Sky Riders: The Rising Sun

After pulling his tunic back on, Nocens and Eliana followed Peior back down the dark and dank staircase. Eliana’s heart was beating rapidly inside of her chest, her frantic mind searching for a way to now free not only herself, but Caelum as well. She’d been so sure that she could get herself out of this situation. She’d rushed headlong into danger without a thought, and because of her selfish pride, Caelum was about to be tortured.

She reached out to Oriens with her mind, praying the sorcerer in front of her would not think to enter her thoughts again. “Oriens?” she called silently, hoping he was near enough to hear her still.

“Eliana!” his welcomed voice answered. “What’s happened? I lost contact with Caelum after you shut us out. I heard a commotion inside the palace.”

“He tried to attack Nocens. He stormed the palace alone. The Dark sorcerer we battled—Peior—he captured him. We’re headed to the dungeons now. They’re going to torture him, Oriens! What can I do?” Her silent voice was desperate, confused, and afraid.

“Calm yourself, Eliana,” Oriens responded in his deep, gentle voice. “We’ll find a way out of this.”

The tears were poised in her eyes, prepared to spill onto her cheeks. “How?”

“Stay in contact with me. I’ll follow your voice to find where you are.”

“The dungeons are underground, Oriens. How will you get in?”

“I will always find a way to get to you, Eliana.”

She accepted the statement without further argument. She trusted her dragon completely, and they had no alternate plan. They had reached the dungeons, and walked between the cells to the very end. Once again, Eliana found herself stopping in front of Ispera’s cell. The woman opened her violet eyes as Caelum’s limp form was thrown in front of her.

Peior sneered. “Behold, your prince.”

Ispera’s eyes widened and she looked at Eliana briefly. “Caelum?” she asked in her mind.

Eliana gave a small nod. “Yes…”

The sorcerer’s long, white fingers reached out and brushed the top of Caelum’s head once more. The blue eyes shot open and looked around frantically as he pushed himself up. Peior grabbed the elf’s fair face between his hands and jerked it in his direction.

“Hello, little prince,” he jeered. “You are going to tell me everything I wish to know.”

Caelum didn’t respond, but his expression was set in an expression of defiance. Peior let out a high-pitched laugh that made Eliana shiver. He pushed Caelum’s head away and took a step back. The sorcerer’s impossibly beautiful face was contorted into a frightening sneer as he circled his prey.

Caelum sat perfectly still in the center of the stone floor, not even following the black-cloaked figure with his eyes. His gaze had found Eliana, standing beside Nocens, and his eyes remained locked on her face.

“It will be alright,” she heard him whisper in her mind. He was trying to comfort her, to reassure her, even as he waited for the torture to come, even though it was because of her that he was kneeling there now. Then, he withdrew, walling off his mind from hers so that she could not enter or share his pain.

Peior stopped behind Caelum and pointed one long finger at the back of his head. His wicked smile grew broader, and a piercing scream filled the air. Caelum’s body arched backwards as he writhed in pain. His mouth was open, emitting that terrible animal-like wail of pain. He clutched has blonde hair, writhing, screaming, screaming, screaming…

Eliana pressed both of her hands to her mouth, holding back her own screams as the tears fell onto her cheeks. Every scream from Caelum’s lips made her shudder, sending aching pain through her chest. He was dying. She was dying. Peior lifted his hand and Caelum went limp, panting on the stone floor.

“Where is your Rider hiding?” the sorcerer demanded.

Caelum groaned, but did not answer. She’d expected Peior to look annoyed at Caelum’s silence, but the sorcerer seemed to grin with delight. He lifted his finger again and pointed it at the prone body that lay before him. Blood-curdling screams rent the air again as Caelum’s body twisted in pain. She couldn’t hold it back any long.

“Stop!” she screamed. “Please stop! Stop! You’re killing him!”

The black eyes turned to her curiously, but he did not remove whatever Dark magic it was that tortured the elf. She tried to run forward, but Nocens’ strong arms restrained her, seizing her by the waist.

“What’s the matter with you?” he asked furiously. “You’re the one who wanted to watch!”

“STOP!” she screamed again, pulling against the arms around her.

Peior just smiled, and Caelum screamed louder still, the sound echoing around the stone walls, tearing Eliana’s heart from her chest.

“CAELUM!” she screamed, pulling against Nocens’ arms. “CAELUM! PLEASE, LEAVE HIM ALONE!”

