The World of Nymoria - Time's Arrow

Thuriden, Sixteenth of Raina, 3E379Y

Rain continues to permeate the city as it has been for the last couple of days nonstop. Seems like as soon as we returned, the weather started adjusting to the normal springtime season. I haven’t seen my thermometer go above eighteen degrees since the day of the hunt a couple weeks back. Maybe those scorching days were pure coincidence? Either way, probably not worth worrying about it anymore. In any case, I haven’t been called to my post since we returned and the reason remains unclear. The following day, after Idylya and I returned to Nymerion, we were summoned by the Seven Wise Ones in the Tower of Nymeria about the details of our capture. It seems Ryn notified them immediately. Can’t say I’m surprised, he would do anything to protect the city and our country even if what happened is largely irrelevant and insignificant, in my opinion. Idylya did most of the talking and continued the false narrative that we were prisoners of war held against our will and about to be questioned, while I mostly just nodded and clarified some hazy details. I know she lied to protect us, but it still felt disingenuous lying to the Council even if most of the story was true. Though on the other claw, if anyone from the Council found out we were saved by the qilins and broke bread with them, we’d be exiled for treason despite any rationale. During the meeting, one of them was recording our story on a scroll, and it looked like a couple others were taking notes. Were they planning something? I don’t know for certain, but they were hasty in sending us home afterwards. Afterwards, we both promised not to tell a single soul what really happened, and that was the end of that. Something was on her mind that she didn’t want me to know, or rather, felt it was unnecessary to tell me. Thinking back to my injury, I mean, injuries, the qilin camp, the dead qilin and the graveyard, this journey has altered my perception of the war and what my purpose is. The war itself spans centuries with neither side showing any eagerness for a ceasefire. The qilin group we met led me to believe that not all of them have a burning hatred for us and maybe I’ve softened up to them as well. Idylya was right, there are no winners in war, just a perpetual cycle of murder and momentary victory.

Idylya. I haven’t seen her since the tenth when we met with the Council. Though, I believe I saw her going into the Arcanum of Nymer the other day when I was at the market. I never knew her to be such a bookworm, especially as of late. It almost seems out-of-character for her. I still remember the symbols on those gravestones we found days ago, ‘Zyntrithian’, I believe is what she called it. She wrote those lines down in her notebook, so she could be translating those texts. Then again, I suppose she could also be reading up on poisons and alchemy. I’d say both are equally likely. I may go see what she’s up to after tomorrow’s training session, but she has been surprisingly quiet. No more rude awakenings to speak of at least, but her sudden silence worries me. Did she also see something in that mist?

That graveyard encounter still keeps me awake at nights. Questions still flood my mind regarding what I saw in the mist. It seemed more like a deadly premonition than anything, like I was being shown my death as a warning. Does magic like that even exist? Can someone know their own or someone else’s future simply by performing a spell? Was it even a spell? I’ve been desperately trying to reject this notion out of fear, but I cannot rule out that possibility. The qilin who ‘killed’ me, before it transformed, bore an eerie resemblance to the one I killed a day prior, but this one had odd markings on its horn much like that green one from the camp. I’d like to believe they’re unrelated, but again it’s a possibility. However, I’ve always believed ‘what’s dead is dead’, even if it was an illusion. No amount of magic can rebind the soul and body. Once the soul leaves, it’s gone forever in the aether, at least that’s what I remembered learning about years ago at the nursery. Maybe once I meet up with Idylya again we can learn more about those old texts, assuming she gets around to translating them.

Even though Ryn didn’t believe our lie about the boars, he was right about me growing weak from the winter and has offered to help train me these next few weeks. Looking back, had I not reacted in that split second before the qilin jumped me, I would’ve been dead, and that terrifies me. Have my skills really deteriorated over the past year? I don’t know what he has planned, especially since we have different elemental affinities, but I do need to brush up on both cryokinesis and electrokinesis. Better get some sleep though as he wants to start early tomorrow.

The sounds of birds chirping in Zuriak’s windowsill causes him to stir a bit before opening his eyes and gazing around his loft. His cozy tree-trunk house was still the way he left it after returning a week ago, barring one Idylya. He uncoils and approaches the window looking out at the busy city in front of him. Many have already started their day either doing chores, their job or simply enjoying the brisk spring air. The sun is partially breaking through the clouds and creating a rainbow against the city’s waterfall barrier. Zuriak checks the sundial outside, waiting for the sun to peek through the clouds again.

“Almost six. I should have plenty of time to get to the training grounds.” Zuriak picks up his satchel of money and dagger, spending a moment inspecting it. The qilin’s blood was cleaned off the dagger after he got home, but specks of red still cover the handle. Zuriak ties it to his left arm and takes one look in the mirror. The wound on his chest has completely healed but the same scars remain from when the qilin cauterized his scales. The two arrowhead wounds on his back have healed as well with no obvious marks. Aside from those two injuries, he still looks the same as he did days ago.

“Nothing’s changed, has it?” Expecting no answer from his mirror-self, he flies out through the open window and over to the bustling city nearby.

“Someone’s up early.” An unknown voice from above calls down. Zuriak looks up and is unsurprised to see a pastel orange-scaled dragon with a vibrant red mane fly above.

“Are you following me around now, Xellis?” He replies impassively.

“Nah, I just happened to be in the area, and I noticed you finally left your cave for once. Have you not been assigned patrol since you returned? Fenrir and I have been pulling long hours this past week guarding the main gate, and the outer perimeter. What gives?” Xellis whines.

“I wish I knew. The Council hasn’t allowed me to return to my post since Idylya and I were debriefed over our hunt.” Zuriak flies a bit lower down to the central plaza and lands in front of the great fountain looking around the various produce carts. Xellis follows suit and lands next to him.

“Right, the hunt. What happened to you two during those couple of days? Everyone in our guild is asking me about it because we’re so tight.” Xellis makes a fist bump, which Zuriak meagerly returns. “Fenrir told me you got bested by a boar, but I don’t believe that. You’re not that weak are you?”

“No! And I’ll tell you later.” Zuriak replies bluntly.

“Why not sooner?” Xellis interrogates.

“Because.”

