Aquirya
Chapter 13

Aeyla and Niko were on their way north of Grazia, walking through Treleskan forest. They hadn’t spoken since they left, Aeyla was unsettled about something. The look on Nikos face when he found out her son was safe. Also, how Leo had started to tell Niko first about the whole thing.

“Niko?” Aeyla said walking through some leaves and looking up to see a bird flying by.

He looked at her. He knew the question was coming. “Yes, Princess?”

“Why were you more relieved than me when my son was found?” She turned to look at him but he was trying to avoid her eyes.

“You didn’t remember him. Maybe you have to see him again to realize how deep your love for him is. I remember him. I know how close you were to him.” He was hoping she would leave it at that for now.

To Nikos’ relief, Aeyla just turned and started to walk away. The answer satisfied her curiosity for now. I mean he was here for five years looking for her son so why wouldn’t he be relieved? She heard some rustling in the trees and immediately took her bow off her back. Niko noticed out of the corner of his eyes her reflexes were returning. Aeyla was an amazing hunter and tracker before, it seemed like she was getting her senses back. He knew that before long she would have her full memory back and she would know everything, everything about her kingdom, her people, her family, and him.

Another noise came from in front of them. They inched their way up to the sound. As they got closer the sound stopped. They looked at each other than inched around a tree, they both jumped when they saw a skunk sniffing around bushes.

Aeyla laughed and backed up not wanting to alarm the skunk and get sprayed by it. She put her bow away and looked around to get back on the trail they were on.

“Where are we going anyway?” She asked Niko, picking a green fruit from a nearby tree and taking a bite of it.

“We are going to the Rigaton Mountains, it’s just after the forest and the beach. It’s an island. We have to go to Kata Island first to use the bridge that connects the two islands. It’s the easiest route into the mountains.” He told her getting back on the trail they needed to be on.

“What do we need there again?” She thought something but brushed it away as impossible.

“You have a friend there that we will need help from to get to Komatiite Volcanos.”

“What kind of friend?” Aeyla was hoping his answer wasn’t what she thought she remembered it to be.

“He is a dragon.” He waited for her reaction.

“A What?!” She stopped dead in her tracks and whipped around to face him.

“A Dragon, Atta.” He said with a smirk on his face.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. Niko, of all the cruel, jerky jokes.” She turned around. “Which way is West, we need to stop fooling around and get to Craceeris to take care of her.”

“Aeyla.” Niko said lovingly. “Atta is your dragon. You tamed him. You calmed him. He does what you ask but he has not shown since you’ve been back, so we have to go make sure he’s not captured also. Hopefully he isn’t, because we need his help.” Niko walked on, hoping Aeyla would calm down and continue to follow him.

“All these surprises in a couple days. I wish my memory would fully return.” She said falling in line behind him.

“I know Princess, but you are starting to remember. That’s a good sign right?”

“I guess so. Thank you Niko.”

They had come to a clearing in the forest and saw the beach and sea before them. She was taken aback by the beautiful scene before her and almost tripped over a rock.

“It is beautiful. Isn’t it?” Niko said noticing her reacting to the splendor.

They saw a white beach before them. The orange sky shone brightly with the white suns above. Under the suns was a wavy, beautiful clear sea. The Cygra Sea, named after the King who once ruled the land that was now under it. There were other Seas in Aquirya but this was the most beautiful and the largest. It housed the mountain of the dragons, which was where Aeyla and Niko were heading. It also had the Lands of the Kings of Ancients. One side of the Trachyte Volcano range and the older lands were also in Cygra Sea. It was also the calmest.

“Come on, this way.” He said to her after a couple of minutes of letting her take it all in.

They walked west for about an hour where they found a small row boat. “We have to row to Kata. It’s about twenty miles out in the sea.” He pointed to the smaller island west of a much bigger island with mountains. It’s a cute little island, with lots of vines. Be careful they don’t hold you for too long, they’ll squeeze the life out of you. We have to run to the bridge.” He motioned for her to get into the boat. He rowed them to the edge of the vine island, and motioned for her to get out in the water so he could remind her of the path to the bridge. When he was satisfied she either remembered or that she understood how to get to the bridge he started running up the beach into the vines. The only beach that was on this island was the four-foot beach they were standing on so they couldn’t even run along a beach to get to the bridge.

She had nothing else to do but to run after him. She remembered his directions to the T and made it to the bridge just after he did.

“Where’s the bridge?” She said when she realized there was no bridge for them to pass on.

“You have to call it.” Niko said standing at the edge of the water just out of reach of the vines. “Aeyla! Watch out!!” He suddenly yelled at her pointing behind her.

“AHHH!” She yelled as the vines started to wrap around her. “Niko! Help mee!!”

“Princess, you have to stay still and be quiet. They’ll feel you struggle and squeeze harder.” He had to think of a way to get to her without him getting caught by the vines also.

“Princess, can you move your hand?”

“Yes.” He saw her try to move it. “I can’t breathe, Niko.” Terror rolled across her face and she started crying. She could feel the vines taking over her whole body, they were cutting her circulation and it was becoming harder to breathe.

“Shh, Princess, don’t move anything now.” He said at her hoping to stop her in time. “They’ll feel it and squeeze.” He stayed in the water until he got his thoughts together.

“When I say to, make fire balls in your hands. Okay?” He was looking her straight in the eyes so he could see her understand what he was saying.

