It was almost an hour to midnight in Novatio. The Dragonlord, Old Lady Kamikaze, Master Jin, Mistress Kira and Captain Hiru stood outside an isolated tower in the middle of the ocean. It was a prison for criminals with enough power to plunge the world into chaos.
The group was led to Galigaos' cell.
"Are you finally ready to talk Galigaos? We know the rangers you captured are alive. Where are you keeping them?!" Captain Hiru demanded an answer.
"I will give you a fair warning Dragon Rangers. Jinrai the Lightning Blade once trapped me in an isolated dimension. I broke free of that. What makes you believe a mere tower in the middle of the ocean is enough to hold me?" Lord Galigaos asked.
"Give it up already! Your plans have been foiled! It's been almost a year now!" Old Lady Kamikaze yelled.
"You presume to know my plans? Is it possible that your vision is failing you Kamikaze the Dragon's Eye?" Lord Galigaos asked.
"You've always been after the lives of Saggeese's heirs and now you're capturing Dragon Rangers for your dark experimentation!" Old Lady Kamikaze roared.
"Getting rid of Saggeese's heirs was merely a way to rid Ryugaeia of any of its symbols of hope. Using the captured rangers for dark experimentation…now that was interesting in its own right. Even Armageddon would need an army once he awakens and what better army than a legion of Dark Dragons" Galigaos said.
"WHAT?! You're telling me that's what the Wyverns actually are?!" the Dragonlord exclaimed in shock.
"Just you wait and see. Besides, the ones that should give it up is you Dragon Rangers. Haven't you ever wondered why I chose to set up my laboratory smack in the middle of Saggeese?" Galigaos bragged.
"Interesting, so your lab is in the middle of Saggeesian territory. That's new information that could be helpful to us. Thanks for sharing Galigaos" Mistress Kira said with a fiery look in her eyes.
Lord Galigaos looked foolish as though he regretted his words.
"Doing anything suspicious in Saggeesian territory would amount to a declaration of war. I suppose you wouldn't want that would you?" Galigaos challenged.
"If you ask me, using our rangers for inhumane experimentation was a declaration of war in its own right. And it's not one we're going to take lying down" Mistress Kira said.
"If I had to argue, you began this by performing covert operations in Saggeesian territory or would you claim to have forgotten that?!" Lord Galigaos asked.
"The Dragon Rangers' sole duty is to protect the Dragons so we will act wherever we sense a threat to the Dragons" the Dragonlord said.
"That is a little harsh towards humanity don't you think?" Galigaos asked.
"We won't debate ideals with a man who doesn't value human life" Mistress Kira said.
"You already have an idea of where my lab is so I'll give you a fair warning. It is an impenetrable fortress guarded by people who like I once was have bonded with the Wyverns" Lord Galigaos said.
"I think we'll manage somehow. We don't need your concern" Mistress Kira said.
Meanwhile, on a hill overlooking a monstrous fortress stood a girl with silver hair and emerald eyes.
"So that's Galigaos' lab isn't it?" the girl asked.
"Yes it is, shall we commence?" Omega asked.
"Omega…engage illumination!" Reia called.
"Of course!" Omega declared as Reia's eyes slowly assumed the likeness of a dragon and her breathing slowed down.
"I am Reia Dragonhaӓrt; daughter of Jinrai Dragonhaӓrt also known as the Lightning Blade. Sensing danger to the Royal Family Of Saggeese, my father sent my brother to be raised by my grandfather, my mother was entrusted with raising me while my father himself headed off to protect and raise Saggeese's heirs. Thanks to my mother's training, I managed to bond with Omega, the Dragon Sovereign of Immaterial Light. What is immaterial light you might ask me? Alpha is the Sovereign that governs light that manifests in the world while Omega is the Sovereign that governs light that manifests spiritually in other words 'knowledge', 'wisdom', 'illumination', 'enlightenment'. These are the attributes of Omega's domain. I have also awakened the powers of the Emerald Drakengaӓrd who governs nature. His ability allows me to resonate with the powers of the Kaignis King within Reis" Reia thought.
