Chapter 377: Dual Nature

 

  The military campsite was in ruins. The valley chieftains had brought some of their best warriors and mages to the Meeting of Dawn and yet none had stood a chance. In mere moments the dragonbane had laid waste to the hillside. 

  Marek Helene stood in numb horror at the gruesome scene. His plans, everything he had worked for led to this moment. The moment of unification for his people. And now several dozen chieftains were dead. His dream of an alliance died with them.

  The wind grew silent and the dragonbane spread its grey leather wings wide. Its mouth opened unnaturally wide and its rib cage swelled. Marek felt himself grow weak and his breath became ragged. As a cold shiver ran through his body he realized that his mana was being drained. His legs grew weak and he leaned on his ebon spear for support, even though it stung him to even touch it.

  A silvery light emanated from the dragonbane’s mouth, like a blazing white sun in the darkness. Dawn lay on the ground in front of the beast, helpless to stop it. Vaughn’s bruised and bloodied body had been flung away and crashed somewhere amidst the campsite rubble. Marek wasn’t even sure Vaughn was conscious.

  The twin archmages had always seemed untouchable, their power far beyond any of them. Now they seemed as mortal as the rest of them.

  We’re all going to die… thought Marek. He recoiled at the idea. 

  Even picturing the twins’ broken corpses in his mind felt like a cold dagger in his chest.

  Vaughn had always been standoffish, but Dawn had somewhat become a mentor to him. She had guided him in leading the tribe and had even gifted and taught him how to wield the orichalcum spear.

  The spear!

  Marek stared at the spear in his hands, a single form made of black glass-like metal. Dawn had once told him that when he was ready the spear would reveal its name to him.

  “If you’re listening, I could really use your help,” Marek muttered to the weapon.

  If there was a weapon that could harm a monster of the Age of Titans then it would have to be a weapon from the Age of Titans.

  Marek clenched his jaw and forced himself to stand up. He gripped his spear tight, pulled back his arm, and aimed at the dragonbane’s throat. It was a long shot, farther than any he had thrown, but there was no other option.

  “It’s now or never!” he shouted at the spear.

  A whisper as quiet and all-encapsulating as the rain echoed in his ear.

  Kalden Obitus.

  “Kalden Obitus…? That’s your name?” Marek furrowed his brow.

  Kalden Obitus, alcna. Alcna.

  The dragonbane turned to the sky and closed its mouth. Its wing folded back over its shoulders and its ribcage slowly contracted to its ordinary size, though the blazing light in its ebon eyes did not disappear.

  Alcna, the voice echoed once more in a soothing yet commanding tone.

  Marek looked around the ruined campsite and realized he wasn’t the only one hearing the voice. The survivors were all glancing about searching for the source of the strange words.

  A thunderous roar pierced the sky and a massive dragon swept down from the clouds. Her dark blue scales shined like sapphires in the morning light. Her pale wings fluttered back and forth over the campsite, blowing away debris and anyone standing too close. She landed on the ground with a heavy thud shaking the ground underneath their feet.

  The dragonbane roared in outrage at the dragon almost twice its size. Thick spit dribbled down from its black fangs as it glared at the dragon.

  Zavinti bared her own fangs at the ravenous beast, but she made no move to attack. A small cloaked figure jumped down from her shoulders and landed on the grass with a silent step.

  Marek frowned in confusion. He recognized that black-feathered cloak anywhere. Crow…?

  Crow strode towards the dragonbane without hesitation. The monster didn’t even bother looking at him, its black eyes were glued on the dragon in front of it.

  Alcna.

  The whisper echoed once more.

  This time the dragonbane tore its gaze from Zavinti and looked at the little cloaked man walking towards it.

  Crow raised his open hand and spoke in a calming voice, “Alcna, Kalden Obitus. Alcna.”

  The dragonbane closed its eyes and lowered its head. 

  Crow placed his hand on its short snout and whispered once more, “Alcna.”

  The monster rumbled a warm sound from its throat. The dragonbane lay down, curled its tail around its massive body, and went to sleep.

  Marek stood stock still in shock. The ebon spear slipped from his numb fingers.

