Quest+in+the+South

The next morning, as the dawning sun touched the Great Library, Simeon and Acasius walked down to the park where Cho, in dragon from, was waiting for them. Dorje, Norbu and Tenzing were attaching a complicated harness to her, looping it around her neck and just in front of her wing joints. Attached to the harness were two belts, obviously meant for two human sized creatures. Norbu was perched on Cho's neck and she was giving him directions for fastening the straps in between his attempts at apologies.

"Norbu!" Cho exclaimed, exasperated. "For the last time, you are not offending me! Now please stop apologizing and fasten that belt a little more securely. We don't want our True Seekers to fall off, do we?"

Norbu complied and at last Cho was satisfied with the arrangement. "All right," she said, holding out her right front leg to Simeon. "Let me give you a boost." Simeon stepped on to her foot and she lifted him into place, where he fastened the belt around his waist. "Would you be kind enough to help Acasius, dear friend? He has not the experience that you do." She proceeded to lift Acasius up in the same manner and Simeon helped the younger man with his belt.

"Dorje, be wary. These are troubled times. Guard the Library well. I am counting on you."

Lama Dorje bowed deeply. "Most Holy, your monks would give their lives to protect the Library. We shall keep it safe in your absence."

"Let us hope it shall not come to that," Cho rumbled, "but thank you. I know not when we shall return, but I shall endeavor to keep in touch with you." Dorje bowed again and then all the monks backed away.

"You may want to hold on to something," Cho called back, as she flexed her massive wings and, with a mighty leap, sprang into the sky. The icy wind bit at them, and they could feel Cho's laughter reverberating under their legs. She beat her wings until she hit a thermal and then rode the updraft. She banked hard to the left, pivoting on one wingtip and then took off towards the South.

Acasius clung to the harness as Cho soared through the air. It was unlike any feeling he had ever felt. They defied the very laws of life.

"Having fun?" Simeon shouted back. He could see the excitement radiate in Acasius' eyes. Acasius opened his mouth to reply, but not a single word was uttered. The force of pressure on his chest crushed his lungs, making it difficult to do anything but breathe. "It's a rush the first time, isn't it?" Simeon laughed.

Acasius leaned over Cho's side, looking into a crystal clear lake below. The reflection of Cho's scales glistened back at him. He muscled up and shouted back to Simeon, "This is fantastic!"

"I'm glad you are enjoying yourselves, dear friends. Now hold fast!" And with that, Cho folded her wings and plummeted toward the crystalline lake, the wind screaming by Acasius and Simeon. Acasius was certain they were going to plunge into the icy water, but at the very last second Cho snapped her huge wings open and they skimmed across the surface, her talons cutting ridges in the water. They glided to rest on the shore of the lake, where Cho helped Simeon and Acasius get down from her back.

"Stretch your legs a little, my dears," she said. "It is not good for you to sit so long in one position."

When they had rested and refreshed themselves with food and water, they remounted and continued South. And in this way, two days passed. They would fly for a few hours, land and rest, fly again. At night, Cho made a tent for them under one of her protective wings. No animal or creature dared to disturb them. Finally, they came to the South. Cho shuddered a bit as she left her domain, but she continued on, setting them down at last in a canyon full of red rocks that had been cut into arches and spires by the passage of water long ago. There was a small river nearby, verdant greenery growing along its banks. The two men dismounted.

"This is the place the //kitsune// and //tengu// described to me. They said that demons and a red dragon were nearby. I suggest we proceed with caution," Cho said, as she shimmered back into her human form.

"Where do you suggest we start?" asked Acasius as he stretched. "Follow the river, perhaps?"

"Perhaps," Cho mused. "But demons and a red dragon do not need much water. No, I believe that we shall find them in a hotter, drier location. Not that I am looking forward to that." She quickly twisted her white hair into a bun, securing it at the nape of her neck and giving her weapons a cursory check. "Simeon? What do you think?"

"Well if I recall correctly, this river is the Ouroboros," Simeon paced over to the river. He placed his hand in the water and cupped a bit, bringing it to his mouth. "Yes, this is most certainly the Ouroboros River, I do not know how I could have mistaken it. If we follow it upstream, it will lead us to the cave lake in the City of Lexico, where there have commonly been spirits, and other non-existential beings. Nothing is too threatening there however. If followed downstream, it will lead us to the Perimuet Valley, a land with thick vegetation where this river flows strong. There is much death in that valley though, as many things are poisonous, and often there have been appearances of more than a few demonic beasts. In my opinion though, I think that neither of these places hold any meaning as to what we seek. If we were to cross this river here and follow along in a perpendicular manner, we would eventually come across the City of Pyrione, a civilization that has been corrupted by evil, that is wrought with much darkness. However, these are the three options we have, I find it likely that we will find something at any of them, and none are more than a few hours hike away. It then comes down to the Lake, the Valley, or the Ruins." Simeon threw his head back and sat down, waiting for a response.

