Breath of Fire III: Of Gods and Dragons
Prologue
Written by Estrelita Farr
.
All was dark, nothing visible in the ever silent abyss. Nothing moved, nothing made a sound. It might have already been an eternity, no one truly knew, and it might just go on forevermore.
Yet, even in this eternal darkness, the very atmosphere gave one the impression of a great creature, calm in its thoughts, patient in its wait, bidding its time before the time of its awakening arrived.
And that time was not too far away.
.
-o-o-o-o-o-
.
A world that was once filled with the mightiest of creatures…
.
"A Dragon?" Mogu said, scratching the bald top of his mole-like head. "I don't know about this…"
Gary ushered him into a wooden cart, his furry fox-like face grinning. "C'mon, buddy, you really have to see this."
"Okay, okay, I'm coming."
.
…whose might shook the world, whose roar instilled terror in the heart of the bravest man.
.
The half-mole gave a thumbs-up to the man next to the controls and the cart started moving along the tracks, gradually picking up speed. As it moved, he crossed his arms and looked thoughtful.
"The Dragons tried to destroy the world…" he muttered.
His half-fox partner nodded. "Yeah, fought in a huge war…"
.
It seemed as though they were immortal.
.
Mogu shuddered. "I wouldn't like to meet a Dragon."
"Yeah, but they're extinct now, so nothing to worry about."
.
But in the end, they died just like every living being, their massive bodies transforming into chrysm over centuries.
.
"No one knows why they became extinct…" Mogu muttered to himself. "I wonder why…"
.
Unbeknownst to all, a story is about to unfold… a story of much anger… of much sorrow…
.
There was a clank and a hiss as the wooden cart slowed to a stop.
"Well, here we are," Gary announced.
A tale – this tale – is dedicated to the Dragons.
.
-o-o-o-o-o-
.
The sound of tools striking the walls echoed continually through the tunnels of Dauna Mine, often accompanied by the rushing sound of carts on tracks and the yells of workers. It was hard to believe that, just a few years ago, this place was just a dark cavern that became home to various monsters. Now, it became a mining ground of daily bustling activity.
It was because mankind had discovered a new source of energy and power – chrysm.
These glowing ores were highly valued, for they had great magical properties of varying levels and it would take more than mere centuries for them to form. Those of a higher quality even took millennia to complete the whole process.
But where did they come from?
Each time magical beings died, their bodies would slowly transform into these magical ores.
…magical beings such as the legendary Dragons.
Gary, for one, always passed off Dragons as an extinct species. Zilch. Dead. Gone. Nothing more than mere stories told to children by old wives. Well, except for the occasional joke thrown by either him or one of his friends, which were variations of "You'd better hope you don't find a Dragon in there!" followed by a chorus of guffaws.
Oh, that phrase became quite significant today.
It had started as a typical ordinary day. Gary got up hours before dawn, took a shower, neatly combed the brown fur on his fox face, wolfed down his breakfast and went straight to the mine. He checked in, slapped his friends' backs in greeting, grabbed his pickaxe and started to work.
But the day wasn't meant to be an ordinary one, apparently.
After some time, his whiskers twitched in excitement when he realised he was uncovering unmistakably top quality chrysm of an unbelievable size. He whistled to his co-workers to summon his co-workers, whose eyes gleamed with excitement, and they quickly but carefully removed the dirt and rocks around it.
However, nothing would have made them expect what they would see today.
Gradually, Gary's pace slowed to a stop. His cheery expression changed to shock and wonder. He straightened as his pickaxe fell from his hand and landed on the wooden platform with a loud thud, his eyes staring and his mouth hanging open.
There was a green creature within the purple glow of the chrysm, still as a statue. The eyes on its reptilian head were closed, as though in deep slumber. The horns on its head were short. So were its front and back legs. Its tail was thick, though not as long as it could be, and the bat-like wings on its back were small and neatly folded.
It was just a small one, no bigger than a large dog, but it was a creature that was, until today, known only in old wives' tales.
A Dragon.
The reaction was instantaneous. Gary and his co-workers screamed in terror and fled from the scene, dropping their tools. Other workers, unable to see the creature from their distances, only looked at them with raised eyebrows and quizzing looks, but the manager-in-charge, frustrated at the extra noise, stomped out of his office.
"What in the name of HELL are you yelling about?" he roared in a booming voice that carried all the way to the end of the tunnels. "Get back to WORK!"
The group arrived at his side and began speaking all at once, but they were talking simultaneously and so loudly that he could not make out any of the words they had said. It was only after all of them had calmed down enough that one person was able to explain why they were acting the way they did.
"S-sir, there was a Dragon in one of the chrysm ores we found!" he cried. "I s-swear it!"
