Archivist Of The Fallen Dragon Empire

The voice at the door

The heavy knock echoed loudly inside the quiet tavern. Luca froze and dropped the broken piece of glass. Amelia stopped breathing and stared at the thick wood. The voice belonged to someone they did not expect. It was not the ruthless inquisitor Kaelen Draven waiting outside. It was a voice from his old human life. It sounded like his fellow archivist from the grand academy. His name was Reuben and he was always very quiet. But Reuben sounded completely different in the dark night. His tone was sharp. Luca told her to hide.

Amelia quickly moved into the dark corner behind the broken chairs. Luca stepped forward with his new face. He looked like a rugged stranger with sharp jawlines and deep eyes. He felt the pure dragon magic pumping steadily in his chest. If Reuben brought the academy guards with him there would be a massive fight. Luca placed his right hand firmly on the wooden door handle. He pulled it open slowly and let the cool wind blow inside. Reuben stood alone in the dark alley wearing a long black coat. He did not look like a scared weak scholar anymore.

Reuben stared at the strange face standing in the doorway. He narrowed his eyes and pulled a glowing silver compass from his pocket. The needle of the compass pointed directly at Luca. Reuben smiled a very thin and cold smile. He whispered that magic could change a human face but it could never hide a soul. He knew it was Luca standing right there. Luca tightened his fists and prepared to strike the man down. He could not afford to leave any witnesses alive. But Reuben then quickly raised both of his empty hands in the cold damp night air.

He said he did not come here to fight or capture anyone. He explained that he was a secret member of the underground rebellion. He had been watching Luca for a very long time at the library. He knew Luca was hiding a massive secret from the terrible false god. Reuben pushed past Luca and walked right into the dusty tavern. Amelia stepped out from the shadows and pointed her small dagger at his chest. Reuben did not look afraid of her sharp weapon at all. He just sighed very loudly and closed the heavy tavern door behind him completely.

Reuben looked at both of them with deep sadness in his eyes. He said the academy was completely destroyed just an hour ago. Dominic Kane felt the massive dragon magic explosion inside the underground catacombs. The false god sent his elite heavenly guards to burn the entire school. Kaelen Draven survived the attack and told the guards about the weak archivist. They found the dead chimera and the empty golden chest in the basement. Now the entire city was totally locked down by the ruthless heavenly army. Nobody was ever allowed to leave the tall gates under any circumstances tonight.

Luca felt a cold wave of pure anger wash over his soul. The academy was full of young innocent students who did absolutely nothing wrong. Dominic Kane slaughtered all of them just to find one single person. Luca clenched his jaw tightly and let his golden magic flare slightly. He promised himself that he would rip the false god apart slowly. Amelia lowered her shiny dagger and asked Reuben how they could escape now. Reuben pulled a dusty map from his pocket and laid it out flat. He pointed to a small red mark near the high eastern city wall.

Reuben explained that there was an old smuggling tunnel beneath the eastern wall. It was built centuries ago and the guards did not know about it. The only problem was the location of the secret hidden tunnel entrance itself. It was located right under the main barracks of the elite heavenly guard. They would have to sneak past hundreds of heavily armed and trained soldiers. Luca nodded his head slowly and told them he was ready for anything. Amelia packed her broken lantern and grabbed her sturdy leather bag from the table. They needed to move very quickly right now.

The three of them walked out of the tavern into the dark alley. The cold wind blew hard against their faces as they moved very silently. They stuck to the deep shadows and avoided the main cobblestone city streets. Luca used his sharp dragon hearing to detect patrol units from far away. He guided his new friends around the dangerous corners with perfect stealthy precision. They finally reached the edge of the large eastern military compound without fighting. Large metal gates blocked their path and massive bright spotlights swept the dark ground. They crouched behind a wooden delivery wagon quietly.

Reuben pointed toward a small storm drain covered by a heavy iron grate. That was the hidden entrance they desperately needed to reach tonight without fail. Luca prepared to use his immense strength to lift the rusted iron bars. But before he could take a step forward the spotlights stopped moving completely. All the bright lights focused perfectly on the small wooden wagon hiding them. A loud terrifying siren began to blast across the entire sleeping eastern compound. Heavy boots marched toward them from every single direction as Reuben suddenly smiled. He stepped back grabbing Amelia by her fragile neck.