The Last Prophecy?
Seekers of a new alternative, listen,
to the last great prophecy given by the Nightwings,
before our gift expires and one can only walk into darkness,
the one who read the future has chosen a path that shouldn't exist,
but change beckons change.
So now beware the other one who remains from the ancient mixed lineage,
and look out for the changes in one's own being,
there's a web of truths and lies and if it's never untangled,
the strings will never be cut.
— Prologue —
16 years ago…
Today was going to be a simply terrible day, Boreas was certain of it, anytime he'd need to step out of the comfort of his home was always meant to be bad.
But family tradition dictated that he should do this, go outside and try to find a mate, because he's 10 and it's best if one tries sooner than later as it can be tough at times, and he's not one to argue against tradition, and for certain he doesn't want to be the one to end his bloodline.
So extremely slowly as if he could stall the moment of needing to walk out, he moved out of his home, through the labyrinth that leads to it within the Cliff, and eventually he was within sight of the concealed entrance.
He sighed tiredly and from a silver pouch he carries tucked beneath his right wing, and from it he grasped an elegant looking steel bracelet, he looked at his reflection on an icy wall as he put it on and observed how his few splashes of black scales were replaced by a glistening white, and his back spikes grew larger and so now he looked like an everyday Icewing.
Yet he was far from an everyday cold dragon, his lineage, the genes within him, they all made it just impossible to be normal, he wished for years to have been born in any other family, not the one that happens to carry millenia of secrets and a curse too many believe to be a gift.
He shook his head, there he is again, thinking about this so he doesn't have to come out of the cliff yet in search of someone to continue this lineage, and words that his mother, Stormbringer, told him some years ago were echoing in his mind
You may not like this, but remember, someday, when the stigma against part of our lineage fades away, our family will finally show itself, and then we can make up for the mistakes of the past. But we won't get to do that if you don't find a nice girl and get some kids. And I want to be a grandmother someday.
But of course, that didn't happen and she was gone, but now he had to at least follow through with it out of respect to his mother's wishes.
He stepped outside, covering with a talon the copious amounts of light that reached his face for some moments, and then he spread his wings and flew up for a few minutes to go over the Ice Cliff and past it, and then simply landed right on the other side.
So rule number 1: don't ever head too deep into the Ice Kingdom, and even less at sight of the palace, no mingling with royals, and no giving them their "gift". Socializing with Icewings outside the Seven Circles, ones living simple lives, is perfectly fine on the other talon as long as one is cautious.
And so he wandered, the feeling of actual snow during his talons still feeling so unnatural to him compared to the firm and familiar icy floors at home, it was weird, and outside the norm for him, but if he must walk on snow, then he'll begrudgingly walk on snow.
And that's when he realized he had absolutely no game plan for this whole situation.
Oh three moons, you idiot. What's the plan now? Kept thinking so much about how I don't want to do this, that I didn't plan that far ahead on how I'll do it. What, approach the first girl you see and go "Hey there, I'm looking to expand my lineage"? I'd frostbreath myself if I was on that dragon's talons… He facepalmed hard.
Well, step one, find a female dragon of the right age that could be together with him and whom he may eventually trust to show his super hidden home with strict rules and magical items everywhere, simple, truly barely an issue…
He walked around the outskirts of the Ice Kingdom, looking around and forward, and as he did that he decided to retrieve another thing from his pouch, a silver necklace, he put it on and closed his eyes for a second, when he opened it his vision had greatly sharpened, about as strong as an eagle. So hopefully he'd get to spot any Icewings before they might spot him, and if anyone catches his interest then he could… Approach?
He sighed, this is going to suck.
Boreas began to walk once more, keeping a sharp eye on his surroundings, he saw a good amount of Icewings in the distance, but not yet a girl that was far away from others so he could have a simple one-on-one conversation without any eavesdroppers.
And then he logically wondered how this might even go, how can he know who to approach? And how? That's if he even finds someone today, he might need to come out again another day and keep trying, because he's not just gonna stumble upon someon-
CRACK! And with a splash he suddenly fell into super cold water as he gasped, he'd been focusing so much on looking around at the distance that he forgot to look at what's right in front and beneath him, like a frozen lake making an ice rink of thin ice that broke under his weight.
