Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Priestess of the Moon: Return of the Lunar Dragon ❯ The War Begins ( Chapter 14 )

Kiya walked alongside Keioke, her cloak around her shoulders, bow in hand, the quiver at her hip. She could feel Reiku in torment through the bond, although she didn't feel the pain that was being inflicted on him. All she knew that he was being tortured and when he passed out again. But just the knowledge that that was happening to him sent a different type of pain through her. I should have been protecting him. He's my Guardian, but I should be able to protect him. If I can't, then who will? Kiya tightened her grip on the Lunar Bow, thinking of when she'll be plunging an arrow into Daorth's heart.

 

Above her, Keioke crooned softly and lowered her great head to nuzzle her shoulder. :You are tense. You mustn't be tense, especially for what is to come.:

 

“I know,” Kiya said softly, “but the bond I have with Reiku is telling me that Daorth is doing horrible things to him.”

 

:Daorth knows that you would feel that through the bond,: Keioke said, :so he is tormenting you. He is trying to make you lose sense of what you have to do.:

 

Kiya sighed and leaded against the dragon's head for support as she walked. “I didn't want any of this, Keioke,” she said softly.

 

:I know, but at least you have accepted it. But look at the good that came out of this.:

 

“I can only think of the bad that's happening now.”

 

:Don't. Think of the good. Think of what you are fighting for. Think of the friends you have and think of the one you love. You will do well, Kiya, and I'll be right at your side. And you know I won't be the only one.:

 

Kiya smiled softly and looked at the dragon, her eyes focused on one of the violet eyes that was looking at her. “Thank you Keioke.” Then Kiya saw Keilila coming towards her. She was dressed in Warrior-Mage whites, fresh and clean, despite her travel-worn ones, her cloak rippling slightly at her quick pace. Walking behind her was Lendell, also in fresh whites, wearing a cloak identical to Keilila's, instead of the fur cloak Kiya had first seen him in. The full demon had been walking at the front with the rest of them, while the Lupian army was towards the back. Kiya had a feeling that Sessroth didn't like Lendell being with Keilila, but the Lupian leader didn't say anything. Kiya shrugged it off; it wasn't her problem.

 

“Scouts said that we are coming up to Riverside,” Keilila told her, “They got a bit of a shock at the sight of the place.”

 

“I don't blame them,” Kiya said sadly, “The place had been changed. How far are we?”

 

“About a mile,” Lendell said, “if we go any farther, the city will see us for sure.”

 

“Then we will stop,” Kiya said. She looked at Keioke and nodded. The dragon lifted her head and gave two short whistles, which told the army to stop. “Tonight is the night when the moons come together,” Kiya said, “We will strike tonight.”

 

The order spread throughout the army and by the early evening, all were ready to strike out at Daorth and Aubrey. They all sat in groups, talking amongst themselves or readying weapons. Kiya sat with her friends at the top of a small hill, all of them lost in thought. Mitt sat with her head resting in her paws, Cliff sitting next to her, studying the sharpness of his axe. Ryudo sat crossed-legged, hands held in prayer, his lips moving soundlessly as he spoke to the Gods. Keilila and Lendell sat beside each other, each of them holding the other's hand tightly in their own. Keioke was lying on the ground, her fore-claws out in front of her, tail curled around her. The dragon was polishing one of her crystal horns against the whiteness of her flank. Kiya herself was leaning against Keioke's opposite shoulder, the Lunar Bow laying across her lap.

 

After a while, Keioke lifted her head, for someone was approaching. Kiya looked and saw Sessroth coming up the hill. The Lupian gave Lendell and Keilila one cold look before giving Kiya a deep bow. “Priestess,” he said formally, “by your leave, I will send scouts to see what we have for battle ground. They can find any faults on the ground if there is any. They can also see what we are up against. That way, we will know what we are fighting and what we are fighting on.”

 

Kiya nodded and stood. “No doubt that Daorth knows by now that we are nearby. He probably sensed my presence by now, as I have sensed his. Yes, send scouts out. But I give them extreme caution. We may not give a surprise attack, but I don't want them to have a chance to lay one on us.”

 

Sessroth nodded and gave a bow before his departure. But before he left, he turned to Lendell and said coldly, “I hope that you are happy to know that you have disgraced our family, the Tesigia name, by bedding this… this half-breed. I no longer see you as one of my sons.”

 

:Silence Dog-Demon!: Keioke snarled, glaring at Sessroth, her mouth opened slightly, revealing her fangs. :How dare you bring this up at such a time? Those words may be your last to your son, yet you speak them still. And also, how dare you speak of one of the Prophecy in that way? Right now, she is at a much higher rank than you, being one of the Priestess's sub-Guardians. Return to your post and remember these words.:

 

Kiya rested a hand on Keioke's shoulder and looked at Sessroth. “Heed my words,” she said, “one more comment like that, and I will release you. I cannot have grudges between anyone in this army. Set aside the differences for now and stand alongside Keilila. After this battle is over, I do not care how you may resent her, but for now, that is the least of your worries.”

 

Sessroth looked at Kiya and then bowed again. Then without another word, he left them. Kiya sighed and looked at Keilila with a smile. “You sure get under his skin.”

 

Keilila laughed and shook her head. “He hates me because I was trained to be a warrior, then I turned out to have the Mage gift, which ticked him off even more. He doesn't see me fit to be a warrior, or even a Warrior-Mage, because I'm half human.”

 

“But you are a lot better fighter than him,” Lendell said with a smile.

