Chapter 21
Shyong gingerly wrestled out a few small spiny twigs from the depths of his now relatively shaggy black hair, and tossed a scowl over at Gene who gave him an equal glance. "What the hell are you staring at?" He muttered icily through unbrushed teeth. The mute shrugged and brought his gaze back to the path ahead. Shyong lifted his head high into the air and sneered into the slight wind. "When are we going to get to this place?"
A few paces in front of him, Mustadio stopped and glanced back. "When we near the cliff... that's when you'll see it."
Shyong's dark eyebrows furrowed. "What cliff? What are you...?"
"Dat cliff...right dere."
Almost running into Rastolf's meaty arm, the black haired soldier stopped in a flurry of dead brown leaves, ice eye gazing down into the sudden valley below. The ground dropped off to form a rocky cliff over what seemed like a forest autumn and winter weather could not touch. Not one leaf was withered...not one tree bare. As he stood, rusted metal boots teetering on the edge, he couldn't help but admit that it was beautiful.
"Right there, concealed in the middle of that forest, lies the great city of Worent." Mustadio commented, moving beside him and crossing his arms.
Shyong rubbed his nose onto his hand and peered harder into the lush foliage. Yes, right there. There was just a hint of a stone structure jutting out from the treetops. It was hard to see and he was pretty sure anyone just passing by wouldn't catch it. His lips curled into a smile as he pushed back his tattered navy cloak. "Alright. So let's go."
"No, no, wait a second." Mustadio said grabbing onto a shoulder. Shyong wheeled back from the touch, eyes blazing. The thief chuckled nervously and released his grip. "Hey, don't be so uppity. We need a plan."
"What plan? The Princess is in there. That's all I need to know."
"Hey, boss."
Mustadio turned towards Rastolf who was leaning awkwardly against a tree, large finger deep within one of his ears. "Yes?" He said after wincing slightly.
The giant pulled out his finger, stared at it for a second with wide bloodshot eyes, and then turned his attention back to him. "Those guys are comin' 'round the bend. You want me to talk to them? They might be wantin' they's money real soon."
Men? Shyong's eyes darted to the path behind them. "What men?" He demanded.
Mustadio tucked a lock of hair behind his ear and flashed a smile. "Did you seriously think I was going to let you just waltz into that town and wave your sword around like an idiot? We need backup."
"I need no one."
"Yes you do." He said placing his hands on his hips. "Have you ever met any Woren soldiers? That Red boy's just a boy if you know what I mean. In order to prop'rly take down an army like that, you'd need well...an army of your own."
Shyong shook his head hard. "No, I just paid for you men and that's it. Believe me, I can get her myself, I..." He stopped when Gene's lanky hand grasped his shoulder. "What the hell do you want?" He cried whirling.
Gene ran his other hand through his short rust colored hair and shook his head. Shyong opened his mouth to say something, but the way that man's dark beady eyes flashed...well it made him change his mind.
"Hey, boss! There they be!"
He turned sharply to see Rastolf's log of an arm swing towards an opening in the bushes near them. His heart raced and he found his hands idling by the hilt of his sword. Was this a trap? Did these thieves lead him out into the wilderness for malice? Or did they want the princess all to themselves? He cast a wary eye in Mustadio's direction. The emerald haired bastard was grinning ear to ear. A mocking, cold hearted grin that made every single dark hair on Shyong's neck stand on end.
"Ahh, I see you brought the whole group! How wonderful!" Mustadio cried clapping his hands together.
"Yes...I figured this was a job for everyone."
Shyong swung his gaze over to see one of the largest creatures he had ever seen emerge, grunting, from the bushes. His hands grasped the hilt and pulled at the sword, releasing it just enough for the base of the blade to shine in the setting sun. Lips curling back into a sneer, he dug his right foot back into the soggy ground. "No one told me one of 'them' was joining us..." He hissed.
The creature's black beetle-like eyes narrowed and a huge fist clenched, the sound of his enormous fingers cracking filling the already tense air. "What do you mean one of 'them', human?" His bellowed in a voice like gravel. It sent a heavy chill down Shyong's back, despite his attempt at intimidation.
