Blade(Part 4): Midnight

Chapter 12: Akanotahkon

Polarpi slowly walked behind Akanotahkon, who was behind Dameon, Shala, and Kai as they went through a doorway that led from the hangar. It was smaller than the one from the underwater landing pad to the hangar, but Polarpi was still small enough to fit through it. Akanotahkon could sense a feeling of nervousness from the dragon, though, and he perfectly understood why. The hallway was narrower, and the ceiling was lower. It was a smaller space for a dragon such as Polarpi to move through, and he would have a harder time defending Akanotahkon and the others from an attack. Akanotahkon rubbed the end of his snout to comfort him, and a soft purr came from the dragon as a gust of breath blew from his nostrils. That returned the comfort that Akanotahkon gave him. That comfort went away when he began to sense an aura of darkness from somewhere to the side of the corridor. He drew his glass tomahawk as Dameon drew his ancient sword, and Kai and Shala formed their blades.

"What now?" Akanotahkon gasped.

"We'll find out," Dameon assured. They continued on, keeping their eyes on the wall for whatever was giving off the strange aura of darkness that was behind the wall to their left. They soon came to a small doorway in the wall, with the darkness hanging over the ruins at its strongest. It was only large enough for a person, and not a dragon, to fit through, though.

"Whatever's in there might cause us trouble later," Shala warned. "We should kill it."

"I don't know," Dameon denied. "We might just want to keep going."

"We will have an easier time without something at our backs," said Akanotahkon. "It wouldn't hurt to make it easier on us, would it?" Dameon was silent for a moment, but then he could only agree with them.

"Fine," he sighed. The four of them stepped towards the doorway, and Akanotahkon felt something grab his hand from behind. It was Polarpi, gripping his wrist with a soft bite. He didn't want his rider to go where he couldn't follow, but Akanotahkon couldn't let his friends go into a place that could be swarming with monsters without him. He gripped the lip of Polarpi's huge upper jaw and pinched it with his fingers as hard as he could. The dragon growled as he reluctantly let go of Akanotahkon's arm.

"I'll be fine," Akanotahkon promised, speaking in Draconic. He stepped forward with the others, and they stepped through the doorway as it opened for them. What was beyond the door left all four of them confused, but Akanotahkon most of all. Dozens of metal, robotic arms were hanging from the ceiling, and all across the floor were tables with strange glass containers sitting on them. It must have been some kind of research lab.

"What the hell?" said Kai. He looked closer at one of the containers, and could only be terrified by what he saw. Clusters of what seemed to be small, round seeds were floating in the water, and they carried the powerful darkness that hung over the place.

"What are these?" Akanotahkon wondered.

"These?" asked Shala. She leaned forward, but when she saw what was floating in the water, her eyes widened with horror.

"Those are eggs," she shuddered.

"Monster eggs?" asked Akanotahkon.

"No," said Shala. "The Swarm." Dread then rushed through Akanotahkon. He knew what the demons of the Swarm were, and he was in a room filled with thousands of their eggs.

"And they're all alive," Dameon gasped. "Let's get out of here."

"We can't just leave them here," Shala argued. "When they hatch, they'll..."

"I could have Poarpi destroy them," Akanotahkon offered. "They won't bother us, at least, or anyone else."

"Good idea," Dameon agreed. "Let's go before they hatch." The four of them went back into the hallway to Polarpi, who stuck his head through the doorway to the lab. Akanotahkon heard his roar from the other side of the wall, along with the shattering of glass and the constant crackling of lightning. When he stopped, he pulled his head back into the hallway. The darkness from the eggs in the lab was gone, but Akanotahkon could still feel a similar aura of darkness hanging over the temple. There was more of the Swarm waiting for them.

"That wasn't all of them," Akanotahkon warned.

"I know," said Dameon. "So, let's be careful." They continued down the corridor with Polarpi behind them and their weapons drawn. Akanotahkon could only feel dread at the thought of being in a huge building with monsters such as the Swarm, but he wouldn't let his fear cloud his judgment. As terrifying as the Swarm were, he was an Auna warrior and a Blade of Midnight with a powerful dragon of the sea and storm by his side. Nothing could scare Akanotahkon enough to where he wouldn't fight it, but he was trained to fight people, not monsters and demons. Whether it was him or Polarpi who killed the monsters that attacked them, though, the only thing they would be doing is destroying obstacles that were in the way of their objective. It still brought nervousness to Akanotahkon, though. He sensed the darkness of the Swarm all around himself and his friends, but the walls around them were made of a nearly indestructible material forged by the Ancient Ones.

"So, I don't know much about the Swarm, but I've fought them before, and they're absolutely terrifying," said Akanotahkon.

"They sure are," Shala agreed. "That's why lesser Guardians have to fight through them to become Knights."

"Makes sense," said Akanotahkon. "So, were the Ilentia studying the Swarm, or the Abyss?"

"Possibly," Kai guessed. "Listen, guys, I don't know how I'll even scratch one of them. My weapon is darkness incarnate. So is the Swarm."

"You damaged Xerxei," Dameon reminded.

"He was human once," Kai reminded back. "His body is human, but his soul is lost, and of darkness. Darkness cannot undo darkness. Only light can do that."

"Right," Akanotahkon sighed. "So, what will you do if the Swarm does attack us?"

"Maybe you should just stay back, with Polarpi," Shala suggested. "If you're okay with that, Akanotahkon."

"Of course," Akanotahkon promised. "I just hope we don't get attacked."

"Don't hope too much," Dameon warned. "I learned not to do that a long time ago."

"So did I," Kai sighed. "And you're right, Shala. I'll stay back if we run into the Swarm. Any of Aziz's soldiers, though... If Xerxei is here, they'll be here, too."

"We'll be ready for them," Akanotahkon growled. "Or whatever else is here." He knew that the Swarm was made up of demons such as ghouls, brutes, nightmares, and monsters that he couldn't even imagine. They wouldn't stop him or his friends from reaching the switch of the temple. That thought sent every feeling of nervousness and fear from Akanotahkon's mind. He reminded himself of what was at stake if he allowed the Swarm to get in his way. He was a warrior that fought from the darkness, but one that also fought for the light. That alone would keep him ready for whatever monsters the Ancient Ones had placed to guard what they built, and it would have him ready for the final battle against Aziz.