Sera
Flying was becoming easier for me the more I practiced. Surprisingly, my wings were strong enough to keep me airborne despite the lack of exercise I had with them. Ryu urged me not to push myself too hard. My wings were sturdy, but I couldn't overexert myself. Ryu remained in his dragon form the whole time, allowing me to land on his back to give me time to rest and recover before taking to the skies again. Every time I took to the skies, Ryu would have me fly a certain distance, andthen return to him. Two feet became four, four feet became six, and so on. Thankfully, the wind current wasn't strong enough for me to lose flight pattern, but I was getting tired. After my fifth lap, I returned to Ryu and plopped onto his back with a huff.
"You've done well, princess," Ryu's voice echoed telepathically.
"Thank you," I panted."Was this what it was like when you first learned to fly?"
"Partially." The air around Ryu shifted as his voice became more somber. "I learned much later than my fellow shifters had, so it was tough for me, too. At least you have someone like me to help you."
"Who helped you learn?" I asked.
Ryu paused for a moment before saying, "Nobody."
I gaped at the beautiful dragon. "What? You didn't have someone to teach you to fly?"
He shook his head. "I had no one before finding the den."
"Why?"
Ryu turned his head to the side so that one massive eye was watching me, the emotions swimming in its depth like the tides of the ocean were telling. The visible sorrow had me wanting to reach out and run my hand over his scaled face.
His eyes hooded as he huffed out a heated breath. "I'm a hybrid too, princess."
My heart tightened so much I could barely breathe. Of all the things that Ryu could've confessed to me, I didn't expect it to be that he, too, was half-dragon. A hybrid, but what was the other half? He couldn't be half-druid, could he? I couldn't sense the aura of a druid from him. One that would tie him to the earth and nature surrounding us. His aura was different; fiery, like how I'd expect from every other dragon, but a bit more?
"I see," I got out, but I wanted to know more. I had questions I wanted to ask, but I didn't want to push him.
Ryu's dragon chuffed out a laugh. "I can practically smell the curiosity wafting off you."
"Can you blame me?" I asked, no sense in denying it. "I didn't want to be rude or make you feel uncomfortable. You don't have to tell me anything if you don't wish to."
"Quite all right, but thank you. I appreciate your concern. As for what I am, I'm a mage from the Xushoeji region in the East. Or rather, half-mage. I grew up in a little town called Quolong."
Now it made sense why his aura felt the way it did. Mages were a different form of magic wielder than druids. Where druids tapped into the forces of nature to conduct our enchantments, mages could manipulate one of the four elements. Mother always considered the Tarrin Kingdom of Xushoeji the most intelligent and imposing among the regions. But I also heard that Xushoeji was also a beautiful region filled with music, festivals, cherry blossoms, and a rich history. Of all the regions in Iferia, Xushoeji was one I would've loved to have visited.
"I've heard of Xushoeji. Lovely region," I said.
Ryu dipped his dragon head. "It is, but it's also a prejudice region."
"What do you mean?"
Ryu let out a soft dragon rumble. "It's not important right now. We need to focus on you and your training. Let's get you back to the den."
I wanted to protest. I wanted to know more about why Xushoeji was prejudiced, and how it affected him, but I knew he'd tell me when the time was right. Still, I wondered what Ryu must've gone through if he lived among the dragons rather than back where he came from. Did they treat him differently for being a hybrid? I at least hoped he was treated better amongst the dragons. Holding on tight, Ryu flapped his powerful wings and dove through the clouds. He was about to bank towards the right, back to where Dragon's Peak Mountain was located, but froze in place except for his wings.
"What is it?" I asked.
Ryu's head moved around as if in search of something. "We're not alone."
Now it was I who was frozen. A part of me was hoping it was maybe Andriel or Lord Igneel coming to look for us. The sounds of a dragon's roar filled me with hope, but it fell deep into the void seconds later when I realized the sounds were too far from the den. It was coming from the opposite side as well.
"Oh no," I whispered in terror.
The dragon riders. They found us, and we were all alone.
"Hang on tight, princess!" Ryu's voice remained calm, even though I could feel the terror wafting off him. The poor man had only been free from his prison for a couple of days, and now he'd have to fight to stay that way.
