—Snow Palace—
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“So, what role is Dragneel Bloom playing for you?” asked Iian. If her father didn’t mean Ignia especially, then Dragneel piqued her interest.
“Her role?” The Great Aide paused and smiled. “She’s the scriptwriter of this story.”
Iian scrunched her eyes in confusion. Why was everyone so difficult the past couple few days? As if Ignia declaring war on Mrs. Moon wasn’t enough. What’s with someone being a scriptwriter? Could someone write out a situation into existence?
“I see. I made it difficult. Put simply, she’s a strategist.” The Great Aide stood up and walked up to the window with the stronger sunlight and drew the curtains. The lighting of the room shifted. “An age old friend… accomplice, to be exact.”
“Where is she now?” Iian’s eyes went wide with thoughts. Her father was old, and an associate from his younger days made her curious.
“Well, she is in exile. Throne exiled her a thousand years ago.”
“I see! A crimi…”
“No! No, no. Not a criminal!” The Great Aide raised his palm to stop Iian. “It’s not like how criminals are exiled. She went into exile for tactical purposes.”
“That means, for a thousand years, she knows nothing about what happened in Dragonix?” Iian asked, “What makes you confident that she will be of help even now?”
“Presence in self and awareness are different in my eyes.” He looked at Iian with a sharp stare. “Sometimes, you know the world without being present in it yourself and sometimes, your presence is useless because of your unawareness.”
This time, Iian stared at him. Dragneel Bloom must be a woman of significance if her father was outward in defending her. But she didn't agree.
“I see you have doubts.” The Great Aide sat beside Iian again and smoothened the creases of his attire. “Then let me tell you something interesting.”
The Great Aide stood up again. He walked up to a cabinet on a wall beside the doors with grace. Iian watched as he pulled out an old crinkly book. Her eyes lit up. It was a book the Emperor Igneous had gifted her on her seventh birthday.
Her heart leapt with joy. She never knew her father put so much care for her.
The Great Aide handed her the book, and she whispered, “The Tests of Unrecorded, isn't it?”
“Yes. This is a story every child in Dragonix knows by heart. Irrespective of race, irrespective of class. But, are you aware of this tale’s background? It's a shame, except for a few none in Dragonix know it.” The Great Aide put a hand on the book. “What you read as a child; a fairytale. Here, read it again. Is it a fairytale after all?”
Iian’s mind had gone blank. It was mind-boggling. ‘The Test of the Unrecorded’ was a popular legend idolised amongst the children. The sheer determination, strength, and wit of the hero ‘Unrecorded’ had lots of fans amongst the younger generation. And the origins of the tale? They were unknown to all. No one knew when, where, and on what basis the tale started. Yet the tale touched hearts.
Iian was reminiscent of the fantasies she had. How she wanted to become a hero like Unrecorded! But, as an adult, they felt nothing but pages of fiction. They might teach morals, but that was it.
“Does Dragneel Bloom have a connection with this story?” asked Iian.
“Very.” The Great Aide glanced elsewhere. The same look Iian thought Mrs. Moon had. The stare into the unknown. “But I won’t tell you which character. You guess it on your own based on what I will tell you now.”
The incident happened some time ago. He tried to remember when. “This was when she demanded my canine as an ingredient for her sword. We have a special metal in the enamel; she came for that.”
Iian looked at him in disbelief. “And you gave Dragneel Bloom one of your canines?”
“Even if I wanted to, I never would. Unless you prove yourself, you’re never worthy. And since it was a chance, I tested her myself.” He folded his arms in pride. “As if earning my recognition is easy. That brat of Igneous!”
Flabbergast overwhelmed Iian. Her father wasn’t only the oldest, but the strongest dragon in that current era. She felt her forehead slightly ache. Though they were simple words, the impact was tremendous! As if she witnessed an ant gobbling up an elephant. “How did that even happen?”
“Listen closely. One fine afternoon, I was resting by the waterfall behind the snow palace. When…”
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I heard footsteps. Intentional footsteps. As if someone tried to announce their presence. I opened my eyes and behold; it was Dragneel Bloom in flesh. She had waist length scarlet and a pair of midnight blue eyes. Intimidating as always.
She stood in front of my coiled dragon form and gave a silent bow in respect, and sat down, crossing her legs.
She had the deadpan in her eyes. “Your butler asked me to find you here. Fair enough, I found Ryuoketusai, The Great Aide of Dragonix, slacking on his work. Empathy for your subordinates, dear.”
“Dragneel...” I opened my eyes. I had to defend myself. “You better have a good reason to have disturbed me on my vacation. What’s your task today with this old Dragon?”
I rose from my coiled form and sat towering over the girl. I flapped my wings and looked at the sky and breathed deep as I roared loud and bellowing, enough to make people fly like feathers.
“Great.” Dragneel smirked as she counted her fingers. “Mr. Majestic, is it a greeting, boast, warning or are you declaring war on me?”
My lips stretched with a smile. No way she would win. “A welcome with a hint of warning.”
She flexed her arms and popped her knuckles. “No need to beat around the bush, then. Ryuoketusai... I want your fang.”
“I’m ready to give you my canine, but only if you take it in a spar.”
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Bloom’s eyes sparkled with anticipation. “I am ready.” She stood up.
And then, I laid out the conditions and restrictions she had to play along. “I choose your weapons and skills you'll use against me in this fight.”
