Path of the Cambion: Kurou's Rising, Chapter 21

I would look back at Xenona with a smile on my face, then I suddenly remembered something "Xenona… do you wanna try, well… becoming armor again?" I would ask, I didn't know how, but somehow, I had a feeling it would work this time. After all, magic didn't have to do with just power, it involved emotion, relationships, bonds, there was a lot to it indeed. I watched as Xenona put on a thinking expression, contemplating my question.

Xenona looked at me before she nodded her head, going around behind me before she hugged me again. Closing my eyes, I focused on connecting with Xenona's soul and becoming one with her. I could feel her warmth suddenly disappear and opened my eyes to see an amazing set of armor that definitely reminded me of Xenona. This time, rather than being too heavy, the armor was actually perfect this time, it felt as if me and Xenona were both one together now, I guess that it didn't have to do with power, but bonds.

Soon, Xenona would come off of my body and transformed back into her normal self, after that, I'd begin to start contemplating what exactly to do now. I already saved Xenona, so I was thinking about getting out and returning the human world, however, before I could even consult my demons about this, I suddenly felt Xenona's arms wrap around me. "I think it's about time I show you around my realm, Kurou." said Xenona, close to my ear, making me blush, but I had to admit, I was curious about Xenona's realm, so it wouldn't be too bad to stay here for a bit.

Xenona smiled when I nodded my head, agreeing to stay in her realm, but then it turned into a mischievous smile, and I couldn't help but gulp. I had a feeling that she wasn't going to give me just a tour of her realm. "W-What do you wanna see, Xenona?" I asked, a bit shy for some reason since she was so close to me and I could feel certain areas of her body a bit too well. She didn't answer me and simply lifted me off, flying through the air with me in her arms. "Xenona? Where are we going?"

As we were flying up high in the sky, I felt like I could see all of the monuments within her realm, all of the buildings, even all of the villages me and Kaiza had passed upon entering here. Looking around, there were even a few incubi and succubi flying through the air as well, some of them giving us looks of envy or scorn, most of which were centered on me. Soon, Xenona would begin to gently set me down at a spot on the ground "Xenona, where is this?" I asked her as we began walking through the place.

Xenona didn't answer me, and simply chuckled, making me question what exactly was on her mind at the moment. "Oya oya… Does my palace really look so bad that you can't tell what it is?" Xenona asked me teasingly, and I blushed, looking around to see that it was very fancy. I didn't expect her to take me to her palace after that, plus she didn't tell me anything about where we were going, so I couldn't be the only one to blame.

As we walked through Xenona's palace, I could see many different artifacts, paintings, and other fancy things Xenona had put on display throughout the palace. I could also see that there were even a few other succubi and incubi walking around, some of which I guessed were guards, and the latter probably being servants. I had to wonder, among succubi and incubi, among demons, I wondered what my rank was exactly, as a cambion.

Before that though, memories of Edakura suddenly began to flash through my head, I guess I missed her more than I thought, I wondered where she even traveled off to anyway, where she was, I didn't know, but somehow, I didn't know how, but I had the strange feeling she was in trouble. I looked up at Xenona as we kept walking through the palace "By the way, Xenona, I'm sorry to ask this, but… can you help me find Edakura?" I asked, I had to know where she was, if she was in any kind of danger, like the time she came back in Kumara village, then I had to find out. I looked up at Xenona as she had a contemplating look on her face after I asked her, wondering what she was thinking about my question, after all, she and Edakura weren't on good terms.

Xenona looked me in the eyes, as if she were judging me, peering deep into my soul. She was quiet, making me nervous, wondering if she was mad at me now. "Well, I did promise to reward you. I guess this is something I can do," Xenona said, patting my head, messing up my hair with a smirk. I pouted, but was starting to like the way she was treating me. I felt a bit spoiled, but it was also a nice feeling. "Are you sure you want to find her?" Xenona asked sternly, a sudden 180 in her emotions. I couldn't help but feel like something may have happened to Edakura after all.

I would look Xenona in the eyes with a somewhat confident, but serious look, and I gave her a nod "I'm sure… besides… I can't explain it, but somehow, I have a feeling that she may be in trouble, that's why I have to find her, no matter what." I said to Xenona with a determined voice. I wasn't sure if Edakura would be mad or happy that I was going to go see her, however, that didn't matter, what was important was that when I found Edakura, she'd be safe. Whatever danger Edakura was in, I was confident that I could handle it, after all, I had Xenona on my side. I wasn't gonna lose my mother figure again.

"Hmph. Personally, that woman can take care of herself, especially with that mistress of Satan with her all the time," Xenona commented, clicking her tongue in some sort of disgust. I suppose her grudge was more with Vizas than with my mother, now that I thought about it. Though, I was confused as to why Xenona called Vizas the 'mistress' of Satan. Xenona seemed to notice my confusion, and looked over at me. "Vizas used to be the right hand demon of Satan. In fact, it's rumored that Vizas used to be one of his lovers."

