Elarayne - What Am I?

Chapter 1

People tell of having the same dream every night. I never have the same dream. Sure there are dreams which are identical to other dreams but they're never the same. Never.

I looked to the ceiling whilst lying on the hay. We can't afford ourselves a bed. The sun was shining through the broken roof. I held my hand out to grab the sun but suddenly the door opened. It was Alexander.

"Oh you're awake. Did I wake you up?", he said.

"No, you didn't. Where were you?"

"Hunting. But I had bad luck. There were no animals to be seen."

"It's been 2 days since I last ate. The hunger is killing me. I even dream about it."

"What was your dream about this time?", he asked.

"I was a beast. A wolf I think. I was running through the woods until I stopped. There was a rabbit. I was hunting the rabbit because I was hungry but I slipped and fell down a hill. Then I woke up."

Alexander looked at me with a thoughtful face.

"Never the same...", he whispered.

Then Alexander fetched some water from the well. I drank a little bit as well as Alexander. After we had drank up our wooden cups filled with water Alexander took his backpack.

"Let's go.", he said.

Then off we were. Every two days we traveled to the great city of Javtaia. Well, great is something different. In this city is only poverty, death and pain for the peasants and luxury, food, dances, music and more for the kings and lords.

Ah, the king Lucios Javtaien the sixth. He's the worst of them all. They call him the 'family breaker'. He breaks families just to win his war for land. He sends the sons of lords and peasants on the battlefield. If in his farms are not enough farmers he just takes a few people and sends them there. A lot of families never see their relatives ever again.

That's why we live outside of the city. Sure they could come in to us and throw us out but yet it didn't happen. I don't think they even know that we live there. We just visit the city and then we leave. We could be farmers trading their wares. But we're nothing.

Nobody knows where we come from or who we really are. I myself don't even know who I am...

We've reached the large towers of Javtaia. The coat of arms was carved into the stone. It showed two crossed swords. Beneath them you could see peasants and the men holding the crossed swords were lords. Above of it the kings crown looked onto everything beneath it.

"That's an awful coat of arms.", I thought to myself.

We passed through the large gates.

"I have to meet someone. You can wait here until I'm back.", Alexander said to me.

I smiled and then he left. I stood in the middle of the marketplace. Merchants from across the country came to sell their wares. I browsed through them but I couldn't buy anything. I didn't even have any money to buy myself a piece of bread.

"Come to hear the legends of old! Just around the corner you'll find the oldest library in the world! Our eldest will tell stories for those who cannot read! Come to hear the legends of old!", a man with a robe said.

I walked around the corner until I found a small door leading to a stairway. While I was climbing the stairs I saw a light at the top of the way. It lead to a large room with a thousand books. In the middle of the room an old man was sitting on a chair and he held a dusty old book in his hands.

"Welcome to the oldest library in the world! Do not fear me. I'm just an old man with a book. Do you want to hear the legends of old?", he asked.

"Why is nobody else here?"

"The young have more problems to worry about then old stories. But in the evening where the hard days work is done most of the people come to me."

"Oh, I understand. What are the legends of the old?

"The legends of the old are the oldest books that we have. They describe the world how it was centuries ago. In the time where shapeshifters roamed the world alongside with the dragons."

"Dragons?", I asked.

"Yes. Dragons. There are many unsolved mysteries. But the famous court wizard Zolton Gubnil managed to capture a dragon. He tricked the dragon and then he held it in his hideout. You see, Zolton Gubnil made experiments on creatures. No one knows why he did that or even what he was searching for but the king Gandil Javtaien the first didn't allow experiments. That's why he had a hideout."

I listened to the old man as he told the old legend.

"Zolton Gubnil made awful experiments on the dragon. But through his notes we found out that dragons really existed in the time of the shapeshifters. No one knows what happened to Zolton Gubnil because he suddenly disappeared. After that the dragons and the shapeshifters disappeared forever, too."

"Both the dragons and the shapeshifters disappeared at the same time? That can't be a coincidence.", I said.

"But the legends tell no more. We will have to live with mysteries.", the old man said and looked at me.

I looked out of the small window behind the old man. The sky darkened itself.

"I have to go. I would love to stay but I'm meeting someone.", I said.

"You can come in whenever you want.", the old man said as he smiled at me.

I left the library and went back to the marketplace. Alexander was already searching for me.

"Where were you?", he asked not quite pleased.

"I was in the library..."

"I was so worried about you!", he said.

"I'm sorry. I forgot the time. Let's go home."