A Dragon's Retribution [Book 3 in Rising Dragons]

Chapter 2: Thirak I

Seeryath and I followed the black-scaled dragon into the cave. He led us further into the cave until we could go no further. I looked around. In our way was a boulder resting in a dip; but the strange dragon didn't hesitate, pushing the boulder out of the way with his shoulder and holding it in place. Seeryath was quick to enter the newly uncovered passage and I trailed after her. The other dragon quickly slipped after us, the boulder rolling back into the dip, and leaving in darkness.

"Keep going," the black dragon said. "This is the most direct route to the valley below."

"Where is this valley?" Seeryath asked.

"Hidden," comes the response and I snorted silently in amusement.

We continued to walk in silence and, eventually, the pathway opened up into a larger cave, rays of sunlight streaming in from the opening. Seeryath paused in front of a wall that had something on it – written in a language I could speak but had never seen written down. And yet, I could read it.

The black dragon padded up beside us and dismissed the writing with a shake of his head. "That was here before I was."

"Do you know what it is?" Seeryath asked.

The black dragon shrugged. "I can't read it all – some parts are gone. However, most of it is legible. It says: ol faal Krel Gein laag, faal Bii Gein kriist vok, yolos nau haal genun dez. Yol meyzah ahrk kii lost vahlut, faal Bii Gein luvmah ahrk pogaan lost luv ko niist miin.

"The rest of it becomes a bit harder to understand, I can read tul nol kii yuvon, but after that I don't know what it says. The next part I can read is nol lok faal Yuvon Gein kuz bod, and then I miss most of the next section except for faasliis. Afterwards, it says faal Soven Gein los ahmiin do grik, yaav – I miss the rest of following the sentence except neilaas. The next part I understand is fen kos gemindok ko ... Sot Gein ... ko gein laat. The next line I can't read at all, and then it says faal Narmah Dovah ken kiibok niist dez and the only part of the final line I can read is ko mul."

I frowned, tracing the words with my eyes; some of the words sounded familiar. As I continued peering at the words, I remembered knowing to look beyond green to blue, and wondered if this was similar.

"Nilaadaan nol lok faal Yuvon Gein kuz bod," Seeryath murmured next to me, and I shot her a surprised look. She stared at me but didn't really seem to see me.

"How did you know that?" The black dragon asked in a curious manner. "That completes one of the sentences that I couldn't complete."

"I can't read it," Seeryath explained, "but I can translate words I've heard in human tongue into our own language – and I've... heard something like this before."

I shifted my weight from one leg to the next. "Sot Gein means white dragon," I said softly, hesitatingly, "and that could mean Alvah."

"Have you read these words before?" The black dragon asked me.

I shook my head. "I heard them in a... vision-like thing, I suppose. Years ago."

"Was it in divination class?" Seeryath asked with a tilt of her head, and I nodded, waiting to see if she would say anything else, but she remained quiet. Her eyes scanned the words, putting meaning to the characters on the wall. "As the Crooked One slumbered, the Blue One arose, a flame on hand expressed a destiny. The fires materialised and ashes were left, the Blue One wept and many had tears unshed," Seeryath mumbled, looking shocked.

"Seeryath?" I called, wanting to know if she was alright.

"The fire probably means sacrifice," the black dragon commented, "since fire is all consuming and deadly." I glanced at him before looking back at Seeryath who murmured her dead rider's name. I shifted in place, glancing at Seeryath again, before looking away.