Old Monarchy will crumble. At the rate things are going… soon we won't be a match for the Camaelists or Black Star. The side of peace will be destroyed, and all that will exist is hate." Silence washed over the group like a wave at the ocean crashing over a couple small rocks. Swordfish noticed Rattlesnake trembling lightly. "A world without peace doesn't even sound like a world worth living in." She said suddenly.
The tunnels kept going. Some pathways were collapsed in, and Swordfish worried that they wouldn't even be able to get to the relics because they would be blocked off. A couple times they ran into some other groups, but for the most part, the group walked alone.
Swordfish wondered who made the tunnels. Who put the relics down here? And why? Why did these tunnels twist and turn, with no reason to it? Was it supposed to be like a maze? To try and hide the relics?
Suddenly, Blizzard raised her head, alarmed. "I hear shouting." She said. The group stopped walking and listened. Nearby, multiple voices could be heard yelling. The humans and dragons picked up speed and began running towards the sound. They took a left, and then a right, and at the end of that tunnel… "Look! A cavern!" Marie said with excitement. They ran towards it.
The tunnel opened into a large cavern. Torches all along the walls of it were lit. There was a large wooden cross in the middle of a stone circle on the ground, which had runes carved into it. There was a group of six people, and two dragons sitting inside of the cavern. They looked up to the tunnel entrance that Swordfish was in, and nodded. "We found them." Said one of the soldiers. "But… not all of them are here." Swordfish looked to the other side of the cavern and saw Commander Seilbrenner standing over a carved stone block, which on it lay two objects.
The dragons helped Anthony, Michael, and Marie down to the floor, and they rushed over to the Commander. "There they are." Seilbrenner said, still awestruck.
Swordfish gazed upon the simple Dagger of Luna, runes carved into its handle, the hollowed blade. Just like Rainfall's sketch. Next to it sat the Necklace of Eclis. It looked just the same as the very necklace Savanna had worn around his neck every day. The objects imbued with divine power from above. Hamza's relics. "But where's…" Vine began.
"The Earring of Sola is missing." Seilbrenner said quietly. "Without it, we won't be able to gain the power of Hamza. We have to find it, or all of this will be for nothing."
Swordfish turned around and stared at the enormous wooden cross. Hamza had been killed when the Valkskyan Empire nailed him to a cross in an ancient public execution method call crucifying.
"What do we do?" Asked Azure. "Without the earring… we can't contact the goddesses." "I'm not sure." Anthony said. "What if Black Star or Camaelists already have it?" "Then, to put it lightly," Said one of the other soldiers. "We're screwed." Rattlesnake sighed.
Seilbrenner grabbed the necklace and dagger. "Well, we're going to have to take these." He said, and then began pacing back and forth. He walked toward the cross in the middle of the ring of runes, when the objects began to twitch in his hands. "Eh?" He said in surprise.
He dropped the dagger, and it flew up, like a giant invisible claw was grabbing it and yanking it towards the cross. The dagger began to revolve around the cross, right underneath where the two pieces of wood met. Seilbrenner let go of the necklace, and it did the same, revolving around the cross.
"Amazing." Said one of the other soldiers. "This ring. It's a ritual ring. Someone used this place to try and gain the power of Hamza." "The Daughters of Amraheim!" Marie exclaimed. "This is where they tried to contact the goddesses!" Swordfish recalled the story of the group of women who set out to find the relics, but were corrupted by their power.
Suddenly, Vulture's head shot up, he looked at the cross, and then at Rattlesnake. "Rattlesnake, go stand in the ring." He said. "Why?" She asked nervously. "Just do it!" He pleaded. Rattlesnake gave him a look and then stepped into the ring, maneuvering her barbed tail to make sure she didn't hit any of the other soldiers with it.
"Ow!" She exclaimed almost instantly. "What is it?" Michael asked, his tears from earlier dried up. "It's my…" She began, and then turned and looked at Vulture with a look of amazement. "You don't think…" "I do. And it looks like I'm right." Vulture said, his one eye staring at Rattlesnake's head intensely.
