Fire Realm

Prologue

Prologue

It was so strange, living among another species.  You might say that was a strange statement coming from a girl who lived among birds, dogs, and bugs for the majority of her life.  But this was different.  The magnificent creatures known as dragons were not domesticated like the dogs were; no, they were nothing of the sort.  Nor were they the same kind of wild as the birds who often sang to us as we would walk through town.  They were more free and wild than even the birds.  Dragons were not vermin or bugs come to infest the human world either, as many people thought.  They were actually very civilized and they did not enjoy preying on humans or pillaging villages as many legends suggested.  They lived nowhere near them and lived many miles away from any human contact, claiming territory over intricate mountain tunnels and several stunning valleys.  It was very much the opposite of the stark and barren canyon territory the fairies enjoyed.

The dragons liked the cold and crisp air of the higher terrain.  Despite their cold-loving nature, they were also fire-resistant.  The Elder dragons claimed that a dragon could not be burned by the fires which created it.  This explained why Averyn had been able to protect me from the flames in the canyon.

After the canyon battle, my family made a home with the dragons in the mountains, living and recuperating in peace.  You may have noticed that I said 'family', and for good reason.  My mother survived the battle, though she no longer possessed the same strength she had previously.  She was barely alive when we brought her back to the mountain, and it had taken great time and skill to bring her back to a fraction of her former health.  She was much better now though, and ruled the territory whenever her strength would allow.  My father, who I thought had gone up in flames with our house, was surprisingly already living with the dragons when we arrived at the mountain.  The jet of flame which killed the man at the window before the house burned had been from a dragon named Ghislaine, my father’s dragon.  Before the house had burned completely, she had saved him and brought him home to the mountain.  Ghislaine had the rare ability to become invisible when she chose, and that was why I had only seen a flame and not the dragon herself.  She had also saved me from the Hunters and Theron when they were chasing me through the alley.  By flapping her wings at the precise moment, she caused the trash to fly away and make them think that I had run in that direction.  Little did I know how often I was watched over.  No one knew exactly why Ghislaine had the gift that she did.  Some older dragons claimed that she had been blessed by sun when she was born, but nobody truly knew for certain.

Several months after the canyon battle, the images of Averyn's death still haunted me in my sleep.  But Averyn had not been my dragon.  My dragon was Serafim, the green and black dragon that had spoken to me the day of the battle.  He knew what sorrows I had suffered that day, and he did his best to amuse me, an attempt to make me forget them.  Mekka also tried to cheer me up as best he could, but he was wrestling with his own sorrows.  His parents were dead, killed by the sickness that he tried to save them from.  

Ferdie also chose to remain with us.  Though he had expressed some desire of returning to the Trogs and making his amends, he had decided to remain with us and ‘pay off’ his life debt to me.  Though he was still very shocked and rather fearful of the dragons, he did his best to get used to them and befriend them.  In time, the dragons too became accustomed to his presence.

I was now considered the princess of the territory since my mother was queen.  I didn't like being called the princess, but when I complained about it to my mother, she explained the story behind it all.  She said that our family came from a very powerful race of people called the Nairi who were well known for their Magic.  These people lived away from other societies for fear that they would be hunted for sorcery and witchcraft.  They had good reason for this too.  Once the fairies had caught word of them, they desired to have the power that these people possessed and sent their most powerful resources to exterminate them.  They had sent what were now long dead creatures to slaughter these powerful people.  

Despite their strength and power, they could not defeat these creatures, and they sought the help of the dragons.  The dragons agreed to an alliance under one condition; the dragons would protect them from these demons if the women would join them and help them become more civilized.  The dragons had always admired the way that the people had ruled themselves, and they wanted to imitate it.  The Nairi agreed to this.  When they formed their official alliance, they mixed their blood; the powerful blood of the Nairi, and the strong, valiant blood of the dragons.  However, something happened when that pact was made; the Nairi lost their Magic, but it was replaced with a stronger bond with the dragons.  These were the first dragon riders.  According to the rest of the legend, the Nairi and the dragon’s spirits mingled were bonded together; a personal bond developed when both dragon and rider had chosen one another.  

My mother and I were descendants of the rulers who had made the pact, and thus the throne was passed on to her, and then down to me.  Although my mother had had a dragon in the past, she had been killed and my mother could not form a bond with another dragon; it was just the way it worked.  Despite the staggering loss my mother continued to rule and tried to teach me to lead as well.  Despite the large responsibilities and title that came with our positions, I had to admit, the freedoms that came with it were nice. I was basically free to go where I chose in the territory without being disturbed.

Today I sat in one of my favorite meadows.  The tall grasses often gave me comfort, reminding me of the prairies we had back home.  Standing up now, I surveyed the area, drinking in the rich colors from the sunset.  Where I stood, the meadow came to an abrupt edge, rolling downward steeply in a cliff that led to the valley below.  A gentle breeze came up, making the grasses around me rustle in a sound no man made wind chime could ever match.  I stretched out my arms and closed my eyes, letting the wind blow through my hair.

A louder rustle beside my feet jerked me out of my dreamy state and my eyes flew open; but not soon enough to see what it was before it came flying at me.  Knocking me sideways, I screamed.  As I came to a rolling stop, I was finally able to see my attacker; Mekka had caught me by surprise and was now lying beside me in the grass, laughing his head off.

“That wasn't funny!” I said, trying to sound pouty though I could hardly retain a laugh.

He finished laughing and looked at me, “You shouldn't be so naive.  I could have been an enemy.”

“We have had months of peac-”

“Promise me you won’t be so unaware in the future,” he cut me off,

“I promise...” I said quietly.  I hated being treated this way, but his sincerity about the enemies confused me.  “Why are you so worried all of a sudden?” I asked,

He stood up, offering me a hand up as well.  We stood there for a moment watching clouds gather into a storm-head further away.  The wind was getting stronger by the minute.

“We have just received news that the fairies have declared war on us.” he said grimly.

I didn't need to ask him if I'd heard correctly.  We'd been anticipating news like this for weeks.  The battle in the canyon had certainly not gone unnoticed.  Staring at the swiftly approaching storm and watching the sun shed its final rays on the valley, I replied, my voice steady.

“Then we will have to fight back.”

The winds propelling the storm toward us were ripping at us, trying to tear us to pieces now.  Suddenly afraid we would become caught in the storm that would be here any moment, I grabbed Mekka's hand and we both ran back to the mountain.  As we entered the cave, I stopped and looked back at the fading sunlight.  The sky was red like blood.  It too was ready for war.