Cale froze for only a moment before resuming his search for his blades, now more vigorous than before. There. They had fallen by a rock near Tzanach's tail. "More monsters?" he whispered as he bent down to retrieve his swords.
Instead of answering, Tzanach said, Forgive me, Caleb.
Swords in hand, Cale stood and spun. A dark wave of energy gushed upward from all around him. He leaped upward, but the barrier closed overhead, and he barely threw his arm up in time to avoid a head-on collision.
"Tzanach!" Cale slammed his fist against the energy wall. When that did nothing, he took his blades and attempted a few swings. Still nothing. He reached inward, intent on summoning his magic—
Pain splintered from his core. Cale cried out as he broke concentration on the bond. No magic, then. He couldn't risk pushing his limits. Not yet, at least. Gritting his teeth, he went back to slashing at the dark energy, watching for any difference besides the rippling surface.
I will release you once they are gone. Tzanach slipped around the rock covering. Cale still had a good view of her and the small stream from his current position, but he didn't see any newcomers. This is only a precaution, so you neither die nor cause trouble for me. The barrier blocks most sound from leaving, but I ask you do not test how confining it can be.
He wanted to dismiss her warnings and see just how loud he could yell profanities her way, but again he remembered that she'd guided him away from death only minutes before. Even if he didn't fully trust her, he doubted she meant him harm with this. But who could she need to hide him from?
His answer appeared shortly in the form of a group walking into the cavern. The tunnel they entered from was just barely in Cale's line of sight. The barrier's dark surface made the new arrivals appear blurred, but as they approached, Cale could see them better. By the time they stood before Tzanach, his blood ran cold.
He recognized them. Well, not all of them, but at least the golden-skinned woman who led the group. She was one of the Shadow Knights who had been in Aharon and Moshe's temple realm. Cale could only assume the three others with her were also Shadow Knights, then. How had they gotten into the Energy Realm, and why?
No, not why. He was a fool to ask that. Half of the entrances to the seals were here. The Paladins had been operating on the belief that they had some safety, because even if the Shadow Knights collected the seals on the Soul Realm, there was no certain way for easy travel to and from the Energy Realm. Yet here before him stood the Shadow Knights.
And based on what Tzanach said next, this was not their only visit here.
I thought I told you not to return to my dwelling, humans, she growled.
The Asian woman held her hands up in a placating gesture. Most of the other Shadow Knights were hidden by Tzanach's body and large chunks of rocks. Still, Cale noticed the way they shifted, ready to react, even if none took any clearly offensive action.
"I am sorry that we had to break our agreement, Elder One," the woman said. "We truly meant to let you have your peace, but we have reason to believe an item of interest is here. You noticed the realm collapse, I am sure."
Tzanach held her head at its highest, making it so she peered down at a sharp angle at the gathering of Shadow Knights. It would be impossible not to notice. Many troublesome monsters disrupted my slumber.
"I am sure you wish to return to your resting state, so we will not be long. There was something hidden within that realm, you see, that we have been looking to acquire. Our source says it should have fallen here." The woman smiled pleasantly as she spoke, and one could almost believe she was trying to remain peaceful, but there was a constant edge to her words, a slight dare to challenge. When she tilted her head, it could have been to look around the cavern or to flash the tip of the spear resting on her back.
The dragon didn't answer immediately, and in the silence, Cale's heartbeat echoed in his ears. There had only been one item in the part of the realm he fell from—the dagger. A dagger which a crazed human with trickles of dark energy obsessively tried to obtain, and when he almost had, the realm shattered.
He could be wrong, but he only knew of one reason the Shadow Knights would seek a random item: the keys. Was this, like the dragon's scale, another one?
If it is a dagger that you seek, Tzanach finally said, then I believe I know where it is. She took a few small steps, shuffling her large frame to the side, and dipped her snout down. Would this be it?
Cale followed the gesture, and he cursed. She had directed their attention to the corpse of the crazed man. In Cale's shock over the man's death and rush for his own sword, he hadn't noticed what Tzanach had. There, barely breaching the water of the stream less than a foot from the man, lay the dagger.
A war raged within Cale. He couldn't sit here and watch the Shadow Knights potentially get another key, but he was trapped by Tzanach's barrier. If he could break it or draw the Shadow Knights' attention to himself, though... then what? He couldn't even reliably draw upon his magic. His own death didn't do anything except ease the sting of his pride.
And if they saw one Paladin was there, would they be more extensive in their search for another? As of now, Mara was still out cold and safe because of it. A rash decision on his part could make her a target.
Fists clenched and jaw locked, Cale did nothing but watch as the woman walked over to the dagger.
The woman picked up the weapon and examined it. From where Cale stood, it appeared to be a plain dagger, though well crafted. The silver-blue tint of the blade implied ildium was used in its creation. Some soul-bound's weapon then?
"This is it." The woman spoke to the dagger more than to a person, making it unclear if she directed her words to the other Shadow Knights or Tzanach. She deposited the dagger in a leather satchel she wore around her shoulders before returning to her group. "Thank you for your cooperation, Elder Dragon."
Tzanach growled, but it was little more than a low rumble. Now that you have what you need, you have no more reason to be here. Out. Leave me in peace once more, and if I see you in my domain again, you shall be given the same treatment as any other pest that scuttles on the ground.
A definite shift of attitude rolled over the group. Some hands twitched toward their weapons. Even the woman, who had been acting as their leader so far, cracked.
