MakiaVi: The Frozen King - Chapter Eight (Patreon)

 
The team flew north until sunrise with Edion trailing behind the rest of them as he struggled to stay up. “You alright there man?” Zan asked. 
“Yeah I’m fine.” Edion replied with a yawn. “Keep going.” Edion tried his best to keep his eyes open. The sleepless nights took a toll on his body. His limbs became heavy and dragged him downwards. Edion fought to keep his eyes open. He slowly lost altitude before barreling towards the ground.
Zan looked back again and noticed Edion falling hundreds of feet below him. He rushed down to try and catch him but could not make it in time. Edion hit the ground with a loud crash. Once the rest of the team reached him, Edion was sound asleep in the crater he made during impact. 
“I guess we should take a break.” Bellatrix said. They all sat in a circle next to Edion and pulled out some fruit from their bags for breakfast. 
“So tell me, what is Zekul like?” Zan asked Crea. 
She paused her meal and looked up to the sky. “It’s a beautiful place. A paradise covered in snow. There is plenty of game to hunt, gorgeous mountains, and friendly people all over. At least, that’s what it used to be.”
“We will fix this mess.” Bellatrix said. “Don’t you worry.” 
Crea smiled. “Thank you. This will not be easy though. Regardless of how awful of a leader my father is, he still has an entire army at his disposal, not to mention my brothers and sisters.”
“I meant to ask about that.” Riza said. “What exactly happened between Edion and your family?” 
“Years ago, my father left to go on a pilgrimage to the west. When he came back, it was if he was a totally different person. He became cold and ruthless, his policies all focused on military strength. A few days after he returned, Edion fled the castle with my mother. I was told that they had betrayed the realm and was ordered by my father to bring them in. Once I had caught up with them, I fought my mother as Edion fled to the south. After I lost, she told my my father’s true intentions.” Crea paused. “He wants to wage war on all non-dragon species. He want’s dragons to be back on top like they were hundreds of years ago. To prepare, he has almost run all of our natural resources dry using our people as slaves. Zekul’s economy is in shambles.” She looked over to Edion. “Since he is the eldest son, Edion is the only one that can stop this. He can make a claim to the throne and overthrow my father.”
Riza put a hand to the ground. “Get ready guys, we have company. Four horsemen.” 
Zan gave her a confused look. “How do you know?” 
“There is no time to explain!” She ran to Edion and violently shook him. “Wake up! We need to get out of sight!” 
Edion sat up and wiped his eyes. “What?”
“Come on!” Riza grabbed his hand and pulled him into the bushes while the others found their own hiding spots. A few moments passed before four knights covered in shining armor rode into the clearing. They circled around the crater and came to a stop.
“Holy knights of the Six.” Edion said.
“What are they doing here?” Riza asked.
One of the knights spoke. “This must have been where it landed. Fan out! It could not have gone far.” The knights rode around the area prodding the nearby shrubs with their lances. One of them hit something solid. 
“Ow! Watch it!” Zan said. 
The knight backed up and readied his weapon. “Come out with your hands where i can see them!” Zan stepped out with his hands over his head. The knight scoffed. “He isn't the one we are looking for.” 
Zan smiled nervously. “Who would you be looking for exactly?” 
“Two dragon princesses from the north. They are wanted for crimes against the Order. Have you seen them?”
“I’m sorry to say I have not.” Zan grinned. “I just landed here from the south.”
The knight looked to his captain. “Should I kill him my lord? Surely he must be punished for the damage to the realm.” Edion prepared to jump out and help Zan. Riza grabbed him by the arm and shook her head. 
Zan pulled back his vest to reveal his tattoo. “Actually I am a MakiaVi member. I ran into some trouble and had to make a bit of a crash landing.” 
The captain grumbled as he inspected Zan’s tattoo. “It’s legit. Move out! We have no business here.” 
The knights rode off into the forest. Once they were out of sight, everyone came out of their hiding spots. 
“That was close.” Crea said.
Riza jabbed Zan in the shoulder. “Nice job out there. First day out and you’re already lying to holy men.”
Edion turned to Serada. “He was looking for you two. Did you do anything on your way down here?” 
“What? Of course not!” Serada replied. Her shaky voice betrayed her. Edion gave his sister a stern look. Serada scratched the back of her head. “Well, we may have…borrowed some supplies during our trip. But we really needed it. We lost our coin purses in the fight.” 
Edion’s eyes darted between his sisters. “Fight? What fight?” 
Crea let out a nervous laugh. “Well… we kind of… destroyed a church.”
Edion furiously ran his hands through his hair. “How in the name of Xarada did you destroy a church?”
Crea looked at the ground. “Father sent mercenaries after us. They knocked me out of the sky and we crashed into the church. They fought us in there until it eventually came down.” 
Edion put a hand on his forehead and sighed. “Fantastic. Well let’s get going before we run into any more knights.”
The team gathered their things and continued their journey north. Below them were acres of lush forest that seemed to go on forever. They flew until the setting sun cast an amber glow across the sky. Bellatrix pointed to a small clearing next to a river. “Let’s stop there for the night.” 
The team delicately glided to the campsite and set down their bags. “Alright!” Bellatrix said. “Time to set up camp. Edion and Crea, see if you can catch any fish for dinner. Serada and Riza, set up the tents. Zan and I will take care of the fire.” 
Everyone except Riza started towards their tasks. She glared at Bellatrix. “Who the hell made you queen?” 
