Thank you so much to gagaball88 for beta reading this chapter! You have been a tremendous help!
Feeling the rays of sunlight grace the back of her head, Janai tried her best to allow herself to relax. While the mighty star had already begun its long trip down towards the horizon, the ground and air around the shining city had only begun to toy with the sun's rage, throwing it around and beating the land with its relentless summer heat. To anyone else, it would have been miserable. However, to Sunfire Elves like her, they were invigorated as they basked in the intense energy.
However, despite how much she wanted to, she couldn't afford to do like the other Sunfire Elves. Not now. Looking down, she found herself fidgeting nervously with her hands, seemingly unable to stop. Now, of all times, that energy from the heavens, which she usually welcomed, acted as a curse, surging her already present anxieties.
She took one last deep breath as she watched the previous guard leave the room.
The throne room was empty.
However, she didn't notice the uncanny silence that resulted as her mind was still stuck, spiraling with her thoughts. There had been confusion when she had asked everyone to leave. She could understand why; such was typically not standard protocol. However, in the wake of recent events, Janai didn't care about any of that.
Nothing was standard anymore.
And she had to do this. Sol Regem's speech and the uproar he had stirred throughout Xadia was still fresh in her memory; The fear that he speared into the hearts of Xadians with his venomous words about humanity; the raging inferno of the fire he had lit when the speech ended; the countless Elves, her own people, jumping up and clamoring to sign up for a place in the "Knights of Sol Regem'' while the final words of the great Sun Dragon rung through the air.
We strike Katolis as soon as possible!
She should've known that Sol Regem would try something like this. The warning signs were evident, and knowing the type of person Sol Regem was… this type of action definitely wasn't out of the question for someone like him. However, she wasn't expecting him to actually follow through. For him to immediately go and change the entire course of the future was jarring, even to her. She knew that as an elf, especially one of her nature, Xadia expected her to be excited about the plan, to be one of the first in line to clamor for those armor sets, to be one of those crusaders that would help the almighty and graceful Dragon "free" Xadia from the influence of humanity, as if the past two years had never happened.
But they had.
And now, all she felt when she thought back to those words was an overwhelming sense of crushing dread. Perhaps it was because she had already gotten to know a human herself, one that had proved to her that humanity was not the ticking time bomb that Sol Regem, and now, most of Xadia thought they were. Perhaps if she had never met Amaya, she would be right there with them, marching into the human kingdoms with everyone else. But now, when she thought of the words that Sol Regem had used, words filled with such vitriol and hate, all she could think about was Amaya's incredible sense of warrior's honor at the breach; the bravery and determination she showed as they fought side by side at the battle of the storm spire; her smile as they both held hands at Queen Zubeia's awakening; and the many different times the two of them had sparred, or fooled around when presented with the opportunity to visit each other for diplomatic reasons.
She forced herself to swallow the onset of tears as all the different memories intruded on her.
No.
Humans were not some horrible creatures, and neither was peace an impossibility. If it were, she would never have fallen in love with Amaya; she would have never made those memories that continued to tug at her heartstrings now.
And that was part of why, no matter what, as Janai spent the last couple of days considering everything that was happening, she always felt the same inevitable pang of pity. She wondered what must have been going on over in the west, beyond the horizon. The last she heard, Katolis had surrendered. She didn't know what that meant for them, but she did know that they were now in a lot of trouble, along with everybody else in the human kingdoms.
They didn't deserve this.
It simply wasn't fair. Humanity had put in just as much effort for a peaceful future as Xadia had; that was obvious. And how were they being repaid? Not with flowers, praises, and cheers, but fire, agony, and blood. There was absolutely no way that Janai, in any good conscience, could help support this endeavor.
And so, she felt she only had one option left. Snapping herself back into focus, she determinedly wiped away the residual moisture under her eyes and unrolled a blank piece of paper that had been sitting on her lap, grabbing the pen wrapped up inside.
It was time to do what she needed to.
After finding a suitable writing surface, she hastily scribbled out a letter addressed to no one in particular, explaining her grievances in detail.
If her people wanted to go along with Sol Regem's ideals, they would need to find someone else to rule Lux Aurea.
Her heart raced as she scratched each letter into the paper, occasionally having to wipe away a stray bead of sweat that dripped down from her brow. She knew precisely the magnitude of what she was doing. To openly betray the wishes of the King of The Dragons and Xadia like this could be considered high treason. Her people would undoubtedly view her as a traitor when they read this letter. But she didn't care anymore; those thoughts quickly silenced themselves with the task ahead; she was too far in to quit now.
Having finished, she breathed a sigh of relief, rolled up the piece of parchment, and used a small, thin piece of rope to tie it shut. She then set the note gently onto her throne, patting it a few times as if it were alive.
Janai gave one last pained smile as she looked down at the letter, and then at the vast empty expanse of the throne room, a space she would likely never see again.
She blinked, continuing to hold back her stray tears as she turned towards the towering doors, listening to her hard, booted footsteps echoing throughout the space as she walked.
Giving the doors a mighty shove, she emerged into the long, expansive hallway covered with bright and shining tones of gold and white, similar to those of the throne room. The two guards stationed at the door nearly jumped out of their skin at the sudden bang behind them, instinctively reaching for their weapons before relaxing and standing at attention.
"Your majesty." The guard to the left exhaled, still apparently recovering from the shock. "My apologies, you gave us quite a scare," he said with a chuckle.
Despite the severity of the circumstances, Janai couldn't help but feel a slight grin tug at her lips at the display. She struggled to remain professional in instances like this, always cherishing these small moments that breathed life into an otherwise dull and routine day. It was such a shame that today was anything but routine.
