Freyan border
Freya, Freyan Mountain path
Lydia Hollow
A thump subtly shakes the ground, stopping me in my tracks. “Woah, what was that?” Elara asks, summoning her ice sword. We all look around for the cause of the sound, but there’s nothing. I look at Dorian, and notice his ears are folded back on his head. “Dorian, what do you hear?” He glances at me before his eyes narrow in on the path ahead. “There are about three of them…” he grumbles. “But they’re… different.” my heartbeat quickens and I scan the trees again.
Then suddenly, there’s a high-pitched screech, painfully piercing our ears. I hear Dorian growl through the screeching, realizing that his ears are ten times more sensitive than ours. I extend my right hand to the side, and summon my Sage Spear and ready myself for a fight. But as I ready myself in my guarded position, my mind reels in shock and worry. It’s a dragon, I tell myself, how are we supposed to go up against a dragon? The screech stops, and the world falls silent again. We all exchange stressed and confused glances, all of our weapons summoned. I don’t even know which direction the screech came from, because the sound consumed the forest. I see Dorian knelt on the ground, his ears folded tightly to his head. “Dori,” I approach him and gently place my hand on his upper back. “You okay?” He looks up at me, his expression pained. He nods quickly, and grabs onto my arm as he stands and his ears twitch quickly as he glares towards the forest. “Dorian?” Elara hesitates behind us. Her voice has a tone of worry I rarely hear from her, causing my anxiety to spike up. Dorian glances over his shoulder at Elara, and then down to me. Then he hisses a curse in Elfish and walks off towards a Freyan tree. My worry skyrockets as he walks away from us, my heart leaping into my throat. “Dorian, wait,” I quickly rush after him as he slumps onto the ground against the dark gray trunk. I kneel in front of him, my eyes wide from the adrenaline. He looks up at me for a moment, before looking over to his right at the path. His eyes flicker red for a moment before they meet mine again with intense warning. “We need to go back.” he states, firmly with caution. I nod quickly. “Okay.”
His eyes narrow on my mouth, and then he looks at the path again with wide, flickering eyes. I pause. I glance over my shoulder at the path to make sure there isn’t a raging dragon, before returning to him. “Dorian,” I say, an attempt for his attention, but he doesn’t react. I frown. “Dorian,” I say again, more firmly, but still no reaction. I wave my hand in front of him, and his eyes follow that movement, then glue to my face. I lower my hand, and immediately understand. He can’t hear… I realize, with horror. “Lydia, what’s wrong?” Elara anxiously asks behind me. “Um,” I murmur, staring at Dorian and trying to think up a solution. “Lydia,” she demands. I finally look over my shoulder, and see Elara standing with her ice sword in hand, Devan on the ground with his Bow, Inara holding Remi with one arm while her other is outstretched with light green light in her hand and Onibi with her altered Coren curved blades; all staring at me. I look back at Dorian, my eyes wide with worry. I raise my hand, quickly motioning for him to stay, then stand when he nods and I meet the other’s anxious stares. “His ears are ten times more sensitive than ours,” I worriedly explain, “he can’t hear right now.” All their eyes widen as I explain, and they glance at Dorian behind me before looking back at me. “Is…” Elara hesitates, “is it permanent?” I consider her question thoughtfully before eventually shaking my head. “No, I don’t think this is permanent.” I sigh heavily, frustrated, and press my fingers to my temples and close my eyes. “It’s not convenient, though,” I groan quietly. Everyone’s silent for a while, until Inara hums. “That dragon… is it…?” I hear her implication and nod. “Yes. it’s infected. And who knows how many are…” I answer. I look up at the ground from my hands. “Dorian told me that we have to go back…” Devan raises an eyebrow. “‘Go back’? You mean give up?” I shake my head. “No, we’re not giving up,” I say, glancing at the trees around us. “We’re going back. We’re tracing our steps, and finding a new path…” my words trail off as I realize that the path is only one way. Elara, as if sensing my distress, grabs hold of my shoulders and looks me in the eyes. “We can’t go back. The only way is through.” I nod slowly at first, but then nod more confidently, and I return to Dorian. “Dorian, can you hear me?” He looks up at me, his ears focusing towards me and my words but I don’t see any understanding on his face. I sigh worriedly. His eyes soften as he sees my worry on my face and in my eyes, and he reaches up and grabs my upper arm gently. I look at him, and he offers a small, reassuring smile. I manage a small smile back, then point up, motioning for him to stand. We rise and I stare off into space, my eyes on the ground, trying to think up something.
