Kiano regretted it as soon as the notorious bridge appeared before them. He wasn’t even sure if he was born as a dragon, yet he now intended to kill the one who had conceived him and brought him to life.

Artam seemed more at peace despite crying beyond himself back in Jewarta; he had, however, spent up all of his strength from flying from the previous days, and so they were forced to trek to the barren land on foot. But despite this, Artam kept his cool and acted fine.

Kiano, on the other hand, could tell that the raven guy wasn’t okay. Artam hadn’t spoken a word to him ever since they decided to return to the border and had kept to himself. He also had the look of a person who had gone without food for a great while.

The crumbling hut and the bloody flag sprung to his mind as he took a gander at the sorcerer. So much about Artam was unknown to him, such as how he kept his identity hidden from the Order of Mages. He was a mystery. What was his story?

He dropped his eyes and blinked, flustered, as Artam noticed his gaze and faintly smiled.

“We’re almost there now. What’s on your mind?”

The hysterical screams grew louder as they approached the dungeon. Hezakhal was preparing for a bloody war. There was no doubt in his mind.

“I’m wondering if this is the right way to go about things.”

Artam nodded to confirm his doubts. “Look at it this way: we can’t prevent this war. The stars predicted it, but we have the power to change it.”

“Talking with her won’t work, right?”

Artam beamed widely. “The Queen I know has no reason and cannot be reasoned with. You’d have better luck trying to beat sense into the fahltyrs!”

“That’s what they’re called… fahltyrs?”

“Hmm, our mother created them after the massacre, but before the wizards tethered her to the black tower. They’re like pets, but they’re not smart or anything, and they’re known for causing more harm than good with their insatiable appetites.”

He stared up at the nocturnal sky in the distance right then. His weary eyes became narrow upon noticing something invisible pass by them in the heavens, and he broke off. The smile on his dry lips faded. The Queen…?

In a state of panic, he searched the darkening sky for any sign of her but failed. But she was there, somewhere beyond the grey clouds, and he could feel her still. Had she always been there or had she come to welcome them to their motherland?

Artam grabbed his wrist. “What’s wrong?”

“You… didn’t see anything?”

Artam followed his glassy eyes, which were darting from side to side. “You did? What’d you see?”

He averted his gaze. ”Never mind, I must’ve seen it wrong.”

He picked up the pace and took the lead through the fog. Artam asked if he was not going to tell him what he had seen. But he feigned ignorance and was determined not to respond. His heart was racing out of control. Did the Queen know why they had come?

He peeked over his shoulder with a distorted face. Artam returned his bewildered look and asked what was wrong again. He bit his lower lip. How could he tell the guy that the Queen must have caught onto their plan and was now following them? He alone had to confront the Queen of Hezakhal – if he indeed was who they believed him to be.

It was too dangerous to bring Artam with him since the Queen was known for harbouring grudges against those who stood in her way. Only he had to face her wrath… He had to leave Artam out of this – for his own good.

But as he closed in on the Salkire, he came to an abrupt stop. His eyes became wide upon realising something. Artam caught up to him during this time, out of breath.

“Hey, what’s wrong with you!? Are you trying to run away from me or something!?” The raven guy grabbed him by the collar. “Hey, Kiano, I’m talking to—”

“Scchh!”

He looked across the bridge in terror as harrowing footsteps echoed around him. Artam followed his flickering eyes and let him go. An army of beasts strode towards the barren land at full tilt. Artam backed away and looked behind them. Kiano glanced at the woods as Artam nudged him, and he too reluctantly stepped away with staggered feet.

Thousands of dwarfs, elves, humans, wizards, and witches appeared out of nowhere from both the southwest and northwest borders, even from Freyskul itself! They exchanged puzzled looks. They were now surrounded by not only the bloodthirsty creatures but also the allied kingdoms! Drums of carnage and horns of war reverberated from all around them. The war had begun!

