Private Tales The Mountains Ahead

[Aviana Sabel]

Kiovec had no idea what was wrong with the man as he went rigid. His first thought was that the blood must have burned Kasim in some way.

Reaching out with his tail, he ushered Kasim back from the dead dragon.

Then his head snapped up, nostrils flaring slightly.

Aviana was so near. He could smell her.

The sun was settling over the horizon, there were only a few minutes left of sunlight. He nudged Kasim with his snout, trying to bring the man back to his senses.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim's body shifted around like a ragdoll.

It was like all of his senses had left him, golden eyes covered in complete black as his mind suffered from a pressing assault. His skin paled, and even his hair seemed to dull slightly as Kiovec dragged him along the beach.

Minutes passed as the Dragon nudged at him.

For Kasim there was no telling how long he was out, how long he lay on that beach, but suddenly a breath filled his lungs and he practically jumped up. "Shit!"

He swore, swiping the blood from his skin as his eyes ebbed into their normal gold.

A breath filled his lungs, his chest rising and falling heavily as he turned his head to see where he was. After a moment the memories cascaded back, and his lips thinned as he looked towards Kiovec.

"Can you get us to her?" He asked quietly, not explaining what had just happened.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Kiovec gave a nod of his head, showing that be understood the question that'd been asked of him, his gaze affixed to the mountains further in the island. One of his claws etched a few runes in the sand

She is close, it read.

Neither of them knew what they would find whenever they reached her, but Kiovec had no intention of backing down now.



Aviana's eyes opened and she sat up on the cave floor. It was dark inside and the fire still flickered. She could see a few last rays of light from the setting sun beyond the cave entrance.

She'd sensed something.

Her eyes darted to Sarkus, anxious.

Without a word, however, she bolted for the mouth of the cave, scrambling to get to her feet as quickly as she could.

There was still sunlight... She might be able to escape.

 

[Kasim Areth]

The slightest movement was enough to wake him from an odd state of unmoving that could not quite be called sleep.

Sarkus' eyes popped open as soon as Aviana's foot struck the floor of the cave. Her breath filling his ears, and the panic that set through her heartbeat as clear as the very air itself. Lips thinned, and within an instant he bolted towards her.

The sun was still shining high in the sky, it's threatening embrace hanging near the entrance of the cave.

Yet he was faster than her.

Every three steps she took was one of his, and the speed at which he moved saw him close the distance just as she reached the mouth of the cave. His hand jutted forward, grabbing at the back of her neck to keep her from fleeing.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

She'd been so close to escaping her nightmare. Sarkus still fully intended to take her to Vel Anir, to use her against Kasim, and to murder one of their children to feed his family's sick Well. As much as she wanted to like the Vampire, she knew she couldn't trust him. His motives were not in her own interests, only his.

Just as she was about to reach the end of the small tunnel, she felt a cold, powerful grasp latch onto the back of her neck. Panic and pain seared through her every nerve, terrified that Sarkus might hurt her in his determination to keep her with him. The still vivid memory of him decapitating her would be protector flashed through her mind.

She screamed.

A sound filled with her fear cut through the otherwise quiet island. It was amplified by the silence and stone that surrounded them.

As she started to fall backwards, back into the shadows, she tried to twist free from the impossible grip the held her.

 

[Kasim Areth]

His grip remained strong, though one hand covered one ear as he tried to stop some of the sound from her scream echoing within his own skull.

Lips thinned to a scowl. "WHY!"

There wasn't any apprehension to the question, nor dismay, only anger. He did not understand why she would choose now to runaway, and in his own segmented mind it made absolutely no sense to him at all.

Nothing had changed to Sarkus.

They were still stuck on this island, and there was no way off.

"WHAT IS THE MATTER WITH YOU PEOPLE?' He called out, his fingers digging even tighter. "ALWAYS SCRAMBLING, ALWAYS RUSHING!"

There was an odd distortion to his voice.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Black spots popped in Aviana's vision as Sarkus' anger consumed him, his grip tightening harder on the back of her neck. She staggered to one knee, reaching behind her to grab at the hand that threatened the break her neck.

