Disclaimer: Hey, don't own 'em, don't get any profit. Capice? Good. Alright, let's get this train wreck a-rollin'!
A/N: I'm back from vacation!
10.
"My feet hurt," Mike moaned, collapsing onto the grassy ground. They had been walking all day and due to heat, it was a real drag (literally).
"Will you shut up?" Aireilei growled impatiently. "We're almost there!"
Sor blinked and yawned in boredom. "Where are we going, exactly?" he asked, scratching an ear "We're in the middle of nowhere…and as far as I'm concerned we're going nowhere." Naicro lashed his shin with his whip-like tail, sending the gunghir yelping and hopping on one foot.
"You are being disrespectful, Sor Lightblade," he reprimanded, staring him in the face with liquid green eyes. "You will listen to your guide without complaint."
"Easy for you to say, you can take longer steps," Sor retorted snidely, receiving another shin slap. "Ow!"
Kiara sighed in the manner of a mother who has a hard time managing her children and yanked Mike up. "C'mon, it can't be much farther," she encouraged, adjusting her rapiers. "We've been traveling all day."
"Yeah, well it wasn't your achin' butt that got slammed into the dirt," the turtle grunted.
"What are you whining about that for? You're the one that fell off," Iwansi pointed out, landing on his shoulder.
"Don't remind me." He involuntarily winced and rubbed his rear.
Aireilei began ascending a steep grassy hill to the right, one that made Mike pant in even more exertion. When she reached the top, she mumbled in a somewhat heartsick way, "I never thought I'd see this again."
"Never thought you'd see wha – Oh wow."
Spread out below them in a wide stretch of green plains and streams were the ruins of what looked like a kingdom or some immense palace. Mossy blocks of stone were strewn all over the place, creating Lego-like pens in the soft soil. Here and there fields dotted the valley, although they looked like they'd been abandoned for quite some time. Surrounding the farmlands and pastures were wooden fences that had long since deteriorated from their former state into rotting sticks. In the distance a beat-up stone structure rose from the land, creating a dismal pyre. Ripped and torn remnants of flags could be seen fluttering atop the three standing towers.
Naicro and Aireilei radiated sorrow as they stared across the wide expanse. "Welcome to Kaernsi, the last remaining piece of the past," the white dragon muttered with a sigh. Kiara bowed her head in reverence as Mike stared.
"Wait. If you guys feel so weepy around this place, why bother coming here?" he asked, scratching his head.
"Because it is a deed that must be done," Naicro said. "My conscience has been in turmoil for as long as I could remember for abandoning the king in his time of desperation. I have been too wary of coming here until now."
"So, coming here's gonna clear your conscience. Funny, the only thing I'm feeling is a sense of serious déjà vu," Mike replied.
"Déjà vu?" Kiara asked, raising her head to look askance at him.
"Yeah, I've been here before, I think." Kiyo appeared as if he was about to reprimand Mikey for pulling their legs until he waved his hands. "Not as in physically, but kinda in a flashbacky, dreamy sorta way. Right before I woke up strung to a pole like one of Spiderman's victims in your camp, actually."
"I can't imagine why you would have a flashback of this place, seeing as how you've never even been to this planet," Aireilei mused.
"Oh yeah. You were in it."
"I…was?"
"Yeah. You remember when we were floating down that river in Japan, completely out cold?"
She smiled. "And Bima and I had to haul you out like fresh-caught tuna? Yes, I do."
"And you remember that campfire story you told us about you and Mr. Pipsqueak-With-Attitude's first meeting?" She nodded warily. "It was during that time. Skewered myself on a few pointy sharp needle things—"
"Those would be lances or pikes," Kiara supplied.
"Before making it to that castle over there," he finished, pointing to the sad excuse for a building.
"That's incredibly odd," Aireilei said, frowning. "The only reason I can think of for you having that dream is that somebody must've sent it to you for an obscure purpose." Mike shrugged.
"Just a 'hey, this happened' spur of the moment thing that needed out. So, we gonna inspect this incredibly hostile plant kingdom that threatens to consume us, or are we gonna sit here and sun ourselves?" The turtle received several stares. "Right! Onward, soldiers!" He dashed down the hill, leaping over railings and whooping like a five year-old.
"Is life no more than a game to that guy?" Sor asked, making his way down at a slower, considerably more dignified pace.
"He can be serious…if you keep all manner of sugary goods away from him," Iwansi commented snidely, galloping after her friend. Naicro went off to the right, no doubt to think for a while. As for Aireilei, she took the time to reminisce on the first time she'd laid eyes on the sprawling farmlands.
Flashback
Fridarus grinned widely at my utter astonishment. "So, how's livin' here lookin' to ya, Aireilei?" he asked with a wink. My emotions were at a standstill; I was speechless at the sight that lay before me.
Farmers in the fields laughed from behind their plows, whooping at their teelas for encouragement. Stone tool sheds were scattered around the landscape and beside every one was a pile of hay bales. In the distance glittered a castle, decorated with all manner of gleeful decoration. My gape slowly turned into a grin.
"Yup, I think yer gonna like it here, my girl!" the crossbred elf said with a melodious laugh.
End Flashback
Aireilei slid all the way to the bottom, carefully keeping her balance. She could see Kiyo sniffing around old blocks of stone, his tail a marker signifying where he was."Hey, Aireilei, I think I found something!" he called, waving his tail excitedly.
The white dragon was at his side in seconds. He righted himself, then held up a strange muddy medallion. Aireilei frowned and wiped it in the grass several times before examining it. It was a silver colored engraving of a bow and arrow, surrounded by what looked to be a sash. The whole thing was in stone. She took it in her hand, savoring the touch of it. "Kiyo, you just found what used to be the symbol for a master archer. Somebody must've dropped it when they got killed five hundred years ago."
Kiyo wrinkled his nose. "What do you suppose these piles of stone blocks were before they got torn to pieces?" he asked, digging around under one. A small lizard-like animal darted out from under it, causing Kiyo to jump back in surprise and run into another block.
"People's houses, tool sheds, barns… We found uses for rock in every way."
"Hmm…what did you grow here?" he asked, sniffing for the offending lizard.