"Hmm," Cho said. "A moment, please." She closed her eyes, lips moving as she whispered. "Southern Cavern, geography, cultures, civilizations, recent. Pyrione. Ah, here it is." Her hands mimed taking down a book and opening it, even as she raised her voice and spoke out loud as if reading from a tome. "//Oh Pyrione, City of Light, why have you fallen to darkness? What once was a beacon of light is now sullied with// //infection// //and// //blight////. You were the Rose of the South, but now a canker worm eats at your heart. Beware the wickedness clothed in wild beauty. Beware the evil disguised in glib eloquence//." She opened her eyes. "Yes. My vote is for Pyrione."

"Well then, Pyrione it is," Simeon said reluctantly, and he hoisted his pack onto his shoulder, and stood. He gestured to Cho and Acasius to follow. He played with the Polyform Orb as he walked off, and looked back. He saw Cho and Acasius give a slight nod as they, too, grabbed their materials and walked behind him. The three made an interesting company. None of them appeared to have an age, nor did they look at all alike. At any rate, Cho and Simeon were becoming fast friends with Acasius and they set off in a northward manner to the dark city of Pyrione.

After perhaps an hour of walking, they came to a tiny village. The thatched roofs of several homes were smoldering and people crowded into the cramped streets. Above them, a red dragon was soaring in the skies and, to Cho's eyes, men on fire marched in the streets. From raw terror writ on the people's faces, she surmised that they were demons.

"Well, my dears, it looks like we have found the objects of our quest," Cho said as she looked skyward with narrowed eyes.

The red dragon flared her wings, coming to land on the roof of the village’s tavern. She raised her head and cried out, “I am Elektra, Bringer of Flame! Pay me your tribute or face the consequences. I am the new Guardian of the South! Bring me your gold or I shall burn your village to the ground.”

Cho growled deep in her throat, staring at the red dragon. "I will not stand for this," she muttered darkly. Then, in human form, she calmly walked out into the street. Behind her, Acasius placed his hands on his weapons and started forward but Simeon held him back.

"She is more than capable of handling this, friend," Simeon whispered. "We have other targets."

Cho had reached the front of the crowd. “Excuse me,” she said, “ but I know the Guardian of the South. You may be the, what was that vile phrase you used? Ah, yes, “Bringer of Flame.” But you are most certainly //not// the Phoenix.”

Elektra’s head swiveled around to stare at Cho. “Who are you, puny human? How dare you confront me?”

“Ah,” Cho said serenely, “you are mistaken. I am neither puny nor human.” With that, there was a shimmer in the air and Cho was in dragon form, blindingly white, sun reflecting and refracting from her scales like millions of mirrors. She raised herself up on her haunches, spreading her opalescent wings wide. “I am Chomolungma, the Guardian of the East.”

“Then you have no authority here,” Elektra stated.

“My “authority” comes from the debt of love and honor I owe to my missing counterpart,” Cho returned as she closely watched Elektra, studying her movements.

“Begone, little dragon,” Elektra sneered.

Cho snorted, almost laughing. “Make me,” she challenged.

Elektra opened her maw and breathed a gout of flame at Cho. It was blocked by a huge cloud of icy particles from Cho. Elektra then launched herself into the sky, wings beating the air, Cho in hot pursuit.

Elektra was fast, there was no doubt about that, but Cho was wise and wily. She read the air currents and adjusted her elevation to slip into a tailwind. This pushed her airspeed up and she quickly caught up to the red. Cho plunged down next to Elektra, jamming a wingtip into the red’s side and causing the other dragon to falter in flight.

At that most inopportune moment, a bird struck Cho in the side. Surprised, she swiveled her head around and saw a human form tumbling from the skies. Instinct kicked in, and she dove after the body, catching it before it hit the earth. She placed the human male on the ground. Growling, “Stay out of my way!” she launched into the air again.

Elektra was waiting for her. Cho swerved to avoid a swipe of the red’s claws at her eyes. The talons raked down her belly instead, opening a shallow gash. Cho screamed in anger and pain as silver blood oozed from the wound.

