Prologue
Fateful Day
Jassa ran after Oriana, darting between the twisted trees that comprised the thickets of Tangled Wood. The shouts and screams of dragons sounded in the distance, made no less horrifying by the miles.
"Oriana! Wait!" Jassa called to her friend frantically. She caught up to her as Oriana slowed to a stop and turned to her. "I know you are upset. Rakgi betrayed us all; but I can help you protect your eggs! You need me." Jassa's pink eyes never left Oriana's as she spoke.
"Jas, you have been a good friend to me. But I can't put you in danger. This is something I must do on my own" Oriana said sadly, her words tinged with unimaginable sorrow. "If you need to find me; go to Leviathan Trench. I will hide there with my eggs until they hatch and the war over."
She took flight, her blue wings easily lifting her into the gray sky. Jassa took off after her, beating her brown wings in an attempt to catch up. A frantic roar of pain pierced the symphony of pain that blanketed the battlefield far below. Oriana twisted in the air, diving towards the center of the battle. Where she was going, a massive red dragon battled against a smaller black Mirror male.
"Ragki!" Oriana howled, landing near her mate. "Oriana, go! Run!" Ragki shouted, dodging a slash from the red dragon he was battling. "Lady Plaguebringer, take me; just don't harm my family" He shouted to his opponent. "You betrayed me, Ragki. For this, your family will pay the ultimate price!" Plaguebringer screamed, whipping a claw around and slashing the wing of Oriana.
The Mirror screamed in pain as she clutched her torn wing and tumbled off the pile of corpses that the pair were battling on. "No!" Ragki shouted, fury and sorrow and anger dripping from his voice. "You will pay for this! Your quarrel is with me; not them!"
"I will take my vengeance in whatever way hurts you most. I am a deity; a god. You are no match for me" Plaguebringer snarled. She dipped her claw behind the corpse of a Pearlcatcher, and brought out a black oval stone, slim purple lines winding their way across the surface. "Where did you get that?" Ragki breathed. Plaguebringer smirked, and raised a claw over it. "Please, no. Don't harm it" He begged."I beg of you; do not harm our child." "Oh, don't worry. I won't kill it."
Plaguebringer moved her claw in a circle over the egg as thin cracks started to spread across the surface. The egg burst apart in her claw, and in the center sat a small black and purple Mirror hatchling. The tiny female yawned; tiny white teeth lining her small jaws, and slowly opened her four purple eyes. She stared around at the battlefield, drinking in her first glimpse of the world, as bloody as it was.
Plaguebringer shifted, drawing the hatchling's attention back to her. The little female squeaked a question; curiosity evident in her glossy eyes. "Hello," Plaguebringer hissed. "What would you like to name her, Ragki?" "Her name- her name was to be Naerea" He said quietly, desperation evident in his eyes as he stared at his newborn daughter. "Well, Naerea. Welcome, to the Tangled Wood" As the red deity spoke, she started to move her claw in a spiral over the youngling, murmuring harsh, arcane words.
The sky started to crackle with electricity, the gray clouds growing bloody red. A foul wind blew over the battlefield, heavy with the stench of rot and decay. Plaguebringer's chanting grew louder until it was easily audible over the sounds of the rising wind. "…Islaku draur lifasit encarcera!" She drew a blue pearl from a pouch around her neck and held it to the chest of Naerea.
Tiny Nae stared down at the pearl, which was steadily glowing brighter. Suddenly, a bright flash blinded everyone for a moment, and when the light cleared, Naerea was slumped in Plaguebringer's claw. "What have you done to her!" Ragki and Oriana cried. "I have trapped the life-force of that tiny brat inside this pearl, along with her dormant power. When she grows to be an adult, I will find her, and slay her before your very eyes. That, Ragki, is your punishment. You will see your daughter grow, then die at my claw."
The red deity smirked, bloody glee evident in the maroon depths of her eyes. She vanished in a swirl of red smoke, and the limp form of Naerea fell to the ground alongside the still-glowing pearl. Oriana rushed forwards, cradling her tiny daughter in her claws. Jassa landed beside her, claws squelching in the mud as she looked at the sight of Oriana cradling her unconscious daughter and Ragki nowhere to be found.
"What happened?" Jassa asked, rushing over to stand beside Oriana. "Plaguebringer… she punished Ragki by trapping Naerea's life-force in this pearl." Jassa gently picked the pearl out of the mud, not caring about the muck that clung to her purple scales. "Is this it?" "Yes. She intends to wait until Nae grows up then she will… kill her. In front of Ragki and I."
Tears leaked from Oriana's eyes, glimmering in the cloudy light. "She'll be okay. We just have to keep the pearl safe." Jassa looked around at the battlefield, her pink eyes searching among the fallen dragons for the dark form of Ragki. He was nowhere in sight; having vanished again when his family needed him most. "Oriana, we have to go. We have to find a safe place, far away." "But what about Ragki?" "He's gone. If he wants to find you, he will. Come on!"
With one last look around the battlefield, Oriana took flight, tiny Naerea clutched in her claws. As they wheeled over the plain, slowly gaining altitude, something whistled through the air and struck Jassa's wing. She roared in pain, wobbling in the air.
Far below, Oriana's eyes picked out several Centaur archers. "It's the Beastclans! Fly!" She shouted. More arrows flew around them. Oriana managed to evade all but one of the deadly shafts. It struck her right leg, ripping through flesh and muscle. She screamed, the leg weakening.
Naerea slipped through her grasp, the tiny dragonet falling towards the ground far below. "Naerea!"
Next update is May 30. Please review and be kind. This is my first fan fiction.