“Because why?” Xellis replies with a hint of concern. “We’ve known each other for, what, two years now? And in those two years, you’ve never hesitated to divulge your thoughts to me.” He looks sadly at Zuriak. “You gotta be honest with your friends, Z. If anything, I’m even more curious now.” He finishes resolutely. Zuriak scratches his head, distracted by his thoughts.

“Fine.” Zuriak sighs and Xellis smiles victoriously. “I’ll indulge you when I’m done with my training for today. Aren’t you supposed to be on guard duty anyway?”

“It’s just a small break, the others won’t even know I’m gone.”

“Mhm.” Zuriak takes his eyes off Xellis and sees an apple cart not too far from where they are.

“So, where are you off to? And who are you even training with?” Xellis asks while Zuriak walks over to one of the carts. He picks up an apple, retrieves three copper coins from his satchel and hands them over to the winged Drogosian merchant.

“Thanks for your patronage!” She takes the coins and stows them somewhere beneath the table. Zuriak smiles and takes a bite. He then shifts his attention back to Xellis behind him.

“I’m training with Ryn for the time being.” Xellis laughs in response.

“Ryn? Hah, good luck! That old codger will work you to the bone! And since when do you need training? You’ve always been capable of handling yourself on missions. It’s why I find it hard to believe your quote-unquote boar story.” Zuriak ignores his comment and starts biting into the apple.

“Sometimes it feels like I’m losing my senses, like I can’t react in time. This past winter was the most uneventful one we’ve had in ages. No major missions and no real reason to keep my skills sharp.” Zuriak says shamefully. He takes a couple more bites from the apple before tossing the core off into the grass.

“Ah, I blame mental fatigue.” Xellis adds.

Zuriak raises an eyebrow questionably and faces him.

“You know, ‘mental fatigue’.” He repeats putting more emphasis on the phrase. “We’ve been at the grind for so long, performing the same duties, jobs, missions and so on that we’ve grown complacent. You’re not alone in feeling out-of-shape, I’ve also started feeling fatigued and lazy, going through the same monotonous tasks everyday.” Xellis lowers his voice and gets closer to Zuriak. “To tell you the truth, I’m personally awaiting the day we can start freely traveling beyond our own borders without the ponies, griffons or even qilins either attacking on sight or cowering in fear.”

“Where would you even go?”

“Don’t tell anyone, but I’d like to visit the unicorn capital someday, Canterlot. Did you know they have some of the best cuisine on the continent, and are famous for their mountain hot springs and baths? Magnificent.” Xellis replies with excitement and gestures a chef’s kiss.

Zuriak smiles and looks up to the sunlight breaking through the clouds.

“You’re a one-of-a-kind, you know that, Xellis?”

“Pssh, you flatter me.”

“Well, I’d better get going, Ryn’s probably wondering where I am right now.”

“No problem, I need to get back to my post anyway before someone catches me slacking. Hey, don’t forget to meet me here this afternoon after my shift. I’m not gonna forget your promise. I know your memory is bad, so this is your first reminder.” Xellis chuckles to himself before taking off towards Nymerion’s eastern district.

“I don’t have a bad memory, do I? It’s just Xellis being Xellis, I guess.” He comments to himself.

Zuriak shakes his thoughts and flies up through the wooden and stone towers covering the market district. Reaching the southern gate, he angles up flying parallel with the waterfall, then lands on solid ground adjacent to the open river cutting through the southern forest. The morning sun creates an orange glow reflecting off the water’s surface.

“The training ground shouldn’t be too far from here.” He mumbles to himself. “Would be nice to have a map though.” He peers down the calm forest path leading further south. “Should stretch my muscles and walk a little.”

Zuriak walks a couple kilometers into the forest, silently taking in the springtime atmosphere before stopping abruptly, taking note of the absence of sound and stillness in the air.

“Something’s not right…”

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, a flash of light passes by just above his head. He immediately freezes, and ducks narrowly missing a second projectile. A series of more firebolts hurdle towards him from the same direction. Thinking fast, he regains composure and continuously heads south hopping over logs and other foliage avoiding each firebolt.

A mercenary? How could they have gotten so deep in our country?

Zuriak freezes for a moment behind a tree, focusing energy in both palms and forming a sign with his claws. A faint blue glow starts emitting from them while he haphazardly dodges the onslaught of fire bursting past him and igniting the trees. After a moment, he ducks down and crawls out to a more open area, then slams his claws into the dirt releasing the charged energy. Stalagmites of ice rapidly rise from the ground around him creating a barrier as tall as some of the trees. Some of the firebolts impact the barrier creating a thick mist, but fail to break through.

Gotta find a way out of here.

Zuriak retracts his claws from the ground and launches straight up outside of the barrier into the sky above. He flies away from the source of fire when a blunt, heavy object drops down on him from above. Both come crashing towards the earth, slamming into trees and branches before making contact with the ground once more. The figure, still on top of him, grabs hold of one of his antlers, draws a blade and holds it against Zuriak’s neck.

“Aha! Now, how’s that for a wake-up call!”

Zuriak’s blurred vision slowly recovers as he focuses on the forest in front of him, while also confirming the source of the familiar voice. Frustrated, he shoves Ryn off and rolls over.

“You could’ve killed me!”

Ryn’s demeanor changes. “Exactly, I could’ve, but I didn’t. Consider this a warmup as we’ve got a lot to cover today. I hope you didn’t forget your training from your year in the warriors guild.” Ryn sheathes his blade and holds out a claw to Zuriak.

Zuriak sighs and takes his claw, pulling himself up. “I didn’t forget, and you could’ve at least warned me prior.”

“What would be the point of that? The purpose of surprise attacks is that they are unexpected. Warning you beforehand would make it too easy and wouldn’t teach you to critically think under duress.” Ryn continues walking through the forest for a couple moments before turning back towards Zuriak. “You coming?”

He huffs and dreadfully follows along with him. After walking for about half an hour more, both of them reach a flat, grassy plain, extending much further south and east. The west end contains a thick line of trees, towering over much of the surrounding forest. The clearing before them is devoid of any trees or noticeable landmarks save for a large boulder. The plains appear to extend to the southern desert and sharply drop off the cliffside. A small river slices through the grass near where they entered the field and extends into the morning horizon.

“Where are we?”