What would they do if they knew what I was-
Janai closed her eyes, shook the renegade thought out of her head, and wore a much more professional, and pleasant smile. "At ease, you two," she said reassuringly. Her expression then faded, morphing into a troubled look as she eyed the open gates of her throne room. "I… I will be away on some business for a while… Nobody is to enter the throne room until I'm back. is that understood?" She prayed that her guards didn't notice her creeping nerves.
The two immediately saluted, "Of course, Your Majesty."
Janai mentally breathed a sigh of relief and regained her smile in a manner she hoped was convincing enough. She then delivered a slight, half-second nod of acknowledgment before hastily shutting the door behind her. The resulting sound was louder than she expected, causing her to jump out of her skin momentarily.
The guard on the right raised an eyebrow at her antics this time but thankfully didn't question her any further. However, Janai's embarrassment and fear still took control of her lips, twisting her expression into a clear simper. She periodically looked in random directions, her mind divided into an even split of two options as it clawed for a solution to a, so far, non-existent problem.
Finally, after about half a second, Janai regained control, bowed, and quickly escaped down the hall, her frantic steps echoing off the walls. She didn't know how long she had now. Eventually, the people of Lux Aurea would grow suspicious. At which point they would search the throne room and find her note.
Undeniable evidence of her treason.
She just hoped she had bought enough time to get far enough away from the kingdom before that happened.
The crushing summer heat slammed her as she exited the palace, a sensation amplified by the slight warmth of the sunforge burning behind her. She could feel it all the way over here, seeing its reflection off the gold in the vast city ahead, shining brightly like a second sun. Though now, she could no longer determine the meaning of its flames.
Was she being judged...
…Or encouraged?
She cast the worries aside for now. Only time would be able to tell on that one.
Lux Aurea was lively this time of day, as it always was. Citizens flooded the city, going about their daily business, and children were running around, playing in the streets or the small patches of grass that dotted countless different blocks. Many people caught her eye and gave her a bow as she quickly sped by, obviously surprised by her sudden, lone appearance. Janai didn't even acknowledge them; their faces blurred and smudged across the edges of her vision as she focused on what was dead ahead of her, set entirely on her goal.
At last, after traveling only a tiny distance, but one that she swore had increased significantly since the last time she had crossed it, the stables came into view: a structure with marble white walls and a triangular golden roof that appeared to stretch far into the city behind it.
The two guards at the door saluted her and, without any word, opened the door as she approached.
Janai swallowed briefly, fighting the timid expression on her face as she slowly made her way into the massive expanse. Here, Lux Aurea kept all the palace's domesticated mounts; every one belonging to every army, guard, noble, or royal member—everything, including her hotcat.
The building was large and airy, with plenty of natural light flooding in. These were, after all, creatures of the sun arcanum; thus, depriving them of this would be nothing short of cruelty.
Immediately behind the entrance, there was a large white pillar connected to a wall that ran down the long end of the building, separating two expansive hallways containing all of the different stables for the animals.
To her right, an attendant was busy at work, caring for the countless exotic creatures. He looked just a bit older than his teenage years, having just entered adulthood. An apprentice of some kind, if she had to guess.
She watched him gently pet the snout of a solche, a sun creature with features resembling that of a cheetah, with black fur like charcoal; it bore a mane of magical fire running down its head and neck, lighting whatever room it resided in with a warm glow. Luckily enough, like the solche, Sunfire Elves were resistant to that specific kind of fire magic. The attendant was in the process of delivering a bucket of water to the creature before suddenly, he and Janai made eye contact, and the poor attendant froze in surprise.
"Y-your Majesty!" he sputtered out, hastily putting down the bucket of water and desperately trying to remember how to bow. After a while, he finally sorted himself out and calmed down with a deep breath. "My apologies… I… I was not expecting you…" he chuckled nervously.
Janai put forth a polite, relaxed smile. "No worries. I know this is all very sudden, but I have been called on short notice to deal with an ongoing situation and must leave for a bit. Could you bring me my hotcat? I'll be out of your hair then, I promise."
"Theia? Of course, your majesty…uhm… I don't want to intrude, but… What's going on…exactly? With the situation they sent you for?" the attendant asked meekly.
Janai's heart pulsed for a moment before she put her hands behind her back and made a formal expression. "Unfortunately… that information is classified."
"Ah… right… right… sorry." The expression he wore made Janai feel quite sorry for him; he was clearly new to this and seemed to regret intruding.
"It's alright," Janai said kindly as she regained her smile.
The attendant warmed up a small amount. "Let me go get your mount; I'll be right back." He still bore the remaining hints of an apologetic tone in his voice.
The attendant returned a small amount of time later, gently pulling on Theia's reins as the creature followed closely behind. Theia was a kind and gentle soul; it was no secret why everyone who worked at the stables loved handling her. She never became aggressive and seemed to have infinite love and affection for whoever was caring for her at that moment.
The attendant stopped, gave Theia a handful of various berries, and gently laid a hand on her snout. The creature, in return, leaned in, purring.
Janai thanked the attendant as he handed over the reins and quickly climbed onto Theia, the two exiting the building together.
She then took one last look at the bustling city around her, which had been her home for as long as she could remember. She hoped she could return one day, but that was for future her to worry about. She had a job to do now.
She carefully gave Theia a slight tug on her reins. The hotcat, in response, slowly spread her wings and took to the skies. Together, they made a sharp turn to the west before disappearing over the horizon, leaving the great city of Lux Aurea in their wake.
