Venturing: Bitroz

Peace. These were the
words we were told to protect by the time we were assigned to the school's
first graduation party outside its doors. All the students' parents and
guardians were here; some of them were chatting amongst themselves hoping to
get to know one another. The students were once again horsing around and
getting called on by their former teachers they were assigned to for homeroom.
And us? Where do we fit in all this? We were just the party's organizers and
security, hoping to get the best out of the day safely for the students and the
special day. A couple of times we had to call the parents to get a firm grip
upon their students. But over time, we had seen them let loose and forget the
rules thought inside of their own private homes. Rendering me curious as I
wonder why. But shaking that thought, I scanned the area once again and
slightly remembered about that dragoness we met inside of the cafeteria at one
point. That particular dragoness was poised at the far end of the party area,
cooking as her smoke rises from her golden pot. Often that dragoness would hum
or sing quietly towards herself, never minding whoever was there listening to
her. All she cares about was her food which she called fox stew.

The party area was a bit
smaller compared to the past few party areas that the school had thrown for in
the past. There was a bowl of fruit punch sitting on one of the three tables
that were covered by a pink blanket underneath it. A large spoon sitting inside
the bowl of a punch, leaning onto the edge as it stares at the dragoness beside
it. Adjacent to the bowl was smaller bowls and cups; all aligned perfectly in a
row of three. Each of the bowls and cups was unique in design but had the same
fixed height throughout. It was a bit hard to understand which cup belongs to
what person. Behind the first table was another table, but all this one had
were a bunch of papers stuck together and stuffed inside an envelope. Nothing
was interesting within the second table, so I chose to ignore it and kept
looking beyond. Another table was sitting behind the second table; this too had
nothing on it because all the students of the class had taken everything from
it, leaving none remaining for anyone else that took interest in the things.
They were flags and sparkles of fireworks that could be used to fire onto the
evening skies above.

The dragoness was still
cooking; her soft voice vibrated to keep herself occupied as her eyes lowered
towards the surface of the pot while she kept stirring it in one circular
motion. The rest of us had noticed that no matter the interval, she always kept
stirring and in one direction. We wanted to know what she was cooking and I was
about to go over to her, but Zander stopped me suddenly and shook his head.
Raising a claw, he grumbled muttering something underneath his breath but loud
enough for me to hear. “Do not bother. I doubt any of her cooking was of any
good." “How rude of you, Zander." Kyro growled whispering in answer to the
black dragon who turned facing him, growling “Hey! Do not look at me, question
the students. They were the ones who asked me to tell you guys." “For what?
Mocking the dragoness' cooking? Because she is making fox stew-" Kyro
questioned him but before he could say anymore, I coughed gaining both of them
my attention as I turned to the questioning. “That is not important right now.
We can argue that all we know is when this celebration is over and done with.
What is important is 'where did she get this endless supply of foxes for her
stew?'" “She is right." Abavina replied, shifting her attention back and forth
from Kyro and Zander, “And for that question, there is an answer." “What do you
think then, Abavina?" Kyro asked, “It is not that simple, however. And this is
a theory after all but… Do you think she got it from Chaos?" We all fell silent
after a second from her talking.

Zander snuffed, throwing
his head back, and smirked confidently “That is impossible." The dragon started
with his high-rising voice of sarcasm. “Chaos and Order realms are in a treaty.
We dragons and foxes would not hurt one or invade, and vise versa." Then he
angrily glared at her before stabbing her chest with his claw growling, “You
did forget about the treaty did you?" “No." Abavian lied, shaking her head as
her eyes settled to him. The two dragons held stress as if they were playing
some sort of staring contest. While the remaining dragons of our unit exhaled a
tensed breath and threw their claws into the air before going off in a
direction, my ears perked up. The atmosphere was a bit tensed. Ripped for the
picking somehow and quickly turned my attention behind me, looking back upon
the dragoness still stirring the pot. At first, I thought nothing was there.
That I was just imagining it and it was all in my head. But somehow, in the
distance, I knew I was not crazy at the time. For a pink fox was coming in our
way. Its eyes were angrily narrowed; he seemed focused upon a goal. His paw
upon a pistol's trigger just as it was pulled out worries me physically but
excites me mentally. As I stare at the fox approaching the dragoness, I noticed
that the dragoness had stopped somehow. She released her claws from the spoon
and turned her attention towards the fox. A smile emerged upon her face which
worries me to no end at all. As I watched the event unfolding before me, I
strained my ears hoping to hear better at the coming conversation. However,
they were too far from where I was sitting and I frowned before turning my
attention towards Zander.

