The Legend of The Ara'dos - BOOK 1: Human's Draconic Ascension

Chapter 9 - Secret Alliance

   The human stared at the dragon in front of him. The dragon stared at the human with a blank look on his face. He was serious. This dragon wanted this trustworthy human to help him. But with what?
   And of course, the human continued to ask himself, "Why me?"
   Dachi leaned back against the wall. He noticed the dragon seemed to relax now. The dragon was trusting Dachi. Dachi couldn't break this trust. One mistake and it was over.
   "You need help?" Dachi repeated to the dragon."With what?"
   "I need help with finding my sister," the dragon told Dachi. "She's like me. Tall and has the same eyes. Pale skin and short and fluffy purple hair with pointy ears." The dragon stuck his fingers out to point at his ears.
   Dachi paused to process this information. As he collected this information in his mind, he couldn't help but think to himself that he's heard this same information just a few minutes ago. It's like the dragon was repeating himself.
   "What?" Dachi asked.
   "You've seen her before," the dragon said. He remained silent like he was waiting for Dachi to figure out what exactly he was talking about.
   Dachi stared at the dragon, and then in just a couple of seconds, his eyes widened. Dachi could feel his brain pounding along with his heart. He gasped and his eyebrows shot up once it all pieced together.
   "Wait, the Ara'dos is your sister?"
   The dragon nodded in response. "Yes," he replied "The Ara'dos is my sister. Her name is Siveth." The dragon pressed his palm against his chest. "I am Ren."
   "Ren," Dachi repeated. "You're the Ara'dos's brother?"
   "I am," Ren replied.
   Dachi put his hand on his head. He needed some time to wrap his head around this new information. Although, if he tried to process it all, he would forget Ren's name in an instant. Plus, he knew he didn't have time to process all of this. Though, he still had so many questions.
   "I have other siblings too," Ren added.
   And that answered one of them.
   Dachi shook his head and then sighed. "So, what happened to the Ara'dos? Your sister."
   Ren frowned. He looked down at the carpet, just now realizing it was black. He never took time to get a good look at his surroundings since he was panicking so much before. He stared at the black carpet for a moment. Ren had to take a moment to try and remember what happened. He had a lack of memory due to the panic that came over him before he got caught by the arrow from his attempt to escape.
   Ren sighed. He closed his eyes to remember the event, letting images flash in his head. "My sister and I were protecting a glacier. Inside of the glacier is like another world," he began. "Though, I'm not going to tell you what's in there." He opened one eye to look at Dachi with a growl threatening to leave his lips.
   "You don't have to," Dachi quickly said.
   Ren held both eyes closed again. He continued with his explanation, "I was on the lookout for the night, standing on top of the glacier and looking for any threats, such as humans. My sister approached me and told me I needed to go inside and that she would take watch. I soon let her take watch, and I left her all alone."
   Ren sighed shakily. "That was my mistake. After a couple of hours went by, I heard her distressed roar. I shot up there with another dragon, and the whole glacier top was evaded with humans."
   Then, Ren slowly opened his eyes, keeping his gaze stuck on the floor. His eyes softened, and they twitched. "I tried to help Siveth get rid of the humans, but they caught her. They caught our friend too, the one who followed me for Siveth's calls for help."
   Ren paused, staying silent for a couple of seconds. Dachi opened his mouth to say something before Ren continued, "Siveth told me to escape. I knew I had to listen to her. I didn't have a choice! So I left her behind. Her and our friend." Ren shook his head and then growled, "I was stupid enough to get shot. I got knocked out and..." Ren looked back up. He took a moment to look at the blue walls and curtains. His ears twitched from the sounds of rain drops pattering against the window, giving him a hint of where exactly he was. "I woke up here."
   Dachi's brows furrowed in concern, his head nodding in understanding. He empathized with Ren's struggles, understanding the weight of their shared burdens involving the Ara'dos. Dachi had sensed the absence of the Ara'dos, and his attempts to alert his father had been met with disbelief. Now, his father teetered on the precipice of confronting the dragons on the Forbidden Hillslide, driven by his desperation to reach the Ara'dos. As Ren spoke, Dachi couldn't help but think, "I was right." Perhaps his initial suspicions about his father's sanity were not unfounded, for Takashi had truly descended into madness.