Artam dragged him behind a wilted thicket as he went into a trance, and being a quick thinker, the raven guy figured the beasts would rather slay their old foes than waste time spilling their blood. He was right.

The heinous creatures passed by them and headed straight for the troops coming from all directions. Swords clashed and chaos reigned as blood was spilt and they had nowhere to hide. They, or rather, he, had lost his chance. He needed more than a miracle now to locate the Queen in this battleground as hectic as a hornet’s nest!

Artam shook him. He looked at the raven guy, confused. The sorcerer spoke, but it was impossible to hear in this mess. By the time he read his chapped lips, he peeked up in awe as a huge shadow hovered above them.

“Snap out of it, you fool, she’s here! This is our chance!”

He followed its course in the twilight sky without blinking even once. Their mother stopped at an odd spot on the far-right border of Jewarta. She breathed fire and created a blazing circle around what, at first glance, looked like a vacant spot. It was hard to discern from this distance, but Artam could see even from several miles away.

“It’s Malakai and the others! She’s trapped them!”

The fiery flames prevented Malakai and his companions from interfering in the battle that had claimed the lives of hundreds on both sides already! Kiano grabbed Artam’s hand just as he was turning into a raven.

“Where’re you going!?”

“She’s going to kill them! I have to do something!”

Artam tried to break free, but he didn’t let the guy go. “Are you out of your mind!?”

“Let me go, you fool!”

“Who’s the fool, the one who tries to come up with an actual plan or the one who wants to declare to the Queen that he’s a traitor!?”

Artam broke free from his grasp with a stern look on his face. Without saying a word to him, the sorcerer turned into a raven and flew towards the blazing circle. Kiano heaved a sigh, regretting the words that escaped his lips, but could do nothing but watch as Artam used what remained of his powers to save those who wanted both of them dead. His eyes darted to the sky as he grunted and chased the sorcerer.

He stopped counting the number of times he almost got his head torn off or his limbs ripped off as he snaked through the crowd of sheer carnage. As he finally found the raven in the dark sky and picked up the pace, smiling out of relief, another ring of fire stopped him dead in his tracks.

Bewildered, he glanced up at the starry night as the circle of fire surrounded him in the twinkling of an eye and obscured his sight. A fahltyr caught fire in an attempt to get to him and turned to ash. He collapsed. Artam was right, after all. The Queen was protecting him. The dancing flames reflected in his glassy eyes grew wilder and fiercer to the cadence of his thumping heart. Wheezing, he stared down at his palms, where an amber glow emancipated through his skin, just like back in the sirens’ lair.

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He stumbled to his feet and reached for the flames without understanding why. It was during this time that he noticed the wounds caused by the boiling moat had now healed. Even as he touched the ring of fire and flinched, he didn’t feel any pain.

Instead, he felt an odd surge of power run through his veins. He shuddered in place upon witnessing the amber glow burn more fervently than previously. The confusion in his eyes was unmistakable. Inch by inch, as he made it through the scorching circle, his skin shifted colour and so did his natural shape.

He peeked over his shoulder, just as his feet got off the ground and he flailed his massive wings. Was this how Artam felt whenever he changed shape into his kindred spirit?

His quivering dragon eyes landed on the other circle of fire as a bone-chilling caw filled the battlefield and arrested him. His heart skipped several beats. Artam! He picked up speed and plunged into the blazing circle, unaware of how he looked from the outside.

Right then, he witnessed the Queen strike an already injured Artam, who collapsed in front of the archmage. At that time, although Kiano couldn’t understand why, Malakai’s intelligent eyes and stern look lost spirit and became out of whack – shocked, even.

He recoiled on his way down to the centre of the ring of fire. Amelia leapt forward to attack him with her Elven-sword and he realised he was no longer a person but something even the dark elf feared and couldn’t recognise. He was a beast – a monster – just like all his brothers and sisters dwelling in Lordôm.

