The Flames of Dragons (31 page)

For how much longer, though, was unknown. Rondel did a mental estimate. Three minutes had passed. Iren needed two more for Muryoka, assuming the slacker could even manage it.

Rondel was his only chance. She had to keep Shadeen busy.

Leaving Minawë at a hopefully safe distance from the battle, Rondel shot back, covering the five miles to Shadeen in an instant. The needles on the pines surrounding Iren still quivered from Yaryoka, but as Rondel flew past them, they seemed to pause in their vibrations.

Rondel rose up to meet Shadeen face-to-face. The dragon roared in challenge, and Rondel responded with a lightning bolt to his eye socket.

The shot didn’t faze him. The scales on the dragon’s face darkened, and a barrage of Shadow Knives launched from them toward Rondel.

They were easy enough to dodge, but after experiencing them multiple times, Rondel had noticed a pattern. The number of knives Shadeen used against her increased every time he cast his spell. The monster wasn’t opposed to using his power, but he also had an intense pride. He wouldn’t use more magic against her than he had to.

Rondel leapt across the sky, lightning arcing from her hands. Shadeen launched wave after wave of knives, but none of them kept up with Rondel’s speed.

In her head Rondel counted down the seconds. It was almost time. She risked a glance away from Shadeen and toward the trees where Iren gathered his energy. Three . . . two . . . one . . .

A white blur shot up from the pines. Rondel flashed over to Iren and appeared in front of him.

Aside from his Dragoon form, the young man looked normal. No flames curled around him; no ball of fire was in his hand.

“Where is it?” Rondel asked.

Iren opened his left palm. “Here.”

Rondel looked. Even with Lightning Sight she couldn’t see anything. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“Don’t worry,” Iren said. “We do. We just need to know where to put it. We need a point-blank shot for it to work. Is Shadeen using Shadow Form?”

“No,” Rondel said. “I think he believes he’s invincible, so there’s no reason for him to. As for where to hit him, Minawë wounded him just in front of his right foreleg.”

“I’ll need cover.”

“No problem.”

Iren smiled. “Rondel, I’m glad we get to end this together.”

Despite herself, Rondel returned his grin. “Me too,” she said. “Now enough sentimental rubbish. Let’s go.”

The pair of them climbed together into the sky. Iren wasn’t as fast as Rondel, but she was surprised how well he kept up. His control over the Dragoon’s magic was beyond compare. Maybe that was because he had done it twice.

Shadeen bellowed as they neared, and a curtain of Shadow Knives descended on them. Rondel flickered around it, while Iren let his Dragoon armor protect him. Divinion’s scales were immune to magic, so the knives dissipated across them.

Rondel shot lightning bolts at Shadeen, but the dragon ignored her. He kept his gaze on Iren. Shadeen might believe himself invulnerable, but he knew not to underestimate Divinion.

He also knew about the broken spot in his scales. As Iren neared Shadeen, the dragon twisted to keep his wound protected. At the same time, he slashed with his claws and fired beams of shadow from his mouth. Iren dodged them all, maneuvering with a precision that impressed even Rondel.

At this rate though, Iren would have no chance of getting Muryoka into that wound. Worse, if he dropped the tiny attack, all their effort would be wasted. Rondel had to get Shadeen’s attention back on her.

Time to give it everything, then. Rondel stretched the Liryometa above her head and channeled all the Dragoon’s magic into it. Lightning burst from it into the sky, and clouds formed above her. The sun vanished behind the brooding storm, and seconds later a torrential rain soaked all three combatants.

Rondel fed more magic to the storm. It was like recreating the tempest over Serona, but Rondel kept this one centered on Shadeen.

The air crackled. It would come soon.

At last the lightning broke free. The bolts smashed into Shadeen, hundreds landing on him each second. Rondel screamed as she released every scrap of energy the Dragoon had left.

Her wings flickered. She was out of time. Hoping the storm would last long enough, Rondel headed for the ground. It was up to Iren now.

*   *   *

Rondel continued to amaze Iren. She kept surpassing herself. Even after her retreat, the storm was doing her job for her. Shadeen roared in frustration against the lightning barrage, but the deafening thunder drowned out his cries.

Yet through all the tempest’s fury, Shadeen kept up his twisting movements. He knew the storm was a diversion. Iren had spotted the wound Rondel had described three times already, but he couldn’t get close enough to strike it with Muryoka. The target was just too small. If only there were a bigger one!