   "I knew it," Dachi whispered. Ren's ears twitched. He looked back at Dachi, his eyes full of concern.
   "What?" Ren asked.
   Dachi's eyes widened in surprise as Ren's response caught him off guard. He furrowed his brows and glanced away, deep in thought. The distant rumble of lightning storms echoed outside, a constant reminder of the danger that loomed. Though the storm seemed calmer than the previous night, there was still a looming threat of a lightning bolt striking Dachi's home and wreaking havoc. The dragons, enraged and without a leader, were in turmoil. Dachi knew they had to act swiftly, for time was running out.
   "I was taking a walk a couple of days ago, and I stayed inside a cave just at the edge of the Forbidden Hillslide," he started. "I often meditate and connect with my surroundings with my powers. It was storming, just as it is right now but more violent. I knew something was wrong, so I focused on the storm."
   Dachi raised his eyebrows as he listened to the lightning echo from outside and to his ears. "I heard the calls of the lightning dragons. They sounded so aggressive. The lightning storm was even more violent than them." Dachi noticed Ren still held his concern. "I know it lightning storms around here a lot—
   Ren suddenly interrupted. "So, your city is the one closest to the Forbidden Hillslide? Dhiashrir?"
   Dachi nodded. "Yes."
   Ren frowned. "You live here?"
   "Obviously," Dachi said softly. He regretted his words when Ren glared at him. "Anyways," Dachi sighed. "Usually, when I listen for the storm, it's calm, and I can hear the Ara'dos's roars. The Ara'dos uses her powers to calm the storm. At least... that's the theory I came up with."
   Ren's eyes widened. "Well, you are right about that..." His eyes softened. "But why do you listen for Siveth?"
   "It's a good way to practice with my powers spirtually. By meditating and listening for connections," Dachi explained.
   "Connections?" Ren nodded, showing that he showed interest in Dachi's ways. Ren kept his arms crossed against his chest. He stared into Dachi's lightning-blue eyes. "Then you can help me find her. And our friend."
   Dachi tensed. He figured that's what Ren wanted, but he didn't know Ren would tell him like that. This was more of a demand than a simple favor, as Dachi thought it would be.
   "You want me to help you find your sister? The Ara—"
   "Just call her by her name," Ren groaned. "You don't need to say the Ara'dos every time you mention her."
   "I thought it was disrespectful for humans to call her by her name," says Dachi. "That's why no one knows her name."
   "Well, now you do. Plus, it's just more simple," Ren explained.
   Dachi's mind swirled with confusion, but he mustered a nod nonetheless. He couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt for bombarding Ren with questions, yet his curiosity burned within him.
   Something Ren had mentioned lingered in Dachi's thoughts. Ren seemed perplexed about Dachi's powers, suggesting that only those connected to dragons could possess elemental abilities. But Dachi knew he was purely human, and he wondered how he could have overlooked being part dragon if it were true. Moreover, he had witnessed other humans wielding elemental powers, like the water people who calmed the river. The earth and fire soldiers were also sent to battle dragons. Perhaps Ren's escape attempt had rattled his senses.
   "So, you're going to help me find Siveth, and our friend," Ren said again.
   "Huh?" Dachi blinked a few times, snapping back into reality. "Oh, um." He nervously glanced away. This was a demand. Was Dachi really going to do this? Help the dragon in front of him find his captured sister, who is the Ara'dos? And their friend, of course.
   "What?" Ren lowered his eyebrows. "You said you brought me into your home for a reason. If you're holding me, hostage, then you're going to help me."
   Dachi gasped, "I'm not holding you hostage!"
   "Then you're going to help me so you can earn my trust," Ren told him. "Don't think you have earned my trust yet."
   "Yet," Dachi whispered to himself.
   All of this was giving him so many chances of making things right again. He knew the dragons had a reason to be angry with the humans. If he could gain Ren's trust, he could figure out why the dragons started the war. Or who really started the war?
   "Okay. Yes, I will help you." Dachi nodded.
   "Very well." Ren softened his expression.
   Dachi frowned. "But how are we going to find Siveth? And your friend?"
   Ren lowered his eyebrows once more, eyes filled with determination. He glanced out the window, watching the raindrops race down the glass.
   "I have a plan..."