Chapter 13
Shyong's good eye widened. "What the hell.are you.?" He asked softly, watching the moon cast odd flickering shadows on the white haired man's pointed face. How could he be here? Not now. Not ever! It didn't make any sense! He wasn't real... Or was he..?
The man walked towards him and extended a pale bony hand. "I'm here to give you your destiny.." he whispered.
Shyong's eye swiveled to Lucia who was standing with her paws crossed over her chest. Her head was down and her eyes were wide and trembling behind her tiny black spectacles. He clenched his teeth and brought his gaze forward. "What destiny?
You..and what did you do to Fallon? Why is she so.."
"Scared?" His orange eyes glimmered in the pale light as he shrugged nonchalantly. "I didn't do anything. I just showed her what it would be like if she stood back and did nothing for her kingdom." He reached up and tousled Shyong's short black hair in an almost loving way.
Trembling, he jerked his head back. "No! You can't be here! You're not real!" He cried, his shaking hands clutching his forehead.
He couldn't be real.. He was just a dream..
The man began to laugh softly; A cold, dark laugh that made his blood turn to ice.
A menacing, vivid, horrible dream..
"If you want, I can show you."
Shyong jerked back again as the frail hand came forward, but he wasn't fast enough. The cold fingers pressed down hard against his forehead and to his surprise, sunk in. His eyes widened fearfully at the man who smiled back, white hair blowing gently in a wind he could not feel. A freezing sensation came over his body starting from his forehead down, shooting painfully into his torso and legs.
"Relax..It'll be alright.."
Shyong gasped as shadows began to creep over the man's shoulders, looking like long tentacles, enveloping him in a blanket of darkness and slowly taking him from view. Head turning wildly, he felt something tug on his body and pull him swiftly into the air.
"What..?"
Colors began to flash before his eyes, flowing past him like shooting stars in the blackness quickly surrounding him. Heart racing he squeezed his eyes closed. "Wh-what is going on?!" He cried into the darkness. Where was he? Where was that man? What the hell was he doing to him?!
~"No. Eyes open!"~ the man's soft voice became harsh in his ear.
Shyong felt his eyes snap open on their own accord and an unknown force throw his head back. The colors were swirling above him now and coming together to create odd lumps in the air.
~"Watch.."~
Reluctantly, Shyong kept his eye on the strange scene before him. The lumps were becoming bigger and brighter, expanding and splitting into three giant glittering balls. His eye moved to the left most one and watched as a fuzzy picture flickered into view. A young black haired boy ran forward and flashed a toothy grin.
Shyong's eyes narrowed. "How dare you..don't show me this..I don't.."
~ "Hey Mom! I'm going out! Make sure to save some dinner for me, okay?"~ the boy yelled.
The ball's view turned to a woman standing in a doorway. Shyong's eye widened. The woman smiled gently and reached up, pushing back long curly black hair.
"Damn it..stop! I don't want to..Why are you showing me this?" Shyong cursed through gritted teeth.
~"I just want to remind you of why you are fighting..of what you hate.."~
"I don't need to see this to be reminded." He whispered. "I relive it almost every night in my dreams."
A soft laugh floated by and Shyong's head was jerked back again. The middle ball flickered and zeroed in on a mass of dark blue hair. He clenched his teeth. "So now you're going to show me Dragoneye? He's the last person I want to see. What the hell do you want?"
As if to answer him, the ball flashed and he watched, sweat beginning to pour down his face, as Ryu's dragon form ripped the side of his face off.
~"You want to power to defeat him."~
The scene played again, slower. Blood splattered forward and covered the image.
~"You want to make him pay."~
Again. More blood.
~"You want to make him and his people suffer."~
A pale hand slapped against the blood and slid down. Shyong's breath caught in his throat as his reflection came into view. It was a grotesque picture of his mangled face, his scars, his colorless, freakish eye..
He pursed his lips tight, fighting the urge to bite the lower one. "How..how can I have that power?"
The first two balls flashed, then began to dissolve into thousands of glittering shards flowing past his astonished face at amazing speed. The last ball slid to the middle and expanded. Shyong leaned forward and watched as the Princess's image flickered. She was walking alongside a river and laughing, every now and then jumping into the air. "The Princess..? What.."
~ "That's right..I want you to bring her to me.."~
Shyong shook his head. "But I..she's already being escorted home.. How can I do anything?"
The ball flashed and then dissolved like the others. Shyong was left in total darkness. Eyes widening, he glanced wildly about. "Hey! I asked you a question!" Clenching his teeth, he swung his fists out into the blackness. "Where the hell did you go..?" His words were cut short when his body was jerked forward. He squeezed his eyes closed.
~ "You bring the girl to me..and I'll give you the power to kill him.." ~
A hot prickling sensation suddenly came over Shyong and his eyes shot open. Lucia was above him, her gray eyes wide and trembling. She reached out and grasped his shoulders, starting to shake him gently. "Shyong! Are you alright? Shyong!" she cried in a choked voice.
He reached up and slowly pushed her away. One glance around the room proved that he and her were alone. Lucia sat back, her chest heaving. "Where is he?" He asked turning towards her.
"He..disappeared."
"Tch..figures.." he whispered grasping his bed post and pulling himself into a standing position. His hand slipped a bit and he realized he was drenched in sweat.
"Shyong.."
He turned to glare at Lucia. "What, cat?"
With a slightly hurt expression, she curled her striped tail around her legs. "I..how.." She swallowed. "Do you know that man?"
Shyong clenched his fist, feeling the sweat slip between his fingers. "No, not really."
"But you.."
He glared again and brought his fist down hard on the bed. "I see that bastard every night.standing there.in my dreams. Laughing at me..at my misery.." He turned to her, eyes opening wide in the moonlight. "No one laughs at me, Fallon! No one!"
Lucia's eyes widened as he thrust his fist through the window.