My thoughts are cut off as Dorian’s head snaps toward the path, and thumping rattles the ground. I struggle for balance, holding onto Dorian for support. I lower my head, in an attempt to protect myself, until I feel Dorian suddenly pulled from my grip. My eyes widen as I hear a flap, and a thump, and then Dorian shouts. I look up, my hands reaching for him until I freeze, my eyes locked on Dorian and a dark red dragon’s talons around his shoulders. The dragon is off the ground, and its nose is pointing upwards as it flies up with Dorian in its grasp. “Dorian!” I shout, as he shouts, “Lydia!” at the same time, unable to hear my shouts. My heart tightens, and I feel as if a part of me has been stolen. My knees buckle and then slam onto the ground with a thump that I feel in my bones.
Devan flaps his wings in preparation to fly after him, but I strongly disagree with this plan. “Devan, no! Stop!” I shout, my voice frantic, pulling everyone’s eyes back to me. Devan’s wings quickly fold behind his back, and he moves to help me stand. I hold onto his arm as I steady myself, staring up at Dorian in the dragon’s hold flying further and further away. “It’s getting away!” I hear Onibi exclaim, and I want to say back really? sarcastically but hold it back, as I’m not thinking clearly right now. I take a deep breath and step back, releasing Devan as I steady myself. “Lydia,” Elara frantically shouts. “Lydia, what do we do?” The anxiety in her voice only adds to my fear and worry and feeling of abandonment. “Just hold on! I- I’ll figure it out, I just-” I groan in frustration as I walk aimlessly around the path area, muttering frantically to myself.
Elara
As Lydia paces along an area of the path before us, I start to step forward to reassure her but hesitate. What do I do? I reach my hand out, but hesitate again, and lower it to my sword's handle. Why am I hesitating? Her muttering increases in volume, her voice cutting off as she scraps an idea and frantically tries to come up with another. What do I do? I ask myself again. I watch, hesitating as Lydia paces and her mutters spiral into unclear mumbles of words. I feel useless. I am her best friend, and have been since we were children. This girl has come to my rescue and consoled me more times than I can count, and what do I do when she needs me?
Nothing.
I stand here like an uncaring idiot.
As these thoughts of uselessness continue, I find them all circling back to one… What would Dorian do?
Lydia
My mind seals itself from the outside world, but I notice Elara’s hesitant attempts to reach out to me, which she draws back in. I go from one place to the next, too fast for me to even comprehend my thoughts. What do I do? That dragon flew away with Dorian… Dorian can’t hear… the dragon is infected… the Dark Entity has control over the dragons… or at least that dragon… which has Dorian… it has Dorian… what do I do?
Chirp!
My thoughts and feet stop. I turn to where I heard this strange animalistic chirp, and suspect everyone else also does. My eyes set on a red, rustling bush, a common bush in Freya.
Chirp!
I jump slightly when I hear it again, my eyes focusing even more on the red bush as it ruffles and sways. I summon my spear again, futilely prepared for another eighteen to twenty feet infected dragon to come out and engulf us all in deadly flames.
Two small red spikes perk up from inside the bush, and in a split second a dog sized red dragon bounces out from the bush, its big round eyes looking up at us, before its eyes set on me, its pupils dilate, and it pounces, knocking me to the ground with a thud and an oof!
