Chapter 10: Well, That's Just Prima
"Hey, boss. We're... we're back." Gobi chuckled nervously as the group entered Gartes' office. The High Merchant was waiting for them, sitting behind his desk with his hands steepled and a benevolent smile on his face. Ryu instantly realized that they were screwed.
"You didn't destroy the torpedo." Gartes greeted them. It was not a question.
"Ah... afraid not." Ryu admitted. "We took down Nabal Castle, freed all the prisoners, killed the Slime Brothers and another General, and liberated the Lands of the Builder Clan... but Cean got away with the torpedo."
"And I'm sure all of those accomplishments will be a great comfort to the people of Prima when we're all being sold in Scande as chunky-style." Gartes said sarcastically. He buried his head in his hands. "This is it. We're doomed. Done for. Nothing can save us now."
"Not just yet, my lord." Bo tried to cheer him up. "There's still some time; the torpedo wasn't done yet. At sea, and without the Builder Clan, it'll take them some time to finish." Gartes didn't raise his head.
"That makes no difference. We can't attack those ships; if the Great Fish approach, they send out full flying-reptile dragons to run them off. No amount of time can change that."
"Wait..." Ryu said, remembering his last conference with Ladon. "If all else fails... my lord, do you know anything about a legendary sorceress?" Slowly, Gartes looked up at him with a strange expression on his face.
"Well, now. How in the world did you think of that?"
"Some books I had back home mentioned a couple things about a legendary sorceress once." Ryu lied glibly, aware of the others all watching him as well. "Don't really know any details, but I figured if we've got nothing else..."
"That may very well be the only shot we've got." Gartes leaned back in his chair, thinking fast. The depressed look was gone from his eyes. "Right, then. You've been to Arad, right? Did you see the moving city of Wisdon there?"
"Yeah." Nina confirmed. "Strange place."
"Legend has it that inside that city, which has not been entered by mortals for hundreds of years, is a sorceress of unfathomable beauty, wisdom and power." Gartes explained. "Come on, follow me. There's somebody here who knows more about it than I do." Taking them up a level, he led them to an ancient, red-scaled Maniro who was resting in a huge bed. Gartes bowed respectfully to him. "Father... we need your help."
"Eh? Who disturbs my sleep?" The old Maniro grunted, turning his head to look at them. "Oh, Gartes... what are you talking about?"
"Can you tell us about the legendary sorceress of Wisdon, sir?" Nina asked with her prettiest smile. The old Maniro scratched his chin.
"The sorceress, eh... she sleeps in Wisdon, the moving city. Apparently, she's been there for hundreds of years, ever since the last days of the War of the Dragons..." Ryu hissed sharply with surprise. The old Maniro continued, not hearing him. "All sorts of rumors... some say she's from an extremely rare Clan... some say she rises to assist every Light Dragon hero who needs her... heck, some say she was the twin sister of the Goddess Myria or the daughter of Ladon himself... nobody knows how much of that is true or not. But she has powers beyond any other mortal." He suddenly gave them all a piercing look. "She won't like to be woken up... but with the straits we're in right now, we don't have much choice."
"Huh?" Gartes blinked. "But, dad... how'd you know..."
"I still know how to keep my eyes and ears open, son." The old Maniro reprimended Gartes. "I know what's happening. There's only one way to get into Wisdon unless you're a spirit, which none of you are." Reaching underneath his bed, he pulled out a statue about the size of Ryu's head. Carved entirely out of some colossal indigo gem, it was shaped like a beautiful lady. Below her waist, however, her body became a snake's tail. None of them had seen somebody who looked like that before. The old man gave the statue to Ryu, who grunted a little from its weight but held it. "Walk towards Wisdon with this held high, and it will cease its moving long enough to allow your group to enter."
"I'll go tell Trout we'll need him again." Gartes decided, hurrying off. "Get ready, all of you. We don't have much time."
"Great. Back to Arad again." Gobi groaned. "I still have sand in my scales from the last time..."
"Well, Wisdon moves around a lot, so with luck it'll be close to us when we arrive." Karn suggested hopefully. Gobi glared at him.
"More likely it'll be on the other side and we'll wander around, never finding it, before dying miserably."
"We'll just have to get lucky!" The perky thief tried again. Gobi responded by rolling his eyes.
"If we were lucky, we would have taken out Cean back at Nabal, and we wouldn't have to go back to Arad in the first place."
"Stop fighting, you two." Ox stepped between them. "We've got enough trouble as is." Being as how they couldn't see each other at all past the massive Builder Clanner, Karn and Gobi didn't really have a choice but to agree.
"Yeah, and we've got more important things to talk about..." Bo frowned, looking directly at Ryu. Nina did so as well, nodding.
"Yeah. We need to talk, Ryu."
"About what?" Ryu chuckled, trying his best to look innocent. Unfortunately, they weren't fooled.
"Vaguely mentioned in a couple books back home? Come on, Ryu." The Princess shook her head. "That's bull. You know it, I know it, we all know it. You found out about the legendary sorceress from a completely different source."
"Well..." Ryu looked away.
"And this isn't the first time this has happened, either." Bo reminded him. "You've mysteriously come up with exactly what we needed out of the blue several times before now. How are you doing it, boss?"
"Oh, it's nothing." Ryu fidgeted. "Besides, we don't really have time to discuss this, do we? Every second is counting right now before the torpedo is finished. We need to get down to the loading section... Trout should be getting there now. Come on, time's wasting!"
"All right..." Bo agreed slowly. "But when Prima's saved, we're going to talk about this again, boss." Nina and the others nodded firmly in agreement.
"All right, explain this to me again." Gobi puffed as the group reached the top of another sand dune. "Explain to me... WHY Trout got to stay back at the beach, with the ocean, and I had to come with you guys to the desert, withOUT the ocean."
"Because you're one of the group, and Trout's just temporary transportation." Karn whistled a little tune as he slid down the other side of the dune. "Nothing personal to Trout, he's a good guy. He's just not one of THE guys. You are. We stick together."
"In that case, can I submit my two weeks' notice? Except make it a two minutes' notice?" The fat Maniro grumbled. "Where is this place, anyways? You said you saw it an hour ago, Bo."
"Yeah, but it moves, remember?" Bo informed him. "It can't be too far; we'll find it... soon..." He stared upward. Wisdon had just appeared over a dune not fifty feet away behind Gobi. "Ryu, quick. Get that statue out before it bolts. This is our best chance."
"What? Where is it?" Gobi slowly turned around. His mouth fell open. "...Oh." Wisdon was an amazing sight; atop a perfectly square-sided hill of dirt, the marble buildings shone with ancient grandeur and beauty, despite their age and decay. Ryu pushed past him, grunting as he held the Statue aloft. The moving city slowly ground to a halt, and rotated around until a set of stairs in the hillside were facing the group. Slowly, Karn set a foot on them, then another.
"It's safe. Come on!" The others rushed aboard, Ryu last. As soon as he was on the stairs, the city took off again, moving across the dunes. Strangely, the stairs did not feel like they were in motion; there was no trouble at all climbing to the top. As they reached the end of the stairs, all of the group stood still. Even Gobi could not help it. Unbidden, an image of Wisdon as it once must have been crept into their minds. The buildings of marble shining brightly in the noon sun as inhabitants walked down the smoothly paved streets, with rich green grass and flowers watching from the sides. Small children playing in the deep blue waters of the moat (Gobi in particular thought at length on this part) that surrounded the central temple-palace at the center of the city.
"All of that... gone..." Ryu whispered. Wisdon was no longer the great city it had been before. The marble was stained with brown sand, the buildings crumbling with gaping holes. There were no more people walking down the streets, no plant life growing on the side, no water in the moat. Only ruins... a hollow, broken shell. "What... happened here?"
"Time happened, young Light Dragon." A voice answered. Ahead of them, two pairs of eyes appeared, floating in the air. One yellow, one green. "It has been countless centuries since a living being walked the streets of Wisdon. Ever since the Dragon War..."
"That long?" Bo asked wonderingly.
"Yes..." The eyes closed for a moment. "Before then, this was the world's greatest center of learning, especially in magic... people from all over came here to study. Human, Wing, Forest, Grassrunner, Fusion, Maniro, Woren, Builder, Mole, Shell, Light Dragon, Dark Dragon... even a few Grass Men... no distinction was ever made between them. All came in pursuit of knowledge above all else, and all were comrades here for that purpose, no matter where they came from and what they did."
"I've never even heard of some of those clans." Nina shook her head in wonder. "I wish I could have been here, even for only an hour, in those days..."
