Chapter 145: A Worried Father

Ira sat at a small table and listened to Virgil, who sat across from him.

“You’ll be heading to the City of Clouds, Ira,” Virgil said. “It’s the home of the Twin Dragons and a place that could desperately use our intervention.”

“Why is that?” Ira asked disinterestedly.

“The legions of the Twin Dragons are starting to stage daily executions to prevent others from joining the uprising. If no one assists them that whole city will end up turning chaotic,” Virgil replied.

The entire process of execution as a scare tactic was sort of counterproductive as it made more and more people sympathize with the uprising. In the perspective of the Dragons, they couldn’t possibly show weakness or it would make the situation worse. Though one had to question whether or not false bravado was the proper decision.

“Well, whatever. Just make sure no one is in my way. I’d hate to accidentally kill one of yours.” Though Ira's words seemed truthful there was a distinct lack of sincerity in them.

“I’ve already sent word to them.” Virgil had already prepared ahead of time due to Ira’s apparent nature. He then slid over a packet of papers toward Ira who accepted them with a questioning look.

“I took the liberty of having someone forge you entry papers,” Virgil explained.

“Oh?...Good.” Ira smiled before he stood up and vanished.

Virgil exhaled as if he was exhausted before closing his eyes in deep contemplation.

…

Lauren and Ustia had caught onto Ira’s trail but his ability to teleport made it quite hard to pin him down. They also had to keep a low profile until they found which made the task even more daunting.

Currently, the two of them were traveling through a large mountain pass with a caravan of traders. They were offered a free ride after demonstrating their swordsmanship which made them more than fit to protect it from bandits. They were so exceptional that they were even given horses to ride, though it may have been because they were beautiful women.

“Are you having some trouble?” Lauren asked as she rode closer to Ustia.

“No, it’s just been a while since I’ve ridden a horse,” Ustia replied while clearly showing discomfort. “A few hundred years, in fact.”

“I see,” Lauren said with a soft laugh.

“Enough about me...I’ve overheard a few rumors.” Ustia changed the subject.

“About Ira?” Lauren’s face became serious.

“A few people were talking about an uprising against the dragons. Apparently, he’s on the side of the rebelling group,” Ustia said.

“They had to offer him something great for that to be true. In any case, once we find traces of the uprising we’ll find Ira,” Lauren replied.

All of a sudden, a horn blew and a group of huge men and women with red hair and tanned skin came rushing down both side of the mountain pass. They were Haykul, a race who were native to mountain living and naturally inclined to acts of barbarism.

“I was starting to get bored anyway,” Ustia spoke with some excitement as she drew her sword.

“Let’s finish this quickly.” Lauren urged her horse forward.

…

Raveria was extremely fast. No, that wasn’t the way to describe it. Her ability was centered around the manipulation of time and it manifested itself in different ways. She wasn’t at the point of large-scale manipulation over time but there were a few things she was already skilled at. Acceleration was one those things and possibly one of her strongest abilities. A thin layer of mysterious energy would cover her body to defend against friction as she moved at a pace that could exceed Rhys’ lightning enhanced movement.

Harper was chasing after Raveria and was clearly determined to catch her. She would use her phase shift ability to cover a huge amount of distance but Raveria was always ten steps ahead.

“Harper’s too slow.” The little girl taunted.

“It’s not fair, Ravi.” Harper groaned but she continued pursuing her.

“Bleh!” Raveria stuck out her tongue. She was so confident she didn’t even notice the spectral energy gathering behind her.

“Got you!” Harper appeared out of thin air and reached out to hug Raveria from behind. It wasn’t teleportation but the Harper chasing Raveria was an illusion while the real one was stealthily waiting to strike.

“Ah!” Raveria jumped and turned around to see Harper’s arms about to close around her when she shifted her feet causing vibrations traveled through the air. Everything had a slight blur around it and color looked as if they were faintly skewed.

Raveria looked around with surprise before turning her attention to Harper whose was still moving but at a rate of mere millimeters per second.