He turned around before the elf could get to him. Malakai collapsed in front of Artam at the same time and looked totally out of it. That’s when he knew. Artam took a blow in Malakai’s stead and this was why the archmage looked the way he did. That stupid guy risked his life to save Malakai – Malakai who wanted him dead!

He gritted his teeth, shaken with fury. His vigilant eyes searched for the Queen in the night sky. But she was difficult to detect with his senses unless she wanted him to find her.

The bloodbath below persisted at full speed as he flew through the heavens in search of her. Screams of terror reverberated throughout the entire battleground. There were more humans down, cold as ice and forever forgotten, than there were beasts present. His kindred spirit did not soothe his heart; it made him doubt himself even more.

All of this was his fault. This entire war had broken out because of the foreign shape he was in. If only it was all a misunderstanding and he wasn’t born as a dragon, then Artam wouldn’t have to show his loyalty to the council by doing such a reckless thing!

A tear trickled down his rough cheek, and he shook the bleak thoughts off. As he drifted out of his dismal mind, the Queen revealed her whereabouts close to the southeast border. She breathed fire into a gnarled tree and knocked it down. He flew towards the dispersing flames, which looked like thousands of orbs in the dark sky, then frowned as he noticed what had caught the Queen’s attention.

It was Derrick. He was with three other people. He recognised the ruler of Reivenir, but the two others were unfamiliar to him. Despite the burning tree, Derrick and the others made it to the battlefield safely. He met Derrick’s eyes soon after.

Despite looking like anything but a dragon, the fair-skinned boy recognised him. This was perhaps why, as he approached the blond guy and the others, he wasn’t met with hostility. He landed on four legs in front of Derrick and growled towards the flaming circle behind them in the centre of the battleground. Derrick followed his gaze and nodded to confirm that he understood, and the peculiar group then passed by him to save Malakai and the others.

He looked up at the sky as yet another strange feeling crept over him. She was furious; she was beside herself because he was trying to help those he was supposed to scorch to death, but so was he. He shut his dragon eyes and tried to feel his way to her. That was when he flung open his eyes and dodged a ball of fire headed for his head. He didn’t let this attempt scare him and flew towards the invisible creature.

As he finally found her, she flew headfirst towards the battlefield and was in a great hurry. He abruptly stopped and noticed too late that she was flying towards Derrick and the others, who were now inches from the circle of fire that kept Malakai and the council members trapped. He clenched his jaw and whisked his wings like never before, not sure how to fly faster, but he picked up enough speed to catch up to her.

But it was not fast enough! She had already breathed a shot of fire in Derrick’s direction when he reached her, and he dived with all he had to hinder her from hurting them. Yet he knew he couldn’t make it down in time, so he growled so loud that the battle momentarily stopped and Julian thwarted the Queen’s heinous attack, albeit not entirely. The fiery flames struck the ruler of Reivenir, who passed out on the barren ground.

He looked up as the Queen breathed yet another ball of fire towards the light elf, but this time he stopped her attack before it struck the ground and eliminated not only Derrick and the others but also a heap of her own hideous children bent on murder.

This made her see red; yes, it indeed did. Like a bolt out of nowhere, and when he lost sight of her for only a second, she tossed him to the ground with her prickly tail and roared at the top of her lungs. He groaned, blood gushing out of his ears as her devilish whispers demanded he obey her and finish what he was fated to do.

He bore his eyes into hers. Do as I say, or the ones you love will pay for your sins, she whispered repeatedly, do as I say, or regret defying me. He writhed. What was she doing to him!?

His limbs turned numb. When he blinked, he was no longer in control of his new shape. Before he could hinder it, a massive roll of fire escaped from his bloody mouth and turned the troops of the allied kingdoms into dust. No—! He had to regain control!

His dragon eyes widened. He was heading towards Derrick at breakneck speed, and even though he fought back her diabolic commands, he failed. She was in complete control. Derrick stood his ground, convinced that Kiano wouldn’t harm him.

The guy was mistaken, he did. Derrick collapsed as he struck him, but it was not enough to kill him, although the left side of his torso was twisted and was bleeding profusely.