"It was a time of wonder for Wisdon." They eyes agreed. "But after the War, the Dragon God decreed that Wisdon must be abandoned. Every scholar, every mage had no choice but to leave, taking all their knowledge with them. Wisdon became the city that moved, never standing still, never resting... and we became the only ones who could enter. Until now. It's been a while, Light Dragon..." Clouds of blue and red gas appeared around the eyes.
"Wisp! Cloud!" Ryu instantly recognized the Guardians. "So, is this where you come when you're not watching the Goddess Keys?"
"Us, and one more..." Cloud nodded. "You come with the Statue, as you were destined to. The one who created it is the only truly living one left in Wisdon."
"The legendary sorceress?" Karn guessed.
"Indeed, young thief." Wisp agreed approvingly. "She remained here to watch the last man leave, then went into the central temple-palace and fell asleep. She has continued to sleep for thousands of years, ever since then."
"Then she WAS alive during the War of the Dragons?" Ox asked, wide-eyed. Cloud snorted with mirth.
"Of course she was... in fact, she was one of those who accompanied your ancestor whose name you bear, Ryu."
"She... was?" Ryu whispered. "Then she... helped hide the Goddess Keys originally?"
"Correct." Wisp nodded. "She sleeps until the Goddess Keys return to the world, wherupon she will be awakened by the next Light Dragon Ryu. That time has come. Follow us, please." The two spirits floated towards a staircase in the ground, leading downwards, and the group followed them. The tunnels beneath Wisdon were just as ancient and ruined as the city above, the obsidian-tiled floors dull with centuries of dust. After only a few minutes, they emerged behind the temple-palace and silently filed into it. Here, the city of Wisdon had not been changed. The royal purple floor tiles still gleamed brightly, and the walls were unbroken.
"You may drink, if you wish." Wisp offered as they entered the main room. On the opposite wall was a Spring of Life, flowing with clear blue water. "It is still pure, even after all this time." Gobi instantly ran over and began drinking as much as he could. The others did so as well, more respectfully. When they were done, they followed the two spirits up a flight of stairs. The second floor of the temple-palace was all one room, and the center of Wisdon. Silver murals covered all the walls with indicepherable pictures and words. Statues of Ladon were lined up, side by side. And in the back of the room, lying on a simple cot, was the Legendary Sorceress of Wisdon. Before they could get a closer look at her, an apparition of green gas materialized before them.
"So, this is the Light Dragon Ryu..." It spoke, opening bright red eyes. "Not very impressive. This one defeated you both?"
"Indeed, he and his friends did." Cloud confirmed. "They are here, as we knew they would be, Myst. It is time for her to awaken."
"It is our duty to guard her, fool." Myst snapped, not convinced. "In addition to the Goddss Keys. I have not yet lost mine to them, and see no reason to surrender my other duty to them as well." Wisp sighed heavily.
"Then what would you have us do, Myst? We cannot simply turn them away." The green spirit's eyes narrowed as he watched the group.
"If you're certain he's so powerful, why not let him prove his worth? The six of them, against the three of us?"
"If it's all you'll accept..." Cloud turned to Ryu apologetically. "Sorry. I know you've already beaten me and Wisp, but Myst is... well..."
"We understand." Ryu smiled. "All right, we agree."
"Show me what you're made of, then!" Myst roared, charging the Light Dragon. Ryu met him head-on as the Fire Whelp, and the two began exchanging blasts of lightning and fire. Wisp was met by Nina and Ox on the left. As he began spewing iceballs, Nina supercharged the big Builder Clanner, who charged forward without even an attempt at subtlety, bashing wildly. Cloud had gone to the right, and watched as Karn, Bo and Gobi fused together.
"Ready for a little one-on-one, friend?" Shin grinned, loosing several huge shafts into the red mist. Cloud grunted, both with pain and approval, as he responded in kind.
"Good... you're learning your Clan's legacy, Karn!" At the center of the room, Ryu and Myst were still grappling with each other. The Fire Whelp's claws and teeth could not find purchase in the green gas, and Myst's bolts of electricity were not enough to take down the dragon's scaled hide.
"Not bad, I will admit!" Myst grudgingly began to give way. "You have seen many fights in a short time, have you not, Light Dragon?"
"And I learn fast, too, friend!" Ryu grinned, hitting the red eyes directly with another burst of flame.
"Then I had best get serious, while I can..." Myst smiled. Ryu blinked for a moment, then screamed in pain as Myst brought down a blood-chillingly cold blizzard on the entire room. Wisp was unaffected, but Nina, Ox, Shin and Cloud all made various noises of annoyance and pain.
"Watch where you're aiming that thing!" Cloud yelled.
"Yeah, watch... Ryu!" Nina shrieked. The Fire Whelp was bleeding all over his body, and still he fought on against Myst. Wisp nodded with approval.
"He has even more spirit than when we-ARGH!" He dissipated as Ox crunched his face into the wall with a particularly vicious swipe, then dove at Myst. At the same time, Cloud cleared the ice from his eyes only to have them pierced by a dozen arrows. He vanished as well, and Shin joined the others. Myst broke off his assault on Ryu to defend against hammer and arrows while Nina began using all of her white magic on the Fire Whelp.
"I'm... okay..." Ryu grunted, staggering back to his feet. "Right, let's finish this!"
"I couldn't agree more!" Myst laughed, using his Blizzard spell again. Ryu, charging and shrieking, was brought down hard. Unfortunately, Ox and Shin were not as affected, and their weapons finished the task. Myst could hold out no more, and with an angry howl he too vanished. Ox turned with a grin on his face that vanished when he saw his leader.
"Ryu! Nina, come on!" The two white magic users quickly applied every healing spell they had on him, and Ryu reverted to his original form. Sighing in relief, Shin also reverted.
"Did you get him?" Ryu grunted, standing up. "Yeah... looks like it. Good job, guys..."
"Never mind that!" Nina yelled. "You idiot, what were you thinking, charging into another one of those when the first messed you up so badly?"
"Well, what was I supposed to do?" Ryu yelled back. "Just sit there and let you guys fight without me?"
"It would have been better then almost getting killed unnecesserily!" Nina retorted. "And another thing-"
"Ahem." Wisp coughed. The group all turned their heads to look at the three spirits. "If you don't mind... I believe friend Myst has had the point adequately proven to him."
"Yes, yes, you're very determined. Let's get on with it." Myst grumbled. "Come on..." The three spirits floated over to surround the legendary sorceress, and the group approached as well. The sorceress if Wisdon was, as Gartes' father had said, an extraordinarly beautiful woman; not really looking particularly young or old, but with a strange, almost timeless cast to her features. She was wearing a deep purple combination of vest and cape that was open down the center in front in a way that the males, Bo and Karn in particular, found very interesting. Below it, her body was a long, green snake's tail. Her long hair was partially bound in a kercheif of the same color as the vest.
"It's the exact same color as Ryu's..." Nina realized. "Don't all Light Dragons have blue hair?"
"Yeah..." Ryu agreed. "Somehow, though, I don't think she's a Light Dragon. But I've never seen a Clan like her before..."
"Sorceress, there's somebody here to see you." Wisp attempted to raise her. The sorceress didn't even twitch. "No response... figures. You try, Cloud."
"Sorceress, a descendant of the legendary hero has arrived. Please wake up." Cloud yelled. Again, the sorceress didn't budge. "Still nothing. Why am I not surprised by this. Your turn, Myst."
"Looks like I'll have to resort to Plan B..." The grumpy green gas decided. All of the group jumped as he called down a lightning bolt that hit the Sorceress full-on in the face. Slowly, she opened her eyes.
"Aaaa... what? What's going on here?" She raised her upper half and glanced around. The spirits quickly faded away. She saw Ryu. "What the-? Ryu? What are you doing back here? You'd better have a very good reason for waking me up, or else-!" She raised an ancient wooden cane threateningly.
"Um... I don't think I'm... who you think I am..." Ryu stammered, backing off. The Sorceress moved forward off of her cot, the tip of her tail twitching threateningly.
"What are you talking about, Ryu? Did you hit your head? A good Nova spell should clear that right up!"
"Wait!" Nina flew into her path. "Don't! This isn't the Ryu you think it is!"
"It's not?" The sorceress blinked, nonplussed. "Well, why didn't you say so in the first place? Would have saved some time!" She frowned and looked closer at Ryu. "Hm... you're right. Not the same. You'll be the next one, then... can't believe it's been that long already..."
"You knew I'd be coming?" Ryu asked, somehow not that surprised. The sorceress gave him a look.
