Dreigiau Book 1: The Gift of Flame

Chapter 32

AsaHi watched with a distant frown as the blue rift-glow returned. She sat perched on a rock next to a waterfall, a place she returned to more and more often. This was the most secure and comfortable spot for her to retreat to as of late, especially since she had been left on her own.

Something was happening, something important and most likely dangerous. She'd hardly seen a familiar face in the past few days, and it bothered her.

Zento and Kaze — it was still too strange to think of him as Lord Zemi — were nowhere to be seen. TsuYa was taken away to be tended almost immediately and no further word was spoken of his condition. Aunt SaRa spent most of her time taking care of the young wounded girl that arrived with her and SoYa. And SoYa...

I can't talk to him... not right now. And I don't even know why.

A prickling hum rose through the air. Instantly, it called her attention to the patterned circle on the ground. Blue lights were a troublesome thing, especially this sort of blue light.

AsaHi slipped cautiously off of the rock and made her way closer to the heart of the strange radiance. Her bare feet padded on the grass, which quickly faded into cold stone. Everything around her was silent, as if the air itself was holding its breath.

I wonder if someone is trying to transport up here. Maybe they're having trouble? Should I go and let Zento know?

She frowned.

If I could even find him.

One foot stepped slowly into the ring of light. The shimmers between her toes were warm and tickling. AsaHi smiled absently, staring down at the patterns. Only a few weeks ago, something like this would have been absolutely terrifying to her, if believed it existed at all.

Kneeling down, she attempted to get a better look at the scrawling runes on the stone. As her fingers met with the warmth of the light she felt a strange sensation. Her stomach suddenly lurched as her whole body jerked in a downward motion — a momentary feeling of being everywhere but nowhere at all. AsaHi fell back, splayed out on the rock.

What happened?

Green eyes darted around, taking in her surroundings. The cloud-swept grass was gone. The trees and waterfall were gone. In their place stood the craggy stone line and the huge dragon statues that reared far over her head. AsaHi recognized it at once.

I'm... I'm on the ground?

She pushed herself to her feet, brushing off the back of her robe with one hand.

I wonder what activated i–

A rumbling growl echoed from the stone outcroppings all around her. First one... then another... and another... until the whole hollow filled with the wild, alien sound. AsaHi's gaze swept around from statue to statue. She couldn't see anything, but she could feel... something...

"Who's there?" she staggered back towards the center of the circle.

The growling only grew louder in response to her voice. It swelled, surrounding her from all sides. Breath coming in quiet gasps, her feet scratched along the dry surface of the stone. The blue light was gone and she wished it would return. She knew the blue light was the only thing that would take her back up to the city. And at that moment, she would give just about anything to be back in the safety of her shady waterfall pool.

At first she thought that her eyes were playing tricks on her as she attempted to make sense of what was unfolding. It was all so ghastly, so unreal, she didn't want to believe it was true.