Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Tale of the Silver Dragoon ❯ Chapter 4
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: OtakuAngelD 
Miscellaneous: Original Stories Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Fantasy / Occult | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 01.31.2007 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.9K | Visits: 125 | Status: Work In Progress
Miscellaneous: Original Stories Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Fantasy / Occult | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 01.31.2007 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.9K | Visits: 125 | Status: Work In Progress
4
The fortress was nearly blinding in the desert light. Pure white seemed to reflect the sun, making it split off into a rainbow of colors. It floated in the high clouds, so high not even it’s shadow was seen upon the Earth below. A slight breeze causing a myriad of flags to ripples. Each flag had a symbol, a crest of the one it belonged to. In the very middle, flying over the Great Dome was the largest of these flags. Made in every discernable color, it was bedecked with a balancing scale, holding a fireball on one side and a sword in the other. It sat on a thick open book. It was the person crest of the leader of the Dragoon.
Silver and Onyx steaks made their way into the city proper, the larger landing first. The black landing soon after, magic humming ion the air as they returned to a form of more convenient size and shape. Not that it mattered in this place. All the buildings were created to fit even the largest of the dragons.
At their landing, the two were immediately swarmed by well kept servants. Water bares carried huge containers while others brought wet cloths to cleanse the grime of the road off the travelers. Mikal seemed to thrive on the sudden attention. He straightened and all but puffed his chest out in pride at being called High Priest and Lord Onyx. Yet, he passed them all without even a slight word of thanks, into the domed building, to leave Hanz behind momentarily.
The silver knight attempted in vein to avoid the group. But as always, it was unavoidable. All he could do was hold his hands up in silent defense before he also was swarmed by the servants. Like with the young Kasteel boy, Hanz always protested about titles. Personally, he hated them. Sometimes, thought, they came in handy. Especially yin the Human world. But here, he was only mid-level in the order. He was only second-in-command of the Metals.
By the time Hanz caught up with Mikal, he was still hungry, irate, and now water logged. His annoyed growl echoed, getting louder when he entered the dome. His voice however was hushed, despite the growl. No one dared raise their voice in these hallowed halls. “How dare you!? How dare you leave me back there by myself. If we weren’t in the Doe, I’d make you pay for that, priest.”
Mikal shook his head and tisked at Hanz. “You need to learn to control your temper better, Silvertalon. And you need to learn your place. Here, you are a Lord. Here, you aren’t just a simple knight. How about you start to act the part you were given? Peasants are there for our disposal.” He stated suddenly, after a moment to catch his breath. “You know what your problem is?”
Mercury eyes rolled and massive arms crossed. ”Enlighten me, priest. What do you think my problem is?”
“You have lived among humans far too long. You’re forgotten your place. As the top of the food chain. As a general, as the Silver, and as a dragon. You really need to start living amongst others of your own kind.”
Hanz muttered under his breath. He liked humans. Most his best friends and acquaintances were human. Fact of the matter was, Hanz much preferred the company of humans to that of dragons. Had the Celestial not made him Dragoon, Hanz would be amongst them right now. But as it was, he really didn’t have much of a choice. The Celestial had called.
Hanz trailed the Onyx, feet shuffling. A child that was somewhere against his will. Once again, he was completely different from his dark counterpart. Mikal strode though the massive double doors into the main chambe4r as though he owned the place.
Like the palace itself, color flooded the inner Dome. It was not from the flags. It was not from the colorful tapestries or mosaics. It was from the small man sitting on the steps to the dais the Celestial throne rested. It was framed by a gargantuan sweeping mural. But the colors truly came from the man. He wore more colors than imaginable. Each piece shredded into jester’s rag. Even from a far, it was the eyes however that gave the fool away. Just like the knight and the priest, the fool was far more than meets the eye. When he rose to his feet, Hanz assumed the position of knights from times far more ancient. When he presented his massive blade, he noted that Mikal had produced one as well. He wondered where the priest had conjured the onyx blade from.
The court fool all but slithered down from his steps to approach the two Dragoon.. At five feet from them, Hanz’s eyes riveted to his own blade. He tilted it just slightly so that he could watch the fool’s every move within the reflection of the highly polished silver.
“Ahh…Mikal Kristopher….You have found him so quickly. I must congratulate you, young one. Silvertalon is a hard man to track down. And even harder to drag back to this place. You will have to tell me how you managed such a feat some day.”
