Iolene Chapter One
I ran through the thick forest as fast as I could even though the soft leaves and moss ground made it difficult to run properly. Bleeding and bruised all over my body it was so hard to carry on but I managed to move forward even though I was in full panic. Looking at my sides I see animals were also running away with me. Birds, rabbits and anything that can run is running away. It was a flood of nature as they are fleeing as they saw what was going to hit us. The blazing heat of the environment started to burn my skin, although no trees were on fire. But I had to have a quick look up as I saw it is coming closer to the planet. A meteor so huge anyone could mistake it as a moon… and it is going to collide with our world. It seemed like running away from this is futile, exhausted, injured and alone I decided to lay down and watch the meteor come closer and closer.
The rumbling of the meteors force started to shake the earth with parts of the meteor started to land on the planet's surface. This place once beautiful and peaceful in seconds becomes a fiery ash field. I looked around as animals got hit and ran around on fire still hoping for an escape. The fire did not look like normal fire… It was golden flame. Beautiful but unnatural I never have seen anything like it. My fear became numb as the meteor collided into the world, a gold light shined then everything became black and silent.
My eyes opened immediately as I woke up drenched in sweat. Then I realized it was a nightmare… Another one thank goodness. These dreams and nightmares are a rare occurrence but it feels so real as if I was there. I sat up and I stroked my long blonde hair and it looked like I was swimming in a lake and even though I was asleep I felt exhausted. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to try and calm my heart and nerves.
However, I immediately shake the thought of my nightmare as I noticed something underneath my sheets. It was not just sweat that dripped into my bed there was also blood. I jumped out of bed in complete fear as if I found a mouse in there trying my hardest not to scream.
Tears welled up in my eyes, as I have dreaded this day for so long. Today is the day I become a woman. I repeatedly took slow and deeps breaths and tried my hardest not to cry. The priesthood has always wondered if the day will ever come as they one day want me married to bear children. At the age of fifteen, I am a very late bloomer, I counted myself luckier for that, as I know some girls get it at the age of eleven.
Throughout my childhood, the priesthood had always told me that I must breed and that it is essential for the future of the world. As I am the last ancient and last heir to the gold draconium royal family so this gives them an easy excuse to breed me like a prized cow. The other girls in the priesthood are lucky as they have no such pressure on them. I felt immensely jealous of them as they can have their freedoms… Going out to the markets, go fishing, late nights at the festival balls and go out to have fun with friends in general. I always fought and argued for my freedoms so to try and relieve myself of this fancy prison I read a lot. My room even felt like a prison cell a small single bed, small drawer, a small chair in the corner and bucket to relieve myself in. The only fancier things I appreciated was my bookcase full of books about the world along with fictional stories, royal dresses even though I do not have any events to wear them to and bed sheets which was given to me as birthday gifts from my family... Which I now unintentionally ruined.
Their obvious excuse was that they are trying to protect me… Oh, how I loathed that excuse. Akvor the Priesthood leader just loved me being under his thumb and loved to control others. In fact, that is what I fear the most is that he would be the one to propose the marriage for me to marry him or he will choose my suiter.
Even though I am related to the royal family I feel like I am the property of the priesthood. Akvor was voted in to lead by the other priests when the previous leader Uji passed away, people adored Uji. But with Akvor not so much except the priesthood council as they believe his stricter rules are closer to the ancient ways. Akvor works as the primary advisor to King Marlowe and they do not even like each other. Even as a King, Marlowe has no decisions over the priesthood and even though the priests serve and advise the king. The priests are immensely powerful with draconium energy powers and ancient knowledge. Turning against the priesthood will only get the king into huge political problems as the priests are well liked by the people and in a way can be negotiators for upcoming wars.
Though through all of this King Marlowe once snuck me away on a trip to Waters Gate which is a small city borderline of the Orange Draconium Empire. This trip changed my life and Akvo did not like that one bit… Because of this fresh perspective of life, I stood up for myself and with the insistence of my grandfather and the king the priests allowed me to learn to be a nurse at the Aquarius City Hospital with strict supervision for two days a week.
Suddenly I heard the knock at the door, I realized I have been standing there for so long staring at this patch of blood. Realizing that blood is also trickling down my legs. "My lady!" a croaky female voice called and continued knocking on the door. I looked at the patch and started to fret, I hoped I had something sharp to cut out this patch of blood but I quickly realized it was pointless. My nightgown also had a blood patch it was unavoidable. I closed my eyes as I turned and then unlocked my door.
