Dragon Prince: The Storm's Courage

Chapter Eleven: Flight of the Moon

They soon approached a cliff with a tree on it to say their farewells. Shira gently pet the moon phoenix's head. "Thank you so much. For doing this."
Phoe-Phoe cooed before lowering herself down so the two could climb onto her.
Shira gently smiled. "Thank you for everything Lujanne. It was beautiful to see all this and for revealing the truth about myself."
The Moon mage chuckled. "Of course, my dear. Come back anytime you wish."
Shira nodded before hoping into Phoe-Phoe's back. Now, it was Runaan's turn to say goodbye to the mage. Runaan bowed at the mage who curtseyed right back.
"Thank you, Lujanne," Runaan said to Lujanne. "This was the first Moonhedge I have seen with my own eyes. And to see it still being protected to this day, makes me unbelievably happy."
"Of course. I will continue to guard this sacred shrine for years to come," said Lujanne. "That is my purpose in life. One I take great pride in doing." Lujanne watched as Runaan also hopped on Phoe-Phoe, behind Shira.
The moon phoenix got up before extending her giant wings and flapping them.
Shira looked down from her seat on Phoe-Phoe. Ellis was seating on Ava, waving, and standing by Lujanne.
"Goodbye!" Ellis shouted, while Ava barked enthusiastically. "Good luck! Come back soon!"
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Shira woke up on Phoe-Phoe's flying back, with Runaan sleeping on her back. Despite her weariness, Shira smiled at his gentle grip on her and the comforting warmth on her back. But when she looked up at the morning sky, Shira was amazed.
What was happening in the sky? Whatever it was, it was the stunning and amazing thing she'd ever seen in her whole entire life. She never seen anything like this before. It was so beautiful. She could count more hues and shades than in the box of paints and watercolors that she had bought a few years ago. Shades of sapphire, violet, magenta, amber, and gold shimmered and shined, like a giant rainbow had blanketed the sky and stretched out over the land.
It was barely morning, but the night stars continued to sparkle like diamonds. Despite the lightness of the dawning sky, the stars were so bright and clear like distant diamonds sparkling in the morning sky. While the faint outline of the moon was in a pale circle of silver, glowing faintly in the dawning sky. As the sun started to rise, it had caught the colors of a blazing, aflame ember as it rise in the east.
Shira's hands clung to Phoe-Phoe's saddle, overcome with amazement. The moon phoenix's lean and strong muscles rippled underneath the human and the awakened elf, and her wings shaped the wind. Phoe-Phoe swerved and ducked, startling some birds. They were up so high, surrounded by the incoming clouds. The mountains loomed in the distance, and the forest went on till it reach the beaches and cliffs. The world so much bigger than Diana had thought originally thought.
Phoe-Phoe startled some birds and made them scattered around them as they kept flying. But as Phoe-Phoe lowered them to the sea, Diana could see bright fish schools and water dragons swam as fast as stingrays in the depths of the water. A few dragons were resting on the sandy beaches. Shira caught sight of their reflections: a moon phoenix, loyal and brave, with Shira and Runaan.
Phoe-Phoe bent her wings and dropped towards the sea, buzzing over the edge and down, gliding gracefully like a hawk. Shira's belly fluttered as they dived hundreds of lengths towards the glimmering pool at the bottom. Fresh spray soaked her to the skin as Phoe-Phoe gently pulled out of her dive and banked, heading back towards the sky. Straight ahead of them fluttered a kaleidoscope of birds, thousands of them. Phoe-Phoe flew straight into them, Shira glanced down at her. With her azure blue wings enveloping her, the dawning sky shining above, and the everlasting blue sea shimmering below, she looked serene as a book illustration. She felt winded with joy and excitement. Shira caught her breath and watched the world pass underneath her feet, blurred and beautiful. They headed up, and then suddenly, Phoe-Phoe lifted her beak and shot to the tops of the clouds. Here, the wind filled Shira's ears and blew her hair down.
But in the next few hours, the sun was beginning to rise, so the view was a marvelous one. Painted pink, orange, and gold, the tops of the clouds skidded underneath them, momentarily darkened by Phoe-Phoe's long shadow. After a few moments of gliding, The wind, chilly as it was, felt like a god's touch on her skin. She closed her eyes and reveled in the feeling of absolute freedom. They rode like that for a few more minutes, both enjoying the gradually raising sunlight, dipping into and out of the cloudbanks like a playful dolphin.
But as Phoe-Phoe lowered them to the ocean, Shira could see bright fish schools and swam as fast as stingrays in the depths of the water. Shira caught sight of their reflections: a moon phoenix, loyal and brave, with Shira and Runaan astride her riding on her back.
Phoe-Phoe bent her wings and dropped towards the sea, buzzing over the edge and down, gliding gracefully like a hawk. Shira's belly fluttered as they dived hundreds of lengths towards the glimmering ocean at the bottom.
Now above the ocean water, Runaan gently leaned on the side, so he could cut his hands through the water and let it run. Shira wanting to do the same thing also begun to lean over so she could also feel the water. Unfortunately, the fourteen year old forgot to keep her grip and tipped a bit too far over the edge. As Shira was about to fully fall off of Phoe-Phoe. Two hands had grabbed her around her waist. Shira turned to see Runaan who now had a face of relief, knowing he saved her in time.
