Tales from the Tavern...

The flight from New York to Toronto seemed to take forever. Ryu slept most of the way, having to wear his cloak most of the time because he was too weak to fully take human form and his horns were poking the seat cushion behind him. Crystal still felt nervous sitting next to him, but when the announcement was made for them to land, she found that she had fallen asleep on his shoulder. Rubbing her eyes she looked up to see his yellow eyes staring out the window.

            “How are you doing?” She quietly asked, “You still haven’t changed back?”

            “I was asleep.” He said, “I didn’t have time to try.”

            “You’re worried about something, aren’t you?” she asked, “What is it?”

            “I don’t know.” He said, “It’s more like Rosette is worrying about it and I can feel it.”

            “I almost forgot what it feels like to be bonded to someone.” She said, putting her hand on his arm, “How are you coping with it?”

            “It’s no trouble. Sometimes I enjoy it.” He said, “When she’s happy, I’m happy.”

            “But when she’s sad or hurt, you feel it too.” She said.

            “Yea, but it’s not that often. I’m okay.” He said, turning to her, “Are you?”

            “I’m not the one who’s bonded.” She said.

            “I’m not talking about that. I can tell that Merlin’s words are bothering you.” He said, “Why?”

            “Don’t they bother you?” she asked, “I mean you are Bahamut, right?”

            “I wanted to think that his words were lies, but for some reason, I feel that it’s true. I believe that I am Bahamut, Crystal, but I’m Ryu as well.”

            “But what about me? I’m supposed to be your enemy!” she said. Ryu placed a claw on her hand.

            “You aren’t supposed to be anything.” He said, “Be what you want.”

            “I want to be your sister!” she said.

            “You are.” He said, “A few words by a maniac won’t change that.”

            “But I am Tiamut, Ryu! Aren’t you worried about what will happen in the future?”

            “No. Should I be?”

            “But what if this gets out? What if others find out that the king and queen of the dragons are still alive?” she whimpered.

            “How can they without first knowing that dragons still exist?” he asked handing her a napkin. Crystal took it to wipe her eyes.

            “I guess. We can just keep it to ourselves.” She sniffed.

            “We could. I guess.” He said, turning back to the window. The ground rose up to touch the landing gear as the cabin shook and the plane slowed to a stop.

            “What do you mean, you guess?” she asked.

            “I don’t know. I just have a bad feeling.”

            The terminal was pretty lively for the time of year. The main lobby was packed with people carrying luggage, and seemed to be filling more by the second. They found the reason why not too much longer when all of the boards displayed cancellations and delays for nearly every outgoing flight. They had just realized that a bad thunderstorm had followed them in and now outside the torrential rain began pelting the windows

            Lineups formed for just about everywhere, making the group very nervous, because Ryu still hadn’t changed back to his human form and still towered over everyone with his horns lifting his hood in the back. The main screen in the lobby was tuned into the news and everyone standing in line was staring at it while they stood with their arms full of bags.

            “We go live to the Mayor’s office for an important announcement.” The anchor said. The screen then showed a correspondent standing in an open field, wearing raincoat and holding an umbrella.

            “Sara, I’m standing in the field behind the town hall with the Mayor this morning. He appears to have an important announcement for the entire city. We’re not sure if this is a statement to prepare for upcoming elections, or if there is something else he has to say.” He yelled. Behind him the Mayor stepped forward under the umbrellas of two other men standing behind him. The camera zoomed out so show another woman standing next to him.

            “This is the Mayor with an important announcement.” Sean said, “It has come to my attention, that there are those living in this city and around the world, hiding who they really are. We are a people who believe that you should be proud of who you are, and we promote equality. I think there isn’t a person out there who would disagree with what I have just said.” Ryu took a step back.

            “Oh, no.” he gasped. The mayor continued.

            “This may be hard to believe at first but for the people out there living in secrecy, your suffering can now be over. You needn’t be scared either, for we are understanding people, and I hope I can speak for everyone in my city when I say we will accept you for who you are, regardless of any past stereotypes we may hold. For the most part, we have overcome racism as a species, and I hope this remains unchanged in the future.” A woman in front of Ryu turned to the one next to her.

            “What’s going on? What’s he talking about when he says, ‘as a species’?” she asked. But still the mayor continued.

            “I understand that a lot of you may be confused at this point. There really isn’t a way to explain this, and without proof you wouldn’t believe any of this to be true. I think the best way would be to show you. Remember that these people are no different on the inside as you or I and you have no reason to fear them.” He said. The woman next to him stepped forward, “This is my secretary, Ellen. She has been working for me for eleven years now and makes the best coffee that I’ve ever had.”

