The Dragon Rider's Chronicles

Neera walked into the common room just when Iris walked out of Matthais' room. "Oh, Iris. I was wanting to speak to you."


"About the fact that you are the third of the Three in the prophecy? The Spirit?" Iris sighed.


".....how'd you do that?" Neera raised both of her eyebrows.


"Lucky guess." Iris answered. "Hold that thought while I go sap the Sun of his intoxication."


"So it's true, Matthais is the Sun." Neera smiled to herself. "Looks like my thoughts were right."


"Don't get too excited." Iris said. "We need the Sun to actually be in the condition to think clearly. He may not believe in the prophecy but he needs to realize that he has a lot of potential that he is not working with. His light manipulation for example. He may not want to know about the prophecy but he still needs to train his skills for when the prophecy actually does come true."


"....okay." Neera sat down on the couch. "I'll wait. But....since I assume you're the Moon and the Moon and the Sun have been united, doesn't that mean the time of cataclysm is coming?"


"Yes." Iris began walking down the hallway. "All the more reason for Matthais to be sober."
 
Matthais had wandered to the medical center... he decided to try those beds out and see just how uncomfortable they are. He was trying to unlock the door for a bit before he accidentally brushed the handle and opened it. He fell over and started looking for the beds. He found a few, decided that Iris was spewing malarkey and these were perfectly comfortable, and he fell asleep.
 
Iris searched for a while trying to find Matthais. He was not in the hangar bay or near the gigantic viewing window or anywhere that seemed obvious. Then she happened to see a pair of legs sticking out in view of a door on one of the beds in the medical bay. Iris sighed and walked in. She gently put up her hands, testing how intoxicated he was. Then, she began slowly draining out the alcohol from his system. It appeared as though liquid was magically being pulled out of his skin by the glowing lights around her hands and afterwards being dumped into one of the sinks.
 
Matthais woke a few minutes after the alcohol had been removed from his system. "Wha- where am I? What happened? Is this the medical bay?" He sat up, and looked at Iris. "Our conversation before wasn't a dream was it?"
 
"No. I'm not allowing you to drink away a conversation just because you don't like it." Iris had already disposed of the Scotch. "Running away from me really isn't going to help you, especially since I'm pretty sure I'm the only one around here who can help you attain your full potential as a fighter and as a person. And that last bit has nothing to do with the prophecy; I'm just the only one who can help you unlock the potential that is at this very moment flowing through your veins."
 
"You're like me. You have the blood of a dragon, however faint, flowing through your veins. The Great Dragons at one point walked the land as humans and each took to them a mortal mate. After each had one child, the Great Dragons disappeared without a trace, leaving the Dragonborn to find their own way. I am descended from Lunora, Dragonborn daughter of Welunaariv, through the blood of my mother. You on the other hand are descended from Solaris, Dragonborn son of Solonosus, probably through the blood of your father." Iris stood back, arms crossed. "The prophecy, whether you like to believe it or not, foretold the coming together of the Sun Dragonborn, the Moon Dragonborn, and the Spirit Dragonborn. Which has already happened. If the prophecy continues being true, then the cataclysm of our time will be coming soon. Now, I could care less if you actually believe in it. I just want you trained and ready for if and when it does happen."
 
"Good to hear," Kenzo said as he stared absentmindedly at Ardra. He hadn't seen such beauty in many years...or, at the very least, hadn't been aware of it. Her hair color was the same as his, though their eyes were dramatically different. The combination of white hair and red eyes was only seen in the Soromine clan.


"Ardra," he said softly, "what do you know of my...of the Soromine clan, and their destruction? Tell me everything you know...please." There was something that neither Neera nor himself knew about what happened to the Soromines; he was hoping maybe Ardra would know something he did not.
 
"So... at some point I have a dragon in my family tree? What was his name Solonosus? Hmm that'll make a good story... If the end times are coming or not I want to be at my best." He stood up. "Where do we start?"


He started walking out the door... "Wait, how well known is this prophecy?"
 
"....you don't want to hear it, Kenzo." Ardra looked down. "Nothing within my castle walls is kept a secret. And most of it isn't pretty." Ardra looked down while closing her eyes. She knew the truth, simply by accident. It was how she had earned most of her worst scars on her back.


--------


"The prophecy was shared among the Council of Lordship, as well as the Sentoni family." Iris replied. "Neera knows it; I've already talked to her about it." Her eyes narrowed and she followed him. "You shouldn't make light about this. Give me access to some records and I can trace you back to Solaris."
 
"It isn't a matter of whether or not I want to hear it," Kenzo said as he propped himself up onto his elbows, twisting to face her more easily, "I NEED to hear it. Whether or not it the truth is pleasant isn't relevant; I've gone most of my life without family, home, or name. I need to know how and why it disappeared. Every detail." His eyes were focused, but not harsh.
 
"Light, ha good one. But dad was some knight of the southern courts, never really new him, and mom never gave me his name. So, I can't really do that..." Matthais stopped. "There are going to be a goodly group of people here to asses me as a savior of the realm aren't there?" It was more of a statement than a question.
 
"None but my High Priestess and Neera will know. Neera only because she figured it out herself. My High Priestess because she could tell on sight most likely." Iris sighed. "No one is going to be assessing you. Saviors are not created over night; they are allowed to develop at their own pace. I will be told to watch your progress and guide you in the ways of the light."