"Now, now, Sir Tsunaia. We can't be saying bad things about ol' Greytall here. He's a very prestigious warrior in his village and..." Mustadio stopped when the soldier snickered and brought an alarmed gaze to Greytall.
"A legendary creature you are... On up there with the dragon scum I'd say." Shyong mused, tugging again at the hilt. "Except your kind choose to dwell in the depths of heathenism."
Greytall growled and lifted a shaking fist into the air, mist pouring from his wide open nostrils. He shook his great stallion head. "How dare you speak that way about a "Taneuma"?! Just because we do not believe in the teachings of a vain deity...!"
Chuckling nervously, Mustadio clapped a hand on Shyong's shoulder. "Oh, he just doesn't know. Give him some slack, eh?" After fighting to keep his hand on the disgruntled soldier, he leaned down and narrowed his eyes. "Tsunaia listen, I know they's ain't the best of creatures, but I helped this one out a long time ago. He owes me and he hates it.. I used my favor on you, so please, be a little more respectful. Without him and his group, the Worens will tear us apart. Do you understand me?"
Shyong snorted and squirmed out from under Mustadio's grip. "Fine, but no one better get in my way and..." He brought a menacing stare up towards Greytall. "The woman with the wings is mine."
The Taneuma laughed gently. "I want nothing to do with any 'woman'. I'm only here for a favor...and a large one at that." He said staring down at Mustadio.
"Listen, I have some business with the 'prince' of this village anyways, it's not just for Sir. Tsunaia here."
Greytall exhaled loudly and crossed his large arms over his soot colored chest. "I brought only the ones you asked for. Men of strength and magic. Worens are a strong bunch, but low on intelligence and the 'arts'. I just hope your little soldier man knows a bit about it."
As if on cue, Shyong brought his right hand up into the air and snapped, creating a small purple flame on the tip of his index finger.
Rastolf clapped. "Oh, wow Mister! You know how to do dat stuff?"
He subsided only when Mustadio shook his head. "You'll have to forgive him. He's quite easily amused..."
"Mere child's play..." Greytall huffed. "And Mustadio says you are the leader of the Windian army?"
Shyong closed his hand and in a flurry of violet sparks and smoke and sneered. "You idiot...I was only showing you that I could do these things. If I were to show you my true power..."
"Please, please, enough...!" A small houndsclan man cried running out from the cluster of men now surrounding Shyong's group, and squeezed between him and Greytall. He shook his head and pawed at his large pointed black ears for a minute before sending an ice blue stare in the soldier's direction. "Greytall is the leader of a band of highly skilled men. I...am one. Of all clans, of all races...he trains the best. You mustn't bicker with him..."
"Houndsclan members aren't too liked in my book either, but you...look different than most..." Shyong snapped.
"Yhon isn't a houndsclan. He's a shapeshifter." Greytall hissed while Yhon stood up straight and forced a toothy smile. "Today he's chosen the form of the wolf. He's a human...just like you, but as you can see, far more advanced in the 'arts' than even the strongest of wizards."
"I don't care about any shapeshifters. How could that help us anyways?" Shyong growled much to Mustadio's dissatisfaction.
Yhon closed his eyes and crossed his arms. A yellowish light enveloped him and as it faded in a flurry of golden sparks, a Woren man came into view. Tiger tail swishing and the toothy smile remaining, he opened his still blue eyes. "Would this help any?" He asked in a significantly deeper voice feline voice.
"Tch...he's still got those damn blue eyes. Worens don't have those."
"He can't help it. That's the only thing that doesn't change." Greytall said putting a large gray hand on Yhon's shoulders. "It doesn't matter, though. He's going to be our key into the place. So, you see...my men are the best...and we never lose to anyone."
Shyong grunted and Mustadio moved in front of him. "So, are we ready?"
Greytall let go of Yhon and ventured to the peak of the hill. He lifted a hand to his forehead and peered into the forest. After a minute he nodded. "They seem to be locking up the entrance now...and most of the sentries are going back into the village." He crossed his arms again. "Nightfall will be the best time. It doesn't seem to be heavily guarded."
"Because no one ever attacks them..." Yhon said softly.
