Chapter 34: Yellow and Black

Lukas kept his head low and palms together.

The room was gripped with a stretching darkness, and the only light was of him and the old body before him on the metal table. Its eyes were closed tightly, chest rising and falling in pained, strained breaths. Yellow scales ran up the right side of the body, tainted, worn down with scars and paleness.

"Grandpa," Lukas voice came, so tiny and gentle. His heart rammed against his ribs, fear gripping his soul at the thought of being a moment too late. "I… I'll make you better. I promise." His yellow eyes surged with mana. His blood boiled, and his vision fell black. Images of the past, of happiness with his family.

Hugs from his mother, praise from his father. All swept away in the same instant that put his Grandfather in this sorry state.

His grip on his shorts tightened to the point his knuckles turned white. The twins' faces flashed in his thoughts. His grip relaxed as a smile touched his face.

A cold, careless smile. They were like him. Special, with a Gem, yet he still defeated them both. While not by his power alone, he's come far since that day. He was ready to face them, and the first one on his mind was none other than Kairas Yamishito.

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Water splashed on his face. Coughing madly, Kairas sat up and held his arm. His shirt and pants were torn where he was pierced, but the wounds themselves closed while he was unconscious. Slowly, his hand gripped a jut out stone and pulled himself up with the wall. His green eyes flashed faintly, alternating the color of the room, allowing him to see through the blackness.

A cellar.

Sand touched his bare feet, and there was a mugginess in the air. The mana flowing around was rich and thick, but held a dark feeling to it. The cellar itself was large in size.

A wooden door was far across from where Kairas stood, illuminated by two faint flaming candles. The golden hinges looked rusted and worn down from old age. Aside from the door, the room was empty. Kairas was alone, utterly alone.

His eyes went wide and he looked around. "Takabi?"

The door opened with a loud cry. In came Lukas, dressed in tight pants that stopped just at his shins. Shirtless, he allowed the yellow scales on his skin to remain visible as they slowly appeared more prominently along his sides and abs. Eyes hard, lightning surged around his fingers as he spoke.

"He's not here. We chose not to take him when we came back."

Kairas sighed in relief, and stood upright once the pain in his body faded away. "Smart choice. That guy is an animal when he's pissed off." He rested his hands on his thighs, eyes locked on Lukas' twitching fingers.

He was itching for a fight.

"Do we have to do this? I mean, I get I almost killed you one time, but that's in the past now, ain't it?"

"Do you even hear yourself," He laughed. "Regardless, I can't allow you to go. I need you and the other one for Grandpa." Lukas began to hop a bit in place. He rolled his shoulders and head, loosening the muscles that were tense. "I'm going to drain you both of your blood and let the cells heal him completely."

"You have a Gem," Kairas commented. "The Yellow Gem. A light Gem. You can heal him, can't you?"

"If I could, I would've." Lukas let his shoulders slump, and brushed the hair back behind his ears. "I can't control my Gem. Not yet. I am hoping, though, that I can learn while I'm killing you."

He spoke, yet his words didn't feel genuine to Kairas. It felt more as if he was trying to convince himself. Regardless, there he was, Lukas throwing bolt after bolt of magic at Kairas.

First, he willed a wall of black ice from the sand, watching as each blast ripped through with no effort. Kairas leapt aside, ducked and dodged, running forward. Lukas ceased fire, and charged at him, yellow electricity surging around him until he vanished from sight.

Kairas, while shocked, ducked under Lukas' punch. The yellow Dragon brought his elbow down, narrowly striking Kairas' shoulder. Gripping his arm, Kairas slid his foot forward and dragged Lukas' out from under him.

Losing balance, the boy hit the sand hard, air leaving his lungs for a moment. Kairas was on top of him, throwing punch after punch, hoping to daze Lukas just enough to escape.

The Dragon bared his fangs, throwing his palm against Kairas' chest, sending lightning surging through him in a thunderous blast. Kairas screamed in pain, heart skipping beats randomly, breathing stopping then starting.

