Dragon Queen: Book One-Scarlet Reign

Chapter Three- Vision

Aelwen stood alone in an empty field. The sun burned brightly overhead, showering the myriad of bright green grass blades in a brilliant light. Majestic mountains loomed in the distance on every side, faded white mist covering their steep slopes like blankets.

She knew it was a lucid dream. The world around her had a strange sense of vagueness to it... that, and she was human. Aelwen stretched her dream arms and poked at her dream fingers, hopping around the grass in delight with her dream legs. Though she knew this happiness was fleeting, she relished being able to be herself for but a night's worth of sleep.

Wind whipped at her untamed hair, a strong breeze materializing in the air. Waves of grass rippled like the ocean.

She could feel herself breathing now, a strange sort of thing to feel while asleep, Aelwen thought. The longer she seemed to stand in the field, in fact, the more real the whole scene seemed to become. She felt her heartbeat as she put a hand to her chest, and could touch the individual blades of grass beneath her wriggling toes.

Was this really a dream?

Her brows knit together as she looked around her once more. The flat field had no end save for those mountains, which seemed to be miles away. From her position it seemed as if she were standing in the middle of the field, right in the center of a huge circular plane of grass.

With a grin, she began to dance through the field, moist dirt squelching under her toes and grass slapping at her shins. An airy yellow sun dress clothed her, so bright and beautiful it looked like it was made of sunbeams as she twirled around in it.

A loud crack resounded through the air as a giant bolt of black lightning hit the ground a few yards from her.

Aelwen cried out, her hair standing on end as she bolted from the spot where the lightning had struck.

The lightning had split the ground, a large fissure forming between burning blades of grass. The crack opened wider and wider, a thunderous roar belching from its depths. An enormous paw emerged from it, sinking its claws deep into the ground beside the fissure. A colossal golden bear pulled itself up out of the crack. Giant purple gems of various sizes adorned its body, and its eyes glowed a bright violet. It roared as it stood upon its hind legs, seeming to challenge the world to a fight. The sun glistened off of its golden fur so brilliantly it was hard to look at.

Aelwen, once a fair distance away, turned to look at the beast with wide eyes. Her mouth hung open and her heart pounded.

"High God Cainen..." she whispered in awe.

The High God Cainen was the god that her mother worshipped daily. She had told Aelwen he was the deity that ruled over and had created the earth. He was the one who had bestowed the gift of magic to man, allowing them to use wands to wield it. He protected Queen Liriel's kingdom, and in return Liriel communed with him every day... though Aelwen was never allowed to see her do it.

Cainen's symbol was that of a golden bear, and thus he was almost always depicted in artwork and sculptures as one. One of the biggest statues Aelwen had ever seen of Cainen was in the Gold Cathedral in her home city of Caineriel. The witches who ran the place of worship had made it themselves from their dark magic. He had always looked down on the congregation with a stern, cruel gaze, and as a small child Aelwen had been terrified of the statue.

The great bear lumbered forward, its huge paws crushing the grass beneath. As every paw stomped the ground, blood seeped from beneath them, as if the grass was filled with it. Rippling muscles bulged from beneath his shimmering golden coat, truly he was a powerful-looking god.

The beast stopped and sniffed the air, a deep, rumbling growl emanating from his chest.

Aelwen cowered, fearing Cainen had detected her.