"Reia, they sensed your presence, they've all left the confines of the lab to take you out" Omega said.
"What is the best strategy to deal with them?" Reia asked.
She immediately felt her knowledge expand.
"I am unlike Reis in many ways and unlike him…" Reia said as she disappeared from the hill and streaked past all her foes overpowering them and knocking them all out with a single strike.
"…I feel no particular reserve for using my abilities to the fullest to take out my foes" Reia said as she landed and walked into the lab.
The Wyverns flew about aimlessly.
"It is as you said Omega, once they have no one to direct them, they are practically aimless" Reia said.
"Now let's free the captured Rangers" Omega said.
MEANWHILE…IN THE RANGER'S GUILD
Reis found himself in Alpha's Temple. The Dragon Sovereign descended from the skies and landed in front of him.
"Alpha" Reis called.
"I can sense him at last. I can sense my brother. It appears he is journeying with your sister. They have already freed the captured rangers. Like us, I sense that in time, multiple strong presences will gather around these two" Alpha said.
"Reia is alright then. I'd really like to see her. Perhaps I should search for her" Reis said.
"The time is not yet right. For now, you two will walk separate paths but in time your paths will intersect. I can tell it will also be a very joyful moment for Aurora" Alpha said.
"But why do we have to wait?" Reis asked.
"In time, you will understand" Alpha said.
Then Reis woke up. He freshened up and went downstairs. Kyla had already laid the table for breakfast. It was that time of year when the Dragon Students were on holidays. School had closed for the term so everyone had been taking things easy for a while.
Reis noticed Master Jin's absence.
"Where did Master Jin go?" he asked.
"Beats me" Kyla said.
"Heh, he tried so hard to conceal his presence while sneaking off around midnight" Shin said.
"How the heck do you know that?" Reis and Kyla exclaimed in shock.
Shin pointed to his head.
"It's grown much stronger lately and so has my bond with Draco" Shin said.
"I think my bond with Alpha is growing stronger too. I see him in my dreams a lot more often now except for the fact that…my dreams no longer seem dreamlike" Reis said.
"I don't know what you guys are talking about. It's probably because psychic and light are mysterious powers but Ehum and I are pretty much the same" Kyla said.
"So how goes your swordsmanship lessons. Aurora requested that you become her tutor a year ago. You've been teaching her so how has it been?" Shin asked.
"She is very dedicated to her training. In fact if I might add, a bit too dedicated. She seems to be in quite a bit of a hurry though I don't know why she's so frantic" Reis said.
"Reis" Shin called as he motioned to Reis to draw closer with his forefinger.
Reis drew closer. Shin slammed a fist on Reis' head.
"About a year ago, Aurora completely despised her homeland and everyone in it. That has begun to change since she met you. She at least loves one person from Saggeese" Shin said.
"And your point is…what exactly?" Reis asked.
"My point is, how do you expect her to completely despise the homeland of the one she loves?! Whether she realizes it or not, her feelings for you may have awakened feelings of responsibility towards Saggeese that she herself is unaware of. Right now, she feels the need to prepare herself but she does not know for what reason she needs to be prepared. It's not necessarily a bad thing" Shin said.
"You've grown much wiser in the past year but between the time it takes for the words that leave your mouth to reach my ears, I think a lot of them fall on the ground" Reis said.
"For someone who is the embodiment of balance for Ryugaeia, I am compelled to say…you're quite a moron" Shin said.
After they were done eating, Reis got up and said goodbye to the others and headed for Team Kira's residence.
Meanwhile, in Team Kira's residence, Aurora and Darak had already began their morning exercises. They began with a bit of hand to hand combat without weapons, graduated to using their elements, then began to fuse their swordsmanship with their elements.
Aurora picked up the Twin Saggeesian Sabres.
"You really want to graduate to double handed swordsmanship now?" Darak asked.
"My brother is no longer here and both swords are needed to vanquish Armageddon. That means I have to take up his share of fighting" Aurora said.