"NONSENSE!" the manager's voice boomed. "Dragons are all dead! GONE! Nothing but stories! Now get back to work!"
"It's true, sir," Gary said, shaking his head. "Come with us and see it with your own eyes!"
His superior seemed to be in deep thoughts for a while, and then nodded. "Fine, but if I find that it's absolutely nothing but a waste of time, I'll cut your pay by fifty percent!"
The workers gulped. "Yessir…"
Once the manager had reacted to the statue-like creature in a similar way, news passed from one worker to another that a Dragon was discovered in one part of the mines. Everyone flocked to the huge chrysm to get a short glimpse of the legendary creature, tiny though it was, and it took a long time for the manager to wave them back to work. After a few days, though, the excitement gradually died down and everyone resumed their monotonous schedule.
After that, however, the manager had something in mind for two of his workers…
.
-o-o-o-o-o-
.
"Uh… Gary…" Mogu began as he reluctantly set the explosives around the huge chrysm ore. "Are you sure this is a good idea…?"
The half-fox nodded. "Yep, I'm positive."
"I-I mean, there's no telling what will ha–"
"Look, the boss said so, okay?"
The mole man sighed as he stood up. "Okay then… the explosive's set."
"Right, let's get to work."
Mogu took cover behind a boulder a few feet away as Gary followed slowly, unrolling a long coil of fuse. He set it down at his feet, struck a match, lit the fuse, then both of them prepared for a huge explosion by covering their ears with their hands.
Long seconds passed as the fuse grew shorter and shorter, the duo waiting in anticipation. Then, almost too suddenly, there was a loud explosion, followed by a long rumble in the earth. Cracks formed and shot through the top half of the large chrysm like lightning-fast snakes. The rumble continued like the low growl of a huge creature. Moments later, there was the loud sound of glass shattering, a dazzling light blinding everyone in sight, and then long seconds of silence followed.
Gary stood up first, cautiously stepping out from the cover. The top half of the huge chrysm had shattered into thousands of pieces – something that was regretted but could not be helped – and the young Dragon was now lying on its stomach, still unmoving.
His mole partner came out slowly, saying nothing as his eyes stared nervously at the little creature.
It was just that very moment when the baby Dragon stirred. He slowly stood up on his hind legs, apparently still groggy, and let out a high yelp.
"It… it's still alive…" Gary muttered in disbelief.
The creature shook his head, still feeling the world spinning slowly around him, his small wings spread to balance himself. He had no idea where he was or what had just happened, and this place looked horribly unfamiliar.
Where did his mother go? Where had all his friends gone to?
He let out another yelp, in hopes of hearing a familiar voice, but none came.
Why? What happened to everyone?
Whining, he took a few steps, failing to notice the two men near him. Mogu, trembling in fear, tossed a spade at him to scare him off.
The Dragon yelped as the blunt end of the spade hit his head, hardly hurting him, but it did a lot to turn the tremendous fear he already felt into uncontrollable panic. Instincts instantly washed over his mind, hot energy gathering in his throat.
"Mogu! Watch out!" Gary shouted, a pickaxe raised in a defensive stance.
"W-what?" Mogu exclaimed, drawing back.
And they were engulfed entirely in flames.
The swift wave of orange-hot flames came from the Dragon's open jaws, spreading left and right like a curtain caught by a strong gale.
When everything was over, there were no more men… only charred bodies on the ground.
There was no time even to scream.
The whelp inhaled sharply, frightened by this sudden burst of energy.
He trembled.
None of this was familiar to him.
"…over here! I heard something from here!" a voice shouted a short distance away.
Several footsteps sounded on the wooden platform, and two seconds later a group of men turned up. Their first expression was first of aghast, then of realisation, and lastly of fear.
"A… A D-DRAGON!"
That was too much for the whelp. Whining, he spun around and toddled in the opposite direction as fast as his legs would carry him, his wings still too small for it to fly. To escape from this frightening reality.
To its despair, all he saw everywhere it went were humans, either fleeing at the sight of him screaming "DRAGON!" or bravely pursuing him to capture him. He dodged anyone who tried to attack him, his confused mind filled only with fear, but those who persisted were – against his will – reduced to smithereens.
Someone help me… I'm scared…
But he was quite alone.
Soon, he arrived in a much larger cave, with no human within sight. Trembling, he toddled along the tunnel wall in search of a hole to hide in, but the moment he glanced up, he froze.
Just above the hole he had exited from, there was the titanic head of a green Dragon.
A Dragon… his family.
He yelped in delight and leaped on several boxes to reach it, thinking that he had finally found one of his brethrens at last. But as soon as his foot touched it, he was shocked to find its hide terribly hard… like rock.
