Chapter 20: Never Say Goodbye
Scarcely months before, the city of Camlon had seen better days; most of the buildings had at least partially been broken down. Camlon wasn't exactly a big city, but it was larger than Drogen, and it had an old castle at the north end of the city overlooking it all. Now, however... everything had changed. On normal days, the buildings were tall and majestic, and the streets calm and orderly. Today, however... the entire city was in an uproar. A good one. Today, Camlon was the site of a party... a festival of the entire world. A world that had only recently been saved.
"So I tell the Admiral, you and what army, jack?" Gobi boasted, taking another drink from his mug. "And he looked around and sees that everybody but him's already been taken out. And while he's looking, I take my pike and ram it into the back of his head while kneeing him in the face. Bam! Like an exploding watermelon!"
"But I thought you said Admiral Cean was a giant crab by that point?" Tina from Gust reminded him. Gobi floundered for a moment.
"Well, yeah... but by head, I meant... where his eyestalks joined his body. And by face... I meant the front of that part. Yeah."
"Sure, Gobi." Nicholie laughed. "Tell us another one. But NOT one about horned toads." He cautioned. Gobi shrugged.
"That one's not my favorite anyways. All right then, how about the time I had to retrieve an ancient weapon? It's called a boomerang. There I was, just me against the treacherous desert of Arad..."
"Another round, folks?" Trout, Gobi's bartender friend, offered. As it turned out, his brother ran a bar in Camlon. "Trust me, they help Gobi's stories a lot."
"That's the honest truth." Gobi's cousin Nuzi agreed with him. "Take it from somebody who's heard a LOT of Gobi's stories." Gobi affected an offended face.
"Well, excuse ME. If you all have something more entertaining to do, don't let me bore you."
"Well, we COULD take a moment to watch that." Barry the Climber pointed, grinning. Gobi turned to see, down the street, Karn doing some type of funky dance. More noticable was that Captain Role and Zenny Gata from Auria were joining him, along with a very large man wearing a nametag that said "Flak" pinned to his fedora. Gobi winced and covered his eyes.
"Get me another drink, Trout... I'm going to need it." In another area of the town, another celebration had resulted in unexpected alliances. The tiny Mole Clan from the West and the huge Builder Clan of the East had discovered that they held many things in common, and many new friendships had already been developed. Elder Minos and Elder Dugron were hammering out a seperate treaty between their peoples in addition to the large mass of them taking place between all the Clans. The largest of the Builder Clanners, however, was not drinking much; he was sitting peacefully on a bench with his wife at his side, gently rocking a cloth-wrapped bundle. He smiled as two Mole Clan children ran up to them.
"Hey, Ox... evening, Mrs. Eika." Mogu tugged his snout respectfully. Ox's wife smiled at them.
"Hello, Mogu. Is this your sister?"
"Yeah, this is Anne." Mogu nodded. The young girl curtsied shyly. "Is it okay if we see her?" Ox's smile was like a sunrise.
"Of course, Mogu. Silly even to ask." Mogu and Anne climbed up onto the bench and looked down on the bundle. Inside was a tiny baby, her horns just barely beginning to develop.
"She's pretty..." Anne whispered. "What's her name?"
"Eichichi." Ox answered. "We're very proud of her... we're hoping she grows up to be a scientest. She's already smart... how many babies do you know that can dismantle their own cribs within two months?" Mogu laughed.
"That's smart, all right."
"Almost as smart as that Mote Ox told me about..." Eika smiled. Ox nudged her with an elbow as Mogu sighed.
"Yeah... like Mote..." He shook his head. "Ah well, no sense being gloomy now. Come on, Anne, let's raid the snacks! They've got veggies from all over the world!" Laughing, the Mole Clan children ran off, Mogu accidentally disemboweling a stone wall as he bumped into it with one claw. In another portion of the city, three Forest Clanners were observing another group of three... an unique one.
"I don't know, Bo." Amelia frowned. "They still don't exactly look like the sociable type."
"I told you they're on their best behavior." Bo reminded them. "Deis told them she'd turn them into cumulonimbus if they started trouble. You've met Deis. Would you want her personally angry with you?"
"Admittedly, no." Terry agreed. "Still..."
