Prologue
Eruyt, Celesta Region of Ivvana
Year 291 of the New Age
It was dark, and late into night. I was on my way to a house that was recently burnt down. Most buildings that go through hardship have something of worth trapped inside, and I want it. I knew the fire was only a day ago, and the house was falling apart and clearly not safe, but a little danger never stopped me from completing a job before. Besides, if I didn’t go early, someone else would take everything before I did, and that wouldn’t be very fun.
I approached the house. It was only a standing frame now, give or take a few walls and patches of ceiling. I decided to start at the bottom and work my way up to the second floor. I tied up my long brown hair, and made my way through the gaping hole that used to be the doorway.
The first thing I noticed was the place was totally destroyed. What had once been a large two-story manse that belonged to a prominent family now lay in ruins. A painting lay crooked on the wall, too distorted with fire and soot to make out. What may have been the furniture was now only a few pieces of wood and soiled cloth surrounded in ash. I almost felt sorry for what happened to this place. It would have made a nice place to raid.
The scent of smoke was still heavy in the air, making it somewhat difficult to breathe. I turned over a few pieces of rubble and figured there wasn’t anything to take in this room. I kept looking around, I searched all the rooms on the ground floor and turned up with nothing. Drat! It would appear that everything was destroyed in the fire.
Suddenly, I heard a noise. It sounded like... crying. Yes, like a baby crying! I wondered... Is it possible someone survived the fire? I hesitated. If someone did survive, I’m pretty sure they’d be mad to find someone tried to rob their house’s ruins. But still, it’s just a baby. What’s the worst that can happen?
I followed the sound; it seemed to be coming from under the floor. I turned over some rubble until I found what looked like a latch, or a handle, coming out of the hardwood floor. It was attached to a thick, wooden door. A secret cellar! How did I miss that?
I lifted the heavy cellar lid. It (the cellar) wasn’t very deep; maybe four or five feet down, but it was about ten feet wide. I made certain that the heavy lid wouldn’t close on me, and I climbed down a small, nearby ladder into the pit. Then I looked around, and one word came into my mind: jackpot.
First I saw twin daggers, made of what looked like pure platinum. They were so beautiful and sharp, but their shape disappointed me. The were rather plain and basic, but they were military grade; quite similar to that of a palace guard’s. I picked them up; they were pretty heavy. Maybe they belonged to the man of the house.
Next to them were three silver earrings. Carved in them were the words “forever and always”, a word on each ring. They were somewhat damaged because of the fire, but if I sold them on the market, they would fetch a nice price. I put them and the daggers in my leather bag and kept looking around.
I heard a soft whimpering in the darkness. Whatever I’d heard before, it was definitely in here...somewhere. I fumbled around a while until I came across something...soft. I held it up to the light. They were gloves, made of the finest dragonskin. The glove itself was fashioned of a soft, smokey purple wing membrane, a material similar to leather. The back of the hand and fingers were coated with small, smooth, shining black scales. Never before in my life have I seen gloves of such high quality! They were in perfect condition, and if I sold them they would be worth a fortune! I stashed them away in my bag and kept searching. Who knew what else I’d find.
Then, in the corner I saw a baby. A little baby, can’t be more than a year old. The parents must’ve placed her in this fire cellar before they died. I picked up the sleeping child, and held her in my arms. The tattered cloth she was so delicately wrapped in was covered with soot. She opened her eyes; they were the most beautiful shade of green, a crystal jade, and she had some red flecks in her left eye. She looked at me with her big, beautiful green eyes, and the whimpering stopped. She smiled.
“I can’t leave her here,” I said. “She’ll die here if no one takes care of her. I’m even surprised she lasted this long with all of this smoke.”
I looked at the things I had stashed away in my leather bag. I realized they must belong to her. As her mother and father were dying, they put the things they thought were most valuable in this fire cellar. Her father’s blades, her mother’s earrings, and the most beautiful dragonskin gloves in the world. They all belong to her.
I decided what I must do. I will take this little girl in, as my daughter and apprentice. And when the time is right, I will give her these heirlooms that are rightfully hers. But what about her name?
“...I know. I will name you Kitiraanya. It means ‘thief of the shadows’ in the old language.” As I held her in my arms, she just seemed so perfect; I knew that my meeting with her had to be a sign from God. Then she started laughing and smiling at me, as if nothing was ever wrong. No. Maybe...maybe she was a gift from God. I looked into her eyes as I climbed the ladder, and began to carry her and my leather bag out of the ruined house, and back to my little home deeper in the city. Yes, a gift from God; to me, a thief by trade of all people. I would teach her all I know and protect her for as long as I live.
I love you... my sweet, sweet Kitty.


Chapter 1
Kitiraa
14 years later, in the same city...
“What?? What do you mean I have to go?” I was infuriated. How can they do this to me? Don’t they know what I’ve been through?
“ I’m sorry, Kitiraa.” the Sage replied. “We don’t have much choice but to send you. I know your reluctance to go to Aavia, but you seem to be the best one for the job.”
“I don’t care. You can find someone else to find your dragon. I may have green eyes, but you can’t force me to go anywhere, especially not Aavia! I’m a Sage too, remember! I have just as much authority as you do.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. They actually wanted me to go and fetch something for them. As if they couldn’t do it themselves.
“You may be a Sage,” Yunae interrupted. “But you are out numbered. In case you’ve forgotten, the way this council works is the highest vote decides the course of action. You have no choice but to-” I cut her off. “I don’t respond well to orders, Yunae!” I was so furious. This can’t be happening. I’m only 14. What good would come of sending me?
The room was the same one I’ve been coming to for the past 5 years. It was always the same. The Sages stood on their stone pedestals, each one marked with a symbol for which Sage stood where; Forest, Fire, Water, Shadow, Light, Spirit, Ice, Nature, and Wind. There were ten pedestals, one for each of the nine Sages, and one in the center of the circle, where the one speaking stood. This time, Yunae, Sage of Spirit, stood there.
“Kitiraa, I don’t think you understand what we’re telling you.” Pyran mused. “The council needs a threat to be neutralized, is all. This dragon is an elder wyrm now, it has been walking the lands of Aavia for nearly 1000 years. This dragon is very cunning, dangerous, and has slain many. It must be stopped. Unfortunately, because of the circumstances, none of our soldiers or guards are able to contain it. This dragon is a very formidable foe, and a danger to us all. If things were to come out of hand, I’m afraid it will have to be put down, one way or another.”
That got my attention. That behemoth! He knows I couldn’t possibly bear to see a dragon put to death! But still, he does have a good point... “Okay, what exactly do I have to do?” I asked. Pyran flashed an evil smile. Sage of Fire or no, he sure was a pain. “It’s all very simple, actually.” He began. “You go to Aavia. You may choose someone to accompany you, if you wish. All you have to do is calm the dragon, and lead it away from civilization. You will appear in these coordinates,” he pulled up a map, “And you will search for the dragon. It was last seen in the Kyr Woods, so that’s where you’ll be going. As for the rest, we leave that up to you.”
I looked around. The Sagus Council seemed to agree that I should go. And Yunae is right, the highest vote wins. Even if I were to rebel, it would serve no results. Looks like I don’t have much of a choice...
“No.” I turned around and saw Shiva. Was she protesting for me? “Pyran, really, sending her? She is powerful indeed, but I don’t believe she’s quite ready to go to Aavia alone. We protect that world. Surely you know of what kind of beasts live there. And yes, she does have green eyes, and can speak to the dragons, but there must be another one to go in her stead. I’m sorry, brother, but I cannot allow you to send this... child... into battle unguarded.”
Pyran did not seem amused. These two certainly have their history. Who’s idea was it to make these twins Sages? Pyran Sage of Fire, and Shiva Sage of Ice; it makes a perfect fit since they can’t decide on anything. They truly are opposites.
“Sorry, sister. But you know as well as I do, Kitiraa is a perfect fit for this mission. She can without harming herself or the dragon, and can then lead it into captivity for further study. No harm will come to the dragon as long as it is safely held here, in Eruyt. Then, when we are finished with study, the dragon will be released into an area of no hume population so that it may live and not be a danger to anyone. And Kitiraa needs the experience, she’s never been to Aavia before. If she is to be a proper Sage, then she will need to overcome this fear. And besides, no one ever said she had to go alone.”
“Hey!” I protested. “Don’t I get a say in the matter?” Shiva began twirling her platinum blonde hair. “Of course you do, sweetie.” she said. She put her hand on my shoulder. “After all, if we are to send you to such a dangerous mission, you should have a say.” This seemed to anger Pyran. I think he knew she was trying to manipulate me. Of course, it won’t work on me, but maybe I should let this play out. “Sages, what say you?” asked Shiva. “As Yunae said, the highest vote passes, so what do you vote for? Should we send her to Aavia?”
There was a moment of silence, when Payne, Sage of Shadow spoke up. “No, we should not have her go. As Shiva said, she is not ready to face the dangers of that world. We must find someone else to go in her stead. To send a 14 year old girl to such a place would be suicide, and such risks cannot be taken with a Sage.” Suddenly, Kiu joined in. “I disagree, she is more than capable of handling this mission. I have seen what she can do, and I’m afraid to say she is quite powerful indeed. A few beasts would be no match for her, even though she’s young. And if anything were to come out of hand, she could always use that powerful left hand of hers.” My left hand? How does she know about that? Wait a minute... “Where’s the rest of the Sages?” I asked. “Aren’t there supposed to be nine of us? I only see six here.”
“Sagus Deluna and Sagus Zira have been given leave for personal reasons.” said Yunae. “You know them as Vess and Lexina. They are currently in Aavia. As for Sagus Kyr, he is in his hometown for now.” Figures. Kyr is never here. I can honestly say that even though we’re both Sages, I’ve never met the man; I don’t even know his first name. I guess he hasn’t unlocked his Stone yet. Yunae looked up and peered out towards us. “There is an even number of us, so not all of us can vote. I’m sorry, Kitiraa, but you may not have a say. However, feel free to try to persuade us.”
“But that’s not fair!” I cried. “Without a fair vote, the matter’s a stalemate. I may not be as experienced as you, Yunae, but I know enough that this is not the proper course of action. You aught to be removed!”
“And you aught be arrested.” she replied. “Oh, that’s right. You were in prison before, weren’t you? You were held there for a full three days, until you escaped. For thievery and assault, no less...” I could feel the blood rushing to my face. That was the last straw. “Why you -- I’d kill you now if there weren’t so many guards outside that door!”
“Calm down!” cried Kiu. Sage of Wind...very befitting for her; she’s always had such a free mind. She raised her hand, and a sudden wind roared in the room. Her long golden hair blew furiously in the strong gusts of wind. It snuffed out our voices and suddenly all attention turned to Kiu. As the room became quieter, the wind stopped. “Well...now that I have your attention...” She lowered her hand and her voice, and became very calm. “If Kitiraa doesn’t want to go to Aavia, then that is her decision. We cannot force her to go. However, Yunae is right. Regardless of her choice, this is a matter of the Council, not Kitiraa’s personal whims.”
She looked up at me, and saw the despair in my eyes. “I’m sorry, Kitiraa. The decision is up to the Council, or at least what few of us are here. You may not have a say in the matter.”
. . .
A few days later...
Hmph. Some job. Why am I a Sage if I can’t do anything? I had absolutely no power in that meeting. None! And Yunae... just the thought of her makes me sick. She thinks she can do what she wants, just because she’s the King’s daughter. Well, royalty or no, she isn't above the law. Why, right now, she’s probably sitting in Bervinia Palace, eating a magnificent feast, and where am I? Trudging my way through a forest in a different dimension, or better known as the hellhole that is Aavia. Why am I the Sage of Nature if all I do is run errands like a servant for that wretched Yunae?
I sighed. There wasn’t much use complaining about it now. I’m here, so I might as well try to find the poor dragon. I pulled out the map that Pyran had given me two days ago. Wow, I thought. This place is huge, and this is only a map of this forest and a few neighboring regions. Kyr Woods... it looks like I’m in the right place. I looked towards the horizon. The sun was falling... I’d sure hate to see what kind of creatures come out in the dark around here; I’ve heard they’re something fell. Ok, I thought, looking at my map. If I go west a little ways, I’ll find a village named... Okia. And noticing how fast the sun was falling, I’d say I have about 30 minutes to do it. Better move fast...
I started walking towards the sunset. The sun falls to the west, so if I follow it, it should lead me right to Okia. I looked around a little. Strange, I thought. This place seems so beautiful, and yet so strange... Then again, it’s not exactly unusual that the rest of the normal world is strange to me. All kinds of things are going through my head. Why me? Why am I here in Aavia, a place known for its dangerous beasts and cruel people? Stupid bad luck. It always seems to happen to me... I stopped asking questions, for I knew the answer. I’ve been through this before, and every person I’ve asked has told me the same thing: It’s all my fault for existing. I’m a worthless, pathetic, unnatural, cursed excuse for a half-breed, and my merely being alive means I deserve all the bad luck I get. And when bad luck happens to me, it strikes hard. Really hard...
It had been almost five years since I had been pronounced a Sage. And I still seemed to be an outcast. Just because I carry a sacred Stone doesn’t mean people have stopped hating me for who I am. I’ve grown accustomed to being on my own, but sometimes, it still hurts.
Oh, well. It doesn’t matter now. I’m stuck here in this Aavian forest, and I won’t... I can’t... leave until I get what I came here for.
I went through my mental checklist. Maps, check... first aid, check... food... wow, thats all I have? Better go fishing later... my twin daggers, of course I have them. They never leave my side. They were fastened to each of my thighs, one at each side, by black leather bands with sheathes to match. And my gloves... Like my blades, I never took them off.
“Ahh!” I tripped on a rock and landed flat on my face. I tried to get up, but I started sliding... I was going down a small cliff! I tumbled over the rocks and branches until I finally reached the bottom. Luckily, the cliff was only 20 feet high. I staggered to my feet, and brushed myself off. Oh, gosh, that hurt! I had a feeling I was gonna feel that for a while. “Dammit! I hate this place!” I exclaimed. I must’ve had bruises up and down my body like you wouldn’t believe. I pulled some sticks out of my graygreen cotton shirt and black leather pants, and brushed my short black hair out of my eyes.
Snap.
I recognize that sound. That was the sound of someone or something breaking a twig. Snap. Snap. And whatever it is, it seems to be getting closer... I better hide, just in case. I took evasive maneuvers, and found the lowest, leafiest tree nearby. I climbed up about 15 feet. I hid in the leaves and looked around; I had to find the source of that noise. Suddenly, coming towards a nearby stream, there was a... person.
He was nearly 6 feet tall, and didn’t look much older than me, 15 maybe. He was wearing peasant’s clothes: a dark green short sleeved shirt, some black pants and no shoes. I couldn’t get a very good look at his face, but his hair was cut medium short in the back, longer in the front; and black, almost exactly like mine. He began speaking another language, what I assumed to be Aavian. I fished around in my pocket for a translator and attached it to my ear; maybe he had something good to say.
Oh, crap. My foot slipped.
“Ahh!” I came down fast and hard. Luckily, I landed in a pile of leaves, but it hurt all the same. Please tell me he didn’t see that, I thought. Please tell me he’s not coming over here...
“Oh my god, are you okay?” Too late. He’s coming this way. I sat up and brushed myself off. “No, uh, I’m fine.” I reassured him. “Second time today, actually. I’m kind of getting used to it.” I brushed a couple of leaves out of my hair. He only chuckled. “Well then, maybe you shouldn’t climb trees.” He helped me out of the leaves and brushed the hair out of my eyes. Ha, ha. Very funny. But I had to admit, it was kinda sweet. Then he started to look at me funny, like there was something wrong with my face.
“Wait a minute... you’re Ivvanan! What are you doing here?” he exclaimed. He shot away from me and backed up about five feet, like if he got too close to me, he’d catch some kind of disease. “Oh, yeah, well you’re Aavian! What are you doing here?” That sounded a lot better in my head... “Uh, duh, I live here. So why are you here, and who are you?” Thieves Code Rule #3: Never give away your identity or purposes unless you’re absolutely positive there is no threat.
“You know, I could ask you the same thing.” I replied very calmly. “Who are you to ask for my name?” He looked me over. After a while, he asked, “If I tell you I am, you’ll answer my questions?” I smiled. This is gonna be a piece of cake. “Well, sure,” I replied. “I’ll answer your questions; that is, if you tell me your name and where you’re from.” I started walking towards the sunset again, but at a slow pace so he could keep up.
He seemed to get the idea that I wasn’t gonna tell him anything. “My name is Luneth,” he said. “I live in Okia village, it’s not far from here. Satisfied?” I smiled again. “Quite.” I replied. “Alright, a deal’s a deal. What’s your name, and why are you here in our forest?” he demanded. “Call me Kitiraa.” I said. “At least, that’s what everyone else calls me. My name is much too long to remember, nor is it important to you. As for why I’m here, well that doesn’t concern you either.” Luneth looked mad. “Hey, you said you’d answer my questions!” I kept walking. “Uh, yeah, I said I’d answer them, I just didn’t say it would be the answer you wanted.” My interest piqued. I stopped walking and turned to face him. “You live in Okia, huh?” I asked. “Yeah, you were heading right for it, actually.” he cooly replied. I bowed my head and sighed, and started walking back in the other direction. “Ah, well,” I sighed. “Looks like I can’t stay there for the night. Better find someplace else soon.”
Luneth looked kind of shocked. “You were planning to stay at my village? Why not?” I paid no heed and kept walking. “Because,” I simply replied. “It’s probably full of people like you. Why would I want to stay there?” He was taken aback. It was so funny, it was almost cute. “People like me?? What’s that supposed to mean??” he exclaimed. Again, I paid no heed, but I turned my head so he could see my face. “People like idiotic racists who judge people before they get to know them. Me being a guest in your forest, you weren’t very welcoming. I gotta say, it hurt my feelings.” I stopped and thought for a moment. “By the way, how could you tell I was Ivvanan?” I asked.
“That’s not much of a question. You stick out way to much. Not to mention your eyes...” Upon hearing this, I quickly placed my hand over my left eye. ‘Has he noticed it?’ I thought. ‘If he sees the red flecks in my eye, he’ll know I’m a...’ I bowed my head and kept walking, with my hand still over my eye, away from the sunset. “So, where are you going?” he asked. “There isn’t a single house, let alone a town for another five miles. Best shot you’ve got is with me.” He started to catch up with me. “And since you’re clearly not accepting my offer, where else are you going to stay?” I turned my head to the right slightly, so he couldn’t see my left eye. “I’m gonna sleep outside, you have a problem with that?”
Luneth started laughing. I began to become annoyed, and stopped and turned. “You plan... to stay the night... outside...? Hahahaha!” he laughed. “Are you quite done yet?” I asked as I waited for him to stop laughing. He started to catch his breath, and stopped laughing. He leaned his back up against a very wide tree. I was very annoyed then. He doesn’t know who I am, so I can’t entirely blame him for doubting me and my skills. But still...
“What makes you think you’ll be able to survive the night? Surely you’ve heard of the fell beasts that come out at night around here. Not a single hume is dumb enough to stay out here after dark.” Thieves Code Rule #21: Keep your temper. I was fuming at this point. I was trying, but he was making me so mad... I had to get out of there, or else he would end up dead, I knew it. “I’m stronger than you think I am, okay?” I replied through clenched teeth. “I can take care of myself, I was raised that way. A few beasts won’t stop me.” I think he could tell I was pissed, but he didn’t seem to care. “Beasts, maybe not,” Luneth said. “But I don’t think you’ll last even one night in the elves’ territory.”
That’s what caught my attention. No one said anything about elves. Damn that Pyran! “Elves...?” I asked. “There’s elves here?” He seemed quite amused, as though my uncertainty brought him joy. “Oh, yes,” Luneth explained. “There’s a sanctuary up north about ten miles. A lot of them live there. We’re talking hundreds. And you don’t seem like a particularly dumb person, so you must know how powerful and cruel the elves can be.” I’d heard about the elves. I knew what strong warriors they were. Their power was unmatched with spears, and not many people know this, but the elves were some of the first people to tame dragons, as well as the first to slay one. And their archers... I’d heard they could strike a man down from 500 feet, and do it in complete silence. The worst of it all, they never showed any mercy, if they had any at all. The elves are extremely territorial, and they despise humes. I was one of the strongest people I know, but in my heart, I knew even my skills would be no match for an elf.
“Well. I’m glad to see you’re concerned,” I calmly replied. “But your attempts to scare me aren’t going to work. I can handle myself, you just watch. I’m a lot tougher than I look. That’s the way I was raised.” I turned around and kept walking. The sun was falling fast. My time has been wasted here, I need to get to that cave before it goes down. I didn’t look back, but I could here his footsteps moving in the opposite direction, and a heavy sigh. Looks like he’s given up on me. Ah, well.
Damn, I’m hungry.
. . .
As I approached the small cave, I looked back at the sun. It looks like I have a few minutes left of daylight, maybe ten. I sat down in the cave, and breathed a sigh of relief. I’d done a lot of walking, even though it wasn’t a very long distance. This place has a lot of cliffs and hills for some reason. I pulled out what little food I had, half a loaf of bread and some cheese. This isn’t gonna last me, I thought. I’ll have to go fishing in the morning. As I began to eat, I looked around the cave, my home for the night. It wasn’t very big. In truth it was only five or six feet deep, but it was at least 20 feet long, so I had plenty of room. Unfortunately, it didn’t provide much protection from the rain, so I’d have to sleep with warm clothes and as far away from the entrance as possible. It was late spring here, I think, so even though it means it might rain, it should be warm enough tonight that I don’t need a blanket. Still... I should go and get some firewood, just in case. I set out, and moved fast, because I knew there wasn’t much daylight left.
That’s weird, I thought. Could’ve sworn I saw something. Must be my imagination. I tried to brush it off, but I kept collecting firewood a little more cautiously. I gathered as much wood as I could carry, and walked back towards the cave. I just couldn’t shake the feeling I was being watched, even as I made it to the cave I could still feel it. I dropped the wood off and took out my food again. Suddenly, a noise came from outside, like a rock being tossed or something. I put the bread down and cautiously went out to investigate. The moment I stepped out of the cave, a figure grabbed me and slammed me against the rock. He held me by the throat and pressed the blade of a spear against my neck. I tried to struggle out of his grasp, but it proved to be useless. I took a good look at his face, and I was suddenly filled with a fear I hadn’t felt in a long time.
I realized... it was an elf.