The pale hand jerked away from Caelum, and the elf’s twisted body lay still. Nocens released her with surprise, and she rushed forward, falling to her knees beside the unmoving body. She cradled his head in her arms, her tears falling onto his face.

“Caelum!” she shouted at his pale face. “Caelum, please, wake up. Please!”

“Who are you?” Nocens asked warily.

She looked up to see Peior’s black eyes watching her knowingly. He recognized her now. “I know who you are,” he said. “You are the elves’ Rider.”

A cold fear gripped her stomach, and the cloaked figure stepped towards her, raising a pale hand. Suddenly, a thunderous roar shook the entire dungeon. All eyes turned up to the ceiling as the stones above them burst inwards, showering the dungeon with debris.

Eliana threw herself over Caelum’s unmoving body, shielding him from the deluge. The stones showered down on her back, tearing at her skin. There was another roar, and she looked up again to see a furious golden face above her, rows of razor-sharp teeth bared in a terrifying snarl.

Nocens screamed in terror and bolted for the exit. More stones fell as Oriens’ claws pulled open more of the roof. Peior backed warily against one of the cells. Even the Dark sorcerer was unsure of how to fight a golden dragon that was crawling through the roof. Eliana quickly stood and sent a blast of fire at the lock on the cell before her, blasting the door open. Her eyes met Ispera’s.

“Help me!” she said hurriedly.

The elf woman rushed out of her cell as Eliana grabbed Caelum’s limp body under the arms. Ispera grabbed his legs and helped her lift him onto Oriens’ back. The dragon was too large to climb all the way into the narrow dungeon, but he rested his clawed front feet on the ground, giving them his bent leg as a step.

“Hurry!” Oriens called anxiously.

The stampeding of armored boots closed in on the dungeon, and soldiers appeared at the end of the stony corridor. They balked slightly at the sight of the golden dragon, but they quickly recovered and reached for bows and arrows. Dozens of arrows flew at Ispera and Eliana as they struggled to heave Caelum up into the saddle.

Ispera lifted one of her thin hands and flicked her wrist. The arrows turned and immediately flew back at their owners. There were exclamations of surprise as many soldiers ducked behind their wooden shield. Others did not move quickly enough, and they soon had their own arrows piercing their bodies.

At last, Eliana reached the saddle, pulling Caelum up in front of her. Ispera scrambled up behind her, tightening her emaciated arms around the girl’s waist. Once they were secure, Oriens heaved himself upwards, out of the dungeon, and immediately into the sky. The golden wings pounded at the air, leaving the palace and Vereor far below.

As they crossed over the city wall, Oriens said, “I can’t fly long with three passengers. It’s too much weight. I won’t make it back to Iterum.”

“We shouldn’t go to Iterum,” Eliana answered. “They know where it is and will head straight for us. We might be able to lose them if we go somewhere else. Fly south. I know where we can go.”

Oriens obeyed without question, turning south. Eliana’s body stung from the showering of stones she’d received, and her heart ached from watching Caelum’s torture. She closed her eyes and leaned her face close to his mouth. Over the chill wind, she felt the faint warmth of a breath caress her cheek. He was alive, but only barely so. Tears rolled down her face as she gently kissed his forehead, which felt hot against her lips.

“Please be okay,” she whispered to him.

“Do you love him?” Ispera asked suddenly form behind her.

“What?” Eliana replied, glancing over her shoulder in surprise.

“Prince Caelum,” she said. “Do you love him?”

Eliana looked down at the beautiful face, which was pale in the moonlight from above. “Yes,” she answered quietly.

The woman nodded understandingly, then changed the subject. “Where are we going, Rider Eliana?” she asked. There was something strange about the way the elf said her name; she said it the way the other elves said “Veholum,” as if it were a sacred word.

“To the place I was born,” Eliana answered. “A human village called Vegrandis.” Behind her, she heard Ispera draw a sharp breath. “Do you know it?” she asked.

“Yes,” came the quiet answer. “Yes, I… I do…”

Eliana heard the hesitation in the woman’s voice. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I have a friend there who will hide us. No human will harm you.”

Ahead of them, Eliana could see the valley in which Vegrandis was nestled. “Make sure you aren’t seen, Oriens,” she told her dragon. “The last dragon to pass over this village was your mother, and they killed her and your siblings because of it. Stay out of sight and land in the woods on the northern edge of the village. Otium’s home is there.”

