Original Stories Fan Fiction / Other Fan Fiction / Romance Fan Fiction ❯ Darkness ❯ Eighteen Months Later ( Chapter 2 )

Chapter Two

Eighteen Months Later

 

 

The harsh grating of stone against metal reached her ears as she rose slowly from the blissful sleep she had fallen into the previous night. Light pierced her eyelids, but she didn't open them. The sooner she did the sooner she would have to surrender the safety of darkness. Soft footsteps, lighter than her aunts entered the cell in which she had resided the last three months.

 

Another man. Another beating. Another rape. More torture at the hands of her aunt. It had become the usual cycle with which Kinnara tried to break her. The only thing that varied was Kinnara's method of torture. Sometimes she was forced to watch as Janelle, Kaji's little sister, was tortured and raped. Those times were the worst, when she was the most helpless.

 

For a full year and a half she had held out against everything, but at the expense of her innocence and every scrap of dignity she had ever held. Her pride had been the first to go with her virginity. Her body had been abused, her heart broken, her mind nearly shattered, but they had yet to touch her soul. Kinnara had never once broken her will and if she couldn't do that then she would never win.

 

The soft footsteps stopped a few paces short of where she lay curled in a ball and still she didn't open her eyes to confront her next attacker. She felt no curiosity as to who they were, she had been broken of that habit a long time ago. She merely wished for it to be over so that she could go back to sleep.

 

“Little one,” a soft, feminine voice called to her.

 

A woman?

 

Great. Just what she needed, something new. Maybe if she performed really horribly for the woman she would only be her plaything for a few short hours, instead of days. Bile rose to her throat, but she refused to be sick.

 

If she had been able she would have called on her familiar to attack the woman, but Kinnara had seen to it that Chimadori was restrained by her personal Kingen during these times. As it was, she remained inert and waited for the first blow to fall. It was all she could ever do, wait for the beating to begin and then remain as still as possible.

 

The straw rustled slightly as the woman knelt beside her and placed a hand lightly on her shoulder. Soren tensed against the gentle touch and squeezed her eyes even tighter shut. This was how it always began. A gentle touch as they tried to convince her to go willingly with them, as if they could persuade her that they were her lovers.

 

“Little one,” the woman called to her again. “I'm not going to hit you. Can you open your eyes for me, please?”

 

It was the quiet plea in the voice that made Soren open her eyes in shock. Her gaze met the steady green-eyed gaze of a slim, silver haired woman. A soft smile touched the woman's lips as she studied the younger woman. “My name is Sais. What is yours, chit?” she asked gently.

 

Soren blinked in surprise. This was different, so very different. Despite her silver hair she looked like a woman just barely entering her prime. “My name is Soren. You're supposed to already know that. Kinnara tells everyone my name before she sends them in.” Her voice was soft and raspy from the long months of alternating between screaming long silences.

 

Anger flashed across Sais's face. “Is this Kinnara the reason that you are chained?” she asked.

 

Soren drew back a little at the change of her tone. Her instincts were clamoring for her to run away, as far away as she could get and keep running. “Didn't Kinnara send you in here?”

 

“No. I was searching for you.”

 

“If Kinnara didn't send you then how did you get past the guys outside? They've never let anyone in just for a visit,” Soren said. For the first time in a long time she felt the stirrings of real curiosity and hope. Maybe…maybe this woman was actually here to help her. Maybe she really could free her from her aunt's clutches.

 

Sais tilted her head to the side and smiled predatorily. “Chit, I'm a dragon. I slit their throats with my claws.”

 

Soren felt her breath catch in her throat. A dragon? A dragon with silver hair? Only the Dragon Guardian of a country's throne had silver hair. She had to be a Riagenkai. “You're lying,” Soren spat out. “No dragon would ever come looking for me.” Thoughts of Farin flashed through her mind for a moment before she ruthlessly shoved them aside.

 

Her smile softened a little. “Soren, I am a former Riagenkai. I serve no throne. What I do, I do of my own free will and I am choosing to help you. Would you like to see her dead?”

 

A dragon offering to help her. Impossible, but here she was. Soren relaxed her position a little and stared hard at the woman. “I still don't quite believe that you are a dragon. Anyone can dye their hair silver with the right mixture of roots and claim to be a Riagenkai.”

 

“Chit, I'm not claiming. I am.” And with that she reached towards the chains that bound Soren, clasped them in both hands, and easily pulled them apart.

 

Soren stared at the broken chains for a moment before she looked up at the older woman and mutely held out her other wrist out to Sais. The dragon smiled slightly as she wrenched the metal apart again and let the pieces fall to the straw. Then she stood and held her hand out to Soren, who took it and let Sais haul her up. She stumbled, but Sais caught and steadied her.

 

“Do you want to see this Kinnara dead?” Sais asked softly.

 

The last year and a half flashed through her mind even as the moment of her father's death presented itself to her. “All of them,” she whispered, hatred lacing her voice. “All of them deserve to die.”

 

“And what of the child? My Kingen told me of a child being held not far from you.”

 

“Janelle lives?” Soren asked earnestly. “Kinnara said that she had been killed for trying to escape a few days ago.”

 

“If that is her name, then yes. Her wrists were slit a few days ago and she was tossed into the cell without much care, so she isn't in the greatest condition,” Sais replied cautiously.

 

Fear flooded her. “Will you save her?” she asked softly.

 

The dragon's features were inscrutable as she studied Soren's too thin face. “Of course,” she replied, her voice equally quiet. An odd emotion filled her being for a moment before it disappeared. Then she was just staring at the young woman that had drawn her attention from across half a continent.

 

Turning her head slightly she said, “Josaline. Tend to the girl and take her to safety while I take care of things here. Understood?”