“Harper’s...slow.” Raveria circled around Harper with curiosity and immediately noticed that Harper was starting to speed up ever so slightly. It was clear her ability wasn’t unlimited and her speed would return to normal.

Raveria concentrated and then the air trembled before her ability was undone.

“...Got you?” Harper’s brows narrowed in confusion before she turned to see Raveria behind her pondering something.

“Ravi?” Harper felt Raveria had an uncharacteristically serious look on her face.

Before she could inquire further, Avery appeared in the yard and moved to pick Raveria up.

“Are you hungry, Ria?” Avery asked.

“...Yes, Mum.” Raveria nodded belatedly.

Avery raised her hand to offer Raveria her flame but the little girl shook her head.

“Mooncakes!” Raveria’s childish nature returned at the thought of food.

“If that’s what you would like,” Avery said as she smiled at the excited little girl.

Harper was left with some instinctive concern for her niece but couldn’t force the issue. She followed behind the both of them while thinking about grabbing a few mooncakes for herself.

…

The City of Clouds was called so due to its elevation. It was a plateau that was frequently hit with large amounts of fog which led to its less than imaginative name. Still, it was quite the sight to behold for Ira, at least, for a few moments it was. He had eaten the Storm Wall and so he was jaded toward the sight of clouds, fog, and plain mist.

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“It’s still pretty nice though.” Ira smiled as he felt a strong breeze blow past him.

The entrance of the City of Clouds was sealed by the Twin Dragon Gate, yet another creative name. A wooden gate studded with the golden symbol of two intertwining dragons, Hvette and Hyld.

There were a line of people carrying carts of minerals and produce with a generally overworked atmosphere about them. Of course, anyone would feel that way if they knew that all of their efforts were going toward an untouchable upper-class society that had a strict requirement of being blessed with dragons blood to enter. The only way to advance was to be personally chosen by the Blessed Ones which became more common as people awakened to gifts due to the Golden Aurora.

“Wait…” Ira’s gaze suddenly flashed with mischief. “The Red Moon could affect the Vulpes.”

Ira began chuckling to himself as he thought about it. He could bring the Vulpes to the Dark Elves and try to merge their bloodlines. His low laughter coupled with the strange look in his eyes was quite off-putting and prevented many people from even thinking of interacting with him. Time passed and his turn to present his papers came.

“Here you go.” Ira snapped out of his daydreaming and spoke cheerfully to the indifferent Legionnaire.

“Did you bring any items with you today?” The Legionnaire asked.

“Nope.” Ira smiled.

“What about money? Did you bring any money?”

“None.”

“...Then I’d advise you to be real careful. Although the papers check out your lack of belongings and money make you a possible target for execution.” The Legionnaire handed over the papers with a sympathetic look. When he said Ira would be a possible target was a lie, there was no way he wouldn’t be found in the next few days and tortured for information before being executed.

“Thanks for letting me know.” Ira’s smile brightened a little bit more.

There was some guilt within the expression of the Legionnaire but he hid it well and allowed Ira to pass.

Stepping inside, Ira could feel the tension in the air and it wasn’t surprising considering Virgil’s words. There were many that carried an unconscious look of bitter resentment as they hauled along items and luggage at the whims of Blessed Ones. A majority of the humans inside were emaciated and dressed in rags carrying a pitiful feeling around them. To contrast, the streets were lined with expensive stones and dazzling buildings. There was one large building that even had a fairy trapped in a cage as its logo. Outside were males and females of different races bound in chains.

Vulpes, Haykul, Humans, and a race Ira hadn’t seen before, Sirens. They looked somewhat similar to human females with the exception of their pointed ears, gills, and the fish-like scales on their arms. It was obvious they were to be auctioned off at some point but there were delays due to the mood of the city. In truth, the stock of slaves was mostly those accused of being connected to the Uprising and those claims were most likely false. There was a hidden agreement between some of the Legionnaires and the Blessed Ones who dealt with slaves but no one could do anything about it.

