—————

And now an ode to my favourite musical artist~

I'm racing a supercell to finish this update! 

Thunder cracking over my head is really setting the mood but damn do I need to get this done so please spare my wifi gods of thunder!

—————

          Káel felt Phantom relax in surprise, his own emotions mirroring the response as Mr. Rudas grinned at them both.

          "You'll not gamble his majesty's heir for the sake of calling a bluff," Ariabella cut in, stepping from the illusionary wall to clear a path for Phantom. "You are free to pass."

          "Try to leave and I shoot again." Mr. Rudas eyed Samanthra, trying to hide his rage that so many people were trying to heal the downed representative all at once. "Call a damned nurse, I need as many bodies as I can get to bring this demon down."

          Káel tried to swallow the sick lump that came with watching Mr. Rudas, going for a better distraction when he heard Puff warble at Phantom.

          "Don't, you'll get in trouble... Or seriously wounded," Phantom muttered.

          Káel tried to turn his head a little to see what his guardian was doing, but the only clues he could gather were on Mr. Rudas' dipping expression. Then he heard the ear piercing roar, Puff blasting by him full sized and scaled up with Zalius riding him bearback. The dragon skidded to a stop before trampling the group of council members, twisting to whip his tail out and send Mr. Rudas tumbling to his butt.

          Phantom took the distraction, pulling the dagger away from Káel's neck and hoisting him into his arms to run them both through the illusionary wall and up the flight of dingy stairs. Even from the distance Phantom had made, Mr. Rudas' cries to chase them were clear as day.

          They fled through the halls, Káel given the perfect view of Mr. Rudas and two white robed representatives trying to keep up while Zalius slammed every door he passed in their faces. He tried to hold back a laugh but couldn't. Even with Phantom having to carry him like a princess, there was no way they were catching up.

          As the hope of leaving Mr. Rudas hovered above them, the optimism was ripped to the ground as a barking call echoed through the halls, bouncing and fractured as a symhony of barking howls responded to the first call. A new spider had set its net on the chase, and Káel was positive these wouldn't be the molves he played with during physed.

          "The lobby!" Phantom called, exchanging a nod with Zalius as the spirit pulled ahead, laying down patches of blue flames that quickly consumed the floor behind him. While his gaze was drawn behind him, Zalius blindly charged ahead, colliding with a person that had casually strolled around a corner.

          Mr. Lightwood was barely thrown by the impact, looking left at Zalius who irritably rubbed his head, then right to Phantom and Káel as he offered his hand to help the spirit up. "Bathroom?"

          Everyone gave Mr. Lightwood their silent confusion. Samanthra and Mr. Mudelin had come in fully armoured robes, and he looked like he'd rolled right out of bed and dragged himself through the halls with his eyes closed.

          He shrugged off the silence, covering a quick yawn while the barking calls of the molves didn't even register on his face. "You know, Sammy called me in the middle of the night for some emergency. Can you believe I'm not even getting overtime? Fat load of use Tia's being, says another spirit took over all her controls." He raised his hand as Zalius tried to move around him, finally paying the barks a glance as one of the molves came skidding around a corner. "Unless you guys are the emergency?"

          Káel held in his breath as he saw Mr. Lightwood mutter a spell, he could cast half a dozen fireballs in the blink of an eye, and no one had the reflexes for a face full of that. But the burst of fire went whizzing well past them, colliding with the molves face as it tumbled face first into a shattered mess of rocks.

          Mr. Lightwood sighed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Sleep deprivation, really ruins my focus." He muttered another spell as a second molve came from the corridor directly behind him, shattering it to shrapnel in a similar fashion. "Gosh, I am just terrible at aiming right now, don't you think so Tia?" He gave the ceiling a deliberate pause, his lips curving into a devious grin. "Oh... right." He dropped his gaze to Phantom with a little wink. "I guess I still have an emergency to find."

          Phantom gave the teacher a couple feet as he wandered off, throwing curiousity to the side and continuing his sprint to the front lobby as a few more creeping howls sounded around them. Káel caught a glimpse of Mr. Lightwood back before they rounded another corner, his lips tugging into a confused frown. "You know him from somewhere?"