* * *
"How long are we going to follow this damn river, huh fox? It's been hours and that's all we've seen!" Red whined hiking his backpack higher on his back.
Deja glanced up into the moonlit sky. "Red you know as well as I do that this 'damn' river goes straight into Worent. We're following it all the way home."
"So, shut up and enjoy it." Gabe broke in.
Red pursed his lips. "Well it's boring. I want a change of scenery."
"I think it's kind of nice, Red." Nina's voice came from behind. Red turned and she flashed a smile at him. Beside her, Ryu swatted a dragonfly.
"Yeah, if you say so, birdy. I guess it ain't too bad."
Nina nodded and hopped forward a bit, swinging the small pack she was carrying in the air. Ryu looked down at her. "You seem to be in a better mood."
She looked up and he smiled. "Well.yeah.I don't know why though. Maybe it's just having people with us. I've never had this many friends before."
"Friends?" Red asked turning to face them. "You think we're all friends?"
Nina's hopping ceased. "I.."
Red laughed curtly. "You really have some warped sense of this world. Just because someone invites you to travel with them, doesn't mean you're their friend."
Ryu shoot him a glare as Nina's stature drooped. "Hey, you stop saying things like that!
Leave her alone!"
"It's okay, Ryu. I understand."
His green eyes moved over her face. "Nina, are you.."
Red burst into a loud laugh that caused everyone to stop and stare. He pointed one hand at Nina and clutched his stomach with the other. "You.you really crack me up.." he gasped in between laughs. Deja shook her head. "You really thought I meant we weren't friends..!" Nina bit her lower lip as Red walked over to her. He smiled and clapped a hand on her shoulder , pulling her close to him. "Don't look so glum. Of course we're all friends here!"
"You certainly have a weird way of showing it." Ryu muttered glaring at Red.
The Woren snickered and leaned in close to Nina's ear. "It's hanging out with stiffs like him that'll make you lose your sense of humor, ya?"
Ryu felt his ears turn red.
"Alright, alright, enough out of you, Red. We're stopping for the night." Gabe called swinging his giant pack onto the ground, dust and leaves flying into the air as it hit.
Red broke away from Nina and ran forward, throwing his own next to Gabe's. "Finally! It's chow time!"
Nina and Deja dropped their things as well and proceeded to help Gabe set up a few tents. Red started a fire and then disappeared towards the river to fish after a short fight with Ryu on who was the better fisher. He left swearing to catch a thirty foot long fish.
"You know, maybe you shouldn't provoke him like that. We've got a good six or more days until Worent." Nina whispered to Ryu as they rolled out sleeping bags and brushed the dirt from them.
He shrugged. "It's not that I like provoking him." he said. "I just.like seeing him angry..?"
Nina made a face. "That's the same thing, Ryu."
He smiled toothily. "Well aren't you the smart one." He said leaning into her so she'd loose her balance.
She laughed and pushed him back. "Oh Ryu, you're horrible!"
"Red! Hurry up with the fish! We're starving out here!" Deja's voice floated by.
"Shut UP, fox! You bitch at me one more time and I'll.." His voice broke into a yelp and a large splash followed.
Ryu chuckled as Nina frowned at him.
* * *
Red shook himself again over a new fire, the water from his fur hitting the burning logs with short pops and hisses. He made sure to shoot glares over at Ryu fishing in the river every chance he got. His teeth clenched as Nina wrestled some kind of prickling plant from his tail. "You know.." he winced again. "I didn't trip. That damn fish.."
"I know, I know." Nina laughed. "He pulled you in and Ryu's stupid."
"I'm serious! I could beat that guy!" He gritted his teeth. "Damn, woman! Don't pull so hard.."
"Well I have to get everything out..!"
"How's our little fishy friend doing?" Red glanced up at Deja who giggled slightly at his matted fur. Nina grabbed his tail as it began to flick in agitation.
"Don't start with me, fox. I don't even want to see you right now." He mumbled shaking his head and sending another shower of water into the fire.
Deja shrugged. "Gabe says he's got some carrots cooking if you want some."
"Tch..carrots?" Red waved a clawed hand in front of him. "I'll pass."
"Nina?"
She looked up from the Worens bramble filled tail and smiled. "I'd love some."
Deja smiled. "I'm glad someone on this trip is courteous." She said with a laugh, turning towards Gabe and the cooking fire.
"Yeah well..takes one to know one." Red mumbled.
Nina smiled "That didn't make any sense, Red."
"I know!" he snapped, turning his head to her. "I'm just pissed and when I'm pissed, I can't think so leave me alone."
"You know, it's okay to be angry." Nina whispered pulling a bramble and tossing it over in a pile.
"Yeah. I know. I'm angry all the time, so what's your point?"
She tugged at a particularly snagged one. "You didn't let me finish. I was going to say that It's good to be angry, but not all the time. You're stressed. Maybe you should lighten up a bit."
He snickered. "Since when did you get all talkative? This doesn't sound like you."
She looked down. "It's something I've been thinking about."
"What? You've been thinking about my anger problems?"
She shook her head. "No.not really that.just.things." She brushed a patch of fur straight. "I just think that it would be good for all of us if you just."
"Lighten up, right?"
"Yes..I guess so.." she said sheepishly.
He crossed his arms and tried not to wince. "I guess I could try."
She let go of his tail. "Really? You really would?"
He laughed gently. "Well..when asked by a pretty girl to do something, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do, ya?"
Nina blushed.
* * *
Nina clutched her cloak tight around her and backed into the wall. Her hand shot out and tried to grasp something, anything to keep her in balance. It was slipping. Her hand was slipping on so much damn blood. The metallic stench was almost too much for her to handle. She tried to close her eyes, but he was still there. It was like his lifeless form was imprinted on the backs of her eyelids. Damn it! Why couldn't she get him out of her sight?!
