Riders of Elysium

Chapter Sixteen

----Third Person----

"Why war?" Rayna asked.

Phoenix, putting her sword back in its sheath, "Velika told the council about you. They believe that you are the key to all of this."

"Welcome to the party," Azariah said. Rayna glared at him, "What?"

"I'm not the key to all of this-"

Azariah interrupted, "Well, let's see. You're the one who managed to convince your mother to let Eyre go to Elysium. You also got brainwashed as an assassin. You have a familiar. You're on both sides of this war."

"You don't understand, it's getting worse," Phoenix said, "The factions are choosing sides."

"What?"

Phoenix sighed, "I'll explain when we get there. Actually, let Eyre explain."

Rayna asked, "How are we supposed to get up there? He can't walk."

"Don't worry," Phoenix grabbed both of them. Amazingly, however fragile her wings looked, they were incredibly strong.

They flew up to Elysium in a matter of minutes, "The one bad thing about being an assassin vs. a rider. Among others."

"Well, there's having to murder people?" Rayna shook her head, so Phoenix guessed again, "No cool dragons? Always needing a ride up to Elysium?"

"No friends," Rayna said.

Azariah acted offended, "But I'm here-"

"Az, that's my point."

"Oh."

Phoenix dropped them off in the stables, where two healers were waiting along with Scarlet, Eyre, and her friends.

"What happened this time?"

The healers ignored Rayna's silence. Azariah was mostly back on his feet in no time at all. The healers then left.

"Why are we hiding in the stables?" Rayna asked, "And what's she doing here?" She glared accusingly at Velika.

"She's here to help," Eyre said, "Also, thanks for bringing back Regina and Zoya."

Azariah then walked over to Velika, "Last time we spoke, she tried to kill us."

"Yeah, sorry about that," Velika said, "But this assassin war has reached Elysium."

"What do people mean when they say the factions are choosing sides?" Rayna asked as Syala ran up to her side.

Eyre explained, "Factions are decided based on your dragon. I'm in fire faction with Scout and a few boys who pretend to not know us. Amias is in night faction. His sister Amber is in sea faction."

"Am I in a faction?"

"I guess I could drag you into fire faction with me, but you have a familiar," Eyre said, "So I guess right now you're the only one in the fox faction."

Rayna sighed, "So which factions are on what side?"

"Elysium is on its own side in the war," Scarlet explained, "Some of the factions remained loyal, like the night, light, and vox factions. Fire and sea factions haven't chosen a side yet. Wind faction is with the rogues, and earth faction is shattered among all three sides."

"I'll go talk to fire," Eyre said, taking Scout with her towards the rest of their faction, "I'll try to convince them there is another side."

Velika frowned, "Which side is that?"

"Ours," Eyre said before entering the school.

"Why is Elysium even entering the war?" Azariah asked.

Scarlet sighed, "I don't know. This is a war among assassins. We have no place in it, but it has been agreed that Eyre will be in charge."

"Even though she doesn't want to join the war?"

"That's why she's leading the army," Velika said, "If she wanted to join the war, she'd be reckless. Which actually runs in your family."

Rayna asked, "Is there a way to-"

"Neither side will be talked down," Scarlet said, "Elysium has decided the fate of the school depends on this battle. Some riders from the light faction are already in battle. Though the assassin archers have managed to nearly decimate the army."

"How do a few archers defeat a dragon army?" Amber asked.

Azariah sighed, "These archers are the best of the best. They know every weak spot, and they have deadly aim."

"Still, the dragons could easily kill them," Amias said, "I mean arrows and dragonsfire have the same range, right?"

"Assassins were trained to be invisible. Ghosts," Azariah said, "They know how to avoid detection, even from the best of dragons. I'd be amazed if there is a single casualty."

Amber frowned, "You know these archers?"

"We used to be those archers," Rayna said, "That was our training."

"You were detected on the side of the mountain," Amias pointed out.

Azariah laughed, "She was nearly dead, alright. That, and if you hadn't found us she'd be dead, so we were kinda trying to be found."

Rayna screamed and collapsed. Her eyes went pearl white, and she vibrated as though she were being struck by lightning.

Eyre lead an army of dragon riders into battle, Amias beside her, Scout and Amber directly behind them.

Dragons falling out of the sky. Flaming arrows flying out of the woods. Dead riders and assassins.

Kugen Tari at the center of it all. Along with an old man she didn't recognize with a pale white dragon.

Eyre running at the old man, sword raised. Her vision was back. Then, Eyre on the ground screaming, "Suni!" as Rayna ran at her, daggers raised.

"Suni, no!" Eyre screamed, "Suni!"

Rayna herself facing Kugen, who had a dagger at Azariah's throat, "I told you not to fail. I warned you."

Screaming, she lashed out at him, firing an arrow. Kugen dropped to the ground, dead. She reached Azariah moments too late.

"Rayna," Azariah breathed, "You can stop Kugen."

He died right in front of her. She was helpless. This was how Azariah felt every time he found her broken and nearly dead?

"You're the key to all of this," A woman she didn't know said, "You can stop this war or you can win it."

Rayna looked at the battlefield. The dead dragons, mages, familiars, assassins. How could someone look at all this death and honestly think they won?

A sapphire blue dragon landed in front of her. A rider, a boy her age, stepped down from the dragon and faced her. Though she didn't even know him, she knew his name was Egan.

"There is no easy way to do this," the boy said to her, "There is no easy way to win."

"Does anyone ever really win a war?"

"Hey!" Azariah screamed at her, "What happened?"

"Is she breathing?" Amias asked.

Scarlet looked down at her, "She's awake."

"What happened?"

Rayna tried to get past the horrors she'd seen, "I think- I think I saw the future."