“I cannot wait,” Shuran jested back as he placed an affectionate hand on his Lugaldur.
“We have arrived!” Jade roared.
The drakkon both stopped pumping their massive wings and stalled in the air for a brief moment of weightlessness. They pulled their wings in and pointed their noses in an angle down toward the approaching mountain. After gaining teeth jarring speed, they spread their wings to full stretch and broke into a steady and effortless glide toward an on-coming squadron of drakkon riders.
They all hailed Shuran Shin’Ar, and his Zidu’Si arriving. More than one drakkon nearly collided as they caught site of Moltar.
Shuran and the Zidu’Si were met in the drakkon practice field by the captains of the riders. Greetings and bows were exchanged quickly but dutifully, as they all seemed to sense Shuran’s impatience to see his mother.
“Nephew! Welcome to your family home!” The lean yet strong man said as he took Shuran in a rib-cracking embrace.
Shuran stepped back from the man to allow room for a proper bow to the Baron.
“You are among friends and family here, we do not stand on ceremony! You shall call me Fallon or Uncle. After all your father is my half brother!” Fallon said.
Shuran wondered how long the man could talk without need of air.
“Uncle then, I do not mean to seem ungrateful for the warm welcome but-”
“Not another word my boy, she is waiting for you within.”
Fallon led Shuran through the tunnels and stairs carved in the mountain. As they approached the room where his mother was, a large white wolf exited the room and transformed into a young woman.
“Shuran this is my daughter, Barurbe.”
She nodded to Shuran.
“It is she who found your mother and began to heal her before we were able to transport her here safely,” Fallon added.
“You have my gratitude,” he smiled. Shuran felt something stir in him he had never felt. He immediately felt awkward and it showed.
Fallon caught on immediately and bent close to his ear. “She was informally adopted as my ward when I found her years ago injured,” Fallon said with a knowing wink.
Shuran relaxed some as he realized he was not having feelings for a cousin, though he was unsure what to make of it.
Barurbe smiled at him sweetly and left him to meet his mother alone.
Fallon encouraged Shuran to go on in alone. “I will be but a shout away should you need for anything. I will have meals sent in for you both.”
Shuran turned and entered the room.
Across the room Shuran could see that his mother sat in a high backed chair near the fireplace. He trembled.
“Please come, let me look upon you my son. I have waited far too long for this moment,” she said breathlessly.
Shuran moved closer and began to see the frailness of his mother’s form. “Mother,” he whispered coming around to face her.
“My beautiful boy, how I have watched you grow and yearned to hold you!” she spoke through tears and sobs.
Shuran fell to her feet and laid his head in her lap crying with joy.
Shuran spent the entire morning and afternoon with his mother sharing memories.
Sulura explained how she attempted to give her shi to save his sister that was being sacrificed, but something went wrong. She had been left on the verge of death, most of her Essence burnt through her to fuel the spell.
Tianna, the fair-haired sister disappeared in a flash of light and her star dimmed. Barurbe, found her and began her healing, by liking the wound closed. For many moons she lay unconscious, and then years barely able to speak without tiring. The one thing that stayed with her was her connection to her children.
“I have been able to watch you all,” she said.
“But Tianna is gone!” Shuran said.
“Not gone my boy, she is just lost. She wanders the realms disembodied and searching.” Sulura said.
“I have seen her! In Britengate she said she knew I would come and she cursed an evil woman!” Shuran realized.
“That would be your sister Salmetu. Tianna taunts her as we speak,” she said with deep sadness. “I am very tired my sweet boy. Will you come back for dinner and bring that sharp tonged moon mother of mine if she is here,” she asked with drooping lids and a tired smile.
“Rest, I will see you this evening and bring Moona when she arrives.” Shuran left with a spring in his step but an ache in his heart.
Shuran spent as much time as he could with his mother while she was strong enough to have visits. The rest of the time he spent with his Zidu’Si and the drakkon practicing various methods of using Fire, Earth, and Electricity. These were the strongest powers among them as the combined blood abilities of the Zidu’Si currently in the collective.
Shuran could wield the other elements, but they were not shared among his trusted companions. The bond only joined the bloodlines together and strengthened the collective. The Shin’Ar could lend strength to his Zidu’Si, but his full blending of gifts was his and now Moltar’s alone.
Shuran ran through drills with the Drakkian riders and their drakkon. He was a natural rider. He learned that never before had a non-pure blood Drakkian ever been bonded with a drakkon.
Moltar was affected in a way that had never happened before. Unlike Jade, who could only wield elemental flame as her bonded could, Moltar showed remarkable new gifts. While hunting he reached for a moose that was running from his grasp when suddenly, lightening shot from his out stretched claws and struck the prey dead on the spot. It also partially cooked it.
“We are running out of time Shuran, the magurmu should be here by now.” Mallick stated.
“They will be here. They will have needed time to provision, and according to Codger, they had some additional passengers to pick-up,” Shuran said. “The dwarves insisted on joining the battle as did the elves. I am not certain how the elves found out,” Shuran said looking to Orian.
“In truth, I only advised where we were to first engage the Order,” Orian said with a less than innocent look.
“Save it cobbler, he is not buying that lame horse of yours!” Avrank said.
“Oh, stuff it turd!” Orian said as he walked off.
“I think you go too far with the shoe making jokes dwarf!” Mallick said.
Avrank went shuffling off after Orian. “Hold on elf, you know I… HEY, slow down…” his voice trailed off.
