The Sorcerer's Dragon (Book 2) (3 page)

“I want more control,” she said as they came upon the first floating platform. They had reached the main walkway between the two towers and while there were a few students sparring under the bright blue sky, most had retired to their rooms or gone to the cafeteria for lunch.

“Control of what exactly?” Remi asked, afraid of the answer.

“As much as possible,” Olivia replied. “But I don’t want to be a dictator or anything. I just want to make sure places like the town we grew up in doesn’t exist. Ever since we got to Paragon, I’ve been loving it, and I’m kind of pissed off that we couldn’t have something like this in childhood.”

“If it wasn’t for our upbringing, we wouldn’t be who we are today. Doesn’t that count for something?”

“Depends on how you look at it. I’m not thinking about us. I’m thinking about all the people that died because they weren’t strong enough.”

“Isn’t that on them?”

“Again, it depends on how you look at it. You know, you put on a great stone face. People don’t see how fragile you are on the inside.”

“Right,” Remi scoffed, stopping herself from playfully punching Olivia in the arm. “I hope you mean physically not mentally. Being strong mentally is what got me this far. It’s all I’ve ever had.”

“No, I mean both,” Olivia replied. “You keep forgetting how close we were. I can tell what you’re thinking. That’s what makes me qualified to go with you on your journey.”

“You want to go so bad that it scares me,” Remi admitted. “I don’t know how you plan on achieving this control of yours, but I’m sure it’s not through completely good intentions.”

“You’ll just have to see,” Olivia said. “You’ll have to weigh the pros and cons of taking me or leaving me behind and then decide. Would you rather have a former traitor in your midst? Or go at it all alone? That’s your decision. But to further help you make it, I want to show you one more thing.”

Olivia motioned for Remi to follow her to one of the empty brick platforms. Remi knew where this was headed.

“Olivia, you don’t have to prove anything to me,” Remi said. “I know you’ve improved. You’re at the top of the class around here.”

“No, that’s not it,” she replied, craning her neck to the side to crack it. “I’ve surpassed you.”

“Who cares?” Remi said. “Congratulations.”

“No, this is important,” she said, pointing a finger at Remi’s right hand. “Take out that eidolon of yours.”

“Fine,” Remi sighed, unsheathing it from her left hip. Her dark purple Falchion hummed as she pointed it toward her friend’s chest, waiting for it to assess and render a report worth reading.

It didn’t disappoint.

Remi’s eyes widened as she scanned her friend and her eyebrows furrowed as the report became more and more detailed.

“Don’t you see?” Olivia said proudly. “There’s no way I would betray you because I’ll never be put in a position like that ever again. I felt sick to my stomach after what I did, and I don’t ever expect for us to have what we once had, but I can still be an invaluable ally.”

“Geez,” Remi replied. “What? You just jump out of bed and do push-ups all day?”

“I’ve been working harder than anyone here, and doing my best to evaluate our classmates and understand their weaknesses. I’ve gained more confidence. I’ve pushed past my limits. But I don’t want you to just stand there and sense it. I want you to experience it. Come on. Activate that armor of yours. You know. The one that no one can break through.”

Remi didn’t reply. She activated it, and Olivia watched with glee as it slowly covered her from head to toe, grafting onto her skin as if it was a permanent part of her. Olivia rubbed her hands together and raised her right hand. She pressed her fingers together tightly and closed her eyes. The tips of her fingers began to glow red and Remi raised her eyebrows in surprise.

Before, Olivia could only incorporate her heat abilities into other objects, but now she was able to affect her body. Sure, she could raise her temperature and fight off a cold or make the food in her hand warmer than it was, but nothing like this. Now she was turning her body into a weapon, and in theory, had developed her own type of armor. What binds could hold her if she could burn them away at the touch? Who could capture her? What steel could cut her?

Remi remained still as Olivia took a few steps forward and then stretched her hand forward, slowly piercing through Remi’s makeshift armor. Olivia didn’t cut too deep, but the message had gotten across.

Remi sucked her teeth and deactivated the armor once Olivia backed up, and she summoned her eidolon once more from her hip. Olivia squinted her eyes, evaluating her former friend’s intentions. When she figured it out, she unsheathed the steel blade at her hip. Being that it was just a normal sword, an eidolon would surely obliterate it on impact…unless Olivia fused heat into it of course.

But she didn’t. She just waited for Remi to approach.

Remi wasn’t sure what she was trying to prove. All it would take was one blow to destroy her sword, and she knew that Olivia had crafted it herself. Why wasn’t she taking the necessary precautions?