“Psst, Zander," I whispered
to the black dragon who suddenly turned his attention to me. His head tilted to
one side as his face relaxed, his eyes blinked as he asked me “What is up,
Yang?" “Go over there and pretend that you are looking for a drink, relay every
information from them while staying nearby. Do not let any of them escape, you
hear me." The dragon nodded and rose his claw to his face before lowering it
down, he turned his head towards the conversation and casually walked up to
them. Grabbing a drink before drowning it into his throat as he looked another
way. I exhaled a breath and closed my eyes, pulling my ears back I tried to
release the tensions inside my body and kept focus upon the impending party
that we were having. However before the party could resume again, the argument
broke out and turning my attention towards the source of it. I was rather
surprised that it was the pink fox and the dragoness. The fox already training
his pistol upon the chest of the dragoness who smirked confidently at him in
response as if she knew that he would not hit her or even fire the weapon at
all. It was also the first time I heard her speak normally which meant she was
just toying around with us and kept a secret of her identity until she was
assured that a fox would come here. 'Was this her ploy to get even with the
foxes of Chaos?' I thought to myself with a frown that Zander interpreted for
he pushed himself from the table he was leaning at and walked over to me. He
shrugged afterward and relay everything that he had learned.

Zander told me that the
dragoness was using foxes from Chaos to make the stew. It's either she loves
burning them alive or killing them before throwing them into her pot which
disturbs me greatly. I shook that uneasiness away from my thoughts as I rapidly
nodded my head at him before raising my eyes to the conversation at hand. The
two continued to bicker to no end. Their voices rose and sink at random
intervals times that it was a bit harder to understand all that they were
saying. Regardless, we got our answer and I smiled faintly to myself before
tapping Zander's shoulder who nodded in silence's answer before departing from
me, heading back towards his usual spot. As he disappears from my view, I
turned my eyes to the two again and watched. The pink fox was slowly getting
desperate and angry that his voice rose in a higher pitch. I could even hear
him from where I was standing right now, which was adjacent to one of the three
tables. His pistol was still trained on the dragoness who continues to bricker
and mocked him; edging him on to take the shot as she loves to call it. But
going back onto the treaty that both Order and Chaos had made, I knew and even
he knows this as well, he cannot because it will invoke the treaty and force
another tension between our realms. And the dragoness wants this somehow.

I had to say. It was
pretty ingenious after all. The fact of using the treaty as a bargaining chip
just to get what you had wanted. It was surprising yet devilish. But before my
mind could praise the dragoness anymore of her selfless strategy of putting the
fox into the corner early on into their game, I was rather surprised that the
dragoness was holding some sort of small blackish-blue orb in her claw which
she breaks and blew towards the face of the fox who grew tired and sleepy; his
entire body shut down in an instant and fell. My mouth hanged opened as the
dragoness' voice cracks momentarily. There was even a hint of a deep male voice
that was covered by the high pitch dragoness voice. On that note, it kinda
surprises me that we are dealing with a transgender dragoness here. But I could
not be sure about that. With thoughts swirling in my mind and bouncing against
the walls of my head, I rose my walkie and pressed the button. “Ling?" I
questioned hoping he would be picked up. “Yes? Something a matter with your
assignment?" Ling asked, his voice calm and tranquil as I slowly chuckled and
turned around with my back facing them. I was blushing faintly but kept myself
together as I responded, “There is a problem. A pink fox has entered into Order
and has marched right up to the chief of the school. They are currently MIA
from this position as we speak. I believe they are at the forest from where we
had resided in." “That place again?" Ling groaned, exhaling afterward as he
takes a breath responding “Alright, I will see what they are doing there."
“Also, please investigate why the fox is here. Talk with its friends in Chaos,
I am sure they will provide insights as to what we are missing." “Roger." and
our conversation ends there. With my silence, my head continues to be filled.
With thoughts and questions without answers, I frowned. Tilted my head as my
ears picked up on my fellow officers shouting and raising their claws. Trying
their best to calm the audience down before anything else goes on.

A sigh escaped from my
lips as I slowly curved them into a smile, then turned myself around and gaze
upon the different students and teachers. All panicking and worried as they had
seen the impending conversation overheard by the two confronting sides. As my
lips split and started on my speed to them, my eyes settled on the principal
who calmly walked up to me. I sealed my mouth and kept staring at him while he
questioned. “Was that the fox from the spiritual realm? Why was he here? I
thought-" “Yes and we are not sure. Answers will be provided once I gain some
knowledge from my partner's unit first." “And when will that be?" He asked.
Just before I could speak to lament some time for Ling, my walkie went off
suddenly and my smile brightened. I rose it high towards my mouth and turned
around walking a few steps away from the principal before pressing the button
suddenly.

