Ritual
#2 of Return
Here is the next chapter and the last chapter before my Basic training. So the next one will not be out for a while.
Late at night around the world all those who knew the arts of magic and mysticism felt a ripple in the balance of power between the light and the dark. The ones who felt it the most were the two divine ones and their children. The divine ones called out to their children to meet them, but what they did not know was that one more heard the call. They would have to discuss with them how to proceed in figuring out what it was that was causing such an imbalance in power. As the divine ones prepared for the arrival of their children. While they prepared someone else was preparing for the event as well.
Deep inside a cave there was a chamber that was lit with the unnatural glow of magic. Inside the room stood the black dragon Xaentrick who was looking at the orb that held the shinning light of Johns soul. He was pondering on what to do with the soul. There were so many choices ranging from simply destroying it to using it to fuel one of his more powerful spells. There was a small twinkle in his eye when he thought of what to do with him. It was simple yet it would also prove to be the best way to use the soul. He would create a new body for it but the problem was that whatever body he put it in the body would just change into its original form.
It took a little bit of thinking but he thought of a way to fix that. He would be able to use some old magic to change the soul before it entered the new body. It would not take long to prepare and cast but he would need a female to collect another critical ingredient from. That was not a problem if his mate was still in this world. She would be overly joyful at his return. She was the only one of the mortals that did not see him as a monster and for that he had taken her from them and changed her. He found himself laughing at the thought of her still being alive, surly they had done something to imprison her after they had him, but it could not hurt to investigate.
As night fell across the land Xaentrick decided it would be best if he moved around during the night so he would not attract attention to himself. The first stop was a nearby town, there he would visit the alchemist to gather supplies then he would look around to see if he could find any info on his mate. It did not take long to travel to the town when one can walk through shadows as if they were doorways. He came out on the other side of the main gate so he would have to locate the alchemists shop in the air. Crouching for a moment he jumped into the air where he began to beat his wings and took flight above the city. Above the city Xaentrick could see the signs on the buildings easier; however the alchemist shop was not the first thing that he saw.
What he saw was a statue that was near the edge of the town. The base of the statue was covered in overgrowth from the years of neglect. It was a statue of his mate, but she was bound with her arms and wings around a pole. Shackles were place around her ankles and had chains connecting them to the pole. At the base of the statue was a small inscription "Mortals no not what she hath done but what they know is that she hath angered the divine ones." Closing his eyes he concentrated until a red glow began to emit from his hand. Bringing his hand up to the statue he scanned the statue for any signs of life. He was over joyed when he got a positive reaction. He knew why she was like this but he did not know what curse was being used to hold her there. However he thought of a way to get her back, if it was his brothers that imprisoned her there then they could release her as well.
Reluctantly he left his imprisoned mate to find the alchemists shop. It did not take long for him to find it from the air but he could see several spells placed along its walls that would prevent a forceful entry. Looking at the spells carefully he could see that they were activated and deactivated at the casters command. If he tried to force his way in he would be hit by the spell and become paralyzed until the caster came and released him. That would not do at all, he needed the ingredients and he needed them soon. He could wait till the morning and return and take the ingredients later. Till then he would just return to his mate and wait till he could get what he needed.
Landing next to his imprisoned mate, Xaentrick looked into her cold expressionless eyes before slowly sinking into the shadow cast by her. Unbeknownst to Xaentrick inside the statue there was a black dragoness floating in an endless beyond; her only relief was the window that showed what was in front her. She was shocked to see that her mate was alive but it shamed her that he had found her in such a state. Tears began to form in her eyes as she saw him sink into the ground in front of her. He would most likely find another to replace her since she was no use to him like this. With that in mind she broke down sobbing as he completely disappeared into her shadow.
The sun rose too soon for Xaentrick comfort. He hated when he had to get up early but since he had slept inside of a shadow he really had no choice in the matter. Rising up out of the shadow he stretched his arms and wings before heading over to the alchemist's store. As he stood outside the door he kneeled down and stuck his hand into his shadow and brought it back with a small green velvet pouch. Opening the pouch he could see that it filled with a fair amount of gold coins. With that in hand he pushed open the door to the store and saw the owner behind the counter. The owner was a reptile that was covered in green scales and wore a gold robe that had ancient symbols sewn into it.
The owner looked over the dragon that had just entered the store. He did not look like he would cause trouble but there was something about him that he could not put his claw on. Something about this dragon seemed evil. He watched as the dragon looked around picking up some things as he went along. They were nothing special just base ingredients that all mages and alchemists used. When he got to the counter he never said a word, he just waited as the owner tallied the total and left after he had paid. Watching him leave the owner saw something interesting, the dragon dropped the pouch that he had pulled the coins out of onto the ground only it disappeared in his shadow.
