The Jadelings Journey

Prologue: What happened?

It was midnight. He had woken up to the sound of glass shattering. Someone was here. He turned to his wife, but she wasn't there. Crash! What is happening? He stood up and walked shakily to the entrance of their shared sleeping cave. Smash! He flinched, thinking, Maybe I should stay out of their way. He started inching away from the cave opening when he heard a cry.

"HELP!" A cry came from the kitchen. Aila! He raced to the sword he kept under their bed, pulled it out of its sheath, and ran back to the cave entrance. He poked his head out to see what was happening. His wife was battling what seemed to be... nothing. Her pale green scales moved swiftly, fighting empty space with a dagger. However, the 'empty' space was making sounds: grunting when it attacked, groaning when Aila fought back, and muttering when it missed. He didn't know much about fighting, let alone in the dark, but two are better than one. After about a minute of watching, he charged in. He realized the 'empty space' was a black dragon. I thought they were extinct. He lost his sword within seconds and was out in minutes. When he woke up, the sun was slowly rising. The black dragon was nowhere to be seen. Thank the trees. He started for their sleeping cave. 'How much sleep can I get in before Luna gets home?' He stopped. Where is Aila? He turned around.

"Aila?" he called. No answer.

"AILA!" No answer. He started frantically searching for her, turning the whole place upside down, but she was gone.

"No," he repeated, sitting down on the cold stone.

"NO!" he cried, tears streaming down his face. NOOOOOOOOOOOO!

"No no no," he muttered, wings wrapped around himself. She was his everything, his whole world. Each scale was made with perfection, beautiful in every possible way. Pretty as a petal and strong as tree bark. She was his soulmate, and now she was gone.

Time flew by, and the sun rose, waving at the trees below. He ignored the birds and bugs chittering. Nothing was important anymore. This is my fault; I should've given her the sword. He groaned. 'Why am I so stupid?'

A noise came from above. He looked up. His mother was flying toward him, Luna trailing behind her.

"DAD!" Luna cried, arms outstretched. He quickly wiped his face as she flew into his arms.

"Luna," he said, hugging her closely. His mother landed a few feet away, walking up to them slowly.

"Son," she said elegantly.

"Mother," he replied, doing his best to match her tone.

"May I speak with you?" she asked, glancing around his home with poorly hidden disgust.

"Y-Yes. Luna go to your-"

"NO, she's mean!" Luna exclaimed. Before he could respond, his mother spoke.

"Luna, dear, I suggest you prepare for... uh...school," she insisted in a sugary voice. I forgot it's her first day of school.

"Ok," Luna replied, walking to her room. When she disappeared around the corner, his mother started speaking.

"That child, uncivilized. Where did I go wrong?" she asked.

"I told you I was going to raise my daughter differently," he responded, trying to tame his anger. How dare she call my daughter uncivilized.

"Such disrespect," she muttered.

"What do you wish to talk about?" he asked, ignoring her rude remark.

"Well... you told me to try to be motherly, so I am... checking in," she explained, her tail swinging back and forth. This took him by surprise; never in his life had his mother tried to be motherly. She had always been this proper etiquette mentor he had grown to love and hate.

"Oh, that's... great," he mumbled, eyeing a shattered vase. I should've cleaned up, made sure Luna didn't see.

"Pardon?" she asked.

"Nothing," he answered.

"So... are you okay?" she asked awkwardly. His face softened.

"I-I'm... not okay," he admitted, leaning against the stone wall.

"Well? What happened?" she demanded. He didn't respond; tears were threatening to fall.

His mother looked around the space, eyeing the shattered glass, broken bowls, and cups scattered across the floor. Finally, she spoke, her voice soft as moss.

"Where's Aila?" she asked sincerely. He slid to the ground, unable to stop the hot tears that were escaping. Should I tell Mother?

"Did she leave you?" she asked, staying put. He nodded. 'It's better this way. Safer.'

"DONE!" Luna shouted. He rose, wiping his tears away though it was no use; they kept coming.

Luna popped out from behind the corner, two scrolls and a book in hand.

"Dad, where's Mom?" Luna asked.

"Why?" his mother inquired.

"She's going to fly with me to school," Luna explained. 'Dad, why are you crying?'

"Luna, come here," he asked. She walked toward him.

"Dad, what's wrong? Where's Mom?" she asked again. It broke his heart. She's too young to grow up without a mom, but I have to tell her.

"She's gone," he said. Her face dropped.

"W-What, h-how?" she stammered, her tears falling onto her schoolwork. He gently pulled the scrolls and book out of her grasp, laying them on the stone floor.

"S-She left," he lied.

"B-But s-she l-loves me. Why w-would she l-leave?" she trembled. He pulled her into a hug.

"I don't know," he said, holding her tightly. He wasn't totally lying; he didn't know why the black mystery dragon had attacked Aila or what had happened while he was out. All he knew was one thing: She was gone.

-Joon
929 words