"Of course I did. Don't say stupid things." She pursed her lips. "Hm... younger than the last one... but cuter, too." She smiled. "And pretty determined, to even get here. I think I like you, Ryu. All right, I'll help you out. What do you need?"
"Well, it's kind of a long story..." Ryu began. She cut him off.
"Shorten it, then. You're on a time limit, aren't you?"
"Well... yes." Ryu admitted. "All right then... basically, we need your help to sink the Dark Dragon fleet before they can complete their torpedo."
"Dark Dragons?" The sorceress stared at him incredulously. "Is that stupid Dragon War STILL going on? I sleep for thousands of years, and I wake up right back where I started! UGH!" She began pacing back and forth, muttering to herself, then stopped. "All right. I think I have what you need." She went over to her cot and began rummaging around under the mattress, eventually coming up with a white egg about the size of a chicken's, with purple spots. She carelessly tossed it to Ryu. "Here, take it."
"What is it?" The Light Dragon asked. She yawned, crawling back onto the cot.
"It's an old egg, of course. Get some Gills from the Maniros... oh wait, you already have those, don't you? Right, go find an undersea volcano near where the Dark Dragons are, and drop the egg into the crater. The heat will make it hatch, and the beast inside will create a typhoon to wipe out any ships nearby."
"That's great!" Karn practically danced with joy. "That'll completely wreck them! Let's see them try to finish the torpedo after that!"
"That's the idea, Karn." The sorceress addressed him by name, even though she hadn't been told it. "Now, I'm going back to sleep. Good luck to you all. Yawn!" Lying back down, she was instantly out.
"Strange lady..." Bo muttered as they walked back out.
"Very strange." Ox agreed. "But remember, she's thousands of years old. I guess anybody who lived that long would be kind of strange."
"Probably." Karn nodded. The group emerged from the tunnels, back into the main city of Wisdon. "Hey, look over there. What are the spirits doing?" The three spirits were together, crowding around something.
"Well, why don't you kick him out, then?" Cloud was asking indignantly. Myst looked thoroughly confused.
"Somehow, I just... can't..."
"What's up, guys?" Ryu asked as they approached. Then he saw what they were talking about, and he just stared in utter disbelief. It was a familiar-looking bum. "What... how did YOU get HERE?"
"I stuck my thumb out and whistled, young'un!" Uncle Specs chortled. The old man was looking as disreputable as ever, covered in sand. "That's always how you pick up a ride! Works every time!"
"I take it this is that 'Uncle Specs' guy you told us about?" Gobi muttered to Bo. The Forest Clanner nodded.
"Yup. The one and hopefully only. No mistaking him."
"Somebody mention my name?" Uncle Specs demanded, peering around. "I'll knock 'is block off! I've got a copyright on it! I'll kill the bum!"
"What's a cop... never mind." Ryu shook his head despairingly. "What are you doing here, anyways, old man?"
"It's not old man, it's Uncle Specs!" The ancient maniac informed him. "You can call me my name, we're old friends! Anyways, I'm here on an archaelogical expedition! This place is a mother lode!"
"Well, whatever THAT is, I'm sure you'll have fun with it." Ryu sighed, walking past him. "We've got to be going. See you later."
"All right, then!" Uncle Specs waved as the rest followed. "Give my best to Admiral Cean!" Ryu started to turn around at that, but changed his mind and kept walking, muttering a few choice words under his breath.
"Hang on! We're going to be there soon!" Trout announced cheerfully. The group were riding on the back of the huge Great Fish, blasting towards the remainder of the Dark Dragon Fleet at top speed. Both Maniros fervently assured the others that they knew the exact location of a nearby volcano. Ryu's eyes narrowed as he spotted the enemy ships far above them. Trout was intentionally hugging the ocean floor as closely as possible to avoid being spotted. "There! Look, see it?"
"Yeah, that's a volcano, all right..." Bo agreed. "We've got a couple near my Clan's lands, so I recognize them. How the heck do they still work underwater, though?"
"Not even our top scientests know that." Gobi admitted. "They're there, though. No question about that. Think this is close enough to the Dark Dragons?"
"It'll have to be." Ryu grunted. "Take us up to the top of that thing, Trout... we need to hurl the egg into the crater."
"I just hope the Dark Dragons don't see us..." The Great Fish fretted, swimming upwards. As they approached, Ryu could see the lava inside the crater.
"Closer, Trout..." The Great Fish did so, and Ryu stretched his arm back. "Right... here goes nothing!" He hurled the old egg with everything he had. The tiny, purple-spotted dot flew straight and true into the center of the lava masses, vanishing without a sound. Trout quickly wheeled around and took off.
"So... now what?" Nina asked as they left the fleet behind, completely unnoticed.
"Now we wait, I guess." Karn shrugged. "That sorceress didn't say how long that egg would take to hatch. I just hope it happens before the torpedo is done."
"For some reason, so do I. Wonder why." Gobi muttered sardonically. "Well, there's Prima, anyways." As Trout pulled in to the loading area, the group noticed that the citizens were in an uproar, even for Prima. Trout reverted to a Maniro and cheerfully accosted one of them.
"Hey, Earl. What's going on here, eh?"
"She... she came here!" The Maniro named Earl was gibbering. "Just came right into town and waltzed over to the High Merchant's! Said she was here for Ryu! Who's Ryu?" Breaking free, he ran off. Ryu and the others stared at each other.
"She? It couldn't be..." Simultaneously, they bolted straight for the High Merchant's. Their suspicions were confirmed; as they entered his office, the legendary sorceress of Wisdon looked up irritably. She had been napping on a couch.
"You're back already? What's the rush? I wanted to get some more sleep before show time..." Gartes was behind the desk, his scales slightly pale.
"Gobi... is this...?"
"Yeah, it is, boss." Gobi nodded. "As for the rush, madame, that would be the torpedo aimed at our city. Which you are currently in, I might add."
"Oh, that." The sorceress stretched. "Well, did you drop the egg in the lava?"
"Just like you told us." Ryu confirmed. She winked at him.
"Well then, don't worry. In just a few hours, those Dark Dragons are going to be getting a VERY nasty surprise."
"Why did you come here, anyways, miss sorceress?" Nina asked pointedly. The sorceress shrugged.
"To be honest, I wasn't going to at first. I was just going back to sleep when some transient barged in and started raving about how the world was in chaos." The group groaned simultaneously. "After I threw him off the city, I started thinking. He had a point. I was pretty much fully awake at that point, and I did some investigating. Things out here are worse than I thought, and I decided I really didn't have any business napping through it." She grinned at Nina. "Plus, I noticed your group only had one girl and five guys, so I figured things might be a little strained."
"Excuse me?" Ox choked. "And what's THAT supposed to mean?" Ryu and Nina had gone bright red, unable to speak. Bo, however, laughed loudly, and Karn and Gobi were grinning.
"Not exactly, madame, but I don't think we'll mind anyways! Welcome aboard!"
"Okay, then!" The sorceress smirked. "One thing, though. Drop the 'madame', okay? My name is Deis. I already know all yours. Gartes here has briefed me on the details of the current situation already. And before you ask, yes, I do still remember most of my magic."
"Most?" Karn raised an eyebrow, to which she shrugged.
"Hey, give me a break. It's been a long time since I used any of it, so I'll probably still be fuzzy on the really complicated things. I'll pick it all back up before long, though, and I've still got enough to send most punks crying with their tails between their legs anyways." She twirled her wooden cane threateningly.
"On that note..." Gartes coughed politely. "You say it will be several hours before this... egg... hatches?" Deis nodded in agreement.
"About six hours."
"Then you might as well get some sleep." The High Merchant winced. "I'll... foot the bill for some rooms at the local Inn. Go on, rest up. I have an uncomfortable feeling you'll need it."
"Truer words have never been spoken, my lord." Ryu agreed as they left.
Exactly six hours from the volcano drop, the seven heroes rose from their beds. Dressing, they readied their weapons and walked out of their rooms. Without a word from anybody, they left the inn and strode down the streets towards the loading area. Behind them, High Merchant Gartes was mobilizing the citizens of Prima. Finally, they arrived, and Ryu turned to face them.
"Everybody ready?" He asked grimly. "That thing should be coming out any minute now. Once it does, that'll be it. No turning back."
"Won't the egg do all the work for us?" Karn asked. Deis shook her head.
"No... it'll wreck all the ships, and if it's not done yet, that'll be it for the torpedo, but it's almost certain that some of the soldiers will survive. Especially this Admiral Cean... he sounds like a real toughie."