She smiled, remembering the bountiful feasts Fridarus would always throw just to get enough food to fill his gut and others'. "Bankas, ruyens…heck, the poultry around here was famous for having stuffing already in their bellies! What the farmers would do was…" She proceeded to tell him the secrets of 'poultry stuffing without having to stick your hand up its butt'.
"Sounds like it was fun," Kiyo said delicately, not knowing if that would be a good or bad statement. He threw aside the block he was searching under and pounced on the lizard that had caused him so much grief. It slipped out of his paws and jumped into a burrow just as Kiyo smashed headfirst into the entrance.
"After the archers got used to me shooting with them, it wasn't so bad. Sure, they still thought of me as an animal for years after, but I shut them right up with spurts of magic." She was unaware that her little brother had his head stuck in a burrow and was currently growling fervent curses out, trying to pry his head free.
Flashback
"Aw, come on, Fridarus! She's an animal! A yatined animal! How do you expect her to even know how to use a bow?" the weapons master yelled. I was stung. I wasn't an animal! I could think for myself and you're smoking something if you even think I'll refrain from punching you into the dung piles next to the stable.
I gritted my teeth as my protector slid an arm around my shoulders. "Look, Aruse, she can shoot just as good as any of your archers. Just let her give it a shot," he growled. I looked up at him. He returned my skeptical gaze with a wink and reassuring smile. "Literally," Fridarus said, laughing at his own joke.
"You're going to make a fool of yourself, Highness, but alright, if that's what ya want," the rukit grumbled, stalking off toward the bows.
"Oh, and Aruse, if it makes any difference, I'd like her to pick her own."
He snorted as I stepped forward. "Hmph. She'll probably just take it and start gnawing on it." I felt extremely compelled to throw him against the wall with wind, turn invisible, and sock him where it counted. Still, I managed to keep my temper in check, trotting to the pile of bow handles.
I glared at him as I picked up a stringless bow. "It might help if I had a string," I pointed out.
"Yeah, sure, whatever, kid." He handed me the desired item, watching me string the bow with interest. I twanged it a few times, pulling it back to my cheek experimentally.
"This'll do just fine, sir," I said politely to Aruse, a small smile playing on my face. He had absolutely no idea what he was in for.
Fridarus grinned. "Shall we get going to the target practice fields then, my dear?" he asked, taking my hand. And in no more than a blink of an eye, I found myself standing fifty feet from my enemy, a straw-filled, red and white target. I glared at it. You are my enemy. My objective is to kill you by sticking an arrow in your chest. I envisioned the person screaming for mercy as I nocked an arrow.
"Back away guys, she's gonna miss," somebody warned.
"Watch me," I snarled under my breath, loosing the arrow. It sailed, whistling, toward the target and impacted with a hollow crack. I heard several collective gasps.
"Holy…"
"Beginner's luck," a veteran snorted. "Let's see you do that again, dragon." Before he even finished the sentence, I stuck the target in the exact same spot with another arrow, splitting the first I'd shot into the bull's eye.
"Wow…jhadie…she's better than you, Haruke!" A rukit male, whom I assumed was Haruke, advanced on me.
"Nobody can get three bulls eyes in a row."
"You willing to bet on that?" I retorted, nocking a third arrow.
"Oooh, I'm scared stiff," he sneered. I glared icily at him, nocking two more.
"Alright, we'll do three arrows, mister smartie pants. And when you lose, you'd better apologize."
"Apologize? To a female? Far as I'm concerned, females ain't good for much of anythin' except cleaning the house and reproducing."
I growled a warning and puffed some smoke. "Watch it, Haruke. You don't want me angry."
"Oh? And what'll you do? Shoot flowers at me?" My spinal region burst into ruby flames as I let my anger smolder.
"Shut up," I snarled, whirling and releasing my arrows. He cried out suddenly and tried to leap away, but for some reason found himself unable to move his boots. They had been nailed into the dirt by my arrows. I snorted, blew him over with wind, and stalked off.
End Flashback
"Sounds like you gave them plenty of reasons for them to treat you as a sentient being at the tender age of eight," his muffled voice came out. The green dragon's wings flapped in exasperation as he continued trying to free his head from the lizard burrow. Aireilei noticed his predicament and grabbed his midsection, yanking him free. "My horns got caught on a root," he panted.
She shrugged and put him down. "Strangest part is, Haruke became one of my closest companions. He was always challenging me to a friendly match, even though he knew he'd lose." The white dragon shook her head ruefully. "Ah, but sword duels? That he was good at. I was victor only once. I won by a stroke of pure luck when he fell and sprained his ankle."
The little green dragon patted her thigh. "It must've been hard when he died." He then proceeded to roll his face in the grass to clean it of dirt.
"Not as hard as losing my mother to Xetyphaes," she growled, clenching her fist. "He makes me sick."
"Apparently I hit a nerve." Kiyo smiled understandingly. "Let's try a different subject, okay?" She nodded. "How about…over there?" He pointed with his tail to a flat stretch of ground near the west wall of the castle.
"That's the archery field."
He raised an eyebrow. "Shall we see if the legendary dragoness still retains her touch?" he challenged, galloping away toward it. Aireilei launched into the sky, lazily following him. It felt so much like she was returning to home. When she landed, Kiyo had already set up a stump at the far end. "Alright! Get an arrow smack dab in the middle!" he shouted, stepping aside. The white dragon summoned her bow and quiver from thin air, nocked an arrow, and fired. It split the stump in dead center. Kiyo whistled in surprise and clapped appreciatively (A/N: Well, as good as dragons can clap.).
Aireilei looked around. "Where are Mikey, Sor, and Kiara?"
"I think they went with Iwansi to check out the castle. Mind going over there to see?"
"Sure."
"Okay, now that's creepy," Mikey declared fervently, pointing to a gothic style painting. The gargoyle in it stared back at him with red eyes.
Kiara put down an intricate vase she'd been studying. "It's called art, Mikey."
"My idea of art is a pan of hot lasagna." His voice echoed high above the rotting rafters of the main hall. Sor mouthed the question, 'What's lasagna?' and Kiara shrugged.
