The Tale of Rulo the Second
"He's why Rulo the Second sent us here!"
"Rulo the second?" said Elfo. The little Elf looked up at the elder dragon, confused and shocked by what he'd just heard. The Elf let out a small chuckle and held up his tiny hands. "Hold on a second. As far as I know, there is only ONE rulo, and he's the one who rules over the elm back home. That, and I'm sure he still wants to kill me for how many times I've slept with his daughter."
The elder dragon looked at Elfo, surprised. "Do you truly not know of your elven history?"
Elfo rubs his chin. "Well, umm…I mean, I know the history of us making candy; OH! And I know all of the different flavors of candy that we have. I can list them off my fingers and toes!"
"Please, no…" said Bean. "Please don't let him do that."
"Trust me, I won't; rulo the second did that too, and it was so annoying..." The elder dragon sighed.
"How come the ruler of Elfwood at my elm never mentioned this before? I mean, I'm sure somebody had to know about other rulers of elves?" Elfo asked.
The elder dragon nods in agreement. "It's understandable that they probably don't know. The tales of ancient elves is a lost one. Ever since the war between humans and elves is one, I'm sure, is lost in your world, rewritten and retold,"
Bean looked at Elfo, then back at the elder dragon. "The war between humans and elves?"
"It was the war between dragons and humans…right?" said Elfo.
The elder dragon shook its head. "It was war between Humans and Enchanted creatures alike. But…the main targets of the war were the elves," The elder dragon stared somberly at Elfo. "The elves, while small, cute, soft, and smelled like cinnamon, were wielders of great magic that rivaled even our own. Scholars from around the world have sought after the knowledge of elves for years. But, of course, the elves forbade anyone from learning their magic. Especially humans. Their kingdom, beautiful and rich with tradition and lavish culture, was closed off; no one but elves was allowed to enter but elves."
"My gosh, they even did this centuries ago? Somethings never change," said Elfo, letting out an annoyed sigh. The elder dragon clears his throat. "Oh, sorry…please continue."
"Thank you. *Ahem* The elves weren't the only ones who believed in this way of life; we dragons and all enchanted creatures were very reclusive. However, Rulo the Second didn't feel this way. Once his father, Rulo the First, passed, and it was his turn to take the throne, he felt very reluctant—"
"I can understand that…" said Bean. She looks up at the elder dragon. "Oh, did I say that out loud? My bad…"
"As I was saying—Rulo the Second was a seeker of knowledge. He would always try and find ways to improve upon elven magic. This hunger for knowledge would only grow when his queen fell ill and met an untimely passing. Rulo the Second's grief weighed heavily upon him. His obsession with mastering elven magic changed to finding the secret of resurrecting the dead."
"Wow…he's just like me…" said Elfo, awestruck. "I would do the same for you, bean; I would scour the lands if It meant finding a way to bring you back from the dead!"
"A part of me wants to appreciate that—but a part of me wants to be annoyed at coming back alive…" said Bean. "I'm not sure which is good for me."
Elfo's eyes gleamed, thinking about Rulo the Second. "I never knew he had such a cool king; he's the king of ALLL elves!" The little elf giggled to himself. "Now I have two idols!" He turned to the Elder dragon. "What happened next? Please, you gotta tell us more!"
"Alright, alright; I'll try to make this short so I can get the point of why I brought you two here," The elder dragon cleared its throat once more. "Rulo the Second spent years of his life trying to find a way to bring back his loved one. It nearly cost him the loyalty of his kingdom. Things worsened for him once he left his land searching for other means. His citizens felt abandoned and lost. In anger and protest, they ate all of Rulo the Second's candy, which caused them to all end up in a food coma. Which, in turn, stopped the riots as soon as it happened."
"What the hell was that going to prove anyway?" said Bean, confused.
"Eating rations of candy out of spite is a big middle finger in elven culture, Bean. Don't judge," said Elfo, scowing at the princess.
Bean and Elfo looked at the elder dragon, scowling down at them. The two would nervously smile; then, the elder dragon continued.
"Rulo's journey for resurrection led him to dead end after dead end. He began to believe there was no way to bring anyone back to life and that he would live alone without his queen. The thought of living without had driven him to dire choices. He wanted to see his queen by any means necessary. Rulo the Second leaped off the highest point and fell on the wings of Azure, the dragon of life."
Elfo wipes a tear from his eye. "This is so sad! Poor rulo the second! He really is just like me!" the little elf sobs. "I couldn't live without you either, Bean! I'd rather die!"
"Elfo…please…" Bean rubs her head.
"I love how you two can comment on anything but the story I'm telling you…" The elder dragon sighs.
"Hey, you're the one who said you wanted to get to the point. We're just waiting for that," said Bean. "Well, except for Elfo, he's really enjoying the rulo the second story."
"That I am!" said Elfo gleefully.
"Fine, fine—but I have to talk about Azure. He is my relative, after all."