Rattlesnake carefully removed the earring Savanna had given her so long ago. It was shaking, trying to escape her claw. She let go, and the Earring of Sola shot out of her hand and joined its fellow relics in circling the cross.
Swordfish's mouth gaped open. It was the real earring. Rattlesnake had been wearing the Earring of Sola the whole time. His mouth dropped even further when he realized that the one that the Daughters of Amraheim had left here was destroyed when Rattlesnake brought the one from the future into the past, remembering what Anthony told him about Hamza ensuring there were no loopholes. Swordfish tried to think back to all the times Rattlesnake had been injured.
The time when he had been in the Healing Center, after Cedar stabbed him, and Rattlesnake had been looking over him. He had noted that she had healed very fast for someone who had been stabbed.
Another time, when they had gotten captured in Lochberg, and the bounty hunters had shot Rattlesnake's wing, putting a bullet hole through the membrane. It had been glossed over in everything that had happened, and Swordfish didn't even realize how fast it had healed.
Wait… the healing center wasn't in this world… how did… Swordfish began to wonder, but he told himself to think about it later. Right now, Old Monarchy had just collected all of the Relics of Hamza.
Seilbrenner walked up, and grabbed all three relics again. He gave Rattlesnake a look, and then stepped out of the ring. The relics stopped being attracted to the cross. Seilbrenner cleared his throat. "Ladies and gentlemen, we got them."
The awestruck spell was broken, and the soldiers began to cheer. "WE'VE WON!" A soldier cried, hugging his comrade. "HUMANS AND DRAGONS WILL LIVE TOGETHER IN PEACE!" Swordfish turned to see Vine, indigo, violet, and lavender swirling around her scales. She had an enormous grin on her face.
Michael began to cry again. "I knew you wouldn't die in vain, Polar." He said, through the tears of happiness. Marie began to cry too, hugging Anthony tightly. "It's over." He said, smiling. "Nobody else has to die anymore." The two shared a kiss, the tears still streaming down Marie's face. "If only Gabi could have seen this…" Azure said, smiling.
"The Necklace of Eclis." Vulture said, coming up behind Swordfish, Blizzard close behind. "We can go home." "But… do we want to go home?" Blizzard asked. "By doing this, we've probably changed the whole course of the world. We might've stopped the scorching." Swordfish suddenly realized that the world he had known was probably gone, and replaced with a different one. One where the Camaelists hadn't won.
As the soldiers cheered, Swordfish realized that they might be on a different timeline entirely now. He might have ended Pyrrhia as he knew it.
. . .
"I mean… it's a little extreme, but we can't afford an outbreak of the truth." Cassriel said. Stygal and Nestorats had explained the King's "plan B." The trio had taken human forms and were taking a stroll through Houston, Texas while Cassriel learned the plan. "I can't believe I'm getting dragged into this." Nestorats said glumly. "This was your mistake." She said to Cassriel.
"But nobody else can do what you can do, Fire Master." Stygal said, making a point to say her title. "Yeah, I guess my part of the plan is a little important." Nestorats said. "Would you keep it down?" Cassriel said, looking around nervously. "There could be some of them around here." "Are you really worried about those pests?" Stygal asked Cassriel. "Here? In Texas?" "They could be anywhere." Cassriel said quietly. His eyes darted around from person to person. The man on his phone, the mailman doing his rounds, the woman eating the churro. Anyone could be a spy, or a trap.
"Fine." Nestorats finally said. "I'll do it if the King says I must, but you'll owe me one, poet." She said, her eyes fiery. She walked away briskly, her black ponytail almost slapping Cassriel in the face.
"Is she always like this?" Cassriel asked. Stygal chuckled. "Yeah, pretty much." Cassriel turned and looked up at the nearby church as its bells rang. He realized what day it was. It was the day everything changed.