Chapter 48 - Imposter or not


    Artemis watched how the barracks was getting smaller as Demarcus flew further away. She couldn''t


    help but stare in amazement at how peaceful the town of Aureum is. The pce was remarkably


    beautiful under the moon.


    She looked down at her dangling feet and the forest beneath her.


    "Wow" there was excitement in her eyes when she looked at how beautiful the forest beneath her


    glowed in a light teal colour and overgrown with night flowers.


    "Human girl, what kind enchantment did you ce on me?" the dragon growled furiously at the human


    girl that was trapped within his scaly tail. Artemis looked behind her and saw the dragon ring at her


    with his glowing green orbs. Her throat went dry. She didn''t ce any sort of magic at the dragon. She


    didn''t have any knowledge of how to use magic whatsoever.


    "I don''t know how to use magic" she called out loudly so that he could hear from the sound of the


    gushing wind that past them quickly.


    "Lies" he hissed, puffs of smoke escaping his nostrils. "I don''t give shit if you believe me, Demarcus,


    but I would never use such harmful magic on a dragon or any creature for that matter"


    Demarcus felt something was off with her when he firstid eyes on her, yet he couldn''t put a w on


    what. That lightening that sparked his heart andmanded him to break the chains was not his doing


    but something else, it was like he was ordered to do it and couldn''t refuse. He still couldn''t move a


    single part of his body nor his wings but his head.


    No matter how many times he forced himself to turn around and fly back to the barracks there


    something stopping his body from doing what he asked it to do. He just kept on flying without his will


    with his wings refusing to let him take charge again.


    Demarcus didn''t swat his trainers away like that on purpose it was his tail that moved on it''s own.


    He couldn''t grasp on what happened to him however he knew it had to do with the human girl.


    ''Why can''t I move my body? Stupid wings stop pping''


    Artemis wanted to tell Demarcus if he was alright but his grumbles and angry aura surrounding him


    indicated he was not in the mood to answer her.


    "mmmm" Homura groaned, moving his little head side to side. ''Oh shit'' Artemis grumbled. Now she has


    to hear him screaming and whining all over again.


    "Where am I?" he slightly opened his eyes. "Filthy human, is that you?" Homura''s amber eyesid on


    her eyes that looked back at him with a slight guilty smile.


    "Bad time to wake up" she said under the grin. Homura stared nkly at her, confused.


    "Just don''t look down or behind me" she warned. There was a slight groaning from Demarcus,


    Homura body froze, and his eyes showed nothing but fear and realisation.


    "don''t look" she shook her head, knowing he would soon regret looking behind her.


    Homura being the snobby fox he is regarded her words and slowly peeked his head out. He spent a


    few seconds looking at the dragon that was busy gazing into the unknown before moving his head in


    and staring into Artemis'' eyes.


    "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" an ear piercing


    shriek came out from him awakening the sleeping creatures below and irritating the golden dragon.


    Artemis was about to say something to quiet down the terrified fox when suddenly she felt the tail


    lighten before she was flung up in the air.


    "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" now both, the fox and the human girl were screaming as they


    were thrown high in the air.


    "WERE ARE GOING TO DIE!" Homura yelled into her ear. "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"


    "I''M SORRY" she screamed out. "WE ARE BOTH GOING TO GET SPLATTEN BECAUSE OF YOU"


    In fear of the fox slipping out of her hands, she held him tightly.


    Artemis felt how they slowed down; she peeked her head down to take a look when suddenly they both


    came falling down rapidly. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"! their cheeks collided together,


    both hugging each other for dear life and looking down at the forest that would soon be their graves.


    "I''M SORRY FOR BEING SUCH A JERK TO YOU!" Artemis apologised, feeling how the icy cold wind


    pricked her cheeks. "I FORGIVE YOU"


    "I''M SORRY FOR EATING YOUR JERKY WHILE YOU WERE ASLEEP AND WAS GOING TO LIE TO


    YOU THAT A RAVEN TOOK THEM" Artemis confessed knowing how angry this fox was going to be if


    they survived the fall which was unlikely with this fragile body of Diana''s.


    "WHAT!" Homura forgotten about them falling and red at her with anger as he was about to say


    something when Artemis cut him off.


    "YOUR TURN TO CONFESS NOW"


    "I''M NOT GOING TO CONFESS NO SHIT TO YOU. I''M JUST GOING TO DIE WITHOUT TELLING


    YOU ANYTHING" he yelled stubbornly.


    "YOU LITTLE SHI-" Artemisnded on something hard and warm. "Hold on human girl" it was the voice


    of Demarcus.


    She opened her eyes to see herself on the back of the dragon, soaring through the wind of the night


    sky.