Her eyes opened at a scuffling sound.
~"You.."!~
Mouth hanging open slightly, she stared at Mikhal's body lying bloodly before her. His mouth.was moving.
~"You killed me.."~
"Oh..God no.."
With much difficulty, Mikhal attempted to reach forward. Nina pushed back against the wall. The stench was overwhelming.
~ "You must atone for your sins.."~
She shook her head slowly. She was trembling. "No..oh God make it stop!"
The hand came closer. Mikhal's dead eyes widened with a sickening sound. ~ "Repent, child of hell!"~ he cried, blood dripping onto the ground.
Nina covered her ears and screamed as he grasped her shoulders.
* * *
"Nina! Nina? Are you alright?"
Nina's body jerked and her eyes opened. Ryu was above her, grasping her shoulders tight, his long hair falling onto her body. "You okay? Bad dream?" he asked softly.
She took a deep breath. Her heart was hammering against her chest, hard. "I..can't.."
Her eyes went to Deja beside her. She was sound asleep, arms flung over her head. "Hey, how about I get you outside. You look like you need air." He said gently, getting her to her feet. She nodded.
They tiptoed out of the tent and into the dew filled grass outside. Nina slowly pulled away from Ryu and wrapped her arms around her stomach.
He cocked his head. "Was it about him?"
Her eyes widened and she felt a squeak escape her throat. She shook her head violently, clutching herself tighter. "No..It was nothing. Just a...." She looked up as his hands again rested on her shoulders.
"Hey, want to accompany me to the river?"
"What?"
He smiled. "I have to talk to you."
Reluctantly, she nodded. He took her hand and led her out into the tall grass near the bank of the river. When they arrived, Nina took her hand from his. "What..did you want to talk to me about?" She asked sheepishly.
He pushed his hair back behind him. "I wanted to keep my promise."
"Your promise?"
He nodded. "To teach you how to fight."
She laughed gently and dug a toe into the sand. "You can't be serious.."
"What do you mean?"
She looked up at him. "Look at me. I'm too small to fight!" she said pointing to herself.
He moved towards her. "No, no, Nina! You can! Even the smallest people can make the best warriors!" He dropped to a crouch on the ground and made a bit of a scuttling movement, a large smile on his face. "You have to think 'agility'!"
Nina shook her head and turned to gaze at the moonlit river's edge. "You don't have to do this, Ryu." She said softly.
Smile fading, he rose from his crouching pose and walked to her. "Nina.I'm not doing this because I think I have to."
She turned to him. "Then why?"
Ryu's eyes moved over her. She looked slightly different then when he first laid eyes on her in the valley. True, she was still the same blonde girl, but something about her.seemed estranged. As she stared at him, with those soft, sea blue eyes, it dawned on him. No one was the same, once they saw death. She reached up and pushed her windblown hair from her eyes and opened her mouth. He waited, but she said nothing. Now she was waiting. He needed to answer, but he couldn't find the words. Everything that came to his mind sounded stupid or immature. He had to.."I.." He smiled and laughed nervously. "I feel..like you need the experience."
She frowned. "I don't want the experience of fighting. I don't like the way it makes me feel."
He tugged at a stray hair in his bangs. "Nina, the world is full of people who can only settle their problems with a fight. Chances are, one day you'll come in contact with them.
And if you do.." He smiled. "You'll have me to thank when you send them on their asses."
Again, she shook her head. "You don't understand..I can't.."
"I do understand how you feel."
Her eyes moved to his.
"When I first killed..it was a traumatic experience, but I got over it. You can too."
Her eyes narrowed. "You..How can you say that?" She cried suddenly, lower lip beginning to tremble. "I'll get over it? What the hell does that mean?!" She squeezed her eyes closed as tears started to flow. "Ryu..you really don't understand! He was..Mikhal didn't deserve to die! Who am I to give judgment?" She threw her hands into the air. "I'm not a god or the Goddess or Ladon or whoever the hell does it! I can't.." She felt her words catch in her throat as Ryu grasped her arms and pulled her close to him. The closeness of him caused everything spill out. Her hopes, her dreams, her fears.everything in the form of tears. She didn't know why. Maybe it was because no one had ever held her before. Not her mother, not her father. No one ever gave a damn about what she thought. No one cared enough to hold her like this or listen to what she had to say. No one.but him. He wasn't a dragon anymore, he wasn't someone to be afraid of. He was Ryu and he was there. She cried and he held her. He held her and said nothing.
After a few minutes, the tears had subsided into small hiccups. Grasping his shirt tight, she looked up and realized he was staring down at her. Blushing profusely, she pushed away from him. "I.."
He smiled. "Are you ready to start your training?"
"But.."
"Listen, Nina. No, we aren't here to give judgment, but we are here to serve some purpose. How can we do that if we're dead? No, Mikhal might have not deserved to die, but he did and it's not your fault. In this world, self defense is something we all should know, and should it lead to death..well it's an accident and there's nothing anyone can do about an accident, human or god." Nina watched as he extended a hand to her. "Come..all you're doing is brooding over nothing. None of us think any less of you and you shouldn't feel that way about yourself, alright? We care about you. I care about you. I'll listen to you no matter what, okay? You have a problem you tell me. Is that okay with you?"
Nina felt the corners of her mouth turn up and she smiled a big broad toothy smile that she thought she could never do again. Torn between laughing and crying, she extended
her arms and dove towards him, grasping him in a hug that sent him flying back into the tall wet grass.
Ryu laughed and grasped her tight as he fell to the ground. Gazing up he saw her smiling at him, great white wings fluttering in the wind behind her. He reached up and pushed her now wet long bangs behind her ear. "A little enthusiastic about fighting, aren't you?"
She smiled and pulled herself up into a sitting position. Her cheeks flushed and she giggled softly. "I'm..really sorry..I just.." She wiped her eyes on her arm. "I've never had someone be so nice to me before. No one ever cares what I think."