MEANWHILE IN CYRIL VILLAGE…
Somewhere in Saggeese, Reia Dragonhaӓrt had managed to smuggle the rescued rangers into a safe hiding place. The village of Cyril was another insignificant village like Tyron was in the eyes of Erikkus Di Devilli. It was a village that posed no potential threat and that in hindsight also made it the perfect place to hide the captured rangers.
Another reason why it was the safest place was because the people there despised Erikkus Di Devilli though they did not show it openly. This made them allies to anyone who openly opposed Erikkus Di Devilli and they'd support such a person from the shadows.
Reia initially attempted to bargain with the innkeeper to take all eighteen of the Rangers in for the night for a reduced price while she went out to earn the rest of the money required to maintain their accommodations till they recovered.
The innkeeper was suspicious to see a girl pay for the accommodations of eighteen unconscious people.
"Don't worry, they are Di Devilli's enemies and so am I" Reia said.
"I see you do not address him as 'lord'. That is enough proof for me. Any enemy of Di Devilli is a friend of mine. Just pay me what you can afford. I'll worry about the rest" the innkeeper said.
"I guess this is what they call finding help in strange places" Reia said as the innkeeper called some men to help her carry the unconscious rangers to their rooms.
IN NOVATIO…THE RANGERS' GUILD
Reis had finally arrived at Team Kira's residence. He found Darak and Aurora clashing blades energetically.
"You are still quite unfamiliar with this double handed style of swordsmanship" Darak said.
Aurora panted wearily.
"Hey look, Reis is here" Darak pointed.
Aurora turned and saw Reis. She sighed heavily and attempted to conceal her fatigue.
"Hello Reis" she greeted.
"Hi Aurora" Reis waved at her.
"I'm ready to begin. I want to master the Dragonhaӓrt Fencing Style of swordsmanship" Aurora said.
"You need to take a break first Aurora, I can see you are clearly fatigued" Reis said.
"I'm not exhausted! I can totally do it!" Aurora said with determination.
"Totally? You're not even sounding like yourself anymore. You need to take a break, tutor's orders" Reis said.
Aurora sighed.
"Tch! Fine" she grumbled.
She folded her arms angrily and sat on the grass. Reis sat beside her.
"Don't you think you've been trying to do a little too much lately?" Reis asked.
"What makes you think that?" Aurora asked him.
"You have been training with me and Darak and I may not be the kind to take it easy on you but Darak is the king of overkill" Reis said.
"If it were up to Darak, I would not be resting right now, I would be fighting" Aurora said angrily.
Reis sighed.
"Aurora, what is really bothering you?" Reis asked.
"Nothing" Aurora replied sharply.
"She says she wants to take up Jared's share of the fighting" Darak suddenly said from behind them.
"SHUT UP DARAK! NO ONE ASKED YOU!" Aurora yelled angrily.
"Where did you suddenly pop out from?" Reis asked with a bored look on his face.
"I was always around. You lost sight of me the moment you started goo-gooing each other" Darak said.
"No one says that anymore" Reis said with a bored look on his face.
"Apparently I do" Darak said with a smirk.
"I'm ready to begin!" Aurora said suddenly.
Reis sighed.
"Fine then, if that is your wish" Reis said.
Reis took his stance. Aurora took her stance while wielding both Saggeesian Blades.
"I see you intend to master both Saggeesian Blades and your reasons are solid. To some extent I'm beginning to understand that sense of responsibility Shin said you might be starting to shoulder but precisely because the size of your responsibility is great, I am going to teach you the flaws in your impatience" Reis said.
"Let's begin" Reis said.
Aurora wasted no time in charging at him from the front. She swung both blades while trying to coordinate them seamlessly.
"First of all Aurora, I believe I taught you that the first person to attack is vulnerable once their attacks are read and evaded or countered" Reis said as he parried Aurora's strikes and moved into an opening behind her.
He prepared for a strike and stopped his blade right before he could lop her head off.
"Try again!" Reis said.
Reis and Aurora took their stances. Aurora was careful this time. She did not approach recklessly.