Now with a much secure hold on her, Shira leaned over and dipped her hand into the salt water. A small wave followed the girl's hand and Shira was amazed.
Runaan gently hoisted the the teenage girl back into a more secure hold on Phoe-Phoe. Soon Phoe-Phoe flew away from the ocean water and high into the air. So much so they were above the clouds. There they could see the sun before it had begun it's decent. Now alone, the two began to talk.
"Are you okay?" Runaan asked, Shira turned to face the Moonshadow elf.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine," said Shira. "I'm just worried about my brothers and their team of friends." Shira sighed. "What you've told me about family, it has gotten me worried."
Once finished, Shira sighed softly. Runaan watched in silence at the girl's worried state. The only thing he could do was pull her a little closer to him. Shira noticed the tighter hold and let out a small smile.
"You know you remind me so much of Rayla." Runaan smiled. "She was able to have such mature ideas and was able to learn stuff quick and easy." His smile turned into a sad and guilty expression. "I hope I can see her."
Shira noticed the sudden change in mood and placed a hand on Runaan's hand which was wrapped around her waist. "We will see her again and the boys and Zym."
"Zym?" Runaan tilted his head in confusion. "Who's Zym?"
"It's the nickname that I gave the Dragon Prince," Shira admitted with a small smile. But her expression became serious. "But with the lack of evidence regarding her parents, I wouldn't be surprised if she's trying to return the honor to her parents."
Runaan's eyes widened at her side of the story and felt a wave of guilt. He should of known better. Rayla has been suffering from the loss of her parents. She's been training harder than the other assassins and pushing her limits to contribute her part. Rayla just want her family back together again. When she and the human princes found the Dragon Prince's egg, he fought her and hurt her more through his words than his actions. Runaan remembers that Rayla is trying to keep the blood price down from their vengeance, in which he was too blind to realize. When he was captured and placed inside of the dungeons, he started thinking of how he could have reacted and regretted fighting his and Ethari's adoptive daughter, who they both raised in her parents' place.
"I hope I can see Rayla again." Runaan looked down sadly and Shira looked at him in concern. "And apologize for what I have done to her." Runaan looked down guiltily as he held back tears, thinking of the last moments he had done with his adoptive daughter before they both separated at the castle. What took him out of his guilt was a gentle hand on his four fingered hand. Runaan blinked the tears out of his eyes as he looked at Shira, who gave him a sympathetic smile.
"You will," said Shira reassuringly. "You're the one who has trained her." Her gaze softened as she met his gaze. "She might not be a good assassin, but she's an even greater protector."
He smiled at Shira as a comfortable silence spread before them. Runaan closed his eyes and crossed his legs behind her. Runaan began watching his thoughts go by and very soon, his mind started to clear. He felt the breeze pass over him as Phoe-Phoe glided effortlessly through the sky. The wind was cool, and the air was fresh.
"Hey." Shira sounded nervous. "Is it just me, or are we losing altitude?"
Runaan opened his eyes and held Diana in his hands, but he also gripped Phoe-Phoe's bright feathers as she careened downward toward the earth at breakneck speed.
"Wuuuuhhh!" Shira hung on for dear life as Phoe-Phoe plunged through the clouds, rapidly approaching the ground below. If ever there was a time for Shira to use her talking to animals powers...
"Shira, what's going on?!" Runaan yelled through the rushing air. "Is she crashing?"
"I don't know," said Shira. "It looks like they're heading for the edge of that cliff."
Shira was right — if the moon phoenix didn't correct her angles...
"Thwummmp."
They landed hard on the cliff top, and the moon phoenix skidded to a stop, coming to a halt just inches from the edge. With the momentum of the sudden stop, the two of them fell off of the moon phoenix.
Shira and Runaan stood in a circle around the moon phoenix on the top of the cliff. Diana crouched near Phoe-Phoe's lolling head and stroked her iridescent feathers.
"Tell me what's wrong," Shira whispered. "Maybe we can help." Then she buried her head in her soft feathers and listened.
Phoe-Phoe responded with a combination of chatter and trill punctuated with clicks of her tongue and beak — Shira loved the rhythm and musicality of the way she communicated. When anyone spoke, whether a person or animal, Shira always listened with her ears, but also with her heart. She could feel the great bird's exhaustion in his own bones. As she stroked Phoe-Phoe's feathers, Shira's own breathing synchronized with the great bird's.
"Phoe-Phoe is okay," she said to Runaan. "She's just tired. But she feels strong." She closed her eyes and focused. "She get her power from the Moon Nexus. The farther away we go, the harder it is to carry everyone."
"I can't believe you could understand all that," Runaan said, impressed by his human companion's gift.
"Thank you for bringing us here, Phoe-Phoe," Shira said. Phoe-Phoe cooed pleasantly in response.
Diana gave her a soft pat on the head, and Phoe-Phoe took off with majestic whooshs. She both cawed as Phoe-Phoe reached her full wingspans and soared into the sky. A tiny dark blue and teal feather floated down and gently landed on Shira's hair. Runaan chuckled and slipped the dark blue, teal-tipped feather into her braid, making Shira smile at him.
"So. What do we do now?" Diana asked.
"Well, Xadia's that way." Runaan pointed across the eastern mountain landscape. "But, it's going to be a long journey."
Runaan wasn't wrong, but their path is long and complicated. Despite that, they have each other's company to find Rayla, Callum, Ezran, Bait, and Zym.