Chapter 2
“Who are you, what are you doing in my woods?” he asked very calmly. I didn’t say anything, I was to afraid. That, and he was strangling me. For a moment, I was actually off the ground. He didn’t even seem to be trying; he must be very powerful. And his spear, the blade was so sharp if he pressed much harder he would break skin. “I’ll ask you again, who are you? What are your purposes here?” I had to say something, or else he might kill me. “I am a traveler here. My only wish is to leave these woods, after I stay the night, of course.” I thought I should try to reason with him, but it’s very hard to talk when you can barely breathe. He was alone... that was very unusual. “Could you please remove the spear from my throat now? I can’t breathe.”
I tried to squirm again, but he pressed the blade harder. “Don’t move.” he said. “The spear is laced with moonlace. Even the tiniest nick and you’ll be dead in a matter of minutes.” He almost smiled. Moonlace...? That’s some seriously lethal poison! He wasn’t bluffing either, I could smell the poison from here... He could seriously kill me in an instant with this one spear alone, and he’d do it, too. “Now, I don’t know much about you, but I can tell when someone is lying, no matter how good they are. So tell me the truth, why are you here?” I could tell he was getting angry. This guy holds my very life in his hands right now, I have to convince him to let me go. I hate playing defense...
“Alright!” I said. “I’ll tell you the truth! But you were wrong. I am a traveler in need of rest, and since the sun was falling I was forced to take shelter here, knowing that this is your territory. But I’m not here for any reason that concerns you. I am a Sage, I’m here on business.” I tried to sound threatening, but that’s very difficult to do when you can’t breathe. “Prove it to me,” he said. “Prove to me that you are a Sage.” I released my hands from his grip, and removed my right glove. There it was, on the back of my right hand was a steel plating fastened to my wrist, and embedded in it, the sacred Stone of Nature. I let him look for a while, then hastily put my glove back on, thanking God that he didn’t touch my bare hand. However, it seemed to work. The blade slowly moved away from my throat, and he released his grip on me. I fell on my knees, gasping for air, and I looked up and took a good look at him.
Even at just a glance, I’ve never met anyone who looked less civilized. He didn’t appear to be that old, late twenties to early thirties. He was wearing clothing made of leaves, leather, and dark wood. It appeared to be some sort of armor, maybe he was a nobleman or something like that. He was very tall, and thin too. I’d heard the elves had very slender frames, but I never expected them to look like this. His spear was most impressive; it was taller than he was and made of the same dark wood as his armor. It was wrapped with thin black rope near the blade, and tied to the rope was a small wooden charm in the shape of a wolves’ head. His long hair was a dark brown color, and strangely enough, two horns like a goat’s coming up from his forehead, and curling down slightly towards the back of his head. But what caught my eye was the long, jagged scar that started on the middle of his forehead, moved diagonally down-right, cut through his right eye, and ended behind the bottom of his pointed ear.
“Thank you,” I said. “For letting me go. I thought I was a goner for a moment there.” I stood up. He wouldn’t look me in the eye anymore. He just kept staring at the ground. “I apologize for attacking you.” he simply replied. “Had I known you were a Sage, I wouldn’t have come here.” I could see a remorse in his eyes, though he wouldn’t look at me. “No, really, it’s okay.” I stood up. I decided now should be the time to ask questions. “Why are you by yourself?” I asked. “I’m not an expert, but don’t elves travel in clans?” After a hesitation, he said, “I don’t have a clan anymore. They left me.” I looked at him a little longer. Upon second glance, I realized why he was too thin. He must not’ve had any food for days... he could die. My heart lightened, and a smile came to my face.
“Why don’t you come in?” I asked him. “I’m sure you must be tired.” He lifted his face, and looked me in the eye. He seemed puzzled at first. But eventually, he followed me inside my little cave.
I started the fire and offered him the rest of the food I had. “I know it’s not much,” I told him. “But I want you to have it. You must be hungry. Here, take it.” Hesitantly, he accepted the bread and cheese from me. “What’s your name?” I asked him. He took a bite of the cheese, set it down, and looked down at the small fire we were sitting around. “I don’t have a name.” he replied. I was surprised. “But you must have a name. What do people call you, when they want your attention?” “I mean, I don’t have a name anymore. I was exiled from my clan. My name was taken from me.”
Exiled? “Why?” As soon as I said it, I wanted to take it back. I could tell by the look of his face the memory saddened him, and he didn’t want to think of it. “The elves minds are filled with poison. They are obsessed with beauty and think it the only thing in life worth living for. They seek to massacre the eyeblights, thinking they are aliens in their world of beauty and do not deserve to live in our precious sanctum.” He looked up at me, and saw that I was somewhere between puzzled and scared. “What are the ‘eyeblights’?” I questioned. He looked back down at the fire. “The eyeblights are the creatures the elves deem to ugly to exist, and so must be executed by the winnowers. Ceidre, the prefect of this area - the Wren - , used to say, ‘The eyeblights are the world’s greatest tumor; the winnowers have an unpleasant job, but a necessary one.’ That’s the job I had... I was a winnower.” That explained the armor. He was an assassin. Strange.
“I had life figured out, I guess you could say. Everything was going in my favor. Then one day, I was called to a duel. In short, I lost, and as my prize I won this lovely scar across my face. In a culture of beauty, the most beautiful are worshipped as gods, while the disfigured elves are treated as scum. A single cut of a blade across one’s face could mean the difference between eating at a royal feast and scrounging through the dungheap for scraps.” He paused and sighed. “There was no avoiding it. As far as the Promenade was concerned, I was disfigured. And for disfigured elves, there aren’t much choices between death and exile. My fate was sealed from that moment. Now, I can’t even hunt. These lands of Wren belong to the clan, and I do not. It is forbidden I slay an animal here on this sacred land.”
As I listened to his tale of woe, I couldn’t help but feel we had a lot in common. Both of us were banished and shunned by our own kind, and thrown out in the cruel world to die. We are not as they are, and as he said, there aren’t much choices for freaks of nature like us. “I guess I know how you feel.” I assured him. “I’m an exile too. Have been for years, really. Unlike you, I don’t know what it’s like on the other side. What it’s like to be loved...” This time I bowed my head, and simply stared at the fire. I had said to much.
“You were excommunicated from your clan?” he asked. “I can’t imagine why. You are a Sage after all. You must be highly respected, by everyone. And you don’t seem to have any scars I can see. I don’t see why you would be exiled.” I almost laughed at his assessment. “I was exiled before I was a Sage, and things haven’t ever really changed just because I have a title now. Besides, my culture doesn’t take beauty quite as seriously as the elves do.” I tried to make a joke out of it, because I knew if I didn’t I would cry. I would cry and cry, just like how I did when I was little. Sometimes even now. Cry at how cruel and unfair the world was, at why it seemed like I would never have a happy ending, cry for my mother...
“If it makes you feel any better, I do have a scar, it’s just on my hand. That’s why I wear gloves all the time. To keep it covered up, so no one will see it. You see, it’s one more thing we have in common. We were both exiled because of a scar.” He almost laughed this time, though I don’t know why. “We are both Rogues, then.” he said. I was puzzled. “A Rogue?” I asked him. “Yes, a Rogue. That’s what we elves call the exiles. They have no clan, they are rogue elves.” He looked away from the fire, and instead looked outside to the night. “That makes us a clan of our own,” I joked. After a while, I thought about it. “That’s it!” I exclaimed. “You can join my clan! Then, you can have your name back, and you can hunt on these grounds! It’s the answer to all your problems!”
He looked at me skeptically. “Me? Join a Sage’s clan? You would allow it?” “Of course silly!” I replied. “How could I ever turn you down? You’ve been exiled, just like me. We really are a clan of our own. We can do whatever we want, you don’t belong to them anymore. You’re free.” He paused and thought about it. The more he thought, the more he liked the idea. ‘A clan of our own...’ he seemed to like the theory.
He looked me in the eye. “If I’m to join your clan, I will need a new name.” I took that as a yes. But I had to give him a name? “Why do I have to give you a name? Can’t you just use your old one?” He shook his head. “An elf’s name is a reflection of their character, and one of their most prized possessions. My name was taken from me, and can no longer be used. You have to give me a new name, as a reflection of my character.” I thought about it. What would make a good name for him? He’s an exile, an independent. A rogue elf.
“I know.” I said. “How about ‘Rogue’? It fits you perfect!” He seemed to like the idea, and smiled. That was the first time I had seen him smile that night, and the last. “Very well, Rogue it is, Prefect.” Huh? Why did he call me a prefect? Ah well. He’s happy. Better him than anyone else in this world be happy tonight. He seems to need it more than anyone, anyway.
. . .
It was getting late, so I gave Rogue a phial of some of my best fish bait, had him help me collect some more wood, and sent him off. It was cold that night, but no rain, so at least I would stay dry. And luckily for me the fire should stay all night, so I wouldn’t freeze to death. Still... I fished around in my pocket for my dressphere. Oh, what would I do without one of these. An entire wardrobe in the shape of a small bright green sphere that fit in your palm and didn’t even weigh half a pound. I pressed the little button, and a hologram appeared of my warmest outfit, a pair of knee-high, fur-lined black leather boots, some thick, skin tight white wool pants, a white long-sleeved shirt, and a long midnight blue cloak with a long hood, completely lined with white fur. I pressed the button again, and the hologram scanned my body and duplicated the outfit on me, replacing my current outfit with the hologram. I was suddenly warm, inside and out. I knew this would keep me nice and warm for the night.
I lay down on my back, near the back of the cave. I breathed a heavy sigh, and closed my eyes. My encounters with Luneth and Rogue that day had really shaken me. It made me take a good long look at my life, and I think it was then I realized how miserable I really was. I always knew I was sad, and it seemed like I always had something to mourn for. I was always in some kind of pain, nearly for as long as I could remember. But now... I think it was then that I began to feel like I was beyond happiness. Why? I thought. Why me? It always seemed to happen to me...
I opened my eyes, realizing there was no possible way I would be able to sleep tonight. I took off my left glove, and held up my hand to the light of the fire. My left hand, the one Kiu had been interested in, that she claimed was, ‘all powerful’. I never saw my hand that way. If anything, I thought it a curse. Especially that scar, the one I hoped no one would ever touch or see. It was still there, in the center of my palm, even though I prayed that someday it would go away. It was a peculiar and unnatural mark, a larger crescent surrounding another crescent, with a small circular dot in the center of the two. I wasn’t big in size, only about two inches in diameter, and was a deep, dark, purplish-black bruise color. It was the kind of scar no natural thing could ever hope to cause.
I hated this curse I was born with. It was dangerous and lethal, and because of it I had always been despised. I could barely handle the fear I lived with everyday. For fear it was that I covered up my hands with dragonskin gloves, the purple wing membrane and grayish-black scales kept from corroding away. The mark was filled with venom, a toxic, lethal venom, that though it had no effect on me, it could disintegrate even stone itself, and if my hand were to touch anyone, the venom would be transferred and unspeakable pain would fill their body. That is, only if they touch the mark itself, where the venom is stored. If they came in contact with my fingertips, or my right hand, the small dose would only put them to sleep. Either way, I swore to never take off my gloves, for any reason, unless it was a matter of life or death. I have felt the pain my venom has caused for myself, and it is a fate I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.
I fear everyday about what might happen. Will there be another victim today? Will it be minor or fatal? What would people think if they saw my scar? If they saw the tell-tale flecks of red in my eye? I knew if I ever took off my gloves, it would only mean misery for me. And that was another thing I could do without.
There was, however, one side affect that I had grown to love: I have the ability to hear the thoughts of others. It has become very useful in times past, and even today. But I could never truly appreciate it because of the reason I have that ability.
My mother, my adoptive mother, she was one of the only people who ever cared for me. She didn’t see my scar as a curse, but rather as a blessing. She even showed me how to use it as a line of defense. She turned me into a real weapon, she did. Being raised by a thief, that was probably the best thing for me. She taught me how to survive, how to fight, and steal food and money from the occasional sight seer in town... She taught me nearly everything she knew, including the Thieves Code. In short, my mother was the best thing that ever happened to me. Oh, I miss her so much.
There was no use complaining about the past now. What is done is done, and I can’t change anything by thinking about it. I decided it was getting late, and put my glove back on my hand. I turned over on my side, closed my eyes, and soon fell into yet another deep, dreamless sleep.

