Eydis turns to me after the ravine shakes with the echo of an angry roar. “That roar...”
“Either that’s someone’s stomach...or everyone needs to be on their guard!”
“Look!” At the other end of the ravine swoops in a large dragon, wings included. The beast soars over the nine of us and lands on the platform we’re heading towards and greets us with a roar. As planned, Renly, Eydis, Alice, and I cautiously approach the beast.
“It’s massive.”
“It’s unlike any beast we’ve seen before… That commanding presence. It must be…”
“T-The Guardian Dragon…”
“You there,” it speaks as we come up to the platform, “for what reason do you dare tread on these hallowed grounds?”
“We’ve come to stop the lightning,” I answer with an attempt at respect. “It’s yours, right? Please, you have to stop.”
“Stop the lightning? Why?”
“Because the lightning is causing many people to suffer greatly.”
“Plant life and animals as well. At this rate, everything in Wesdarath will be reduced to ashes.”
“That is precisely why I am asking. The land and all that dwell upon it are the sole property of I, Vallenthor. If I declare lightning upon this land, then it is providence...no objections.”
“Then what are we supposed to do?”
“Isn’t it obvious. Burn… That is the fate I have decided for you all, and burn you shall.”
Eydis doesn’t accept that answer to her question. “But the people worship you, and you protect them in return, don’t you? Isn’t that why you gave humanity the Silver Orchid in the first place?”
“The Silver Orchid… I see. You used its power to gain entry to this ravine. I do reall bestowing the tiny ones with that spear. However, now I realize that decision was my single greatest mistake.”
I shake my head. “I don’t believe that. You gave it to them to symbolize your role as their guardian.”
“Guardian, you say? You dare assign the great Vallenthor such a foolish role? I am the sovereign of this land. I was merely maintaining my property. But no longer. I will rectify my error. I will regain control of this land and its life and return it to its original state. Therefore, the lightning is a necessity. Subservience through ruin and fear. That is my decision.”
“Then you leave us no choice, Vallenthor. Guardian or not, I can’t let you destroy all life for the sake of controlling it.”
“That reticence is the fatal flaw of your kind. Absolute control through immense power… That is the formation of order. So then, tiny ones, are you prepared? I will reduce your meager lives to cinders!” Lightning snaps around its body and the platform before being shot from the dragon’s bolt-shaped horns. Wary of the electricity in the air, I take hold of the Silver Orchid and try to keep it from the others.
“You three, hurry up!”
“Come on!” Alice and Eydis engage Vallenthor, but the dragon produces a gale of wind that knocks them off their feet. In my struggle, I look at Renly, the green knight stuck in place. I can see the fear from the side of his face, but my focus is on the ever increasing might of the lightning. Eydis and Alice get up again but the dragon anages to hold them at bay.with a powerful shockwave that paralyzes them to the ground.
YOU ARE READING
Alicization: Steel and Lycoris
AdventureWhen Kirito loses his sense of self in the Underworld and the Ocean Turtle is taken over by a mysterious force, Jaymes dives into the Underworld and joins three new friends; the current head of a disgraced noble family, Medina Orthinanos, and the In...