"Excuse me." A voice said nervously. The Forest Clanners turned to see the three spirits of Wisdon whom they had been discussing hovering nearby. Wisp flickered. "May... we engage in... friendly dialogue with you?"
"Er..." Amelia froze. Myst rolled his eyes.
"Ugh... this isn't working. We never should have come to this-"
"Hey, hey!" Deis swooped down on them, a bottle larger than her head in her hand. "You three making friends? Good! Wisdon's got to have more P.R. with the outside world, like I told you! Just make sure it's GOOD P.R., or else...!" Waving her cane threateningly, she strolled off through the crowds, singing some millenia-old bawdy chant. Terry stared after her for a moment.
"Scary lady."
"Now THERE, we have some common ground." Cloud agreed. Bo looked at them both.
"Ah, she's not so bad. And besides, she has embarrassing moments like anybody else."
"Embarrassing moments?" Amelia asked. Myst turned to face Bo.
"I'd like to hear this too."
"Well..." Bo warmed up. "There was this time when we were sneaking into Scande..." The others listened raptly as he went on. Around the center of the city, however, things were rowdier; there, you could barely hear anybody talking specifically through all the general-and very loud-communication. Ryu and Nina extricated themselves from the mess and sneaked off towards a quieter spot.
"Whew... this is quite a party." Nina wiped her brow. "You're pretty popular in Camlon, to say the least."
"We all are." Ryu shrugged. "And in the rest of the world. Camlon, though... this was the first place aside from Drogen I really solved any problems on the trip. It's pretty natural that the party would be held here. I'm just glad everybody could make it here. And I'm glad the Dark Dragons were accepted as well as they were."
"I think the rulers had some talks with their subjects about that before hand... some very specific talks." Nina guessed. "Empress Victoria seems like a nice girl, though... no traces of her father's insanity. But she'll be a good ruler... if anybody can mend the Dark Dragons' ties with the rest of the world, it's her."
"I'm glad that you feel that way, Princess Nina." A quiet female voice said from nearby. Ryu and Nina both turned to see the Empress of the Dark Dragons standing nearby, with a young man in General's armor next to her. Nina blushed.
"Your majesty, I didn't know-"
"That's all right." Victoria smiled shyly. "We can't be creatures of court our entire lives, can we?" Her face grew somber. "Sir Ryu... I wanted to tell you something. It was going to be in private, but this is close enough."
"Is it about... your father?" Ryu guessed. The Empress nodded.
"Correct. My father... Emperor Zog... was an insane man. I knew this. He was an evil man to most people... but to me, he was always kind... and brutally honest, even about himself. He made sure I knew what he was... so that I would not be like him, when he passed on the throne to me. He told me something once. His dream of conquering the world... as you know, it grew out of a different dream in his youth, of the world unified... working as one. That dream will likely be fulfilled, if it is not already... but even that grew out of something else. His first dream... when he was but a child... was simply to see the Dragon Clan respected by all once more. That, also... has come to pass." She bowed formally. "Ryu... I think if my father could see this now... he would be content." Turning, she walked away. The General smirked.
"Icy little thing, I know... but we're trying to thaw her out. Let's hope it works, eh? See you around Sir Ray-oop, I mean Ryu!" Ryu waved back as the General followed his Empress.
"See you later too, Johnny." He turned to Nina. "All things considered, the Dark Dragons could have turned out a lot worse."
"Yeah." Nina giggled. "Although I think the Empress kind of likes you, boss."
"Really?" Ryu shrugged. "Unfortunately, she's not my type. Besides... I think I'm already spoken for..." He fell silent, and Nina said nothing either. As they sat there, another man ran up, this one much older.
"Ryu! Princess!" King Firdan puffed. "Whew... haven't got it like I used to. Come to the main square, please! It's time for the unveiling!"
"What unveiling?" Ryu blinked, but they followed him back anyways. All the partygoers were gathered around a tarp-covered lump in the center of the city. The other six heroes were facing it, and the rulers of the lands were surrounding it, each holding a string. Ryu and Nina joined the group, and Firdan took his place as well.
