Niaomi: The Journey

13.1 | Walking

A/N: Had to change the previous chapter title AGAIN because I had to create a new list since my old one along with all my notes got deleted (sadness). However, I managed to construct an outline of the last chapters of Niaomi, so we can finally progress if I'm ever able to write anything. But here we go with the first half of chapter thirteen; my hiatus is official, but suspended for now since today was my last day of classes!

Enjoy this while it lasts, folks, cause the reading period is now upon me. (^_^;)

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"Just one more - "

"Nick, please." Ren caught his hand before he could raise it. "We just have to wait for him to wake up on his own."

"But what if he doesn't?" Nick argued. Nia shuddered at that from where she crouched beside their brother, but she went unnoticed as he continued, "Whatever happened wasn't natural!"

"We don't know that for sure - "

I can smell it.

The blonde paused and turned to the white she-dragon. "What do you mean you can smell it?"

Luminous lowered her head, nostrils flaring as they passed over the prone figure of Nathan. Her breath ruffled Rosaminda's hair, who sat with her beau's head in her lap. He smells like Nia did when her mind left.

"Wait, what?" Nicholas stopped trying to craft another spell to wake his brother and turned to his sister. "I though you just had a vision."

This time he saw her shudder and heard the muttered phrase, "Never again."

"What do you mean 'never again'?"

"Never again," she repeated, gripping her knees tighter. "I'm never having a vision again."

Confused, her brother attempted to ask again, "What do - "

"I'm done being the damn Seer!" Niaomi's shriek ripped through the air. "This accursed gift has only brought pain and death! I knew it, you knew it, damn them, the gods even knew it themselves! But all of you were so blindly eager to march to your doom, while I played the idiot shepherd and guided you stupid lambs to be slaughtered despite my best instincts. Curse you all, Riders be damned, and curse the gods and their gifts! I'm through leading! If you all want to kill yourselves, you'll have to do it without my help!"

Silence reigned at the end of her tirade, and the young woman glared at them all before bursting into tears. Luminous stretched out towards her, but the Rider recoiled and tucked herself further inwards. 

"How do we wake up Nate?" Rose asked, her eyes red and her voice hoarse. Toparien growled from where her godsister had been forced to restrain him as they tried to treat her fiancé.

"This magic is strong and not easily broken," came Angela's voice as the witch returned from repairing the damage the orange dragon had caused. "The best chance to break the spell is to find Ruby."

"The Progenitor?" her sister spoke up, gray gaze flickering towards the huddle figure. "But how..."

"I don't care about the risk," she interrupted. "Nate is worth all the risks in the world. We'll find the Progenitor with or without Niaomi."

Her dragon brushed against her mind questioningly as Nick frowned and said, "I don't think you should just disregard Nia's words."

"Damn her." Luminous rumbled warningly, but Rosaminda ignored her and continued harshly, "If she's going to let her own brother die, then she doesn't deserve to be the Seer."

"Rose!" Renata called sharply.

"It's true," she retorted. "Finding the Progenitor is our best chance of saving Nate, yet she won't even help find her. Not even after she did nothing to save him!"

The gem dragon snapped at her, and Ophiela snapped back, baring her long dagger-like teeth in a silent snarl. Luminous was more vocal. Mind your tongue, flower-wind-Rider. Do not speak as if you are partner-of-Nia's-heart-and-mind like I.

"What good would that be? It's not like you did anything to help either - "

The resulting roar nearly deafened her as white-hot fury flashed in those icy slitted eyes. Just because you failed to save your mate does not mean you can take that fury out on us. And cease that snarling, Opheila, when you know I have the right.

Right or not, I shall not allow you to threaten my Rider.

As she has mine?

"Enough!" Ren yelled with voice and mind, causing all of them to fall silent, even Toparien. The tension still riddled the air, and her voice tersely cut through it. "Instead of arguing amongst each other like fools, we need to be making a plan. The king will not have given up so easily, and I have my suspicions that it is Liress who did this to Nate. So stop snapping at your family, all of you! And Toparien, if you promise to stop behaving like an irrational overgrown lizard, then maybe we can release you to help us as well."

Irrational? And how would you feel if it was Silveran who lay still as the dead?

At least the fire dragon was speaking actual words again. "I would be focused on helping him, not trying to bite the people who were doing the same." When she got no response, she said to Nia, "Free him."

Not even a lock of raven hair stirred, but Toparien was freed and moved to Nate's side in an instance. Ophiela made no move towards him aside from her tail, which slowly curled around his, and he seemed less deranged than earlier as he laid his huge girth down. Du Seithrs Lögr rocked, yet Rose still managed to gracefully stand to her feet, placing her fiancé's head between the paws of his dragon before walking over to slouch down next to her godsister. She made no further move, waiting until the other finally slid to rest against her shoulder.

Nicholas moved to his own fiancée as Angela hastily directed Emere to take his brother's place before the ship "pours us all into the sea!" Smoothing away the creases from under her silver eyes, he laid a kiss upon her brow and held her close.

With a dry sob, Renata clutched him back and began blubbering, "In the cavern - after your trial...Na-Nate told me...he t-told me he n-never...he never lost faith in - in me. In me being a-alive. And now I w-want to do the same, but...but it's just s-s-so hard...!"

"I know, Ren," he whispered back, squeezing his own tears shut and pushing aside the looming guilt of failure to deal with her own. "I know. But he's not dead, and he's not going to die. Not while we're around, alright? Not while we work together, which is what you made us all remember. You've done more than just have faith - you gave us faith."

Her sobs only grew louder at that, and he blinked to find his dragon soulfully staring directly at him. The sorrow and concern within the emerald depths he could withstand, but not the pity that hid behind them. Not when he knew why it lay there, and the guilt threatened to overwhelm him once more.

Emere continued to watch him, so Nick turned away.