Sky Warriors: Poleuthan's Thief (Sky Warriors Saga Book 1) (26 page)

Ange scowled still thinking the limitation was unfair.

“Imagine the chaos, the destruction that could be
sowed if an individual could freeze time over the entire universe indifferently, without restriction?”

Ange swallowed thinking carefully on his words and reluctantly agreed that he had a fair point, such powers could not be left in the hands of mortals without dire consequences. She knew that with power came the possibility of abuse, she had lived it. She was a testament to that very truth.

“So what does this have to do with the other effect of the bonding?”
Ange asked in confusion.

“
Taliesin was not aware of this secret, no one was. Do you recall what I told you about half our soul and control of our powers being ripped out of us once the spell was finished?”

Ange nodded then realized he could not see her nod, so she sent a silent confirmation.

“Well, when that occurred, our ability to use the imperium universi was stripped from us as well, those of us who had it at the time. Afterwards, if we were reborn after the Souls Binding Contract, we were also unable to determine if we had even been born with a gift. And when he shackled us to our Dragonbounds’ will, he unintentionally made it so that only our Dragonbound could use, summon, and control the imperium universi, making them too one of the Endowed. A possibility we, the Council, could never have even fathomed or foreseen.”

“No wonder the Adherent hate humans,”
Ange commented, to which Showl had no response.

Ange frowned thoughtfully, thinking of the knowledge had had just shared with her carefully.

“Did you have this power in your last life?”
Ange asked inquisitively.

“No, I didn’t. This is the first time I have experienced one of these endowments firsthand,”
Show hesitated for a moment, articulating his next words carefully, they rang with hollow torment. “
I must admit, it was frightening…feeling you die slowly and unable to stop it was the most unbearable experience I have ever suffered.”

Ange hunched her shoulders, feeling bad she had worried him. “
You weren’t excited? Thrilled to find out that you- we had this power?”

“Not in the slightest,” he
relied instantly and without a second thought. “
In fact, I have never been in such a difficult predicament…”

Ange frowned, unable to follow his cloudy and jumbled thoughts.

“What’s the matter?”
She asked concerned, finding herself feeling worried by his disturbed thoughts.

“I don’t know, Angeline. Remember when I told you that portions of
Harfang’s memories had been sealed?”

“Yes,”
Ange replied recalling the day Showl had first showed her the iced over sword.

“Well, our bonding was supposed to unlock them, but it didn’t. There is still gaps and shadows in my memories and when I try to remember I get a horrendous headache,” he
growled frustrated.

Ange frowned vexed. She was aware of how vital this information was to both sides of the war, and now they were discovering they could still not access it. She expected they were going to have some very irritated dragons knocking on their door soon. Literally.

“The others are not going to like this,”
Ange commented moderately.

“Indeed they won’t,”
Showl agreed with a mental sigh.

“Showl…”
Ange began carefully concerned with the topic she was about to bring up. “
Was I imagining what I saw in the sky before I fainted?”

“No…I saw it too. But I don’t know how it was possible, an entire other world hanging in the sky.”

“How is it possible? Did it disappear after time began to run again?”

“Yes,”
Showl replied bothered. “
I feel like I should know something about it but…when I try to remember there is a huge whole in my memory and I feel like blacking out trying to recall it. Clearly, Harfang went through great lengths to keep any information about that aberration in the sky from being divulged to anyone, even myself.”

“That is weird and troublesome,”
Ange agreed prickled by curiosity and worry that no answers existed for them at the moment.

They sailed the sky in silence, contemplating, lost within their own thoughts as the stars above moved slowly by and the moons followed their own paths across the heavens. Three of the moons ran their course, the largest was full, the smallest was half filled and still waning, and the second to smallest was waning from its crescent shape and within a few nights would be a new moon.

Ange observed them feeling as if it was just within her reach to touch one.

“Perhaps it will take time for you to remember,”
Ange suggested quietly.

“Perhaps,”
Showl replied unconvinced. “
Or I might not remember at all. Harfang’s last thoughts before his death were, ‘The destined pair will be the ones to unravel the mysteries I leave behind and end Phoenix’s tyranny once and for all so they may save our combined races.’”

Ange frowned. Digesting the heavy words Showl had just shared with her, thinking upon
Harfang’s last words and the ‘destined pair’ he mentioned.

“So what now, Showl?” Ange whispered as she began playing with his unveiled scale again.

“What indeed,” Showl rumbled in his deep dragon voice, making vibrations run through his skull underneath her saddle. “
Now you must decide our course of action. Will we try to make a run for it or shall we stay and cooperate and become members of the Sky Warriors and the Council as it is our place?”

Ange scowled and rubbed the scale a moment more before brushed the feathers back into place.

Gusting wind suddenly pushed them off course as a streaking black object launched past their side, stirring the wind and ruining their flight pattern. Showl only wobbled momentarily in their glide before leveling out once again.

Ange looked up after the object that had suddenly disturbed them.

Amaris and Corvus looped over them, blotching out the stars in a sheet of pure black, his glossy feathers ruffled in the gentle breeze as he peered down at them with Amaris relaxing lazily on her black and silver etched saddle.

“Come on, you call that flying?” she teased as she stuck out her tongue tauntingly as Corvus let out a deep chortle before diving away.

Ange smiled feeling enthusiastic and determined.

“Now?”
She instigated suggestively.

A deep rumble-like growl reverberated through Showl.