He flew back, hitting the wall at the far end of the cellar, wheezing weakly. Lukas raised his palm, magic building into a large ball in his grip, before it shot forward as a beam. Kairas raised his gaze, smirking as a faint trace of white coated his skin.

The explosion ripped through the silence and shook the mansion. Dirt and rock flew by Lukas' head, a smile of satisfaction stretching across his face. His eyes flashed with a false happiness, guilt settling in his chest, but it would all be worth it in the end.

He'd save his Grandpa, no matter what.

Ice pierced through his back. Lukas froze, slowly looking at the wound before coughing blood and dropping to a knee. Kairas stepped from the smoke, wings stretched out wide, black hair lengthened to his lower back and skin completely white.

Mana built within him as he slid a foot forward and pulled his head back. With a roar, ice and lightning shot from his throat, charging at Lukas and swallowing him whole. The shockwave ripped through the walls and ceiling, smoke filling the cellar.

"You want to learn how to use your Gem. Fine, I'll give you a crash course."

Lukas stepped through the smoke, arms raised in defense. Kairas smiled proudly, bringing his arms to his side and willing a sword of ice forth. Double sided, and large in size.

He charged forward, green eyes leaving a trail of light the faster he moved. Both vanished from the naked eye, dashing about at blinding and breakneck speeds, slashing and clashing with enough force to rupture pockets of air.

Kairas evaded an electrified fist from Lukas, throwing his own knuckles into the boy's stomach. Pain gripped him, but he refused to stop.

Bringing his arm back, Kairas took the full force of his elbow, flying back through the air, slamming into the stone steps and shattering them. Picking himself up, he flipped back, avoiding the continuous pursuit from Lukas until he reached the first floor hallway.

Lukas blew the door off its hinges, watching Kairas slide back against the wall. The two eyed each other, green and yellow lights surrounding them. Getting to his feet, Kairas stretched his limbs, loosening his muscles.

"Don't run from me," Lukas growled.

Kairas smirked at him, cracking his knuckles. "Trust me, I'm not and don't plan to." He paused for a moment, eyes scanning left to right. Lukas plopped down on the marble floor, his yellow eyes burning with anger, burning with a false hatred. "Your Grandfather is your reason for fighting, right?" When his gaze returned to Lukas, he blocked a punch with arms.

Lukas, seething with rage, opened his mouth, fangs jutting out longer than they had previously, yellow scales more pronounced than before. "Don't you dare utter anything about my Kin! You know nothing!"

Kairas bent backwards, sliding under Lukas' arm, before hopping up and placing a heavy foot on his back. Lukas' head crashed through the window, glass cutting his cheeks. Slowly, he turned back, blood oozing but pain nonexistent. "I'll sooner die than let you defile our plans any further!"

Kairas released his Fallen Angel form. Smirking, he brushed the dirt from his pants and removed his attention from Lukas.

"They're not your plans," He said nonchalantly. "They're Carlos'. The Kults. They're using you, Lukas."

"You lie!" He yelled, lightning surging around. He took a deep breath, releasing a magic roar that swallowed Kairas whole, and a thunderous explosion shook the compound. Smoke flew high in the air, intense winds blowing out window after window.

Lukas smiled, hoping his attack did some kind of damage. To his dismay, Kairas stepped out from the smoke, body sporting black tattoos along the right side, along with a black right pupil.

"I'm really trying here. Don't force my hand." His palm rose, stretched out in front of him between himself and Lukas.

The Dragon charged at him, but Kairas stopped him in his tracks with a blast of magic. What followed was a barrage of bolts, each one striking Lukas harder than the last. Before the Dragon realised it, he was completely out of breath, and struggling to stand.

The gap between the two was too large. Gritting his fangs and holding his aching chest, Lukas heaved out words of hatred, as well as questions. "How is there such a difference! I… I'm stronger than before!"

