The trainings they endured were relatively short, but their experiences made it possible to be prepared in just two weeks. It was all basic combat skills or simply by keeping themselves up to shape with the skills they each had.

Hans, guided by Fenrir and an elven swordsman who agreed to train him in the way of a dragon rider, proved to be very capable, yet unorthodox, swordsman. Due to having the nimble body of a werewolf (he had stayed in werewolf form for so long Hans started to think that it was permanent) Hans’ sword techniques did not focus on defense as he fought more like a beast with a sword than a properly trained swordsman, along with the use of his claws, his teeth, and most important of all, Fenrir’s spirit. Fenrir proved to be a great support with his Spirit Walk, as he could also attack his targets separate from Hans. Unfortunately, Hans was unable to use his wolf form without causing distress and fear due to its size. For some reason, they were more scared with a dragon-sized wolf than a dragon, though Hans felt it was justifiable since wolves were more beasts than dragons.

Adeline also learned to fight with a sword alongside Keeshar and Hans. The three Ternorians, befitting their experiences and personalities, had widely different techniques. Hans’ was wild and intended to be unpredictable. Adeline’s was graceful and adhered to techniques while also making use of Zenithia’s light, which could change the shape of the light sword with ease. Keeshar’s focused on devastating wide strikes that could potentially kill. His macuahuitl, due to its obsidian saw ridges, made it very heavy and unwieldy to compensate with its brutality. One rider even commented that, if enchanted properly, the weapon could easily decapitate a horse in the most brutal way possible: by sawing them off. The others shuddered upon hearing that.

The rest of the group did not need as much training as defense against Aetherium, though they found that they needed to come up with new skills if they really wanted to fight the light dragons without hesitating.

Elyse, previously concerned about how the other satyrs perceived her rough fighting style, became convinced that it was the right fighting style to be used against the invaders. Zenithia told her that Altered Reality had almost none of nature’s energy, so the satyr decided to learn how to control herself and use her enhancement efficiently instead of coating herself with nature’s energy. By the end of the week, she could direct the energy to her hooves, which were her greatest assets, to kick off a brick wall, to the astonishment of onlookers and her own surprise.

Richie and Ritik, already forging a friendship, complemented each other’s strength and weaknesses by their use of magic. Richie noticed that Ritik had weak destructive spell, but he was proficient in the use of ‘support magic’ due to his workaholic nature. Ritik confessed that he used several magics so that he could keep doing his research, often at the risk of destroying his own body. While Richie reprimanded him for it, he also realized, from his knowledge of Role-Playing Games, that Ritik would make a great support role in a group full of warriors and fighters. While Ritik did not like being considered a support (owing to a slight misconception of ‘kobolds as servants’ archetype), he soon realized that Richie was right. He could only use low-level fireball magic, but his other magic spells, such as regeneration, mass healing, and other enhancement and debilitating omagic (or as Richie liked to call it, “buffs and debuffs”) were vital against their enemies. Then, he focused on how to make them effective against Aetherium. Again, Zenithia was happy to help.

Finally, Zenithia, the most powerful one in the group due to her status as a Daughter of the Eternal Frost, learned more on her ice magic, which as she understood it, was a heat manipulation magic that produced her ice. Azureath learned how to control the weather by learning how to manipulate the flow of heat. Given her big mana reserve as a dragon and her own affinity to ice, she could create a small winter in a place with no such weather in the desert. Yet, she also found out that area-wide weather manipulation took a great toll to her mana reserves, so she decided to stick with the one she did best: that of producing ice with her front claws.

Overall, everyone had improved after being tempered by the grueling experiences they faced. Zenithia made sure they would be given the luxury of further training with her Altered Reality, which disguised their intentions and presence within a private space she created. Her powers had somewhat returned from absorbing the essences of Shawar and Shalaka, along with traces of Ashaire’s. Due to the countless years of fighting against Shawar and expending most of her powers in the process, she lost her adult form and most of her powers. She could wait it out, but the distinct lack of Aetherium in that reality made it impossible. The pillars of light could only do a little.

She predicted that she might be able to return to her full power in about two thousand years or so, which was an optimistic prediction, and also if she could access the Thread after everything she had done. Zenithia knew she was walking a one-way road; she was committed to it, and could not turn back.

