“…Despite my complaints, this meeting with the elves has really been advantageous. We’ve shared any information we have about the Dark Lord and have begun drawing up potential plans for battle. Aureum is mustering and sending seven companies of soldiers to aid their villages. We’ve both agreed that we need the help of the other countries, but we’re still debating how to go about getting their cooperation. As it turns out, when they say Kastra is the scourge of nations, the only nations they’re referring to are Aureum and the Elven kingdom. Anyway, I hope your classes are going well.

  Your (especially amazing) cousin,

  Khastri

  Khastri looked the letter (all four pages of it) over once more before folding it and slipping it into an envelope. He would take it to the messengers’ hut later. He could have just given it to a servant to deliver, but he liked taking it himself. He knew Starla would never know about the gesture, and he wasn’t usually a sentimental person but… well, to be honest, he really missed his little cousin. He missed their banter when they sparred, her encouragement, and her fierce but gentle spark.

  His gaze fell on the letter again, and he sighed. Khastri had put a lighter spin on it, but that the other nations didn’t recognize the danger of the Dark Lord was a problem. The Elves and Aureum had been sort of a buffer zone, preventing Kastra from truly expanding. Their fierce soldiers and strong mages had been able to hold the Dark Lord back so far, but they had never managed a successful offense, and their ability to hold the line against him was waning—as the visit of the elves had revealed.

  Khastri stood up and turned around. “Fools, all of them.” Then he sat back down heavily. He couldn’t blame them for not taking attention to Kastra. They hadn’t experienced his power, or his cruelty. Not like Aureum had. Not like the Elven villages were, even now.

  He shook his head and stood again. “All the same, we have to get the other nations on our side. There’s no other choice.” His eyes were again drawn to the letter, and he picked it up. “I suppose I might as well run this down to the messenger now.”

  He swept out of the room.

  …

  Out of all the classes Starla was enrolled in, Magical Combat was her favorite. One reason was that on sunny days, like today, class was held outside. “Alright, students,” Instructor Luc said. “Start warming up.” Each class began with a strictly non-magical warm up time. That was another reason Starla loved it. Instructor Luc was a down-to-earth sort of mage. For the first week of classes, they hadn’t even used any magic!

  “Nice day, innit?” Lias, Starla’s friend, commented as she stretched.

  “Yup,” Starla said. “I’ll bet they’re serving ice-cream for lunch today.”

  “Aye,” Lias agreed, her face twisted in concentration as they did one of the harder stretches. “Ne’r did ‘ave much ice-cream back home.” Lias was from a small village on the edge of the North Wilds. She was a powerful fire affinity, though her magic wasn’t wild and dangerous like one would expect. It was a more controlled power, fierce and graceful. She was one of the top students in Instructor Luc’s class.

  By now the class was finished with their warmup. They stood in a line, waiting for the instructor to give his orders.

  “By now, you have the absolute basics down,” Luc said, pacing along the line and looking each student in the eye. “So, for the next few classes we’ll work on foundational principles and figuring out a fighting style that works for your magic. After that, you’ll start sparring against each other.” Starla and Lias glanced at each other. Lias raised an eyebrow. Starla grinned.

  ‘Nice. Last time I had a chance to spar was with Khastri before I left.’

  After that, Luc gave them a few basic exercises to practice. The students spread out into groups on the field, and Instructor Luc walked among them, giving advice and sometimes just observing.

  Starla formed a small orb of light for the first exercise, and Lias ignited a flame. She took a few steps back and caused the flame to float a few inches in front of her, and Starla did the same. Then, as Luc had directed, they started… breathing. With each breath in, they funneled less power into their magic, and with each breath out they gave more. For Starla, the effect was the ball of light growing and shrinking in sync with her breath.

  Soon Instructor Luc reached their group. “Excellent job,” he commended with a nod. “Try giving a little more power when you breath out,” he advised Lias. Lias nodded and focused again on her flame, and Instructor Luc turned to Starla. After observing her for a minute, he spoke. “Do you have any past experience with magical combat?” Starla nodded.

  “Yes, sir,” she said. “I used to spar with my cousin.” She didn’t mention her battle with Virentree, the Dark Lord’s heir.