"Simple," Kairas said, a black aura encasing him. "I never took you seriously."

At that response, Lukas flew into a blind rage, rushing at Kairas, throwing fist after fist, trying to connect anything he could. Upon his last punch, Kairas gripped his knuckles, the shockwave rupturing the solid floor like simple ice. Tightening his grip, the Angel threw his free hand forward, striking Lukas' nose hard.

His brain rattled in his head, dazing him to the point that despite flying back through wall after wall, all he felt was a strong dizziness and nausea coursing through his body. The final wall he smashed through was into the library. There, he hit the floor, Nana and Carlos looking at him with curious eyes.

Kairas flew over, landing softly, and stepping closer. Once he spotted Carlos, all his cares for Lukas left. "You're here too. Of course you are."

"Oh look, the second fiddle," Carlos taunted.

He had neary a scratch on him. Behind him, Nana was on her knee, breathing heavy with sweat coating her face and body, faint cuts healing in a thin cloud of steam.

"You beat Lukas," Carlos stated.

"Not… yet…" Lukas raised his head faintly, holding his bloody nose. "I can keep fighting. For Grandpa. I will not stop."

"Even if it gets you killed? Is it really worth it?"

"I wouldn't expect a creature such as yourself to know," Carlos chimed in, turning away from Nana.

The girl bit her lip, air and fire dancing around her palm. She thrust her knuckles forward, the magic dashing through the air. Carlos brought his hand back, knocking the mana away into nothingness, before pointing at Nana and shooting a beam back at her that pierced her shoulder. She cried out, hitting the floor, pain rushing through her body.

"Easy. You wouldn't want your pretty little face to get roughed up."

Kairas clenched his fist, but kept his composure. It wasn't his place.

Carlos was Takabi's problem.

Then again… My brother's enemies are my enemies. He raised his left palm, pulling it back before slamming his right fist into it. Black ice began building, and as he threw it forward, a spurg of dark cold shot at Carlos. Kairas rushed ahead, jumping over Lukas when Carlos caught the magic, then coated his fingers in mana and ran them up Carlos' chest. It cut deep, but the wounds quickly healed shut. Carlos leapt backwards, then over Kairas and next to Lukas. "Not yet. Let's get our pieces together first."

The floor shook faintly. A low, heavy growl filled all ears, followed by a sudden wave of heavy magic energy. Kairas and Nana's eyes went wide.

"What," Nana uttered, holding her shoulder as it healed.

Elsewhere, Garuga and Porrelth had just entered the master bedroom hallway, when they stopped walking and looked at the floor.

Porrelth was confused, trying to piece together what exactly it was that they just felt. Garuga couldn't put anything into words, but once he looked at the Fire Dragon, he said, "Whatever it is, it's big."

Carlos picked Lukas up on his shoulders, placing his free palm to the floor. "Next time. See ya later." Red flames ignited around them, blocking them from view until they were gone.

Kairas released the Gem's form, moving towards Nana and helping her stand. "You okay?"

"More or less," She said, looking at her side. "And you?"

He shrugged. "Where's Jewel and Aqua?"

"No clue. Can't smell them, or feel them." She waited a moment, before looking at him and asking, "Where's Takabi? Did you come alone?"

Shaking his head, he pulled up a chair and sat down. "No. I got caught. As far as I know, Takabi is still at a waterfall a few ways back. He looked like a sick pup last I saw him." He rubbed his arm, biting his lip and bouncing his leg. "I'm worried."

Nana let her gaze soften.

She'd known Kairas since they were kids, and not once did he ever show this side of himself. The side of someone who actually worried about family in public. She placed a hand on his shoulder and flashed a warm smile. "He'll be okay. He's tough."

While he wasn't sure completely, he had no reason to doubt Nana's words. Both boys were built strong. He knew that, yet he couldn't shake the ominous feeling building inside his chest. It was a feeling he hadn't had since he was young.

Since he was nine.

Since the night they all were ripped apart from each other.