Hi everyone! I know, I know. It's been a long time since the last update. Sorry! But here it is!
With footsteps as light as an autumn leaf falling to the forest floor, Kyra approached the stone steps into the hall. She swept aside the vines shrouding the entrance just enough to see inside. No elves were inside the large library, neither perusing the shelves of the most guarded secrets, nor protecting this haven of knowledge. All of them were focused on protecting the eggs, which, of course, were deemed much more important. Quietly, she slipped into the deserted treasure trove of restricted information—dangerous spells, dragon secrets, and things so long lost that they were forgotten. She started pulling scrolls from the shelves and scanning them at an alarming rate.
It wasn't that she wasn't allowed in. In general, elves trusted one another greatly. But even so, those who entered were always closely monitored. Besides that, this mysterious "threat" had them all on edge.
Kyra finally found the one she was looking for and hastily replaced the others back onto the shelf. She unfurled it to reveal a single spell: Atra manin waíse draumr manin, wiol eka… The spell was long, and it would have taken Kyra a few precious minutes to memorize it. Instead, she placed another blank scroll on the ground next to it and uttered, "Ethgri sja." Immediately an identical set of words shimmered onto the second piece of paper. She scooped it up and put the other back in its place. With a swish of the vines, she was gone.
As soon as she reached a safe distance away, she covered it in a brown cloth sack and hurried back past the Menoa Tree and out of Ellesméra, bypassing Gilderien the Wise by heading straight out through the forest. The small village that she came from was only a league away from Ellesméra, a short run for an elf. Their parents had set them up in a loft in Ellesméra for the duration of Agaetí Skulblaka, which meant their house would most likely be empty. Her mother spent her time promoting the growth of the beautiful flowers in the forest. Her father was part of the group attempting to restore the ancient trees that soldiers had cut down for siege engines to their original height and splendor. It was a daunting process, even twenty-one years later, as the enormous monarchs required a huge amount of energy to grow thousands of years.
When she reached her house, Kyra ran up the steps taking them two at a time. She reached the room she and her sister shared and stopped dead in her tracks. Veyna's head whipped up to stare at her sister. Her eyes widened at the sight Kyra.
"What did you do, Ky?" Veyna exclaimed vehemently, staring at the object in Kyra's hands in shock.
"What? It's just—"
"You stole a dragon egg? How could you? Why would you do such a thing? What were you hoping to accomplish? Don't you see—?"
"Veyna!" Kyra shouted. Her twin immediately stopped talking. Her sister never used her full name. "I did not steal a dragon egg," Kyra said through clenched teeth.
"Oh." Veyna looked at her sister, then down at the wood floor. "Sorry. What's that then?"
"Uh, this?" Kyra held up the sack, thinking frantically. "Just a scroll on…dragon lore. I wanted to do some reading before, you know…" She pulled the scroll out of the bag and waved it at Veyna.
"Why here?" Veyna asked sensibly.
"Oh, uh…it's…quieter!" Kyra responded suddenly and felt the need to change the subject. "Why are you here?"
"Hmm? Oh, I just forgot my pearl leaf necklace. I wanted to wear it for the ceremony."
"Ah. Did you find it?"
"Right here," Veyna held the necklace up. The pearl attached to the leaf's stem glistened in the morning sunlight streaming in from the window. "I guess I'll be heading back now and leave you to read your scroll in peace. Don't be late!" With that, she scrambled down the stairs and out into the forest. Kyra released her pent-up breath. Safe. She sat down on the floor and unfurled the scroll. The elvish glyphs seemed to dance in front of her eyes as she read them seamlessly, the Ancient Language having been her native language since birth. With each word, she imbibed more energy into the spell, directing it towards her own mind. As she completed the spell, a wisp of thought seemed to brush over her consciousness, like cool water flooding into her. She rested her head on the wall and tried to regain her energy as quickly as possible. There was no way to tell if the spell had worked, but she could only hope. Her thoughts and feelings were her own, and no one else had any right to peruse them, even if they had been innocent. She immediately crushed them down, as they led to times and places she didn't want to think about.