Out of the corner of her eye, Cho saw movement. Another bird. She folded her wings and dropped lower to avoid the creature. As she did so, the bird sailed by her, talons extended, headed straight for Elektra’s eye. Another scream, and Cho looked up to see flame dropping like tears from Elektra’s wound.

Good. The red was now blind on one side. That was the only tactical advantage that Cho needed. Pumping her mighty wings, she rose in altitude and then dove, focusing on Elektra's left side. Cho targeted the red's left wing, shredding it with her claws. Elektra, flapped her wings in vain. Unable to hold herself in the air, she spiraled sharply to the ground, exploding in a fireball when she hit.

Exhausted and wounded, Cho flew slowly back to where she had left her friends. She had no time for pain, they might need her help. As she transformed and walked toward them, she felt warm wetness running down her torso. She looked down to see silver blood soaking her white kimono. "Oh dear," she sighed. "What poor timing." And with that, she collapsed on the ground, unconscious.

"Cho!" Acasius shouted as he ran towards her.

"Acasius, no! Leave her!" Simeon cried as he sprinted after the younger man. "Don't touch her!"

The archer ignored Simeon and kept heading towards the downed woman as large humanoid figures materialized around her. Acasius skidded to a halt and notched an arrow, launching it straight at the shade. The force from the arrow thrust the figure towards Cho, but it seemed to hit an invisible barrier and disintegrated instantaneously.

"Gah!" Acasius grunted, keeling over as he felt a tug on his heart. It was almost as if he had a connection to these... things. Breathing raggedly through the pain, Acasius straightened and nocked another arrow in his bow. As he did so, Cho’s body flared with incandescent light, blinding him briefly. At the same time, two more of the humanoid forms were vaporized, sending more waves of agony through his body.

Simeon caught up with Acasius and pulled him back, speaking urgently in the younger man’s ear. “She is fine, she //will be// fine. She is healing and the world itself will protect her! You //must// retreat. It is dangerous for you to be here now.”

"I'll be fine!" Acasius snarled. He whipped his dagger out and spun around only to find a hulking figure standing before him. It grabbed him by the throat and lifted him up off of the ground. The demon's fiery stare seemed to bore into him as he spoke to Acasius in a grave voice.

"Do you fear //death?//"

At that instant, the demon impaled Acasius with a short sword that had been concealed on his side. Simeon stood frozen in awe. The demon let the archer hang in the air for a bit, seeming to get a sick pleasure from the kill shot. The amorphous face seemed to give a sinister smile as black blood dripped from Acasius' mouth onto the dusty ground below. He slid off the sword and landed on his knees. He held his wounded chest, his hands the darkest shade of swirling black. As the demon lunged toward him, Acasius threw up his hands in defense. A magical burst of energy forced the beast away and up into the air, conversely Acasius flew backwards into Simeon's arms.

"Don't worry," Simeon soothed. "I've got you."

Acasius looked up and halfheartedly smiled before he wailed in anguish and felt the repercussions of his actions; the demon had landed on Cho's protective barrier and lit up in a flash of light. When it dissipated, the two men had disappeared from existence. The last thing they heard was a mournful keening. They could not tell if it was from Cho or from Tetravier itself.

Cho woke to pain. Her head pounded, her throat was parched and she was ravenously hungry. She gingerly felt at the area where she had been wounded. It was just a little tender now. But the rest of her hurt so much that it felt like the earth was undulating underneath her body. She blinked slowly, trying to get the sandy Southern grit out of her eyes.

And then she realized that the earth was indeed moving. It rumbled and shook like a thing alive, a wounded animal in pain. In the distance, her farsighted eyes picked up the blooming eruptions of volcanoes on the horizon.

The truth hit her hard, like a punch to the gut. Acasius was gone. //Simeon// was gone. Her steady rock in a sea of impermanence. And Tetravier felt //wrong//. Unstable. Chaotic. Before, when the Phoenix was missing, Tetravier felt unbalanced, but Cho had been sure that he was still on the planet, just hidden somehow. But now...her mind whirled and spun as ideas chased themselves around her brain.

//Simeon//. Of course! How could she have been so stupid? He was the key. She had felt a little ripple in Tetravier when Acasius appeared, but it was not enough to cause this amount of disruption. But Simeon...he must be the Phoenix in disguise! And now, he was gone, as if he had never existed, causing this havoc.

She started to sit up, anxious to try and help keep order, when a wave of blackness rolled over her. She blinked. What had she been thinking about? Well, it was no matter. She needed to get back home.