Callum's body was locked in place as time slowed down to a crawl. Though the image in front of him was evident, a small part of his brain still refused to believe it, forcing him to blink rapidly just to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. But, after every single cut to black, the image before him remained unchanged.
"J-Janai," Callum managed to stutter out, still recovering from the surprise and the many thoughts and questions that raced through his head.
Janai stood in the doorway and nodded weakly, her face still holding that anxious and slightly embarrassed smile he had seen when he'd opened the door. She fidgeted nervously with her hands, wringing them in front of her, and sighed audibly as her head drifted downward, her face molding into an expression of deep thought, sadness, and a little bit of… regret? She took a small look to the side for the moment, appearing to glance at the trees over by the edge of the clearing before looking back at Callum, her smile returning, though far more crestfallen than before.
Janai then took a prolonged breath of air before exhaling suddenly in a short burst through her mouth, appearing to make her own mental preparations. "I'm… I'm sorry… I know this visit is unexpected… and I promise to explain everything… But…don't worry, I promise you I'm not with Sol Re-"
Callum suddenly rushed at Janai, arms outstretched. The loose, hanging, golden parts of Janai's armor clinked quietly, swinging back and forth as the force of Callum's embrace nearly sent her stumbling backward. Once the Sunfire queen had managed to compute what had just happened, her lips curved into a far warmer and genuine smile as she returned the gesture.
All at once, Callum's emotions re-fired, his eyes once again building up the salty fluid he had become all too familiar with over the past few days. He let out a few quiet sobs before chuckling, separating from the embrace, and wiping his eyes dry. Finally, he smiled at the person before him, his eyes still a deep red. "I'm… sorry about that… " He chuckled again. "Just… with everything happening recently… you know… it's… uh… It's good to see a friendly face again."
It really did feel good. Since this whole thing with Sol Regem, the only faces Callum had seen from Xadia had been cruel or hostile, having come here to take his kingdom and everything important to him, treating those who opposed them without any semblance of mercy. After the unending nightmare he had gone through, it was nice to see a reminder of the Xadia he had seen and geeked out about two years ago, the Xadia he had risked his life for at the battle of the storm spire.
"Good to see you too, Callum," Janai said warmly. However, her expression quickly morphed into one of uncertainty. "Uh…" she croaked out briefly before hastily checking her surroundings. "Is it okay if we come in? I know this is all very sudden, but… we shouldn't be seen out here. Again, I'll explain everything soon, just… please… "
We? Callum thought, before something orange and fluffy caught his eye. Looking a little to the left, he finally took notice of the creature sitting just behind Janai. Its tail swayed slowly up and down as it returned Callum's glance with its wide, sky-blue eyes and tilted its head to the side in an adorable, innocently curious fashion.
"Y-yeah, of course… please…" Callum's princely manors, which had been hardcoded into his brain from all those years of instruction, immediately activated as he stepped to the side and extended his arm back into the lodge, almost as if guiding her in.
Although in doing so, he quickly noticed the faces of his other lodge guests as they watched the situation unfold. While Opeli, having been down here with him and therefore far closer to the reunion, had already relaxed significantly, Iris and the Crow Master were watching intently from the floor above, apprehensive and uneasy.
Callum chuckled and rubbed the back of his head as he spoke. "Oh yeah… uhh… everyone, this is Janai. She- she fought with us at the battle of the storm spire. Don't worry, she's on our side," Callum said as Janai's heavy armored footsteps came up next to him, followed by the trailing mount's quick pat, pat, pat as its paws made contact with the wooden floor.
Janai pulled her shoulders in tightly, making herself smaller before hesitantly waving with a flustered grin. Callum watched as his spectator's bodies deflated from the release of tension before descending the steps to greet their new visitor.
After a quick round of introductions, Callum suddenly perked up. "Uh… hey... Janai? We can sit in the dining room back there if you want. It-it uh… might be more comfortable, you know, than… standing here." He chuckled awkwardly as he finally closed the door behind them, realizing it had been open the entire time.
"Of course, that would actually be much appreciated… thank you, Callum."
While the group made their way into the pitch-black room, Opeli grabbed some old spare matches from a drawer in the kitchen and, after struggling to reawaken the spark within them, muttering some obscenities about the incompetent castle staff apparently forgetting to replace the matches every now and then, finally managed to get one to light.
As Opeli lit the various candles hung up on the wall, a pleasant, warm, orange, flickering glow slowly spread throughout the room, chasing away the darkness and settling everyone's crushing stress just a bit more. There was just something about the sight that seemed to return a hint of… normalcy...
This was despite the fact that the dining room had almost been utterly untouched since Callum's arrival and was conquered by the same dust and cobwebs that covered every other corner of the lodge. Only a few select chairs showed signs of recent use, with a few stray breadcrumbs strewn about the long table which ran down the middle of the room. These remnants of the bread, which Opeli had managed to snag before leaving the castle, were already being claimed by the lodge's new ant population.
Callum stood momentarily at the head of the table as the rest of the group began settling in. "I- I'm sorry… I don't have much food, but-"
"It's alright, Callum, I'm not hungry anyway." Janai smiled as she dusted off an unused chair. Theia, meanwhile, made herself comfortable, curling up in the front corner of the room and allowing her eyelids to, very slowly, begin falling. A much-needed rest after a long flight across the continent.
"Ugh…" Janai said, her face falling into her hands as she and everyone else took their seats. "There's so much I want to say… where to even begin…"
"How did you find us?" Callum asked, looking at Janai attentively.
