《The Dragon Conquest》


 Jacey

    Jacey stood alone on the platform while the villagers stared at her with anticipation. Her skin prickled as their dagger-piercing eyes inspected her. She shivered despite the heat and folded her arms across her chest.


    The bright sun scorched her tanned skin. The village of Valin was hot during summer.Hottest in summer,Jacey corrected herself. Solaris was an arid country where the sun is nearly visible all day. The people were always greeted with the harsh star.


    Jacey wished for the wind to take her away but there was none. The tall trees, maintained by the vegetation guild, surrounded the village and blocked the wind. She wished she could sneak into the trees as she used to do when she was bored. The gust of air against her skin was always refreshing.


    She wanted more of it, she wanted to escape the village, to see beyond the trees, and to experience the world outside. But she couldn''t. It was too dangerous. The war was still going on.


    The war, Jacey quivered at the thought of it. Two alliances fighting against one another for their own purposes. She could never figure out what these purposes were, and which one of it was right. She only knew it was going for thousands of years. The world had suffered, and everyone was affected. Millions had died, yet there was no sign of stopping, and Jacey felt it was just the beginning as if something big was going to happen.Somethingthat could change the world. She hoped it was a change for good, a new world with peace and serenity.


    Jacey faced the quiet crowd and wanted them to speak. She dug her nails into her skin at the discomforting silence, it made the wooden houses seemed ominous. The bright, blue sky felt like the peace before the chaos, and the shadow of the trees that surrounded them felt distant and eerie.


    The audience''s eyes were wide and their ears pointed. They were all excited. Jacey couldn''t blame them since the Summoning was an exciting event. She used to stand in front of the crowd, clapping and cheering, but as she grew older her enthusiasm was replaced by anxiety. She no longer stood in the front, and instead watched from the distance while her stomach lurched at every summon. She sometimes missed her childhood eagerness when she became scared.


    The Initiator was still talking to the person that summoned before her. Liran, she remembered his name, greeted all of the village officials with a smile. The officials stood in front of the crowd and celebrated Liran''s Summoning with his parents. The parents of the summoner grinned with every praise the officials gave. Jacey couldn''t take it anymore and looked at the houses instead.


    The houses were scattered behind the mass of people. The houses came in varieties, some were larger and more extravagant than others. Some houses challenged the trees height and others that are more colorful than the rainbows she had seen. The ground beneath them was dry, even though it had rained yesterday. Many people came to see the Summoning, but few could not because of their jobs. The farmers'' guild, for instance, planted during the Summoning and harvested their crops in fall.


    The people cheered as Liran demonstrated his powers. He reached out his hands to the trees and concentrated. The power of summoning requires willpower or it will fail, resulting in injury or death. The village lowered their voices as Liran grunted. The trees swooshed and leaves flew through the air. Jacey was amazed and clapped along with everyone. A tinkling sound traveled through the village and everyone silenced themselves.


    The villagers inclined their head as the head officials prayed. "We gave thanks to the Gods of the Stars for the gift they brought to Liran. Amraph, we thank you for the good spring we had. All of the crops we planted last fall were accounted. Parys, we are grateful to you for protecting us from the war..."


    Jacey raised her head she when she heard the chirps of birds. It was quiet but sounded so sweet. She spun around and searched for the sound. Jacey heard it to her left, then right, then left and so forth.Where did the sound come from, she asked herself. She strained her ears as she looked for the birds then she heard a cough. Her cheeks reddened and she bent down her head.


    "Adamerta, we thank you for the light you brought to this world..." the prayers went on.


    Jacey clasped her hands together and brought it to her lips. She ignored the prayers and recited her own.


    The Sirens, the rulers of the world and beyond. The one that formed the oceans and seas, and the one that cared deeply for us all. They don''t see you right now, but I do. I believe, and I hope you forgive me for hearing these false prayers. One day they will see the truth in you. They won''t call us devil worshippers, child rapers, and murderers. They won''t call this Saranism but instead, acknowledge it as truth.


    Jacey kissed her hands and rested them on her thighs. The prayers went on, and the sweet and quiet sounds of the birds left the village. She sighed and her mind wandered to her parents, her friends and stopped at the thought of the Summoning.


    "The Summoning," Jacey whispered to herself, but she bet the crowd heard.


    The Summoning was when you acquire the ability to summon. It was held during the first day of summer, and everyone that passed 16 after the previous Summoning would participate. She wanted to go back to the days where she wanted to summon, back when she didn''t realize the burden of it.


