Verse of Estoria Ballad of The Heavens

The Aftermath pt 1

         “WYVERN ATTACK, WYVERN ATTACK,”

         A frantic man runs through rows of tents ceaselessly shouting the same words. Scattered across the flat plains of greenpeace, the featherless harpies and tengus all exit their tents and look to the skies for confirmation. It wasn’t long until screeches rip across the skies warning the people of the impending menace.

         “Heavens help us! Another wyvern attack?”

         “Look, a woman points towards a flock of wyverns jetting towards the island.”

         “Run, we gotta, run.”

         Panic ensues as people flee and cry as the wyverns unleash a barrage of red bolts wreaking havoc on the tent city. People scatter across the fields as red bolts slam into the grass, flinging dirt and grass in all directions. As the barrage continues colums of dirt leap into the air by the dozens as screaming citizens are flung across the plains. A fleeing little girl falls on her face as explosive chaos echo around her. Frozen in fear, she sobs uncontrollably, calling out for her mom and dad. A wyvern spots her an jets towards her as the two dorsal claws on its wings glow red. Staring at certain death the little girls body quaked as the wyvern zeros in. However a pair of yellow talons swops from the side and clamps onto the flying reptile and carries it away as Maria lands directly in front of the little girl. With her long brown dress flapping in the chaotic winds, Maria stands glaring at the wyverns as she runs her hand through the sides of her curly hair.

         Not wasting any time, Maria breaks into a sprint towards the wyverns as they terrorized fleeing residents. Opening her legs wider, her pace quickens and breath shallows, but her stern rage-filled eyes remain fixed on her targets. As a wyvern swoops nearby, to attack a group of fleeing residents, Maria leaps high into the air, cocks her arm back and punches the creature on the top of its head. The wyvern whelps as its beak snaps, crashing into the ground and tumbles across the plains until it halts motionless. Maria lands on her feet and pats her arms of the dust. However two red lasers his past her head slams into the ground, erupting into columns of dirt that rains on Maria’s shoulders. Maria turns and stares at a diving wyvern charging directly towards her. Opening its elongated mouth, the wyvern screeches as its purplish tongue flapped wildly in its mouth. Unfazed by its grimacing roar, Maria spreads her feet apart and waits as the creature aims its beak at her chest. The wyvern hones in for the kill, but Maria raises her arms and hands in front of her and in a blink of an eye, catches the creature beneath her arm. Maria instantly slides back as the wyvern continues flapping its wings. Her sandals scrape the grass as every muscle in the giantess’s body burns. She squats and digs her feet further into the ground, leaving a dug trail as the wyvern continues its restless flight. Maria squeezes the wyvern’s neck underneath her arm and she slows to a halt. Releasing a semi-exhausted breath, Maria squeezes its neck tighter as the bones inside crack. With its long, thin tail smacking the ground, the wyvern’s claws grip the earth as it struggles to escape Maria’s powerful grasp.

         “My, my, you shouldn’t struggle so much,” She giggles before her face twits into an angry grimace. “It makes it all the more painful.” And with a swift jerk, she snaps the creature’s neck.

         Its wings flop lazily onto the ground and its twitching tail slams down as the wyvern’s life force vanishes. Maria tosses its limp torso onto the ground and sighs, patting her arms and shoulders.

         By now, the attack ceases and Ura drove away the rest of the attacking wyverns leaving the campsites in ruins. Smoke rises from flattened tents as pots, clothing and bodies littered across the plains. A cool breeze rushes through the ruined tent village and picks up light clothing and torn tent fabric or anything that reminded the people of what they once had into the air and spreads it across the plains passing men, women and children walking in a daze. Sobbing soon fills the somber area as the refugees begin mourning for their lost love ones killed in the recent raids.

         Watching this quietly, Maria’s heart fills with silent rage, remembering how she lost her husband and son to the dragons. Watching parents mourn for their children, children mourn for their parents and being left behind with no one to help…she shared their pain.

         “They always attack without warning,” Ura says walking beside Maria. Tears fills her eyes as she gazes over the flattened plains seeing a crying man carry a woman in his arms. “Even when we’re no threat to them, they still attack.”

         “I know,” Maria says staring sorrowfully at the mayhem.

         After a few more moments of silence, Maria looks down at the dead wyvern, reaches down, grabs one of its leathery wings and stomps on its neck. With her feet pushing firmly on the corpses neck, Maria twists her torso pulling hard on the wyvern’s wing. Straining every muscle in her body she continues to pull until the base of the wing tears and completely ripped off. Tossing the limb aside, she does the same to the other wing until there's a wingless corpses with its purplish tongue hanging from its elongated snout. Maria looks directly at ura with gleeful smile on her face.