"Right…" Janai sighed. "Well…" She paused momentarily and made an awkward movement with her mouth as she appeared to try to get her thoughts in order. "So… after Sol Regem took over, I… I was… at a bit of a loss for what to do. It shocked…everyone…and… well…some took it easier than I did.
"I tried to go on like normal… at first… rule Lux Aurea like I always had, but… after some time, I just… I just realized I couldn't do it anymore… staying would've meant following his agenda, and I… I just couldn't go along with that… not after everything that had happened… it didn't feel right. I didn't know exactly what Sol Regem was planning, but based on his speech once he took over, I knew it wouldn't be anything good… Sol Regem hates humanity… he always did…"
Callum found himself gulping unconsciously at what Janai said. A quick look around the table showed that some of the others appeared to be almost holding their breath. He didn't know why this prompted such a reaction from him. He knew all of this about Sol Regem for a while; he had experienced it personally when he first met him and then again during his… his… conquest of Katolis.
Callum tried to shake the rogue stream of thoughts from his head; now was not the time for this. Instead, he turned his attention back to Janai, hoping to mute his thoughts with the distraction of her story.
"But it wasn't just that. I had heard about Sol Regem's hatred for a long time… even shared it once…that was until I met Amaya." She stopped briefly and looked longingly at the wooden table before apparently realizing something with a flicker of hope. However, that slight sparkle quickly faded away as she took one more look around before addressing Callum. "I assume… since she's not down here with us, she's-.."
"She's not here…" Callum said dejectedly. "She's still out with Rayla and the others…" He swallowed hard. "...Looking for Ezran"
"Oh…right…" Janai curled her head into herself, trying her best to hide her feelings, though the small hints which Callum did see began to build an uneasy feeling inside him.
"Please…" Callum asked, already knowing the answer. "Is there anything you know?"
A hopeless smile formed on Janai's lips as she looked back at Callum with glassy eyes and shook her head. "Callum… I'm sorry… but if I knew where they were or what was happening with them, I wouldn't have asked about Amaya just now…I… don't know any more than you."
A shaky breath forced its way into Callum's lungs. He already knew what she was going to say. He knew his question was out of pure desperation. He had been expecting that answer the whole time. So why did finally hearing it sting so hard?
There was something more, though… Janai never vocalized it, but there was something about her demeanor when Callum brought up the mission to find Ezran. That immediate inward retreat… that uncertain aura with how she danced around her words, the heartbroken look in her eye mixed with a particular type of resignation.
The mission was doomed. At least, Janai thought so.
Callum's head began spiraling again as he felt his last remaining hopes turn to ash in front of him. This whole time, he had been able to cling on to the belief, the vague hope that at least after all this, he might be able to see Rayla and Ezran again, the two most important people in his life. And everyone else too: Amaya, who, other than Ezran, was the only blood relative he had left; Soren, who, while a little mean before, had become extremely close in recent years and always seemed to care so much for him and Ezran; Corvus, who had helped Ezran make it home when he decided he needed to leave and be king and always had their safety as his top priority, even when it could be argued he was working against them. And Gren, whose smile and positive attitude always seemed to light up the room, even on Callum's darkest days. These people… they were all family… the last family he had left… and he was about to lose them all just like that.
No… they couldn't…. NOT NOW!
Callum began breathing harder as he felt a tidal wave of emotion approaching the shoreline. He struggled, and gripped the edge of the table, forcing himself to snap back to reality. He couldn't lose control. Not again. Not now. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself down, remembering what his mother had always taught him.
Breathe
Think rationally
Breathe
Janai didn't have faith in the mission, but that didn't mean he had to do the same. He wasn't going to let the rest of his hope die now. He'd have nothing then. Rayla, Amaya, Soren, Corvus, Gren…, and even Nyx… were good (though Nyx was questionable), intelligent, and extremely capable people. They weren't going to let this or anything else slow them down. They would overcome everything that Sol Regem threw at them.
They had to.
"Callum?" Janai asked, worried.
"It's… It's okay…" Callum finally said with a deep breath. His near outburst had earned him a few concerned glances from the others, however nobody said anything. "Please… continue, Janai… you were speaking of Sol Regem?"
Janai nodded. "Right… well, as I said, I had heard about Sol Regem's hatred for a long time, but… I don't know… when I watched his speech that day, listening to his plans about invading the human kingdoms… his rage… it seemed to carry more fire than it ever had… it was almost like you could feel it burning all around us as he spoke, … I think for the first time in a while… I had been truly scared by a Dragon…"
Janai paused for a moment, letting her words sink in. "So… after contemplating everything, and hearing what he had already done… I decided to leave. Unannounced, I left Lux Aurea with nothing but a note to explain my absence. To leave my kingdom behind like this… It was treason… I knew that… I just hoped they wouldn't learn about what I had done until after I left."
Silence filled the room as everyone listened, being pulled further and further into the tale. Callum specifically couldn't stop thinking about what she had said. Janai had sacrificed everything just to come here. He didn't know if it was his selfish side talking, but despite the gravity of the situation, a big part of him felt elated that she had done all that…gone through those things… for him… for them… for Katolis… for humanity. It gave him the reminder that… despite everything going on right now, even when it felt like the entire world was against him… he still had friends. He still had people on his side. Maybe, everything he, Ezran, and Rayla had worked for hadn't gone entirely to waste. Though it didn't fix a lot, the realization was still extremely important to him, and a nice reminder to help him stay grounded.
"I tried going to your castle first… then…" Janai stopped for a moment, seemingly trying to reconsider what she was about to say before she sighed, apparently deciding to just spill it anyway. "...Then I saw what happened to it…"
Callum immediately snapped out of his better mood at the mention of his old home. He looked down at the floor, his sorrows returning.
