Chapter 81

Ezma

The Woods

The Jungle Basin changed in the time she last remembered it. The whole area began to glow with a sheen that had never been seen before. Due to that sheen and the unknown effects both Ezma and her bonded dragon Jhamet chose to avoid the area. This meant that when the weeklong debilitating shock wave was released, she was far enough away to not be directly impacted by the worst of the energy. Though she and Jhamet both received a minor blessing that offered +1 to all attributes.

Their avoidance of the area also led to their being on the northern border by the time the release of energy occurred. This led to them being in the right spot to witness a man with a large backpack making their way through the wilderness.

From high above it might look like the man was leisurely making their way through the forest like they had nowhere in particular to go. This initial impression would of course be dismissed if one took in the state of the wilderness. For fiend wolves hunted the lands, a giant pack of no less than twelve seemed to be searching the leafless forest for its intended prey.

The leaf bearing trees were a marvel to see for Ezma. She still had a hard time imagining the trees going from the bare bones that they were currently, to the lush greens she saw in Sidhertha. It was also somewhat odd to see that the signs of winter were already upon the lands, especially with how green and vibrant all the great jungle basin appeared not more than a few dozen kilometers away. Her distractions of the different types of plants that were so different from the pine trees she grew up with were soon dismissed as she saw the reason why the man looked like he was only out for a leisurely stroll in the forest.

First the wolves seemed to be lost. A pack of a dozen or so of the fiend wolves seemed to be hunting and sniffing in unison trying to find the man who was just a few meters in front of them. Second the minute one particularly bold, or lucky wolf managed to get close a burst of ice appeared from the ground impaling the approaching beast.

“AARRF!” The beast let out, before being completely skewered by the massive particle of ice.

Seeing the attack that spawned seemingly out of nowhere Ezma and Jhamet both paused in wonder. That was high grade magic from a man who looked to be little more than a traveling farmhand who got lost in the woods. Yet after witnessing the display of magic, Ezma was intrigued. Calling upon her bond with Jhamet she attempted to use Identify on the being. This wasn’t the standard Identify that was a skill used by most in the empires. This was a deeper version, one of the magical variants of Identify. Though this one was distinctly to be used by dragons only. The reason was simple, the spell if such a working could in fact be called a spell required more use of smell than most humans were capable of deciphering. The odd part about the spell was it didn’t require one to be close enough to smell the targeted individual. Instead, the spell basically grabbed the scents of the targeted individual and pulled them towards the caster. Again, these are still not the right words, as the smells that are being evaluated are not the natural stench of the different creatures. Instead, it is a measure of their natural essence.

For those that might not be aware, essence is the natural bleed off effect of mana usage. The time when essence interpretation would be the highest would be right after a spell was cast. After a recent casting, the lingering traces of essence would be the easiest to both obtain and decipher. For these reasons Jhamet pulled in the essence that sill surrounded the individual.

Only after the spell was cast and the essence was made into a tangible cloud before them could Ezma see the spell. Even then she could only see the spell cloud thanks to her senses that she shared with Jhamet. A normal human or even humanoid caster would not be able to interpret the mists before them with such ease.

This was another thing that astonished her about dragons in general and her bonded dragon Jhamet in particular. Their ability to multi-task. Here Jhamet was floating for all intents and purposes. He was floating, while casting a spell and able to interpret the readings from the spell. This was why Ezma had chosen Jhamet to be her bonded, despite his being a male and thus unable to ever gain the true backing of the other dragons fully. Her choosing of Jhamet was also why she thought her mother was always so tough on her. Before she could go too far down the hole of how she got to this point, Jhamet began to interpret the smells.

Breathing in the fumes a vision of power filled Ezma’s mind. Then after a few seconds their shared consciousness were able to interpret the readings of the mists provided.

Name: Unknown Class: Sage Race: Human? Age: Unknown

This was odd. To have not one, but two unknowns from a reading was odd. Also, what did the class Sage do? That was a Skill or Ability Rating, not a class.

“That is not his real class.” Jhamet shot back from their link.

“Then what is it?” Ezma asked out loud knowing that Jhamet could hear her even while gliding forward to get a better look at the individual.

“I don’t know for certain. Likely it is a blessing of some kind that keeps his true class hidden.”

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“What type of blessing would allow such a reading to take place?”

“I don’t know. I just know there is the scent of ozone to the class, making it seem to be from a higher plane.”

Hearing that explanation Ezma seemed to understand the confusion. Ozone was the smell that Jhamet most often associated with the gods. This was also the same smell he assigned their minor blessing they received for being at the edge of the great jungle basin when the change in power occurred. Even then the only reason why Ezma didn’t pass out was that Jhamet was able to remain aware long enough to fly them both to safety. Though he too received the same blessing of ozone that allowed for all his attributes to be increased by one.

“Should we help him?” Ezma asked looking down at the man who was still trying to flee from the fiend wolves, but his actions only seemed to draw more to his immediate area.

“That sounds like a great idea. Also, I wouldn’t be opposed to a late breakfast.” Jhamet mused as the two began to drop lower.

Ezma for her part trusted her saddle that saw her strapped in tightly by her leather harness. She used this time and her absolute trust in Jhamet to begin her own actions of removing her rifle from its holster. With a few practiced motions she had the rifle up, out, and aimed.