 

Kiya looked up at the sky. She could already see the moons. Kiadi's moon was a pale blue and Daorth's moon was almost invisible in the night sky. The two of them seemed a lot closer than usual. “The time is approaching,” she whispered.

 

Keioke lowered her head and nuzzled Kiya. Kiya wrapped an arm as far as she could around the dragon's muzzle from under Keioke's chin. She leaned her cheek against the dragon's muzzle and stood like that for a while. Then she pulled away and went to Keioke's side. She mounted and sat straight, looking down at her friends. The Lunar Bow began to pulse with light, but Kiya held in the power that wanted to come out. “I don't know if I will see any of you again after tonight,” she said to them, “but I want you to know that I couldn't have found better friends than what you all have been to me. I am honored to have met all of you.”

 

“And the same to us, Kiya,” Ryudo said, nodding to Kiya.

 

“Yes,” Keilila said with a smile, “it was an honor to have known you.”

 

Mitt began hopping up and down. “Let's not jinx ourselves before we even get started!” she exclaimed, “Let's hope that we do all see each other again.”

 

Everyone laughed and Cliff chuckled, “That's just like you Mitt. Bring up the positive when something horrible is coming.”

 

“I don't all the time,” Mitt pointed out, “Usually when there's danger, I run like hell.”

 

Kiya smiled and looked at all of them. She then raised her bow, allowing her power to spill out over all of them. “May you be protected on this night,” she said softly. She then allowed her magic to seep over to the rest of the army, although it wasn't as much as she placed on her friends. She then lowered her bow and said, “Time for us to join the rest of the army.” With that said, they all headed down the hill towards where the army was preparing themselves for the battle.

 

~*~

 

Reiku came to and lifted his head. He jumped slightly at the sight of Aubrey's face so close to his. :Time to wake up,: the dragon snarled, :can't have the bait be sleeping.:

 

Reiku growled and said, “I didn't intend to fall asleep.”

 

Aubrey laughed and with one claw, sliced the chains apart like they were old rope. But he didn't take the manacles off. Then he ordered four black robed people to come in. Reiku couldn't see their faces because the hoods of the robes covered their faces in shadow. One of the robed figures fitted a collar around Reiku's neck that had four chains attached. Then each robed figure took a hold of a chain, standing at four points around Reiku and waited for orders.

 

“What are you going to do with me?” Reiku asked, glaring at Aubrey.

 

:Putting you somewhere where that blasted Priestess can see you.: With that, Aubrey ordered the robed men to follow him and they left the dungeons. They kept at a steady pace, Reiku on the center of the four robed men. They climbed up the fortress and Reiku couldn't help but notice the slaves scurrying about; how they looked like deformed creatures that had once lived in this town. After a while, Reiku couldn't look anymore, so he focused on Aubrey in front of him. Finally, they were at a tower at the top of the fortress. Reiku saw two poles made of black metal set up at the center of the tower that went nearly ten feet into the air. The robed men led him to that and had him stand between them. Then they waited. Reiku looked up at the sky, seeing the two moons. Kiadi's moon was a little over half full and Daorth's moon was, as usual, full and nearly invisible. It was also a lot closer to Kiadi's moon than any other night. Reiku knew that in another hour or so, Daorth's moon would cover Kiadi's moon for five minutes. In that time, Daorth will try to kill Kiya or draw out enough blood to allow himself to return to his true form.

 

Daorth arrived and clapped his hands. The robed men removed Reiku's collar and left. Then Daorth raised his hands and a black-green glow formed around them. As he did that, the manacles snapped as Reiku's arms were forced to lift up so they were spread-eagle to his body and his ankles were forced together. Black-green rings formed around his wrists and around both his ankles, making him unable to lower his arms or spread his feet apart. Then Reiku was lifted several feet into the air, a little more than halfway up the poles, so he could be seen from all over the city and beyond. Reiku closed his eyes and sensed Kiya nearby. He willed her not to come, but he knew that it was no use. A breeze picked up, lifting his hair slightly.

 

Reiku could nearly feel the entire world waiting. He opened his eyes and looked up at the sky. The moons were getting closer together. He looked down and saw Daorth and Aubrey waiting. Aubrey was shifting slightly and Daorth looked at the dragon and said, “Patience, Aubrey. You will taste the blood of the Lunar Dragon soon enough.”

 

Then Reiku heard it, a musical crooning coming from the distance. He recognized it instantly. “Keioke,” he whispered, “Kiya.”

 

~*~

 

The army was on the march, heading towards Riverside. The battle would begin at any moment, as soon as the scouts returned. After a while, the Lupian scouts returned and came over to Kiya at the head of the army. They looked up at her where she was sitting on Keioke and saluted. “The battle ground is big,” one said, “and there is no wall around the fortress. Daorth probably believes that the army won't make it that far.”

 

“What about the army?” Kiya asked.

 

“The army is large,” the other scout said, “but they are all dark elves. They should be easy enough. But the number will cause some difficulty.”

 

Kiya nodded and gave her thanks. The two scouts bowed and returned to the Lupian army. Kiya looked down at Mitt and the others. “I need you four to get to the fortress as quickly as you can,” she said. She looked at Lendell and said, “You can go with Keilila if you wish, but you have to make sure you get to the fortress. The prophecy said that we are to defeat a great evil, Daorth and Aubrey, so I will need you guys up there when the time comes.”

 

The others nodded and Keioke crooned softly. Kiya then sat straight and lifted the Lunar Bow high. “We attack!” she cried. Then she lowered the bow as Keioke lifted her head and crooned.