“I don’t see anyone else complaining.” Bellatrix said. “The only person with the problem is you.” 
“Oh so you just take over by default?” Riza stood only inches away from Bellatrix. “Where do you get off acting so high and mighty? You are the same rank as us. You have no right to give us orders.”
Both of their faces were contorted in anger. Edion flew in between them and pushed them away from each other. “Look, we are burning daylight here. For now, we will go along with with Bellatrix’s plan. We will sort this out later.” Bellatrix and Riza traded angry glances and went their separate ways.
Bellatrix and Zan walked up to a small tree near the camp. With one swipe of her sword, Bellatrix cut the tree down. Together they started chopping it up into firewood. “Damn Riza.” Bellatrix said. “Who does she think she is?” 
“Well to be fair, you have been a bit bossy lately.” Zan said. Bellatrix stopped cutting and glared at him. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that. But Riza doesn’t seem too keen on taking orders.” 
Bellatrix scoffed. “If she can’t follow simple commands then she doesn’t belong on this team.” She split another log.
“You just have to change your approach. Ordering her around just isn’t going to work. Ease up a bit and try to turn your commands into friendly suggestions.” 
Bellatrix sighed. “Whatever.”
Edion stood in the river attempting to catch fish with his hands. Meanwhile, Crea sat on the riverbank, holding a fishing rod. “You realize there are more civilized ways to do this right?”
Edion shot his hands into the water. “Yeah, but where’s the fun in that?”
Crea stared absently in the water. “Tell me. What ever happened to mother?” 
Edion took a break. “Your guess is as good as mine. I haven’t seen her since you stopped us. I was hoping she would eventually make it to the MakiaVi.” 
“I just want you to know, I’m sorry for everything I did. If there is anything I can do-” 
“Stop.”
“But there has to be something I can do.” Crea said. “I feel so awful for hurting you. I just want it to go away. Please just tell me what to do!”
Edion stood in silence. “Get us to Xarada and maybe I can start trusting you again.” Crea nodded as she continued fishing.
Serada and Riza were setting up the tents. They hammered the stakes into the ground in silence. “So.” Serada said. “I see you are a hybrid.”
Riza stopped her work and glared at her. “Yeah. What about it?”
“Nothing. Nothing. I just have never seen one before. I meant no offence.” Serada wiped a tear from her eye. “I guess I never got to see much being stuck in that miserable castle.” 
“I know how you feel.” Riza said. “I was on a farm my whole life. It was so lonely out there. I didn’t even have any friends or siblings to talk to.”
“Looks like you have plenty of friends now.”
Riza looked over to see Edion and Crea walking back to camp carrying wicker baskets filled with fish. At the same time, Zan and Bellatrix made there way back holding armfuls of firewood for the night. The three tents were set up in a circle around a firepit. “Wow, this place looks great.” Edion said. He set the fish down. 
“Yes. Good job.” Bellatrix added. 
Riza grinned. “Glad it’s to your liking my lady.” Bellatrix ignored her insult. 
They sat around the fire and cooked the fish they caught. Once everyone finished their food, they put out the fire and split off to their tents. 
Edion laid down in his bed wide awake. After about an hour of tossing and turning, he decided to give up and go outside. He opened the tent and was greeted by the darkness of the forest. He could barely see a few feet ahead of him. He looked up to the sky and saw smoke dancing in the moonlight. As he followed the smoke, he stumbled on the invisible obstacles at his feet. 
He saw Riza sitting under a tree, working on her smoke tricks. “What are you making?” Edion asked. His words broke her concentration. Riza sighed as her construct dissipated. Edion gasped. “Oh sorry. I didn’t mean to-” 
“It’s fine. What are you doing up?” 
“Just out for a walk. I’ve been having some trouble sleeping lately.” Riza patted the grass next to her. Edion took a seat. 
“Worried about your family?” Riza asked. 
“It’s just… I’m a bit scared about confronting my father. His power is far above mine. I’m not sure how to defeat him.” 
Riza grabbed Edion’s hand. “Let me show you something.” Riza put Edion’s hand to the tree. “What do you feel?” 
“A tree?” 
Riza laughed. “No I mean what do you feel on the inside? Try to sense the viren flowing through it.” Edion focused. It was faint, but he could sense the veins of viren that resided in the tree. It felt like a steady heartbeat that pumped the power into it. 
“You’re right. I can feel it.” Edion said. 
Riza smiled. “Viren flows through every living thing and all things on the earth are connected through it. If you can sense the viren around you, it’s possible see things more clearly than you would with your eyes. My father told me that once you get good enough, you can feel what going on in another person’s body before they even know it themselves.” Riza looked up to the sky. “You can see it all. Every breath, every muscle twitch, and eventually, even their thoughts and feelings. Sadly, I’m not there yet.” 
Edion’s heart skipped a beat he gazed at Riza in the moonlight. It complimented her in a way he had not noticed before. He shook his head to snap himself out of his infatuation. “So if I master this, I can defeat my father?”
Riza shook her head. “I’m saying if you master this, you will be able to defeat an entire army.” 
Edion buzzed with excitement. “Really? An entire army?” 
“Calm down. This is a difficult technique to master. I’ve been at it for three years and I still can only see but so far, let alone read minds.” Edion breathed a sigh of relief. 
Riza grinned. “But sometimes, I don’t even have to.” They shared laugh and talked well into the night.

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