Hey guys, sorry for the long wait but anyway, here is the next update.

And the start of the newest Arc.

Chapter Cover: A flag dancing in the wind with a Silver Dragon sigil upon it.

Chapter Fifteen

Changing Winds

In the west of Atlasia, grew a city known as Atlas. Many who visited this city always remember the shimmering lake that seat right by the city's side, glimmering as if one was made of sapphires. This very city was the seat of power within Atlasia and was also known as the Heart of the Imperium.

The Imperium was the Order of Wizards that mostly focuses on maintaining the order within the continent among it's many mages that exist. It is also responsible for dealing with any problem regarding mages and any type of magic. If they were dark magic being used by people then the Imperium would crush it without mercy. Before the fall of the Salvatore Royal Family, the Imperium was directly under their influence and they followed the Royals decrees to a letter.

However, things have changed in the past fifty years.

There was an underlying air of tension within the room. At the heart of the Imperium building a meeting was taking place. It wasn't unusual for meetings to be taking place within this very room as the Council of Magisters debated on the best approach to deal with many of the growing problems that plagued the continent over the years and yet, today this wasn't an ordinary meeting.

About an hour ago, a report had come from the East. While that wasn't strange by itself, it was the nature of the report that had prompted the emergency meeting that was happening right now. The report itself was based around the rumors that the Beast Eater Minotaur one of the powers in the East had been defeated by an unknown wizard.

It was unthinkable that something of such caliber could happen right under their notice, but then again, their informant hadn't been able to truly guess what Minotaur was after.

"For such a thing to happen like this," one of the Magister spoke out, "I didn't think they had anyone who was capable of such feat."

The man who had spoken had long gray hair and beard. He was dressed in a cloak with a high collar which reached his ears. The shirt he wore had a ring pattern upon it as he was leaning upon the armrest of the chair, he was seating on, a thoughtful expression upon his features.

Magister Rodrik

"It would seem the Imperium has gotten lax with it's security if something like that had happened right underneath our nose," Rodrik continued, his eyes looking at the other fives.

"Are you implying something Rodrik?" another Magister asked, eyes narrowing with anger.

This one had purple hair and his similarly colored eyes were glaring dagger into Rodrik's general direction. He was wearing a fancy suit upon his form as he had both of his hands upon the table in front of him.

Magister Bane

Rodrik let out a small chuckle.

"I meant no offense," Rodrik said.

"Could such an attack have an effect upon the others?" a woman asked with a light frown.

She had dark hair falling upon a side of her face. Her skin was fair and pale. She was wearing a low-neck dress that showed an ample cleavage. Her dark hair was falling upon her pale shoulders as well as both of her hands were upon her lap beneath the table. One of her most obvious features was the lone wine-red eye that was staring in their direction.

Magister Clara Bell

"I doubt it," Bane spoke out, "Minotaur had always been a wild dog. He wouldn't ally himself with the other Fallen Gods. He was always too arrogant, too full of himself."

Clara Bell didn't seem to be convinced as she narrowed her eye at him.

"You think just because the man is arrogant that he isn't cunning?" she asked, "A wild dog Minotaur may be but he was still a Fallen God. The others might take actions on something like that happening to one of their owns."

"We have been keeping eyes upon the movements of the others Clara," another Magister spoke, "But they haven't been any movements from them at all. There is a chance that they didn't even care."

The other woman who spoken had white hair. She was significantly older than Clara her eyes a deep emerald. She was wearing a simple dress with a witch hat upon her head with both of her hands joined together.

Magister Ella Bones

"However, we must keep an eye upon this new arrival," Ella continued, "If they were strong enough to defeat the likes of Minotaur, then their powers must be at least on that level if not more powerful than one of them. We have to work quickly to gain them under our thumbs before this can spread any further."

Bane had a surprised expression upon his face, his purple eyes wide in surprise at what the older woman was implying. Rodrik let out a soft hum as he was staring at the woman. He knew that Ella would have given such a directive. He had almost expected it to happen.

Clara Bell titled her head lightly.

"You suggest…we made this person into a Fallen God?" she asked.

"At the least," Ella said.

"This is reckless," Bane spoke out, "We should just send in the Wardens and deal with them accordingly. We should have dealt with Minotaur a long time ago and this person came in and did it for us. We should take care of it before they become another "Magical Disaster"."

Clara looked at him.

"The Magical Disaster had burrowed itself in the Northern Mountains and hadn't left since," she said, "Other than the tragedy that happened at Mamatsu village, they hadn't been any incident involving her."

"That tragedy shouldn't have happened at all, if someone had done their job." Bane growled, his eyes looking straight at Ella.

Ella glared right back.

"Enough,"

All of the Magister glanced at the head of the table where the Leader of the Imperium Magisters was seating. A young man with blue hair was seating there dressed in a white pants and long sleeve. He was looking at them with cat like yellow eyes as his hair fell down around his head with two bangs falling on either side of his face, thought the more curious had been the two horns that grew from his forehead, the size of a finger each.

