Interlude 2: Dremasul and Draxxor - 'Til Death Do Us Part
"Good morning, Dremasul." The voice awoke the tiny hatchling from his slumber. He was trapped in something he didn't understand. He couldn't breathe, but he didn't seem to need to. He could feel the liquid around him, only just barely separating him from the walls of whatever contained him, and he was reluctant to open his eyes. He kicked, and he felt his legs hit the wall. There was a crack.
"It's time for you to awake." The voice told him once again. Dremasul recognized it now. It was Idwallon, the ridgeback he had met in the afterlife. He had offered him a second chance of life, and Dremasul had taken it. Which must mean-
Dremasul kicked again, this time with more fervor. He had to get out of here. With one final push, he burst out of the eggshell containing him, and he tumbled onto the ground from where it hovered above the nest. His parents looked down at him, though Dremasul didn't recognize them. He still had all his memories from his previous life, and it was weird to once again have the weakness and ability of a hatchling.
"What happened to the hatchling you put me in?" Dremasul demanded of Idwallon as he watched his siblings crawl around, exploring their new world. His scales were not the ones he had before, they were patterned differently, and held different colours.
"He would have been stillborn. Thanks to you, his parents will not feel the heartbreak of losing a child. Now, enough chit chat, you have work to do." Came the silky response, and in that moment, Dremasul felt he was going to be sick. The task before him was not a pleasant one.
I'm lost! I can't believe I'm freaking lost! Draxxor thought bitterly to herself as she stared at the glowing mushrooms and tangled forest that she was certain she had passed several times already. How many times had she made this journey to visit her brother?
I knew that spiral was shifty! I shouldn't have let myself get so distracted! Just because I saw a glimmer of genuineness in him doesn't mean he was being genuine in that moment! How could I be so foolish! Draxxor cursed herself again. One would think having the ability to read souls would make it easy to figure out who one could trust, but it was frustratingly complex. Dragons were rarely black and white in their intentions, as they had been in the hatchling stories she had grown up on. It was easy to misinterpret what was meant for the situation at hand and what was just background information.
Draxxor was just about to stop and rest for the night when she caught sight of something dark moving through the trees. Draxxor narrowed her eyes. It had looked to be draconic in shape, but she got no soul reading off of it. It must have been a trick of the light. The Tangled Wood was known to distort like that. Still, Draxxor's curiosity was not sated. She crept forward, trying to catch a glimpse of the strange figure she had seen.
Tracking the figure led her to a clearing. He seemed to be shaped like a wildclaw, but he was the most mysterious dragon she had ever seen. She assumed he would look ordinary to most dragons, but from what she could tell, he shouldn't be alive. She couldn't read anything from him, not a spark or life or the slightest hint of a soul. It unnerved her more than she could put into words, but she was not repelled. In fact, she felt nothing but curiosity.
"Excuse me, but if you don't mind me asking, are you following me?" The wildclaw asked, a smile cracking on his shrouded face.
"So, this is where you live?" Dremasul asked, eyeing the crowded alleyway. It seemed to be filled with dragons that wished to not be seen. They scurried from shadow to shadow, darting glances of mistrust at those around them. However, despite the wild energy of the place, it appeared strangely non-violent. He had never seen a place like it.
"This is a part of Clan Yonder run by a different queen." Draxxor explained. "Anyone can stay here, no questions asked, regardless of their past. The only requirement is that they follow the rules of the street. Break a rule, and death will surely follow."
"That doesn't seem like any way to live." Dramasul scoffed, immediately feeling a surge of guilt. he was not one to talk. He belonged in a place like this, and he would belong there even more so after he completed the talk Idwallon had given him. Of course, completing the task could very well be breaking one of the rules, he'd just have to make sure he did it outside of this street.
"Some dragons don't have a choice, especially after the rebellion. Some just need a place to crash where they will be safe." Draxxor shrugged.
"And what are you doing here?"
Draxxor stared at him levelly, as though she was trying to stare into him and work out if he was serious. She gave him that look often, but he could never work out what it meant. Eventually, she gave up, as she always did, clearly frustrated by something.
“Clan Yonder has known much heartbreak. Before this street came to be, we were ruled by a tyrant who overthrew Queen Fenn and lead the clan with an iron fist. We may be at peace here, but I want to know if anyone has the slightest intention of hurting my clan and family.” Draxxor said finally.
“But how would you know?” Dremasul asked, tilting his head. There was something she wasn’t telling him.
“I’m good at reading others.” Was all she said. “Here, let me introduce you to my brother.”
At first, Dremasul thought she was simply changing the subject, but that as when he caught sight of a large guardian ambling towards the two of them.
The moment Dremasul met the blood-red eyes of the guardian, he felt a jolt through him like a bolt of electricity. It was him. It couldn’t be, but it was. He had found him.
“Draxxor, who is this?” The guardian growled, not taking his eyes off of Dremasul. He wasn’t even blinking. He knew too.
“This is Dremasul! I met him in the Tangled Wood.” Draxxor explained. “Dremasul, this is my brother Dakota. He may not look like my brother, my parents were given his egg to look after not long before my clutch was laid. He’s been looking out for me ever since!”