Chapter 3
I awoke with a start, shivering. The fire must have died overnight, but I was still warm from the clothes I was wearing, so I didn’t know why I was shivering. I just shook it off. I pulled out my dressphere, changed clothes to what I was wearing yesterday, packed up my things in to my pocket belt and left. My stomach was growling worse than an angry bear, and I didn’t have any food left. I had given it all to Rogue, along with some of my bait, making fishing difficult. Oh, well. I had to try and fish, or else I might just die out here.
I came up on a nearby river, the same one by which I had met Luneth the other day. I wondered if I would ever see him again. Probably better I don’t, he was quite annoying. I walked downstream a little bit, and sat down, looking to see if this river had any fish.
I took out one of my phials of fish bait, and let a small drop fall into the river. Almost instantly, several large fish came up to the riverbank. I silently drew my blade. My technique of fishing is a bit more complicated. I have to throw the blade with deadly precision, so that the fish doesn’t have a chance to escape. I raised my dagger high, and as I was about to strike--
“What are you doing?” called a voice from across the river. My hand slipped and my dagger went haywire into a tree not far from the person’s head. I looked up, and there was Luneth, clearly frightened and with a blade embedded in a tree about five inches from his face. He stopped looking at the dagger and looked at me, but at seeing my furious expression, he wished he hadn’t. I looked back down at the fish, all of them had fled at the loud noise.
“You idgit!” I trudged through the water to the other side of the river. I pointed my finger right in his face. “You made me miss! That was my breakfast!” I wanted to strangle him so much. He just stared at me in shock. “Oh, you were aiming for the fish...” I was fuming. I didn’t know what kept me from killing him at this point. “Yes, I was aiming for the fish. That was going to be my breakfast!” I pulled out my other dagger and slammed him against the tree. I lifted the blade to his throat. “Hey, hey! Take it easy!” he cried. “I didn’t mean to scare of the fish, okay! I was just surprised to see you!”
Surprised to see me? What did he mean by that? I wanted to kill him, I wanted to slit his throat right then and there. But something held me back... for some reason, I just couldn’t do it. I sheathed my dagger, and pulled the other one out of the tree. I pointed it at his face. “If I were you,” I said. “I wouldn’t let it come to this again. Got it?” He slowly nodded, apparently still in shock. I backed away, put away my other blade, and went back to the river. I wasn’t angry anymore, but I didn’t know why. All I knew was that I was hungry, and now the fish were gone. I didn’t have enough bait for a second try, so I just sat down on the riverbank and stared at the water, hoping some fish would come by.
“Oh... kay...” he said. “What are you doing?” he asked a second time. I sighed. “Fishing.” I replied. “I would have thought you’d figured out that much by now.” “That’s a strange way to fish.” he simply said. There was a brief silence that followed, me staring at the water and Luneth staring at me. I wondered what he meant by he was surprised to see me. But I quickly shook it off. “I’m sorry.” he said. “I was just a little surprised to see you. I didn’t think you survived the night.” I shot a glare at him. “I would have thought you’d realized I have more talent than that by now.” I realized the fish weren’t going to come back, so I got up.
“Where are you going?” Luneth asked. He got up too, and turned towards me. “Anywhere but here.” I started walking away from the riverbank, into the trees. “Hey, hold it!” he called. “I thought you were dead, doesn’t that count for anything?” I stopped and turned. “What’s that supposed to mean?” No reply. “Look, whatever. I’m going to your village. Can you show me the way?” “...Yeah, sure. Why?” I turned back towards the woods. “Good, lets go.” I kept on walking, he started to follow. “Wait a minute...what just happened here?”
. . .
Luneth
It was so strange. I woke up yesterday morning, with great plans for the day, when I met this psychopath calling herself Kitiraa. I have little memory of the last day or so, just a few pieces of it here and there. She falls out of a tree, insults me, walks away, I expect her to be dead, the next day she nearly kills me, insults me again, and now she’s demanding I take her to Okia. I don’t know much about this freak, but she’s already on my bad side.
Suddenly, she gasps and stops. I turn back to her, and ask her what’s wrong. “Nothing,” she says. “It’s nothing.” “Alright then. Let’s keep going.” We keep on walking, and after a while, she asks, “You think I’m a freak, don’t you?” What the hell? Where did that come from? “Is it that obvious?” I asked. “Not really. I guess you could say I’m really good at reading people.” she answered with a slight smirk. “Besides, from my point of view, you’re the freak.”
I turned to her, but kept walking up the slope. “Oh, really? And how is that?” I saw her flash a look of, ‘I’m so glad you asked,’. “You see, you’re just too normal. It’s not natural, ya know?” I turned away, and almost laughed. “Oh, so it’s unnatural to be normal? You really are insane.” “Hey, I’m not insane; my reality is just different than yours.” she replied. This time I did laugh. “And that doesn’t sound crazy at all. You aught to be wearing a straight jacket, not carrying knives.”
She snapped up almost immediately. “Hey, I’ll have you know these are my personal twin daggers, they weren’t issued to me. And what I said was true. I see things differently, therefor, I have a different reality than you. And you really are too normal. Everyone’s got to be crazy once in a while; don't ya know it? Insanity is what keeps us sane.”
I just shrugged it off. “Whatever.” I simply said. But she didn’t stop there. “My question is, why do you think I’m a freak?” she asked. I sighed because I knew this wasn’t over. “Did I... get on your bad side or something?” What? Where is she getting this? It’s like she’s inside my head! She started laughing a little bit. “What’s so funny?” I snapped. Regaining her breath, she replied, “Nothing, just something funny I heard.” Whatever. “You’re just stick out too much.” I told her. “You’re nearly the exact opposite of most of the people here.” She scoffed at me. “Oh really? And how is that?” she asked, a perfect imitation of what I had asked her earlier. “Well, you’re wearing city clothes, so I guess you’re not used to living in the woods. You have three silver hoop earrings in your left ear, and I don’t know what that costs in your realm, but those earrings alone are more than I would earn in ten years. And then there’s your eyes...” When I said that she clasped her hand over her left eye. Again? She did that yesterday too, when I said her eyes stood out. Why does she keep doing that?
“Could we change the subject?” she asked quietly. I just realized she was getting short of breath. “Hey, are you okay?” I asked her. “I’m fine, I’m just having a little difficulty with these hills. Why does your dimension have so many damn obstacles?” I turned away. “Oh, so you really are from the city.” I wasn’t looking at her, but I could still feel her piercing glare from behind. “Yeah, and what of it?” she snapped. “I’m only originally from the city, but I’ve spent my fair amount of time in the woods. It’s just this is one hell of a hike.” I laughed a little bit. “Yeah, well, don’t worry about it. After this turn, the rest of the way is fairly flat. Okia isn’t that far from here.”
. . .
Kitiraa
As we approached the village, I almost immediately understood what Luneth meant when he said I was like the opposite. The houses we’re small and cylindrical, looking as though they couldn’t hold more than a family of three or four. There was a thin stream that ran through the village, probably one of the off streams from the river we’d passed earlier. The people were hard at work, some of them hauling water, others forging steel, things of that matter. I was almost shocked at how simple Okia was compared to Eruyt, the place I called home for so many years. The tall buildings and merchant filled streets were nothing at all like this small, simple little village.
“Alright, we’re here,” Luneth called. I realized that I was brought to a standstill, and I wasn’t breathing. I pulled myself together and followed him into the center of the village. “That over there is the patriarch’s house. If you have any issues, talk to him.” I only nodded in reply, to show him I was still alive, I guess. I was in too much shock to do anything else, anyway. I had no idea... this is nothing at all like I thought Okia was like.
“Hey, are you okay?” It was Luneth. I shook my head, I had to pull myself together. “Yeah, uh, I’m fine.” I told him. “It’s just... I had no idea this is what your home was like.” I turned to him. “I guess I owe you an apology. Sorry.”
Now he was shocked. ‘Is she really apologizing?’ he thought. ‘She doesn’t seem like the type to admit when they’re wrong.’ What was that supposed to mean?? I kept my temper, but I wanted to smack him across the face so much right then.
“Thank you,” I said as calmly as I could. It didn’t come out well, I was too quiet and my voice cracked. “For taking me here, I mean.” That try was better. He came out of shock and looked away. “Sure, uh, no problem.” was all he said, and then he disappeared deeper into the village. I did the same and made my way to the leader’s house. Maybe he knew something about the dragon I was looking for.
. . .
I sat down in the living area of the village leader’s house, on the floor. My assessment when I got here was not far off. Even though his house was the largest of them all, it was still rather average sized. A second floor, two bedrooms, a kitchen, and the room I was in now. It was actually quite small compared to most of the homes in Eruyt. Then the leader, a man about 30 or 40 years old with short brown hair, entered the room. “Sir, it is a pleasure to meet you.” I stammered as I stood up. He only shook his head and said, “Take a seat, Sage.” I did as I was told. “Now. Introduce yourself, please.”
“Uh, I am Sagus Kitiraa Natu, sir. I would like to ask you a few questions.” My voice was unusually quiet, and my hands gripped the carpeting on the floor. “A few questions, hm?” he answered. He sat down on the other side of the small wooden table. “What kind of questions would a Sage from Ivvana wish to ask of me?” This man was making me quite uncomfortable. On the surface, he was trying to be helpful, but I could feel his hatred and impatience through his slight glare.
I cleared my throat. “Nothing you would be too concerned about.” I simply replied. Rule # 18: Always keep a good poker face. Let them see what you want them to see. “You see, there has been activity reported about a certain dragon infestation. I’m certain that you were the one who wanted the... pest... gone?” Saying this was hard for me. I never thought anything negative about one of the dragons before. If anything, I loved and respected them more than anything else. But I had to maintain my poker face. “Well, I was sent by the Council, specifically for this case.” I bowed my head in respect. “I am at your service.”
“Ah, yes, that feral dragon. It’s about time the damn Council sent someone here. It’s been nearly a month since I’d reported it.” He spoke to me with a slight tone of anger, even though it wasn’t directly aimed at me. Wait, did he say a month? The Council never takes that long to answer a threat like this... “Our entire village has been living in fear! Nearly half of our people have already been slaughtered in the war, and now with that damn dragon, the body count is yet increasing!” He leaned back a little bit, and wiped his hand down his face. “My sister... she... she was taken by that... that feral beast!” I understood his hatred, but I just wished he wouldn’t speak like that. I decided I should try to calm him down, or else he would swear and curse all day.
“Sir, I need you to calm down. I know this is hard for you, and I’m very sorry for your loss, but I need you to remember. You said your sister was taken. Now, when was this?” His face became solemn and sad. “I don’t know,” he simply replied, through a cracked voice. “I guess... a week ago. She was out fishing, with my daughter. I told her I loved her before she left, and to take care while she was out. That was... the last time I spoke to her.”
I personally thought this was very interesting. “Wait, wait, wait. You said, she was fishing?”
“Yes, with my daughter.”
“Sir, what are the ages of your daughter and sister?”
Aleena, my sister, is about 35, and... I think Sylphi is nearly 14, about your age, actually.”
“Where is Sylphi now? Was she taken as well?” I asked, intrigued.
“No, she is here. I sent her out to collect wood earlier, accompanied by my dear friend, of course. She... she is the only family I have left, now.”
This was strange. Usually, if a dragon does have to resort to eating human flesh, they take as much as they can at the time being. Assuming this is a very wise dragon, and a very hungry one, there would be no reason for him to spare Sylphi. Then, an idea hit me. “Sir, what color are your daughter’s eyes?” I asked him. He looked confused. “What does that have to do with Aleena?” he questioned. “What does it matter?” I shook my head. “Sir, it’s very important. Please answer the question.” I told him. There was a brief pause. He seemed to be pondering what to do. “Sir, please.” I said somewhat impatiently. “Green.” he said. “Sylphi’s eyes are green.”
Just what I thought. That proves my theory on why she wasn’t taken. A girl with green eyes has the ability to speak to dragons; a girl like myself. As for the reason Aleena was taken, the dragon was probably attracted to the smell of dead fish. Maybe Sylphi can help me track the dragon down.
“Thank you, sir. That will be all. I promise to help find your sister, and anyone else who may have been taken. And again, I’m very sorry for your loss.” I got up a little bit faster than I should have, and hurried out the door. “Wait!” he called. “What does that have to do--” I slammed the door shut before he could finish. I need to find Sylphi.
I began searching the small village, looking around buildings and in small windows, running here and there. I soon gave up the search, though. I had no idea what she looked like, let alone where she might be. And I didn’t know this village at all. Even though it was small, it was still very easy to get lost, with the dense trees and boulders around here. I stopped running and bent over and put my hands on my knees to catch my breath. I saw Luneth in the distance, chopping wood, and I ran to him. Maybe he could help me out.
“Luneth!” I cried. “Luneth, wait!” I stopped and hunched over again. I was completely out of breath at this point. He stopped chopping wood and ran to me. “Hey are you okay?” he asked, clearly concerned. “What have been doing, running up the mountain side? You look like hell.” I looked up to him and answered him with a glare. “Gee, thanks; that’s what every girl wants to hear.” I bent back down.
“No, really, what’s wrong? You aren’t going to pass out, are you?” He put his hands on my shoulders, and lifted my face to look me in the eye. Now that I was really looking at him, I realized how good he looked. His eyes had a concerned look in them, and they were the most beautiful shade of silver, almost like crystal. His black hair was pushed back out of his eyes and was almost glossy; he had sweat on his brow from all the work he had been doing. His body, even through his shirt, was lean and muscled. Our faces were already so close, our eyes were only half a foot apart. I had never looked at anyone the way I looked at him then.
I realized I was still short of breath, but not because I was exhausted. It was because of the way he was looking at me. I stood up straight and shook my head. I couldn’t let my guard down. Not in front of him. “I... I’m fine.” I struggled to say. “I just had to... do a lot of running... to get here.” I backed up a little bit and ran my fingers through my hair. “Look, it doesn’t matter...” I sighed. “Just... You know a girl named Sylphi, right?”
I guess he figured I was okay, so he went back to work chopping wood. “Yeah, she’s the patriarch’s daughter. Why, do you need to see her?” he asked. He swung and hit the wood perfectly down the middle. “What color are her eyes?” I asked him. He stopped working and leaned on the handle of the axe. “I dunno, green?” He gave me a confused look. “Why does it matter what color her eyes are?”
“More than you know, trust me.” I simply replied. “I know why Aleena was taken and not Sylphi. And why this dragon is attacking Okia in the first place.” He set up some more wood and swung again, this time it didn’t go straight down the middle, but pretty close. “Kitiraa, that’s great, but what does that have to do with the color of Sylphi’s eyes?” He set up another piece of wood. “Okay, first, the dragon is probably hungry.”
“Hungry?”
“Yes. You see, dragons very rarely resort to eating human flesh. It doesn’t matter what you’ve heard, we’re aren’t that appetizing to them. The only reason this dragon would be attacking Okia and taking villagers would be if all other food sources were gone. It was probably attracted to the smell of dead fish when Aleena and Sylphi were fishing, and came for food. Seeing the opportunity to hunt, the dragon took Aleena with the fish.”
“And? What does that have to do with Sylphi’s eyes?”
“I’m getting to that.” I said impatiently. “Sylphi wasn’t taken because her eyes are green. I don’t know what it’s like in your realm here, but in Ivvana, green eyed girls can speak to dragons.”
“Really? Speak to dragons?”
“Yes, I’m quite serious. The dragon, being a 1000 year old Wyrm, is most likely very wise, and at least noticed she had green eyes. A dragon could never harm a person that could speak Drayko. It’s in their nature to reach out to people who can understand them.”
He kept on chopping wood, and for a while there was a brief moment of silence. I watched him swing the axe, and that feeling I had before started to creep back. For a while, I let it take over, let it fill me. But then I shook my head again. I couldn’t let down my guard. Not now, not ever. Such is the life of a thief.
He stopped working and put the axe down. “So, you think Sylphi can help you find this dragon?” he asked. I nodded yes. “I personally don’t see it. Simply because her eyes are green doesn’t mean she--” He paused. He looked me in the eye again, and almost stared. I covered my left eye again, in hope that he wouldn’t notice the red flecks. I let my gaze drop to the ground. “Huh.” He leaned back. “You knew to ask if she had green eyes, because you have green eyes too.”
I took my hand off my eye; it appeared my secret was safe for now. But he was right. I did have green eyes. In all honesty, I was surprised he hadn’t noticed it until now, the way my piercing bright green eyes stood out against my porcelain skin. There was no mistaking it.
In that moment, a few memories flooded back to me. I remembered being a little girl, maybe seven years old. I was the odd one out, playing by myself, no friends at all. I remembered being teased because of my green eyes. ‘Ooh, look at the dragon girl!’ ‘She’s a freak!’ I remember being beaten, kicked, pushed down, having my hair pulled. In truth, I couldn’t take it anymore. I remember fighting with a boy, one of my attackers. I remember sending him home with bruises on his arms and legs. And I remembered going home feeling guilty; for self defense.
I never saw that boy again. I figured his parents made him move, or something. But even though I managed to defend myself that day, I never stood up to them again. I didn’t like feeling guilty. And I knew it wouldn’t help. So, I stayed away from those kids. After that day, I kept my distance, and I never saw them again.
I brought myself back to reality, back to my conversation with Luneth. I tried to remember what he said, what triggered my suppressed memories. “Kitiraa?” he asked quietly. “Are... you okay?” I realized my face was feeling hot. I must’ve looked like I was gonna cry. “Yeah, I’m fine. But...” I struggled to get the attention off of me. “...I’m surprised you didn’t notice my green eyes earlier.”
“You can talk to dragons too then, huh?” he asked. “Not really that surprising, you seem to know so much about them.” I rolled my eyes. It was true that I knew a lot; but I wasn’t quite an expert. Rule #25: There’s always gonna be someone who knows more than you, there’s always gonna be someone stronger than you; so don’t get arrogant.
“Yes, but, that’s sort of the reason I’m here in the first place. I need to know where Sylphi is. I think she can help me find this dragon.” Luneth put his hands behind his head. “So,” he replied, “Naturally, you come to me first.”
“Well, yes. I don’t know anyone else here. And I figured you know the woods by heart. So, why not?” Suddenly, and out of nowhere, I heard a scream in the distance. It appeared to be coming from the woods. “Oh, no.” Luneth seemed to recognize the sound of the scream. “Kitiraa, we’ve got to hurry, that’s Sylphi!” He started running off to the woods, I guess signaling for me to follow. I ran after him fast as I could. If that really was Sylphi, that scream couldn’t be good. And I kind of need her alive.
“Luneth, how do you know that’s her?” I asked tiredly. “Are you sure?”
Another scream. Louder this time.
“That’s definitely her!” he cried. We kept on running through the trees, until we came up on a clearing. It was an ordinary clearing, grass, rocks, meadows. But in the center was a girl about fourteen, with long brown hair, a red dress, and a hungry dragon circling her. I assumed she was Sylphi, and the dragon was who I was looking for.
“Sylphi!” Luneth cried. She turned her head, and sure enough, her green eyes nearly glowed in fear. She seemed relieved to see Luneth, and confused to see me, but her fear and concern for the dragon overwhelmed both of those feelings. She turned back towards the starving dragon.
I walked closer to the dragon, and held up my hand to tell Luneth that he should stay where he was. At first, I hurried a little bit, but as I got closer to him I slowed down. I held up my hand towards the dragon, and he turned his attention towards me. I began to feel that all too familiar feeling of delirium, as his thoughts merged with mine. I could hear what he was thinking, and he could hear my thoughts as well.
I got closer, and turned my eyes to Sylphi, silently telling her to run. She didn’t seem to get the message, she stayed where she was. Maybe she was just frozen with fear, I don’t know. I tried to keep my attention on the huge dragon.
He was an enormous, hulking creature. He must have been 20 feet tall, and 40 feet long. His wingspan was rather impressive, broad and wide. The scales that covered his huge, muscular body were large and dull red. Judging from the sheen of them they looked rather thick; physical attacks ineffective. The fangs in his mouth were sharp, pointed, and menacing. He had an old scar over his eye, and several others on his face and arms. Strangely enough, his eyes were an oddly deep shade of chocolate brown.
I placed my hand on his nose. “What is your name?” I asked with a quiet voice, almost a whisper. “Why are you here?” He became docile and calm. He took a few steps back; I followed, keeping my hand placed on his snout. “Why are you attacking these people? Why are you taking their loved ones?” An answer came, but the voice was different than what I expected, what I had heard from other dragons. It sounded older, more mature, and weak. It was a little threatening, but I stood my ground. And from that voice came a single word.
‘Isaaru.’
“Isaaru? Is that your name?” I asked. Before I could get an answer, I heard a scuffling behind me. I turned my attention to the sound, only to find Sylphi finally decided to take my advice and run. The loud noise broke my concentration, and before I could stop him, the dragon bolted. I watched in shock as the dragon raced towards Sylphi and snatched her in his talons. He flew away, and all I could hear was the screams of the poor girl being carried off.
“Dammit!” I shouted. I ran my hands through my hair, worried on what to do. Sylphi was my only lead. I’m so screwed. I turned to Luneth. He had a confused look in his eyes and a horrified expression on his face.
“So,” I asked him. “What the hell are we gonna do now?”