"Come in," I said in a shaky tone.
My handmaid Eleya came in and it did not take long to see what transpired. She also took a long breath and sighed. She knew what I was going to go through next and she held my hand as a sign of that she will support me. She is a small elderly lady I met at the hospital who was a homeless refugee. She is deaf in one ear, almost blind in her right eye, has blue hair which is greying, large ears and olive skin which is covered in scratches and scars. She also had moments of flashbacks where her mind would go back to the moment that the Black Draconium Empire took her homeland. She becomes angry and incomprehensible and it happens at random. Which is why Akvor calls her the crazy mouse, in which describing a keeper as a mouse is an offensive term as they are often slurred as rodents and looked down upon by humans and dragons.
Her whole family was murdered and everyone else she knew was enslaved. For you see she was known to be a keeper the small people from the city of Suravi in the small country North West of the continent of Draconis n our world. They were called keepers for the fact they were known to keep anything. If it was rubbish they would keep it and try to make some use of it. Eleya was no different she despises waste and yells at anyone who throws out something useful. She may seem off-putting but she is the kindest lady when people manage to see through her rough exterior and random outbursts. She was homeless and lost so I demanded to Akvor that she become my handmaiden as I was allowed to have one on the behest of my family. They teach me to be a princess but Akvor tries his hardest not to give me any privileges of one even with my family's interference.
"What do I do?" I looked down at Eleya and she looks up at me. She just gave me the simple answer of telling Akvo. She was right I can only hide it for so long especially in the past few years where he asks and checks my clothes on the daily basis. Tears started to fall from my cheeks as I hated this prospect, he would want to see the proof that I bled. So Eleya and I went down the hall to the bathroom where she heated a nice warm bath for me. I needed to freshen up even though having a bath at this time can get messy either way. Scrubbing all of the sweat from last night away it felt relaxing and I sorely needed it.
When finished I put on the traditional priesthood outfit. It is white with gold trimmings which is different from the rest who wear light blue with ocean patterns. Each priesthood is different in other nations. Aquarius City is the National City of the Light blue Draconium Empire of which our powers is based on which is closely associated with water. My outfit is based on the Gold Draconium Empire which should be my home but it cannot be. I put on my shirt, pants and boots. Then on top of my shirt, I tie on the special armour plating. After dressing myself Eleya complimented me as usual that I looked beautiful and we walked down the small cave-like hallway to the large temple main hall.
It was massive the whole temple is underground and under the sea. The only lighting in this temple is from the large draconium pillars that light up light blue when people or dragons are in its presence. Draconium is metal that is present everywhere in the world even in the bones of humans and dragons.
The only entrance of the temple is a cave located just in the outskirts of the city's mainland. There are two parts of the city. One part of the city is on the mainland and dividing the other part is a large river that takes a half day sail to reach to a large island. The island is where the majority of the fishing trades and navy is located. There are palaces on both parts of the city so the royal family can live in which area they like.
Walking through the temple everyone is starting to come out doing their usual duties. The dragon priests have started to gather inside the meeting chamber. This made me even more nervous as not only would I have heard from Akvor but the rest of the council as well.
A dragon walked past me and he turned around and nodded a hello to me and I softly said hello back. His name is Fiskeri who is also a young dragon priest apprentice. A dragon who had fish like tendencies he had fins on the back of his legs and chin. With a tail that is an actual large fin. His light blue colouring makes him blend well into the ocean and while he swims he is such a graceful creature. He is very kind and sweet but is yet to choose a human partner. He quickly runs off as it looks like he is late for a lesson.
"Iolene Summers!"
I turned around I can immediately tell who's horrible raspy voice that is anywhere. It is Akvor in his full-on priest armour glory. His helmet being large and magnificent details on his priest garments. The shell and ocean details are unmistakably beautiful and I have to give congratulations to the designer who made it as I bet Akvor will favour them greatly for their well-deserved hard work. I nodded and curtsy gently while softly saying "Hello Akvor" and as I look up he did not like that I just called him "Akvor". I did not even have to see his face since it is covered with the helmet I could tell automatically. I should have called him Lord Priest Akvor, but I really did not want too.
We stood in silence for a minute or two until he finally came out with the question I always dreaded that was going to ask.
"Has she bled yet?" he said demandingly. Eleya nodded yes to him and for once I see the man smile. He looked at me up and down and then he immediately asked for the proof. We all ended up back in my small room and he saw the blood on my bed. His smile got even bigger he was so excited about this. The more he felt excited the more I felt terrified.
