CHAPTER 2
Ria grabbed a quick bite to eat and set out towards the wooded area behind her cave. Megaton was the kind of town that seemed to be hollowed out of the thick forest surrounding it on all sides, making flight really the only logical way to enter or leave. She trotted happily through the wilderness, her belly now full and her mind free to wander to more childlike things...what its going to be like to fly, which clouds are shaped like bunnies and chasing the many butterflies that fluttered around her favorite clearing. It was far enough in the woods to be away from everyone, but close enough so she could find her way back. She came to her favorite spot; a place where the canopy opened up and a warming ray of sunlight shown through. The grass was the softest she'd ever felt anywhere, and her favorite pastime was rolling around in it, letting it gently sweep her troubles away. Ria closed her eyes and breathed deep. She would stay like this all day if she thought she could get away with it...
xXx
Xenith walked down the hallway of the temple to the elders chambers. The other possible candidates for the head elder position had already been ruled out, some had even dropped out for...lets just say, cloudy reasons. He was to greet the elder Trias in person to try and convince him once again to eliminate Gafron from the running; as it was an appointed position, by Trias himself.
He entered the grand chamber and bowed before the very old elder.
"Elder Trias, it is an honor to be in your presence." The old dragon nodded.
His scales were no longer the sharp orange that he once imagined they had been. He was now graying in more than a few places, and his old bones barely allowed him to walk. As a result, he was mainly limited to his chamber. He was scarred with many battles of ages past, and was most of the time withdrawn. When he did speak, all listened. It was even rumored that earlier in his life, he met someone, who met someone who knew a friend of the legendary purple dragon. But as he never spoke, it was all mere speculation.
"My elder, I have come to ask for your vote of confidence in the appointment of the head elder position. Gafron has nothing to bring to Megaton but deception and greed!" He said humbly, looking up to watch for the elders reaction.
His expression was one of indifference. He had to think of something!
But before he could, he was joined by none other than his rival, Gafron.
"Trying to drag my name through the mud behind my back are you? I expected someone with such a penchant for the dramatic to announce it to all the elders at once." He said in a pompous voice as Xenith glared at him.
"Why don't you just leave the wise elder to his decision? He will surely make the best choice for Megaton..." He said smiling. He had secretly been bribing the other elders into putting a better word in for him, than Xenith.
Trias Raised his forepaw, signaling them to leave. Both dragons left them chamber and Xenith confronted his rival in the hallway.
"Don't think I don't know that you've been bribing the other elders Gafron! Your crooked tactics will only bring you defeat!" He growled.
He simply laughed at this and responded
"Think what you will Xenith, but know this. My first act as head elder will be to...'retain' my opponents, and their families, indefinitely!"
Xenith stood stunned. Did he just hear what he thought he heard?
"This is not a dictatorship! You wont touch my family! I swear if you so much as look at them I'll-"
"You'll what? You can do nothing to me. Everyone knows how much you envy me, if something happened to me, they would know who was responsible. As you know, the head elder has absolute power in Megaton. Or, he will. As soon as I abolish the elder council, I'll be able to do whatever I damn well please. The glorious revolution will start here in Megaton, but it will end in the capital! You see Xenith, Megaton has all the Holy crystals. With this leverage, I will force the grand council to appoint me Chief Elder, or I will attack. They wouldn't dare risk bloodshed, and they wouldn't dare attack the holiest site in all of the Creators lands. Soon Xavier, very soon, I will have unlimited power. So you better start trying to get on my good side." He sneered back.
"May the best dragon win." Gafron said walking away.
Xenith was in shock. If he lost, his family was in grave danger. He had to win. For his family, and for Megaton.
xXx
Ria heard faint voices coming from far off in the woods, causing her to raise her head and look in that direction. She tried to determine who they belonged to as they drew nearer.
She recognized the owners of the voices and her heart dropped to her stomach.
"No...Alexis!" She said in fear to herself as she began to tremble, looking for a place to hide. She heard the rustling of bushes coming ever nearer as she scrambled out of the meadow.
"Hey did you guys hear that?" She heard Alexis say.
"Yeah, I think there is something in the woods over there!" One of them said.
Ria walked slowly back towards her house as quietly as possible, until she snapped a twig with her back foot.
'Oh no...' She thought.
"Over there! Hey its mount Baldmore!" Alexis shouted as her and her gang came out of the bushes.
Ria was paralyzed with fear. She could only sit and stare as they walked toward her.
"Hi...Alexis..."
"I don't remember telling you to speak! I like this forest. I think we should elect a ruler dont you guys?" She asked her crew. They of course agreed.