         “Can you fetch me some knives, dear?” The people are going to need all the meat they can eat.

         “Okay sure,” Ura says scratching her head. “But, why?”

         “I’m going to teach them how to hunt wyverns”

###

         Donavan stop, a voice echoes in Drake’s unconscious mind. You can’t stop what’s happening. It’s already too late.

         It has to be stopped. It’s already taken half of the continents and it’s poised to take Armalon. Are we going to just stand here and watch as that thing destroys everyone on the planet?

         But we don’t know who released it. And there are billions of people out there. You’d be trying to find a needle in a haystack. Let’s wait till father arrives.

         There’s no time left.

         Drake gasps awake, huffing and heaving in sweat. His heart pounding inside of his chest, he stares up at the ceiling until his blurry eyes clear to see a large chandelier high inside the chamber. He blinks several times wondering where he was until he felt the softness of the bed beneath him.

         “I must be back at the palace,” Drake thinks.

         He relaxes and for a while, grows comfortable resting on the bed until he scans the room. The chandelier was unusually high. Even for Avians who could fly, they preferred small and cozy living spaces…preferably in the tress…without a concrete ceiling.

         Panicked, Drake springs up but is suddenly snagged by chains binding his wrists to a bed large enough for a dragon. Looking down, he could see chains on his ankles and he grabs them and yanks on it several times, but to no avail. He shifts to his knees, grabs one chain clamped on his wrists and pulls with everything he has. However, a sudden pain shoots through his torso and wraps his arm around his rib. The pain persists as he collapses on his hand while gripping his ribs with his hands.
“You took a heavy fall when you fell off the eagle,” a female voice calls out from behind.
Drake turns around to see Debra sitting at her chair, wearing her battle armor casually patting her face with make-up in front of a vanity.

         “I’m sure you’ve broken a rib or two.”

         “Yeah…” Drake says clenching his teeth in pain. “I can feel it.”

         “And don’t bother about breaking out like you did last time. Mahogony wrote a silence verse on you so you won’t be able to write or speak them.” she continues applying her makeup in the mirror.
Drake couldn’t respond, but he was still shocked that she was able to seal his power. He carefully lay on his back and waits for the pain to subside.

         “How did you find me?” Drake asks.

         “As I said before, you fell onto our lands after the Dragon attack. I picked you up after the wyverns saw you lying on the ground.” She closes her lipstick, places it on her vanity desk. “Count yourself lucky Mahogany wanted you hanging upside down from the cliff wrapped in those very chains.”

         “And let me guess…you asked Daddy to put me here.” Drake teases.

         “Of course. My father is the King so, I requested for you to be my prisoner. Shocked that he agreed to it though,” she says in a softer tone.

         “So what’s in store for me?” Drake asks rising to his knees as the pain subsides. “Are you going torture me?”

         “I could do that.” She says as she pulls a string from her braided hair and allows the auburn strands flow down her back.

         “You’re gonna get me back for everything I did to you, huh?”

         “That’s a good idea as well-humiliate you the same way you humiliated me and my father.” she continues walking behind a dressing screen decorated with serpentine dragons. Unfastening her armor, she removes her gauntlets and tosses them on the tops of the screen as well as her chest plate, grieves and shoulder pads. While she dresses behind the screen, Drake looks up and around at the chamber trying to think of various ways of escape. He notices a window along the curve of the stone wall, but it was too high up to see anything. The wooden door seems like a no go as he notices two shadows at the bottom off the door…probably guards.

         “There’s got to be a way out of here.” He says raising his wrists to gaze at the iron bracelets clamped thereon.

         “Still trying to get away?” Debra says walking from behind the screen wearing a silky white spaghetti strapped nightgown. She stands with her arms crossed tapping her finger on her elbow.

         “Well excuse me for not wanting to be locked up here.” Drake says plopping down cross-legged. “Your…dad was very hospitable the last time I was here.”

         “You won’t have to worry as long as you don’t try to escape.”

         “You don’t seem to understand what I’m trying to say. I can’t be chained here.”

         “Oh,” Debra says raising an eyebrow. “You’re worried about your Avian friends.”

         “Yeah, Unlike you they’re more hospitable and less hostile.”

