Chapter 60 FIRELIGHT AND DEMONS
When the sun sank behind the horizon, the festival in Andagon Valley began. There was cheering and shouting as a huge fire was lit in the center of the village, one of the hugest open areas in the valley. Everyone had gathered there. This was where it was all going to be. Everything was already set up. First was just a celebration with a bit of dancing.
Magnus sat there alone, staring at the night sky. He watched as one of the dragons shot a few flames up into the air, watching as the sparks from the flames danced around in the sky, glittering like the stars above. It was a beautiful sight. He hadn't known that fire could do that. He really didn't like fire that much. Out of all of his magic, he knew the least of those spells.
The dragons began dancing around the huge flame, all of them being very light on their feet. It was such an odd dance. They all twirled, twisted, clapped, did all of these steps he wasn't used to. The only kind of dances he had ever gone to were formal ones, the types where he had to dress appropriately. He had to dress up for this one though too. Instead of his brown colored clothing, he was wearing white. They were robes and a pair of pants that were just a bit baggy. The robes hung down to his knees, but they were open more towards the bottom than the front, the slit going to his waist. They were surprisingly comfortable and incredibly light despite how heavy they appeared.
He just sat there on his rock, waiting and watching. There was a soft smile on his face. It was fun watching them. The dragons all looked so happy. They had every reason to. Their lives were filled with peaceful days. No one ever attacked them. Only occasionally did a demon come through or perhaps a slayer. Otherwise, they were safe. There were so many of them, too, that they could easily protect their village.
He looked around a bit, realizing that he hadn't seen Astrid or Xyra yet. Both girls had said they'd be going, and yet they were nowhere in sight. It didn't make too much sense to him, but he didn't really mind. The only thing on his mind right now was the tournament. He wanted to show off his skill a bit. A human being on par with the dragons was something he could brag about, and if he beat Darren, he could really start bragging. Now that his arm was completely one hundred percent better, he would have no problem keeping up with the fight.
"Hey Magnus," called Xyra from behind him. A smile crossed the sorcerer's face, and he turned around to greet her, but not a single word left his lips. The second his eyes fell on her, his mind lost the ability to operate. He couldn't speak, couldn't think; he could barely breathe. She was breathtaking, and she left him speechless.
Astrid had found the perfect outfit for Xyra to wear. It was a set of robes and a light pair of pants since the robes only came a little above her knees. They were white with blue trim. The fabric hugged her slim body tightly, highlighting every aspect of her. She curved in all the right places and in just the right ways. Magnus had never taken the time to notice. She hid herself well with her baggy white shirt and tan pants. Under those old pieces of clothing though was a beautiful woman. There was a soft smile on her face when his eyes finally strayed there. She glowed in the light of the fire, her sapphire orbs shining.
"Well?" she asked as she came and sat down next to him. "What do you think? Astrid said it looked nice, but I think she went a bit overboard. She insisted I wear it though, and I wasn't about to say no."
Magnus wasn't listening to a word she said. He was still too busy staring at her. She is too pretty for her own good right now. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't tear his eyes away. Nothing he tried was working. The fact that when she was done talking, she turned and gave him a beautiful smile wasn't helping the matter any. He needed to stop staring at her before she got the wrong idea. Sure, his eyes had wandered just about everywhere, but at least now he was staring at her face. The way her hair shaped it, gave her an angelic look. He knew better than that though. He could admit that she had her sensitive, sweet moments, but Xyra was no angel.
"Magnus?" she asked, meeting his eyes. She could read the look in them easily. He was in awe. She was starting to feel nervous again as his eyes continued staring. She wasn't sure she liked the way he was looking at her. "Magnus? Could you please stop staring?"
"What?" he asked her, his voice not protruding any thought. He had said it more in reflex than anything else. Xyra did the only thing she could think of. She shoved him, making him fall off the rock. When he finally sat up again, he was glaring.
"Why would you do that?" he asked, sounding just a bit annoyed with her.
"Because you wouldn't stop staring. It was either that or slapping you." She crossed her arms and turned away. "Men are such perverts."
"That wasn't it!" he assured her, getting back on his sitting rock. "I wasn't staring at…that. Give me a bit more credit. I'm not Darren. I was just thinking about how beautiful you are…" He clamped his mouth shut. He hadn't meant to go quite that far, and beautiful had not been the word he had wanted to say. His reason was because now he had her complete attention. There was a small blush on her cheeks as she looked at him.
"Thanks," she said softly.
"You're welcome." He sighed a bit, rubbing the back of his head. I hope she didn't get the wrong idea. I don't like her like that. She's just a friend, nothing more, nothing less. Still, she looks so… I really shouldn't be thinking about this!
"Hey Magnus," called Levi as the blue-eyed dragon walked over. There was a smile on his face. "The tournament's going to start. Are you ready?"
"Of course!" Magnus shouted as he stood up. Now he was on fire. He had been waiting to hear those words. "What are we waiting for?" He began to run off towards the fighting area, but he stopped and turned to Xyra. "You want to come and watch?"
"Sure," she said as she stood up and began following. She really did enjoy watching him fight. He always seemed so into it, a smirk or a smile always on his face. That's how it had been when he was fighting with Darren. He had just been enjoying himself.
They walked over to where the tournament was going to be held. There were a ton of people there, all waiting to participate. This was really going to be fun, especially since Darren was among them. The hunter was smirking to himself, confident that he was going to win this. Just like the sorcerer, he wanted another chance to put their duel to an end. One of them had to be stronger, and they wanted to settle it now.
"Are you ready?" Magnus asked Darren as he came up next to him.
"As always," he responded, a cocky grin plastered on his face. Both boys looked pumped and ready for this.
Xyra just smiled at the two hunters, shaking her head a bit. They were so much alike. Despite how little their time together had been, they had really seemed to hit it off. They were already great friends. All three of them had only met a month ago, and yet they acted as if they had known each other for years. Despite how close they had all become, there were still secrets between them. There probably always would be. Everyone had skeletons in their closets. Not one of them was an exception.
Just as the tournament was about to begin, and the first two people stepped into the ring, someone shouted a word that sent everyone into a panic.
"Demons!"