"You are cautious, that is good. I understand that you feel you must carry the destiny of two heirs in order to defeat Armageddon however…attempting to fight a superior foe with nothing more than conviction is setting yourself up for an overwhelming defeat. You have not even began to comprehend the motions of double handed swordsmanship, let alone began to master it" Reis said as he disarmed Aurora easily.
"Try again!" Reis said.
Aurora sighed and dropped the Dark Blade. She wielded the Light Blade in a stance similar to Reis'.
"I see, you've become a bit smarter. You've decided to abandon your weakness and focus on enforcing your strengths. That isn't bad" Reis said as he began to clash blades with Aurora.
For a while, they seemed evenly matched.
"However, don't be naïve enough to believe that your weaknesses will not be exploited by an enemy in a real fight" Reis said as he suddenly doubled his attack speed.
Aurora was powerless to resist.
"You might have been able to block that…if you wielded both Saggeesian Sabres" Reis said.
Aurora dropped on her knees. She felt totally beaten and utterly depressed.
"What do I do then? There is no way I can become stronger. Swordsmanship has never been for me but everyone keeps telling me that my destiny and the fate of my kingdom is tied to my swordsmanship" Aurora said.
"If that is what you believe, I suppose that then is the truth. After all, there is no way to master swordsmanship once you've given up. The Dragonhaӓrt Fencing Style is a swordsmanship style that is predominantly forged from the faith of the practitioner. It grows continuously, refines itself in the midst of battle. It's impossible to master it if you detest it and far more impossible to master it if you believe it cannot be mastered" Reis said.
"So what are you saying exactly?" Aurora asked.
"I will always be your friend Aurora and I will tell you the truth, whether or not you can master it is completely up to you" Reis said.
Aurora sat on the grass for a while. She clenched her teeth tightly and felt tears begin to flow down her face. She recalled the Kaignis King's bite and Reis' poisoning after he had saved her from the bite herself. She recalled Reis' pain as he lay dying in her arms after Galigaos' fatal strike.
"I never want to feel that powerless again" she swore to herself.
Darak suddenly appeared.
"I know why you're trying so hard and it's not just because of Jared. It's because of Reis too. You still feel guilty for the way you treated him when he initially came to the guild but that's so long ago. You also think the reason he's always in danger is because of you but every time he was fatally wounded for your sake, it was his own choice" Darak said.
"You wouldn't understand! You're strong! You don't know what it's like to almost be responsible for a person's death especially if that person is someone you love!" Aurora yelled.
"You're right, I don't understand. You're telling me you feel responsible for something that never happened?! How could I understand that?!" Darak roared.
Aurora gasped in realization. She had never really thought of it like that. Reis had never really died so she had no reason to feel guilty for his 'death'. It made no sense. If he was alive, and she didn't want him to die, she would just have to find a way to protect him. She needed to disconnect those two feelings from each other.
"I think you're right" Aurora said.
"Of course I am" Darak said.
Aurora smiled to herself.
MEANWHILE IN THE VILLAGE OF CYRIL…
It was finally morning in Saggeese, in the Village of Cyril. A boy with bright orange hair and crimson eyes sat on the bed in the room he had just awakened in. His surroundings were unfamiliar to him. He felt weak and was still slightly dazed.
"Where am I?" he wondered.
Reia walked into his room. The boy raised his eyes and beheld an unfamiliar girl with emerald eyes and silver hair. She looked slightly older than him.
"Who are you? Where am I?" he asked her.
"I am Reia Dragonhaӓrt and you are in the Village of Cyril in Saggeese. Do you remember anything about yourself?" Reia asked.
"Yes, my name is Jared. Jared Saggeese, and I am a Dragon Ranger" the boy said.
"Jared Saggeese. Interesting name…isn't that the name of the Saggeesian prince?" Reia asked.
"I am simply a Dragon Ranger. You appear to be an ally" Jared said as he stared at Reia's ring.
"You belong to a guild?" Reia asked.
"Yes, the Dragon Rangers Guild" Jared said.
