The heavy oak doors of the underground chamber of Falmouth City groaned shut behind the last elder, sealing the room in near-total darkness. Only a single ring of low-burning torches, mounted on iron sconces around the circular stone walls, cast flickering amber light across the round table.
The table itself was a relic older than the city; massive, with glowing red liquid flowing from its center outward to the edges.
Nine high-backed seats of carved yew surrounded it, each one equal in height and dignity.
Usually at this point the elders would bicker among themselves before the main eting started. Tonight, however, the silence felt crushing.
Elder Maelis Dragonforge, whose voice was usually the calst, finally broke the heavy silence.
"It’s been three days and that young man is nowhere to be found."
Tamara, who sat opposite him, leaned back and crossed one leg over the other. "That ’young man’ is our master, so show him so respect."
Elder Garrick slamd his fist on the table, jaw tight with barely contained fury. "Why should we respect that young man! Isn’t it you who gave him leadership of the clan in our absence? You know very well that the only reason we accepted him is because you’re the strongest and the lady seed to enjoy his company!"
Tamara held Garrick’s gaze without blinking. "A Dragonforge never breaks his or her promise, and as you said, as the then acting leader of the family I had the right to pass my role to another if I saw fit."
"That doesn’t include a lowly human," Garrick shot back.
Elder Tessia, who sat a distance away, smirked. "Garrick, why trouble yourself? You think we elders don’t feel the sa way? Why do you think we haven’t said a word?" She let her words settle before continuing. "That human brings more to the table than any of us do."
Elder Maelis nodded, stroking his beard slowly. "He didn’t just help the lady awaken — he gives us mana weekly without regard for his body, he helped us build our city and economy, and he has our god’s core along with a talent to surpass him. If we can truly tie him down to us, it will be the greatest fortune we could ever have."
Another elder with blue hair and blue eyes spoke up, her voice barely above a murmur. "But Maelis, what if one day he betrays us? We haven’t actually done anything that would make him stay. We were the ones who caused him to get separated during the summoning, we tried to kill him multiple tis, the lady violated him, and even through all of that he was made to manage our city and give us mana."
The entire council went completely still, every gaze shifting toward the shy elder, who quickly lowered her face and drew her shoulders inward.
A tall, broad-shouldered elder with a terrifying pressure radiating off him, spoke up. "He won’t betray us," he said, voice booming. "If the fool wanted to, he could have done it a year ago. Besides, if he dares run, Tamara could kill him, and without any allies how would he survive in the wastelands or make it to the outer zones?" He smirked, then added. "By the ti he grows stronger he’ll be too attached to us, and he’ll have already opened his heart to the lady."
All the elders nodded in unison, except Tamara, who exhaled quietly. "That isn’t the case, Elon."
Elon’s brow furrowed. "What do you an? I was by the gate the day he awakened and a rainbow ford in the sky. From his aura he’s clearly still a squire."
Tamara leaned forward, folding her hands on the table. "He’s a squire that can beat easily. I’ll tell you this now — remove any hostility you have toward Hinata, because if he reaches expert realm, not even the old monsters of the Sterling clan can touch him."
Elder Garrick’s breath caught. "He can already beat you?" He shot to his feet, palm striking the table as he leaned toward her. "Then why didn’t you tell any of us? You’re making our clan carry a ticking ti bomb!"
"If I told you, what would you have done?" she asked simply, and the question alone was enough to make Garrick sink back into his seat. "When I say Hinata is stronger than , I an that even if every mber of the elder council attacked him at once, he would co out on top."
"A living monster," the shy elder murmured, her tone carrying a gravity that didn’t match her usual deanor. Her eyes glowed faintly as her fingers curled around the edges of the table. "If he ever cos to rember what we did to him and we have nothing to hold him with, he’ll beco our greatest calamity."
A loud gulp echoed through the silent chamber as the weight of those words pressed down on every soul present.
Elder Maelis turned sharply to Tamara. "Tamara, do we have any leverage to hold him back?"
Tamara shook her head. "The master doesn’t like the lady, but knowing him, he won’t kill her. The only thing that could restrain him even slightly is the lady’s ability, but even that can’t stop soone hell-bent on destroying us. All we can do is pray to the great Noctis that he allows us to live. As for , I’m certain of my own survival at least."
Elder Garrick clenched his jaw, but when he saw the other elders bowing their heads in prayer to their god, the great Absalom Dragonforge known as Noctis throughout the lands, he closed his eyes and joined them.
"Oh god Noctis, deliver your people, and slay those who wish to harm your family. An."
---
anwhile, in the canyon, Absalom slamd against the barrier again and again, his eyes blazing with rage. "You..." he sputtered, the words mangled behind his clenched teeth. "You fucking bastard! How dare you say that."
Hinata’s gaze was cold as ice as he watched Absalom from the other side of the barrier. Slowly, he offered a bow. "I thank master for his teachings." Raising his head, he continued. "However, you don’t actually expect to help the clan that caused all my pain rise to the top?"
"Y — You... You!"
Hinata raised a single finger. "You should bla yourself for this, master. If you hadn’t spoken so poorly of my dream, perhaps I wouldn’t have rembered that it was you and your family who made it impossible to begin with."
Absalom forced a smirk through his fury. "So you’re just a bitter bastard! What happened to that nonsense you always preach about all lives being equal under the heavens?"
Hinata nodded. "I’m glad you rember that, master." He held Absalom’s gaze, his own sharp and unblinking. "What I’m doing now can be called making sure all lives are equal. For every hero and every person who died at the hands of your race, for every brutal second I endured after arriving in this world, isn’t it fair that I pay it all back?"
His expression softened by a fraction. "If all lives are equal, shouldn’t I avenge the dead? Are you telling their lives don’t matter?"
"So you’re claiming you’re doing this for equality."
Hinata chuckled softly. "Of course not. This is simply a ans to an end." He paused, then added softly "Then, I’ll see you later, master. I pray you have a wonderful afterlife."
Hinata turned away even as Absalom kept shouting curses at the top of his lungs. He didn’t bother looking back. Not at the man’s twisted expression, not at the fury burning in his eyes. None of it mattered anymore.
All he wanted now was to get far away from this damned place.
All he wanted was to get far away from the realization that he might never find his way back ho.
After stepping out of the narrow part of the canyon, he called out to his dragon companion, but there was no response.
Hinata frowned. "Goku, can you stop ssing around and just co out?"
His words were t with cold silence. Hinata stopped walking and stared at the empty air around him.
"Goku?"
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