Black Blood

Chapter 1

Outside the Dragon Castle, on the western side where the training fields were, a company of Dragon Fighters were partnered off, sparring with one another. The shouts and jeers of watching soldiers echoed over the wooden clack of the training swords. Off to a more isolated side, leaning against the fence that surrounded the field, the tall captain watched the Fighters with a critical eye. His arms were crossed over his chest, the black trench coat just barely moving in the wind as he studied each movement, calling out advice and instructions every once in a while. Otherwise, he stood silent, focused on his work.

Until a familiar, high pitched voice shrilled across the area.

"Teeeeeeeeeeeeeetheus!" a young woman waved frantically as she leaned over the fence opposite him. The short leather jacket seemed much too short for her (as did her shorts), and the white shirt just barely covered her midriff. A small, leather knapsack hung around her shoulder.

The Black Dragon Officer closed his eyes and let out a sigh as the Dragon Fighters broke from their daily practice and turned to look at her.

"Hey, Kitchel!" one of them shouted, waving a training sword. "It's been a while, how have you been?"

"I've been doing all right, though you guys look like you're about to drop dead," she grinned. "I just came back from a trip!"

"Really? Where did you go?" By this time, most of the company had gathered around her, though a few hesitated and stayed in their positions, eyeing their captain warily as he slowly made his way over.

"Yep," she said, not noticing the sudden stillness that was spreading through the crowd. "I had to run to Luwa to pick up a few things."

"That explains your attire."

Tetheus' deep, crisp voice sent the rest of the assembled Dragon Fighters scattering before they stood to attention on either side of him. Only Kitchel seemed to be the one who was relaxed as she smiled cheerfully and gave Tetheus a mock salute.

"Kitchel, ready and waiting for orders, sir!"

The Officer gave her a look that was by far from being amused. He obviously did not share her attitude. "Is there something, you need?"

"Do I have to need something to visit the coolest guy here?" she grinned.

He just gave her a stern glare, a look that Kitchel was used to by now, but one that still made her squirm a little, sometimes. Those dark, cold eyes seemed as if he could see her very thoughts, and she somehow did not doubt this. Despite her sudden nervousness, she flashed him a bright smile, hiding her unease.

"Oh, come on! I just got back and I wanted to see what was going on."

More staring.

"…Could at least say hello?"

In a deadpan voice, "Hello."

Even Kitchel doesn't get it easy, was the thought that echoed through all the Dragon Fighters' minds as they watched the poor girl swallow. They had to admit, their Captain could be unforgiving, particularly when someone interrupted their practice session. It did not help that Tetheus was probably a full foot taller than Kitchel.

The ex-thief bit her lower lip before swiftly turning away. "Well I can see where I'm not wanted. Sorry to disturb you."

Again, the Dragon Fighters could only watch in awe as their Captain made no motion to move while the girl stomped off toward the Castle building. They could not help but wonder what kind of relationship the two had. It was not that uncommon to see Kitchel tagging along behind Tetheus, whether the Dragon Officer wanted her company or not. Yet he seemed to tolerate her quirky actions, at least moreso than other female persons.

They had to admit, their captain was considered a stud, especially since he started to leave his hair slightly more unkempt than in the past. Slightly. While it seemed somewhat strange to not see the hair not completely combed neatly back like before, the new style gave him an even more powerful image. A hint of danger. It definitely caught the eyes of the ladies more, though the soldiers seriously doubted that was the reason. The fact that it was slightly longer – as well as Kitchel's constant fussing whenever she had a chance – was probably more of the reason. Only the captain could pull off a hairstyle that looked both neat and slightly messy at the same time and look cool and professional.

Then there was his whole personality and stature. Every Dragon Fighter aspired to be as strong as Tetheus, and more than one envied how he could always keep his cool even in the toughest of situations and work things through. They knew he was the one who defeated Nadil's right hand general, Shydeman, and there were rumors about his past, but who cared? While he gave off a cold demeanor and was the strictest person around, every soldier knew that their Captain was always looking out for them, and that just made them respect him even more.

Maybe that was what Kitchel saw in him and always hung around him. It was no secret that she had shown some sort of interest in the Black Dragon Officer ever since they met in the caves. There had also been rumors that the two were possibly seeing each other. It was a rumor that the maids often talked about, and even the Dragon Fighters could see this connection, as absurd as it seemed.

