The night air was thick with sea salt and urgency.
Down by the docks, far from the firelight and laughter of the Ilagron estate, shadows moved in coordinated silence. Crates were loaded. Supplies secured. Every clang of metal or shuffle of boots was met with a sharp glance. The moon cast a silver sheen over the sea; calm for now, but how long would that peace last? Not for much longer, Lukas thought.
This was no ceremonial departure. They were slipping away under cover of darkness, and every soul present knew why.
Lukas had immediately told them what the Prince had made known to him and the reaction was nothing like he'd expected. They could not wait till sunrise. They would need to set sail now as time was no longer on their side. In fact, with this Hero that Nozar had sent after Rodan, finding him had now become a race against the clock.
Velena stood near the edge of the pier, arms crossed over her chest, watching her people move with disciplined speed. She didn't speak until Lukas approached, Katrina and the Kraken just behind him.
Her voice was quiet, worn. "He's always been something of a folktale, a legend. Many presumed he'd died long ago. He was there during the Great War. He was already a renowned hero when my great grandfather was but a toddler. If the prince is telling the truth…then maybe it might not be a good idea to set sail…"
But Katrina shot her a fierce glance, shaking her head profusely.
"He killed my grandfather. He killed Lord Jaren. I'm sorry, Velena but this is not your place. No matter the danger, I won't let him kill my father too. I can't stand here and do nothing knowing that my father could die at the hands of the Dragon Slayer." Her words were sharp but they were not meant to cut. And Lukas saw the truth in what Katrina said. They were going to find Rodan, even if it meant crossing paths with this Admiral that Nozar had sent after him.
But Lukas was still surprised. He hadn't known that it was this man who killed Lord Jaren. His father, once a Dragon Lord of the Seas, was killed during the Great War. He knew that, Selene had made that much clear.
Katrina recognized the look on his face and sighed, remembering that Lukas still knew terrifyingly little about the world of Hiraeth and the rich history it held.
"It was centuries ago. Just when the Great War had begun. The dragons had already destroyed three kingdoms in their path and soon humanity realized they couldn't win, so Nozar turned to the Church of Oceanus. The priests…they summoned him. A being from another world — a warrior unlike any they had ever seen: The Champion of Oceanus. They say he is a vessel for the sea god and his fight with your father…my grandfather, they call it the First Coming because it was like watching a god walk on the face of Hiraeth."
Velena nodded grimly. "Thousands of dragons died by his hands. I still remember my grandfather telling us about the Dragon Slayer. I didn't even believe he was real. A hero that Nozar created for all to look up to. It turns out he's very much real. And he should be dead...but he's not."
Katrina turned her gaze out to sea. "And now, they've sent him to finish the job. To hunt Rodan."
Jesse stood at Velena's side, arms folded, his voice thick with worry. "I don't think that you guys should set sail. I think…it may be a better idea to remain here in Ilagron. Velena is right. You're going to die if you choose to do this. And Lady Kaitlyn made it clear that our first priority is ensuring that we get back to Linemall safely."
For a moment, Lukas didn't respond. He didn't know what to say. Because their safety was his responsibility. He didn't want their deaths on his hands, was he sure that he was ready to put not only himself but Katrina's life at risk as well? When Lady Kaitlyn Drakos was awaiting her granddaughter's safe return?
But it was Katrina who broke the lull, voice full of venom. "This is my father you're talking about! You think we can just turn our backs on him? Leave him to die out there?"
Velena frowned. "This isn't about—"
But it wasn't Katrina's fire or Velena's caution that came next.
It was the Kraken.
"WE WILL FIND RODAN!"
His voice cracked like a cannon over the still water. Everyone turned. For a moment, no one spoke. Then he stormed off, shoving past crates and coils of rope until he disappeared into the dark edges of the docks.
"The fuck was that about?" Jesse asked, turning to Lukas for a response Lukas frowned before realizing that both Velena and Katrina were both waiting for an answer too.
He was Lukas' familiar after all…
Lukas exhaled through his nose and held up a hand. "Give us a moment."
He found the Kraken leaning on a rusted post, staring out at the black ocean, head bowed like he was waiting to be dragged under.
Lukas stepped beside him. "Come on. Talk to me." He'd come to grow a bit fond of the Kraken. Despite their beginnings, the Kraken was a reliable ally. He had been a great help and Lukas appreciated having the big octopus man on his side. For as much shit as he gave the Kraken, he'd definitely been someone that Lukas knew had his back and that wasn't just because the Kraken had lowkey become his slave.
The Kraken didn't look up. "We have to find him. We have to." He repeated once more, as insistent as ever.
Lukas stayed silent, sitting beside the Kraken now.
"Rodan spared me. I was meant to die long ago. I was young when Lord Jaren gave me this scar, when he locked me up in Kuria Prison."
Lukas wasn't surprised. From everything he'd heard, Rodan seemed like a good man; far too kind for his own well-being.
"Your brother was different. Your father gave the order for my execution. He could've followed through with it after the Great War when he became the new Lord of the Seas. But he didn't."
The Kraken's voice trembled, low and rough like waves breaking over stone, but within it was a strange fragility that Lukas hadn't heard before.
His many eyes, usually so cold and calculating, softened with a weary ache as he looked at Lukas.
