Chapter Text
The sea crashed against the rocks, waves reflecting the setting sun with an almost blinding light. Seagulls soared high above, circling the water in search of a last meal.
Only to be swept up into a pair of jaws and crushed.
Phainon watched as Kephale ate his catch from where he was seated on one of the cliffs. The wind was sharp and cold, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. The Stormcutter flapped his mismatched wings, the sun casting a warm glow over the yellow and deep blue membranes. He landed next to Phainon with a thud, shaking off whatever droplets of salty water had clung to his scales, before moving to lay down next to his rider.
“Think we can ever make it past the horizon?” he asked the dragon, reaching out to pet the plated snout. Kephale gave a noise that was somewhere between a grumble and a coo before licking the hand at his nose. Phainon couldn’t help but chuckle, wiping the spit off on the grass beneath him. “Yeah. Maybe someday.”
“What are you planning?”
Phainon didn’t need to turn his head to know who that voice belonged to. He only sighed softly as Kephale got up and walked over to Cyrene, nudging her with his head as a greeting before going to fly with Oronyx. Mem stayed with her, comfortable on Cyrene’s shoulder.
“I was just thinking about going out there,” Phainon pointed at where the sun kissed the horizon. The sky had shifted, rosy hues mixing with darker blues as the night grew closer. “Explore the world beyond Aedis Elysiae.”
“Hmm,” Cyrene sat herself down next to him, her legs hanging over the edge of the cliff. The Terrible Terror on her shoulder climbed down into her lap to get petted. “You should, you know. You still have your entire life in front of you. Go do something with it while it’s not too late, you don’t have to be stuck here.”
“You say that as if we live in a prison,” Phainon laughed. “I don’t feel trapped here. I just.. want to see what else is out there. Beyond our home. But I won’t be upset if I never get to go there. Aedis Elysiae is our home, and I will never grow tired of it.”
Cyrene smiled, and Phainon couldn’t make out what was going on in her head. Mem turned around and hopped over her legs to sit on Phainon’s thigh, pressing her little paws against his arm in a demand for attention. He gently scratched behind her curled horns until she settled down again.
“Well, whatever you do,” Cyrene finally spoke after a few long moments. She turned her head to Phainon, her smile growing happier. “Know that I will always be there to support you.”
Phainon beamed at her. He should’ve expected that from her, though. Cyrene had always been by his side, a constant reassuring presence even when Phainon went ahead and did something stupid. She was his voice of reason.
“Thank you, Cyrene,” he said. “You could always join me if you want.”
“I’ll have to think about that,” Cyrene nodded and moved to get up. Mem blinked open her eyes and quickly flew up to reclaim her spot on the girl’s shoulder. “We should get back to the village, though. It’s getting late, and they were making dinner when I went looking for you.”
Phainon followed after her, patting the grass from his clothes and looking up to see where Kephale and Oronyx were flying. They seemed to notice their riders’ intent, and returned to the cliff to let them climb onto their backs.
“Race you back to the docks?” Phainon grinned at Cyrene, grabbing onto the reins of Kephale’s saddle. Cyrene laughed, taking hold of the handles on her Death Song’s leather seat.
“You bet!” the words hadn’t even fully left her mouth before Oronyx shot up into the sky. Phainon didn’t waste a second before following after her with Kephale, the wind in his eyes and in the direction of home.
~~~~~☆~~~~~
The evening air was pleasantly warm against his skin as he wandered through the wheat fields of home. Phainon had eaten his fill and decided to take a walk, leaving the bonfire and his people to their meals. Kephale had stayed behind as well, content to rest on the side.
Reaching the open spot in the field, Phainon smiled to himself at the sight of the battered training dummy he and Cyrene had made a few weeks ago, when Phainon had obliterated the last one. He picked up the wooden sword laying in the dirt, giving the fake weapon a few spins before striking at the faux enemy. While he never had to use the sword techniques he’d been teaching himself, it would do good to practice.
Besides, if he ever planned on exploring the world, Phainon would need to be able to defend himself, even without Kephale’s help.
He stayed there for a while, hitting the dummy with various amateur moves. The sun had long since dipped under the horizon, but its warmth hadn’t left yet, and it made for a nice summer’s evening with the addition of the crickets singing into the night.
The pinpricks of claws on his back had Phainon pause, turning his head to the small dragon climbing up using his clothes. He chuckled and gave Mem a scratch under her chin.
“Come to join me, little friend?” he smiled, but it faded when Mem seemed more anxious than comfortable. Frowning, Phainon turned to the direction she had come from.
Only to see flames rising high above the huts.