 

Around her body the air rippled and bent, blurring the edges of color for a moment. “Is that your wish, Sais?” the familiar asked. “Currently the woman holds a Kingen that could give even you trouble if he and the rest of her men were to attack. I could take care of him and then tend to the girl-child before taking her to safety.”

 

She glanced at Soren for a moment and met the woman-child's cold stare. “No, that is not necessary. I can take care of myself. There is no need for the girl to be here when I slaughter the adults in this place. Take her and go.”

 

There was a moments pause, then, “Yes, Riagenkai.” The air shimmered for a moment before the Kingen's presence faded as she carried out her master's wish.

 

Sais turned and entered the narrow corridor. She stepped over the still bleeding corpses of the guards, but she paused and looked back as she heard Soren's light footsteps following after her. What she saw in the full light of the torches stoked her fury. Soren bore the marks of maltreatment. Her silver hair was long and lifeless, her silver eyes were nearly bleached of all color, and her skin was ashen from long periods of imprisonment. Of the skin that could be seen there were fresh wounds and old scars that had healed badly. Beneath the ragged, dirty clothes she wore Sais could almost count each of her ribs.

 

Mine, some part of her mind whispered to her. Rip. Tear. MURDER those that dare to hurt mine. Her fury rose with her temper and then all she could smell was the blood of the woman-child that she had claimed.

 

Still unaware of the changes that had taken place in the dragon, Soren stepped towards her. “Thank you,” she said, smiling softly.

 

Her smile broke the rage that had been building and allowed her to return to sanity long enough to touch her hand to the younger woman's cheek. She almost growled at the way Soren flinched at her touch, but repressed it. Power throbbed between them for a moment and any infection that she might have had was killed. “You should leave,” she said abruptly as she dropped her hand.

 

She could feel the rage building again the longer she had to see Soren's wounds. Any second the short leash on her temper could fray and the woman-child would be in danger of being injured by her claws. “You should leave,” she said with more force.

 

For the first time, Soren could see just how close to losing it Sais was, but there was no fear. “I don't know the way out,” she said and watched Sais's green eyes dilate a little.

 

“Then stay behind me and don't try to run if I come at you. It'll only make me chase after you. I don't want to hurt you.” There was a real plea in her voice as she felt herself propelled a little farther towards the edge.

 

“Then you won't,” Soren said. She didn't know where the confidence in this woman came from. It just existed.

 

Sais smiled faintly before she turned her back to the younger woman and released the hold on her temper, allowing the rage to flood her and turn the world red. Then there was nothing but the scent of those that had harmed the woman-child she had claimed as hers. The stone lost its definition as she sprang forward to follow the scents to the sleeping quarters portion of the building.

 

The Kingen was the first to die. Child's play.

 

Stone became wood.

 

Screaming.

 

Open air.

 

Screaming.

 

Flash of metal.

 

Screaming.

 

Gore splattering her face.

 

Screaming.

 

Running. Running.

 

Screaming.

 

Her claws sank into the soft flesh of the humans and tore them apart without regard. If they stood she attacked them. If they ran she chased them. Up the floors of the building, across the roof and into the open air she hunted them. Blood sprayed her clothes and face, but she paid them no mind. Chunks of flesh still clung to her hands, but there was no pausing. Her only thought was to hunt those that had harmed her woman-child.

 

Springing lightly from the roof of the second building she landed on the top of the inn from which she had freed her woman-child. She was there, among the heaviest cluster of the woman-child's blood scent. They scattered, afraid. Each held a weapon that barely scratched her.

 

Her claws plunged deep into the stomach of a male and separated his body from his innards. Another lost her head for a clumsy attack. A third and fourth lost legs and bled to death as they crawled away from her. The rest lost heart and threw their weapons away, running like wild animals. Some jumped to their deaths below, but most became ensnared in the tangled web of her magic as it flowed instinctively from her. They died slowly from the fire that consumed them from the inside out.

 

She faced the woman with crimson hair. This woman held the heaviest scent of the woman-child's blood. The wind riffled softly through her hair as she stepped towards the woman. It was her, only her. The world lost color and became painted over by red. The woman put up a valiant fight and almost managed to escape, but in the end her weapon broke beneath Sais's claws and the dragon ripped into her.

 

The feet went first, then the hands. Blood sprayed everywhere. Screams filled her ears and narrowed her focus. The calves were sheered off next. Words from the woman flowed soundlessly through her mind. Bones were crushed beneath the exertion of gentle pressure. Humans were so fragile. Ribs rippled apart like water under her fingers. Soft tissue squirmed as it left the body. She was still breathing as her innards were ripped from her stomach and chest. Not enough, never enough.

 

Old memories flashed through her mind, confused with this reality. Old hatred welled and broke and she saw him. His face replaced her's for an instant, but then she was staring at the woman that had harmed her chit. Not enough, never enough.

 

Ending. Flowing away. Too soon gone.

 

Rage flared in her chest again and she crushed the corpse's skull. Gore splattered her arms and face, but she cared naught. Ebbing away, color returned. The red rage left her and she could suddenly hear everything within the city. Her muscles tensed, but then relaxed under the gentle pull she could feel leading her towards the younger woman. Descending, descending.

 

She remained straddling Kinnara's waist for a moment before she sighed and stood. The corpse held no interest for her anymore. The others she had hunted lay dead or dying around her as she leapt lightly from the roof to land among the empty streets. Around her cautious faces peered at her blood stained clothes from the safety of their homes. The whites and browns of the surrounding homes and businesses pressed in on her like lightning and burned her eyes. For an instant she felt dizzy and nauseous.

 

Then the woman-child asked, “Sais?” and she felt lighter than she had in years. Just the sound of that voice brought her back to her senses, dimmed the vivid colors, and dulled the noise of the city. Turning her head, she met the steady silver-eyed gaze of the too slim young woman.