    Demarcus'' body lifted up. Artemis grasping the situation quickly grabbed a hold on one of the spines on


    the dragon''s neck and adjusting her legs around the scaly neck as he flew up and into the clouds.


    The Orga dragon straightened up and glided across the clouds, his legs scraping against the soft fluffy


    white blobs in the sky. Homura still trembling and breathing heavily in fear, Artemis attention was on the


    clouds.


    She reached her hand down and let her hand glide through the white ball of gas. It didn''t feel like


    anything on her skin, but she liked how it split into two.


    Demarcus let out a small rumble and another puff of hot breath. He wasn''t flying fast anymore but


    slowed down.


    Artemis couldn''t help but smile, her eyes darting around admiring the beautiful sky above her and


    feeling how the slow breeze brushing the hair out of her face and cooling her cheeks.


    "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU SMILING FOR?" Homura yelped.


    A smug smile appeared on her face. "WIPE THAT SMUG OFF YOUR FACE BEFORE I SCRATCH IT


    OFF MYSELF"


    "It seems like that blob of orange is alive" Homura stiffened hearing Demarcus deep and gentle voice.


    He turned his head slowly to face the dragon "p-please d-don''t e-eat m-me" Homura stuttered.


    "Eat you? I have never eaten a fox in my entire life" he said. "y-your l-lying"


    "Let me exin something to you, little fox." He turned his head and red at the trembling fox "A


    dragon never lies." his emerald eyes narrowed at him as a puff of grey smoke escaped out his nostrils,


    making Homura shrink his head down in fear. "Now if you don''t mind, I want peace and quiet while


    flying. I don''t want to hear whining from you or your dreadful screaming"


    "I''ll k-keep m-myself q-quite" Homura was really terrified of this dragon even though he didn''t threaten


    to eat him.


    Artemis patted Homura''s head with a smile. "Don''t you dare smile at me like that. Not after you got me


    into this mess" he hissed.


    "You heard what Demarcus said" She smirked. Homura looked at her shocked, moving his gaze to the


    dragon and back to her. "This lizard has a name?" he sounded so surprised.


    "LIZARD?" Demarcus was offended by being called a lizard.


    Homura flinched. "I am no Lizard."


    "L-lizard? Wh-who s-said lizard? Did you say it?" the fox shifted the me to the human girl who rolled


    her eyes at his stupidity.


    "I wouldn''t call a dragon a lizard. We aren''t small or stupid"


    Homura shut his mouth, yet the ttering of his teeth was loud and clear.


    For the next 3 minutes it was quite between them, no one said a word until Artemis chose to speak up.


    "Demarcus are you ok?" she said patting his scaly spine. "I have no breath to speak to you, Human


    girl" his tone sounded hurt towards her and irritated. "I really didn''t do anything. I swear." Artemis said,


    she really didn''t do anything to hurt the dragon.


    "Then exin what happened to me earlier?"


    Artemis clicked her tongue in annoyance. How many times does she have to exin herself to this


    think skulled dragon?


    She let out a sigh and tried to think what really caused the dragon to go out of control and snatch her. "I


    can feel my heart in my ears" Homura mumbled.


    Artemis eyes lit up with the sudden memory that came rushing in. ''Could there something about Diana


    that I''m unaware of?''


    Homura watched the human''s face changed to a serious expression and seemed like she was in deep


    thought.


    "Demarcus, I know your still mad at me, but can you exin to me what really happened to you?"


    Content bel0ngs to N?vel(D)r/a/ma.Org.


    Homura stared at how serious and cold she looked now. There wasn''t a slight of terror in her eyes


    when talking to the dragon. The hood that was hiding her face before was now swinging in the wind


    behind her revealing the silver locks of hair that was flying in the rhythm of the wind.


    Her pure white skin lit up under the moon.


    "What is there to exin, Human girl?" Demarcus gentle tone echoed through the wind, his scales


    making a swift noise against the current of the breeze and glimmering a glow of yellow under the light


    of the white ball in the sky.


    "If we are going to figure out the answer to our questions then I need you to tell me what you felt when


    going crazy" Artemis demanded under her cold tone.


    She wasn''t going to let this dragon me her for something she didn''t do or cause. Artemis was going


    to figure out what really happened, so it doesn''t happen again when she encounters other dragons


    because deep down, she feels she might have done something to start the uproar of the dragons.


    There was silence. Artemis could feel the low breathinging from the dragon she was riding. The


    sounds of wind beating against his leathery giant wings as he pped them up and down and Homura''s


    ttering teeth.


    She couldn''t tell what was going through Demarcus'' mind and what he was going to say to her.


    "What is your name?"


    ~Aureum Pce~


    "How is your shoulder?" Damon asked, looking to where Edmond slumped back on the couch chewing


    on a round cookie, he took from the stash he hides in Damon''s office for emergencies.


