Elemental Ascension, page 23
“They persecuted Raven for many years just for being a Slyph. Like you, for so long he didn't know he could manipulate other elements and I don't think he really wanted to. He crammed his knowledge into that book and locked it, hiding everything about himself he despised within its pages and shoved it on a shelf in his library. He only finished writing it a few months before I met you.”
“And the key?” Ash asked, fingering it. “Its energy is far from anything the Land has seen before. Almost like the magic of a Dragon urges it. If I hold the book or touch the egg, it comes alive. It frightens me,” he said, sighing.
“Raven wouldn't have gifted it to you if he thought you'd be in danger. He knew of your plight, and he loves me like a daughter.”
“Aye, he wouldn't risk you coming to harm through me,” he agreed. “I long to understand it, though, and I think when we are finished here—if I survive, and if Alchemy is still shared amongst us—that we should return and ask him about the key's glow.”
“I have a few questions for him myself,” she said.
“I imagine the God of Universal Energy's mother to be beautiful. Like that carving in the temple door, but blonde and blue-eyed,” Ash told her, worried about the possibility of a seventh God like everyone else.
“That image spoke to me,” she told him, meeting his gaze and smiling. “The image of the moon is inspiring. Perhaps that's her?”
“Well, just as there is no evidence of her existence, there is nothing to suggest she was imprisoned with the others if she is real. She may have tried to free her son from Akasha out of pity, and was overpowered by him. Being the son of two Gods explains his unique strength. Anything is in the cards.”
“Aye,” Deerbolt said, “and pray she is merciless and kind, unlike him”
Crane and Cage's apartment door opened and Sarronious led the Oracle out with his wrists tied behind his back. Reverie took Kite by the hand and followed them to the top of the stairs. They kissed one another, then she threw fistfuls of black petals up in the air and watched, smiling, as they fluttered into the square and tumbled at Ash's feet.
Chapter Twenty-One
Fire, Earth, Air, Water
It took more of them to roll the egg back up the hill than it did to bring it down, and Ash hadn't given much thought to how they'd return it to the temple. One-handed, Ash stood behind the egg to stop it rolling backward, and was still able to transfer the flame's heat to it.
As far as they knew, Ash's actions were enough to keep the Dragon alive, but nobody had ever seen a dead egg, so they couldn't be sure. Perhaps it had died when the Oracle removed it from the flame earlier that day. Collectively, they agreed only a cold egg was a dead egg.
They reached the bottom of the stairs, leading up to the temple's carved wooden doorway. From the base, the marble pillars reflected the sunset's dwindling light and appeared ethereal. Ash handed the bowl to Captain Deerbolt and bent to pick up the egg. The others held their breath, stunned that his fingers didn't burn at its touch.
“I'm a Salamander,” he reminded them, and took the first step of one hundred until he reached the top without incident. “I'm sure that would have been easier if I'd mastered my Gnome or Slyph Alchemy,” he said and wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. “But the key's energy helped.”
Ash touched the doorway. It slid open, and Riley wrung his hands together, pleased they had finally figured out how to activate it.
“A Dragon's presence?”
“Then how did the Oracle access it?” Deerbolt said.
“He's not really an Oracle though, is he?”
“No, he's a God,” Ash said.
“But then, how did you access it earlier?”
Ash frowned. Riley had a point. He thought about the first time they'd approached the doorway. Deerbolt had been ahead of him, standing between the carving and Ash. Riley was in the trees. The second time, Ash had placed his palm on the door to examine it for keyholes before he heard a noise inside and retreated to the jungle. Could he have prompted the doorway to open, and if so, how? So far, the rule had been that only Dragons or Gods were permitted to enter, and Ash was neither.
“The Oracle was on his way out,” Ash suggested, “so maybe he opened it?”
But he didn't believe his own theory—the key around his neck was baffling enough, and drew its power from somewhere or something outside of himself. It fed him energy and answers, and responded to his needs before he knew what he wanted himself. Like a spirit from the Lingerverse was steering him and, as an Astral uses those souls to boost their own Alchemy, this key did so for Ash without consequence.