         “They’re not what you think they are.” Debra says walking back to her vanity and picks up a tray of food and walks towards the bed and places at its edge. Picking up a faint smell of honey and smoked hog, Drake glances at the trey and sees the edible meal. Hunger suddenly rouses Drake’s stomach and his mouth waters staring at the charred hog.

         As hungry as he was, Drake remains still, with his eyes shifting from it to Debra.

         “Hog, I distinctively remember you trying to make us your slaves using this.”

         “You’re hungry, aren’t you?” she asks ignoring him. “The last battle seemed pretty intense.”

         “I’m not eating this until I know that you’re not trying to enslave me.”

         “Oh, c’mon don’t be silly.” Debra rolls her eyes. “You’re already are my prisoner. There’s no need for me to bribe you.”

         “Right,” Drake says before snatching the food. He peels a strip of well-cooked meat from the hog and shoves it into his mouth while picking up honey bread and bit a chunk off. His body invigorates as if he hadn’t eaten in days.

         “How long was I asleep?” Drake asks chomping on his meal.

         “Four days.”

         Drake’s eyes widen in shock as he continues to eat.

         “Four days? I’ve been sleep for that long?”

         “Your body was broken when I found you, but it seems you heal faster than ordinary humans. I can understand why Father has interests concerning your true nature.”

         Drake continues eating not wanting to discuss his origins. He really wanted to know what he was, but discussing it with people who may want to use him for their own ends, didn’t appeal to him. He continues into his meal tearing at the meat and bread.

         “How’s it like?” Debra asks as raising a leg to climb onto the large bed. She sits next to Drake wrapping her arms around her knees rocking back and forward.

         “What?” Drake asks confusingly staring at Debra.

         “Out there, traveling places with nothing holding you back. Fighting in battles and meeting new people.”

         “Wait a minute aren’t you the princess? I thought you go where ever you wanted.”

         “Ugh!” She rolls her eyes “All they do here is just…prep me up to marry the next available male without considering how I feel. I’m not against it. Its just…we’ve been bound to seclusion because of who we are. Every time we go somewhere, they immediately suspect that were hell bent on destruction and they try to kill us. So anywhere we go, it has to be in a secluded wasteland where no one would dare to visit for us to stay safe.

         “What makes you say that?” Drake wipes grease from his mouth. “You were at war against the Dalmecians and against the Avians. You tried to cut off the wind currents putting everyone on the islands at risk of dying while loosing their homes. That looks like destruction to me.” Drake says.

         “As I told you before we never strike first.” Debra says casting an accusatory glance at Drake. “Nor are we going to idly sit by and allow people to destroy us because of some ill-born fear. If we draw any blood, its because they drew it first.”

         “You literally blew fire at me when I told you that we weren’t going to be your slaves.” Drake says staring at Debra in disbelief.

         “That’s because you’ve insulted me after offering you a gracious escape from the Dalmecians,”

         “So insults is considered drawing blood.” Drake’s eyes narrow.

         “W…well that was different.” Debra says uncomfortably scratching the back of her hair. “Look don’t make this about me. What I’m saying is that because of us just being dragons’ people automatically assume that were out to destroy everyone and it makes them mistrust us. And we suffer for it. The avian unleashed a disease that killed nearly all our males and made the survivors sterile. Our people are on the brink of extinction why can’t you understand that?”

         “But why unleash a disease that causes the Avians to lose their feathers?” Drake asks.

         “What are you talking about?”

         “What am I talking about? The disease. The Avians are suffering from a disease, you release to them.”

         “No,” She spats shaking her head. “We didn’t do anything like that. We don’t know anything about diseases. If we knew how to make them, then we wouldn’t have built the wall.”

         Jasmine told me that the Dragons sent the disease to them. What’s going on here?

         “How did you know the Avians were the ones that send the disease?” he asks.

         “Because we caught one trying to pour poison into our food reservoirs. After we executed him, all of the men started getting sick.”

         Then she stops rocking and stares off into the distance. Her eyes water in teary eyed fear as she recalls the plague ravaging her people.

         “It was horrifying.” She says. “Dragons, who were considered invincible, reduced to mere scale and bones while they vomit what little life they have onto their beds. Young boys dying in the arms of their mothers and all they could do is watch in heartbroken tears. Some of the women killed themselves after losing almost their entire family while the rest of us struggle to maintain what’s left of our kingdom.”

         “Did you lose anyone to the plague?” Drake asks in a somber tone.

