Half Breed

The Blackheart Legacy

He was quite serious, but in my mind, I was a little happy to see what is arguably my grandfather. I put a finger to my lips in thought and replied with a big smile, "I'm your granddaughter," I said, with eyes of naively optimistic anticipation as to his next few words.

The elder Blackheart tilted his head and stepped up from the lower, more dangerous parts of the volcano to get a closer look at me. His blackened face neared mine and he sniffed me. "You are the magic-born half breed?" he asked.

"Yes, it's nice to meet you, uh, what do I call you?" I asked, not sure how to address him. Grandpa? Mister Blackheart?

"Why have you come here?" he asked, not at all caring to give his name. I removed my barrier, thinking it a bit distrusting of me to have it channelling still.

"I, wanted the help of the salamanders."

"You," he snared, "you may have Razz'ol's fire in you, but, you are a wretched half-breed born of the wicked magic of humans. You have the scent of Eblis in your veins as well. We will not kill Razz'ol's, daughter," he emphasised, looking at me with less than loving eyes, "but you are not welcomed here. You cannot request our help. Now leave us." He turned back around, a very apparent cloud of misery hanging over his head.

They were a prideful kind, much more so than that of the water dragons. Minds as archaic and simple as these, and their obvious strength-glorifying nature showed me how to rile them up, although, it was a risky thing. I prepared my teleport spell just in case. "What kind of father are you? Do you not want to see your son freed?"

With movements as fluid as the younger dragons, he raced back to me and smashed his heavy claws into the dirt, missing me because I'd teleported just a few metres away. "You dare..." he growled. "Will you remain here, defeated?! Will you keep your back turned from your own blood?!" I shouted out at him and his chest lit up and smoke flowed out his barely opened mouth, blocking most of his face as it danced upwards.

"Go ahead! Burn the very person trying to help Razz'ol to a crisp and return to your pitiful suffering." I taunted him. His anger was leaking out.

"How," a bit of fire escaped his mouth, disappearing as fast as his furore did, "do I know I can trust you? You're human too, like the rest of filthy two-legged enslavers!"

"I can't give you a reason to trust me yet, but will you continue to stay here in this empty home and mourn? When last have you," I turned around to the rest of dragons and outstretched both arms, "any of you," I shouted so they could hear clearly, "ventured outside Emberscale? You call us filth like we're below you, but in truth, aren't you all just afraid of going to Venreval?!" I was pulling words and generic information out of nothing. I only prayed that they fell to the effects of my generalisation.

"You are, sorely mistaken. I see now that, through your false information, you tried to vex us to your liking. Razz'ol was not captured, half-breed, he went there on his own. He abandoned us without saying why."

I felt like an idiot after he called me out, but admittedly, expressed a similar feeling for buying into my banter. But why would Razz'ol do such a thing? It made no sense. "Is that so..." I muttered, stumped by the sudden turn of events. I'd never think that he went there of his own volition, that made acquiring help from the salamanders impossible. I failed.

I bade them farewell, and they were all too happy to see me leave, though some were disappointed they hadn't the chance to disembowel me.

I teleported back to the south seas, fuming and complaining to Natrix. Even he hadn't known why Razz'ol would do such a thing.