Prologue
As the sun rose dawning the birth of a new day, the shadows of multiple mountains eclipsed
the valley that sat below, contrasting the dark green appearance of the surrounding forest
with the purples and oranges of the awakening sky. In a valley like this, one would expect
any creature to begin the day with a warm smile and a positive attitude, but the scene that
was playing out at the base of the tallest mountain begged to differ. Six dragons, all different
shapes and sizes surrounded a statue similar in size to them, standing in silence with the
only noises to be heard being the wingbeats from two dragon soldiers above the statue, and
the metal chains they held that entangled the statue. The statue itself was a distinguished
sight, to say the least. Made out of a sandy rock like material, it had a snake-like build, with
four legs and a long tail, yet while it lacked wings, it instead possessed a long mane that
went down from the tip of its head all the way down the body until just the arms. A massive
horn stood on the top of its head, and underneath it lay two gaping eye sockets, a commonly
sized nose, and an emotionless flat frown. The statue stood on its hind legs, yet held its
head slightly down, as if it was almost bowing. Its tail was raised behind its body, yet it
allowed itself to balance partly on the ground, to support its smaller sized legs. Its upper legs
were sealed together, like it was almost begging, yet the statue's lifeless expression did not
give off a sombre feel. The dragons that surrounded it all knew this was no mere statue
however, rather it was a prison to hold an enemy that had fought tirelessly to defeat, and
who now resided within its walls, placed there while unconscious.
One of the dragons stepped forward. He was a tall, orange, muscular dragon who had three
straight horns extending from the back of each side of his head. They were in a mirrored
position, with the longest pair sitting at the top of his head, pointing up into the sky, the
shortest pair lying underneath, pointing horizontally, and the final pair sitting underneath
them at his chin, pointing slightly away from each other. He had a horn-like chin underneath
his snout, dark - red eyes, and sharp teeth, which all complemented his strong and
intimidating build. His wings stood high about his arms, with a blue color scheme that
contrasted the orange, and more noticeably, a sizable flame burned at the back of his tail,
mirroring the anger he felt towards the soul he was about to try.
"Kandikinis!" The orange dragon addressed the statue in a booming voice that echoed
across the valley. "You stand before the Titans that represent all Dragonkind. With the
conclusion of the Great War, the council has deliberated on how to properly punish you for
your crimes during our conflict." He looked back for approval at the other dragons, who all
nodded their heads, before continuing on "After days of discussion, it has been that you shall
be encased in the prison of your confinement, and banished to the fiery depths of Mount
Eradicus!" The heads of the dragons that stood behind raised to look up at the volcano that
they had gathered at, as smoke rose from its peak. While not an active threat where they
stood, its lava still flowed at the top of the mountain, and was very much dangerous.
"Before you are forever encased in lava and stone", the orange dragon finished, "do you
have anything you would like to say to your audience?
The statue stared back blankly for a moment, as if it was nothing more than a mere statue.
However, the dragons there knew that wasn't the case, as within the statue's eye sockets, a
yellow beady eye glared back, emulating with pure rage and hatred. "YOU INBRED RAT
TAILS!" The statue boomed. "YOU WON'T SAVE OUR SPECIES, BUT YOU'LL DAMN ME
TO A VOLCANO FOR ETERNITY?!" The dragons that surrounded it did not respond, yet
the orange dragon did not take this question lightly. "You align yourself with the dark one
Kandikis," he retorted. "The mortal enemy of all dragonkind! This punishment was brought
about by your selfless actions!" The orange dragon gave himself a moment to stand back
and straighten himself up, as he had shown a glimpse of his anger, but he quickly returned
to his former self. "So I ask you again, do you have anything to say of MEANING to us?" he
clarified. The dragon within the statue glared back at his audience, intending to eye them
down.
"Oh I have something I want all of you to hear. Listen closely, as I will only say this once. My
lovely pet is still out there, and it will continue to devour anything in its path until there is
nothing left but stone. In the highly unlikely event that you can stop it, my power over it will
return, and I shall seek vengeance upon you, your children, or whoever is unfortunate
enough to face my wrath. However, I do know this for a fact. By the time I'm done, you'll wish
you had listened to me, and everything you know and love will be nothing but a fleeting
memory. Although I'm sure that's already the case for some of you"
As he spoke his last sentence, he eyed down a specific red dragon within the group. He had
orange luscious hair that ran down his neck from the top of his head, and an orange
underbelly of scales. Bright orange wings stood proudly above his arms, and his tail
emulated long wavy hair that waved in the air. A horn stood proudly above his nose holes,
and behind his snout he possessed two blue eyes. These eyes were emulating pure horror
and grief, as the dragon recalled past memories from the war, knowing exactly what Kandikis
was referring to. He shut his eyes and hung his head, gritting his teeth as the pain and loss
he had experienced began to hit him like a ship to an iceberg. Many heads turned towards
him in sympathy, including the orange dragon, who looked down at his friend with remorse
and sorrow, this emotion quickly fleeted as he glared back at the statue with pure fury,
allowing puffs of smoke to emerge from his nostrils. Looking up towards the two soldiers that
hovered above, he nodded, giving them the signal that it was time.
