by LJ Davies
"I’d tell them that, for centuries, I've looked to the stars for guidance. But sometimes the stars can guide us in more ways than we can ever imagine."
Epilogue
"Is that it?" the young voice asked abruptly, a pair of unsatisfied eyes peering up toward the blue dragoness holding the closed book.
With a slight sigh, Risha looked down at the dragon and smiled.
"Yes, Teal, as far as we know, that's it," she admitted, masking how she truly felt by turning to place the book behind her.
Teal cocked his head, shifting his webbed ruff. Beside him, another set of curious eyes focused on Risha.
"That can't be it. We all know how the battle ended, plus all the parties, the coronation and all that stuff. But a dragon like him couldn't have just vanished," a second young dragon added.
Risha's smile didn't falter, even as she shook her head and gazed up into the chamber in which the small class of bickering, young dragons sat.
"Well, Scarlet, I don't think there ever was another dragon like him," she said quietly.
Her forlorn look didn't go unnoticed, and the mumbling paused for a moment as the group realised what they'd brought up. Their heads drooped, as did their wings.
"Sorry, Risha, we didn't mean anything bad by it. It's just, after what we saw, it’s kind of hard to believe he's gone," the fiery dragoness apologised, her yellow eyes gleaming with the faintest hint of respect as Teal nodded beside her.
Risha shook her head slightly as she glanced back down at the pair.
"It’s fine, it's hard for anyone to believe he's gone." As she spoke, the sounds of parents arriving began to drift in from outside.
"Come along now, Vermillion, it's time to go," the voice of a tall dragoness beckoned a red-scaled hatchling to move off swiftly after her and wave goodbye to his teacher.
Risha smiled and waved a wing back as more parents swooped down, calling out names, and more of her class took off into the air.
"See, I told you stories always make the last session go faster," Scarlet told Teal, spitting her tongue out at the water dragon as he scowled back at her.
"Well, I never disagreed with you," another meek voice announced from behind the pair, and a small, bronze-scaled head appeared between them.
"Oh come on, Brass, you never disagree with anyone," Teal laughed.
The shy dragonesse’s muzzle parted with a small grin.
"No, just you two," she teased with growing confidence.
"Good to see I can actually find you three in the same place for a change." Each of the four heads perked up in recognition of a new voice floating in from outside.
Ember stepped in from one of the stone arches, her orange scales and polished golden armour gleaming in the radiant light of a pair of glowmoss lanterns.
Teal and Scarlet sank back into their folded wings as the fire dragoness approached, Brass meanwhile rushed up to her eagerly.
"Did you speak to them?" she asked, practically beaming at the older dragoness and resting her forelegs against her chest.
Ember smiled and wrapped her scarred wing around Brass's shoulders.
"I did indeed; tomorrow you can start training with Neera and the rest of her wing out in the woods."
As soon as the words left her muzzle, it wasn't hard to see that the mostly-timid little dragoness was battling not to jump up in glee.
Her two friends, on the other paw, clearly felt quite the opposite.
"What, how come she gets to train with Neera and the other survivalists?" Teal and Scarlet asked in perfect unison.
Ember gave them both a stern look.
"Because she doesn't go running off from class. Besides, Neera doesn't have time for all of the younglings that want to be part of her wing," she explained, only sounding a little chastising.
"I just think the order needs more faldrons, and they're like... A hundred percent more fun than regular dragons," Teal answered, folding his forelegs as he pouted.
"Well, I think the time of running off to hunt down fire flowers is over," Risha intervened, looking down at the sulking pair.
Ember glanced at her sapphire friend for a moment, their brief expression one of mutual respect.
"Hey, it wasn't that bad! I even found a red one, and we all know that finding a fire flower the same colour as your element brings you good luck," Scarlet declared proudly, raising a forepaw to her chest as both Risha and Ember rolled their eyes.
"You know that's a game for hatchlings, right?" Ember replied, and the red-scaled dragoness frowned.
"I'm eight, nearly nine, thank you!" she snapped, puffing up her chest to display her bright yellow markings.
