Dragon Tooth

Chapter 3

“Wait! Stop! Let me down!” she screamed.

“We are in the Nightfall Plains, I'm sure you've heard the stories of monsters that haunt these lands. If we stop, we're going to get attacked. And if I let you down, you will die. So try to be quiet, we've got a long way to go,” shadowy figure said brusquely.

“Just stop! Why did you even help me?” asked the girl.

He continued as if he hadn't heard her.

“Hey, I'm talking to you!” she yelled.

“What did you say?” he asked

“I said, why did you save me?”

“Oh . . . because I wanted to,” he responded.

“This is getting ridiculous. You can at least answer the person you kidnap when they ask you something,” she snapped, frustrated at the lack of information and attention.

“Stop ignoring me!” she exclaimed, hitting his back.

“What do you want?” he replied.

“Fine, at least answer this, how did you move so fast? How did you stop the henchmen? That was Magic, wasn't it?” she breathed, trying not to sound too excited.

“Yes and no. It's Magic, embedded with Willpower,” he responded.

“Willpower?” She frowned, confused. She had never heard of Willpower before. Was the person deceiving her? Or was he merely hiding his secrets?

The figure sighed. He appeared rather worn, as if it wasn't the first time he had answered this question.

“Here's the simplest way I can think of explaining it. Although Magic is everywhere, not everyone can use it. However, everybody possesses Willpower. And only a few can combine both at the same time,” the figure took a pause. He sighed.

“And to answer your previous question, I saved you because I knew you weren't one of them. And I couldn't look my family in the eye had I stayed my sword and let an innocent die,” he continued.

The girl felt relieved at her answer. There was something about this person that inspired trust in her heart. “You really took care of all the bandits?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“Wow, you're very talkative,” she said dryly.

“Thank you.”

“I was joking . . .”

It wasn't long before the figure stopped. He looked at the sky above. “It's getting dark. We are better off to rest for a moment.”

He let the girl down. There was her opportunity to get away from her captor. She considered her options well, but as the rumors of the terrible place that they have stopped to take their breaths dwell within her thoughts, she figured she would be better off to take her chances staying with this man.

She looked at his brown eyes long and hard. “I'm cold.”

The figure gazed back at her. He was not accustomed to such requests. He raised his right hand, and a fire grew from nothing right next to her.

The girl jumped backwards. She realized that had he wanted to, he could have killed her by now.

“Why did you save me . . .” she asked him again. She wasn't convinced by his previous answer.

The figure sat next to her and straightened his arms near the fire. “You're not from around here are you?”

The girl nodded. “I'm not from around here. I'm from . . .” she bit her lips soon after. She still did not trust him enough. “I just came looking to get away from that place.”

“And where you're from, I suppose no mages or guilds are there correct?” he asked.

Her heart skipped a beat. She could not tell how he knew this. He could have read her mind for all she knew.

“It's not often that someone doesn't recognize my guild after all,” he said, in a soft tone.

“Back there, when you saved me . . . it was the first time I've seen magic.”

“Well, and that Willpower you spoke of,” she continued.

A small smile wore his face. “Magic can be amplified with Willpower. Not a lot can do that.”

“Magic amplified? So when Willpower is combined it is even more powerful?”

“It depends, if you train enough, your Willpower adds certain attributes to the magic.”

He looked back at her, and saw that she was about to fall asleep. He got up, and picked her on his shoulder again.

“Hey! Let me down!” she cried.

“Rest up, or sleep if you want. We aren't that far from the city, and I'd rather not be caught by darkness here,” he said and began to run, he was upon the city before he knew it.

After the mess Dragon Tooth caused with the bandits incident, the Council sent one of the Enforcers to have a talk with the Master of Dragon Tooth. As he entered the ancient halls of the Guild, he couldn't help but feel that somehow his presence was being monitored. With every step he was taking, it felt like someone was watching his every move.

Soon, he arrived at the center of the hall. It was filled with statues of dragons, which elevated his senses and kept him on his guard. Everywhere he looked, he saw the statue of a dragon, each with a name under it. He arrived at the center. And there was the Master, sitting on a throne encrypted with ancient writings; they were as clear as day. They stood out somehow, even though the Master, wearing a brown robe, was covering it.

He approached the Master carefully, and as he came closer, the writings on the throne changed. They glowed gold. His heart beat faster with each step he took. Never had he felt so intimidated by the presence of an individual. He tried to speak, but couldn't find the words. He staggered.

“Why are you here?” asked the Master, as he gazed into the eyes of the Enforcer. The Enforcer regained his composure.

“First, I'd like to mention that me here is just a formality. Normally, after an incident occurs, the Council sends an Informant. You know how this works,” said the Enforcer. As he finished this sentence, a sudden wind hit the place. A shadowy figure appeared with the girl upon his back.

“Mist, did you kidnap this fine lady? Because if you did, this really is a bad time,” The Master said wearily. But his expression had changed dramatically, and so had the Enforcer's. He kept gazing into Mist with a threatening look.

“What is this? Explain!” the Enforcer demanded, widening his eyes. He could not believe what he was seeing, and right under the Master's nose . . .

“Ehhh . . .” Mist breathed a deep sigh. “I rescued her from an angry mob that wanted to behead her. Everyone thinks she's one of the bandits I slaughtered. Nowhere is safe except here.”

His tone brooked no argument.

“Doesn't it matter what I think? Don't I have a say in this! You're impossible,” the girl said as she lifted her eyes and saw the Enforcer.

“Even if what you said is true, how is she becoming a member of your guild the answer here?!” the Enforcer complained. Yet as he was looking at Mist who turned his back, let the girl on the floor gently, and started walking.

“Stop! I asked you a question!” said the Enforcer, preparing himself to stop Mist. His posture invited only trouble as blue energy flowed from his ring and engulfed his entire body; a blue shock could clearly be seen, yet Mist did not even feel the need to look back and kept walking.

The Enforcer's Magic field shrunk tremendously, as he heard the Master's steps. He had stepped off the throne and was walking towards him. The sheer fear of his presence troubled the Enforcer, and he knew that this was not the time for recklessness. He lowered his guard, yet he still awaited an answer to his question.

“Because people think twice before striking a member of Dragon Tooth. Leave him be. He wants to go see his friends before their league battle tomorrow,” said the Master as he put his right hand on the Enforcer's shoulder to assure him there is no need for violence.