The dragon pins me to the ground, sitting on my chest and eyeing me with curiosity and affection. Sighs of relief come from behind me as we all realize that it's just a baby dragon, and not only that, but Eden’s baby dragon Ember. I giggle and sit up, propping myself up with my arms as Ember’s short stubby tail wags excitedly against my stomach. “Hi, Ember,” I chuckle, amused at his eagerness. His short, stubby spiky horns perk up, and his mouth opens. Crackles of red sparks flicker in his mouth, as a familiar laugh approaches.
“Good boy, Em!” I look up to see Eden clapping and laughing, her eyes widening in surprise when she sees us. “Lydia!” she excitedly exclaims, rushing to me and offering her hand. “Eden!” I exclaim, taking her hand as she pulls me up and into a tight hug, Ember hopping happily in circles at our feet, making clicking and chirping sounds. She pulls away and looks me directly in the eyes, her gaze as intense but friendly as ever. “What are you doing here?” she asks incredulously, her eyes flicking all over my face. My worry takes place on my face again, and her expression shifts slightly in reaction. “Eden… the Dark Entity is back. He’s already infected the dragons, and-” I pause, and look over her shoulder at the path before returning to her gaze. “-and we need to get out of here.” Her eyes narrow and she nods, then releases my shoulders and looks at everyone. Her eyes stop on Onibi. “Who’s this?” she asks. Onibi sheathes their curved Coren blades to their side, and stands straight before Eden. “That’s Onibi. They’re an Dragon Elf from Ahren,” I introduce them, Eden nodding along. Eden extends her hand to Onibi with a wide
smile. “I’m Eden. Sage of Fire, and Ruler of Freya. Great to meet ya, Onibi!” Onibi smiles kindly and takes Eden’s hand, their hands bobbing up and down twice.
Chirp! Chirp, chirp!
Ember enthusiastically chirps up at Onibi, and they look down at him with slight curiosity. Eden chuckles at the baby dragon’s attempt for Onibi’s attention. “He likes you,” she tells Onibi, and Onibi’s eyes widen slightly as they look at Eden in surprise. They look down at Ember as he continues to chirp and hop at her feet, then back to Eden, as if in confirmation that they can touch the baby dragon. Eden nods encouragingly. Onibi kneels down before Ember, and presents their hand low in his view. He stops his chirping, and curiously sniffs their hand before his stubby little tail wags eagerly and he rubs his scaly cheeks on the side of Onibi’s pointer finger. Onibi smiles adoringly down at Ember, and gently brushes his cheek as he affectionately rubs his cheek against Onibi’s hand. “What’s his name?” Onibi asks. Eden leans to the side and rests her fist on her hip, overlooking Onibi and Ember’s wholesome scene. “His name is Ember. He’s the son of the High Dragon of Freya,” she replies, a hint of pride in her tone. Onibi smiles softly and nods, and then Ember unfurls his tiny wings and flaps them quickly. I smile and look at Eden. “his wings are bigger than the last time I saw him!” I say. She huffs a short, amused laugh. “Well, you haven’t visited Freya in a while,” she smiles, our long history in her eyes. “It’s good to see you again. Even if it’s because that demon is back.” I nod in solidarity, as we turn our gazes back to Ember and Onibi.
“So,” Eden leans against a tree across from me, “that demon possessed my dragons?” she confirms, challenging in her tone. I nod carefully. “Yes. The one that took Dorian had completely red eyes. And its scales were darker, as well,” I remember aloud. Eden nods, a fiery glare in her eyes. Then, her lips lift into an excited smirk. “I made so many things! I can’t wait to show you all.” she tells us before her expression shifts to a more serious one and she lifts herself off of the tree, crossing her arms. “We should go now,” she says, “we don’t wanna be caught in the Mountains when the sun goes down.”
