Saint Seiya: The Legend of Seiya

49 - The Wrath of the Dragon

Palaestra was a small mount that rose on a rocky island at the mouth of a lost and isolated river in the middle of Europe. A beautiful temple was erected for Athena on top of the hill, but the Palaestra complex also had a school for various subjects, as well as outdoor areas for the physical training of aspiring warriors of Athena.

The small rocky island was connected to the bank of the wide river by a beautifully detailed white stone bridge.

It was a stronghold for Athena.

A few commons already lived there at least for a week, ever since its construction had been completed under an immense secrecy. These were folks tasked with taking care of cleaning and maintaining whatever necessary for the stronghold to fully function.

And every day new people were arriving at Palaestra, all of them thoroughly hand picked to serve the purposes of Athena, both by Saori and Mayura. Xiaoling was the one who welcomed them all at the entrance with the biggest smile she could have; but also a small pamphlet which was a guide to Palaestra, its localities, but also its strict rules.

Jab was also part of the receptionists that helped Xiaoling with the newcomers; he was responsible to settle them into their dorms, while Ichi guided everyone through the outdoor areas. Jack was the tour guide to the themed rooms in the school environments and the wonderful planetarium.

One fateful day, Xiaoling had the surprise and the pleasure of seeing a girl and an older boy arriving at Palaestra: they were the Black Pegasus and the Black Swan, who had been defeated by Saori and Seiya in Death Valley some time ago during the Black Saints battle. They were, after all, orphans from the Graad Foundation who had failed in their Bronze Cloth quests and joined Ikki in her revenge. The Phoenix Saint, however, met them recently and convinced them to join forces in Palaestra, as they told Xiaoling.

It was a shame that they were to arrive at such terrible day in Palaestra.

For those two Black Saints were not the last guests to show up at the end of that white bridge.

Xiaoling saw a golden silhouette on the other side of the river.

Her stomach dropped immediately and, beside her, both Black Saints stood on their guard seeing the enemy far from there.

"Come in!" she asked, desperate, closing the huge portico.

They got in the stronghold into a large courtyard, Xiaoling looked up and saw Jack standing on top of a lighthouse. The huge Bear Saint blew a horn that was the siren to warn the inhabitants of Palaestra of the danger around them. To get ready for war, if needed.

In addition to the common folks, Palaestra already had a small contingent of warriors who came from many parts of the world to join that cause. All of them were on standby; there were those former Black Saints, that recently got there, but also refugees from the Isle of Andromeda, the Bronze Saints who had fought in the Galaxian Wars and some other Bronze Saints that the Owl of Athena had managed to contact around the World and who hadn't been seduced by the Sanctuary.

It didn't mattered.

The Golden Cosmos invaded Palaestra little by little like a mist taking all of its territory, penetrating walls and rocks covering everything in its path. The sky above the mount became dark as night and Xiaoling saw, with amazement, that it was like watching a dark scenery where dozens of flame wisps were being sucked from all parts of that stronghold into an open crack in the sky.

A crevice that showed everyone in Palaestra the dark hills at the edge of the world of the living and the dead. Next to Xiaoling, a young woman who was tending the flowers in the garden fell to the ground; from her breast, the white flame, which was her spirit, left her body to that threshold in heaven.