    Edmond nced over with a glum look in his eyes. "It feels like shit".


    Damon arched an eyebrow at the response he got. "A prince shouldn''t have foul mouth".


    "Prince. Huh. You mean a homeless prince" he corrected wagging his finger in the air for Damon to


    see.


    "Well, you should have thought about your situations when you decided to leave Terra"


    "Meh" he shrugged his shoulder but quickly winced in pain. "Be careful Edmond. We don''t want the


    stiches''''ing off" Damon said.


    "****." He let out a painful sigh, cing a hand on the back of his shoulder. "That bitch. When did she


    have the skill to throw a de so urately?"


    Edmond didn''t understand how Diana was able to defeat them so quickly and easily and it really


    angered him that he got beaten by a woman who was supposed to be weak whenes to fighting,


    injured him on the shoulder which he could have reflected easily however the metal star she threw at


    him was fast, faster than light itself.


    He didn''t understand how Diana who was madly in love with Damon and would never hurt him actually


    threatened to stab his eye.


    Furthermore, he felt like rocks came toppling down on him when he witnessed how Diana, the woman


    with ability to use no magic at all was able to jump on top of the earth wall he created then to run


    across the roofs so swiftly and quietly without nearly tripping over where he had trouble, nearly getting


    his feet trapped under the tile and tripping over.


    He wanted answers badly. How could Diana he knew since childhood, a woman with no sense of style,


    nodylike manners, too cocky about her title and someone with no talent of anything whatsoever


    except for humiliating herself in front of everyone at every social gathering, had suddenly been able to


    fight.


    It just didn''t make sense at all. No matter how many times he tried to think, no answer came to him.


    Damon rested his chin on the back of his hand and ced down the quill he used to write the


    deration and stared at the young prince that was caught up in his own thoughts


    He knew exactly what was going through Edmond''s head because he too was having the same


    thoughts as his best friend. "Thinking about Diana"


    Edmond shifted his green eyes to Damon''s golden eyes that looked back at him with the same cold


    expression he always held no matter who it was.


    "UGH!" he shuffled the front of his messy brown hair in frustration that he couldn''t think of any answers


    to his questions. "I don''t know what''s going on with this world anymore"


    "First I hear that Diana casually agreed with the annulment without throwing a tantrum and bursting into


    waterfalls like 4 years when you said you will annule the engagement if she kept up with her behaviour"


    Edmond started to rant while Damon listened quietly like he always did when Edmond ranted about


    things he didn''t like or what triggered him.


    "Then she suddenly became some smart mage that gave us the n to capture the Dark users then


    she run away from home without a simple exnation, not like I care about that. She didn''t even


    belong there in the first ce, but she suddenly attacked us. The precious and handsome prince of


    Terra and Aureum''s sleepless troll" he said ncing back at the crown prince with a visible nerve throb


    on his temple.


    "Aureum''s sleepless troll" Damon echoed after him with a twitching eye.


    Ignoring the dark atmosphere surrounding Damon he still continued "Then she ran away again and


    was never caught by the spades. I mean the Spades have never lost chase to someone" Edmond


    sounded so betrayed by the Spades, pouting. Damon continued on writing so he could finish off before


    he had to stop for the night.


    "It''s not like a lost soul decided to possess her while she was sleeping to live out the life they never


    had" Edmond still rantedpletely ignoring the sudden change of expression of Damon.


    Damon stopped writing immediately and stared nkly at the inky writing on the paper.


    "I mean why Diana out of all the people of Alphyria. Why not me? I mean I have everything a


    he heard the sudden scrapping of the chair against the wooden floor.


    Edmon titled his head while scratching his chin, observing Damon thoroughly trying to figure out what''s


    wrong with him so suddenly. Damon had both his hands mmed against the desk and head right


    down where he couldn''t see.


    Damon quickly lifted his head and Edmond flinched, startled by the sudden behaviour. He looked like


    he had seen a ghost.


    "Guards!" Damon suddenly yelled in a very harsh and demanding manner.


    Edmond jumped up not knowing what he said to upset his friend.


    "What the hell are you calling the guards? Did I say something to piss you off?" Edmond said with a


    sweat drop.


    The doors mmed open and came into guards wearing silver armour with a golden Phoenix crest on


    the side of the chest of the te.


    "Yes, your majesty" the knights both bowed in courtesy. "Damon whatever I said I''m sorry. Don''t take


    me away"


    "Call in the high priests" he demanded ignoring Edmonds sudden plead.


    Edmond sighed in relief, rxing his shoulders knowing the guards didn''te for him


    Damon watched as the light guards closed the doors behind them. He wanted to know the truth. The


    truth behind Diana''s sudden change of behaviour. ''Are you really Diana or an imposter?''