“Are you ready?” Remi asked.

Olivia nodded.” Yep. Anytime you are.”

Okay then, Remi thought to herself, gripping the hilt of her eidolon tight. Can’t say I didn’t give her a chance.

Remi summoned her white Sage robe to cover her as she lunged forward, using the boost in power and energy to overpower Olivia. Olivia waited until the last moment to strike. As Remi stretched her eidolon toward the middle of her former friend’s chest, Olivia swiped her sword down so that the flat surface of it was on top of the flat surface of the eidolon, and she pivoted to the side as she pressed down, forcing Remi to lower her blade. Then with a sudden snap of her arm, her blade whipped forward and nicked Remi on the collarbone. Remi swung her eidolon upward but Olivia dodged it and pressed the palm of her hand on top of Remi’s closed one.

The heat that shot into Remi’s hand and up to her shoulder was so intense that she dropped her eidolon from the burning.

Olivia then stretched her sword out and pressed it against Remi’s neck.

“Dead,” Olivia said as Remi pushed her away and picked up her eidolon.

“It’s like you barely moved,” Remi said and Olivia nodded. She was so calm and confident that it was as if she had become a Sage herself.

“It’s not all about speed. Or strength. It’s about timing.”

“Where did you learn that?”

“A couple of the senior Sages. I begged for them to let me into their training sessions until they agreed.”

“You have learned a lot,” Remi said, allowing her eidolon to disappear. She chuckled to herself. “And here I am, wasting all my time going to parties and socializing, looking for someone to join my cause when I should have been training.”

“I can show you what I know.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because we’re friends,” Olivia stated matter-of-factly. “Maybe not best friends, but friends all the same. You’re just in denial.”

“I’ll let you show me a thing or two,” Remi said. She wasn’t too proud to admit that Olivia had a few techniques that she could adopt.

“Great, then…am I coming?”

“Why don’t I think about it while I get my hair done first?”

“Fine,” Olivia sighed wearily. “That is the reason we left the cafeteria, isn’t it?”

“We might not have too many moments like this,” Remi replied as they walked up the couple of steps leading back to the main walkway and heading toward the eastern tower. Although both towers were able to take the students down to the ground, the eastern tower was less crowded and they could talk freely.

“What do you mean?” Olivia asked.

“Cimmerian will strike again soon, and I don’t think Paragon will be able to ignore it this time. I really think the war will start for real next time, and I…I want to make sure I’m ready by then. I can’t be second guessing myself.”

“No worries,” Olivia said as she threw her arm over Remi’s shoulder. “After all, you’re wearing
me
now.”

Remi wasn’t sure what to say to that.

“The city is just a little further,” Olivia said as they walked along the forest path. Although Altostratus was impressive enough with its cozy cottages and majestic mansions, it wasn’t until one traveled to Virga that they saw how beautiful Paragon could truly be. Upon entering Virga’s borders, one was introduced to a living Paradise.

Cute, furry creatures scurried along the grass as they squeaked and chattered excitedly. The sun couldn’t fully reveal its brilliance as there was a carefully placed canopy of trees above. Streams of light shot through the organic ceiling and on each spot that they landed, a miniature garden sprouted up from the earth. The flowers were in abundance, and bunched together in patches like bouquets. Not one flower was gathered with its kind. They were all bundled together with others and the fragrance from each bouquet was so strong that it ignited new and exciting emotions into those passing by. One minute Remi was taking in the decadent chocolate smells that came from one of the Paragonian cocoa spreads and in the next, a particular patch of flowers would take her thoughts into a strawberry cheesecake garden.

The road to the main city of Virga was filled with so many perfumes and smells that Remi nearly sat down in the middle of the trail, ready to just take it all in one at a time.

“This is kind of annoying,” Olivia grunted as Remi couldn’t believe her ears.

“The scents are amazing,” she said in awe, reaching down to brush her fingers through a bouquet. Some of the petals were like silk, others like tiny solid bubbles. She nearly giggled at the sensation. “I feel like I could stay here all day.”

“That makes one of us,” Olivia muttered. “I mean, it’s kind of nice, but then I get hit with another fragrance before the last one even left.”

“That’s because we’re walking too fast. This kind of place…it’s supposed to be savored. Why are we practically running anyways? There’s no rush.”

“I want to get back to my training.”

“You could turn around, you know.”

“No,” she said quickly. “I want to do this with you.”

“Wait, wait,” Remi said in shock. “You’re going to get your hair done too?”

“I was thinking of getting it cut.”

“It’s already kind of short.”

“Not enough though,” she said. “Sometimes it gets in my eyes.”