 

“I thought you didn't know your way out,” Sais said with a slight grin. She was suddenly all too aware of the human blood she wore under Soren's scrutinizing gaze.

 

“Following the trail of bodies wasn't that difficult,” Soren replied with a shrug. “You look rather pale. Are you all right? Was one of their blades laced with poison?”

 

“I'm fine. Even if a weapon were laced with poison it wouldn't have affected me in the least. Dragons have a natural resistance to any sort of poison,” Sais answered. An awkward silence fell over them as they continued to stare at each other.

 

“Did anyone escape you?” Soren asked after a while.

 

“It is possible. I didn't pause to count.” She studied her for a moment longer before she added, “What do you plan to do now? Will you return to our family or something else?”

 

Soren gave a humorless laugh. “I don't even know what city I'm in, so I don't think that there is any chance of returning to them.” She leaned against the doorframe for support and raised her hand to shield her eyes against the blinding sun. “What about you? Now that you've helped us, what do you plan to do now?”

 

Sais shrugged uncomfortably. “The same thing that I've been doing these last fifty years: wandering.” She glanced up the streets to see that a few people were beginning to venture out of their homes the more time she showed no signs of aggression. Very soon there would be a crowd coming to assess the damage, question her, and then try and get her to use her powers for their benefit as payment for the lost lives. It was the same wherever she went, nothing ever changed. Especially the country of Regenku, especially the Trestri Mountains.

 

“You could come with me. You and the girl.” The words had left her lips before she had a chance to think them over. She felt something grow cold in her stomach as surprise and then suspicion and mistrust flashed across Soren's face. It hurt to be looked at like that by the woman-child, but it was only to be expected after everything she had been through.

 

“Why?”

 

She shrugged, concealing the uneasiness she felt. “Dragons live a long time and I've lived longer than most. I'm bored of being alone and you seem like you would be an interesting companion. What have you got to lose by traveling with me for a time?”

 

Soren's smile was tired. “I wasn't exactly treated well these last couple months. Whatever strength I had before I was kidnapped is gone now. Before I even think about doing anything, I'd like to get away from this city and the people in it.”

 

“I know a place,” Sais said softly. “You wouldn't have to do much, just send your Kingen out to hunt for food and do a few chores during the day. Otherwise you could rest and regain your strength.” For a moment she studied Soren's too thin frame before the young woman pushed herself off the doorframe and took an unsteady step towards her.

 

“That sounds like a pl-” Soren began before she fainted and strong arms wrapped around her waist.

 

* * *

 

His silver hair glinted in the high sunlight as he knelt on the roof beside the corpse of a woman that had once been a noble within the court he helped to rule. Touching a hand to the remains of her arm he brought his fingers away slick with her congealed blood.

 

A low growl sounded in his throat. So close, so damn close. An hour earlier and he would have been the one to rip Kinnara apart. An hour earlier and he would have been the one to find her. Eighteen months he had searched for her, scouring the cities by hand where he felt the tug and circling endlessly when the draw towards his queen ceased for a time.

 

Farin nearly felt his heart stop when he felt the link between them dim, but still it pulsed with life. Allowing his mind to slide towards her's he found himself blocked. He touched the barrier and shuddered as the power of another dragon snapped at him. He withdrew back into his own mind and took comfort in the fact that she was alive. Alive, but in the hands of another dragon.

 

He stood, stepped over the other mutilated corpses, and stopped at the edge of the roof where he could see the slowly gathering crowd of humans. Maybe one of them had seen something. The thought cheered him only slightly. An hour was more than enough time for a dragon to capture his queen, transform, and return to the Trestri Mountains where his father waited.

 

The thought of his father stirred an old memory, but he pushed it away. Now was not the time to remember those years. Right now was the time to track down the dragon that had beat him to Soren. His nostrils flared slightly as he took in the tantalizing scent of the other dragon again. Roses and sea brine were intermingled with the musky scent of a female. It taunted him with its familiarity. Perhaps she was a dragon that he had seen during his time in the Dragon court.

 

As he stood on the ledge the humans slowly became aware of his presence and motioned to his still figure as they alerted their neighbors to him. They stared and murmured quietly, some moving forward and others moving away. The dragon before him had left an impression in her single-minded killing of the people in the building.

 

He took a step forward and plunged through the air to land lightly among the startled humans. His eyes scanned the suddenly tense, frightened faces of his people. Another scent caught his attention and he turned his attention to a short, squat man with coarse brown hair. His beady, black eyes darted nervously around the crowd as though he were looking for help.

 

Under Farin's steady gaze the man began to sweat profusely until his fat head was glistening with droplets. “Why do you wear the scent of my queen?” he asked softly, stepping towards the man. “She was held within this building and tortured by the woman with crimson hair. Tell me why you wear her scent.” Farin stood in front of the man now and the scent of lavender, rosemary, and ocean grew stronger. He felt a possessive rage stir in his breast. This man had been close enough to Soren to make her scent cling tightly to his body. The only way that happened was when…

 

He touched the man's cheek gently with his claws and brushed the hair from his eyes. “What did you do to the girl? Did Kinnara offer her to you for the night?”

 

Still, the man did not answer even as his eyes dilated with fear. As human as the man was he could recognize the threat that Farin represented in his too gentle actions. No one could mistake the rage with which Farin moved. The other humans back slowly from their Riagenkai and the man that had wronged his queen.

 

“Answer,” Farin whispered, resting his claws against the man's throat.

 

“S-s-s-she was j-just a whore. The woman offered use of the girl to m-m-m-me for a f-f-f-few hours for f-f-f-free. I h-h-h-ad no id-d-dea she was q-queen,” the man stuttered finally.

