Rebirth

Chapter 47: Gift from the Dragon of Flames

Garuga and Syrreth sped past me towards Porrelth. Jarrod was breathing heavy, and I continued free falling, frozen. It wasn't shock or fear that halted me. No, something worse was boiling inside. My hands were trembling, and I could feel myself shaking. Despair? Rage? It was some type of negative emotion and feeling, and I knew that for sure, because the moment I turned back to Jarrod, my eyes felt as if they were burning. Magic was building within me, violet flames bursting to the surface around me. Fallen Drive slowly crept onto my body, then to my surprise, the black markings grew more, covering more of my body. My hair was flowing wildly, more than usual, and I cried out. Two black wings shot out from my back, feathers falling as the wings spread. I didn't hesitate to shoot myself at Jarrod, and cut through his right wing. He roared, turned, and swat at me, but my fingers dug into his scaly palm, and with a sharp jerk and twist, I broke the bones within. He groaned in pain, but I didn't let up. I pulled down, then flew up. Using the force of my sudden movements, I tore Jarrod's arm from its socket, and watched the blood spew. His eyes bulged, and he let himself drop, with me, not too far behind.

Jarrod's body gradually began shifting back to his human form, and he landed in a tree. I slammed into the dirt nearby, looking up and glaring at him. The dragon fell from the branch he was on, and slowly looked at me, holding his missing arm and watching me with fear. "Monster..." My body went on autopilot, and my foot slammed into his chin. "Me! I'm the monster?!" My hand shot forward, and fingers gripped his throat. "How am I the monster here?!"

"The.. things.. I've seen.. And what.. You're doing now.." He said, struggling to breath. I had enough of him, and my patience was thinning more. "Just shut up.."

His eyes widened at me, and he forced himself to speak, "Wait... Do you.. Plan to kill me.."

I didn't speak. The hardened and enraged glare in my eyes had answered that question. He took a deep breath, and smirked, looking down. "Well.. At least I accomplished something you never could... I impregnated-" I stopped him short with a simple twist. He froze, and arm went limp. The rest of his body stiffened and fell, cold as stone, and dead as night. "I've had enough of your sick crap."

I left his body were it was. I couldn't be bothered to even burn it, at least he'd be useful in death and feed the animals nearby. Dragging myself towards the dragons, my eyes fell on Porrelth's body. He was wheezing, and struggling to breath. Garuga and Syrreth were at his sides, eyes closed as they waited for their friend to pass. My wings retracted back into my back, and Fallen Drive had released itself as I approached him. "Porrelth.." I said, kneeling and rubbing the side of his face. His large eyes opened, and fell on me, and he chuckled weakly.

"Look at ye'... Ye' have grown.. So much..."

"Don't talk. Please..." My voice was cracking, and my throat felt dry.

"Ye'.. has been a proud heir to us dragons.. And I.. could not have been any more.. Happy to have known you.."

Garuga and Syrreth lowered their heads. Syrreth gently nudged me, offering his sorrows. I balled my hand, holding back as many tears as I could, to no avail. My strength had faded, replaced by pain. The pain of loss. The pain of losing someone close to me, all over again. I hated the feeling, and now was much worse. I left for a year, to train and better myself to prevent something like this, yet despite my efforts, it was all in vain.

"Do not.. Fret.. Justin.. Come here... Closer.." Porrelth instructed. I did so. He weakly blew at me, small flames leaving his mouth and swirling around me. The fire clung to my skin, slowly oozing inside. "I give.. Ye' the last.. Of my power..."

I welcomed the flames, accepting them, and the power they brought with them. Porrelth's body started glowing, a gentle light illuminating the dark crater. "My brothers... and my student.." His body broke apart, flowing up in the air, glowing brightly in little spheres before completely vanishing from sight. "Thank you.. For giving me a purpose in life.."

We sat in silence. Garuga raised his head, as did Syrreth. The two looked at me, once again lowering and nudging me with their heads. "I'll be fine... But I'm done playing nice..."

"What are ye' going to do," Syrreth asked.

"Something I should before we all go to war."

The two looked at each other. Despite the sorrow, the two grinned. "Seems he's claiming himself a queen."

"He should hurry then. I don't think she wants to wait too long anymore."

I looked at the two. The sense of sadness was slowly diminishing, and I was happy for that. Being swept in sadness wasn't something Porrelth would want. If he anything, he would want me to hurry and take their job for them, and I will. "Garuga... Syrreth. I promise.." The two looked at me, and my eyes shot back up at them. "I promise, I'll end Amaterasu, and I'll put an end to people relying on you. You can both rest easy now..."

"Finally. Being worshipped is great and all, but having to handle human crimes and negativity is tiring work. Take the job, and be swift about it," Garuga grinned.

Syrreth lowered his head next to me. "Ye' should be on ye' way."

"What about you two?"

"We shall travel, and join our brethren in the Dragon Land. We'll remain in contact, but don't expect to see us around. We've done all we can, now, it's ye' turn. The next generation must lead the world now."

The dragons stretched their wings, flapping them and raising in the air. They roared goodbye, and took off towards the skies, flying south. As they disappeared through the clouds, a ball of light and shadow expanded, before shaping and forming the words, Goodbye Porrelth. No Fire Dragon shall be as memorable as ye'.

"Yeah.. Not one.." I muttered. Fingers tangled with mine, along with a gentle tug. I didn't have to look to tell it was Zhaniah. "So.. Are you really carrying his kid?"

She looked shocked at my question, "What the hell?! Do I look like I want to be a mother?!"

"So that answers that question," I chuckled softly. My smile faded, and my tone grew serious. "Well, we can't wait any longer. We're going back to the capital soon."

"What for?"

I looked her in the eye. "Richard is gonna help us put together an army, and we're going after Amaterasu." My lips rose in a smirk. "But before that... I have business to handle." She watched, and slowly removed her hand from mine. "I.. I'm kind of scared.."

"You should be." I winked, and began walking back towards the guild. Zhaniah walked behind me, and I could tell she was hesitant. On my mind, however, I was focused on what to do about Amaterasu and Luna, yet deep inside, I knew the connection between the three of us ran deeper than anyone knew.