Mega Dragon: Harbinger of Death

FAR CRY

The wind howled violently. It’s howl, a taste of the scourge that was to follow. The people believed it was rain that was months due and the sky poured out its contents with so much vendetta that the people worried if they would survive the night. The cold ran deep into Aroha’s bones that no amount of covering protected her from its sharp claws. For the first time, she thought, where was Zhiyi? No one needed to be told to stay indoors. There was no curfew but no one dared to roam the streets. Thunder crackled through the skies as it raged on for what seemed like forever. But even the thunder bowed when a greater entity appeared. Whatever it was, the thunder submitted to it. Above its ferocious frame, the clouds seized throwing tantrums. Below it was unfathomable darkness. The like that has never been seen before. It roared to establish its dominance. But it already was an open secret. The entire capital recognized the power of a royal wyvern.

In an instant, the guards were deployed to subdue this creature that manifested such an ominous aura. Aroha had only one place to be; with her sister. She had to protect her. And if she was unable to come to her, she would go to meet her instead. She stormed into Zhiyi’s room, who couldn’t hear anything above all the rancor. Underneath the clout of fear, she trembled. Aroha’s soothing hands did more to startle her than it would have comforted her. She was terrified. This was very unlike Zhiyi. She wasn’t the most brazen person alive, but she was not one to sit scared in times of trouble. And this worried Zhiyi. There was only one thing that could make Zhiyi react this way; an overwhelming presence and no possibility of defeating it.

Aroha could hear the marching of soldiers all across the manor. The Renoffs were the next family that would be protected in these kinds of cases after the Crofts of course. A soldier ran into Zhiyi’s room after knocking twice. There was no time to wait for a response. “I’m sorry my ladies, but you need to stay inside. There is an invasion,” the guard said.

Aroha’s heart skipped a beat. Very few kingdoms would dare such. Within the Croft capital reside the strongest man on Maori. And even so, Zenon; who was rumored to be among the top five strongest men as well, was in the capital. To stage a siege despite knowing all these, could they possibly have devised a way to deal with those monsters?

“We can help!” Aroha blurted out. The capital would need as much help as it could get. There was no sense in protecting capable fighters. She was sure that Ara and Zenon would have stepped into the battlefield at the time. And if matters got any worse, the king himself would step in. She and Zhiyi were top-tier fighters no matter how you looked at it. And unlike most of the Renoffs that resided in the capital, she would happily fight for Croft kingdom.

But the guard quickly dismissed her suggestion. “I’m sorry my lady. The order comes from Lord Alex himself.”

Of course. How typical of Master Alex. He was once someone who could rival their father; Gero in a fight but he had long deviated from that path. Of course, he would be hiding away at the manor. But in times of true disaster, there is no real hiding place, only death traps. And surely Aroha was not going to wait for the enemy to strike first.

Aroha made to run for the wall. With her death palm, she could make a hole in it, enough for her and Zhiyi to pass through, but Zhiyi held on to her gown. So tightly that Aroha came to a stop. The fear she felt through Zhiyi’s cold hands even though her hands didn’t touch her body gave her chills. Her eyes spoke volumes; a thousand different voices, all frightened but saying one thing – don’t go!

Aroha pressed her head against Zhiyi’s. She wanted to go so badly, but they were all each other had in the capital. Zhiyi hugged Aroha tightly and she shivered even more so when they heard explosions from the hallway – the enemy had broken in.

“My ladies, ru---” were the last words that left the guards' lips before the knife that slit their throats echoed throughout the hall. There were five of them, with masks, wielding double blades, with daggers sheathed within their pants. Not a single mark on them to suggest which kingdom was responsible. But why hide? Taking down the capital of the Croft kingdom was an accomplishment. Or were they afraid that the Lo kingdom would retaliate? Or was it just a precaution in the event that they failed?

Rancid thoughts ran through Aroha’s head. Zhiyi was for some reason in a bad shape. The only thing standing between them and her sister Zhiyi was her. And there was no way she was letting them lay a finger on her. She crouched in front of Zhiyi, like a lioness protecting her cub. But these attackers knew no fear. They unsheathed their weapons at Aroha and Zhiyi, approaching them steadily, further slowing time down.

Before either party could attack first, another explosion followed. The hesitancy that the enemies showed gave Aroha the opening she needed. In one jump, she was onto one of the attackers and snapped his neck. She took a hold of his weapon to defend herself against the other four but there was no longer a need for that. Through the door that the guards once guarded, prince Ara and prince Zenon walked through. One draw of his sword from its sheath saw all four of the attackers’ heads drop. Even Aroha’s keen senses couldn’t follow his sword. Perhaps the rumors of the duo’s strength bore more truth than she would have admitted.

“What’s going on?” Aroha asked. If anyone knew, it would be them.

“We’re under attack,” Ara said grimly.

“I can see that!” Aroha snapped. That bit of information was obvious.

“A group of sorcerers with an army...” he added, but Aroha could tell there was more. More that was the reason Zhiyi was the way she was. “Wyverns. They have wyverns,” he let out finally once he saw the wait on Aroha’s face.