"You should have talked to me about it sooner. I don't like to see you sad, Nina."
She blushed again. "Well..I don't like to see you sad..either.."
He brought his hand to her head again and ran his fingers on her pink cheeks. "You want to know a secret?"
"Wh..What..?" She stammered glancing down at him. He was..staring at her with an odd expression. He was smiling warmly and as she looked closer, she realized he was.blushing? She gasped as his fingers went to the back of her head and started to pull her towards him.
When she was inches away, so close that she could feel his breath against her mouth, he whispered softly.
"No one ever cares for a dragon. No one..except you.."
Her eyes widened as he leaned up. He touched his nose to hers and grinned. "Come on, let's start practicing."
She nodded and stood up slowly, brushing the dirt from her arms. He did the same.
"Well," she said looking up at him, cheeks still red, "How do we start?"
He made a stance, right fist at eye level and the left at the chest. "We're going to start with the good ol' sway-back."
She blinked twice. "Sway-back..?"
He nodded and began to bounce slightly in place. "Yeah, it's a dodging move. You've got to learn defense before offense, okay?" He clenched his fists tight. "Now, I want you to copy my stance."
Nina hesitated and then brought her fists up to mimic Ryu. "Should I dance like you are?"
He laughed. "Of course! You gotta keep on your toes if you know what I mean." She did so.
"Okay, now we're going to dodge. Say I get a fist coming straight for my face." He suddenly swayed back and slid to the side. "See? It would have either missed me completely or grazed me."
Nina stopped bouncing. "I can't do that."
"Sure you can!" Ryu cried bouncing more enthusiastically. "You can even do it better."
"Better than you?"
"Yeah, you have wings after all."
She looked back at a wing. "And that does..what?"
"Makes you faster. You might even get a bit of air with them too."
"But, Ryu. In the bar and outside the castle.you were a blur fighting those men and Red. I couldn't possibly be that fast."
He smiled. "With training, you can do anything. Now, I want you to try. Start bouncing again."
She did so and put back up her fists. "So I do it now?"
"Yeah, the fist is right in front of you. You've got to do something about it!"
Nina clenched her fists and jumped to the side, trying to use her wings to make herself go farther. It was an awkward attempt and she almost fell, but she felt like she did the trick. Ryu smiled. "Not bad! I can seriously tell you that after this week, you'll definitely be able to handle yourself adequately."
"This week? We're going to train all week?"
He nodded. "I'd like to. It's great practice out here. There's even dead trees in the forest that we can practice kicking or punching. All in all.." He smiled and ran a hand through his hair. "You'll be able to kick some ass."
She smiled and begged him to teach her more. For an hour they practiced other different ways of dodging. Nina wasn't perfect, but she was a lot better than he had ever imagined her to be. He figured it was her determination. She wanted so bad not to be the cushy princess everyone thought or wanted her to be. She wanted to prove them wrong. He had faith in her. Even if it took him years, he was going to teach her everything he knew. Nina landed and plopped to the ground, breathing heavily after a session of hovering jumps. "This is..hard.." She breathed.
He walked to her and clapped a hand on her shoulder. "You're doing great! I'd love to stay out here all night, but it seems there's only a few hours until sunrise. You should attempt some sleep, okay?"
She nodded. "You're right. I'm pretty tired." She stood and brushed the dirt from the seat of her night gown. Yawning, she started back towards the grass. Looking back, she saw that Ryu was still standing at the river's edge. "Are you coming?"
He smiled and waved a hand casually. "I'll be right there. I just want to look at the moon for a bit."
She nodded slowly. "Okay..well..goodnight."
"Goodnight." He said waving at her again. He waited until she disappeared before he turned back to the river. "You going to hide there all night..Red?" he called loudly.
A rustle came from the grass. "Shit..how did you..?"
Ryu laughed gently. "Remember, I'm a dragon. I can sense you."
Red crawled out from the grass, running his hands through his flame colored hair, the claws getting snagged in brambles. "Well..I wasn't spyin' No use tryin' to yell at me or anything."
"I wasn't accusing you."
Red walked beside Ryu and stood, clasping his hands behind his back. Looking over, he balanced on the balls of his feet, tail swishing behind him. "So, you're teachin' her to fight. How admirable."
Ryu turned. "And you care, why?"
Red flushed. "No reason. Don't get all uppity."
"You're the one that came to me."
Red shrugged. "So what's wrong with a little jealousy?"
"Jealousy?"
The Woren smiled. "She gets to spar with you, but I don't?"
Ryu smiled. "You want to finish the fight from the bar?"
He nodded and curled his tail close to his body. "I was drunk. It wasn't fair."
"You know, I didn't want to fight you. I almost transformed."
Red's crimson eyes gazed over at Ryu. "You're kidding? Why would you do that?"
"I don't know. It's getting hard to control."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I thought you'd understand."
Red growled and clenched his fists. "Now don't try to get all buddy buddy with me! I still don't like you!"
Ryu shrugged. "It doesn't matter, Red. You don't have to."
The Woren lowered his fists. "Then why..?"
"No reason. I just wanted to see if you wanted to talk about it."
"Tch.screw you. I don't wanna talk about nothin' with you." Red spat.
"Fine. Have it your way. I'm going to bed now."
Red watched as Ryu began to walk away. Gritting his teeth he reached out. "Hey, wait!"
Ryu turned. "Yes?"
Red brought his fist back down and smiled. "I wanna finish that fight soon, boy. Even if it comes to Dragon and Weretiger."
Ryu's emerald eyes widened in the moonlight, but he did not respond. He turned and walked into the grass.
Red smiled and picked up a rock, chucking it into the water. "Who's afraid of the big bad Dragon?" He watched the water ripple from where the rock hit, a shower of fireflies fleeing from the splash. "Not little ol' me.."