"Ahem..." He coughed. "We, the rulers of the civilized world... hereby wish to thank Ryu of Drogen, Princess Nina of Winlan, Bo of the Forest Clan, Karn of Bleak, Gobi of Prima, Ox of Gant, Deis of Wisdon and Mogu of Gramor for, well... for saving the civilized world, eliminating a threat to all our continued existence, and many other services too numerous to list. This is a gift from all of us... you shall hereby be remembered as the Eight Heroes for all eternity." The rulers pulled the strings. Gobi's jaw unhinged. Glittering in the sunlight were eight life-size golden statues, carved to perfectly resemble each of them.
"Are those... solid?" The Maniro whispered. Karn coughed.
"Easy there, Gobi. Even I probably couldn't steal those puppies. Just look at them." Any response from Gobi was lost in the following cheer from all parties involved, and the heroes were drawn back into the crowd, which commenced partying twice as hard as before.
Several days later, there was another gathering... this one much smaller. The eight heroes walked across the Winlan Bridge alone, Ryu carrying a large package. When they reached the east end of the bridge, they stopped and walked south, to the edge of the cliffs. There, they stood and silently waited for the sun to set. When the sky was a beautiful gold-touched red, Ryu opened the package he carried and placed the objects inside on the ground. A monocle of bright ruby... a purple scrap of cloth that had once been the hood of a robe... a pure white Dark Dragon General's cape... a huge, star-carved sledgehammer... a shining crown that reflected the sunset... an emerald pendant, of the kind worn by Priests of Ladon... and a powerful sword, more deadly even than the one Ryu had recieved from Ladon. The last remains of the Tiamat Unit lay on the ground in front of the heroes. Nobody spoke. Finally, Ryu gathered the objects again, then with one swift motion, cast them out over the cliffs. They sparkled in the light for a brief moment as they fell, and then they hit the ocean water, and were lost forever. Even the hood and cape, which would normally float, sank instantly. Again, nobody spoke... they simply looked into the sunset. Seven young people looked back. A tall, thin young man with pale skin and a mop of unruly black hair. Another man, much larger and wider, with black hair worn longer down his back. In his arms, a tiny infant with blood-red skin like the man holding him. A beautiful young woman in armor too large for her, with long blonde hair. A second woman, this one wearing priestess' robes, her own hair a soft blue. A gangly-looking prince with dyed red hair and a trim goatee, and the eyes of a dreamer. And a familiar man with long blonde hair and a smile on his face, who had not aged visibly in fifteen years and thus looked exactly as they had known him. The seven spirits waved, and then faded away, lost in the wind. The eight heroes remained there, watching the sky and the sea until the sun was completely gone and the only light came from the moon and the stars. None of them were surprised when, at that point, another person stumped up and joined them.
"Hey, kids." Grand High Priest Spekkio greeted them. The old man was still wearing his tramp clothes. "A little dragon told me I could find you here. I've got a message for you... really, it's for Ryu, but it applies to all of you, to be honest."
"Who's it from?" Nina asked, although she already knew the answer. Spekkio gave her a direct look.
"A young gal I knew once... a Priestess named Sara. She said to tell you... she's proud of you, kid. They all are. Just when Myria thought she had it all, you flipped the tables on her completely and paid her back for everything they went through. They watched the entire thing, you know, and they're happy now... so they're heading on. Everything's finished for them now... they're probably already gone for good."
"It's finally over for them..." Nina sighed. "It's not really fair, you know... they were the ones who really suffered the most from all this. And yet, our names are the ones that will go down in the history books, while they have almost everybody in the world cursing their names even now, no matter what we say." Spekkio sighed as well.
"Yeah, well... there's an old proverb that we in Ladon's service try to remember for situations like this."
"What's that?" Ox asked.
"Life sucks, and then you die." The old man thought about it for a moment. "Well, most of us, anyways. What it means is, bad things happen, and sometimes you can't change that. You just have to keep throwing your best at the ones you can. That's just the way it works."
"Believe me... that's one thing we've figured out." Ryu assured him. "Anyways... while you're here, could you take another message? This one to your boss?" Spekkio nodded.
"Might as well. What is it?" Ryu silently handed him a pack off his back. The Grand High Priest looked inside. The Dragon Sword, Armor, Helmet and Shield were in there... along with the robes and pendant Ryu had recieved upon unlocking his Rudra form. The message was clear. "Kid... you saying..."
