Chapter 24
After dropping Sean off with a vague, half-true explanation of his injury, Rayen left the local hospital. He knew what to do next. Without saying a word, the Wingly had made that perfectly clear. He moved to a nearby building, leaned against the brick wall, and waited. Almost instantly, the Wingly appeared. He glanced at her, sizing her up.
It was the first time he really got a close look at her. She was very pale, like all Winglies, with the familiar metallic tresses, cut to shoulder length. Her eyes... those were definitely different. Most Winglies had crimson eyes, the red color of fresh blood. This Wingly's eyes were a much darker red, a deep burgundy color, so red they almost seemed purple. After a few moments, she spoke.
"I have your three comrades. Surrender yourself and your Spirit and come with me and they will not be harmed."
Just as Shade had predicted, Rayen nodded. He knew it would come to this sooner or later. As much as he desired a fight, he couldn't risk the chance of her getting away and the others ending up dead. He pulled the fist-sized ruby from his pocket and lobbed it nonchalantly towards her, as if he were tossing nothing more important than a baseball. She caught it, the gem making a clinking sound as it gently struck the steel claws.
"That's all of them then... now we'll finally see what he's going to do with them."
"He?"
"My superior. Now that I've brought him five Spirits, I'll finally get promoted."
"Five? But didn't you take six?"
The Wingly smirked.
"Ah, so you don't know. The Dark Dragoon came along willingly. He's with us now."
To Kyra's great surprise, Rayen did not appear at all startled by this fact.
"Oh."
'Oh?', Kyra thought to herself. His comrade double-crossed him and all he can say is 'Oh.'? Maybe the Dark Dragoon was right, and the others didn't really trust him. Kyra couldn't say she blamed them. Still, she was slightly taken aback. But she eventually shrugged and they warped away.
The next few hours seemed to go by in a dizzy whirl. Rayen remembered being jostled awake by Phil. He and Dawn were standing, unchained. Rayen looked down at his own wrists, and saw that they had taken the manacles off him as well. He stood, and they left the room, led by two solemn guards. They were thrust into a gigantic chamber. It was cold and metallic, like the rest of the compound, and there was nothing at all in the room except a large chair and a machine. The 'superior' Kyra had mentioned was obviously the man sitting in the chair, but it was the machine that caught the eye of the three Dragoons.
It was huge, looking like something out of a bad science fiction movie. It looked like a cannon, and the nozzle was pointed out of the room's only window, which was actually more like a square hole in the wall. At the base of the machine was a control panel, and something very odd. To the right of the control panel, there was an odd design consisting of strange pictures, indecipherable runes, and seven circular depressions where Rayen guessed the Dragoon Spirits would be placed.
Suddenly, the double doors opened, and troops filed into the chamber. It did not appear to be a large group. Rayen guessed there were no more than forty, minus the five guards that stood watch around them. Rayen tried to pick out Shade from among them, but could not. They organized into two groups, each with five rows. The three Dragoons were pushed between the two groups. A person moved to the head of each group. Rayen recognized one as the female Wingly. The other man he had never seen before.
The man in the chair started calling out names.
"John Emerson."
The man at the head of the left group smirked and strolled to the machine, placing a topaz Spirit in one of the seven depressions. He then stood at the head of the room, directly in front of the mastermind. The leader continued in a monotone, but none of the other lackeys came up. None of them had managed to get their hands on the coveted Spirits. Rayen noted that they were moving by row. Through this process, the Wingly would be called last. He wondered if that had been done on purpose for dramatic effect.
"Shade."
Shade marched from his rank towards the machine, risking a glance at the group of his former comrades. Phil was clenching his fists, trying to suppress his fury. Dawn merely appeared sad. Rayen remained impassive. When their gazes connected, he gave an almost imperceptible nod.
Rayen knew, then. Whether this was good or bad for his own position, Shade couldn't say. He continued walking, and placed the onyx Dark Dragoon Spirit in the depression clockwise from the topaz. He also marched to the head of the room, standing to the left of Emerson.
John Emerson listened with a self-satisfied smirk as the leader continued to read off names, but it soon faded from his face. They were reaching the end of the list, and five Spirits were still unaccounted for. Surely it was not possible...
"Kyra."
