CHAPTER 19: DARKNESS RISING

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With winter coming in fast, and the uncertainty of when or if they would find a suitable home, leaving wasn’t the best idea. Still it felt better than sticking around and waiting for a dragon planning world domination to descend upon them.

Making plans didn’t take long. Cutter mentioned knowing a place defensible enough to hold against Tanor and it was close enough that they could reach it before the first snowfall.

So plans were made for a small group to empty the storehouse while everyone else took care of packing up and getting ready to move.

It was the longest week and a half of her life. Each day she sat at the top of the hill, watching for their return. Two weeks later, the group hadn’t returned. Lyndria didn’t like it. That Cutter was nervous as well confirmed it. At first, they tried to wait and see if the group returned. Eventually, they had no choice but to send out a second party to find the first. They also decided to prepare to leave the temple if needed. According to Cutter, Tanor was still trying to conquer the western region.

Still, Lyndria couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that this was different and they should cut their losses and get as far away as possible.

One morning she was shaken roughly awake. Thinking it was an intruder, she snapped and swiped at them only to realize it was Silias. There was a cut above his left eye from where one of her swipes nicked him that he completely ignored and stared at her worriedly.

“There’s a problem. A dragon has shown up outside the temple. Another Celestial.”

“Just the one?” she asked, rising and following the drake into the hall.

“Yes, she’s completely alone. Cutter and Sareen are already going to meet with her.”

“If it’s just the one dragon, what are you afraid of?”

As if in response to her question, immense pressure fell over them. That feeling had to be caused by a Matriarch’s Call but this one was different. No Matriarch she had ever encountered had a Call this powerful. It felt as if her very organs were being squeezed. It was hard to breathe, hard to think. Her legs buckled and she lay on the floor.

The pressure vanished as quickly as it came but she still felt it lingering in the air like a loosened knot that hadn’t been quite untied. Shakily, she rose to her feet again.

You’ve got to be kidding me. I’m a Matriarch and had that effect on me. What about--

Before she could ask about Silias, a loud crackling filled the hall. Her body was briefly wracked with pain and then everything went numb and darkness claimed her.

****

Lyndria slowly opened her eyes. The sky had turned a deep shade of red, indicating she had been out for nearly the entire day.

Standing not far from where she lay stood a dragon. This one was a Celestial like Cutter but the difference between the two was apparent. The dragon standing there had to be one of the biggest dragons she had ever seen, bigger than even Sareen. Cowering next to the dragoness, looking like a whelp in comparison, was Olyvia. What drew her attention however was the object around the Celestial’s neck. It reminded her of the things humans wore they called necklaces except this one didn’t shine like the others. It looked to be made of bone. A large green gem sat in its center.

Ignoring the dragoness’s style of dress, Lyndria slowly moved her head to look for the others without drawing too much attention to herself. It seemed as if every human in the temple had gathered outside and formed a perimeter around them. Each one sat on their knees and stared straight ahead with a blank expression.

They’re under the effect of a Call. But whose is it?

Not from her resting place stood Sareen, Cutter, and Silias. Sareen glared daggers at the large Celestial while Cutter’s expression was a mixture of pain and rage. Silias seemed oblivious to all of it and stared at the ground like a scolded hatchling.

It all clicked immediately. Olyvia had betrayed them. She wasn’t sure how or when but the dragoness told this newcomer where to find them. The larger Celestial was likely the reason their scavenging team went missing. She cursed not keeping a closer eye on things. She had been so focused on making sure they had enough supplies and everything had been properly prepared, Olyvia could have vanished for weeks and she likely wouldn’t haven’t noticed.

Lyndria rose to her feet. “You traitorous bitch,” she spat. “After all Sareen did for you, this is how you pay us back?”

Olyvia flinched and shrank away. The Celestial next to her shot a glance at Lyndria. The way the dragoness looked at her, like something that shit in her bed, she wanted to turn invisible and never be noticed again. It was worse than any look Delour had ever given her.

“I would not have you speak to one of my brood that way,” the dragoness said. “But I’ll overlook it this once. There won’t be a second.”

Lyndria was too stunned by the realization to acknowledge the threat. Olyvia was the offspring of this Matriarch. Looking at them it was hard to believe. Olyvia was a Horntail, her scales were silver and she had sharp horns protruding from her tail. The dragon next to her had none of those things. Her scales were blue as the midday sky and she had no tail “accessories”.

She shouldn’t be surprised since dragon offspring only shared the physical characteristics of one of their parents but never both. But it wasn’t the difference in their species that made the truth hard to swallow. It was their personalities. Olyvia trembled next to this dragon, her head low, and tail wrapped tightly around her like a shield. Her mother exuded confidence like a campfire gave off heat.

The dragoness broke the silence. “I can see you’re confused so allow me to clear things up for you. I am Tanor and this is my daughter Olyvia. She told me of how you rescued her from the humans and looked after her. For that, you have my thanks.”

