horizon in the west

Chapter Ten: The Dragonslayer Joins the Quiet Flame

The day he arrived, the sky cracked.

Not metaphorically.

Literally.

A thin, jagged line split the air above Zyphir Academy, revealing a glimpse of the void beyond—black, veined with red, pulsing like a wound.

The line sealed itself a moment later.

But something had come through.

He walked through the southern gates as if they weren't warded.

He wore no robes, no sigils, no house crest. His coat was torn leather, long and faded, burned in places. His boots still dripped with the blood of something ancient.

A massive blade—blackened steel etched with ancient dragon runes—was slung across his back.

His right eye was gone. Replaced by a glowing shard of obsidian, set into his skull like a cursed jewel.

His name was whispered before he even reached the tower.

"Vaern Kael."

"The Black Veil Mage."

"The Dragonslayer."

No one had seen him in over a century.

Not since the War of the Ash Moons, where he supposedly killed a thousand dragon beasts in a single night and then disappeared into the ether, refusing all titles, refusing all thrones.

Some claimed he was dead.

Others claimed he had become something worse than divine.

Now, here he was—standing in Zyphir's main hall like it was his personal den.

Headmistress Vareth stood at the top of the stair.

"You weren't invited," she said.

"I wasn't asking," he replied, voice dry, gravel-thick.

Behind her, Kyoko and Apya watched from the gallery above.

Kyoko narrowed his eyes.

"That's not a mortal soul," he whispered.

Apya's ears twitched. "He smells like fire. And death. But not evil."

Vareth stepped aside.

"Why are you here?" she asked.

Vaern looked up at Kyoko.

And smiled.

"Because I've hunted gods.I've killed dragons bred by creation itself.I've walked into the breath of starfire and spat it back.

But I've never seen Balance reborn. And I'd like to see what it grows into."

Later, in the garden beneath the veiled moons, they spoke.

Kyoko. Apya. And Vaern Kael.

The three most feared beings in the academy—one a reborn god, one an anchor of unraveling, and one a weapon wrapped in human skin.

Vaern sat cross-legged, sharpening his blade with something that looked like a dragon's fang.

"You two are a mess," he said casually.

"Thank you," Apya replied, chewing a biscuit.

Kyoko frowned. "What do you want from us?"

Vaern glanced up, one eye gleaming.

"Nothing. I've done enough wanting for one lifetime.I came to watch. And maybe fight beside you.Because something's coming. Something that remembers you.And trust me… it doesn't want a rematch. It wants revenge."

That night, the stars began blinking out one by one.

Not from clouds.

Not from spells.

From something in the dark.

Something approaching.

Kyoko stood at the tower window, eyes reflecting the abyss.

Apya stood beside him, her ears brushing his arm.

Behind them, Vaern lit a pipe made of dragon bone and said:

"Hope you're ready.I didn't come out of hiding just to bury a couple kids."