Oriens brought his wings in enough so that they dropped to just above the level of the trees, skimming above their bare, leafless branches. They swept down into the valley and Vegrandis became visible below them—a cluster of hunching shadows against the white snow.

They dropped below the tree line and Oriens carefully settled onto the ground. Eliana could feel his fatigue form the long flight and the extra weight he carried. He bent his knees so that she could slide to the ground more easily, carefully pulling Caelum with her.

Ispera followed, once again taking hold of Caelum’s booted feet, and helped Eliana carry him towards the village. At last, Eliana’s home of fourteen years appeared before them. She pushed the door open with her back, and it greeted her with a quiet creaking, seeming to welcome her home.

They settled Caelum’s limp, unmoving body onto the sofa. Then Ispera dropped into a nearby rocking chair with a heavy sigh. Eliana looked at her as the older woman leaned back, her eyes closed. She must have been exhausted. She’d been starved and tortured for nearly eight years. The escape and the journey had likely wearied her.

“Who’s down there?” an anxious voice called from the top of the rickety flight of wooden steps.

“Otium?” Eliana called back, straightening from where she knelt by the sofa.

“Who’s there?” the frightened voice repeated.

“Otium, it’s me. It’s Eliana.”

Light footsteps hurried quickly down the stairs and the familiar old face appeared before her. The old widow smiled broadly and rushed forward, taking the girl into her arms.

“Eliana!” she cried. “Oh, I thought I would never see you again, my dear, dear girl! Teleas told the villagers that you disappeared on the hunt.” Otium pulled back and gazed up at Eliana’s face, taking it between her hands. “I thought I had lost you forever.”

Eliana smiled tearfully back at her lifelong guardian, touching one of her hands with her own. “I disappeared for a reason, Otium,” she said. “Let me show you.”

She took the wizened old hand and led the woman out the back door through which she had entered. In the darkness of her house, Otium did not even see Caelum and Ispera. Eliana led her to the edge of the woods, then paused.

“Otium, you must promise not to scream,” she said in a low, calm voice. “I promise you, he is not what you think. We have been wrong about his kind all along. He is intelligent, and kind, and gentle.”

“What are you—?” Otium began. Then Eliana guided her between the trees, and Oriens’ great, golden form was before them. Otium gasped loudly, her hands flying up to her mouth.

“It’s okay!” Eliana said, hurrying to touch her dragon’s golden snout, to show her it was safe. “His name is Oriens. He’s my dragon.” She held out her right hand, showing the mark to her. “I’m a Rider, Otium.”

The aged hands fell away from the woman’s mouth, but her eyes remained wide with shock. She took a slow step forward, then another, until she was standing directly in front of Oriens’ curious green eyes.

“Otium,” Eliana said, “this is Oriens. Oriens, this is Otium—the woman who raised me most of my life.”

Oriens gave a soft thrum in his throat and gently touched the woman’s mind. Eliana could sense his curiosity and uncertainty; would she even hear him? Still unsure, Oriens projected his thoughts to both women’s minds. “It is very good to meet you, Otium.”

The old woman let out a squeak of surprise, and Eliana knew that she had heard. She was beginning to worry that Otium was going to have a heart attack when the woman finally said in a quiet, shaky voice, “You… you as well… Oriens.”

Eliana sighed and hugged Oriens’ snout. “I never did thank you,” she said to him silently. “You saved Caelum’s life, and mine. You were wonderful.”

The dragon rumbled happily deep in his throat.

She returned her attention to the old woman before her. “I need your help,” Eliana said. “My friend, Caelum, has been injured. He’s a prince from Iterum, the elf city. If we don’t act quickly, I… I’m afraid we may lose him.”

Otium stared at her in surprise and confusion. “Iterum? Prince? Eliana, what have you been doing all these months?”

“Please, Otium,” the girl begged, stepping towards the woman and taking her hands in her own. “I promise, I will explain it all later. But if Caelum doesn’t get help, he could die.”

The woman sighed. “Very well. Where is he? I’ll see what I can do.”

Eliana ran back into the house, pulling Otium along behind her. When she saw Caelum, the old woman shook her head. “He doesn’t look well,” she said gravely, listening to his faint heartbeat. “What happened to him?”