Kiano shut his eyes as the image of his mutilated mum passed through his mind, and the memories of how Derrick and Artam helped him overcome the hardest moment of his life flooded his mind. He flew open his eyes and flailed his wings upwards as he was about to breathe fire and scorch Derrick to death.

He didn’t stop until he regained control of his kindred spirit and changed target. Consumed by anger, he was too deep in his fury, too resolute in his desire to kill, to even consider stopping. A massive shield of amber glow belched out of him as he flew towards the Queen, whose expression turned cold as ice and utterly muffled. She didn’t avoid the collision. She flew several feet in the chilly air before she finally hit the ground near the woods bordering Freyskul as he struck her.

He shifted back to his true shape and was now falling because of the impact of the collision that should have killed him had his kindred spirit not protected him. He lost power, he lost the will to live. Knowing that Artam and the others died doing good, he saw no point in living when death was certain.

When he reopened his sunken eyes, however, he noticed he was still alive and floating in the air. His feet never touched the cool ground. Amelia caught him in the nick of time and now stared down at him, fraught with worry. When she put him down as carefully as she could, he looked around the battlefield and his heart skipped a beat. The rings of fire faded; one by one, the beasts turned to dust with blood-curdling screams and perished forever.

He forced himself up despite Amelia telling him not to as his eyes landed on Artam, whose body was slowly perishing like their vile siblings. He tripped several times on his way to him and collapsed next to his lifeless body, which was turning to dust limb by limb.

Derrick, whose torso hardly carried his weight, crawled towards Artam too, and they both watched in horror as the sorcerer turned to nothing along with the Queen and her other offspring. But Kiano stayed the same. Was it because he killed the one he should never have touched? Was this some sort of curse he had to endure for killing the one who conceived him?

The archmage watched, still beyond himself, as Artam slowly vanished, and the battlefield turned to dust. Lordôm, along with the Salkire and the Hezakhal Dungeon, evaporated into the heavens. The tortured inmates, who were now free, ascended too. That was when Malakai drew out his translucent sword crafted by the light and dark elves in Druasdûr.

Kiano stopped breathing. The two wizards who had accompanied Derrick leapt to his side to hinder the great mage from doing more harm than there already was. But Malakai conjured a shimmering ring of shield around them and kept everyone else at bay. Kiano shut his eyes in anticipation of the inevitable.

The archmage raised his sword despite Derrick’s pleas to spare his life. But things took a different turn. The archmage never meant to kill him; no, Malakai stabbed himself in the chest instead and twisted the shaft without hesitation. Crimson blood trickled down from his chest and coloured his ruby. Kiano slouched forward – wheezing – relieved.

Malakai mouthed something, perhaps a prayer, then. But whatever it was, it did something none of them had ever witnessed before. Artam was no longer perishing. The tide shifted. The curse passed on to the archmage, who spat blood and convulsed. The protective shield abated and Amelia supported the archmage as he was about to fall sideways to the ground.

The allied troops encircled them and they would soon witness a miraculous moment – one that would forever change the fate of Gartâr. Indeed, it would be written in the Sacred Chronicles for many thousands of years to come as the day a great many lost their lives, and many others, like the callous Malakai, taught a lesson that only came once in millions of years.

“The Queen, she- she’s dead. This bloody war is… is no more. I’m leaving my legacy to- to this child of the Queen, who’ll one day surpass me and bring the North and South together. This is how… this is how I’ll repay her.”

Malakai spat out more blood, convulsing out of control, and at great pains to deliver his final message.

“The guild is no longer… It’s no longer a place for the nobility to claim power over the common people of Gartâr and Jewarta. Tell- tell the king… This is my last request: bring her up as my apprentice. I want nothing else from him but to promise me this. Leave… leave my remains on this battlefield as a token of this dark day and- and rejoice. The Queen is dead, and she’ll stay so… till the day Almighty for- forgives her sins.”

The End.