  Monster in the Dark had always sounded hollow to him. Crow didn’t seem like a monster. But now, Marek was beginning to think the title was more than fitting.

  “What are you…?” he whispered fearfully.

 

~~~

 

  A dull pain settled into Dawn’s bones. Just breathing sent sharp pangs of pain through her body. With a grimace, she slowly sat up and looked at the resting dragonbane, confused.

  “I thought this might happen,” Crow lamented. “The moment the dragonbane spotted a dragon he went into a hungry rampage.”

  Dawn stared at him in surprise.

  The god wasn’t wearing his usual skull mask but the feather cloak was hiding his face. Still, his soft, assured voice was unique. Caligo had returned.

  Dawn glanced at the dragon standing a stone’s throw away. She had never seen such a large dragon before and yet the creature seemed to wish them no harm. The dragon simply stood on its haunches, watching them.

  “Ah, Dawn, you’re up. Good. Why don’t you go check on your brother? He seems to still be unconscious,” Caligo said lightheartedly.

  “What is happening?” Dawn muttered in frustration. “Why is there a dragon here? How did you manage to calm down the Unildyr beast!? You never even once spent time with them in their pens!”

  “Didn’t I?” Caligo raised his eyebrow.

  A cold shiver ran down Dawn’s back. Her blue face paled. “No… The Unildyr beasts hated you since they hatched from their eggs. They couldn’t stand being near you.”

  “Oh, Dawn,” Caligo said with pity. “You are so desperate for your freedom and so confident in your abilities that you consistently underestimate me. You look at me and all you see is an ebon god, and so you think you can defy me. But I am not like the other ebon gods, I am so much more than any of them.”

  Dawn narrowed her eyes, “You knew this would happen. You wanted the Unildyr beast to run rampant at the meeting.”

  Caligo smiled, “There may still be hope for you yet.”

  “B-But why? Why ruin the Meeting of Dawn? You’re the one who set this whole meeting in motion!”

  “You’re still only looking at what’s in front of you, child. You see this meeting as a necessity for an alliance, I see it as a simple piece on the board. A means to an end.”

  “Is that what we all are? Just pieces to you?” she asked bitterly.

  Caligo walked over to her and caressed her cheek with the back of his hand, “Is that what you believe? Do you not remember what I told you and your brother when we first met? You were so young, perhaps you do not.”

  “...We would be destined for great things…” she mumbled.

  “And so you shall be. Your story does not end here, Dawn. So I suggest you stop this little ‘rebellion’ of yours before it is too late.”

  Dawn’s eyes widened in panic. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about…”

  “Mm,” Caligo smiled knowingly. “I must admit I didn’t expect you to be brave enough to steal from one of my treasure vaults. But if you think an orichalcum spear or that dire boy can stop me then I truly overestimated you.”

  Dawn swallowed hard, “How long have you known…?”

  “Lord Crow!” Nokti called out as she ran towards them.

  Crow looked up from beneath his hood, his eyes were in a constant swirl of ever-changing colors. “Go attend to your brother.”

  Dawn bit her lip, but nodded nonetheless and went to find her twin.

  Nokti reached Caligo and bowed her head as she rested her hands on her knees breathlessly. “My lord, you’re okay!”

  Lin-Lu jumped off the vampiress’ shoulder and landed on Caligo’s shoulder. The white fox nuzzled her nose on his cheek and purred. “I was worried, Ann,” she whispered.

  “I’m fine as you can see,” Caligo petted her gently.

  “What is she doing here?” Nokti pointed a shaky finger at the azure dragon.

  “Zavinti is no longer a threat,” Caligo said.

  “Don’t tell me you… bonded with her?” Lin-Lu asked.

  “Nokti, find Marek and bring him here. Once the surviving chieftains realize they are no longer in danger they will come for him,” Caligo said.

  “Yes, my lord,” Nokti nodded repeatedly and went off to find the dire human.

  “Ann, please tell me you didn’t bond with that dragon,” Lin-Lu pressed.

  “Don’t worry, I didn’t,” Caligo chuckled. “I suppose you could say I corrupted the parts of her soul that allowed her to make a bond. Now, she will only listen to me and me alone.”

  Lin-Lu glanced at Zavinti and finally noticed the dull light in her azure eyes, there were no emotions behind them. “So instead of killing her, you broke her?” Lin-Lu surmised.