Chapter 4
Luneth
I tried to catch my breath. The dragon escaped with Sylphi in his arms. We had been chasing him for a while, futilely. After we ran out of breath, we hunched over with our hands on our knees, trying to breathe. “Okay,” said Kitiraa. “It’s obvious that... trying to... catch up on foot... isn’t going to work.” She leaned up against a wide, smooth tree and slid down until she was sitting on the ground with her back against the tree. I went over next to her, and did the same.
“So,” I asked her. “What... exactly are we... going to do?” She breathed a heavy sigh. Softly she said, “Luneth...”
I looked at her. She had a troubled look in her eyes, and she simply stared at the black sandals on her feet. “Luneth, you need to choose.”
“What?” I had to choose? What was she talking about?
“I mean, you have to decide if you really want to help me.” She turned to me and saw that I wasn’t following with what she said. “Look!” It appeared she was getting frustrated that she couldn’t find the right words to say. “I need to find this dragon! And soon! I need to know if you’re going to help me or hurt me!”
There was a brief pause. She regained her breath and tried to keep calm. “If you come with me,” she started, “I won’t lie; things are going to be rough. You already know about the beasts and other obvious dangers about this place. You’ll have to keep up with me, no doubt you’ll find that difficult. Also, there’s the chance you may have to go very, very far away from home. I judge it would take only a few weeks, but the way things have been since I got here, it may take even longer than that.” She paused again, then added the thought, “And there is always the chance you may die.”
That shook me. I could die? I knew I wasn’t ready for that. But... there was something about the way she said it, something that made me wonder why she added that last thought. What did she mean by that?
But then I thought about Sylphi, about all of the other villagers. The dragon was a danger to everyone, not just me and Kitiraa. I remembered my mother and little sister back home. My poor mother, she was frail enough after Father died, and Kirima, she’s only eight years old. I didn’t know what I would do if anything happened to either of them. And Sylphi... my old friend. Someone had to help her. I couldn’t simply sit around anymore. That damned dragon has officially made it personal!
I turned back to Kitiraa. She was just staring at me while I was deep in thought. Her face was sad, but by now it wasn’t so unusual. She always seemed sad, to me anyway. Sad or angry. Even though I’d only known her for a day or two, it made me wonder if she was ever happy. Suddenly, she looked away from me, and turned her attention back to her feet. Her face was even sadder than before. She sighed. It was a sound of sorrow, of grief.
“I’ll come.” I said suddenly, to break the silence. Her face jolted back up to me, full of shock. I suppose she wasn’t expecting me to say yes. “I want to help. No matter the cost.” I took a deep breath. I realized I had stopped breathing for a minute. ‘Even if I die.’ I thought.
Kitiraa turned away from me again, but kept her cool. “Okay...” she stood up suddenly and brushed off the dirt on the backside of her pants. “In that case, we shouldn’t sit around. We’re gonna need supplies, food, you’re gonna need a weapon...” she trailed off, apparently in her own world at the moment. She began walking in the wrong direction, away from Okia. I got up and pointed my hand toward her, calling after her. “Kitiraa!” She turned quickly like the strike of a snake. “What!” she answered back, harshly.
“You’re... uh...” I’d forgotten what I was going to say. “You’re... going the wrong... way.” I finally stammered out. She paused, looked around, and noticed I was telling the truth. She came back slowly, head down, and asked, “Luneth... which way...” I pointed her in the right direction. “Thanks.” she quickly said, obviously embarrassed. “Welcome to the team.” she added as she walked away.
. . .
We were heading back to Okia; Kitiraa and I were nearly there. I was beginning to become curious as to why we were here. From the way she’d reacted to Sylphi being taken, I think Kitiraa was out of leads. And didn’t she say something about supplies? Maybe that’s why we were here.
“Hey, Kitiraa?” I asked her.
“Yeah? What?” she asked back. I noticed she was a lot calmer now. Almost like nothing was wrong. In fact, it’s the most calm I’ve seen her since she got here. It was actually a little unusual to see her this way. Wait, what was I going to say?
“Uh, what exactly are we doing here?”
“Stocking up, among other things.” She sat down under a shady tree in view of the village. She brushed her smooth black hair out of her eyes, and put her hands on her head to rest. “Like I said before, this isn’t going to be a camping trip. It’ll be dangerous. We need supplies like food, water, a pack, clothes, probably some canvas or rope, I need to make more bait--” whatever that means, I thought. “--medicine, information, and I can tell you right now, there is no way in hell I’m taking you along without a weapon.”
“Okay, makes sense to me.” But then I thought. “How do we get all of that?”
“How else? Walk up to the front door and say hi.”
“Really?” I asked in disbelief. “What are we supposed to say? ‘I’m sorry sir, but your daughter has been kidnapped by a dragon and is most likely going to be eaten? We need supplies?’”
“Actually, yeah.” she calmly replied. “But not like that. You need to sell it.”
“Sell what?” She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Oh, Luneth.” she said. She got up, stretched, and shook her head a little to fix her hair. “You know what, just watch the master at work.” She ran off to the center of the village. I followed.
“She’s gone! She’s gone!” Kitiraa started crying franticly. She was acting hysterical! “She’s been taken! She’s gone!” The people came out of their houses, and gathered in the center around her. They ate up every word that came from her mouth!
“Are you okay?”
“What happened?”
“What’s going on?”
“Is the dragon going to come back?”
“Will this ever stop?”
 “Are we safe?”
The questions kept coming, Kitiraa kept acting, and the people were becoming more and more nervous. Suddenly, the patriarch came out of his house and saw from the confusion and terror that something was definitely wrong. When he saw Kitiraa in the middle of the trouble, he clearly became angered. He glared at her until she saw him and they made eye contact. He signaled for her to come inside. She walked slowly, still acting, moving as though she was half dead with a horrified look on her face. I caught up with her. I simply stared. I couldn’t say anything. I probably had a shocked look on my face, because when I came up to her, she whispered in my ear, ‘And THAT is how you sell it.’ She went ahead of me a few steps, a with slight smirk on her face, and left the crowd to it’s chaos.
Wow.
. . .
We sat down on the floor around the table. The patriarch was pacing back and forth across the room. I couldn’t really tell if he was angry for all of the trouble Kitiraa caused, or nervous because of the bad news we were obviously going to tell him. I turned to Kitiraa. She was apparently still acting. She was staring at the floor, acting anxious, like the news she was going to tell him was a memory she didn’t want to have. I didn’t want to admit it, but she was good. Like, really good. Although I didn’t quite understand what it was she was doing, it certainly was helping, so I didn’t complain or ask questions. I simply, ‘watched the master at work’.
“Dammit!” I turned sharply to the patriarch. He had stopped pacing by now, and was sitting opposite to us. But he seemed in a worse state than before. His hand covered his face, which by now was pale and white. He wore a look of sorrow on his face, of grief. It was almost the very life had drained from him.
“How could this happen!” he exclaimed. “How could you just stand there while my daughter has been kidnapped!”
Kitiraa just kept looking at the floor.
“Answer me!” he cried.
“I’m sorry, sir.” she said softly. It was obvious she didn’t cope well with people being angry with her. Or was she acting? “I had little to no control over the situation.”
Lie. I saw the look in her eye, talking to it. She was totally in control.
“The dragon acted of it’s own accord; I couldn’t stop it.”
Truth. She freaked out when the thing bolted.
“I did all I could. We both did.”
We?
At this, he (the patriarch) slid his hand down his face, and leaned back. He looked at the floor with tired dark brown eyes. “You’ve got him caught up in this too?” he questioned, pointing at me. Kitiraa appeared baffled. “No sir, nothing of the sort!” she retorted. “Luneth has volunteered. I... I would never force someone to... to... I wouldn’t even think of having some one like him... join a mission so dangerous!” She was slipping on her words, like she was insulted he would even think of asking a question like that. Probably more acting.
He didn’t seem like he was buying it. “Is that true?” he asked. He had an inquisitive look in his eye. I swallowed. “Yes, sir.” I replied. “I voluntarily joined her. I want to help.”
“You see?” Kitiraa jumped in. “I didn’t force anyone to do anything. I even made sure to tell him the dangers of the mission. He knows what he signed up for.”
He sighed. The poor patriarch. His wife and parents died in the war, and Aleena was taken by that fiendish dragon. Sylphi was he had left, and now she’s gone too. “Alright.” he finally said. “But hear me, Sage. If anything happens to that boy, I don’t care who you are, I will have your head.” She appeared relaxed. Calmly, she replied, “Don’t worry sir. I will take every precaution with him.” He dismissed us, saying we should ask around for the supplies we needed. He even gave us a blessing.
But wait a minute. Did he call her a Sage?
. . .
Kitiraa
“Alright, do we have everything we need?” I heard Luneth ask. I checked our little pack of supplies. A week’s worth of food and water, spare clothes for Luneth (because I have my dressphere), a thin, gray cotton blanket, a first aid kit, a few phials of fishing bait (I borrowed some ingredients and made some myself), a small iron pot (perfect for hanging over a fire), some fire starters, and a little map of areas where the dragon has been spotted, courtesy of the friendly neighborhood cartographer, Leo. But something was missing...
“Where’s your weapon?” I asked him.
“Uh...”
“Luneth, I’m not going to take you along without a weapon.” I told him through clenched teeth. “Where’s your weapon?” He had a look on his face of discomfort. ‘I have a weapon,’ I heard him think, ‘I just can’t use it.’
“Don’t tell me you don’t know how to fight...” I said tiredly. I really, really didn’t have time for this. And I especially didn’t have time to teach him. We needed to get on the road. Time was being wasted the longer we stayed here. And time was not something Sylphi had...
“I can fight.” he replied. I looked him in the eye. He was telling the truth. “I can fight, but the only weapon I know how to use... I can’t take it.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. Who cares? I could just steal it for you, dammit. We don’t have time for this...
“It was my father’s.” he said quietly.
I saw the look in his eyes. Memories flooded to him, memories that were better off not known. I saw them, just as vividly has he did. Memories of his father, fighting, training, teaching little Luneth how to fight, to defend himself. Memories of his father’s funeral... I understood. There was no way he could desecrate a memory as precious as his late father’s sword. But still, we needed to get going. And soon.
“Okay.” I said finally. “Is there any other sword you can use?” I asked softly. “Maybe the blacksmith has one you could use.” He looked a little confused. ‘How did she know it was a sword?’ he thought.
Oops.
“Uh, come on,” I said, grabbing his hand. “We need to find you a new sword.” I dragged him off to the local blacksmith. “But Kitiraa...” he he protested. I shot him a slight glare. “No buts. We need to get you a weapon. We’re not leaving until you have one, end of story. Got it?” He nodded in reply. His mind was clear of all thoughts of me knowing about the sword. Phew. Almost blew my cover there.