As Xaentrick exited the store he smiled as part of his plan was complete now all he had to do was wait for the date of his family meeting, He knew how to get them to free his mate. It was simple just use a memory to create an image that he could use to scare them into releasing her. Returning to his home he put the ingredients into a small bowl that was on a small pillar. Them he held out his hand where a small blade formed from the shadows and cut along his forearm letting the purple glowing blood flow down his arm and into the bowl filling it. Chanting a few words the blood in the bowl changed from purple to black that emitted a faint white glow. Carefully he placed the orb that contained John's soul into it and left.
As he exited his lair he felt something he had not felt in forever. He felt hungry for the first time since he had been imprisoned. Smiling with a toothy grin he leapt into the air and flew off towards the forest in search of some prey. When he could not see anything from the air because of the trees he decided to do it his way. Landing in a small clearing near the center if the forest and walked over to the shadows that the trees were creating. When he reached the shadows he literally dived into them where he began to move around unseen. It did not take long for him to spot something that he could eat. A doe was lying down in the tall grass. Silently Xaentrick moved through the shadows until he was directly underneath of it. Suddenly the doe's eyes widened before they closed and its head hit the ground limp.
There were four spikes sticking up through the doe's body. When the wind picked up it caused the limbs of the trees to sway back and forth. As they were swaying back and forth some of the light got through and hit the spike. When it hit the spikes they just dissolved into nothing. Rising up Xaentrick smiled at his kill it, had been a while since he had enjoyed the pleasure of killing something. Turning the deer so that it was on its back he took the claw on his right hands pointer finger and cut through the deer exposing the deer's inside to him. Reaching inside he pulled out the heart and some of the arteries that were attached to it. Biting it in half he swallowed the chunk whole and did the same to the other half. Then he sat down and began to eat the deer. Blood soon covered his arms and mouth as he ate. He took his time when it came to the stomach as he had to cut it and let all the contents out before he ate it. That step was not needed but he never did like the taste of stomach acid.
When he had eaten his fill he stood up and brushed himself off and for the first time realized he was still wearing the dark green cargo shorts from when he took his new body. He liked the way he looked in them so he left them the way they were but he decided they needed something more. So he began to wave his hand around in the air. The shadows in front of him began to swirl and push upwards until the shadow was now floating in the air then with the flick of his wrist the shadow flowed over to him. When it connected with his shorts purple runes where left where it had passed over. With his alteration complete he grabbed the shadow with his right hand where it circled the center of his forearm. Forming a thick band where two tendrils snaked out, one on each side. They began to spiral down his arm each one going in the opposite direction so it created a helix pattern down to his wrist. With the last bit of the shadow it formed a jewel that sat between the tendrils in the outside of his arm where it turned a light red color.
With his arm band complete he decided to head back to his lair and finish with what he had started with John. Quickly returning to his lair he made his way over to the bowl that currently held Johns soul. Dipping his hand in the bowl he grabbed the orb and pulled it out. The orb had changed in size and color. Now it was a translucent purple color and was about 6 inches in diameter. The light inside was a yellow in color signifying that it was confused. Xaentrick smiled as he inspected the altered soul and was ready to proceed with the next step. Removing the bowl he placed the orb back on the pedestal. His only problem was that his mate was trapped but come tomorrow that would no longer be the case. Moving to another room he looked around to see that it was his old bedchamber but it was barren now. Bringing his hand up in front of him he concentrated and then quickly brought them above his head. In the center of the room a huge shadow formed and then quickly rose up. The shadows then receded revealing a huge octagonal bed that would fit two adult dragons in it. Getting on it he walked to the center where he lay down and fell asleep.
Xaentrick awoke with a start as he sat up. He was having a nightmare, that was something he had not had in a while. It had startled him for the first time since he could remember. He waved his and opened a portal that showed a forest that was fairly dark but he could see sunlight poking through the trees. Closing it he got up and went over to pedestal that held the orb. He placed it in the pocket that was in the middle of his left leg. Today he could fix two problems with one go. Sinking into the shadows inside his lair he was eager to get this day over so he could continue with his plan. Today his mate would be free; today his family would find out he had returned.
