Valor's Impasse

The Rescue

Valandi woke to violent shaking. Someone had her shoulders in a tight grip and it took her a moment to realize that they were yelling at her. A high pitched whine prevented her from hearing what they were saying. She attempted to push them away forcefully, but she was stopped by an intense throbbing in her head. Gods. Valandi felt like she had been trampled by a herd of horses. Every movement hurt, add that to her headache and wave of nausea, she wanted nothing more than to lie down again. As she was leaning back to the ground the hands returned, jostling her about. Indiscernible chatter filled her ears, as if the person was speaking another language. Finally Valandi opened her eyes.

An old, Eastern woman looked back at her, worry adding depth to her wrinkles. Valandi could only understand one word from what she was saying. "Go!" She pointed away from where they were. Valandi could barely recognize the place. Previously organized campfires were scattered and people kept light by torches. The grass around them was burnt black and the smell of smoke filled the air. Suddenly Valandi remembered the events, barely, that occurred.

She stood up straight, ignoring the screaming pain from her body. "Christan!" Frantically she scanned the camp but couldn't find her face among the people. She turned to Na, clasping her shoulders. "Where is she?"

Na pointed towards what Valandi remembered as East, there was a mountain with a flat top. "Go. Find love." She said. She attempted to say more but kept slipping into her own language. All Valandi heard was "taken".

Valandi felt sick to her stomach and not just because of the alcohol. She was supposed to protect Christan and now she had no idea where she was. Before she could go into a mental spiral, she started to evaluate her situation. It was still dark, so not much time must have passed. If she went now she may catch whoever took Christan. If they were the same people who caused the destruction here they could be dangerous. But Valandi didn't care. All she knew was she had to find Christan.

Valandi spotted Ziba. The rope she had used to tie him to a stump was severed, but the horse stayed. Good boy. Valandi thought. She quickly went to mount the horse and was about to go when she felt Na grab her hand. Valandi looked down at her irritated, but Na wasn't looking at her. Her eyes were closed as she held hands with the others in her tribe. They started to mutter a low prayer. Valandi hadn't heard people pray like this since she was a girl. Again the atmosphere changed. This time instead of despair and hopelessness, she felt focused. A wave of calm passed over her. She felt her eyes sting with tears as she realized that these people were wishing her good after all the misfortune that happened to them potentially because of her and Christan.

"Thank you." Valandi said to them when they stopped.

Na squeezed her hand. "Go."

And Valandi was off. She gripped the reins like they were her life force as Ziba raced down the hill. All the while Valandi fought the heavy over whelming dread that fought its way from her stomach. For once she only had one thought on her mind: Christan. She felt her carefully locked away emotions threatening to break loose. She didn't stop it. Small moments with Christan flashed through her mind. Christan in her green dress. Her terrible mounting technique. Her deep snores that reverberated through her chest. Her striking green eyes-

Suddenly an ear-splitting roar filled the air. It's sound instantly made the dread in Valandi turn into pure terror. Ziba whinnied and bucked so much that Valandi was thrown to the ground. The earth seemed to shake as it failed to absorb the force of the sound.

Valandi knew that sound. It haunted her nightmares for years. But this time it was the source of her dreams. Smoke billowed above some treetops a couple kilometres ahead following the cry.

"Christan!" She screamed hoarsely. Valandi's bones felt like they had been shaken, every movement jolted her. She grabbed Ziba's reigns anyway. Ziba was still frightened. His hooves stomped in every direction, almost hitting Valandi.

"Shh, shhh" Valandi grasped Ziba's muzzle, stroking it. "Come on boy. Christan needs us." Ziba was still restless and Valandi was losing her patience and her resolve. She moved her hands towards the horse's body, petting her. "Look," she said. "I need you, okay? If we don't get there before something happens to Christan I don't know if-" Valandi swallowed a sob. She pulled herself towards Ziba, wrapping her arms around her as she started to calm down. "I guess she mean's more to me than a stupid quest and I don't know how to deal with that. But I do know I have to do everything I can to make sure she's safe. I can do that." Ziba was already still and nuzzled Valandi's head. Valandi wiped away a tear with her arm. "Thank you." Then she mounted him and they raced towards the smoke.

Valandi rode past burnt down trees and blackened earth. Then she saw the dragon. It was massive, much bigger than the one she faced when she was a child. It had burnt orange scales that reflected the flames that surrounded it. It's tail stretched out behind it decapitating trees. It hunched low, muscles rippling throughout its body. Despite being stricken with fear, Valandi was frozen in awe.

There were two men in front of the dragon. One of them shot lightening from his hand at it. It glanced off its scales. It spewed fire at them, engulfing them in flames.

Valandi dismounted Ziba. She could barely make herself take a shaking step forward. "Christan?"

At the sound of her voice the dragon's ears swiveled to Valandi's direction. A low rumble emanated from its chest. It caused Valandi to tremble more but still she kept moving forward. Gently she stepped over burnt husks she feared were bodies, similar to the ones at the tower. As she approached the dragon she felt warmth. Heat came off it in waves. When she was just a foot away from it, she was drenched in sweat. The dragon lowered itself to the ground, putting its head at Valandi's level. The rumbling in its chest deepened.

Valandi put her hand on its snout. "Christan."

The dragon's scales started to recede. Quickly shrank, till it was shorter than Valandi and in the shape of a redheaded princess. Tears streaked Christan's eyes. She grabbed Valandi's hand on her cheek. "Val, I'm sorry. I don't-" she started.

Then Valandi closed the space between them. She pressed her lips softly against Christan's at first. Christan responded by dropping her hands to Valandi's waist and pulling her into a deeper kiss. For them, the world faded away and there was only this moment. Valandi was perfectly content. And Christan for the first time in a long time felt a burning in her chest that wasn't flames. It was warmth.

Christan heard a slight thwish in the air. She barely noticed it. But when Valandi loosened her lips and Christan tasted the familiar metallic taste of blood on her tongue, she knew something was wrong.

"Uhhhh," Valandi gasped for air. Blood now stained her lips and choked her as she tried to breathe. Christan saw an arrow sticking out from Valandi's upper back. "Val. Val." Christan shook her trying to keep her awake. "No." Her voice shook. "By the good lords breathe dammit!" Valandi's eyes looked around widely. Her panic evident, but she was unable to say anything. Finally they rested on Christan who was carrying her. She smiled faintly, then her eyes fluttered close. "Valandi!" Christan screamed.

Another thwish filled Christan's hearing. Then there was fire.

A/N

So I may have taken a while to update... sorry life gets in the way. But I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! It's a bit short because this was supposed to be the last chapter but I decided to split it into two parts. Can't wait for y'all to read the next one :)

~ Ivy