My hold on one of his spikes held tight as he took off in a different direction, no longer safe to return to the mountains. He couldn't risk bringing the dragon riders there for fear that one might escape and warn Verania of our location. With that in mind, Ryu was leading them away, but that further emphasized how alone we were against however large this army would be. Dragon riders didn't travel alone. There would at least be four in a party. The largest group I'd seen was ten. The possessed dragons' cries grew louder, though I still couldn't see them. How was that possible?
Unless...
"I think they're invisible," I warned Ryu through his mind.
"They are. I can feel the druid's enchantment," Ryu confirmed as he dove to fly through the clouds and use them to conceal us better.
I'd never seen the dragon riders in action until the escape during the Dragon Ceremony, so I wasn't aware of what tricks they used to capture the shifters. An invisibility enchantment is an underhanded tactic, but an effective one. But if memory served me, there was an enchantment that could heighten my eyesight to see through invisibility. Narrowing my eyes, I tried focusing on the blank area behind me, willing myself to see what's obviously there but concealed. No longer restrained from the poison, my magic flowed like water. My eyes tingled, my vision sharpening. Something blurred in the center, almost as if the empty sky was a painting and the movement of a brush was causing the image to shift. A faint outline came into view, still trying to remain camouflaged but more visible to me now.
"I see them," I said to Ryu.
So far, I could only see one dragon rider, but I knew better than to expect only one. More would be close by.
The lonely dragon rider behind us remained on our tail, the poor dragon's head raised, and I could sense the heat building.
I gasped. "They're attacking. Ryu, behind us!"
Ryu whirled around and raised his in retaliation. Both dragons spewed flames from their mouths, but Ryu's flames differed. Usually, flames were the color of the sun, a mix of red, gold, and orange. For my mate, his was a deep azure color. I didn't know fire could be a different color, and as Ryu breathed out his torrential blue flames, I couldn't help wondering if maybe his bloodline affected it. A collision of spewing embers caused a torrential inferno that erupted between us. The clouds cleared, and the disturbance must have disrupted the invisibility enchantment. The enemy dragon rider came into view, the druid grunting and pulled on the reins that strapped into the harness the dragon wore. Flames dispersed as the dragon rider reeled back, preparing for another attack.
"Your time away from your kingdom hasn't done you any favors, huh, Princess? You're not looking so well," the druid knight shouted.
"On the contrary, I've never felt better after learning the truth," I fired back.
"The truth about what, that you were never fit to be our ruler?"
"The truth about the dragons we've been holding captive. They're not mindless creatures, they're shifters. Living beings like you and me, and they deserve to live in peace."
"They're weapons of destruction that need to be tamed by us," the druid knight argued. "Their mighty power belongs to us. We're the only ones who can control them, and with them, we'll show everyone why the druid region is the strongest."
"He's not going to listen to reason," Ryu's voice rang.
My thoughts exactly. I hoped I could reason with him, to show him the error of his ways, and maybe convince him to release his hold over the dragon he was controlling. Alas, it didn't seem possible. Power had corrupted him and stripped him of his humanity. Or was it Verania's beliefs that brainwashed him?
"This is your only warning, traitor. Give up and tell us the dragons' locations, and the trip back to Queen Verania for punishment will be far less painful. Refuse, and I'll take you both down by force," the druid knight warned.
I pretended to think about it. "A tempting offer, but I'm afraid I'll have to refuse."
The druid knight's sneer could be seen through the openings of his helmet. "Then it's time you feel the full force of the Dragon riders of the Zeffari Kingdom."
Right as he said that, a shiver of warning ran down my spine. I turned to see three more dragon riders, invisible to everyone but me, hovering behind us and ready for a surprise attack.
"Up!" I commanded Ryu right as the dragon rider in front of us readied for another volley of dragon flames.
Seeming to trust my judgment, Ryu shot upward, narrowly missing the flames erupting from both directions.
Pointing down to where the other three dragon riders were concealed in their enchantment, I instructed, "Fire there."
Ryu nodded and breathed out a storm of blue flames. Dispelling their invisibility enchantment, the dragon riders scattered to avoid my mate's attack. That gave us the opening we needed to fly out of there and try to lose them. Ryu dove forward like an arrow, no destination in mind. As expected, the dragon riders were still in pursuit of us. But at least we were keeping them away from the den.
"We need a plan. We can't run from them forever," I said.
"Try to reach Andriel and the others through your mate bond," Ryu suggested as we swerved left to avoid another fire breath.