"Well, that all changes tonight." Shyong curled his fingers close to his palms and listened to them pop. "They shouldn't have harbored that...thing..." A smile creased his pale face then he turned to look at the army behind him. "They're going to wish they were never born..."
* * *
Steam filled the air and floated slowly past Nina's face as she watched the off white porcelain tub fill with water. Shaking the rest of the melting snow from her mop of blonde hair, she fumbled with the collar of her cloak. It fell easily to her ankles. Odd.
With trembling, almost purple tinted hands, she removed the rest of her clothes. Brow creasing, she realized this was a strangely daunting task. Lately even the most simple things caused her energy to rapidly deplete.
The bath filled and after a few times of dipping her tiny feet in to check the temperature, she finally settled in. She sighed and leaned her head back, relishing the feel of the warm water on her aching body. Why it was aching, she didn't know. She didn't do much. Most of the time it was Ryu that did anything for her.
After a minute of soaking, she sat up and unfurled her wings, trying hard not to get water onto the cracked wooden floor. She brought her hands in front of her and cupped them, filling them with water and splashed it on her face. She did this over and over again until she figured it was clean, and started to stand.
Since she wasn't really allowed to go anywhere or do anything, she had taken to having many baths a day. There really wasn't much else to do and it was so frigid here, it was almost all she could do to stay warm. Shivering at the blast of cold air that hit her already drying body, she wondered just how the dragons put up with it.
Carefully, she stepped out and pulled the long silver chained stopper. A loud rumble sounded and the water began to drain from the tub. She reached back and grasped a thin ragged blue towel from the wall and covered her steaming body with it, shaking water from her feet as she did so. The loud rumbling resumed and she stood quietly, watching the water slowly disappear.
It was odd...the things she would do. As if she had no direction, no feelings...she was slow and lazy. She would sleep until the sun was already high in the sky, and then mill about the house for hours. Occasionally, she would glance out of the windows and watch the Drogen children play, but it would be only for a second, because as soon as they would see her, they would start to yell and move their games out of her sight.
She knew Ryu hated it...hated the way she had become. He would lie awake at night and stare at her. She knew because she was also awake, but because she couldn't talk to him and the fact that she never wanted to...she figured it'd be best if he thought she was asleep. Whenever she happened to get up for anything, though, he'd lie down. She would hear him. He was a bad liar.
Something was happening to him, as well. It used to be that he would smile when he saw her, and ask her how her day was when he got back to the house. They would sit at the table and he would give her soup Deis made to help her throat or what not. She would never pay attention to him, though. No matter how hard he tried. She couldn't look him in the eye, not now that she was such a burden.
At first, he seemed not to notice, but just a few days ago, he had become strangely quiet. He would no longer sit with her while she ate. He merely gave her food and left, mumbling sometimes about having to train. He would leave and she would cry. That's how it was. The awkwardness, the pain...she couldn't figure anything out, she just...
A soft scraping noise brought her attention to the floor. Her blue eyes narrowed and she stared between her feet at a single feather.
A feather?
She bent painfully, and scooped it up from the ground, slowly lifting it to a ray of light streaming in through the dusty window above her. Her eyes began to widen.
Instead of being snow white like she thought her wings were, this feather was...a dirty white, yellowed and aged.... She turned it and saw how bits of it were torn and bent...scraggly...horrible. Brow furrowing even more than it had been earlier, she moved to throw it away, but her eyes caught something even worse in front of her.
A full length mirror shone, and threw back at her, a girl she hardly recognized. Eyes becoming wider, she stepped forward and tightened the towel around her body. Trembling, she started to spread her wings. Twenty or so more feathers, each as disfigured as the previous one, fell to the floor. With each small thud, her eyes filled with more tears.
She slowly lifted shaking hands to her thinning face. It was thinner. She could tell. And the blush...the blush that once gave her a healthy, beautiful glow, was now an ashen hue that gave her the look of the dead. Letting her now almost bonelike fingers trail over her jutting cheekbones, she moaned gently. What was...happening to her? She hadn't...looked at herself. Was this why Ryu didn't want anything to do with her? Was she really turning into this...sickly looking creature?