The dragon howled at the storm as it intensified. As he did, he turned his massive gullet toward Iren.

Iren sighed. He knew what he had to do, and he wasn’t going to like it.

Then again, Shadeen would like it a whole lot less.

Iren flew toward the wound on Shadeen’s belly. The dragon needed to think that spot was still Iren’s target. He landed on the monster’s stomach and raised the Muryozaki in his right hand as if to strike. Shadeen twisted again, and Iren made a show of losing his balance. He hovered in midair.

The dragon leveled with him, and the beast’s mouth opened. Yaryoka’s black sphere formed between his jaws.

Now! Before he could fire!

Iren flew forward, in control the entire time. He passed between the rows of eviscerating teeth and through the heart of the growing Yaryoka. His left hand touched the back of the dragon’s throat, and he spoke a single word.

“Farewell.”

*   *   *

Rondel stood at the edge of the pine forest Minawë had created. Her Dragoon form had ended, and with it, she felt her magic disappear. Just like with Iren’s Dragoon form against Feng, the transformation had sealed it away. She couldn’t even use Lightning Sight to follow the battle. She could see the Darkness Dragon, but Iren was impossible to spot amid all the lightning.

Then she shielded her eyes. Shadeen glowed from within. White light burst from between his scales. It shot into the storm and broke it apart, letting clear sun onto the battlefield.

Rondel grinned. Iren had done it.

A second later, though, the old Maantec’s smile turned to an open-mouthed cry of terror. Shadeen detonated. Muryoka’s energy exploded from his body, and Rondel was left momentarily blind. When the glare cleared, Shadeen was gone.

And so was Iren.

A spot of red, like a falling star, appeared in the distance. Rondel ran toward it, frustrated at how slowly she moved now. Sweat poured off her, but she kept running.

She arrived just as Iren hit the ground. His impact threw up a cloud of debris.

“Iren?” Rondel yelled as she neared the impact site. “Iren!”

Coughing told her he was alive. Rondel stumbled her way into the crater the young man had made on impact. “Iren!” she cried again.

“Over here,” came the stifled response. Rondel followed the voice. At last she found him. He was still in his Dragoon armor, but his wings had vanished.

Iren stood and shook all over. The dragonscale melted back into his skin. “It’s done,” he said.

Rondel slapped him on the back. “I told you you could handle him!”

“Ow!” Iren shouted. “Can we save the jumping around and celebrating for tomorrow?”

Rondel smirked. “Sure, slacker. You’ve earned it.”

They crawled out together from the crater, Iren leaning on Rondel’s shoulder for support. The dust had settled, and Iren gazed up at the clear sky. He whistled. “I can’t believe I walked away from that one. I’m glad that ended it.”

“As am I,” a voice said from behind them.

Rondel’s blood froze. She turned around. She was so shocked she dropped her dagger. It clattered against the ground.

Melwar floated ten feet in the air.

But he was more than Melwar. Dark scales wrapped around his body. Black, smoky wings smoldered behind him. His eyes burned with an inner yellow light.

Iren gaped. “That’s impossible.”

“I must express my gratitude,” Melwar said. “I stood no chance against Shadeen in a contest of wills, let alone against four dragons. Now I need not worry about them. Since you defeated Shadeen, I can take his magic without resistance. Thanks to you, I have become the Darkness Dragoon.”

Iren trembled. If he and Rondel still had their Dragoon forms they might stand a chance. But like this, exhausted and without magic . . .

Rondel knelt and picked up her dagger. Her hands didn’t shake. She must be as terrified as Iren, yet somehow she held firm. “It doesn’t matter what you’ve become,” she told Melwar. “I will carry out Okthora’s Law.”

“You cannot even reach Okthora anymore,” Melwar said. “Why obey the law of an absent master?”

Rondel raised the Liryometa. “That’s why you’re a poor Maantec, Melwar. You claim to follow the old traditions, but you don’t understand them at all. How many Maantecs never met Iren Saito, yet faithfully served him? You haven’t a clue what honor or duty or love even mean.”

“I will not need to when I am the Maantec emperor!” Melwar lashed out with his sword. The blade moved so fast Iren could barely track it. It was coming for his gut. There was no time to dodge.

A blow from the side knocked him down. He rolled in the dirt and gasped.

Rondel stood where Iren had been a second ago. Melwar’s twisting sword speared her chest.

“Rondel!”

