The Beginning of the Beginning


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A Dragon watching over ben'narri. How ironic.

The bite of winter curled over the air. The cold had cleared the sky, leaving it wide, dark, and pricked with stars. It was cold enough to freeze the grass, cold enough to burn the tip of your nose with cold.

Not yet cold enough to be truly dangerous.

But winter would come, and with it, the dangers of living in the high north. The ben'narri brayed from down the hill, their cloudy bodies huddled together against the chill. Ben'narri were built for the cold, rocky weather; their hooves were wide and hooked and their black bodies covered with a thick layer of fleece.

The Dragon lay across the grass, her fingers interlocked behind her head. She closed her eyes, taking a long, last breath of autumn. How quickly the seasons pass now. Midwinter is only two moons away. She rolled onto her side, the long platinum braids spilling like white snakes across the half-black of the grass. Closing her emerald eyes to the darkened forest, the Mil'vardea breathed again, the soft smell of grass and cold filling her lungs.

The seasons will continue to ease by, the years filled with no meaning, no life. Just soft, monotony touched by Midwinter and Midsummer festivals. Then I will die an old warrior woman, telling, then retelling the tale of how I slaughtered the Great Dragon of the North. How I became the Mil'vardea. How I did nothing else worth noting through the rest of my life but raising ben'narri and watching over my brothers' children.

The Dragon curled in on herself, the hard earth cool through her even the lined leather of her corset. No man would ever take the Mil'vardea to be his wife. I am something to inspire awe, to be worshipped, not to be touched.

Damn this place.

One of the ben'narri cried out softly then settled, as if waking from a dream. Mil'vardea shifted again, settling into a more comfortable position on the grass. She watched the stars from beneath a curtain of blonde hair, her mind full and unhappy.

Blessed twins, my gods and guardians: I don't pray often… Please, tell me what you have put me here for. I need some kind of sign… The night curled around her, the darkness dappled with stars. Then slowly, softly, the stars faded into the true black of sleep.

A ben'narri mewed softly, shifting closer to his companions as the wind picked up, blowing cold from the north.

Clouds lined the sky like gray cotton, and the usually streaming sunlight was broken and weak. The normal flairs of color form the market had been dulled down to broken halftones. The glittering gold coins resting in Vrandel's hands were lackluster on that gray day.

It was the same, lifeless umber his whole life had become.

The fine strands of his hair tumbled over his eyes, messy and unadorned. Vrandel reached forward with too thin fingers, grasping at his wine goblet; there was no point to any of this.

Grief shook through his hands, staining his skin with tears and abuse.

I wish I had died… I should have died…

The salt air blew in from the north, strong enough to pull at the curtains, and make a wild tangle of the merchant's silver hair. The wind brought with it the sounds of the ports, the sound of the coming storm; the sheet of gray clouds bubbled and throbbed with waiting rain. Storms such as this were rare in the desert, and this would be a blow to remember.

But it doesn't matter; nothing matters anymore. Tears flow, raging down Vrandel's features like the rain. This world is cruel, crying with me, when it is the one who took everything from me in the first place…

In the midst of the chaos and the rain, Vrandel leaned across the bright wood of the table, falling asleep to the sound of the rain and his own tears.

The sun was harsh.

As it always was, on the outskirts of the jungle. The trees reached to the sky, stretching up into the azure infinity. Bryth climbed the slow, circular stairs to his treehouse. His hawk settled, rustling his feathers, then resettled on the thick leather on Bryth's wrist, as if impatient.

"All in good time, my feathered brother. All in good time."

Sharp, stinging claws bit into the leather, brushing the skin of his wrist. The yellow-green of the hawk's eyes burned with intolerant impudence, a physical manifestation of his wild temper. He is fair polite most of the time, but the moment he gets hungry, the foul humor of his returns. I suppose I'll never quite break him of it.

The rabbit Bryth had stored in the cellar was sufficient for dinner for the hawk, and the Bryth's feathered brother fell asleep, one wing covering his eyes. A servant will be bringing my dinner along any moment now; I suppose I have time for a quick nap before Council tonight…

And the couch did look inviting…

"I come to thee as you call me."

The incense billowed into thick, scented clouds, blurring the edges of Kaellin's vision. Carefully, she leaned forward, dragging her fingers across the surface until they found the tiny blade resting on the altar's surface. It felt heavy in her hands, the tip sharp and solid.

"I come to thee as you call me."

The words slip from her throat, the prayer engraved across the very surface of her soul. There was something at work today, some terrible energy that rumbled under her feet, half-awake; the sun was as clouded as the future, its rays feeble and insubstantial after their long battle through the clouds.

"Your voices ring through my soul, my mind, my heart."

Drawing the knife across her skin, Kaellin bite down on a gasp of pain. She could feel the blood slithering across her wrist like a snake, dripping down onto the stone altar.

"This is my offering, hear my call… Something stirs deep in the earth this day. Show me its meaning."

The knife tumbled from her fingers, clanking against the stone floor. Kaellin waited, her breath caught in her throat as the rumble from the earth turned into a soft hum. The buzz filtered up through the marble, rushing over her whole body, lulling consciousness from her eyes like the Sandman…

Oh, good gravy. Another RotD fanfiction! Wow! I must be going insane. Enjoy, enjoy, my kiddies. You will see where this is going, very very soon. I promise.

:mina: