Legends of Marithia: Book 1 - Prophecies Awakening: Uncut and Extended Second Edition (10 page)

Nymira took another deep breath and sent
searing fire in every direction around them. Houses were set
further into flames and dark screams escaped from the shadows
within them.

Stand up straight, and stay as still as
possible. I promise that I won’t hurt you and you have to trust
me.

She spread her wings wide, turned to Vartan,
and grabbed him with her claws as she leapt off the ground.

“No!
Disjecta membra!
” screamed
Kassina. The flames around the city were sucked into large
flickering balls that hovered in the air.

As the sorceress took aim, Nymira curled her
claws to hide Vartan’s body within them. She shifted her scales
once again to hide them both within the smoky sky, and within
moments she was invisible, swiftly gaining height and distance from
Greenhaven. Out of pure desperation, Kassina sent fireballs flying
in pursuit, but they were easily avoided as Nymira continued her
climb towards the clouds.

Vartan relaxed his muscles and let himself
lay down gently in her claws, wincing at the pain of his ribs.

Does she know Karven?
he wondered.

I am glad you trust me, Vartan, and you are
safe with me. Karven is our King, and of course I know him—I
certainly should. I am Nymira, the Queen of Dragons. I will take
you to him immediately as the time has come.

Vartan concentrated his mind with all his
strength to form the words.

Thank you, Nymira. You saved my life, and in
return, I owe it to you. I have so many questions I want to ask of
you.

You owe me nothing and I would save your
life any time. We share a common goal, Vartan. The war has only
just begun, and there is much to be done. Leave your questions
until we reach Trahoterra. You need to rest and should regain your
strength—we have a long journey ahead of us.

Vartan closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep
in the safety of the dragon’s grasp.

Helenia - by Guido Leber

Chapter 5: Old Blood

“For many days now, we have searched the
entirety of Greenhaven. It is
nowhere
to be found, and I
took great risks to leave my tower, suffering heavy losses in the
battle for the city. This victory is nothing without the
Artefact.

Stupid Derian—he promised me that it would be
found, and yet, here we are…
still
digging beneath the city
in the vain hope of finding the most powerful needle in an
oversized haystack.

I put too much trust into our deal; maybe I
shouldn’t have granted him immortality. I’m beginning to wonder if
he even knows its location at all.”

(Queen Kassina of the Underworld)

Vartan awoke to the sound of heavy waves
crashing below him, and after a few hazy moments, he remembered the
events that had taken place.

Have we arrived at Trahoterra?
He
thought.

Yes, Vartan, we are approaching it now. Let
me show you our home.

Nymira adjusted her scales to provide him
with a small window between her claws. Vartan looked down to see a
large island enveloped in mist, with only the smallest glimpse
visible of the razor-sharp rocks at its outskirts. He was looking
over the island of Trahoterra. It reminded Vartan of a gigantic
claw reaching into the sky, birds of prey circling above its
peaks.

It looks so strange - unlike anything I have
ever seen. There are no beaches? Nowhere for ships to anchor?

We prefer it that way. It is the island of
dragons, after all.
We can come and go as we please, while
the island itself serves to keep out unwanted visitors.

Nymira began her entry dive, and Vartan felt
his gut drop with the sudden change of altitude. He pushed out his
extremities to brace himself and breathed heavily as he grit his
teeth.

Do not fear, Vartan. You are safe with me,
remember?

They plummeted towards the heavy mist with
immense speed. Suddenly, at what felt like the last moment before
they would have hit the dangerous waters, Nymira extended her wings
and they caught the air, shooting through the mist like an arrow.
The water blurred underneath them as they rocketed over it. Vartan
let out a chuckle of pleasure.

They glided towards a large cave mouth, which
looked like a serpent’s jaws prised open. The mouth appeared too
small for her extended wings and just when Vartan opened his mouth
to protest, Nymira contracted her wings to enter the cave, flapping
them quickly once they were safely inside. The cave walls sparkled
with crystals, as if they were stars filling a pitch-black sky.
Like a gifted acrobat, Nymira flew at impressive speed through the
cave, narrowly missing natural columns and stalactites until they
broke free into a gigantic cavern within.

"Can we do that again?" laughed Vartan, a
grin stretched across his face.

I told you to trust me, didn't I?

She gripped him with one claw as they
descended to a gentle landing in the middle of the cavern floor.
She eased Vartan to the ground, and he stood tall to take in the
many wonders of Trahoterra. His eyes widened at the kaleidoscope of
colours and objects that begged his attention.

The cavern was filled with gigantic golden
statues of dragons, and was laden with treasures as far as the eye
could see. Treasure chests were everywhere, as were legendary
artefacts thought to have been lost forever.

This is not the first time that humans have
allied with our kind. This is what we have left to show of that
past allegiance. Just remember that these treasures are forbidden
without our permission.

“Of course, I understand. I have no need for
such things anyway. What an amazing sight to behold!” Vartan
beamed.

I sense that Karven has returned from a hunt
for food. It looks like we are right on time.

As Vartan turned, the opening to the cave was
darkened by the shadows of many dragons in flight. One by one, they
landed with a shudder around Vartan and Nymira in a circle,
dropping their catches before them. The largest of the dragons
alighted in the centre of the circle, folded his great wings, and
turned to Vartan. “So, young knight, we meet again."

Vartan reeled back in shock at hearing the
dragon’s booming voice.

“You can speak? I thought you only spoke
through minds.”