"I'm afraid so." Ryu sighed. "Tell him I'm sorry, but it just can't work. Even if Myria was moving most of the chess pieces... he was doing a fair hand of it himself. The life of a priest isn't for me. I probably won't even go into a Dragon Temple very often any more. He has my respect... but not my worship. Not any more. Guess I'm kind of burned out on immortals after all this." Spekkio stared at him for a moment... then chuckled.
"Believe it or not, kid... I know exactly where you're coming from. There was a time when I was young, I felt exactly the same way. I think that's WHY I got this position; even he needs somebody to talk to who'll call him on it when he's being an idjit. Got a pretty good sense of humor, really, Ladon does. Not like some other immortals I know."
"About that..." Ox frowned. "She... said something. A seed has been planted or somesuch..."
"Yeah, there's that." Spekkio exhaled angrily. "Believe me, we're on it... but we can't act directly. We NEVER get to act directly. It gets pretty damn annoying, to be honest. In all likelihood, it'll fall to your descendant to deal with that, Ryu... but keep your sword sharp, just in case. You never know. Any more questions?"
"Is she..." Mogu hesitated. "Is she really dead? Did we actually kill an immortal?" Spekkio thought for a moment.
"Well... I'll be honest with you, kid. I don't know... and neither does Ladon. He has no idea at all... not even an inkling. If you think about it, that's pretty scary by itself. Is that it?" The others nodded. "Well, I'll be off then... got to take all this stuff back." He looked at the Dragon Equipment fondly. "I still got a bit of a soft spot for this stuff... I'll make sure to take care of it. That's one of my duties. Doubt I could fit into it again now, though... been far too long since I wore it." Ryu's eyes widened.
"Since YOU...wait. You never told us if Spekkio was your real name... you just said it was the one you used right now. Are you..."
"I'd file that one under 'questions best left NOT answered' if I were you, kid." Spekkio grunted, turning away towards the Winlan Bridge. "Sometimes, uncertainty is best. Nice seeing you again, Deis... and good luck, all of you." After he stumped off, the eight heroes sat on the edge of the cliff, watching the waves break against it for a while. Finally, Nina spoke.
"I suppose we should probably get back to our homes soon... we all have things our people need us to do." The others all mumbled an agreement.
"Geez... don't we ever get a break?" Karn complained loudly. Bo glared at him pointedly.
"You just GOT a break. The party, remember?"
"He's got a point." Gobi grinned. "Oh, boss. Speaking of things to do... don't forget, you still owe me money." Karn, face expressionless, knocked him into the ocean. Everybody laughed, even Gobi once he ran out of curse words and Nina flew him back up. And then they turned and walked back across the Winlan Bridge.
Around the world, a bird flew. A startlingly large, pink-feathered bird with seven friends riding on its back, winging across the sky along the northern coastline.
"Hey, look at Pagoda." Bo yelled. Inexplicably, the Forest Clanner had finally gotten over his fear of heights, and he now enjoyed the view as much as any of them. "The towers are gone!"
"They would be." Deis nodded. "They were tied to Myria herself... that was part of the reason she couldn't just muscle her way out. When she went bang, they did too... kind of like Obelisk, but moreso."
"Speaking of Obelisk, did you hear what the Aradians are doing?" Karn asked the others. "They're going to go check out that piece of Obelisk that landed near the desert... they might even move in. That might cause problems."
"If it does, we'll handle it." Ox shrugged. "Handling 'problems' like that is pretty much our entire career by now."
"There is no such thing as only one career, Ox." Gobi remarked with a pained look on his face. "Plus, I can't exactly blame the Aradians for wanting to move to higher ground out of that place."
"Hey, don't diss my homeland." Deis growled, mock-indignantly. Ryu smiled, but said nothing. They were all making small talk even more than usual; none of them wanted to bring up what they all knew they were doing. And then Gramor came into view, and Nina touched down. Everybody went inside, where the Mole Clan were waiting.
"Mogu!" Anne smiled. "Are you back here for good now?" Mogu nodded.
"Yeah... I'm here to stay." He turned back to the others. "Well... looks like this is it. It's..." He smiled. "Well, heck. It's been a blast."
"You've got that right, kid." Ox shook his claw. "You come visit soon, hear? You come too, miss Anne... Eichichi likes you both."
