The King Trials 2: Beyond.

The Tigress and her handmaidens escort me to the Kumentah’s dwelling. But to my surprise it isn’t in some extravagant throne room or sumptuous hall, but we go deep underground, deeper than the falls. But in an abysmal depth of sheer obscurity. At a colossal threshold, the Tigress and her entourage remain where they are. The Tigress says that this part of the journey I must complete alone.

I walk through a large passageway, surrounded by rock walls, enveloped in darkness. The only thing I can hear are the crunching sounds of crushed rock beneath my feet. In the distance, light sieved with silver beckons.

I emerge out of the underpass. My gaze rises with the enormous stone pyramid that stands before me. It takes up much of the space in the vast chamber, obstructing my view of anything beyond. The size of the cavern, emulating the magnitude of the bastion above, at least only a huge part of it.

My eyes travel up the staircase on the spine, every stone layer of the pyramid engraved with a plethora of hieroglyphs. I free a long exhale and I begin the trudge forward. Rallying both will and strength, I climb the aged edifice, feet clomping up the steps cracked with old fissures.

An excruciating eternity passes, I reach the apex huffing and puffing, leg muscles burning. I nearly collapse to the floor, lowering myself to set my hands on my buckled knees. The brink is designed as a square-shaped arena, the earthen floor flat and smooth, but at the centre is a ring-shaped symbol.

I erect. Immediately I begin to unravel my one bandaged forearm, untangling the wrap. I hold my flattened hand at the focus to see that the symbol carved into stone resembles the tattoo on my palm.

My eyes snap up. Ahead of me is a ginormous hole drilled into the massive wall, gaping and yawning in the abyss. I stare into it, my heartbeat accelerating beyond my control.

The darkness inside blinks. Revealing a gigantic pair of glowing, reptilian eyes.

My blood runs cold, turning into ice.

A clangorous rumble resounds, dust spills from above. The creature slinks forward, skulking out of the darkness and into the exposure of light. It rushes out; the ground quakes on impact, everything trembling. The creature is mammoth size, the pyramid I stand on is nothing but a plaything compared to both its grandeur and scope.

The creature’s body is gargantuan, serpent-like with crimson, scaly skin, armoured with an impenetrable hide. The entire coat adorned with wavy white stripes. On its back sit folded wings, the edges hemmed with lethal spikes. It circles the pyramid, every ground-shaking step it takes, thunders.

It halts in front of me. Its neck elongates grandly, leaning forward and bends, so its formidable face is exactly in front of mine, poised in a curious stance. Its wide cavernous nostrils flare, releasing a plume, its mere exhale. A scant breath blows through my hair, the wisps pushed off my shoulders.

Bone-white tusks curve from its jaw, matched with a set that protrudes from the back of its head. Then its mouth peels open, baring its teeth—rows of a thousand glinting blades.

Its mouth curls back into a… grin.

My breaths fall shallow.

“Great Sagetai,” It booms, his sonorous voice the sound of a multitude, its words reverberate into the hollows. “At last. You awaken.”

My chest heaves, bellowing for air.

The Kumentah is a dragon!

My eyes frozen wide. I steel my resolve, swallowing the lump in my throat.

“You.” Barely audible, even to me. Louder, I say, “You know who I am?”

“More than you, it seems.” Its voice like an orchestra of thunderheads.

My eyes begin to flutter wildly. “You may be right.”

It locks its gleaming eyes on me, the black pupils; shaped slits. “I have awaited your coming for inestimable eras. Now what I see before me disappoints beyond comprehension.” He blows a cloud of black smoke from its nostrils.

I shrink from the fumes, evaporating before it overwhelms me.

At a loss of words, I do only what I can. Gawk.

He lengthens his neck to loom far above me, forcing me to crane my neck backwards.

“You are weak.” His words blaze out like lightening. “Your light has been corrupted, tainted by malignancy. I cannot fathom how one as unworthy as you can be Chosen.”

A spout of confidence stirs within me, the source unknown.

I find my voice, ferocity welling in my throat. “That is because I am not,” I agree sincerely. “I was not chosen because I am worthy. I am worthy because I was chosen. I never wanted this, nor did I ask for it, but I wish to understand it.”

It lowers his head to align his face with mine, its eyes penetrating me.

His eyes drop to my forearms, roving around my exposed forearm. I glance down at the tattoos, the luminescent shade of gold.