She stepped forward, her hand going to her spear as she snarled, "You realize it is our own kindness—"
One of the two Shadow Knights who had kept their composure placed a hand on the woman's shoulder. He leaned forward and whispered harshly into her ear, and she forcibly calmed down.
"We will be leaving now," the man said, still not taking his hand off the woman. "Thank you for your mercy."
The Shadow Knight man whispered something to the others that Cale couldn't catch, and they turned to leave. The woman took a few steps back, slower than the others to show her back to Tzanach. It wasn't until the man yanked her by the shoulder that she did. By the time they reached the exit, they seemed certain the Elder Dragon wouldn't attack. The group moved more easily, almost jovially, their success hanging over them.
They had come for the dagger, found it, and left. All right before Cale's eyes, and he had done nothing.
He hung his head, closed his eyes, and breathed. There was nothing he could do but let the intense emotions roll over him. Guilt and rage crashed together until they almost morphed into one frustrated behemoth at this entire situation. The realm, the separation from the other Paladins and Ezraim, now the dagger and the implications of the Shadow Knights being here.
He didn't know what to do about any of it, or if there was even anything he could do.
Even with his eyes closed, he knew when Tzanach dropped the shield. The quiet noises of the cave and the dragon living within it were no longer dulled, and the air lost the thickness being trapped had given it.
Cale took one last deep breath before opening his eyes. He found Tzanach curled up on the ground, resting her head on her forepaws so she faced him.
"There are Shadow Knights in the Energy Realm."
They have been here for half a year. That, however, is only when I became aware of them. They could have been here for longer.
"How many?"
I am not sure. I have seen perhaps a dozen in all over the span of that time.
Cale had to close his eyes again. The Shadow Knights had easy access to the Energy Realm. How? The traitorous Sage? No, if all it took was a single Elder Dragon and Sage to open a rift between realms, Joel would have been more concerned. He was missing something, of that he was certain, but what?
His head was spinning. Cale felt his way to a rock and balanced himself against it before asking his next question. "Why did you let them take that? You're an Elder Dragon. You called the Phoenix Dragons tortured souls. Don't you know what that dagger might be? What the Shadow Knights and Phoenix Dragons plan to do?"
I am no fool, Caleb. Tzanach spoke softer now. Cale opened his eyes. There was no change in her expression, and her voice gave away nothing, leaving the Elder Dragon as mysterious as when he first met her.
I will not help them in their quest, she went on, but nor will I impede upon it. The matters of the realms have long since ceased to be a concern of mine. I fought for so long, centuries ago. Now, all I wish for is rest. And, I will admit... At this, she shifted, moving her snout so she no longer faced Cale. I am no longer sure which outcome will provide that for me the best.
Cale frowned. His head was getting foggy, and an ache began in his chest once again. That didn't make sense, though. He hadn't used any energy, had he? "Are you saying you may wish for them to succeed?"
It took Tzanach too long to reply, and if Cale was in his usual form, he likely would have taken it as a sign that he needed to get out of there. As it was, he didn't think he'd even be able to outrun a child.
Tzanach sighed. I am saying that I am tired, Caleb. But you have nothing to worry about from me. I protected you just now, and I will continue to until you are ready to venture out on your own. For now, you need to rest. You still haven't fully recovered from the earlier sudden attack of Soul Sickness. This time, you will make it through without risk of a full infection, but only if you give yourself proper time.
Cale glowered in the direction of the exit the Shadow Knights had taken. Even if he wasn't sure he fully trusted the Elder Dragon, he couldn't ignore her words. Not because of what she said, but because of how she said them. She said she was tired, and every word she spoke carried the weight of that. A deep exhaustion, not just to the bones, but to the very soul.
She had no reason to reveal that vulnerability. Before the Shadow Knight's arrival, she likely wouldn't have. Maybe allowing them to take the weapon hadn't been as easy to do as she made it appear.
Caleb, I have saved your life twice today, Tzanach said. I speak truth. You have escaped the grasp of Soul Sickness today. If you continue to push your body past what it can bare in this realm... I cannot promise you will manage to accomplish that again. Rest, child.
"Alright. But not right here. If my friend wakes up while I sleep, I don't want her to be alone."
I can help with that.
A dark aura surrounded Cale's body. His stomach dropped as his feet left the ground, and he moved slowly through the air toward Mara's location. He knew that Sage's and Elder Dragon's could use telekinetic type abilities, and he also knew that it took great effort to do so.
As he landed gently next to a still slumbering Mara, he thought, Thank you.
The only evidence that there had been a connection between him and Tzanach was a faint hum, and then her presence vanished.
Too many thoughts spun in Cale's mind to sleep, but he could still rest, so he got comfortable against a smooth rock. He watched Mara as her chest rose and fell, slowly regaining enough energy to stir back to consciousness.
"I'm going to get us home, Mara," he whispered. "No matter what."
Fun Fact: Tzanach's name comes from me playing with the Hebrew words for watch (tzafah) and rest (nach). She watches the world from her place of rest, so, like... Thought it was fun and fitting :D
So... The Shadow Knights finally pop up, and perhaps not where anyone ever expected them :D And they are showing interest in a dagger... Interesting?? Also, Tzanach over here just refusing to take sides because taking sides requires too much energy. But hey, she's keeping Cale safe, so that earns her some points. Right? They have a safe place to rest for now, and hopefully that's enough. So, who's ready to get back to Josh? :D
Let me know your thoughts on the chapter down below, and if you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and comment. Or even join my Patron, which can be found in my bio. The lowest tier only costs $1 a month and gives you access to my discord, where you can get chapter previews.