"They will." Elder Dugron assured him. "Mogu will need to maintain strong ties with the other Clans... after all, he will be the leader of ours after I am gone." The other seven heroes stared.
"You will?" Nina demanded. "You never told us, Mogu!"
"It didn't seem that important at the time." Mogu shrugged. "Besides, I'm not very good at acting the part. Greeting foreign leaders properly and all that never really clicked with me." The Princess giggled.
"You think it's any less awkward for me? It's so boring it'll make you sick, all the formalities. Fortunately, these days we usually don't have to go through them ALL."
"That's a relief." The young Mole Clanner nodded. "Well, I'll see you all around!"
"Most of us, anyways..." Deis muttered to herself a bit sadly as they left. Bo glanced at her, but didn't comment. They boarded Nina again and took off, going southwest. It wasn't too long before they reached Gant; the Great Bird travelled at insane speeds and made it all seem natural. As they walked into town, Ox's wife and daughter met them immediately.
"We saw you flying up." She explained, kissing her husband. "I think Eichichi likes the pretty birdy."
"We like her pretty well ourselves." Ryu smiled. "Have fun with the family life, Ox."
"Oh, yes." Ox laughed, taking the baby. "If what I've heard is true, in six months memories of a kamakaze assault on Scande will look dull by comparison."
"Probably." Gobi nodded. "Why do you think I never got married?"
"Well, aside from the obvious..." Karn deadpanned, then dodged a kick. Eika shook her head.
"Ox, tell me this hasn't rubbed off on you."
"I like to think I'm still the sane one of the group." Ox assured her. "See you later, guys." From Gant, it was only a short distance to the nearest beach, which deposited them within walking distance of Prima.
"So, what are you going to do now, Gobi?" Karn asked as they walked in, largely unnoticed by the busy Maniros. Gobi shrugged and glanced at Deis for a moment.
"Well, there's that idea we were throwing around... but before that, I figure I'll lay in some small, light but valuable stock and try the life of a traveling salesman. With my rep, I should get far richer than I already am. You should be able to find me pretty easily when you're ready to go." Karn chuckled.
"You never stop, do you?"
"Do you really expect me to?" The fat Maniro chuckled back, then turned solemn. "Actually... there's something I want to say. This is really painful, and I hope you all know how much this means. Boss..."
"Yeah?" Ryu asked simply. Gobi clapped him on the shoulder.
"Forget the debt. It's dropped. You've more than paid me back... in a currency so valuable it can't even go on the same exchange rate as gold." He thought for a moment. "Okay, at an insanely high exchange rate." Surprisingly, Karn didn't comment; he simply shook Gobi's hand, and then they left, waving. The next stop was Wisdon; fortunately, it seemed Deis was able to stop the moving town at a mental command, since they had left the Statue who-knew-where. Returning to the inner sanctum, Deis moved back onto her bed.
"You're going back to sleep, aren't you." Nina said, a little sadly. It wasn't a question. Deis nodded somberly.
"Yeah... and not I'm not talking about just a nap. It's what I do... the next time I wake up, you'll all be long gone, and I'll have to help your descendant save the world, Ryu. For what it's worth... I don't remember any other group I had as much fun with as you guys. It was... nice."
"Before you go... there's something I've been wondering about." Ryu admitted. "Myria... she's your sister. And the two of you have made numerous references to your father... Myria even shouted the word at Agni when she died... at least I think she did. But she's a Goddess, which I think means you are too... so, your dad..."
"What was it that old man who calls himself Spekkio now said..." Deis smirked. "Questions best left NOT answered, I think it was... that's another one of those." Ryu laughed.
"Right. Forget I even asked."
"Well, I hope you enjoy your sleep." Bo smiled. "We'll be out having fun while you are, of course. Me, Karn and Gobi have been talking about another little adventure in a year or two."
"Really?" Deis yawned widely, already settling down. "Well, knowing you three you'll blow something important up and become wanted in every Land in the world."
"Not THAT kind of adventure." Bo continued, apparently oblivious. "We're going back up to Pagoda... look around what's left, and set up a kind of secret base of operations for our group there. There are all sorts of crazy rumors about what residual magic from Myria has done to that place."
"Probably true..." Deis muttered absently, closing her eyes. "That kind of thing will leave a mark... magically speaking."