"You don't get to be millitary commander of the Dark Dragon Armies by sitting on your duff." Ox agreed. "But we can take him."
"Then we're all agreed on what we have to do." Ryu confirmed. "Once the fight starts, we all make for Cean. The citizens of Prima should be able to mop up the rest of the remaining soldiers, but we're the only ones who stand a chance of taking the big man down. And this won't be some arrogant General or overconfident Captain. This is the final battle of their eastern invasion. We win here, we stop Zog's movements cold. From this point on, we're in the big leagues. The Dark Dragons won't stop until each and every one of us is dead and gone, and I think we all know who they'll send to do it. I'll understand if anybody wants to turn back." Six heads shook in negation. "All right. High Merchant, are your boys okay?"
"We're ready to go." The High Merchant ran up, puffing. "And you?"
"Same here." Ryu nodded. "Inform your men to leave Admiral Cean to us, assuming he survives. They won't stand a chance against him."
"They'll stick to the ordinary soldiers." Gartes assured him. "Ryu... all of you... thank you. You've done so much already, and here you are, taking the front lines... and this isn't even your city..."
"It became our fight the moment the Dark Dragons became involved, sir." Ryu saluted sharply. Gartes saluted him back, then turned to one particular member of the group.
"Gobi."
"Yes, boss?" The fat Maniro answered, a bit uncertainly.
"Gobi, do you remember what I told you when I took away your license?" The High Merchant of Prima smiled. "I told you I was doing this to teach you a lesson, that you had to care about more than just your own greed. I told you that some day, if I saw you doing the right thing without any thought for yourself, you would get your license back." He closed his eyes and chuckled. "And here you are, putting your life on the line with these people for Prima. You've done what I wished, beyond my wildest dreams. Gobi... go out there and make me... make all of our Clan proud. Here..." He pulled a thin card made of gold out of his pocket and handed it to Gobi. "You've earned this. Now, I just have one more task for you." He grabbed Gobi's shoulders roughly. "Don't die out there, Gobi. Come back to Prima alive."
"Yes, sir!" Gobi saluted with his pike, smiling like a rising sun. He turned to Ryu. "What are we waiting for, Ry... boss? Let's get out there and settle the score with Admiral Cean!" Trout was waiting, already a Great Fish. The seven heroes climbed onto his back, and he departed. Ten miles east of the city, they stopped and waited. Several minutes passed, and nobody spoke. And then, three more Great Fish swam out to meet them.
"The enemy! They're approaching fast!" One yelled.
"WHAT?" Ryu screamed.
"The torpedo!" Ox cursed, eyes grim. "They've finished it! Deis, where's that egg beast of yours!" Deis was staring in the direction of the volcano.
"Any minute now... any minute..."
"It's too late!" Karn groaned. The remaining ships were now visible, quickly growing larger. However, something was wrong. There were only five of them. And there was something behind them. Something huge, tall, and moving fast.
"What... is that?" Ryu whispered in awe. It was a waterspout, hundreds of feet wide, bearing down on the remaing ships. Deis slowly smiled.
"That, my friend... would be our little eggy-weggy."
"They're running from it!" Gobi whooped in realization. "The torpedo's not done at all! They're running away!"
"But they won't make it." Ryu's teeth were bared fiercely. "Look." The typhoon created by the egg beast had already caught one of the ships. It was instantly obliterated, chunks of wood flying everywhere. On the deck of the lead ship, a figure in silver armor was ranting and screaming insanely.
"WHERE ARE YOU!" Admiral Cean howled at the unresponding oceans. "RYU, COME OUT AND FIGHT!"
"Admiral Cean, we can't stop that thing!" A soldier urged him. "Our ships are lost! There's nothing we can do! We've divided up all the Gills we stole among the remaining men!" The Dark Dragon Admiral whirled on him, face a mask of fury. For a moment, it looked as if he would kill the soldier, but then he screamed again.
"ALL MEN, OVERBOARD!" The soldiers hastily complied, jumping into the ocean. Cean was last to go, casting one last look at the nearly completed torpedo on the deck before plunging with an insane snarl on his face.
"They're diving!" Ox yelled. "Here it comes!"
"Damn... there's still about four hundred!" Ryu cursed. "I don't know if the Maniros can match that many!"
"They'll have to." Karn scanned the huge mass of soldiers descending through the water, and quickly found his target. "There! Looks like Cean's making a beeline for us, too!"
"Put us down, Trout." Ryu ordered, strangely calm. Trout quickly complied, then swam off to join the rest of his kind. Admiral Cean was the first to land on the ocean floor. His men quickly followed, standing behind him as the Dark Dragon officer smiled darkly at Ryu.
"First you steal our Goddess Keys. Then you stop our activities in the Wing and Forest Clan lands, as well as Auria. THEN you destroy my castle. Now, you sink my navy! These four hundred are all I have left! All that's left of twenty-five thousand men that were meant to bring the land of the east to their KNEES!" He was shrieking by now. "You think you're pretty smart, don't you!"
"Apparently, smart enough to deal with you... sir." Ryu smiled mockingly. The Admiral's eyes flashed with hatred.
"You've destroyed everything I have... but now you'll pay! And after you, Prima will fall! CHARGE!" As the soldiers rushed forward, Cean began glowing. Unlike the officers before him, however, seperate beams of golden light were emitted from the glow.
"What is he...?" Nina started to ask, then regretted it. The Dark Dragon Admiral was growing... and growing... and still growing. His hands became massive pincers, his legs split into six spindly appendages, his skin became a rock-hard red shell. His eyes were huge, green and on stalks. The horrendous crab, bigger than a house, blew a bubble from its mouth and charged. The group scattered like bowling pins.
"What's wrong, Ryu?" Nina yelled. "Transform!"
"I'm trying!" Ryu yelled back, thinking hard. Fire will be nearly useless underwater... Ice will just freeze the water solid unless I'm right in his face... and Thunder would kill everybody! None of them work! "I can't!" He screamed, and threw his new boomerang, hard. The flying weapon smacked into both of Cean's eyes and returned to his hand. The crab just blinked, then laughed.
"Is that all? HA!" Moving towards him with surprising speed, it sent him flying through the water like a skeet with one flick of its right claw. Yelling, Bo, Ox, Gobi and Karn attacked him from the sides and back, shooting, ripping, tearing and smashing. Cean's shell cracked, but did not open, and one by one he flicked them away too. "Well, it's about time I really used these, methinks..." He clacked his claws in glee.
"I don't think so, big man!" Deis yelled, raising her staff. On her command, the very ocean floor began shaking, and a massive chunk of earth thrust itself upwards into Cean. The monstrous crab was flipped, exposing his lesser-armored blue underside. The group instantly moved in, hacking at it, and they got in several good hits before Cean righted himself and they had to retreat from the deadly pincers. Despite his wounds, Cean moved as if nothing was wrong, actually hopping around.
"Come on, you fools! I'll rip you all to shreds, then destroy Prima!" Growling, Deis tried the earth spell again, but as soon as he felt the rumbling, Cean charged straight at her. The sorceress was forced to dive out of the way to avoid being decapitated by a claw, and the pillar of ground only hit the enemy glancingly.
"Try this on for size, you overgrown bug!" Gobi hovered in the water as a swarm of tiny green fish flew towards Cean and covered him. Unfortunately, that didn't seem to work either; the crab just laughed and swatted them off.
"Is this truly all you can do? What a waste!" Cean demanded. "Here I thought you were some Light Dragon monster, and you're just an idiot who got damn lucky!" Ryu growled and hit his eyes with the boomerang again, slightly blackening them. "AH! You wretched little..." Cean advanced, claws at the ready, then spun as more arrow, hammer and dagger wounds appeared on his shell. "You stupid little pests!"
"We may be little, but there's a lot of us, big man." Deis taunted. "Try this on for size!" There was a huge noise as the very air around Cean exploded, flipping the crustacean again and sending him skidding across the ocean floor to crash into a boulder. Again, the heroes descended with their weapons, and again they did little, even to his weakened underside; he kept struggling as though the deep wounds were nonexistant.
"Phew!" Nina commented as she ran her rapier deep into the crab's guts. "What's he MADE of? We've all got max powerups on us... ACK!" All the heroes went flying again as Cean staggered back to his feet. He started to attack them, then thought better of it.
"No... why attack you? Instead... I shall destroy that which you protect!" Cackling with horrible glee, he began blasting towards Prima, running backwards. Unlike a real crab, his legs were spaced evenly around his entire body, allowing him to move in any direction. The heroes chased, but were repelled from getting too close by his snapping claws. "Ha ha! I'll bring the entire city down on your heads by myself!"
