Sistrilla

Chapter 1: The Nameless Mount

The cold Ambrosia air bit hard at the heels of the farmers, among them was a girl of only 18. She wore long, dark hair that flowed to her young and narrow shoulders. Her eyes were the colour of clear mist, this made her young face brim with the senescence of a woman two or three times her age. As the men and women toiled at the mire a deafening sound cracked across the young evening sky. "You ere that Pyx?" a gruff man bearing black eyes and long, unkempt raven hair gestured towards the girl "Dragons approaching" Pyx had been told the stories of Dragons by her grandmother, she was fully aware that they, like the grass and the people around them were real. Pyx gave a nervous laugh, before she could answer a hand clapped to her young shoulder "Dragons you say Pious?" spoke the young but gruff voice of her brother "You know there are no Scaleborn around here". Scaleborn was the collective term used for people who were mystically linked to Dragons, it was old knowledge that the kings and queens of old Ambrosia had ridden and been able to speak to Dragons. The First King, Halveus discovered a Dragon egg in his keep one night, he decided for whatever reason to nurture it until it hatched. His servants and even his young wife Lysenne protested this decision but Halveus being a stubborn man in spite of his young, 28 years persisted. It took 10 years for the Dragon egg to hatch, but when it did the mouths of his clergymen and servants gaped like sword wounds. The creature was no bigger than a goose, it had opal eyes and a brilliant emerald sheen, his wing membrane, whilst covered in the thick albumen from the egg, was a pale almost transparent silver. Halveus consorted with his second man about where the creature would stay within the walls with the two men deciding on the large sprawling grounds. Halveus eventually decided on Dhuraenis or "Kings Dragon" for the young beasts name. Several years later the kings younger brother Aeron grew jealous, he waited for Halveus and Lysenne to retire to their quarters and then, made his way to the grounds. He approached Dhuraenis as bold as the now large dragon itself. it was widely accepted knowledge that the only person Dhuraenis would allow near him was Halveus, anyone else was met with instant aggression. The large emerald creature, whose scales shone like beacons in the winter moonlight caught the man in his gaze. He pressed his head, which itself was as long as Aeron was tall to the ground, letting out a sinister and throaty growl. In his arrogance, Aeron ignored the shot across the bows, approaching the large winged beast with staunch superiority. "My brother may have raised you, vile creature!" The raven haired man spat from the mouth on his sharp featured face "But know that it will be Aeron Ambros that mounts you first". Dhuraenis kept his head low, keeping the foolish prince held in his periphery. The rest was a mystery to Pyx and many others, all that was know was Dragons and by extension, the Scaleborn had not been seen outside the keep of Banerun in 600 years and as for Dhuraenis himself, that was a mystery. "How can yer be so sure?" Pious grumbled, sticking his rake into the ground "You wouldn't know a Scaleborn from the rest of us Phillian", Phillian was Pyx's older brother, he was a young man of not yet 20 with silvery hair cut short and clean. He had eyes the same colour as Pyx but his were speckled with ashy grey flecks. Phillian laughed "Castero is a farmers town Pious" the older teen spoke succinctly as if he was downplaying the other mans intelligence "There hasn't been a Scaleborn birthed outside the keep of Banerun in more years than every man here has combined". As he said that the same thundering roar seemed to rip straight through the bodies and spirits of the men and women there, sending many of them staggering back, faces white as sleet and aghast. Pyx felt her chest knot, the roar felt as if it was more in answer to Phillian's assertion, her eyes traced the outline of a dark figure that, as brief as anything shot across the glow of the moon. "Phillian, did you see that?" She asked, her voice low and shallow, Phillian nodded "Everyone leave for the safety of the town" he bellowed. The men and women promptly dropped their equipment and scrambled for safety, "She's fast, I'll give her that" Phillian said, licking his lips anxiously. Despite his bravado Phillian had never seen a Dragon in the flesh, the only exposure he had to Dragons were through his grandmother's tales. "How do you know its a girl?" Pyx asked puzzled but not taking her eyes off of the skyline "Grandmother told me that females are faster than males" he said, picking up a rake as some sort of makeshift weapon "Males are the strong ones, Battle mounts she called them" he reinforced "Females are speed focused, good for...". Pyx broke her gaze on the skyline for just a second, making her brothers gaze instead, Phillian was now the colour of freshly laid snow "Good for what?" She asked anxiously, Pyx was not usually an anxious girl as she often took lead of proceeds on her parents farm, but seeing her usually confident, hardheaded and almost cocksure brother so nervous had broken that front. "Good for blitzing a township" he finished hastily. "Did you notice a rider on her Pyx?" Phillian scrambled, voice full of panic and with fear that danced in his smokey eyes "I...I didn't" she said, the panic was growing in the young girl now. It was hard to make out any features on the great She-Dragon let alone a rider but for Pyx it mattered very little, a rider would mean the possible end for the town and people of Castero, whereas no rider would mean just Pyx and Phillian would meet their ends. Scaleborn's mounts were often driven to fulfilling specific missions where as lone or wild dragons mostly attacked to secure a quick meal, Dragons were exceedingly dangerous creatures and would attack lone travellers or tradesmen indiscriminately. However no Dragon would show cruelty, mercilessly killing people and torching townships without the intervention of a Scaleborn with an axe to grind. The early night air returned once more to the calm it had been earlier in the day, "Did she leave?" Pyx asked, relief had settled slightly within the young girl but she still remained vigilant. Phillian shook his head, unsure "Its almost too quiet" he said, clutching onto