He ended submerged in freezing water, his talons flailing in panic as he tried to resurface towards the hole he just made, but now he realized one of the very few downsides of never wanting to leave his home: he had absolutely no idea of how to swim, his movements just getting him further away from the surface.
None of the gifts he brought with him in the pouch would be of help, he had grabbed things to blend in, be evasive and sneaky, nothing that could help when he's about to drown.
This is the worst outcome, is the whole bloodline going to end because he fell into water and drowned!? As much as he struggled, it appears that it was going to be that way…
Another shape had jumped into the hole and he suddenly felt talons wrapping around his own as he was getting pulled back up towards the surface, quickly he managed to grasp a side of the opening with his claws while the figure that helped him got out as he climbed up.
"What were you looking at? The birds? What's so interesting to not realize you're walking on thin ice?" The other dragon spoke with a huff, and Boreas now looked at her, the Icewing that saved him had mostly shiny gray scales, with white ones being mostly on her wings, and her expression looked very confused.
Boreas coughed and huffed for some seconds, subtly looking down to his talon as he made sure the concealing bracelet hasn't moved from its spot, and luckily it hasn't.
"Apologies…" He managed to mutter. "I was merely distracted looking for something that I didn't see where I was looking at, it was foolish."
"That I can agree with," she said, giving him a critical look now. "And you look like a fully fledged adult, how can you not know how to at least float up?"
"I… Never had a reason to learn," Boreas said vaguely, he's engaging in conversation with a stranger, he must be extremely careful.
"Scared that a Seawing will bite your tail if you ever decide to swim even in this kingdom?" She replied.
"I just am not one to travel or step outside much, that's all," Boreas replied, rolling his eyes.
"Maybe you should, it might save your life to know basic stuff," she pointed out, and he straightened.
Basic stuff, so that means it'd be normal if he knew how to at least fare in water, he did not consider that before, but now he decided he might need to try this some other time.
"Yeah, you're right, sorry for making you jump into cold water," Boreas decided to simply apologize.
She nodded at that, and began to simply walk away. "Well I'll be leaving, so whatever you're looking for, you better don't fall into the water again," she announced while departing.
He got ready to leave too, before stopping as realization snaps into his mind, he did find what he was looking for, he talked to a female Icewing, and nobody else seems to be around, now he can convince the first girl he's met to come with him to his secluded confines inside a cliff to keep going with the greatest secret in the tribe. Yay…
He walked over towards the direction she was heading. "So, you saved me, might I get to know your name? Mine is Boreas," he called out.
She turned her head back to look at him. "Flurry."
"Flurry, alright I see, thanks," he said with a nod, she looked at him for some moments as if waiting for something, and then she just kept walking.
And Boreas wanted to facepalm, she clearly thought he'd say more than just that, and he should have, he isn't getting into a relationship like this, probably.
He'll need help, so he quickly opens his pouch again and brings out a small ring which he quickly fits on one of his claws, this is a lesser and far less egregious version of a spell made by that one ancestor. When looking at him, other dragons should be more willing to think positively of him, so not quite charm them or make them think he's awesome, just more receptive.
He rushed forward and stopped by one of her sides and in front of her.
"Heya," Boreas said, trying a confident toothy grin to Flurry, who turned her head to look at him as she walked by.
"Hi…?" She replied with clear confusion while she kept on moving.
"So, Flurry, were you enjoying the sights before you found me?" He decided to ask.
"Huh, no, I was just out hunting when I heard the sounds of someone falling into the water."
"Ah, hunting…" Boreas mumbled, he never had to hunt in his life, the gifts back home cover any need that might require going out, yet he might need to do something here. "I… Was looking for something to hunt too, maybe we could hunt together?"
Flurry wasn't looking very impressed and shot him a questioning look. "You want us to hunt together?"
He thought about how he did not give a very impressive first impression, so he cleared his throat.
"If you think I'll fall into a pile of snow and alert someone, don't worry about it," he said, shaking his head.
"That was only half of what I was worried about, the other half being a random dragon just offering that to me," she replied, raising an eyebrow.
"Right… But I won't be a bother, I promise."
"Hm, fine, but you have to hunt your own piece, okay?" She finally accepted and he nodded, first time he'll hunt something, but anything that might make him look good to her.
They took off and he decided to ask some questions, just to make sure she's the one.
