Fireheart:

Chapter 14: Light through the Darkness

Rose looked around as she cautiously entered the darkened alley. Still being unable to fly due to her shoulder, she'd turned her hunting staff into a hoverboard. Even then, it took her nearly an hour and a half before she'd found the right alleyway.

Movement nearby snapped her out of these thoughts. She wasn't alone here. "Eye of the dragon" she whispered, carefully scanning the area. A tall, thin shape caught her eye. Switching to night vision brought out the colors, though with a heavy blue tint. Gold and bright red, the black seven-pointed star still clearly visible. She almost didn't want to believe it, until he spoke her name: "Rose."

"Jake!" In that moment, her grief was all but forgotten. So overjoyed was she to see him that she threw cation to the winds, rushing forward to hug him. He stiffened for a moment, as if in surprise, but then his arms came around her and he returned the hug.

Rose closed her eyes, burying her face against his scaly neck, feeling that now, somehow things would be alright. Jake said nothing, only stroking her hair as he held her close. No words were spoken, for none were needed, or so Rose thought...

If only she had noticed the strange glint in Jake's eyes, or the sly, cruel smile that played across his face as he held her...

If only she had noticed the shadows suddenly deepening around them...

If only she had noticed the glowing red eyes that slowly circled them, coming closer and closer...

"KID! GET OUT OF THERE!!!"

Rose's eyes snapped open as she hastily pulled away from Jake. A look of shock and anger flashed across his face as he glared at something behind her.

Rose turned to see what he was looking at, not yet seeing the shade demons lying in wait on either side of them...

Fu Dog was running towards her as fast as his short legs could carry him. "Jake!" He cried, wheezing as exhaustion caught up with him, "It was Jake! Jake killed Gramps!"

"What?!" Sure she had heard him wrong, Rose came over to the old Sher Pi , kneeling down in front of him. "What did you just say?"

"Jake," panted Fu Dog, glaring up at the young dragon, who had come to stand behind Rose. "Jake killed Lao Shi."

"Fu, calm down." said Rose, her voice shaking, though with dread or shock, she couldn't tell which. "You- you're just confused. You don't know what you're saying!" She felt numb all over, even as alarm bells went off in her head. Jake is the killer?! No- no it can't be true! She shook her head. She didn't want to believe it.

"What are you talking about?" Jake asked, sounding confused.

"You know perfectly well, murder!" snapped the old dog, "Gramps is dead because of you!"

"Fu! That's enough!" snarled Rose, her temper rising. But even as she spoke, an icy chill ran down her spine. Fu Dog would never accuse Jake of something like this. Something was wrong here. Very wrong.

"Look Fu." said Jake, annoyance clear in his voice. "Even if Gramps is dead, what could possibly make you think I did it?"

No grief in his voice, he didn't even sound surprised over learning that Lao Shi had been killed.

"This." said Fu Dog, holding up a scrap of bright red fabric. "It's a piece from your jacket. Gramps was holding it when he died, and your scent was all over the crime scene!"

"One scrap of cloth doesn't prove anything." growled Jake, as his eyes flashed dangerously.

"Are you sure that's Jake's?" asked Rose. She took the fabric from him and looked at it closely.

"Rose," said Jake, softly, "you don't really believe this, do you?" He laid a claw on her arm.

Fu Dog snarled, jumping between them. "Get away from her!"

The red dragon glowered down at him, but Rose gently pushed Fu Dog aside, getting up and holding the cloth out to Jake. "There's only one way to know for sure." she said firmly. "Show me your jacket."

"Alright, fine. I have nothing to hide." Jake said casually. Almost too casually. Rose could've sworn she heard a slight purr in his voice. He returned to human form, spreading his arms out so they could get a good look at him.

Rose studied him, but couldn't see anything amiss- until she spotted the tear in his sleeve. Jake's cocky smile vanished, as he saw what she was looking at, and as she held the scrap up against the rip. It was a perfect match.

Rose had no time to react. Instantly Jake was back in dragon form, his claw slamming her against a nearby trash can! Just as he raised his claw to strike again, Fu Dog lunched himself at it, sinking his teeth in! Jake yowled in pain and bashed the old dog against the other wall. The Sher Pi lost his hold and fell to the ground.

Rose looked franticly around, and saw her staff lying at the far end of the alleyway, where she'd dropped it in her carelessness. Just then, the shade demons swarmed out of hiding to attack! She fought them off as best she could, trying desperately to reach it, but Jake tackled her first. She rolled onto her back, raising her hands in a defensive position- only to have a blinding white flash shoot out her palms!

Jake screamed as the light burned his eyes, rearing back and allowing Rose to kick him off her. The shades vanished like smoke as the light hit them. In that instant, Fu Dog grabbed Rose's sleeve in his mouth, dragging her away as he muttered, "Come on kid! Let's get outta here!"

She quickly got to her feet and ran after him, not daring to look back. They didn't stop running until they were good and lost inside the maze of back alleys. Only then did Fu Dog let her rest, pulling her into a large cardboard box hidden behind some dumpters. They were both roughed up a bit, and Fu had a sprained front paw, but were otherwise none the worse for the wear.

As soon as they'd both caught their breath, the Animal Guardian rounded on her. "What the heck was that?!" he cried.

"What?" asked Rose, clutching a stitch in her side.

"That! Back there with your hands and the lights and the whoosh and the all that..." said Fu Dog, making gestures with his uninjured paw. Rose cocked a weary eyebrow at him, not getting of word of that.

He frowned, then said more slowly, "What was with the freaky light show coming out of your hands?!"

The slayer shook her head. "I have no idea. But whatever it was, I think it saved our lives."

Meanwhile...

Jake finally opened his eyes. Now that the blindness had worn off, he could see that both Rose and Fu Dog were gone. Jake snarled in anger, slamming his fist into the wall. The Dark Dragon was not going to like this.

Hey all! Sorry for not updating sooner, but my second semester of college has started and my first tests and coming up. Well, that and a case of writer's block. This chapter was actually a pain to write, if only because I'd written the next chapter first and couldn't seem to get the mood for this one quite right.

Anyway, like? don't like? Please feel free to let me know. As for those of you who have been wondering about the podcast. I have some good news, and some bad news. The bad news: the podcast is currently broken. The good news: It's getting fixed! Yay! I'll be sure to let you all know as soon as it's back online.