 

Farin's smile was too soft and then his claws sank into the man's soft flesh and tore his vocal cords out in a spray of warm liquid. Blood bubbled in a silent scream as he fell back clutching at his throat before Farin crushed the man's skull beneath his foot. He looked up at the rest of the humans, his eyes glittering.

 

“Tell me about the woman that came here and killed these people.”

 

No one spoke. No one moved.

 

“Now!!” he roared and the crowd broke.

 

They scattered and Farin chased after them. He did not hurt them. They were not his prey. He caught hold of the arm of one woman and spun her around to face him. His claws were still slick with blood and they left a crimson stain on the sleeve of her dress. There was no edge to his voice as he asked, “Was she a dragon or not? What did she look like? Tell me, please.”

 

The woman stood in his gentle grip for a moment and then looked into his eyes. She trembled.

 

“Sh-she is queen?” the woman asked.

 

“Yes,” he whispered.

 

Her scent lost some of the tangy fear as she said, “The woman showed up about two hours ago, Riagenkai. She didn't say anything to us and just kinda poked around before she slipped into the building. Not five minutes later the screaming starts and we folk outside scatter before we can get caught in the middle of it. Some got outside, but she chased them down and ripped their heads off. The last one she killed was the woman on the roof. Then a girl staggered out and she dropped from the roof and she calmed right down as they talked.”

 

“What did she look like?” Farin asked gently.

 

“Red hair like blood, silver eyes, and much too thin. She was a pretty thing, that girl.” The more time that passed and he showed no edge of anger towards her she calmed more.

 

“The dragon. What did she look like?”

 

The woman blinked and then comprehension dawned in her eyes. “She was a head shorter than yourself, Riagenkai. She was stocky, muscular, and had silver hair, bright as you-” The woman cried out in surprised pain as Farin's grip tightened for an instant and then she stumbled back when he released her.

 

“Silver hair?” he gasped.

 

There was no trace of a lie in the woman's scent. She was telling the truth. The dragon that had beaten him to Soren was Sais, the former Riagenkai to the Regenkan throne. That was the reason the dragon's scent was so familiar. It was the same dragon scent that was embedded into the very stone of the palace and the inner city. She had served the throne for so long that her scent was an ingrained part of the stonework, but she had abandoned her position almost fifty years previously.

 

Sais had gone into hiding when she had disappeared. She had to have known that there would be repercussions for slaughtering her royal and his entire court. No matter if they had deserved it, there was still a law prohibiting the mass slaughter of unarmed humans and to break that law was to bring death upon their own head. Why would Sais reappear now? What did she have to gain?

 

“What did the woman do to the girl?” Farin asked.

 

The woman shook her head, trembling. “Nothing. The girl fainted and the dragon caught her and then she walked away like nothing happened. She didn't transform or anything.”

 

“Which…which way?” Farin asked.

 

The woman pointed up the left of the street and Farin was gone before she had time to register his disappearance.

 

The brown, white, and black of the buildings blurred together as he raced by them. Faces lost their definition as he sprang around them and stepped lightly off the buildings. Maybe…maybe it wasn't too late. An hour wasn't that far a head start if Sais had taken Soren by foot, but if she had transformed outside of the city…surely someone would have seen something. Surely they would have come forward, but a nagging suspicion told him otherwise.

 

Sais was a crafty one. She had survived the wrath of each successive Dragon King. As a Riagenkai she had kept a firm grasp over the throne in times of calamity and ruled when she could find no fit ruler. Her age alone was enough to warrant caution, but her abilities far exceeded that of the lower Healer class that she had been born to and she was dangerous even to the Fighters. Among the dragons, she was something of a legend and someone to be treated with caution.

 

If Sais had truly taken Soren to exact her revenge against the Dragon Throne then she would wait to kill his queen until he found them. Fear held him captive. The former Riagenkai was not one he would trust his royal with.

 

* * *

 

Warmth was the first sensation she was aware of. The next thing to register in her mind was the fact that course fur pressed against her cheek. Slowly she rose from the depths of sleep until she hovered just on the edge on consciousness.

 

“…dead,” a soft feminine voice said.

 

“How long?” Sais asked gruffly.

 

“A few hours.”

 

There was a pause.

 

“And you could not save her?” Sais asked bitingly.

 

“The girl had lost too much blood by the time I got to her,” the voice replied coolly.

 

Soren felt her stomach clench as Janelle's smiling face flashed through her mind. God, please no, she thought desperately.

 

In response to her thoughts her familiar shifted slightly and pushed her cold nose into her master's ear. Soren yelped in surprise and sat bolt upright. There was no trace of amusement in Chimadori's voice as she said, Janelle is dead. Sais's Kingen could not save her and by the time Sais got to her she was already at death's door. Not even a dragon Healer can pull someone that far gone back to the living.

 

For a moment the true weight of her familiar's words couldn't sink in and then an icy hand squeezed her heart. Her throat burned and tears clouded her vision. Her sobs were ragged as she leaned into the curve of Chimadori's back and clung to the leopard's neck.

 

Sais sat in the chair nearest the bed and watched with a heavy heart as the woman-child wept brokenly. “Soren, I-” she began, but words failed her. She had lost a daughter not so long ago and she could still remember the bitter grief that had haunted her. Whatever Soren had been through would never compare to the pain of losing someone she had been close to. Sais let her weep in silence.

 

Her Kingen stirred restlessly at her side and Sais's eyes flicked to her familiar with an annoyed look. Josaline returned the look with a blank stare. “Go,” she said softly. “Leave me for a time.”

 

“As you wish,” she said and her form faded into the air.

 

Sais rose and traced her fingers along the wood of the chest beside her chair, her eyes never leaving the heaving form of Soren. The leopard glanced at her and bared her teeth briefly, but then looked back to her master.

 

For a long time there was silence between them. Then, as Soren's sobs were beginning to ease and the sun set, Sais finally said, “The child will be buried at sundown. I am sorry for your loss.”