Another thing Hanz hated. At the moment, he was less than the furniture here. Not until he was directly address, he had to remain in that position. Just as Mikal couldn’t speak until the Celestial was finished talking. “I assume you would like to go back to your studies. But I’m afraid you can’t just yet. I still have uses for you.”
“But…” Mikal’s words were silenced into indignant sputtering when the Celestial brushed passed him to stand in front of Hanz. He used the sword’s surface to fix his hair, primping in the reflection of the blade.
“Onyx…how you do enjoy arguing with me. If I ask something of you, you should know it is of the most dire importance. You would do well to remember that. Now…I have a question for you. What is your opinion on the Silver?”
Hanz gritted his teeth and rolled his eyes again. He could see the smile the Celestial wore. It was a game the man in fool’s rags played. He once had called it the Temper Game. It was only played with the more volatile members of the Order. He understood, it was played to teach self-control. Mikal had already failed to win by questioning. The knight refused to lose this time. He was a Knight of the Realm. He would show just how restrained he could be.
“I find Silvertalon to be a total barbarian. All he thinks of is food and women. He is stubborn and thick-headed. I would be glad to go on another mission, so long as he wasn’t involved.”
The fool’s smile widened. Hanz felt his dread mounting. He knew that smile. He’d seen it given on three separate occasions, and each time, it had not boded well for him. “I am terribly sorry to hear that. He might be all those things, but Hanz is also an accomplished knight, and a very skillful fighter. And his…specialties…will come to be very helpful on your newest mission.”
“What?!” Hanz echoed Mikal. “You have to be joking.”
The Celestial spun around once and clapped. “You lose again, Hanz my boy. But you are doing much better. Who knows, in a few hundred years, you might even calm down enough to be civilized. But as I was saying, you have a mission, Silvertalon.”
The silver glared at the speechless Onyx. They would have words later about ‘barbarians’. “What do you require of your knight?” As always, he laid the formalities very heavy as payback for the annoying games.
“Always to the point. I knew there was a reason I liked you. I wonder if it’s hereditary. You Metals are always so blunt. Speaking of metals, the Gold discovered something very worrisome on her last trip from the Vatican to the borders of the Vampire Kingdom. It’s finally resurfaced….The book… It’s bound in the skin of the Orihalcon. We know it to be well guarded…Our General was almost killed and she wasn’t even close to it. You of all people know what it is. It’s dangerous and it needs to be retrieved and taken here, where he can shield and protect it. Put it where no one can use it’s contents.”
“I see.” the knight stated. No question, no argument. Just those two words. Honestly, he knew why he was going. His life seemed irreparably tied to that book, from the moment of his final test nearly 600 years ago. That, and as the name suggested, the Vampire Kingdom was the hub of the Undead. Hanz, in either form was walking death to many creatures from that land, be they undead, shifters, or demons. He just failed to see the dark priest’s usefulness in this mission. “I will start right away. Just…”
The Celestial shook a finger at the silver. “Don’t make you partner with the onyx, correct? You Metals are so predictable. You fail to see how a scholar would be of any use in that dark land.”
Hanz stood finally and re-sheathed his sword in one smooth well practiced motion. “Though thought did occur to me. I’ve seen his fighting prowess, or lack there of. His magic, while impressive, is easily stopped. I’d make it in, get the book, and get back much quicker if I didn’t have to baby-sit clergy.”
Again the priest sputtered. Again, he was ignored. “Yes. Well, that may very well be the case, but it is because he is a scholar that he will be of use. I’ve had him researching the lands and ways to control the book and seal it away safely. But we have delayed long enough. There has been word that a No Life King is moving in to collect it as well. So...I will bid you both good day. And good hunting,”
The fool turned his back upon the two. As he returned to the floor of the dais, he waved his hand dismissively. The swirl of color went from the Celestial to surround the two Dragoon. Hanz noticed for the first time since they had met, Mikal was excited. He noted also that he really hated being teleported like this. All the colors blinded him, and whenever he arrived at the desired destination, he felt nauseous and out of place.
The knight could hear what seemed to be the distant wrenching of his partner emptying the contents of his stomach. The sound was superseded by a powerful voice in his head. Something else the Celestial loved to do. “Welcome to the South East Border. You will find your home base for this operation a few miles form here. You’ll be under the roof of Heinrik Gorlitz. Do try to remember you are a dragoon and a knight of the realm and behave. And watch the priest. He knows something and he will not say what. And his mind is clouded to me.”
