Perseus' P.O.V
As I watched the bond strengthen and finish, between Arya, Victoria, and myself, I glanced at my arm. Feeling slight phantom pains, I hissed slightly in displeasure. I recalled, some of what Kulkarvek did to it, now that I was no longer blinded by the anger and blood lust of Belladonna.
As Kulkarvek grabbed and crushed my arm, he grinned horrifically, with a blood thirsty gleam in his eyes. His hands coated in a malevolent, red, almost black aura, radiating the foul stench of decay, and pain. I screamed in pain and anger.
"FUCKING HELL!" my arm turned ghastly black, with green spots appearing on it, randomly. Noticing it trying to spread, I brought my leg up and kicked the filthy urgal monarch backwards, putting some distance between us. Panting with pain, and some exhaustion, I said to Belladonna, "Okay, that settles it. He dies now. Time to quit playing around and finish him."
The memory was cut off, thankfully as I didn't want to witness the brutal manner of killing the beast, as Arya came back to consciousness. "That hurt!" She pouted adorably, her bottom lip sticking out a bit, as her arms were crossed over her chest. Victoria leaned down and puffed some smoke at her face, causing the little elf to spit and sputter a bit, before sending Victoria, what she evidently thought, was supposed to be an angry glare, needless to say, it was more funny and adorable than frightening.
I couldn't help it, I threw my head back and laughed. "Pft, ahahaha." I lost it, I bent over, clutching my side with my remaining arm. Arya glared harder. Finally, I took pity on her, and managed to, somehow, stop laughing.
"Come on, we need to speak to the masters, as well as your mother and father. This is an unexpected development. We need to think about how to move forward." she grabbed my hand and we walked back towards Tialdarí Hall. The whole while Arya gushed on and on excitedly, about Victoria.
"She's so pretty, and her voice sounds so pure, clear, and wise!" Her happiness was obvious, her face radiated joy, bright like the sun itself. She grinned up at me. I found myself grinning back.
'Though why do I get the feeling that anytime her mother irritates her, she will simply hop on Victoria and take off?' I mused to myself.
It didn't take us too long to get back to the Hall. Islanzadí was standing outside, her arms crossed, and her foot tapping the ground repeatedly, and impatiently. Her eyes were narrowed, as they took in Perseus and Arya walking towards the Hall.
'She looks hot when she's angry. Where the hell did that come from?!' I thought to myself, feeling my face get warm, knowing I was blushing. 'Damn, I hope this goes away before I speak to her. I don't want any uncomfortable questions to be asked.'
"Is there anything either of you wish to tell me? Anything at all?" The queen asked sweetly, far too sweetly. I gulped.
'Why is she so angry? I mean it's not like we left the forest. Maybe it's because of how late it is?' I questioned myself. As I was about to ask her the reason for her anger, Arya piped in, "We went way up in the sky, and it was so fun! The wind felt so good on our faces, and the freedom of being able to fly around, it almost made me never want to come down!" Arya exclaimed gleefully to her mother. Her mother's anger seemed to melt away, as she stared at her daughter, replaced with a small, growing smile.
"Oh I can't stay mad at either of you, can I? I'm happy you're safe and sound, as well as happy that you had fun today, Arya." Islanzadí spoke. Arya nodded her head, grinning widely.
"Oh look mother, guess what happened." Arya held up her hand, the one that held the Gedwëy Ignasia, or the mark of the riders. Her mother's eyes went wide, though there was a glimmer of sadness in them as well.
"I can't believe it, my own daughter, a rider. I suppose I have to admit, the dragon couldn't have chosen better. Though I must say, I had hoped you would one day consider succeeding me as queen, but now that you have become a rider, you can no longer take the throne." The queen said.
Arya who was happy that her mother accepted her being a rider, was shocked and confused about her not being able to become queen in the future, "Why wouldn't I be able to take the throne? Not that it matters. Elves live forever. We can't and won't die." She said.
I spoke up before Islanzadí could. "You can't take the throne, Arya, because no rider, no matter their race, can or should, rather, sit upon the throne of any race. Riders, according to masters Oromis and Formora, are supposed to be neutral parties. They are to be unbiased, unprejudiced, impartial, just, honorable, and fair in their judgment and decisions. Taking a throne, would upset that balance. For example, if I were to take the throne from Galbatorix, and ruled in his place, would it be any different than what he is doing now? Or a better example, say something were to arise between humans and elves. As a rider, I would have a duty to bring an end to the conflict. Who would I support in the endeavor? Would I be able to separate Perseus the rider from Perseus the king? I would like to say that I could, but I don't really know if I would be able to. It's the same as if you were queen of the elves. As a rider, would you be able to your duties as a rider, while sitting on the throne? Would you be able to come to a decision as rider, while removing the queen at the same time?" My voice unknowingly took on a lecturing teacher's tone.
Islanzadí rose an eyebrow at hearing my explanation. 'Okay, perhaps he's smarter than I thought. He is right though. No rider should ever sit on a throne.'
"Okay, sounds a bit confusing, and kind of stupid, I mean it doesn't sound too hard to separate yourself into two different people. But I think I understand." Arya said. Truthfully, she didn't. But they didn't need to know that.
"It's not, but that's neither here nor there. I'm sure your mother would love to put you too bed, and I need to catch some sleep myself. I will be here come dawn, to take you to masters Oromis and Formora." I said, feeling some tiredness seeping into his body.
