Salvos

By sundown. The Wyvern eggs were going to hatch by sundown. And I had no idea what I was supposed to do with them.

It was a brash decision to bring them here to Alyras, but I was the one who made it, so I was going to have to figure out how to solve this problem. Zin Norwood urged me to hurry.

“Very little is known about how newborn Wyverns act, Salvos. But I have a feeling— a really strong feeling— that they’re not going to react quite positively when they see Humans surrounding them as soon as they hatch.”

She spoke with her arms crossed. I shuffled my feet, glancing between her and Saffron.

“I… um, will figure this out! Just give me a few hours!”

“We barely have a few hours.”

Saffron gave me a flat stare as I dashed out of the tent.

“You’re right— I’llberightbacktakecareoftheWyvernswhileI’mgoneokbye!”

They just watched me go as I flew off into the distance. I could almost hear Saffron sigh, even from afar. But I pressed on, already knowing where I was going to first. Or, more specifically, who I was going to first.

“This is nice…”

Edithe murmured as she lay at the grassy hilltop. She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. It was peaceful. Quiet. Well, not too quiet— the tranquility was slightly perturbed by the hubbub in the distance. She was barely even a mile from the gates of Alyras, and there was a small crowd of travelers still trying to enter the city.

A hooded figure stumbled behind the wagon of a [Trader], joining the line, but Edithe didn’t pay them any mind. She instead turned to the man lying next to her, staring into the blue sky.

“It feels like forever since we’ve had time to just relax like this.”

Hadrian blinked and faced her. His brows furrowed as he thought about it.

“It really has, huh?”

He agreed after some time. She leaned closer to him, chuckling.

“So much has happened over the past few years. It just—”

Her lips pursed as she slowly recalled everything that had happened. All the things they’d been through. All the fighting and the suffering.

“With the company war, then the Lich. Even after all that was over, more problems just kept coming up with the True Valiants and that Primeval Demon… and now there are apparently even more Demons or something showing up…”

She trailed off as Hadrian’s blue eyes bore into her. Edithe let out a heavy sigh.

“I just…”

“Edithe—”

He opened his mouth, then hesitated. Whatever he was going to say didn’t come out. Instead, the blond man gently brushed a finger over her face, drawing her attention as she turned to him. The redhead blinked once as he guided her head to his shoulder. She couldn’t react, caught off guard. Then she relaxed. She felt his warm embrace as she lay there in the grass.

Hadrian didn’t say anything, and she was fine with that. This moment would be ruined if not for the silence. So they basked in it together. Just the two of them. For once, a moment to relax. Where they could forget their problems. Where neither of them had responsibilities.

Edithe’s eyes fluttered open as she looked up at Hadrian. His eyes were closed as he hugged her, the exhaustion on his face evident. She knew he was tired too. Deep down, he hadn’t even had time to grieve. Mourn his father’s death. It was unfair. And it pained her knowing that he had to bottle it up— hide his emotions as the leader of the Valiant Dreamers Company.

She shifted, leaning closer to him. Hadrian blinked his eyes open and looked at Edithe as she was just inches away from his face.

“Hadrian…”

Edithe whispered his name. Their eyes locked. They held that stare for a moment. And the two leaned closer—

“Edi—”

The redhead blinked as she heard a distant voice echo from the city’s direction. Both the man and woman paused. Hadrian narrowed his eyes.

“Is that?”

She sighed.

“It is.”

And they both looked up as a figure descended from the sky. One wreathed in flame. With silver hair and an excited grin.

“Ediiiiiiiiiiiiiithe!”

Salvos landed between them as they got to their feet. Hadrian and Edithe drew away from each other, flustered.

“Hi!”

The silver-haired girl beamed. Then she blinked, noticing their red faces.

“Wait, am I interrupting something?”

“It’s fine, Salvos. Did you need something from us?”

My companion waved a hand off and faced me with a smile. Hadrian greeted me with a nod too as I waved back at him. I focused on Edithe, remembering my task.

“I need your help.”

“What for?”

The redhead raised a brow. I shuffled my feet and explained the situation.

“Do you, um, remember those Wyvern eggs we brought back to Alyras? Well, I mean, the ones my clones brought back?”

“I do… what about them?”

She eyed me warily. I sighed.