“Yang!" “I heard you,
Ling," I started, “What you find?" “I need you in the forest now. Flashes are
going on inside of it then a distant roar that sounded like a dragon." “A…
what? Are you sure you are not watching a movie or something from our home?" I
joked, smiling hiddenly a bit. But it seems Ling was not laughing. A frown
formed upon my mouth as my wings folded into a serious matter. My coworkers
knew what this meant, having spent twenty years in service with me as their
leader. “Alright, we will be in the forest. Go to the Chaos realm, you know
where that is right?" “Yeah, be careful. I am not sure what the two are doing
right now, but I imagine it is not pretty." “Gotcha." I remarked releasing the
button before turning to the principal, “We gotta go. Unit; let us advance to
the forest!" I exclaimed as I spread my wings. The others did as well and together
we flew Eastward from the schoolyard.

We have reunited again in
the center of the forest where our wings spread loose as we descended from our
flight. Returning to the grounds once again. I stared onto Kyro Zander and
Abavina as their eyes swayed and gaze onto somewhere else. I said nothing and
set my eyes away from them, gazing in a random direction. We were all silent.
The tranquility echoed in my ears as I looked onto the forest trees staring
back onto me, Kyro's voice filled the void. “We should split up and find the
clues faster that way." “Where should we start then?" Zander asked, glancing at
the red dragon who returned the look over to me. I coughed before raising my
eyes to them, maintaining contact, and spoke “We should split in an 'X' formation.
Everyone picking their corner to run to and start from there. We will meet in
the middle at the end." “Do you think we will find clues this way?" Questioned
Abavina despite the stares from the other two dragons, I nodded in response.
“Yup. Now move." I barked and startled them. They flinched in response and
scrambled to get onto their corners. Thus disappearing through the woods where
only I alone stands at the starting point. Faintly, I smiled before returning
my head to the only direction not picked and started moving there.

I walked far and deep in
the one direction I had needed to go. The silence was in my ears. As my wings
flapped steadily behind me keeping me balance while my eyes stared forth
towards the horizon before me, I began to thought. There were a lot of
questions in my mind that were yet to be answered. Half of them were involved
in the Chaos realm. The other was the dragoness chef. But I know that the
answers would not come to me unless I find it out on my own and so I cut my
thoughts as I stretched my ears outward from my head, listening to the
footsteps I was creating. I stopped and planted my feet. There was something in
the distance. Sparkling against the sun's reflective rays as I blinked and
pondered silently, I carefully make my way forth towards what it was. My claws
were already trained upon the pistol in my pocket in case I met with
resistance. Until I was adjacent to the object at hand was when I lowered my
eyes onto it upon the proximity and noticed that it was a silver empty bottle.
My eyes widened at the sight of it as my claws released from the pistol's grip;
lowered to the bottle before picking it up. My other claw was already trained
onto the walkie as it presses the button, sparking life onto it, and raised it
high to my mouth before responding in the silence. “I found a silver bottle.
There are perhaps more if I were to search real care for them." I released the
button and waited a few seconds for a response. Zander's voice ring through the
speakers followed by Kyro. “A silver bottle you found Yang? Dang, I was hoping
for something interesting for my collection." “You do not have a collection,
Zander." Kyro pointed out before addressing me, “A silver bottle? This must be
the potion that the foxes use during their assault for horror." “What do you
mean by that?" I questioned him and he answered in response,

“What I mean is, the
empty potions are nothing more than special effects for psychological horror
that the famed R7 uses on their victims. Have you not read the 'completed'
series of Chaos' previous book?" “No." I hesitated after a while of silence
which Kyro exhaled in response before informing me, “Regardless, the chef
dragoness must have known this too and decided to use the potions bottles for
her use. I am guessing by her terms it is getting what they deserve.'" “I see."
I nodded, spying another glass in the corner of my eye “There is more of these
things out there. Did the chef dragoness accidentally drank them all?"
“Perhaps," Kyro answered cryptically as he and Zander went on silence and left
me alone while I pondered all that the red dragon was saying. It was honestly
weird to see a dragon getting all of the status effects of whatever these
potions contained. Then again it was not weird considering that Chaos was the
one who made it first of all. As I was pondering over these statements, my
walkie came to life once again. But it was neither Kyro nor Zander. Another
familiar dragon from another unit and my eyes brightened up knowing who it was.
'Ling!' I thought with a persistent smile as his voice called out from the
walkie. He explained that he had found the whereabouts of Rinichi, the said fox
that was confronting the chef dragon for killing and skinning them alive for
the dragons to eat at the school celebration party. Ling also pointed out where
Rinichi was being held at. The storage room in between Order and Chaos makes
sense considerably. As the words settled in my brain, the more I grew
frustrated till the walkie died was when my wings unknowing spread. Perhaps it
was time to confront the dragoness after all?