We cautiously continue down the increasingly rocky path, now with Eden and Ember hopping around Onibi and my feet. And I feel relieved that we found Eden. Happy to be with my old friend again. But the pit of worry in my stomach and the tightness in my heart from the loss of Dorian. He’s alright, I keep hopelessly reassuring myself, although I have no belief in this thought. For all I know, he’s gone… sorrowful tears line my eyes, my heart swelling with remorse and longing. My gaze lifts to the sky, naively hoping to see Dorian. The tightness in my heart brings me back to cradling little Fern’s limp body as a tear streamed down her pale green cheek. Her struggling to ask if she did it. Me reassuring her that she was brave and that she had done it. And that fulfilled little smile as her eyes dulled and her face froze. Onibi sobbing over her lifeless body. The devastation in Lizx’s eyes when Fern didn’t come back with us. The devastation that has created a painful hole in my heart that aches constantly, now being stretched and pulled at with Dorian’s absence. My eyes lower to the ground as we walk, not wanting to show how on the edge of breaking down I am.
A hand touches my upper arm, and I look in the corner of my eye to see Elara’s piercing eyes on me. I look away quickly and reach up to wipe away the tears brimming my eyes, sniffling quietly. “Oh… hey,” I whimper pathetically. Her hand tightens on my arm, and I hear a heavy sigh. “He’s alright…” she says slowly. The hesitance in her voice almost breaks me, but I swallow and just keep walking. As if sensing my instability, she sighs softly again. “He’s okay,” she repeats, her voice firmer, trying to convince me. I breathe in a long breath, and let it out slowly. “Yes… he’s okay…” I repeat her words, trying to convince myself of this as well. I look up at her, and she smiles reassuringly at me. But I see the conflict in her eyes. And in this moment, I realize that I’m not alone. I’m not in this hurt alone. And, as if sensing my realization, she takes my hand and looks forward, now walking hand in hand in quiet unity.
Elara
I decide that the best way to console Lydia right now is to simply be silent, but show her that I care. That I’m here. That she’s not alone. And even as tears brim my own eyes from all that has happened, all the loss and pain, I hold onto her
hand. A feeling of relief flutters in my heart as we walk in silent understanding. I finally did it, I think. I am sorry for how long it took me, my friend. Please forgive me for my ignorance. I am here now.
Lydia
My mind swims with childhood songs as the sky shimmers a deep red and the stained clouds shift slowly in the sky. Elfish lullabies, Eirian songs, Daryan tunes and instruments, plus poetry from all over the world in different languages and styles, all that touched my gentle heart as a kid. My mind focuses on one, Always with you, an Eirian poem. Dorian’s favorite poem. And I remember with it, his favorite line, no matter where we go, I will never leave. No matter how high the mountain, nor how vast the ocean, I will always be near. I will always be with you, even if we are apart. And I remember little me and Dorian, long ago, in my mother’s Great Library, reading those words to me with an inspirational enthusiasm. What’s it called? I asked him. Always with you, he had replied. I like it. It reminds me of you, he added. My small head tilted in curiosity. Hm? Why’s that, Dori? And then he smiled at me. That inspiring, contagious, heartwarming smile. He grabbed my hands and with a wide smile he said, because no matter where we are, we’ll always be best friends! And even if we are separated… I remember his pause, and my awkward blush as he thought on his words, I will always be with you. He touched my heart over my chest, in here, and then he giggled and said, and you’ll always be with me, right here! And he gripped his shirt above his chest where his heart was.
