"Drachnai."
"Aragnes."
The twins' eyes flew open at the same time, burning bright white and shady black. "Rise!"
A blast sounded throughout the mountains. The impact was shocking and disturbed the eagles, which started to fly out of control, forcing some of its riders to descend to the ground.
Elder Sima took a step back and held his arm up to shield his eyes as a sudden blinding flash shone beneath his feet. It was only for a few seconds, but when he looked back again, he felt a great shiver run up and down his spine.
His jaw dropped as he stepped further back, inclining his head towards the sky. What he was seeing...he must be dreaming.
Elias and Eryn were no longer standing on the ground. Instead, it felt like they were thousands of feet above them in air, staring down at them like gods...and they were still ascending.
And it was not just them.
Beneath their feet were two great serpents, one black and one white, and they each carried one sibling on their mane-
Mane?
Elder Sima's froze, his eyes nearly bulging out of his sockets. These were no 'serpents', he realized.
They are dragons.
And there were two of them, both past the solidifying form stage. No wonder the twins were able to physically stand at the edge of the manes.
Elder Sima could only stare in amazement as the two great beasts twisted around in the sky, their presence bringing a shocking chill throughout the atmosphere. Frankly speaking, the word 'great' was too simple. They weren't just great, they were magnificent, their scales shimmering against the sunlight. The massive dragons nearly completely blocked the sun from their view, and from where Elder Sima stood, Elias and Eryn were barely the sizes of ants compared to their spirit animals.
"Heavens," he breathed. "Grandmaster Feng, you've really found gods."
But the show wasn't done yet.
Suddenly, the scales on the two dragons flashed, emitting a terrifying power from their forms. Black shadows circled around the sharp black dragon, similar to what they've all seen Elias use. Whilst the black dragon looked scarier and more threatening, the white dragon displayed its power more elegantly, flying about in its white clouds.
The ground-shaking roar that came next was nothing Elder Sima has ever heard, and he'd never felt so small in his life.
_______________
Milan and Alec winced and pressed their palms against the ears, relieving their eardrums from the thunderous roars.
"What's happening?" Milan shouted over the noise.
Alec pursed his lips and pushed open the doors to the infirmary.
Milan ran after him out the door and looked up, and immediately, her jaw dropped. "What-"
"Dragons!" Alec yelled back, trying to make his voice heard to his junior sister. "They're dragons!"
Milan blinked at him. Never in her life had she seen such a wild and crazed look on Brother Alec, and he was grinning from ear-to-ear, his eyes filled with awe, fear, and hope at the same time.
She darted her eyes back to the two beasts in the sky, watching as the circled threateningly around their enemy.
They're...on their side!
A high smile broke out across her face, and suddenly, she was laughing, something she'd never thought she'd do for the next ten years.
Finally...finally...finally, they had a chance against their enemies, and they were going to crush them. They were going to bring them down on their knees and make them pay for the lives they'd taken.
She glanced up at the two tiny figures on the backs of the dragons, but no matter how hard she squinted, she couldn't see who it was.
She'd never thought that she'd ever been able to meet the legendary dragons in her whole life, and yet, there they were in front of her eyes, moving splendidly in the air.
"Kill them!" Alec suddenly hollered, waving his arms frantically in the air. "Make 'em pay!"
Milan grinned and joined her Senior Brother in his shouting.
Hell to the yes.
Kill those f*cking b*stards.
_______________
"Ho, ho, ho," Drachnai rumbled, flying up and down in the sky. "Finally. The day has come."
Aragnes flew beside him, her black eyes gleaming underneath her long, white brows. "Yes," she hummed. "Indeed."
They eyed their targets, circling them like a predator ready to pounce on their prey.
The men on the backs of the eagles were few, many had already ditched their ride and jumped down into the sect.
"Take the eagles first, then we'll get the men," Elias said, repeating Eryn's orders.
"Hehehe...as you wish," Drachnai said. "Hold on tight, kiddo."
Elias barely had time to grab on to his dragon's mane before he felt himself jerk forward in the air, the wind blowing painfully against his face.
Drachnai dived straight for the eagles and Elias was thrown off from the impact when they collided.
From the corner of his eye, he could see Eryn had already gained a steady balance atop her dragon, unaffected even when Aragnes turned sharply and swerved dangerously in the air, devouring her targets with her immense power.
Elias clenched his jaw, determined to be able to make the same progress as his sister, trying to stand steadily on the back of his flying dragon.
"Catch up," Aragnes said before darting straight down to catch the escaped men.
Eryn held up her arms, her eyes glowing as Aragnes flew low, almost at ground level.
She heard the men's screams as she sliced her arms down in the air, watching blades of magic shoot through the sky from her hands and hit their targets.
"Your aim has improved," Aragnes noted approvingly.
Eryn smiled, feeling the cool breeze blow against her face and enjoying the dangerous sensation of flying recklessly in the sky. Never has she ever felt so good. "Of course. I still practice every night," she remarked. "You know that already."
Aragnes cooed. "Let's go find their cowardly leader, shall we? We'll leave the cleaning up to the boys."
Eryn glanced behind her shoulder to see Drachnai carrying Elias on his back, who was aiming his shadows at the enemy, killing them with one strike through the chest with his power. He had it in control.
She nodded. "Let's find him."
It didn't take long until they found a man walking hopelessly around the mountain's edge, muttering to himself while he paced back and forth.
He froze when the shadow of Aragnes fell over him, completely surrounding him in darkness. His figure trembled as the white dragon flew closer, only stopping when her face was inches away from the man's.
Eryn stared down at him and flicked her fingers.
A white string appeared at his neck, its sharp edges circling dangerously close to his neck.
He stiffened and gulped, sweat dripping down his brow to his chin. "Wha- what do you want?" he asked.
Eryn raised an eyebrow. He didn't seem much like a commander other than his significantly nicer clothes. "Speak. Are you the leader or not?"
He hesitated.
Eryn narrowed her eyes and string circling around his throat closed in, giving his skin a slight cut.
A yelp escaped his mouth, but he didn't dare to move. "Yes! Yes, I am!" he confessed, his voice quivering.
Eryn sneered. "Congratulations, you'll live to see the sun set and rise just one more time."