A lover… of Satan himself, no wonder Vizas was able to completely outmatch me the first time I met her then, against a demon like that, who probably trained with him and got stronger just from being around him, I didn't stand a chance. Though, her origin made me wonder why she would be with Edakura, maybe Edakura was her only chance of living, or maybe she seeks to use Edakura somehow. I couldn't be sure what exactly Vizas's purpose was for helping her, however, one thing was for sure, Vizas was not to be underestimated.

Xenona sighed and looked at me, seeming to be a bit out of it now for some strange reason. She patted my head, messing up my hair once again, but there was a serious look in her eyes that made me stand still and wait. "...Satan is her master. She won't bow down to anyone else but him," Xenona said, and I could see her eyes glowing, but for what reason I didn't know. "So I can't tell you why she would go and be with that human other than the fact that her origin is what makes her a good host for demons."

It made sense that Vizas wasn't the type to bow down to anyone, she certainly seemed to have that domineering, defiant air about her, however, I couldn't help but feel like there was one underlying factor I was ignoring. Maybe Xenona didn't want to save Edakura exactly because of Vizas, after all, from the last time I saw them in a dispute, they didn't seem to be on good terms at all. I looked up at Xenona "Does that make you reluctant to save Edakura? Is it all because of Vizas?" I asked her, curious to see if that was the reason she seemed so hesitant.

Xenona was quiet for a moment, and then she turned away from me. "Vizas and I have never been on good terms before. She's cocky because of her master, but has the power to back up that cockiness." I heard Xenona sigh, listening in more intensely to hear the rest of the situation. "And your mother, Edakura… she's with Vizas, yes, but that's not why. I've never been on good terms with that girl since we met. Her flames are… dark because of her father. They reject all of us demons because Edakura herself hates demons. And I can't blame her after what she's been through, but her attitude pisses me off."

A dark look appeared on my face now, an expression of silent anger on my face, my hair keeping my expression hidden, so she won't save Edakura because she hates demons? That could easily be changed given how much you do for each other, how much you get to know each other, I thought Xenona changing into armor for me was proof enough of that. "Then should I just go find her myself?" I asked in a quiet, but dark voice, all I needed was for her to say yes and I would leave, after all, her choice was clear in the end, she just hated Vizas and Edakura too much to help me find them.

"That sounds like a good idea," Xenona said to me in a sarcastic tone. Just when I was starting to get along with her, she turned around and was probably going to abandon me. "Listen here, kid. That woman is someone you shouldn't be around. It's not just because I hate her. I worry about your safety. She's dangerous," Xenona whispered, spreading her wings and flying away. I couldn't believe what she was saying; how could my mother be dangerous to me? I shook my head, I wanted to believe in Xenona's words, but I just couldn't abandon them, not when they could've needed my help. Edakura and Kaiza had taught me a lot.

"Dangerous or not, she's still the one person- well, one of the only people who bothered to give a damn about me since my village was destroyed. I'm not going to just turn my back on her." I said as I suddenly began to walk. I didn't care what anyone said, Edakura was my mother figure, I wasn't just going to betray her just because she was dangerous, I wanted her to live, I wanted to travel with her, be a son to her. If I just turned my back on Edakura now, what would I have then? Nothing but a cursed past, that wasn't how I was going to live, and I wouldn't let Edakura suffer because of a wrong decision I made.

As I walked, I used Xhanaru to take me back to the human world, looking back at Xenona with a hint of sadness in my eyes before soon leaving, when I made it back, I would appear right in the forest like always. I would begin walking throughout the forest before noticing that I stepped on something, and it sure as hell wasn't grass, I looked down, lifting my foot up to see what looked like… blue cloth, I slowly bent down and picked it up, and all over it, I was able to sense Edakura's energy. My worst fear had been confirmed, Edakura was attacked, I had to go save her, but I knew I wouldn't be able to do it without help, I tried scanning the area for Kaiza's energy signature, but it was gone, long gone.

I grit my teeth in frustration, now not only was my mother kidnapped, but Kaiza was nowhere to be found, I took in a deep breath to calm the maelstrom of emotions bubbling up inside of me, clear thought reigning in my mind once again. I began to walk my way back to Kagura Village with a determined expression on my face, if there was one person there that would know where Kaiza had gone off to, it'd be Chief Daigen. After all, Daigen had already known Edakura, I sincerely doubted that he wouldn't have known Kaiza along with her.

