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Noctis sat in the center of town his large wings folded against his flanks, his eyes filled with a crazed mirth. Around him lay a field of bodies razed to cinder. He held a human infant in his talons dangling it above his mouth as if about to eat the child alive. The babe wailed for its mother, her corpse nothing more than a pile of ash and bone a meter away. Yet as Noctis opened his gaping maw, flames—not his tongue—licked at his lips. The breath of flame quickly erupted from his mouth and engulfed the now-screaming child. It took moments for the shrill cries to go silent. Noctis dropped the burning corpse and a terrible, low, rumbling laugh rolled out of the Black Death's maw.

***

I held my blade aloft for a split second before bringing it down, only to hear and feel it clang and bounce off Aurelion's own. The sound of metal scraping against metal resounding throughout the chamber that was the Inner Sanctum. Phineas sat cross-legged on my right side. Watching us with an adept eye, practiced at analyzing students and not revealing a thing.

We sparred with real swords using magic to dull the blades. My blade was a brilliant vermillion red. Its color reflecting on my pale features casting them in a ruddy hue. It was single edged with a slight curve and a fuller along the upper side of the blade. Its grip was made of cherry, which was then wrapped in the pebbly skin of some sea creature I'd never heard of nor seen. The Skin was bound by bands of woven Arach silk which had been run through a special bleaching process to wash out the adhesive qualities of the silk, then died a vibrant maroon. The handguard on my blade was circular. The piece having been carved with an image of Aurelion in flight. It was beautiful craftsmanship. Every piece of it having been done with extreme attention to detail. The scabbard within which it would rest was made of the same cherrywood as the handle and had been stained to show off the wood grain. The same hung from my belt where it was securely fastened. Its lacquered sides reflecting the light.

The blade Aurelion used was just as fine of quality, though a little more simplistic. Its handle was wrapped in a fine cowhide strip held on by brass tacks. Its length was longer than mine by a measure and its blade was a fine polished steel. It was more of a bastard sword of traditional style with two edges coming to a point with a fuller down the middle. Yet in Aurelion's hands it may as well have been a one-handed blade. The buckler he had strapped on his arm was evidence of the Dragon's intention of using it as such. The hand guard on the blade a simple contoured bar of brass. It wasn't that Aurelion didn't deserve a fancier blade, it was that Aurelion and I would do most of our fighting mounted up in the skies. Aurie's blade was not going to be seen quite as often as mine would be, thus the simpler design.

As I bounced off of Aurie's blade, I jumped back, narrowly escaping the riposte of the dragon. His blade sang from the force of the thrust. He wasn't holding back. Nor should I. I reset my stance for a moment before going for a horizontal slash at chest height. Again he parried, our blades sparking off one another. He used this opportunity to sweep my leg. Laying me out on my back. The point of his blade kissing the tip of my nose. “Yield!" Aurie's baritone rang through the chamber.

Phineas stood and walked over to kneel beside me. He had the look of a man whose patience was at an end. His brow furrowed and his lips pursed, he said, “That's your problem, Archie. You over exert yourself. You're too focused on 'beating' Aurie that you lose focus on your fundamentals. You left yourself in a precarious stance to accomplish that attack and Aurelion was able to take advantage." Phineas sighed, “You're improving, though. You managed to last longer than last time, but you will have much to learn if you want to face Noctis."

He held out his hand, which I grasped. Holding my sword in the other. As soon as I was on my feet I sheathed my blade.

The chamber was quiet, save for the sound of the three of us breathing. I heard Aurie's blade being sheathed then his feet padding softly against the mosaic tiles which made up the inner sanctum's floor. I felt a hand rest on my shoulder and squeeze softly. I smelled him. His scent filling my nostrils and my mind. It reminded me of being near a volcano on the Pelean Isles. The smell of brimstone and fire. It was a scent which would have frightened me not even a year ago, now it comforted me in ways that, were we not telepathically liked, I doubt I could actually voice to him.

His scaled finger met the bottom of my chin and gently lifted my face. His eyes met mine and the love and compassion which filled them was immeasurable. He leaned down and gave a gentle peck of a kiss on the lips. “Hey, love. Don't forget that you are learning. For one who's unfamiliar with the ways of battle, your abilities with the blade are commendable. We'll get you there. I promise you."

I pounced on him wrapping, my arms around his middle and burying my face in his sculpted chest. I squeezed him with all my strength. His arms fell around me and he whispered in my head, I love you, Archie. I won't let anything happen to you.

Just then the door burst open and a younger member of the Order greeted us, his dragon behind him. A black whose eyes were the color of liquid honey. He had a relaxed smile gracing his draconian visage. His partner on the other hand? He looked about to pass out from fright. I thought that a little odd. “Master Phineas! Master Phineas! Another town has been destroyed. Not a single survivor. Noctis! He's headed our way."

The Black grasped his rider—an elf from the shape of his ears—on the shoulder. He immediately seemed to relax. The Black opened his mouth to speak, but Grix burst into the room at just that moment, “Phineas. The king beckons us. We need to leave. I'll go get ready."