It wasn't that the scroll contained a particularly deceitful piece of magic. The counter-spell was very simple and could not be prevented. It was also fairly basic to enchant someone—such as a prisoner—so that none of their memories could ever be hidden by magical means. The reason it would hopefully work for Kyra was that the testing was supposed to be a secret, so no one would expect her to prepare in that way.
She placed it on a stone slab and muttered, "Brisingr." The scroll burst into a glow of orange fire, the rosy flames dancing in the breeze around the edges. The scroll was reduced to a small pile of ashes, which she quickly pushed out the window. Kyra turned and left the room. The sun was almost up; she had about an hour to get back. Less than that if she wanted to be unnoticed. She set off at a brisk pace in Ellesméra's direction.
0==]=======
Kyra and Veyna stuck close together as they were herded into groups. The testing was over. Only a few elves had been turned down, and Kyra's chance was safe. But the biggest test was yet to come.
The procession took about an hour, but the ceremony lasted for up to two days, depending when the eggs hatched, the duration of Agaetí Skulblaka. This time, however, it would end just as the celebration commenced. Slowly, the group spiraled out, a large group of elves, then a thinner group, then a long thick group, and finally a long tail that went from thick to thin. From above, the collection of elves looked exactly like a spiraled dragon. Arya came out from Tialdarí Hall along with Tamos and met the elves at the dragon's snout. The egg she held was a pale shade of pink, with pinpoints of orange all over it. Tamos held the other egg, a dark, forest green with a couple golden streaks running across it. She handed the pink egg to the first elf, who held it reverently, then passed it on to the elf next to him. The same was done with the green egg. When the pink egg finally reached Kyra—having gone through Veyna already, whose eyes were shining—she discovered it was warm. She touched it with her mind to find it thrumming with energy. She passed it on, sharing in Veyna's elation. Even if she wasn't picked, it was enough to have touched the egg. Eggs, she thought as she took the green one from Veyna and passed it on.
Finally, when the eggs reached the end of the dragon's tail, Tamos and Arya took them and placed them in the middle for all to see. In one motion, all of the elves participating sat down to meditate in the glade. They would continue doing so until the eggs had hatched.
0==]=======
It was around six forty-five the next morning when a slight crack was heard. All the elves stiffened, then murmurs of excitement rose around the assembled elves. Necks craned to see the eggs. The green one had a long crack down it and was rocking gently from side to side.
Whispers ran through the crowd. What gender was the dragon? Who would it pick?
Kyra felt Veyna's sharp intake of breath. It all came down to this. How could they ever be content to heal ancient trees or grow flowers when they had had the chance to become one of the legendary Shur'tugal? How could anything in their lives amount to something when they were rejected by a youngling of the most majestic race in Alagaësia?
Something was clawing at the inside of the shell. All of a sudden, the dragon's shiny green snout poked through, expanding the crack far enough for it to wiggle out.
The baby dragon's wings were a dark green, as was the rest of its body. Its ivory talons and spikes were minuscule even in proportion to the dragon's small frame. It blinked out at them all; golden eyes watching them intelligently. It squawked indignantly, seeming to be searching for someone. Its wet wings flapped feebly a few times before it hopped forward. It cocked its head at the elves, then proceeded to hop through their legs, trying to get somewhere.
A chorus of joyous laughter sounded throughout the clearing at the sight.
The dragon came ever nearer. Kyra couldn't seem to get enough air. The forest green dragon stopped just as it reached them, watching again. It shuffled forward, but didn't stop in front of Kyra.
Veyna? Kyra thought jealously, How does she appeal to the dragon in a way I don't?
The dragon's chosen partner was obvious, however. Arya blinked once at Veyna over the crowd, and a subtle message passed between them. Slowly, Veyna squatted down by the dragon, which sniffed her hand, probably looking for food. She tentatively reached out to stroke the tip of the dragon's nose. A look of shock and pain crossed Veyna's face as her palm was branded with the everlasting gedwëy ignasia. The dragon hopped into Veyna's outstretched hands, humming contentedly. It dug its tiny claws into Veyna's hands for support as she carefully stood up, presenting her dragon to the light of a new day. The hatching snorted, the tiniest wisp of smoke rising from its nostrils.