------


"....the King of Ventenadana is why your family is dead." Ardra said at last. "Your family opposed some of his plans. I know not what plans they were. It was known that your family was becoming increasingly restless with the rule of the Dracsofarian government. When Queen Sapphira sent envoys to them, my father had them killed and their bodies sent back. It was after that that the assault that destroyed your family commenced. Your father was brought back to the palace; I watched my father execute him."
 
Kenzo stared at her, blankly, for several agonizing seconds. He turned away, sliding his legs off the bed and letting his feet rest on the ground. He slumped forward with his arms on his knees, and was unnervingly still for several seconds.


Suddenly, the sound of a gale rushed through the room, as the end table to Kenzo's left flew across the room, exploding into splinters against the wall. Kenzo stood, as the air in his immediate vicinity rushed around him. He was the eye of the storm now, as a cyclone of air whipped around his body. He spoke softly, still facing away from Ardra: "The Soromine clan were a clan of warriors, but their desire was for peace. They cared for the wellbeing of others. They fought in the place of those that could not. Political interests were simply not on their agenda."


He turned to face her, and his eyes were like a wildfire as they burned with vengeance and hatred. "Two 'princesses' I have been given as allies. Both are kin to families unredeemable." His voice rose in volume the more he spoke; his pent-up frustration and anger were overflowing. "Since I spoke with Neera, I have worried that my family shed the blood of innocent envoys. The thought terrified me." His face contorted in rage. "Pathetic, to eradicate an entire clan for your petty gains. Not a mention of diplomacy; only bloodshed." He finally burst into shouting at the top of his lungs. "DRAGONS ABOVE DAMN YOUR POLITICS!"


At that, he collapsed onto the floor, coughing violently, right hand steadying him somewhat on the bedframe. The vortex around him dispersed as he knelt there, coughing.
 
Ardra stood without moving. "....am I still your princess now?" There was no bite to the words, just immense sadness. "I found out about this by hiding in my father's personal chamber. When he found out, he had me dragged half-naked in front of him and three sets of cat of nine-tails were taken to my back. That's the price of your information."
 
Kenzo worked to collect himself, slowly ceasing his coughing fit. He rose onto his knees, holding himself on the bed by his elbows and forearms. He was breathing heavily as his eyes darted around, not meeting Ardra's. After a short time, he calmed his breathing and looked at her, still panting slightly, conflict apparent in his gaze.


She is not so different from Neera and the damnable Dracsofarians. Her family is just as monsterous, if not more so. Just like Neera, she is kin of monsters!


He grit his teeth at that, but then closed his eyes, and let out a somber sigh.


And despite all of that, she willingly divulged this information to me, with full knowledge that there was no one to protect her from whatever my reaction was.


He opened his eyes, which now shone with sadness and regret at his outburst. "You are no princess of mine. Not anymore. As of now, I have no allegiance to any country or people. I am alone." He coughed once more. "Even so...to know the truth concerning the demise of the Soromines...I am in your debt, Ardra. Thank you." His head drooped, burying his face in the bed. His hands gripped the blankets tightly, and his shoulders jerked erratically. He was silently weeping.
 
Ardra shook her head. "You owe me no thanks." Her eyes softened and she went to him, kneeling at his side. Her arms went around him, pulling his face against her chest. "You owe me nothing. I owe you for what my family has done." She allowed him to cry against her chest, knowing that this was all she really could do.
 
Kenzo wept in silence for almost a full minute, mourning the unfair fate of his honorable clan...and then he realized where exactly his head had ended up (hint: it wasn't a pillow like he thought, but at least as soft and comforting, if not more so).


He practically flew off of Ardra, surprise and embarrassment in his eyes, blushing furiously. He pulled himself off of her in such haste that he backed up right into the wall, where the endtable had been minutes earlier. He sat there, looking like someone caught in a very embarrassing act. His eyes fixed their gaze to the floor as he struggled with language once more. "Ah...um...I'm sorry about...my outburst...unprofessional of me...apologies..." His voice trailed off to a barely-audible mutter.
 
"...why did you pull away from me?" There was a bit of hurt in Ardra's eyes. "...I was just trying to help." Ardra turned heel and marched back to the window, standing stalwartly and staring out in cold silence. What had she expected? She was the daughter of his family's murderer.
 
Kenzo rose up, once again kneeling by the bed, arms resting on its surface. "Oh...much appreciated, of course...just...I was worried I may be unintentionally...that is, I didn't want to step over any boundaries..."


What the hell am I spluttering about?


"I mean to say...professionally speaking...that is, our relationship-" he bit his tongue at that last word...


WHAT THE HELL AM I SPLUTTERING ABOUT?
 
"....so you see me only professionally?" Ardra's eyes turned on him, filled with purple fire. "Am I only a colleague for battle and to take care of your wounds? And here I was thinking...." Her words trailed off.
 
Pretty much everything that wasn't essential for living froze for Kenzo. After several seconds of statue-like stillness and mental processing, he blinked, staring at her in mild surprise. "...thinking...what?" He was equal parts terrified and desperate for the answer.
 
"I doubt that it matters if you only view me professionally." Ardra crossed her arms and turned away again. "There is no point in me telling you a thing if that is how you see me."
 
"....get rid of the attitude or I'll give you a better taste of what happens when you make me angry." Iris' eyes flashed silver. "Don't test me Matthais. I've lived my entire life waiting to meet...." She stopped, shaking her head. "Waiting to meet you."
 
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