I pondered if I should
also contact my other teammates in confronting the culprit behind it. Wondering
what kind of traps or ambushes that the dragoness has for us. As my thoughts
reside, I exhaled and folded my wings. Lowering my head and stared at the
grounds below me, I allowed my mind to argue amongst itself for the final
decision of what I was about to do. But shortly into that argument, the walkie
spring to life again and a chaotic voice escaped from the speakers. It was
Ling, no doubt. But he seems panicky and surprises that his words were garbled
up that it was hard to hear what he was saying. Regardless, he tried relaying
the information out there. Urgently telling us to come to where he was at. The
other officers agreed and cut off communications as I hear whispers of winds
blowing against my face and rustle of leaves vibrating from the trees therein.
Exhaling, my mind pondered of a trap and how far should I stand to avoid
triggering it as my wings unknowing spread too and the next thing I knew was
taking to the skies, flying Northward where Ling was.

It was a short trip after
all. Before I knew it, I was already there. Settled upon the grassy grounds
beneath my feet as my wings folded again and my eyes rose to glance around. An
opened door stood before me, inside was silence and darkness that my heart
pounded against my chest. I grabbed a pistol and rose to the horizon, ready to
shoot whoever was there. But before I could enter in, other whispers of winds
were brushing against my ears as I turned around looking. Spotting my unit as
well as Ling's. I blinked and smiled softly as the familiarity of the dragons
returned upon my sight and smell. Yet the peace was shattered when Zander
growled and demanded, “We should move on now. Head straight through the door
and find out what Ling is doing inside. I swear… if it is a trap…" His voice
lowered to mutter at the end of his sentence, as I nodded without hesitation
and motioned them all. I turned around and stared at the pitch darkness beyond
the door. Drawing a breath, we all entered.

The place was empty, only
cages were upon in. As we all stared in the following silence, Kyro broke it by
saying “That was underwhelming." He joked causing some eye glares over to the
red dragon as he chuckled to himself. Zander rolled his eyes and pressed
forward, breaking away from the ranks as I exclaimed whispering to him,
“Zander! Get back here." “No." He said childishly and kept going while his eyes
darted from one cage to another. Kyro shrugged and split from the ground.
Ling's unit did so too leaving me by myself upon the front door as I crossed my
arms growling threateningly at the rest of them. None of them reacted for their
eyes were upon the interest of the small silver cages set before them. On that
note, I sighed and dropped my arms, raising my eyes towards another door on the
other side of the room. It flashes cyan light for a flicker of a second before
disappearing as I blinked pondering what it was. Heading straight towards that
door, I snatched Kyro and Quichie before ending up upon the door. Another
flicker of cyan lights appeared before us, I flinched so did Kyro and Quichie
as Zander walked over to us pondering what were we looking at. Towards my left
was a rail where I grabbed upon it with my claws and leaned forward. Gazing
onto the abyss below, I stared onto the cyan lights again while a whisper of a
voice called out to us.

“Get… Out."

“Who is there?" I
demanded, my voice filled the abyss below while I felt claws grabbed against my
arms pulling me back. Kyro whispered to me, “Yang. Do not interfere with what
you do not know. It is better to be safe that way." “And why not?" I argued in
response before angrily growling at the abyss again. “Who are you! What is
going on?" “Yang!" Zander's voice called out from the other room. The cages
were rattling violently, some fell upon the ground with a loud clank that
echoed and filled the void for less of a fraction second. I still pressed for
answers before Kyro yanked me away from the railing and threw me out of the
room. Hitting against one of the cages, I groaned but my thoughts were snapped
as I complained of a splitting headache. Kyro and Quichie came over to me, Doax
shut the door before locking it as a knock of four erupted from the door.
“What… what happened," I responded in a whisper before picking myself up onto
my feet. “You were under a trance by the cyan lights." Kyro informed me as
Quichie started, “I think I knew who it is down there. And it is not pretty
after all…" “What do you mean?" Zander asked, tilting his head to one side
looking at her. She frowned, raising her claw onto her forehead, and closed her
eyes. Opening them again, she turned to me and spoke.

“Someone down there is
experimenting with souls which is illegal in Order. But alright in Chaos. The
R7 would have to stop whatever they were doing to prevent it from escaping to
the outside and causing havoc." “Then we got to" “No," Quichie demanded
snapping my thoughts as I looked at her before closing my mouth. “Alright….
Alright." I turned to the others, looking at their worried faces then gazed
away staring at somewhere else before speaking. “Let us not speak of this again
and move off. Like Quichie says, 'they can handle it. Let us prepare for what
is to come." Everyone else nodded, some smiled and others remained neutral in
their expressions. Their eyes settled on me while I turned around and moved off
from the room. Exiting out onto the forest once again. Where a breath of fresh
air hit my face and filled my nostrils with it, my expression had changed and
as I spread my wings. I flew off with the dragon officers of Vaster trailing
behind me.