“They’re going to hatch by sunset.”

I let it out. Edithe’s jaw dropped. She stared at me as I shifted back.

“Are you serious, Salvos?”

I nodded glumly. She tried to work her mouth, but nothing came out. It was Hadrian who spoke next. He raised a hand, staring at me in disbelief.

“Wait— Wyverns. You mean the very same ones that attacked Catark.”

“Yep, although just a bit smaller.”

“The monsters that can grow up to a hundred feet in length with wings just as wide?”

“That’s it.”

“The ones that are typically hostile towards Humans?”

I snapped my finger, giving him a grin.

“Exactly! You got it right, Hadrian!”

Then I scratched the back of my head uncertainly.

“And we’re going to have to figure out what to do with them before they hatch and attack everything on sight.”

I wasn’t too worried about whether the Wyvern babies were going to harm anyone. They’d be low-leveled since they would still be newborns. The problem was if others attacked them.

Hadrian sat back on the grass, turning to Edithe.

“Well, good luck, Edithe. You’ll need it.”

“Fuck that, you’re coming with us.”

Edithe scoffed. She yanked him to his feet and he rolled his eyes with a smile.

“Alright, alright. Let’s go find Ismail. I’m sure he’ll have a solution to this.”

“Are you guys sure? You’re putting a lot of trust in this guy.”

I peered at them curiously, but both Edithe and Hadrian reassured me that it would be fine.

“He’s a [Beastmaster]. One of the best I know.”

Hadrian said as he waved a hand off dismissively.

“Ismail Zuland will surely have an idea of what to do.”

—--

“I have absolutely no idea.”

Ismail Zuland spoke with his arms crossed. I felt my shoulders sag. I stared at him— he was a darker skinned man, similar to the folks of the Helbir Plains but still slightly different in tone. He had a Pegasus with him. A horse with a pair of wings.

The Pegasus huffed when she saw me, but I paid her no mind. Instead, I protested as the [Beastmaster] sighed.

“But Edithe and Hadrian said you’d be able to help!”

“Well, they were wrong.”

Ismail looked past me, glaring at the man and woman standing at the back. Hadrian and Edithe flinched as he scoffed.

“What made either of you think I have any experience with Wyverns? Seriously?”

“Well, uh, we just thought since you were a [Beastmaster], you could… you know?”

Edithe tried to explain. Ismail massaged his temples.

“I can’t. Wyverns are a whole different breed of trouble. I’d need a more specialized Class than what I have to raise three baby Wyverns. I form bonds— partnerships— with monsters and animals.”

He nodded at the Pegasus.

“I am not qualified to take care of children.”

“Why not?”

I tried to protest. But Ismail raised a hand.

“Because Wyverns are incredibly intelligent, even from their birth. If they don’t see their mother as soon as they hatch, they’ll assume you killed their mother and hold a grudge. And trust me, they can tell that this—”

He gestured at himself vigorously.

“—is not a Wyvern. The best course of action is to stay completely out of these Wyverns’ lives.”

His point was clear. Ismail Zuland sank back into a chair as I deflated. I had a lot of things I wanted to say. I made a promise, and I wanted to keep it. But Hadrian bit his lower lip.

“Ismail is right. I heard of a [Beast Tamer] who tried to raise a Wyvern young over a decade ago, and it just ended up eating him after it grew old and strong enough. We should probably release these Wyverns back into the wild.”

“That’s—”

I opened my mouth. That couldn’t be it. We couldn’t just give up so easily, right? It upset me. Yet, everyone had given up. Just because these were Wyverns. They weren’t Humans, so they didn’t care as much. If it had been Humans, they would… they would…

I found my jaw clenching as I stared at the three Humans. Edithe bowed her head apologetically.

“I’m sorry, Salvos. This isn’t just for our sake, it’s for their sake. We aren’t Wyverns, after all.”

I opened my mouth to argue. My annoyance reached a tipping point— and cooled. I blinked a few times as what Edithe said slowly settled in my head.

“Wait, so we just want the Wyvern to be raised by another Wyvern?”

Hadrian and Ismail exchanged glances. Edithe frowned at me.

“Yeah… why?

I met her gaze. A smirk ran across my face. Her eyes widened, and she knew what I was thinking at once.

“I have an idea.”