Hello all, I have returned. This fic is completely AU and only has places and characters from the series itself. I hope you all enjoy.
Disclaimer: i only own the storyline.
enjoy!
"How many years have you stared at that egg, Vervada?"
"I have lost count of the years." Vervada answered her mate as she looked at the sapphire egg. "When will it hatch? There is peace now, unlike when it was birthed."
"They will hatch soon. Like you said, there is peace. I," A squeak interrupted him. Both dragons looked at the egg. Another squeak and knocking filled the cave. Vervada looked at her mate, an excited light in her eyes. A few minutes later, a small dragon flopped out of the broken shell. Vervada stepped forward and began cleaning her child. "She's beautiful." Iormúngr pulled a small chunk of deer from behind him and placed it in front of his daughter.
"Who am I?" The three month old dragon asked her reflection. "What is my name?"
"Saphira," a voice whispered.
"Who's there?" She called out, whipping her head around.
"Saphira," it whispered again.
"Is that my name?"
"Saphira," the voice said one final time and then was gone.
"Saphira," she looked at her reflection again. "I am Saphira."
"Daughter!" She looked up at her mother's voice.
"I am here, Mother." She answered. The storm-scaled dragon landed next to her daughter.
"What are you doing so far from the nest, Daughter?"
"Finding my name." Saphira replied. "I am Saphira."
"It is a fitting name for you, my daughter. Come, Saphira. Your father awaits us at home." The two females flew into the air and headed for the mountains in the distance.
Saphira expertly evaded an attack by her opponent and sent a blast of fire at the elder dragon. She cut off the blaze when she heard the other dragon roar and disappeared into a cloud. She extended her consciousness and felt him below her. He was unharmed, which she had expected. He was far older than her and could fly out of range of her fire for the moment. He was looking for her by smell, something she knew how to do well. But she could not watch him from her position without revealing herself. She waited until he was directly beneath her and then shot downward. She caught him in the back and forced him to the ground, biting at his neck. He roared in anger and struggled to break free. She let him go before they hit the ground and disappeared behind the peak.
She was breathing hard now. They had been fighting all day. But she knew it had to be done. There was no telling when their ancient enemies would attack them again. They had an uneasy truce with the humans now. But humans were fickle and often forgot their promises.
She dove as he flew straight at her. He took a moment to change direction on account of his bulk and her timing. She turned and sent fire towards him again, catching him on the wing this time. He roared in pain and she flew at him, clawing at him and biting at him until he yielded.
"Well done, Daughter." Iormúngr commented as he cleaned his wounds. No hatchling has ever gotten the better of me like that."
"Where are my siblings, Papa?" Saphira asked as she drank her fill of the stream water.
"They flew to Vroengard to learn from the dragons there. It is there that many of our race dwell, the older dragons. In time, your mother and I shall join them. But now, we like our life here in Du Weldenvarden." Saphira looked up at the mountains that served as their home.
"I like it here to. There are many dragons here." She stretched her wings before folding them against her body and sitting next to her father. There is so much to see. I especially enjoy watching the humans scurry around their towns from above."
"That is good that you study them, Saphira. But be wary. They are able to use magic at will, just as we are. You must be on your guard around them. As you know, our truce with them is an uneasy one. You would do well not to befriend them unless you are sure you can trust them. There are those that would seek to use us against out will."
"But our minds are strong and so are we. No human has the strength to control a dragon."
"They have other ways." The six year old dragon looked at her father and nodded.
"Vervada! Saphira!" The two female dragons woke suddenly at Iormúngr's shout. Other dragons were also shouting the names of their loved ones. He landed and they met him outside.
"What is wrong, Papa?" Saphira asked, looking into the darkness and see many torches.
"What we have long feared is happening. The humans have broken their word and the truce between us."
"What do we do?" Vervada demanded, looking at her eldest daughter and the youngest one who had yet to name itself. Saphira was its elder by two hundred years.
"The hatchling needs its parents. Saphira and I will fight with the others to give you and the other mothers and hatchlings time to escape. Go to Vroengard and warn them of our plight. We will join you when we can."
"Mind the Magicians." Vervada said, jumping into the air and grabbing the hatchling. Saphira and her father joined the other dragons in the fight below.