"Do something, Deis!" Bo yelled, trying to fire. Cean's quick claws, however, stopped the arrows easily.
"I can't!" Deis yelled back. "He's moving too fast for me to peg him with earth or explosion spells, and the others won't work underwater!"
"Then maybe it's time for some magic that will." Gobi gritted through his teeth. Everybody stared at him as he watched Cean's advance. The other Maniros were too busy fending off the Dark Dragons to notice. One Maniro, however, had definately noticed Cean. His eyes shone with pure hatred. "You... you're responsible for it all. Everything all my friends have gone through... everything I've gone through... and now, you still want to destroy the only place I've ever called home? The only place that ever gave me a second chance!" Calling forth his Water Magic, much more powerfully than with Morteo, the fat merchant was joined by a school of angry grey dolphins. Cean snapped at them feebly, but it was no use; the school covered him, ripping at his armor with sharp-toothed mouths and tearing it off piece by piece. Within seconds, the Admiral was defenseless. Screaming, Gobi ran his pike into the unprotected crustacean's flesh over and over. The claws raked him, opening horrible wounds, but he still kept going, and the others joined him. Within minutes, Admiral Cean was nothing but a pile of crabsmeat. One eye still glimmered.
"What... what do you plan to do... Light Dragon Ryu, what do you... do to this world..." Ryu held out his hand wordlessly, and Gobi gave him his pike. The Light Dragon raised it high.
"I'm going to wipe you out... you, and all your ilk, until none remain." The pike decended, and Admiral Cean's eye flickered out. Ryu and his friends looked around wearily. The fighting was done; Cean had been the last to fall. High Merchant Gartes approached, and Ryu saluted him slowly. "Any enemy survivors, my lord?"
"One." Gartes confirmed. "A magician who surrendered."
"Good." Ryu smiled, to the surprise of all. "We're going to need a messenger."
"You won't need anything..." A pain-filled voice gasped. Somehow, Cean was still alive. "I'm dead... but I'll take you to hell... with me!" He began glowing with white light. Ryu's eyes widened.
"Everybody! SCATTER!" The heroes and Maniros ran in all directions only moments before Cean exploded in a massive fireball, scattering crab chunks everywhere. Deis snapped her fingers even as she felt her head hit something hard and everything went dark.
"THAT's how you do that spell..."
"Ah, you're awake." High Merchant Gartes greeted Ryu as he opened his eyes. The Light Dragon slowly looked around. He was in a bed back in Prima.
"Is everybody... okay?"
"They'll all live." Gartes assured him. "Although you all-and Prima-would have been toast if that explosion was any closer."
"We got him... that's what counts." Ryu sighed heavily, smiling. "I take it the rest of the battle went well?"
"You'll never believe it." Gartes shook his head. "At first, it was going bad; they had us outnumbered, and they were trained soldiers. Then, from behind us comes a fleet of merchant ships from Auria, packed to the gills with human, Forest and Wing Clan soldiers! Great Ladon, I'd never seen anything like it! The enemy were completely slaughtered!"
"Sorry I missed it." Ryu cracked a grin. "Are they still here?"
"Oh, yes." Gartes smiled. "As a matter of fact, I have some friends who will want to see you once they hear you're awake." The friends, as he put it, were King Firdan from Camlon, General Cornus from Winlan, Terry from Tantar, Captain Zenny Gata from Auria, Trout from Prima, and to Ryu's delighted surprise, Captain Role. All of them were pleased to see Ryu, though surprised at his injuries.
"My friend, you look like you went into a butcher shop wearing horns!" Captain Role exclaimed. Ryu winked at him.
"The other guy looks like the leftovers from a banquet serving a hundred fat Maniros-no offense, Trout-so I think I came out ahead. What about you? We all thought you were fishbait."
"I never told you I was the champion swimmer in the entire East." Role grinned. "Learned it from the Maniros... somehow, I made it back to Auria alive."
"I'm glad." Ryu smiled. "I thought you were a goner." He inclined his head towards General Cornus. "Fortunately, Nina should be far less wounded than I am."
"Yes, I've visited her already. She regained consciousness before you did and promptly fainted again when she heard you were still out." Cornus smiled. "Thank you for keeping her alive, Ryu."
"From the stories Bo's been telling me, it was the other way around more often than not, Cornus." Terry joked. Zenny Gata laughed.
"I think none of them would have made it this far without the others, my good men. This group seem to be charmed by Ladon himself. Elder Khel was having nightmares that Karn would wash up ashore dead long ago, but he's still going strong, and we have you and your friends to thank, Ryu."
"We all owe them tremendously." Trout smiled. "Do you think you will be well enough to get out of bed soon? All the rest of the rulers came too. Once Elder Minos from Gant arrives, they're going to be holding a conference, and I think they'd all like you and your friends to be there as well."
"Give me a day or two more of sleep, and I should be able to move." Ryu smiled wanly. "I heal fast. Are the others all up?"
"Gobi's still out, but we think he'll be fine." Role assured him quickly. "If we need to, we can carry his bed into the meeting room."
"Let's leave him be for now." King Firdan spoke up. "If he says he needs sleep, let him."
"His majesty has a point." Cornus agreed. "Come on, let's go." They left, and Ryu sank back into peaceful darkness.
Three days later, the meeting that history would remember as the Council of the East took place. Two Kings, two Chiefs, three Elders, two High Merchants and seven advisors were cloistered in Prima's biggest meeting room, guarded by twenty brawny Builder Clanners. Gobi, contary to expectations, had managed to make it to the room by himself, although he winced with every step. By general agreement, since the building was his, High Merchant Gartes presided.
"First things first." He started off once the tedious formalities had been gotten out of the way. "Are we certain that all Dark Dragon presence is gone from the lands of the east?"
"Not a single enemy soldier has set foot upon our lands since they were beaten back at Prima." High Merchant Ross assured him. "With the complete destruction of their eastern navy, it is certain that they are gone from our lands... at least for now."
"For now." Elder Khel repeated grimly. "That was twenty-five thousand, all told, that Zog had sent to conquer us. Unfortunately, our intelligence indicates that was only half of the Dark Dragons' total army."
"You CAN'T be SERIOUS!" Chief Bart expostulated. "Half!"
"I'm afraid so." Khel shook his head. "Ten thousand are kept in the city of Scande. The remaining fifteen thousand are distributed throughout the Lands of the West, which, as we all know, have unfortunately been Dark Dragon territory for quite some time now. Those lands are mostly human; that is where they get most of their recruits from."
"What about the Mole Clan?" Chief Lupin asked. "Their lands are Dark Dragon territory..." Khel shook his head.
"They refused to join the army when first conquered, and ever since they've been slaves."
"Figures." King Gwyn snorted. "Emperor Zog has no patience with those who defy him. Believe me, I know."
"Still, twenty-five thousand more that they can bring against us..." Elder Minos shook his head. "That's far too many. Even united as we are, we can't stand against that. We only survived this assault because of these brave heroes." The leaders all looked at each other, then sighed.
"So, we are agreed." Elder Khan spoke for them all.
"What do you mean?" Ryu asked. He blinked; all the leaders were looking at him.
"Ryu." King Firdan shook his head. "I'm sorry, but... we have to ask you to continue your task. As it stands, you and your friends are our only hope."
"We were planning on going on anyways, sirs." Bo smiled. "Ryu has sworn to end the Dark Dragon threat forever, and we are all sworn to follow him."
"Then it is settled." Gartes thumped his fist on the table. "We will do everything in our power to aid you. And after you leave, we will unite our peoples and try to hold back the Dark Dragons until you do your job." He thought for a moment. "There's also the matter of the Goddess Keys to consider. Intelligence says they only have one right now... and you have four, correct?" Ryu nodded and held up the four Keys for them to see. The leaders stared in wonder. Deis nodded, looking grimmer than any of them had seen her before.
"Yup... those are the Earth, King, Light and Dark Keys, all right." She growled. "Don't get too thrilled, gentlemen... those things were SUPPOSED to never have come back out into the world again. Does anybody have a map of the world?"
"Here you are." High Merchant Ross handed her one. Deis bent over it for a moment with a quill and ink, then held it up for everybody to see. There were three Xs marked on there.
"All right, gentlemen, this is where we hid them thousands of years ago. I didn't bother marking the four we already have. First is the Time Key; that one is on the Island of Tunlan."