He's… dead…?
Unable to believe it, he rubbed his cheek against the head, whining hopefully to get a reply.
But there was no response.
His excitement gone, the whelp slid to a sitting position, fighting tears that threatened to fall.
Was there truly no chance of it finding its family…?
He shook his head.
No… I know they must be here somewhere…
He stood up slowly and slid down the hard neck of the fossilised Dragon.
I mustn't give up…
With one final gaze at the fossil, the young Dragon sadly turned and headed down in the opposite direction.
However, as soon as he crossed a plank onto another wooden platform, someone else stood in his path… someone much, much larger than those he had encountered. Covered in brown fur instead of human skin, he had the head of a bull, complete with white horns.
"Well, well, well, it's only a tiny one after all!" he cried, twirling a metal pole. "Let's get him!"
The Dragon froze, his wide eyes staring up at the man. He tried to run, his heart banging against his chest, but his feet would not obey him.
"What's wrong, whelp?" the man thundered, his towering body moving closer and closer. "Not gonna use that fire breath of yours?"
Filled with terror, he felt the hot energy gathering in his throat once more.
"GOTCHA!" The half-bull charged, a rope in hand.
The Dragon shut his eyes tightly, his eyes stinging with unshed tears.
I… I only want to find my family!
He threw his head forward, ready to unleash his lethal flame breath.
Then, a familiar male voice.
"NO! DON'T!"
It screamed loudly in his mind.
Startled, the Dragon whelp complied, drawing back.
But the voice was familiar. It reassured him.
The energy in his throat ebbed away, together with the fear in his little heart. He gave a high yelp into the air that echoed off the walls.
Silence. Only silence that rang in his ears.
Despair filled his heart.
Why…? Why won't anyone answer…?
As the whelp fought the threatening tears once again, a human man saw the chance. He hopped onto a crane, slammed in the key quickly, and swung the crane's metal arm as hard as he could.
There was a sickening crash in the air.
The Dragon gave a roar of pain, a high-pitched one. Darkness filled his sight as he collapsed weakly onto the floor.
I… only want to find everyone else…
And everything around him became shrouded in darkness.
.
-o-o-o-o-o-
.
The second time so far, the whelp stirred, partly noting that the ground was trembling this time. Shaking his head, he slowly got to his hind legs, and observed his surroundings – a small metal cage, just barely big enough to fit it. Apparently he was being transported on a carriage-less train moving along tracks in the wilderness, operated by a single man.
He yelped as panic rose within him once more.
I… I must find everyone!
He threw itself against the bars repeatedly, trying to break a way out to escape. The metal bars were too hard for him to break, but panic forced him to a frenzy, his lethal flame breath forgotten.
"H-hey, stop it!" the human cried.
The Dragon ignored it and continued to hurl himself onto the hard bars, thoughts of escape keeping him going. The cage still would not break, even as his sides were hurting from the force.
But he refused to give up.
Taking a deep breath, he slammed into the side of the cage as hard as he could, and the whole cage toppled completely over the side of the train. Instantly the train skidded to a stop, its driver staring back in horror, but it was too late.
The cage rolled endlessly down the steep hill, forcing its inhabitant to be thrown against the bars repeatedly like a rag doll. He shut his eyes tightly, tears from fear and pain welling in his eyes.
And, all too suddenly, the cage slammed into a tall tree with a loud crash and shattered completely into pieces.
He was thrown onto grass-covered ground, landing on his side hard, and rolled a short distance before he came to a stop. There he stayed, his limbs spread limply, pulled down by exhaustion and pain.
Will this… ever end…?
As he slowly slipped back into unconsciousness, a soft white light began to surround his battered body. However, when that light faded away, the Dragon was no longer there…
…only a small boy.
.
End of Prologue.
.
.
Author's Note:
A new story… nearly one year after I posted my last story. I was hoping to finish this novelisation before I posted it, but I decided to post today (even if I've about 2 chapters to go) because… well, it's an important date for me. xP
Hopefully you like it!
.
.
Review Replies for Foreword…?
.
To VictimofVirtue:
Thanks! And yes, I still plan to novelise Alundra, though I may not finish it by this year (2009)… I tend to get sidetracked a lot. T_T
The main reason why I chose to novelise Alundra is because it's one of my favourite games, but it's sad to see that it doesn't even have its own section in FanFiction (dot) net. It's just for my own enjoyment. xP
Thanks for the review!
-.-.-.-.-
To Ksuden:
No, I should say thank you for reading my story all the way to the end! I'm happy you like the storyline, and that what I've written fits nicely into your idea of the game. And I'm certainly glad it fulfilled your wish, no matter what it is. :D
Thanks for reviewing!