For a moment, the enormous creature seemed smaller, almost human in his pain. He didn't say anything, allowing the Kraken to continue because it was clear he had more to say.
"Rodan was different…he cared about the prisoners in Kuria. He's a good man. Every week, he visited the prisoners of Kuria. He'd sit. Talk. Listen. Not out of pity but because he truly believed even monsters had stories. Even monsters had something left worth saving. And I don't say this because I want sympathy, Drakos. Your brother was…he was my friend."
He knew that. Lukas knew that the last thing the Kraken wanted was for him to show him fake over-the-top sympathy. So he didn't. He sat there and he listened because that was all he needed to do.
"He would come back to Kuria Again and again. And he opened up to us. We opened up to him. He talked about you, you know? His little brother who he cared so much about, trapped in a coma. His wife had just passed and now he had an infant to protect and an entire ocean to command. And he was barely holding himself together. He had the weight of the world on his shoulders and he was but a boy. No older than you are now."
Lukas could barely imagine that. He could already feel the burden of responsibility and he wasn't even a true Dragon Lord of Linemall, to think himself responsible for the entirety of the Seas? Unfathomable.
"He started asking me for advice," Kraken continued, voice cracking. "And somewhere along the way… we became friends. Real friends."
He finally turned, and for the first time, Lukas saw it: real, gut-wrenching guilt. "I used my magic on him. I waited for when his guard was down and planted the idea. That he should leave. He could become a pirate and bring back riches so that the Seas could flourish once more."
The Kraken nodded slowly. "Linemall was in disarray. And I thought… maybe I could rule it better. Maybe I could step in while Rodan was gone, take control."
A bitter breath escaped his lungs.
"But then he was gone. And I realized that I'd done all of that just because of my own greed. I fucked up. I was planning to bring him back, right my wrongs. But then I heard you awakened. Rodan's younger brother. I thought you were going to take Rodan's place. I didn't want that. I thought if I could hold Linemall together long enough, he'd return. And I… I could serve him. Be his right hand. His advisor."
"We have to find him. We have to bring him back, Lukas. No matter what." He whispered and that was when Lukas finally spoke.
"You want to make it right?"
The Kraken just nodded, slow and full of weight.
"You know how to find him, correct?" The Kraken had sworn on the River Styx that he knew how to find his brother but Lukas just had to hear it from him one more time.
"Of course. When I was in Linemall, he was out of reach. But now I can sense it, the traces of my Mana on him. We just need to follow that trail."
"Then we'll find him," Lukas said. "We set sail tonight. Make it right by finding my brother, Kraken. We'll do it together."
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Finally, the ship was ready. The Kraken nodded as he boarded the ship first while Katrina and Lukas said their goodbyes.
Lukas stepped forward, a hand resting on Jesse's shoulder. "I trust that Ilagron and the Merchant Guild are in safe hands."
Velena tried to hide it, but her jaw tightened. "I shall pray for safe travels till your return."
He managed a half-smile. "We're gonna need as many prayers as we can get."
Jesse suddenly crushed Lukas into a hug and the small dragonborn buried his head into Lukas' stomach. "May our Ancestors watch over you and bring you back home, Lukas."
"I will see you soon, young one. I promise." He whispered, giving him a tight squeeze before finally withdrawing.
It was time to set sail. This had been long overdue and it was the reason why they'd travelled beyond the Kingdom of Dragons in the first place.
They stepped back as the gangplank was pulled.
The ropes were cast off. Slowly, the ship drifted from the dock, sails catching the wind, the sea claiming them once more.
Lukas stood at the bow, arms folded, the spray of salt brushing his face.
And yet, Lukas felt nothing but unease in his gut.
He had no illusions. This journey would be dangerous. But this wasn't about glory or revenge. He didn't care about that. Lukas had realized one thing as the Kraken told him his story and one thing stood out above all else.
The Kraken's magic had worked on Rodan. It had worked on a Dragon Lord. How the fuck was that possible? If it was true that Rodan inherited the Three Legacies like all the Lords before him, then how could it be that the Kraken's magic of the mind was able to take effect on him?
He needed to find Rodan despite all of the dangers that they were fated to come across.
Because if Rodan was truly susceptible to these kinds of attacks where his mind could be manipulated and put under another's control, Linemall's true location could be finally revealed. That was not something Lukas could allow to happen. Not when he had so many people he'd come to care about who could be at risk of losing their lives.
If Rodan had never been under the Kraken's control then he'd truly betrayed Linemall. Then Lukas would have to keep his promise to the Lady Kaitlyn Drakos and kill her son, his brother, before he could bring great danger down on the Kingdom of Dragons.
And a small part of him…was curious. He wanted to meet this Admiral in spite of all the warnings that they had imparted because he…was summoned from another world.
What if he was from Earth? Did he know something that Lukas didn't?
What if he could explain to him how this was even possible and how they were brought here in the first place?
Could the god that he'd seen right after his death as Julien Fronterra, the being who glowed bright green, been the same one who'd summoned that Hero?
He wanted answers. No, he needed answers. And embarking on this journey to find Rodan was the only way he could do so. In the meantime, he needed to prepare himself; ensuring that he was in peak shape to protect his crew.
Little did Lukas Drakos know, by the time the sun rose on the horizon, they would be going up against a Nozar Warship and the navy was out for blood.