Melwar withdrew his blade, and Rondel dropped to the ground. Iren crawled forward and grasped her by the shoulders.

Blood trickled from Rondel’s lips, but she curled them into her wide, sarcastic grin. “A mother protects her children, no matter what.”

She closed her eyes. Her breathing stopped. Yet even as she died, she kept on smiling.

Tears ran down Iren’s cheeks. It had happened again. During the battle with the Quodivar leader two years ago, Rondel had seemed to die. Iren had hardly known her back then. He’d idolized her as a powerful warrior, but now he knew better. There was so much more to her. A traitor. A hero. A murderer. A parent. An enemy.

A friend.

White light, ever so faint, appeared on Iren’s left hand. He eyed it with disbelief. He’d lost contact with his magic. What was this glow?

Melwar seemed not to notice. “Do not cry for her,” he said. “She betrayed you. She betrayed all Maantecs.”

“Stop talking,” Iren murmured. He had no idea what he would do against the might of the Darkness Dragoon, but he couldn’t bear to listen to Melwar’s ignorance. He stood. “You think you have so much power, but for all your strength, you’re a failure. You couldn’t manipulate me into being your puppet. You couldn’t defeat Rondel. You couldn’t kill the Kodamas. You couldn’t stop the dragons from taking over your body. And do you know why?” He was screaming now. “It’s because you don’t know anything about them! You never saw any of them as people. They were only ever obstacles for you to overcome!”

Melwar’s eyes narrowed. “What makes you think you can speak about it, whelp? I have succeeded where even your father failed. I united the Maantecs. I brought them here. I will conquer this world and give it to our people. I am a Melwar. I do not fail.”

“Your whole life has been nothing but failure. It’s because you can’t accept those failures that you’ve become so demented.”

“Show me then how I failed from your grave!” Melwar thrust at Iren.

Iren was ready for the outburst. He ducked the blow, drew the Muryozaki, and slashed up into Melwar’s Dragoon armor. There was no magic behind his attack, but the Muryozaki was dragonscale. It clanged against Melwar’s armor and left a dent.

Iren ran behind Melwar and struck again, but the Darkness Dragoon was expecting it this time. He dodged, and his sword arced around and cut Iren in the right shoulder. Iren dropped to the ground beside Rondel’s corpse.

“You see?” Melwar said. “This is the power that comes with ultimate success.”

From his spot in the dirt, Iren’s face was level with Rondel’s. The woman looked so peaceful. She’d died to save him, but she must have known Melwar would kill him in the end. How could she die happy, knowing her sacrifice was meaningless?

“Because it wasn’t meaningless,” a voice rang inside Iren’s head, one he’d heard before. “Rondel told you she believed you could defeat Melwar. She died still believing that.”

Iren went rigid. “Dad?”

“You can win, Akio.”

Iren looked at his left hand. That faint white glow was still there.

That’s right. Divinion had explained it to him before. Strong emotions could make magic act unpredictably. It had happened before when Rondel had seemed to die.

Except Iren didn’t have any magic. He’d exhausted it all as the Dragoon.

No, that wasn’t correct. He did have one more source he could draw on.

Iren rose and faced Melwar. He sheathed the Muryozaki. He didn’t need it for this. He held out his left hand, palm up. The glow brightened and enveloped his hand.

Then it ignited.

“What?” Melwar asked. “You can’t use magic.”

“Stand there and take it, then,” Iren growled.

White flames shot up from his palm. He forced his will into them, ordering them to condense.

Beneath his helmet, Melwar’s sulfurous eyes went wide. “That can’t be!” He swung his sword.

The flames released a tendril that formed a shield around Iren. Melwar pummeled it with slashes, but the shield held firm.

The white fire in Iren’s hand shrank. In his previous attempts he could never get it shorter than his forearm. Now it was the length of his hand, then the size of a cherry.

Iren had no idea where the will to force the magic into shape came from. It had taken both him and Divinion five minutes to create this spell as the Dragoon. This one was getting smaller by the second. The spell seemed to act of its own accord.

Maybe it was because of the magic he was using. That was the secret to Muryoka’s perfect form, after all. His father had shared it with him. If you were the Dragoon, you could rely on Divinion to help cast the spell. If you weren’t, the only way to create a perfect Muryoka was to use all your biological magic. You had to put so much of yourself into it that it killed you.

Yet even that sacrifice wouldn’t guarantee victory. Melwar could use Shadow Form to avoid the spell.