When he arrived he could see that he was late as his family was already there. His brothers were scattered about Luminarus was in front of their parents with Kale and Xenthroes next to him. Durndel and Perion were standing behind them not paying attention from the looks of it. Luminarus was a polished gold in color with the same dull silver bands as Xaentrick. Kale was green in color with brown bands on his stomach and chest. Xenthroes who was no stretching had Purple scale covering him with white bands on him. Durndel was playing around with a few fireballs as he listened. The light from the fire was reflecting off of his red scales and caused the orange bands on his stomach to almost glow. Perion was playing around with some water he had floating above Durndel, before he could Durndel turned the water to steam with his fire. With his little trick foiled Perion went over to sit next to Kale. Perion was an aqua blue in color with black bands on his stomach that was speckled with green dots.
His parents were larger then his brothers as they were in there feral forms unlike his brothers. The larger of the two was his father who was covered in black scales that were speckled with white that made it look like stars in the night sky. The bands that were on him were white along with the two horns on his head. His mother was the smaller white one. She was almost the exact opposite of his father with her white scales and black bands but instead of horns she had a crest. As they discussed what was going on I heard them talk about the balance of good and evil. They spoke of how it was beginning to become unbalance. It was Luminarus who spoke about the balance but it was his father who told them the truth. He spoke of how the balance was not being distorted but it was reverting to normal. That it had been unbalanced for hundreds of years.
As they discussed it deep in the back of his fathers mind he knew what it was. He knew who had returned and he knew he would show up. What he did not know was how angry his son would be. They had imprisoned him because he had started a war that had devastated one of the most beautiful parts of the world. Just to make sure no one would release him early they sent his soul into another plane of existence till they felt it was time for him to be released. In his deep thought he noticed something on the edge of his vision. Turning his head he saw a lone shadow. Looking at the shadow he knew what it was. It was his son; he had come to the meeting like he was raised to. Turning away he raised his front right leg then flicked it before setting it back down.
Xaentrick watched as his father flicked his foot then set it down. Not realizing what he was doing. Suddenly Xaentrick was ripped from the shadows and slowly brought before his parents. In a booming voice his father spoke. "It appears we have a visitor". All of his brothers eyes went wide as they saw there brother. "Now that you are here the rest of you can leave us." With that said his mother closed her eyes and with a flash all but he and his parents were gone. As his father set him down he looked at him noticing that his father did not look surprised nor angry at him. Before Xaentrick could speak his father beat him to it. "You have come back, how I will not ask but what we know is that you are most likely upset. However you may feel, those feelings are irrelevant. You know why we imprisoned you and cast you from the plane of existence. We knew you would return because like us you are part of the balance of power."
Xaentrick looked at his father as he spoke but looked away from his fathers face so he would not make eye contact. From the way his father spoke he knew that he was not angry with him. "Your mother and I are surprised you managed to get back to this plane with what has happened recently but since you are back it should resolve itself." That caught him off guard, He was not aware when he John was ripped from his home but he knew that it had taken him years just to learn how to alter his surrounding to create the necessary requirements to complete the spell. "Now my son how is it that you have returned?"
When his father questioned him on how he had returned he told him how he had altered the surroundings in the cave so he could return. How he had taken the body of one of the sentient beings and reformed his body. When he got to the part about how he had found his mate He asked his father if he could free her. He knew his father might not help so he had to prepare a backup plan just incase. When his father agreed to help him Xaentrick felt joy for the first time in years. Opening a portal Xaentrick pulled the statue of his mate through so that his father could release her. "Before you do anything father what is it that she did to be imprisoned like this?"
With a soft sigh his father revealed what she had done while his mother went to work on freeing her. "She attempted to destroy your brothers because of the fact that they had helped take you away from her. When she confronted Luminarus she tricked him then bound him so he could not do anything while she began to torture him. She was trying to cut through his hide when we arrived. So we turned her to stone so that she would not hurt your brothers." This surprised him. He knew that she loved him but to do that just because she was separated from him. As he watched his mother put a claw tip on the head. Where she had put her claw cracks began to form, slow at first but then they began to rapidly spread over the entirety of the stone.
Pieces of stone began to fall from his mate revealing the violate scales that covered her. Soon larger chunks were falling off of her until she was free. Xaentrick watched as she fell unconscious towards the ground, before she hit it he ran to her. Catching her he held her close to him. He cradled her head as he held her never wanting to let go. His father walked up to them and spoke. "You may have the area surrounding your lair, but be warned if you attempt to create another disturbance like before we will do far worse than just banishing you to another plane. However I feel you have changed. Your aura may be darker but the love for this female shows me that there is hope for you. Now leave us until we call again." When his father turned around there was a bright flash that blinded Xaentrick.