She sunk to her knees and didn't flinch when the tattered towel fell free.. Her eyes just widened...and watered more and more. Her whole body...her wings...everything...was dying. How...how could this have happened? How...could she have let herself go this much...? Did she really let everything get to her this much?
Ryu...He...
Shimmering dull blue eyes stared up through the snow covered dusty window.
* * *
There had to be something she could do. There had to be somewhere she could go. There had to be something in this world that could make her happy again. Something...had to go right. The world couldn't be against her... Her feelings couldn't be against her like this. Feelings just...didn't do this.
Something...needed to make some sense...
Snow flittered into the pale afternoon air, sometimes catching a glimpse of the sun attempting to break through the constant barrier of gray clouds that surrounded Drogen. The wind came to a standing halt and all sound seemed to drain out into the frigid air.
Silence...that was deafening.
Silence...that was only broken by her frantic footsteps.
Tears streaming down her wind seared cheeks, she stumbled through the mounds of snow that covered the icy gray cobblestone main roadway. Deep inside, a sharp pang of...something reminded her she shouldn't be out, but she had to be. She had to find an answer. Some kind of answer...or flee. Pulling her cloak back so that it wouldn't get caught in the flurry of her legs, she contemplated which she would like to happen.
For a second, she thought of high mountainous lands of Windia. Bright blue skies reaching as far as the eye could see, with large, white clouds that floated through the air lazily... Her eyes closed and her heart ached. Would it have really been better to leave with Tsunaia? She would be there now, warm, and safe... Not here in the cold...
~What would you do if I had to leave you?~
Her eyes shot open. If Ryu left her? What would she do...? ...Would she have done anything?
Sattva had said that Ryu was to go to the Tower of Ladon...Angel Tower, to receive the powers of Ladon. But, Red had specifically stated that the one who gets the power, purges the races.
What...did that mean? And what...did it mean for Windia and...for her?
Did it mean that every race except for the dragons would exist? Or that another war was to start and the one that was the strongest remain? It would be easy if the dragons had Ladon. They were almost sure to win, but...what about Weretiger? How did it all fit? How did...?
Nina barely saw the arm that close lined her.
Crimson cloak billowing out from her astonished face, she flew back hard against the ground. Her stomach heaved from the breath leaving her. Eyes watering and body fighting for air, she slowly rolled over onto her side.
"What the hell are you running around here like an idiot for, you filthy Windian?"
That voice... What spirits Nina had, fell. Wincing from a dark bruise slowly appearing on her right cheek, and still trying hard to breathe, she glanced up and into cold, narrowed violet eyes.
Skylar snickered and reached down, grasping a handful of honey hair. Nina didn't have the strength, nor the voice to whimper. She merely felt her face screw into a hard grimace. The girl yanked the Windian's head up, and stared hatefully into her eyes. "You really are an idiot." She spat ruefully. "Dragoneye has no business worrying about a thing like you." Nina's eyes caught something flash within the girl's hand.
They widened. A knife. What...was this girl planning to do?
She squirmed and attempted a moan. "Hush, hush..." The girl sneered, bringing the knife close to the her pale long neck. "We'll all be better off not worrying about you. You can't leave this place alive anyways. No one would let you. No outsiders get to Drogen and live to tell of it. You'll get us all killed...don't you understand?"
Nina tried to pull back, but ceased when the grip on her hair tightened. Skylar's violet eyes blazed and her mouth formed a manic smile. "My father was going to do this, but I wanted to do it myself. You have no idea what honor this will bring me. This is all the village was talking about. Everyday, we think about how to get rid of you, but you were always with Dragoneye." She sighed. "He's always been such a lover of mortals. Deis as well. Sattva's the only one without a proper grasp on things." The knife began to press into Nina's skin and shook menacingly. "Now, now... it's not that you have particularly done anything...it's just there must be an example made. They killed a Woren the other month and put his body out by the entrance." Nina's eyes widened. "But no one really knew about it. Worent didn't so much as squeak. I believe he was an outcast. He had to be, to think that he was welcome here..." She leaned down and let her dark hair fall onto Nina's shivering body. "Enough idle talk. I've given you too much time anyways, I..."
"Let her go."