I didn't know how to do that. I barely understood what it meant to be fated to someone, but I had to try something. Closing my eyes, I mentally pictured Andriel, Drayce, and Ladon, hoping that would trigger the bonds tying us together.
"Guys," I mentally called for them. "We need your help. We're under attack by dragon riders. If you can hear me, please help us."
I didn't know if they could hear me, but more movement from Ryu caused my eyes to open wide and break my concentration. I needed to focus on what was happening. Ryu flew effortlessly while narrowly avoiding every blast of fire trying to hit us.I needed to do more than just sit here. I had to help. Turning myself around to face the dragon riders, I built up my flames into both of my hands. Balls of amethyst flames swirled, and I threw one of them like a cannonball. Three of the dragon riders moved out of my attack's range, but the fourth got hit in the chest, causing it to recoil, temporarily stunning it.
Praise the gods above for giving me this ability.
Not wanting to lose the momentum, I chucked another ball of fire at the dragon rider I hit. I thought it would connect, but one of the other dragon riders came to the rescue, knocking the fireball away with the dragon's tail.
A breath of flames shot out from our right, but Ryu sensed it and dove to avoid it. That was their plan. The fourth dragon rider waited below for us, mouth agape and ready to fire right at us. It was too late to evade it, and Ryu wasn't charged enough to fire back. Shocked and fear for Ryu's safety had me springing to action. Though they were still sore from flight practice, I forced my wings to flap, lifting off Ryu and facing the dragon rider. My amethyst flames build up in my hands and I shot them forward right as the dragon rider's flames erupted. My flames collided with theirs before it could hit Ryu, saving him in the nick of time.
The force of the dragon rider's flames was strong, however. My arms strained as I tried to push back against it, but the force of it was too strong. I was sure that if I could fully shift into my dragon form, my flames would be stronger. But since I couldn't and I was still in this in-between state, my flames were relatively weaker. I panicked as the enemy dragon's flames were overpowering mine. Suddenly, Ryu joined in with his azure flames, merging with mine in the collision and completely overpowering the enemies. Our combined fire melded into a deep violet blue inferno that engulfed both the dragon and its rider. The druid knight in control couldn't keep a firm grip on the reins and let it go, falling off his dragon and plummeting to his death. The other dragon riders didn't bother to save him. They simply hovered above and watched as their comrade died before their eyes.
As for the dragon, he remained where he hovered, stunned. The magic was fading from his eyes.
We did it. We rescued another dragon. The dragons above bellowed as the druids prepared to attack again. One of them charged for a tackle. We also had to protect the shifter we just rescued.
Ryu swerved up and met the dragon rider head-on, their claws extended, and collided with each other. The dragons held onto each other, trying to assert dominance over the other. While Ryu had his hands full, the druid knight riding the enemy dragon climbed onto its head, then jumped down onto Ryu's back to face me. I backed up right as the knight landed, ready to fight.
"I always knew you were an abomination. Now you look the part," the druid said, drawing his sword out and holding it in front of him.
I recognized his voice, realizing it was the same druid from before. I didn't have a weapon on me, and I wasn't trained to be a warrior, but my claws were long and sharp. Plus, I had my fire and magic. Hopefully, those would help make up for my inexperience.
"It doesn't have to be this way," I said, trying one last time to reason with him.
"You're right, it doesn't, but you brought this upon yourself. Once I bring you back, the queen will surely reward me." The druid knight charged at me and swung his sword.
Jumping back, I flapped my wings to help push me further away from the sword, avoiding the blow. The knight tried for three more swings, all of which were avoided. Only dodging wouldn't be enough. I had to attack.
Ducking to the right to avoid another swing of his sword, I then lashed out with one of my claws. The knight brought up his sword to use as a shield, taking the hit and causing sparks to fly upon contact. He brought a leg forward, kicking me square in the chest. The blow knocked the wind out of me, causing me to stumble backwards. He swung his sword again, this time connecting with a slash from my right shoulder down to my left side.
I let out a cry of pain and dropped to my knee. Blood began trickling from the cut. There was pain, but the wound wasn't as deep as I expected it to be. I looked down at my chest, realizing my skin had partially morphed into dragon scales. That must've made it more durable as well. Not enough to avoid being harmed, but tough enough to prevent the sword from slicing me open like warm butter.
I could sense Ryu's worry for me, but he was still occupied with the knight's dragon to help me. The other dragon riders hovered on either side of me, the dragons building up their flames and ready to fire. The dragon we freed remained behind us, bewildered and rattled. He wouldn't be able to help us.
