Fireheart
Chapter 8: An Unlikely Ally, and a Hidden Legend...
Professor Rotwood sat in his chair, watching the news. There was nothing of interest on it. By now, it was night and a heavy drizzle was falling outside. He was considering going to bed, when a noise from outside caught his attention. It was the soft clatter of talons on woodwork.
Rotwood turned slowly, and caught sight of the serpentine creature that was silhouetted in the window. He didn't need to see it, to know instantly what it was.
"Yes?" he said, with a strong German accent, "And which dragon are you?"
Rotwood turned on a nearby lamp. It's light flickered across the dark blue scales and worried face of an elderly Chinese dragon. The professor had only seen this dragon once before, but he knew there was only one person it could be.
"Oh, it's you. You are Jake's grandfather, correct?"asked Rotwood. He paused, "Oh, but where are my manners? Come in quickly before you let the rain in."
Two figures slid off the old dragon's back as he stepped into the room. The strangers hid in the shadows. Standing a respectful distance from Rotwood, Jake's grandfather took a moment to shake the water off his scales and close the window behind him.
Rotwood eyed his guest warily. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"
"Unfortunately," said Loa Shi, turning to face him, "we did not come to visit."
"Oh?" Rotwood seemed surprised by this. "Then why did you come?"
"We came for information."
Rotwood quickly turned at sound of the voice, and saw a young ninja and an old Sher Pi emerge from the shadows. He realized that they were the ones who had been riding the old dragon.
The ninja looked about the same age as Jake Long. Her outfit was a wine colored red, from her mask to her boots, and her long golden hair was tied back in a braid behind her head. She stared at him with fierce blue eyes, and then Rotwood noticed the large, double-bladed staff in her hand.
This is a girl to be careful around, thought Rotwood. The old dog beside her was of little interest, until it stood up on its hind legs and said "We're here lookin' for an ancient scroll you might have."
"Ahh! It talks!" Rotwood was sitting on the back of his chair, staring down at the old dog with wide eyes.
Loa Shi and the young huntress glared at the dog.
"Fu Dog!" snapped the old dragon, "What have I told you about talking to strangers like that?!"
"What?" said Fu, "He already knows about magical creatures. Might as well know about me too."
"So he really does talk?" asked Rotwood, "Fascinating..." Then he remembered where he was.
"Uh, excuse me, but could one of you please get me down from here?"
After Loa Shi pulled him down off his chair, Rotwood turned to the group. "Now then, what is this about a scroll you're looking for?"
It was the young huntress who answered him. "We believe that you have an ancient text known as the 'Scroll of Secrets'." She paused, looking around at the others. "We have need of it."
"The Scroll of Secrets?" asked Rotwood, "Hmmm... Yes... I seem to remember that one..." He stared at them intently. "But what do you want with it?"
The three companions looked at each other, then Loa Shi spoke. "I'm afraid it concerns my grandson..." He said sadly.
"Jake?" asked Rotwood, "What happened? I heard that he'd transferred to a High School out of state." He fixed the old dragon with a glare. "Don't tell me that someone else has exposed him as a dragon before I could!"
"No." said the huntress, "It's worse then that..." She paused then, thinking about how much they should tell him. Finally, she said, "Jake is in trouble, and if we don't find that scroll, and the information it contains-" Here she paused again, and looked straight into Rotwood's eyes. "Then the entire magical world, is doomed..."
The German paled under her fierce gaze, as her words sank in... Then, regaining his composure, Professor Rotwood turned away from her and headed for the door of the room. Once there, he turned back to the group and said, "Well? What are you all standing around for? I haven't got all night. You want to find that scroll or not?!"
The threesome gathered outside the door, then followed the German down a flight of stairs to his garage. But once there, he led them over to a rug in the middle of the room. Underneath it was a trap door revealing more stairs leading downward. Professor Rotwood went down first, and the others followed him. At the bottom of these stairs was a heavy metal door, that would've looked more at home on a bank vault then in a hidden basement.
Rotwood went forward, turned the large wheel set in the center of the door, and pulled it open. As the others approached him, he stood aside to let them pass. "Ladies first." he said, giving a small bow to Rose.
She glared at him and said, "I don't think so. You go in first."
Rotwood started to protest, but then noticed her staff again. She was holding it so that the large blades were clearly visible even in the poor light of the basement.
"Ah, yes... maybe I should go in first." he said cautiously, edging away from her and the blades. The young huntress nodded to the dragon and the dog, then stood aside to let them follow the professor. Rotwood entered the room, hearing sudden gasps as he turned on the lights...