Nina squeezed her eyes closed when the knife was pressed harder against her. One slight movement, and it would slit her throat. Skylar looked up and smiled. "Ahh...Deis. Did Father not tell you at the meeting that this would happen? You shouldn't care." She tried to sound confident, but Nina could tell she was frightened by the way her voice began to shake.
Deis brought her hands up and crossed them over her sparsely covered chest. "That girl is in Dragoneye's and my care and as long as she is, you can not lay a hand on her." She spoke slowly, accenting every word as if it were the most important word in her entire language.
The dragon girl fumed. "That's not true! Father said..."
Deis' dark teal eyes narrowed. "I said, you may not lay a hand on her!" The instant the sentence finished, Deis triggered her spell. Suddenly the knife became increasingly hot for Skylar and she dropped it, and Nina. The limp Windian went to the ground and the other girl's widening eyes went to the red hot knife sinking within the snow.
"You..." She seethed through damp chestnut hair. "You can't keep her safe forever. You and Dragoneye... I don't care if you two are the 'high-ups'. Drogen citizens have the right to feel safe and as long as that 'thing' is here..." She pointed towards the crouching form of Nina with the tip of her knife. "We are in danger. You know that as well as I do."
Deis bent down and covered Nina with her bare arms, shooting an ice stare in Skylar's direction as she did so. "Off with you, girl. You have no business here. Tell your father that if I see anyone but Dragoneye and I anywhere near her, I will not hesitate to use force."
Skylar's eyes blazed. "You can't do that! You can't...!"
"I said be off!" Deis cried through her long dark blue hair.
The dragon girl hesitated for a second, and then snatched the now merely steaming knife from the snow and shoved it into a gold plated sheath on her side. "Fine...but I will talk to him and don't be surprised if Sattva finds out."
"So be it." Deis retorted bitterly.
She waited until Skylar's slim form disappeared into the snowy distance before she reached down and pulled Nina's head up to face her. "You're safe now. Open your eyes, winged child." She did so, but not without a slight moment of hesitation.
Deis smiled and motioned for her to sit back. Nina nodded and let her heal her wounds. The process took a mere second, just a bright light, and then the pain was gone. The Windian then hunched over and exhaled gently.
"I came looking for you."
Nina looked up and watched as Deis pulled her legs under her and then tossed her hair behind her bare shoulders. The snow fell down and littered her already shimmering body with it's beauty. To Nina's surprise, though, the flakes did not melt, no matter how long they remained on her. They just piled into glinting mounds on her pale skin. The dragon woman merely smiled, seemingly oblivious to the phenomena. "I wanted to talk to you so I went to the cottage, but you were gone. Your footprints were easy to follow, though, I had no trouble." She let her gaze go to the ground. "You are lucky I found you. Dragoneye and I recommended that you stay inside. Why did you not listen?"
It was Nina's turn to look at the ground. She didn't know. All she was thinking at the time was she had to run. It didn't matter to her what happened and honestly, when she was in Skylar's grip...she didn't care. Nothing mattered anymore...nothing...
"Aren't you wondering why I came to find you?" Nina nodded slowly. "I want to know why you are not speaking yet." Deis' teal eyes met Nina's and seemed to scrutinize her. "Any normal being would have been healed by now. I am wondering...why you are different."
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, shaking off the snow and watching it float, still shimmering, to the ground as if it had never touched her. "I think...little winged princess...that you do not possess the willpower. But...what made you lose it?" She placed a hand on Nina's head and pushed back her damp, snow filled bangs. "Are you afraid of us? Are you afraid...of what you do not know...?"
Afraid? Nina kept her gaze on Deis, noticing the way her eyes reflected perfectly everything that was happening before them. Maybe...she was.
A smile crept over the dragon woman's flawless face. "You have heard about the war between the races, have you not?" Nina nodded, remembering Red's conversation with her over a week ago. It seemed like such a long time had passed...
"The races...Dragons, Humans, Windians, Worens...all fighting for the world...but, do you know what started it?" Nina shrugged and watched her own pale fingers trail over the snow. The Goddess. She wanted everyone to believe in her, that was what Red had said.
