Chronicles Chapter II - As Above So Below

Character/s: Loreatir (AshVulture #100), Komodelia (MintySage #159)
Path: (Part 1) Journey Through Gold
Date submitted: 2/07/2022
Word count: 2019
Author’s notes: Loreatir uses any pronouns. In this piece I have chosen to use she/they pronouns for them. Komodelia uses any pronouns + neopronouns. In this piece I have chosen to use he/they/xe pronouns for them (they/them/their – xe/xem/xir).

It had not been long ago that Loreatir had returned from the Cardinal Temple. She had been in Bivnix, where her chisliers were being cared for by Eda'Ukris. Kris's bulbous house was at the edge of the city where trees began to grow sparsely. Lor’s travelling companions had been ambling around the large paddock, surrounded by a ring of blue-topped trees and fencing.

The last few weeks had been peaceful. Loreatir had been resting in Bivnix, waiting. Sure enough, the archaeological findings related to her recent travels were published, alongside a new destination: the ruins of Chaveri.

Loreatir had already packed up and made all the necessary arrangements with Kris. As usual, he would look after Loreatir’s chisliers, and if Lor did not make it back, he would continue to, whether that meant keeping them, releasing them, or handing them to somebody else.

The next day had been the day of their departure. Originally, Loreatir was going to go alone, but as they had shut the gate to the paddock, saying goodbye to their chisliers, the back door had swung open. A mint-furred face had popped out, two neon green whiskers swishing with the movement.

"Oh! Who might you be?"

"Ah, I'm Loreatir. Who are you?"

"I see! I am Komodelia, Kris's friend. Partner. You must be the owner of the chisliers?"

"Yep, that's me."

"If you don't mind me asking, where are you off to?"

"The ruins of Chaveri."

“Oh! Are you going to try to speak with Edenlline?”

Loreatir had shaken their head. No way.

“But I do plan on listening in on what she has to say to the others. That, and looking around for anythin' interesting.”

“Will you be travelling alone? Can I come with you?”

Loreatir had stared for a moment. She didn't need company, that would just be awkward, right? Besides, it was a dangerous journey. They weren't even confident they would make it.

“I mean, sure, but the Aurix Caesin is a bitch to travel through…”

“Oh, I would not worry about that. I am a high aura mage, and I have combat experience. I can promise I will be very helpful.”

Loreatir had nodded slowly. That did sound good.

“Alright then… Ah, but, I’m leavin’ tomorrow, is that alright?”

“Of course.”

“See you here in the morning, then.”

The day they started out on their journey had been rather lighthearted for what could have been the death of them – some polite chatter mixed with plans for where to rest and hunt. The travel plan had been to take a blimp from Bivnix to Tucruitora; from the capital city, they were to fly north-east, along the Hawh River some distance, until they reached the Aurix Caesin.

Loreatir had a quiver with several javelins sitting between her wings. It had a few compartments down the side – places for their aura compass, a few knives, and a canteen of water. Komodelia had been wearing a brown cloak dusted with dark cyan. Xe had a few hardly-noticeable pockets and loops on xir cloak; four daggers were hanging in sheaths somewhere under there, alongside a number of other objects and booklets.

Loreatir had been staring down at the desert dunes when Komodelia's reflection had appeared in the window.

"Can I ask what your magic ability is?"

Loreatir had let out a short sigh.

"Manipulation of dead things. Like a taxidermy puppet but without strings."

"Would that work on windiages?"

"Nope. It's pretty useless. What can you do?"

“I am sure there is something it could be used for… To answer your question, I have purple fire. It only burns plants and fungi. I can also fly, because I’m an eastern dragon. Morshin.”

“Oh, morshin?”

“Yeah, taroot blood.”

Loreatir had nodded, finally noticing the two slits on the side of Komodelia’s snout.

“I’ve also learned a few practical things like making my palms glow and mending fabric. I used to fight in arenas, so some things like making my reflexes a tad faster, numbing, minor healing. That is all. The last two are useful for treating animals as well,” Komodelia had finished.

“Oh shit, arena fighting? So that’s your combat experience…”

“Yeah.”

Komodelia's mouth had hesitantly opened and shut. Xir gaze had drifted off into the distance at that.

"GET BACK, GET BACK!!"

Loreatir stumbled mindlessly backwards. She hissed as she collided with a tree, the wood crumbling and splintering on her hind and catching on her tail. Just seconds ago, they had been making their way through the forest with nothing in sight and no sounds to be heard. The daze in Lor's head cleared with the pain, and suddenly everything that was happening flooded their mind.

Komodelia had a blade in each hand, positioned on their hind legs, leaning on their tail. The light was dim in the evening, the brightest source being Komodelia’s glowing palms. Loreatir could make out the figure of a monster not far in front of her. Shit.

The wretched corpse of some small Chaverian was throwing itself at Komodelia. Smoke wafted from patches of plants on the windiage, crackling in Komodelia’s flames.

The creature lunged at the dragon once more, talons outstretched.

As Komodelia pulled to the side, his knife was slick. A chunk of rotting flesh now hung loose off the side of the windiage. Crusty scabs and skin turned to dust and some oozing sludge fell to the ground. A sickeningly sweet stench washed over Loreatir’s snout.

They felt like throwing up.

At that moment, Komodelia’s voice echoed urgently in the forest.

“Lor! Your javelins!! Pass one!”

Loreatir sprang into action, grabbing a javelin off her back between her teeth. Leaping forward, they pushed down hard through the air with their wings, dropping the throwing spear over Komodelia and landing lightly on the other side.