  Instructor Luc nodded. “Your affinities are very powerful,” he said. “But you handle them with a surprising level of experience and skill.” There was a pause.

  “Thank you,” Starla said carefully, not sure if there was something else Instructor Luc was expecting from her. Luc nodded again and turned away. He took a few steps before turning back.

  “There’s something different about you, Starla. More than a double affinity or strong magic. Don’t… don’t be blinded by the way things seem of the surface. Dig deeper. Sometimes you’ll find what’s underneath to be corrupt or saddening, and sometimes… sometimes the truth of what’s beyond the surface is much more beautiful than you ever expected or imagined.” Starla was quiet, not sure how to respond.

  “…Thank you,” she finally said. Luc nodded and turned away, approaching the next group. Starla and Lias’s eyes met. Lias shrugged and went back to the exercise. After a moment Starla did the same. ‘It’s good advice,’ she thought after chewing over the Instructor’s words. She stored them away in her mind. ‘I’m sure they’ll come in handy sometime.’

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  …

  Viren quietly rolled out of bed, careful not to wake his roommates. When his feet touched the floor, he paused, his eyes passing over Rickson and Tysonn. No movement. Still fast asleep. Crouching down slowly, he picked up his boots and walked silently to the door. Opening it carefully, he slipped through and shut it silently behind him.

  He was too nervous to sleep. Tomorrow morning, the plan to catch the thieves would be put into action, and everything hinged on Viren being able to follow a thief to their hideout without getting caught. ‘I can’t even remember the last time I was this nervous,’ Viren thought, lips tight. He had done far harder, scarier things before, so what was different about this?

  The answer came to him as he descended down the long staircase. ‘The rest of the Tigers.’ If he failed, he would be disappointing more than just himself. Brack, Rickson, and all the rest were putting their trust in him for this… what if he messed up?

  Viren entered the empty kitchen. Skirting the counter in the center of the room, he unlocked the side door and exited the house, taking a deep breath. The cool, crisp night air filled his lungs. ‘When did I start caring so much about what they think?’

  He walked a little way away from the manor and sat down. The grass was cool but not wet. He leaned back and looked up, getting lost in the stars and the constellations they made. He focused on them and purposely deepened his breathing, taking in as much air as he could every breath and emptying his lungs completely when he exhaled. The stillness and peace of the night rubbed off on Viren, quieting his mind.

  “Viren?” The voice came from the side door of the kitchen. Viren froze, then relaxed. It was Tysonn. Then he frowned. What was Tysonn doing out here? He was supposed to be sleeping, not bothering Viren.

  “I’m here,” Viren said quietly. He didn’t hear any footsteps, but he felt Tysonn come up behind him.

  “What are you doing out here?” Tysonn asked.

  “Sitting,” Viren said without turning around. Tysonn sat down. “Why did you follow me?” Viren asked. “How did you even know I was gone?”

  “I woke up after you left,” Tysonn responded. “There was only one other person breathing in the room.” Viren laughed incredulously.

  “You woke up because you couldn’t hear me breathing?” Tysonn shrugged but didn’t respond, and both sat in silence.

  “Why did you follow me?” Viren asked again, breaking the silence.

  “I wanted to make sure you were ok,” Tysonn said. “I’m pretty sure you didn’t sneak out just to sit around.” Viren was slow to respond, wondering how to phrase his fears.

  “What if I mess up?” he asked in a whisper, almost hoping Tysonn hadn’t heard.

  “Then we’ll just have to find a different way to the ring’s hideout,” was Tysonn’s prompt response. Viren nodded, but he wasn’t satisfied with the answer. An owl took off from its nest in the forest beyond the manor, and Viren watched it until it was too far away to be seen, night vision or otherwise.

  “I won’t mess it up,” he said firmly. “I know I won’t.” And he did. Viren knew he was skilled enough to discover the thieves’ hideout. “I don’t even know what I’m worrying about.” He snorted quietly at himself and stood up, turning back to the house. He was a few steps away before Tysonn shifted and spoke.