Then, another screech blasts through the area, prying me from my thoughts. Elara’s hand tightens around mine, as everyone freezes. We all whip our heads in every direction, trying to determine where the dragon is, my heart thudding in my chest. I look at Eden, noticing her troubled expression. “Eden?” I call out to her in question, and she looks at me with a troubled expression. “Rey Dragon…” she says in Freyan with a grave tone of voice I’ve never heard from her before. My eyes widen in surprise and alarm. Rey Dragon… that's the Dragon King. The Dragon King of Freya. The screech morphs into a roar, and then the sound echoes as it stops. Eden’s grave look turns into urgency, and she motions with her hand to continue walking. I send her an alarmed look, and she puts her hand up
dismissively. “Just be quiet,” she whispers, a sense of dread in her voice that I suddenly realize where her mind is. The other dragons are infected… the King Dragon of Freya could be, too…
The six of us walk carefully into the mountain clearing, the tan mountain coming into view. Suddenly acutely aware of how open we are, my heart squeezes and I repetitively look over my shoulder anxiously. Elara’s hand is still tight around mine, and her other fingers are curled in preparation to summon her Ice sword. Onibi is walking with Ember walking quietly alongside their feet. Onibi has their altered Coren curved blades in both hands pointed in, curving up her arm, her expression hard with focus. The sound of Remi’s happy musical sounds no longer fill the air, instead an uneasy silence in its place. I look down at Ember at Onibi’s feet, and notice how oblivious he looks to the gravity of the situation. I wonder if the baby dragon even knows what’s happening as his stubby little feet tap on the rocky ground and his stubby tail wags calmly behind him, his round eyes glancing up at Onibi every few seconds.
A whoosh alarms all of us, except for the oblivious baby dragon, and Eden rushes us back behind a large rock. Eden crouches behind the rock, ducking under it while carefully peeking up, and Elara and Onibi are knelt close behind us with their weapons ready, Onibi’s curved blades now in an X shape in front of her chest.
The two watch us intently, as if waiting for an order, and Devan sits with his back against the rock, looking down at me with alarm, and Inara is kneeling with Remi hiding behind her long blonde hair on her shoulder and Ember protectively in her arms. I look up at Eden. “Is it…” I trail off, hinting at the worst. She nods. My heart drops. “Is he…” I trail off again in question, and she nods abruptly.
Oh, Aiyana and above.
Ahumado, The Dragon King of Freya is under the Dark Entity’s control…
Eden
My eyes dart in every direction for an escape route, while I stay low to avoid the Dragon’s attention. Mierda… no… Mierda! I curse in my head, trying to keep the dread out of my face so I don’t alarm my friends. But I am rarely so serious, so that’s probably worrying them anyway.
Accepting our situation, I turn back to Lydia. “There’s no way around him.”
Lydia
The gravity in Eden’s tone and the uncharacteristic look of defeat in her eyes gives me a pause and alarms me to my core. I peek over the rock, and my heart nearly leaps into my throat. The medium sized, beautiful fiery red scaled, intense orange eyed Dragon King I knew years ago, now larger than any dragon I’ve ever seen, and black veins around His body like a rope. His narrow head turns past us, and my heart sinks at the sight of His once vibrant and bright orange eyes fully black, like Inara’s when she was possessed and the dragon that stole Dorian. I duck my head under the rock once again and try to formulate some sort of plan. As I start to doubt our survival, Dorian’s voice echoes in my head. You can do this, Ly. You always think of something. Just take a breath, and think. My heart swells with longing and grief for him, as I listen and take a deep breath with my eyes closed. When I open them again, I see Eden staring at me with a raised eyebrow in question, and Onibi and Elara lean in, noticing my expression. “The Dark Entity has control over an unknown amount of Freyan dragons, including the Dragon King,” I state, and Elara nods along. “The Dark Entity wants control. Control over the dragons, control over us, control over the world. But…” I look at Onibi, an apologetic look flickering in my eyes. “He only wants Sages…” I vaguely say, but their eyes narrow in realization instantly. “He wouldn’t target a little Owl Elf?” they spit out, bitter humor lining their voice. I look down. “N- no, that’s not what I’m saying…” they spit another laugh. “Good. I thought you forgot that He took me as a newborn and used me at His will,” they lean in so I can’t avoid their eyes. “To murder. To lure you in to kill you all.” they say, their eyes narrowing as they glare at me. I nod, cursing myself for my word choice. “Yes, I know. I’m sorry, Onibi. But my plan is not to use you,” I say, earnestly, imploring them to listen. They lean back and nod once, their eyes fixed on me with slight annoyance still, but calmer now. “You used barrier runes on the cave back in Ahren, if I remember correctly,” I say in question. “Yes…” they confirm hesitantly. “Do you remember what type of rune magic you used?” their eyes narrow in thought before they look up at me again. “Sunan Runes. Why?” they ask. An idea lights in my head and I quickly summon my book and flip the pages, everyone watching closely. Onibi
goes to tap my shoulder, but Devan waves their hand away. “Hold on,” he tells them. They pull their hand back and watch on.