'Why am I so tired and weak? I feel as if I shouldn't be this weak or tired, even now I can feel my energy being drained. I don't know why though, or where it's going.' I thought, before bidding the queen and princess a goodnight, and heading to my tree.
I barely stumbled into the house and up to my room, before crashing on the bed. Tormented by more memories, from other times and places.
A young man, roughly fourteen years of age, standing alone on a battlefield, being approached by an army of thousands, a hundred thousand, to be exact. The opposing army was full of monstrous beings, and some of what looked to be normal humans, if it weren't for the power they radiated, an aura that just screamed otherworldly. The young man, stared down his opponents.
He had long, raven black, hair, falling down past his shoulders, to his upper back. His skin was a Mediterranean tanned, his sea green eyes were glowing, his pupils replaced by a trident, shining within their depths. He wore fine, immaculate atlantean steel armor, forged by Briares himself, cooled in the five rivers of the underworld. In his hands, he wielded two blades. One was a celestial bronze, about three and a half feet in length, glowing with an ethereal gold shine, a trident on the bottoms of each side of the blade, and the name, Anaklusmos written up the face, and in his other hand, he held a sea green and blue sword, also about three and a half feet in length. This sword, however, was made by Briares, and his half brothers, the elder cyclopes, bathed and cooled in the five rivers of the underworld, blessed by Hades, Hestia, and Apollo, bathed in the blood of several immortals, waves and tridents imprinted on the sides, the blade's name, Καταστροφή. This young man, was named Perseus.
As the army charged the young man, he himself ran at them. The battle was bloody, body parts, blood, everything was everywhere. Perseus was a whirlwind of destruction, and death. He sliced, stabbed, jabbed, hacked, dodged, ducked, weaved. Spinning around, his swords circled around decapitating bodies, he started moving faster and faster, his blades just blurs. There were times where he would move back, only to summon water, wind, lightning, even abilities like vibrations in the ground, fires, shadows, hellfire, even a meteor shower. Hours must have passed in the memory, for the army was losing more and more of their soldiers. Eventually, Perseus was the last man standing, or kneeling rather, because he was seen panting harshly, in enough blood, that it could have filled several lakes. His body, had several cuts and bruises. Hearing voices, he glanced up, seeing a few women approaching him, as they neared, his vision faded away.
I came to with a start, feeling my head pounding. 'what was that? A massive battle took place there, I don't remember who I was fighting, or why. How was I able to use all those elemental powers? Who were those women? Why do I seem as if I know them? Where is that other blade? How could I take on an entire army by myself?' many questions seemed to plague my mind every time I got another memory.
Getting up, I walked to the washroom, and cleaned myself, while readying myself for the day. I headed out of the tree, after sending a message to the dragons, telling them to get a move on, 'come on, we need to go.'
The three of them flew out of the window. I sprinted towards the Hall. It didn't take me too long to get there. I was about to knock on the gates, when the queen herself appeared. "Come on, Perseus. You are going to have to wait a few moments. Arya isn't awake yet. Also, if you wouldn't mind, I think I am going to enchant the Hall, in order to allow you to open and walk through the gate whenever you have something to speak about." she said.
I wasn't sure what to say about her adding me to the gate's spell, it seemed a bit intimate, or familial. Though on the matter of Arya not being awake yet, I couldn't help the laugh I let out. "Yeah, that sounds like Arya, all right. Between her not wanting to wake up, her stealing all the blankets at night, or her kicking me off the bed, I don't know what was worse."
Islanzadí herself actually let out a small giggle at that. We arrived at Arya's bedroom, I waited outside while the queen went in herself, in order to wake up Arya. I waited for about fifteen minutes, while Arya was in the washroom, ranting and raving at having been woken up at such an early hour.
The queen came out, shaking her head in utter exasperation at her daughter. We sat down and waited in the seating room. Arya came down and after eating a quick breakfast, we sat around, waiting for masters Oromis and Formora to arrive. They arrived a few moments later.
Spending a few hours to sit around and explain the situation between Arya, Victoria, and myself, I could tell they were shocked, well kind of.
"I should be surprised, and I am, but not by much. After having three dragons hatch for you, this doesn't really shock me much." Oromis admitted dryly. I just gave him a look.
"Well, Perseus, it seems your luck strikes again." Formora said.
"Hey, what, exactly, do you mean by that?!" I said, feeling my right eye start to twitch.
'They're making fun of me. Those assholes!' I thought to myself.
'I mean having known you since my hatching, and given the few memories of your past that I have seen, are they wrong? I seem to recall a few memories of yours, that if it hadn't been for your bipolar luck, would either have not happened, or happened differently.' Belladonna teased me.
'I won't even bother to dignify that with a proper comment.' I thought, with both my eyes now twitching.
Arya was now conversing with both Oromis and Formora. I couldn't hear what it is they were talking about, but I could guess. Arya was beaming at me, "isn't it great, Perseus? Now we get to train together all day, every day."
"Sure, sounds fun." I said. A training partner could be fun. Though if masters Oromis and Formora were to be believed, I won't be a student much longer.
The end.
Next chapter, I plan to have another time skip, showing Arya's beginning training as a rider, and some of the Forsworn will be dead, Brom will found the Varden, maybe, Perseus might or might not meet some goddesses, as well as find out why females are attracted to him, and he to them (as in why he seems to make more female friends.)
What do you think about the flashback? Wasn't much to it, I know.
We will also, maybe, find out just who/what/why Kulkarvek was able to do that to Perseus' arm.