Dragonworld: The Drive For Power

Part 7: World Born Of Fire

World born of fire

You could see the age etched into her face. The saggy skin, the wrinkles as deep as valleys, all revealed the relentless march of time, each crease a testament to the burdens of life. 

As the head of the order of the Fire Sisters, she was the guiding light of a religious sect that had a direct connection to nature's primary elements. 

Her mind was heavy with thoughts. Reflections were bouncing off each other, but always settling on one final image.  

"The world must be saved," she sighed, mumbling to herself. "It's my duty, what I was called upon to do." 

Her eyes, dulled by the years, settled on the ancient relic before her. This was her burden, her final test, one that would define her legacy and secure her place among the stars. The relic pulsed faintly, as though it too awaited its fate. With trembling hands, she reached for it, a deep, resonating hum filling the air around her.

Then, she heard steps approaching. Quickly hiding the object beneath her cloak, she turned towards the incoming intruders. 

Dressed in white dresses with hints of orange, their heads covered with headbands made of reeds, a group of women approached.  

"High Mother, we have brought news," the woman leading the group said, her voice laced with the weight of what could not be spoken. She was the first of the group to speak, but they all carried the same grim look. 

They came to a halt before the High Mother, standing as though before a reckoning. 

"Yes, my children. I have been awaiting your words," said the old lady, her gaze focused on the women standing in front of her. 

"The document you had instructed us to find, we found it," continued the woman standing at the head of the group.

"Sister Natalie, please tell me. What does it say?" The High Mother looked at the women.  

"Fire is coming," said Sister Natalie, her voice solemn. "Our era is coming to an end."

"Yes, my child. I had foreseen it."

"What does this mean?" The woman at the top had a frightened look, her eyes glancing at the High Mother, trying to find reassurance. She had served her for countless years, and knew the wisdom the old lady carried within her mind.  

The old high priestess took a long look at the group in front of her, and proceeded to explain. 

"The passage of time is divided into eras, with each era divided by cataclysmic events, ones that change the world. Sometimes it is water. Sometimes air. This time, it will be fire," she explained. The fate of the world was hanging in the balance, she could feel that in her heart. 

"Will the world burn?"

"It is foretold. When an era ends, it is subsumed by the element that reigns supreme. The fire is coming. It will eat us all," said the High Mother, her eyes growing bright.

"Can we stop it?"

"No, we cannot," said the old lady. 

The faces of the Sisters listening to the High Mother turned to horror. Their expressions became masks of fear, their eyes wide as they absorbed the weight of what they had just heard. 

"But there must be something we can do," one of the Sisters, a young woman with trembling hands, whispered urgently, her voice barely more than a breath.

The High Mother's gaze turned upon her, calm and unyielding, like the stillness before a storm. "There is nothing but to wait, child. We have all been chosen for this moment. It is not our will that guides the end. It is the will of the fire itself."