The fortress was nearly blinding in the desert light. Pure white seemed to reflect the sun, making it split off into a rainbow of colors. It floated in the high clouds, so high not even it’s shadow was seen upon the Earth below. A slight breeze causing a myriad of flags to ripples. Each flag had a symbol, a crest of the one it belonged to. In the very middle, flying over the Great Dome was the largest of these flags. Made in every discernable color, it was bedecked with a balancing scale, holding a fireball on one side and a sword in the other. It sat on a thick open book. It was the person crest of the leader of the Dragoon.
Silver and Onyx steaks made their way into the city proper, the larger landing first. The black landing soon after, magic humming ion the air as they returned to a form of more convenient size and shape. Not that it mattered in this place. All the buildings were created to fit even the largest of the dragons.
At their landing, the two were immediately swarmed by well kept servants. Water bares carried huge containers while others brought wet cloths to cleanse the grime of the road off the travelers. Mikal seemed to thrive on the sudden attention. He straightened and all but puffed his chest out in pride at being called High Priest and Lord Onyx. Yet, he passed them all without even a slight word of thanks, into the domed building, to leave Hanz behind momentarily.
The silver knight attempted in vein to avoid the group. But as always, it was unavoidable. All he could do was hold his hands up in silent defense before he also was swarmed by the servants. Like with the young Kasteel boy, Hanz always protested about titles. Personally, he hated them. Sometimes, thought, they came in handy. Especially yin the Human world. But here, he was only mid-level in the order. He was only second-in-command of the Metals.
By the time Hanz caught up with Mikal, he was still hungry, irate, and now water logged. His annoyed growl echoed, getting louder when he entered the dome. His voice however was hushed, despite the growl. No one dared raise their voice in these hallowed halls. “How dare you!? How dare you leave me back there by myself. If we weren’t in the Doe, I’d make you pay for that, priest.”
Mikal shook his head and tisked at Hanz. “You need to learn to control your temper better, Silvertalon. And you need to learn your place. Here, you are a Lord. Here, you aren’t just a simple knight. How about you start to act the part you were given? Peasants are there for our disposal.” He stated suddenly, after a moment to catch his breath. “You know what your problem is?”
Mercury eyes rolled and massive arms crossed. ”Enlighten me, priest. What do you think my problem is?”
“You have lived among humans far too long. You’re forgotten your place. As the top of the food chain. As a general, as the Silver, and as a dragon. You really need to start living amongst others of your own kind.”
Hanz muttered under his breath. He liked humans. Most his best friends and acquaintances were human. Fact of the matter was, Hanz much preferred the company of humans to that of dragons. Had the Celestial not made him Dragoon, Hanz would be amongst them right now. But as it was, he really didn’t have much of a choice. The Celestial had called.
Hanz trailed the Onyx, feet shuffling. A child that was somewhere against his will. Once again, he was completely different from his dark counterpart. Mikal strode though the massive double doors into the main chambe4r as though he owned the place.
Like the palace itself, color flooded the inner Dome. It was not from the flags. It was not from the colorful tapestries or mosaics. It was from the small man sitting on the steps to the dais the Celestial throne rested. It was framed by a gargantuan sweeping mural. But the colors truly came from the man. He wore more colors than imaginable. Each piece shredded into jester’s rag. Even from a far, it was the eyes however that gave the fool away. Just like the knight and the priest, the fool was far more than meets the eye. When he rose to his feet, Hanz assumed the position of knights from times far more ancient. When he presented his massive blade, he noted that Mikal had produced one as well. He wondered where the priest had conjured the onyx blade from.
The court fool all but slithered down from his steps to approach the two Dragoon.. At five feet from them, Hanz’s eyes riveted to his own blade. He tilted it just slightly so that he could watch the fool’s every move within the reflection of the highly polished silver.
“Ahh…Mikal Kristopher….You have found him so quickly. I must congratulate you, young one. Silvertalon is a hard man to track down. And even harder to drag back to this place. You will have to tell me how you managed such a feat some day.”
