novelraw Chapter 83
Chapter 83
The moment Bianca's form vanished into the light, the portal began to flicker violently, its edges warping. It was a clear sign of imminent collapse.
Before the gate could tear itself apart, threads of raw, red mana materialized in the air. They shot forward like crimson spears, plunging into the unstable portal. The instant they made contact, they burst into flame, a ring of controlled fire that blazed around the gate's shimmering perimeter. The flickering immediately ceased. The portal stabilized, humming with a steady, newfound power.
Hijacking and fortifying a gateway was a traditional craft for those touched by providence. Though Aiden had only just inherited this power, the knowledge was instinctual, as if he had been doing it for eons.
He felt the mana draining from him like a river. A glance at his internal panel confirmed the cost.
[Mana: 10,506 / 11,247]
A thousand points, gone in a breath.
He turned his massive head toward the blue figure beside him. Azure was staring at the now-stable portal, her blue, slitted pupils wide with a focused intensity. She had seen it flicker, had felt its instability, yet now it stood firm, wreathed in Aiden's flame. How did he do that? That fire…
The tip of a long, sinuous red tail prodded her back. Then again.
She turned her head, her eyes meeting his. A burning desire for knowledge lit her blue pupils. Aiden could see a thousand questions swirling within them, but now was not the time for answers.
“Do you need me to send you on your way, too?” he rumbled, a hint of wry warning in his tone.
Azure understood his meaning instantly. Without another moment's hesitation, she strode purposefully through the ring of fire and into the light.
...
In the garden, a white dragon erupted from the portal without warning, tumbling through the air before crashing into a meticulously cultivated flowerbed with a shower of soil and petals.
Isolde and Thea stared, eyes wide, at the figure that had just unceremoniously landed in their midst. It was a dragon, powerfully built, with scales a stark, bone-white. Its wings were tucked against its back. Even after the fall, it clutched something tightly in its claws. Was that… a cactus?
She doesn't look particularly intelligent, Thea thought. A classic white dragon, then.
Bianca's nostrils filled with the sweet perfume of crushed flowers. That wretched Aiden! she grumbled internally. Throwing me again! She pushed herself up, her powerful hind legs finding their footing.
Clatter.
The cactus fell from her claws, forgotten. She no longer cared for it. Her white eyes locked onto the gazebo.
Meat. Two morsels of meat.
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A string of crystalline saliva dripped from her maw.
The dragon's predatory gaze sent a shiver of primal fear down Isolde's spine, and she took an involuntary step back. The contract mark on her hand remained cold and silent. This was not her partner.
From her seat in the gazebo, Thea was instantly on alert. She shot to her feet, her expression hardening. There was no mistaking the look in that white dragon's eyes. It was not curiosity. It was hunger.
It wants to eat Isolde!
The white dragon's powerful hind legs coiled and then launched her forward in a terrifyingly swift pounce, her great maw snapping open to bite—
And stopping dead.
A shimmering blue barrier had materialized between her jaws and their target. Her snout slammed into the invisible wall. Bianca stared at the transparent shield, confused.
Damn it! she snarled internally. Can't a dragon get a decent meal around here?
With a frustrated snarl, she began to claw and bite frantically at the barrier, but her attacks glanced off its surface without leaving so much as a scratch.
Thea stood with her left hand outstretched, palm open. Upon her finger, the Ring of Valerius pulsed with a steady blue light, feeding power into the shield. Thankfully, its rank is low, Thea thought, a sliver of relief cutting through the tension. It shouldn't be able to break through.
She glanced back at Isolde. The girl had collapsed onto the summoning formation, her legs splayed awkwardly beneath her. She was clearly terrified.
“Are you alright, Isolde?”
“I… I'm fine,” she stammered, her voice trembling.
“Why did it attack you?”
Isolde met Thea's dark, calm eyes, and the sight was enough to begin soothing her frantic heartbeat. Her panicked thoughts began to clear. “I… I don't know. But I know it's not my contracted partner.”
As she spoke, the portal flared again.
A blue figure stepped through. It was another dragon, the same size as the white one, but with scales the color of a deep sapphire sea.
Azure emerged from the light, her gaze sweeping over the lush scenery. It landed immediately on the spectacle by the gazebo: a white dragon throwing a tantrum against a blue energy shield. Inside the shield, two of the short-lived species huddled—mere whelps, by the looks of it.
Her eyes settled on the girl sprawled on the ground. She was sitting right on top of the summoning array. So that one must be Aiden's contractor.
Azure's gaze then shifted to the other girl, the one holding up her hand. Specifically, to the glowing silver ring on her finger. A powerful magical resonance flowed from it. An heirloom artifact, no doubt. A flicker of primal, draconic greed flashed in her blue, slitted pupils.
Just then, the portal pulsed one last time.
A crimson figure stepped out onto the grass. As his long, sinuous tail cleared the gate, Aiden severed the flow of mana. The portal dissolved behind him into a cascade of red motes that vanished in the gentle breeze.
Blue sky, green trees, air thick with moisture and life. He was finally out of that damned sub-plane.
Aiden lifted his head, taking in his surroundings. He stood in what appeared to be the garden of a magnificent estate. His contractor, he mused, was every bit as wealthy as he had suspected.
Speaking of which, where is she?
His gaze flicked to the side. Azure sat quietly, as calm and composed as ever. He looked past her toward the gazebo, where Bianca was thrashing about, her head and claws attacking something unseen.
Has she already found a meal? Her luck is impressive.
He looked back to Azure, meeting her blue eyes. “Azure, have you seen a human?”
Azure said nothing. She simply lifted her blue tail and pointed it directly at Bianca.
Aiden followed her gesture. The fool was indeed gnawing on something. But as he took a few steps forward, his eyes narrowed. Wait. That wasn't food.
She was chewing on a blue energy shield.
And inside that shield were two small figures, one standing, one collapsed on the ground. His gaze locked onto the one on the floor. Golden hair, a slightly rounded, cherubic face, and small legs clad in white stockings, splayed awkwardly. The other girl's fine black dress spoke of nobility.
Aiden straightened to his full, imposing height. With a sigh that sounded like stones grinding together, he strode forward and slammed a heavy, crimson claw down upon Bianca's head, pinning her squirming form to the ground.