Return

DanMachi: The Dragon's Return

Hey everyone! Thanks for the reviews. We have now come to the Bell arch. After this, I was thinking about turning my eyes back on the events of Orario, namely because of Hestia's plea to Ouranus in the last chapter. (Sometimes the direction of this fic writes itself more than I planned on.) What do you all think? Would you like an arch in Orario? If so, who would you prefer? I was planning on mainly shooting between the Xenos and the Loki Familia, but I can't ignore certain events with the Freya Familia I had long planned out. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this next chapter!

Musical inspiration comes from LOTR's "Elven Rope."

Chapter 18

Return

…

Bell slowly trudged atop his grey horse. Rain poured overhead; its heaviness was almost dictated by the sound of thunder that cracked as a whip in a room of marble. Lili sat in with her young rabbit, nestled in front of him for matters of, as she claimed, safety. Every crack of thunder caused her, and the horses, to jump, and she took advantage to snuggle closer to the boy she loved with every clap. While Bell was the back of the company of four, Michael stayed at the head. Welf was in the center and held the reigns of the horse Lili no longer mounted.

"Lord Michael, would it be much to ask for us to get out of this rain?" Welf called to the Titan.

"The storm shall not harm us," Michael replied. "It is not yet of the dark powers that rule these mountains."

"Even so, the cold is enough to bring us harm," Welf countered. "I'm sorry to say that we are not strong enough to weather nature."

"Truly?" Michael asked with a slight smile that Welf could not see from behind. "I thought those of the blood of spirits were far more versatile. Was I mistaken?"

"I can assure you that none of us are as resilient as you are!" Welf frowned. "We should take shelter!"

"Fret not, young master Welf," the Titan pointed his staff just ahead of the party towards a mountain wall. "There is a cave before us!"

Lightning flashed overhead once more, illuminating the earth around the group. As Michael had claimed, there was a cave's mouth ahead of them about a couple hundred feet away. The mouth of the cave opened like the maw of a monster ready to devour anything that came near to it. Welf, Bell, and Lili sighed in relief, eager to be out of the storm that raged overhead. Yet, despite their eagerness, Bell and Welf could not spurn their horses faster out of fear that the mud might cause the horses to slip.

Thunder clapped once again, and she whimpered as she buried her face into Bell's chest. Wind howled as wolves in the night and danced around the group as ghosts inspecting the victims of their next haunt. Bell wrapped an arm tightly around Lili and grasped her hand to comfort her as he gripped the reigns in his other hand all the tighter. Ever since the group had entered the mountains, Bell felt as if something were watching them with cold and hateful eyes. Even when the boy had entered Edas Village with Hestia and Aiz, Bell had never felt such a presence upon him. Though, in truth, Edas Village had been closer to the border of the mountains while Bell was now inside the vast mountain range.

According to Michael, when the group had parted ways with the two groups of women a month ago, the Beol Mountains were vast enough to stretch between Orario and Asgard in the far North. Nothing was easy going between the two great cities, and the only nation between the two cities was Sharm, the mining country that specialized in exporting steel. Dwarves mostly worked there and built a vast network of roads; the dwarven roads led from Asgard in the far North and ended at Rhondda, which was only a two week's journey away, northwards, from the Alf Royal Forest by secret mountain paths. From Rhondda, the dwarves would send steel southwards to Karuna, where the Elves and many others would come in order to trade with the dwarves.

Bell's mind drifted to Ais, Lefiya, Tiona, and the others. He wondered if they were safe on their journey, though he knew he could easily answer that question be reaching his own spirit to Lefiya's or Tiona's. Still, it was far easier to reach out to them in his dreams than it was when he was awake, and he had taken most of the nights on watch while Michael would scout ahead. His connection to Lefiya and Tiona, the boy imagined, was similar to the connection a Familia child's spirit was connected with said Familia's deity. The bond in of itself was precious beyond words, and yet its implications were as cruel as they were beautiful: the joys of unity and the fear of death. Bell felt fear at the sudden loss of the bond he shared with Tiona and Lefiya and wondered how a god dealt with it or what that god might feel the moment such a thing happened.

"Master Bell?" Lili's warm voice snapped the boy out of his thoughts. Her large, brown eyes stared into his and he smiled at her.

"Sorry, Lili," Bell said softly. "Did you say something?"

"You just looked like something was bothering you," Lili smiled back at the boy who reminded all those who knew him of a rabbit. "I didn't want you to ride past shelter."