    Everyone had said that days before the Summoning the 16-year-olds would always be worried. Jacey experienced it since the last few weeks she didn''t talk to her friends as much. She spent time preparing dinner and talking to them more. Even her friends are doing it. One of her friends, Pearl, spent all her time in her bedroom. Never going outside and not eating. She was worried about her and was glad when she saw her along the way to the Summoning.


    Bells disrupted the silence, and the prayers concluded. Jacey lifted her head, and the village started talking. The people muttered at first, but it broke into loudness and cheering. One of the officials reached out his hands and cleaned a stick using water while another held it. An official older than the others grabbed the stick and wiped it with a cloth emblazoned with suns.


    Jacey scanned the throng for her parents. She walked around the platform and peered for them. It was hard to find someone among the white clothed crowd but not for her. Her mother''s blond hair, which she inherited, was distinguishable among the audience. Jacey''s parents did not wear their usual red uniform but instead wore a white smock and brown trousers.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    Her mother looked at her and gave Jacey a sincere smile. She didn''t return the smile, her heart was beating in speed she never thought possible. She glanced at her father, whose posture was stern but his smile full and bright. He stood a little taller than her mother''s, and his messy brown hair gave Jacey familiarity. It was a quick escape from her nervous feeling, but it was fast, and she started to tremble.


    Sweat formed around Jacey''s forehead. Her blond hair was tightly braided by the tailors, but few strands escaped. She patted it down as it blocked her vision and bit her lips. It was a bad habit of hers, one she wanted to go but could never get rid of. She wanted the Summoning to commence, but the Initiator was too busy congratulating the previous summoner.


    What if I summoned something humiliating, Jacey thought. She felt she needed to be punished but regretted thinking about it as soon as it came.


    The conversation with her parents came back to her. They were inside their house, it was bigger than most houses in the village since it was given to them.


    Jacey''s parents were highly respected since they were healers. Their job was to summon blood to people who need it. They could save lives in a minute, and she wanted to be like them. Since Valin was the closest village to the coast, Solaris soldiers would come to the village. The soldiers, when saved from facing death, would thank her parents and Jacey. She would always smile when someone praised her even though she didn''t do anything.


    Jacey wanted to help end the war.But what if I failed them? What if I shamed them because I tried to be them? Scenarios played in her head but she knew that they would not be angry, but instead be disappointed. She would rather see her parents yelling and screaming at her than being embarrassed when someone asked about their daughter.


    "What If I get something disappointing?" Jacey blurted days before the summoning.


    Jacey stood in the doorway. Her mother sat on a wooden chair behind the wooden table. Solaris have an abundance of wood since the vegetation guild numbers had been growing the last few years.


    "What do you mean disappointing?" Her mother replied, her right arm extended in the air.


    Jacey watched intently. Blood appeared at her mother''s fingertips and floated in the air. Lines of blood flew in the direction of the blood bags on the table and filled the dozen bags quickly. Jacey stretched her fingers, pretending that blood appeared from it. She scratched her arms and moved towards her mother. She could hear his father teaching in the living room.


    "Well..." Jacey bit her lips. "What If you don''t like it?"


    Jacey''s mother hesitated and stood up. She placed her hands on Jacey''s shoulders. Her mother was wearing red clothing that matched her naturally pink lips.She''s beautiful,Jacey thought as she looked at her mother''s mesmerizing blue eyes and defined face.


    "Me and your father love you, Jacey. We want the best of you. If you like it we-"


    Jacey jolted as she felt a sudden coldness in her hand, a dread came to her from the contact. She heard the crowd chuckle and looked behind her. It was Reras, the Initiator. The one that would allow her to summon.


    Like all of the officials, he was wearing an intricately designed robe embroidered in silver. The silvers glimmered in the sunlight as Reras walked along the stage. The design depicted a goddess slaying the Sirens with her unbreakable sword. Reras'' gray hair was trimmed short, and his face heavy in cosmetics to hide the wrinkles. His face was paler than his skin tone, and it surprised her that he has no facial hair.


    Jacey shrunk in shame as Reras stopped in front of her. He was an influential person and could punish her for touching him. She averted her eyes from him and the crowd. She looked down at the black stage with her red cheeks.


    "There''s no need to be nervous," Reras said with his hoarse voice.


    He looked back and smiled at her, half of his teeth were missing. Reras turned back to the crowd before she could smile back and started the Summoning. It was a lengthy speech, one he would do for every participant. Jacey eyes wandered to her left where the other participants stood.


    They were all wearing the Summoning uniform. Black tunic, white pants, and red shoes. It supposed to symbolize the world, but Jacey felt it was a waste. Black for the evil, white for the good, and red in between was what the village officials told them. She didn''t understand it but didn''t question it. Her questioning would be perceived as doubt to the officials, and she could be punished.


