After I said goodbye to my commanders, I had a moment to consider Jasper's report. I stared at the blue gemstone, unsure of what to do with it as I wasn't entirely sure of its nature. There was no time to personally listen to Jasper's report as he was already preparing for his next deployment. The destruction of the slavers' den in the southeast wilderness was good news; however, I was almost sure it wouldn’t be the last time we would hear about them. The most concerning point in his report was the information about the presumed slaver experiments on hybridization. The samples Stella and Aurora examined left no doubt that some of the hybrids partially consisted of parts from the People of the World. It wasn't clear why they had done that or if these hybrids could pose any serious threat, but Jasper speculated that the slavers wanted to create another menace similar to the Winter Beasts. In his opinion, the new hybrids shared the main characteristics with the Winter Beasts, which, of course, suggested that the Winter Beasts were hybrids as well, but the new ones were more resistant to heat. In that case, creating new hybrids made more sense since their physiology would allow them to stay in Cridia for the entire year.
Hmmm...
I looked through the reports from Berna and Metaka for information about the Winter Monsters, but to my surprise, I found nothing. This wasn't just suspicious but straight-up alarming. Was it just a coincidence that the forces of Void had invaded Cridia, or was it simply the outcome of the opportunity that Korkas had as the king of this country? While these questions do not need to be replied to immediately, their answers might have consequences that would be almost impossible to predict. I looked at the gemstone again and slowly reached for it with a sigh. The fate of that poor dungeon was a clear warning to me that I was not invincible. What took place in that dungeon was evil, twisted, and, moreover, grotesquely cruel. It is safe to assume that Void and Chaos gods request the bloodiest sacrifices.
Void and Chaos... These forces are often equated as being similar or at least cooperating with each other. The Eternals did not seem to differentiate between the two… or I didn't understand the nature of this threat. They also didn't have a shared opinion about them, but they at least held the same conviction that both were our enemies. Their behaviour was not ignorance or stupidity but rather far-fetched carefulness fueled by fear. Void and Chaos alike proved to be dangerous enemies, perfectly capable of corrupting the minds of Mortals and, as it turned out, Dungeons as well. In the face of these facts, I had to acknowledge their power and become careful in my pursuit of knowledge. Knowledge, as always, was the key to victory or downfall. However, I had the feeling that Void and Chaos were two separate forces that were not exactly working together. This was something more than a simple gut feeling; it was almost a palpable and fully shaped suspicion. It was not exactly important, but it was a small theory of mine that needed some evidence. Again... The long war that had just barely started would provide me with an abundance of many different clues and proofs of my correctness or show me how wrong I was...
I raised my head with a wide smile. My Wyverns were finally ready.
•••
I would have been lying if I tried to pretend I was not excited about the Wyverns. No matter how you look at it, they were actual dragons. A giant, viciously looking reptile was lying in front of my Queens and me in a submissive bow. The lesser dragon was huge, easily three times larger than my Storm Eagles. Its onyx black scales shined with gold and sapphire hues, the same way as his wings' membranes. The large, serpent-like head that could easily swallow anything up to human size was sharp, with the sapphire-blue eyes that looked at me attentively. Its head was finished with a crown of horns, and the most significant two horns looked like sharp sabres that could easily split someone in half. The spikes followed its spine line and reached the end of its tail, on top of which was a blade-like stinger. Its front legs were fused with the wings the same way as bats' wings were. The Wyvern was easily four, maybe even five metres tall when it was idly walking around and twelve, if not fifteen metres from its muzzle to the tip of his blade-like tail. The mountain cave where I had placed their spawner was large and spacious, but it trembled in the wake of Wyvern's steps, and smaller stones were crushed without as much as an afterthought by the majestic dragonoid. Its large, muscular body awaited my orders or an enemy to face.
"Of course..." I whispered, barely holding my excitement. "You shall be called Gawain..."