The Rider paused, trying to find a way to describe what she had witnessed in the dungeons. Then a faint, weak voice answered from the corner, “He was tortured by Dark magic. No human remedies can repair the damage that’s been done. He needs an elven Healer’s magic.”

Otium turned towards the voice in surprise, trying to peer through the darkness. “Who’s there?”

The woman in the rocking chair stood and drew a step closer. “Hello, Otium,” she said, her voice tinged with an emotion Eliana couldn’t identify. “Don’t you recognize me?”

The old woman stared for a moment, straining to see in the faint light. Then she gasped and rushed towards the thin elf, embracing her tightly. Eliana stared in surprise and confusion.

Otium turned to the Rider with joyful tears in her eyes. “Eliana, why didn’t you tell me you had Ispera with you?”

Eliana looked between them, trying to figure out what she had missed. “Do you know her?”

Otium blinked. “Eliana, don’t you… Don’t you know who this is?”

The girl just continued to stare.

Ispera spoke again, her voice soft. “Eliana… I’m your mother.”

She stared blankly back at her. Surely she’d misunderstood. “What?”

“I’m your mother,” she repeated. “I was married to Tego, your father. You were barely a year old when the villagers chased me away.”

Eliana took a slow step backwards. It wasn’t possible… Her mother? A starved and beaten prisoner? A former concubine of Corpanis? She had been in Vereor for a decade before being discovered, but she had never tried to come back to Vegrandis? Never tried to contact Eliana or her father? Her frantic, confused heart rebelled against it, and before she knew what she was doing, Eliana turned and bolted from the door.

She sprinted straight into the woods, to Oriens’ side. He watched her approach, knowing what was happening in her thoughts, and he lowered a wing to his side for her. She dove beneath it, hiding beneath its golden expanse. The dragon stuck his head under his wing, looking at his Rider with an emerald eye.

“Little one,” he said soothingly, “why do you hide from your heart’s desire?”

“It can’t be,” Eliana replied quietly, shaking her head, hugging her knees to her chest. “She cannot be my mother.”

“She knew your father’s name. Otium knew her. She knew the age you were when your mother was driven from Vegrandis. Eliana… you know it must be the truth.”

“But she was there, in Vereor, for years! She was so close, but she never came for me!”

“You know that she would have if she’d been able to. Even before she was a prisoner, you know she would have been kept under close watch. You know as well as anyone how difficult it can be to get away when you are a concubine to a member of the emperor’s family.”

Eliana did not reply, but curled up against Oriens’ warm belly, which radiated heat from the fire inside of it—the fire that he had not yet learned how to release. She knew that it bothered him to still not be able to breathe fire. He often attempted it when he thought she was not watching him. He was nearly eight months old now, as large as a small house, and he felt that he should be able to release the fire that stirred inside him.

After a long moment of silence, he said, “You forgot the books.”

“Books?” she repeated.

“The volumes from the palace libraries.”

She had entirely forgotten the ancient texts, the memory buried beneath everything else that had occurred. She crawled out from under Oriens’ wing, and the dragon arched his golden neck, pointing with his snout to the saddle on his back.

“Caelum came and tied them to my saddle when you went to search the dungeons for Ater. It wasn’t long after that that you cut yourself off from us, and I lost contact with him. They made it quite difficult to fly, especially with three passengers.”

Eliana went to the far side of the saddle to find a bundled cloth—Caelum’s brown cloak—tied around the old manuscripts and secured with a saddle strap. She carefully removed them and settled them on the snowy ground. She pulled out one of the books and opened it at random, reading to avoid reentering Otium’s house.

"There is destruction all around us. We never dreamed of something like this happening. Our friends and allies, the humans, have turned against us unexpectedly. Iterum is in shambles. The sacred forests have been cut down and burned by the human Riders and their dragons. Those who once helped to protect us now destroy us.

"They are led by the human prince, who Rides his red dragon ahead of the rest in the attacks. He is merciless, killing all in his path. The elven Riders are at a loss. We have no defenses against such an attack. Why, oh why, would our friends treat us this way?"

She picked up another book, flipping through its pages for several minutes before finding something of interest.

"The time for compromise and debate is long since past. We will attack Vereor, return the favor of havoc which they so unjustly wreaked upon Iterum. I will lead them. I will Ride at the head of the armies. The humans will sorely regret ever turning against us. And so, the war begins."

