Malefor Rising: Origins
It was true that Malefor was just like Spyro once but funnily enough, almost no records of him exist save for a few manuscripts which give only a brief insight into his otherwise obscure past. While physical manuscripts, books, and scrolls written by mortals tell little, the Books of Time are a different story. Malefor began as nothing more than a dragon who lived an ordinary life, at least for the first five to ten years after being born. On a winter's night in the year 1867 of the Third Age, he broke free from his protective shell. A legend is born, one dragon to change the world.
Prologue
The dawn of winter brought about little excitement for Xarnas. As steward of the rookery, it was his task to look after the eggs that were not hatched. The fires that kept the eggs warm were prone to being extinguished by the roaring easterly winds and it was his job to rekindle them. Should he fail his task and the hatchlings in the eggs die, the emperor would have his head. The very thought of going to the guillotines made him shudder and the cold was not helping. If he was not stuck with this accursed job, he would've returned to his home in Kathalgan to celebrate the passing of winter.
Blast those unhatched eggs, he thought to himself. The young adult fire dragon paced up and down the rookery, as if hoping they would hatch soon and get it over with. He stopped for a while to check the windows to make sure that they were shut tight. It puzzled him that even with the windows firmly closed, drafts could still blow into the rookery. Maybe they came from the chimneys, Xarnas said to himself. He did ask some foremen to examine the chimneys and they actually found some design flaws which allowed air from the outside to blow in and disrupt the warming fires. Funnily though, the rookery master did not seem all too concerned about it and ignored Xarnas's calls to fix the problem.
Sometimes, he wondered if Curanth was purposely making life hard for him. He could've sworn that he was smiling deviously at him when the last bell for the year rung. No rest for the good and honest, his mother always said. For once, he had hoped his mother was wrong about something in life. While he mulled over what to write in the letter he planned to send to his family, a blast of cold air engulfed the rookery. Xarnas saw one of the hatching pods go dark, its fire extinguished by the sudden draft. He sighed and walked towards the pod. Taking a deep breath, Xarnas exhaled gently and let out a jet of soft fire. The pod lit up once more and he saw that it held a perfectly purple egg.
"What an odd egg. Its colour is nothing like what I've seen before," Xarnas muttered to himself. He sat down in front of the pod and looked at the egg. "I wonder who your parents were. Curanth told me you fell from the sky," he said softly and chuckled.
Just as he said that, the egg move a bit followed by a soft cracking sound. Xarnas's breath became shallow and his eyes widened. The egg was hatching and just when everyone in the rookery had went home. Assisting in hatching was the task of a rookery matron but she had already returned home for the night. They told him the eggs would not hatch until just after the New Year but it seemed like this purple egg decided to be different. Cracks began forming on the shell and Xarnas began to panic. Hatchlings were fragile creatures and a simple cold or a blow could kill them so it was imperative that he saved it. He scanned the room for a piece of thick cloth but there was nothing he could use. Xarnas dared not leave the premise in case the hatchling hatched without him being there to catch it.
Then, he had an idea. He undid his fur coat and laid it flat on the floor. After that, he proceeded with breaking the eggshell as gingerly as possible. That should be the correct procedure. Xarnas mentally kicked himself for not paying attention during hatching assistance practice but he was not entirely oblivious. Right now though, he had to make things up, deciding the best way to approach the matter. Bit by bit, the top half of the egg fissured from the combined tapping of the hatchling within and by Xarnas using his claw to tap on the shell. After an agonising ten minutes, the fire dragon managed to break open the egg. Inside it, a purple hatchling dragon looked up at him and made a sort of happy chirp.
"Hey buddy, welcome to the world," Xarnas said in a light-hearted tone while scooping up the hatchling. "Let's get you warm before you freeze to death."
Before he covered the hatchling in his fur coat, Xarnas examined the tiny hatchling to determine its gender. It was a male and a rather feisty one too. Normal hatchlings usually do not move so much but the purple one was squirming about like it wanted to play. When Xarnas wanted to examine its eyes, the hatchling spat clear liquid at him. He growled as the hatchling made rapid chirps, as if laughing at him for being mad. This one was definitely not a normal hatchling, he thought while cleaning the slime off the hatchling. Perhaps this was the Prodigy that the Seers had foreseen a few decades back, the one dragon that would usher in a new age.
Prodigy or not, Xarnas had to keep it warm and safe. He had no experience in taking care of hatchlings but he tried his best to make things up as he goes. The coat was too large and would suffocate the poor hatchling if he decided to wrap it up entirely. Xarnas covered the hatchling using the collar section of the coat only and that was sufficient to keep it warm and calm. Despite its earlier energy outburst, the hatchling was quickly calming down, his rapid movements slowing down until it laid still. It yawned and closed its eyes, sleeping in the warmth of the thick coat. If this was to be his future when he has a family of his own, it would be rather troublesome.
Still, the sight of a sleeping hatchling warmed Xarnas's heart and he found a comfortable spot to lay down at so he could watch over it. Who would have thought a small hatchling could bring out non-existent parental instincts from a young dragon? While the hatchling rested, Xarnas checked on it every hour to make sure it was still breathing. He did that while looking after the rest of the eggs until the break of dawn when the rookery matron came in the check on things. Accompanying her was Xarnas's substitute, a young adult dragoness named Thurandil. When they came into the rookery, they saw Xarnas cradling the hatchling in his left arm.
"You mean that you took care of it the whole night?" the matron asked in a surprised tone.
"Hadn't got a choice. I think he likes my coat too," Xarnas said as he eyed the still sleeping hatchling.
"Oh, it's a he? Let me see," the matron said.
He handed her the coat and the matron examined it closely. Her gentle prodding woke the hatchling up and when it saw the matron staring down on it, the hatchling chirped and held onto the matron's prodding claw with its hands.
"Well, you're right, it is a male. I am truly surprised, Xarnas. I never took you for a dragon that could differentiate a fish from a cow," the matron said with a mischievous smile.
"Hey, that's just insulting," said an unamused Xarnas while Thurandil chuckled.
"You did well taking care of it though," Thurandil remarked. "Perhaps you'd make a fine father one day."
"With a feisty kid like that, I'd rather be unmarried."
"It does seem rather lively. And the colour, it's different from the usual colours we all have."
"Who are the parents?" Xarnas asked the matron. "I've not seen any purple dragons before and surely it couldn't have come from any elemental dragon, right?"
The matron shook her head. "No dragon in known history has purple scales. This is the first time that a hatchling bears a colour that no other dragon has. It could be a sign."
"Like it being a possible Prodigy?" Thurandil suggested.
"It is possible but it is up to the Seers to decide. As for his parents, we don't know who they are. In such a situation, we ought to present him to the Elders so they can decide who can adopt him. Come, let us go to Krion. Thurandil, look after the eggs," the matron said.
The darkest of days was graced by the brightest of lights. During an empire's darkest hour, one soul shall rise above all to smite its enemies and usher in a new age. That time is now but as with all things, time is needed for even a star to glow brightly and be part of the heavens. But how much power can one hold before it ultimately consumes itself? The greatest enemy is neither dragon nor beast but the soul within.
A/N: I feel that Malefor needs a good origins story. Sure he gradually became evil but what was he like before that? That's the question I'm planning to answer. Do review and make suggestions. They are greatly appreciated. Anyway, this is just a prologue so it's rather short. But it should be enough to get things started.