The entire room was lined with row upon row of long shelves, and every shelf was lined with scrolls and books. The professor turned to look at his three guests, pleased at the looks of awe on their faces.
"Impressive, no?" asked Rotwood smugly, "It took me quite awhile to find all of these in my younger days. The scroll you want is in the 'S' section."
"'S' section?" asked Fu, "You mean you alphabetized all these?"
"Of course." said Rotwood, "How else do you expect me to keep track of them? Anyway, if you want to find that scroll before next year, I suggest you start looking."
"He's right," said Rose, coming over to the others, "We should spilt up. We'll cover more ground that way."...
Some time later...
Rose was walking down one of the many pathways between the shelves of books. Loa Shi and Fu Dog where somewhere on the other side of the basement, and none of them had found the scroll yet.
She was just about to turn back, when something caught her eye. Hanging on the wall nearby, between two long shelves, was what appeared to be a curtain of some kind. Rose went over to it for a closer look... It wasn't a curtain. It was a sheet, but it did seem to be covering something.
Intrigued, Rose took hold of it and pulled. The sheet fell away to reveal a large, colored tapestry. It looked very old, but well made and well preserved.
The tapestry depicted a battle scene. On the ground, a fierce battle raged between elves, trolls, hobgoblins, unicorns, leprechauns, giants, centaurs, and many other creatures that Rose couldn't identify. Then, her attention was drawn to the image in the sky above. Griffins, phoenixes, pegasi and other flying creatures soared high over the battlefield below, locked in furious dogfights.
But it wasn't these that caught her eye... Here a flash of bright scales, there a blast of flame. Everywhere the dragons dodged in and out between the fighters. Two dragons stood out among these, centered above the battle and placed in the foreground of the scene.
One dragon was shrouded in darkness. It didn't take long for Rose to recognize him...
But the other dragon was different. Pure white with silver scales down it's belly and huge, feathered wings. It was surrounded by light, but the light seemed to come from the dragon, emanating from it's very center.
Rose stared at it in awe. She'd never seen this dragon before, but it seemed so familiar... She reached out slowly, tracing the image of the white dragon with her hand...
"I see you've taken an interest in my tapestry."
The sudden voice made her jump. She quickly snatched her hand away and turned, to see Rotwood standing behind her.
"I- I- was just-" she stuttered.
Rotwood raised a hand to silence her. "No need to apologize." He said, smiling at her. "I too often find myself mesmerized in the presence of it's great beauty." He turned to look at the tapestry, smiling proudly.
"It is beautiful..." Rose said softly, "but sad too..." She looked at Rotwood. "When did this battle take place? I've never even heard of that white dragon before."
The professor raised an eyebrow at her. "You have never heard of this?" He thought for a moment, taking his monocle off to clean it on his shirt. After putting it back on, he looked down at Rose and said, "Very well. As you too seem to be a student of magical lore, I will tell you the legend that goes with this tapestry."
He cleared his throat and began, "It is an ancient legend, lost thousands of years ago... It was once housed in the great library of Alexandra, which, as I'm sure you might know, not only housed the greatest literary and scientific collection of all time, but also the greatest legends, potent magic, and most treasured artifacts of the magical world."
He could tell by the look in her eyes that she hadn't known this, but she didn't interrupt him, so he continued.
"Now," he said, "When the library was destroyed by the earthquake and fire, many of the treasures inside were lost with it, including the scroll containing the legend I am about to tell you. This," He pointed at the tapestry, "was one of the few items that was rescued and is all that remains of it."
"Excused me..." asked Rose.
"Yes?" asked Rotwood, "You have a question?" He raised an eyebrow at her again.
"It's just that, if the legend was destroyed with the library, then how do you know it?" asked Rose.
Rotwood gave her a smug smile and said, "I was keen sighted enough to find it woven into the back of the tapestry. But now, to the legend itself." He pointed to the tapestry again. "Thousands of years ago, when magical creatures and humans lived side by side..." he began, "there were two dragons. One was a powerful female," he pointed to the white dragon, "and the other was her brother." Then he pointed to the dark dragon...
"They were twins." he said, "but the sister of the two was gifted with powerful magic, loved and honored by all who knew her. She was wise and kind as well as beautiful, and it was said that she would be destined for great things.