"Besides, Risha never really had a problem with it when we brought fire flowers back to class for her," she added, pointing a forepaw at her teacher.
"Only when it wasn't during training time, I bet," Ember countered, shooting a knowing glance at Risha.
"You okay?" she asked, approaching her water elemental friend.
Risha shook off Scarlet's comment and smiled.
"I'm fine, just. Well, only about as fine as everyone else is these days," she admitted.
Ember nodded before moving over to place a wing on her shoulder.
"What about you?" Risha asked, looking back at her.
Ember sighed, glancing down at her gold-clad forepaws.
"The order's sending us back out to Storm Peak to clear up the last of the orkin. Skies know where else they are going to need us, especially with all of the ebon wings still out there. I don't think this war's going to be over as soon as we hoped," she confessed, but Risha shook her head.
"Ember, that's not what I meant. I meant how are you?" the sapphire dragoness elaborated, pointing a claw to Ember's chest.
It wasn't hard for Risha to notice her friend's reluctance to speak, but she knew if there was any dragoness Ember could open up to, it was her.
"Pretty much the same as you. I’ve got over the whole flying off thing," she finally admitted, and Risha nodded. "But if you're asking me about that, then how do you really feel?" she pressed, redirecting the question back at Risha with a glance.
The sapphire dragoness paused and shook her head.
"I... I miss them, both of them. They were all I had," she confessed, and Ember nudged her shoulder reassuringly before backing away.
"Well, you've still got me and Neera, and I don't think Queen Tarwin and the tribals would turn you away either," Ember reassured.
Risha smiled as a small laugh escaped her muzzle.
"Thanks, Ember."
The orange dragoness nodded, before turning back to the three youngsters.
"Come on you lot. Oh, and Teal, your brother is waiting down by the temple. He said you need some more practice with your defensive stance before going for dinner," she added, ushering a disgusted look from Teal.
"Oh, skies curse him! No dragon is supposed to be stood still for that long," he mumbled indignantly.
Meanwhile, a sly smile appeared on Scarlet's face as she walked beside him, while Brass just pranced merrily.
Risha watched them all leave, waving to Ember with a wing, as she and the younglings flew off into the crowded Dardien sky. Finally alone, she let her outwardly positive personality relax and peered down at the book she'd been reading only moments ago.
‘Dragonfire’ was its title, and besides the blazing text, it bore the image of an eight-pointed star, with a long, serpentine dragon weaving between the points. It represented the Seal of the Guardian. The most well-known image throughout the city, through the entire order, in fact, even rivalling that of the Seal of Eternity.
For all of the fame garnered by the tale that ended the last age, she was the only one to possess a real copy of the book. She placed a forepaw on the cover as she thought about that, trying not to dwell too much on what it all meant. The words within had been copied by the Cartographer and the Elders from the Guardian's own memories, granted to them by Seraphine herself so they may remember it as he did. Honour him for a
ll he did to save them from the evil wrath of what the order had come to call the Great World Dragon.
She loved reading out parts of their adventures together to the class, even if she had to leave out some of the more graphic details. Despite all of the celebrations, the festivals and even a whole day dedicated to remembering him, she still felt lost. Those feelings were all that were left of her hero and her closest friend. It was such melancholy thoughts that she tried to avoid, as depression was too easy a trap for a dragon to fall into.
She took the book, slipped a small satchel over her neck, placed it inside and began to walk through Dardien’s vast tunnels. She made the journey every day, the route providing her with a very good view of the renovation work and repairs going on throughout the city. All watched over by the new Sovereign Zephyra, and the newly founded Order of Enishra.
The city was far more alive now than it had ever been. Griffins, hippogriffs and even humans were permitted to fly about the great hanging stalactites, the latter forming close bonds with their escorts, while their new tribal kingdom flourished under the rule of Queen Tarwin.
Risha made her way into a large, open chamber, its roof smooth and its edges lined with towering pillars of gold. At the far end, a gloriously decorated arch opened out to the crowded skies, each side guarded by a golden-armoured dragon.