One soldier nodded back, as the two began lifting the chains that connected to the statue
below with all their might. Although the rock it was carved out of made it heavy to lift, the
statue began to rise slowly into the air, startling a small mouse who was cleaning himself in
its shadow. It quickly scampered into the forest, afraid of becoming any of the surrounding
dragons' meal, yet none of them seemed to notice or care, as they looked up into the sky at
the one dragon who was being lifted up into the sky, towards his fiery imprisonment.
As the two soldiers flew higher and higher, the air got more smokey and hard to breathe,
with their vision becoming more blurred as a result. However, they soon arrived at the peak
of the mountain, where a pool of hot bubbling lava awaited them. The heat radiated off it like
a frying pan above a fire, and each second a new bubble emerged and then burst sending
fragments of lava flying everywhere, yet not high enough to reach the two soldiers. Without a
moment of hesitation, the two let go of their respective chains, and allowed the statue to
plummet below in the boiling substance, creating a splash that sent magma and lava flying
everywhere. As the heat encased the statue's walls, an ear piercing shriek could be heard
within the statue's walls, as lava began to overflow the statue through its eye sockets,
drowning and dissolving the dragon within with its hot boiling substance. The dragon's cries
were soon muffled as the statue was fully engulfed in lava, and it began to sink deeper and
deeper, until it became nothing more than a dark shadow within the boiling pool.
…
"You shouldn't blame yourself, Elderess."
The orange dragon looked over at his friend, who looked down at the forest that sat at the
bottom of the cliff they now stood at. In the time that had passed, the sun was now fully in
the sky, shining bright as the blue sky almost appeared to merge with the open sea that lay
in the horizon at the edge of the land. The rest of the Titans had already returned to their
respective tribes and realms, yet the two friends had remained behind and journey to the
edge of the valley, where the words that Kandikis had spoken still lingered in the back of
Elderess's mind
"You say that Charidus, and yet I still do." The red titan looked solemnly at the forest below,
imaging all the life that was likely thriving in its presence, and then remembered the ones he
had lost during the war; his children. Although fully grown, they still had entire lifes ahead of
them, with not a single one either having a mate or offspring yet. The war had taken that
away from them, yet here he was, still alive and healthy, a privilege they deserved more than
him.
Charidus looked at his friend sadly, understanding the grief he was experiencing, yet
not wanting it to consume him like it did to so many other dragons he knew. "Your children's
deaths were caused by Kandikis's fall," Charidus attempted to reason with Elderess "You
can't blame yourself for his actions." Elderess looked glumly at his friend. "But what if you're
wrong?" he questioned. "What if I could have done something to prevent his fall?" Elderess
then turned away and looked towards the ground, shutting his eyes and he felt the world
darken around him. "What if it was one little thing that sent him down that path of darkness,
something I could have changed? What if it prevented his turn, prevented the amount of
dragons he killed?" His voice began to choke as his children's faces flashed through his
head. "What…what if it…" he couldn't bear to utter what he thought at that moment. A war
hand then embraced his shoulder, and he opened his eyes, turning to see the orange face
that looked at him. Although Charidus was one who rarely smiled, he could still emulate
emotions like grief and understanding for his friend regardless. This stubble, yet comforting
easened nature of Charidus eased Elderess, as he knew his friend was here for him.
"I'm sorry," Elderess sighed, as he glanced out to the ocean. "I just - I just wish things could
have been different."
"There's no need to apologise, old friend," Charidus reasoned. "This war has taken many
things from all of us, but thankfully, it has finally ended. The Dark One is gone, his armies
and allies have been banished, and the nine realms can thrive once more."
As the last sentence left his mouth, Charidus could almost sense the doubt that Elderess
expressed, and while it may have been just his mind playing tricks, even his own
self-consciousness was uncertain of how long that last remark would last. "All we need now
are trustworthy dragons who can identify threats before they occur, in order to prevent
further bloodshed." Charidus's notion seemed to intrigue the red dragon, but his interest was
soon replaced with scepticism. "But what if it's not enough?" Elderess examined, "What new
threat manages to emerge that slipped right underneath our noses?" A horrible realisation
just struck Elderess and Charidus pondered his question. "Furthermore, Kandikis's beast is
still loose in the realms! Even if it is weaker without him, how do we plan to contain it?"