            “Oh, sir. You flatter me!” she blushed.

            “I mean it! It’s better than anywhere else.” He said, “But this isn’t about coffee. I’ve just recently found out that she just happens to be one of these different people, and nothing has changed. She still makes amazing coffee.”

            “Sir, just tell them already!” she exclaimed. A few people in the lobby laughed.

            “Alright, keeping everything I said in mind, Ellen is a dragon.” He said.

            “Oh, no!” Ryu muttered. Again more people in the lobby began to laugh. They did stop when Ellen walked out into the rain, away from the camera, and transformed in a small tornado, into a three story tall dragon. Silence echoed around the lobby as everyone stared at the screen with their mouths open. They started to aimlessly stare around the room, taking in what they had just seen and the mayor’s words with it. The dragon bent down to look in the camera and smile at the mayor when he placed a hand on her nose.

            “I think we have a lot of confused and frightened people out there, Ellen.” He said.

            “Please don’t be scared of us.” She said, “We just want to live in peace and we mean you no harm!” At this point even the camera began to shake as the operator must be white as a ghost.

            “To ease this transition, there will be a new law put in place. It’s not meant to discriminate, because both Humans and Dragons will be required to do it. Effective immediately, All Dragons and Humans are to register their species. New driver’s licenses will be issued to everyone with this new information included. This law will soon come into effect across the country and soon across the world. I stress again that this is just during the transition phase and will not restrict either race. Remember people, these people have been living like this for thousands of years undetected. They are the nice people you meet everyday. I hope this will not change any relationships you have now. It doesn’t matter what you look like on the outside, it’s the person on the inside that counts. And if you’ve been keeping track, I am calling them people, because they are no different than you or me. I know this may be a shock, but I hope you heed my words. Thank you.” The camera snapped back to the anchor who was still sitting with her mouth open. There was a snap off camera and she shook her head.

            “T-Thank you for that special announcement.” She said, “Just to clarify, that was an official announcement from the mayor and at no time were special effects used in this broadcast. What you have witnessed was indeed real.”

            The group stood in shock as the weather flashed on the screen, showing the status of the storm, but no one cared.

            “What the hell?” Sparcy muttered. Panic began to fill her face, “What are we going to do?”

            “Just calm down, Sparcy.” Crystal said. Grim stood next to Nydra in his usual form, after having his demonic aura wear off for the moment. Nydra held onto him as she wiped her eyes. Ryu hung his head, deep in thought. It took a while for him to notice that there was a small boy standing in front of him, staring directly up into his cloak.

            “Mommy, who’s that?” he asked, pointing upwards. His mother turned around and pulled him back with an apologetic smile.

            “Sorry about that, sir.” She said, “Kids these days!”

            “It’s alright.” He said, but the mother didn’t turn away.

            “Mommy, his eyes were glowing!” the boy said and his mothers head tilted to the side.

            “Can you believe the stuff the mayor just said?” she asked, “It’s unbelievable that dragons were actually living along side of us all these years?! I find it amazing that they actually exist in the first place! I thought they were myths and fairytales!”

            “So you believe him?” Ryu asked.

            “How can you not with proof like that?” she exclaimed. Still she became more suspicious of him, “You can never tell who might be one of them now. I wonder how they can look like us?”

            “Magic I suppose.” Ryu said, trying to find an exit. He knew what was going to happen, and he wanted to escape, but every exit was blocked by the sea of people.

            “Mommy, he has a funny looking face!” the boy shouted rather loudly, attracting the attention of everyone around them. The mother turned red and knelt down to scold him.

            “That’s awful, honey! You shouldn’t say something like that!” she yelled, “I’m really sorry about that!” Ryu shrugged but he noticed that there were many others around him that began to take notice to his appearance.

            “I’d say the scientists are going to go crazy over this!” she said, “I wonder what they’re like? I always thought dragons were monsters or more like beasts. But for them to be intelligent like us? Go figure.”

            “Yeah, go figure.” Ryu muttered. Still even more people began to stare.

            “You seem pretty understanding and patient.” She said, “Even after my son said those things to you.”

            “It’s alright, I’ve been called worse.” He said. Now he noticed security heading his way and Crystal tighten her grip on his arm. Still there was nowhere to go and he knew what was coming. It was only moments after that he felt a tap on his shoulder.

            “Sir, can I have a word?” the security officer said. Ryu turned around to find him with his hand on his gun.

