THE LOST GOD OF CHAOS

Chapter 10 – The Calm Before the Storm

THE leader of the dragon riders ordered his men to land, and before Jie could think properly, they were all on the ground with their weapons aimed at them.

“We will kill everyone if you don’t surrender the holder of the Creation Orb!” The leader gestured with his hand, and suddenly, a red flame materialized from his palm.

Jie swallowed in silence. He could hear his loud heartbeat, but he still held his head high. It wouldn’t hurt if he tried to negotiate.

“Let me talk to him.” Jie strolled past Aelec.

“Be careful, but I trust you. Only you can handle them.” Aelec was so serious that Jie’s jaw almost dropped. Why did this man trust him so much?

If it was hand-to-hand combat, Jie was confident he’d surely have an edge in a fight. But these men looked menacing, especially when their beast appeared tamed. How was it even possible?

“We don’t know what you’re talking about. We are just a small village trying to survive under these harsh conditions on the island.” Jie sauntered toward the leader. He was just buying time. At the corner of his eyes, he was trying to take a glimpse at Nyssa, who finally got inside the cave because Kali forced her in.

“I will not repeat myself. This island is uninhabitable, and it’s obvious that this oasis was made by the Creation Orb. It reeks magic in case you are not aware.”

Jie clenched his jaw. He just confirmed that these people were after Nyssa.

“That is not true. This place existed even before.” Jie sounded adamant. He prayed that he was convincing enough to make them believe his lies.

The leader chuckled. “We are not ignorant, like you! Savages! I know the holder is...” he paused. The man smirked and turned his head towards the cave’s entrance, “hiding inside that.” He motioned his hand to his men to check the cave.

Jie almost lost his cool. He thought of several ways to evade casualties since they couldn’t face these warriors. They’d just be slaughtered like animals.

“Wait! I’ll trade myself. I’m an orb holder, too!” Jie sprinted near the leader but immediately paused as the hundreds of spears pointed at him suddenly lit their tips with raging flames.

Oh, crap!

The leader scrutinized him from head to foot. “You’re just a lowly human. Back off!”

The dragon riders went inside the cave. Jie followed them, hoping that Nyssa had hidden in a safe place. However, before he could check everyone inside, the leader came back carrying Nyssa unconscious.

No! Jie fretted out.

“Put her down!” Jie warned. His vision caught Kali lying motionless on the ground; she was bleeding, while Tarian was tending to her.

“I said put her down, damn it! You can have me instead of her. She is just a child!” Jie tried to negotiate one last time, trying to put his trepidation in place.

The leader glared at Jie. “I am Commander Semme of Vatre’s Aerial Army, and I have an order to kill everyone on sight here except this orb holder if anybody shows resistance!”

Meanwhile, Herlan and Zuri refused to listen. They saw an opportunity to hit their enemies at close range.

Zuri gazed at his cousin, knowing the consequences of their actions. “Let’s do it!”

Determination was all over Herlan’s face. “Now!”

The two adjusted their aim, but as soon as they released their arrows, the dragon riders used their fire magic with a swift incantation. It was led by a man wearing a monocle.

“Zuri! Herlan!” Jie felt like a bucket of cold water was poured all over him when he saw his two friends burned to ash when they tried to fight sneakily despite Aelec’s objection.

Now, they were all surrounded and kept as hostages, waiting to be slaughtered without mercy if they acted irrationally.

The hatred that gathered inside Jie’s chest grew even more. Zuri and Herlan were killed just like that! They couldn’t even mourn the deaths of their comrades.

“Xeric, burn this place along with everyone if their filthy mouth won’t stop blabbering nonsense!” Semme was nearly losing patience.

“Yes, commander!” The flame in Xeric’s spear went larger, which made Jie flinch.

Jie glared at the commander and his second-in-command. “We are not savages!”

“Ethros, please don’t do anything stupid!” Finn warned him. Tears were slowly forming in his eyes.

Jie inhaled and exhaled sharply, trying to calm his raging mind. For the past few months that he’d been with these people, he considered them his family, especially Nyssa, who believed he was still Ethros. He’d do everything to protect this little innocent girl who sacrificed a lot for their survival.

“You will pay for this!” Jie finally let everything loose. “I will avenge my comrades you killed and I won’t let you take her!”

“I warned you.” The commander turned to his men. “Make this place ablaze until everything turns to ash!”

Aelec and his men sprinted to safety when the ball of fire rained from the sky. However, Ethros firmly stood on his ground, uncaring of the catastrophe that befell them.

“I will kill every one of you!” Jie’s voice reverberated. Clouds started to form in the sky, obstructing the illumination of the full moon. And then there was thunder.

“Commander, beware! He must be the holder of a minor wind orb!” Xeric warned.

Jie was unaware if it was his doing. All he felt was the surge of anger engulfing his body, and he began shaking. The feeling was familiar because he had been through this that night in Ardhi Village when the monsters attacked.

“Give Nyssa back to us!” Jie commanded. There was another thunderstorm. The bolt of lightning made the dragons squeal.

Aelec saw the same Ethros he witnessed that tragic night. His natural emerald eyes now glinted in crimson, and his mouth was uttering incomprehensible words that seemed like an ancient spell. It was like he transformed into a different person. The kind and gentle Ethros was gone; all he could see was a young boy filled with malice and ready to kill.

When the forest was ablaze, the ground trembled and everyone fell, aside from Commander Semme, who still firmly held Nyssa’s body. His face was void of emotion as he observed the boy with crimson eyes.

“Fascinating,” the commander murmured.

Aelec’s eyes widened when they heard the familiar roar coming underground.

The creatures of the Abyss were trying to break out!

Jie let his body move as his consciousness began to fade, heedless of what was going on. In his mind, he could vividly see the monsters below them trying to free themselves, but they couldn’t resurface because a glowing red seal that bore an unfamiliar crest prevented them from doing so.

As the ground violently quaked again, Commander Semme waved his palm, and a fire shackle emerged. He threw it in the air, and it landed perfectly on Jie’s neck, creating burn marks with a distinctive circular pattern.

“Impeding Shackle!” The commander snapped his fingers, and Jie fell hard on the sandy surface. “Bring him as well. He’d be a useful slave in the mines.” Commander Semme even appeared bored and not threatened at all.

“Yes, commander!” Xeric dragged Jie and brought him up to his dragon. "The Luominen is ours!"

“Ethros, no! Oh, goddess. Please help us!” Amri’s eyes burned with hopelessness. He tried to reach for his crossbow, but Aelec stopped him.

“Don’t get too emotional, Amri. We’ll surely find ways to save them.” Aelec tried to sound optimistic even though he knew it was nearly impossible to do so. “For now, let’s do everything we can to put out the fire.”

“They’ll kill them, Aelec!” Finn didn’t mind the heat that slowly engulfed them.

Aelec’s jaw clenched. “And they’ll slaughter us, too. We just lost two of our comrades. I can’t let us be extinct just because emotions cloud our judgments. We can always rebuild this place once they’re gone. But if we lose our people, no magic can revive the dead.”

They couldn’t do anything to get Ethros and Nyssa. Their difference in power was overwhelming. All they could do was stare at the dragon riders mounted on their beasts and fly away.

Meanwhile, inside the cave, Kali slowly opened her eyes, and tears fell.

“Nyssa, I’m sorry,” Kali whispered. “Ethros…”

It was not long before Kali found that they had lost two comrades and Ethros, too. It broke everyone’s spirit.

Aelec began to question himself. How could he save them? Could they come on time?