"So… What things do you like to do? Normal things?" He decided to ask, which made her turn her head towards him.
"Did you see me as the type that'd do something out of line?" She asked.
"Not at all," he quickly shook his head at that. "And are you good at keeping secrets?"
She was slowly somehow looking all the more baffled by this. "Is it because you have anything you want to share…?"
"No, not at all, just curious, nothing else," he quickly denied.
"Not a question that one usually asks within 10 minutes of meeting someone, but I guess I am not a secret spiller at least?" She said with a shrug while flying to a snow coated forest.
"Are you single?"
That question immediately made her stop moving forward and hover in the air with a shocked expression as she quickly turned at him.
"Oh in the name of the great ice dragon, you can't be serious. I saved your life and now you want to "hang out" with me that way? Is that it?" She asked deadpan and began to pick up the pace of her flight.
"Wait! I'm sorry! Don't leave!" Boreas said, going after her while pleading, oh he's certainly looking comical and not normal.
So this first date? It did not go as expected, and for obvious reasons she was a much faster flier than he is.
"Okay! I'll be at the ice rink tomorrow, and the day after, and after that!" He barely managed to call out as she got out of reach.
He sighed and flew back to the Ice Cliff. This was terrible, and sure he had managed to tell her where he'll be, but what reason would she have to go over there the next day?
But she's a female, she looks to be of the right age, she's normal, and she can keep secrets, so if she's single she's perfect, his mind had some wishful thinking as Flurry had literally met all of his standards.
So he went back home and decided to rest, stretching atop of his bed as he thought of the events that just occurred, trying to think of actually decent talk topics, but eventually he fell asleep.
The next day he had quickly ordered some breakfast at the table, then began the trek outside again.
Needing to go out two days in a row… At least this time I know there MAY be results…
He flew over to the ice rink, this time actually being cautious to not stupidly step on thin ice, and waited to see if Flurry might actually come over here, with Boreas constantly turning his head to try seeing her with his sharpened eyesight.
He waited out for about two hours, just moving around while constantly looking at his surroundings, nothing so far. But when he was slowly starting to give up for today, he noticed a bit of movement behind some trees in the distance and quickly looked there.
The movement stopped for some moments, but then a gray shape came out and looked over to him as it approached.
"Okay, I am surprised you even noticed me moving over there," Flurry called out.
"I got a sharp eye I'll admit," he replied, not commenting on the fact he's magically aided. "So, you came back."
"It was just to see if you actually had come back here today, I wasn't planning on being found," she grumbled a bit.
"Well, you're here now, so we could talk. Starting with my apology for yesterday, admittedly I… Haven't spoken much to other dragons in my life."
Her expression appeared to shift slightly when he said that, maybe he could go for the pity angle? Not leaning heavily on it, but just slightly.
"Okay, so with that you clearly got no social skills given nobody just asks someone else if they're single right after meeting them," she said and he nodded.
"My late mother insisted a lot that I should go out and find someone, yesterday I went out to try that and…"
"Did you… Go for the first female you saw or something?" Flurry questioned him.
"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't," he replied vaguely, and he actually got her to snort as she held back a chuckle.
"You truly are an odd one," she commented and he winced at that.
Maybe he'll convince her over time to come with him, but with how his life has been, she'll never consider him normal if she's the one to find the truth.
Oh well, one step at a time, taking it slow must be the typical way…
They had these meetings a few days per week for a few months, and very slowly he'd been getting more used to interacting with another dragon that isn't his mom. And Flurry had been a nice dragon during these meetings, and much to his relief she had proved with further talking to be as average and normal as he'd hoped, and she didn't seem like one that had great dreams of grandeur, just enjoying her life, so should be safer to bring her around several dozens of magical items.
And finally after some months, he convinced her to follow him closer to the ice cliff, and there during late afternoon with no other dragons at sight, he took off his bracelet, and right away the black scales on random spots around his body were revealed, alongside his back spines shortening.
She recoiled back in shock as Flurry saw these changes, small, but what separated him from the rest of the kingdom.
"H-Huh? How did you-!?"
"Please, let me explain, without screaming or flying away if possible, this is something I've wanted to show you for a while now," Boreas said nervously, getting ready to reach for his pouch if needed to retrieve a particular gift he brought.