The elder dragon clears its throat again. "Azure had unintentionally caught rulo, the second on his wing. He didn't notice he was there until he spread his hair dramatically like most of us do, and rulo smacked into the wall. Azure took rulo in and tended to him using the healing magic he was known for. Azure had powerful magic that could reform a dying forest—bringing back the trees and plants. Once Rulo had awoken and noticed the magic that Azure held, he wasted no time pleading with the dragon to help bring back his queen from the dead. Azure had spent his life healing and restoring nature but had never considered resurrecting the dead. He was intrigued by the thought and, without any hesitation, agreed. Rulo and Azure had spent years studying, crafting, tinkering, and delving into the deepest depths of magic until they finally combined the most substantial assets of their magic. Rulo the Second's elf blood and Azure's dragon scales to make the Amulet of Resurrection."
"Wow…they had to come together to complete their goal. Two different people from two different worlds. It's so beautiful," said Elfo, sniffling and wiping his eyes.
"Wait a second—so the crystal just brings you back to life? It doesn't grant you immortality or anything?" said Bean.
"It also cures of you any illness you may have had before you died, but it doesn't grant you immortality," said the elder dragon.
"Oh wow, my dad is not going to be happy about this," said Bean, crossing her arms and looking at Elfo.
"Hey, once we head home, the dragons can finally be left alone. So what If Zog can't become immortal? No offense, Bean, but I don't think immortality could save Zog with how he goes about life," said Elfo.
"Trust me, no offense taken," The princess turned to the elder dragon. "So, now that that story is over, are you going to get to the part about you having a problem with me?"
"Certainly," The elder dragon replied, staring into Bean's blue eyes. "Before, I stated there was a reason why Rulo the Second had sent us to this world for our protection. It was because of a man with hair as white as wool and eyes as bright as the sky. His name was Alaric Walter Xerxes De le Rochambeau Grunkwitz, and he is your great great great great great *Cough* ancestor."
"Wait, wait, wait," Bean held up her hands. "Who? What? Who the hell is Alaric? I didn't know I had another family member besides my mom! And this guy is why a whole war with enchanted creatures started?"
"Yes, that is correct," said the elder dragon. "Unfortunately…this is the limit of my knowledge. All I have is his name. But I do know that he led this war with the enchanted creatures to steal their magic and use it to create some sick, twisted utopia where everyone is 'equal.' Of course, it wasn't just enchanted creatures fighting; vagabonds and other humans stood by the enchanted creature's side and fought against Alaric. But many, many fell before their hand. Alaric's magic was something no one had ever seen before. It was dark, cold, and damn near unbeatable. No one could stand up to him. It nearly brought Rulo the second to death. But, in the end, Rulo the Second was the one who brought him down after sending us dragons to this world," The elder lowered its head in sorrow. "So much wonderful life lost in that war. Half of our dragon species, the pixes, are losing half of their magic. I don't remember what became of the mermaids. But I know that so many elves had lost their lives in those horrific battles. I thought that till seeing you, Elfo."
"Oh, we're fine!" said Elfo, waving the elder dragon down. "We're all safe in elm, hidden away from the world! The war couldn't have damaged us much if I had been born!"
"Is that so? So they were able to start a new life. I'm happy to hear that," The elder dragon smiled at Elfo.
"But, Bean here isn't evil if that's what you were getting at. Bean is my best friend. She might be a violent, drunk, crime-prone alcoholic with family issues, but she's not anything like her ancestor!"
"Wow. Thanks, Elfo," said Bean, while Elfo winked at her.
"So it would seem," said the elder dragon skeptically.
"Yeah, you sure sound convinced," Bean turns away from the elder dragon and holds herself. "My mom has never mentioned anything about an evil ancestor from eons ago. Come to think of it, I don't know a single thing about my mom's side of the family or my dad's. Wow…what a way to find out your family history…started a war and committed genocide."
"It's a good thing that Luci isn't here right now. I can picture him saying something, 'Wow, Bean, so you do get the ugly attitude from your mom's side of the family,' Or something like 'he really does sound like you.' Or—sorry…" Elfo covered his mouth once he saw Bean glaring at him. "Just saying…you don't act like him at all. You're sweet, beautiful and—"
"Ok, Elfo, enough talking," said Bean. "So, now that all of that is taken care of, can we talk about the people trying to come into your world and disturb the peace you all have had for thousands and thousands of years? Like, oh, I don't know, the dark legion soldiers?"
"Oh, right!" Elfo smacks his hand on his head. "Elder dragon, you need to free our friends! They can help us stop the dark legion soldiers here from stealing your dragon magic! These people are very dangerous!"
"No need to worry about them. Our soldiers outmatched the remaining two with ease. But, I will free your comrades. But please do something about the one dressed like a dragon. It is very offensive. Also, please stop him from trying to mate with us,"
"Ugh…goddamn it, Oscar," Bean rubs her face stressfully.