Chapter 250: Terrifying Presence

"You are going to wake him up?" Shiva asked me as her body changed back to the form I had found her in.

Her body was covered in a light blue metallic dress that looked good on her, but the Jaguar face was a bit of a turnoff. I wonder what kind of structure she would make when she passed on.

"Yes, I need his help with taking down the Sky Folk, or at least putting them in their place," I explained, and Shiva let out a whistling sigh.

"Well, I don't think that you will have very much luck with that. Rai Cait was a firm supporter of the Sky Folk and even a follower of Hilda, so good luck convincing him. I got excited there for a moment, but maybe if you give him his little nine-tailed tart, he might listen to you," Shiva said with spite as she looked over my shoulder.

"No, I will not be giving him anything. Don't worry about him; I will make him listen to me, and he will become one of my subjects like the other two goddesses that I have in my hive," I said, in a level tone, but I was seething inside from her suggestion.

My Champions Instinct flared up from my anger, and Shiva stepped back, looking at me differently. My calm voice and violent aura must have made her think differently about who I just might be, and her next question asked as much.

"Just who are you? I have never seen any Bee Folk with blue skin, and you also don't have a tail. What are you?!" Shiva asked as she started to get a worried look on her face.

"We can talk about this more when I get back, all right? I don't want to waste time right now, and we can talk as we leave," I said and then waved the two girls to come and join me. 

"All right, I suddenly feel like you might just do what you say. I think that you might even scare Rai Cait with that menacing aura of yours. I don't know how you can keep such a calm exterior and have such a threatening presence at the same time," Shiva said as I felt the girls move behind me.

I lifted the three of us into the air and spoke down to Shiva, "I have been getting some practice lately." 

Shiva took another step back like she had just been pushed by my anger about Sakura not explaining herself. I needed to let it go, but I really didn't want to.

What I wanted was an explanation, but I also didn't feel like I should have to force it out of her. Maybe she really was in love with Rai Cait, and maybe I was just making things difficult for her. 

I might just have to settle with having her close to me, but at the same time, I would just prefer that she stay far away. I didn't like Gamble, and if Sakura were to want to be with Rai Cait… I really wasn't sure what I was going to do.

I wasn't about to let my feelings mess up what I was trying to accomplish here, but I couldn't lie and say they weren't hurt. I was a mess right now, and I needed, as always, to focus on the most important thing, getting my people back. 

I floated forward, but Shiva didn't say anything else; I think that she finally got the message. I focused on the tunnel ahead, and Thanos and Tigra both hopped off my shoulders and expanded.

"We will check up ahead. Neither Atom nor I can get any reading from up there, but we won't go in; we will just come back and let you know if there are any dangers," Tigra said to me, and I nodded.

The two jumped into the air one at a time with Thanos in the lead and flew ahead. Neither of them flapped their wings as they flew, and I wondered if they had gotten that ability from me.

I looked down to where Hexi was resting, and I asked her a question.

"Can you fly?" I asked, feeling silly for it.

"No, I am not a dragon-like them, so I can't use magic the same way that they do," Hexi hissed in explanation. 

"What do you mean? They use magic to fly?" I asked, but it was Helaina that spoke up from behind me, startling me.

"All types of Dragons have magic in their wings that help them fly. Without it, most of the larger Dragons' bodies would be too heavy to ever be able to get off the ground," Helaina explained as I floated her forward to my side.

My hand slipped into Helaina's, and I felt immediately better. Her touch and presence didn't have the same magical calming effect, but it was still lovely.

I closed my eyes, and took a deep breath, and then let it out, trying to force the stress, frustration, and anger out of me. It must have been weird for Helaina after she had answered my question, so I tried to explain myself. 

"Sorry, I am just really stressed out, and I am trying to center myself, so the sigh wasn't for you. Thank you for the explanation and taking my hand; it helps," I explained, and Helaina squeezed my hand.

"I know, you don't have to explain yourself. I think you might be worried about it a little too much. Sakura isn't talking right now because she doesn't think that what she says will matter. She thinks that it is better to let it all play out, and I partially agree with her, but I am not going to intrude between the two of you. I just don't think that you should worry, that's all," Helaina said, and then she kissed my cheek, making me sigh again.

While that was very helpful, I was still left wondering what Sakura's words meant when she said they wouldn't matter. 

"The route is clear, and Tigra said that she can see three round tokens sitting on the massive tomb," Atom explained from within my mind, but that wasn't right.

There were supposed to be four Sage Tokens. Now, what was I going to do?!