Another thing Hanz hated. At the moment, he was less than the furniture here. Not until he was directly address, he had to remain in that position. Just as Mikal couldn’t speak until the Celestial was finished talking. “I assume you would like to go back to your studies. But I’m afraid you can’t just yet. I still have uses for you.”
“But…” Mikal’s words were silenced into indignant sputtering when the Celestial brushed passed him to stand in front of Hanz. He used the sword’s surface to fix his hair, primping in the reflection of the blade.
“Onyx…how you do enjoy arguing with me. If I ask something of you, you should know it is of the most dire importance. You would do well to remember that. Now…I have a question for you. What is your opinion on the Silver?”
Hanz gritted his teeth and rolled his eyes again. He could see the smile the Celestial wore. It was a game the man in fool’s rags played. He once had called it the Temper Game. It was only played with the more volatile members of the Order. He understood, it was played to teach self-control. Mikal had already failed to win by questioning. The knight refused to lose this time. He was a Knight of the Realm. He would show just how restrained he could be.
“I find Silvertalon to be a total barbarian. All he thinks of is food and women. He is stubborn and thick-headed. I would be glad to go on another mission, so long as he wasn’t involved.”
The fool’s smile widened. Hanz felt his dread mounting. He knew that smile. He’d seen it given on three separate occasions, and each time, it had not boded well for him. “I am terribly sorry to hear that. He might be all those things, but Hanz is also an accomplished knight, and a very skillful fighter. And his…specialties…will come to be very helpful on your newest mission.”
“What?!” Hanz echoed Mikal. “You have to be joking.”
The Celestial spun around once and clapped. “You lose again, Hanz my boy. But you are doing much better. Who knows, in a few hundred years, you might even calm down enough to be civilized. But as I was saying, you have a mission, Silvertalon.”
The silver glared at the speechless Onyx. They would have words later about ‘barbarians’. “What do you require of your knight?” As always, he laid the formalities very heavy as payback for the annoying games.
“Always to the point. I knew there was a reason I liked you. I wonder if it’s hereditary. You Metals are always so blunt. Speaking of metals, the Gold discovered something very worrisome on her last trip from the Vatican to the borders of the Vampire Kingdom. It’s finally resurfaced….The book… It’s bound in the skin of the Orihalcon. We know it to be well guarded…Our General was almost killed and she wasn’t even close to it. You of all people know what it is. It’s dangerous and it needs to be retrieved and taken here, where he can shield and protect it. Put it where no one can use it’s contents.”
“I see.” the knight stated. No question, no argument. Just those two words. Honestly, he knew why he was going. His life seemed irreparably tied to that book, from the moment of his final test nearly 600 years ago. That, and as the name suggested, the Vampire Kingdom was the hub of the Undead. Hanz, in either form was walking death to many creatures from that land, be they undead, shifters, or demons. He just failed to see the dark priest’s usefulness in this mission. “I will start right away. Just…”
The Celestial shook a finger at the silver. “Don’t make you partner with the onyx, correct? You Metals are so predictable. You fail to see how a scholar would be of any use in that dark land.”
Hanz stood finally and re-sheathed his sword in one smooth well practiced motion. “Though thought did occur to me. I’ve seen his fighting prowess, or lack there of. His magic, while impressive, is easily stopped. I’d make it in, get the book, and get back much quicker if I didn’t have to baby-sit clergy.”
Again the priest sputtered. Again, he was ignored. “Yes. Well, that may very well be the case, but it is because he is a scholar that he will be of use. I’ve had him researching the lands and ways to control the book and seal it away safely. But we have delayed long enough. There has been word that a No Life King is moving in to collect it as well. So...I will bid you both good day. And good hunting,”
The fool turned his back upon the two. As he returned to the floor of the dais, he waved his hand dismissively. The swirl of color went from the Celestial to surround the two Dragoon. Hanz noticed for the first time since they had met, Mikal was excited. He noted also that he really hated being teleported like this. All the colors blinded him, and whenever he arrived at the desired destination, he felt nauseous and out of place.
The knight could hear what seemed to be the distant wrenching of his partner emptying the contents of his stomach. The sound was superseded by a powerful voice in his head. Something else the Celestial loved to do. “Welcome to the South East Border. You will find your home base for this operation a few miles form here. You’ll be under the roof of Heinrik Gorlitz. Do try to remember you are a dragoon and a knight of the realm and behave. And watch the priest. He knows something and he will not say what. And his mind is clouded to me.”