his rake for dear life "I think she's sizing us up". This made no sense to Pyx "Sizing us up?" She questioned "We're two ants compared to her, why would she need to size us up?", she moved around to her brothers flank, thinking it would deter the dragon from that angle "Its for the same reason you push food around a plate" Phillian answered in a grumble. The calm was soon cut through once more by the screech of the large winged beast, this time though it was so much more than deafening. The screech of the great beast almost permanently deafened Pyx, she looked to the small collection of grassy knolls a mere 50m from the siblings home as this had been the origin of the roar. It was then Pyx saw her, she was elegantly grandiose, a titan amassed of brilliant amethyst scales that sparkled like seawater in the night. Her eyes were enormous opals, a light pink in colour cut through by an ebony streak of pupil. Instead of horns, like the dragons of her grandmothers stories this Dragons elegant head crest was adorned with what looked like a feathery down. "By the Gods" Phillian exclaimed dropping his weapon, mouth agape "Whatever has brought that girl here cannot be good, this is the first time in 600 years a Dragon has ventured from the keep". Pyx felt whatever words she could have mustered catch in her throat, now she could see her Pyx did not feel scared by the Dragon, intimidated by her size? Yes Scared? No. The young farmhand was merely in awe of the regal majesty of the She-Dragon, before Phillian could speak again the Dragon turned her attention from a herd of grazing sheep to his sister who was still caught by the monstrous visage of the She-Dragon. "She's got you" Phillian croaked "She sees you, sees your bones, your blood. Sees your flesh and your young heart Pyx. She...she sees you.". Pyx caught herself mid gaze, meeting the striking watch of the queenly Dragon. Her eyes now met the watch of the beast, she staggered back losing her footing and tripping over onto the dirt. When the dragon saw this she kicked off the knoll and instantly shot towards the two teens, her wings a mere six feet off of the mud. It was clear to the two frozen teens that this Dragons craft was flight and she was a master of it, the Dragon made almost noise as she flew it was almost as though she was a missile, a rocket propelled by engineering and not a living heart. Her majesty effortlessly shot forward stopping dead mere feet from where her two subjects stood rooted, Pyx felt the hot air from between the Dragons teeth on her face. Her eyes remained fixed on the young girl, not even acknowledging her brothers forced fealty. The Dragon slammed her wing into the ground, knocking Phillian off of his feet. Before Pyx had the chance to react the Dragon shot forward, knocking Pyx onto its back before immediately climbing the skies with no effort. Pyx screamed out in anger, slamming her hands into the great Dragons scales "Let me down!" She cursed "I'm not going to be food for you!". Her draconic captor paid no mind to her wails, flying as straight and as forward as she ever had "Put me down I said, return me to my farm" before she could say another word Pyx was hit with a blinding pain in her head. The only thing she could hear or feel was a feeling that felt like being underwater. "I've been telling you to keep quiet since before I landed, monkey" a female voice chimed, the voice was relatively youthful with a cutting, crunchy exterior and softer tones conservatively scattered throughout. "Is...is that you?, speaking to me?" Pyx asked once again puzzled "Well, what do you think?" the Dragon spoke again "Do you often hold conversations with the breeze?" Pyx indignantly shook her head, "No" she said "But then I rarely hold conversations with Dragons". As they flew the now dead of night air cut at Pyx "What was all that about me eating you?" the Dragon breathed harshly, as if offended "A scrawny thing such as yourself couldn't quell an insects appetite let alone a Dragons", Pyx shook her head "I just thought Dragons ate people" the two came into a clearing in the night sky, Pyx look over the great Dragons wing to see a huge castle like construct, far removed from any city or town. "We do eat people" the Dragon cawed sharply "Just not skinny urchins such as you" Pyx was about to speak when her winged captor chimed up once more "And does the urchin have a name by chance?" Pyx nodded her head as the two descended onto a large plane of grass a little ways off from the castle. "My name is Pyx" she said politely "Pyx Thistlewhit" she dismounted the large beast onto the grassy field "I'm sorry for hitting your scales", the Dragon scoffed curtly "As if those infant hands could harm my armour" a mans laughter caused Pyx to jump slightly in place. Walking across the field was a man wearing all black, he had onyx shoes, onyx trousers a long onyx robe and onyx gloves "My oh my young lady" he said in a old and frail but kindly voice as he examined the Dragon "How long have you had her?". Pyx and the Dragon looked at each other "Not long at all actually" Pyx laughed nervously "It was a surprise", the old man chuckled again "How very rude of me not to introduce myself" he said, holding his hand out for the girl to take "My name is Brennic, Brennic Dandelon" Pyx shook his hand "My names Pyx Thistlewhit" she happily introduced herself. The man smiled "Well Pyx, how long have you known you are a Scaleborn?" he asked, still smiling, Pyx shook her head hurriedly "Oh no, I'm not a Scaleborn" she said nervously "She kind of kidnapped me" she gestured towards her Dragon who chuffed in annoyance. Brennic gave the girl a confused look "I don't mean to undermine you my dear but you are a Scaleborn and to be able to mount a Regenta I would say your as skilled a tamer as Lord Halveus himself." Pyx was in full overload, all this information made her dizzy. She couldn't be a Scaleborn, for one thing she was not born inside the keep. What's more her family where farmers, she was a farmer, her brother also and her deceased parents. "Come" Brennic gestured "It seems we have so much we need to discuss" he took a pause "You and..." the Dragon gave a sort of head shake "What's your name?" Pyx spoke gently "It seems we also need to speak" the Dragon spoke now in almost a chilly tone, as Pyx wondered what was to happen next with the nameless mount and the Onyx Hermit Brennic.