"I've never heard of it." Ryu confessed. Most of the others were shaking their heads as well.
"I'm not surprised." Gobi explained. "Tunlan is almost completely cut off from the rest of the world. The people there are technically humans, but their entire culture is different from everybody else's. They don't even speak the same language as we do, which makes going there problematic."
"Yeah, I'll bet." Ryu shook his head. "That's a problem. How are we going to get that Key, then?" Elder Khel stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Rumor has it that there's an artifact known as the Magic Hood that, when worn, translates the language of Tunlan. As for speaking back, the language is musical in nature; it doesn't require words. Anybody with the hood, an instrument of quality, and even passing skill in music should be able to speak it."
"Well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Deis continued impatiently. "The next Key is the Sky Key, which is hidden in the tower of Spyre, near the town of Spring in the far east."
"Might that be the one the Dark Dragons already have?" Chief Lupin asked. Deis shrugged.
"Possibly. I doubt they have the Time Key, so it's either that one or the Queen Key." The third X was right on Scande, the Dark Dragon Capital. "We left that one buried inside Obelisk, Myria's own flying fortress. With the Mole Clan working for them, the Dark Dragons might very well have dug it out."
"So where do we start?" Nina asked. High Merchant Gartes pointed out a town in the northeast, which was actually only seperated from Camlon by a huge mountain range.
"This is the town of Gust. I'm sorry, but it's the only place we can set you ashore without being spotted by Dark Dragon ships."
"We'll manage, my Lord." Ryu assured him. "We have so far. Oh, has anything been done about that Dark Dragon prisoner yet?"
"No, not really." Gartes shook his head. "We don't really have a use for him, so he's just been cooling his heels in the cell. Why? Do you have an idea?"
"I do, indeed." Ryu nodded. "But we can get to that later. Back to our enemies... what do we know about the Tiamat Unit? Now that we've killed Admiral Cean, I think they'll be coming for us themselves."
"The Tiamat Unit... Blue Alchemist Cort, Red Dreammaster Mote, White Asassin Cerl, Black Warrior Goda and Gold Lord Jade..." Elder Khel thought for a moment. "They are, as you know, second only to Emperor Zog himself in command. Jade is their leader and seemingly the strongest, though I have yet to see a report on his full power. As for the others... Cort is an apparent human, male and in his midthirties. He is tall, thin, bald and wears a ruby monocle. His skin was somehow turned deep blue; there is no knowledge as to how that occured. He is the world's foremost scientest, an absolute genius but devoid of any scruples whatsoever. He experiments freely on intelligent species without a care for their lives. His speech is urbane and civilized, but don't be fooled; his mind is really as cold and sharp as a surgeon's knives."
"Pleasant guy." Nina muttered. "No wonder he hung out with Manson."
"Mote, on the other hand, is a very small, short person who always wears a hooded purple cloak to disguise himself." Khel continued. "Rumors have it that his skin is blood-red from occasional sightings of his hands. He is said to be cruel and sadistic, enjoying the pain and suffering of others; as his title suggests, he is a master of the mental arts, and can manipulate your dreams like a fine-tuned harp."
"So I should wear my tin hat." Gobi joked. The others glared at him, but Khel continued as if he had not been aware of the interruption.
"Cerl is the only female of the Tiamat Unit, and by the looks of it, the only one with actual Dark Dragon blood aside from Jade; apparently, though, her mother was from another Clan. Not sure which one. Her father was a Dark Dragon General; after his death she took his place and soon impressed Lord Jade, gaining a place in the Tiamat Unit when it was formed. She is stealthy and cunning, can enter a room full of hundreds and kill them all one by one without even being noticed, and possesses a marked talent for lying and persuasion of victims."
"I can vouch for that." Ross remarked angrily.
"This is only a rumor, but..." Khel frowned. "She may just be the most skilled at the art of Transformation of them all. All of the Tiamat Unit have horrendous alternate forms, worse than even Admiral Cean, but if this rumor is true, Cerl was the one who taught them." He paused for a moment. "Goda, then, is a gigantic brute of a man... bigger even than you, Ox. Bald with blood-red skin like Mote, he is supposed to be an unrepentant savage who kills swiftly and without mercy using any weapon in existence; a sword, a bow, a spear, a knife, even his bare hands. He's a master with them all. Some people say he has a different side to him, but they're usually laughed at; his killings are famous for their brutality."
"And Jade?" Ryu asked fiercely. Khel coughed.
"Jade... a full Dark Dragon, he was apparently a childhood friend of Emperor-then, Prince-Zog, and his closest advisor from the moment the throne was passed on. He's a tall man with long blonde hair and pale skin. Supposed to be handsome, looks like a real ladykiller, but he has no interest in women... as a matter of fact, he doesn't have much interest in anything. They call him the man of ice." He shrugged. "Sorry we don't know more about them."
"That's all right." Ryu assured him. "We know all we need. We'll be ready."
"Does anybody else have anything to bring up?" High Merchant Gartes asked. There was nothing. "Very well, meeting adjourned. Now then, about that prisoner, Ryu..."
Only a few days after the Council of the East took place, another council was held, in a far different place. Emperor Zog's audience chamber was constructed like a stadium; circular, with seats in rising tiers all around it. The foremost seats were for Generals and Captains; Knights sat towards the back. At the back of the room, facing the entryway, was a huge blue-black stone throne, covered with precious gems. Placed at equal intervals around the circle from it were five smaller thrones, each one a different color; blue, red, white, black, gold. These were empty at the moment, but the largest was not. The Emperor of the Dark Dragons was an imposing sight; a huge man clad in armor that encased him from head to toe. Made of craggy obsidian and silver, with fearsome spikes rising from the shoulders and helmet, the effect made him look as if he was wearing some black dragon's rocklike hide. The man's face was the only part of him that was uncovered. It was not a handsome face, though it might have been once. Now, arrogance, pride and self-glorification were etched upon every inch of it. Unlike most Dark Dragons, his hair and beard were dyed a flaming red. Most people preferred looking into the false eyes of his helmet when addressing him, for his natural gaze teemed with madness. At the moment, however, he was placid, sitting absolutely still on his throne and waiting for some unseen cue. The doors banged upon without warning, and his head shot up. All of the officers in the room promptly stood and saluted.
"Hail, Gold Lord!" They shouted. Jade smiled sardonically as he entered. Walking to the center of the room, he dropped to his knee and bowed.
"Hail, Emperor Zog."
"Rise, my old friend." Zog told him. "You have always been my most faithful servant, Jade."
"I live but to serve, Emperor." Jade stood up and, in a single motion, backflipped into the gold throne above the entryway. "The survivor will be along any moment now."
"And the rest of the Tiamat Unit?" Zog inquired. Jade just smiled and inclined his head. The Emperor smiled back in understanding and resumed his statuelike calm. The lesser officers began whispering among themselves, but neither the Emperor nor the Gold Lord made any moves until the doors opened again. Two Dark Dragon soldiers entered, with a third between them. This third was dropped unceremoniously on the floor, and the other two saluted.
"You may leave." Zog told them. They quickly did so, with such speed that one might almost suspect they didn't want to see what was going to happen. "Now, then. Tiamat Unit, take your seats so we may begin."
"As you command, my Emperor." Four voices said simultaneously. The lesser officers jumped in surprise. There was a bubbling on the floor in front of the blue throne, and Cort seemed to rise out of it as if it were water and not stone. The red throne hissed and emitted a cloud of black gas, which congealed into a small blob of absolute darkness before solidifying into Mote. From the ceiling of the room, there was a blur of motion, and Cerl was suddenly standing before the white throne. The air around the black throne shimmered, and where there was nothing before, Goda appeared instantaneously. All four took their seats. Then, there was a sudden flash of light, and a fifth figure, clad entirely in grey robes that covered its entire body, stood next to Jade.
"Quite good on the dramatic entrances." Jade smirked. "Although our Emperor might make you clean up the floor, Blue."
"No, it's nothing." Emperor Zog waved a hand dismissively. "I see your newest member has elected to join us?"
"Indeed." Jade smiled at the grey-robed figure. "Sorry we don't have a throne in here for you yet, Silver. Why don't you take Admiral Cean's seat? He won't be needing it." The apparent newcomer to the Tiamat Unit wordlessly walked over and took the indicated seat, ignoring a few angry whispers from the lesser officers.
"Now, then. To business." Zog leaned forward, and the lone soldier left in the center of the room trembled. "State name, rank and last mission."
"S... soldier Ernest, grunt-level mage, yo... your majesty. Last... the conquering of Pri... Prima..."