Ira took in the sights of the city while searching for new pastries. Each time he passed an open food stall he waved his hand and a strong wind sent an item flying toward him without anyone even noticing.

Without knowing, Ira arrived at some downtrodden area of the city with a huge crowd gathered around. They silently whispered about something which allowed him to clearly hear what was happening.

“Let go of my sister!” A boy yelled.

“Shut it brat,” said a man with a rough laugh.

As Ira made his way through the crowd he was able to see exactly what was going on. A young girl who was a few years younger than Harper was locked in chains and surrounded by Legionnaires. It was clear that she was another victim of the Legion’s response to the Uprising. No matter how others felt they wouldn’t be able to save themselves so how could they dream of helping someone else. The spectators could only curse the girl’s bad luck while being relieved they weren’t the ones chosen.

“She’s not apart of the uprising, bastards!” A small and unkempt boy cursed loudly. He was a bit older than his sister but he had a lively tenacity about him.

“Oh, bastards are we?” The Legionnaires laughed before they shoved the boy to the ground and began to press their boots against his back.

“Stop it!” His sister cried but there was no response to the Legionnaires.

Ira watched on indifferently before he felt a sense of deja vu. The cries coming from the girl made him think of Raveria. Was she crying at the moment or was she happy? How much had she grown? His mind began to get clouded with such thoughts and he didn’t notice a few hooded figures in the crowd slowly moving.

Was it fear? It couldn’t be but there was uncertainty and worry building inside of Ira. A somewhat foreign feeling, it made his chest tight and his hands tremble. He unconsciously cracked his knuckles and the loud popping sound resounded through the crowd and brought silence. They could feel something emanating from Ira’s body, something that caused instinctual fear and that soon spread to the Legionnaires who stopped what they were doing.

“Hey.” They cautiously approached Ira.

“Ria,” Ira whispered to himself. Such a feeling hadn’t assaulted him since he first held Avery and Raveria during their mental connection. There was also the time he held here when she was born.

“Even though she was so light...she felt so heavy,” Ira murmured. The responsibility he felt in being a father grew even heavier when he learned what happened to Indras. Could something similar be happening right now? He told himself it couldn’t, that Avery and the Valkyries were strong enough to keep her safe. But there was that unrelenting sense of uncertainty that burrowed into his skull and polluted his every thought.

“Don’t you hear us talking to you?” A Legionnaire asked. They drew their swords and moved even closer to Ira.

“Hey!”

“Right, right, right! It couldn’t possibly happen. That reality won’t exist because I don’t want it to.” A crazed look of denial appeared on Ira’s face as he murmured incoherent sentences.

“Hey!”

“I won’t let it.”

“Hey, bastard!”

“I can’t let it!”

“Hey, you crazy bastard!” A Legionnaire raised his sword up to Ira’s neck.

Ira blinked rapidly before looking in front of him to see a group of Legionnaires with their weapons drawn. He lightly exhaled before raising his hand up to grab the sword at his throat.

“...I miss her,” Ira said to himself.

Suddenly, dozens of black lines erupted from around his body and those watching all felt as if day turned into pitch black night. It was only a second but it felt like minutes had passed while in that empty vacuum of darkness. When the spectators opened their eyes, they saw nothing left of the legionnaires but a thick cloud of blood. The ground under Ira’s feet was shattered and ripples appeared in the space around him. Then, chunks of viscera began to rain down from the sky with a disgusting sound that broke the silence.

Ira, who was still holding the Legionnaire’s blade, tossed it to the side before wiping his blood covered face. He looked as if he returned to normal, well, his definition of normal. He walked over to the stunned children before breaking the chains tied to the little girl and walking away.

After his figure became distant, everyone felt as if they could breathe again and began heaving. The young boy who wanted to defend his sister looked troubled but he quickly made up his mind grabbed sister's hand. He dragged her along as they chased Ira who was already quite a distance away.

The hooded figures who were about to interfere on behalf of the boy were a step slower in reacting. They shared a look before they too chased after Ira.

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