“For the life of me I can’t figure out how.”

“Whoa,” Olivia said, stopping in her tracks. Remi stopped with her just as the smell of lavender breezed past her. She looked forward and saw the city sprawled before her. It was simply breathtaking. Cobblestone streets. Lampposts with different shades of color emanating from them. Statues that came to life and told stories to those passing by. Remi didn’t know much about Virga, but after seeing the little gardens and the entrance to the city, it had to be a place of imagination.

There were street vendors in little carts selling piping hot food that was so fresh and succulent that Remi’s stomach screamed at her just by looking at it. She could hear music playing in the distance, and she noticed that there were several couples running toward it hand in hand with great big smiles on their faces.

“What’s going on?” Remi asked. Olivia shrugged her shoulders in response.

“Hello there,” a man in a three piece black suit said from the entrance. He was leaning against the bronze colored stone wall with his arms crossed. “Welcome to Virga.”

“Who are you?” Olivia demanded and Remi patted her shoulder.

“Calm down. He’s being friendly. Um, we’re new here.”

“Excellent,” he said, jumping to an upright position. “I’m a greeter here.”

“A job?”

“No,” he chuckled. “Volunteer. Although for services rendered, we are given first dibs on the leftover food from the vendors.”

“Oh,” Remi cried as she clutched her stomach. “Can we get some? How much does it cost?”

“It doesn’t cost anything,” he replied. “It’s all free. All you have to do is pick up a menu and make a request.”

“Then how does the food continue to get made?”

“Here in Paragon, the weather is always just right. The right amount of rain, sunshine and nourishment. The soil is ridiculously fertile so the crops are continuously growing. We have more than enough, trust me.”

“But isn’t there some kind of way to regulate things? In case…I don’t know. In case that’s not always the case?”

“I have no clue what you’re saying,” he laughed. “You mean if Cimmerian wins the war and takes us over? That’s not going to happen.”

“I mean…it could,” Olivia said. “It’s not impossible.”

“But it is,” he said adamantly. He gave them a blank stare.

“Never mind,” Olivia said.

“Food,” Remi groaned, and the man waved them toward him as he began walking to the closest vendor. He was just finishing up handing a child in a tuxedo a slice of pie. Remi wasn’t sure what kind of fruit was bursting out of the sides, but it looked divine.

“I’ll take two of that,” she groaned.

“What is wrong with you?” Olivia asked in disgust.

“I’ve got cramps,” Remi said, “and the only cure is pie.”

“Strangest cramps I’ve ever heard of.”

The greeter held up two fingers to the vendor, signaling that two slices were required. He reached down and produced them as if he had a magic food maker at his feet. Remi didn’t question it. Ignoring the utensils in a cup on the side of the cart, she began shoving the pie into her mouth and devouring it noisily. Olivia stifled back a chuckle.

“I heard that,” Remi said, pointing a wet, sticky finger at Olivia. She then went back to shoving the second piece of pie into her already stuffed mouth.

Olivia snorted and covered her mouth in reply. She turned to the greeter so that she could take her attention off of Remi. “So, what’s your name? I’m sure it’s not ‘greeter.’”

“Gill,” he said, giving her a curt bow. “At your service.”

“What is this place?” she asked, craning her neck up to take a look at the mansions around her. The cobblestone streets were quite wide, but on either side were the mansions or the gate that shielded Virga from the rest of the outside world.

“No one actually lives here,” he said. “Each of these mansions you see here…they each have attractions of some sort. Some are designed to reflect places throughout history. Some are make-believe worlds created after permission from the King. You can’t get bored here.”

“What do the vendors get out of being here?”

“People get addicted to the food,” he said, “and then when they go back home, they decide to go to that particular vendor’s place for sustenance instead of making their own meals.”

“But there’s still no money or bartering right?”

“Nope. But the vendors do gain popularity. I guess you could say that here in Paragon, reputation is the currency. The more popular someone is, the more they are revered and the more sway they have in important decisions.”

“Like what?”

“Oh, well, the most recent decision Paragon made was allowing the Sages to stay here for a little while. There was a fear that the Sages would be too violent and bloodthirsty, and so, that would end up disrupting the harmony, but a vote was cast by the most influential people, and it was determined that the Sages should be given a chance.”

“I had no idea reputation mattered that much,” Olivia said, watching a child trying to fit his entire mouth over a scoop of ice cream. He was failing.

“It’s all we have. It’s another reason why the King and his officials are getting ideas all the time. New attractions. New ways of keeping the people happy and interested. Virga is currently a hundred square miles in length and it’s expanding all the time.”