“Draxxor, you should stay away from this dragon. He’s dangerous.” Dakota growled. He still hadn’t blinked. Seriously, how long could this guy go without blinking? Dremasul tried to match his gaze but he was terrified. He had finally met his match and he was terrified.
“You think everyone is dangerous, Dakota! I may be your charge, but I am perfectly capable of looking after myself!” Draxxor scoffed. “Dremasul is my friend and you will make him welcome!”
“Yes, I will.” Dakota said, raising his eyebrows at Dremasul. And in that moment, Dremasul realized he had to stick around.
There had been conditions to his return to life. Idwallon had put a price on his head. Dremasul had half his life, and to earn the other half, he had to find the dragon who Idwallon had also granted a half life to and kill him. Dakota was the other half, and neither could be fully alive until the other had been disposed of. This would certainly make things complicated with his new friendship with Draxxor.
"You didn't tell me your family line was diseased!" Draxxor shouted. "These are things I need to know
before we have a nest! Not after!"
"I didn't know this would happen! You have to believe me!" Dremasul was trying to keep his voice level and calm but he was more scared than he had ever been in his life. What was he thinking, trying to avoid his destiny and have a normal life?
A stalemate had been drawn between him and Dakota. Neither was willing to hurt Draxxor by killing someone she loved. Dremasul had almost believed he could live like that. That was, until his children hatched deathly ill. He supposed they were only three quarters alive, and that missing quarter could very well kill them.
"You must have known something would happen!" Draxxor shot back. "Now our children are off with some stranger going to some bizarre doctor in Shadow and I don't know if I'm ever going to see them again! I've had enough of you! get out!"
"Draxxor-" Dremasul wanted to hold her close, to share her pain. It was clear she had kept herself together long enough to see the hathclings off safely without scaring them and now she was spiraling. He wanted to pull her out of the spiral, and to share his pain with her. Maybe, if they carried to together-
"No. Get out! I don't want you in my life! There's always been something off about you! You don't have a soul!" Draxxor spat.
Dremasul froze. How could she possibly know? Fear overcame him and his courage failed him. He ran out into the street and down an alleyway. He stopped to catch his breath. He had to go back, didn't he? He could explain everything, maybe he could find a way around the curse that bound his tongue. He would be there for her and he would make things right. Lifting his head, he turned to leave, only to see Dakota blocking the alleyway.
"My sister isn't here to protect you now, and from what I've heard, she won't want to." Dakota growled. He was approaching slowly, his claws glinting in the lamplight. He took up the whole alley, there was no way Dremasul could get around him, and he was several times bigger than him. Dremasul was a dead dragon.
Suddenly, red filled his vision and he sprung into the air. What followed was a flurry of teeth and claws and scaled, and his vision was filled with white and red. Then, as suddenly as it started, it stopped. Dakota lay slumped on the cobblestones, dead. Dremasul backed away, panting heavily. How had he actually won?
He stared down at the blood on his claws. He had killed a dragon. He felt sick and he immediately threw up. He hadn't wanted to kill Dakota. When he jumped, he had aimed to run. What had happened to him? As he raised his head and wiped the vomit from his mouth, he looked up into the horrified eyes of his wife.
"You monster!" Draxxor shrieked, and her cries alerted the attention of the other residents of the street. Dremasul had broken a rule of the street, and he was in big trouble. Why didn't he feel any different? Had his other half of his soul returned? Shouldn't he feel stronger? Suddenly, he realized that wasn't the most important thing right now. Right now he had to get out of here. He turned and he ran, and he didn't look back.
So Idwallon had lied, surprise, surprise. Turns out Dakota was only a test. Take two souls, split them in half, pit them against each other, the winner would make the best hitman. Now Idwallon held his other half captive, as well as the souls of his two dead sons in order to ensure his co-operation.
Every so often, Dremasul would get a list from Idwallon. His task? Kill the dragons on the list and bring their souls back to Idwallon for his collection. Dremasul had joined up with a black market in order to take up a job as an assassin to make things easier. He hated this existence, but Id held too much over his head. He knew to much, and he knew how to hit Dremasul where it hurt.
Maybe staying in Clan Yonder was foolish. It was too close to Draxxor and she hated his guts, for a very good reason. But Dremasul was selfish, and he did not want to be far from his daughter, Epidemic. Perhaps someday he could explain everything to Draxxor, and he could make things right. However, deep in his heart, Dremasul knew that was wishful thinking, even for him. He must be resigned to his fate.
Now you know Dremasul's dark past.
Hey all, it's been a while! (a month and a day to be exact). School has been busier than I expected, not because of assignments and schoolwork, but more because I've been getting more involved in things in the evenings. I've discovered going out and doing things and being part of clubs and having things to do in the evenings does wonders for my stress and energy levels as an extrovert. I want to get back into posting somewhat regularly though, I have some great ideas for this next arc.
Actually funny story I originally started writing this update the first day of Starfall, but I didn't have the energy to finish it so I stuck it in a Google Doc with the plan of finishing it and starting the new arc with a Starfall update but, well, you know that didn't end up happening. I've had to shift a couple of ideas for the arc to make it work (timewise it will be taking place about a year after my previous update, almost 2 years after the battle against Daisy Mae) but it should be coming relatively soon! I'll try not to let it be a month from now!