"So, all in favor of me?" Alexis asked, and all of her friends agreed.
She smiled and looked back at Ria.
"Well, my first act as queen of the forest, is to order all hornless freaks to bow before me!"
"Hmm...I don't see any here...oh wait! There's one! Freak! Bow before your queen!" She said smirking.
Ria was still frozen in place, feeling the tears of fear gathering in her young emerald eyes. She tried to repress them, but they soon made their presence known.
Alexis growled and turned to her friends.
"Make her bow!" She snapped angrily. Her thugs grabbed the much smaller Ria and threw her hard to the ground before Alexis, cutting up her elbows and knees to the point of bleeding.
Her tears flowed freely at this point, as she began to sob.
"That's more like it! Now, my second act, I think we should play a game!" She announced and her friends agreed with cheers.
"Lets play hunt the beast!" She shouted to the glee of her gang and the horror of Ria.
"You better run Baldy! We're gonna give you some horns when we catch you!" Alexis jeered as Ria scrambled into the woods, running as fast as her little legs would carry her. She had no idea where she was going but she wasn't going to stop running until she collapsed from exhaustion. She could hear her pursuers thundering through the woods behind her as she went. She charged straight through the sharp shrubs cutting up her scales to no end, though she ran through the pain.
"We almost have her! Wait till we catch you!" One of them called as she saw an old rickety rope bridge across a massive canyon. the bottom of the expanse was obscured by fog, but it was obviously a long way down. Without so much as a second thought, she darted across the bridge, feeling it gently sway under her weight and the wind. Alexis stopped at the foot of the bridge and put a forepaw on the first plank. It snapped in half and she screamed as she withdrew her foot. She looked toward the other side and saw Ria disappear into the fog on the other side. She growled in aggravation and addressed her crew.
"C'mon guys, there's no way she'll make it back across this thing." She said turning around and heading back to Megaton.
Ria was still at full sprint, not noticing that the woods had become shrouded in fog. She finally began to slow down as her legs protested any further movement. She slowed to a trot, and then a walk as she sniffed up her tears and looked around.
"Whe- Where am I?" She said aloud looking around through her watery eyes. She could see only a few feet in front of her in every direction as the calls of unfamiliar animals filled her ear.
No sooner had her tears dried up then she began to feel them return. She was completely and totally lost.
"Mommy!? Mooooooommy!" She called into the fog, with only her echo's reply. She began to slowly walk forward into the fog, calling for her mother and father, becoming increasingly panicked. She continued into the fog sobbing as she soon stopped walking and sat on her haunches in tears. It was hopeless; she had gone so far into the forbidden forest that she couldn't hope to find her way out now. Her wings weren't strong enough to lift her into the air yet, so she was stuck here on the ground. Knowing this, she did the only thing a 7 year old could do. She curled up there, tucking her tail close to her and cried. For what felt like hours she wept until she finally looked up and saw something peculiar. The thick fog in front of her swirled around and began to clear into what looked like a corridor. She stopped her crying and looked toward the strange phenomenon and saw an old building overgrown with vines. It looked like it was hundreds of years old. Something was strangely calming to Ria about this place. It was as if it wanted her to come inside it. Safety was inside this place, whatever it was. Safety from inattentive brothers, and that mean Alexis. She stood up on all fours and carefully sniffed the air. It too, was inviting, so she tentatively stepped toward the temple. The large vine covered wooden doors were slightly ajar, beckoning her inside.
'This looks like the temple back home...' She thought.
She stepped up to the threshold of the door and peered inside. It was really dusty, and cracks in the ceiling allowed the main chamber to be illuminated from the sun outside. She stepped inside and took a quick look back to make sure the door was still open, then turned her attention back inside. There was a large dragon statue in the center of the room. It was weathered and cracked, it looked to be just as old as the building itself. She walked around the statue and came upon another hallway, with a few broken in doors. She walked in the first room and it looked as though it had been ransacked, then abandoned. Holy crystals grew randomly throughout the room and out of the walls, just like they did in the center of Megaton. She got an uneasy feeling after walking to where the bed used to be. There was a stain on the floor, though she couldnt tell what it was. The front door slammed shut loudly and startled Ria as it echoed through the empty temple. She stumbled toward the door and smacked her ankle on a piece of rubble. She cried out and fell onto a large Holy crystal. She tried to move away from it, Remembering what she was told happened to those who touched the scred gems, but before she could get far enough away, she fell unconscious.
Oh Noes! Ria's lost deep in the forest and no one knows she's out there! and whats up with this deserted temple? questions to be answered next chap! Peace readers!