          "He'd be hard to forget if I did," Phantom replied, his bouncing run taking the final turn to the pillared lobby of Cobalt's main entrance. The massive steel doors were sealed shut, the walls dimmed to grey without the starlight to summon a myriad of colours upon their surfaces. It never looked more like a cage to Káel as Phantom slowed his pace to a walk, but another bird sat inside with them.

          Ariabella was dressed for the greyed halls, a moving shadow that stood just before the door and welcomed Phantom to approach her.

          "You're a faster runner than Unicorn Boy, I'll give you that."

          "It's not a feat to outrun a group of imbeciles that have a door in their face every two skips," she replied, smiling to Zalius. "Nor is it to place a temporary illusion upon the front entrance of a school laced with enchantments to drown it out."

          Phantom crouched to let Káel back onto his feet, focused on bracing his balance while he tried to keep the conversation short. The closer they got to Ariabella's body, the more they could vaguely see through it. "Does that mean you're still running with the imbeciles?"

          Ariabella dipped her head. "I would describe Mr. Rudas' pace as more of a half dead drag of the feet now, but I will truly be here shortly, alongside three council controlled molves."

          "Thanks for the warning," Phantom replied, leading Káel off past Ariabella and straight for the door.

          "I understand the ritual has drained your magic, and left you unable to cast any spells for your escape."

          He stopped, a hint of offence now in his tone. "I can still run."

          "Molve's are cunning creatures, they wait in the greatest numbers where the easiest escape routes are. There are ten outside, prepared to run you down on foot," Ariabella spoke, watching Phantom slip his hand off the door with a shred of defeat. "Luckily, I believe you'll find a piece of crystalised raw magic in Káel's leg brace. A gesture of good faith that Alta Staar will consider to be a favour."

          They both froze, Káel springing with new energy as he dropped to his butt to worm his fingers around the contraption on his leg. His cry of success was almost too childish as he held up a sharp white crystal, trying to hold up the smile while Phantom grabbed it. "What's that going to do?"

          Phantom crushed it in his palm, a dusty white glow shimmering over his arm and settling into the fabric of his red jacket. He raised his chin to Ariabella. "You have yourself a favour." 

          She dipped her head. "We will contact you when we wish to use it."

          As another bark echoed through the halls Phantom turned to Káel, taking a knee so Káel didn't have to rise and say his short goodbyes. "I cannot thank you enough for helping me, even after you had nothing left to gain for yourself. There is nothing I can do right now to repay you, but I am forever in your debt."

          Káel smiled wider than he knew he could. He wanted to continue his adventure with Phantom, follow him to the craziest ends this world could offer. But he also wanted to help him, make his encounter with Mr. Rudas the last one he'd ever have to see.

          And that just wasn't going to work if he disappeared with him. They both knew that.

          "Friends don't hold debts."

          He closed his eyes as Phantom pulled him into a final hug, trying to keep the tears of joy and sorrow at bay. He'd see him again. But the thought of not knowing when was wrenching.

          Phantom pulled away from the hug too soon, rising up to give Káel a few meters of space. "Apologise to Lady Samanthra for me."

          Káel looked at Phantom questionably. "For what?"

          "The lobby."

          Phantom removed his hat, muttering a spell that sprang a shroud of black tendrils from the ground, twisting and expanding to cover him until the massive black shadow that nearly reached the ceiling of the lobby. Ariabella's illusion shattered into dust before the first molve came skidding around the corner, Mr. Rudas and Lady Samanthra hot on its trail as they immediately froze to gape at the towering shadow.

          The tendrils quickly melted away, revealing a blood red coat of scales plating the body of a massive dragon, Phantom. He paid Mr. Rudas a creeping grin, glistening white fangs bared into a snarl as he paid the man's manners with a deafening roar that left him a cringing ball. Satisfied with the scare, he gave Káel a final dip of the head, turning on his toes to charge headfirst through the front entrance, leaving an avalanche of iron and stone in his wake as he took to the skies.

          Silence lingered over the group. A chorus of footsteps bringing Mr. Lightwood and Ariabella to the aftermath.

          Káel glanced at Puff, the dragon's jaw dropped from Phantom's transformation to a point where he hadn't even noticed Zalius had disappeared from his back. He shifted his gaze to Samanthra,  a shot expression all she wore as she stared at what was once Cobalt's lavish grand entrance.