Shyong's good eye widened. "What the hell.are you.?" He asked softly, watching the moon cast odd flickering shadows on the white haired man's pointed face. How could he be here? Not now. Not ever! It didn't make any sense! He wasn't real... Or was he..?
The man walked towards him and extended a pale bony hand. "I'm here to give you your destiny.." he whispered.
Shyong's eye swiveled to Lucia who was standing with her paws crossed over her chest. Her head was down and her eyes were wide and trembling behind her tiny black spectacles. He clenched his teeth and brought his gaze forward. "What destiny?
You..and what did you do to Fallon? Why is she so.."
"Scared?" His orange eyes glimmered in the pale light as he shrugged nonchalantly. "I didn't do anything. I just showed her what it would be like if she stood back and did nothing for her kingdom." He reached up and tousled Shyong's short black hair in an almost loving way.
Trembling, he jerked his head back. "No! You can't be here! You're not real!" He cried, his shaking hands clutching his forehead.
He couldn't be real.. He was just a dream..
The man began to laugh softly; A cold, dark laugh that made his blood turn to ice.
A menacing, vivid, horrible dream..
"If you want, I can show you."
Shyong jerked back again as the frail hand came forward, but he wasn't fast enough. The cold fingers pressed down hard against his forehead and to his surprise, sunk in. His eyes widened fearfully at the man who smiled back, white hair blowing gently in a wind he could not feel. A freezing sensation came over his body starting from his forehead down, shooting painfully into his torso and legs.
"Relax..It'll be alright.."
Shyong gasped as shadows began to creep over the man's shoulders, looking like long tentacles, enveloping him in a blanket of darkness and slowly taking him from view. Head turning wildly, he felt something tug on his body and pull him swiftly into the air.
"What..?"
Colors began to flash before his eyes, flowing past him like shooting stars in the blackness quickly surrounding him. Heart racing he squeezed his eyes closed. "Wh-what is going on?!" He cried into the darkness. Where was he? Where was that man? What the hell was he doing to him?!
~"No. Eyes open!"~ the man's soft voice became harsh in his ear.
Shyong felt his eyes snap open on their own accord and an unknown force throw his head back. The colors were swirling above him now and coming together to create odd lumps in the air.
~"Watch.."~
Reluctantly, Shyong kept his eye on the strange scene before him. The lumps were becoming bigger and brighter, expanding and splitting into three giant glittering balls. His eye moved to the left most one and watched as a fuzzy picture flickered into view. A young black haired boy ran forward and flashed a toothy grin.
Shyong's eyes narrowed. "How dare you..don't show me this..I don't.."
~ "Hey Mom! I'm going out! Make sure to save some dinner for me, okay?"~ the boy yelled.
The ball's view turned to a woman standing in a doorway. Shyong's eye widened. The woman smiled gently and reached up, pushing back long curly black hair.
"Damn it..stop! I don't want to..Why are you showing me this?" Shyong cursed through gritted teeth.
~"I just want to remind you of why you are fighting..of what you hate.."~
"I don't need to see this to be reminded." He whispered. "I relive it almost every night in my dreams."
A soft laugh floated by and Shyong's head was jerked back again. The middle ball flickered and zeroed in on a mass of dark blue hair. He clenched his teeth. "So now you're going to show me Dragoneye? He's the last person I want to see. What the hell do you want?"
As if to answer him, the ball flashed and he watched, sweat beginning to pour down his face, as Ryu's dragon form ripped the side of his face off.
~"You want to power to defeat him."~
The scene played again, slower. Blood splattered forward and covered the image.
~"You want to make him pay."~
Again. More blood.
~"You want to make him and his people suffer."~
A pale hand slapped against the blood and slid down. Shyong's breath caught in his throat as his reflection came into view. It was a grotesque picture of his mangled face, his scars, his colorless, freakish eye..
He pursed his lips tight, fighting the urge to bite the lower one. "How..how can I have that power?"
The first two balls flashed, then began to dissolve into thousands of glittering shards flowing past his astonished face at amazing speed. The last ball slid to the middle and expanded. Shyong leaned forward and watched as the Princess's image flickered. She was walking alongside a river and laughing, every now and then jumping into the air. "The Princess..? What.."
~ "That's right..I want you to bring her to me.."~
Shyong shook his head. "But I..she's already being escorted home.. How can I do anything?"
The ball flashed and then dissolved like the others. Shyong was left in total darkness. Eyes widening, he glanced wildly about. "Hey! I asked you a question!" Clenching his teeth, he swung his fists out into the blackness. "Where the hell did you go..?" His words were cut short when his body was jerked forward. He squeezed his eyes closed.
~ "You bring the girl to me..and I'll give you the power to kill him.." ~
A hot prickling sensation suddenly came over Shyong and his eyes shot open. Lucia was above him, her gray eyes wide and trembling. She reached out and grasped his shoulders, starting to shake him gently. "Shyong! Are you alright? Shyong!" she cried in a choked voice.
He reached up and slowly pushed her away. One glance around the room proved that he and her were alone. Lucia sat back, her chest heaving. "Where is he?" He asked turning towards her.
"He..disappeared."
"Tch..figures.." he whispered grasping his bed post and pulling himself into a standing position. His hand slipped a bit and he realized he was drenched in sweat.
"Shyong.."
He turned to glare at Lucia. "What, cat?"
With a slightly hurt expression, she curled her striped tail around her legs. "I..how.." She swallowed. "Do you know that man?"
Shyong clenched his fist, feeling the sweat slip between his fingers. "No, not really."
"But you.."
He glared again and brought his fist down hard on the bed. "I see that bastard every night.standing there.in my dreams. Laughing at me..at my misery.." He turned to her, eyes opening wide in the moonlight. "No one laughs at me, Fallon! No one!"
Lucia's eyes widened as he thrust his fist through the window.