            “Yes?” he asked.

            “Sir we have reports of someone seeing you carry something sharp and shiny. We have to ask you if you are carrying a knife or concealed weapon.”

            “No, I’m not.” He said.

            “Then may I check your person to confirm that?” he asked.

            “I’d rather you don’t.” Ryu said. The mother behind him stepped forward.

            “He’s not a dangerous person, officer. We were just talking.”

            “Ma’am, just let us do our job, please.” He said, “We’re going to have to ask you to submit to a metal detector scan. Please remove all metal objects.”

            “I have none.” He said. The guard pulled a metal detector from his belt and waved it around him, not setting it off once.

            “Thank you for your patience, sir. Have a good day.” He said. Ryu nodded and turned around, hearing Crystal release a sigh of relief.

            “That was close.” She said.

            “I have to get out of here.” He said, “I have to get to her.” Again the mother smiled and turned around.

            “Yea, me too. I’m already late.” She said. Her son was still staring up into Ryu’s cloak.

            “Mommy, he looks like a red lizard!” he shouted, pointing at him. This time everyone turned to stare at him as he towered over them all. The two security guards stopped in their tracks and turned around.

            “What are you talking about?” she snapped, but this time she didn’t scold the boy, but instead bent over to take a look for herself. Her gasp could be heard across the lobby. Within seconds the security guards advanced on him and pulled down his hood.

            Just like the first time they had seen the dragon on the screen, everyone in the lobby went silent as all eyes were on him. The nearby people were even eying Crystal who was still attached to his arm.

            “He’s one of them!” someone yelled.

            “He’s a dragon!”

            “What do we do?” one of the guards asked the other.

            “I don’t know, but I don’t think this is in out job description.” The other said.

            The crowd seemed to disperse away from Ryu, leaving the small group feeling like an island in a turbulent sea. Ryu was so nervous that he was shaking, but only crystal knew it because she was holding his arm. It was only when the single mother and her child stepped out of the crowd and approached them that he began to calm down.

            “What is your name, sir?” she asked. Her son was staring at him in amazement, which surprised Ryu, because he was expecting fear.

            “My n-name?” he stammered.

            “Yes.” She said, “I would like to know. My name is Phyllis, and this is Matthew.”

            “My name is Ryu.” He said, “Nice to meet you.” He extended his clawed hand towards the mother and child, hearing the click of the guard’s pistols being raised in the air. She stepped forward, taking his hand without fear, and shook it with a smile. He then knelt down to take the child’s hand and flash him a smile.

            “It looks like I’m not wanted here.” He said, “I’m scaring them. I’ll leave now.” He began to walk towards the door with his friends following close behind him. The crowd parted to let him pass as still no one said a word. Even though there were well over a thousand people in the huge room, you could still hear the claws on his feet tap the linoleum as he walked. The doors slid open for him and he stepped out into the pouring rain.

            “I’m going to her.” He said, “Can you go back without me?”

            “Are you going to be alright?” Sparcy asked.

            “Just meet me there, ok?” he asked, Crystal nodded, noticing the window behind her fill with faces. A few even took out their video cameras and there was a cell phone in front of every second face. In a flash of fire, Ryu changed into his full dragon form and took off into the stormy sky, flying off towards the hospital.

            Thunder cracked and the room lit up as the front doors slid open, and closed behind Ryu as he dripped water all over the floor. Now in his smaller, dragonoid form, he stood in the doorway as he read the hospital directory. No one seemed to notice him at first, because they were too busy watching the big screen television in the lobby, where the mayor’s announcement replayed, along with new footage of Ryu at the Airport. Ryu didn’t care anymore about hiding what he was. He just wanted to see her.

            He stepped up to the front desk where even there, everyone was fixated on a television set somewhere.

            “Excuse me, I’m looking for a patient.” He said. The receptionist didn’t even look away from the television set.

            “What’s the name, sir?” she asked.

            “Rosette Pegasus.” He said. She kept her eyes on the TV even as she fumbled the keyboard of her computer, only glancing over when the information had appeared on the screen.

            “Room, 245. Second floor.” She said, “Can you find your way?” Ryu let out a sort of bestial snort.

            “I can manage.” He said, it was then that the receptionist looked away from the screen to see him for the first time and her stifled yelp caught the attention of everyone else in the lobby. They stopped to stare as he left the lobby towards the stairwell.

            Once he stepped onto the second floor, he knew right away that something was wrong. It seemed that the entire second floor was without power and a flashlight beam danced across the walls. Emergency power should have kicked in by now, but it was strange for the second floor to be out without the first being aware of it. He took a step into the hallway and turned the corner, stepping in front of a young blonde nurse. Her scream echoed throughout the halls.