"It doesn't seem like anything important's been left here," Iwansi muttered, climbing down the wall and falling into a pot when she lost her grip. "I've already checked the rooms around here." She clambered out of the pot and shook herself vigorously. "All I've found are a couple of beat up bed frames and this." The yellow dragon held up a glittering ring.
Mike grinned slowly. "Hey, if you ever get married…" Iwansi kicked him and gave it to Kiara to examine. She turned it over and around in the light for a few moments, then grunted, "I have no clue what this is."
Sor took it from her hand. "Well, I bet Aireilei would know. Where is she anyway?"
"Right here." The gunghir nearly jumped out of his skin when the white dragon abruptly materialized out of the shadows. "What? I remembered a secret passage I used to play in when I was off duty around ten years old," she defended, taking the ring. She widened her eyes, looking very much like she received a bullet to the stomach. "Where in the blazes did you find this?" They stared at each other. "I asked you a question!"
Iwansi held up her forepaws. "Alright, alright! Sheesh, don't get yer undies in a bunch. This way." She trotted up to a door that had been torn nearly off its hinges and carefully pushed it open, prompting an eerie creak from the old thing. Dust showered down on the little yellow dragon. "My gosh, doesn't anybody dust around here?" she ranted, giving a sneeze and stumbling through the doorway. Aireilei treaded carefully on the ancient carpet, peering inside the hallway that Iwansi had disappeared into. She saw the dragon's yellow tail vanish around a corner to the left.
The white dragon sniffed the air uneasily. It had suddenly become a little harder to breathe in the musty atmosphere. Maybe it was just her, but she was beginning to get a bit hot. Yeah. Or maybe I've finally hit puberty after a millennia, she teased herself, making her way down the hall. She took a left turn, nearly falling through a gaping hole in the floor. Apparently the wooden supports had given out on this section. Aireilei hopped nimbly across it, momentum carrying her slightly farther than she would have liked. The result was her knocking over and breaking a piece of what would have been expensive pottery had it been five hundred years prior to the event.
"Geez, you're making a racket back there!" Iwansi growled, peering around another corner. "Will you hurry it up? It's getting uncomfortable in here." Aireilei grinned, pleased to find out that she hadn't after all met her time.
"Nope, that was nine hundred eighty-seven years ago," she corrected herself. By the time she reached Iwansi's location, she had nearly fallen down another hole, saved a vase from the fate the first suffered, and broken down the wrong door, releasing the sour smell of a pantry that had seen better days.
"If I were an orc, I'd have you run through with a lance by now," the yellow dragon grunted as Aireilei entered the room after her perilous ordeal. She shrugged and suddenly gasped, looking at the ring and the room simultaneously.
"By the Claw, I'd forgotten where the king's chambers were!"
Iwansi raised her visible eye ridge as Aireilei rushed around in excitement. "These are the king's chambers?" she asked, thoroughly unimpressed. "What kind of royalty can live in a shack like this?" The yellow dragon snorted, seeing she wasn't going to get an intelligible response from her ecstatic elder sister, and walked around to investigate the many items.
The wooden items such as the closet, bed frame, heck, even the door frame, were all rotted and could probably have fallen apart from a single touch. Iwansi tested her theory by poking a bed frame leg and found it to be true when the small amount of force put behind the push caused the entire structure to creak for a moment, then collapse in a glorious medley of crashes.
Kiara came running through the doorway. "What are you two doing?" she inquired, Sor bumping into her from the sudden stop she made. From behind Sor came the unmistakable sound of Mikey's complaint that he was going to die from hunger. "What are you doing for that matter, Aireilei?" The question was spouted because the white humanoid reptile was bustling around a corner, tugging down tapestry poles and the like in a frenzy.
She turned around in a huff, clearly searching for something. "I'm trying to find the entrance!" she exclaimed hurriedly, and resumed pushing around the stones in the wall and scratching at mortar.
"To what?" the rukit prodded, puzzled.
"The…entrance!" the dragon puffed impatiently once more, scurrying to a different side. "Look, don't ask me why! I remember there's a hidden door leading to…something in here! And this ring Iwansi found is the key to opening it! So if I could just find the…"
"Slot?" Kiyo finished, pointing to a strange indent in a stone block. It was circular and looked as though something fit neatly inside it. "I found it behind the headboard of the bed. Since Iwansi sorta…well, destroyed the thing, it was kinda hard not to see it." Aireilei grinned jubilantly, zipping to the aforementioned slot in a blur of pearl. She took a moment to examine the piece of jewelry in her hand before sticking it into its place. Nothing happened for a moment, then an almighty rumble that shook the floor like an earthquake. Dust and pieces of wood showered them from above as the shaking stopped. When the dust settled, there was a huge opening in the wall, revealing a black passage.
"I'd say we'll need a torch," Sor grunted.
Mike squeaked and backpedaled a bit. "Hold it, no way am I going in there!" he declared. Iwansi stared, exasperated, at him.
Aireilei stuck her head in the foreboding tunnel. "No need for torches, guys; they're already here!" And with that, she spat a ball of white fire down the length of it, igniting several ready torches and shedding light on the floor. The turtle plastered to the wall gulped audibly as the three dragons and a rukit began down the subterranean passageway. Sor cleared his throat impatiently. When Mikey didn't move, he leaned forward and grabbed him by the arm, dragging the protesting reptile into the tunnel and around the corner.
Aireilei had already reached a dead end. "Now, what in blazes am I supposed to do here?" she growled, punching the wall.
"Answer a few riddles, stupid." The dragon nearly jumped out of her skin at the sudden voice.
"I guess you made an invisible friend," Iwansi commented snidely.
"Alright, whoever said that, shut up," the voice grunted. "I'm being serious here. Now if you'd be so kind as to listen to me and quit blabbering your idiot mouths off…"
"He's got an attitude too."
"I'm going to ignore that, impudent imp. First riddle's this: 'What has a neck but no head?'"
Aireilei scratched her head. "Um…that's a hard one. Howz about a hint?"
"No dice, what's-your-name. I can't do that. It ain't in the rules." Kiyo rolled his eyes just as Kiara caught up with them.
"What are you guys doing staring at this wall?" she asked.
"Trying to answer my riddles. Now shush. The poor morons are trying to think here." Aireilei glared at the stone wall.
"What's the riddle?"