"Interesting. It is such an ambiguous name. If there are going to be numerous guilds in the near future, I think you might have to consider changing that name" Reia said.
"I don't think so. It's who we are. Changing the guild name now would be like changing our identity" Jared said. "Though I don't think that decision is entirely up to me" he added.
"Your comrades should be recovering anytime soon. When you are recovered, you can make your way back to your guild can't you?" Reia asked.
"You rescued me…uh I mean us?" Jared seemed surprised.
"That doesn't really matter. You cause me greater financial loss the longer you stay at this inn" Reia said expressionlessly.
"You are quite the brutal one aren't you?" Jared said with a laugh.
"Well where do you think I get all the money? I don't want to go on any needless hunts" Reia growled angrily.
"Yeah yeah, we're quite a nuisance to you but you have a Dragon Ring. How is that possible if you do not belong to the guild?" Jared asked.
"I guess the world's a pretty big place" Reia said.
"Not so big enough that a Dragon Ring accidentally falls into the hands of a person" Jared said.
"I guess you're not aware of the changes that have been occurring recently" Reia said.
"What changes?" Jared asked.
"I'm leaving. Whenever you guys are completely recovered, you can leave" Reia said as she walked out of Jared's room.
Jared got up and chased after her. They ran into the rest of the rangers downstairs.
"I see you are all recovered. It shouldn't be difficult to make it back to Novatio from here. The Saggeesian border should be close. But you should probably leave under the cover of night" Reia said.
"And where will you go?" Jared asked her.
"There may be others like you who need my help. This new world might be a bit puzzling to them…even a bit overwhelming. I also need to take into consideration that men like Galigaos the Crimson Swordsman Of Darkness and Erikkus Di Devilli might be after them for their abilities. I don't have a moment to lose" Reia said.
"Wait, are you suggesting that there are more people with Dragon Rings who do not belong to the Rangers' Guild?" Jared asked.
"At least not yet" Reia said.
"You did not deny it" a female ranger said.
"Let us come with you. If what you say is true, you will need all the help you can get" Jared suggested.
"You'd better not slow me down" Reia said.
"We won't" Jared promised.
"But could you at least tell us who you are? I introduced myself to you and though you are our rescuer, we still do not know your name" Jared said.
"The name is Reia, Reia Dragonhaӓrt" the girl introduced herself.
MEANWHILE IN THE RANGER'S GUILD
It was midday and Aurora stood at the Lake Of Kagua Beasts. Erasa sat beside her. Aurora had decided to take a walk to the lake and ran into Erasa. Recently, Erasa was a frequent visitor to the lake. Aurora knew she probably met Shin at the lake often.
She herself had hung around with Reis at the lake quite a few times though most of the time, it would result in them walking into the Caves Of Light. Since Alpha had inhabited the cave and transformed its darkness into Light, no one referred to the cave as the Cave Of Shadows anymore. It was now known as The Caves Of Light.
Anyway, Aurora sat with Erasa and both of them began to talk.
"You started training with Reis right? How does it feel to have your fiancé as your tutor" Erasa teased Aurora.
"F-F-Fiancé?! I d-don't th-think Reis and I have decided on what we are yet" Aurora said.
Erasa laughed.
"You both confessed your feelings for each other so what are you confused about? If you ask me, you're already a couple" Erasa said.
Aurora chuckled nervously.
"To answer your earlier question, it's kinda hard having Reis tutor me. He is a different person when he tutors me from when we are just friends" Aurora said.
"How so?" Erasa asked.
"Well let's just say he is a little scary and leave it at that" Aurora said.
"Now I'm curious, scary? How?" Erasa asked.
"It's almost as though he's reading me like a book" Aurora said.
"Well that is an essential part of combat so it shouldn't really surprise you" Erasa said.
"No, what Reis does is kinda different. I don't quite understand it but I believe I have experienced it once on the day I fought him with the Twin Saggeesian Sabres in order to free him from Armageddon though now that I think of it. That was also Reis tutoring me" Aurora said.