* * *
"How long are we going to follow this damn river, huh fox? It's been hours and that's all we've seen!" Red whined hiking his backpack higher on his back.
Deja glanced up into the moonlit sky. "Red you know as well as I do that this 'damn' river goes straight into Worent. We're following it all the way home."
"So, shut up and enjoy it." Gabe broke in.
Red pursed his lips. "Well it's boring. I want a change of scenery."
"I think it's kind of nice, Red." Nina's voice came from behind. Red turned and she flashed a smile at him. Beside her, Ryu swatted a dragonfly.
"Yeah, if you say so, birdy. I guess it ain't too bad."
Nina nodded and hopped forward a bit, swinging the small pack she was carrying in the air. Ryu looked down at her. "You seem to be in a better mood."
She looked up and he smiled. "Well.yeah.I don't know why though. Maybe it's just having people with us. I've never had this many friends before."
"Friends?" Red asked turning to face them. "You think we're all friends?"
Nina's hopping ceased. "I.."
Red laughed curtly. "You really have some warped sense of this world. Just because someone invites you to travel with them, doesn't mean you're their friend."
Ryu shoot him a glare as Nina's stature drooped. "Hey, you stop saying things like that!
Leave her alone!"
"It's okay, Ryu. I understand."
His green eyes moved over her face. "Nina, are you.."
Red burst into a loud laugh that caused everyone to stop and stare. He pointed one hand at Nina and clutched his stomach with the other. "You.you really crack me up.." he gasped in between laughs. Deja shook her head. "You really thought I meant we weren't friends..!" Nina bit her lower lip as Red walked over to her. He smiled and clapped a hand on her shoulder , pulling her close to him. "Don't look so glum. Of course we're all friends here!"
"You certainly have a weird way of showing it." Ryu muttered glaring at Red.
The Woren snickered and leaned in close to Nina's ear. "It's hanging out with stiffs like him that'll make you lose your sense of humor, ya?"
Ryu felt his ears turn red.
"Alright, alright, enough out of you, Red. We're stopping for the night." Gabe called swinging his giant pack onto the ground, dust and leaves flying into the air as it hit.
Red broke away from Nina and ran forward, throwing his own next to Gabe's. "Finally! It's chow time!"
Nina and Deja dropped their things as well and proceeded to help Gabe set up a few tents. Red started a fire and then disappeared towards the river to fish after a short fight with Ryu on who was the better fisher. He left swearing to catch a thirty foot long fish.
"You know, maybe you shouldn't provoke him like that. We've got a good six or more days until Worent." Nina whispered to Ryu as they rolled out sleeping bags and brushed the dirt from them.
He shrugged. "It's not that I like provoking him." he said. "I just.like seeing him angry..?"
Nina made a face. "That's the same thing, Ryu."
He smiled toothily. "Well aren't you the smart one." He said leaning into her so she'd loose her balance.
She laughed and pushed him back. "Oh Ryu, you're horrible!"
"Red! Hurry up with the fish! We're starving out here!" Deja's voice floated by.
"Shut UP, fox! You bitch at me one more time and I'll.." His voice broke into a yelp and a large splash followed.
Ryu chuckled as Nina frowned at him.
* * *
Red shook himself again over a new fire, the water from his fur hitting the burning logs with short pops and hisses. He made sure to shoot glares over at Ryu fishing in the river every chance he got. His teeth clenched as Nina wrestled some kind of prickling plant from his tail. "You know.." he winced again. "I didn't trip. That damn fish.."
"I know, I know." Nina laughed. "He pulled you in and Ryu's stupid."
"I'm serious! I could beat that guy!" He gritted his teeth. "Damn, woman! Don't pull so hard.."
"Well I have to get everything out..!"
"How's our little fishy friend doing?" Red glanced up at Deja who giggled slightly at his matted fur. Nina grabbed his tail as it began to flick in agitation.
"Don't start with me, fox. I don't even want to see you right now." He mumbled shaking his head and sending another shower of water into the fire.
Deja shrugged. "Gabe says he's got some carrots cooking if you want some."
"Tch..carrots?" Red waved a clawed hand in front of him. "I'll pass."
"Nina?"
She looked up from the Worens bramble filled tail and smiled. "I'd love some."
Deja smiled. "I'm glad someone on this trip is courteous." She said with a laugh, turning towards Gabe and the cooking fire.
"Yeah well..takes one to know one." Red mumbled.
Nina smiled "That didn't make any sense, Red."
"I know!" he snapped, turning his head to her. "I'm just pissed and when I'm pissed, I can't think so leave me alone."
"You know, it's okay to be angry." Nina whispered pulling a bramble and tossing it over in a pile.
"Yeah. I know. I'm angry all the time, so what's your point?"
She tugged at a particularly snagged one. "You didn't let me finish. I was going to say that It's good to be angry, but not all the time. You're stressed. Maybe you should lighten up a bit."
He snickered. "Since when did you get all talkative? This doesn't sound like you."
She looked down. "It's something I've been thinking about."
"What? You've been thinking about my anger problems?"
She shook her head. "No.not really that.just.things." She brushed a patch of fur straight. "I just think that it would be good for all of us if you just."
"Lighten up, right?"
"Yes..I guess so.." she said sheepishly.
He crossed his arms and tried not to wince. "I guess I could try."
She let go of his tail. "Really? You really would?"
He laughed gently. "Well..when asked by a pretty girl to do something, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do, ya?"
Nina blushed.
* * *
Nina clutched her cloak tight around her and backed into the wall. Her hand shot out and tried to grasp something, anything to keep her in balance. It was slipping. Her hand was slipping on so much damn blood. The metallic stench was almost too much for her to handle. She tried to close her eyes, but he was still there. It was like his lifeless form was imprinted on the backs of her eyelids. Damn it! Why couldn't she get him out of her sight?!