"Yeah... they even say that if you hang around there for long enough, you'll stop getting old." Bo glanced at the ceiling. "That the aging process stops affecting you, and you'll stay the same no matter how many years... decades... even centuries... you stay there." There was a moment in which nobody moved... and then Deis' eyes snapped wide open.
"Are you..."
"I was never really big on the whole dying eventually no matter what you do thing anyways." Karn remarked cheerfully. "Bo and Gobi feel the same way, and maybe we'll even be able to persuade these other sad sacks to try it too."
"It's a long shot... like I said, just rumors." Bo shrugged, overly casual. "But the next time you do wake up... look in on the island anyways. You never know... everybody needs some friends who stick around, after all." Slowly, the Legendary Sorceress of Wisdon let a broad, grateful smile cross her ageless face.
"...Yeah. I'll do that." She closed her eyes again, and the others turned to leave. "And hey..." They paused. "Thanks, guys... for everything." Ryu inclined his head, and they walked out. North they flew next, to Bleak.
"Home, sweet home." Karn gazed happily over the barrels full of flaming garbage, very large men lurking in dark alleys and a truly astonishing amount of variations on the common knife. "I love Bleak."
"So, you'll be bringing the other Fusion Clanners back here?" Ryu inquired. Karn nodded.
"Most of them. One's already here, but I'll be bringing Pardus and the other two here, yeah. They'll fit right in, especially when it gets out they're of my Clan. The Dark Dragon Empire's officially dropped all animosity against any survivors, so they don't need to hide any more... Cerl's not going to do anything to them ever again." His eyes grew distant for a moment, and then he shook his head. "Won't be bringing her here, though... she and Alan wouldn't like it. Their new lives should be as different from the old ones as possible."
"I saw Cerl again a few days ago, actually." Nina admitted. "After that ritual Jade put her through, the 'old Cerl' in her mind has pretty much vanished... by now, there's probably not even a trace. It's for the best."
"Yeah... although sorting it out might cause Ladon some problems sixty, eighty years down the line." Bo commented.
"Well, that's why I'm glad I don't have his job." Karn grinned. "Party hearty, guys. I know I will. Matter of fact, I think I'll look up a few girls I know around here right now about that." He strolled off, whistling something as he went. The remaining three only flew a short distance north; they touched down a fair distance from Tantar, near the volcano where the Stone Robot laid, eternally sealed beneath the hardened magma.
"Seems like forever since then..." Bo sighed as they stood there, glancing up at it. "I still remember seeing you two for the first time, up against General Folage... had no idea how things would turn out with you, though." Ryu nodded.
"And now we're back here again to say goodbye."
"NEVER say goodbye." Bo told him firmly. "That's one thing I've learned, and I'm older than you are. It's never goodbye unless somebody's dead... and as we've seen, sometimes not even then."
"He's got a point." Nina agreed. "We'll be seeing everybody again all the time, you know."
"It won't be the same, though, will it?" Ryu asked. Bo frowned.
"No, not entirely... but hell, it'll be close enough. Nobody ever promised us easy, you know."
"THAT, I know all too well." Ryu gave in, smiling. He pumped the Forest Clanner's hand. "All right then. No goodbyes. I'll see you later, Bo." Bo grinned, shaking Nina's hand as well.
"Right then, I'll leave you two alone..." He looked gravely at them both. "And remember... in the end, any choices you make are entirely up to you. Don't think you have to make the wrong decision because somebody else tells you." Ryu and Nina smiled and nodded, then turned and walked away, to the west.
Now that they were alone, Ryu and Nina did not fly to Winlan; they took the long way and walked, for several days. During those days, they talked happily about small, unimportant things, as well as what their respective homes would want them to do once they got back... endless affairs of state for Nina, endless backbreaking work repairing the town of Drogen for Ryu. They never did settle the argument about whose would be more painful. They simply enjoyed each others' company, and steadfastly stayed away from the topic that truly remained strongest on both their minds. And then one day at sunrise, they crossed the Winlan bridge. Before they entered the city, they stopped and spent a few moments doing nothing but looking at each others' eyes.
"Bo said to never say goodbye." Nina remembered. Ryu nodded.
"He did... and it won't be goodbye. We'll see each other... like all the others. All the time."