She still looked shocked, but tried to regain composure. "You're… A hybrid, those black scales…"
"I have Nightwing ancestors, I'll admit that, but the closest one is from centuries ago, for the most part I am still an Icewing," he quickly assured her, not wanting his Nightwing blood to ruin everything.
"That bracelet…" Flurry muttered, looking at it.
"Animus touched, although I am not one myself," he explained, she might feel more at ease knowing right away that he still has enough normalcy in him and is not a dragon that could ruin the kingdom with a single sentence.
She looked at him with a growing interest mixed with her very understandable fear, any normal dragon would get startled upon being thrown such reveals.
"Okay… And what do you want with me? What's with all these months of chatting?"
"Well…" He suddenly felt extremely awkward as his face turned a light blue. "Right now… There's just me back home, and I was told that I need to find someone and continue the legacy."
And now her face had turned bluer as well. "You want us to be… Mates and do… All that stuff?"
"Yes."
They both remained in silence, with him eyeing around just in case there were any approaching shapes, but luckily there weren't. Then he cleared his throat.
"Would you… Like to… Visit my home and see if you like it?"
And if you don't want this… I'll have to help you forget so we both move on…
Eventually she accepted warily, and for the first time he guided someone back into the secret cave system in the cliff, guiding her without any issues through the maze and to the actual habitable zone.
And then Boreas' hopes rose as he saw the wonder in her eyes upon seeing the marvelous place, the sun was reflecting on the crystalline surfaces thanks to the enchantment made on the windows to show through the cliff and actually outside. A big and fancily decorated chandelier in the living room, and moon globes that can be turned on and off in the other rooms.
And so many shelves and alcoves holding multiple items and trinkets, with the way her eyes looked at them all, he assumed she wondered if they were all magical, which they indeed are.
She walked around with him following with a smile on his face, then she turned at him.
"This place… It is beautiful," she admitted.
"And it could be your home if you come with me. a majestic inside that could probably rival the inside of the palace, every basic need easily taken care of, and nearly two thousand years of different gifts," he said in the tone he considered the most alluring.
She thought about it in silence for some moments before speaking. "I… Really need some time to think, you really just threw everything at me in the same day,"
Boreas panicked at that, he showed her his identity, his home, his secrets, he'd hoped this would be convincing right away, but now what if he ruined everything?
She must have noticed something in his expression based on what she said next. "Don't worry, I understand now why during our first meeting you just outright asked how I am at keeping secrets… And you can bet I don't want to be on the other side of possibly a dozen magical weapons at once. I just need to think, that's all."
He still felt tense, his talon twitching and wanting to reach for the pouch… But he eventually stopped himself with a sigh as he slowly nodded.
"Fine… Let me guide you back outside and I'll be there at the usual spot at the usual hours for when you can answer…"
He guided her outside as promised, and thought about this feeling in his chest after having finally revealed everything, after having Flurry see the real Boreas. He felt a sense of relief as such a big weight was lifted off his shoulders, and surprisingly he felt sadness upon seeing her fly away.
Boreas reminisced of all these moments related to Flurry merely over half a year ago, remembering that feeling when she left, with him feeling saddened but also scared about the idea of not seeing her, the first hints of him feeling actual love towards her.
He looked at the gray sleeping shape of his mate, and towards the bulge in her belly. These nights the past few months with her had been just… Wow, not even the scrolls he read before getting to that could've prepared him for the stream of sensations that would appear whenever they got more intimate.
And now soon they'll have an egg, a child, a legacy.
And indeed, two days later there was an egg that was mostly as white as the snow itself, but with some black spots and dots around, Flurry looked extremely proud of it and cradled it on her arms despite how tired she was, and Boreas moved closer and placed one of his wings over her and the egg.
But as this happened and he just happily looked at the egg, just now after all this time he realized that he forgot a very important detail.
That next night, while Flurry was sleeping near the egg, Boreas silently got up from their bed and went to one of the alcoves, there he grabbed a long piece of white crystal and he slowly approached the egg, holding the tip of the crystal towards it.
The crystal began to glow and his eyes widened, with how surprised he was he almost dropped the animus touched object to the ground, but he quickly went back to the alcove to put it back in place as he breathed heavily, his claws scraping on the icy floor.