"Yes, it's true, the Goddess was greedy, but I'm going to tell you why."
Nina glanced up at Deis. Could she...tell what she was thinking? How did she know? Deis answered with a slight smirk. "All the races of the world have something they truly believe in. There just wasn't the Goddess and Ladon and so on. Every race had something, but...a God or Goddess is only as strong as the faith that is put in them.
"In the beginning, Humans were the first to forget the faith. They envied what the other races had instead of focusing on what their own creator had blessed them with. The Windians had timeless beauty and the ability to soar with the flying folk. Worens had strength and could do amazing feats with their lithe, sleek bodies, and we, the everlasting dragons... had cunning and the possibility of immortality...
"After centuries of jealousy, they finally decided on worshiping the Goddess, since Windians were about as close to Humans as they would ever get." Deis smiled. "Maybe they thought the beauty and the wings would rub off. Who knows what was going through their minds at the time. This new wave of faith gave the Goddess strength and far more power than she had ever believed possible. Therefore, she became arrogant, and craved more.
"Behind the backs of Ladon and countless other deities, she planned for their demise, and the theft of the faith that kept them in power 'against' her. After all, she had succeeded in winning over the Humans...why not the rest of the races?" Deis's pale hands pushed strands of perfect blue hair behind her ears. The earrings tinkled with a slight musical tune at the moment. "She managed to get to a few of the other races before concentrating on ones such as the Worens and the Dragons. Some houndsclan men. Taneumas. The stupider of the world's races I guess you could say. Ones that were blessed with more brawn than brains. She knew the Worens were strong, but they were clever, as felines usually are."
Nina noticed that when she spoke, mist did not pour from her full parted lips. The teal eyes shined. "You see, Nina, there was a time, when every race lived together. They had problems, yes, as all people do, but then again, they are people and are prone to emotions such as jealousy and hatred. Not all of us dragons hate the other races. I, for one, do not. And neither, does Dragoneye.
"I saw the war start. I witnessed the malice the Goddess preformed and..." She gazed off into the gray horizon. "I fought in the first battle, right beside Sattva. So many of all races died that day and it still lives in the hearts of a lot of us..." Her eyes went back to Nina and the smile again appeared on her lips. "But it takes one as strong as I to resist the urge to hate.
"Ones like Sattva, only wish to obtain power because they believe the power is the answer to all. He wishes to send Dragoneye for the power because the Tower of Ladon has become his beacon of hope. It always has been... He hates all and wishes for them to see the powers of the 'most ancient race of all'."
Nina tugged at a hole in her cloak. So if Ryu were to go to the tower, he would overthrow her father. He would have to...if that was what his master wished. She felt tears come to her eyes. If her father was going to start a war, like Red had rumored...he would die...
"Sattva, though, fails to see the truth in his actions." Nina looked up. "It's true, the Tower of Ladon is in legend and it tells us of a power locked deep inside that only the 'descendant' can receive. But..." Deis crossed her arms over her chest, the intricate silver metal bracelets on her arms making an even louder metallic tune than her earrings. "We don't even know if Dragoneye is the one."
The descendant? But Ryu could transform into the form of the Dragon. That had to say something. Deis herself said that not all dragons could do that, but...
As if again she read Nina's mind, Deis smiled. "Dragoneye has the power of the Wyrm. A humaniod dragon form that has the strength and agility of a God..." She closed her eyes and revealed slightly purple shimmery shaded eyelids. "There are others, who could do what he could do."
Then if so...
"Dragoneye was found, as a babe, at the foot of the statue of Ladon towering over the entrance to the tower. 'Slumbering within the vines of life stemming from the gaze of our Lord...he shall be received'." Her voice shook when she spoke the last sentence. Nina felt a chill go up her spine. "Dragoneye was indeed found in that situation, but we had found similar children over the years." She sighed. "People read the scriptures, and they place their children there...it's just a test of who bore the descendant. Everyone wants their child to be the 'one'.
"What caught Sattva's eye about Dragoneye, though, was that when this boy was found, there was no one to claim him as the countless others. He was merely a newborn, thrust into the arms of Ladon by some unknown force..."