"It won't be the same." Nina threw Ryu's own words back at him.
"I know." The Light Dragon admitted. "Nina... you know what I want. But... it's your call." Nina looked at him for a moment more, then looked away.
"You know what my call is."
"I do." Ryu agreed sadly. "Then... let's go in, and I'll greet your parents... and then I'll head home." The Wing Clan Princess kissed him once, and then they walked inside. The King and Queen were happy to see them both, and treated Ryu with a great deal of respect, offering to have him stay for a few days in the castle. Ryu politely declined, pleading that he needed to get back to his hometown and help them rebuild. Within the hour, he was on his way again. Nina stood on a balcony in the castle, watching him walk until he had vanished from her view.
It took three days for Ryu to reach Drogen, stopping only for a brief visist with King Firdan of Camlon. As he approached, he looked at the small town as he had been too preoccupied to when preparing for the assault on Obelisk. The Light Dragons had been rebuilding well; the wall around the town was completely repaired, and at least half the houses were mostly fixed up. The Dragon Temple had been restored to a shining brightness. Around town, everybody was working, with Theo and Esma calling out directions. As Ryu walked in through the front gate, however, everything ground to a halt. The Light Dragons turned to look at their hero, who smiled and set aside his sword.
"I'm home." Ryu announced.
In one land and another, from east to west, the world above rejoiced. Peace had come to it at last... universal peace, with no threat remaining. No visible threat. But that was the world above. Unbeknownst to any, save those few who served Ladon, there was another world... a world below. A world Myria had commanded... a world she had summoned demons from, to guard her mighty flying fortress Obelisk. But those demons she had summoned had not been the entire population... nay, they had only been a scant few. And now that she was gone, the many, many remaining demons that lived unknown and unseen beneath the world... were discontented.
"She is gone." One demon, a dragon with its outer skin removed, all white bone and pulsing muscle, told the others he was cloistered with. "Whether she is truly dead, or simply driven farther away than any of us can comprehend, the fact remains. Our Goddess, our worship, has left us... and she will not be coming back any time soon."
"Perhaps you are right, Counciller Necromanson." Another demon, this one a mass of tentaclelike vines and roots, with two crablike claws and a face centered in a poisonous red flower, admitted. "But yet, we must not say as such to the general public... we must keep the hopes in their minds up, in order to maintain our control over them. To the populace, at least, we have to maintain that Myria will return and guide us once more."
"Counciller Aruhameral is a dreamer." Necromanson snarled, but it was subdued. A third demon growled.
"He's right, Necromanson. We have to tell them that, no matter what we believe ourselves." His five whiplike, tufted pink tails thrashed angrily, a strange contrast to his purple-scaled reptilian bulk and fierce green mane. "Now that that's settled, we should decide what we shall do aside from keeping the people behind us. With Myria gone, we cannot simply lie in wait for her to be freed again and to summon us to do her bidding. We all saw where THAT got those of us unlucky enough to be chosen."
"What would Counciller Kuwadora suggest, then?" Aruhameral demanded sibilantly. "Declaring war on the world above?"
"That's exactly what I was going to suggest, Aruhameral." Kuwadora grinned, showing more teeth than an extended family reunion of alligators. "They're complacent... relaxed... lazy. They think they've won it all... that there's no threat to them left in existence. We should strike now, catch them off guard... and then the both worlds, the world below and the world above, will be OURS!"
"Has Counciller Kuwadora perhaps injured his head lately?" Necromanson snorted. "Or perhaps he was dropped as a whelp? Drop-kicked, even? Your mental abilities aren't normally held in high regard, Kuwadora, but this takes the prize. In case you hadn't noticed, the world above is ALSO completely unified as one whole right now... even the Dark Dragons. And, of course, there's the fact that the world above is about ten times the size of our world. Admittedly, we demons are much more powerful than the average aboveworlder, but not enough to alter the balance. The only thing preventing them from squashing us like Slimes is that they don't even know we exist... even those 'heroes,' with the accursed Deis asleep again, have most likely forgotten us. And not ALL of us are stupid enough to just throw away out advantage like that."
"Watch it, Necromanson..." Kuwadora's mane rose, and his eyes flashed. Aruhameral raised his claws.