“Have you never been this far south? We’re right at the southern border of Ithral. Just beyond these plains lie the Wasteland.” He points a claw towards where the grass is faded just before the drop-off point. “I figure this would be the best place to train you with no interruptions and plenty of open space.”

“I see.” Zuriak and Ryn both look up at the rising sun.

“What a beautiful day! The clouds are finally clearing up.” Ryn shouts, taking a deep breath. “Let’s get started.” Ryn approaches the lone boulder next to the river and places a claw on it.

“Even though we both have a different elemental prowess, the fundamentals are still similar. When it comes to magical projectiles there are two things you need to focus on, accuracy and precision. Accuracy describes how well you are able to strike an object at its target location, and precision measures how well you can successively hit that target. You see the indent right here? Imagine it’s the target.” He then points a claw at a jagged, round indent near the rock’s center.

“Watch.”

He then moves back several meters, and holds up an arm. His palm glows red with fire forming around the outlines of his claw. He then aims at the rock and fires several shots at the indent, leaving burn marks around the edges, all overlapping each other perfectly.

“Since you’re an ice elemental, try to imagine you’re throwing sharp knives. Ice is more direct and deadlier, but easy to miss your target because of the limited area of effect. Fire, on the other hand, is splashy and has a more forceful impact.” Ryn digs his claws in the mud next to the river and draws a bullseye in the rock’s indent. “See how many bullseyes you can get from one barrage of ice.”

Zuriak focuses magic in his right palm and a light blue aura coats his claw. He takes aim at the same spot Ryn fired at earlier and fires a barrage of ice spikes. A couple shots managed to pierce the indent and embed into the rock near the center of the target, but the other icicles found their way outside of the bullseye.

“As I thought. You have a good eye, but hold back your power. Those first two shots were nearly perfect, but each progressive shot was further and further from the target. Every attack you do needs to have the intent to kill, or else you’ll grow uncertain and lose focus.”

“Right.” Zuriak curls his claws into a fist, thinking back to the kirin he killed days prior. He focuses his palm again and fires more ice at the rock, this time most of the shots missing the center.

“All your shots landed on the stone at least.” Ryn comments, now laying in the grass and observing from a distance. “Keep going until you can land a bullseye with ten successive shots.”

~

After over three hours of training, Zuriak collapses and stares up at the clear blue sky. He turns over to see Ryn napping in the grass.

“Some instructor he is. It feels like I’ve been at this all day.” Zuriak mutters to himself.

Zuriak crawls over to the river and dunks his head in to cool off. He pulls his head out and cups his palms in the water to drink from while staring into his distorted reflection in the waves. In the ripples he notices a shadowy figure right behind him take shape. The figure slowly manifests into a shaded cyan-colored kirin with a dark blue mane. Blood drips from their eyeless sockets and their expression remains neutral. Zuriak rubs his eyes and reopens them seeing the same horror stare at him in the water.

Zuriak’s eyes widen as it lifts a hoof and places it on his shoulder, keeping the same emotionless face. A sensation where the apparition set its hoof causes Zuriak to snap and discharge a beam of ice in its direction, in terror. The beam travels down across the field and hits a tree in the forest, icing it over completely into one solid chunk. He continues breathing hard, processing this moment and staring at the frozen tree in the distance as it slowly falls backwards onto smaller trees behind it.

“That wasn’t real, it couldn’t have been real, but I know I felt something.” He runs a claw through his mane turning his attention to the now awakened Ryn, staring at him in shock.

“I...saw something...in the forest.”

Ryn gets up and looks out into the forest where he shot at, but sees nothing of interest. “I’ve been watching you this whole time and eyeing the forest, making sure that we weren’t followed by anyone. Trust me, I would’ve known if there was someone or something out there.”

Liar, you’ve been sleeping since I started.

“Right...it was probably my imagination.” Zuriak responds, keeping his thoughts to himself.

“Still though, that was quite a shot. If that tree was your enemy, that would’ve been an instant kill by the force alone.” Ryn turns his attention to the target-boulder, noting its severe damage from Zuriak’s continuous attacks.

“You’ve certainly been at this for a while. Let’s try moving on to something else.”

Zuriak silently gazes back in the river, seeing nothing but his own worried face.

“You okay over there!?”

Zuriak snaps out of his thoughts and looks at Ryn now on one of the hills, past the river. “Yeah...I’m good!” He shouts back as he makes his way over.

“Follow me, we’re going to need a bit more open space for this.” He responds as he goes airborne, flying further south to the cliffs. Zuriak does the same and they both land just before the edge. He looks over the cliffs at the near vertical drop and out into the sandy sea before them.

“It does make you wonder what’s out there.” Ryn curiously comments, while also gazing into the sands. “No one knows much about what lies further south past the desert. I’ve heard reports of one of our own making the trek across by air a couple decades ago to map it out, but they had to turn back after a few days when supplies ran low. They reported nothing but sand as far as the eye can see. A curious bit of information; how much we still don’t know about our own world.”

“It is certainly intriguing…” Zuriak responds, now shifting his attention back to Ryn.

“Ahaha, you’ve got that look in your eyes, I can tell! Nevermind the desert, we’re here to train. Now, I know you already know how to breathe ice, but do you know how to synergize your primary and secondary elements?”

Zuriak gives him a look of confusion.

“As I thought, this is something you don’t learn about during basic training because of how uncommon it is to hatch with two elements. For example, I’m a fire and wind elemental, and you’re an ice and lightning elemental. Now watch.”

Ryn takes a deep breath and channels the air around him while also charging flames. In one long exhale, he releases the fire coupled with a steady stream of wind. The fire and wind begin vortexing, forming a fire tornado out into the desert, gradually dispersing the further it travels.

“Now you give it a try. Remember to focus and channel both elements as one.” Ryn says, out of breath.

Zuriak inhales sharply and releases a beam of ice from his mouth over the cliffside. Realizing his failure, he inhales again and breathes another beam of ice, though this time with less vigor. In frustration, he inhales a third time, but does so too fast and coughs up some ice.

“You’re being too forceful and letting one element consume the other.”

“And what do you...suggest I do...to not let that happen?” He replies in between coughs.