    Jacey turned her gaze to Reras when she heard him coughed. Reras smiled at her and was holding a cane, but it wasn''t an ordinary stick. It was a cane that granted power. She used to laugh when she saw the stick.How could a stick grant powers?But every time she was amazed at the outcome. Now she realized how much it affected.


    Jacey walked towards Reras and looked at the cane, it was barely shorter than her arms. Her mind wandered over the possibilities of what she could summon, a part of her hoped she would summon blood. She saw her mother do it many times, and she felt she could easily do it.


    Three people already summoned and Jacey envied their amazing abilities.


    Rain, the first one, summoned a bird. Her heart exploded in happiness when a bird emerged from the stick and flew away. Its wings flapped in the sky and joined a flock that passed the village.A bird, Jacey thought,how amazing is that. Rain would travel the world with his birds and live freely.


    The second summoned an apple. A single red apple, but the crowd applauded when they saw it. The village expanded in the last few years and incredibly needed food. If she can''t summon blood, Jacey wished she would get something that could help the community.


    Liran summoned the wind, just a small gust of wind but with practice, he could make a storm. Liran would be living in a battlefield, wind summoners are valuable during the war. The wind can change the outcome of the battle. He would live in luxury if he survived the war, but Jacey doubted it. Wind summoners are heavily targeted, and most of them died at the start of a battle.


    Jacey grasped the cane with her two hands. When she touched it, her senses vanished. It felt like time stopped. She couldn''t see anything or felt anything, everything was non-existent. The darkness had consumed her. Then she heard a low grumble. Then the beating of hearts, and the taste of stale bread. She felt incredible, like a bird flying in the wind with its flock. Everything was crystallized, she could see animals miles away, hear the winds across the sea. She involuntarily raised her arms and gasped.


    She couldn''t think properly, her head felt like it was exploding. Moments ago she felt like a crystal -- clear and amazing -- now she felt like a rock. Like a rock thrown across walls, she was going to break. And she did.


    Pain surged through her body, starting from her feet to her head. It was electrifying. She fell and dropped the cane. The impact of the ground made her gasp for breath, the pain so great she could taste death. It was black, but she could see the surrounding chaos. It was inaudible as her ears rung. She felt empty as if her soul was taken and given to someone.


    Jacey breathed heavily as her head throbbed. She tasted blood in her mouth, the flavor of iron touched by water came through her. Jacey spat it out and slightly opened her eyes. She raised her head, pain throbbing in her neck, but she fought it. Her vision was blurred, but she could identify bodies and trees.


    Everyone was running, people with steel swords swung at the air. Why are they swinging at the air, Jacey thought as her senses started to come back. The buzzing of her ears subsided enough that she could hear voices. Blood run across her face, and her vision turned red.


    The sound was worse than the ringing. Everyone was screaming, their voices so loud and terrifying. Few with agony, some with fear, and others with confusion. It was a horrible symphony.


    What happened, Jacey thought. Then she heard it, a word that somehow answered her question. A word that sent chills through her.


    "Dragon!"

 Mera

    Mera could not believe it.


    All of the treasures she saw, the jewelry she wore, and the food she tasted could never match this. Nothing can challenge the sight she was looking at, not even the scenery of the Solaris castles, or the blue rippling seas that surrounded the kingdom. Her heart was chaotic in the stillness of the crowd but this time it wasn''t lust. It wasn''t the incestuous affair she had with her brother, her sister''s husband, Kane Inari, or simply the king.


    This time it was motherly love.


    Mera gasped when he saw him. She had always hoped he lived, always believing that somehow Philip had saved him. Even after seeing the High Star, Kinarn Sun repeatedly stabbed the newborn, she had always hoped. She wished, dreamed, and wanted a miracle to happen, and it all came true.


    He stood on the stage and faced the audience, his sweat visible in the bright, hot sun. Mera shuddered at the familiarity of his face. He looked like her when she was once a child, the black messy hair, small full lips and the brown speckles against his pale skin. But he also shared the features of the king.


    Anyone that saw the king many times can easily point out the similarities. The long straight nose, round rosy cheeks, and green eyes that twinkled in the sunlight.


    Mera trembled at the thought of the king, all of her happiness gone in an instant. The king was a vicious, evil, and sadistic man. He would execute children, behead their parents, and burn anyone related to them in one flick of a hand. She shuddered at the terrible stories, how the king raped his youngest daughter, how he went into brothels for his pleasures even though he has a queen. The queen that was her sister and the sister that she had betrayed.