         “My two older brothers” Debra says leaning back while staring at the ceiling. “It was their deaths is when Queen Reina decided to leave the land to raise her young."

         Then Drake frowns recalling what he heard from Ryzor.

After Radius left her for dead, they threw her husband and children in with her. Imagine how that feels, watching your dead loved ones tossed inside your grave, one by one. I’m sure it was traumatic for her, especially for the one chosen to be the queen of the dragons.

         Then Drake stares at Debra from the corner of his eye.

She probably doesn’t know about what her father had done or is planning. But…the queens’ still alive. Why hadn’t she shown herself yet?

         “Are you listening?” Debra asks in an offended tone.

         “Sorry,” Drake shakes his head, not wanting to give away his thoughts. “Still feeling a little tired.”

         “Since you’re here, I want to ask for your help.” Debra says looking at Drake.

         “My father says that you possess some sort of…power an ancient power.”

         “I don’t know how to use it.” Drake laughs, “I don’t even know what it really is.”

         “But all that matters is that you have it.” Debra says abruptly moving her face close to his. Drake pulls back staring at her determined eyes.

         “What are you asking me to do?”

         Debra shifts on all fours and crawl while keeping her face close to his. Drake continues to pull away as he shifts on his butt and crawls backward as she crawls forward until the chains snags him still. Still moving closer, Debra forces Drake on his back as she opens her legs and mounts on top of him with her hands firmly placed near his head. Her lush, auburn hair slips from her shoulders and flows onto Drake’s face. The apple scented strands tickles his face as he apprehensively gazes into her eyes. Leaning close she whispers into his ear and his eyes widen in shock. She pulls away and removes herself from him as he stares at the ceiling in bewilderment. Her words burrow into his mind and he sighs thinking about what she says.

         “Please save my father,”

         He sits up in his bed and stares at her in disbelief as she walks back to her vanity, sits and stares at her reflection in the mirror.

         “Why do you think that I can save him?” Drake asks

         “You don’t have to read into it all that much.” She sighs “My father already respects you as a warrior. You fought and nearly defeated him after all and you single-handedly destroyed his wall. He’ll be more receptive of you than me or my mom. He’s been…cryptic as of late.”

         “Debra, why doesn’t he end all of this and work with the avians to come up with a cure?” Drake asks. “This war…isn’t really accomplishing much only that its adding more corpses.”

         “I just told you the Avians were the ones who struck first. Why should we entertain the idea of us working together?”

         “Are you sure it was them?” I spent some time with them and they…don’t seem like a people would resort to such means.”

         “Well you haven’t spent enough time.” She sharply replies. “Fear can make anyone do anything they wouldn’t do.”

         “Your father built an entire wall to kill an entire race of people…who’s really scared of who?”
Debra sighs and slams her comb onto the dresser.

         “I thought you’d understand us as powerful as you are.”

         “I get what you’re saying, but both of you are saying the same thing. You are afraid of them just as they are afraid of you. Have you been at whistle top forest when wyverns are attacking? Its frightening and it just reinforces their fears against you.”

         “Well, when they attacked us with the blight, just reinforced our fears of them.”

         Then there’s a loud bang on the door. Debra quickly rises from her chair, rushes across the black carpeted room and pulls open the door. There Drake notices Mahogany in her white scaled form with her head slightly bowed with two armored lizardmen standing beside her.

         “My apologies for interrupting your conversation your highness, but Lord Radius demands the prisoner be brought to him immediately.”

         “I’ll be on my way.” Debra says before rushing back towards the dressing screen for her armor. Drake watches as she hastily removes pieces of her armor off the screen, but turns to look at Mahogany.

         There, a cold chill runs down his back as he sees her giving him an devilish, gleeful smile before turning and walking away with her heels clapping the cobblestone floors.

         Something seems…off with her. Drake thinks.

         However, before he could ponder, Debra unlatches his chains from the bed post wrap them around her shoulder and stands near the door.

         “I’m bringing you to my father.” She says looking over her red and black armored shoulder.
Drake didn’t protest. With the pain in his ribs receding, he gets out of the bed, steps behind Debra and holds out his arms for her to chain them.

         Afterwards, they proceeded onward.

         A green dragon casually soars over, Drake and Debra as they walk down the enormous halls. Tilting his head back, he gawks at the enormity of the hall with its arching roofs and tall glass windows that sunlight pours through. A painting of a serpentine dragon stretched endlessly along the ceiling while four legged dragons varying in color was embedded in the floor every twenty feet.