  “…Tell me, Lin-Lu, what is a god’s greatest weakness?” Caligo asked. “Even a god as powerful as an ancient dragonlord? What is the one thing that Kaleidrog the Azure Sky holds most precious?”

  “His children,” Lin-Lu said quietly. 

  “When you were a cub your mother died protecting you from another god’s wrath. Kaleidrog’s fate will be no different, though his will be far more painful,” Caligo said, venom dripping from his voice.

  Lin-Lu suddenly stiffened. “Ann, you’re hand…!”

  Caligo glanced at his trembling fingers and quickly hid them underneath his cloak. “I’m fine.”

  “Did you revert to your true form?” she asked worriedly.

  Caligo sighed, “Zavinti was a greater foe than I imagined and she managed to bring an entire army down on me. I was already tired from my fight with the dragon. I would have been forced to escape.”

  “So you did revert to your original form.”

  “For a time, I still can’t hold it for long without losing myself.”

  Lin-Lu nodded sympathetically. She knew what that was like. The monstrous being Ananta had become when they first met eight centuries ago. She had seen Ananta take countless forms of other creatures throughout the years, but she had never seen anything like the one on the day they met. Even now she didn’t understand what that form was, she had never seen anything like it. All she knew was that it terrified her.

  “You still want to know what it was,” Ann whispered as if reading her mind.

  “There are some questions you just never answer,” Lin-Lu sighed.

  “Try me.”

  “…You’re serious?”

  “The next stage of our plan is finally coming to fruition. I see no point in holding back with you. Though you may not like the answers you hear.”

  Lin-Lu nodded thoughtfully, “Ann, I understand why you’re doing all of this. I understand why we must do this. I never questioned you, even when you decided to find those silver eggs and hatch them. But now…” her voice trailed off.

  “Now that you’ve had a glimpse of what the dragonbanes are capable of, you're worried about what that might mean for the future.”

  The fox nodded hesitantly, “You told me you fought against the dragonbanes in the Age of Titans. So you know exactly what sort of horrors they’re capable of. Then why bring them back? If they… If they turn on us—”

  “They will never turn on us. As you can see I was able to stop this one just fine.”

  “Yes, but what if someday you can’t? Tell me the truth, are the dragonbanes a threat to us?”

  “The dragonbanes will never betray me,” Ananta said calmly.

  “How are you so certain? Because you raised them?”

  “No, I’m certain for the same reason why the old dragonbanes couldn’t harm me thousands of years ago. The same reason why Kaleidrog and the other elder dragonlords betrayed me and tried to kill me. The same reason why I was the greatest weapon against Unildyr and why in the end he allowed himself to be banished.”

  Lin-Lu frowned, “I don’t understand. What reason?”

  “Tell me, Lin-Lu, what is a god’s greatest weakness? Even for the Dark Visitor of the infinite Null? What is the one thing that Unildyr holds most precious?”

  The fox’s eyes widened in dawning realization, “You’re Unildyr’s daughter.”

  Ananta smiled softly, “I may have been queen of the Vesir like my mother before me, but I have always been my father’s daughter.”

  “That’s why the dragonbanes follow you…”

  “And why they will never betray me.”

  “So that form you took the day we met…?”

  “I suppose you could say it's the blood of my father reacting to my survival instinct.” Ananta stared at her trembling hand, “I was dormant under Mount Mov for millennia but even now some part of my body still thinks I’m fighting for survival. Fighting against the Sundering. It can be difficult keeping my blood under control, particularly in my true form.”

   “And if you were to lose control, what would happen?” Lin-Lu asked carefully.

  “As I said, I am my father’s daughter.”

  “I see…” Lin-Lu muttered grimly.

  “You know, when I was very young I thought my dual nature a curse and I resented my father for it. Now I’m grateful to him, my blood is the reason I survived the Sundering even when my world did not.”

  “Ann, I’m sorry…” she whispered sympathetically.

  “It’s fine, Lin-Lu,” Ananta smiled though it did not reach her eyes. “Back then I was too late. This time I won’t be.”