“We
can
speak, Vartan. We just don’t
always choose to exercise that power. So, do you remember our first
meeting?”

“It has been so many years, Karven, but how
could I ever forget that day? I have so many questions to ask of
you that have been plaguing me all these years."

“Of course you do. However, allow me to begin
this discussion with a revelation. Have you ever wondered how you
channelled your power on that unfortunate night in the woods? Did
you ever wonder why you didn't also die that night? Have you ever
thought about why you have foreign and sometimes horrible dreams?
Did you also not question how you happened to have an audience with
me?”

“I do. I have thought about that night every
day of my life. Finn… I failed him.”

A smaller dragon in the outer circle stopped
eating and slowly raised his head towards Vartan.

No, brother, you did not fail me at all. I
carved my own path.

The dragon stretched his great wings and flew
to Karven’s side.

“Finn? Is it really you?” said Vartan, tears
filling his vision. “By the gods, can it really be true? All these
years, I thought you were dead.”

It was Karven who responded. “You weren't
ready to hear the truth that night, but the time has come. Our kind
has had many gifts bestowed upon us; however, some of us wish to
experience being mortal, and to live a human life. There is only
one path that leads to that particular destination, and it happens
to be irreversible.”

“What is this path you’re talking about? And
what has it got to do with me?” asked Vartan.

“It takes the form of a spell of the highest
order, and one that can only be cast upon a dragon who truly wishes
in his or her heart to be human. Once dragons transform, they
cannot return to their forms until the event of death and the
rebirth of life. Last but not least, the spell only works once.
Many years ago, two of our kind requested the spell of human life,
and it was granted."

"I get all of this, I really do... But what
does that have to do with
me
?” Vartan repeated.

“The two dragons who were granted this spell
were your mother and father."

“You can’t be serious! Are you suggesting
that I’m a…” Vartan trailed off.

“Yes, that is exactly what I’m suggesting.
You may not have been born of scales, but two humans of dragon
blood created you, and of course, your brother,” said Karven.

Vartan looked from Karven to Finn and stepped
back in bewilderment. Looking upon the dragon Finn once more, he
began to see similarities in the features of the dragon’s face;
most notable were Finn’s eyes.

Karven addressed him again. “The spell allows
this to happen, but you must understand that if you are killed or –
should you be lucky – die of old age, you will never be able to
return to your human form again. And your dreams are not dreams at
all; they are
visions
."

Vartan’s face contorted as he asked,
“Visions?”

“They are visions of the past, the present
and of the future. Although you are as fragile as any other human,
you are empowered with many of our gifts. Magic, visions and
telepathy are all skills you can learn to harness.”

Vartan put his hands on Finn’s neck and
attempted to give his brother a hug. “I have missed you, Finn. I
just can’t believe it’s really you.”

“Do you know why Greenhaven has been
attacked?” asked Karven. “Why Kassina would take such a bold risk?
Have you ever wondered at its beauty, and how such a structure
could be realised by human ambition alone as your history books
have taught you?”

Vartan released his brother’s scaly neck and
turned his full attention back to the King of Dragons. “Of course I
have."

“Many thousands of years ago, the ancients,
our allies, built a weapon of immense capability. Talonsphere is an
artefact that was created as a last resort to completely destroy
the Forces of Darkness.”

“How do you know all of this? Why haven't I
been told this before?”

“I know all of this because we helped them to
build it. And is it such a surprise to you that nobody would share
this with you? Not even the late King Arman knew the full history
of Greenhaven and some secrets are guarded for a good reason. This
is not the first time in history that we have faced the Forces of
Darkness, Vartan, and it likely won’t be the last. However, the
prophecy has almost been fulfilled. We have a chance to rid the
world of our oppressors forever and experience eternal peace, and
it all depends on you.”

“Me? What are you talking about? How do I fit
into this prophecy?”

“The prophecy says that a man born of two
dragons in human form will unlock the Talonsphere and rid the world
of the dark forces that plague us. You are the final hope, for your
kind and ours. Finn is unable to fulfil this prophecy, as he has
returned to his true dragon form."

Vartan paled as he stared into the distance.
"I understand. So I am the last hope for Marithia... This is quite
the burden to bear. What else can you tell me?"

"Greenhaven was built to designs found in
ancient scrolls, and its intended purpose is to protect this
weapon, the Talonsphere. However, the language of the ancients is
no longer spoken, and the average Marithian is unable to read the
written word. Only a few have passed the ancient language on to
their children. One of those children was King Arman. Upon his
ascension to the throne, he was provided access to the royal
library, including the ancient scrolls. After years of study, he
located the blueprints of Greenhaven, and learned that Talonsphere
was buried at a location hidden in the scrolls."

“Then Kassina can destroy it?” asked
Vartan.

“That is the greatest of all our fears. If
the weapon were to be destroyed, then we would lose the chance to
rid the world once and for all of the Forces of Darkness. We would
all become slaves to the underworld."

“Surely you could just build another
Talonsphere?”

Karven let out a chuckle. “If only it were
that easy, Vartan. The ancients disappeared long ago, without a
trace: none of those with the necessary skills to build such a
weapon are alive. The materials alone would take hundreds of years
to collect, even if we had the ancients here to build it. No,
this
is our only chance. We need to recapture Greenhaven,
and we will not be able to do it alone. Even with our powers, we
could be overwhelmed by Kassina’s forces. Our numbers are limited;
we will need allies, and the strength of our combined efforts."