“And to think he was the one who inspired this rebellion,” she said with a chuckle. “Oh, Seraphor. Things could have been so much different without you. Or maybe you did know I was going to follow your path. I would say how stupid it was, but I suppose that applies to me, too.”

She knew she couldn’t regret it. All she could do was to finish what she and Seraphor started.

And all that would be answered in Qeveriyt.

***

“Listen up,” said Zenithia after everyone gathered around her. All who were invited by Avila to help her and some other affiliated warriors, alongside volunteers and mages from the Academy were all recruited to undertake one of the most impossible mission of all: to find Qeveriyt. Normally, people would laugh it off and even ridicule Zenithia, but the secret of her being an exiled light dragon had been going around the city for a while and this made them know that whatever ridiculous things she said had some truths in them.

Once Zenithia had seen everyone interested gathered around her, she started.

“You might not know about this,” she said. “But Qeveriyt has been hiding under your noses for a very long time. The city disappeared due to the mechanisms of the light dragons for a purpose I myself wasn’t sure of. What’s important, however, is the danger that will surely greet all of you when the veil is lifted. If not the danger, then there will be the fates of those caught behind the veil, which will surely be horrifying. If you think this is something that you cannot go with, I suggest you turn around and keep this city safe.”

She saw several of them leave, but not all of them. The rest seemed eager to finish it.

“Then you’ve made your choice.” Zenithia then jumped off the brick fence she stood on. “Now, as all of you have known already, I am a light dragon. I know that Qeveriyt, given its ancient name as a clue, was concealed by both a perception filter and a prismatic veil that camouflaged the whole city and made its position lost, along with any other things they did to make you forget the city ever existed. But it won’t be for long. Questions before we begin?”

A lion man raised his hand. “Where will the city be? Is it far from here?”

Alverian, who sat near Zenithia, answered, “It is connected to Dracokin via the eastern gate. You may notice that no one seems to go through that gate or even care about it.”

“Is it really?” whispered one of the soldiers.

“I made my rounds there. There’s nothing out of ordinary there,” whispered another.

Zenithia heard the whispered and said, “It may sound improbable for you, but perception filters are meant to make you think there’s nothing there even if you are there. It forces you to look away without you even knowing about it, to filter your perception.”

There were murmurs of understanding from the gathering.

“Now, in regards of attack plan, I will let the commander for this operation to brief it for you.” Alverian then stood aside. “Briggs, if you may?”

Briggs, a human standing near the soldiers, walked up to Alverian and proceeded to pull out a magical apparatus that send out a diagram with a crude, but effective, picture of the eastern gate.

“This operation will involve land and air attacks,” he started. “I assigned the Sword and Shield divisions to be in the frontlines due to their expertise in combat, while the dragon riders and their dragon partners are to provide air support when the need arises. We are to defend the gates from any potential attacks while Zenithia and her comrades explore the city as forward scouts. Once they determine it to be safe, we can start occupying the city. If not, then they will need all the help they can get. Any questions?”

“Any chances of a preemptive attack?”

“Very likely, which makes Dracokin’s barrier handy for such attack. There is also a likelihood that we will get the jump on them instead. The danger, aside from Aetherium, would be what Zenithia called ‘prismatic fog’. Once you see colors in your vision, close your eyes immediately. Are we clear?”

Everyone acknowledged the warning.

“Good. Ground forces will converge around the gate and outside of Dracokin’s wall. Air forces will be on the lookout of changes and react appropriately. We don’t know how the filter will affect us once Zenithia dispels it. If any, be ready for anything. Any last questions before we deploy?”

There was a silent acknowledgment.

“Then put on your gears and get to your positions, soldiers. Dismissed.”

The crowd quickly dispersed in an ordered fashion, grabbing whatever weapons and armors procured by the blacksmiths and artificers who were told to supply the soldiers for a war.

Zenithia proceeded to walk to the only group that stayed: that of those who Avila personally chose alongside the Draconic Death Aspect herself and Azureath, who was waiting nearby. They were the forward scout responsible with exploration and arguably were also the best ones in term of combat prowess due to each of their uniqueness. If there were light dragons, they could easily combat them with Zenithia’s support.