"I hate repeating stuff. 'What has a neck but no head?'"
Kiara smiled. "Easy! A bottle."
"One point for the smart rukit, morons zero." Sor and Mikey arrived seconds after the reply. "How many of you are there?" the voice asked crossly. "Because if just one more of you come in here, I've been had."
Kiyo scratched the wall. "Just give us the next riddle already," he said.
"Alright, you impatient twirp. 'What never gets any wetter no matter how hard it rains?'"
"Well, it should be something wet already, so that leaves us with some body of water," Kiara mused. She suddenly snapped her fingers. "Got it! The ocean!"
There was a slight delay in the snappy voice's reply this time. "Are the rest of you brainless?" it asked. "The last time I checked, the only stupid people on this planet were males." Kiara giggled as Mike uttered an indignant sound. "I need to get harder riddles…This one should stump you. 'What do people make that nobody can ever see?'"
Mikey hemmed and hawed. "Man, if Donny were here, he'd have this down in squat seconds!" he grumbled, scratching his head. "Um…can't be anything of the waste product type…"
"MIKEY!" Aireilei shouted.
He grinned sheepishly. "Okay…um, wait! Shout again, Aireilei!" She was puzzled, but did so. "That's it! Noise!"
"It's nice to know not all of you are idiots," the voice still insultingly commended. "Enter at will." Several stones dislodged from the wall, nearly squashing Iwansi's toes. The dragon glared at the voice wherever it was, and pulled them aside. "Okay, you people, now, if you wanna know what's inside there, trust me, it ain't me. I got nixed a long time ago. And if you really wanna go in there, you'll need that ring you used to get in here."
"Gee, thanks," Sor said dryly.
"My pleasure. Now, if you're not gonna do anything, beat it. I've got more boredom to waste." Aireilei stepped forward and thrust her hands into the space, pulling the rocks apart with mighty force. She ripped it down and spat more fire at a torch to light it. "Oh, and one more thing. Look up." They all simultaneously raised their gazes to the ceiling. "See that purple gem?" They nodded as one. "Somebody smack it as hard as you can." Mikey took out a nunchaku, jumped up, and whacked the end against the gem. The faint light from within died a bit, then flared brighter. "One more time sonny." He cracked his weapons on it again, shattering it to pieces. A spectral form slowly materialized from the remains and stretched with a happy sound. "Ah, to be free! Thanks a bunch! For a troop of idiots, you're not half bad." It ran through the wall abruptly, leaving the confused travelers to figure out for themselves what just happened.
"What was that?"
Aireilei was gaping. "I have no clue," she said, emphasizing each syllable separately.
Iwansi blew some hair out of her left eye. "Well, who's going down the creepy tunnel first?"
"YOU ARE!" everybody bellowed.
The dragon grumbled, "Me'n my big mouth," before trotting down the passageway. It was a while before they heard anything from her. "Hey guys! I found something!" she yelled. They all stampeded down after her, finding her standing before a door. "I can't break it down. Anybody care to help?" Aireilei rammed the door, only succeeding in making her shoulder ache.
"Trust me when I say that thing isn't gonna budge," Mikey advised, smiling slightly.
"That spirit thingie said we needed the ring, right?" Sor asked, standing a bit straighter. "Hold on a minute, I'll be right back!" He dashed around the corner in a flurry of wings. Aireilei looked at Mike and shrugged, proceeding to pound the snot out of the thick slab of wood. Despite her attempts to break it, force it open, or do anything else, it didn't give. Nor did it hint on giving. Just then, Sor returned. "Aw, dang it, I can't find the stupid thing, Aireilei!" he cried, grabbing his head in his wings. "I thought it would still be in the door, but it's not! Argh!"
Iwansi looked at the door. "Guess we won't find out what's behind curtain number one anytime soon," she muttered, turning around to go back. Once they had all gotten out, Aireilei started feeling strange. The room began spinning in circles and she was hard pressed to keep her balance.
"Rei? You okay?" she vaguely heard Mikey ask. Someone caught her as she fell down.
"What's wrong with her? Why'd she pass out?" Sor inquired, puzzled.
Mikey shrugged. "Too much beer? Ow!" Iwansi had clawed him in the leg.
Suddenly and abruptly, the roof was ripped off with an almighty roar. "I might know the answer to that question, gunghir rebel," a sinister, yet squeaky voice cackled.
What finally woke Rijinn up from his nap was the sensation of having a wet muzzle. He opened his eyes and blinked groggily. A single water droplet sat there quivering on one of his nostrils. The red dragon wrinkled his nose and tried snorting it off to no avail. Something thundered up above, causing him to look up. Directly overhead were angry dark clouds that looked like they were fully prepared to zap slash crispy fry any dragon, turtle, or rukit with a lightning bolt.
He leapt up with a yelp. The red dragon darted franticly to Lharom and pounced on his muzzle, waking the wolfena up in a jiffy. "For cryin' out loud, pipsqueak, do ya gotta stab my poor maw with those claws of yours?" he growled, shaking Rijinn off. "A guy can't hardly get any…oh jhadie." He was on his feet immediately, staring at the storm clouds. Then the wolfena turned around. "Well well well! That storm from about two hours ago has caught up with us!" he commented as a gale ruffled his fur.
Several fat raindrops spattered his face, causing the canine to snort and sneeze franticly while trying to clear his snout of water. Rijinn, knowing an emergency when he saw one, leapt onto Don's plastron, using it as a springboard, and landed claws first right on Kyrunir's rear. The rukit jerked wide awake with a surprised squeak, flinging the dragon off his posterior. Rijinn landed on Raph, which set off a chain reaction. Raph bellowed and jumped up, Sais in hands, sending the red dragon airborne once more. The squealing little winged reptile landed on Saesha's tail, making her jump at least four feet up and bowl into Ukeera, who clawed with her hands at the assailant she couldn't see. On of her flailing hind legs connected with Don's rear, sending him forward a few inches and snapping him out of sleep.
"Will you all just shut up?" Lharom bellowed after five minutes of confusion. All activity froze. "Cripes, you people are the most excitable I've met!" he panted. "Now let's all just calm down and figger what just happened! Who started this?" Rijinn grinned sheepishly from underneath Kyrunir and Ukeera, who had run into each other. "I declare, when I say 'caught up with us' I don't mean right on us, ya silly dragon! Now, can we get moving before somebody ends up getting torched by lightning?" Raph jabbed his Sais back into his belt and glared at Rijinn.