•••
Loriana was meditating in the cave as usual. It was a vast and empty cave where no one stopped by, so it was perfect for her mental training. She had been meditating since the day that the King had taken Princess Aoi as his wife and killed Viccar and Lork Sar. The subsequent events had led to a profound change in her people. Under the guidance of the University and Academy teachers, the Dragonkins realised their folly and recognized that continuing their former behaviour would lead them straight into the clutches of Void or Chaos. When they acknowledged their weaknesses and cast away their hubris, the Dragonkins grew as a race and gained the forgiveness of their Queen. Each day was now filled with learning and discovering that true strength lies not only in the body but also in the mind. Queen Aoi reviewed their progress weekly, and while Loriana was proud of the progress they made, the Queen wasn't impressed in the slightest. However, the elder wasn't sure if that was just a facade put to make them strive and push them further, but the fact remained that Her Majesty's disapproval was always enough to try harder. Suddenly, Loriana's focus started slipping away as something around her changed in the cave.
The angered Elder opened her eyes. She had planned to yell at whatever unruly youngling had disturbed her peace, but instead, she paled and froze in place. She could clearly see the majestic and equally terrifying shape of a real dragon from behind the large rock she sat in front of. The reptile stood in the middle of the huge cave, lit by the glowing moss and strayed rays of sun that found their way underground. Its smooth, onyx-black scales shone with a golden and sapphire glow, while its long, sharp, vicious-looking horns appeared to be made of pure gold. Its large and blue-as-ice eyes were cold and full of predatory intelligence as well as unfathomable wisdom. Loriana trembled as the enormous predator looked right at her, but its gaze was without malice or even a sliver of interest. The Dragon opened its mouth, displaying a line of sharp teeth and a pair of long fangs. Its breath was hot as if the flame inside this creature was waiting to be released, but with a loud snap that reverberated through the air and echoed in the empty cave, it closed its jaws. The tremors of that snap still echoed in Loriana's body when the Dragon moved away with grace and lightness. Its massive body crushed the smaller stones on its path, and its long, golden talons left scratch marks on the solid stone. Loriana realised that she wanted to scream in fear, but that same fear kept her from even as much as moving a finger. Suddenly, the large Dragon turned around and lay on the cave floor, and Loriana saw the King and his Queens near the entrance. Their Majesties stood in front of the monster without fear or even hesitation.
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"You shall be called Gawain..." She barely heard the King's voice, and the Dragon vanished as if it had never been here.
When the Dragon disappeared, she let out a sigh of relief only to slip into despair once more as the second one, almost as big as the first one, emerged from the darkness that led into the deeper parts of the cave. However, her heart almost stopped as she noticed Queen Aoi resolutely approaching the beast and raising her hand. Loriana was sure that her Queen had gone insane, but instead of killing her, the Dragon meekly lowered its horned head and allowed himself to be patted.
"I shall call you Fafnir." With that, Loriana had enough. She fainted, thinking just how much Lady Aoi had changed, becoming so powerful to tame a Dragon just like that.
•••
I observed Aoi happily patting, hugging, and scratching her Wyvern. My other Queens still couldn't decide if they wanted one, but I saw their gazes telling me it was only a question of time when they would take one for themselves. I had secretly prepared myself for a huge letdown, but the Wyverns had exceeded my expectations. With them, attacking the capital of Cridia would be far easier, and having them protect my Queens would take some weight off my shoulders.
Since Aoi was occupied with her new pet, I focused on the faint presence I had been sensing since we first entered the spawner cave. I looked over my shoulder to see the rest of my Ladies following me with intrigued facial expressions. I chuckled and stepped behind a rock, where I found Loriana. My smile faded as I asked Irene to examine her as the Dragonkin elder was lying unconscious on the floor. After Irene used a spell to bring back her consciousness, Loriana looked at us with clouded eyes.
"Oh... I must be dreaming... The mighty Dragons..." Loriana said, barely audible as she tried to stand up. "Your Majesties?!"
"It's all right, Loriana." I hoped that I sounded reassuring. "What are you doing here in the Wyvern Spawner?"