"Everyone has to change," the dragoness muttered to herself as she recalled just how different the intricate attire worn by the guards was from the sharp silver armour they'd once boasted.
Though, the soldiers weren't the reason she came here so religiously, and moments later, she turned to the opposite end of the chamber to gaze upon a row of magnificent statues. The sentinels flanked her on either side, their brave poses as heroic as those who’d inspired them. Many were dragons, but some were griffins and other races that had participated in the Second Great Battle of Dardien. At the very back of the hall, one great statue dwarfed all others.
The great masterpiece of stonework depicted four dragons and a faldron, each standing triumphantly upon a rocky ridge. The four figures had come to be known as the Dauntless Wing, four souls to mark the points of a star and one to stand in the centre. Even cast in stone, it wasn't hard for Risha to make out each face, even her own, and yet the dragon that stood in the middle was who always stole her attention. His scales were encased in the sculptor's best interpretation of magical, star dragon armour, and a large diamond was affixed to his chest plate.
Risha slowly approached the cylindrical base of the grand monument and sat down on the cool stone before it. Engraved in the smooth marble surface, around the circumference of the base, were many names, each one a small tribute to those who'd fallen in battle. Her attention was always drawn to two names in particular, at the very top of the list.
Raising a forepaw, she brushed a quivering set of claws across the names of her brother and the dragon she loved. Looking back up at their stone monuments reminded her of what she'd seen, all that changed that day they'd met. He'd been the best of the world, shown her all the good someone could do. He'd given everything for them right until the very end, even his life. With that thought, she stepped back, and holding back tears, straightened herself.
"I love you," she admitted to them both, glancing at the sky.
Peering at the crowded air, she wondered how long she could do this. For now, it was firmly set in her mind that she would do it for as long as she lived, but that would be a long time for such a young dragoness.
Then something else caught her attention and she looked to see a hooded dragon approaching. Assuming it was just another mourner, she didn't pay much attention as the tapping of their claws ceased and the figure stopped at the base of the statue beside her. There was a moment of silence, and for some reason she couldn't help but look at the mysterious stranger. Dark robes covered their body, and from what she could see, their scales were a distinct, fiery-red, tipped with sharp flicks of gold.
She caught a glimpse of something strange through the gaps in the cloak – three jagged markings of white along the scales on the left side of their neck and shoulder, shaped almost like claw marks. She assumed it must be some kind of strange hatchday marking; they were common among dragons, but their location on this occasion seemed oddly familiar. Regardless, as the stranger sat down and sighed, her curiosity was too great for her to keep her muzzle closed.
"Sorry, I don't mean to sound inconsiderate, but..." she began, and the dragon looked at her with a pair of sky-blue eyes.
She knew immediately how strange that was for a dragon of such an element, yet she paused, fearing she may have just done something stupidly disrespectful. The dragon merely looked at her until she finally plucked up the courage to look back.
"I lost someone too, if that's what you're asking. Actually, I lost a lot of things," the stranger admitted, his voice striking so many memories.
It was impossible; no way could she be hearing that voice again. Yet she was so sure.
"I'm sorry. I lost my brother in the battle, and... well, someone else I cared about," she admitted, and the stranger shifted his forepaws as if he were suddenly incredibly nervous.
In that moment, Risha caught a glimpse of something shiny within his robes. There was something around his neck, a fancy pendant maybe or an enchanted trinket? No, none of those things glowed with the faint light of a white flame. Overcome, she tilted her head to get a better look at the amulet, and finally the stranger mustered up the courage to look back at her. His hood fell from his four horns and the instant his red-scaled features were revealed, her mind went blank.
"I also made someone a promise," he admitted, his now familiar eyes fixed on her even as they shivered with guilt.
Stunned, Risha could only smile warmly as she finally responded.
"I imagine they'd hold you to it. But then again, there's always more bridges to cross."
The End
The world may be saved, but the lands of Enishra still hold many mysteries. The series continues in arc two:
Arc One: Dragonfire
Book One: Sphere of Eternity
Book Two: Fallen Star
Book Three: Age of Legend
Arc Two: Age of Dragonfire
Book One: Order of Enishra