"I'm… I'm sorry, Callum…" Janai said, noticing his reaction.
Callum tried his best to wave it away dismissively, though his hand shook as he did so. "It… it's fine…"
Janai nodded understandingly. "I… I didn't know what to do from there… I didn't know where you were or if you were even alive… I had begun to wonder if… if I had been too late…I was ready to call it quits and just hunker down somewhere in Katolis or the other human kingdoms while trying my best to help the people… even if I wouldn't do much good… but then I realized…. This place… I had visited it a couple of times before on winter visits. I still fondly remembered warming up some hot chocolate for Amaya and I while we watched you all have snowball fights in the winter weather." Janai smiled at the memory before shaking her head and getting back on track. "I just knew… if there was anywhere you would be… it would be right here… and well… you know the rest."
Callum sighed. It was a lot to take in, and there was not as much news as he hoped. He didn't blame Janai for it, obviously, she was doing the best she could, but Sol Regem was only giving her so much to go off of. He just wished he could get a better picture of what was happening. Especially now that Janai had confirmed Sol Regem wanted to lay siege to all the kingdoms, not just Katolis. He already knew it, but the confirmation made it all a little more real. When he was still a prince, he had contact with all the different rulers around the continent; he could always form a mental map of all the current events. Now that was all missing; the only source of information he had were those soldiers he had sent out to the other kingdoms… whom he was still waiting to hear from. Not that staying informed would help much… he still didn't know what he would do about it even if he had all the news in the world…possibly help in the search for Ezran? He didn't know; it was… it was all just so. Damn. MESSED UP.
"There is one caveat to all this though, I guess…" Janai started again. As Callum's eyes moved up to meet hers, he saw consideration in her face, mixed with a hint of what seemed like determination or at least some severe focus. "I'm not the only one who has… issues with Sol Regem… far from it. Right after Sol Regem had finished speaking that day…while so many others were diving for the armor sets being distributed or cheering on their new king… I happened to see out of the corner of my eye someone backing up…I think it was a Skywing. He seemed… really uncomfortable and unsure. That's when I turned my head and saw quite a few people had decided to do the same. Elves from different sources were all trying to retreat silently from the crowd amid the commotion. I… don't know if I was the only one who saw them."
That piqued Callum's interest. He immediately sprang up with attention. "Do you know where they might have-?"
"No… Callum… Unfortunately, I only saw them leaving… I don't know where they went off to after that. I don't even know if they want to get involved per se… I don't know… It was just something that I noticed."
Callum sat back in his chair again, disappointed. It was a bit of good news, but he didn't really know what to do with it right now. He had no way to contact those Elves who had walked away, and, as Janai had said, he didn't even know if they wanted to be contacted. It was frustrating, to say the least.
In a last-ditch effort to try and get something, Callum finally sighed and held his head in his hands for a moment, trying his hardest to work through all the games his mind was playing with him before finally saying, "Janai?... Do you?... do you think things will ever return to normal?"
Janai let out a small spurt of air through her nose before solemnly looking down at the table and shaking her head. "I don't know, Callum… I really don't know… Sol Regem… he changed so much… managed to stir up so much hate, reawaken old feelings that had been dormant for so long… Even if Sol Regem were suddenly defeated right now...and things began changing for the better again… there are some things you just can't undo… like… like…" Janai paused for a moment and took a deep breath before continuing. "Like the deaths of Queen Zubiea And King Azymondias."
Callum felt his heart plummet. Through everything else going on, he had almost forgotten. It was one of the first pieces of terrible news he had received since this all had begun. Zym and Zubeia were gone, and no matter what happened, no matter what they did, no matter their efforts, they were never coming back.
"It's very possible that even if things begin to improve… and go back to normal… it won't be the normal we've grown accustomed to. It might be wise to prepare for a… a new normal."
Callum sighed. It wasn't really what he'd hoped for, but he couldn't argue against it. Too many factors had been tampered with already, even if they could bring down Sol Regem right now… what would happen then…who would replace him? Who would dull the raging flames within Xadia left in Sol Regem's wake? As much as Callum hated it, he had to confront the obvious.
Nothing would ever be the same again.
Snap
The shattering of a stray twig echoed into the forest air, causing a couple of birds from the treeline above to shoot off in a sudden panic. Zym held his eyes shut tightly, holding his breath, praying nobody had heard the sound. Slowly, he pried his eyes open and peered into the dark, seemingly never-ending woods. However, even with the excellent vision of an Archdragon, darkness was all he could see. Growth loomed above him, creating an impenetrable thick ceiling, blocking out the moon and stars, denying him the gift of their light.
Zym stayed rooted to the floor for a few seconds, listening to his surroundings as his ever-weakening legs began to wobble. The only sounds that managed to reach his ears, however, were the soft chirps of crickets and small rustles in the trees from a gentle passing gust of wind, as well as the hoot of a far-off owl echoing in the distance, unbothered by the Dragon's antics.
Zym sighed, then, as the fear of immediate danger began to leave him, he huffed, shook his head in aggravation with himself, and, after finding his orientation once again, he attempted to push onward through the large fauna. Barely able to see half a meter ahead of him, he shuffled forward slowly, though he didn't know if that was just him being careful or his body's ever-familiar calls for sleep returning with a vengeance, which he had to strain himself to force down. After his broken sleep incident last night and his encounter with those knights days ago, he wasn't eager to make himself vulnerable again.
And so, he continued walking despite his body's demands, until, suddenly, he felt his head running into a patch of hanging leaves. He grunted, heating up with the building annoyance that had been flaring up as nature messed with him, placing obstacle after obstacle, allowing only mere moments to react and avoid what was dead ahead.