 

Soren lifted her red rimmed eyes to meet Sais's gaze and the dragon almost flinched back at the hate she saw swirling within the woman-child's silver orbs. “Her name is Janelle. Is Kinnara truly dead, or did you let the bitch escape?” she asked softly.

 

Sais shivered in anticipation at the venom in the woman-child's tone. She felt a half forgotten instinct rise to the surface. It was unsettling the way this one half grown girl could make her want to drop to her knees and bear her throat in submission, but she reigned in her emotions and answered, “If Kinnara can survive having her limbs sheared off, her insides ripped out, and her heart crushed then she is more than just human. She would have to be God to have survived what I did to her while she still breathed.”

 

Relief flashed through her eyes and she turned her head. She reached her hand to her side and Chimadori butted her head against her master's hand. For a moment Soren stroked her Kingen in silence. “Thank you, Sais,” she said finally.

 

There was a hint of a growl to Sais's voice as she answered, “It was my pleasure, chit.”

 

Curiosity at the dragon's reaction flickered through her, but a fatigue unlike anything she had ever felt before swept over her. She leaned forward until she could rest her forehead in the palms of her hands. She closed her eyes and let all thought cease for a moment.

 

Soren? Chimadori asked and she opened an eye to stare at her Kingen. Rest some more. I will wake you a few hours before the burial so that you may eat and regain some of your strength.

 

I'm not tired.

 

Annoyance crossed the leopard's face as she answered, I can feel it within your very mind. You've existed in a half life this last year and a half so don't try to tell me that you're not tired now that you're within the presence of someone we both know can be trusted. She killed Kinnara and tried to save Janelle. Whatever her reasons for saving you, she is a dragon and she won't let her efforts go to waste. So, sleep!!

 

She didn't try to resist any longer. The weariness was too much and she surrendered to it as curled up beside her familiar again. Sleep overtook her before she settled her arms around Chimadori and so she slept dreamlessly for the first time in a long time.

 

* * *

 

The sun was just beginning to cast shadows across the deep forest glade as the two women stood side-by-side at the edge of a freshly dug grave. Their familiars had opted to give them privacy through the process and, so, they were alone.

 

Soren leaned heavily on Sais's shoulder as they stared at the slender form of a young black-haired girl. Her oval eyes were closed as though in sleep, but her skin was too pale. "Scorlunaz corona fi no ma, un kia de mi grana. Necun mar a aman se mi batara, doman curanta man kia dosonta,” Sais whispered.

 

Soren tilted her head to look at the dragon. "What does it mean?"

 

"With the passing of the body comes the life of the soul. No more do you exist in this life, but forever will you be remembered by those that remain."

 

She eased herself off Sais's shoulder and knelt beside the little grave and the mound of dirt beside it. Picking up a handful she sprinkled it over Janelle's body. Tears slipped fell like rain as she said, “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. I'm sorry that I couldn't save you. We'll meet again someday, little one.”

 

With that Sais knelt beside her and together they filled in the shallow grave and placed rocks over top of the dirt. For a while they just sat staring at the mound before a soft breeze touched them and ruffled through their hair. Sais stirred as though from a dream and touched Soren's shoulder. The younger woman turned her head to stare at the dragon.

 

“Darkness is falling fast. We should get you inside before it becomes true darkness,” Sais said quietly.

 

“Why couldn't it have been me?” Soren asked, sounding like a frightened child.

 

Sais bit back her first reply that it was just how it had happened. If she said that, then Soren would most likely try and hit her and while it wouldn't hurt her it would hurt the more fragile human woman. “It was Janelle's time, not yours,” Sais said as she slid her arms around Soren's shoulders and under her legs. “Over the course of my life I've had almost twenty children. A few I lost to birthing complications. Others I lost to war and single combat over stupid things, but one thing has remained the same through it all.”

 

“What's that?” Soren asked as the dragon lifted her off the ground.

 

“I've outlived them all,” Sais said heavily, “and each time I watched them die or received news of their deaths I've wished that I could take their place. We've survived, not because of strength or luck, but because it is not yet our time to die. It means that there are things still that we have to do. We carry the burden of memory and we honor those we love that died before their time by living for them.”

 

Soren rested her cheek against Sais's chest and listened to the steady thrumming of the dragon's heart. Her entire body ached from the healing wounds from her prolonged captivity, but most of all her heart ached. Anything that Kinarra could have put her through couldn't compare to the agony of losing someone she had shared she had been close to.

 

“We live for them?” Soren asked, feeling her body relaxing against the searing heat radiating from Sais's body.

 

“Yes, chit,” Sais answered, though the woman-child was already asleep in her arms.

 

* * *

 

The next thing that Soren was aware of was warm sunlight stretching lazily across her face. For a moment, she forgot the burial and the terror of the last year. The familiar scent of her Kingen filled her nostrils as she turned on her side. The blankets were tugged gently from her body and Soren made no attempt to grab them back.

 

She cracked an eye and was met with a patient stare from Chimadori. She groaned and rolled over to face the familiar. Reaching out a hand she touched the leopard's cheek and breathed a sigh of relief at the contact.

 

Time to get up. You've been asleep the last two days. If you don't get something to eat soon, you'll wither away.

 

Heaving another sigh she swung her legs off the pellet that served as her bed and tangled her feet in the blankets. The ground blurred sickeningly as it rushed up to greet her, but she never received her face full of dirt. Instead, she collided with Chimadori's back and bruised her hips against the Kingen's hard bones for her trouble.

 

Chimdori turned her head back to glare at her master as Soren spat out a mouthful of crimson hair and white fur. Shifting the young woman's weight, she got her fully on her back and then set off at a jarring pace from the room. Where are we? Soren asked after a few seconds.

