Chapter Four: A Legend Discovered

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Albert smiled to himself as he finished up a book. As he went to put it away and pull out another, something hit him right on top of the head.

"Ow! What in the…?" He looked at the object that fell on him. It was a book, bound in old leather. Although it was extremely dusty, Albert could make out the symbol of the sun inscribed on the cover as he picked the book up. He carefully opened it, afraid it might crumble to dust. When it didn't, he relaxed somewhat and read the cover page.

"Let's see…'The Tome of the Sun Dragon'." Albert raised an eyebrow. "Sun Dragon? Hmm…I shall have to show this to the others later…"

Back in town, Dart and Carlos had returned the child to his parents. Afterwards, they headed down the street together.

"At least I'm not broke anymore," said Carlos. He had taken a bag filled with gold coins from one of the dead bandits. Carlos never had qualms about stealing from a thief. There probably wasn't one coin in that bag that was gotten legitimately.

Dart chuckled. "Maybe you ought to get some armor. That shirt and those pants don't offer you much in the way of protection."

"Hmm…I suppose that'd be prudent. So, what happened after you killed that Melbu Frahma guy?"

"Things just sort of turned back to normal. There are still quite a number of those monsters I told you about out there, but not nearly as many as there used to be. Hell, you used to have to have your guard up almost the second you left town!"

Carlos nodded. "I know the feeling. On the streets of my hometown, you have to pay attention each time you turn a corner. If you don't, there's a good chance it'll be the last corner you ever turn." Carlos then chuckled quietly. "I still find the idea of more than one intelligent species on the same planet very odd."

Dart laughed. "Well, back at you; I find it hard to imagine a world with only humans in it!"

"Heh, I'm not surprised. One thing still puzzles me. You said that Meru girl was one of the Winglies, right?"

"Mmm-hmm."

"It explains the hair color, but I don't remember seeing any wings on her…"

Dart smiled. "Wingly wings aren't physical wings, like a bird's. They're ethereal; they look like they're made of light."

"Made of light?" repeated Carlos with a raised eyebrow.

"Yep. They're translucent, so it looks like they're pure light. The point is this: Because they're not physical wings, Winglies can withdraw them into their backs when they don't need them."

"Ah."

It didn't take long for Carlos to get his extra protection. Chain mail covered his T-shirt, over which a small breastplate now hung. His shins now had guards on them, and he had traded his tennis shoes for some nicely armored boots.

Dart looked him over. "Good. How's the weight?"

"It's not bad…but hold on." Carlos took a fighting stance, and did some practice moves. He immediately noticed a bit of a slowdown, and frowned. Still, it was better than being totally unarmored. Carlos sighed.

"Thanks, Dart. I'd say I've been around town enough now, so I'm gonna head back up to Indels Castle."

Dart chuckled. "I've got to get back there, too. Everybody who was at the meeting is staying there. A get-together, y'know?"

"Yeah…" Carlos tried to disguise his displeasure at that statement, but failed. Dart caught on immediately.


"What's wrong, Carlos?"

Carlos sighed. "I…I never got to do anything like that. I never really had a family…"

"You're an orphan?"

"…Yeah."

Dart bit his lip. "Well, join the club, bud. I am, as well."

Carlos raised an eyebrow? "Oh, yeah?"

Dart looked down at the ground. "Yeah. When I was a little kid, much younger than you, my parents were killed in an attack on our hometown."

Carlos nodded. "Well, at least you can remember your parents. I'm not even sure how mine died. I was told it was a gang fight that got out of control, but the source was pretty flaky to say the least. After that, I just lived my life one day at a time. Orphanages, missions…" Carlos sighed. "I eventually just took off and relied on myself."

"I know what you mean. Well…let's get up to the castle. Albert's a pretty patient guy, but the others…" Dart suddenly laughed. "Meru's probably half ready to pull her hair out by now."

Carlos smiled a little. "I've known a lot of people with energy to spare, but she's the most bouncy kid I've ever seen! Does she ever relax?"

"She does sleep, but that's pretty much it…!"

Meanwhile, in the castle, Albert was showing the other guests the book he found.

"Sun Dragon? But there's no Dragon called that I've ever seen! What's it look like? Where do we find it?"

Albert barely suppressed a laugh. "I was getting to all that, Meru!"

"Eh…sorry, Al."

"Not a problem. Anyway…here's what I've found. The Sun Dragon is a crossover breed of Dragon. According to the Tome, it was born from the combined energy of a Red-Eye Dragon and a White-Silver Dragon."

One of the other guests, an elderly man, spoke up. "From their energies?"

"Apparently, Haschel, it was the energy released when both of them died. Oddly enough, this happened BEFORE the Dragon Campaign."

"Before? How long before?" said another guest, a huge, hulking man with muscles rippling across his frame.

"About five thousand years, Kongol." Albert chuckled before continuing. "The story basically goes like this. The Dragons used to battle each other, to prove their strength and skill. Although they did not possess much in the way of wisdom, they knew that they were fighting mock battles and not true battles. The practice went on for thousands of years without any actual deaths, though many Dragons were badly injured. However…sixteen thousand years ago, two representatives took it too far. The Red-Eye Dragon and the White-Silver Dragon were locked in battle, going at it harder than ever before. Before they could be stopped…they destroyed each other. Their life energies were instantly released and combined. After that, the mock battles were never performed again."

"I don't doubt it," said Meru. "Sounds pretty nasty. Nasty, nasty, nasty!"

"Indeed," said Albert. "Also, shortly after the deaths of the Dragons, it is said than an image appeared in the sun. It was a new Dragon. There's no drawing, but it was described as being like a gigantic snake with small, clawed limbs and a very ornate head. It goes on to say that the image then disappeared in a flash, and an orange light was seen headed towards the northern part of the planet. After that, it was simply…forgotten."

Haschel sighed. "A new Dragon…with the elements of both Fire and Light, I take it?"

"Correct."

The old man chuckled. "Well, if there's a new Dragon, that must mean there's a new Dragoon Spirit to go along with it."

"True, true."

Meru piped up again. "Who do you think is going to be the one to receive the new spirit, Al?"

Albert smiled. "Well, the last page of the Tome says that when the destined bearer is near, the Tome itself will let them know. Doesn't say how, though-" Albert was about to say more, when Dart stepped into the hall.

"Hey, Albert!" called Dart.

"Hello, Dart. I was just telling the rest of the group about this tome I found here, and…what in the world?!" The Tome began to glow with a bright orange light, and levitate off the table. It steadily grew in intensity, and peaked as Carlos appeared in the hall. Once he did, the Tome shot out an orange beam that struck Carlos right in the chest, where his heart was. The impact knocked the teen right onto his back. He was unhurt, just stunned. The Tome dropped back on the table. The previously faded image of the sun on its cover glowed, and then went back to normal.

Meru raised both her eyebrows. "Guess we know who the winner is…"

Carlos growled as he lay on his back. "Okay!! I get it!! I messed up your meeting, and I'm sorry. Dios mio, you guys are the worst grudge-holders I've ever seen!!! Jesus!!"

Author's Note: Yeah, that story about the dragons fighting each other was a bit slapdash, wasn't it? Best I could come up with, I'm afraid. Same goes for the way the new bearer got chosen, though I wanted it to be humorous in nature.