"What?" he asked, wriggling out of the rukit pile he had been under.
Saesha pawed Don's leg anxiously, staring at something behind him. "Would it be stealing a line to say 'Auntie Em! It's a twister!'?" She took off like a shot as the turtle in purple turned around to went slack-jawed. A huge, whirling tornado was steadily making its way toward the group!
"Wait for me!" he yelled franticly, dashing after the dragon. Lharom grabbed Ukeera in his teeth by the scruff of her neck as Kyrunir scrambled onto his back. Raph took one look at the funnel on swirling branches, leaves, and grass and went running after Don and Saesha like his rear was on fire. The wolfena behind him darted headlong in a steady lope, easily catching up to the turtle and passing him as Rijinn leapt onto Raph's shell, holding on for dear life.
The wind roared in their ears, blowing them back and slowing their progress. The grass snapped like whips on Lharom's legs, making faint red welts. "What are we gonna do? That thing's gonna get us!" Raph bellowed, grabbing a root to avoid being pulled off the soil.
Lharom braced against the gales, his fur blowing everywhere. "We need to find shelter! Otherwise, you can make that blender your clingy new friend!" he barked.
Don looked like he was thinking. "Well, I can see a couple of caves to the north!" the purple turtle called, blinking dust out of his eyes. Lharom turned his head in the aforementioned direction.
"That will lead us past the twister! Are you sure about that?"
"Trust me! The direction the wind is going can help us move! We need to go with the wind, not fight it!" Don stood, hunched, beginning to walk forward at a slow shuffle. His bandanna tails were going in front of him now. It finally dawned on Lharom that the crazy wind currents could be of some use after all. The turtle slid a little toward the tornado and worked his way back to the imaginary line he was following, going with the flow of air as it pushed and pulled.
His eyes began to water from the constant blinking he had to do. Don couldn't hear anything except the roar of the twister that was steadily gaining on him. When he was about ten feet from one of the caves, he jumped for it, disappearing down the hole and barely missing getting his head smashed on the low upper lip. Lharom drove his legs down into the dirt with each step, finding it harder to walk with the wind than fight it. Raph and Rijinn moved past him, vanishing into the cave like wraiths. He threw Ukeera into the cave, followed by Kyrunir, and then found himself unable to get in due to his size. He shrank into a covey, nearly getting blown away as he hooked his claws on the rim. Muscles screaming, he hauled himself into the hole. Without the wind pulling on him, he fell forward, sliding down a steep slope of gravel.
His world spun in dusty circles, giving him a headache and making him sick. When he thought he couldn't take any more of it, he hit a hard shell. "Yeow!" he cried as his rear sent him a message that said 'pain'. Similar moans came from underneath Raph's bulk.
"And I thought…Mikey's pizza topping choices…were the only things that made me sick," Raph groaned, rolling off Ukeera and hitting the floor.
"Ow. Whose idea was this?"
"Not mine," Ukeera grunted, prying Rijinn off her tail.
"Hey, you could've been twirled around in a tornado," Don said, coughing. "And that would've been much worse."
"Ya ever been in a twister, Donnie?"
He hacked some more dust. "No."
When Lharom finally felt healthy enough to trust his limbs for movement, he stood up and leapt nimbly off. Much to his chagrin, he collapsed on impact with the floor. "Nice landing," Saesha commented, her eyes glowing an eerie lavender. He growled and sighed.
"Well, looks like we're in a real pickle now, guys," the covey groaned. "For one, it's pitch black. Two, that slope is so steep and shaky we'll never get back up it. And three…"
"And three?"
"Three, I don't know where the heck we are."
"Duh," Raph deadpanned. "Like anybody knows where they are in the dark." A red light flared in the corner, blinding them all for a moment. "Oops. Guess I forgot we have the Living Candle over there."
Rijinn snorted. "Hey!" Don stood and abruptly bumped his head.
"Looks like we'll have to crawl," he said, wincing and rubbing his noggin. The red dragon trotted off, his light fading for a moment.
"Uh, guys?" he called, his voice sounding unexpectedly timid as it echoed off the walls. "This is a dead end." Saesha galloped to him, skidding to a halt beside a stalagmite and closing her eyes in deep concentration. All that could be heard were the labored breaths of the trapped travelers by the entrance.
"No, it isn't," she finally said, walking nonchalantly to a wall. She reared and tapped a claw against it. A soft plop sounded from the other side. "This wall is relatively thin. It could be broken through. Stand back, Rijinn." She backed away a few feet, glowing with her telekinesis. Then, Saesha charged. Don, Raph, Kyrunir, Ukeera, and Lharom involuntarily cringed when she connected with the wall. Surprisingly, she bowled right through it, creating a small hole. Dust and small rocks fell from the ceiling as the group tensed. It stopped as suddenly as it had begun.
Rijinn peered through the punctured rock. "Sis? You okay?" He heard some distant grunts.
The sound of shifting dust and rocks. "I'm alright," she growled. "But there was a small chasm on the other side. And with my luck, I fell right down it."
"Well, can't you fly out?"
"I can't very well fly when I'm buried under a foot of rubble."
"Oh." Rijinn prepared to drop from his window. "I'm coming down, sis!" He heard grumbles about being nicknamed as he hopped out of the hole and started falling. There's just one bad thing about darkness: experts say you can't see anything unless you have a light. And by golly, they're right. Rijinn flared his wings abruptly to keep from becoming a flattened pancake on a ledge that had popped out of nowhere.
"Took you long enough," Saesha grunted. "Now get me out of this." The red dragon snorted.
"Well, who died and made you mother?"
"Just dig already!"
"Bad-tempered little…" Just the same, he landed on the ledge to help her. When the light from his fire revealed her position, he had to keep from laughing. All that could be seen of his sister were her two front paws, her head, and her right hind leg (A/N: That's kind of what my dad looked like when he went to float in the Great Salt Lake.). "If you knew just how ridiculous you looked…" She growled a warning and started to glow. "Alright, alright! Sheesh…" Rijinn plunged a paw into the dirt and rocks, pulling a fist sized rock out. It tumbled down the rubble hill and clattered off the ledge. After a five second wait, they heard a soft splash. "Guess that means if you handed oh so gracefully landed here, you would've been a dragon smoothie," Rijinn remarked evilly.
