"We've almost got her" a loud voice called out from the dark night of northern Alagaesia, only challenged by the blistering noise of the cold wind blowing hard from what seemed every direction.
"You two," an even louder voice barked in a commanding tone, "split up and fly by separate sides of the mountain, I'll fly in from above and force her to ground!"
The other two riders needed no further explanation; this tactic was well known amongst the order of the Forsworn and would get the rouge flyer down from her flight in no time.
The skies were heavy and soaked with rain, which, accompanied by the gruesome blow, made flying no easy profession. The only thing lightening up the skies were the lightning, and with them the thunders that roared the heavens like the earth itself were tearing apart. One could almost feel the power that lay within the air.
If anyone would have stood in the middle of the storm, he would not have seen anything, only heard the magnificent sound that occasionally was heard through the hammerings of thunders. It was the sound of the ones that followed, and the one being followed.
"No worries little one, we are almost there, a place where THEY can't get you"
She had travelled far for her loved one, never resting, never stopping, not even to hunt. Realising fully that she did not have a long flight left in her, the sight of her destination at last sent a wave of relief flowing through her, a sensation quickly out powered by the sudden realisation that she was being followed.
This, however, made her only more resilient in reaching her goal faster. After all, the fastest dragon of Doru Areaba would not be caught without a fight, even as fatigued as she was.
"We're there"
Suddenly the majestic dragon took a dive through the rain. In this dark weather this leap of faith seemed nothing short of a suicide, the last move of a defiant dragon. But as they drew closer to the ground it became obvious that she knew exactly what lay beneath her and was deep beneath the surface of a large lake within seconds.
The lake may not have appeared so from above, but it was deep and reached far beneath the roots of mount Hammer. But she knew this place well, having been the mating ground of her ancestors for centuries.
She dove deep, deeper than any man, elf or dwarf could hope to survive. When she was confident she had gone deep enough she located an underwater opening to a cave and swam into it, going far underneath the mountain itself.
She was almost airless herself, being tired and out of breath even before entering the water. Thankfully she soon found the way shift upwards, a faint light shining not too far ahead. Before she knew it she was out of the water and crouching on the bank of a cave lit with torches.
The cave was full of treasures and beautiful things carved on the wall. There were statues made out to represent important events and people from this continent and even beyond. She vividly remembered her first time up there, intrigued by these wonders up to a point that was to be considered shameful for a dragon.
This time, however, she could not care less. She was there for one purpose and one purpose only.
Carefully she removed the small bag from its bindings on one of the spikes on her back. Within it was the thing she cared most about and a note from the one person that would ever come close to holding as much of her love as her baggage.
"Be free and choose well, my little love"
Although it being the hardest thing a mother can do, she knew she had to leave her offspring in order for it to survive. It was one thing for a mountain to conceal the presence of a dragon's egg, but the mind of a full grown dragoness was never made to be hidden.
She could hear footsteps closing in from the cave's interior and knew it was time. Taking one last look at the pearly white egg peaking out of the bag she re-entered the water and swam away, almost eager to meet the man she had felt earlier, wanting few things more than punish him for the betrayal of her rider.
Only one thought ran through her mind as she plunged through the water to meet her death head on, it was of her companion, her rider, her life.
So as she met with three of Galbatorix's most powerful servants, each riding a nameless dragon, her teeth sinking deep into the flesh of a rider and throwing him into the lake, even as Morzan's Mysery slid into her very heart of hearts, her fire finally dying, she thought of him.
She thought of Brom.
... So, this isn't exactly the first time I've done this, but could as well have been since I haven't written anything for more than four years (can you believe that! Wow!). I actually took an old story of mine called "Secrets of the Fire" that I never got around to finish and decided to rewrite it, giving it the proper changes and, yeah, well, a LOT of changes
So, tell me what you think of the prelude... If I'm lucky I'll get around to update pretty soon (like, within a day!).
-Adalbjorn