“Hmmm, try holding out both palms and focusing one element in one palm, and the second element in the other.”

Zuriak nods, coils in the grass, and holds both claws open, focusing magical energy in them. They both glow a pale blue, while an icy orb forms out of both.

“Okay, that’s one element in both. Now, switch your left claw’s energy to lightning.”

He nods and attempts to switch, but unintentionally does so to both claws. A purple-ish blue aura now outlines both claws with sparks of electricity arcing off his fingers.

“Mhm, I see now. You can’t split your chakra at once.”

“So, I won’t be able to combine my elements then…” Zuriak says, defeated.

“Not yet, at least. It will take some time with more training. You should also meditate at least once a day to help gain control of your chakra. Chakra is the magical energy with which we are able to manipulate the elements, so it’s likely your problem is rooted there. Regardless, I believe that is all we can do for today. Let’s head back.”

Zuriak squeezes his claws and lets the energy dissipate.

~

After flying back, Ryn floats down and lands just outside Nymerion near the southern waterfall. Zuriak lands next to him and looks down at the buildings and trees below. Ryn briefly pays him no mind and gazes up at the late afternoon sun.

“I’ve been meaning to ask, but what did you see in the river?”

Zuriak hesitates and closes his eyes.

“Nothing.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to tell me?”

“There was nothing there, I just lost my senses a bit.”

“I see...well, if you ever feel like telling me the truth, you know where to find me. We’ll reconvene tomorrow for the next session.” Ryn takes off and begins flying to the main plateau towards the Tower of Nymeria.

Maybe I should’ve said something. Would that have accomplished anything?

As soon as he’s out of sight, Zuriak looks up at the sun and back down at the waterfall contemplating where to go.

Well, it’s not too late in the day. I should make use of the remaining daylight.

He starts flying and descending lower into the valley below most of the rocky platforms and trees until he lands on a very wide, flat plateau at the center of the city. Situated about five meters above the lake’s surface sits a lush garden, the Arboretum. A unique plethora of trees, flowers, and plants grow nowhere else in the city but here, making it somewhat of a sacred place. Due to the plateau’s elevation and obstructions above, very little sunlight reaches this far, except during the mid-afternoon hours.

Zuriak looks around and sees several other dragons perusing the gardens and talking amongst themselves. Most come here to unwind, while others use the garden’s natural energy to meditate. He sees an open patch of grass just under a sliver of sunlight and lies down creating a circle with his long body. He faces into the circle and moves his palms together intertwining his ring and little fingers while placing his two middle fingers above his indexes creating the hand sign for ‘Energy’. He breathes deeply, closes his eyes and concentrates on absorbing the natural energy around him. Slowly but surely, a glowing green aura envelopes his claws. The faint aura begins covering the surface of his body until he is fully encompassed. He opens his eyes, now able to see the flow of energy around him and its sources, be it from nature and other living creatures. At this moment, his hand sign changes to where his indexes, thumbs, and little fingers meet, while his ring and middle fingers cross over each other. His aura then transitions to a light blue while focusing the natural energy to his head. Soon, his thoughts are flooded by his recent capture, the dead kirin and the graveyard. He starts to lose focus as these memories disrupt the chakra point in his head. Overcome with fear, his claws drop and the energy dissipates around him.

“I can’t forget, and I can’t find peace with myself.” Zuriak sits on the warm grass staring into nothingness, feeling the wind brush against his mane while pondering his recent past.

“That stag…could it have been one of the divines?”

In the wind, an airy tune fills the air. Zuriak’s ears perk up and his attention shifts to the source of the sound. He gets up and walks through the garden, noticing that he is now the only one here. He comes up through the bushes where the plateau slopes down into the lake and sees a familiar purple dragon playing a flute. As he steps forward, his claw breaks a twig, interrupting her performance. She jumps up and looks behind her.

“Oh, it’s you. I honestly didn’t expect to see you here.” Idylya says, half-surprised.

“I was...meditating...over there.” He replies pointing over his shoulder. “Just trying to clear my head.”

Zuriak steps fully out onto the grassy slope and lies down across the decline. “I didn’t know you played.”

“This old thing? I’ve been playing on and off for a number of years, but I never fully committed to learning it.”

“It sounds pretty. What were you playing?”

Idylya blushes a little. “It’s some stupid song I wrote many years ago that I can’t get out of my head. I find that it sometimes helps me relax.”

“Play it.”

Idylya tenses up, stunned. “N-no, I shouldn’t. I’m too out of practice...”

“Didn’t sound like it to me.”

“I can’t play in front of anyone either, stage fright.”

“Do you want me to cover my ears?” Zuriak responds as he humorously covers his ears. Idylya chuckles a bit.

“Fine, but no laughing, or interrupting or making faces. And you can’t tell your friends either. And don’t-”

“Okay, okay, I get it. No funny business.”

Idylya gives a soft smile and holds the flute to her chest.

“This is still a work-in-progress, so it’s not quite there yet.”

She then moves the instrument up to her mouth. Zuriak notices the strange tendril markings etched into her silver flute begin to glow blue, but doesn’t pay any more attention to it. Notes begin filling the air as she performs a soothing melody. The wind picks up, carrying the music far beyond the Arboretum. As she plays the first eight bars, Zuriak’s eyes start to grow heavy, and he finds himself yawning unexpectedly.

Damn, I didn't expect to get tired so fast. Hope she doesn’t see me yawning.

She moves on to play the next passage, opening her eyes momentarily to see her guest’s reaction. The new notes reverberate off the rocky walls around her creating a slight delay effect. Zuriak’s legs weaken with exhaustion, and he begins sliding down into the grass. Idylya plays the final phrase as he begins drifting away from consciousness and his body relaxes on the grassy slope.

Idylya finishes her song and opens her eyes to see Zuriak asleep. “Huh, so it did work, after all.” She smiles and flies up to the city above her leaving him to rest near the water. “Sweet dreams, Zuri.”

~

Zuriak opens his eyes to a sliver of sunlight peering down into the Arboretum below and the loud reverberation of a bell echoing throughout the city. He finds himself sprawled out on the grass with part of his tail drifting in the water.

“What happened? How did I get here?” He asks himself as he rolls over and stands up. He looks around trying to recall the events prior, but his memories are still hazy.