Sunan runic Alphabet…Sunan Death Ceremonies… Sunan Runes! I find the page with the yellow sun drawn at the top in the middle of the pages combined, and quickly read the words under the first dark blue rune circle. Water rune. I look at the next, a gray rune circle. Glamor rune. Light red circle rune. Barrier rune - the one Onibi used. Green rune circle, protection shield.
“Got it,” I lay the book flat on the ground in front of me, and Elara leans in. “Sunan protection shield.” Eden nods once, peeking up over the rock again at The Dragon. “Okay,” Onibi presses. “So you make a Sunan shield and we just run?”
“How much time do you need?” Elara puts in, an understanding in her tone. I look up at her with a doubtful look. “Ten minutes. Maybe fifteen,” I lean back as a calculating look sparks in my eyes, “plus I would have to keep it up… and I would have to keep complete focus…”
“Do you think you can do it?” Elara asks me.
I look at her, hesitantly. “I think I could, if we had the time and I could maintain complete focus…” Elara nods, her eyes narrowing sharply in thought.
“I don’t understand,” Onibi cuts in. “can’t you just teleport us out?” Elara’s eyes widen and she giggles softly as she leans back. “Ah, yes. I forgot.”
Teleportation of eight people? Aiyana and above… I dread silently, I could barely teleport me and Devan to Ahren. How am I going to teleport eight people? Can I even do it? Elara, sensing my unease, raises an eyebrow at me. “Ly?”
“U- um…” I stammer, hesitatingly weighing telling them the truth, or going along with this and hope everything goes well. “Y- yeah… I can teleport us,” I slowly say. “But I can't guarantee that we'll all end up in the same place.” Onibi narrows their eyes in suspicion. “Onibi, how did you break from His hold?” I ask. “He let me go. He doubted me because I hadn't killed you yet,” they say coolly.
“We brought Inara back with the exorcism. Would that work on The Dragon?” Elara asks, and I shake my head. “It would if I could recite it while he can hear me without burning us alive,”
Elara nods.
“And seeing that he’s under His control, that is unlikely.” Onibi sighs in frustration and leans in. “Can’t you just teleport us one by one? That’d work,
right?” I sigh and carefully meet their eyes. My mouth opens to give them a counter to this idea, but my throat closes and I falter. Do I tell them? How can I?
Onibi lifts an eyebrow at me in suspicion, and I can see the question in their eyes.
Elara
Lydia’s hesitation sends confusion through my head. That sounds probable… So why are you hesitating? But the pointed look Onibi is shooting at Lydia gives me the urge to step in. “What if we distract him while you recite the exorcism?” I throw out openly. Lydia’s head shifts to me and her hesitant eyes narrow in calculation. Then, she looks at Onibi again. “Onibi, how much rune magic are you familiar with?” she asks, and my mind follows her thought like we share a brain. “All Sunan runes, and I know a few Daryian runes,” they reply. Lydia’s lips lift in a slightly hopeful smile, and she points down on her book to the Sunan runic shield.
“If we both hold up the runic shield,”
“Then you can focus on the exorcism,” I finish her sentence, and she nods at me with a smile.
Lydia
Onibi shoots me a significant look, and they nod slowly. “What if the shield breaks?” Devan asks, and we all turn to him. “Ya know, what if he throws fire,” he asks differently as a drop of sweat drips down his temple. “Will we be burned alive?” Eden chuckles at Devan. “Yes, Devan. We will. But Lydia n’ Onibi won’t let that happen.” She looks at me. “You can do this?”
I nod once. “Yes. I think so.”
She smirks, her eyes sparking with excitement and she nods confidently. “Alright. Let’s do this, then.”