"Shelter?" Bell mumbled, following Lili's turned eyes to the cave before them.

A slight blush of embarrassment colored Bell's cheeks before he looked down at Lili and placed a hand on her head. The Pallum girl looked up at the white-haired boy questioningly but smiled under his touch.

"Sorry, Lili, I've just been in thought," Bell smiled at the Pallum and helped her dismount the horse once they were inside the cave.

"You've been like this for a while now," Lili said watched Bell as he dismounted off the horse after she was down.

"It's nothing to be concerned about," Bell muttered, taking packs off the horse and placing the packs on the ground. "I've just been a little tired."

"That's an understatement," Lili frowned. "You should let master Welf or me take the night watch more."

"No point of giving you that burden if I just can't sleep. I promise, I'm fine," Bell turned to the girl after he tied the horse reigns to a rock. He smiled kindly at her, though Lili wasn't buying into Bell's assurance.

"One of the things I find cute about you is how honest you are," Lili placed her hands on her hips and stared disapprovingly at the boy. "Please don't lie to me. You've been acting distant ever since we left the others."

The smile on Bell's face slowly disappeared and was replaced by a distant gleam in his eyes. Lili frowned. The last time Bell looked in such anguish after he fought Ais to protect the Xenos.

"Lili," Bell said softly, "I appreciate you're looking out for me, but I'm asking you not to pry."

"Master Bell," Lili started but she was cut off by the boy.

"Lord Michael, I'm going to hunt," Bell turned his eyes to the Titan, who was puffing on his pipe. A sweet frangence filled the cave from the smoke that dance out of the pipe's bowl. Michael merely nodded at Bell, who flipped a hood over his head and quickly exited the cave.

"Master Bell," Lili called after the boy.

"Leave him be," the Titan said gently. "What is on his mind is too much for you to handle."

"You know what's bothering him?" Lili frowned and turned to face Michael.

"What I may or may not know is not your concern, young lady Lili," Michael answered after a puff on his pipe.

"Master Bell is my captain and my friend," Lili argued. "If I can help and protect him, I will."

"And if he hides something to protect you, will you accept his judgement?" the Titan asked with a small smile. "I admire your devotion, but the boy will tell you what's on his mind when he is ready, and not before."

"I agree with lil' Lili," Welf scratched the back of his head. "If we know what's bother Bell, we can help him quickly."

"And if it's something you can never help him with, young master Welf, what then?" Michael glanced at the blacksmith. "If you truly wish to be of aid to the boy, be an extension of his strength through your friendship."

Lili's frown deepened and she turned her back to the Titan to cave's mouth. Rain crashed down upon the earth as if the sky were made it own waterfall. Her left hand found its way over her heart as the thunder clapped once again.

…

The longer Bell stayed under the rain, the colder it became. Bell wondered what cold rain felt like when it was ruled by dark magic. He shivered. If the Black Dragon was indeed somewhere within the mountains, then it could easily control the storms around it. Michael had mentioned, however, that while the Zeus and Hera Familias had failed to kill the Black Dragon, they were at least able to force it to retreat and rest. Even if the two Familias even failed to harm the Dragon, being able to exhaust the beast's magical power to a point it became dormant for a time was an incredible feat in itself. Still, according to Michael, the Dragon made its home at the tallest peaks of the Beol Mountains, which were supposedly unscalable due to high winds and magical wards the Dragon had placed.

The boy had often wondered what it took to kill the Black Dragon. Michael had answered that very question a month ago, the night he spent with Tiona and Lefiya, and Bell felt his heart sink every time he thought of the answer. Bell wondered if that was the very way Albert Waldstein injured the Dragon, but it should have been next to impossible as the gods had not yet entered the world, and Michael did not mention a Titan or Seraph aiding him.

"The Dragon shall be slain by nothing short of the sacrificed blood of a power equal to its own," Michael's voice rang clearly in Bell's memory. "A god's blood."

"No, there has to be another way," Bell growled at very thought of the memory. "I refuse to allow anyone to perish because of that monster."

Bell clenched his fists as the rain battered upon him. He wondered how many times he thought of that memory, and how many times he refused to accept that the blood of a god had to be upon his head for the Dragon to die. He thought back to the memory, trying to recall anything Michael might have said that offered a way so that Bell would not have to sacrifice anyone.

