Golden Dawn

|Chapter 28 ~ Taming A Tempest|

It was absolutely silent.

A very strange phenomenon, since we were in the very eye of Katagîa, the Tempest of The Plains. A storm that swallowed us whole and somehow, did not fling us into the air like limp pieces of paper. I looked around, heart pounding so hard I wanted to throw up.

We all stood miraculously unscathed, in the middle of a massive tornado. The wind blew at probably thousands of miles per hour around us, our group the centre of a circular shaped whirlpool. It was as if we all stood in a cocoon, the wind forming the barrier that shielded us from the outside world.

Electricity cracked all around as if it had a mind of its own, flying and racing on the wind in pure exhilaration. The longer I looked, the more convinced I became it was indeed alive. Some motions were a lot more familiar to an actual creature than to that of lifeless energy.

I eventually decided on a snake, the creature slithering past us so fast - I could only make out faint blurs of lightning. Our small little cocoon was dark, so dark I couldn't see anything except the occasional flashes of lightning that served as the only light source. When my mind eventually began to hurt from watching the creature, it slowed to a sudden stop in front of us. Wind raced past the electric body of a massive dragon-like creature, starting to become more visible with every passing second. It was strangely beautiful, slim body made out of pure electric currents that cracked and flashed like disco lights. Energy zapped through the air, making my skin tingle and even burn from all the electric sparks the creature's body gave off.

Sweat formed on my brow as I began to notice two voltaic yellow eyes, looking down on the seven of us like a lion inspecting its prey. It was terrifying.

I glanced around and noticed I could see everyone again. Our group's gazes were however not directed on the bright creature anymore, but instead - Angelus. The Lesphares' black hair wafted in the wind, blood red cape flapping around him as he looked up at the electric-charged snake.

Then the most strangest thing happened. The creature bent its long neck down towards Angelus, as if to show respect for the Lepshares. As some kind of acknowledgement for the delicate notion, Angelus placed his hand on the creature's snout. The gentle exchange seemed so surreal I thought I must have imagined the entire thing, but when I looked at my friends, I knew it wasn't.

I wasn't making anything up. Angelus was touching a creature that radiated pure lightning and did not burn to a crisp as a result.

Ferîan's voice sounded strange after the fascinating sight and it almost made me jump when he suddenly spoke.

"Katagîa is the defender's most famous mount and companion, never before known to bow down to anyone except him." He explained. Somehow, the explanation only seemed to make everything more amazing than it already was. My eyes were transfixed on the magical exchange between the two beings, Angelus and the snake-like creature, the duo appearing to have known each other for years.

Something triggered inside me as I watched them. And the unknown feeling scared me.

"Katagîa will take us to the Sandrîanî." Angelus suddenly said, removing his hand from the creature's snout. As if on cue, the electric snake arose from its slightly crouched position and dove into the whirlpool in an elegant splash of electricity.

For a while, nothing happened. I almost wanted to ask what we were all waiting for until the wind began to gradually lessen and finally dissolved entirely. I gasped as I realized the storm was finally gone, consumed as if it never existed. All of us were also still alive and well. 

I looked around and almost cried out in relief when I saw where we were. We stood right in front of the Sandrîanî's desert civilization. It was massive, almost the same size as Lîxîlîa. The entire society built in the middle of a grand oases with massive palm trees surrounding a sand metropolis, various water springs resurrected between elegantly crafted buildings. From afar, one would have thought the civilization was part of the very desert surrounding it, such was the nature of the architecture.