          "You let it escape..." Mr. Rudas muttered, still shaking as he wobbled back to his feet.

          Puff hissed when when Mr. Rudas approached, the lifetime dose of dragon's he'd recently received stopping him in his tracks as he paled.

          "B-by the order of The Grand Council of Lumi..." He blanked, staring at the wreckage with quivering lips while he gave Puff a generous gap of space. "You are under arrest for aiding in the escape of an ancient Novan, practising forbidden ancient Lumience... possessing an ancient weapon... and assaulting multiple council representatives."

          "Possessing an ancient weapon is not addressed by any regulations, let alone criminal charges," Samanthra boomed, pulling a quiet chuckle out of Káel as she moved herself to stand in front of him. "I'm not sure what to say about this. The use of lethal spells before provocation, not prioritizing the life of a colleague..." she motioned at the gaping hole that sat as a new front entrance. "Thousands in damages to a historical artifact? Is it inadequate training?" She scoffed as Mr. Rudas' eye twitched. "You didn't just threaten the life of one of my students, you threatened every single person in this building by provoking a creature that repeatedly stated its wishes to leave peacefully." 

          "Are you accusing me?" Mr. Rudas growled, finding some newfound strength in standing up to the head administrator. "Even you saw the ritual. How is what he did less of a threat to the innocents in this building than my attempts to secure a dangerous Novan before it escaped upon Lumi? Ancient Lumience is grounds for immediate arrest. Warlord or not I will throw you down in front of the Council if you act out of order! Coming to that boy's defense after what he's done is unacceptable!" Mr. Rudas boomed, turning to Ariabella and Mr. Lightwood with a face flushed red. "Make yourselves useful and detain him!"

          "You're embarrassing yourself," Ariabella retorted, scribbling a quick note into her pad. "The people paid to listen to you are with Mr. Mudelin and Ms. Metulas, assisting in keeping Andril Barrow alive. The man your condensed pyrillis spell struck when you attempted to murder his majesty Elisious' only heir." 

          "Those are some serious accusations," Mr. Rudas hissed. "It drew its weapon, and I fired before Mr. Aeric decided to get in the way. The Novan threw the spell and struck my subordinate." 

          "It appears our stories don't match up then," Ariabella replied. "I am his majesty's eyes and ears on this incident, as such, he would like to invoke the Treaty of Shakri'gurn and challenge the Council's case against his word as Warlord of Alta Staar."

          Káel tensed with excitement as something about her words dragged Mr. Rudas' expression to the floor. The last thing he wanted for Káel was a hope in getting out scotch free, and Ariabella had definitely threatened that.

          "If you truly wish, I will not stop you from arresting him for the practice of ancient lumience. But do keep in mind that none of us actually saw him activate the ritual. I can't imagine a detail like that will look good in front of the Grand Chancellor."

          Káel breathed a sigh of relief as Mr. Rudas pulled back, fists clenched while he let some of his temper slide off his tongue with a series of muttering curses. Káel allowed Mr. Lightwood and Lady Samanthra to help him up, still skimming the scope of the damage and finally noticing his uncle's portrait. Still perfectly stuck to the wall to look out over a pile of rubble, and down on him with the ghost of a smirk on his face. 

          He smiled back, a single thought running through his head as he was lead from the hole of freedom, Phantom's flapping silhouette woven seamlessly into the distant stars. 

          In a little over a day he had walked a path that forked more than it stood still. Fought a hydra that grew three more questions for every one he cut down with an answer.

          But the battle was far from over, and the road ahead likely just as tangled, if not more.

           The hydra lived.

          So was this the right path to slaying it?

Don't forget to:

CRY THAT IT'S FINALLY OVER/BUST OUT THE CELEBRATION DRINKS/WAIT FOR FUTURE PUFF - IT'S COMING

Quality Quip #58:

'I'm seriously going to f*cking miss you guys. Thank you SO much for reading this through to the end and having the patience of my cat staring at a piece of sunlight on the ceiling when I took MONTHS to put out an update. This is the last piece of creativity I could keep alive from my childhood, and it's all thanks to you guys that I could dust it off  and keep on putting it out there. This isn't a quip, because it isn't short and witty. But let's be real, I'm not good at short, you just read through over 200k words!'

~ Spookyspackles

The End

(Of Book 1)