“You were wise to conceal your markings. You are vulnerable in your current state. If I wanted, I could end your life here, submerge you in an inferno of fire.”

A swarm of panic bursts in my chest.

“A warning, Sagetai.” His tenor suffused in compelling reassurement. “Not a threat.”

I inhale a breath, extinguishing the bout of fear.

“What do you wish to know?”

I gather my thoughts, deliberating. “The Great Realm War. We were all led to believe that the Ulris invaded our world. They wanted to usher in their reign of tyranny and desolation.”

The corners of its mouth stretch to resume its dread-inducing grin.

“It all began because of one’s unquenchable thirst for power,” he regales, his voice rumbling. “Cornelius Qhar, a member of the Sanctum, wanted to shift the reins of power. He believed the governing system was flawed; the other races inferior, unable to rule themselves. He wanted to install a new regime of kingdom ruling, one of his own making.”

Attentive, I scrunch up the bindings into a ball, folding my arms across my chest.

“But he needed influence, numbers and strength to support his revolution. He allied with a high-ranking General in the Emikrol Empire who promised him his forces, but it was still not enough. The Sanctum was a coalition of dominions and their armies, unified, they were too powerful.”

A shadow flickers in his eyes, darkening them.

“That is when Cornelius consulted sorcerers. Hitsches. That is what led him to open the threshold to Orese, a hellscape where Vilnus resides. There he struck an alliance with him, so he could use his dark powers to win his war of greed. And Vilnus delivered, but he had aspirations of his own, one that did not include him or any kind of existing peace.”

Now I see. Fragments linking together.

“My Priestess and my Guardians were sent in to close the breach, depleting both of our powers. When it was sealed, the Vanguard battalions along with Emikrollian aid defeated the remaining remnants of Vilnus’s army. Victory won Cornelius his aspirations, and that is how he became the first High King of Urium.”

I nod avidly.

History is written by the conquerors.

“But it was neither the end nor the beginning. So long as good exists, so shall evil. So long as beings live, so shall the darkness within them. Their nature. What is coming was long foreseen even before Pavelia, as was your coming.”

“Then,” I intone, the pitch of my voice fluctuating. “Vilnus will return by the Eternal Eclipse?”

“The time of black sun is the seventh moon, the month of Tharul. You must be ready. For if you are not, all will suffer. No being will be spared.”

No pressure.

My temples throb with apprehension. Fear crawls up my skin like a horde of tiny insects.

I shake out my arms. Angst-ridden, I say, “But how? Even you said that I am weak, I need to be strong, I need training. I must learn, I need time. I have lived with this distinct impression of expectation over my life, but I have always dreaded never being able to measure up to it. Now this….”

“You can only be as great as you believe yourself to be.” His eyes shine with a glimmer of hope. “As you said. You were chosen for a reason. And I must believe that you can succeed despite reason to fail.”

I never thought in my living days that I would be motivated by a dragon.

I discard my astonishment. Concentrate. “The current High King thought it best to initiate the Shalem protocols after the death of his heir to choose a successor. He believed it necessary to make ready the next Ruler for what is to come.”

“The King Trials, I know that is how you came, but not why. This is all but a catalyst of your destiny, your purpose. Urium needs the other dominions, all realms need to be united to endure the storm of destruction that will be unbridled. Your next destination will be to visit Nivalis and appeal to the Ice Erus.”

Nivalis, bitter cold climate. The Ice Erus, rumoured to be even colder.

“Nivalis is a long way. I will lend you and your convoy an imperil airship to get you through the Night Desert to the cerulean harbour. There you can choose a selection of boats crafted from acacia wood, strong enough to sail the wrathful seas to reach the frost kingdom.”

“And what of you, Exalted One?” I ask, my voice surprisingly steady. “I know you wanted to keep Velheim safe, by keeping it hidden. Where do you and your people stand?”

“Velheim can no longer hide,” he says with iron conviction. His neck rises, towering above, his head bent to stare down at me. “When it is time, Velheim shall take up arms and fight. With the might of a fully transformed Sagetai. Velheim will never again have to hide.”

I force a nod. Unsure if he can see it from that distance.

“Where my people stand is with me.” His neck descends gradually. “And I stand with the Sagetai. Not the High King or whomever wears his crown. Only when you call will my armies come.”

He lowers his massive head—I inhale a jagged breath—he bows to me.