A few days ago, finding a patch of growth like this would have made him overjoyed.
Not anymore.
Because, in addition to everything else he had sustained the past week or so, his body now sported the marks of the minefield the environment had become. Every piece of tall grass, bush, and growth he forced his way through was hiding some devilish surprise. A new root to trip over, a new deep hole to step into, a new net of thorns to tangle around his skin, scratching open fresh wounds and burying themselves in old ones as they choked the life out of him.
As if feeling left out, his stomach now also began rumbling violently, forcing Zym to come to a stop and clutch it for a moment.
Right… that was also an issue.
He couldn't remember the last time he had eaten… and he was getting really hungry. He felt he could easily eat a whole deer right now, but neither that nor anything else seemed to be lying around in these god-forsaken woods. It was like some cruel joke, he was surrounded by all sorts of vegetation, just not the ones that would provide him with much nutritional value. If he continued on like this, he would have to start eating bugs. Though he didn't know how many of those could fill up a Dragon, not that he'd be able to see them right now anyway…
His skin grazed another bunch of leaves and growth to his side, and it, as punishment, rained down across his whole body with flakes of dirt and accumulated dust, with some slipping harshly into his eyes.
Zym hissed in pain as he blinked rapidly, attempting to rid himself of the foreign invaders, blindly stumbling forward until he felt himself run into something.
Squeezing out the last of the dust and fighting against the throbbing in his head, he looked up to see what had stopped him.
A low-hanging tree branch sat dead in his way.
His anger peaked, and he whacked harshly at the stubborn plant limb. It rebounded forcefully, landing a heavy blow to his snout.
"AGH!"
Zym instinctively clutched the burning area of impact, recoiling as the world around him became a blur.
Though hard to see in the darkness, pulling his claw away, he could've sworn he saw dark streams of something running down the appendage. An immediate stench of metal filled his nostrils as he felt warm drops leaking from his nose, running down his face and dripping onto the floor below with a light tap. His suspicions confirmed, his breath hitched as his eyes began to fill with tears.
Typical
The growing sadness sparked his previous frustrations as he stared back at the offending tree. His mind abandoned all rationale, and he let out a feral yell of fury mixed with heavy grief. His still-flowing tears flew backward through the air as he lunged at the branch with the full force of his body.
It snapped, sending Zym flailing into the fauna as the branch flew out ahead of him. He tried his best to land on his feet, only to feel the sudden, red-hot piercing of a particularly sharp rock sinking into his claw as he touched down. He inhaled sharply, his pupils constricting in agony as he violently ripped his claw away from the stone. The sudden jerk forward caused him to lose his balance and stumble, falling face first through the leaves ahead, which quickly gave way…
To air…
Zym tried desperately to put his claws out ahead of him to stop the impending fall, but it was hopeless. His legs acted like springs as they slammed into the hillside, thrusting him forward and causing him to summersault down the steep hill face first. He lost track of up or down as the world around him spun, only feeling impact after impact each time he made contact with the floor. At one point, he gained a small amount of airtime, allowing him to open his eyes, only to see the ground rushing back to meet him before the whole cycle started anew, sending him on a collision course with the various bushes, sticks, and rocks in his path. Some of them were occasionally dislodged and began to fall with him, continuously hitting him during his tumble.
His back screamed out in shattering pain as he slammed into something hard. The overwhelming force of the impact shot the air out of his lungs as his head snapped backward, his horns saving his skull from a collision with whatever he had crashed into, though not without sending a few throbbing aches into his head for good measure.
Zym didn't have time to think about it because the remaining momentum of his fall carried him up and over the obstacle, launching him into the air before falling to the ground below.
He lay there for a moment, staring up into the canopy of trees above as he gasped helplessly in an attempt to fill his starved lungs.
He continued to lay there, even after getting his breathing under control. His eyes filled with tears as he continued to look toward the sky, completely and utterly defeated.
Why?
He thought. The words rang out repeatedly in his head. Why, why, why…
He squeezed the salty rivers out of his eyes as he slowly curled himself up on the forest floor, sobbing silently to himself.
Why, why, why….
It had all become too much; everything from the past few days had suddenly crescendoed. Something snapped. And everything that the world had thrown at him twisted and turned inside him as his sadness spun itself into a cold. Hard. Rage. His sobs stopped, and his breathing grew harder.
WHY
Enraged with a new dark fire, he struggled for a few moments to gain control of his limbs, grunting as his legs refused to comply. They wobbled underneath him and ultimately gave way under his weight with each attempt to move forward, causing him to tumble again. Zym yelled out in anger and pounded the ground next to him.
Pathetic.
Get up.
Now.
Zym tried again, this time far slower and with more care, stretching out his front claws ahead of him and pushing them down into the ground with all his might. They shook and sputtered as they struggled to lift his upper body. However, Zym was no longer taking no for an answer, their suffering only causing him to push harder. Then, finally, after decently securing himself on his front, he did the same with his hind legs, being as slow but as forceful as possible, until at last, though weakly, he was standing once more.
He stood there for a moment until something caught his ear. It was faint and barely audible above the cacophony of cicadas and crickets, but it was there. Behind the bushes ahead, just out of his view, was an unmistakable trickling sound, the sound of running water.
A river.
Zym slowly slogged forward, gaining a bit more command over his limbs with every wobbly step that he took, gradually making his way towards the sound, struggling against the pain that attempted to grab him and drag him back into the darkness, away from his goal, away from salvation.