“The Arboretum, I was here...and I saw Idylya playing a flute...and…wait, what happened after that?” He continues asking himself. “I don’t remember feeling sleepy at all before she started playing.” Zuriak looks around the Arboretum, then down at the lake.

“Was it a spell? Did she do this?”

He then ascends up to the city, hoping to find Idylya, but upon reaching the main plateau, she is nowhere to be found. He sighs and lands on the street staring at the other dragons going about their business. Sunlight over the area begins to dim as it moves behind the western forest and out of the valley.

“I must’ve been asleep for a few hours.” He scratches his head, unsure what to do.

“Didn’t expect to see you back so soon. How did the training go?” Xellis asks as he randomly appears above him. Despite his sudden appearance, Zuriak remains unfazed.

“It was…alright, but it didn’t go exactly as planned and we had to call it early. By the way, have you seen Idylya around by chance?” Zuriak responds, his eyes wandering around the sky.

“Nope, why?”

“Nevermind.” Zuriak takes his eyes off the sky and starts walking down one of the streets. Xellis follows right next to him.

“Is your shift over already?” Zuriak asks, surprised.

“Uh, yes? It’s dusk. We usually work day shifts in the middle of the week. Don’t you remember?

“Sorry, had an unexpected nap earlier and I lost track of time.”

“Well, count yourself lucky you’re on ‘vacation’, these past couple of weeks have been the most boring weeks I’ve had since the Julis Festival last summer. I would love to be in your position and just sleep whenever I want.” Xellis bitingly comments.

“This isn’t a vacation! I think I’m growing weaker both physically and mentally.” Zuriak snaps back. “It feels like I can’t control my magic, and I’m being plagued by memories of what happened weeks ago.”

“Well, what happened anyway? You promised you were going to tell me.”

Both of them stop abruptly outside a large marble building at the end of the road, terminating in the cliffs. It stands tall above the other adjacent buildings and glows in the fading sunset. The waterfall behind it creates a cool mist, glistening in the light. The four pure white pillars in front hold up much of the structure with additional architectural support on the sides. The nameplate above the pillars reads: Temple of The Twelve Divines.

Zuriak remains silent and walks up the rocky steps.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up.” Xellis quickly runs up next to him and places a claw on his shoulder. “Since when are you religious? Are you that hesitant about telling me?”

Zuriak continues up the steps and reaches the set of double doors. He turns around at Xellis patiently waiting for a response.

“Are you coming?”

Xellis sighs and follows him into the marble building. Inside, the sole room contains a massive ornate statue made of metal, depicting the twelve dragon gods and goddesses all intertwined with one another. The statue sits tall, almost reaching the ceiling with various displays of ancient art hanging on the four walls around the room. Bits of sunlight filter in through the windows and reflect off the statue’s polished surface. No one else is presently in the room. Zuriak approaches the statue, noting some incense still burning at its base, filling the room with an aromatic scent. He lays in front of the statue and reads the plaque out loud.

“Nivalia, Thera, Marsa, Raina, Maya, Solera, Julis, Aquilius, Sarais, Orthos, Novos, and Lunys, the architects of this world.”

Xellis silently lays along the right side of the statue, across from Zuriak, appearing uninterested.

“Each of them had a purpose during the creation of our realm. Nivalia created the earth we stand on today. Solera created the sun, and Lunys created the moon. Both of which are now controlled by the winged-unicorn sisters. Maya created life, Thera gave that life the ability to feel emotion, and Orthos granted sentience to those creatures. Aquilius-”

“Look, I know the story already. Our elders instill this belief ad nauseum. What’s your point?”

“Well, all throughout history, they are depicted as dragons, like us.”

“Correct.”

“But what if we were wrong? What if they’re not, and instead something else? No one has ever seen the divines.”

“According to the legend, they left once their work was done, so of course, no one’s seen them. Whether they are dragons or not, it doesn’t matter that much to me...what are you getting at?” Xellis replies with a bit more intrigue.

“That one, right there, Novos, the god of death and entropy.” Zuriak points a claw up to the black and gold dragon depicted on the statue. “I saw him on our journey back home. Or at least, I thought I saw him.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“There’s a patch of dense forest at the far western side of Ithral near the Valley of Despair. Idylya and I stumbled through there by accident, and there was a massive graveyard from ages ago.”

Xellis doesn’t say anything, but puts a claw on his chin becoming more interested.

“A mist came in out of nowhere and we got separated. I followed a glowing orb to a lake and saw a large stag before me. It ran off when I approached it, but what it was obscuring was a mysterious stone monolith, like a gravestone. There was no name on the stone, but I couldn’t help but see a resemblance in the dragon carved on top.”

“Hmm, that sure is something…” Xellis focuses his eyes on the ornate statue. “As crazy as it sounds, you’re not the first dragon to witness that kind of phenomenon with the divines.” Zuriak curiously turns his focus over to Xellis.

“When I was still living in Raana, out east, we had a sage living in the village who would offer us wisdom whenever we needed it. Some say he was nearly two-hundred years old, but no one truly knew his past or how old he actually was. I remember seeking his advice on how to make the right choices in my life, and he brought up this one story about the time he was allegedly visited by Thera, the goddess of emotion. Many years ago, when he was in the forest outside our village gathering wood, he witnessed a doe with glowing, tendril and branch-like tribal markings along its body. Drawn to it, he followed it to the forest’s edge, but by the time he reached it, the doe vanished. Afterwards, he said he had visions of the future about critical choices he’d have to make in order to be happy and to be at peace with himself. He claims it changed his life, but I figured the whole story was a metaphor and that he didn’t actually see the goddess because of how preposterous that would be.”

Zuriak stays silent and turns his gaze to the incense still burning.

“I am still a bit skeptical, but it can’t be a coincidence.” Xellis continues. “Have you spoken to Idylya about this?”

“No, come to think of it, but today I did see her by accident in the Arboretum. For some reason though, I ended up passing out sometime after she started playing her flute. I don’t know what happened after that, but when I woke up, she was gone.”

“You fell asleep after hearing her play?”

“I think so. I saw her playing a flute, and I asked her to play something. She did and apparently, I nodded off part way through her song despite being completely lucid moments before.”

