Cassandra Pendragon

Cold rain drenched me to the bone. The fires had petered out and I was at the mercy of a massive thunderstorm, an unconscious girl in my arms. Lost in thought, I shook out my tails and gradually descended to the ground. The pentagram had turned into smouldering, black wounds, crisscrossing Free Land, and the former market had become a wasteland of ash and glass, almost like hell. A chorus of pain and despair rose from huddled together figures, even though they were the lucky ones, who had survived the carnage. An acrid smell remained in the air, slowly being washed away by the downpour. Just below me, the people I had come to protect waited, their expressions somewhere between wonder and fear.

I sighed deeply, relief, sorrow and anxiety warring within my chest. Everyone I truly cared for had survived, but I couldn’t shake the images of my brother collapsing and my mom crying at the feet of a monster, I hadn’t been able to stop. If it had taken me even a minute or two longer… and now, he was here. Beaten and bruised, I assumed, but still alive. How many cities would burn, how may people would die to stop the aspirations of a mad man? More than I cared to admit.

I had taken away his magic, I had stopped the ritual, I had even known what he was trying to accomplish, but yet, all I had managed to do was protect my closest family. I hadn’t even been able to prevent his arrival. At least the city hadn’t burned to the ground.

I turned my head and studied the horizon. The airships, which had survived the flames and magic, were hurriedly riding the storm to get as far away from Free Land as possible. While their shadows grew blurry in front of the pitch black sky, I toyed with the idea of going after them, but I didn’t have the stomach for another killing spree and I was tired. They would run and they’d rejoin the Emperor’s forces, but right then, I didn’t care. I wanted to retrieve Ahri and Lyra, retreat to either my cabin or underground room and simply sleep for a day. And then, I intended to spend some time with my family. We had earned it.

I touched down lightly, my wings vanishing the very moment I stood on solid ground. A deafening silence greeted me. The few surviving mercenaries even attempted to limp or crawl away, but their behaviour only elicited a sad smile from me, while I gently lowered my living burden. What truly mattered were my mom’s eyes, sparkling with gratitude and pride, my brothers arms, as they wrapped around me, the rising and falling chests of the children and the constant flow of reassuring dreams, that tickled the back of my mind, every time I focused on my tattoo.

“Sorry for being late,” I whispered and breathed in his scent. “You scared me.”

“I didn’t mean to. Thanks for showing up, when you did. You saved me… all of us.”

“Consider it a down payment,” I mumbled, fighting to hold back my tears. “You have pulled me out of the fire often enough, it feels nice to return the favour, once in a while.” Blinking rapidly, I pushed him to arms length. Everyone else had come closer, forming a smiling ring around me.

Before I knew what was going on, I was hugged and squeezed, pinched and prodded. Alassara, her daughter snoring in her arms, kissed my cheek, only to be pushed aside by a scaly head, as Viyara rubbed her snout against me and Reia hugged my waist, squealing. My mom had nimbly jumped onto my shoulder and made no sign of vacating her throne, anytime soon, while each and every dwarf insisted on shaking my hand. It slowly dawned on me, that I had actually done something I could be proud of. I might have been unable to stop the Emperor, but I had managed to protect, what I cherished. I had done well.

Slowly, the throng of people thinned out, the ones who hadn’t been hurt started to care for those, who had been less lucky. The pirates were dead, as close as they had been to the Emperor, their souls had been the first to be taken and burned to fuel the spells. Most of the mercenaries and soldiers had suffered the same fate, but some of them had made it. Sheer luck had allowed them to survive, but they were wounded and traumatised. They needed help, quickly.

“You didn’t lie a single time, did you?” Vanya’s voice brought me back to reality. She and Will were leaning against each other, dirty and bloodied but alive. “And just so you know, I consider us even. Actually, more than, come to think of it.” I grinned happily and wrapped my arms around them, making them hiss in pain and surprise.

“That we are. Thank you for coming, thank you for… just, thank you. If there’s anything I can do to repay you, all you have to do is ask.” She smiled slyly, as her free arm went around my neck.

“Oh, I’m sure we’ll think of something. Free Land has changed… many are dead. I’d like to have a say in how we rebuild and I’m sure you can give me a leg up.” I felt her stiffen as she quietly added: “once we’ve buried the ones who didn’t make it.” I squeezed her shoulder.

“It’s the least I can do… did… Malique, is he still alive?” She trembled and sniffled.