After swatting the bushes away, Zym finally saw it, glistening in the starlight. The river itself was small, more akin to a stream. The water was textured with small bumps as it glazed over the uneven rock bed below. Despite how fast the water was rushing, its shallowness tamed it, ensuring it remained as peaceful as Zym had heard back in the forest.
Zym nearly tripped over himself as he approached, stumbling into the open area.
The trees were forced back about 1-2 meters on either side of the river bed, allowing plenty of moonlight from above to seep into the open space and illuminate its tranquil qualities. Both sides were lined with a smooth grass field dotted with groups of various magical flowers, glowing softly in a variety of colors, oblivious to the world around them. They were surrounded by the occasional flicker of fireflies, which found brief interest in the plants, curiously inspecting them before moving on through the field, their lights continuing to dot the grass.
It was… beautiful…
But Zym wasn't admiring the scenery today; his mind was somewhere else, trapped in a dark spiral which the illumination around him only had a marginal effect in breaking.
He took a deep breath and slowly wobbled to the river's edge, gazing into the mirror that stared back at him when he reached his destination. His condition hadn't improved; in fact, his recent journey through the woods had only made him worse for wear. Brand new dark spots of dirt and freshly opened wounds were strewn haphazardly and harshly around his face, joining the already present injuries. The right side of his head appeared darker than the left, coated in a thin layer of dust and grime.
Zym sighed, shaking his head at what he had become before slowly leaning in to take a drink from the river.
However, just before his lips parted the water, the reflection before him changed. He blinked, confused, as it slowly morphed in front of him. Once it had revealed itself to him fully, he gasped and nearly took a step back at what he saw. What had once been a broken and battered sky-blue Dragon had now changed into a large, looming figure with dark blue scales and two majestic, glowing eyes piercing through the darkness as they gazed back at him.
"M–Mom?"
Zym asked quietly to the image in the water, a heavy weight present in his chest.
The image did not respond. Instead, its eyes narrowed at him, glowering as its face twisted into a deep scowl.
A pit slowly built in his stomach as his vision blurred from the building of tears on his face.
"No, Mom-" .
The image snorted angrily, the disdain on its face growing harder and harder.
This is your fault.
His voice whispered in his head.
You've brought this upon yourself.
Zym's breath hitched
"I'm- I'm Sssor-"
The image shook its head, then quickly turned away, breaking the line of sight as if not even able to look at him anymore.
"No… Mom, wait-" Zym tried, desperately, gripping the edge of the river with his claws as if that would stop what was happening. "Please-"
It was no use, though; the image closed its eyes, spread its wings… and then it was gone with nothing but the glow of the moon in the background in its wake.
"No-!" Zym shut his eyes tightly as his whole body began shaking, his grief met his previous rage, and the two warred in his body, creating a conflict that threatened to tear him apart from the inside.
Finally, the rage won out and Zym's head snapped towards the river, towards where that reflection used to be, and he yelled as he brought his claw down across the water with all his might.
He just barely saw the harsh splash of white water he had caused before he collapsed, silently sobbing. His inner fury continued to simmer as he stared at his now-returned reflection.
This was why, wasn't it… why it seemed like the world just refused to leave him alone…Of course, it was… the universe was punishing him. It was not like he didn't deserve it…
I'm sorry….
He thought to himself, over and over again. Not like it mattered now.
Why….
Why am I still here?
He looked at the reflection of the sky above him in the river.
Why?!
He demanded an answer, but nothing came back, predictably. It was not like the sky was going to talk… apparently, he was just too stupid to think of that.
And so he lay there, staring into the river, watching, unmoving, as his bloodied reflection churned in the busy flow of the water.
He wasn't thirsty anymore.
A couple of minutes later, Zym heard a faint noise to his left, though he didn't truly process what it was until he saw…something…manifest on the surface of the water. Zym yelped when he realized what it was, A familiar masked face had appeared, staring him down through his reflection.
He instantly swiveled his head to the side, and sure enough, two black, gaping eyeholes met his gaze. This wasn't like the reflection he had seen earlier; this was real.
He growled at the figure, summoning tiny sparks and bolts of lightning that began flickering around his body.
"What the HELL do you want?!" Zym snarled.
The masked figure said nothing, merely tilting their head as they continued to peer directly into his soul.
Zym could see them much more clearly now. The figure's gray coat, connected to the hood pulled over its head, was made of a cotton-like material with buttons positioned up the middle. Matching colored pants hung loosely around the legs. Both the jacket and the pants were well-worn, torn, and harshly stained with dark splatters of dirt, mud, or grass. Their hands, which fell idly at their side, were covered with black leather gloves, similarly worn and well past their prime.
The hood's shadow made it challenging to see the mask itself, but it appeared to be some kind of old, white drama mask bearing a constant neutral expression. Cracks and chips of gray, where the paint had failed to maintain its hold, split through the mask's pure white like a freshly opened fissure.
The image was extremely unsettling, to say the least, building a slight tinge of fear in the Dragon's heart.
Suddenly, they stepped forward, and Zym immediately shot a small bolt of lightning ahead of him as a warning. It slammed into the ground and generated a harsh BOOM, kicking up a cloud of dirt and leaving a scorched circle in its wake.
"Back. off." he hissed.
Surprisingly, they heeded his warning and did as instructed, with a slight clinking noise as they did so, like metal hitting metal.
The figure then tilted their head before they reached into their left pocket and pulled out a small, brown fabric bag. They held it out in front of them momentarily, pinching the top of the bag closed with their thumb and index finger before releasing it haphazardly with a flick of the wrist, sending the bag sailing ever so slightly in Zym's direction.