Komodelia fumbled for a moment, trying to sort out his weapons. In that second, the windiage hurled towards the dragon. Lor stepped forward, jaws parted.

But Komodelia was fast enough.

Xe slipped across the ground, narrowly avoiding the monster’s jaws, flew up into the air with the javelin in xir hands-

-and plunged straight down, impaling the windiage’s skull and pinning it to the ground.

“Go, go, go!”

Loreatir bolted, trusting that Komodelia would catch up. She kept her wings poised and made sure not to let her claws rest on the tangled, foggy forest floor for too long.

For a while, Komodelia and Loreatir ran. But it didn't take long for them to slow down with a realisation.

"Hold on a moment… Where are we?" Komodelia murmured.

The forest around them was unfamiliar but not unique, yet it seemed twisted in the night. The faint moonlight was tainted with yellow. Shadows were mangled around the trees, forming dark pools on the holey trunks.

"I… don't know… Would… a compass… help?"

"Ahh… maybe… I think we should just rest for a bit so we can think clearly," Komodelia sighed as he laid down beside a tree.

Loreatir nodded and did the same, pulling the quiver off her back. She sucked air through her teeth, trying to get rid of the lightheadedness, and began picking out bark from their tail. Soon enough, the eerie quiet was interrupted.

"I did not pull your javelin back out, sorry."

“Don’t worry about it. Still got more.”

Komodelia nodded and pulled a book from within their cloak. Loreatir had seen xir use it the previous nights.

"Is that a spell book?"

Komodelia looked up from where they were bent over, with a stick in one hand and the open book in the other.

"It is my own compilation of some useful runes, yes. I leave the big spell books at home."

"And what is this rune for?"

"It will alert me if anything comes within the region of this outer shape," Komodelia explained.

He frowned and looked up at the sky for a moment.

"A compass will help us to go in the direction we need to, but it will not help us know which direction that is."

Loreatir pointed at the path of snapped branches that stretched into the forest.

"That's where we came from."

"Right, and from back there we were meant to go somewhere over there," Komodelia turned and pointed, "But I have nothing for farsight, navigation, or anything like that. We will just have to go with this approximation."

Loreatir unbuttoned a quiver compartment, pulling out their compass.

"Okay. So that direction is north-west, at around 340°."

Komodelia stood up and tossed away their branch, announcing with a smile, "Great. I am done with the rune. Once we get to the Broken Plateau, we can reorientate ourselves. Now, we sleep."

As Loreatir stared up through the canopy, they hoped that they would wake up in the morning after an uninterrupted night of rest-

-but who was she kidding?

“ARGH- LOR WAKE U-!!”

The moment Loreatir’s eyes flew open, they knew exactly what was going on. What shitty luck. A bright plume of purple ploughed through blurry brown and yellow, illuminating the forest and fog. Though it would not burn her, the flames sent tingles of heat through Lor’s bones. She scrambled to her claws, squeezing her eyes open and shut, reaching for her javelin.

“Do you need help?” they yelled over the ravenous roars and crackling.

Lor was not going to just stand back and watch this time.

"If you see an opening,” Komodelia shouted back, "immobilise the windiage!”

Stop the windiage from moving? She could tear off a limb, or pin it to the ground like Komodelia had before. The windiage was bigger than last time, with Gargyl-like wings and a spiny tail as long as Komodelia's. Loreatir stared hard at the chaos in front of them, trying to find that opening. But it seemed impossible.

A spray of blood shot out a second after a blur of brown cut through the air, white flashing. Crimson splattered on the trees and on Loreatir's feathers. Whose blood was that? She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Their throat felt sore and shrunken. Lor took a deep breath, trying to stamp out the panic.

She caught Komodelia's narrowed eyes, shining beneath their fringe, trying to tell her something. Xe had a hand held to xir head, ears pressed back, mouth twisted in some strange smile.

The windiage's limbs were torn up and folded, wound up. Their bloody tail thrashed from side to side. Komodelia's stance matched. Loreatir felt herself shift downwards as well, to a stance like a fen about to… POUNCE!

Lor barreled through the air with their javelin in two hands. As the corpse reached Komodelia, Loreatir's spear broke through its bones and into a tree. The monster's two legs were now pierced like meat on a stick.

"DUCK!!"

Loreatir dropped to the ground at Komodelia's cry, tumbling to the side, struck by a sudden force.

"Run now!! That way!"

Komodelia's blades shone orange as he swung them to the side with a pointed claw, slashing the windiage's front wrists.

Loreatir crashed through the forest, eyes down on the blur of tangled roots. This better be the right direction. Soon enough they could hear another set of claws pounding on the ground to her left.

The silence stretched on as the two ran, even as the trees disappeared and they entered open air. There was more sunlight now, pouring all over the sickly landscape, cracked and cavernous. Lor glanced quickly to the side to reassure herself it was not another windiage pursuing her. Their breath hitched at the sight of Komodelia’s bloody face. Shit.

“I’m fine,” Komodelia asserted, having caught Lor's wide eyes.

“Oka- wai- STOP!!”

The two Ptithians slammed their hind claws into the ground. It collapsed at the sudden force, soil and stone falling away. Loreatir’s wings shot out and Komodelia looped in the air.

“Look, over there!”

Not too far off, Loreatir had spotted a gaping hole in the ground – not surprising. But around the edges and down the steep sides, rope was strewn across the fragmenting rock.

It was the entrance to the ruins of Chaveri.