 

A Sanma in the city of Jorus to the southern tip of Regenku. The city Sais brought from was Quntam, Chimadori answered.

 

She lifted her head until her chin rested on her familiar's shoulders. They room they had left behind led into a short hall that opened to a rather run down courtyard. Her eyes traveled over the ragtag group of younger children that played games and chased each other. There were no adults and she could only guess that the older children were in the fields or else learning lessons from the few teachers and adults that served to staff the orphanage. She watched as one child sprinted to the base of the immense pine tree growing in the center of the yard and begin climbing its branches.

 

Have you done any exploring while I was out of it?

 

No. I was more concerned about you.

 

The children don't seem to be very concerned about you, she remarked after a few glanced curiously at them before turning back to their play.

 

Sais's Kingen is a frequent around here. Once they got used to her presence they were more than willing to accept a wild animal amongst their ranks, Chimadori said with a hint of humor. Josaline is a little hard to get along with, so don't be surprised if she ignores you or, when she does talk to you, insult you. She's a Kingen of old, so her temperament is less than pleasing to anyone not her master.

 

Soren shifted her weight and slid from her familiar's back to stand as she said, “I'll keep that in mind. We're going to see them, I take it?”

 

Of course, the familiar snorted. Sais is setting wards to keep bandits, dragons, and…other people out of the city and Sanma. She should be somewhere near the forest…

 

Her voice trailed off as a young woman near Soren's age approached them. She had a small nose, green eyes, and delicate cheek bones. The hair tied back in a loose ponytail was brown and waist length. When she reached them, she tiled her hips and placed a hand on one as she inspected them with a haughtiness that made Soren want to slap her.

 

“I am Shandra Horun. Who are you?” she asked, ignoring the familiar as she glared at the older woman-child.

 

“Soren,” she responded, idly stroking Chimadori's fur.

 

She smells of violence and jealousy. Be careful what you say to her, Chimadori cautioned her even as her hackles raised. Just the girl's scent set her temper to a dangerous edge.

 

Despite her familiar's warning and unease, Soren remained unaffected by the haughtiness of the younger woman-child. Her voice was almost pleasant as she asked, “What is it that you want? Surely, you didn't come over here to just introduce yourself.”

 

“You're the new one that's going to be living here?” Shandra asked. She ignored the shiver that passed over her spine as Soren's eyes turned to ice and didn't wait for an answer as she plunged on, “I don't see what's so special about you that would make a dragon want to travel with you.”

 

“Yes, well,” Soren said airily, “the same could be said for a dung faced little worm like yourself.”

 

Shandra flushed crimson. “You're not such a looker yourself,” she snarled. “Listen well, because I'll say this only once. I'm in charge here, so if you do anything that I don't like its right back on the streets for you. No matter that you have a dragon companion it will not be tolerated if you do not abide by the rules.”

 

She studied her for a so long that Shandra began to shift uncomfortably under her cool, unrelenting gaze. “If I leave, it will be by my choice. Stay out of my way and you won't get hurt,” she said, dropping her hand to her side.

 

Gently, she warned Chimadori.

 

I'll be gentle, her familiar shot back as she lunged forward.

 

Shandra shrieked as the solid mass of muscle and fur barreled into her, knocking her to the ground. Chimadori placed her paws on either side of the girl's head and grinned, baring her impressively sharp teeth.

 

“Chimadori,” Soren said quietly and her Kingen retreated back to her side. She slid her fingers through the familiar's rough fur both for the support and the reassurance of her presence. “Listen well, because I'll say this only once: Leave me alone. Next time, I won't restrain her and she can be quite vicious when provoked.”

 

With that, they left the trembling girl still lying on the ground. They passed through the rest of the school without a sound and son left it behind. Before them stretched a great expanse of pine and oak trees that towered over them. For a moment Soren stood, absorbing the sight of the magnificent sight of the forest and trying not to recall the times she had spent with Farin in a similar forest. Even the fresh sap and pine scent was the same.

 

Catching the tenor of her thoughts Chimadori said, If you call him to you then no barrier will stop him from coming.

 

He never came for me, no matter how many times I called him. I'm not his queen. I was just something to amuse him while he spent the years looking for his actual ruler, Soren replied, tearing her gaze from the trees and entering the forest. Chimadori paced after her, her ears flicking back in irritation.

 

You know that that is not true. The Riagenkai is honorable. He would not have spent so much time with you and taught you the things of court that he has if you were not his queen! Chimadori snarled.

 

Then why did he never come? I begged him to. If he had come before Sais then Janelle would still be alive, Soren answered scornfully, not looking where she was going.

 

Chimadori had no answer and she subsided into seething silence. Her master ignored her as she continued her aimless wandering. She knew that they were getting farther from Sais, but at the moment she didn't have the energy to care. Heaving a heavy sigh, Chimadori followed after Soren. The young woman was so angry with her dragon. Perhaps…perhaps Sais could help Soren when they traveled. Right now, though, her master would have to recover her strength before she would be of any use to her country or herself and being angry wasn't helping her any.

 

Soren? she asked tentatively.

 

“What?” she replied.

 

Don't be so angry. It will only slow your recovery.

 

“I'm already walking normally. If I continue like this I'll be more than ready to leave in a few weeks,” Soren answered with a sigh. Trust her Kingen to turn motherly on her, but then if not for Chimadori she would have died in that cell a long time ago. But…maybe that would have been better. Maybe Janelle would still be alive if she had died or given into her aunt. She considered it for a moment, then decided that Janelle would have been worse off if she had died. The girl would have been the only one to entertain the men that Kinnara recruited and that would have been a worse sentence than if she had been captured by bandits.