Magister Lucis of the Sun Demon Tribes

"Lord Lucis," Bane asked surprised.

The man sighed lightly.

"Magister Ella had the right idea in making this new arrival a Fallen God," Lucis spoke out, his voice as smooth as velvet, "The lands that Minotaur has been in control of has fallen into disarray if the reports have been accurate. A New Fallen God might be just what is needed to get it back under control once more."

Lucis leaned forward, a light frown appeared upon his features.

"Rodrik," he spoke out calling the older man's attention, "You will travel to Hyades Village and meet with this new arrival and tell them of our situation."

The man blinked in surprise.

"Huh? Me?"

Lucis stared at him, his eyes glinting lightly.

"Yes you," he said, "You are one of our negotiators after all. Your silver tongue will be needed in this situation. I am sure everyone in this room share the same opinions."

They were nods around the room thought Bane let out a small sigh.

"You do not approve Magister Bane?" Lucis asked.

"I have my reservation about giving someone we have no idea about the title," the Magister spoke out, "However if this is the will of the Imperium then I will abide by it."

"That is one of the reasons why I chose Rodrik," Lucis said looking at the man, "He is a good judge of character."

Rodrik let out a small chuckle.

"While I do appreciate the vote of confidence," he bowed, "I will do as you command Magister Lucis. Thought I can admit I am curious myself as to what type of person could have bested Minotaur."

Hyades Village

It had been a few days since Minotaur was defeated. Shinji, Yael and the wounded Aesyr had returned from the battle against Minotaur victorious. The old knight, Bartholomew had been shocked to see them return that late afternoon with the young woman and Aesyr had been taken to be healed from the injuries she had sustained against Minotaur.

That was days ago.

Now that her injuries were better, Aesyr had been helping the villagers of Hyades Village clear through the rubbles and the destruction of Minotaur's attack. Dressed in a sleeveless shirt and pant, the dark-skinned girl was carrying some logs, her white hair pulled in a high bun keeping it out of her face, thought some strands still fall on the side of her face.

She made her forward walking through the ruins and placing what she was carrying upon the piles. One of the villagers, an older man glanced at her.

"Good job girl," he said with a light nod, "We might be able to clear out this part before noon."

Aesyr nodded at him.

"I'm just happy to help out," she said.

The man glanced at her, most likely toward the bandages that were upon her skin.

"You sure you should be walking around the way you are," he asked, "I mean you're injured."

Aesyr looked at the bandages.

"It's not as bad as it looks," she said giving him a light smile, "I have always been able to heal quickly no matter how bad I got hurt, so don't worry about it."

The man gave her a look but he nodded.

"Well as long as you're sure," he said with a light nod.

Aesyr returned the look before turning her attention back toward the village itself. Most of the homes were destroyed in the fire from the attack and already the people were already hard at work in rebuilding it. Split into two large teams, were the builders and the cleaners.

The cleaners mostly like Aesyr were simply working around to remove the debris from the homes and clear out the debris from the fire and clearing out the area that were needed to built new homes. While the builders formed of the craftsmen of the village were rebuilding what they had lost. It was fortunate that no one actually lost their lives during the attack as most of the village had evacuated during the initial attack.

The only people had gotten injured where the soldiers who faced the Minotaur forces in combats and they had some life threatening one but Helen had managed to keep them alive with her healing and medicines.

It's a miracle that no one actually died during this entire thing, and Aesyr can thank her lucky stars that no one did die. She couldn't handle an innocent person's death upon her conscience given she already blamed herself for what had happened to Elassan's and speaking of that. She had told everyone the truth about what happened to Elassan.

She didn't want to keep it a secret any longer…thought she wasn't really keeping it a secret. She can still remember their expression in knowing that the Dragon God they all probably worshipped and respected was dead. They've deserved to know the truth even if that truth was hard to bear.

"Aesyr?"

The young woman paused in what she was doing before turning in the direction who had called her. It was the old knight Bartholomew. The man was waiting for her at the bottom of the pile she was standing on. Aesyr descended and approached him.

"Yael wanted to talk to you," he said.

Aesyr nodded and the two of them settled to a brisk walk.

"I want to thank you again for what you've done," Bartholomew told her drawing her gaze.

"Shinji was going to charge ahead by himself to try to save her," Aesyr told him with a light shrug of her shoulders, "I simply went with him so that he doesn't get himself killed."

"Given what Yael had told me, it's a good thing you did," the man told her, "I had no plan to go rescue her and even if I did, I could have never defeated Minotaur in a one on one battle. Maybe if I was younger but I am no longer as young as I was back then."

Aesyr stayed silent as the two continued on leaving the construction zone behind and heading toward the small establishment that had been built. They were a few children playing around within the area along with some people working on making food for the workers when they were done. Aesyr and Bartholomew walked pass that into the small hut at the end of the courtyard.