He demanded Eleya to clean up the mess as he grabbed my hand and dragged me into the main meeting chamber where dragons and humans congregated for their first-morning meeting. It looked like a small battle arena where the priests have special seating arrangements. The dragons are at the further back due to their sizes and the humans are at the front. With a large intricate throne made of pure light blue draconium placed in the middle facing the entrance it even has a special staff holder. They look like they are about to watch a gladiator battle unfold. I could only hear a glimpse of their discussions but they are talking about the serious matter of the dragon separatists. I believe that issue is a little bit more important than me gaining my womanhood.
He dragged me into the middle of the chamber and lets me go so he can sit on the beautiful throne placed on top. Everyone was looking at down me, dozens of eyes judging me. I felt like a traitor being sentenced as this is usually how they do it. I wanted to run away but I see the gigantic rock door closed behind me. The room fell silent.
Akvor Then tapped his staff three times to gain everyone's attention, and with his raspy voice, he announced my name and that I have finally become a woman. Then the discussions really began. High Priestess Marianas immediately stood up and shouted at the fact that this should be a private matter and should not be treated as a spectacle. I have always liked her, she and I get along very well as she was also my teacher for political matters and public speaking. She was so close to winning the vote of becoming Lord Priest, my god I wish she'd won… Things would have been different. But I believe Akvor won because he had the money edge as much as he and his friends on the council denied.
The dragons sitting up top were not thinking much of this. Just looking at their faces they look annoyed after all Akvor distracted them from a very important discussion earlier about the dragon separatists. They may growl and roar with some even speak human tongue but it is very obvious that this subject matter is not as important to them as humans.
"It is time to for her to find a suiter!" One of the priests said as many have started shout out potential suiter's names from around the world. But they had to be careful of which suiter they choose or hopefully I can choose… As the world is in disarray choosing anyone from Black, Green, Orange, Light Green and possibly even purple can end in my death and that will be the end of that. With my golden eyes and gold energy, it can be an obvious trait to the enemy. Even if I birth a child, the child will also have the gold eyes and energy. It was only fifteen years ago when the gold empire officially fell, Dragon City the home of gold immediately was being occupied by the Black Draconium Empire. As much my great uncle wants to destroy and avenge our families, they are too powerful of a nation to go against them on his own, at least we are powerful enough nation not to be taken over by them. He has tried gaining allies but each has their own problems or they do not want to be a part of it.
Akvor tapped his staff again to silence everyone in the room. Marianas came down my level to be with me. She saw me in complete distress and dread as I still hold back tears. She held my hand and then gave me a gentle hug following with a kiss on the cheek. Akvor then announced that I should marry him. I felt so sick…I would rather be re-living through the meteor nightmare or wish it was actually real... Anything to stop this.
"NO! I would rather die than marry you! You horrible pig!" I shouted out. I'm usually very softly spoken however becoming that man's wife just repulsed me so my manners here do not exist. The man is fifty five years old and has treated me horribly for so long. Marianas shouted along with me as she is also against this. Lucky for me so do some of the other priests and especially the dragons as they roared in anger and in unison.
Marianas then grabbed me by the shoulders and demanded that the guards open the large door. We both had enough of this while walking out another young priest followed our footsteps. We all quickly headed into Marianas's room.
"There we go sweetheart" As she gets me a rag so I can clear my tears since I can no longer contain them. She then massages my back as she tries to comfort me. To try and distract myself I look around Marianas's room it is large and beautiful. Soft King size bed, elaborate detailed large wardrobe, large bookshelves full of books everything is so light blue. So many books but yet we still raid the library to no end as we love to read together. Marianas even sometimes lets me sneak in here to sleep or read.
"Well, that was something… Interesting first morning as an official priest" As I heard the young man's voice. "To think we were discussing the dragon separatists uprisings from the north. To suddenly talk about your flowering". He looks at me with his slanted smile it is so easy to tell who it is underneath the priest helmet. I said hello to Clifford and tried to smile back. Clifford has just been appointed as a new priest by Marianas he is a funny man who has excellent fishing skills. He has been training for ten years for this moment and his family who owns a small fishery could not be happier. His garments are certainly not as detailed as the high priests so people can easily tell that he is the new man.
"What do I do now Marianas?" I looked next to her. She took a long deep breath and sighed. "I wish for you to have all the freedom in the world, my dear. But I do not know how to give it to you without endangering you or the rest of the empire".