Chapter 5
We were on the road, Luneth was nice enough to carry the pack for me. And by that, I mean I volunteered at first, but when he saw how ‘exhausted’ I was, he took it from me. He’s alright, but way too easy to predict. Not that I’m complaining.
The pale, olive green pack was strapped to his back, and sheathed at his waist was his new sword. Beautiful thing. In fact, I was surprised the blacksmith gave it to us free. It was silver with a soft darksteel handle, and had a mirror-like reflection all the way from the tip down to the hilt. Light weight, easy to handle, Luneth seemed to like it enough. There were runes carved on the blade, but I was quite surprised to see them there. They were written in Drayko; dragon script. Few people in Aavia even know about this ancient writing, and even less know what it means. These particular runes said, “Courage”. I thought the sword was perfect for Luneth. It almost reminded me of him. And besides, he was brave enough to join me, wasn’t he?
“Ah!” I cried. I slipped on a loose rock, and started tumbling. Again? Luckily this time, I only went about five feet. But it hurt all the same. My already sore bruises started aching again. “Ow...” I muttered. Luneth came running down. “Kitiraa, are you alright?” he asked me. He helped me up.
“Yeah, I’m alright.” I managed to say. “You guys really need to put in some trails or, something.” I brushed myself off, groaning and wincing at the sore bruises that now hurt even worse than they had this morning. “Ah... that really hurts...” I examined the casualties. A few more bruises on my arms, judging by how sore my legs felt I assumed they got beat up too, and the ones I had the day before hurt at least twice as much now. Damn. Got to keep moving...
“Are you sure you’re alright? That looks really bad...” Luneth started rambling. Okay, you’ve got to give him credit for being so sweet. But right now, I didn’t need his pity; it was only a fall. Strange, though. This seems like the first time he’s noticed my bruises. Then again, even though they were sore, I’d nearly forgotten about them too. “Does it hurt?” he asked. “Duh.” I snapped. I sighed. “But really, it was only a fall. We need to keep moving if we’re gonna reach it by nightfall.”
“Uh, reach what, exactly?” he questioned. I kept walking, he followed. It was almost a little strange having him follow me, him being the one who more about this forest than I did. “The place we’re going to stay for the night.” I calmly replied, trying not to wince at the pain my bruises caused.
“And where would that be?” he asked. He’s just full of questions, isn’t he?
I sighed and pulled out my map, the one Pyran had given me one my first day. A little bit to the southwest, maybe a half mile from here, was the cave I had stayed at that first night I was in Aavia. I showed him the map, and pointed at he spot. “That’s where we’re staying.”
“A cave?” he asked.
“Yes, a cave.” I folded up the map and put it back in the pocket on my belt. “That’s the cave I stayed at my first day here.” I told him. He didn’t appear to have a reaction, but his thoughts sounded relieved. ‘At least she didn’t have to stay outside...’ he thought.
I was thinking about his thought... I think... (temporary brain fry), when I was interrupted.
“Where are we going? Tomorrow, I mean.” he asked me.
Dammit. He won’t stop asking questions. Ah, well. At least he gave me something to do, instead of just walking. And this silence was making me a little uncomfortable, anyway. Problem was though, I didn’t even know myself. “Let’s get to the cave first, then we can talk about tomorrow. Okay?” I asked him. He seemed a little surprised. ‘She seems so calm...’ he thought. ‘It’s almost strange...’ Strange? Oh, that’s right. He thinks the only emotions I can feel are fury and pain. He doesn’t even know how true that might be...
It was silent again for a while, I couldn’t take it. “Luneth...” I asked. He looked up. I guess he was watching the path, trying not to fall, or something. He brushed his hair out of his eyes, and for a moment, I could have sworn they sparkled.
“Yeah?” he replied.
“What’s this war everyone keeps talking about?” I asked him.
Suddenly he stopped. I kept walking, but when I didn’t hear his footsteps following, I stopped too and turned. His head was bowed slightly so his long bangs were in his eyes, and I couldn’t see the top half of his face. His thoughts sounded sad. Grieving almost. Then I figured it out. Those memories of his late father sparring, training, fighting, showing off his impressive swordsmanship; this must be how his father died. In battle.
“Luneth...” I tried to console him. But I held back, I’m not even supposed to know his father is dead. Still, from the troubled state his mind was in, I could tell he threatened to break down. Normally I wouldn’t care. I’ve never cared about other people too much. But something was different about him. I almost couldn’t stand to see him suffer. I reached out toward him, and put my hand on his shoulder. By this point, I wished I had just kept my big mouth shut.
“The war was seven years ago,” he said. I could tell he was trying to sound strong, like nothing was wrong. But his soul, which unfortunately for him I could read like an open book, said otherwise. His voice quivered. His shoulder was trembling under my hand. His hands were balled up in fists. He wasn’t fooling me.
“I was only eight when the war started.” he began. “It was more like a massacre than a war, though. The elves in the northern territory, they couldn’t stand us humes. They’d always hated us, for even being in their forest, but until then we had lived in peace. Then one day they just started attacking. Probably one of their little 'holy wars'. They killed everyone who was outside of their homes. Mostly women and children...”
He started trembling again. I saw his memories. They were horrible indeed. Bloody sliced up bodies all over, the majority of them with their throats slit. For a moment I feared the high quality work of the assassin that did these terrible things. Not even the best killer I knew would be capable of the perfectly straight lines that were nearly paper thin across the victims’ necks. I wondered if Rogue was a part of this. He did say he was an assassin...
“My father, he was a warrior. He was strong and brave, but he was a bit too stubborn for his own good. He got out his sword and prepared for battle. He said that ‘enough was enough’. He didn’t want to see anyone else killed. I told him not to go, but he didn’t listen to anyone, not even me. About 15 more men came with him, armed and clad in armor, and they set out. None of them returned alive.” At this, his voice wavered and cracked. If he spoke, he would start to cry. So he remained silent. I knew the feeling.
I took my hand off his shoulder, unsure of what to do. I can’t even call him my friend, and he’s just told me about a very heart breaking moment in his life, a very personal moment; his father’s death. I didn’t understand. Because my brain wouldn’t work, instinct took over, and I guess my first instinct was to comfort him. I grabbed him and held him close. I didn’t know why, but it felt right. I think if it were me, I’d want to be held too.
He didn’t react at first, but slowly his soul began to regain it’s strength. “I’m very sorry for your loss,” I told him. “I’m sure that your father is very happy in heaven. And I’m sure he’s proud of you.” I didn’t really know what I was saying. But that didn’t stop the words from coming out of my mouth, unfortunately.
“Thank you.” he said quietly.
I looked up. His eyes were sparkling, not with tears of sadness, but tears of joy. He released himself from my grasp, and kept walking. I didn’t follow. I kind of stayed where I was for a while. I felt like I was paralyzed. I didn’t turn and walk with him. I didn’t say a word. I was frozen.
Did... did he just thank me?
“Kitiraa, something wrong?” he asked.
I slowly turned and smiled. Rule #12: One of the best ways to escape a hostile situation is with a smile, sincere or not. “No, nothing’s wrong.” I called. “Coming!” I ran to catch up with him, and we kept on going towards the cave. Despite this whole scene, we still seemed to have enough time. “Really?” he asked. “Okay. Sometimes you scare me, you know?” I laughed a little bit. “Well, sorry I guess.” was all I could say. He smiled, even with the tears in his eyes. But as soon as he stopped looking, my smile disappeared. Sometimes, for the benefit of others, it’s best to put on your smile, or at least try. Even if the world is falling apart.
He thanked me. No one has ever said thank you to me before.
. . .
We made it to the cave before dusk, thank God. I sure didn’t want to have another encounter with an elf, especially since the next one might not be as nice a Rogue was. When we got there, the first thing I did was drop to the floor and lie down. I was tired. These last few days have really worn me out. ‘Sleep. Such a wonderful word,’ I thought to myself.
“Well, come on in.” I called. Luneth was still standing outside the mouth of the cave. ‘She stayed here?’ he thought. Wow, he says that like it’s a sty or something. Despite his best efforts, he can be really irritating.
“Look, I know it’s not much, but I don’t ask for much anyway. Just, make yourself at home. Okay?” I got up and head outside. “I’m gonna get some firewood before dark, alright? Stay put. I’ll be right back, don’t even think of leaving the cave.” I called. I ran off before he could even reply.
When I was out looking for wood, nothing particularly interesting happened. Doesn’t look like Rogue’s gonna show up. Or any other elf. Good. I don’t want any more little ‘visits’ from anyone today. Things were quiet, and I was alone. It was... peaceful. I wanted to stay out here for a while longer, but it was getting dark, and I needed to get back.
“Kitiraa, you’re back.” Luneth welcomed me as I walked into the cave.
“Did you stay here like a good boy?” I asked him.
He nodded. “Yeah. It was really boring though. Glad you came back with the wood so soon. I’m starving.”
Luneth helped me start a fire, and before long we were eating some grilled fish the villagers had given us. Starving was an understatement. I was freaking dying of hunger. I hadn’t eaten all day (no thanks to Luneth; he scared my fish away), and I literally had to bite my lip to stop me from eating the fish raw while it cooked. While we were eating, Luneth was staring at me.
“What?”
“You must’ve been really hungry...” he said. He was watching me eat. I probably looked like I was starving. “Well, yeah.” I replied. “I didn’t get any breakfast, so...” My voice trailed off, and I looked at the ground.
He handed me his fish. I looked up. He wouldn’t look me in the eye. “Here, take mine.” he said. “I’m not that hungry.”
Didn’t he just say he was starving? I didn’t know what to say, so I took the fish. I looked at him again. He looked down into the fire, with his legs crossed and hands resting on his lap. “Thank you.” I said, and I began to eat. His thoughts were racing. He was definitely worried about something. One single thought was made clear. I think it said, “It’s the least I could do. I scared her fish away, and she had to go hungry.”
So, he did remember that. And from the looks of it felt sorry for it too.
“So...” Luneth started.
“So what?”
“So what was with that acting? Back at the village, I mean. You seemed pretty good at it. Do you... need to act often?”
Hm. What do I tell him? He can’t know I’m a thief, I’ll lose my advantage.
“Um... only... when I need to.” I told him. I got to turn the conversation on him. “Life in the city can be rough, you know? You need to do what you need to to survive. That’s something I’m sure you already know. I mean, living out here, on elven territory, that’s suicide on it’s own. I’m good, but I’m not that good. I probably wouldn’t last too long out here.”
“Huh, yeah. I guess.”
Things went on, slow and actually somewhat uncomfortable. At some point we both got bored and said we should get to bed. He fell asleep pretty fast, but me... I stayed up all night. I couldn’t sleep, no matter what I tried. Something was making me anxious, and I couldn’t figure out what. It was actually kind of irritating. When I finally did fall asleep, something happened that almost never happens for me: I had a dream.
It was dark, and hazy. I could barely see; it was like there was some kind of mist everywhere. Every now and then a bright flash of light lit up everything, like lightning, and I got a glimpse of where I was. It looked like I was by some kind of lake.
My dagger was in my hand, but I don’t remember grabbing for it. There was some kind of sticky, warm substance all over the blade. It was still really dark, and I couldn’t see what it was, but I reached for it and touched it. It was warm, and fresh, whatever it was. I rubbed it between my fingers. Then a flash of light came and I saw what it was.
It was blood.
What was blood doing on my blade?
I began to think of all of the reasons why fresh blood was on my dagger. I cut myself. I don’t feel any pain. It fell from the sky. Why would blood fall from the freaking sky? I killed an animal, or something. I don’t even know where I am, why would I kill an animal? But then I thought... no...
Did I kill someone?
I brought the blade up to my face, and another flash of light came. My reflection appeared in the blade. I was absolutely covered in blood.
Then I woke up screaming.