“Make it fast, Ryuoketusai.” She snickered with her head bent. “Put all your wits against me.”
“You can only use your archery.” I made the battle immediately impossible on Bloom’s side.
“Do I get my fists?” She held her hand high.
“You get to punch and kick. But, I ain’t done.” I gave a smile in triumph. “No leaping, no flight whatsoever. And you use Dragon Blade only once on the condition of not shedding my blood.”
Bloom pondered over the conditions for once.
Archery was useless against my dragon form. And restricting her flight fell the chances of her reaching my face. The fight would conclude at a definite strike.
“I am ready,” she said as she placed Dragon Blade on her back and drew out an ornate, deeply designed mahogany bow.
“Let’s see what you have got.” I murmured under my breath and threw a large ball of fire right at Bloom.
Instead of dodging it, Bloom sucked the fireball down her throat. “Fire is the best delicacy.” She let out the steam of the fireball after she ate it.
I blew wind next. Bloom had to dodge it. The wind was sharp as blades and a single touch could shred her body to dust. She completed a circle around me with my wind at her heels.
And she was waiting for it.
She ran between my legs; that intercepted the attack. Bloom then slid on her boots just to save herself from the next batch of rays. Then, she turned towards me while I was busy building another one. The tips of her index and middle glowed. Her chest stretched wide; she planted a foot at the back and plucked the string of her bow. “Xavier!” A shot right at my face.
Arrows posed no threat to me. But Xavier was extraordinary. It was an arrow of spontaneous light and explosion. The arrow pierced through my purplish rays and took a slight turn from my mouth, exploding just above my eyes and blinded me for a moment.
Bloom didn’t wait for me to recover and by the moment I could see, she was at the base of the waterfall. The water of the waterfall had already shimmered intent in her eyes. She tucked her bow on her left shoulder and grabbed the first rock and firmly put her feet in the small cracks and gaps among the rocks and started climbing up in full force.
Bloom was fast enough to swing herself from rock to rock in perfect balance. She was climbing a quarter way up the waterfall when I attacked. She turned away from the impact that broke some rocks and made the waterfall rain down, drenching her from head to toe.
A splinter injured her right shoulder and blood seeped out of her wound. Still, she paid no heed and sped up the waterfall.
Then I devised a plan to trap her. I opened my mouth and strained my muscles till maximum. And that took away a whole chunk of the waterfall above her head.
She looked at her side and saw a small crack and dangled on it. The rocks collided and crashed and covered the area with a cloud of dust. I immediately blasted rays again, Beta rays in the cloud. Her figure shot up like a bullet. My beam pierced the hard rock, and the surface cracked up in waves with heat and steam.
Bloom flipped up on a chunk of rock and ran upwards. Defying gravity was tough, but she had so much speed, she outran the gravitational force. Dragneel found a suitable crack in the rocky structure. She grabbed it and pushed herself up in the air on the strength of her arms.
“Ice arrow, Polar.” With quick precision, Bloom fired an ice powered arrow on the debris.
Dragneel grabbed onto the nearest rock and started climbing again. I flapped my wings and extended the wing radius and seated myself atop the waterfall.
“Where will you go now?” I felt triumphant.
“If I can’t go up, I’ll go down. But the fact is, are you brave enough to follow me till there?” Bloom pointed towards the ground before she let go of the rock and went for the free fall.
I wasn’t in the mood to ignore a challenge and darted after her.
“Now’s the time. I won!” Bloom pulled Dragon Blade from her back and placed it on the string of the bow and stretched it for aim.
I realised what she aimed for and gave an immediate response and bellowed a roar.
She took a perfect aim; Dragon Blade powered himself with a gold and silver aura covering it. And as she plucked the string, it took the lead, piercing the wind like air resistance never existed.
It broke my right upper canine in half. I growled in pain and stopped mid-flight.
Bloom was halfway off the waterfall when Dragon Blade started free fall at four times her speed. She stretched her hand and caught Dragon Blade. Flipping it fast, she thrust it into the waterfall’s rocky structure so that she wouldn’t fall on the ground. Dragon Blade cut through the rocks and eventually slowed down to get stuck just a few feet above the ground.
Bloom was panting softly; she lightly lifted her other arm to catch my canine. She tried to stabilise her breath. Adrenaline was coursing through her veins and she started feeling the pain. Her face had severe bruises, and stones and pebbles had embedded all over her hands and palms.
Her left leg’s boot was half destroyed, but did she care about it?
Nope.
As long as she got the canine, nothing mattered.
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He turned towards Iian, content with what he had narrated. His skin jumped a little under his clothes.
Iian had her eyes twinkling and bright. “And then!”
“That’s it.” The Great Aide shrugged his shoulders. Yes, he wanted to reconcile, but wasn’t she enjoying his defeat a little? He looked at her again. No, way too much.
"Surprisingly, even I can be petty," the Great Aide mused, his voice tinged with amusement as he reflected on the events of the battle.
Iian stood and looked at the door. “It’s been a while since I enjoyed something way too much.” Her eyes turned crescents. “It felt like it was Unrecorded himself.”
“Wow… You even figured it out fast.” thought the Great Aide as he clapped his hands, and the doors opened ajar for Iian to take her leave. “Not that I’m telling you before you come to a concrete conclusion yourself.”