“Did you ever see it when it was a lot smaller?” Remi asked.

“No, I’ve only been in Paragon for two hundred years. Not that long compared to most of the people here.”

“Could we learn about the greatest warriors of the past?” Olivia asked.

Gill nodded. “Definitely. Here.” He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. “Here’s a basic map of Virga. It’s kind of crude, and it’s only done in ink. There’s no colors, but it’s great for getting your way around here.”

Olivia examined it carefully. “Hey, did you make this?”

“Yep,” he said with a wide smile. “Have to get noticed somehow.”

“So are you our escort, or that’s it?” Remi asked. Gill looked back at the spot they had first met him at.

“Um, I mean…if you need someone to show you around, I could, but—”

“Don’t worry about it,” Remi said. “Sell some more maps.”

“Thanks,” he beamed, giving them their own bow. Then he headed back to his spot and leaned up against the wall once more.

“According to this map, there’s a salon up the street and to the left,” Olivia said, flipping the map around over and over in her hands. “The map’s pretty crude.”

“He definitely needs to make it fancier,” Remi whispered, making sure Gill didn’t overhear them. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings.

“Are you doing this for you or him…the hair styling?” Olivia asked as they began strolling down the street. It felt like there was only the two of them as many had already run off to the concert in the distance.

“You mean Kace?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s for me,” she said. “Haven’t you seen my hair?”

“Oh, okay. Just checking.”

“What would it matter if I did?”

“I was just seeing where your head’s at,” Olivia replied, examining the different shops and buildings they passed by. “Because…well, not to be rude, but I don’t think Kace is all that great. I don’t know what you see in him.”

“Our relationship is not like you and Eckard,” Remi laughed. “Now that’s a cause for concern.”

“What do you mean?”

“Are you serious?” she exclaimed, throwing up her hands. “You basically control him.”

“He doesn’t see it that way.”

“But that’s what you’re doing, isn’t it? I mean, you use him for you own pleasure and that’s it.”

“We do more than that,” she huffed. “We talk.”

“Yeah, barely. You throw a few jokes and anecdotes his way to make it seem like you’re spending time together, and then you just do your own thing. That’s not really a relationship.”

“What do you want me to say?” Olivia laughed, facing Remi and shaking her head. “He’s my boy toy, and if he can’t see that, that’s his fault for being so dumb.”

“Wow,” Remi said, turning her attention upwards toward the sky. “If only Eckard could hear the words coming out of your mouth.”

“What would it matter? Even if you told him, he’s so dumb that he wouldn’t believe you, no matter how much evidence you throw his way. He can’t face the truth, and he’s so grateful to be with me that he’ll deal with whatever it takes for us to stay together.”

“So what’s the future look like? Little Olivia and Eckards running around?”

“I hope not,” Olivia muttered. “But…I don’t think it could happen anyways. He’s a Deja so I don’t think procreation is possible.”

“But if you found someone back on Terra…you could have children.”

“If I wanted children. Don’t get me wrong, I’m fully aware of the situation our generation is facing. Terra is the only place that still has births, and even then, only people that haven’t died can have them and that number is dwindling every day. People are dying faster than they can multiply, and the three worlds are still converging. I’ve heard reports that women are turning up barren more and more. A few more generations and who you see is all that there will be. No more new people.”

“And that doesn’t make you think about having kids?”

“That’s up to me to decide. Why don’t you ask Eckard? He’s probably praying that I get pregnant every day off of some miracle, though the odds would be that the kid isn’t even his.”

“I don’t get you at all,” Remi laughed as they approached the salon. “You’ve changed so much.”

“Or this is who I was from the beginning. I couldn’t act out upon my thoughts back in our hometown. That’s for sure. The less attention you got there, the better.”

“And yet, that’s all you want now.”

“We all want to be valued and loved,” Olivia replied.

“Is that why you want to hang out with me so bad? Or is it because we have history?”

“Regardless of what happened between us, I know that you’re the only person I know that I can be myself with. I’ve never had to hide who I was with you.”

“Yeah…but I’m not even sure I like who you are.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Olivia said. “At least you see who I am and you’re not running away. I respect that.”

“It’s this damn fake leg,” Remi said and Olivia had to laugh at that.

“It looks like we’ve—” Remi began when a single fat water drop smacked her on the forehead. “Geez, that was hard.”

“Hmm,” Olivia mused as she stuck her hand out. The rain began to fall, but it wasn’t the thin curtain or light trickle that Paragon was known for. The water was hard and tough, and it was falling faster and harder with each passing second.