 

A twig snapped somewhere behind them, drawing her back to the present and sending her spinning to face to danger. She was met with the sight of an amused dragon. “Well, now,” she said, “if I had been an enemy you would have been dead.” Then the amusement left her face. “You really shouldn't be out here. You haven't had enough time to regain your strength. If you really were attacked you would have no reserve strength on which to fight once your main source gave out.”

 

Sais crouched down and picked up a bit of dirt to sniff at it. She frowned at the scents she caught from it. “Josaline,” she called and her familiar materialized next to her.

 

For the first time, Soren really studied the dragon's Kingen and saw what Chimadori had meant when she had called Josaline a “Kingen of old.” Sais's familiar looked almost like an angel the way she stood with skin paler than moonlight and wings whiter than the first snow drift. She was completely naked and so close to human that if one ignored the wings and took in only the black hair and ageless face, Josaline could have passed as woman of less than thirty years. A Kingen from a time when humans still experimented with animals and magic, she was proof of Sais's long life.

 

Ignoring them, the Kingen waited for her master's orders. “There have been bandits through here within the last week. I want you to track their movements and report back when you've found their camp. If you think they're dangerous then attack. If not, we'll herd them out of Regenku together.”

 

“Yes, Riagenkai,” she answered before she disappeared.

 

Glancing up at Soren, she carefully dusted her hands off and rose. “You look better now that you've slept some, but you still look like someone stripped you of all the meat on your bones and then sewed you back together. You'll have to eat more if you're going to recover at all.”

 

Soren made a face at the dragon. “Thanks for the image.”

 

Sais ignored her comment as she said, “The scent of a dragon remains for years and cannot be washed away whatever you try or whatever happens to you. You carry the scent of a male dragon. Care to tell me why?”

 

The woman-child visibly flinched at the mention of another dragon and she felt her rage flare for an instant. She had no love for the family of the dragon whose scent she carried and if he had been one of the ones that had hurt her…

 

“His name is Farin. He's the Riagenkai of the country,” she said shortly. Then she turned her head to her Kingen as they had a silent exchange that made her scowl at her familiar. “I'm not queen if that's what you're thinking and he wasn't one of the one's that helped hurt me. He merely used me to pass the years as he searched for his actual ruler.”

 

She couldn't bear the thoughtful expression that crossed Sais's face. “I had to travel by foot once I got to Regenku, because the Dragon Prince was circling around this country. I had no idea he was my successor to the Riagenkai post. Last I knew, Karu of Jesira had taken him in. I suppose some things really do change given enough time.” Sais threw her head back and laughed. “To think, Askerin was enough of a bastard that he actually banished his son to the post of Riagenkai. Soren, how long has he been at the post?”

 

“Fifty some odd years now. He killed his first ruler about ten years ago now,” Soren answered warily. “You are the previous Riagenkai?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“You slaughtered your last ruler and his court and then disappeared?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“And now you're back, helping me? Why?”

 

Amusement crossed Sais's expression again. “No, I am not back. I gave up my post after Korus murdered my daughter. The only way I'll ever return to the post is if I choose to. That is the beauty of being so old and abandoning one's post. Askerin cannot bind me, because I was born before dragons were required to swear, in blood, their allegiance to the Dragon Throne.”

 

She knew Sais was trying to distract her from her actual question and after a moment Soren decided to let go of it. Whatever her reasons for helping, Sais had freed her from Kinnara and in that she had more than earned a little privacy. Instead she asked, “Who's Korus and Askerin?”

 

“Korus was the king of Regenku I murdered. Askerin is the current Dragon King,” she answered, turning away from Soren and running her hand over one of the trees.

 

“I thought your last king's name was Hoqun.” Confusion touched her voice.

 

Her tone was humorless as she answered, “The king before Korus was called Hoqun. When I destroyed his court I did more than kill the humans. I set fire to the records and erased his name from the minds of his people. I doubt very much that anyone other than I and a few dragons remember what his name was.”

 

Surprise crossed her face as she asked, “You can do that? Wipe someone out of existence and make it as though they never existed?” Against her will, hope flared in her chest as memories of Kinnara and her men presented themselves to her.

 

“No,” Sais said flatly. “I cannot wipe them out of existence entirely. Though I can erase the name and face there will remain a vague sense of remembrance. It is why people associate Korus's rule with that Hoqun. The memories themselves remain unchanged, it's just a certain person that is forgotten.”

 

“Oh.” And just like that the hope that she would have been able to forget the last year and a half vanished.

 

Chimadori chose that moment to butt Soren's knees and propel her into a sitting position. Unconsciously Sais mirrored her movements and sat down against an old oak tree. “Human memory fades with time,” she said. “Even the worst moments in your life cannot stand the test of time, because better memories will fill the aches the longer you live.”

 

“Is that what happened with you?”

 

Sorrow flashed across her features. “No, my memories remain painfully clear. Even to this day I can recall with perfect detail how my parents died.”

 

“What happened?”

 

“War,” she said shortly and Soren left it at that.

 

Silence fell between them for a few moments before Sais asked, “What of your parents and family? What happened to them? Why don't you wish to return to them, if they are indeed still alive?”

 

Soren hesitated. Her family wasn't really a subject that she wished to broach with a dragon that was almost a stranger to her, but she had been more than honest with her past. “When I was born my family lived in the palace. We were nobles. Kinnara was my aunt. About the time I was seven she murdered my father and my mother, sister, and I relocated to a village some ways from the palace. About ten years after that, I found out that Kinnara escaped her execution when she showed up with a group of men, killed my sister and mother, and kidnapped me. As far as I know the Kiragashi family was politically ruined not long after the minister's failed revolt and the Basalt family has remained in good standing with the Riagenkai by remaining neutral on all things court concerned.”

 

“Kiragashi and Basalt?” she repeated, tilting her head as she studied Soren. “That would explain your odd colorings. Those are some very old bloodlines and that would also explain your ability to command a Kingen.”