Her eyes opened at a scuffling sound.
~"You.."!~
Mouth hanging open slightly, she stared at Mikhal's body lying bloodly before her. His mouth.was moving.
~"You killed me.."~
"Oh..God no.."
With much difficulty, Mikhal attempted to reach forward. Nina pushed back against the wall. The stench was overwhelming.
~ "You must atone for your sins.."~
She shook her head slowly. She was trembling. "No..oh God make it stop!"
The hand came closer. Mikhal's dead eyes widened with a sickening sound. ~ "Repent, child of hell!"~ he cried, blood dripping onto the ground.
Nina covered her ears and screamed as he grasped her shoulders.
* * *
"Nina! Nina? Are you alright?"
Nina's body jerked and her eyes opened. Ryu was above her, grasping her shoulders tight, his long hair falling onto her body. "You okay? Bad dream?" he asked softly.
She took a deep breath. Her heart was hammering against her chest, hard. "I..can't.."
Her eyes went to Deja beside her. She was sound asleep, arms flung over her head. "Hey, how about I get you outside. You look like you need air." He said gently, getting her to her feet. She nodded.
They tiptoed out of the tent and into the dew filled grass outside. Nina slowly pulled away from Ryu and wrapped her arms around her stomach.
He cocked his head. "Was it about him?"
Her eyes widened and she felt a squeak escape her throat. She shook her head violently, clutching herself tighter. "No..It was nothing. Just a...." She looked up as his hands again rested on her shoulders.
"Hey, want to accompany me to the river?"
"What?"
He smiled. "I have to talk to you."
Reluctantly, she nodded. He took her hand and led her out into the tall grass near the bank of the river. When they arrived, Nina took her hand from his. "What..did you want to talk to me about?" She asked sheepishly.
He pushed his hair back behind him. "I wanted to keep my promise."
"Your promise?"
He nodded. "To teach you how to fight."
She laughed gently and dug a toe into the sand. "You can't be serious.."
"What do you mean?"
She looked up at him. "Look at me. I'm too small to fight!" she said pointing to herself.
He moved towards her. "No, no, Nina! You can! Even the smallest people can make the best warriors!" He dropped to a crouch on the ground and made a bit of a scuttling movement, a large smile on his face. "You have to think 'agility'!"
Nina shook her head and turned to gaze at the moonlit river's edge. "You don't have to do this, Ryu." She said softly.
Smile fading, he rose from his crouching pose and walked to her. "Nina.I'm not doing this because I think I have to."
She turned to him. "Then why?"
Ryu's eyes moved over her. She looked slightly different then when he first laid eyes on her in the valley. True, she was still the same blonde girl, but something about her.seemed estranged. As she stared at him, with those soft, sea blue eyes, it dawned on him. No one was the same, once they saw death. She reached up and pushed her windblown hair from her eyes and opened her mouth. He waited, but she said nothing. Now she was waiting. He needed to answer, but he couldn't find the words. Everything that came to his mind sounded stupid or immature. He had to.."I.." He smiled and laughed nervously. "I feel..like you need the experience."
She frowned. "I don't want the experience of fighting. I don't like the way it makes me feel."
He tugged at a stray hair in his bangs. "Nina, the world is full of people who can only settle their problems with a fight. Chances are, one day you'll come in contact with them.
And if you do.." He smiled. "You'll have me to thank when you send them on their asses."
Again, she shook her head. "You don't understand..I can't.."
"I do understand how you feel."
Her eyes moved to his.
"When I first killed..it was a traumatic experience, but I got over it. You can too."
Her eyes narrowed. "You..How can you say that?" She cried suddenly, lower lip beginning to tremble. "I'll get over it? What the hell does that mean?!" She squeezed her eyes closed as tears started to flow. "Ryu..you really don't understand! He was..Mikhal didn't deserve to die! Who am I to give judgment?" She threw her hands into the air. "I'm not a god or the Goddess or Ladon or whoever the hell does it! I can't.." She felt her words catch in her throat as Ryu grasped her arms and pulled her close to him. The closeness of him caused everything spill out. Her hopes, her dreams, her fears.everything in the form of tears. She didn't know why. Maybe it was because no one had ever held her before. Not her mother, not her father. No one ever gave a damn about what she thought. No one cared enough to hold her like this or listen to what she had to say. No one.but him. He wasn't a dragon anymore, he wasn't someone to be afraid of. He was Ryu and he was there. She cried and he held her. He held her and said nothing.
After a few minutes, the tears had subsided into small hiccups. Grasping his shirt tight, she looked up and realized he was staring down at her. Blushing profusely, she pushed away from him. "I.."
He smiled. "Are you ready to start your training?"
"But.."
"Listen, Nina. No, we aren't here to give judgment, but we are here to serve some purpose. How can we do that if we're dead? No, Mikhal might have not deserved to die, but he did and it's not your fault. In this world, self defense is something we all should know, and should it lead to death..well it's an accident and there's nothing anyone can do about an accident, human or god." Nina watched as he extended a hand to her. "Come..all you're doing is brooding over nothing. None of us think any less of you and you shouldn't feel that way about yourself, alright? We care about you. I care about you. I'll listen to you no matter what, okay? You have a problem you tell me. Is that okay with you?"
Nina felt the corners of her mouth turn up and she smiled a big broad toothy smile that she thought she could never do again. Torn between laughing and crying, she extended
her arms and dove towards him, grasping him in a hug that sent him flying back into the tall wet grass.
Ryu laughed and grasped her tight as he fell to the ground. Gazing up he saw her smiling at him, great white wings fluttering in the wind behind her. He reached up and pushed her now wet long bangs behind her ear. "A little enthusiastic about fighting, aren't you?"
She smiled and pulled herself up into a sitting position. Her cheeks flushed and she giggled softly. "I'm..really sorry..I just.." She wiped her eyes on her arm. "I've never had someone be so nice to me before. No one ever cares what I think."