Its glow was constant when lit, and it never wavered. Whatever its source, there was unspeakable power inside.
“What about this?” he said without thinking and lifted the key. “I don't know exactly how it works, but it's helped me in unexpected ways.”
Riley reached out to touch it, then thought better of his actions. The men in their party all stepped back; it did look like a plain metal key. If fancier, perhaps. But none of the other keys on the island were alive.
Instead, Riley said, “You might be right, Ash. But, I see no keyholes anywhere. None of us have entered the temple before—only the Oracle and Zarro came here. So, maybe it's cursed?”
“Raven gave this to me,” Ash said to himself, then turned to Deerbolt. “Along with the book. Do you think he knew it would unlock the egg's location, given he was... you know?”
Deerbolt chewed her lower lip. She thought Raven had told her everything there was to know about his past and why he'd written the book. Unable to openly use his Tetrad abilities, and terrified to speak of them, Raven collected every incantation he had learned and noted each slither of advice to store them safely for the next Tetrad he met to take advantage of before he settled in the north. Raven hadn't forged the lock and key himself; he had it made by a capable locksmith at the First Watchtower when he finished writing. He'd worked with an excavation team in the Gravelands just before Deerbolt met him, and they sold most of what was found in exchange for jewels to pay the Order's taxes. All except the key, which he asked the locksmith to create.
“I suppose he could have,” she admitted, a little puzzled. “But, I'm pretty sure he found the key in a chest beneath the desert when he worked in the West.”
“Well, something happened. I'm assuming the key wasn't in the chest's lock.” Riley said. “He must have known it was special, even if he couldn't explain why.”
Ash's fingers tightened around it. Something happened to it, he echoed. Then someone buried it for a reason.
Kite and Reverie made it to the top step and lingered behind them, a little out of breath.
“That was much easier with my sight back,” Kite chirped.
“I bet it's wonderful to see how Reverie's body has changed,” Deerbolt told him, and the couple beamed in response.
“Right,” Reverie said, “let's get this over with, shall we?”
“You can back out of this at any time,” Deerbolt reminded her.
“We made a promise,” she said, “as a thank you for healing Kite. We can't turn away now, not when we are so close to knowing if our child is the key to the next Dragon age.”
“Either way, you will never lose us,” Kite assured her.
Holding her hand, he led Reverie through the open doorway and into the temple. The pillars of lava continued to burn and light the way between bowls like Ash had been carrying. Deerbolt allowed Ash to pass next, so he could return the egg to its pyre at the far end of the walkway, which he enhanced with the sparks he'd taken earlier. Once settled safely again, everyone let out a sigh of relief, and a collective weight seemed to be lifted.
“Does anyone know how we go about this?”
Riley shook his head and turned to the spokesman, who he'd learned on the way uphill was called Sweets after his original employment on the mainland making candies and baked goods somewhere in the Sleeping Reeds Valley. Nobody knew his real name, but Sweets seemed to suit his young, unshaven face and short but prominent presence.
“Sweets, did Zarro or the Oracle tell the Guardsmen anything about how this works?”
“Sorry,” he said, “but we were kept in the dark. Personally, I thought the egg would simply sense when a suitable soul was present, and respond in its own time.”
“Perhaps it doesn't work in the womb?” Kite said.
Deerbolt elbowed Ash in the ribs and threw her head in the direction of his satchel, where she had safely secured the Tetrad book. Then, she cast her gaze to the four Elemental pillars guarding the egg's resting place.
Ash already knew what he needed to do next. He pushed through the men standing ahead of him, ignoring their protests. Everyone wanted to be at the front to witness the Dragon's miracle. Some dare not blink in fear of missing the first signs the egg was responding.
“Sweets, I have an idea.”