After a while of walking, I had finally made it to the Training Pavilion, where I was able to sense Daigen's energy signature, which currently felt as calm as the sea itself, something that led me to guess that Daigen was meditating. I would open the door quietly to see my guess was correct, as Daigen was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the pavilion, I began to stride over toward Daigen, however, as soon as I took a few steps, Daigen would instantly disappear from the spot he sat in and appeared behind me, holding his sword right to my neck. I watched as the light slowly reflected off of the blade of Daigen's sword while it was held to my neck "Always anticipate your opponent's movements, even when they are completely unmoving." Said Daigen as he removed his sword from my neck.

I gave a short bow to Daigen "Thank you for the advice, Chief Daigen, but I;m afraid there's a matter I need your assistance with." I said in a serious tone as I looked up at the old master, he gave me a curious look before sitting down cross-legged once again in the pavilion "And what is it you need help with, young lad?" Daigen asked as he sat. I would sit down in front of him with my eyes closed, taking a deep breath before taking out the red cloth from Edakura's cloak and showing it to him "Edakura has been kidnapped, and I need to find her brother Kaiza, he's pretty much the only one that can help me save her right now." I explained, Daigen would look at the red cloth for a moment before chuckling slightly. "Ah, Kaiza Darkness, if you seek to find him, he is most likely back in his home in Astaria Kingdom." said Daigen, Astaria Kingdom huh? That must've been pretty far, but I didn't care, Edakura's life was on the line, and of all people, Kaiza atleast deserved to know that there was a chance that his own sister would die.

Daigen would get up and would head towards a bottle on one of the tables inside the pavilion, with what looked like a piece of rolled up paper inside "Lucky for you my boy, I have a map that can lead you right to his kingdom." said Daigen, handing me the piece of paper, I looked at it, unrolling the paper and surprisingly, it seemed that Astaria Kingdom was far, but not terribly so.

I would give Daigen a bow "Thank you for everything Chief Daigen." I said in a voice filled with gratitude, and I would begin to walk off before suddenly, he would appear right in front of me.

"Hold your horses, did you really think I would let you go there alone?" asked Daigen, who would then motion to a wall near us, where two hidden doors would open, revealing two girls that were hard to forget, Saika and Saniki, who I looked at in surprise.

"We heard everything you know, and there's no way in hell we're letting you go alone, besides, a moron like you would die in a matter of seconds out there." said Saniki, who I'd scowl at before smirking when her ear was suddenly pulled by Saika.

"What she means is, we're not gonna let you take the burden of all this by yourself, you're our comrade after all, as well as our friend." said Saika, who I found myself smiling heartwarmingly at. Soon, me, Saika and Saniki would say our goodbyes to Daigen before we would finally begin to head out, onward to Astaria Kingdom.

Gasseth's POV

The expectations of a parent are what drive the children to do better, but when a parent gives up on a child, what is left for them? To have them notice me, I must be someone better. To have them acknowledge me, I must act the way they want me to. To be accepted, I must be someone else. And once crushed by abandonment, all the rules that have been drilled inside me crumble as well, leaving a beast that runs wild. The Dragon forgives none, and its pride is as high as it can fly, up towards the stars in the sky.

Branded on me are marks of my village, the village of dragons. We are the Drake Descendants, an ancient village known for their dragon blood and one of our special most powerful magic abilties; the power to turn into a dragon. And as proof of our power, when we are born, the marks of the shadow of our dragon form is branded on the pupils of our eyes. It is a permanent marking that brings fear in the hearts of those that know about our kind. We, as dragons, have no mercy for humans nor do we like them in our territory. Dragons have always been very territorial. That is why I was rejected by the rest of the village; I was half outsider, half villager.

One flap of the wings could uproot hundreds of trees, and one cry into the distance can send hundreds of animals running away. At the top of the food chain, the mysterious creatures were once the most powerful of them all. How they have fallen to be forced to hide in a village away from the world, fearing the people of the outside. I sometimes find it pitiful when I look at them. How they look at me with disgust and disdain, but the fear is evident in their marked eyes. Fear is what drives people towards anger, hatred and discrimination.

To leave the place you grew up in is painful to most, but I have never understood pain before. I have always been emotionless; almost like a blank canvas. So while I wander the forest alone, I feel nothing but physical touch, the breeze of the wind that makes my hair fly along behind my back. Around me is nothing but tall trees, light shining through, peeking from the small holes between the branches. Leaves fluttered the ground while crickets chirped from the long grasses on the ground. I could hear the nature breathing, silent and loud.

For now, I have no purpose but to find a way to survive. Once I have built up a good living, it would be easy to find my own territory and guard it. There are no regrets when leaving my village for I have already lost my loved ones. Constantly I will mourn about my two little brothers while blamed for their deaths. If I had been a full villager, I wondered if I would have been a stronger dragon and could've protected them from the hunters. I say my village is in fear of the humans, but perhaps I myself may contain some kind of fear, and it is that fear that creates anger inside of me. A desire to get revenge for those I cared for.