Mega Dragon: Harbinger of Death

KERRA

Atlan was amongst the many few who weren’t involved in the preparation for the night’s feast. Whenever the Elites came back from a successful mission, there was a feast to celebrate it. Everyone looked forward to it. It was one of the few reasons that there was ever a feast. Seeing as the Elites were usually almost successful and undertook numerous requests, the celebrations were frequent. The logic behind it was that if they had failed and possibly suffered causalities, all of Kerra would have mourned. So why not celebrate their success? They were Kerra's gold mine after all. The heroes of Kerra!

In truth, Kerra's chief just wanted to feast as often as he could. Being a recent town, they didn't have any local festivities except for Ilmaz; the day Kerra was formed. But that was only once a year and the chief was a feast addict as much as he was an alcoholic. Not to brand him as irresponsible, but he was. Everyone else might not have been able to see it, but Lillian could. She could see it beneath the cloak of a warrior’s spirit that he donned most of the time.

“A warrior who was weak to rum is no warrior,” he would tease. But it was just an excuse to drink some more. He was a heavy drinker so it would take almost a barrel to knock him out. But to everyone, he was just a great warrior. And he was. In his hay days he might have given Atlan trouble in a fight, but not now. Not when she was finally catching up to him. Lillian could see it all clearly, as she could see that something was wrong with Atlan.

A lot was weighing on his mind. His team could see it too, but Atlan usually preferred to be left alone whenever he was moody. Gin's message was a grave one, but he couldn't just leave everything behind. He had long given up on trying to overthrow the Mega dragons. Maybe over time, they would be able to reach some sort of compromise. Living in the present world wasn’t so bad. They lived with the dragons before, with time they would adjust to the mega dragons. So, he put all his effort into developing Kerra into what it was. And now Gin was asking him to leave it all or risk losing everything. Where would he start from?

Lillian walked into Atlan’s room after knocking briefly. He had been cooped up in it since Gin came. Gin had been granted residence somewhere close to the outskirts of the town. Everyone including Atlan thought Halland; the town’s chief was crazy to let him stay. He was far from trustworthy and he was dangerous as well. But Halland was the chief so there was little disapproval. Atlan trusted Halland's sense of judgment. It wasn't because he was Lillian’s father but he had made some strong decisions in the past that enacted that thought in his head.

The other members of the Elites were taking advantage of their free time to move around. A mission could pop up at any time and they would be called into action. As long as it wasn't Gin's mission, they were fine. Mega dragons were way beyond them. What hope do six humans have against a force that defeated the mighty Ahovin empire? Luckily for them, Atlan wasn’t party to it either. They would have had no choice if he ordered them to embark on that suicide mission.

Atlan felt some reprieve when Lillian walked into his room. She hasn't said or done anything yet, but he knew she would find a way to cheer him up at the very least.

“Hiding from everyone?” she teased. Atlan sat up as she rested on his bed but she pushed him back ever so lightly. The mighty Atlan Deharas was on his back by the mere fingers of a woman. She cupped herself in his embrace and Atlan held her tight. For a moment, there was silence. They relished in the comfort of each other's company. It was an enchanting moment. So enchanting that Lillian almost forgot why she came in the first place. And Atlan was hoping she would.

“What are you afraid of?” she asked. This time, a lot more stern.

“There's just so much at risk here. Whether or not I move, I stand to lose too much,” Atlan said.

“You know you're not alone, right?” Lillian said. She understood the pressure that Atlan was under. He was the leader of the Elites and the crowned prince of the Arvins. Seeing as both his parents were dead, he was practically the King of the Arvins save for a coronation. He was being made to choose between the two of them. Even worse with the world being laced in with the fate of the Arvins. The problem wasn’t whether Atlan had to pick, the problem was, what would his choice amount to? Could they really mount a stand against the mega dragons?

Atlan let off a relieved sigh. Lillian was in his arms. What the hell was he thinking? The world could go to ruins for all he cared.

“You'll always be here with me, right,” Atlan asked. It was the most uncertain he had sounded all day.

Lillian moved her face to look Atlan square in the face. “What happened with Neria is unfortunate, but it wasn't your fault. It's not going to happen again,” she assured him. She needed to look him in the eye as she said it. Neria was an Arvin who was also Atlan’s first love. But she died in battle and Atlan blamed himself ever since. It was also the reason he never let Lillian embark on missions with them.

Atlan smiled as he took comfort in Lillian’s words. She noticed his change in mood and decided to exploit it. “So, does that mean that I can follow you in missions now?” she asked as convincingly as she could.

“No.”