He felt the temperature around him drop as he arrived where ever it was his father sent him. It took a while but his vision returned to find himself on his bed with his mate lying next to him. She was unconscious still but she was alive and that was all that mattered. Reaching into the pocket and pulled out the orb and held it in front of his face. He looked at her and then to the orb. Dropping the orb into his shadow it disappeared. Pulling his mate into his arms he lay down and covered them with his wings. Slowly he fell asleep with her in his arms.
Hours later Saydra awoke in total darkness. It was odd usually when she awoke it was dawn. She felt something around her shift position. This startled her more than anything. Looking down she could see two arms wrapped around her. Unable to look up she shifted about surprised that her body was so stiff. Eventually she managed to free herself from the persons grip. Turning around she saw the face of her mate. Tears began to form in her lavender eyes as she looked at him. He had not replaced her instead he had rescued her. She hugged him close to her which caused him to wake. Opening his eyes Xaentrick saw his mate hugging him. Gently he began to stroke her head which caused her to look up at him.
As they gazed into each others eyes Xaentrick lovingly licked the tip of her snout before she let her tongue snake out and twirl around his. Gently they kissed which made it seem as if time had stopped. When they separated she hugged him again before she spoke. "I could see you when I was imprisoned. When you disappeared into the shadows I thought you were going to leave me and just replace me." This surprised Xaentrick. He may have been described as a heartless monster by many, but the one thing he loved was his mate. When he changed her he used his blood to choose the form she would take. "Silly girl I could not replace you no matter how hard I tried. Besides if you remember back before I met you. I would start wars just to watch the people suffer and slaughter each other. Ok not much changed other then I did not start them as often."
She laughed at him as he thought about the past. Standing up she stretched so she could get the feeling back in her limbs. After not being able to move for so long it felt good to be able to do so. When Xaentrick stood up next to her he held her again before they went to get something to eat. As they walked into the main area Saydra noticed the pillar that held Johns soul. She knew what it was but she did not know what it was for. With it her mate could cast some very powerful spells. "Xaentrick what is this soul going to be used for?"
"That will let me fix a mistake I made when you were changed. With this I can cure your sterility. That mistake will be fixed and we can have the family that you always wanted." Those words overjoyed Saydra. She had been denied the ability to give birth when she was changed. He had breached the circle when he had stumbled and breeched the circle it stopped the change when it was finishing up. All but her womb was changed completely. It was stopped about half way so she would be unable to conceive until it was finished. "We can do that later till then we should eat and then I need to make some changes to the territory that my father has given me.
They made their way to the entrance of their home and took flight in search of some food. It was Xaentrick who found the meal. A buck had been sleeping in the shade of a large tree. He killed it by landing on it and breaking its neck, then let Saydra know. They enjoyed the buck as they consumed it. When they finished the deer Xaentrick decided it was time to change some things in his domain. It was certainly nice here but he could make it better. Of course his idea of better was very different from most others. Jumping into the air he took off with his mate not far behind. The first thing he did was hook a cloud with his claws. Where he touched it the cloud began to darken. The darkness in the cloud spread until it was as black as the dragon holding it. Xaentrick then began to stretch the cloud until it cast a great shadow over the entrance to his lair. Slowly the plants that sat in the shadow quickly began to shrivel and die. Leaves from the trees fell off rapidly leaving the trees barren and lifeless.
Saydra saw what he was doing and decided she would have to make sure he did not completely destroy this land like the last time. She flew up next to him and whispered to him so he would not kill off all the plants. Even though she was mated to someone that was regarded as pure evil she herself was not evil. When he had taken her away he had shown her compassion, and she knew that he was not as evil as everyone thought. Although she did like watching him work it always made her feel a range of emotions depending on what he was doing. He could be very caring when he was with her. It was almost as if he was a different person.
When his mate flew up to him and told him not to destroy all the plant life he decided to stop the cloud a few miles from the entrance to his lair. He would never understand why she some of the stuff she did. However he loved it when she was around and soon she would be a mother. When he was done here he would have to check out how many towns were in his new domain. Maybe he could have a little fun with the populace of the town before the day was out, but for now he would have to settle for the changes the cloud would cause. It was not strong enough to alter any animals larger than a mouse but it could alter some plants and more simple creatures. Nothing major would change about the animals, they would simply get more aggressive while the plants it changed would grow larger and some would even become carnivorous and feed on small animals.
