The Dragon Conquest

Jacey

Jacey stood alone on the platform, the villagers stared at her with anticipation. Her skin prickled as their dagger-piercing eyes inspected her. She shivered despite the heat and folded her arms across her chest.

The bright sun scorched her tanned skin. The village of Valin was hot during summer. Hottest in summer, Jacey corrected herself. Solaris was an arid country where the sun is nearly visible all day. The people were always greeted with the harsh star.

Jacey wished for the wind to take her away but there was none. The tall trees, maintained by the vegetation guild, surrounded the village and blocked the wind. She wished she could sneak into the trees as she used to do when she was bored. The gust of air against her skin was always refreshing.

She wanted more of it, she wanted to escape the village, to see beyond the trees, and to experience the world outside. But she couldn't. It was too dangerous. The war was still going on.

The war, Jacey quivered at the thought of it. Two alliances fighting against one another for their own purposes. She could never figure out what these purposes were, and which one of it was right. She only knew it was going for thousands of years. The world had suffered, and everyone was affected. Millions had died, yet there was no sign of stopping, and Jacey felt it was just the beginning as if something big was going to happen. Something that could change the world. She hoped it was a change for good, a new world with peace and serenity.

Jacey faced the quiet crowd and wanted them to speak. She dug her nails into her skin at the discomforting silence, it made the wooden houses seemed ominous. The bright, blue sky felt like the peace before the chaos, and the shadow of the trees that surrounded them felt distant and eerie.

The audience's eyes were wide and their ears pointed. They were all excited. Jacey couldn't blame them since the Summoning was an exciting event. She used to stand in front of the crowd, clapping and cheering, but as she grew older her enthusiasm was replaced by anxiety. She no longer stood in the front, and instead watched from the distance while her stomach lurched at every summon. She sometimes missed her childhood eagerness when she became scared.

The Initiator was still talking to the person that summoned before her. Liran, she remembered his name, greeted all of the village officials with a smile. The officials stood in front of the crowd and celebrated Liran's Summoning with his parents. The parents of the summoner grinned with every praise the officials gave. Jacey couldn't take it anymore and looked at the houses instead.

The houses were scattered behind the mass of people. The houses came in varieties, some were larger and more extravagant than others. Some houses challenged the trees height and others that are more colorful than the rainbows she had seen. The ground beneath them was dry, even though it had rained yesterday. Many people came to see the Summoning, but few could not because of their jobs. The farmers' guild, for instance, planted during the Summoning and harvested their crops in fall.

The people cheered as Liran demonstrated his powers. He reached out his hands to the trees and concentrated. The power of summoning requires willpower or it will fail, resulting in injury or death. The village lowered their voices as Liran grunted. The trees swooshed and leaves flew through the air. Jacey was amazed and clapped along with everyone. A tinkling sound traveled through the village and everyone silenced themselves.

The villagers inclined their head as the head officials prayed. "We gave thanks to the Gods of the Stars for the gift they brought to Liran. Amraph, we thank you for the good spring we had. All of the crops we planted last fall were accounted. Parys, we are grateful to you for protecting us from the war..."

Jacey raised her head she when she heard the chirps of birds. It was quiet but sounded so sweet. She spun around and searched for the sound. Jacey heard it to her left, then right, then left and so forth. Where did the sound come from, she asked herself. She strained her ears as she looked for the birds then she heard a cough. Her cheeks reddened and she bent down her head.