 

Soren looked at Chimadori and then back at Sais. “How so? I've been commanding her for as long as I can remember.”

 

“The Basalt and Kiragashi lines are distant descendents of an imagi line the decided to interbreed with humans. It was a very, very long time ago, but the blood still remains however diluted so a Kingen attaching itself to a mostly human host isn't unheard of.”

 

Fascinated by the knowledge that the families her parents had come from were of imagi descent she said, “They never told me anything about it. My sister and mother had Kingen of their own. Even Kinnara. But as far as I know only the four of us had Kingen at all. If there were others they never allowed their Kingen to materialize in front of other people.”

 

The dragon chuckled. “Humans of this day and age forget that there was once a time when the imagi ruled them. Jealousy and spite has eroded whatever good will was between the two races and so humans have hunted the imagi almost to the point of extinction. If it were revealed that someone of noble birth had imagi blood then it would be viewed as a crime and everyone would be summarily executed.”

 

“For their blood?” Soren exclaimed. “That's stupid.”

 

“Yes, chit, for the crime of being born to a family they had no choice in choosing,” Sais answered, studying Soren's outraged countanence. If the woman-child was so enraged at the unfairness of the imagi hunts and executions, then perhaps… She had mentioned that Farin had spent time with her before she was taken by her aunt. “Did you know that when a dragon is born or hatched they must bond their magic to a stronger adult in their prime or they will die?”

 

Startled by the abrupt change in subject, Soren could only shake her head and listen as Sais continued, “What would you say if I told you that I returned to the Trestri Mountains a few months ago and stole a dragon egg?”

 

She froze. “I would say that that was a very dangerous thing to do. You're wanted by the Dragon King and in doing something like that could only provoke him into redoubling his efforts to capture you. What would you have to gain for doing something like stealing an egg from the dragon stronghold?”

 

Sais grinned and then spoke a few words in draconic. The air rippled at her waist and a sack appeared. It wasn't overly large, just a simple oilskin sack that held an orb of some kind. Carefully, Sais untied the sack, reached in, and withdrew an entirely black egg. “Trust me, chit, a Riagenkai of his potential strength being raised by the likes of Askerin would not bode well for the rest of us. If he hatches with a dragon or human that can teach him the correctly how to live and care for people then the Dragon King's plan is thwarted and the risk was worth it.” She rolled the egg between her palms, hardly daring to look at Soren as she spoke.

 

“So,” she said carefully. “You're going to hatch it and raise the Riagenkai yourself. What country is he Riagenkai to? Adair and Regenku have stable Riagenkai. Jesira can't be far from needing a new Dragon Guardian. Kokutoma has been rulerless for the last thirty years. Riana is in the middle of a civil war with its ruler and Riagenkai probably dead.”

 

Sais's sea green gaze flicked to Soren's cold silver eyes. The woman-child was purposely trying to divert her attention. Fair enough. “Riana's queen yet lives, but she and her dragon were driven from the palace by her ministers. Jesira's courts are corrupt and ruled by a queen that could care less about her people. Adair's queen is a cold hearted bitch that has ruled with an iron fist the last hundred and fifty years, but she's smart enough to know where to draw the line. The kingdom next in line for a new Riagenkai is Kokutoma and I cannot be the one that he attaches to. I am past my prime. He will have to bond to you. If, however you do not wish the responsibility of raising him then I will, but you will have to travel with us because if a young dragon gets too far away from his magical symbioses they die.”

 

There. It was out. Now, it was up to her.

 

There was a tense moment in which the emotions that Soren had been holding back flooded her. The guilt and grief for Janelle's death. The rage that Kinnara was already dead. The anger at Farin for leaving her to die.

 

With years of practice, she mastered herself and pushed her emotions aside so she could look at things from a distance. Janelle had died as a result of her wounds inflicted. It had only been a matter of time before she would have broken or died as well. Sais had saved her from Kinnara at a great personal risk. Maybe Sais was using her. Maybe the dragon wasn't as kind as she appeared. But, the fact still remained that she had saved her and now she was asking for a favor in return. Something within her loosened.

 

There was still someone that needed her, still something that she could do for someone else. She had failed the younger girl when she had needed her the most, but there was still someone that needed her to do something for them. Sais knew that she had failed and yet the dragon still wanted her help.

 

What do you think? she asked Chimadori.

 

I smell no lie in her scent, but she is much older than I am, her familiar answered cautiously. I can see where you would want this responsibility, but…consider what would happen if you weren't strong enough to support his needs and raise him properly. Tell me the worst case scenario.

 

I make him into a monster worse than my aunt and the corrupt courts. He would be free of the bindings that normally keep a dragon under control and he would be free to terrorize anything within his reach, she replied promptly. If I'm not strong enough to support him, then the worst case is that we die, and then who would be left to mourn us? Fayra and mother are gone. Kinnara was crazy when she murdered father. The rest of my relatives don't give a damn about me, so it's a win-win situation either way I look at it. The best case scenario is that I raise him well and he becomes a good Riagenkai. On a more cheerful note, Sais did say that we could travel with her for a time if we wanted, so we wouldn't be alone in raising him.

 

Chimadori's answer was hesitant as she said, You're suicidal.

 

Perhaps. At least this if I die, it was trying to do something worthwhile, she mused while out loud she said, “I'll do it. On one condition: You teach me everything I need to know about raising a Dragon Guardian. If I'm to do this, I don't want to mess it up.”

 

A small smile played about Sais's lips as she nodded, but any thoughts she had were well concealed. Though they would never admit it to each other, both were looking forward to the time that they would be spending together. It would give them a chance to heal old wounds and move forward with their lives. Their hands brushed as the egg was passed between them and they shared a fond smile.

 

Former Riagenkai and fallen child. Their fates would forever be intertwined.