"And why are you back here?" Zog asked him calmly. "Prima has not yet been conquered, has it?"
"We... we lost, Emperor!" The soldier wailed. "They... they butchered us!"
"You don't look butchered, old boy." Cort smiled friendlily. "A bit waterlogged, perhaps, but that's to be expected, considering where you've been, eh?"
"What Blue means is, how come you didn't get killed with everybody else?" Goda growled, showing his teeth. "You seem to have been the only survivor, soldier Ernest. As a matter of fact, you were delivered near here by a Great Fish. Why is that?"
"The... the enemy..." The soldier blubbered. "They... made me take a message... said it was for... for my Emperor and the Tiamat Unit..."
"A message, you say." Mote whispered from the depths of his hood. "An interesting message, probably. Shall we take a look, my Emperor?"
"We shall, Red Dreammaster." Zog agreed. "Soldier, play the message." Ernest stared at him, terror-stricken.
"Majesty, I cannot-"
"Don't be foolish, soldier." Cerl interrupted him. "We all know you had no choice in the matter. The contents of the message will not affect your fate whatsoever. However, I would not advise defying Emperor Zog a second time." She raised an eyebrow meaningfully.
"Y... yes, your highness!" Gulping, the soldier concentrated. In the air above his head, an image appeared. It was the battlefield before Prima. Slowly, the image panned back and forth, taking in hundreds of dead Dark Dragon soldiers. Angry muttering began filling the room from the lesser officers. The image stopped on a huge, carved-out crab's shell. Streaks of blood still coated the inside of it. The muttering doubled as they recognized Admiral Cean's remains. A single man walked out in front of the shell. He was young, about eighteen, but strongly built. His hair was blue and shoulder-length. In one hand, he carried a boomerang; in the other, a sword.
"Twenty-five thousand men." He spoke emotionlessly. "Twenty-five thousand were sent here for the purpose of conquering the East, the half of the world you do not control. And now, each and every one of them is dead. Nabal is completely destroyed, the great Admiral Cean is slain, and you have no presence here." One by one, others began walking into the image and standing next to him.
"Your plot to kill my father failed." Nina said.
"Your armies in my forest were completely obliterated." Bo informed them.
"Your attempts to gain the Light and Dark Keys by blackmail were repulsed." Karn sneered.
"Your torpedo that you planned to use on my city is now dust." Gobi grinned.
"All of your control over my people has been erased." Ox scowled.
"Face it. We've been kicking your asses on all accounts." Deis summarized. Ryu nodded.
"And, most importantly..." He held up his hand. Four Keys were extended from it like fingers. "We have four of the Goddess Keys. Swiped them right out from under your noses, and blew up said noses afterwards." He exaggeratedly dropped the Keys, one by one, into a pouch. "I know you want them. You know you want them. But it's not that easy. You're going to have to take them from us. And don't bother sending any more schmoes after us. You want to even pose a challenge for us, you know who to call in." He grinned mockingly. "If you guys have the balls to come meet us yourselves, that is. We're not satisfied with simply freeing our homelands, see. We're coming onto YOUR turf now. You've got the home territory advantage; I suggest you use it. And start taking us seriously; otherwise, we'll get the other Goddess Keys first too." All seven of them were smiling now, as they drew their weapons and saluted. "Hail, Emperor Zog. Hail, Tiamat Unit. Hail, all of the stinking Dark Dragon empire. This is your warning. We're coming for you."
The image disappeared, its message played. The lesser officers were now staring in shocked disbelief. But the Tiamat Unit were an entirely different matter. Cort adjusted his monocle and gave a thumbs-up. Mote's smile shone with red light from the darkness of his hood. Cerl's lips twisted slightly upwards in approval. Goda's teeth were bared in a fierce grin. And from the last two... came clapping. Slow, deliberate clapping as Jade and "Silver" stood up.
"Wonderful. Absolutely splendid, Ryu the Light Dragon." The Gold Lord declared.
"You approve of such insolence?" Emperor Zog demanded. He was not smiling. Not even close. Jade nodded.
"What is the fun of world domination if it is all easy, my Emperor? I think these ones will be a challenge worthy of the Dark Dragon Empire... worthy of the Tiamat Unit, I should say."
"Not neccessary... not even close, your highness!" One of the Generals blurted. "This man is obviously insane. We can take care of him without the Tiamat Unit's aid."
"Perhaps you missed seeing Admiral Cean's totalled corpse, General Zurm." Mote sneered. "If they killed him, none of you have a chance."
"I don't know how they took down Cean, and I don't care." Another General spat. "Obviously by some sneaky, underhanded trick. Once we pin them down, they'll squash like the bugs they are. Another twenty-five thousand will turn the trick!"
"Did you pay attention to a single thing that's been going on here, General Pess?" Cerl yawned, annoyed. "The first twenty-five thousand all died, and it's certain that the lands of the East are twice as unified against us now. If you want to commit suicide, you can just go swimming outside Scande." Another General glared at her contemptuously.
"We don't need your opinion on a millitary matter, you rankless bi-"
"Choose your next word carefully, General Targ." Goda rumbled. The offending General gasped as he realized the Black Warrior's fist was clenched around his neck. "I can pop your head off like a berry from a bush." The other generals started to rise, then stopped. The rest of the Tiamat Unit had also risen.
"It seems we have a little discipline problem, ah, friends?" Cort winked. "You seem to have forgotten something. True, we have no millitary rank. That is because we TRANSCEND rank. We are the Tiamat Unit of the Dark Dragon Empire. The five-headed dragon from Hell itself... well, I should say six-headed now. Sorry, Silver." The grey-robed figure nodded. "We have no past... we have no future. And that is not a position gained by having a tough father..." Mote fixed his hood on General Zurm. "...or by having a lot of money for bribes..." Cerl made a beckoning motion towards General Pess. "...or by surviving a war through cowardice." His gaze rested on General Targ, who Goda released. "Isn't that right, Lord Jade?"
"Indeed it is, Blue." Jade nodded. "With your permission, my Emperor, the Tiamat Unit would like to handle this matter personally from this point onward."
"Of course, Gold Lord." Zog nodded firmly. "I am glad to heed the advice of my most trusted advisor. If any officer would like to disagree with MY decison, let him speak now." His mad eyes swept around the room, but now there was not even a squeak of objection. "Good. Now, as for the matter of your fate, soldier Ernest..." The soldier fell to his knees.
"Your Majesty, let me live, I beg you!"
"I say, old boy, no reason for that." Cort jumped down to the floor and pulled the man to his feet. "Don't embarrass yourself, eh? I'll tell you what. I think I'll take the first crack at these enemy fellows. Of course, I'll be setting up a new lab where I think they'll be entering my territory. You can come along and be one of my lab assistants. How's that sound?" The soldier stared at him for a moment, then fell on his knees.
"Thank you... thank you, your highness!"
"That is, if Emperor Zog doesn't mind?" Cort looked directly at the Emperor and winked. Zog smiled.
"Not at all, my faithful Blue Alchemist. Take him with my blessing." His gaze swept around the room. "From now on, the Tiamat Unit's orders are to be obeyed without question. Any lesser Officer who defies them defies me, and I will deal with them personally. Am I understood?" The officers nodded. "Good. You are all dismissed." Five of the Tiamat Unit bowed, then disappeared the way they came. The lesser Officers followed suit, shuffling out, until only Jade and Zog remained. Sighing, Zog removed his helmet.
"You begin to go bald, old friend." Jade noticed. Zog laughed.
"The price of growing old, my friend. You seem to not be as affected... you could pass for a man in his twenties."
"I don't have to deal with the stresses of rulership." Jade reminded him. "Uneasy lies the crown and all that."
"Yes, but it's worth it." Zog grinned darkly. "It is only a matter of time before the entire world bows to the Dragon Clan once more. We may not even need the Goddess Myria after all." Jade shrugged.
"Who can say, my lord? We must continue looking for the Keys, regardless."
"Yes, about those." Zog remembered. "Have you found any leads on the remaining two?"
"Yes. One is in Tunlan. I'm dispatching White there soon." Jade reported. "Nothing on the last, but it's only a matter of time... either we'll find it, or Ryu will."
"And, of course, once we kill HIM we get all his Keys." Zog chuckled. "An interesting Light Dragon, worthy of his clan, but nothing to us."
"Yes, of course." Jade echoed. "I should be going, old friend. I need to talk with the others-Blue, in particular-about our plans."
"Isn't that always the way." Zog sighed. "Very well. You're dismissed, old friend." Jade saluted and walked out. As he continued down a hall, the rest of the Tiamat Unit appeared around him.