Why must he always be so foolish and shortsighted? How is it possible that he wasn't prepared for this months ago? In full honesty, he didn't inherit the gift and neither did his mother, so he actually had some hope for a while that perhaps the gene may have diluted and there'd be a very low chance of this.
But the worst outcome happened, their child will be an Animus, someone with the potential to be an incredible danger to others, including their own family.
Boreas walked over a hallway with haste towards another room, this one was decorated completely by only portraits, every single dragon in these being his ancestors, the Gift of Remembrance.
He saw his mother at the rightmost side, but he focused on the left side afterwards, at the beginning.
There at the very left were the portraits of Foeslayer and Arctic, after them were Lady Whiteout and Sir Thoughtful, the most respected members due to basically starting this half of the family by supporting their daughter, Lightbringer, when she wanted to move away from home as she wanted to live among her grandfather's tribe, even if in secret by using her magic.
But right next to Whiteout's portrait was one that Boreas always tried to not look at. Giving a sideways glare to the observer was Darkstalker, the reason for Boreas to consider the "gift" of magic to be a curse, it doesn't matter that his family has lived on without causing a disaster for nearly two millennia, all that's needed is one Animus out of place and everything could be ruined.
His family has magic, they're the only dragons in Pyrrhia to have known since long ago the whole story of Darkstalker, their Gift of Learning is a scroll that when asked about anything regarding Darkstalker, it shows all the relevant information: his conversations, his actions, his spells. And this serves as a warning for the ones carrying the curse to know what went wrong.
Heck, he wasn't the only one in this family that was worried about such outcomes, a thousand years ago one of his ancestors had made an enchantment so his descendants could only cast two spells with their powers, the first one normally to actually find out if they're an animus, and the second one meant to be the gift they leave behind for the next generations. Although later on someone else would make that crystal to identify an Animus so that meant they didn't quite need to use their first spell for a simple test.
He sighed and rubbed his head, still panicking at the idea of raising a magical dragonet. He'd read plenty of times how bad Arctic had it, and he felt scared, for his life, and for Flurry's.
Finally after a couple weeks, the hatching day of their son had arrived, they both knew it based on how much the dragonet inside was moving.
Flurry had proposed Blizzard for their name and he just distractedly accepted it that day, these last weeks he'd been more tense and distraught, although with his mate focusing a lot on their egg, she didn't quite realize that much.
And he'd been arguing with himself a lot, an idea appearing in his mind at times. He cannot do much for himself, he must stay and raise the next one in this lineage.
But maybe… Just maybe he could save Flurry if it turns out that their child was a mistake, but the only way he had to get her away from all this broke his heart.
But today was the big day, if he didn't make a decision now then it meant he never would, the dragonet will hatch today and would see both of its parents, they'd be imprinted within its mind.
So he finally made his choice, approaching his mate he tapped her shoulder.
"Hey, I know we have to stay close, but would you mind helping me find something? A gift to use upon them when they're born as per tradition," he said, barely forcing a smile.
Flurry felt natural curiosity about magic, so of course she agreed if it was meant to be good for their child.
"Hmm, so what are we searching for exactly?" She asked, looking at the top of some shelves, but he didn't answer right away as his talons grasped a white stone, that last gift he'd been carrying in his pouch when he had to go outside all these months ago.
"Make Flurry the Icewing forget everything related to myself and of living here, and then make her appear back in her previous home at the Ice Kingdom," he whispered to the rock.
He approached her and turned her around to Flurry's surprise, then he suddenly brought his face closer and gave her one last kiss, filled with all of his love and affection, the love that brought him to this point, of making her leave before the chance she might end hurt.
She returned the kiss and so she didn't notice his right talon reaching for her side, and then the rock touched her, and Flurry was gone.
He immediately felt numb and cold as he fell to the ground, lone tears falling down and splashing on the ice. This cannot be undone, she's safer now and can live a normal life without the constant fear of magic that he's certainly going to feel until his child casts its second spell.
"I'm so sorry…"
And with his lamenting and sorrow, he didn't hear when the egg started to crack, the shell had turned silver as the very first rays of moonlight had hit it through one of the enchanted windows as Boreas forgot to close it.
And then black limbs poke out of the egg, and Blizzard was born into the world, the first ever feeling his mind caught was the sadness and despair coming from another room.