“Huh, was there anything odd about the flute? Like did you see anything out of the ordinary when she was playing?”

“I could’ve sworn I saw a faint blue glow emanate from different parts of it, but it was hard to tell.”

“Uh-huh, well I suppose it could be enchanted or…”

“Or what?”

“Mmmmm, it’s nothing, there’s not a chance it could be one of those things…” Xellis says partly to himself. “

“What things? Why are you being so secretive?” Zuriak says, getting irritated.

“A divine instrument. Honestly, being in this temple and hearing your story are the only reasons I remembered. They were used by the divines of course and contain their cosmic power, but like most ancient objects from that time period, they’re lost to the sands of time. I doubt she just happened to randomly find one, no, I’m positive that flute is just enchanted. From what I know, blue-colored enchantments affect the state of mind. Doesn’t she have a background in enchanting? Maybe she was trying to test something, heh.”

“Well, regardless of the flute’s nature, why would she…”

“I’m beginning to wonder if she just did that to avoid talking to you.” Xellis interrupts, getting ahead of himself.

“But that’s such a complicated way of showing it.”

“Hey, it’s just a theory.” Xellis holds up his claws in defense. “You know, at some point, you should confront her about this.” Xellis says as the sun begins to fully set and the room darkens, leaving only the torch sconces to light the room.

“Right, it’s just a matter of finding her again.”

“Shouldn’t be too hard, I always see her leave the Arcanum just before dusk after my shift usually ends.” Xellis looks again at the statue and moves uncomfortably. “Let’s get out of here and get something to eat. It feels like the eyes on that statue are staring into my soul.” Zuriak nods and stands up, briefly staring into the statue. He then follows Xellis out into the cool, breezy night. Lanterns light up the streets in a neat array from the shops and businesses near the temple. As they descend down the stairs, a large group of dragons pass them going up, led by one holding a book.

“Looks like we left just in time. I’d rather not get caught up in the evening service.” Xellis says with relief. Zuriak nods in agreement.

“Do you still eat at that one ramen shop, the one with that goofy looking statue outside? What’s that one called again?”

“Zibiki’s? Nah, I’ve been pinching pennies since I’ve been out of work for the last two weeks.”

“Well this one’s on me, but you have to tell me what else happened during your adventure.”

“Deal.”

The two dragons continue walking the serene streets all the way back to the central fountain. The outdoor markets and stalls are all closing up for the day with many dragons flooding into the restaurants for dinner after a long day. Zuriak and Xellis cut around the fountain and head north in the general direction of the Tower of Nymeria passing through Nymerion’s crowded nightlife district famous for its wide variety of food. At the end of the street, a lone ramen shop sits on the corner with a chiseled, stone lung dragon situated outside. It is comically holding up a sign reading ‘Zibiki’s Ramen’ in a fancy calligraphic font.

“You know, that statue kind of looks like you.” Xellis comments, holding back some laughter.

“No, it doesn’t!” Zuriak goes up to it and compares facial features.

“Sure, whatever you say.” The two duck underneath the cloth hanging from the stall and coil up on two cushions on the left side of the bar overlooking the prep station. Many ingredients are laid out on the counter, and a steel pot sitting over a light flame is nearly empty. A shorter, older looking dragon emerges from behind the shop and sees Xellis and Zuriak. He gives them a wide grin upon seeing Zuriak.

“Was wondering when you were going to show up, Zuriak! It’s been a while.”

“Haha, I mean, it hasn’t been that long, has it?” Zuriak responds, nervously. Xellis lightly chuckles.

“The ‘usual’, I take it?” Zuriak nods. “And for you?” He turns to Xellis.

“I’ll just have the house special, thank you.”

“Sure thing, I’ll have that up shortly.” He disappears into the back of the shop again, and Xellis turns to face Zuriak with a silly grin.

“How often do you come here again?”

“Let’s not talk about that.”

“Heh, alright.” Before Xellis could continue, Zuriak sees a dark figure sitting a few cushions down turn towards them.

“So you made it back after all.” The charcoal-colored dragon says. Xellis whips around and is startled by Neverak’s presence.

“Gah, how long have you been there!?” Neverak ignores Xellis’s comment and keeps his attention on Zuriak.

“I know what happened.” He points to Zuriak’s neck where the suppression collar was and a burn mark where Ryn sliced it off. “You’re lucky to have made it out alive.” Zuriak rubs the spot where the collar was and turns away from Neverak, looking down into the table.

“How did you know?” He says, defeated.

“Know what?” Xellis asks, looking back and forth between Zuriak and Neverak.

“The Council of Elders explained to every group leader in the warriors guild what happened. It helps us to avoid certain areas when traveling outside of the country for missions.” Neverak takes a drink from his white, ceramic cup. Xellis looks at the burn on Zuriak’s neck.

“For a dragon that’s in the intelligence guild, that was pretty bold of you to hunt near the Northwestern Passage. You and that purple one, the one Ithinyelle won’t shut up about.” Neverak adds.

“It was a mistake. We didn’t know where we were.” Zuriak replies in the same defeated tone.

“If you say so.” Neverak takes one last gulp of his drink, then drops several silver coins on the counter from his coin pouch. “By the way, I probably shouldn’t tell you two this, but I overheard something from the Council today as they were exiting a meeting. They’re planning something big soon.” Neverak uncoils and stands on all fours, trying to balance himself while being slightly inebriated.

“Something big? What does that mean?” Xellis questions. Neverak shrugs his shoulders.

“Do I look like a council elder to you? I’m only telling you two because I heard your names being mentioned.” Xellis rolls his eyes in response.

“Well, thanks for the info. I suppose that’s something to look forward to.” Zuriak says. Neverak nods and stretches out his arms and legs before flying off into the night sky.

“That wasn’t exactly a pleasant conversation. Why does it always seem like he’s hiding something?” Xellis asks his companion. “But more importantly, when did you get burned? You did promise to tell me more in exchange for a free meal.” Zuriak shakes his head and faces Xellis.

“Before I tell you, can you promise not to tell anyone?”

“Yeah, absolutely.” Zuriak looks around making sure no one else is within earshot of their conversation.

“We were attacked near the border.” Zuriak explains in a lower tone.