"End of the line, traitor," the knight growled with a smug look on his face.
I wouldn't be able to fight all three of them by myself. But if I didn't try, Ryu, the other dragon, and I were done for. I could try calling for Andriel and the others, but doing so would make me lose focus on our enemies.
"In the name of the one true queen of the Zeffari Kingdom, we hereby condemn you to your demise," the knight declared. Pointing the tip of his sword at me, he nodded for the other dragon riders to finish me.
I summoned my flames to aid me, ready to push them both back, but their attacks never came. Before they breathed out their fire, one dragon was tackled from above by a dragon with tanned scales. Another was hit by a red dragon, and the one Ryu was facing now had a black dragon behind it. My mind was buzzing as recognition hit me.
My mates. They came for us.
The black dragon I now knew to be Drayce reached out with his mouth open and took a bite at the dragon's neck. It shouted its pain, now too distracted to push back against Ryu. The knight and I stumbled to remain on our feet as Ryu and Drayce tag-teamed the brain-washed enemy dragon. I heard a thump followed by a grunt from behind me and looked back to see that it was Virgil in full armor.
Relief washed over me to see him. To see everyone.
", are you alright?" Virgil asked me, but his eyes remained on the druid knight.
I nodded, moving backward to stand next to Virgil. "I'm better now that you're here."
"Well, this may be my lucky day. Now I can do away with both traitors," the druid knight praised himself as if his victory was as certain as the sun rising the next morning.
Virgil stepped forward to use his body to shield me. His sword was drawn to meet the enemy's challenge. "Sounds like a plan. Too bad it won't come true. You'll never see the queen again once I do away with you."
Virgil was ready to fight, but I didn't want him facing the knight alone. Now that I no longer had to try defending myself and Ryu against multiple enemies at once, I could put all my attention on the enemy facing us. I could only hope my mates could take care of themselves.
Ryu was mindful not to move around so much so as not to jostle our footing. Drayce, sensing my presence on Ryu's back, did well to keep the possessed dragon within range of Ryu so he could help take it down. With Virgil and me keeping the druid knight occupied, he'd be unable to use his enchantments to protect his dragon.
Not wasting any time, Virgil went on with the first attack. He jogged forward, only to jump and swing his sword down towards the knight's head. The knight, in retaliation, blocked the strike with his own sword, pushing Virgil's out ofthe way and parried forward. Virgil leaped back to avoid it, then went for a diagonal swing from right to left. The two clashed their swords with a loud clang ringing from every direction. Using the distraction, I flew over their heads, landing behind the knight, and I went to impale him with my claws.
The knight saw my movements and blocked it with his sword, but Virgil struck a blow to his chest with his knee. Virgil and I ducked when the knight swung his sword towards our heads. Virgil used his sword to block the second swing, allowing me to throw a fireball at the knight, exploding upon contact and causing him to flail back.
The more Virgil and I jumped him, the more the knight's frustrations grew. In turn, his movements were becoming sloppy as he fought to maintain momentum over us. We weren't letting him.
"Give up," Virgil demanded. "You can't win against us."
The knight scoffed before spitting out a mouthful of blood. "You think I'd surrender to the likes of you? I'd rather die fighting for my kingdom than willingly surrender to you traitors."
There was nothing more that could be said. The knight had made his intentions known, and there was no changing his mind. I hated it had to come to this, killing the very knights I spent most of my life believing I would lead someday. We went from allies to enemies. If only there was another way, but there wasn't.
Charging up my flames, I readied myself to put an end to the knight and set his dragon free. But the dragon Ryu and I rescued earlier slowly raised his head behind him.
Eyes widening, Virgil and I watched as the dragon opened his mouth and snapped his head down like a viper. The knight barely had time to let out a surprised shout before the dragon's mouth closed around him. The dragon ate the knight and swallowed him whole. Virgil and I looked at one another, wondering if we really witnessed that happening. The only thing that snapped me out of it were the sounds of my mates' bellows. I looked around, seeing all the dragons free of their magical influences. Their former dragon riders were nowhere to be found. They were all dead.
"!" Andriel's dragon flew closer to us. "Are you all right, my darling?"
I huffed out an exhausted breath, dropping to my ass and leaning against one of Ryu's spikes. "Never better. We should return to the den before more dragon riders discover us."