They continued to stare off in the direction Kitchel had gone, each one thinking about their possible relationship. However, feeling the Captain's cold glare digging into their minds disrupted their thoughts as they quickly scrambled to return to their previous positions. Once more the sound of shouts and swords clacking filled the air. The only one who was silent was the tall, ever stern figure who watched them, as if the event had never happened, but unbeknownst to his soldiers, other thoughts were starting to infiltrate his mind.

x – x – x

"Owww! Sabel! Quit that!" a voice wailed from the halls of the Dragon Castle.

The Water Dragon Knight could only smirk as he gave one final, though not rough, tug on Rim Kaana's exposed, delicate faerie wings. "If you don't want them to be pulled, then don't show them around."

She just glared up at him while gingerly rubbing her back. "Or you could actually be nice and not tug on them!"

"But I can't help it. They're just begging to be pulled. I thought you never liked showing them off anyway."

Rim Kaana flushed slightly. "…Tintlet won't let me wear anything otherwise."

"Tintlet?" Sabel just grinned. "Or Rune?"

"It's none of your business!" Why does he always pick on me, anyway?! Stupid Sabel!

"Oh, but it is," he laughed. "Everyone knows that you three have a great time at night."

Her face turned a brilliant shade of red, but before she could even say anything, a potted plant appeared from out of nowhere, aimed right for Sabel's head, and was followed by a rather loud, "SABEL STOP THAT!"

Sabel just laughed as he leaned back, effectively dodging the plant as it smashed into the wall instead. "Way to kill the décor, Rune." He smirked at the seething faerie. "That's, what, the tenth plant today? I thought we were trying to save nature, not kill it."

"It's your fault for saying such stupid and irresponsible things!"

The Knight just waved a slender index finger. "But you were the one who resorted to physical violence. What if you missed and hit poor Rim, here?" At this, he proceeded to wrap his arms around the smaller faerie, who immediately blushed.

"S-Sabel!!" she squeaked.

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF HER!"

"Aww, but she's so cute and squishable. Don't want to share? It's not like you don't have enough to go around," he smirked. He always enjoyed picking on the strange relationship the three faeries seemed to have. Even though it was still unclear what kind of relationship they had, it was still enough fuel for Sabel, and he was always in for a good bit of teasing.

"That's not the point!" Rune flushed angrily. I'm going to kill him, I don't care if he's the Water Dragon Knight or one of the few remaining faeries left to help restore the forests, I will kill him.

"Don't I get a say in this?" Rim Kaana wailed as she tried to squirm her way through Sabel's grip.

Sabel just laughed as he let go of her, raising his hands high as he stepped back. "As you wish, my Lady," he said, the sarcasm not hidden at all.

Shooting him a glare, Rim Kaana quickly ran over to Rune and hid behind his back. "Ruuuuune! Can't you do something? You're the White Dragon Officer!"

The faerie just let out a long, drawn out sigh, a fair, slender hair running through his long, soft blonde hair. "Even so, he's technically not under my command. You'll have to ask Bierrez."

Rim Kaana fidgeted slightly. "But he's so…so…anti-social!"

"Got that right," Sabel muttered under his breath as he crossed his arms behind his head before turning to Rune, a bored look on his face. "So what did you want to see me about?"

Oh yes. That. "You haven't heard anything from the Spirit Realm, have you?"

"The Spirit Realm?" Sabel raised a brow. "No, why?"

A small frown formed on Rune's lips. "Delte did a reading just a few hours ago. She said that a dark force would soon appear, and it would be from the land of the dead."

The Knight knew Rune would be telling him something important – or at least, the faerie would claim it to be important – but he did not think it would be something like this. "The dead? It couldn't be…"

"No, not Nadil," Rune said, though his face was far from being less concerned. "Rath made sure of that. When he fired Rakieta, Nadil's source of power was obliterated. And Ri-Ma told you herself that his soul was being kept in another part of the Realm, remember?"

Yeah…but this is Nadil we're talking about…he did anything for power and ensure his own win. Sabel unconsciously fingered his now unmarked wrists. "So it could be something else. Or someone. But who? And how?"

"That's why we're going to send you on a little trip," a voice said behind him.

Sabel jumped slightly at the voice and whirled around to find himself face to face with the Red Dragon Officer, his brilliant orange eyes burning into his own sea green ones. "You're what? I've only been back for a week since the last stupid mission you sent me out on!"

"And you haven't done anything useful since then," Bierrez said in a bored voice.

"Hey, it's not my fault that just sitting in the Water Realm is all it takes for me to help purify all the other faerie forests," Sabel scowled before letting out a small sigh. "Whatever. So what do you want me to do? Poke around the Spirit Realm and see if it breaks?"