Charidus didn't respond. As much as he wanted to believe this conflict was over, his friend
raised some valid concerns that needed to be addressed. The two dragons stood in silence
for a moment, before Elderess held his head high, looking with determination as if he was
about to fly to the sun and never look back.
"No. I can't just sit by and do nothing. I have to do something. Anything…"
Charidus looked at his friend with slight concern. Elderess has always been one of the most
determined dragons during the war, but he was always down to earth with whatever plan he
pursued. Here, it felt like he was preparing for a threat that was non - existent. "Elderess,"
Chardius exclaimed, "you're beginning to sound like a crazy dragon. How could you possibly
find, let alone destroy the beast. It works almost like a plague, invulnerable to all forces but
the Lord Almighty."
Elderess struggled to conceive a response for his friend, before approaching footsteps
behind the two distracted him. "Not if you know where to look," a voice explained behind the
two dragons. They turned to see a long green spindly like dragon with a slightly darker green
mane approaching them. He had a green and yellow-ish dorsal fin and tail fin, green eyes,
and on top of his head proudly stood his massive horn, although one could assume it was a
statue of some sorts, given its prestigious appearance.
Charidus and Elderess immediately knew who these dragons were, as they had worked
alongside him and his siblings during the war, and he had grown to become not just a
member of the titans, but also one of their closest allies.
"Pengu?" Elderess exclaimed with surprise. The green dragon gave his two friends a smile.
"The beast is confined only by water, which happens to be my species'
core element." Pengu
gave the two dragons a moment to understand what he was saying. They understood this
fact, but they had forgotten that was why they were so useful in capturing Kandikis. Charidus
felt like an idiot.
"My brother Jagan has located the possible nesting spot of the Drunn, in
our home realm. With the help of our entire tribe, we could capture or even destroy the beast
once and for all." He began to walk forward as the two contemplated what Pengu was
suggesting. Sending an entire tribe to destroy the Drunn was almost like a death sentence,
but they knew that wasn't the same for Pengu's kind. Given their connection to water, it was
feasible that they could destroy the Drunn.
Charidus then noticed Pengu had walked up to his left side. Although smaller than him,
Pengu was still tall enough to stand at eye level with Charidus. "However, the alpha as well
as myself and others do share some concerns about the comments Kandikis made before
his imprisonment." The three stood silently for a moment. Despite their differing beliefs at the
moment, they all knew what their king said stood for the entire species. "As shallow as they
seemed, the fact remains that we won't always be here, and there is a chance he could
return. How can we prepare for that scenario if none of us are alive?"
The three stood there longer, unable to resolve the question. As much as Charidus hated to
be in the minority, he knew better than to count an enemy out when they appeared defeated.
However, unlike most of the battles he had led his friends and soldiers into during the war, a
solution didn't immediately come to mind regarding Pengu's concerns. The orange dragon,
for once in his adult life, was stumped.
A moment later, a shadow that flew over his head distracted Charidus, and upon looking up
to discover what it was, the dragon noticed that a father sparrow was flying above with his
baby. Charidus observed the two, and noticed that the father was doing somersaults in the
air, stopping every now and then to observe as the baby followed suit. Why it was clear the
baby bird wasn't as skilled as his father, given its age, it was clear that it was learning its
moves from the parent. Observing how the father was teaching its child, the sight gave an
idea, or furthermore, an answer to his friends' concerns.
"Easy. We prepare them."
Both Elderess and Pengu glanced over at Charidus with confused looks. "I'm sorry, who's
them, exactly Charidus?" Pengu asked while Elderess remained silent, appearing to try and
solve the answer himself silently. "Our children, of course," Charidus replied. "Dragons can
live for very long periods of time, yet no one is , who
says that the guardians cannot be. During the rest of our years we can train our children in
the ways of the titans, in hopes of potentially finding the next guardians. If unsuccessful, their
children can train their children, and so on and so forth. The training can be continued until
the next guardians have been chosen." While Charidus knew he had just thought of this at
that point, the other Titans seemed to like his idea. Pengu was smiling, as he appeared not
only intrigued, but also behind this idea, meanwhile Elderess was looking down with a talon
on his chin, although still with a solemn look on his face, clearly nodding in agreement.
"We can start as soon as we're ready," Charidus finished. "My mate is currently carrying two
eggs. Once she has laid and raised the children properly, I can begin teaching them our
skills and beliefs. This way, if that wingless lizard or his master do return, our forces can be
prepared, even following our deaths."
All around the three dragons seemed to be on board with the plan, yet there were still
uncertainties about certain aspects floating around in their minds, including Charidus's to an
extent. Eventually, Pengu was the first to speak up. "That's a bold plan, Charidus, but
teachings can be easily lost over time. You would need some type of magic to perfectly
guide future guardians." This statement made sense to Charidus. He didn't even consider
how information can be distorted over time due to different causes. Before he could respond
however, Elderess finally spoke up. "No Pengu. Magic is not what they need. What they will
need is their own guardian…" Elderess paused before looking up at the sky, knowing what
he was planning would shock both the two present and everyone else they knew. "And I
shall be that guardian."