            “Oh, sorry.” He said, “Do you know what’s going on?”

            “Y-you can talk?” she stammered, “What are you?”

            “You haven’t seen the news lately?” he asked, “Did you see the Mayor’s announcement?”

            “N-No! The power has been off up here for a while now!” she whimpered, “Please don’t hurt me, Mr. Lizard!”

            “Excuse me?” Ryu said, “First of all, I’m a dragon, not a lizard, and I won’t hurt anyone.”

            “Really?” she asked. She finally stopped trying to back away and leaned against the wall.

            “I’m just looking for a friend.” He said, “Rosette. She’s in room 245.”

            “T-That’s just down the hall on the left.” She stammered, “Can….can I come with you? I can’t find anyone else!”

            “Aren’t you scared?” he asked.

            “Yes, that’s why I want to come with you!”

            “You’re not scared of me?”

            “I’d be lying of I said no, but you don’t seem like a bad, whatever you are.”

            “Come on.”

            The crept along in the darkness with the nurse shakily holding the flashlight in front of her. Even though Rosette’s room was but feet away, he stopped, making the nurse jump.

            “W-what is it?” She stammered.

            “Go downstairs and call the police.” He said, “Try to talk to a man named Detective Gantz.”

            “Who’s that? A friend?” she asked.

            “I have no clue who he is, but you need to talk to him. Get the police here.” He said.

            “A-Alright.” She muttered. Ryu watched as the light from the flashlight faded around the corner before continuing on.

            Her hospital room was dark and empty. In the little light that was in the room, he could see her lying on the far bed in the corner. He should be elated to be back to her, but the nagging feeling of doom lingered over him. He knew it was a trap, but he had no choice but to spring it.

            The place smelled of death. The sharp scent of sulfur accented the smell of blood and charred flesh. It reminded him of so many years ago, when humans spilled each other’s blood over petty things, like the mess he left behind when saving a girl named Myaan.

            As if the past had come back to haunt him, she appeared in the middle of the room. He thought he was seeing things at first, but when lightning lit up the room, he couldn’t forget that face. The same face that was now staring at him in sadness.

            “Ryu, you forgot about me…” she whispered. Ryu stepped forward.

            “You betrayed me!” he yelled, “How could I forget that?!”

            “Ryu, you hated me…” she whispered. Ryu took another step forward, catching a glance of Rosette’s ivory face.

            “I didn’t hate you.” He said, “You were my only friend at the time! I trusted you!”

            “Ryu, you wanted to kill me…” she whispered.

            “No…..” he stammered, “I would never…”

            “Ryu, I will kill you…” she rasped. There was a bright flash and he was sent flying backwards, crashing into medical equipment behind him. He staggered to his feet and glared at the evil grin that Myaan had across her face.

            “You are not Myaan!” he roared, “What did you do to Rosette?”

            “Well, Bahamut.” She said, “You have to ask yourself one thing. Whose life do you treasure more? Hers or your own?” She pulled a dagger from behind her back and drifted towards Rosette. Ryu recognized the dagger to be the same one she was going to use to end her own life, so many years ago. Now she was holding the serrated edge to her throat, and her evil smile seemed to mock him.

            “Who are you?” he yelled, “Merlin?”

            “Good job, Bahamut.” He said, changing back, “Nothing like a little mind reading to pull out a troubled past.”

            “Get away from her!” he roared.

            “Here’s the deal.” He said, “I could kill her right now, but that wouldn’t accomplish anything. You go back to being immortal, and therefore, I can’t kill you. But If I did, I would cause you more pain than killing you ever could.”

            “You monster! She has nothing to do with this!”

            “Me? A monster? Have you looked in a mirror lately, Bahamut?” he snapped, “You are the monster.”

            “Do you think I care what you think of me? This is between us, Merlin. She has nothing to do with this!” he roared.

            “Oh but she has everything to do with this, Bahamut.” He said, “For she is the key to my plans. With the news of you monsters out to the public, just killing you won’t be enough now. No one knows who you are!”

            “And let it stay that way.” Ryu said.

            “If I kill some lowly fire dragon named Ryu, no one would care.” He said, “But If I kill the King of all Dragons, the mighty Bahamut, then no one can dispute my power!”

            “So you want to win by cheating?” Ryu snarled, “Hiding behind a helpless girl?”

            “There are no rules in war, dragon!” he snapped.