They were all aware that whatever revealed by Zenithia would be unpleasant. However, they kept their wits with them and prepared themselves for it. Already prepared and ready to go, they all walked towards the eastern gate.

As Alverian had said, the eastern gate seemed deserted with almost no one walking there. It could be due to the operation, but many other peculiarities became clear as they approached the gate. Parts of the city around the eastern area were not developed and many of them were empty spaces. No one seemed to care or wonder why such big area were so empty while everywhere else, rampant urbanization caused buildings to be build outside the wall and some facilities were also built among the walls. Like everyone else, the empty space seemed to never exist due to the perception filter.

The only reason why they could see it was because of a strong dispelling magic that Alverian used as a grand mage, alongside Zenithia removing the ‘shroud’ of light that made the whole area non-existent. The revelation that the whole area was empty came as a surprise for them.

However, it was only a prelude for things to come.

Zenithia and the others walked towards the gate. Like before, the place seemed to open to the vast desert of the Central Region, but the light dragon’s eyes saw something else. By adjusting the light to the right wavelength, she could see things others could not easily perceive. She was also the only one who was unaffected by the perception filter, though like others, it was well hidden by an uncommon light spectrum invisible to others and only visible if one look hard enough.

“They went to such great lengths to erase a city from existence,” she commented. “Just what secret do they have in this city?”

“If it is their forward base, we’re screwed,” said Richie.

“I thought we already agreed that it’s unlikely,” said Ritik.

“But not impossible, right?”

Hans, walking near Adeline, noticed the red-furred werewolf trying to stop her hands shaking. He already noticed this from Elyse. Clearly, both of them were terrified of what’s behind the filter. As he held the hands of the satyr, he also did so for Adeline, comforting and calming her down.

“Trust your friends, Addy,” said Hans. “Don’t ever think you’re alone in there.”

“I never would think of that, friend,” said Adeline with a smile across her lupine face.

“I won’t be scared,” said Elyse. “As long as you’re not.”

“I’ll try not to,” said Hans.

Everyone had their own private thoughts and self-encouragement against something that they might not be ready against. Even Azureath, the strongest and the one most prepared against a light dragon, knew things could easily go wrong and decided to trust her newfound friends, including the dragonborn from another world and the kobold mage.

She started to wonder how things had changed ever since she decided to let go of her traumatic past and help the Ternorian crew go back to her own land. Maybe things could have been different if she did not return to Main. She wouldn’t even know that she had the blood of an old god in her. She never believed those sorts of things, knowing that if she did, her relationship with the Raptors would be radically different.

Now, she had friends she could rely on, and those who would rely on her. She was a dragon, and she would make sure her enemies know that.

Resolute and full of determination to finally solve the mystery of the light dragons pushed them towards an uncertain fate, though with a high hope of survival. Zenithia knew this as she saw their expressions. They might be walking towards their deaths, but they were determined to save their reality.

And Zenithia would ensure that it would be done.

“Is everyone thoroughly prepared?” she asked as a final confirmation. Everyone acknowledged her.

“Then let’s begin.”

Zenithia turned around towards the eastern gate. To everyone else, it opened to the desert, but for the light dragon, there was a veil or a barrier hidden in a specific wavelength that made it invisible. Only a light dragon that knew where to look would be able to see the veil. There were many other safety measures that Zenithia discovered as she tried to open the veil. Aside from the perception filter, there was an amnesic field that would make people forget once they got out of the field, a very subtle, but powerful mood wave that would mess with one’s mood, and the most troublesome of all, prismatic fog that would incapacitate everyone before they began to aware of it.

Zenithia, with the powers absorbed from Shawar and Shalaka, could provide a constant protection from all of the security measures to all her friends, but unfortunately not to the rest of the combatants. It was the reason why they were chosen as a forward scout. Even so, she knew that a fight was inevitable, and she needed to restore more of herself if she wanted to give them a reliable protection in combat.

Knowing that it would come later, the light dragon focused on finding a crack in the veil so she could open it for them. She quickly found one and promptly ‘grabbed’ it with her claws, opening it to reveal a peculiar and intriguing sight: buildings beyond a portal.