“Those aren’t wyverns. They are demons. Wyverns wouldn’t attack us,” Zhiyi finally spoke out.

“How do you know that?” Zenon asked.

“Can’t you feel it too, prince Ara? Would there be any wyvern that could disobey your commands?” Zhiyi asked. Her trembling had subsided. She made a strong argument. Ara was rumored to be as strong as the original beasts. Before he decided to settle in Croft kingdom, he traveled around Maori seeking strong opponents. For a while, he and Zenon traveled together before they finally went their different ways. It was on that journey that he met and conquered many wyverns. His only reason for not bringing one with him was that the people would grow to fear him. He had since how his father had to seclude himself from his people because of his terrifying aura. Ara didn’t want to live that way. It was also the reason he learned to curtail his presence. That was the only way he could stay around people. But that also meant he had to subdue his own strength as well. But it mattered not. With the strength he had combined with that of Croft kingdom, only a fool would charge at them. But that day’s fool proved a bigger opponent than Ara would have ever envisaged.

“Let’s get out of here for now. We’ll take you to the palace,” Ara said.

“You left the king alone to save us?” Aroha was perplexed. Shouldn’t the first priority have been the king?

“My father can take care of himself.”

The aisles were choked with corpses; of both friends and foe alike. Most parts of the manor had been ravaged and the girls spared no thoughts for their uncle Alex; the master of the manor. For all they cared he was hiding somewhere and he only bothered to keep them trapped within the manor instead of taking them somewhere safe. Everyone knew the manor was no safehold. It was a house like every other; only bigger and with more guards. Nothing more. No defensive setups or traps. Nothing. The Renoffs had always been known to be able to take care of themselves, much like the Crofts. And unlike other noble families, in the past, the Renoffs rarely stayed in the manor. It was just a resting place before they were on the move to wherever war-stricken areas that they were needed in. But the Renoffs’ fire had long gone cold and only politicians remained. And as such, not a single Renoff stood to defend their homes. They either fled or were killed before they had the chance to.

The streets were worse. They offered no reprieve to those who were still alive. Corpses lined the ground like spilled rice after a harvest. There was no semblance of the capital that Aroha and Zhiyi arrived in a night ago. No guards, no soldiers, no one was running around. Not even the enemy. And that was when Aroha realized something was off about the two. “Ara, where’s the king?” she asked one more time.

A flicker of sadness flashed across his eyes. Something had happened to the king. “I don’t know,” Ara replied. “Zenon and I were coming from the eastern market when we heard the explosion at the palace. I haven’t seen my father since then. But I’m sure he’s alright. There’s no way he would have gone down so easily.”

Aroha wanted to respond but she knew better. The prince was in denial. If the king was alive and, in the capital, surely, he would be battling the enemy at that very moment. But looking around, the four of them were the only souls still breathing. “Where is everyone?” she asked.

“Killed or eaten. We don’t know if they took any prisoners,” Zenon said. His words only dealing more damage to the prince’s fragile mind. But they had no time to solve the puzzle at hand. The roars of the wyverns crackled through the skies, all heading towards one point; them!

They ran through the now desolate capital as they looked to escape plain sight. The wyverns controlled the air. They would stand at a great disadvantage if they fought in an open plane. On their own, Zenon and Ara would outrun the wyverns. But the girls would be left behind. Even though they barely knew them, they tried to save the only people that were still alive.

Zenon came to a halt and for the first time since they met him, unsheathed both his blades. “Keep moving. I’ll join you when I’m done with this bunch,” he said.

Ara didn’t give the girls a chance to defy Zenon’s wishes as he pulled them with him. it might look like a suicidal attempt but he trusted Zenon more than anyone else. He could hold his own.

Ara and the Renoff girls continued their run to no end. Where were they headed? Aroha looked back several times to see if Zenon was behind them, but nothing. The only reprieve she felt was the screams of fallen wyverns that continued to echo behind them. But why wasn’t he on the move already? They had gained enough distance.

But Zenon probably had better luck than they did. Before them, was a shadowy presence that oozed a terrifying aura. It was similar to what Zhiyi had felt from the wyverns. An aura strong enough for them to resist the commands of Ara Croft. But this time, Aroha and Ara could feel it very clearly. Before them, was the progenitor of that energy. And for the first time, Ara felt a presence stronger than his.

“Take your sister and go. Don’t wait for me,” he said to Aroha, but she didn’t budge. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not trying to save you. This might be the only time I get to fight a being stronger than myself. I want to savor this experience. Now go! You’ll only be in my way,” he said.

Aroha mustered the courage to leave him behind. She wasn’t close to him but it still felt wrong. Those two could escape if they wanted to and yet they stayed behind for their sake. No matter what Ara said, she refused to believe that he wasn’t doing it for them.

They ran as fast as their feet permitted them to. The skies were filled with even more wyverns this time. It confirmed their worst fears. Zenon had fallen. And amidst all the wyverns that roamed the skies was one that she remembered all too well – the wyvern that spoke to her!