“UGH!” Mallick sounded. “I bet the twin pains in my arse will be on one of those boats!” Mallick complained.
Shuran laughed and led his friend out to the drakkon fields. “Come see what Moltar has learned to do,” Shuran said.
“What is worse than mimicking dwarfs?” Mallick asked.
Shuran shrugged.
“Drakkon pet tricks!” he laughed.
“You call him a pet and see how much I laugh!” Shuran smiled back.
They never had the chance to see the mighty drakkon preform his newest skill. As they approached the field a scout flew in to alert of attack.
“DEATH WALKERS! They approach from the Northwest. They arrive in the thousands.”
The war horns sounded and the night thundered with riders on drakkon launching into the sky.
Shuran ordered Mallick, Orian, and Avrank to man the castle walls and wield Essence at the front lines of the enemy. “I will send you messages by thought as to what is happening in the field and you do the same here. Mallick, check if you can find what is keeping our backup!” And with that last command he launched into the air upon Moltar’s mighty back.
“I am glad to not be on that creature’s back!” Avrank said.
“Or in his mother’s gut!” Orian jested. “Let’s get moving sheesh!”
The drakkon riders dove and swerved to avoid the dark bolts of energy being sent from the death walkers. The riders and drakkon sent streams of fire into the encroaching undead army. The wielders in their ranks to great affect deflected their attacks. They were not making much headway in diminishing the enemy ranks.
“Look for an isolated master, they will be consumed with controlling the mindless death walkers. Take one out and you render those they control useless!” Shuran called out.
Word spread quickly as the riders began to take closer passes at the outer perimeters. Someone must have found one. What looked like one hundred or more death walker’s halted their forward attack and wandered without direction.
The Earth below them opened, and swallowed them up. The riders attacked with added zeal. Then the fighting grew.
Clouds roiled and flashed as the first of the magurmu came into view. Lightening flashed and cracked as it slammed into the ground amidst the death walkers. The flying boats began lowering to the ground where they could safely drop warriors to engage the enemy on foot.
Elf and dwarf warriors launched headlong into the fray, hacking at the death walkers and wielding Essence to attack the spell casters. The fighting went on with wild abandon. The death walker numbers were being reduced more as the fighting went on.
Suddenly the center of the now halted enemy army cleared at the arrival of a demon-possessed wielder of greater strength.
“Shuran! Show yourself! It is time you face me after all these years hunting you!” Telalsu said.
Shuran roared through Moltar and dove from the sky at the demon.
Telalsu was not expecting this.
Moltar and Shuran came to a ground-shaking landing before the demon.
“Well, this is unexpected, the prophecies do not speak of this!” Telalsu said.
“If I have learned anything about prophecy is that they are poorly interpreted and often self fulfilling! I plan to design my own ending demon, you shall not see it!” Shuran instructed Moltar to show off his latest ‘trick’.
Moltar swung back his wings and quickly flapped them forward three quarters forward. The result was, the ground along the path of movement rippling and rolling in a concussive wave of earth and wind pushing everything forward in the direction of Telalsu.
The demon had no time to react and went sailing over one hundred paces back.
Shuran jumped from Moltar’s back and gave chase. “You took my friend from Birchshire, demon. You were looking for me, well now you have found me. I will end this fruitless hunt for you now!” Shuran shouted.
All the death walkers appeared to just be watching and waiting for something. This was because the demon possessed weavers controlling them, stood in shocked surprise when Telalsu went flailing from the drakkon attack.
“Impressive, you teach your beast new tricks! Ultimately ineffectual, Ersetu mutt!” the demon spat from the ruined body he currently inhabited.
“You lay there dying and you still mock?” Shuran asked.
“Your ignorance will be your undoing no matter what power you posses. Only this body dies fool. I have another waiting for me back at the keep.” The body shook and heaved, then breathed no more. A shadowy black mist slowly seeped from every orifice and made its way northwest toward the Orders’s keep.
Shuran jumped back on Moltar and called out to Gregoran. “Meet me at the Order’s secret keep!” Shuran shouted.
“How will I find you?” Gregoran asked.
Shuran just grinned and sent the image to indicate Moltar. “You will find it difficult to not find us. Now hurry, time does not march within our ranks!” Shuran turned Moltar toward his destination. Shuran followed the void in the Essence that was Telalsu’s disembodied form slithering off toward the keep. He must get there to prevent what he suspected was to happen.
***
“Get away from me wraith!” Salmetu shouted as she sent sparks flying around the room.
“He comes, he comes, HE COMES!” The apparition mocked as the bolts of Essence passed through her.
“Why do you keep saying that?” Salmetu asked.
“It is true. He comes and he will not be happy with you! My brother comes!” Tianna shrieked as she shot from the room up through the ceiling.
Salmetu suddenly realized what was happening. She has been haunted by the sister that would have been. The one who died so that she might live to serve the darkness. And now her brother, Shuran was coming.
A tear welled up in her eye. She lifted it to her finger and looked at it momentarily, then anger took hold and the tear evaporated in a small puff of steam.
“Welcome, brother. Do come in, I have so very much wanted to meet you!” she said aloud as the foundation of the keep shook and cracks formed along the walls. “Oh dear I must have left the door locked, I will have to go let him in.” Salmetu said talking to herself. An evil laugh escaped her as she left the room to go meet Shuran.
Shuran could not find a way into the keep so he decided that he and Moltar would have to make a way. They flew around the natural formed tower, searching out with the Essence for occupants. He was able to pick up on where the faint signature of Bastien was.