“It was not for your benefit,” Sareen spat.

Lyndria just stared, slack-jawed. This was Tanor? And she was Olyvia’s mother? She could understand Olyvia being tight-lipped about it, but why didn’t Cutter say anything?

“Leave these dragons alone,” Cutter said. “I’m the one you want. They didn’t—”

Tanor slapped the ground with her tail, the sound making every dragon flinch. The humans continued to kneel and show no reaction to the unfolding event.

“You do not get to speak, traitor,” Tanor said venomously. “I will deal with you later.”

“You will not be dealing with anyone!” Sareen cried with a snarl. She stepped to the front of the group. “I am the Dracaena here and I will not have some upstart—”

There was a shift in Tanor’s eyes. The dragoness moved with a speed that belied her large form and quickly closed the gap between them. Sareen planted herself and braced for the charge, sparks flying from her body.

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Instead of tacking her head-on, Tanor dug in her heels and spun, bringing her tail up and striking Sareen in the chin. Lyndria flinched from the crack of the bodies colliding. Sareen’s head jerked upward, nearly lifting her on her hind legs. She stumbled sideways, her eyes unfocused and glossy, before falling on her side.

Lyndria’s mouth fell open. It had to be a trick. She was seeing things. There was no way Sareen was knocked out from a single blow. Not after weeks of training. She was one of the toughest dragons Lyndria knew.

Yet her companion continued to lay on the ground and showed no signs of getting up again.

“Sareen!” Silias cried. He ran to her side and began licking and nuzzling her face.

Tanor exhaled slowly and relaxed. “I did warn you that there wouldn’t be a second time. I will not be spoken down to by a weakling who hadn’t even awakened yet.” She turned to Lyndria. “And what of you? Do I need to teach you a lesson as well?”

Lyndria couldn’t move. She hadn’t seen such a one-sided fight since her days challenging Delour, but back then it made sense. She wasn’t a Matriarch; her Call hadn’t been awakened, and she was just a whelp trying to challenge a hardened fighter.

But this was different. Sareen was no pushover. She had been doing nothing but train herself the last several months, the strength of her Call was undeniable. And yet, Tanor made defeating her look easy!

“Leave them alone!” Cutter shouted. “I’m the one—”

Tanor slammed her tail against the ground, her muscles tightening as she spun on Cutter. Her voice cut through the air like a thundercrack. “Shut her up!”

The immense pressure from before returned. Silias moved without hesitation, slamming into Cutter. The dragoness screamed as her body twitched and jerked then she collapsed. The focus returned to Silias’ eyes and looked down in horror at what he had done.

Tanor sighed and relaxed. “That’s better. Now where was I?” She turned back to Lyndria with a hard don’t-cross-me look. “Oh, yes. You.”

Seeing Sareen on the ground brought back memories of that day. Her mother lying in a pool of blood, her murderer proudly strutting over her corpse. The entire clan standing by and watching.

She dug her claws into the ground. This couldn’t be happening again. She had finally found a place she felt comfortable, safe. A place she called home. Yet another wandering Matriarch had come to take it all away again.

Then do something about it, she thought. Take a stand.

The last time she tried that, it didn’t well.

But this is different. Last time you weren’t a Matriarch. So go and show this bitch what happens to those who mess with our home!

Lyndria wasn’t sure if it was fear or stupidity that spurred her forward, but she stepped forward and got into a combat stance.

A devious grin spread across Tanor’s snout. “You’re scared but you face me anyway. I respect that. Unfortunately, I promised my daughter I would not kill her saviors, so I can’t give you a proper death. I’ll leave you broken and ashamed. Do you still wish to do this?”

That did it. Tanor’s question shook all the doubts and fears from Lyndria’s mind. The arrogance of that dragon! Talking as if she had already won. It reminded her too much of Delour. Thinking of that traitor made her blood boil.

She wouldn’t wait for Tanor to make the first move and instead charged the larger dragoness. When she crossed half the distance between them, she opened her maw and expelled a burst of flames. Tackling Tanor head-on would be a fool’s move. She was larger so staying mobile would be key. Using her flames would block line of sight and give her an opening.

Lyndria cut off her flames and slipped to the side and circled to her flank. Tanor didn’t move and casually tracked her movements.

Lyndria fired more flames then jumped into the air. The flames should keep Tanor distracted long enough for an attack from her blind spot.

She landed on the Celestial’s back, pinned her wings down, and bit the back of her neck. Something felt wrong. Tanor didn’t offer any resistance. There was no taste of blood. Instead, her mouth felt cold as if she swallowed a mouthful of snow. Her paws felt cold. Her teeth met resistance like biting into a stone.

What? I can’t even break her scales? Do Celestials have harder scales than other dragons?

“Is that really all you have?” Tanor asked. “I expected better.”

Before Lyndria could react, Tanor shook violently and threw her off. The move was so surprising, Lyndria didn’t even bother to try and catch herself before hitting the ground. She should have had a proper grip yet she slid right off as if the dragoness’s body was made of ice.