Not fully registering what Elderess had said, Charidus replied. "Well, yes, future guardians
would be ideal, but I'm sure through the records…" The orange dragon suddenly stalled on
his words, as Elderess' statement finally sank his thick skull. He looked over towards the
orange dragon, and gritted his teeth. "Wait... what do you mean You, Elderess?" Charidus
growled warningly. "I mean that I shall be the one to guide our future guardians," Elderess
explained. "With the power of our gems, I can decrease the speed of my aging by centuries.
By doing this, I will be able to have our future guardians prepared almost eons into the
future." This statement seemed to confuse Pengu the most. "Elderess, that's... that's
complete lunacy! Even if some crystals have the power to distort time, the strongest one can
only reach a few years. None have ever been known to be capable of
what you speak!
Furthermore, even if they did, you would need thousands to sustain a living creature of just
your size, let alone other living beings. It's pure fiction!"
"It isn't," Charidus started before stalling for a moment. Elderess and Pengu look over the
orange dragon, as he looks with a dark expression down at the ground. Observing him,
Elderess knew Charidus figured out what he was referring to. "There is one place…"
"Indeed," Elderess agreed. "The hill of -
"No, Elderess!" Charidus interrupted, turning towards his friend. Anger was present within his
voice and in his expression, yet Elderess knew that sadness was also present behind it,
based on how long the two knew each other. "The hill of dilation has been outlawed for
generations." Charidus claimed. "Its power was only used for punishment against the most
insane of criminals. I am not letting you use its power on yourself in fear of some weightless
threats made by a dragon at the bottom of a volcano!"
Elderess tried to reason with his raging friend "The temple's structure can easily be
refurbished and modified. They can sustain me while allowing younger dragonets to travel
freely. Kandikis's threats can't be be ignored Charidus! We've made that mistake too many
times. I have made that far too many times. I won't let any more dragons suffer for my
mistakes!" Both of them knew Elderess was still holding on to the guilt of losing his children,
but Charidus wasn't about to let him use that as an excuse. "THAT DOESN'T MATTER
ELDERESS! He boomed "YOU CAN'T THROW AWAY YOUR LIFE BECAUSE OF WHAT
HAS HAPPENED TO YOU!"
"I'M NOT THROWING IT AWAY!" Elderes cried. "I USING IT TO PROTECT OUR FUTURES
AND OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS!" The two glared at each other with enraged
expressions, Charidus clearly with the most out of the two. His tail flame had enlarged during
their argument, and was large enough to set a small patch of grass behind him on fire.
Luckily, the stone mountain they stood on and the lack of wind prevented it from spreading to
the forest behind them. Pengu had taken a few steps back, concerned of whether or not two
would end up fighting, and while it seemed likely for a moment, Elderess shut his eyes and
sighed, hanging his head towards the ground, away from Charidus.
"Please Charidus," Elderess pleaded, before looking back up at his friend. He saw the pure
fury written all over the orange dragon, and looked at him solemnly. "I have to do this. Don't
let it destroy our friendship." While Charidus'
fury remained for a moment, his expression
quickly softened, as his friend's plea settled his rage, and left only his sadness. He knew
Elderess valued their friendship, and didn't want to leave it in pieces if this truly was the end.
He was annoyingly compassionate and understanding, despite his resilience and resolve
during the war. Charidus hated it when they first met, and still hated it just as much now.
He hung his head towards the ground, gradually shutting his eyes, letting out a long,
breathful sigh. "I can't stop you from doing this, can I?" he asked, looking up at his friend.
Elderess shook his head.
Charidus sighed once more. "Very well, we will remodel the hill of dilation so it fits whatever
needs you require." Elderess held his head high, as Charidus accepted his request for the
plan. "Thank you, Charidus."
Pengu looked over at the two dragons who he had fought alongside for years still struggling
to fathom how the two became friends. They had such casting personalities, strengths and
weaknesses, as well as the fact that they clashed almost all the time. Charidus walked over
to Elderess and placed his right talons on his friends shoulders. "But before we begin, at
least allow us to host a gathering for all of our friends and allies to say their final goodbyes."
Charidus requested. "I might not agree with you on how to prepare for future dangers, but I
will support you, as well as everyone else. You deserve to know that we will never forget
about you, or the sacrifices you have made." Elderess smiled. "Of course, old friend.
Despite not knowing what would happen next, both now and all those times during the war,
he knew one thing; the strength of a dragon's bond with another would always overcome any
challenge or obstacle, no matter how impossible it may seem.