"Hardly," Rune said, rolling his eyes.

"You're going to Kainaldia instead," Bierrez said bluntly.

"Oh is that all," Sabel sighed before doing a double take. "You want me to do what?!"

"You want him to go where?" Rim Kaana gasped. "But that's…he can't go by himself! That's suicide! No one's been there in years!"

Sabel gave her a look. "Hey, I can handle it just fine." He was still not that pleased with the idea, however, and looked at the two Officers coldly. "You think this whole prediction of Delte's has some relation to Kainaldia. Why?"

"It's a good guess." Bierrez leaned against the wall, noting the still broken plant just a few feet away. "Who knows what leftover demons are lurking over there." He glanced over at Sabel. "Don't you wonder why Water and Fire suddenly called to you and Gil?"

Sabel fingered a lock of his sea green hair. He had grown it out since the end of the war and was starting to return to how it was before he had…changed. "But then what about Earth? He hasn't budged from the rock he returned to."

"That is a good point," Rune said, frowning slightly. "Earth hasn't even made so much of a whisper."

"Couldn't Thatz try and unseal him?"

"But he's the Blue Dragon Officer now," Rim Kaana said pointedly.

"Rath had both the Fire Dragon as well as the Red Dragon Crystal before, so he was also technically the Red Dragon Officer, if unofficially and illegally," Bierrez said.

"But Thatz's arm…" her voice trailed.

A silence fell upon the foursome as each recalled the end result of Thatz's final battle with Fedelta. Though the then Earth Dragon Knight had come out victorious, it was not without a price. It was not impossible for his arm to be healed, but he had refused since the end of the battle, thinking it a "cool battle scar" and something to remind him of his old days as a Dragon Knight. To this day he still pushed away any attempt to show the possible procedures to restore his lost left arm.

Tiring of the silence, Sabel moved from his spot and cleared his throat. "All right, so I have to go to Kainaldia. Why me?"

"You can still create portals, so you have the easiest access to the place," Bierrez quickly replied, somewhat grateful to Sabel's interruption for once.

"And what do you want me to find? Some suspicious demon performing some rituals to bring back the dead?" he snorted. "Do you know how large that place is? Nadil's castle might be in ruins, but it's still huge. And what if the person is actually somewhere here on Dusis or some other continent?"

"Gil will be responsible for that," Rune answered. "Thus, having you in Kainaldia while Gil searches here will make the process go much faster."

"Well I'm not going alone," Sabel grumbled. He hated it when they actually thought everything out and he failed to find a loophole out of it. "Like I said, the place is huge, and though I'm pretty sure any leftover lowlife demons would remember who I was, I'm now a faerie and part of the Dragon Tribe. My whole being will be a beacon for them. And," he raised a finger. "I can only bring up to two people with me. Unlike Gil, I won't have any Dragon Fighters to back me up."

"You won't need a company. You just need Tetheus," Bierrez said blankly.

At this, Sabel just looked at him as if he was crazy. "Are you insane?! You want to send Tetheus to Kainaldia with me? Are you trying to make this stupid mission even more like hell?!"

"What's this about Tetheus?" a new voice piped up a few feet away from them.

Great, more people, Sabel sighed. What is this, a hot spot to see my never-ending torture? He looked at Kitchel, who was staring at them curiously. "Nothing."

"You can't fool me, Sabel," she grinned. "I heard it all." She paused. "Well, from when you were talking about something in Kainaldia at least."

"You what?" Rune half shrieked.

Bierrez rolled his eyes. "If you wanted this to be a secret, then you should have arranged this to be in an office rather than just out in the hall."

"It was going to be but—Sabel—he—and Rim—argh," Rune grumbled as he rubbed the heel of his palm against his forehead. Breathe, Rune, just breathe…and make note to kill Sabel if the demons don't kill him first. After a few seconds, he let out a sigh. "It's nothing special. Tetheus is just going to accompany Sabel on an intel mission."

"Really?" she asked, curiosity evident on her face. "Where to? Can I come along?"

"It's none of your business and hell no," Sabel answered, giving her a look. "I don't need a chatterbox of a thief to look after."

"Hey, I can take care of myself," she huffed. "And I'm not a thief anymore."

"You still take treasures without permission."

"That's different. That's all part of being a treasure hunter."

Bierrez coughed. "That's all well and good," not really, "but we can't have you on the mission, Kitchel. Your services are required elsewhere."

"What?" She looked at him confused. "But I just came back from Luwa. You need me to go out again?"