"You want me to pull a Darth Vader on you?" Saesha snarled, beginning to glow again.
"Oh, yeah. Like you could pull off the whole 'I find your lack of faith disturbing, commander' line, with the 'shhhh ko' gasping."
"You've watched too much Star Wars with Mikey."
Rijinn grinned, his flames flaring a bit. "I pride myself in knowing the lines." He resumed shoveling dirt off the purple dragon, hearing the showers of rubble hit the water with distinguishable splashes. When he discovered one of her wings, he poked it experimentally. She yelled, apparently in pain.
"Don't touch that, Rijinn!" she hissed.
He inspected it carefully. "I may be no doctor, but it doesn't take a moron to know that your wing's sprained."
"Hey guys! You okay down there?" Kyrunir called.
"Peachy! We'll be up there in a sec!" Rijinn replied loudly, unearthing Saesha's neck. "'Kay, you can get up now. But be careful not to move that wing too much. We'll have to get that fixed somehow."
"I've not doubt that Donnie'll know what to do," she grunted, standing up. "So, how do you figure we're going to get back up?" Rijinn launched into the air.
"Grab my paws," he instructed, holding out his forepaws. She reared and grasped them.
"If I fall, I'm taking you with me," she warned.
"Don't I know it." The red dragon stretched his wings to the maximum before flapping down hard. He moved vertically about five inches before having to flap again. When they finally reached the side of the chasm opposite to the hole, he was exhausted. "I hope…you're happy," he gasped, gulping deep breaths of musty air as he collapsed.
"Rijinn? We need light over here," Don said. "Kyrunir and Ukeera aren't going to cross unless they can see where they're stepping."
"And you?"
"Raph and I are fine. We're ninjas, remember?"
Rijinn sighed. "Yeah, sure. Leave it to the smart one to make me feel stupid." He got up on shaky legs and trotted over to the edge of the chasm. Seconds later, Kyrunir came leaping out through the darkness, landing practically on his face. "Trust me when I say that wasn't the least bit graceful," the red dragon said with a grin.
Kyrunir was shivering. "I hate jumping over wide spaces like that."
"Oh, Ky, you're such a WIIIIMP! EEEEK!" Ukeera flew from the window, clutching her head as she cannonballed into the floor, shaking. "Don't throw me!" she practically roared.
"Hey, it was either that, or ya fall," Raph retorted, landing nimbly beside her. He received a punch in the shin that made him wince. "Remind me to never again deal with a hysteric female."
Don sprawled onto the ground, receiving several inquiring stares. "He kicked me over here," the turtle answered, jabbing his thumb back. Lharom, in mutant turtle form, landed on the rock ground in a rolling tackle.
"Show-off." The mage shifted into a covey again, winking at Raph. "Can we please get moving now? I've gotta feeling that if I'm in here for much longer, I'm gonna become another Gollum."
Rijinn flared his flames once more and started trotting toward a faint blue light. "Hey, what's that?" The red dragon slid down a slope of rock and disappeared into a hole in the wall, cutting off the glow for a brief second. "Oh, wow," he breathed. "Check this out!" Don dove into the tunnel, emerging out the other side only to be slightly blinded by blue.
They were in a huge, spacious cavern full of stalagmites and stalactites. That in itself was interesting, but the main thing was an enormous transparent crystal sitting directly in the center of the cave. As Don advanced on it, he could see a pale yellow form inside the rock. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be a wingless dragon about fifteen feet in length from nose to tail.
"What's it doing in there?" Don wondered, putting a hand on the crystal's surface.
Rijinn shrugged. "Dunno. But from the looks of it, she's been in there a very long time."
"She? How do you know it's a she?"
He looked quizzical. "I have no clue. Just sorta came to me."
They were still standing there when Raph ran up to them in a panic. "Guys, we've gotta get outta here!" he said. They stared at him. "Look, I dunno how it got in here, but there's a beihl right around the corner!" Rijinn squealed, all his control gone, and dashed to the other side of the cave, searching franticly for an exit.
Don saw Lharom, Kyrunir, and Ukeera pop out of the tunnel, followed by a slimy green tentacle of immense proportions.
"Bad news, guys," Rijinn announced. "There's no way out."
Angry voices penetrated the drugged fog of his sleep. He tried struggling out of it, but for the moment, his mind was still groggy and confused. Something slapped him in the face, producing a sting that helped clear some of the blackness – and it hurt too! Leo grimaced and shook his head, trying to make his blurry vision focus. Nope. No dice. All he saw were blobs that talked…and swore, evidently. The turtle saw a growing copper blob rocket toward his face a little too late and received a punch in the beak that made him yelp. That cleared the rest of the drug from his mind, but now he wasn't so sure if he was even on a planet anymore.
For one thing, everybody was upside down. Rukits gathered around him were speaking a different language. And he had just enough sense left in his throbbing cranium to move aside when another punch headed for his face. It hit something hard and the owner cursed like a madman.
"Leo! Are you alright?"
It took him about a minute to register the voice and match a name to it. "Dakari?" he grunted, slapping away a different fist with his tail. "What's going on? And why am I getting clocked in the face?"
He heard the rabbit utter a fervent, 'Ouch!' and assumed that he had also been hit. The copper rukit who had been the first he saw to visually hit him approached Leo venomously.
Somebody rushed out of the crowd of spectators, clearly ready to rip Mr. Copper's head right off. "Laseiwur wurhseiti pru. Nruse," she growled, standing toe to toe with Mr. Copper. Leo blinked. The girl was the one that he and Dakari had rescued right before being knocked out by darts. So if they were hanging by their feet from a pole, why wasn't she?
"I wurrutiey phrruer wurru pru hrulasei," Mr. Copper snarled right back, backhanding her across the face.