So, this Wingly did have a name, although it appeared she only had one. Rayen wondered if she had refused to give her last name, or it was possible that Winglies merely didn't have them.
Kyra walked over to the machine, and slowly placed not one, but five Spirits in their respective depressions. Then she marched to the head of the room, standing to the right of Emerson, smirking at his awestruck look.
(Man, these people take job politics to a whole new level.)
The mastermind finally got up from the chair. Rayen expected a speech, but it appeared that none were forthcoming. He merely nodded to the group, and everyone drew their weapons. They placed the hand that held the weapon on the left side of their chests. Rayen noticed that Shade was using his longer weapon, and wondered why he had decided to use that blade rather than his right-handed sword.
The man walked to the machine and pushed a few buttons on the control panel. The runes flickered with a strange light, and the Spirits shone their respective colors, creating a blinding spectrum of magical radiance. An enormous white beam shot from the machine. It pierced the sky, creating a gaping extradimensional hole.
The amassed troops gaped at the swirling portal in the sky. Kyra's eyes shone in anticipation. Surely whatever emerged from that gateway was immensely powerful. Now, nothing would stop them from bringing about a new world order!
They soon found out what was living on the other end of the portal.
Dragons.
Red, blue, green, brown, purple, white, and black, they emerged in threes from the portal, a larger dragon ahead of two smaller ones. The twenty-one legendary beasts hovered in the sky, casting shadows on the pathetically weak planet below.
But they were not done yet. Another being emerged from the portal.
It was immense beyond any imagination. It had seven eyes, arranged in a circle around a huge eighth orb, all with cat-like slit pupils. Seven wings, plowing powerfully through the air. Wicked claws, a gigantic cannon, and a barbed tail. This thing was meant to kill, utterly and mercilessly.
The Divine Dragon.
The mastermind turned on a huge screen, which apparently showed satellite images from space, so they could watch the dragon's antics from a birds-eye view, although all real birds had by now fled the skies of Endiness. It flew through the air with malicious intent, headed towards Bale, its obvious target.
Kyra watched, her pride steadily growing. She was an instrumental person in releasing this magnificent beast, which would bring about a new era to Endiness. But suddenly, it stopped. Kyra did not understand why. It turned to the huge forest just outside of Bale. A magical green bubble suddenly surrounded a large section of the forest. Now Kyra understood. The dragon was aiming for the forest, which was famous for the most concentrated Wingly population in Endiness. She mentally divided the forest up into the living districts, and located the district with the shield.
She was in for a nasty shock. That was HER district, the district she had grown up in! It couldn't be possible...
But it was. The eighth eye glowed, the pupil dilated with the bright light. A humongous radiantly white beam shot from the cannon, annihilating the district, shield and all, in a nanosecond. Kyra fell to her knees, sobbing. The blood of her family and friends was on her own hands. The Divine Dragoon, satisfied, flew back to its ancient home, the Mountain of the Mortal Dragon, diving into the depths of the volcano.
Shade saw his opportunity. It was now or never.
"This one's for you, Joey!"
True to Master Kohima's prediction more than ten years ago, Kenneth Perrault fulfilled his modus operandi. He plunged his weapon through John Emerson's heart, killing him instantly. He withdrew his blade, made a mad dash to the machine, withdrew four of the spirits, and tossed the three, in rapid succession, to each of the captive Dragoons. Phil and Dawn both looked dumbstruck, but Rayen merely grinned as he caught his and activated it immediately. He had guessed the whole time, then.
Realizing what was going on, all of the troops with any sense, including the mastermind, fled either physically or magically. About twenty people remained in the chamber, naïve enough to attempt fighting a Dragoon. Kyra remained on her knees in disbelief. The four Dragoons cut down the opposition quickly. They reverted back to their normal forms.
Kyra rose to her feet and turned to the Dragoons.
"Take me with you."
It wasn't a request. On a sudden impulse, she walked to the machine and took the three remaining Spirits. When her hand touched the Thunder Spirit, it began to glow with a fierce light.
"But why? It didn't react to me when I first took it..."
Shade pocketed his own Spirit and turned to the Wingly.
"It appears your destiny has finally caught up with you."
As if on cue, the first snows of winter fell on the land of Endiness, like downy white feathers sticking to the scalding tar of destruction the heavens had so unjustly rained upon them.