She wielded the sword with deadly accuracy. She had a mission to complete. Her mother, the seer, had told her which dragon to place in the slumber. One dragon would change the fate of the empire in the years to come. Her mother had told the human king what he wanted to hear. He feared the dragons and how they had so easily beat the humans into submission. Her mother had told him that the dragons would attack them many years from that day. So the king had decided to attack the dragons before the dragons attacked them. She had gone with the army to ensure that the sapphire dragon would not be killed in the resulting battle. Her mission was to find the dragon and but her into a long slumber that would lift when the time for her was needed. She wasn't surprised when the dragons landed and changed form. Her mother told her that they were able to do such. But it made her difficult to tell which dragon was the one she wanted. Nothing about a dragon in human form made it easy to tell them apart as the many dragons shared colors. She wasn't sure how many sapphire dragons lived at the current time. But there was only one she was interested in.
A roar signaled the retreat of the dragons as the humans began to overwhelm them. She had already seen others fly away to spread the word that the humans had grown far more dangerous than they had been before. While the men cheered, she watched the skies for the dragon she wanted. She saw her following behind in the rear with another, larger, dragon. She wondered if the other was her parent. It was a quick thought and then she began her spell. The sapphire dragon sent one more stream of fire before she was lost to sight and the forest burned.
"Saphira!" Iormúngr called over the fire. He had last seen his daughter as she set the forest ablaze with the intent of killing the humans as he led the dragons to Vroengard.
"Iormúngr, let's go!"
"Not without Saphira!"
"She is lost."
"No, she is better than that. I taught her better."
"Iormúngr,"
"Glaedr, I have to find her! She is my eldest daughter."
"Listen to yourself!" The gold dragon yelled. "If she is not with the others, she is lost. Perhaps she hid and will join us when the humans have left. Right now, we have to go before the humans kill us all. We have lost too many already. These Magicians are more powerful than last time. Come on." Iormúngr reluctantly followed the gold dragon to the west, sparing one last glance at the burning forest. Glaedr looked at the younger dragon. Saphira was the first daughter in Iormúngr's family in many years.
"We will see each other again, my daughter. I promise you." Iormúngr vowed before turning his back to the fire and the dying humans within.
She looked at the dragon. She had successfully cast the spell and the three hundred year old dragon was sleeping peacefully in the cave on the ground. She hated to leave her alone, but she would be needed to save the people of the empire many years from now. "I am sorry." She whispered to the sleeping dragon. "But you are needed in a later time and we could not risk you dying in this battle. May you have pleasant dreams as the power of this land supports you as you sleep." She touched the dragon gently, feeling the scales beneath her hand, before closing the cave.
She traveled months before she returned to her mother in Ilirea. "Is it done?"
"It is mother. The sapphire dragon sleeps until she is needed into the years to come."
"That is good. Tell me, Child, do you believe we did the right thing. You shared in the vision. Did we do right?"
"If we had not done what we have, the Mad King would rule us all." She answered with confidence. Her mother nodded and dismissed her.
"Arya! Arya wait up!"
"Oh do hurry, Fäolin. I want to see if it's true."
"If what's true?"
"I read in one of the ancient scrolls that a dragon was trapped when the kingdom split."
"You mean after the humans attacked the dragons." Arya waved him off. They were still human, in a sense. But ever since their people had settled on the land the dragons once inhabited, they had become faster and looked more feline and had the grace of one as well.
"Yes, after that. It is rumored that a dragon was imprisoned in an enchanted slumber and locked in a cave here, unable to wake until the kingdom needed her. I want to see if that is true."
"Is this where you have been coming these past few months?"
"Yes it is, if you must know." Arya turned and looked at her brother, her green eyes flashing with excitement.
"But the dragon must be dead now. That happened over two thousand years ago."
"Dragons are immortal-"
"Unless blade or poison or lack of food take them. How would she live if she were asleep?"
"That is what I mean to find out. Look, there's the cave." Fäolin hurried to her side. The siblings looked at the cave in awe. It was obvious that the cave had been sealed by magic that was almost gone. The twins looked at each other and hurried to the cave entrance. Together, they eliminated the last of the magic and used their own to tear down the wall. After the dust had settled, they looked in and saw darkness. Arya lit a branch and stepped inside. Fäolin followed close behind. They suddenly heard a deep breathing the echoed through the cave, making the light flicker. Arya supported it by magic. She took a deep breath and took another step forward, bumping into what appeared to be a snout. The snout moved and the twins were staring into a large, hard, ice-blue eye. A growl filled the cave.
So what did everyone think? Promising? I don't plan on updating until i get at least three to five reviews. Thanks for reading and please review!