“Now,” he
agreed with a flicker of childlike excitement.

His wings suddenly tucked in as Ange pressed her body down and grasped the handles of the saddle tightly. The plunged into a powerful dive as they fell from the sky, allowing gravity to lend them speed.

Ange laughed exhilarated as they swooped past Corvus and Amaris.

“Hey!” Amaris protested surprised as they flashed past, disrupting the wind they were flying upon.

Ange glanced back and gave her a taunting smile and mocking wave.

Amaris grinned, her face becoming serious as Ange and Showl got farther ahead.

“Hold on, little thief. This race is going to get wild.”

“Gotcha.”

Showl’s white downy form began to twist as they spun quickly to the left, changing their route smoothly but effectively making Ange nauseous. The cool air though quickly cleared her head as she took a deep breath. She glanced back as Amaris and Corvus quickly caught up to them, swiftly coming up to Showl’s lower flank.

“Are you up for a little challenge, little thief?”
Showl asked high spirited.

“Bring it on,”
Ange smirked, thrilled by the wind that rushed past her, flapping her clothes against her skin as her coppery hair was held back by the rushing air.

“Then let us see how much they remember from their lessons,”
Showl exclaimed as he built up speed.

His jaws parted as a powerful roar boomed from his throat. Energy began to pull between them, straining through their connection as Ange felt him draw upon his power, the air shivered for a moment around them.

Ange squinted her eyes, then smiled as she realized what Showl was doing.

Just ahead, a large stretch of water was quickly icing over before sheets broke from the surface and flew up into the air, breaking apart before reforming once more into dozens of rings that spanned several miles around the island. They glinted coldly and obscurely in the night and as Ange watched she guessed they ranged in size as they hovered stilly in the night air.

Corvus roared jubilantly behind them as Showl took the lead. The first icy ring was coming up swiftly.

“I am a bit out of practice, little thief. And I imagine this will be a bit nauseating for your first time, but I assure you will become use to it in no time.”

“Thanks for the warning, but if I throw up on your head it will be your fault,”
Ange warned.

“Your warning has been duly noted. Now let’s fly!”

Ange gasped as he twirled quickly in midflight. The spin lasted less than a second but didn’t fail to make her dizzy. She swallowed hard and wondered seriously for once the wisdom of racing at the moment.

“Come, little thief. Fly with me,”
Showl insisted.

Ange frowned confused.

Brilliant light washed in behind her eyes as Showl entered her mind. Instinctually she froze at the intrusion, she relaxed as warmth and reassurance washed through her mind, calming her. Suddenly the light formed into claws, grabbing on to her essence and tugged.

She resisted for a moment feeling more perplexed as her hands tightened on the handles of the saddle.

“Trust me,”
Showl whispered.

Ange frowned and nodded, reluctantly forcing her mind to unhinge itself from the security of her head.

Showl’s hold was gentle, then a slow tug reeled her away and pulled her into the tunnel between their minds. Her sight began to darken, frightening her so she closed her eyes and focused on Showl’s brilliant mind instead.

A breath escaped her, the last thing she felt of her own body as she plunged into the sea of energy that was Showl’s psyche. His power engulfed her, pulling her front and center of his thoughts, ignoring the rest of the swarm of thinking that passed by.

Strands began to sting through her, piercing her soul and person without pain, weaving into her own channels of thought. She felt frightened by the energy that felt like it was changing her from the inside, though she could feel Showl’s essence in the channels and she rationalized that she had nothing to fear. Thinking so did not change the sense of fear that coursed through her nonetheless.

Somehow her eyes opened, and they were a thousand times sharper.

She held in a gasp as her mind went into shock and she realized she was looking through Showl’s eyes. She could barely feel her own body, she found herself at awe and intrigued, her fear vaporized in a second as their thoughts joined and mingled into the nous of one living being. She felt their combined influence reach out, string through to Showl’s other senses.

It was the most powerful intimacy she had ever experienced and that knowledge frightened her. Their emotions brushed against one another, their quietest thoughts seemed to be yelling as they collided. Their personalities began to mix and she felt his memories lend into her own and she suddenly knew everything there was to flying, incomprehensible information became comfortable thoughts to her and they were suddenly controlling one body together, Showl’s.

Their wings spread wider for a moment as their long sinews neck curved slightly down, in turn tilting their entire body several degrees down into a gradual dive.

The first ring was approaching fast.

A single glance back reassured them that Corvus and Amaris was still behind them.

They caught every detail, Corvus and Amaris held themselves close to their trail.

Their flight leveling was even, perfect form and concentration on their faces. Ange’s curiosity mingled with Showl’s pride as they returned their gaze ahead.

Over the dark ocean spanning at just the edge of the mist hung each individual ring at different heights, some even had drastic drops between short distances.

The first ring was tight, a relatively short diameter.

Their wings tucked in close, their neck turned to the left, beginning the momentum of a twist, and their tail formed the perfect counterbalance, keeping them straight on their path.

Showl’s wide skull passed through the icy ring first. They twisted perfectly, every muscle clenched, flexed, and reacted in the ideal direction, shifting Showl’s massive weight evenly and keeping their length perfectly straight as they spun completely out of the ring and straight into a dive in a mere second.

The air coursed through their plumage, brushing away insulated warmth from Showl’s ivory white scales. It was a marvelous sensation, clawing at them as gravity failed to keep up with them. They jetted through the air to the ring below.