“This is it, good friends!” said Zenithia energetically. “Let’s go!”

“Qeveriyt, here we come!” exclaimed Richie as he enthusiastically walked through the portal, followed by Ritik. The werewolves and Keeshar went in next, before finally accompanied by Elyse and Azureath. Zenithia stayed behind for a while to keep the portal open before finally going in, portal left open for backups.

Unfortunately for her and the others, they were not ready for the state the city was in.

Qeveriyt was not left untouched in the years since its disappearance. Rather, no one was sure what the light dragons did to the city and its inhabitants. The city was supposed to be made in the image of Dracokin, essentially a twin to the city of dragons. At a glance it looked like it, but it wasn’t the case once they saw the city in full, especially when Azureath and Hans decided to check the city from the city.

“Oh my god,” said Hans, mortified. “What the bloody hell…is this?”

Azureath was similarly surprised. In her long years of living, she had never seen things so…twisted and so horrible.

The city did not resemble Dracokin in architecture. The spires that made the other city were gone, replaced by writhing tentacles of flesh. Many of the buildings looked organic and alien, almost as if they were made out of flesh.

As the others walked into the city, the full scope of the horror became clear for them. Qeveriyt’s wall was caked with blood in such a volume that could only happen if a dozen or so dragons were thrown to the wall and exploded, showering gore and blood everywhere. The city buildings were twisted, some become organic, living tentacled monsters while others were made out of uneven limestone held together by their weight and gapped by small stones. Compared to Dracokin’s, the buildings, and the wall, looked ancient.

“Did the book…ever mention Qeveriyt being established thousands of years ago?” asked Richie.

“Hundreds of years ago, during the early times of dragon-human alliance,” said Ritik.

“This is the consequence of throwing Qeveriyt out of normal timestream,” said Zenithia. “From the looks of it, the city is trapped for so long it became corrupted by time, causing it to look ancient when it was not.”

“Then how do you explain that monster?” asked Keeshar as he pointed towards the tentacled organic building.

“That’s…something that happened somewhere in the city’s history. An accident.”

As they contemplated on entering Qeveriyt, another one of their group, the one that gathered them together, joined them. Avila, the Draconic Death Aspect, revealed herself to them, apparently following them through the portal. She was missing from the briefing and the initial portal opening, apparently keeping herself hidden with her presence concealment.

“This place is unnatural for another reason,” said Avila with a growl. “Death has no power in this altered reality. Be wary of those who are unable to rest peacefully, for this is their hell.”

As she said that, and as the group decided to start walking into the city, they soon faced the true horrors that defined the city’s fate. Mutated creatures that were once people roamed the city. Their bodies were horribly disfigured by the cancerous growth that not only grew their body, but also made them resemble nothing of their former selves. Even worse, and they realized this, was that they could never die. Ritik, who learned a bit about magical anatomy, became sick of the realization caused by their immortality.

“Shit….” Ritik could only look away as one of the mutated creatures moaned and slowly crawled towards them. He prepared a fire spell to burn them, unable to see them suffer.

However, before he could start a fire, he and everyone else became alerted when Azureath roared. They looked up to find a beam of light missing the azure dragon by inches as she beat her wings to escape the attack.

“Well, about time they show up,” said Richie as electricity crackled all over his body, along with the element of wind swirling with them.

“Zen, what do we need to do?” asked Adeline as she pulled out the hilt of her light sword. “We can’t stay here and fight them.”

“We need to find whatever is sustaining the field and deactivate it,” said Zenithia. “Qeveriyt is made hidden for a very specific reason. I can already sense him. We must not delay, Adeline.”

“It’s too late for that, Zen.”

Richie’s declaration wasn’t made lightly. They became stunned when they saw not one, not two, but a dozen or so pillars of light beaming all around the city, turning the bleak, dark environment into a bright one. This time, the pillars did their purposes properly. As the light went away, a light dragon appeared. They were transported in by the light. Some of the light dragons looked feral, while others looked more humanoid and took either a dragonborn or an elven form.

They did not wait. All of the sudden, some of them started their attack. A beam of light forced them to break away, only to become engaged with the dragons in a fight that further separated them from each other.

Qeveriyt had now become a battlefield.