He allowed Ash to step up onto the platform, standing beside the first Salamander pillar with the red crystal atop it. Carved into the front was a flame sitting in a bowl. Fire. Ash remembered what Raven had written in the book about how to create embers from nothing. Normally, a Salamander required an existing flame in order to use their Alchemy, but according to Raven's notes, there was a way for confident Elementals to birth fire themselves. Supposedly, using their body heat and their will—the fire in their hearts. Ash would need to recreate the symbol by forming a horizontal figure eight, then swinging his arms out to either side, representing the bowl.
Ash then looked across to the second pillar with the green earth stone on top, and carved into that were three circles, which Ash would have to mimic by swirling his arms in rings. On the other side of the egg, the white air stone glistened, allowing Ash to catch sight of the carving for Slyphs. A crescent moon shape, followed by three wavy lines, which Ash knew was probably the easiest to demonstrate with his body. He could draw the C-shape, then move his arms and upper torso to form the wind. Finally, the blue water crystal and its paired symbol sat at the far end, and though it was faded, it looked like a wave made of three circles, which Ash would have to build one at a time using his hands and a swirling motion in the space in front of him.
Together, Ash would have to perform the most complex incantation he had ever attempted, and get it right first time. If not, who knows what he could accidentally summon? Then, rather than draw the energy from all four above the egg in order to extinguish the flame, he wondered if it might awaken the Dragon to Reverie's presence.
“Do it,” said Riley. “Sweets, you're with us, right?”
Sweets nodded, and the men around him urged Ash to give it a try, waving him forward and smiling. Suddenly, he felt supported and appreciated—in ten years, nobody had made Ash feel so important, not even Captain Deerbolt or the marketplace Oracle.
Reverie knelt before the egg and waited patiently as Ash prepared himself. He paced back and forth, wrung his hands together, and took a few deep breaths. This was a lot of pressure.
What if I get it wrong? If I die, will Raven make the journey to try in my place? Or, could I blow our only chance?
“You can do this, Ash,” he heard Deerbolt say amongst the whispers and chattering. “This is your legacy.”
She's right. I've got this.
Ash began. He formed the symbol for fire, then send a fireball to the crystal, causing it to glow cherry red and burn. He side-stepped to the earth pillar, which trembled through the incantation before glowing green and sprouting a Necrosis flower. Reverie turned away and swallowed hard at the memory, but it was over now. Kite had been healed, and they were on their way to forming the future of Alchemy.
She felt Ash's presence move behind her as he shuffled to the air pillar and performed the necessary incantation. He sent a gust of wind to the crystal, illuminating it like a star against the black backdrop. It twinkled, and the air surrounding it cooled. Finally, Ash moved to the water pillar, sending droplets to ignite the blue crystal, which seemed to then produce its own. It trickled down a groove to pool in a crevice below.
“Now what?” he grumbled.
Reverie groaned and folded forward. The only thing within reach she could use to steady herself was the egg, and when her palm touched its scorching surface, the crystals exploded. Fragments splintered and rained on the Guardsmen; they shielded their eyes as multi-coloured pieces scratched the skin on their arms and faces. Reverie gasped, wondering why the egg wasn't burning her and tried to back away. But her skin was fused to the scales and she couldn't get up.
“Ash!” she called, but Ash couldn't hear her above the shouting of the Guardsmen.
Kite pushed his way through and quickly loosened two arrows at the egg to try to pierce its shell. They ricocheted off. Everyone ducked and complained.
“Ash!” he screamed until he got his attention. “What's happening to her?”
When he was near enough to offer aid, the key around his neck illuminated again and floated between them. Slowly, he ducked out of the ribbon and let it hang mid-air, then shimmied around to free Reverie's hand. With both Kite and Ash tugging and Reverie pulling with all her might, the egg refused to budge.
It never crossed his mind someone could reach out and steal the key. If they did, they would likely have been killed. From it, a flash of light and a crack of thunder shot, connecting with the egg and sending colourful veins up and down Reverie's fingers to her bump and back again.
She panicked and thrashed but to no avail.
“Am I going to die?” she asked Kite.
