Path of Dragons-Chapter 53Book 8: : Storms

Davika Yadav massaged her arthritic knuckles as she lay on her pallet, every possession she’d accumulated over the past five or six years in a roughly sewn sack by her side. The only thing she’d left behind was the small shack she’d built, and that was only because, with her meager Strength, she couldn’t carry it with her. As a Farmer, she just didn’t have attributes like that.

Sure, her high Constitution gave her the endurance to keep going well after everyone else dropped dead from exhaustion, but aside from a healthy dose of Ethera, her attributes were nothing special. Unfortunately, no matter how many levels she got, she couldn’t undo the damage of decades spent laboring with her hands.

Before the world went mad, she’d worked on a mango orchard in Bihar, where she’d lived for most of her life. The only time she’d ever left home was when her husband, Vikram, had sprung a trip to Hawaii on her. And it had been a wonderful change of pace that should have been capped off with a visit to Seattle, where much of his family had settled after immigrating to America.

But then the plane went down, the world had gone crazy, and she’d spent the following years in a brutal fight for survival. And she had been forced to do so alone. Vikram had perished in the crash, and her last memory of her husband was seeing him ripped apart by talons the size of swords.

It still gave her nightmares.

In a way, though, the struggle to survive had blunted the pain. Or at least, it functioned as a distraction. So many had died that she’d grown numb to it all. Instead, she’d focused on what she did best – using a lifetime of knowledge about farming to feed the other survivors. Because of that – and her refusal to cater to ridiculousness – she’d become something of a leader.

Not that she wanted anyone to follow her. She was far more comfortable doing her job, then going home to peace and quiet. However, the new world didn’t afford those sorts of opportunities, so she’d had to adjust to a life where peace just wasn’t an option. More than once, she’d been forced to take up arms. Sometimes, against monsters, but others, against her fellow survivors.

Like the people who’d broken away from the community to search for something better. They were all idiots, as far as Davika was concerned. Fools who craved adventure and novelty more than safety. She would have bid them good riddance and a not-so-fond farewell if they’d chosen to go without causing any problems.

Of course, they hadn’t picked that path, instead deciding to fuel their flight by stealing from everyone else. Davika didn’t mind sharing with those in need. In fact, their whole community was built on that idea. But the moment those fools had decided to leave, they’d ceased to be part of their community.

That fight had claimed more lives than she cared to remember. It was just another dark day in a series of the same, though. She’d long since resolved to worry about those among the living, rather than wallow in remorse for those who’d passed on. Anything else, and she would have gone insane.

Or just given up.

“Oh, who am I kidding?” she muttered, climbing to her feet. She knew she didn’t have it in her to give up. She’d fight to the end and go out scratching and clawing. “I’m too old for this.”

“What was that, badi amma?” came a voice from nearby.

Davika glanced in that direction to see one of the children standing there. How the dirty, little girl had survived the crash was a mystery, and she’d not had an easy life since then. But she was alive.

“Nothing, child,” she said as softly as she could manage. “Go back to sleep. We have a long and important journey before us.”

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That much was true. Already, they’d embarked on a harrowing expedition through the tunnels. If it had been anyone but Mako, she wouldn’t have believed the story of a vast wilderness far beneath them. But the Wayfarer had always been a solid young man, and she trusted him more than most. If he said it was down there, then she believed him.

Fortunately, they had a few Explorers who’d managed to usher them along without garnering the attention of the resident monsters. Most of the time, leaving the main cavern was tantamount to suicide – at least it was if one didn’t possess the proper skills. That was why so few ventured forth to explore. They were too busy trying to survive the hostile environment.

But then that man had come, strolling toward the gate like he hadn’t just passed through the territory of the flesh spider who’d claimed so many lives over the years. The little ones weren’t so bad, but the big one? Only one person had even seen the thing and lived to tell the tale.

To think one man could walk through that and come out unscathed beggared belief.

Such thoughts accompanied Davika as she guided the child back to her mother’s pallet. Then, she headed toward the communal fire where they’d cooked the previous night’s meal. There was a little flesh spider stew leftover, though Davika refrained from eating. It was more useful in other people’s bellies.

She could keep going for a long time yet.

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“Not much further,” came a familiar voice. She glanced up to see Mako approaching.

“You look tired. You should rest more. And eat. You’re skin and bones.”

He smiled. “You sound like my Tūtū.”

“That a good thing?”

“She liked to nag too.”

“Say that again, and it’ll just get worse,” she responded. “I might start asking when you’re going to meet a nice girl and settle down.”

He laughed softly. “Maybe when we get to this other city.”

“Do you believe it truly exists?” she asked.

Mako nodded. “I do. You didn’t see what I saw, Elder. He can turn into a dragon. He can fly. I believe he was guided here by the Aumakua.”

“Your ancestors played no role. He came because Gwenivere and the others made it through the storm,” she said.

“Then thank Kanaloa.”

