Chapter24: Lights in the dark

The lake was very close to the walls of the cavern. There were strange ripples in the water of unusual fish and strange creatures that Megufu had never seen in his life. Raga led the way and they crept carefully sticking as close as possible to the walls. Raga tried her best to go the right way but it was difficult with just the light of the dragoon spirit. He would have to explain to her once they got out into the open.

"This is the turning," she said at last, "This leads to an opening in a forest"

"Come to think of it we could have crawled up my tunnel," said Megufu looking back to the distant glimmer of morning light across the waves.

"There was an opening back there?"

"That's how I got it," said Megufu, "But I had to crawl"

The cave rumbled and the walls shook suddenly but not as much as before. Again the noise of gentle splashing started up again as the small pebbles and rocks fell from the roof down into the lake. It was more a quiet tremor than the huge crack of noise it had been before.

"Was that…?"

"Yes I think so," whispered Raga, "We should leave"

"What does it look like? The statue?"

"I don't know," she replied quietly, "As I said I left when I saw the eye open. Maybe I imagined it opening"

"Can you show it to me?"

"The statue? No… no I couldn't"

"Why not?"

"I don't want to go back there again. I ran for my life last time. I don't ever want to go through that again… it was enough coming back to this place"

"Please take me. I need to see it for myself"

"I…"

"Please just a glimpse"

She looked twice both ways down the tunnel and to the far side of the lake and then looked at the glowing light in her hand. She took a deep breath, "Only if you tell me exactly what that light is and what that sword you are carrying is… and… what your story is with no lies"

Megufu paused looking at the sword. He didn't even know what the sword was himself so that would be slightly easier. She was a hermit after all. Whatever he told her would stay with her to her lonely grave.

"Alright," he replied.

"Follow me…" she quivered, "But don't touch it. Just look at it… then we must go"

"Agreed," he responded and they set off again round the lake. The path widened out as the lake receded a bit. There was certainly something in this place. Megufu felt he needed to know what it was. As a dragoon he somehow felt a need to know what this monster was.

Raga stopped and began to climb up some rocks.

"Where are you going?" asked Megufu, "Don't we continue round the lake?"

"It's up here. It looks out on the lake," she replied, "You can get a better view and we won't have to go quite so close"

"You are really that afraid of it?"

"You would be too if you had been fishing in its hand," she replied.

The ground was very rocky when they reached the top. They continued walking across the higher level into Megufu could see it – a dark shape huge and strange and unnatural in the cave. It certainly wasn't naturally formed.

"What is that?" whispered Megufu. The head was a huge dark shape that is if it could be said to be a head. The shape was smooth all round and out across the water a huge hand with sharp spiked fingers clawed the palm facing upwards.

"Is that where you fished from?"

"Yes," she replied, "It's the only place in the cave I could get to the deep water from"

Megufu started walking, "Don't go any closer!" she hissed. Megufu stood still and turned to her, "Why not?"

"Just don't"

"Ok…" he replied.

A finger moved. Megufu turned back to look but he missed it. It looked as lifeless as ever.

"You wanted to know what this stone is?" asked Megufu

"Yes," she replied, "I've never seen anything like it"

"Have you heard of Meru?"

"Yes," she replied, "I asked you that before remember? She's a dragoon"

"Yes I know…" he replied, "So am I. This is a dragoon spirit"

She was silent in the darkness. He turned to face her.

"Prove it!" she said cynically.

"No," he replied, "Not here"

Reaching into his pockets he took hold of the purple dragoon spirit and brought it out to show her.

"This is the dragoon spirit of the thunder dragon," he said holding it up. It glimmered slightly in the darkness but did nothing more. She looked at it and held out her hand to touch but Megufu quickly took it away, "Don't touch!" he insisted.

"Why?"

"Just don't… I can't allow anyone to touch them," he said putting it away. Carefully he took out the earth dragoon spirit.

"This is the dragoon spirit of the earth dragon," he said holding it out. All at once the stone burst into bright brown and orange light as bright as Megufu's own spirit. In answer he felt his own spirit shine more.

"What's going on?" he whispered gazing at it. Slowly he opened his palm and watched as the light intensified.

"It's beautiful!" said Raga. As if the world itself had been made with no gravity but the soul will of the gods alone the stone rose up through the air out of Megufu's hands and came down in Raga's.

"I don't believe it," he whispered

She closed her palms around it, "What's happening?" she asked quivering on the spot.

"It's yours! Don't you see? Soa…"

"Mine?"

"The dragoon spirit has chosen you. You are the dragoon of the earth"

"What?"

"Go on transform! Become a dragoon!" insisted Megufu.

"But… I… I don't know how!" she replied looking at the light in amazement.

"No," replied Megufu, "You are right you don't"

Taking up his own spirit he burst into bright light and transformed with a flash into the darkness dragoon. As a dragoon he could feel her presence now next to the spirit.

"Of course it was you," he said, "How could I not see that you would be the earth dragoon?"

"This is incredible!" she whispered.

Megufu pointed his hand forward gazing at her light, "Arise dragoon of the Earth dragon"

Immediately the light grew bursting out and glimmering on the waves. The fingers of the monster clenched suddenly with a snapping noise of rock. The eye opened a bright green gem in the center. It was a monster that had been hidden for a very long time. Time was meaningless to it.

Wings and armor surrounded her yet differently to Kongal. Somehow she did not look at all as strong when compared to the massive shape of Kongal. The emphasis of her earthly power showed a different aspect of the element. She was magic strong. The bow glowed with an earthly fire, burning arrows appearing in her hand out of thin air.

The creature moved and Megufu turned in shock to see the creature leap up smashing the rocks either side of it. The ground shook a huge crack rearing towards them it moved in-between Megufu's feet and away up the cavern wall.

"It's the monster!" exclaimed Raga amazed at the armour, which now surrounded her body. Jumping up the giant creature flew far away across the lake and hovered in the centre where it turned to face them.

"The dragoon spirits!" said Megufu to himself, "They must have awoken it!"

Hovering a white piercing light started to glow on the green gem of the creature.

"Fly!" insisted Megufu and both took to the sky in opposite directions Raga unsure of how to. A bright beam of laser light slammed into the rocky ground they had been standing on and shattered it crashing down into the lake below like a landslide.

"Why are you attacking us?" shouted Megufu

There was no response.

"Megufu!" called Raga, "I feel dizzy… I can't … stay like this"

"Use your bow!" he roared, "Get an arrow or two in the damn thing!"

Swiping the sword it burst into a bright yellow and he charged the monster.