She snapped the book closed, the history of the Great War slowly piecing itself together in her mind. Nocens’ ancestor had led the first attack. She didn’t know what lie he’d spread to convince the other Riders and humans to turn on the elves—she probably never would—but there was no doubt in her mind that the humans had drawn first blood.

The human prince of that day, whoever he may have been, had been a power-hungry tyrant. He didn’t want to only claim the throne to the human empire, but the elven kingdom as well. He’d wanted all of Paerolia under his hand.

Nocens had been right in saying the elves had attacked Vereor, but it had been in retaliation only. However, she still did not know the reason for losing the alliance with the dragons.

Listening to her thoughts, Oriens said, “I cannot answer that, despite my born knowledge of my species’ history. I can only assume that that means my mother did not know the reason either, that it was lost, just as the reasons for the Great War were lost.”

Eliana reached for another book, praying that she could find more answers there. The first contained details of battles between the humans and elves, as did the second. Finally, she found a volume that contained what she was looking for.

"Our Riders are gone. The elven Riders are entirely extinct and the human Riders are quickly following. The only one left is the emperor, the one who killed the other Riders. He has the only tamed dragon. His power is unparalleled by any.

"The dragons have fled from our old friendship. They no longer trust us. They are being slaughtered in their dens, their nests destroyed, and they cannot know who does this to them. The humans hunt them like simple beasts. They fear that the elves will tame another dragon, begin to raise up Riders against them once more. The dragons are slowly disappearing from the land. I cannot know how much longer their species will survive in the face of the human brutality. I can only assume that it will not be long."

She sighed, closing the book, having found the answer to the question that had plagued her mind since she’d first been bonded with Oriens. The humans had begun killing dragons so that the elves couldn’t have another Rider. And the tradition had continued through the centuries—hunters forgot why they hunted, soldiers forgot why they fought.

The three races had fought for nearly five centuries because of one man’s desire for power—a man who had long since died, leaving monsters like Nocens to continue leading the futile fight.

Eliana retied the cloak around the books and stood, filled with new determination. It was time to end it. No more senseless killing. No more hunted dragons. No more wars. She directed her hand at the books. The earth shifted underneath the piles, rolling along, carrying the stolen volumes towards Otium’s home.

“Time to face your mother?” her dragon asked in her mind.

She sighed and faced him, scratching him under the chin. “Yes…” she answered slowly. “You are right, Oriens. This is what I have wanted all of my life—to find my mother again. And I have no reason to harbor anything against her, after all she has suffered.” She kissed his scaly nose. “Thank you, Oriens,” she said quietly. “You are a wonderful help to me.”

He closed his eyes happily and nuzzled her shoulder. “That is why I am here, little one.”

She quickly removed the saddle from his back and, resting it on her hip, headed towards the door. The volumes had deposited themselves outside of the door, the earth being unable to move it further. Eliana conjured a flurry of wind to lift the books over the threshold, and pushed the door open with her foot.

A fire was now blazing in Otium’s small fireplace and candles had been lit around the room. A black pot boiled over the stove, Otium’s small form bent over it as she stirred the contents. Eliana allowed the texts to settle on the floor against the wall and set her saddle beside them.

Her eyes turned to the sofa where Caelum lay. Ispera was bent over him, her ear pressed to his chest, her eyes closed as she listened carefully. Hesitantly, Eliana stepped towards her. The elf opened her eyes and stood upright, looking at the Rider.

Eliana suddenly realized that Ispera’s eyes were the exact same shade of amethyst as her own. Beneath the lines and dirt on her face, she began to recognize the similarities between them—the shape of her mouth, the slight upwards turn at the end of her nose.

Ispera spoke. “It’s difficult for me to assess the extent of the damage done to his mind,” she said. “His fever is high, but we can’t do much more than wait and see what happens.”

The Rider nodded slowly. “Are you a Healer?”

“I used to be,” Ispera answered with a nod of her own. “When I lived in Iterum, before I met Tego.”

Eliana took another few steps forward until she stood beside her, looking into a face in which she could see so much of herself. Sudden tears filled her eyes as she tried to speak. The words came out barely above a whisper.

“I’ve missed you, Mother.”

Ispera smiled and pulled Eliana into her arms, which felt somehow familiar. She kissed the top of her head, and she heard her whisper, “My sweet child. My little Eliana. How I’ve missed you.”