Iren’s eyes burned as brightly as the flame in his hand. He would have to wait until Melwar committed to an attack. When Melwar’s sword embedded in Iren’s flesh, the Darkness Dragoon would have to be solid. Then, and only then, could Iren hit him.

Muryoka finished, and Iren let its shield dissolve. Melwar’s final blow came. Iren waited for it to reach within inches of his head.

He lunged. His hand reached out and touched Melwar on the chest.

White flames exploded from Iren’s palm. They erupted across the land, blasting through Melwar like he wasn’t even there.

As the attack faded, Iren cursed. At the moment he’d released Muryoka, Melwar’s sword had passed cleanly through Iren’s head. Iren was still alive. He’d failed. Melwar had used Shadow Form.

Iren sank to his knees, utterly spent. His breath came in heaves. Rondel and Dad had given him one last chance of victory, and he’d blown it.

Melwar towered over him. The Yaryozaki descended.

It never landed. Melwar screamed, a wrenching, writhing cry. His Dragoon armor glowed white. Iren averted his eyes, but the explosion was still all but blinding.

When Iren at last had the courage to look again, Melwar was gone. All that remained was a smoking black sword.

In Melwar’s place was a different man, dressed not in Dragoon armor but homespun linen clothes. To anyone else he would have seemed an ordinary farmer, but Iren recognized him right away.

“Dad!”

Iren Saito smiled. “You did well, son.”

“But how? What happened? Why are you here?”

“To use Muryoka, you have to sacrifice your life,” Saito said. “You thought you were using your biological magic to cast it, but you weren’t. You used mine. I transferred it to you while you were the Dragoon. I was the sacrifice. After your spell missed Melwar, I used my will to convert it back into a physical form. When Melwar attacked, I struck him from behind with the same energy.”

“So you defeated him! And you’re alive again!”

Saito shook his head. “If anyone can claim credit for defeating Melwar, it’s you and Rondel. As for being alive, I’m not. I’m not truly Iren Saito. I’m the bits of magic and spirit that remain from the Muryoka, and from the spell I used to trap myself inside the Muryozaki. It’s not enough to stay here. I have a few more seconds, and then I’ll disappear.”

“No!” Iren jumped up and embraced his father. “I finally got to meet you for real. I finally got to have a parent. Please don’t leave now!”

Saito smiled again, even wider. A tear slid down his cheek. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that. But I died twenty years ago. Even so, I was never at peace, because I split myself to enter the Muryozaki. Now I can finally rest.” He chuckled. “Besides, Carita and Rondel have already gone ahead of me. I shudder to think what stories they might tell about me if I’m not there. It’s time I joined them.”

Iren wiped his eyes. “I watched the memory,” he said. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. I don’t deserve it. Thank your mother. She’s stronger than I ever could have been. If you’ve grown up the way she wanted you to, it’s because of her.”

Saito faded, but Iren clutched his father until the last. “I love you,” he said.

“And I will always love you,” Saito replied. “Good-bye, Akio.”

Iren stepped forward. His father was gone.

A sharp blow to the head dropped Iren to the ground. He looked up through bleary eyes, but he couldn’t stand.

A woman with long black hair walked into view. She met Iren’s gaze with a jaded stare.

“Hana?” Iren managed.

Hana Akiyama ignored him. She knelt and picked up the Yaryozaki.

“What are you doing?” Iren asked. “That thing’s dangerous.”

“I know,” Hana said. “That’s why I’m taking it.”

“Where?”

“Where no one else can get it. Even without the Stone Dragon Hammer, I can get a good ways down. I’ll travel so far underground that no one can find it and return to the surface alive.”

Iren’s eyes widened as he realized what Hana meant to do. “Wait!” he said. “There has to be another way!”

“I followed your battle from underground,” Hana explained. “I heard Rondel. She healed Serona, so I can’t throw it into those flames. If I tossed it in the ocean, some fisherman might pull it up in a net. No, this is the only way.”

Iren struggled with both arms to lift himself. He fell back to the dirt.

“That’s why I hit you,” Hana said, pointing at him. “I figured you’d do something stupid and heroic to stop me.”

“Hana, please.”

“This is the way I want it. It’s just like your father said. I have someone waiting for me, too.”

Hana sank into the earth with the Yaryozaki in hand. Iren tried once more to reach out and restrain her, but she was too far away. She smiled, and then her head vanished beneath the surface. A moment later, Iren blacked out.