“These aren’t the Mouth of Menadion, but the Maw of Bytra.” The Shadow Dragon said while waving at her wife with pride. “She is not only the Fourth Ruler of the Flames but also one of Menadion’s disciples.
“What one genius Forgemaster can make, another can recreate.” As she spoke, the two Maws resonated with each other, generating a synchronization effect that Lith and Solus knew all too well.
The two artifacts cast several detection spells and arrays in quick succession, collecting all the evidence they needed and storing the data necessary for the Eldritches to make up for their lack of Life Vision.
“And you dare throw them in the face of the emissaries of the Council?” Ryka the Titania asked in shock.
“Why should we hide?” Xenagrosh’s laughter was full of contempt. “We are as strong as your precious Council. If you think we feel threatened by you, think again. Make one move against the Organization and not only will you discover how wrong you are.
“You will also learn the hard way what Bytra’s creations can do in the hands of beings older than any Council elder if not even the Guardians themselves.”
Between the power of the Maw and her black-white aura exuding Dragon Fear, the members of the Hand of Fate took several steps back without even noticing.
“You must be great in bed to inspire such a betrayal, lizard!” Strider roared in outrage, releasing his aura to oppose the Dragon’s.
“Better than you’ll ever be, kitten.” Xenagrosh extended the claws of Sky Piercer and beckoned at him. “I bet you are fast in everything you do. And I mean everything.”
“Enough!” Bytra stepped between them, breaking the clash. “Xenagrosh, stop taunting him. It stopped being funny an hour ago.”
Zoreth grumbled but she retracted her aura and lowered her gaze.
“As for you, fastest jerk alive, I’m sick of your ridiculous claims. I owe no loyalty to you or the Council so stop acting like at some point you and I were betrothed. Insult me again and we are going to see if you can fight as meanly as you talk.
“For the record, even though it’s none of your business, the Organization found me when I was already an Abomination.”
“Preposterous!” The Zouwu replied. “Am I supposed to believe that someone who achieved the title of Ruler of the Flames failed Awakening or a breakthrough?”
“Yes, you idiot!” In her rage, Bytra conjured her horn and the mother of all storms. “Do you really think that a brilliant Forgemaster likes to spend her days breathing and training while her head is full of projects and ground-breaking theories?
“I Awakened young but reached the violet centuries later because overcoming the bright blue took time and I was always busy in my Forge. I devoted myself to training only after I had mastered the level of crafts I could perform and only because my core lacked the power to put my new ideas to the test.
“To all those like Menadion and I, our core is just a means to an end: Forgemastery. You wouldn’t find one Forgemaster at the cyan level if we could do everything with a green core.”
Bytra’s outburst took everyone aback and also explained to Solus why Bytra had yet to reach the bright violet after finishing her apprenticeship with Menadion.
‘I was different from the others.’ She thought as fragments of her memory flashed in front of her eyes. ‘After what happened to Dad, I was obsessed with training. I was terrified of exploding like him.
‘I had little life outside the Forge because I devoted my free time to refining my core and training my body.’ Then a painful memory hit her.
After reaching the bright violet, Elphyn had thrown the training in the gutter and moved her attention to sweets. Solus could remember Ripha nagging at her for gaining weight and the slow build of her Senton physique.
‘I guess I still have something in common with Elphyn Menadion.’ She inwardly sighed.
Meanwhile, the Zouwu could see the fury in Bytra’s eyes and feel her power.
‘She’s beyond the bright violet as well and, with her speed, she might even be my match. There’s no point fighting a losing battle. Even if I win, the Shadow Dragon will have my head and if not her, the Council.
‘Stop acting like a child, dammit!’ Strider stepped back and closed his eyes, trying to push the memories of the Eldritch destroying his birthplace back into a corner of his mind.
Whenever he met an Abomination, he could still hear the screams of his people as they were mowed down, feel his mother’s hand painfully squeezing his own in fear while she dragged him away by force.
He would go back to being a six years old Zouwu, forced to leave his father behind to face the monster alone while he and his mother escaped. Strider hated his old self for its weakness and his present self for lashing out like a scared child.
“I apologize, Lady Bytra.” He growled more than talked and gave her a small bow. “My words were uncalled for.”
“Sucks as an apology, but this isn’t worth my time.” Bytra dismissed him with a wave of her hand, like a petulant servant. “Xenagrosh?”
“On it!” The Shadow Dragon’s human form flickered, her body became covered in black scales that turned smoother and of a deeper shade of black as she tapped into her Eldritch powers.
She used her Stalking Predator bloodline ability to draw in all the auras in the room and integrate them into her body. The books lost the smell of old paper, the air became clean of the smell of the breakfast the master and apprentice had consumed, until everything that gave the secret lab a lived-in appearance was no more.
Everything became aseptic as if the scene was just a display in a museum. Lith noticed that even his smell and the small particles of dust on the Voidwalker armor had ended up the same way.
He felt the same way as after taking a sterilization shower back when he was quarantined in Valeron. Even his armor looked brand new. He wasn’t the only one. Everyone was shuddering, feeling that something they had never noticed yet they cared about had been taken away from them.
Everyone but Bytra.
“It’s not my first rodeo.” She shrugged in reply to Lith’s silent question. “I’m wearing brand new clothes on purpose so I barely notice the difference.”
“Do you need the life force sample too?” Strider wanted to argue about the violation of his personal space, but with an effort he managed to keep his temper in check.
“No, thanks.” Xenagrosh replied while sniffing the air. “I don’t need it. Two smells came in here but only one gets out. The old man died here.”
She pointed at the impression of the Forge in the carpet.
“Correct.” Unanna the Naga said. “We found Limbell there. But how does that hel-”
“Shush, child. This is the crucial step. I need to focus.” Zoreth raised her hand to ask them to be quiet while her body metabolized the energy signatures she had devoured and converted them in a signal that she could follow.