            “And I guess honor has no meaning to you either? What kind of knight are you?”

            “I have been to hell and back because of your kind, dragon!” he growled, “I will not be spoken to like that by the likes of you!”

            “You really don’t have a plan, do you?” Ryu taunted, “You’re flying by the seat of your armor on this, aren’t you?”

            “Even the best plans have back up plans, dragon.” He said, “If I beat you as you are now, it wouldn’t be a challenge. I apologize, Ryu. You are not Bahamut yet. You haven’t even tapped into your true power yet!”

            “I have enough to beat you!” he snapped.

            “No you don’t” he said, “And the only way for you to become Bahamut, is to become immortal again. If I kill a God, then I become one myself!” The blade of the dagger began to glow with a red light, until it caught fire and dropped from his hand, melting into a pool of molten metal at his feet.

            “Don’t you dare!” he roared.

            “You can’t stop me, dragon! I will win!” he laughed. Ryu couldn’t move fast enough. All he could do was watch as he picked Rosette up by the back of her neck and threw her across the room. No fancy spells or complex incantations. He wanted him to suffer, and when he heard the loud snap her neck made when she crashed into the wall made Merlin laugh even louder.

            Ryu stood in shock.  He couldn’t believe what had just happened. If only he had done something different, if only he had said something different…. He only now realized that he had been too cocky. This was his fault for provoking Merlin. He couldn’t hear her anymore and he could feel power returning to him because of the broken bond. Having his immortality returned to him, he had forgotten what this feeling was, and he didn’t miss it. The feeling of loneliness swept over him like a tsunami and he began to suffocate under the pressure.

            He was losing everything. He lost his friend, he lost his companion, and he had lost his one true love. If only they had their time back, he could have told her how he felt. But now it was too late. Sinking to his knees he could barely hear Merlin’s maniacal laugh. He lost all feeling to anything, becoming numb to the world. He had nothing to live for anymore, and the last thing he was going to lose, was his control.

            “Yes! That’s it!” Merlin laughed, “Become who you are! Show me the power of the King of Dragons!” Ryu could feel it. Even more than usual. He even felt something inside of him change, but what he was changing into, he wasn’t sure he liked. The world went white and even Merlin’s laughter went silent as he found himself in an abyss.

            Here he felt comfortable, as if someone was trying to console him about his loss, but there was no one there. It was an odd feeling, being totally alone, yet feeling as if you were in the arms of someone important to you. No matter what they did, the lump in his throat just wouldn’t go away and his rage towards Merlin began to swell.

“What do you want, Ryu?” came a familiar voice. He wasn’t sure who it was exactly, but the voice felt trustworthy.

            “I want Rosette back!” he said, “I want my revenge!”

            “I can give you power, Ryu.” The voice said, “or rather, unlock the power you already have, but how you use it is up to you. Just remember, whichever power you unlock either will have the power to destroy, or create, and not both.”

            “What are you saying?” he yelled.

“Then I choose Rosette.” He said.

Merlin laughed as Ryu shook on the floor, flooded with emotions. He pulled his sword from his scabbard and pointed it at the weeping dragon on the hospital room floor.

“You have nothing left, Dragon.” He said, “Give up and die!” With a yell, Merlin lunged forward, swinging his sword through the air towards Ryu’s head. There was a flash of light as the door opened, sending Merlin flying backwards and out the window with a crash. Behind him, police stood shocked, while his sister’s pushed to the front. Sparcy gasped in shock at the scene before them. A large bright light stood in the middle of the room, and Rosette’s limp body in a heap in the corner.

They watched as the light seemed to drift over to her until it was bathing her body in its aura. The light seemed to dim, and Ryu stepped out, in his adult human form, wearing a pure white cloak and matching hair.

Ryu knelt down next to his friend’s lifeless body and held her in his arms. His sisters remained silent as they could hear his silent sobs from across the room. It was only when Crystal stepped forward and put her hand on his shoulder that he began to shake.

“I’m so sorry, Ryu.” She said.

“I won’t give up on her.” He said, “Not ever.” Crystal backed away when his power began to swell and his body began to glow in a bright, white light, until she could no longer look at them. When the light died away, she was breathing with Ryu’s tears streaming down her face.

“Please, take care of her.” He said, placing her on a bed.

“What are you going to do?” she asked.

“I can’t let him continue hurting people.” He said.

“Ryu, you have Rosette back! She wouldn’t want you to die for a stupid revenge!” Crystal exclaimed.

“This isn’t revenge. This is my responsibility.” He said.