Her eyes went to Nina's and when she saw the look of perplexing astonishment on the young girl's face, she smiled. "I see I must back up a bit. Back in the days before the war, deities had enough faith put in them, that they had the power to come to the land of the living, and appear before their believers. It wasn't uncommon for one of incredible faith, to speak with Ladon, or the others. Miracles were preformed, and life really was better. Crops flourished, people lived day to day in the peaceful security of their Gods...
"But...after the war, the Woren god disappeared, never to be seen again, and Ladon retreated with the last of his followers to Drogen and the tower. Even the Goddess lost too much faith to appear." Nina watched Deis with awe. "The world fell into a state of darkness." The dragon pushed more snow from her body and Nina's. "The deities lost all will to witness the actions of their people. If they were ashamed of us, I'm not sure, but all we knew, was that there was no prayer answered, no hope rising. Only the sad, complete darkness of the unfaithful."
Nina's eyes widened. No hope. No light. Only sadness. She felt her heart ache even more than it had before. To think that the whole world felt at one time as she did now... It was almost to awesome to fathom.
"That, was when the prophecies began." Deis formed the word "prophecy" with an odd respect. "All throughout the lands, scrolls started to show up, as if from the Gods themselves. Great manuscripts of faith and love, speaking of beings, resembling the deities, that walked the earth with the followers, possessing the power to bring the world back to what it used to be in it's youth. That, my young child, was where it all began."
The descendants...living beings that resembled the Gods... Was that what Weretiger was?
"They stated that every thousand or so years, a descendant is born. The only exception to this was the appearance of Weretiger. That became a part of the leadership of the Woren clan, who was more animalistic than human. While not as strong as the other descendants and not full of the faith they have...they still played an important role.
"The people rejoiced when they heard of this because it meant that the time of suffering and darkness would be coming to an end. But, while this was good news, the scrolls spoke very roughly of what these descendants would appear like. The ones of Ladon only gave us the arrival point. What the boy shall look like, remains a mystery, although..." She turned and gave a thoughtful glance to Nina. "The scrolls of the Goddess pointed out very clearly that the descendant would mimic her image, her grace, and her intellect."
Nina's honey brows furrowed, and her sea blue eyes traced over the intense expression that was appearing on Deis' face. "It was once thought that the entire Fae Tribe were her descendants, but the thing was...they defied her in every way possible... When the wings were lost in the time that lapsed between the war and the time of the descendants, the Windians turned to them for hope that they would bear the one who would restore peace and faith to the land...but..."
She stopped suddenly, and brought her gaze to the ground. "Not all of us hate the other races as I said before. Sattva was deeply wounded by the war between the races. When the Worens retreated and cried truce, the dragons were left to fight the Humans, the Windians, and countless other rogue races. He has love for none."
So he held everyone responsible...but why? That happened so long ago...
"It doesn't matter to him how long ago something happened." the dragon woman suddenly snapped. Nina drew in her breath. "He is immortal, can't you see that a century to him is a blink of an eye. It is the same for me..."
She again pushed a fallen strand of hair behind her slender pointed ears. "I used to be the same...until I met Dragoneye." Nina's eyes widened. "No matter how many times Sattva tried to tell the boy dragons were superior, he would only stare at him with those wide emerald eyes and merely whisper 'why?'" Deis smirked. "When Sattva could only reply with things such as 'we are the strongest', or 'do you see them with powers like yours?', Dragoneye would only reply, 'well, if we are so powerful, why shouldn't we protect them?' It used to make Sattva so angry... He would beat the poor boy until he bleed from every pore..."
So he didn't want to purge the races...he didn't want to overthrow her father... Nina's eyes began to fill with hot tears of frustration. Everything he had done for her...everything he had said...it wasn't a lie. He didn't take her to get back at Windia...he really did feel sorry for her... She closed her eyes and let the tears fall to the snow covered ground. She noticed her hands were numb.
"Dragoneye cares for more than he can handle, but even he has started to be oblivious to the good there is in the world... Forty or so years would do that to a man...although..." She reached down and grasped Nina's purple hands. Immediately they began to steam. "He believes in you. I don't know what he believes in...but he thinks you can change something..." Her lips curled into a smile. "I don't know what power you have, little winged girl...but if he believes in you...there has to be something..."