    "As the Initiator of the 60th Summoning of Valin in T.A. 10871," the old man beside the boy said, "I, Reras Hekrys, would allow Liran Cers of Valin to summon what the Gods of the Sun gave him."


    That must be his name, Mera thought. She did not follow Solarity, the kingdom''s official religion, but she read enough that the name Liran was written to be a child of the Sun. Either way, Liran was a beautiful name.


    Liran accepted the stick that the Initiator gave him, his face broke into a wide smile and Mera''s happiness came back to her. He was a beautiful boy and Mera wanted to be there for him. She clutched her chest as she knew that the king already found out her escape from Mahasira.


    The crowd murmured as Liran raised the stick. Mera was apprehensive, she didn''t want Liran to inherit her power to summon acid. The acid had burned her when she first summoned it. She remembered the lethal substance showering her during her personal Summoning. It scalded her skin and formed scars across her face. She was grateful that it didn''t touch her eyes but sorrowful that she would be forever disfigured.


    Silence spread through the crowd as Liran started shaking. His hands clasped the stick and he muttered something Mera couldn''t hear. After a few seconds, Liran let out a loud gasp and the trees swooshed.


    "Wind Summoner!" Reras shouted.


    The crowd applauded but Mera did not. She froze on her spot as the people around her moved. She covered her mouth to halt the scream that came to her. War, Mera grasped for the word but it slipped away. Liran would be shipped to one of Solaris military bases to be trained for battle. She didn''t want Liran to fight, after 16 years of uncertainty and searching for him, only to find out that he was gonna die. That he was gonna leave her.


    Mera''s breathing came loudly, she turned when someone tapped her on the back only to be greeted with a recoil. The crowd applause dispersed and Mera slipped away from the horde. Tears gathered in her eyes and her heart was broken once again. It felt so cruel, her heart was shortly glued back together only for a hammer to smashed it into pieces.


    Mera ran through the small alleys and hid in an alley behind a house. She gripped on her trousers and tears fell on her face which quickly evaporated on the sun. Mera leaned against the house and slid down. She shivered as she sat on the cold ground, and a hole in her heart opened for Liran.


    "Mera!"


    Mera stood up and saw a familiar person in one of the alleys. His body was a silhouette but his face was distinctive. When he emerged from the shadows, she quickly recognized him.


    "Alric?" Mera''s voice was hoarse and rough.


    The man ran up to Mera and embraced her. She could smell oil and grime on his skin. It must be Alric, Mera thought after their long hug. He wore brown trousers and white smock. His beard and graying brown hair neatly trimmed, and his face was older than last time, wrinkles that must have formed after his wife''s death.


    "I thought you were dead," Alric said as Mera wiped her tears. "Philip and I are searching for you. We bought dozens of ships to Mahasira, it cost us thousands of Sun coins."


    Mera missed Alric but when she heard Philip''s name she cried again. She had known Philip all her life, he was a cartographer like all of the Dragontail males. Philip visited the Siron castle often, he would give Mera''s father maps and told her the discoveries he made. He consoled her after the Summoning and was the one that convinced the king to exile her instead of killing her.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    "Is it really you Alric?" Mera touched Alric''s face.


    Mera was confused why Alric was in Valin. She remembered he had lived in Kaser, a machine guild town near the capital, Solar. He was a water summoner but his knowledge in machines made him an engineer.


    "My son''s alive, Alric." Mera sobbed through her words. "He''s beautiful and handsome and smart, I just know it. But he''s a wind summoner, Alric! His fate is death and I would be alone again."


    Mera heard the distant crowd applauded, and Alric put his hands on her shoulders.


    "Mera," Alric had a sincere but sad look on his face. "I know he''s alive. Liran is beautiful, handsome, and smart but he''s also brave and strong. If he goes to war he would survive. I know and believe it, and you should too Mera."


    Mera freed herself from Alric''s hand, wiped her tears and stood straight and tall. She must believe that Liran would survive, and Mera doesn''t like the pitiful look on Alric''s face.


    "You''re right Alric, once again. But it''s so hard," Mera was on the verge of breaking again. "This is the first time I saw him after 16 years. I want to meet him and I want him to know me, her real mother. The one that loved him and gave birth to him."


    Mera was grasping Alric''s shoulders, her face closed to him. She hoped that he would understand but Mera knew it was a bad idea. Liran could never know about her, the king would interrogate him and possibly kill him.