She righted herself, glaring acidly at him. "I seilala nruwur leseivsei wurhseila hseiyesei wurru kaerffseiye fruye a eyseiseiey wurhseiphr eyiey nruwur eyru!" The tan rukit narrowed her eyes rebelliously at him as the crowd gasped. (A/N: You are all getting lost at this point, so I'll take the liberty of translating this load of hooey.) (I will not leave them here to suffer for a deed they did not do!)
"Pru hrulasei bseifruyesei I eyru karulaseiwurhinp I seilala yeseipyeseiwur," he commanded blackly, grabbing her roughly by the shoulders. (Go home before I do something I will regret.)
She wrenched out of his grasp and stared icily at him. "Phrruer alayeseiaeyphr havsei," she said. (You already have.) With that, she whirled and bowled through the crowd.
He heard Dakari whistle. "That's tough luck, buddy," he muttered. Mr. Copper, turned, his eyes shining with wrath. Lightning fast, he snatched a spear from a companion and threw it at the rabbit. His cry of pain didn't go unnoticed by Leo, who struggled uselessly in his bonds. "Yeow! If you've got a medical degree for this stuff, pal, I'd like to see it!"
Mr. Copper strode over to the samurai and yanked his spear out of something Leo couldn't identify because his peripheral vision wasn't working too well. Then the rukit did something Leo knew instinctively that he should stop. He raised the spear and prepared to drive it through Dakari's head. Just as he was gearing up for it, the turtle reached out with his tail, wrapped it around the spear, pulled it away from Mr. Copper, and pitched it over the crowd, a yell testifying that it had definitely hit somebody.
Leo smiled nervously when the rukit looked at him, obviously fuming. "Um, hi?" he ventured. The response was another flying spear. As he prepared to smack it away with his tail, something else interfered on his behalf. A flash of tawny gold and white leapt in front of the trajectory, catching it in mid air. The snapped shaft fell to the ground with a clatter.
"Quit this nonsense, Rames," it growled, sitting down on its haunches. Even though he was upside down, Leo could still identify the thing's features relatively well. Its whole body was a blinding shade of titanium white that looked like not a hair was out of place. Encircling its neck and running down its spine was a mane of golden fur that made it look like a lion. It was just about the size of one too, standing head at Leo's shoulder.
"Pseiwur ruerwur ruf tiphr vilalapsei, Shahkar," Rames rumbled murderously. (Get out of my village, Shahkar.)
"No!" Shahkar shot back. "You get out of thisvillage! These people have no need for your madness to go and infect their peace-loving ways. If I were you, I would stop polluting their minds with stories and tales and whatever stranger comes within a half a mile radius of your village," he spat," should be killed because they could be enemies seeking you out." Dakari gulped.
Rames picked up his shattered spear, still glowering. "Wurhseiphr weseirusei pruinp wurru yeazasei tiphr piyela," he snarled. (They were going to rape my girl!) Dakari gasped out of indignation. Leo didn't, as he didn't understand a word the copper colored rukit had said.
Shahkar bared his teeth. "Is that really what you believe?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. "Have you really consulted your daughter on this, chief? I think not!"
"Hoo boy…" Leo heard Dakari mutter.
"Let them go now, Rames. You are making a substantial mistake."
"Pru bacudi wurru phrruerye zaacudi, flaseia biwurwursein kaseiyeerlaaf," Rames growled dangerously. (Go back to your pack, flea bitten serulaf.)
"I refuse," Shahkar countered. "Have you enough sense about you to know that one of these two is chosen of Hiph for a purpose? If I indeed leave, then the only chance this broken world has of pulling itself back together will be lost to your idiocy."
"Hsei ai nruwur cuhrukasein, hsei ai a eyseitirun!" (He is not chosen, he is a demon!)
The serulaf pounced on Rames abruptly, ending his spout of incoherent elvish. "Would you like me to show you a real demon, prince of fools?" Shahkar growled, baring his teeth and flattening his bear-like ears. He swatted the rukit in the face with one of his paws. "You're becoming even more delusional every time I run over here to deal with your captives." Snorting in disgust, he removed himself from Rames' chest and just for good measure, kicked him with a hind foot in…er, that place that puts the male gender in agony. The rukit lay on the ground, moaning pitifully while clutching at his groin area.
"That hurts," Dakari said, wincing. Shahkar was now in front of Leo. As he reared, the turtle managed to catch a glimpse of two golden, scruffy eyebrows hanging over his hazel eyes. However, his train of thought was rudely interrupted when the ropes holding his feet gave way and he crashed headfirst into the ground.
"That was painful…" he groaned, rubbing his stricken noggin as he got to his feet. A similar noise came from Dakari when he got dropped. When Leo looked over, he nearly laughed at the poor rabbit's position. He was on his stomach, spread eagled, and face down in the dirt.
"Ya know, if you'd have put some pillows down there before dropping me on my head, I'd have appreciated this more." The turtle staggered a bit and rested himself against the pole to let all the blood return to the rest of his body. He felt a bit lightheaded for a second, but the feeling subsided when his legs went numb. Shahkar leaned up against him for support.
"Step aside, and let me pass," he commanded. The crowd split like their legs had given way.
Leo chanced a glance at Dakari and found himself staring longer than he should have, more from shock than amusement. "What happened to your ear?" he asked.
The rabbit wrinkled his nose and grabbed at Shahkar when the serulaf began to move forward. "When Rames jabbed his spear down, he got my ear because I moved to the side." Leo was felt a bit of a sting when he realized he could've saved his friend a wound. "As a result, I have a hole in it now." Noticing his friend's peculiar behavior, he consoled, "Don't worry, I've a feeling Usagi will give me grief when he sees me next time anyway, pierced ear or no."
"Will you two stop talking and walk?" Shahkar growled. "I feel as though I'm half dragging you." Dakari looked puzzled but Leo did as he was told. They had gotten fifty feet from the crowd when the serulaf angled sharply toward a beat-up building to the right. The tan rukit from before was standing in the doorway. "Your father isn't the least bit happy with you, Heinakwa," he called.
Heinakwa scowled blackly. "Tiphr 'fawurhseiye' cuan pru beryephr hika hseiaey in a zailasei ruf eyernp," she said, nodding her head curtly to Dakari and Leo. (My 'father' can go bury his head in a pile of dung.) The rabbit chuckled at her angry statement and replied in a similar fashion. She smiled maliciously. Leo, however, was completely lost.