Chapter 6
Luneth
I woke up to the sound of screaming, a really, high pitched scream that pierced the air. I jumped up from where I was sleeping, hit my head on the ceiling (ow...), and leaned up against the cave walls with my arms outspread, startled and breathing fast. At first I thought the worst, that someone was hurt, but then I saw Kitiraa and my fear quickly turned to irritation. Figures. I stay one night with her, and I’ve already got a head injury and nightmares.
Kitiraa was sleeping on her back, apparently, but now she’s sitting upright, holding her knees to her chest. She was breathing fast and hard; whatever it was that scared her, it must’ve been pretty bad, to startle her like this. But at the moment I didn’t care. Judging from the position of the moon, it was only five or six in the morning.
“What the hell? Do you always wake up screaming?” I asked, trying to make as clear as possible my irritation.
She thought about this, and for a moment all you could hear was our frantic breathing. “Oh, no,” she replied. “This doesn’t usually happen for me.”
“Then what’s the special occasion?”
She took a deep breath and calmed herself. “Nightmares.”
So she had a nightmare too?
She got up and looked out at the sky. I think she was trying to tell what time it was. When I told her it was about five and a half hours past midnight, she freaked out. “It’s that late?!” Late? The sun won’t even be up for another hour and a half. She scrambled up and started grabbing everything on the cave floor.
“You, uh, want to tell me what’s going on here?” I asked her. She stopped for maybe a second and a half and then continued. “Okay then, maybe not.” She only shook her head. “Luneth, grab everything, we got to get moving.” She picked up the pack and started stuffing everything inside. The only things she kept out were my sword, her weapons, and whatever was in that stupid pocket belt of hers. She grabbed the now completely stuffed pack and threw it at my face. “Get moving.” she said.
“Okay, what’s going on here?” I asked, still as confused as I was when she woke me up two minutes ago screaming.
“We’ve got a place to be in half an hour, so move it or I’ll stab your ass.”
Isn’t she lovely?
“Where are we going?” I asked. “That is, if you’re going to tell me?” As I said that, I started walking out of the cave, because let’s face it, she scares the crap out of me. “There’s, uh, someone I want you to meet.” she said. Why does that make feel like she’s gonna kill me? “She’s really important, and maybe she tell us more about Isaaru.” Isaaru? Oh, she means the dragon. She pulled out her map, and pointed to a spot about a mile south of us. “That’s where she lives.” She pointed south. “Let’s go.”
After a while I decided to break the silence. “So, who is this person we’re going to meet?” I asked her. She turned back to look at me, like she’d forgotten I was there. “Oh, her. Her name is Rose, but everyone calls her Rosie. She’s... uh... special. She knows a lot about dragons and their behavior, and in some cases more than me. I thought that since she’s in the area, we might as well ask her what she knows.”
At least she’s calmed down. “How do you know her?” I asked.
“What do you mean?”
“You’re from Ivvana, right? How do you know someone from Aavia if you’ve never been here before?”
“You know how I said she was special? One of the things that make her special is she’s a familiar.”
That didn’t really help. “A what?”
“A familiar. Assuming that you don’t know what that is, a familiar is like a spiritual helper. Normally they’re given to witches and mages, to help them with their magic. But some familiars don’t have a master, and they use their powers for whatever they choose, good or evil.”
“And what does that have to do with you?” I asked, still a little confused.
“Well, familiars are one of the only living creatures besides Sages that can actually cross between realms, like how I came here. Rosie used to belong to a mage in Eruyt, the city I live in. When he... died... she was all by herself, and we quickly became friends. A few months ago, though, she decided to try living on her own, so she thought it would be best if she started somewhere new. Earth was out of the question; the people there are so selfish, petty, and ignorant; who could live with them? So, she came here.”
Hm. Makes sense to me. I probably wouldn’t last with the Earthans either. I’m better off with the elves here.
After another five or ten minutes of talking, we came across a river. Weird. I never knew there was a river here. Then again, I haven’t been this far into the forest before. I guess there are things about the Kyr Woods that I still don’t know.
The river was wider and deeper than the one I was so used to. It could be the same river, just farther upstream. The whole place seemed peaceful... the trees were like willows, with low-hanging branches, smooth white bark and silver-green leaves, giving lots of shade. There were lilies, water lilies, floating along the riverbanks; they smelled fragrant, and sweet. I couldn’t even believe that such a beautiful place could exist in my forest without me knowing, considering I’d lived here so long. But at the time, I didn’t care. I was just wrapped up in the beauty of the river.
I actually forgot Kitiraa was there until she shoved me and I fell on my face.
“Oh, damn!” I cursed. I got up slowly, shaking the dirt off of me. “What the hell was that for!” Kitiraa was smiling like the little devil she was. “Hee hee hee... just making sure you were conscious.” I hate her so much right now. I wonder how hard you have to swing a rock over someone’s head before their skull cracks...
Then I looked up, and I saw just the strangest thing. It was a fox... yeah, a fox, about fifty feet away. But I could tell it wasn’t a normal fox. It’s fur was fiery red-orange, and it was larger than most foxes; actually it was taller than a wolf. It looked like it was trying to fish in the river, because it was sitting on it’s haunches staring at the water. That’s another thing that was strange: even at this distance I could see it’s piercing jade green eyes. Almost like Kitiraa’s eyes...
I started walking towards it for a closer look. Naturally, I expected Kitiraa to object, but she didn’t say anything. That’s when I knew there was something wrong.
The fox noticed me, and looked me over. I kept moving toward it, even though at this point it was pretty obvious it was a stupid idea. Then the next thing I know it’s running towards me, and I think I had thoughts of running away, but by the time my legs decided to move it was within arms reach. Then I get slammed on the ground pinned to the riverbank, unable to move. The fox had an angered look in it’s unnaturally green eyes. At this moment, three thoughts were going through my mind. One, I think I’m going to die.Two, why on earth did I walk towards this thing? And three, why isn’t Kitiraa helping me?
Then all of a sudden, the fox gets off of me and runs somewhere behind me. I slowly sit up and turn, only to find the fox licking Kitiraa’s face while she laughs hysterically. Oh, sure, you’ll try to kill me, but when you see her, you act all friendly.
Kitiraa managed to get out from under the fox and ran over to the riverbank a little bit farther upstream. She bent over and picked something up... a kimono, I think. It was sky blue with water lilies and white roses all over it. It had been folded neatly on the riverbank, and I felt kind of stupid for not noticing it before. The fox came over to Kitiraa, and sat down in front of her. Then Kitiraa slowly wrapped the kimono around it, and tied it. Then the strangest thing happened: The fox turned into a hume. It slowly stood up as fox like features began to form a human face, and delicate paws extended into fingers. What was this? Was it magic, or an illusion? I had never witnessed anything like this before. The fox stood tall now, fur peeling back to reveal smooth skin, and arms coming out of the sleeves of the kimono. However, it's tail, claws, and fangs stayed as they were, making this creature seem like a demon.
Well, as it turned out, it was a she, with tan skin and long, fiery red-orange hair. Kitiraa picked up a ribbon that was the same color as the kimono and tied up it’s-I mean her-hair. She smiled, and piercing gaze met mine. She looked a little confused. Kitiraa noticed this and said, “Oh, Luneth, I’d like you to meet Rosie. Rosie, this is Luneth. He’s going to be traveling with me for a while.”
“Wait a minute. You’re Rose?” I asked, pointing at the she-fox.
She responded with an indignant look on her face. “You act like you’ve never seen a hydra before.” She turned her nose in the air, acting all prideful.
“A what?”