“Wait, seriously? How far out were you?”

“As Neverak brought up earlier, we were apparently near the Northwestern Passage, but…something happened. I don’t know if it was magic, or a high-powered weapon or what, but I was impaled by a deadly force.” He points a claw against his chest scar. Xellis winces a bit.

“Idylya was also injured but she was well enough to find help, and apparently there was this group of qilins nearby…”

“Jeez, Z, don’t tell me…”

“They helped us.” Xellis sighs and turns away from Zuriak, holding his face in one claw.

“You’ve been in the intelligence guild for how long? Nearly a decade now? And you didn’t see this obvious trap? Did she not see it either? Did you really expect qilins, our bitter enemies, to just take you in and help you for no reason?”

“Okay, well what were either of us supposed to do, just die?”

“Well our elders did say…” Xellis quietly mutters to himself.

“Whatever, I’m going home.” Zuriak says bitterly. He gets up from the cushion and heads out onto the street.

“Wait, I didn’t mean it like that.” Xellis turns around and calls out to him just as he passes the stone statue. Zuriak stops and looks back.

“I didn’t mean to insult you or jump to conclusions, I’m sorry.” Zuriak sighs and begrudgingly returns to the shop.

“Look, I’m glad you’re alive, but was there really no other option? I thought Idylya was a healer.”

“I’m not sure, I was unconscious for most of it, but I assume she was unable to do anything.”

“And you told this story to the Council? I’m surprised they didn’t exile you for breaking bread with the qilins.”

“I didn’t exactly tell them the truth. Actually, Idylya spun it to make it seem like we were captured and I just went with it.”

“Hmmm, I hope that doesn’t backfire later down the road, you could get in serious trouble for that.”

“Hoping this all dies down soon and we all forget, honestly. I just want to move past it.” Zuriak says. A moment of awkward silence passes as neither wishes to diffuse the tension. Xellis rhythmically taps on the counter and looks around the ramen shop, trying to fill the void.

“So, what were they like? The qilins, I mean.” He asks. “I’ve never met one before.”

Zuriak scratches his chin. “...Frightened.”

“Of you?”

“Mhm, all but one of them. I don’t think they’ve ever seen dragons before. Their leader, however, looked like she'd seen it all. Apparently she’s the reason I’m alive.”

“Were you afraid of them?”

“...No, not them but…”

“Sorry to keep you two waiting for so long!” The red-scaled chef bursts through the kitchen door holding two hot bowls of ramen. “We’re running low on spices, so I had to pull some from storage. But please, enjoy!” He places the two bowls in front of Zuriak and Xellis, then returns back to the kitchen.

“It’s about time, huh? I’m starving!” Xellis playfully nudges Zuriak. Zuriak stares into his own reflection in the broth for a minute before scarfing it down.

~

“Concentrate on your chakra flow. Feel the energy, and let it pass through all your chakra points.”

A deeply-focused Zuriak floats gently meditating above the grass overlooking the adjacent desert. A faint green aura encompasses his body. Ryn is floating meters above him inspecting his form.

“Now, begin channeling one element into one palm.” Zuriak, keeping his eyes closed, does so with ease as cold mist forms around his left claw.

“Good, now reduce the chakra flow in your left claw in half and return it to your core. Then channel it to your right claw while keeping a steady flow on both sides.” Zuriak holds out his right claw and tenses up his arm.

“Finally, assign the second element to your right half.”

Sparks start erupting off Zuriak’s right claw as he opens his eyes now holding both ice and lightning.

“Release!”

He cups both claws and releases the combination over the dry wasteland before him. The beam fires far beyond their view distance and slowly dissipates.

“Not bad.” Ryn floats down to the grass and continues staring at the electrical energy fading away. Zuriak floats down as well, breathing heavily.

“You now have a good grasp of elemental chakra control.”

“Yeah...it only took me...three weeks?”

“Quicker than most, that’s for sure. Over time, it will get easier, and you’ll be able to refine your attacks and synergize better. Keep in mind though that dividing your chakra and synergizing elements is only possible when all of your chakra gates are open. Those who do not have a strong connection between the mind and body often struggle with chakra control. And that is something we will work on soon. Have you been meditating outside of our training?”

“Y-yes.” Zuriak responds with a bit of hesitation.

“Good. Elemental splitting is a powerful tool that can both help and hurt you.”

“What do you mean by ‘hurt’?”

“Well, to a fragmented mind and body, one who tries to force chakra through a blocked chakra point risks severing that connection permanently. So far, we’ve only dealt with the core point and its extremities, i.e. your palms. Say for example, you channeled two elements to your throat but that chakra point was blocked. The instability of those two different elemental chakras flowing at once through that blocked point would damage it and hinder your ability to breathe ice. That’s why I tell you to continue meditating and to keep a sound mind.”

“How does a chakra point get blocked?”

“All sorts of reasons. Could be a result of inner turmoil, stress, or even a physical injury.”

“I see, that’s good to know.” Zuriak looks down at his left claw.

“Indeed, unfortunately, that is all we can do for today, as I need to return to the city for a council meeting. We will reconvene in a few days. By the way, I was told you are scheduled to return to guard duty with Fenrir and Xellis on the eleventh.” Zuriak simply nods.

“Should be nice getting back into some sort of routine.” Ryn adds.

“Yeah.”

“Well, I’m off. You try to take care of yourself, okay?”

Ryn flies off northward into the clear, blue sky hastily, leaving Zuriak behind. As Ryn leaves his line of sight, Zuriak flies over to the small river back in the plains. He sticks his head in, cooling off and washing the dirt from his face. After resurfacing, he stares back into his reflection expecting to hallucinate again, but no figure appears in the water.

“Maybe it was all in my head.”

He turns back towards the forest and without looking back, ascends over the treeline flying back home. During the flight, he continues to stare down at the forest below, observing its serene state. The sun above him casts rays down on the trees and foliage as he passes by, creating a warm glow.

To just fly away from everything, would that be so bad?

After flying for some thirty minutes, the tall buildings of Nymerion come into view. Zuriak starts descending down into the Central Plaza and looks around. The sundial near the fountain reads slightly past 13:30. He turns to one of the food carts grilling several cuts of meat on a skewer, producing a tasty aroma. There’s a long line twisting out into the street, obscuring much of the setup, and it appears to be handled by a group of winged Drogosians.