After dropping Sean off with a vague, half-true explanation of his injury, Rayen left the local hospital. He knew what to do next. Without saying a word, the Wingly had made that perfectly clear. He moved to a nearby building, leaned against the brick wall, and waited. Almost instantly, the Wingly appeared. He glanced at her, sizing her up.
It was the first time he really got a close look at her. She was very pale, like all Winglies, with the familiar metallic tresses, cut to shoulder length. Her eyes... those were definitely different. Most Winglies had crimson eyes, the red color of fresh blood. This Wingly's eyes were a much darker red, a deep burgundy color, so red they almost seemed purple. After a few moments, she spoke.
"I have your three comrades. Surrender yourself and your Spirit and come with me and they will not be harmed."
Just as Shade had predicted, Rayen nodded. He knew it would come to this sooner or later. As much as he desired a fight, he couldn't risk the chance of her getting away and the others ending up dead. He pulled the fist-sized ruby from his pocket and lobbed it nonchalantly towards her, as if he were tossing nothing more important than a baseball. She caught it, the gem making a clinking sound as it gently struck the steel claws.
"That's all of them then... now we'll finally see what he's going to do with them."
"He?"
"My superior. Now that I've brought him five Spirits, I'll finally get promoted."
"Five? But didn't you take six?"
The Wingly smirked.
"Ah, so you don't know. The Dark Dragoon came along willingly. He's with us now."
To Kyra's great surprise, Rayen did not appear at all startled by this fact.
"Oh."
'Oh?', Kyra thought to herself. His comrade double-crossed him and all he can say is 'Oh.'? Maybe the Dark Dragoon was right, and the others didn't really trust him. Kyra couldn't say she blamed them. Still, she was slightly taken aback. But she eventually shrugged and they warped away.
The next few hours seemed to go by in a dizzy whirl. Rayen remembered being jostled awake by Phil. He and Dawn were standing, unchained. Rayen looked down at his own wrists, and saw that they had taken the manacles off him as well. He stood, and they left the room, led by two solemn guards. They were thrust into a gigantic chamber. It was cold and metallic, like the rest of the compound, and there was nothing at all in the room except a large chair and a machine. The 'superior' Kyra had mentioned was obviously the man sitting in the chair, but it was the machine that caught the eye of the three Dragoons.
It was huge, looking like something out of a bad science fiction movie. It looked like a cannon, and the nozzle was pointed out of the room's only window, which was actually more like a square hole in the wall. At the base of the machine was a control panel, and something very odd. To the right of the control panel, there was an odd design consisting of strange pictures, indecipherable runes, and seven circular depressions where Rayen guessed the Dragoon Spirits would be placed.
Suddenly, the double doors opened, and troops filed into the chamber. It did not appear to be a large group. Rayen guessed there were no more than forty, minus the five guards that stood watch around them. Rayen tried to pick out Shade from among them, but could not. They organized into two groups, each with five rows. The three Dragoons were pushed between the two groups. A person moved to the head of each group. Rayen recognized one as the female Wingly. The other man he had never seen before.
The man in the chair started calling out names.
"John Emerson."
The man at the head of the left group smirked and strolled to the machine, placing a topaz Spirit in one of the seven depressions. He then stood at the head of the room, directly in front of the mastermind. The leader continued in a monotone, but none of the other lackeys came up. None of them had managed to get their hands on the coveted Spirits. Rayen noted that they were moving by row. Through this process, the Wingly would be called last. He wondered if that had been done on purpose for dramatic effect.
"Shade."
Shade marched from his rank towards the machine, risking a glance at the group of his former comrades. Phil was clenching his fists, trying to suppress his fury. Dawn merely appeared sad. Rayen remained impassive. When their gazes connected, he gave an almost imperceptible nod.
Rayen knew, then. Whether this was good or bad for his own position, Shade couldn't say. He continued walking, and placed the onyx Dark Dragoon Spirit in the depression clockwise from the topaz. He also marched to the head of the room, standing to the left of Emerson.
John Emerson listened with a self-satisfied smirk as the leader continued to read off names, but it soon faded from his face. They were reaching the end of the list, and five Spirits were still unaccounted for. Surely it was not possible...
"Kyra."