Chapter 7
Kitiraa

It took a while to explain to Luneth what a hydra was. He’s not exactly the brightest of people, if you know what I mean. “Luneth, a hydra is a fox-like creature with magical abilities.” I explained. “Many of them are shapeshifters. On Earth in a country called Japan, they’re often called ‘kitsune’, and are dubbed mischievous creatures. However, only some of them can take on the form of a hume. Like I said, Rosie’s special.” He was confused, but I think he understood. I think he was more confused by the fact he just saw a fox transform into a human being. I can’t exactly blame him for that.
After that, Rosie and I started walking towards the woods. A short walk away was her house, and we needed to talk. At first Luneth didn’t follow. I gestured for him to come along.
“Hey, uh, if it’s all right with you, I’ll just stay out here by the river.” he said. I figured he was scared of Rosie. Not that she’s very intimidating in her human form. Actually, she’s quite adorable. She’s got these big eyes and the sweetest smile; it’s nearly impossible to not like her. So what was his problem?
“Well, is there a particular reason you wanna stay outside?” I asked. I was feeling a little bit unusually curious.
At this point, Luneth cleared his throat, like he was going to say something important. “I don’t know about you, but I’m just a little concerned about how many lunatics are gonna be on this trip.” he retorted. With a little laugh, he added, “MY limit is one.” As he said this, he held up one finger. “That goes for how many lunatics are in the same room with me, too. I’d like to stay in one piece, if you don’t mind.”
So, he was scared of us. I figured.
“Fine, do as you wish. I’ll just fill you in later.” I told him. “Just don’t go wandering off, okay? I don’t want to have to go looking for you.” He began walking back to the riverbank. “Hey!” I called. “Promise to stay put?” He raised his hand, signaling to me to just go ahead. Whatever.
I turned to Rosie. “Let’s go.” And with that we were making the short walk to her hut in the woods.
“Hey, what’s up with him?” Rosie asked me as we walked. “It’s not like you to take along someone like him; or anyone at all, for that matter.” It was true, I preferred my own company more than anyone else’s. Whether it was choice or just loneliness, I was almost always by myself. But it got me thinking. Why was I taking him along? He could fight, I knew that much, but I hadn’t seen how well just yet. He’s not the most friendly of people, and doesn’t know very much either. In fact, his chances of being an asset instead of an anchor just dropped. But then again, that day in the woods when we chased Isaaru... I just so readily accepted his offer, even though I had expected otherwise. And at the riverbank; I was mad for sure, furious...! But I couldn’t kill him. I just couldn’t kill him despite all the anger in my soul.
“Hey!” Rosie called. “Hello? Could you get your head out of the clouds? I asked you a question?” I snapped out of it. I laughed a little bit. “Sorry, my mind just tends to wander.” I told her.
“These are things I know all to well, Kitiraa.” she replied. “But seriously, why is he here? It’s very unlike you to trust a stranger with what could be your life.” At this, I laughed. “Rosie, I know what I’m doing-” Sort of, I thought, “-and I can tell you with near certainty that Luneth won’t be a problem. He can fight well enough-” Even though I’ve never actually seen him fight... “-he makes an excellent guide, and besides, he practically begged me to come along.” Even though it was quite the opposite... “Sure, he can be a nuisance, but he’s not really doing any harm, so I just figured, ‘why not?’” Besides, I thought, I could use the company. I know I’m normally on my own, but his is a company I can learn to enjoy.
Rosie smiled. “Well, if you’re sure, I won’t question you’re judgement... but I don’t know, he’s not exactly the sharpest sword in the shed.” At this, we laughed together. “Yeah, I know,” I responded. “But it’s not really his fault he doesn’t know anything. Once I get it through his head, he seems to get it. I just don’t think he’s ever been told.” By the time I had finished my sentence, Rosie’s little house came into view. It wasn’t very big, but it didn’t need to be. Enough to house maybe one or two people, it was no bigger than one room and a bed mat in the corner. It was kind of like a nomadic hut, and could all be picked up and carried away if she ever wanted to move, which was handy, because if I remember right, Rosie never sits still in one place for very long.
“Well, now that we’re here,” She said as she pushed back the curtain that served as the door, “We can get down to business.” We went inside, I took off my black sandals, and sat down on a tatami mat on the floor while Rosie went over to her little bookcase. She ran her finger down through the titles. Her library was most impressive. In truth, she was probably the only person who know more about dragons than me. When I was little (well, little-er), I used to come over all the time, and read her extensive collection of books, all of them with vast knowledge on dragons. Actually, she’s the one who taught me all I know about the extraordinary creatures.
“So, who is this dragon you’re looking for?” she asked. “Do you happen to have a name?” I thought hard. Pyran hadn’t given me a name for the dragon Wyrm. Then again, I shouldn’t’ve expected him to care that much. It’s MY job to learn all about him, after all. Wait, didn’t he say something last we met? I thought back, and remembered; he said a single word: Isaaru.
“Hey, what do you got on ‘Isaaru’?” I asked her. “When we spoke, he said ‘Isaaru’. I assume that to be his name.” She looked through the seemingly endless row of books. I know the bookcase is magicked to hold as many books as she pleases. Even though it’s no bigger than maybe 3 or 4 feet off the ground, but when you look close enough, it’s a collection that would put any library to shame. “Isaaru, Isaaru... no, I don’t think I see anything by that na--” She stopped suddenly. “Wait. I think I’ve heard that name before. Just how old is this dragon?” She asked. I shrugged. “Pyran said he was an elder Wyrm; at least 1000 years old.” I told her. “The battle scars up and down his arms and face proved that much. Why?”
“1000 years old. You’re sure?” she asked again. I nodded. I was a little puzzled, but whatever it is, it’s important. “Oh boy...” At this Rosie sat down. “This is not good...” she sighed and put her hand on her face. “Kitiraa, I think this is a little bit more than a contained incident involving a hungry dragon.”
“What do you mean?”
“Kitiraa, Isaaru is the name of an old dragon tamer; he’s mentioned in texts dating back as far as 1000 years old.”
I still didn’t get it. What’s a dead dragon tamer got to do with the Wyrm I’m following?
“Kitiraa, he’s... he’s not just another tamer, he... he tried to destroy the world.”
What did she say?
. . .