    "I understand your pain, Mera. After Althea, I was heartbroken. I felt like there are no reasons to live. I abandoned my children, you know sweet Kleria and smart Malseo?" Mera nodded. The last time she saw them was the day before her exile. Kleria was only 6 while Malseo was 13. "I became drunk and wasted all my coins gambling. You were gone and Philip was planning to go to Mahasira. I couldn''t pay my taxes and the officials were planning to take Kleria and Malseo away. And I let them."


    Alric stopped, his eyes became watery and Mera squeezed his shoulders. The crowd once again applauded. She didn''t know anything about the officials taking Kleria and Malseo away. Mera only knew that Althea died from a fire by the letters she received from her treacherous brother.


    "I was truly alone and I realized that I must protect them. They need me and I need them. But for you Mera," Alric cleared his throat. "Liran doesn''t need you. It will only put him in danger, and if it''s a choice between the war and the king. The war is much kinder."


    "I realize that now Alric," Mera said.


    She folded her arms and walked back the Summoning. Alric followed her and they stood far away from the crowd. A girl was standing on the stage now while Reras gave his lengthy speech. The three that already summoned stood on the stage left while the ones that didn''t on the right. Mera saw Liran whispering to a girl beside him.


    "How did you get away?" Alric whispered to her.


    Mera sniffed her nose and looked upon the ground. "My brother sent me a guard. At first, I thought it was an assassin meant to kill but he only gave me a letter. The letter was from Henar saying that the guard would escort me to a village that would help me escape to Solaris. I followed and-"


    A loud bang interrupted her whispers. Mera looked in the direction of the stage. The crowd was in chaos, people running around and screaming. The trees violently surged as the wind whirled around the village. The day became darker and guards with steel swords appeared from alleys. Mera didn''t know what happened at first but then she saw it.


    A dragon as large as the size of the village hovered above them. The scales black and glittered. The dragon opened its mouth and showed its sharp and threatening fangs. Its wings flapped upon them. The red demonic eyes seemed like it was made of fire. It roared and circled the crowd. Mera was petrified, she shivered and was still. The scene reminded her of the books she once read as a child.


    The dragon plunged toward the crowd. It opened its mouth and fire came out of it. It burned the people around it, their bodies disintegrated to ashes in few seconds. The guards swung their swords at the dragon as it soared up. Her body started shaking and Alric face came upon her.


    "Mera!" Alric shouted at her.


    Mera broke from the catatonic trance the beast place upon her and gasped. She stumbled in her step and extended her arms for something to hold onto. Alric offered his hands and held her. His mouth moved but she could not decipher it. Alric withdrew his arms and turned her around. Mera grasped for him again as he pointed somewhere. She followed the path of his hand but the screams jumbled her thoughts and she turned around.


    She saw Alric running toward the crowd and pointing his arms at the dragon. Water appeared from his hands and advanced toward the creature. The dragon screeched as water made contact with its skin, the scales hissed as it gave off smoke. The guards followed Alric, dropped their weapons, and used their own powers to attack the dragon. Fire, water, and rocks came to the direction of the beast. The dragon cried and contracted as people ran toward the forest. But it was no use. A fire started in the forest and burned everyone near it.


    Mera stood there hazily, Alric''s words disappearing from her mind. She released her breath as she saw Liran. He laid against the ground and Mera walked toward him. She kneeled down as her body ached and turned Liran over. Mera wheezed at the blood that poured across his cheeks. She hovered her hand around the huge gash that was on his forehead.


    Mera stood up and realized that the screams were replaced with weeping and crying. The fire was hot against her skin and the dragon was nowhere to be seen. The rest of the guards tried to smother the fire with water. Smoke darken the sky and she covered her mouth using her smock. She grasped Liran leg and dragged him as she looked for Alric.


    Many people were laid back on the ground. Most of their skin was burnt and crisp but there were a few that moaned for help. Mera felt tears rolled in her face and trembled as she walked toward a path where the fire was already smothered.


    "Help," someone whispered.


    Mera looked down at her path and met a girl with burnt skin black as night. The girl was young, far away from her Summoning but old enough to go to school. The girl did not flinch at the sight of her and she walked and kneeled next to her.


    "Water..," the burnt girl begged in a tired tone.


    Mera searched for a flagon, her hands scattered across the ground until she noticed the container on Liran''s belt. She grabbed it and help the girl drink.


    "Can you walk?" Mera asked.


    The girl inclined her head.


    "What''s your name?" Mera asked as she waved for someone to help.


    The girl opened her mouth but came nothing.


    "Do you need help?" a man shouted at them.


    Mera nodded and pointed to the girl. The man wore the usual village outfit with a star pin on his left breast. She crawled back to Liran and smiled to her self as she finally found the person she had always wanted to be with.