Just when everyone had just about forgotten, a large crack filled the air. The pink dragon stood in the hollows of its egg, split neatly in half. It deftly cleaned its claw, seemingly unaware of its hushed audience. All of a sudden it sprang at the nearest elf, digging its claws into his foot. Thinking it had chosen him, the boy reached down to touch the hatching and thus complete the bond. Before he could, however, it darted away, tangling as many legs and wrecking as much havoc as it could along the way before it arrived at Kyra and practically thrust its snout into her hand. As soon as it touched her right palm, her hand seared white hot. The sensation faded away a few seconds later, leaving only the silvery mark behind. Tamos's eyes twinkled at her. "You'll have your hands full with that one." She, Kyra, of the House Rílvenar, was to be a Dragon Rider.
0==]=======
"She's just so cute!" Veyna exclaimed, running the tip of her finger over the crest of her dragon's head. The green dragon snapped up the piece of meat she offered with her other hand, blinking lazily.
Kyra's own dragon, however, was already curled up and asleep, a piece of meat tucked under her wing, as if to safeguard it from predators. Kyra felt like dancing with glee. This was really happening! They were Dragon Riders!
Arya and Tamos returned a few hours later to check up on them and bring more strips of meat. The dragons were hungry and very much awake by then.
"Have either of you found a suitable name yet?" Arya asked, scratching the green one under the chin.
"Not yet," Kyra spoke for both of them as the pink dragon settled into her lap.
"All right," Arya said, "If you choose to sleep tonight, know that when you wake up, the room might be a little chaotic. Goodnight."
"Goodnight," they chorused. As soon as she was gone, Veyna asked, "Do you have any naming ideas?"
"Yes. One. Nuaen."
"Does she like it?"
Kyra ran her hand down the dragon's back. Its presence tickled the back of her mind. Tentatively, Kyra reached out to brush the mind with her own. The dragon chirped happily.
Kyra, it said.
Kyra smiled, Are you Nuaen?
The pink dragon hummed contentedly. Kyra took that as a yes.
"Nuaen," she said aloud, wonderingly, "Her name is Nuaen."
"It's beautiful," Veyna replied. She looked down at her own dragon.
"Would you like to be called Istalri?" In answer, the green hatchling hopped onto Veyna's lap and stretched out. Veyna's eyes sparkled as she shared a glance with her twin.
0==]=======
Arya knocked on the door, rousing Veyna from her waking dreams. It's ope—" Her mouth fell open. The room was in shambles. The bright lamp lay on the ground, hook wrenched out of the wall. Books from the bookshelves, half their pages ripped out and strewn around, were scattered everywhere. And, sitting in the middle of it all, were Istalri and Nuaen. Arya laughed as she entered the chaos.
"Dragons will be dragons," she said as she surveyed the mess.
"We named them!" Kyra exclaimed.
"Oh?" Arya asked, "And what are their names?"
"Arya Dröttning," Kyra began formally, "Meet Nuaen."
"Greetings, Nuaen," Arya said bowing slightly to the dragon, "You bear a name as beautiful as yourself."
"And meet Istalri," Veyna finished.
"Istalrí?" Arya asked, looking at the forest green dragon perched in front of her confusedly, "Flame?"
"She has brought light into my life," Veyna responded quietly.
"Ah. Greetings, Istalri. You were aptly named." Arya paused. "Kyra and Veyna of the House Rílvenar, Istalri, daughter of Celestí and Trayim, and Nuaen, daughter of Miira and Gom, do you accept the responsibilities of the Shur'tugal and Bjartskular and promise to peacefully protect all of the races of Alagaesia to the best of your ability, even at the cost of your bonded partner's life as well as your own?"
"We do," the sisters swore as one.
We do, Istalri and Nuaen spoke their first words to say the oath.
She motioned for the twins to stand.
"Where are we going?" Kyra asked. "To Eragon, to the island?"
"No," Arya replied, "To the Crags of Tel'naeir. Come. Bring your dragons.
Did you like it? Please review!
Note: Nuaen, Kyra's dragon, is pronounced like New-a (like the letter)-n (like the letter again).