“No… there was nothing for us to do, we… I don’t even know, why we’ve come. It made no difference…Lorian was right, we’re courting death for as long as we are near you and he…” she fell silent and I expected her to push me away. I didn’t agree, but I couldn’t deny her unvoiced accusation. If they hadn’t tried to help, he’d still have been here and the result would have been the same, regardless. I could hardly blame her for holding me responsible. This had been a fight, where a dragoness had been out of her depths and I had, in a way, enticed humans to take part. Admittedly, I had always been honest about their actual chances in an open conflict, but I had still dragged them into this mess and his death was partly my fault.

To my surprise, she didn’t lash out, though. She held me even tighter and whispered:

“I don’t ever want to feel like this again… scared and useless. Will and I…” she paused and it took me a moment to make sense of her stiff posture and the quickening beat of her heart. She was embarrassed. Will came to her aide and, after clearing his throat, finished her question:

“We were wondering, if you could… you know, help us along. I have no clue, what exactly you are, but judging for what I’ve just witnessed… damn it, I’m just going to say it. We don’t want to be deadweight, especially when it’s our home at risk. We don’t want to have to rely on vampires or gods or some other bullshit. We want to fight with our own strength and thought, you might be able to give us just that.” Holy hell, it surely seemed like I had underestimated them, a mistake I was repeating much too often for my liking.

“Just to be clear, are you asking me to train you or change you,” I wanted to know. Vanya stepped back and they shared a guilty glance, like children who knew, they were asking too much.

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“Both,” he finally replied. “We’re human and we don’t want that to change, but…” he looked around the square, his eyes filling with determination, “I’m never going to hide, again. What we saw… it was a wake up call. I’m not going to risk my home to serve my pride. The world is dangerous and we are ill equipped to deal with it. So… can you help us and will you?”

I chuckled, more than happy to oblige. “Of course, but I’m not sure, what I can actually do. We’ll have to see. Tomorrow… no, make that the day after, we can take a few hours. Why don’t we meet somewhere quiet? Maybe even out of town.”

“The forest,” Vanya immediately piped up. “I know a few secluded spots, I can lead you there. We won’t be disturbed and there’s nothing to break close by, either.” I nodded.

“Sounds good, why don’t we meet at the nearest market, say two hours after sunrise? You’re, of course, also very welcome to stick around until then, by I’m not yet sure, where I’ll be, most of the time. There’s still so much I want to…”

“Cassy,” my brother shouted, “could you spare a moment?” My head snapped up, my energy stirred and my wings manifested again of their own accord, before I realised, that I was only making a fool of myself. Mordred was kneeling next to one of the armoured soldiers, her helmet lying next to them on the ground. She was a tall blonde, one I had never seen before, but I could still guess her identity. A second later, my hunch was validated, when Will hissed:

“Brightblaze. You better go, we wouldn’t want another Captain dead, especially the one, who actually bothered fighting a foreign army. Do you think she’ll make it?” I shrugged, retracting my wings. Truth be told, whether she lived or died was of little importance to me. She had already proven her character, when her church had helped in the raid on Alassara’s home.

“I can’t say. If she survived this long, she should have a decent chance, but there was so much going on… I just don’t know what might have happened to her or her soul. Best to find out.” I squeezed his shoulder and hugged Vanya one more time, before I made my way across the demolished square. Since the fires had been extinguished by the pouring rain, a few onlookers had appeared, peeking around a corner, but they had quickly decided to stay the hell away from a bunch of dead bodies at the centre of a calamity, none of them had ever witnessed, before.

Distracted, I reached up and patted my mom’s tails. “You’ve been awfully quiet,” I projected, when we had just passed a veritable hill of bodies. Their colourful clothes assured me, that they had been pirates but the lifeless eyes amidst a contorted face, reflecting nothing but dread and despair, stills sent shiver down my spine. Whatever they had been, this was no way to go.

Her claws scraped against my skin, while she moved from one shoulder to the other. “What is there to say? You came, just in time. I’m…” she hesitated and continued in a rush: “I’m scared, Cassy. I’m scared for my children. If you hadn’t… Mordred would be dead… worse than dead. I’ve just been reminded, whom we’re facing and I’m lost. Aurelia and myself were the only ones who could withstand the magic, if only briefly. I… I’m torn. I said I’d accompany your brothers, but I’m not so sure, anymore. I’m one of the few creatures, who can actually help you and I… I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to leave you, but yet, I still think they’ll need me more, than you do. I… I should be the one protecting you, saving my children, but…” she mewled softly and rubbed her fluffy head against my neck. “I’m failing. I lost my kingdom and now, I almost lost a child.”

I stopped, picked her up unceremoniously by her scruff and held her in front of me, glaring.