  “Do’ya ever wonder if you’re not good enough?” he asked quietly, still facing the dark of the night. The question stopped Viren in his tracks and stirred something deep in his soul, like a lurking monster in a deep dark pit. The dream from a few nights ago flashed through his mind, along with the worry that he wouldn’t make the right choice.

  Viren shook himself and, pretending not to hear, tromped back to the manor.

  …

  “Ready, Viren?” Rickson asked. Viren nodded. They stood outside a large house in a nicer part of the city. The bait was set, and now it would be Viren’s job to keep watch for the thief. A few other mercenaries were also on duty to keep watch, but Tysonn had placed Viren at the “most likely points of entry and exit.” Rickson left, and now all that was left to do was wait.

  It was nearly midnight before a thief arrived. Viren watched as a grey-clad man deftly climbed in through a second story window. From Viren’s position on the roof of another house, he had a good view of where the thief would exit, if Tysonn was correct.

  He was. Not twenty minutes later, the thief exited through another window, a small bag slung over his shoulder. With a quick look around (but not up or down) he dashed down the street. Viren followed the man from the rooftops, his footsteps not making a sound.

  Viren trailed the thief from the rooftops for several blocks before he was forced to find a way down. He followed the thief through empty markets and narrow streets, and even through an abandoned house.

  Ten minutes into the chase, Viren followed the thief down a smaller side street. Without the usual daytime crowds to hide in, both Viren and the thief stuck to the shadowed edges of the streets. Before long, Viren could see that the street ended in a large square, with many streets attached to it. The thief reached the end of the street and turned the corner, vanishing out of Viren’s sight.

  Viren quickened his steps, peering around the corner. The man was gone. Viren’s heart skipped a beat, but he took a breath and looked again. No one. The thief couldn’t be hiding in the shadows, because Viren could see in the dark. The courtyard was—somehow—empty. His heart was beating double time by now.

  ‘No. How can this be happening?!’ The man couldn’t have just disappeared into thin air like that. Viren peered around the corner again. There were a few empty market stalls, and buildings surrounded the square, but Viren had no idea where the thief could be hiding.

  He ducked back behind the corner and slid down to a sitting position, his head in his hands. ‘Think. I can’t mess this up. There has to be some was around this. They’re going to be so mad.’ Viren tried to think of what to do, but he couldn’t concentrate with the panic running through his mind.

  Holding his breath, Viren looked to the sky, trying to catch sight of the moon or stars or something to anchor him, hold him back from breaking down. But it was too cloudy for him to see anything.

  It would’ve been the perfect night for a fly, if he wasn’t on this mission. He could’ve flown above the clouds, and no one would’ve been able to spot him. The only problem was that above the clouds he wouldn’t have a view of the city.

  His thoughts screeched to a grinding halt. ‘View… of the city? From above?’ Viren’s heart was still beating fast, but for a different reason this time. It was the perfect night for a shadow dragon to fly, because no one would see him. It was too cloudy and dark. And if there ever was a time to risk possibly revealing his true form… it was now.

  Viren stood up, resolutely. Carefully, he stepped into the courtyard. It was empty and silent. If the thief had been hiding somewhere in it, he was long gone now. With a deep breath, Viren transformed into his dragon form and flapped his wings, flying high above the city. He wavered awkwardly for a moment before he evened out. His dragon form had grown, now roughly twice the size of a grizzly bear if he had to guess. Viren summersaulted in mid-air experimentally. The movement was familiar and comfortable, but not as smooth as it used to be. ‘It’s been a little bit since I’ve done this,’ Viren thought. Weeks, maybe a month or two.

  He shook his head. ‘What am I doing? I don’t have time to waste!’ He dove down as close to the city as he dared, gliding over it as slowly as he could without falling out of the air. He scanned the city streets carefully, searching for the thief. He circled the city twice before he saw anything.

  ‘There!’

  A full block from the square! Viren dove towards the city, transforming in mid-air and landing on a building above the thief with a soft thud. He wasted no time looking over the edge, making sure the thief was in his sight. He silently exhaled with relief and went back to following the thief by rooftop.

  Ten minutes later, Viren had the location of the hideout and was dashing back through the city to the meeting spot.