"You watch it, Kuwadora. Much as I loathe to admit it, Necromanson's right this time. It would be suicidal to make ourselves known to the world above, let alone attack them... for now. We must bide our time and wait before we can even consider that course of action." Kuwadora slumped, muttering to himself. None of the three spoke for a few moments, and then the one who had remained silent thus far, the only female demon on the council, raised her voice.
"What of the seed of evil?" She hissed. Her body was long, red and sepentine, currently curled up in a pile with her torso rising from it. Her claws flexed abently, and her scarecrowlike face twitched with annoyance at the others. "Have you all forgotten our Goddess' words on the subject?"
"Of course we haven't, Counciller Shupukay." Necromanson sighed. "Haven't you noticed that Lord Habaruku isn't here? He's still searching for it."
"Very well." Shupukay's eyes grew cunning. "In the meantime, while Counciller Kuwadora's suggestion was idiotic..." Kuwadora growled again. "There is an idea related to it we may wish to pursue. Doubtless not every aboveworlder is all that altruistic. Perhaps if we send out spies, we may locate some few who would turn their backs on their kind to aid us..."
"Counciller Shupukay may be on to something there." Aruhameral admitted. "There would not be many, of course... we would have to find those with at least some power over others... who can be trusted, at least when given motivation beyond their dreams... and who are, of course, quite thoroughly evil."
"If we offer to change them into lower-class demons..." Kuwadora continued thoughtfully. "It might just work..." Further discussion was cut short as the doors to the meeting room banged open. The four councillers glared at them, wondering who dared interrupt them. It was an older demon in voluminous robes, orange-skinned, his face like an octopus. His eyes were filled with a cruelty and hatred even beyond the four councillers, and yet he held a bundle of black cloth carefully... almost even caringly. The councillers bowed reluctantly.
"Oh... it's you, Lord Habaruku." Shupukay sighed. "Pity... I was looking forward to eating the fool who thought it would be a good idea to barge in here."
"Shut up, Shupukay." Habaruku said absently as he walked past the four of them, to the completely dark back of the room. Stopping in front of it, he bowed on one knee with utmost respect. "Your majesty... I have found it." The councillers drew back, startled. From the darkness, high above Habaruku, a single red eye opened... vast and vertical, slitted like a cat's, with its lids on its sides. The eye stared down at the black cloth bundle held by Habaruku, and then two more like it opened, to the sides and halfway lower than the first.
"This is it, then?" The owner of the eyes rumbled. "This is the seed of evil? This... is the son of Myria?" Habaruku nodded.
"Yes, King Barubary. There is no mistaking it... look upon him for yourself." He uncovered the bundle so that only Barubary could see, and the three huge red eyes contracted in surprise.
"Ah... indeed. You are correct as always, Habaruku... this is undoubtably him. Does he have a name?"
"He is called Evans, your majesty." Habaruku told him. There was a moment of silence, and then one horribly large appendage reached out from King Barubary. It was covered in a purple plate of chitinous armor, like that of an insect, with hooked, rending claws at its end. On one of those claws was a circlet of blackened, ruined gold, engraved with scenes of violence and death. The claw dropped the circlet gently onto the bundle, and the councillers gasped.
"Your majesty...?" Kuwadora wondered.
"No." Barubary denied. "Never address me by that title again. We have a new King, far greater than I... he is Evans, and he shall be both King and God to the demons. I shall be his right hand, and Habaruku shall be his left, and we shall raise him to the glory and grandeur that is his by birthright. And when the time comes, he shall lead our armies to the world above... and none shall stand in the way of GOD!" Low, quaking laughter came from beneath the glowing red eyes. Habaruku laughed as well, his own voice higher, more hysterical. After a moment, the other four councillers joined in.
"You know..." Habaruku remarked, pausing in his hilarity for a moment and looking at his ruler and his four underlings around him. "I have a sudden urge to corrupt a Dragon Clanner." This made the others laugh even harder. The bundle in Habaruku's arms stirred a bit, then pulled the black cloth back over itself, feeling like a nap and completely unfazed by the hideous laughter around him. The laughter poured out of the hall and echoed throughout every cavern in the world below, and every demon who heard it shivered involuntarily.
It would be a very long time indeed before all traces of that laughter had faded from the world below.