Zym braced himself, not entirely sure what for.
The bag splattered on the grass with a designated thunk and tumbled with the excess momentum, slowly rolling towards him, its contents spilling out all over the river bank.
Zym nearly had to do a double-take when he saw what had fallen out of the bag. He didn't know what he had been expecting, but it certainly wasn't this.
Splayed out in front of him, in an almost perfect line following the satchel's path, was a large variety of Xadian fruits and vegetables of all different shapes and sizes, many of which Zym recognized, coating the green in front of him in a brightly colored rainbow.
Zym looked at the figure in disbelief, who merely continued to stand there, entirely emotionless.
He narrowed his eyes. "The hell is all this?" he demanded with a certain degree of venom in his voice. He wasn't sure what game this was, but he was going to make damn sure they knew he wasn't interested in playing along.
The figure didn't respond.
Of course, they didn't.
Zym again looked at the assortment of food, and as he did so, he felt the familiar rumbles of his stomach reawakening, opening up a gaping abyss within him, demanding. As suspicious as this all was, Zym would be lying if he were to say he didn't feel an onset of a particular primal urge as he stared at the colorful sustenance. In fact, it was getting harder and harder to deny.
He wanted it. He had had so little to eat for so long that all it took was the sight of a few colorful plants to get him salivating.
Pathetic, really, when he thought about it, to throw himself at food haphazardly tossed on the floor by a stranger he didn't even know or wasn't even sure he could trust. But despite all that, he felt himself slowly being drawn forward by the allure of the sweet, fruity smell that flooded his senses.
However, finally, he managed to stop himself at the last moment. He narrowed his eyes, scrunching his expression into one of scrutinization, and gently tapped one of the Xadian apples with his claw. He watched as it tipped and fell over onto its side, gently rolling a tiny bit to the right before coming to a halt.
He locked eyes with the masked figure in front of him again, a hard glare showing on his face. "How do I know you didn't poison this?" he spat, albeit quietly.
The figure immediately let their arms fall to their side while their body slumped forward a tad bit for a brief moment, almost as if sighing. Then, it was hard to make out, but Zym could have sworn their head swiveled a tiny bit, tilting upwards, then to his right, and back down.
Did they just roll their eyes?
Before Zym could put too much thought into it, the masked person suddenly began walking forward in his direction.
Zym immediately recoiled, leaping back a few steps and growling at the figure again.
They took no notice and slowly crept their way over to the blue Dragon. There was something unnaturally calm about how they walked that sent chills down Zym's spine, but he couldn't quite place his finger on it. Though he wasn't going to waste time trying to figure it out now. Instead, he took another two steps backward and reactivated his aura of lightning, charging up as the figure got closer.
Thankfully, they stopped this time and snapped their head to meet his briefly. They then slowly bent over, picking up the apple Zym had tapped just moments earlier before turning around.
Zym watched from behind as their right arm moved to grab the bottom of the mask and tilt it upwards a small amount; however, as Zym tried to move forward slightly to get a better look, they instantly snapped the mask back shut and spun around to look at him, making Zym stop on a dime as his eyes went wide with surprise.
They stared at each other momentarily before the one in the mask nonchalantly turned back around like nothing had ever happened.
Zym heard an audible crunch as whoever this was bit into the fruit before once again dawning the mask and turning back around, a large chunk now visibly taken out of the apple they were holding.
Zym slowly slithered closer, a dangerous, skeptical, and warning expression still on his face. "Who are you?" he said in a low, demanding tone.
The masked figure didn't respond; they only stared at him for a moment, then took out their free hand, held it in front of their face with the palm facing inward, and wiggled each of their fingertips sequentially.
Their five fingertips.
"Oh, so you're human? Wow, that really narrows it down. Do you know how many humans are on this continent?" The sarcasm in his voice betrayed the creeping agitation. He was really starting to tire of this person's games.
The figure just tilted their head again. That damn pose… It had all but lost its intimidation factor at this point, and only made his blood boil. He couldn't tell if they were curious, or making fun of him, or some other third thing, and the uncertainty drove him mad.
It was then that he realized something. The masked one… throughout this conversation… they were close enough too…
On an impulse, Zym immediately launched his claw toward the figure, making a shot for the mask. However, before Zym could even get close, in what felt like less time than he could perceive, the masked one had intercepted him with both hands. The sheer speed of this dazed the blue Dragon slightly as he stared at the figure in front of him, mouth agape, with the only sound being that of the lone apple falling onto the grass floor and bouncing a couple of times before rolling over into the river with an audible
Splash
The figure held his claw tightly, though with noticeable effort. Their two hands wrapped around his, constricting it in a tight iron grip, one that to any human or elf would've been quite painful.
"Alright… I get it… Draggy-no-touchy-masky…" Zym sighed, slightly annoyed. Although he could've probably fought harder here, he decided to leave it. This individual's quick response to Zym's initial aggression reminded him that he had no idea who this person was or what they were capable of. It was better not to start battles with an opponent he knew nothing about. "Can you…Can you let go of my claw now?"
The masked one slowly released their grip, letting their hands fall back to their waist before standing fully upright again. Then, after staring for a bit longer, they simply turned and walked away.
"So when can I expect to see you again?" Zym called out behind them with annoyed, oozing sarcasm.
They stopped for a moment.
"Yeah… I know you're following me; you haven't exactly been subtle."
They stood there for a little while longer before continuing to walk out into the wood they had emerged from; Zym held them in his eyesight until they disappeared into the shrubbery, leaving the ex-king of the Dragons alone to his thoughts once more.
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