•••
Elisabeth was kneeling in her room, pretending she was praying, an act she perfected throughout the years of pointless life. Despite her teacher's judging gazes and sharp tongue, she always found her ability amazing. She could pretend anything as if she was putting her heart into that. She had quickly learnt how to pretend that she was afraid of the gods of Berna; she pretended that she was broken, and finally, she learnt how to pretend that she was praying perfectly. She had realised early on that no one disrupted her while praying, so she did that often. Apparently, it was a sin to disturb someone's prayer, so she spent all her days doing nothing, aimlessly wandering in the land of her thoughts where she was free. She did this and the gruelling training where she was learning how to fight. Spears, swords, daggers, and poisons; all techniques of combat and assassination were drilled into her mind so aggressively that she sometimes worried about what they were planning to do with her. The days, weeks, months, and finally years began to pass, yet she still learned and honed her skills. Ever vigilant to not let her guard down, ever pretending to be an obedient and zealous follower of Hur'zhun, she waited for the end of her miserable life. She knew she would be given away as a mere bargaining chip to a promising officer only to secure his loyalty to her father. Her training was to ensure that Elisabeth would kill said officer if he rebelled.
But something had changed lately. Her sisters whispered nervously but with visible satisfaction about the crushing defeat and total annihilation of the entire paladin detachment, which had been almost the size of a small army. Cassandra was visibly happy since she avoided the fate of becoming the plaything of George Copriton, who died in that battle. On the other hand, her teachers had intensified her training in assassination techniques. She wondered why until she was escorted to the sacrificial chamber, where the priests had already prepared the ritual. Hur'zhun's avatar stood in the central part of the chamber, and in front of him, a pile of various kinds of wheat and fruits burned. The large white bull stared angrily at Elisabeth as the priests threw more and more offerings into the fire to appease their god. She automatically lowered her head and started whispering the meaningless words of the prayer, but she continued to observe the avatar. Its expression gradually changed, and all gathered priests sighed, relieved.
"Faithfull daughter, you will be sent away to a Godless place." The high-pitched and unpleasant voice, which did not match the huge bull by any means, almost made her shout in happiness.
"Oh, Majestic Hur'zhun! How would this lowly servant fare without your unmatched guidance? I'm not worthy of your praises!" She put extra effort into masking her real feelings, suspecting that agreeing too early would be disastrous for her.
"You have proved to be worthy." The bull raised one of its hooves and thumped it on the floor, making all gathered kneel. "We, the Gods of Berna, give you an order!"
"It will be as you ask!" She lowered herself even more, masking her thoughts.
"Good! Stand, girl." She did as she was asked for and looked straight into Hur'zhun's eyes. Her body suddenly stopped listening to her, and she felt an intrusive and powerful force, leaving no hope, disagreement, or defiance. "You will follow my gaesa, woman, and you will subdue to your will Theon Avalon, or if that proves impossible, you will kill him, even for the cost of your life!"
At first, she wanted to oppose the alien will but fortunately realised her folly. Instead, she vigorously accepted that will, and seeing the surprise on the face of the bull, she also felt a great deal of that force leaving her body.
"Good! I revoked some of the gaesa since you are so willing to carry our will!" The Hur'zhun was so happy that it even wagged its avatar's tail. "Now go. We will prepare an appropriate delegation that will accompany you."
Elisabeth prostrated herself on the floor before leaving the chamber without haste but quick enough that Hur'zhun stayed happy. The woman quickly returned to her ascetic room, which was nothing more than a slightly decorated prison cell, and patted her cat. Her father had allowed her to keep the cat in a rare display of generosity. The Patriarch of Berna, a man who never allowed any of his daughters to call him by his name, always treated his daughters as a disgrace, but with age, he had seemed to change a bit. Allowing her to have a cat was seen as an incredible act of mercy, and the fact that Elisabeth's very existence was kept as a national secret had created many speculations among the most influential figures of the Kingdom. For Elisabeth, however, this little freedom was one of the happiest moments in her life.
"We will soon get away from this awful place, Kitty."