If he got angry enough, he could easily crush her spine into dust, turn her neck into a pulp of red gore and bone. Panic set in and her mind started to race.

"Sarkus, please!" She gasped out, terrified of this side of the vampire. There were tears in her eyes in her desperation.

He was going to kill her.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Sarkus' fingers tightened.

Kindness was difficult for him at the best of time. There were so few things that now kept him to humanity, so few things that gave him even a string back to what he had once been. With his mind broken, fractured, none of it seemed enough.

What was the point of kindness?

What was the point of trying to hang on when it would be so easy just to let it all slip away.

His fingers tightened, teeth grew, pressing into lips, and his eyes slowly shifted to an odd mixture of red and black. Slowly he dragged Aviana back into the cavern, away from the dreaded light and back into the darkness of his hearth.

Then a screech echoed.

The piercing cry reached through the sky and echoed through the walls, reverberating and sounding out through the air. In an instant Sarkus' head whirled, a black dot soaring through the sky and dive bombing down towards the entrance of the cave.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Aviana struggled against Sarkus, but there was next to nothing she could do against him on her own when he was in such a state. Another scream tore from her lips as he dragged her away from the light.

Then she felt it.

That surge of power. A connection she'd not felt in so long. Kiovec. He was here.

Was Kasim still with him?

She just need to stay alive, for just a few more moments.

An elbow lashed out towards Sarkus' head, the darkness creeping into her vision as his grip tightened all the more.

She could hear the blood rushing into her ears. Just a few more moments, please, she just wanted to see his face one last time.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Sarkus took the elbow to the face without even his expression changing, blood dripping from his nose as he stood there and stared at the dot. His eyes focused, and then he let out a quiet sigh.

His grip on Aviana's throat suddenly released.

Without ceremony, without word he suddenly let her drop onto the ground. His fingers pulled back to his side, and he took a step back just as Kiovec and Kasim swooped lower and lower. They seemed to hone in on the cavern, closing the gap in mere moment.

The old Vampire peered down at Aviana, his lips thinning with a slight hint of disgust. "I can't kill my own nephew."

Whatever shred of humanity remained in him called out, or was it simply self preservation?

"The joy you will feel now, savor it." He half turned away. "It will not last long."

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Blood flow swiftly restored and left Aviana uneasily lightheaded. She could already feel the bruises from Sarkus' grasp starting to form around the back of her neck, no doubt there would be deep, black marks there in just a few hours. The bones in her neck creaked in discomfort.

Once she was freed, however, she started to scramble back to her feet to run towards the form of her lover, the father of her children-to-be, and the dragon that carried him.

She didn't say anything to Sarkus, afraid of the man now, far more than she'd ever been previously.

He'd never cared for her, it'd all be about getting to Kasim.

The sun light touched her skin and she nearly burst into tears on the spot. "Kasim! Kiovec!"

 

[Kasim Areth]

The Dragon swooped low, lower than one might have liked, but from his back jumped Kasim.

A long thin blade was already in his hand, the sword flickering with the last vestiges of sunlight as he came crashing onto the rocky ground. A rune already glowed on his palm, two more hidden on the outside of his thigh.

Both of them had been drawn in dragon blood, both of them burned into his flesh as power flowed through him like it never had before.

He stood tall, lithe, ready to lash out as Aviana cried out to him.

Kiovec landed with a thundering roar behind him, his tail lashing down onto the ground as if in threat of anyone that would stand against the duo.

Kasim's eyes focused forwards, seeing Aviana at the mouth of the cavern, but no one else. Confusion dawned on his face, and with sword still raised he called her name. "Aviana!?"

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Her hair whipped in the wind as she raced towards him. A part of her mind was in shock as just how massive Kiovec had gotten in their time apart. She could feel the connection firmly reestablish between them and tears of joy brimmed in her eyes.

Sarkus didn't matter, not now. Kasim was here and the vampire was trapped for now inside the confines of the cave.

She closed the distance between them and threw her arms around Kasim's neck, nearly knocking him over in the process. There was no holding back the sobs from pouring forth as she clung to him, deeply inhaling his scent.

"You're real... Please tell me you're really here." She gasped, tightening her hold around him.