"You should have talked to me about it sooner. I don't like to see you sad, Nina."
She blushed again. "Well..I don't like to see you sad..either.."
He brought his hand to her head again and ran his fingers on her pink cheeks. "You want to know a secret?"
"Wh..What..?" She stammered glancing down at him. He was..staring at her with an odd expression. He was smiling warmly and as she looked closer, she realized he was.blushing? She gasped as his fingers went to the back of her head and started to pull her towards him.
When she was inches away, so close that she could feel his breath against her mouth, he whispered softly.
"No one ever cares for a dragon. No one..except you.."
Her eyes widened as he leaned up. He touched his nose to hers and grinned. "Come on, let's start practicing."
She nodded and stood up slowly, brushing the dirt from her arms. He did the same.
"Well," she said looking up at him, cheeks still red, "How do we start?"
He made a stance, right fist at eye level and the left at the chest. "We're going to start with the good ol' sway-back."
She blinked twice. "Sway-back..?"
He nodded and began to bounce slightly in place. "Yeah, it's a dodging move. You've got to learn defense before offense, okay?" He clenched his fists tight. "Now, I want you to copy my stance."
Nina hesitated and then brought her fists up to mimic Ryu. "Should I dance like you are?"
He laughed. "Of course! You gotta keep on your toes if you know what I mean." She did so.
"Okay, now we're going to dodge. Say I get a fist coming straight for my face." He suddenly swayed back and slid to the side. "See? It would have either missed me completely or grazed me."
Nina stopped bouncing. "I can't do that."
"Sure you can!" Ryu cried bouncing more enthusiastically. "You can even do it better."
"Better than you?"
"Yeah, you have wings after all."
She looked back at a wing. "And that does..what?"
"Makes you faster. You might even get a bit of air with them too."
"But, Ryu. In the bar and outside the castle.you were a blur fighting those men and Red. I couldn't possibly be that fast."
He smiled. "With training, you can do anything. Now, I want you to try. Start bouncing again."
She did so and put back up her fists. "So I do it now?"
"Yeah, the fist is right in front of you. You've got to do something about it!"
Nina clenched her fists and jumped to the side, trying to use her wings to make herself go farther. It was an awkward attempt and she almost fell, but she felt like she did the trick. Ryu smiled. "Not bad! I can seriously tell you that after this week, you'll definitely be able to handle yourself adequately."
"This week? We're going to train all week?"
He nodded. "I'd like to. It's great practice out here. There's even dead trees in the forest that we can practice kicking or punching. All in all.." He smiled and ran a hand through his hair. "You'll be able to kick some ass."
She smiled and begged him to teach her more. For an hour they practiced other different ways of dodging. Nina wasn't perfect, but she was a lot better than he had ever imagined her to be. He figured it was her determination. She wanted so bad not to be the cushy princess everyone thought or wanted her to be. She wanted to prove them wrong. He had faith in her. Even if it took him years, he was going to teach her everything he knew. Nina landed and plopped to the ground, breathing heavily after a session of hovering jumps. "This is..hard.." She breathed.
He walked to her and clapped a hand on her shoulder. "You're doing great! I'd love to stay out here all night, but it seems there's only a few hours until sunrise. You should attempt some sleep, okay?"
She nodded. "You're right. I'm pretty tired." She stood and brushed the dirt from the seat of her night gown. Yawning, she started back towards the grass. Looking back, she saw that Ryu was still standing at the river's edge. "Are you coming?"
He smiled and waved a hand casually. "I'll be right there. I just want to look at the moon for a bit."
She nodded slowly. "Okay..well..goodnight."
"Goodnight." He said waving at her again. He waited until she disappeared before he turned back to the river. "You going to hide there all night..Red?" he called loudly.
A rustle came from the grass. "Shit..how did you..?"
Ryu laughed gently. "Remember, I'm a dragon. I can sense you."
Red crawled out from the grass, running his hands through his flame colored hair, the claws getting snagged in brambles. "Well..I wasn't spyin' No use tryin' to yell at me or anything."
"I wasn't accusing you."
Red walked beside Ryu and stood, clasping his hands behind his back. Looking over, he balanced on the balls of his feet, tail swishing behind him. "So, you're teachin' her to fight. How admirable."
Ryu turned. "And you care, why?"
Red flushed. "No reason. Don't get all uppity."
"You're the one that came to me."
Red shrugged. "So what's wrong with a little jealousy?"
"Jealousy?"
The Woren smiled. "She gets to spar with you, but I don't?"
Ryu smiled. "You want to finish the fight from the bar?"
He nodded and curled his tail close to his body. "I was drunk. It wasn't fair."
"You know, I didn't want to fight you. I almost transformed."
Red's crimson eyes gazed over at Ryu. "You're kidding? Why would you do that?"
"I don't know. It's getting hard to control."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I thought you'd understand."
Red growled and clenched his fists. "Now don't try to get all buddy buddy with me! I still don't like you!"
Ryu shrugged. "It doesn't matter, Red. You don't have to."
The Woren lowered his fists. "Then why..?"
"No reason. I just wanted to see if you wanted to talk about it."
"Tch.screw you. I don't wanna talk about nothin' with you." Red spat.
"Fine. Have it your way. I'm going to bed now."
Red watched as Ryu began to walk away. Gritting his teeth he reached out. "Hey, wait!"
Ryu turned. "Yes?"
Red brought his fist back down and smiled. "I wanna finish that fight soon, boy. Even if it comes to Dragon and Weretiger."
Ryu's emerald eyes widened in the moonlight, but he did not respond. He turned and walked into the grass.
Red smiled and picked up a rock, chucking it into the water. "Who's afraid of the big bad Dragon?" He watched the water ripple from where the rock hit, a shower of fireflies fleeing from the splash. "Not little ol' me.."