Yael was at the entrance dressed in lighter clothing with her hair falling upon her back. When she noticed them approach, the young woman smiled brightly and waved them over. Bartholomew waved and Aesyr simply followed after him.

"I brought her as you asked," the old man spoke out.

"Thank you," Yael said, but then she frowned lightly, "You won't join us?"

"I still have some things to work over with the village chief," the old man said, "I'll leave the two of you to it."

With a slight nod, the man walked away. Aesyr looked at his back for a few moments before turning toward the blonde girl.

"Come on, seat with me," Yael told her.

Aesyr obliged taking a seat upon the floor beside Yael as the two of them looked out toward the homes that were around them.

"Are you feeling okay?" Yael asked her.

Aesyr glanced at her for a moment, thinking about the last few days.

"It's been alright since we defeated Minotaur," she said, "Haven't seen Shinji in a while."

Yael smiled sadly.

"He went to speak with one of his contacts," she said, "They have been rumors going on that he was concerned with."

Aesyr was surprised.

"I'm surprised he left in such a hurry," she said, "After doing all of that to rescue you. I thought he would have stayed around longer."

A soft laugh escaped Yael, "You don't know Shinji very, well do you? That boy was never one to sit still anywhere. There is always something that he needs to do, some other quest he set himself up to accomplish."

Aesyr stayed silent for a moment, thinking.

"This hasn't got anything to do with what I revealed about Elassan did it?"

Yael glanced at her.

"I don't know," she said, "I can't speak for him but I know that I was saddened to hear his passing. I had always had this hope that I would meet him one day."

"I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to protect him," Aesyr said softly to her, the guilt of what had happened still eating at her.

A gentle hand was placed upon her shoulder. She glanced toward Yael finding a kind gentle smile directed at her.

"It wasn't your fault," she said.

"That's what everyone say," Aesyr told her, "But it doesn't make it hurt any less."

"I know," Yael said to her, "I too, have lost people that I care deeply for."

The two sat in companionable silence for a few moments longer. It had been a long time since Aesyr had felt companionship with someone else before. Not since Ace and Elassan back then.

"Do you mind if I ask you something?" she asked.

Yael glanced at her, curious.

"What is the Dragon Heart?"

There was a moment of silence as Yael turned her gaze toward the people that were in front of them. Her gaze seems to be so far away, almost like she was lost in thoughts. Aesyr could see a trace of sadness within her eyes.

"The Salvatore family had ruled Atlasia for a long time," she said, "You can look our history and you will find at least someone bearing that name as they caused a change within this land. In a family of wizards, it was the way it had always been, but the Salvatore always had their secrets as well."

Yael glanced at her.

"Dragon Heart is one of those secrets," she said, "Only the members of the royal family and their close confidents would know about it. Its' one of the reasons that puzzle me as to why Minotaur knew about it."

"It's a powerful magic then?" Aesyr guessed.

"If you would like to think of it like that," Yael told her with a light shrug, "The way the story goes is that long ago, one of our ancestors Dani Salvatore met a Dragon that lived in the lands that will be later known as Dragmount. Because of that close friendship they've formed, the Dragon granted her a gift…and it was that gift that was known as Dragon Heart."

Yael fell silent for a moment.

"Now it is my turn to ask you a question," she said, "When you were battling Minotaur, you used silver flames the same type of flames that Elassan used. You said that he taught you this magic but you never said how he did it."

Aesyr looked away.

"He used an enchanting magic," she said, "the Queen of Dragnov, Irene Belserion is a powerful enchantress and was able to gave birth to the spell. She called it Dragon Slayer magic."

"Dragon Slayer," Yael murmured, "The power to slay Dragons…then, what Minotaur said was true. You killed Dragons."

"It was war," Aesyr said curtly.

"I'm sorry" Yael spoke out softly, " I didn't mean to draw out unpleasant memories."

She let out small smile.

"But I am glad that you're here," she said drawing Aesyr's gaze once more, "If you weren't, I probably wouldn't be here and Shinji would most likely have been killed going against Minotaur alone. I don't know about the others yet, but I will be grateful if you stayed."

Aesyr looked at her surprised at the offer.

"You want me to stay here…in Atlasia?"

Yael nodded.

"Didn't you come here because you made a promise to Elassan? If you stayed, it could be a way of honoring that promise."

Aesyr let out a small hum, thinking to herself. She had already starting to make up her mind to go look for Ace, wherever he may be. She didn't think that she was wanted here and given the bad reputation Dragon Slayers gained because of Acnologia, she didn't have a home there either…

But if she could stay here in Atlasia…maybe she can…

"Alright…," she said looking at the young woman beside her, "I'll stay."

A new friendship is formed...

Next Time: Advent of the Dragon Knights

Jacques0 out.

R&R