Kite cuddled her. He wrapped his entire frame around her body to shield her from the egg. Ash covered her palm with his—whatever was about to happen to Reverie, he wouldn't let her suffer alone. They were in this together. This was his doing; if anyone deserved to perish, it was Ash.
The men in the temple fled, leaving Sarronious, Deerbolt, Riley and the brothers Crane and Cage huddled together at the base of the podium.
“I'm sorry,” Ash told Reverie, and they all squeezed their eyes shut.
Beneath Reverie's palm, the egg cracked. Scales dropped from its surface onto the marble floor beneath, and Reverie was able to wriggle her palm free. The three of them rolled backward and scampered to join the others, blinded by the key's electricity.
“Something's happening,” Riley mouthed to Ash, who reached out to wrap an arm around Captain Deerbolt.
Were they all deaf? Not a sound escaped, except for the cracking of the egg's shell and the jingle of its scales against the floor beneath, like jewels being dropped against metal. Ash stole a glance in time to see the key's light cut out and it fizzled, as if someone had doused it with water. But, within the egg, a rumbling and grumbling could be heard. It vibrated, sending shock waves across the temple, shaking the lava pillars and knocking a few of the bowls over, spilling the contents and forcing areas of the temple into darkness.
“We can't stay here,” Deerbolt said, grabbing Reverie by the hand. “This building is about to crumble!”
Sarronious helped Deerbolt to pick Reverie up off the floor, then ushered everyone out through the wooden door and onto the steps. They crashed to a halt against the tree line and spun to see the walls of the temple creak and sway. After only a few more seconds, the roof caved in, and the temple fell. Dust and debris filled the air. Everyone coughed and spluttered.
Ash formed the air incantation again to get a clearer view of the destruction and to make the surrounding air breathable.
Reverie stroked her belly and said, “The baby is kicking a LOT. Whatever that was, it's unsettled us.”
Standing in the centre of the chaos, Ash carefully approached the remains of the temple, wondering if the egg had survived the explosion. Smoke plumed where the Dragonborn flame had been, and as he navigated chunks of stone and wobbly slabs, he made it to where he thought, roughly, it had burned.
Relieved to see a tiny flicker between two pieces of marble, Ash exhaled. “It's here!” he called to the others.
Sarronious shouted back, “Can you see the egg?” and the group held on to one another, tense, as Ash searched for evidence the Dragon hadn't been killed.
When he thought all hope was lost, Ash spotted green scales beneath debris. He rummaged until his fingers felt a sharp, scaly sphere. But, it was only part of the egg. Around it were scattered pieces of the shell, littered with scales and a slimy, pink substance. He wiped it on his doublet and turned to tell the others.
“You won't believe this, but I think—”
The ground beneath Ash's feet gave way, and threw him. He landed on his back, winded, with an umph. Pieces of the temple peeled away as something underneath rose from it. Rubbing his eyes, Ash rolled onto his side and crawled out of its way.
“ASH, LOOK!” Deerbolt screamed.
Towering above him, glaring down with brilliant blue eyes and sharp, white quartz teeth, was a Dragon. Before them, it grew in size and width until it stood ten metres tall, and flexed its gigantic wings. From head to toe, it was spiky and solid, with a pronged nose and two deadly horns. It's four-toed feet crushed the stone beneath, turning it to sand.
Ash tried to escape, but he couldn't find his footing. His arms were grazed, and every time he fell, he tore another part of his clothing. He never thought to draw his sword. Subconsciously, he knew it would do no good.
Deerbolt cried and set off to help him, but Sarronious held her back.
“ASH!” she called. “Let me go!”
“Get her out of here!” Ash yelled at him.
“Deerbolt, it's no use,” he said, wrestling her to the ground. “You'll get yourself killed. Let him go.”
Deerbolt burst into tears. “Run, Ash!”
Despite his fear and the Dragon's advantage, it did not advance toward him. It leant to nuzzle him with its long snout, and puffs of grey smoke escaped its nostrils. Ash swallowed hard, closed his eyes, and waited to be squashed. But the Dragon pulled away.