Lyndria decided she could focus on that later. She quickly rolled over and stood again to face her opponent. Just in time, she saw Tanor inhale, ready to expel her flames.

There was no time to dodge so she just folded her wings in front of her face like a shield. Instead of heat, an intense cold washed over her. She tried to put down her wings and found them frozen together.

What? How did she--?

She didn’t get to finish her thought as something slammed into her frozen wings, forcing them into her face. The force of the impact shattered the ice and broke her wings apart and also every bone in them. The air rushed out of her lungs as pain wracked her body. Blood spurted from her nose. She stumbled backward and fell.

She lay there, trying to catch her breath. Her nose bled and was likely broken. Her wings had definitely been broken. She couldn’t even pull them close without pain shooting through her limbs and spots dancing in her eyes.

Tanor stood amidst the flames of Lyndria’s attack, her blue scales glittering in the light and looking none the worse for wear.

Fuck, I couldn’t even scratch her. Her scales weren’t doing that before. What changed?

“I can tell from the look on your face that you don’t even know your true potential,” Tanor said. Her bored expression changed to a sneer. “And someone like you had the audacity to challenge me?”

Lyndria said nothing. There was nothing to say. That brief exchange had proved she was outmatched. She thought back to all of her training but couldn’t think of anything that would help. Never had she encountered a dragon whose scales she couldn’t break. Not landing a blow was one thing, but Tanor didn’t even need to avoid her.

“Get up,” Tanor spat. “At least face your defeat with some dignity.”

She slowly stood trying to ignore the pain in her wings. Despite her growing fear and hatred of this dragon, they could agree on one thing at least. She would face her defeat with some dignity. Delour didn’t break her and she wouldn’t be broken now.

Tanor slowly approached. Each step thundering like the drums humans liked to play. Lyndria used to like the sound, but hearing it now didn’t give any sense of comfort or joy. But she dug her claws into the dirt and faced her approaching doom. Even as every muscle in her legs tensed to carry her as far away from that place as possible.

The Celestial stood before her, easily towering over her. Lyndria was sure even on her hind legs, she couldn’t look the giant in the eye.

To Lyndria’s surprise, Tanor smiled. “I like your eyes, warrior. You refuse to bow even in the face of a superior opponent. I could use someone like you. Unfortunately, I did promise to leave you broken and ashamed, didn’t I?”

“Just shut up and do what you have to.”

“No, mother, don’t!” Olyvia cried.

Lyndria was shocked to see the dragoness was still there. She assumed Olyvia had run for cover once the fighting started. Or perhaps she did and came from hiding. She couldn’t tell which.

The Horntail rushed over and stood between them. “Lyndria, please, don’t do this. I don’t want anyone to die!”

“That’s not up to me,” Lyndria said.

Olyvia whirled around to Tanor. “Please, mother? They saved me. Don’t kill them. What if they begged forgiveness? If they apologize will you let them go?”

Tanor closed her eyes and her body tensed again. Olyvia backed away until she bumped into Lyndria. Even Lyndria felt a small pang of fear.

Tanor wouldn’t attack her own, would she?

After several tense seconds, the Celestial opened her eyes again. The smugness from before was gone and replaced with a calm fury.

“I can’t believe humans brought one of my brood down this low,” Tanor said. “Very well, they did save your life and I said I didn’t want to kill my daughter’s saviors. So I’ll extend you this one courtesy: bow and beg forgiveness and I’ll not only forget what happened here, I’ll let you join as my Sentinels.”

Olyvia smiled and started to say something but a single look from Tanor made her remain silent.

“Refuse and I’ll still spare your life,” Tanor continued. “But only this once. If we ever meet again, I’ll kill you.”

Lyndria didn’t even have to think about her response. She strode forward, ignoring Olyvia completely. The Horntail reminded her too much of Madrin.

She looked Tanor in the eye and said clearly and firmly, “Dragons don’t beg.”

Tanor smiled. “It truly is a shame we stand on opposite sides. Are you sure you’re not of my brood?”

Lyndria said nothing. Her strength was starting to leave her and her legs trembled. Regardless, she was glad to not be tied to Tanor. She no longer blamed Olyvia for not speaking up sooner.

A smirk appeared briefly on Tanor’s face before she walked away. Olyvia gave one last look at Lyndria before dropping her head and following.

Lyndria heard multiple footsteps and spun around. All the humans had risen up and were following as well.

“Hey!” Lyndria called after Tanor. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

Tanor didn’t stop or look back as she replied, “I’m taking back what’s mine and a few extras as well. You’re welcome to stop me if you have a problem.”

Lyndria snarled. As if there was anything she could do in her current state. She glared at the back of Tanor’s head until the dragoness vanished from view. Still, she looked in the same general direction watching as the humans who followed them, the ones who constantly praised her and Sareen silently obeyed.

By nightfall, everyone was gone.