“Don’t,” I hissed. “I understand, truly I do. Every time… it doesn’t matter. Don’t go down that road. You’re doing more than anyone could expect of you and were still all here. I’ve even got a new sister. Don’t lament what we lost, cherish what we still have. You’re not failing, not even close. Whatever the future brings, you’ve done more for my brothers and me, than we could ever have hoped for. You’re incredible, mom, you really are and I won’t let anyone belittle your choices, even if it’s you, yourself.” She granted me a crooked grin, full of teeth.

“Be that as it may, at least I’ve manage to raise you properly. Don’t take me too seriously, I’m just exhausted and depressed. It’ll blow over. I’m proud of you, Cassy. You did what none of us could, thank you for that. Now, before I’m going to embarrass myself completely and start crying, why don’t you tell me where your lover is? You pulled her away, didn’t you?” For a moment, I was tempted to not allow her to change the topic, but I knew her well enough to realise, that she’d deal with her own problems. She’d tell me, if she needed me.

“I did. When I woke up for the first time, my powers didn’t work and I was back on the island, where we found Shassa. It took me a while to get through to Ahri, but once I did, I felt her pain. You know me… I didn’t hesitate. Afterwards, I tried to contact Viyara. When I was finally able to reach her, I understood bits and pieces of what must be going on. Amon’s curse had forced me to confront my past, quite literally. As a side effect, the knowledge form my previous life had become much more tangible. I hurried back and the rest, you already know. Except… remember the crystallised, winged snake I took from Shafeer’s hoard? In reality, she’s an ancient, cute elven princess named Lyra. I left Ahri in her care. They’re waiting for my return.” I had stated the last bit rather casually. My mom reacted with her feline variety of laughter and commented:

“Just a regular day, then. Get cursed, nearly die, gain knowledge of aeons past, save a city and free an ancient elf from her prison. Seriously, one day, someone should write a book about your exploits. Provided, there’s someone left, at the end, who can hold a quill,” she added much more sombrely. I’d have liked to contradict her, but the rows of corpses, resting under a raging sky, as if they were waiting for the ferryman to descend and take them away, made the words wither in my throat. How many had died today? Hundreds?

I shook the dripping water form my tails and quickly rushed to Mordred’s side, eager for a distraction. Unless there was something I simply couldn’t put off, I’d stay busy for as long as I had to and leave, directly afterwards. Grief, revenge, plans and politics could wait for the morrow, for all I cared. Tonight, I was going to spend with Ahri. I really needed a moment of peace, even if it had been bought with blood and suffering. I’d only make sure, the ones, who had been taken, hadn’t been harmed, and then…

My brother was in a heated discussion with an armoured mountain of a man, both of them slowing getting louder and louder. If I hadn’t been preoccupied, I’d have long since heard their voices. As it was, I had almost reached them, before I realised, what was going on.

“…never going to let a filthy halfbreed touch her!” To Mordred’s credit, he didn’t punch him, but his fingers went white around the pommel of his sword, while he snarled:

“That filthy halfbreed is my sister and the only reason you’re still alive! Insult me all you want, but if you ever look down on her again…”

“I won’t let a dirty beast kin, who should have been in chains, the moment she…” I had heard enough. I was too tired to deal with animosity, born from fear, desperation and an unhealthy amount of ignorance. Why had Mordred even called me over? The woman was obviously still unconscious… maybe her soul had been damaged, but if her underlings didn’t want our help, why would he insist? Her life could end right then and there, for all I cared. Still, I wasn’t going to allow a stubborn, frightened boy to insult my brother.

Without haste, I stepped up to his side, wrapped my tails around his legs and slammed my elbow straight into the thickest part of his plate mail, just above his chest. When he felt my touch, he whirled around, eyes wide. I granted him a dazzling smile, just as the metal of his armour deformed. For the fraction of a second, he hovered almost vertically in the air, his feet held by my tails, while his torso moved under the weight of my attack. A thunderous explosion sent droplets of water flying, as man and metal crushed into a shallow puddle, both groaning rather identically.

I placed a foot in the dent I had just created and said: “you’re shit out of luck, boy. I don’t know what your problem is and I really don’t care, but you’ll watch your tone, or I’ll teach you to respect us. Now,” turning to my brother, without lifting my foot, I asked: “why did you call me?”

He grinned and completely ignored the gasping human. Pointing at the pale girl, he replied: “she’s getting worse by the second and I don’t know why. Unless you want another headless faction in Free Land, we have to do something, fast. Curses have become something of a speciality of yours, have they not? Do you think you can help her?”