"So it is your duty to destroy the beast?" Bell turned to face the Titan, who merely stared at the stars in the sky.

"No," Michael shook his head. "I am here to guide you. If I destroy the Dragon, Enyo Eris shall be released from her chains as punishment for my interference. This trial belongs to the mortal races alone. If the Black Dragon releases his brethren who sleep under the Dragons' Valley, Asgard shall be destroyed, and he will turn his attention towards Orario and freeing his Dark Lady."

"Why me?" Bell whispered, only to earn the Titan's chuckle.

"You are amongst the last of a bloodline you share with Ais, Lefiya, and the Hiryute twins," Michael finally turned his head to look at the boy. "A bloodline that has a chance of uniting the mortal races in a way that the world has not seen in over a thousand years. You have indeed been chosen."

"I never asked for it," Bell muttered.

"No, but you did ask for it," Michael smiled. "You asked for it when you heard the tales of heroes from your grandfather. You asked for it when you left your home to become an adventurer. You asked for it when you fell in love with Ais Wallenstein and swore to stand next to her. Time and time again you asked to become a hero, even if you never thought you could become one. You chose to do with what time has been given to you pursuing a prayer in your heart, not knowing who you were, and now that prayer has been answered. Do you regret your choice?"

"No," Bell answered without thought. "I don't regret wanting to protect those I care for. I don't regret wanting to be a hero."

"Then continue to choose with what little time has been given to you," Michael rested a comforting hand on Bell's shoulder. "Hope remains while we remain true to ourselves and to each other, and with hope comes trust."

"It isn't safe to stand alone in the middle of a mountain road during a storm, boy," the voice of on elderly man called out to Bell, snapping out of his memories. Bell turned to the man, who wore a black cloak and leaned on a simple walking stick.

Bell's eyes widened and he dropped to his knees. A cold paleness enveloped his face as he gazed at the old man. The old paced forward to Bell and knelt down, a kind smile spreading upon his lips.

"Th-this can't be real," Bell gasped. "You're dead!"

"I'm surprised to see you as well," the old man chuckled. "Oh how well have you grown, my dear boy."

"Grandpa?" Bell asked, wondering if he was a dream.

"Let's get you out of this rain," Zeus smiled and pulled Bell to his feet. "I suspect you have questions."

…

Bete growled angrily as the rains pounded over him and the earth around him. He had lost the scent of Bell Cranel and his company, though there was something that asked him over and over again why we was following the Rabbit's Foot boy to begin with. Yet, whenever he would go to sleep, the werewolf once again found himself obsessed with finding and killing the boy when he would awake again. Every time he found himself exhausted once more, Bete questioned why he was following Bell Cranel.

"I know my goddess ordered it of me," the werewolf thought, "but why would Loki…"

Bete shook his head and entered into a nearby cave. Thundered clapped outside. The werewolf scanned the cave. It was shallow, with a visible back so nothing would sneak up on the werewolf, and it didn't seem like a cave travelers often used considering the lack of scorch marks on the floor.

"Damn it all," the werewolf grumbled. "What am I even doing here?"

He sat at the back of the cave, behind convenient rock so no one could spot him, and allowed sleep to quickly overcome him. The next thing the werewolf was aware of was his head was on the lap of beautiful, naked woman with smooth, unblemished skin and dark hair. She smiled at the werewolf, though he eyes held no warmth in them.

"Hello, my sweet Fenrir," the woman's voice sounded like the singing of doves.

"Goddess," Bete nodded. "I'm sorry, I have not found the boy and the old man."

"It is no matter," the goddess giggled. "They will die one way or another. But first, we need to find our friend."

The goddess laughed cruelly as Bete saw images of a tall mountain in his mind, and a dragon of black scales and yellow eyes staring into his. Bete knelt before the goddess and kissed her feet. The goddess laughed again, enjoying the view of the filthy mortal worshipping her.

"After we have found our friend, there is a weapon I need you to find somewhere in these mountains," the goddess showed Bete the image of an ash-grey arrow. "Find it and head to Asgard in the North. There, shoot the arrow at the city, and I shall give you all that your heart desires."

…

Hey, everyone! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please leave your reviews and comments. I always appreciate the feedback. I originally planned to bring Zeus into the story later, but there was a direction I needed to go in that allowed me to bring Zeus in earlier for the tale. In either case, next chapter we can start taking a look on where Zeus had been and why. That's all for now. Stay safe, everyone, and have a great day!