So, this Wingly did have a name, although it appeared she only had one. Rayen wondered if she had refused to give her last name, or it was possible that Winglies merely didn't have them.
Kyra walked over to the machine, and slowly placed not one, but five Spirits in their respective depressions. Then she marched to the head of the room, standing to the right of Emerson, smirking at his awestruck look.
(Man, these people take job politics to a whole new level.)
The mastermind finally got up from the chair. Rayen expected a speech, but it appeared that none were forthcoming. He merely nodded to the group, and everyone drew their weapons. They placed the hand that held the weapon on the left side of their chests. Rayen noticed that Shade was using his longer weapon, and wondered why he had decided to use that blade rather than his right-handed sword.
The man walked to the machine and pushed a few buttons on the control panel. The runes flickered with a strange light, and the Spirits shone their respective colors, creating a blinding spectrum of magical radiance. An enormous white beam shot from the machine. It pierced the sky, creating a gaping extradimensional hole.
The amassed troops gaped at the swirling portal in the sky. Kyra's eyes shone in anticipation. Surely whatever emerged from that gateway was immensely powerful. Now, nothing would stop them from bringing about a new world order!
They soon found out what was living on the other end of the portal.
Dragons.
Red, blue, green, brown, purple, white, and black, they emerged in threes from the portal, a larger dragon ahead of two smaller ones. The twenty-one legendary beasts hovered in the sky, casting shadows on the pathetically weak planet below.
But they were not done yet. Another being emerged from the portal.
It was immense beyond any imagination. It had seven eyes, arranged in a circle around a huge eighth orb, all with cat-like slit pupils. Seven wings, plowing powerfully through the air. Wicked claws, a gigantic cannon, and a barbed tail. This thing was meant to kill, utterly and mercilessly.
The Divine Dragon.
The mastermind turned on a huge screen, which apparently showed satellite images from space, so they could watch the dragon's antics from a birds-eye view, although all real birds had by now fled the skies of Endiness. It flew through the air with malicious intent, headed towards Bale, its obvious target.
Kyra watched, her pride steadily growing. She was an instrumental person in releasing this magnificent beast, which would bring about a new era to Endiness. But suddenly, it stopped. Kyra did not understand why. It turned to the huge forest just outside of Bale. A magical green bubble suddenly surrounded a large section of the forest. Now Kyra understood. The dragon was aiming for the forest, which was famous for the most concentrated Wingly population in Endiness. She mentally divided the forest up into the living districts, and located the district with the shield.
She was in for a nasty shock. That was HER district, the district she had grown up in! It couldn't be possible...
But it was. The eighth eye glowed, the pupil dilated with the bright light. A humongous radiantly white beam shot from the cannon, annihilating the district, shield and all, in a nanosecond. Kyra fell to her knees, sobbing. The blood of her family and friends was on her own hands. The Divine Dragoon, satisfied, flew back to its ancient home, the Mountain of the Mortal Dragon, diving into the depths of the volcano.
Shade saw his opportunity. It was now or never.
"This one's for you, Joey!"
True to Master Kohima's prediction more than ten years ago, Kenneth Perrault fulfilled his modus operandi. He plunged his weapon through John Emerson's heart, killing him instantly. He withdrew his blade, made a mad dash to the machine, withdrew four of the spirits, and tossed the three, in rapid succession, to each of the captive Dragoons. Phil and Dawn both looked dumbstruck, but Rayen merely grinned as he caught his and activated it immediately. He had guessed the whole time, then.
Realizing what was going on, all of the troops with any sense, including the mastermind, fled either physically or magically. About twenty people remained in the chamber, naïve enough to attempt fighting a Dragoon. Kyra remained on her knees in disbelief. The four Dragoons cut down the opposition quickly. They reverted back to their normal forms.
Kyra rose to her feet and turned to the Dragoons.
"Take me with you."
It wasn't a request. On a sudden impulse, she walked to the machine and took the three remaining Spirits. When her hand touched the Thunder Spirit, it began to glow with a fierce light.
"But why? It didn't react to me when I first took it..."
Shade pocketed his own Spirit and turned to the Wingly.
"It appears your destiny has finally caught up with you."
As if on cue, the first snows of winter fell on the land of Endiness, like downy white feathers sticking to the scalding tar of destruction the heavens had so unjustly rained upon them.