Dragon Wars: The Rise of Drogmaar

Prologue: War

All around there was chaos. In every direction the echoes of blood-curling screams from people and dragons alike filled the air. The streets and sky ran red with the blood of the fallen. Fire rampaged through the center of the once glorious and golden capitol streets, with Ice close behind dowsing the Fire and crystalizing the bodies of those both dead, and alive. I watched in horror as all of those I loved were incinerated. I gaped at the sheer heartlessness of the other nations as they slaughtered everyone in their path. My culture was on the brink of collapse. Those I called my closest friends, my allies, were fighting in the skies for every last moment of freedom they could grasp. It took everything in me to stay away from the battle. To sit back on my haunches as I was and stare in utter disbelief. I was hurt, and going in and getting myself killed, as much as I longed for that sweet release, I couldn't. I had to stay alive and stay strong. For the sake of my people I had to silently reside in the shadows, so that maybe some day I could find my human rider and take back my city.

    For years the Ice and Fire nations had been trying to penetrate the great city of Astrapi and for years they had been kept at bay. But today they came at us with every force they had. We had thought they were retreating. They had been pulling back their forces across the board. It seemed that although we were only one nation fighting against two, that would were going to come out on top. The dragons, myself included, had held a number of meetings about where we would go and how we would urge the humans to deal with the attackers, if we won. We learned today that we were wrong. At dawn the city was under siege from every direction. We were taken completely by surprise. All of our forces were spread thin across the continent. Typically only the dragons with riders were asked to fight. That changed today. The Lightning people gathered as quickly as they could and strategized. They sent centries to the main dragon lair to recruit. I was the youngest of my kind and those older than I begged me to stand down. I refused. And now I watched helpless.

My people were unprepared, living in the idea that the Fire and Ice nations would never make it this far. This was a fools idea, an opinion I tried to voice frequently to my masters, and an opinion that was often disregarded. I was young and foolish and had no place to speak of strategy. Now I stood to the side and watched each of my masters fall in battle one at a time. A battle that I had tried desperately to protect us from. A battle that would be the final straw in this war. If Fire and Ice won, the war was over and that would be the end of the civilization that I held so very dear.

    The sky blackened with soot and ashes from the burning city below. I had to help. I had to do something rather than sit here and watch my people die. A massive pale blue dragon raced past my perch and I took the liberty of shooting a bolt of lightning his direction. My energy was waning quickly with the number of wounds that covered my neck and back. But that did not mean that I would not try to help as much as I could. My bolt made its mark and the rider screamed as he and his dragon fell to the ground and were engulfed in their allies flames. I smiled to myself at the moment of pride that swelled through me annihilating my enemies. Even still, that was not enough compared to the sheer magnitude of Ice and Fire forces that seemed never-ending. I had to do more. I had to go back out and join the last of the front lines.

     I stepped further back into the shadow of the looming trees and readied myself for takeoff. My massive and glorious pitch black wingspan unfurled behind me. I was a young dragon, the youngest of my kind, but I was also destined to be one of the largest and most powerful dragons in centuries. I began running; heading toward the cliff face for take off feeling the too hot, too thick wind, rush around me. As the wind blew along the length of my body, through my wing I knew that I would need to catch a draft just right to be able to make it to the front in one swoop.If I failed my enemies would be upon me in a flash and I would be unable to assist in the thrawl. I reared back on my haunches and roared, heading to the edge and off into the sky.

    Too late I heard the final scream. It was like nothing I had ever heard before. The ground and sky shook with the might as my master, the last Lightning dragon left on the battlefield, was hit with a killing blow.

    My steps faltered at the edge of the runway. I could not tear my eyes away from the site of such mighty beast falling to the ground. He was killed instantly upon impact. I let my emotions get the best of me and forgot what I was trying to do. All too fast I began my own plummet to the earth. My wings catching and scraping on the jagged rocks of the mountain face. I bit my tongue to keep from letting out a howl rivaled only by that of my masters that still echoed in the canyon. If they found me here I would be killed, losing all hope of ever redeeming my people.

    Down, down I fell tumbling through the trees and rocks of the the mountainside. Way too quickly to get my bearings and take off. Every inch of my body was crying in pain. The golden specs that once shone so brightly in the sunlight were now dull and barely noticeable, as blood ran over them and down my body. I saw nothing, and yet I could see everything. My mind revised the images of my burning city and my masters death over and over again as I fell to the ground. I stopped trying to save myself. I stopped struggling and embraced my fate. The ground was a welcomed release as I met it hard after a fall that had felt like an eternity.

The war was done. Ice and Fire had won.