Chapter Three

Baby,
I compare you to a kiss from a rose on the grave.
Ooh, the more I get of you,
Stranger it feels, yeah.
And now that your rose is in bloom,
A light hits the gloom on the grave.

The rally of humans was huge, under the banner of their leader Emperor Diaz. Rose lived with a nomadic group, which was large in number in human standards, thirty in all. This fort with all of its vast space held more heads than she could possibly count. At least a thousand was in attendance easy. It seemed that her emperor was ready for war.

"Rose, over here," the female Dragoon, Shirley called.

With Michael in her arms, Rose left Zieg's side to her fellow Dragoon. Zieg seemed too involved with the people talking about and awaiting Diaz's speech that he didn't notice her departure. As Rose made her way through the crowd to Shirley, Emperor Diaz made his appearance and all cheered for their leader. Rose didn't know if she should wait until Diaz was finished with his speech before meeting with Shirley but she didn't have a choice as the other female Dragoon dragged her along to the huge walls of the fort where four other humans stood in the wings, away from the crowd.

"Okay guys, this here is our newest companion, Rose. She holds the Dark Dragoon Spirit," Shirley started off.

"Ah, welcome to the fold. I am Syuveil of the Wind Dragoon. It is an honor to meet you," the man in a green suit of armor said and approached to shake her hand.

"Move it old man," a thin girl, no more than twelve Rose would guess, pushed the Wind Dragoon just an inch to see this new Dragoon and another female at that. "Hi. Um… I'm Damia of the Water Dragoon. I'm a mix between a human and a mermaid. Will you be my friend?"

"Yes, do. And when you do, take her far from here," a man in deep violet martial artist robes instructed.

"Who might you be?" Rose asked kindly, hiding her immediate dislike for the man.

"Name's Kanzas. If you can fight, we'll get along fine. If you can keep Damia from me, all the better," Kanzas finished and moved away from the group.

"Don't worry about him. Like all Thunder Dragoons, he can be very dangerous but only for a brief time, like lightning. Anyways, I am Belzac, Dragoon of the Earth, glad to meet you," the giant of a man said while extending his massive, golden gauntlet hand. Though Rose initial reaction was that he would crush her hand yet she still grasped him hand for a good shake. Her grip seemed the stronger as the giant was gentle with the handshake.

"Yay, we make an entire set," Damia said while clapping her hands.

Rose smile and nodded at each of her new friends as if she knew them all for a long, long time. Perhaps it was the fact that at such a dark time she needed to attach to those around her for strength or perhaps it was the Dragoon Spirits that made her feel as if she was spiritually bound to these strangers soon friends. Indeed, they were a set for Rose could only guess that Shirley was the Dragoon of Light. With a cry from Michael, Rose held him closer to her heart, soothing him with her heartbeat.

As if her new friends, the emperor's power speech and the crowd's sounds were drowned out by some unknown silence, the warrior turned to the final Dragoon Zieg. She was surprised that his eyes met hers. She thought he cared about the rally and Diaz's speech but one look in those sharp, fiery eyes, she knew he's been staring at her since she left to Shirley. She couldn't believe him. He wanted her to break away to chat with the other Dragoons like he planned it.

And it was true enough. Zieg was interested in his emperor's speech and the reactions from the crowd. But he heard Shirley's voice and knew what she had planned and gave Rose no knowledge that he was aware of her exit. The moment she left, however, his head turned to watch her go with her beautiful hair bouncing side to side. It was a sight he didn't want to bare witness again, her leaving his side.

Zieg couldn't turn away no matter how much it pained him, no matter how hard he tried. He knew then that his focus was only on Rose and the more he resisted the more he was driven into thinking about her. Back on the trail he could've sworn she was going to kiss him but he shook it away as if his imagination was going wild on him. But her lips, her smile, remained in his thoughts.

To Zieg, she seemed to be a kiss from a rose on a tombstone, as if she was the lone beauty in this dark world. Standing out in a crowd that she belonged there but not. The more and more he saw or heard of her, the more confused he became. He never quite felt this way before. It was strange but he wouldn't question it for though it was strange, it was his heart and he would always follow it.

"And now I give you the leader of the Dragon Knights, Zieg Feld!" Emperor Diaz cried and all cheered.

However, neither Zieg nor Rose heard the conclusion to the speech as like the rest of the sounds around them. Zieg was too enchanted by the gentle eyes of Rose and Rose was captivated by the fire within Zieg's. The cheers died and all looked around for their champion, this Zieg Feld. Diaz only smiled as he pointed in the middle of the crowd.

"Him, the guy in red armor," the emperor pointed out loudly.

The connection between Zieg and Rose broke a moment later as the Dragon Knight in red was hoisted into the air and cheers began anew. Both Dragoons were dazed, as if snapping out of a trance and unaware where they were or what was going on. Cheers of "God bless Diaz" and "God bless Mangrad" was so deafening, Rose didn't know how she didn't hear it before. As Zieg disappeared from view, the female warrior fought her way only a little into the crowed to figure out what they were doing with her companion.

In mere moments after parading him through the crowd, the men that had Zieg on their shoulders through him onto the stage, where he tripped over his on feet but kept his balance. Diaz went through the end of his speech that humans would no longer be slaves and he, with his Dragoons, would liberate the human race.

"And now, here is the leader of the Dragoons, Zieg Feld," Emperor Diaz finished.

With a smirk and some dynamics with a touch of pyrotechnics, Zieg transformed into his Dragoon Armor. Still ablaze, he melted the snow around him, showing the people their light of hope was here. Zieg looked into the front of the crowd only for fear if he locked his gaze upon a single woman with beautiful thick dark brown hair again, things could get dangerous.

Rose, on the other hand, stared deeply at the fiery plated man with as much wonderment as everyone around her. For thousands of years, the wingly race dominated the world and all species lived in fear in this dark age. But this man she just recently met seemed to be the light that would shine brightly through this gloomy war and she swore she would stay by his side until the end.

"God bless Diaz. God bless Mangrad," Rose paused as she smiled and whispered under her breath. "God love Zieg, for I surely do."