"Hey, guys." Jade smiled. "What's up?"
"Well..." Cerl shrugged. "What do you honestly think of this, Lord Jade? We seem to be disagreeing. This is IT, isn't it? What we've been waiting for for ten years."
"I'm concerned, boss." Goda admitted. "These guys might be trouble... a LOT of trouble. And depite what we know is going to happen sooner or later... I don't know, I just can't get my mind around the concept."
"Well, it IS the Light Dragons, old boy." Cort reminded him. "We knew this was going to happen. Still, it's not Jade's time yet. I can handle my own fate quite adequately." Mote nodded in agreement.
"At first I thought maybe Admiral Cean was faking most of it to distract us while he made his play for power. But there's no arguing with his corpse, so this is real. It's finally time." There was a pause, and then "Silver" spoke for the first time.
"I've only known all this for a short amount of time... but you've all been planning for this for ten years... more in your case, Lord Jade. But... I know Ryu. If he's gotten this far... he'll go the rest of the way."
"She's right. We don't need to worry." Jade assured them all. "We knew this would happen... we're all ready. Remember our motto? We're the best of the best. We've got this covered."
"Yes, sir!" All five saluted. Jade smiled.
"That's the Tiamat Unit I know. Remember, keep our real objective in mind at all times. You're up first, my faithful Blue Alchemist. Don't let me down." They nodded and departed, and Jade walked on, musing to himself some more.
"Hm... this confirms it. They're right... you are indeed the Light Dragon I've been waiting for, Ryu... nobody else could get this far. But now the danger to your life shall increase a hundredfold. Will you still follow the path that had been set? What will you do now, Ryu..."
"Ryu, are you in here?" Nina asked, knocking on his door at the inn.
"Yeah." He grunted. "Come on in." The Wing Clan girl pushed the door open to see him sitting on his bed, looking morose.
"Something up?" She asked, flying over. He shrugged.
"It's nothing."
"You've stunk at lying ever since we met back in Winlan." She reminded him. "What is it?" Ryu sighed.
"Well... it's just that I think I may have opened my mouth more than I can handle." He admitted.
"You mean with that message you sent to Scande?" Nina asked. The Light Dragon nodded.
"Yeah. I don't know if I can handle what's coming..."
"Why not?" She sat down on the bed next to him. "You've done great leading us so far..."
"Not lately." He shook his head. "For a while now... these Whelp transformations have been measuring up less and less. Suish would have killed me if you guys hadn't bailed me out... same with Myst. And I couldn't even transform against Cean... what'll happen when we go up against the Tiamat Unit?" He was unprepared for Nina's reaction; she giggled and punched him lightly on the shoulder.
"Forgot already? We already know where the next Dragon Shrine is! Heck, Ox can probably take us there tomorrow if you want!"
"Oh, DUH!" Ryu hit himself in the face. "Can't believe I forgot that. Thanks, Nina!"
"No problem." She smiled evilly. "Before that, though, I think it's about time we had that talk about those lucky hunches of yours..."
"Uh, yeah, about those..." Ryu laughed weakly, frantically trying to think of a way out. Fortunately, he was saved by another knock on the door.
"Yoo-hoo! Coming in!" Deis pushed the door open. She took in the situation at a glance and raised her eyebrows. "Well, now. Am I interrupting something here? I'm still new to this group, so I'm not sure how the relationships go..." Nina turned bright red.
"No! Not even close!"
"Good." Deis grinned. "Then I've still got a shot at him." She laughed at both of their faces. "But that's for later. Come on, we're having a group meeting in the Temple of Ladon." Turning, she left. Nina shot Ryu a glance.
"Might as well." He shrugged innocently. "We can talk afterwards."
"Oh, you bet we will..." She growled as she flew out with the Light Dragon in tow. The others were all waiting in the lobby.
"What were they doing?" Bo asked the sorceress, who smirked.
"Nothing... that I could see, anyways."
"Quit." Ryu grumbled. "Let's go, then." As they crossed the streets of Prima, they ran into High Merchant Gartes.
"Ah, Gobi. I was just coming to talk to you." He greeted them. Gobi stepped forward, a bit hesitantly.
"What's up, boss?"
"You're... you're not going to stick around Prima, are you?" Gartes asked. Gobi shook his head.
"Afraid not, boss. I'm going with these guys." He grinned cheekily. "Ryu still owes me money, you see..."
"Oh, come on." Karn elbowed him jokingly. "Tell us the truth! You just like hanging out with us!"
"Nooooooo!" Gobi howled in mock-horror. "I want my money!" Gartes sighed.
"Whatever your reasons are, I should give you this now." He handed the fat merchant a glowing, green crystal sphere. Gobi stared at it.
"Boss, you..."
"I gave you your license back, didn't I?" Gartes reminded him. "You've earned that too, Gobi. Use it well!"
"Is that the thing that'll let you turn into a Great Fish?" Ryu asked. Gobi nodded.
"Yeah, this is it! Whoo! Come on, let's get to the Temple! We all have to work hard so you can pay me back!" He marched off ahead of them.
"Talk about a one track mind..." Karn muttered. Gobi spun around instantly.
"What was that? I didn't hear you..." Karn just groaned.
"Never mind!" Fortunately, the Temple of Ladon was nearby, and they made it without incident. All of them, even Gobi, bent down and offered silent prayer first thing upon entering. Deis was the first to finish.
"All right, people, down to business." She waited until they were all watching her. "Now, as you all know, sometimes when we're in really tight spots, our boss, Ryu, suddenly has suspicious hunches that turn out to be exactly what we need. And you're all wondering where he gets his information from, and why he doesn't tell us." The others nodded. "Well, there's somebody here who can explain everything. That's why we're meeting here, of all places."
"I was wondering about that." Bo admitted. "So, who's this mysterious man who knows everything? It's not Uncle Specs again, is it?" He added as an afterthought, looking worried. Deis laughed.
"No, it's not. It's this guy right here." She indicated the Statue of Ladon. Everybody stared at it, then at her.
"Ah, Deis..." Karn said tactfully. "Did you... hit your head or somethIIIIII!" He jumped ten feet into the air as the statue began moving. Like in Ryu's dreams, it transformed into a hazy, ethereal old reptile wearing green robes. This time, though, he was awake, and he wasn't the only one seeing it. They all were.
"Great Ladon..." Nina whispered. The Dragon God inclined his head towards her.
"That's my name, princess."
"What was IN that painkiller they gave me?" Gobi muttered to himself. Ladon smiled at him.
"Oh, come on, Gobi. This isn't the first time I've appeared to you."
"It's not?" Karn demanded of the fat Maniro. Gobi slowly shook his head.
"No... there was one time... but I thought I was just hallucinating."
"You were not." Ladon assured him. "I've been appearing in Ryu's dreams for quite some time now to give him advice. And of course, Deis and I know each other from long ago."
"So why show yourself to the rest of us now?" Bo asked. "I know I'VE just lost a few years off my life." The others nodded fervently, and Ladon laughed.
"Why now? Well, I'd have to sooner or later... Ryu's not the only important one, you know. Each and every one of you was destined to accompany and aid him since before your ancestors in the War of the Dragons were born. If even one of you dies, the world is lost. Remember that."
"We'll do everything in our power to remain as not dead as possible, sir." Karn deadpanned. Ladon laughed again.
"There you go." He grew grim. "But why right now? I decided it was time to show you all the truth... since from this point on, your enemies will ALSO have been destined."
"The Tiamat Unit." Ryu stated, and Ladon nodded.
"Exactly. Their paths were decided long ago, even as yours were. Be careful, all of you; what you've gone through so far is nothing compared to what lies ahead for you. Most importantly, Ryu, there's someplace you have to stop by as soon as possible."
"The Builder's Cape." Ryu agreed. "I know. Ox knows exactly where it is; we're going tomorrow." Ladon nodded approvingly.
"Good. I think that's everything. From now on, any time any of you wish to talk with me, just come into a Temple when there's no innocent bystanders around. I'll see you at the Shrine, Ryu." Stepping back onto his pedestal, he waved and returned to stone. Ox let out a huge breath he had been holding with a whoosh.
"Now THAT... was different. I don't know about the rest of you, but I REALLY need a drink after that."
"Amen to THAT."
"Count me in."
"Oh, hell yes."
"Understatement of the century." The heroes departed quickly, leaving the statue behind. Such was their haste to leave that none of them noticed something that had changed on the stone surface. One of its eyes was closed in a wink.