His grip on the sword tightened when he ran back. Mem had let go and flew ahead, likely to find Cyrene again. The wood would not hold out against a real weapon, but Phainon had nothing else, no other choice.
The smoke was thick, making his eyes tear up and closing his throat with a burning sting. Every breath hurt, and he swiveled around to see where his people were.
“Cyrene!” he called out, only to be met with the roaring of dragons and the yelling of people. He ran towards the nearest noise.
The door to the hut was already kicked open, barely hanging from the hinges. Inside, a stranger had stabbed their sword through another’s stomach, blood spilling to the floor. Phainon recognized her scream immediately.
“Livia!” Phainon charged at the stranger, hitting them with the wooden sword. Livia was dropped to the floor with a thud, her head hitting the floor hard as the invader turned around. Phainon took a step back, glancing from them to Livia and back.
Their clothes weren’t familiar to him. Black with orange details, and a crest he didn’t recognize. Their face was hidden behind a mask. None of it mattered though, not when the stranger lifted his sword to attack Phainon as well. He tried blocking it, but the wood splintered when the iron blade struck it. Letting out a frustrated yell, Phainon balled his fists and managed to land a few hits on the invader. While he managed to his them a few times, punching their nose hard enough to knock their head back, his upper hand was only short-lived. Grabbed by the throat, the stranger rammed Phainon back against the wall of Livia’s house, effectively knocking the air out of his lungs. He wheezed, clawing at the offender’s arm, but his blunt nails did nothing to the thick clothing they wore. He saw Livia’s terrified face, still lying limp on the floor, blood seeping out of the wound from her stomach.
Phainon had never felt so homicidal.
And yet he couldn’t yell, couldn’t scream for help he wasn’t sure would come. Oxygen had left him, and the smoke burned down his airway with every inhale he tried to make. He would die and not even be able to see his murderer’s face. He would die knowing he couldn’t protect his people.
The ceiling caved in, wood crashing down accompanied with Kephale’s roar. The invader was knocked aside by his tail, and Phainon coughed on his first breath. But there was no time to rest. He quickly got up and rushed over to Livia, cradling her paling form in his arm as he ran out of the house.
The person who attacked him was only the start. Countless people broke into the homes of his people, coming out with bloody swords. Their dragons were held down by nets and traps, wailing for help and snapping at their captors. Phainon’s knees gave out, and he dropped to the floor, Livia still bleeding in his arms.
“Livia? Livia, can you hear me?” he asked, shaking his friend’s body. But her eyes were already empty, lifeless. Her blood soaked through her clothes, seeping into Phainon’s, dripping onto the dirt. “Livia, wake up! Livia!!”
His cries attracted the attackers, and three of them made their way over. Phainon only looked up in time when Kephale returned, standing in between him and the invaders. The dragon roared, before sending a spiral of fire their way. Once those were dealt with, he turned back to Phainon and shook his head.
“No.. no, we can’t leave them here!” Phainon protested, still holding the corpse that was once his friend. “We have to protect them!”
But the more he looked around, the more hopeless it seemed. Fire ate away at the huts. His people lay dead or dying on the ground. Their dragons were trapped, and those who weren’t had fled or tried in vain to help. The smoke obscured his vision, made him almost choke.
Kephale wasn’t having any of it, though. The dragon was often smarter in the heat of the moment, seeming to know what would be the best course of action. He was so different in that regard, compared to Phainon.
And so, having made his decision, the Stormcutter opened both pairs of his wings and flew up. His talons curled around Phainon’s frozen form, and his rider found himself carried up into the sky. He watched Livia’s body shrink the further he was taken up.
“No, no no! Kephale, go back! We can’t leave!” he cried, struggling against the hold. The only noise in response was a loud snarl, but Kephale didn’t change his course. The smoke cleared the more altitude they gained, and Phainon could finally breathe again.
“We have to go back..” he whispered, voice hoarse from yelling. Finally, he let his tears fall down to the ocean. He’d stopped struggling by then, paralyzed in the claws of Kephale.
A small movement caught his attention. Phainon blinked to refocus his eyes, watching the pink dot get closer. His eyes widened.
“Kephale, wait!” he ordered. While the large dragon didn’t stop, he did slow down enough for the Terrible Terror to catch up. Phainon reached out his arms, taking Mem into his arms and holding her close to his chest. “It’s alright, it’s alright.. I got you..”
Phainon looked back at the flames engulfing his home, growing smaller by the second. The smoke rose high into the sky, and he could see a few dragons who’d made it out fly off to safety. They were too far for him to recognize any of them, to see who managed to escape the bloodbath.
But Kephale refused to turn back, and so Phainon could only watch helplessly as the town he grew up in disappeared into the distance.