"Shahkar, I've been wondering," he mused. "Why did he look confused when you talked to him?"
The serulaf sneezed. "Because to him all I'm spouting is barks, growls, snarls, and howls. He can't understand a word I say."
"Why is that?"
"Why are you able to converse with me?" he countered.
Leo scratched his head. "I don't know…maybe that drug had more of an effect on me than I thought."
"No, it's because you are of dragon friendship. Do you see those ears, the tail, the eyes?" The turtle nodded slowly, self-consciously blinking. "That is a sign that you have formed a bond with a Hiph dragon; in your language they would be called the High dragons. It is another reason that they," he said, jerking his head in the direction of the village, "think you an enemy. Those appendages mean nothing but trouble for them. At least, that's what Rames claims. And what he says basically goes around there. Does this make sense to you?"
The turtle felt like he did after one of Donnie's lectures on physics. "Kind of, but not really," he said truthfully.
Shahkar sat down and patiently began to explain. "Many decades ago, our race was formed because of an accidental encounter of dragon and wolfena. The dragon, also known as Rainbou, was determined to cause Xetyphaes as much trouble as she possibly could before he caught her and transformed her into the monster she is today. The wolfena was asked by her to stand still before being incinerated with her flames." Leo involuntarily cringed. "Out of the ashes, rose two puppies of our breed, a female and a male. They became known as the Fire Twins. Rainbou hid the two pups in a cave, where they grew. I'm sure you know how the rest of us were formed." The turtle nodded, rolling his eyes. He could just imagine Mikey's explanation: "When a mommy serulaf and a daddy serulaf love each other very much, they decide to…" "My point is, we serulaf were created by dragons and therefore can communicate with them. However, our wolfena heritage prevents us from talking with anyone but the rukits and dragons. This is why you can understand me – and he cannot."
"Lengthy, but it makes sense. By the way, do you know where my katanas are?"
The serulaf perked his ears forward. "Your swords? I should expect they'd be in Rames hut. He loves to keep all manner of shiny objects in there. More of a crow than a canine if you ask me," he finished, a bit on the disgusted side.
Abruptly, Heinakwa snarled. "Hsei ai curutiinp!" (He is coming!)
"Who's coming?" Dakari demanded.
Shahkar was on his feet in seconds. "Rames. We aren't safe here," he muttered, darting inside the building. Several squeals told Leo what he was after. The turtle dashed after him to help, but failed to see the poorly placed ragged plank that stuck out into the doorway. And by the time he had, it already struck him in the face. What a stupid way to pass out, he grumbled as his head hit the floor. Dakari could be heard valiantly trying to stifle his laughter as he blacked out.
When he woke up again, he was feeling especially embarrassed at his fluke. If Mikey had been there, he would've given Leo grief for as long as the orange-wearing turtle remembered the event. However, Dakari would be just as bad. The turtle sat up, finding himself on Tunali's back once again during the dusk stage of the day. "What happened?" he asked aloud.
He heard a hysterical chuckle. "You smacked yourself in the forehead with a plank, that's what!" his rabbit companion guffawed. Leo gave him an exasperated glare. "What? It was funny!" He looked around, trying to ignore his companion's giggling. They were currently riding across some sand dunes that you would normally find near an ocean. "By the way, have you any idea how big a bruise you have?" He groaned. "Oh, suppose you'll want to know what conspired while you oh so conveniently slept away your cares. Shahkar carted you and I away from the rukits' village because we didn't have time to saddle Tunali and Watishi. Otherwise, you would've woken up on a pole again. Anyway, he took us to his pack to rest for a while. Nice guys, I even got attacked by a few pups. You, however, were still out like a light. So, I saddled up, and we left!"
"And that was how long ago?"
"Two days."
"Two days?"
Watishi laughed in her coughing way as Dakari grinned. "Yes, humiliating, isn't it?"
"Just shut up."
"Snippety, aren't we?" the rabbit prodded relentlessly. Leo huffed in a dismissive mood, signing he was done talking. "Well, alright then, Mr. Personality. Have it your way." The turtle decided to take in more scenery rather than take heat from Dakari any further. A view of the ocean rose over the sand, sparkling yellow and orange like liquid gold in the setting sun. Abruptly, Tunali stopped.
"What now?" Dakari stood up in his stirrups.
"I don't know…Watishi's smelling some enemies up on those cliffs, I can feel it." The turtle squinted at the jagged shards reaching for the sky. His sharp eyes picked up some activity on the tops of them. "See anything?"
"Yeah…there's a group of them up there. I think it's be best to play it safe and avoid them," Leo advised.
Dakari grinned daringly. "Right! Ready to live dangerously?"
Ten minutes later, Leo found himself hugging the cliff-side wall under faint starlight. "How'd I let you talk me into this?" the turtle whispered, grabbing a handhold. The sound of pounding waves far below reminded him of the consequences should he lose his grip.
"I'm a surprisingly smooth talker."
Leo jumped nimbly onto a thin ledge, quickly regaining his balance. "Where was that skill when we were strung up like pigs at a luau?" he hissed.
Dakari's shrug, though more visible in the dark than reptile green because of his fur color, was still hard to discern. "I haven't a clue what a luau is, so I couldn't answer that." A sudden rumbling shook the cliffs, showering rocks onto both.
"What was that?"
The rabbit froze. "Earthquake!" And with that, an even more powerful tremor threw him off into midair.
"Dakari!" Leo lost his grip in the confusion of falling rocks, half diving after his plummeting companion. He remembered nothing except slamming agonizingly hard into the water's surface before all manner of breath was pounded out of his lungs by the crashing waves and he sank in a maelstrom of bubbles.
Uh-oh...(yelps and flees a horde of angry reviewers) Eeeeek! Stay away from me! HEEELP! Readers: "No more cliffies! No more cliffies!" Suffice it to say, I've opted to keep you guys guessing. And apparently, this is going to keep my nerves frayed too...my awareness has now risen five hundred points! Not even Chibi Rose Angel or pacphyscan successfully get me now! Chibi and pacphys: "Oh really..." (gulps) This is not going to be pretty...BYE! (runs off)
LN