Kiovec caught another stranger scent and moved closer to Aviana and Kasim, protectively wrapping his tail around them with a low, threatening growl towards the cave.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim lowered the sword and swept it to the side so that Aviana did not impale herself on the blade, his free hand coming up to wrap her in a tight embrace.

His head bowed over hers, catching the scent of her as he simply lingered within her arms. His entire body was shaking, emotion and the tenseness he had felt for the last few weeks suddenly seeming to ebb into the moment.

"Where is..." He began. "How?"

He was so confused. "How are you here?"

How was she not on her way to Vel Anir? Where was the Blackfort? Where were the Anirian Soldiers? Had the Dragon he had Kiovec had seen killed them all? None of it made any sense, none of it seemed like anything but a dream.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

The question was so loaded that Aviana wasn't sure where to begin. She was left trembling in Kasim's embrace for a few moments as she gathered her senses and tried desperately not to cry.

"The sea drake, the dreadlords attacked her after she saved me after I fell overboard... There was a battle and... Me and Sarkus washed up here on shore. But he..." She shook her head, grimacing in pain from the movement.

"Kasim, he wanted to take me to Vel Anir. We need to go... He's still in the cave. There's not much time..."

 

[Kasim Areth]

"Sarkus?" Some of the color drained from his face.

Kasim remembered his uncle well. A creature that had been once a man, a shell of a human being that had been left behind. He'd liked Sarkus growing up. He was named for him, in part, and the two had long conversations about the histories of their family.

He remembered those days, but also remembered what his uncle was capable of.

Almost on instinct Kasim's head turned towards the setting sun in the distance, something dropping in his stomach as he turned back towards the cave.

"You're right." He told her. "We have to go."

As he turned to lead Aviana away Kasim caught sight of a pair of eyes watching within the darkness.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Kiovec stepped closer to Aviana, nuzzling into her belly for a moment and then againt her palm. She knew that the dragon could sense the life within her womb. "I'm okay." She said softly, leaning down to kiss the dragon's head before she moved to climb into his back.

The size of him was incredible. If there'd been time, she would have marveled over his beauty for a little longer than she did then.

Her gaze shifted to Kasim, reaching out to him as he followed.

"He's after you..." She said quietly, still shaking her head.

 

[Kasim Areth]

"I know." Kasim said as he looked towards the cavern, watching carefully as he helped Aviana climb onto the Dragons back.

He moved to follow, sheathing the sword on his hip before quickly stepping up and moving onto Kiovec's back. As he did the eyes hidden within the cavern stuck out more, and slowly a mirror image of a much older Kasim stepped out of the cave.

Sarkus had not changed a single bit in the last decade.

The striking similarity between them was stronger than it had been before, the face looking at him being that what he saw in the mirror.

For a second Kasim hesitated, his head swirling with a thousand thoughts. "Uncle."

He said simply, not sure if it was a greeting or a warning.

Sarkus only stood at the rim of the cave, a pale beam of sunlight seeming to act as the barrier that kept him away. His eyes briefly flickered to the ground, watching as the creeping light slowly ebbed away from the cavern and into the world.

He took a step forward.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Kiovec seemed even more protective of Aviana than Kasim. His wings unfurled in a whirl of orange and red that stood out against his ebony scales. A tremendous roar bellowed from the dragon as he gnashed his teeth and pulled his head back. Flames licked at the edges of his maw, as if daring the vampire to come any closer as Kasim got settled onto his back.

Aviana could sense the fury churning in Kiovec's belly. It enraged him that someone had dared to lay a finger on her, that they'd stolen her away and endangered the unhatched she carried.

The concept was intriguing. It was almost as if Kiovec considered her children his own offspring and she supposed, in a way, they were. He carried a part of her soul in him and she a part of his in turn.

Instead of backing away, Kiovec stood his ground, growling deep in his throat.

Aviana reached down to touch the dragon's shoulder, not saying a word as she conveyed her thoughts through their connection. It was time for them to go, they needed to get to a safe place where he couldn't reach them.

Snorting in frustration, Kiovec turned and leaped forward, sweeping his massive wings down to get airborne. Carrying two people at a time was going to still be a challenge, but it could manage.