"Wow" Erasa did not really seem surprised.
"Come to think of it now, on that day I was battling with the Dragonhaӓrt Fencing Style" Aurora said.
"Aurora, are you sure you don't still despise Swordsmanship?" Erasa asked.
"I don't think I do. I mean, if it's necessary and it can help me protect Reis, then I guess…I am willing to learn" Aurora said.
"I see…did Reis say anything else?" Erasa asked.
"He said something about the Dragonhaӓrt Fencing Style predominantly being forged from the faith of its practitioner. Growing continuously and refining itself in the midst of battle. He said it was impossible to master if one detested it and far more impossible to master if you believed it could not be mastered" Aurora repeated Reis' words to Erasa.
"I see. Aurora, have you tried fighting anyone else with a sword aside from Reis and Darak?" Erasa asked.
"I did train with Sir Jinrai in the past. On missions, I rely mostly on Marina's power since I am unreliable with a sword" Aurora said.
"Aurora, as a swordsman, I don't think you have a problem. In fact I think you'd beat the snot out of anyone who'd be foolish enough to pick a sword fight with you. You've fought with a sword three people that possess otherworldly abilities" Erasa said.
"I don't get what you're trying to say" Aurora looked confused.
"The problem is those three people with otherworldly abilities are probably the only ones you've ever fought with a sword" Erasa said.
The sudden realization hit Aurora hard.
"We are Dragon Rangers Aurora, and our enemies are not exactly supposed to be ordinary however, we've been handling pretty ordinary situations. In situations like those, skill, strength, intelligence, they might be useful. But when dealing with a foe that defies or transcends natural law, those might not be helpful at all. If what I gather from what Reis said is correct, the Dragonhaӓrt Fencing Style is a style forged to deal with those kinds of foes" Erasa said.
"I see" Aurora said.
Erasa smiled.
"I'm always ready to help you whenever you need me" she said.
Aurora stood up.
"See you later Erasa. Thanks a lot" Aurora said as she headed for the Ayenhayze residence.
Meanwhile, Reis lay under a cluster of trees in the garden behind the Ayenhayze residence. He thought of Aurora's current struggle. He understood it since he had been where she was many times in the past. While training with his gramps, there were moments his gramps would place an overwhelming obstacle in his path that it almost seemed impossible to overcome. But while his gramps might occasionally drop useful hints to overcoming the obstacle, he would never directly tell Reis what the solution itself was. At times like that, he often said it was probably time for Reis to expand his range of experiences. Reis would often find the solution quite accidentally, almost coincidentally after trying to overcome the problem repeatedly.
"As painful as it is to watch Aurora's struggle, at times like this, it's probably best to allow her to seek the answer to her problem on her own" Reis said.
As he lay thinking, Aurora suddenly appeared before him.
"Hello Reis" she greeted.
"A-Aurora, wh-what are you doing here?" Reis was surprised by her sudden presence.
"I just spoke to Erasa and I think I realized a bit of what my problem was" Aurora said.
"Really? I'd like to hear it" Reis teased her.
"I may not be bad with a sword. But you, Darak and your Dad were just too good" Aurora said.
Reis laughed.
"Now that's an interesting thing to say!" Reis laughed.
Aurora pretended to be offended.
"Don't laugh at me. I had to really mull this over you know?" she said.
"But that might be half the problem" Reis said.
Aurora's expression suddenly changed.
"Darak was right. I wanted to carry Jared's weight too by wielding both Saggeesian Sabres but my real weight was my memory of watching you almost die thrice" Aurora said.
"I see" Reis said.
"I wanted to become strong enough to protect you" Aurora said.
Reis raised his hand and gave her a light chop to the head.
"What was that for?" Aurora seemed irritated.
"You worry too much. No matter how much we might try, some things are just beyond us. As long as you do your best you don't have to regret it later" Reis said with a smile.
"So will you train me again?" Aurora asked.
"Well of course. Why don't we create a variation of the Dragonhaӓrt Fencing Style that aligns with your convictions" Reis said.
Aurora nodded with a smile.