BOOM!

The repeater rifle fired off a deafening burst. But the practice Ezma put into her training at the Sidherthan Academy had paid off. While others worked diligently to improve their magical aptitude Ezma fell in love with the rifles used by the common soldiers. This was part of why she avoided everyone while she was at the Academy, she felt that others tended to judge her with disapproving glares when she wasn’t looking. While the looks hurt, she couldn’t help herself. It didn’t help that she was one of the few women who actively took interest in the rifle. There were others of course, women who used rifle training as an excuse to get close to a particular boy. Such women made her sick. They didn’t care for the rifle, or its power. They didn’t care that when wielded properly it could be an equalizer on a battlefield. That the range of the rifle was further than most magi could ever hope to achieve. That the precision was only up to the wielder. Then for others to use such an amazing device solely to pick up guys disgusted her to her very core.

Those women who used a feigned interest in rifles were also part of why she never made a move on Lykan. Their worlds were so different, he liked runes apparently and Ezma wanted nothing to do with runes. She also didn’t want to come across as anywhere near the same as those other women who used the rifle to attract men. She had failed she knew, but right now, right here she felt free.

BOOM!

The rifle cracked again, and with deft motions she pulled the charging handle back, found the next wolf aimed and fired.

BOOM!

Here, on the back of her bonded. Wielding an instrument of death. This is when she felt the most alive. This is the freest she had ever been in her life, and likely the freest she would ever be. Right now, she didn’t have to worry about failing any more of her mother’s grand schemes of power. She didn’t have to worry about anyone giving her side long glances for being better than they were at using the rifle. She didn’t have to deal with the disapproving glances of the women who only pretended to be interested in using rifles. No here and now, she and her dragon were a team of death.

“SCREECH!” Jhamet let out a mighty roar as he flew low enough to burn a few fiend wolves that hadn’t quite begun to run away.

BOOM!

BOOM!

Two more shots fired, two more wolves dropped dead on the spot. Head shots, each shot. Five total shot, three burned, factor in the one that was skewered by ice and that made a total of nine. That was more than enough carnage to scare off the remaining fiend wolves.

Five was also the number of rounds per combat clip that Ezma was able to use for her weapon. She used the moment to reload. The two were a formidable pairing. With their shared senses the number one concern, that of possibly firing and hitting a flapping or moving part of Jhamet was null and void. They were one, they knew where the other would be instantly. This was the extent of their bonding; this also spoke to their respect and love for each other that they were able to bond so completely.

As soon as the rest of the fiend wolves broke off and began to run for cover, that was when the pair landed. Ezma got off, as she always found it weird to be sitting on Jhamet while he ate. Jhamet for his part didn’t care as he always enjoyed being with Ezma but could understand her discomfort with the motions his body would make during the devouring process. As such Jhamet didn’t make any protest at the breaking of their contact.

Jhamet began to look around, only to be astonished by the fact she was unable to find where the old man had gone to. She looked around and wondered if this was why the fiend wolves seemed to be at such a loss when trying to find him. It was clear that he was in the area, likely watching them. She also knew he was clearly visible, at least from up above. But now that she was at eye level she could not identify where he was.

A quick glance around showed nothing but bare trees, leaves on the ground, and the dead wolves that were now being devoured by Jhamet. Jhamet for his part preferred the wolves that had the bullet holes in the head, claiming that the flames took away from the natural texture of the fur. Also burnt fur added a sour aftertaste to dragons. This suited Ezma fine as she would often eat the cooked meat made by Jhamet’s kills, at least she would do so when it was her turn to eat. This was their system; one ate while the other stood lookout.

Still Jhamet couldn’t help but feel like she was being watched. She looked around the area for any sign that the Sage was nearby but could not see any sign of the man. While talking to the Sage had been part of why she chose to act the way she did, the added benefit of a freshly hunted meal also sounded appealing.

“Grr.” Jhamet let out a low growl, though he still focused on her meal.

“What is it?” Ezma asked, her eyes and head on a swivel as she scanned the entire area around them form signs of movement.

“It watches.” Jhamet sent back mentally.

Hearing that, Ezma felt a chill in her bones as she wondered where the stranger was and what they were doing now. She wanted to close her eyes to get a glimpse of the future but didn’t want to do so while she was supposed to be on lookout.

“Do it.” Jhamet sent back reassurance that he would stop eating while she scanned the future.

Hearing that and seeing Jhamet’s blood covered face rise to scan the area, Ezma nodded. Then as she steadied her mind and was about to close her eyes a voice called out from right behind her. The voice was so close that she couldn’t help but jump in fear. This was the fear of being caught so completely off-guard that you knew should the person who spoke wished you ill, then you would have been dead. The word spoken though was benign in nature, and seemingly at odds with the reaction provided by both Ezma and Jhamet.

“Hello.” A calm voice called out, as a man seemed to walk out of a separate dimension.

Heart racing Ezma turned to see the same man with and overstuffed backpack on his back appear before her. With a start she grabbed her chest, to catch her heart before it could rip its way free of her chest. Taking one look at the man before her, she knew the man was clearly on another level of power entirely. She also knew that if she didn’t want to die, she would need to pay close attention.