With his alterations no where near done he decided that he should get his plans with john over with. They flew to the entrance of the cave where they sunk into the shadows and appeared in the main chamber. He grabbed the orb and went into the bed chamber with his mate next to him. With a wave of his right hand the bed sunk into the shadows so he had room to perform the part of the ritual that he had messed up. He went around with the tip of his tail covered in black energy that was leaving deep grooves in the stone. When he was done there was a large circle in the stone that had a large triangle in it with several smaller triangles in it. He had her sit in the center of the circle so he could complete the final change to her. With the small change he would not use all of the soul. With the small amount that he would use it would grow back as he aged.
He set the orb on the edge of the circle and backed up so he could start. When he began to chant the lines in the ground began to glow with a purple light. As he chanted the orb began to float in front of him. When he stopped chanting a section of the light that was held inside the orb was ripped out causing the orb to change to a dark blue in color. The section of the soul that was outside of the orb began to disintegrate in the air until it was gone. Inside the circle Saydra could feel her midsection tingle as the changes to her womb were completed. When the section of the soul was gone Xaentrick began to chant once again which cause the orb to fly over to Saydra where it began to float a few inches above her waist. Then suddenly it dropped and seemed to pass through her. What it had done was pass through her and as it passed her womb the soul was yanked out of the orb and was just floating until it slipped into an unfertilized egg.
With that done Xaentrick waited for the light to fade before he went over to his mate and studied her. Inside the circle Saydra was a little surprised. As all dragons she knew when she was pregnant and she was most definitely pregnant. When Xaentrick helped her up he could see the look in her eye and he knew that his plan had worked. He was excited because he was going to become a father very soon. Looking at her he wondered if his brothers had hatchlings of their own. Lifting his hand he made the bed rise up underneath of them. Laying down Xaentrick and Saydra fell asleep in each others arms.
A month passed from that night. In a nest made of several blankets sat an egg that had a speckled white shell. Saydra was curled around it in her feral form hugging it close to the sapphire blue bands that ran along her underside. It would hatch soon and because of that she did not want to leave it alone. Xaentrick would bring her food so she did not have to leave. When she felt the egg vibrate she looked at it to see it move again. As the egg moved back and forth Saydra curled tighter around it to provide more warmth.
Inside the egg a small dragon was scared. He was scared of the darkness that surrounded it and the small space it was in. it struggled against the barrier in hopes that it would give way to freedom. As it struggled it heard a loud cracking noise. A sliver of light appeared in the wall. It began to focus its efforts of escape on the crack. After a few more tries the barrier gave way. The little hatchling found itself in a large room. As it looked around faded memories seemed to flood his mind. He knew what the memories were but it could not recognize them. As it looked around it found a large scaled creature starring at it. This larger creature scared him but something told him that it was okay. Something about the creature radiated warmth and protection.
So it walked over to the larger creature and snuggled up to it. He knew something was wrong but he just could not place what it was. As he lay there next to the larger dragon it turned its head and began to gently lick him on his head which caused him squeal in delight. When she stopped the hatchling lay its head down and fell asleep. Saydra covered him with her wing to help keep him warm. Soon Saydra was asleep as well.
Xaentrick returned with a large horse at his feet as he appeared next to Saydra. Seeing that she was asleep he waved his hand causing the dead horse to sink into the shadows so it would not spoil while she slept. Then as he walked over to her he changed to his feral form. He lost the few human features that he had as he began to grow in size. When he was done he walked over to his mate and curled around her, before he fell asleep he noticed that the egg was in pieces. Smiling Xaentrick closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Xaentrick and Saydra both woke up to the sounds of something moving around. Looking up they saw the little hatchling looking around the room. He was two-tone in color. With dark blues scales that faded to turquoise near the center of his body and continued up to his head. The bands on his stomach were light purple in color that seemed to darken when he moved into a brighter source of light. When he noticed that his mother was awake the hatchling ran back over to her and rubbed his head against her. As the hatchling rubbed Saydra, Xaentrick changed into his anthro form. Noticing this Saydra did the same. When she was done the she noticed her child was doing the same. She knew that her child's form would follow hers. Picking him up she looked at him and smiled when she heard his stomach grumble.
As if on cue Xaentrick waved his hand causing the horse he had caught to rise up from the shadows. Sitting down next to the horse Saydra began to cut off small chunks with her claws and feed them to her child who greedily swallowed everything that was offered to him. Every other piece Saydra would pick a chunk off for herself. As Xaentrick watched this he knew he would have to create much more evil in the world to make it a perfect place for his son.