Freyr

CHAPTER 3: When Prophecies Whisper

We waited in tense silence for Freyr to choose.

A strange tingling crept through my body, then a sudden jolt—like the moment you wake from a dream where you've been falling. Emotions surged, wild and overwhelming: dread, anticipation, anger, sadness, fear... longing. All of it churned together and settled like a stone in the pit of my stomach.

And then I looked up.

Freyr's massive blue eyes locked onto mine.

It felt like she was staring straight into my soul, stripping away every barrier I had built around myself. The auditorium went deathly silent, a shared breath held by hundreds.

All eyes turned to me.

I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe.

The headmaster's voice broke through the stillness like a thunderclap.

"Freyr has chosen!" he announced into the microphone, voice trembling with excitement. "Amory, come forward and meet your dragon!"

My blood turned to ice.

Muffled voices echoed around me—people whispering my name, hands touching my arms—but it all felt distant, like I was underwater. My limbs were heavy. My chest was tight. I couldn't look up. I couldn't speak.

*No. No. No.*

*This isn't happening.*

This *cannot* be happening.

My breaths came faster and faster, panic threatening to consume me. I was spiraling, stuck in a waking nightmare. Everything my parents feared, everything they warned me about—every warning to stay away from dragons, from destiny, from danger—was crashing down on me now. And I couldn't run.

But then...

Something stirred inside me.

Not a voice exactly—more like a presence. A *feeling.* Gentle, yet powerful. It spread warmth through my veins, steadying my pulse, silencing the chaos in my mind.

Confidence. Clarity. Calm.

It was her. Freyr. Speaking without words, reaching out to me in a way that no one else ever had.

My mind snapped back into place.

The fog lifted.

My eyes opened, glowing with a soft, unnatural blue fire.

I stared back at Freyr, this time not with fear—but with understanding. And trust.

I moved.

Down the steps.

The crowd parted as I walked. No one tried to stop me now. They simply watched, too stunned to speak, stepping back as if my skin carried lightning.

I reached her.

Freyr had lowered her head, her breath slow and even. I reached out, running my hand along the smooth, cool surface of her scales. Up close, I could see it clearly—those strange colors I thought were woven into her body were just reflections of the light. She was *pure* white, the kind that didn't belong to this world.

When my fingers reached the crease between her eyes, something incredible happened.

A spark.

Raw, electric power surged through my arm and into my entire being, like my soul had been struck by lightning. I gasped—but I didn't flinch. Freyr jolted too, her head twitching slightly, and her eyes met mine again. In that instant, we understood each other.

The air shimmered.

Her scales began to shift.

Black began to seep into the tips of her horns and spread down the sides of her head, trailing toward her wings. It was beautiful—like a crown forming, dark and regal, etched in shadow. The crowd gasped in awe.

She angled her head toward me, inviting me forward. I climbed carefully, using the edge of her horn like a step, then swinging myself up to the place just behind the base of her skull. It felt natural. Like this had always been waiting for me.

Freyr rose slowly, her body unfolding with divine elegance. She stood taller than the others, her wings folding in behind her like the cloak of a queen.

And I stood with her.

For the first time in my life, I wasn't scared of the future.

I felt *powerful.*

Untouchable.

I looked down at the sea of faces—hundreds of them—all staring back in wonder. Some were in awe, some confused, and a few were jealous. But none could deny what had just happened.

The other dragons stood behind us with their riders, forming a line like a royal procession.

And Freyr... Freyr stood at the front.

Our front.

Then came the sound—small at first. A single clap.

A little boy in the front row, clapping slowly with both hands over his head.

Then another joined in.

And another.

Until the entire crowd was erupting in applause. Cheers echoed through the oval like a thunderstorm, reverberating through my bones.

They weren't just cheering for the Five anymore.

They were cheering for us.

The chosen.

The protectors.

Their last hope.

And I, Amory—who never believed in dragons, in destiny, or in prophecy—was now the one they looked to.

The one who rode beside Freyr, the dragon of many colors and none at all.

The one who would lead them.

The one who would face the Dark Lord... and not back down.