Aviana looked over her shoulder to see Sarkus lingering in the shadows. A part of her ached to leave him behind in such a way... But he'd been the one to steal her. He intended to use her and the twins she carried.

As much as she wanted to help him regain his humanity, she realized that there was only so much she could do.

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim knew that his uncle would not be stuck on that island for long. He knew that within a month he would return to Vel Anir and tell his father of everything that he'd learned.

It was not because he wanted to, not really, but because he was bound to do so. Lips thinned for a brief moment, he glanced back towards the cavern, almost wondering if it was worth touching his families magic to free Sarkus.

His fingers tightened, and then his head shook.

"Take us as far as you can!" He called to Kiovec, knowing well that even with his size the Dragon wouldn't be able to carry the both of them for very long.

They had been flying every day for hours, and just like Kasim, the Dragon had been pushing himself far beyond what it should have.

As they flew Kasim turned around to Aviana. "What happened?"

He asked her, just loud enough to hear over the wind.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Kiovec carried the pair as far and as fast as he could. He could sense Aviana's fear of the creature in the cave. At the very least, he was intent on getting them back to the mainland.

Aviana kept her arms around Kasim, legs holding onto Kiovec's sides to keep from sliding off.

"Which part?" She asked softly, leaning close to his ear so that he could hear her.

"Sarkus was the one who took me from our ship... They kept me on the ship, but one of the dreadlord's started... Twisting my dreams and tormenting me. I ended up calling overboard.." she explained as best she could, as succinctly as possible.

 

[Kasim Areth]

"Liam." Aviana did not have to describe the magic any further. He had suffered through the same experience as a child, the twisting of dreams. The touch of a malignant soul upon his own.

A shiver ran up his spine. "You were supposed to be bait."

Kasim finished the story for her, deciding that he did not need to know anymore. His father couldn't give a damn about an Elf woman, not normally, but when she was the one that he loved? The bastard would go to the ends of the earth to take her just to harm him.

Just to have a chance to get him back.

"It's alright now." His hand reached back, slowly touching her leg. "We're together again."

That was all that mattered in the end.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Aviana placed her hand over Kasim's, still in disbelief that he was real. Was this just another dream that was being manipulated? She buried her face in between Kasim's shoulder blades and squeezed her eyes shut, forcing herself to focus on the solidity of the man. The realness of him.

It wasn't until Kiovec touched ground on the mainland on an overlook that would afford them an excellent vantage in case Sarkus came hunting in the night.

Her legs swung off the dragon and she hopped down, wrapping her arms around herself for a moment as she looked down. Brow furrowed in thought, she tried to think of the best way to tell him the truth.

"Kasim... It... It wasn't just you that Sarkus was after." She whispered in a hushed voice, slowly turning back around to face her beloved.

There were tears in her eyes. What should have been a moment of sheer delight was tainted. Instead of rejoicing, she was terrified.

"I'm... I'm pregnant, Kas."

 

[Kasim Areth]

Kasim was swept away in a tidal wave of emotion.

At first was utter joy, delight at the thought of having a child with Aviana. Then dawned the realization. The facts of what it meant to have children, the pain of it, and of course what it would mean for the future. His face dropped.

Before they had been hunted, he had been hunted. Half a world away and it still hadn't been enough. Now? Now the Well would hunger more than ever, now it would threaten to consume everything that he held dear.

Slowly he stepped forward, closing the distance between them and enveloping her in his arms. "It's alright."

He said softly.

His father would know before long. Would know that the sacrifice would soon have to be made. The Well demanded blood. The Blood of a first born.

"It will be alright." Kasim told her softly. "We will figure it out."

They would have to.

 

[Aviana Sabel]

Her as arms tucked against Kasim's chest as he held her and she buried her face into his tunic, inhaling a ragged breath as she tried to keep from crying. She knew exactly what it meant that she was pregnant and what would come after them now. Nothing would stop Kasim's father.

She trembled against him and closed her eyes. "I'm... I'm so sorry." She mumbled, as if this was all her fault.

The young Princess leaned into Kasim's embrace, taking a deep breath and then slowly exhaling. "But... You're right. We'll be okay."