Over time, as magical creatures and humans were able to live in peace and coexist with each other, the female's brother grew jealous of her, and he despised humans above all else, believing them to be inferior. He believed that only magical creatures should rule, with humans either destroyed or kept as slaves.
His sister disagreed with him, wanting to continue peace between the two worlds. Her brother would hear none of it, thinking that she was foolish to want peace with humans, and so he left, setting out to discover his own power.
Unfortunately, that was exactly what he discovered. For many years, he stayed hidden in the shadows, gathering more power in secret. When he returned, he took his new power and the followers he had gathered, and sought to make an example of the humans, to prove just how inferior and weak they truly were. It was his actions that shattered the fragile peace between our worlds. It was this that turned humans against magical creatures." Here, Rotwood paused, bowing his head sadly...
"It was a dark time... a time of dragon slayers and terrible monsters roaming the land, destroying villages and towns, and in return the humans would strike back, hunting down the creatures they thought were responsible for the attacks. But more often then not, it was innocent creatures that paid the price...
Some humans even made the hunting a life-long commitment. There were those who believed the creatures to be a poison, an unnatural plague that should be wiped from the face of the Earth. Such people banned together, forming clans of hunters and making a career by selling the pelts taken from magical creatures, along with other magical items, for profit." Here he paused again, staring at Rose. He eyed her bladed staff, and the ax-blade symbol on the forehead of her mask.
"The most successful of these clans..." he said slowly, "was known as the Huntsclan. They were the only known clan to have survived the Dark Ages. Growing stronger over time, they became experts at hunting magical creatures, especially dragons..." He coughed, then continued.
"Now, when magical creatures were forced into hiding by humans, dragons were chosen to become guardians over the magical world. Being the most powerfully magical of all the creatures, coupled with their natural ability to shape shift into human form made them the perfect choice. They could live among humans in secret, while still protecting the magical creatures.
Now, I'm sure you're asking yourself what any of this has to do with the battle and the white dragon, well I'm getting to that.
The white dragon was one of the dragons assigned as magical protectors, but her brother, the 'Dark Dragon' as he came to be known, found out about this. He offered dragons the chance to join him in overthrowing the humans and reclaiming the Earth for magical creatures. A few dragons accepted his offer and joined him, but many dragon refused, siding with his sister to protect the remaining creatures and the humans. Over time, each side gathered an army, each preparing for the fierce battle they knew would come..."
Rotwood pointed to the tapestry again. "As you can see," he said, "a battle did come. This tapestry serves as a record of that terrible day."
Rose looked up at the white dragon... "What happened to her?" she asked softly.
"Sadly," said Rotwood, "she perished at her brother's claw during the battle, but according to the legend, using the last of her strength and magic, she was able to drain most of his dark power, forcing him to retreat. The Dark Dragon escaped and went back into hiding. He then hunted down his sister's family one by one, making sure that none of her bloodline ever survived to challenge him again..."
Rotwood paused to catch his breath.
"Apparently," he said, "he did such a good job of it that even the dragons have forgotten about her." he sighed heavily as he finished, "Her entire legacy, lost forever in the midst of time... Until now."
Rose stared up at the white dragon, saddened by Rotwood's tale. Then, she noticed something... There was a small red mark woven onto the white dragon's wrist...
"What is that?" she asked, pointing to it.
"I'm not completely sure." said Rotwood, "I believe it's a birthmark of some kind, but I've never been able to see it clearly enough to tell what it is."
Then he stared a Rose's outstretched hand...
"Pardon me for asking," he said, "But could I see that mark on your wrist?"
"What?" asked Rose. She pulled away, covering the mark with her other hand. "You mean this? It's nothing, really." She backed away from him. He eyed her suspiciously, then shrugged, turning to study the tapestry again.
Rose stayed where she was, trying to think of how she could leave without drawing attention to herself. Suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps caught her attention.
"Kid!" called Fu Dog, skidding to a stop and collapsing in front of her.
"Fu Dog?! What's wrong?" asked Rose, kneeling down beside him.
"Too... much... exercise..." panted Fu.
"What Fu Dog is trying to say," said Loa Shi, flying toward them over the book selves, "is that we have found the scroll!"
I'm sorry I took so long to update this! So I made up for it with a long chapter :) Hope you like it, and thank you for waiting! By the way, we're almost ready to put out our first story podcast! The first story we'll be doing is "Trouble With Phyiscs" and the first long podcast story we'll be doing is "Dragonfire"! I'll announce when the podcast is out in a later chapter of this fanfic, or "Strange Alliances" so stay tuned!