"Not right away, but we will need you, and if you're not accessible we can't send you out."

Great logic, there, Bierrez, Sabel thought with some sarcasm, but whatever worked to keep the girl out of his hair he will not argue against. "Fine. Whatever. I guess I'll talk with Tetheus later. Is there anything else you need?"

The Red Dragon Officer glanced at Kitchel before looking back at Sabel. "Come by my office later. And bring Gil. I'll fill you on the details then. When there are less people around," he added with a direct look at Kitchel, who just gave him an innocent smile.

"And if you hear from Ri-Ma," Rune added, looking at Sabel, "let me know."

"Right, right," he said, growing a little agitated. "If that's it, I'm out of here."

Rune stood silent a moment, thinking if there was indeed anything he needed to talk to Sabel about, when he remembered. "Oh wait, Sabel—"

But he was too late. A fast stream of water had engulfed the Water Dragon Knight, but before he disappeared, Rune could distinctly see a slight smirk through the swirling water directed right at him before Sabel disappeared, all traces of water gone. The Officer clenched his fist. Damn that Sabel, he knew I had forgotten to ask about his report!

Bierrez glanced at the irritated faerie with slight amusement before turning away. "I'll be taking my leave then." He started to walk away before a thought occurred to him and glanced back over his shoulder. "Have fun with Rune, Rim."

"Bierreeeeez!" she glared at him.

He could only smirk as he continued on his way. Sabel's right, this is amusing.

Rune just scowled after him before placing a comforting arm around Rim Kaana, the girl still fuming and muttering under her breath something about wishing she still had her threads so she could choke them both. "So did you bring the items, Kitchel?"

The ex-thief grinned. "Of course! They're right in here," she patted her knapsack. "Do you want to take them or…?"

The faerie thought for a moment. "Take them to Ruwalk. He'll know what to do with them."

Kitchel smiled. "As you wish." She turned and walked a few steps before stopping. "Is their mission…dangerous?" she asked, trying to hide the slight hesitation in her voice.

"All of their missions are "dangerous" so to speak," Rune said carefully.

"But this is Kainaldia we're talking about," she said, the concern seeping through her voice. She wished she had arrived sooner so she could have heard more.

"I'm sorry, Kitchel," he said tersely. "But I can't tell you the details. Besides," his voice softened slightly, "you don't need to worry about anything."

She bit her lip. She did not know why, but she could not help feel uneasy about this whole situation. "But…if you're sending Tetheus out…"

"It's only because Sabel's right. He can't have a whole company of Dragon Fighters to help him, and even though he's a Knight, going by himself is suicide. There's no one else capable."

"What about Bierrez?" she continued. Why was she so against Tetheus leaving?

Rune stared at her for a moment before slowly saying, "Tetheus wanted to go."

"What?" Rim Kaana gasped.

This was not the response Kitchel was expecting. He wanted to go? Is that why he had been so cold earlier? Was he thinking about this secret mission? "But…"

The faerie sighed. "Ask him yourself, Kitchel, but I doubt he would tell you. I have things I have to do," he said hurriedly, though not without feeling slightly guilty. "And there's nothing more I can say about this. And please, don't mention this to anyone else."

Rune ignored the looks Rim Kaana was sending him as he led them away, leaving a confused Kitchel standing alone in the hallway. I shouldn't have told her that. But there's nothing she can do. What harm could happen anyway? Even so, the unsettling feeling that had arisen ever since the Dragon Officer volunteered to accompany Sabel had yet to leave. I made the right decision…right?

x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x – x

Afterword:

Now this is what I'm talking about…a niiiice long chapter. Feels good to be writing one of these again.

Shaping up the plot a little :O What could be going down in the Spirit Realm? Oh, and some of you are probably what powers everyone has at this point. Pretty much everyone who was part demon, except for Cesia, has been fully converted to their original/respective Tribes. Like Tetheus, Bierrez, and Gil, they are fully part of the Dragon Tribe and have little to no essence of their old demon selves left inside them. Sabel first returned to being a full fledged faerie before becoming part of the Dragon Tribe. They all have most of their original powers, some having to be tweaked some. More in depth explanations will be in future chapters. And as briefly explained in this chapter, the duel dragons were sealed, but have reawakened, thus why Sabel and Gil are able to become Dragon Knights. Not sure how I'm going to deal with Earth. I don't want an original character Earth Dragon Knight. So we'll see!

More of the cast will be introduced (or reintroduced, heh) in the next chapter or two :O And see if you can guess the pairings x3

As usual, reviews are welcome!