Nina swallowed hard and brought her gaze to Deis as the woman squeezed her hands tighter, still warming them. "I'm starting to believe...there is something within you as well..."
The tiny winged girl looked down. Something within her? Power...? Her mind went back to Mikhal. Was that the power everyone was talking about? The power to kill...by just her emotions? She shivered. If that was it...she didn't know if she wanted it. How could she use it for good? She didn't think she could control it. Definitely if she had known how to handle things...she wouldn't have killed him...
She stopped thinking. Blood made her head ache.
"Even though Dragoneye seems cold, he is trying to deal with the fact that he is going to have to go to the Tower. He has to soon. Sattva believes in him and whether his heart is in the same place...he still dares not to disobey his master." Deis frowned. "Sattva is controlling, and has Dragoneye by his emotions, and his physical being... I'm not sure how much longer the boy's soul can handle it..."
Nina shook her head gently. He couldn't forget his feelings, he couldn't let the hatred Sattva had for people lead him to the wrong decision with Ladon... The world...Windia...
Through the still flittering snow of the silent air the surrounded her, feathers and crimson danced.
* * *
Amber eyes flashed through strands of white. Something was pulling at him. He smiled. Was it determination? Could it really feel so strongly?
A gentle, eerie laugh escaped his lips and brought severe chills down the spines of the frozen soldiers standing guard. Puppets who could sing...
What a world this was...
* * *
Ryu frowned and brushed away bits of ice lining the top of his collar. He had prayed too long.
His bright green eyes went to the silent stone face of what was thought to be Ladon's image. A man, not unlike any other man, who standing with a blank expression, gazing out into the northern horizon through waves of hair. A dragon slunk behind him and wrapped around his moss covered body like a shield, it's once shimmering emerald eyes dulled to mere stones, staring intensely in the direction of its host. Staring at the Tower, they thought. Ryu pushed his hair back behind him and marveled at the awesome feeling the statue gave him. He didn't know why, but every time he prayed here, at this broken and scarred monument, his heart seemed that much more human.
Brow furrowing, he couldn't help but to smile. To think if he told Sattva that he felt like his enemies while speaking to the ultimate master... He wondered if he should meet Ladon himself in the Tower, if he should tell of his feelings. The thought actually brought a chuckle to escape him. It didn't last long, though, and soon he was back to giving Ladon a somber stare.
Ladon...
The God of the Dragons.
Ryu lifted his hands in front of his face. While his body was a masterpiece of scars, his hands, were fairly soft, fairly unworked. Maybe it was the healing powers of the dragon that caused them to be this way. The scars on his body were much too deep, even for them. He sighed and turned his hands over.
Would he really be able to harness the power of Ladon? Was he really...the one? His eyes narrowed. What did it really mean, to get his powers? He could already transform into the form of the dragon...what more did he need?
At that sudden thought, he shook his head. No, he couldn't think like a child anymore. Power was not the only thing he would gain. Ladon would teach him how to control the powers. No more would he feel his soul being devoured in that form... Maybe now...he would finally be able to understand the true meaning of his existence... The reason...why he was cursed.
The wind picked up, tossing his long bangs over his face. Giving a slight half smile, he pushed them away and behind his ear. ...Whatever it was...he would be ready. He had to be. For Sattva's sake and...for the world. ...He had to be strong...for her.
...Her?
In the sudden flurry of his dark blue hair, his nostrils flared and he turned. Snow flew before his widening emerald eyes, threatening to obstruct his view. His mouth opened and his hands went out into the air.
She stood before him, wings and all, blue eyes brimming with bright shimmering tears that ran down her ashen face in two glowing waterfalls. Her lips parted and he felt his heart stop.
"R...yu...."
A/N: I know it took me a long time, but please be patient with me, lol. I promised you all I would finish and I'm not about to break it, I just was in a bit of a writer's block and a bit busy with life deciding to be a little on the cruel side, but everything's okay now and I'm ready to finish this thing. We still have a ways to go, but I'm excited about it! I hope you are still enjoying it!
Thanks Legacy, you are a peach and you know it.