Davika sighed. She had never been religious, so she had difficulty understanding how anyone could attribute the goings-on in the world to deities. Even with everything that happened, belief in gods – or ancestors – watching over them was too much for her to believe. Instead, she’d rather keep her feet planted firmly on the ground and deal with reality.

“I’ll thank whoever gets us off this island.”

That satisfied Mako, who helped himself to a little of the leftover stew. The boy had certainly acquired a taste for the strange flesh spiders, which he claimed reminded him of roasted pork. No one else liked it, but they weren’t really in a position to turn down any potential food source. And for better or worse, the juvenile flesh spiders were very abundant, often bypassing their guards to swarm the settlement. Thankfully, they were easy to kill, even if their bites were difficult to heal.

The survivors made do, though.

As Mako eagerly slurped down his stew, Davika headed to the edge of the cavern. They’d been traveling for more than a week, which meant that, even at their slow pace, they had covered quite a lot of ground. According to Mako, this was where he’d agreed to reunite with the self-styled Druid.

For her part, Davika only half-expected him to return. The subterranean world was dangerous, and he was more likely to end up in some creature’s belly than anything else. Even if he survived, he might decide rescuing a bunch of people wasn’t in his best interests.

“Expect the worst, hope for the best,” she said to herself.

“Hard agree on that philosophy,” a disembodied voice came only a second before a monster shimmered into view. Before Davika could even react, it transformed, taking on the familiar shape of the Druid.

She bunched her fists, ready to fight if necessary. But the man only smiled.

“Glad you all made it. I was a bit worried I’d have to come back and get you,” he said.

“Rakshasa,” she breathed.

“Nope. Just a guy who got a few cool spells. Mako! Good to see you, man!” he said, waving at the man behind Davika.

She refused to turn her back on the demon before her. He looked harmless now, but she’d seen his other form. If ever a monster existed, it was that thing.

Unfortunately, Elijah was strong enough that he didn’t need her permission to enter the camp, and he pushed past her to clasp hands with Mako.

After that, it wasn’t long before the group was back on the move. As they traveled, she kept her eye on the Druid. She wasn’t sure if he was an actual rakshasa or if he just had an odd class, but she wasn’t going to take any chances. She had people to protect, after all. To that end, she kept the children close, and she remained on edge, ready to defend them at a moment’s notice.

If the Druid noticed, he gave no indication as he happily walked next to Mako, who led them along the last leg of their journey.

Then, they reached the precipice of a new world.

The expansive forest took Davika’s breath away, and for a moment, she forgot to remain vigilant. And of course, the potential rakshasa took advantage of her inattention. He appeared beside her, saying, “Impressive, right? It’s partly bioluminescence just like we had before the World Tree touched Earth, but there’s a lot of magic to it, too. I think if this place had slightly higher ethereal density, it would be teeming with natural treasures.”

Davika had felt the declining ethereal density as they moved further away from the home they’d established, but she hadn’t thought much of it.

“Why?”

“Huh?”

“Why is it less dense?” she asked.

“You know – I’m not sure about that. I have some ideas, but I’d need to explore a bit before I could say for sure.”

“What are your theories?”

“Two major options. Either there’s a powerful natural treasure like right under that island, or there’s a Primal Realm somewhere near there. My money’s on the latter, but I’m hoping for the former.”

She nodded, though she had no idea what a Primal Realm was. Nor was she certain what constituted a natural treasure. It was then that she recognized the truth – their long isolation meant that she and the rest of her people had no idea what was going on in the rest of the world. That wasn’t as big of an issue as starvation or monster attacks, but it was definitely a problem.

“How will we get down?” she asked, peering over the edge.

“I’ll carry you a few at a time,” he answered. “It won’t be comfortable, but I think it’ll be fine.”

With that, they began the arduous process of transferring everyone to the next location. Though Mako had prepared the others for it, Elijah’s transformation into a giant, winged creature was met with a little panic. It quickly died down, though, and after a few minutes, that alarm became interest.

After all, he made for a very pretty monster, with his rainbow scales and elegant shape.

Some of that panic returned when they strapped people to his back and he took off, but in the end, there was nothing for it but to endure whatever they needed to endure in order to escape the hellish life they’d been living. In all, it took most of a day for Elijah to fly everyone to their destination, a few people at a time. Davika chose to wait until the last group to make the journey herself.

The flight wasn’t as bad as she’d expected. Clearly, Elijah’s serpentine body wasn’t meant to be ridden – especially by someone who lacked a significant pool of Dexterity – but that was why they’d chosen to lash themselves in place. However, there was something about flying that ignited a sense of freedom she’d never expected.

“You feel that all the time?” she asked when they’d landed in a clearing.

“Yep. My turtle form is more fun though.”

Davika was going to ask about that when she saw the structure the rest of her people had surrounded. It was comprised of nine arches arranged in a circle, and each one was carved to take advantage of the white-and-blue stone to give the impression of a whirling typhoon. She could practically see the clouds moving, even though she knew the entire thing was stationary.

“What is this?” she asked.

“It’s the Circle of Storms,” Elijah answered, already transforming back into his human shape. “And it’s your ticket to a better life.”