“Probably should get something to eat.” He reminds himself. As he makes his way over, a certain purple dragon catches his eye going into the Arcanum of Nymer at the south end of the plaza.

“Or maybe…”

Forgetting his hunger, he makes his way across the plaza and up the stairs into the Arcanum. Inside the round building, rows of tall bookshelves extend out from the center circle with tables, and cushions scattered in between. It is quite crowded and many of the dragons present are quietly studying. After looking in between each bookshelf, he walks up to the second floor, seeing much of the same. Like with the first floor, bookshelves draw out from the walls and point into the center, though much shorter with a wide circular gap in the center. Across the way, he sees her on her back resting on one of the pillows, with her nose buried in one of the books she’s holding up. He quietly makes his way over, but the creaking wooden floor makes it difficult to stay hidden.

“Hi.” He whispers.

She momentarily lowers her book to see who it is, but quickly goes back to reading when she sees Zuriak’s face. He then places a claw on top of her book and pushes it down. She sighs annoyedly.

“Can I help you with something? I’m a bit preoccupied at the moment.”

“I know your flute was enchanted.” She tenses up, but then relaxes.

“That was three weeks ago.” Idylya snickers. “And is that what you believe?” She adds, grinning.

“Believe? Don’t think you can gaslight your way out of this one.”

“Don’t take it too personally, I was just testing something that even I didn’t know anything about. You were an excellent test subject, by the way.” She then resumes reading her book, breaking eye contact with him.

“Ugh, you confuse me, you know that?” Zuriak remarks while rolling his eyes.

“At least that’s one thing I’m good at.”

“Yeah, yeah, well the reason I came here is to ask you something.”

“I’m all ears.” She does a gesture.

“So, you remember when we stumbled across that graveyard up north?”

“Yeah, I mean it wasn’t that long ago…”

“Well, did you see anything in the mist?”

She tenses up again, and turns away from him, biting her lip. “No, I just got the heck out of there as fast as I could. It was a miracle I found you, you know. Why are you asking? Did you see something?”

Zuriak remains silent, unsure if he should mention his hallucination because of her response.

“No, I just thought I’d ask because of how weird that whole place was.”

Idylya raises an eyebrow confused at his shift in tone.

“...aaaaaannnd, that’s it? That’s all you wanted to ask me?”

“Yep.” Zuriak quickly replies, trying to dissipate the conversation, slightly embarrassed. Idylya just shakes her head

“Pffft, and you say I’m the confusing one...” She whispers under her breath. “Well...now that we’re on the same topic, do you remember that monolith we saw just before the mist?” She starts digging through her bookbag and retrieves a journal.

“Vaguely.”

“I actually finished translating it not too long ago. To tell you the truth, I was on the fence about translating it based on the experience we had. It definitely felt otherworldly.” She opens the journal and flips through some of the pages.

“The Mist of Novos, Shaia zhún Novos.” She says as she hands him the journal. He takes it, places it on the nearby low table, and turns to the same page she was reading from. There, scribbled in charcoal were the symbols she wrote originally along with their translated counterparts.

“How long did this take you?”

“About two weeks. We have like several different volumes of the Zyntrithian glossary here, so searching through them took a long time.”

Zuriak flips through a few more pages until he sees more of the translated contents.

“In the mist, he waits, not out of malevolence, but as a warning. A warning of what’s to come.” He pauses and looks at her with a bit of concern.

“That was on the backside of the boulder, the rest is up front.” She notes, turning a page over.

“A mortal god cruelly nudges fate. He doesn’t harm the body, but the mind... Our attempts to defy destiny irrevocably put us on its path. One cannot change destiny, and knowledge of it is a curse. Let this ice disease finally embrace us.” Zuriak looks back up at her more concerned than previously.

“What happened to them?”

“That remains a mystery, but the sentence ‘let this ice disease finally embrace us’ leads me to believe they died of hypothermia, which is strange considering Ithral’s hot climate. It never gets cold enough here to provoke hypothermia and we’re also cold-blooded. However, I was able to dig up some old scrolls on an unidentified creature that was seen here in Ithral sometime around the year two-forty five in the second era. It reportedly was able to freeze everything around it without casting a spell, almost like a walking ice box.”

“Any physical descriptions on it?”

“Only that it was a quadruped with scales, which doesn’t really help that much.”

“Hmm, so it couldn’t have been that stag…” Zuriak whispers to himself.

“It couldn’t have been what?” She overhears.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” He quickly defends as he flips some more pages and sees a large depiction of a familiar symbol resembling Zyntrithian patterns. It is circled in red and below it, ‘time’ is spelled out in capital letters.

“What’s this one?”

“You don’t remember? That one qilin we met in the forest, the green one with the weird horn. That symbol was on her horn, and I was right, it was Zyntrithian. It means ‘time’.

“Time...” He trails off.

“Just adds more to the mystery, doesn’t it? And why is a word from our language on her horn?”

“Perhaps we weren’t the only ones to adopt it?”

“Well, as it turns out, Zyntrithian did have some presence in both Kyryo and Drogos, but Equestrian was always the most common language. Only higher class qilins were ever taught Zyntrithian. Like, we’re talking about royal status level qilins.”

“Maybe it’s some weird custom where they carve a symbol in one’s horn to represent something.”

“I doubt it. Qilin horns are ten times harder than bone. No knife or blade would be able to cut that deep and so precisely.”

Zuriak turns to another page and finds a rough sketch of the collars Terra placed on them back at the kirin camp. Symbols are taken from the design and overlaid below the sketch with rough translations.

“And what are these?”

“I haven’t quite figured that one out yet, but those collars contained Zyntrithian symbols as well. I’m wondering if their translations can give us any clues on their origins, or a way to effectively remove them without dragonfire should this happen to other dragons in the future. So far, no luck.”

“Crystal, magic, void, Novos.” Zuriak recites from her notes. She takes back the book and closes it.

“As far as I know, it’s just gibberish and answering one question seems to have opened up many more.” She adds while stowing the journal away. “I’ll continue looking into all of this, but that qilin definitely knew more than what she let on.”