“Addramelech, the Wroth... you’re sure that’s the name of the dragon?”
“No, I’m not sure. The tomes say that there were three dragons, Addramelech, Ultima, and Zalera. It doesn’t necessarily say which is which.”
I was running out of time. I needed to leave this place with some solid information, and soon. An hour has already passed, and we’ve poured over dusty old books and still, we have nothing. Rosie, I trust in your knowledge, but Luneth and I need to leave...
“Aha!” she exclaimed. I sighed in relief as I moved towards her. Finally, solid evidence! “What, what did you find?” I asked her, glad to have finally found something.
“Well, it says here that the three dragons were born of three places, Ultima of the water, Addramelech of the storm, and Zalera of the fire.” she read.
“Meaning?” I asked impatiently.
“Meaning, that the dragon your looking for can be narrowed down. What was his coloring again, red?”
I thought back. I nodded. “Yeah, a dull red.”
At this she smiled. “Then your dragon can only be one: Zalera.”
She showed me the book, pages worn but well cared for, and in the center of the page were the dragons. Sure enough, Zalera was colored dull red. The diagram was impressive, it looked just like him.
“So, what does this mean for me?” I asked her.
“Well, we at least know who this dragon is now.” said Rosie. “It’s not much, but it’s a start. The way I see it, this is good news and bad news. The good news is, we know more about him. I think your next move is to find the dragon’s place of birth and work from there. The sooner you can find out his weakness, the better.”
“And the bad news?”
“Well... the bad news is there’s two more dragons you have to worry about...”
WHAT.
“I was not informed that I’d have THREE dragons to take care of. This ‘Zalera’ is more than enough for me to handle right now as it is.” Well... this is definitely irritating... “That stupid Pyran. Always sending me on stupid errands without all of the information...” I took a deep breath. Getting angry now will not help me. Think positive thoughts... positive thoughts... impaling Pyran with a wooden stake... strangling Yunae to death... shaving off all of Shiva’s ‘precious’ long soft hair... hitting Luneth in the head a few times... getting Pyran drunk and shoving him off a cliff... taking on a couple of rounds with some of the best palace guards... Gosh, I really need to hit something right now...
I shook my head. Focus. Breathe... you can do all of those things later. Must find dragon now.
“So... anyways...” Rosie had a scared look on her face. She must’ve seen my horrifying expressions... I guess I do think of some scary stuff. Eh, that’s normal. Moving on now.
“Uh... so, where is this dragon from? Meaning, where should I start?”
She snapped back into reality and began thumbing through the pages of the book. “Hmm... I believe that Zalera’s birth-place is not far from here... Yes, it says here that his egg was crafted from the fires of Mount Rizumu. It’s a volcano about 50 or 60 miles southeast from here, maybe only... five days walking time? Of course, if Lunakai were here, she could just give you guys a ride and you’d be there in a matter of minutes...”
“Rosie, you know I couldn’t take her on a journey like this.” It’s true, that taking her along would make things a lot simpler, and I do miss her very much... but no. I couldn’t take her to Aavia. If she got hurt, I don’t know what I would do.
“I know, I know, you left her behind for her safety and all that. But, you should know she misses you and wishes you’d have taken her.” she replied with a smirk.
“What?” I cried, shocked. “How do you know about that? And what do you know what she’s feeling?” I thought I was the only one who could do that...
She only laughed. “Kitiraa, dear, I think you should know by now that hydras are special. Of course I can sense Lu’s feelings. I’ve always had a connection to those creatures that most humes can’t understand.”
Oh, yeah, huh... hydras and dragons have a lot in common, spirit-wise, anyways.
“Whatever... I just want to get this job over with. I just want to go... back home.”
Funny thing for me to say. Where is my home? I don’t exactly have one. I’ve never really had one.
Rosie saw my saddened expression. “You know as well as I do that Eruyt is no home for people like us. You don’t belong there, neither did I. That’s why I left.”
I only stared at my feet. “Eruyt has always been my home. That’s where my mother raised me, and where I met you. I... I belong there.” I replied with obvious uncertainty in my voice.
She hastily grabbed my right hand and took off my glove, being careful not to touch my bare skin. “Kitiraa, you don’t belong there. This does.” she told me as she pointed to the sacred Stone fastened to my hand. “The only reason you stay is because this bloody thing makes you want to.”
I jerked my hand back and put my glove back on. I didn’t want to admit it, but she was probably right. The Sagus Council is one of the main reasons I stay there. That and I wouldn’t have any other place to go.
“Eruyt is my birth-place. It’s where I was raised. If I don’t belong there, then where do I belong?” I asked her. She only put her hand on my shoulder, and looked me in the eye. “I don’t know. But it’s not for me to decide, Kitiraa. Someday, your heart will find it’s right match. It’ll find a place where you do belong, like I have here, in Aavia. Just, don’t give up and stay in Eruyt forever. I’m not saying you need to leave, but you should at least keep your mind open. Travel some more, explore a little, you’ll find the place you belong. Someday, I’m sure.”
I laughed a little bit. “Well, travel seems to be something I’ll be seeing a lot of. If the Council can convince me to come to Aavia, it seems I’ll be going to plenty of places in the near future.” At this, she laughed with me.
I told her that we needed to leave soon. It was still morning, and I’d like to get in as many miles as I can in a day, seeing how far we’ll be needing to walk. She said she understood, and gave me the book. “Are you sure? It’s not like you to just let me borrow a book, Rose. What if something bad happened to it? We are going to a volcano, after all.”
She only shook her head. “Take it. You’ll be needing it more than I. Besides, I trust you. You’re probably the only one I’d ever trust one of my books with.”
I smiled. It’s nice knowing that people have confidence in you. I took the book from her and held it carefully in my arms. In parting ways, I gave her a hug and a short goodbye, and began walking back to the river where Luneth was waiting. As I came closer to the river, I noticed Luneth, sitting on the riverbank. He seemed to be staring at the water... no, as I got closer, I saw that he was drawing. Yes, he was drawing in the soft sand with a stick he must’ve found nearby. Then as I looked down the bank, I saw it was covered with many of his drawings. Some already being slowly washed away by the waters, others looking as fresh as though they’d just been etched into the sand; all of them were marvels to behold. The drawings depicted wolves, deer, trees, just about anything he would’ve seen in the forest. All of them were beautiful and artfully made, though they were only sketches in the sand. The one he was working on currently was the strangest of them all: it was me. Softly in the sand, he was drawing my face. It was very realistic, except the woman in his sketch looked more beautiful than I am. ‘Is this how he sees me?’ I wondered.
“I didn’t know you were an artist.” I said softly. He jumped a little at the sound of my voice. He must not have heard me come up behind him. “Really? You like them then?” he asked me. I looked back down the riverbank, staring in awe of his creations. “Yes, I like them very much so. You drew them all yourself in only an hour?”
“Well, yes. I got bored. Needed something to do.” he simply replied, then went back to drawing my portrait. I sat down next to him on the bank.
“Y’know, Rosie doesn’t like graffiti.” I told him. He only laughed. “You honestly think these’ll last that long? I give them a day tops. The water will wash them away soon enough.” He kept drawing, appearing as though his mind was in another world. “Besides, it’s one of the things that makes art so beautiful. As much as I’d like them to last forever, it’s better if they only last so long. Like everything else in this world, it only lasts for an instant, before the tides of fate wash it away.” And with that, a sudden wave from the fast-moving river came and washed away half of the drawings farther down the riverbank. Very poetic indeed.
“I never knew you were so artistic, Luneth.” I said with a slight smile.
“Yes, well, there’s a whole lot I don’t know about you, so I think it’s only fair.” he replied.
I laughed. “Yes, I suppose it makes sense.” I stood up. My portrait was done. Like the rest of his works, it was beautiful. It looked just like me, or at least as accurate you can make a 2D drawing in the sand look. The woman in the sand was so beautiful... it made me smile to see that he thought that of me. I shook my head. Focus, girl. Don’t let your guard down.
Luneth stood up too. “So, what did you find out about the dragon?” he asked earnestly. I sighed. Long story, I thought.
“Well, his name is Zalera. He was born over 1000 years ago in the fires of Mount Rizumu. We’re headed there next, to see if we can find any more information.”
“Wait, did you say Zalera? Isn’t he one of the three dragons from that old legend?” I sighed. “Yes, Luneth, unfortunately for us, he is. Look, anyways, Rosie gave me this book to study if we needed any more information. It’s not much, but it’s a start. We’re going to walk a ways, then stop to eat in about 30 minutes. I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.” He agreed, and we laughed, like old friends.
I couldn’t get my mind off that portrait, though. As we started to walk off to the mountain, I looked back, and saw his creation, his image of me. It was so beautiful, I couldn’t help but stare. Then suddenly, the waters splashed off the rocks, and landed on the drawing, washing half of it away. Soon after came another wave, washing it away completely. Any evidence of the portrait was now gone.

Chapter 8
Luneth
My world has become so complicated in the last couple of days. I used to be a normal guy, or rather, as normal as a guy from around here can be. In fact, before now, I’d never even heard of hydras, or dragon whisperers, or this Kitiraa person with whom I was now traveling with. Now, I’m on a wild goose chase for a dragon that sounds a lot more dangerous than I first thought him to be, not to mention I’m being accompanied by a possibly even more dangerous (and also quite possibly insane) 15 year old girl, who seems to have way too many problems of her own. My, how my world has changed.
But, I didn’t have time to think about that right now. We needed to find a place to stop and rest, so we could have some breakfast. And my hunger overtook any other thoughts I had.
“Say, Kitiraa? How much farther until we stop?” I asked.
She looked at her map. “Um... well, according to this, it’s only a few steps away...” She looked up from her map, and smiled. “We’re here.” she said happily. I sighed with relief. I was so hungry, and I was sure that she was hungry too. I looked at what would be our resting place for now. It was a small meadow, surrounded by shady trees, and seemed to be a very peaceful place, like Rosie’s grove by the river. The trees stood tall and had high branches, as silvery green leaves floated slowly to the ground in a mysteriously beautiful fashion.
Kitiraa seemed to be awed by the sight as well, because she folded and packed up her map slowly as she looked around. However, the second the map was away and the food was out, we simply ate, and didn’t stop to look at the beautiful scenery. Our breakfast today was some bread with fruit. I ate the bread quickly, but didn’t touch the fruit. Honestly, I wasn’t sure it was fruit. Kitiraa had brought it, from her world. And frankly, it was strange.
She noticed I wasn’t touching the odd fruit. “What’s wrong? Not hungry?”
“No,” I replied. “I’m just not touching that fruit. I mean, look at it.” I held it up to her. She admitted it looked a little strange. It had a white skin, tough and about a quarter of an inch thick; surrounding the whole fruit. I split it open to reveal the flesh inside. It was a deep, wine red, and had flesh similar to an orange.
“It might look a little strange to you, but it’s not bad. It’s an exotic fruit. It was taken from an Earthen orange and a pomegranate and crossbred in Ivanna, creating this fruit. It’s called an appama. It’s pretty satisfying, actually.” With that, she took a bite from her fruit, then put the seeds in a separate bag. She set the bag in the middle and continued to eat.
“How can you eat that? It looks so weird, like it’s from another world.” I stated in a sense of slight disgust. She just kept eating. “It is from another world, genius. It’s from Ivanna. And trust me, it only looks weird. Take a bite, you’ll see.”
I didn’t want to eat it. But, I couldn’t deny, I was pretty hungry. And something sweet would do me some good. So, hesitantly, I took a bite. I was surprised at how sweet and fresh it tasted. It had a deep flavor, sweet, and absolutely delicious. I ate the rest of the appama, until it was all gone, stopping only to put the seeds in the bag.
After breakfast, we rested for a while, and began to talk strategy. For the first time since I’d accepted, we sat down and talked about what we were actually going to do with this dragon.
“Well,” Kitiraa began, “First things first. We need to find out as much as we can about Zalera. The other two dragons, as well. Though we’ve only had contact with one, the other two dragons could pop up any time.
“After that, we figure out the best way to handle the dragon. I did speak with him, so he’s not entirely feral. And he was trained at one point. The problem is, if a dragon isn’t feral, it makes things a little more complicated.”
“How so?” I interrupted.
“Well, feral dragons are much like animals. Animal instinct, do what you can to survive, that kind of thing. They don’t speak often, if at all, and they don’t think very much unless it’s about tomorrow’s dinner. Tame dragons, on the other hand, are more hume-like. They have minds of their own, and love to speak and tell riddles. They don’t let their animal instinct get the better of them; they are very intelligent.”
“What does this have to do with our dragon?” I asked her.
She looked up through the treetops. “If a dragon can think for itself, it’s like dealing with a whole other person. And people can be stubborn.” She looked back at me. “This dragon is three times more likely to retaliate because it can think than if it were feral. We may have a fight on our hands. And THAT is a problem. You have to remember, this dragon was created to destroy the world. It’s very powerful, and very much invulnerable. If we have to fight, we’re most likely going to die.”
Well, that was a positive and encouraging thought.
“However, if it’s totally feral, that could be a problem as well. Wild dragons can be very paranoid and very violent. And if the dragon has no mind of its own, then it has no sense of right and wrong. Meaning, if it does come down to a fight, it’s not going to think twice about killing us, and will most likely not listen to reason.”
I didn’t understand all of it, but one thing was made clear. This dragon was very old and very powerful. Whether it was tame or not didn’t matter, if it came down to fight, we’re as good as dead.
“Exactly.” Kitiraa said.
“Huh? Exactly what?”
“Um...” She looked around. “...nothing...” She opened her map, and began to study it.
“Do you have ADHD or something?” I asked her.
“What? That’s a ridiculous notion, what makes you think I would have OH LOOK A BUNNY!” At that she jumped up and ran off behind me, and squatted down next a brown rabbit, and began petting it.
Yep. She’s crazy, alright.

. . .
Sylphi
I woke up in a cave of sorts, near the back. Oh, my head... I must’ve hit it when I was unconscious. What happened to me...? I tried to remember, and little snippets of memories came to me. I remember Luneth, and the dragon, in the meadow... and that girl... that strange girl. What was she doing there, and who was she? Why was she with Luneth? And what did she do to make that dragon so calm? It was so strange... she held up her hand, and he stopped thinking about me... he almost started to... to speak... wait... how do I know that? I shook my head. I can’t worry about this right now. Where... where am I?
I sat up, and looked around. I gasped, and held my breath. There were bones everywhere. Sheep, wolves, deer, even oxen. The bones were littered all over the stone cave floor. It begged the question... Why am I still alive? I should be dead by now... I should be one of these skeletons on the floor. Come to think of it, where was the dragon?
I looked around, and it was nowhere to be seen. The cave was large, but not that large as to hide it. Not a single living soul was around, so I felt brave enough to stand all the way up. I was a little dizzy at first, but once my eyes and body adjusted, I began to walk around. I stepped carefully over the bones, and slowly made my way to the mouth of the cave. Morning light was coming in, slowly illuminating everything in sight. The bones began to glow, almost, bright white and completely cleaned. It was a little beautiful, in a morbid deathly way.
I made my way to the entrance of the cave, and looked around. The bright light stunned me at first, but as my eyes adjusted, I realized how lonely I really was. As I looked out, I didn’t see the forest I was so used to. I saw only fire and stone. I didn’t recognize it at first, but I recalled something my mother told me. The Fire Plains. No grass grows there, there is only flame and death. The heat was unimaginable, geysers with scalding water erupted, turning molten rock to stone. It was like I had been taken to Hell.
I backed up into the cool cave, tripping over a few bones. I fell on my back as some poor animal’s rib cage cracked beneath my weight. I scrambled up and fled to the back of the cave where I had woken up. I sat down and pulled my knees up to my chest, and I felt like crying. I think it was then that I realized just how alone I really was. I didn’t know where I was, I had no hope to escape, and I knew it wouldn’t be long until the dragon returned. Even if I could avoid being eaten, there was no way I could make it back home before I starved to death or burned alive. Everything just seemed so hopeless.
I felt wet hot tears roll down my face. How I wish my mother and father were here. That Luneth was here. I hid my face in my knees and cried.
Luneth, please, hurry!

Impressum

Tag der Veröffentlichung: 25.01.2011

Alle Rechte vorbehalten

Widmung:
I dedicate this book and the ones to follow to my friends, who helped me and encouraged me all the way. This is a story I have had in my mind for a while, but never put on paper. Please enjoy, and do tell me what you think. Oh, and warning, rated T for teen. Mild language and violence. Just to let you know before you read it.