Beth 'Elar: The City of Books

Prologue

"Hide your face, Anny", her mother said, pulling her hood further over her head. Anny didn't know why. She was far too young to understand that people like her weren't welcome here. 

She scratched her face and small pieces of paper fell to the floor. 

"What are you doing, Anny?" Her mother stopped and got down on her knees in front of her. She picked up the small pieces of paper and looked around, being quite nervous if anyone was watching her. Her voice was quite rough and Anny felt tears starting to run down her cheeks. 

Her mother noticed her crying and caught one of the tears in her hand. "Hey, little one. You know we have to hide you. Or they'll kill you. And", her mother's voice broke, "I can't let that happen. You're everything to me." She sighed. "Listen, Anny. You must keep your head down. Don't look up."

The closer they got to the large gate, the tighter her mother gripped her hand. It hurt a lot, but Anny didn't dare let go. She bit her lip and tasted the iron flavor of her own blood. Pain against pain. 

The gate was as tall as a giant to a child's eyes. And so it was. It was decorated with gold ornaments and so many flags and stories. Books flew around the towers on either side of the gate. Flying books! Her mouth dropped open, overwhelmed by the sight of flying paper.

"Moummy?" She tugged on her mother's coattails. "Can I fly, too?" Her childish eyes sparkled and her voice reached higher spheres.  

But her mother didn't answer. The eyes of the woman, wrapped in grey cloth, looked up at the black dragon, who sat on the platform above the gate with his head held high, looking down on those who were about to enter the City of Books. Her gaze did not last more than a moment, for there was a rule: Always bow your head if you wish to pass through the dragon's gate. If you do not, he will examine you all too closely and decide whether you are worthy to enter Beth'Elar or not.

If he thought that one wasn't ... Let's say: You'd better run for your life.

Anny heard her mother holding her breath and blew her cheeks full of air to match her. The air gurgled so merrily in her mouth. But she didn't dare laugh. So she pushed the air bubbles around with her tongue. Unfortunately, one of the air bubbles ended up on the wrong side of her face. She tried to catch it with her tongue, but the bubble escaped through the thin layer of paper and even the letters on it couldn't stop it. A few letters, it was an R and an M, stuck to the bubble and floated away with it. She saw them out of the corner of her eye. "Ouh ouh", she said. 

But the dragon had already noticed that something strange was going on, for the bubble crossed his nose. A deep groan came from its mouth and it rose to its feet. The people who were about to go in stopped at once. Including her mother. 

Anny gasped, as she bumped into her mother and felt the trembling take hold of her small body. "Please", she wispered as quietly as she could. "Please be a nice dragon and don't eat me." She pulled her bonnet deeper into her forehead. "Anny is perfectly normal."