He got ready and ran at her right before he got to her he yelled, “NOW!” and swung his sword at the same time she created her fireballs. They burned the vines that were holding her arms and Niko slashed through the ones that were hold her legs.

“Run Princess!” He slashed at the rest of the vines that were holding her still and she ran straight for the water where the bridge would appear. When she got to there he was right behind her. She could only jump in his arms and hug him as she cried.

“Niko, you saved my life again.” She backed up and looked into his eyes. “You’ve probably done that more than the couple times than the last couple days.”

“Not that many. You’re pretty capable of saving yourself Aeyla.” He wanted so badly to kiss her right now, like they’d kissed so many times before. He couldn’t, he couldn’t risk her having that confusion right now. He pulled away, and smiled. “You okay?” He cared about her more than a royal knight should and he’d been trying so hard to hide that from her until she remembered who he was.

“We better get going. If Atta is in trouble we’ve wasted enough time.”

“How do I call the bridge?” She asked Niko putting out her hands.

“Just call it.”

Apprehensively she looked out at the sea. “Evenio Pons.” Not confidently at all. As soon as she was done saying it though, a bridge appeared right before her eyes like it had just been invisible.

“How did I know that?” Looking at Niko with wide eyes and an open mouth.

“You’re starting to remember.” Niko replied simply.

It was a beautiful fiery red bridge, with a dragon head at both ends of the bridge. It was magnificent and long with two humps in the bridge tops. They started walking along the bridge and when Aeyla looked back she noticed the bridge was disappearing as they walked off that part of the bridge.

“Niko. Have I been on here before?” She tried not to sound horrified.

“Yes.” He was a bit ahead of her and almost at the beach at the Rigaton Mountains. “I was hoping you’d remember this place, you come here all the time and I don’t.” They were both at the end of the bridge now. “I’ve actually never been past this point. I don’t know where to go from here. You have to remember where Atta lives.”

“How?”

“Close your eyes and try to remember.”

Aeyla stood still on the sand of the beach and closed her eyes. She waited a couple minutes, “I can’t do this.”

“You can and you have to.” Niko said coming over to her. She opened her eyes when he touched her. “Close your eyes and think about Atta.”

“I don’t remember him.”

“Close your eyes Aeyla.”

She closed her eyes again. He started talking. “He is a dragon. He has a special place in his dragon heart for you. He’s big, has a spiked tail, he’s black. He spits Slime and poison on enemies. We need to replace him Aeyla, you need to remember where his cave is. Remember the path to his cave.” He stopped talking so she could remember the image he tried to place in her head about what Atta looked like.

“He has a scar above his left eye.” Aeyla said slowly.

“Yes.” Niko smiled. “He got that when…”

“…he was in a fight with another dragon that Craceeris was ruling over. I healed him.”

“Yes Aeyla. You’re remembering him. Remember your fondness of him.”

“Yes. I know where he is!” She opened her eyes quickly and smiled. She was running across the beach into the wooded mountains before Niko knew what was going on. At least she had taken her sword out, he thought to himself. He took his own sword out and started to run after her even though she had disappeared in the thick brush before him. When he got through the brush he could tell which way she had gone because the trees were cut, he soon caught up with her as she was heading down a path in between two mountains. It was a narrow path, which he was thankful for. He couldn’t lose her if they only had one way to go.

“I figured it out Niko. I know where he is!” She yelled from ahead of him.

“I know Aeyla. All you had to do was believe in yourself and your love for Attar.” That’s all you need to do to remember me too. He thought to himself as they ran. They ran up a mountain side through more brush, trees and woods.

Ten minutes later she stopped short. They had come to a cliff and she was shaken. “This isn’t right. This is the way to his cave.” She started walking back and forth. “This is the way. Niko, something is wrong. This is the way to his Cave! I’ve come this way a million times. I know it.”

“Okay, Aeyla, Calm down. We’ll replace him. Take a deep breath. Which way would we be going if there wasn’t a cliff and a drop off right in this place.”

She looked around for a couple minutes, “That way.” She pointed to the right down a steep but walkable slope. They started down the slope, sliding, and falling as they went. Rigaton was a huge mountain range island, it was also tall and full of many cliffs, hills, woods, thick brush, and other obstacles. They got to the bottom of the cliff and walked through the river and up the other side of a hill. On top of the hill Aeyla stopped again to remember which way to go from here. She looked above her and around her then closed her eyes to remember which way to go.

“This way.” She said and went straight. More woods, brush, and they encountered their first huge snake, that surprisingly didn’t take much to take down.

“That was too easy.” Niko said as the snake lay not moving on the ground. It was about twenty feet long, five feet wide, and it was an ugly green color. Snakes were all over the Rigaton Mountains, food for the dragons mostly. But they were never that big. Aeyla looked at the snake they had just battled and something came to her.

“That snake, wasn’t real.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s not a real thing. Look.” She said pointing at it. It was a clear green color now.

“I think you’re right, it looks like its fading away. It must’ve been a diversion.” Niko looked up and looked around trying to see if he could figure out what it was a diversion from. Suddenly he saw a form running from the left side of where they stood.

“Aeyla. Over there.” He whispered and pointed. “Something just ran into that cave.

“That’s Attars’ cave.” She whispered back. “Come on let’s go.”