         “This place is really something Drake says as they walk over an dragon embedded into the floor. This place looks like dragons built it.”

         “This castle is ancient.” Debra says almost gloating. “Said to be built by King Elyonesus himself as a gift to our kind.”

         “Was he a dragon?” Drake asks raising an eyebrow.

         “He’s everything…from what I’ve read about in the archives. Though there isn’t that much about him in the archive. This castle has been built before the great war and when the war happened, the great king carved it from the lands and placed it into the skies for safe keeping that’s how the floating islands came to be.”

         “That’s pretty impressive,” Drake says. “Even if its just an old legend.”

         Then, Debra stops and turns to Drake and folds her arms.

         “Then how do you explain, the floating islands?”

         “I don’t know,” Drake shrugs, “Verses?”

         Debra sighs, turns around while she disapprovingly shakes her head.

         “You don’t know anything do you? There’s no being powerful enough to cast a verse as powerful as the ones keeping us afloat. Even if we managed to discover where to find it, you would have to be as powerful as the king to use them.”

         “Okay, but…where is he now?”

         “No one knows,” Debra asks. “All I’m trying to say is that you shouldn’t assume that something is false because it seems impossible to you.”

         Drake rolls his eyes in annoyance and doesn’t say anything else. The two arrive at a pair of iron doors with a design of a s-shaped serpentine dragon on one side and a four-legged dragon on the left. As she approached, the doors slowly groan open allowing for a cooling mist to escape the lair and envelop Drake in a relieving breeze. Not waiting for the doors to fully open, the pair entered leaving to two lizard-men behind. The area opens up to a wide chamber filled with the noise of a rushing water as well as the crackling liquid irrigated from the waterfall behind the throne. The two walk past several columns and arrive at the throne where Radius and Herria sat quietly. Mahogany was there as well kneeling before the throne as Debra walks up beside her places her hand over her heart and formally addresses her father.

         “Father, I’ve arrived and brought the prisoner just as you’ve requested.”

         “Your devotion matches your beauty my daughter.” Though, I’m inclined to ask, why did you fight so vigorously to bring him to your chambers?”

         Debra is taken aback by his question as her face turns beat red.

         “W..well…” She struggles to find an appropriate answer. “I wanted…to interrogate the prisoner myself.”

         “Oh really?” Radius says sneering at his daughter as he rests an inquisitive hand on his chin. “And I suppose personally nursing his wounds alone and feeding him was a part of the information gathering.”

         “DAD!” Debra stomps her feet in protest. “You said you’d let me handle it in private.”

         “I’m also curious,” Herria says sitting cross-legged on her throne. “It was the only time you exuded actual feminine traits for once. Do you carry feelings for this young man?”

         “Mom!” Debra shouts as her face as she occasionally glances at Drake and quickly snapping back at her mother.

         Drake stands slightly confused at the bantering between the family.

         “I figure if we treated him well, he’ll be more willing to help us. He was tortured last time he was here.”

         “I’m amazed that you show such concern for him.” Herria say. “Would’ve came in handy for Tinsley if he were alive.”

         “Can we please stop talking about tinsley?” Debra sighs rubbing her temples.

         “You can’t hide it, Debra.” Radius says “Its clear that Drake here has had an impact with you in the short time you spent with him. I had my suspicions, and who can blame you,” he continues looking directly at Drake as if he was addressing him. “Ever since he arrived on the scene, he’s been a force to be reckon with. Facing me in open combat, riding with the Avians and managing to not only kill one of our serpentine Dragons, but single handedly using his destructive power to destroy the wall. If you were a dragon, I’d personally welcomed you into our family.”

         “A lot good it did me though” Drake says, raising his arms to show his chains wrapped around his wrists. “I’m stuck here.”

         “Speaking of your capture,” Radius says standing to his feet and walks towards Drake. The young man looks up at the towering King seeing the black and white face mask covering half of his face, partially obscured by his red hair.

         “Mahogany here has faced you twice already and developed the means of keeping you…contained without needing to lock you up. Your verses have been robbed from you and there’s no way off this island without the ability to fly. While you’re here, Mahogany will conduct some…” He turns to look at her while she remains bowed in obeisance with her hand over her white scaled chest. “Tests on you. If you don’t know what you are, then we’ll do everything we can to find out.”

         Then Radius turns around, walks back to his throne and sits.

         “What am I to expect with these…tests you mention.” Drake narrows his eyes.

         “Anything,” Mahogany says as she stands and turns to Drake. With her white wings folded on her back and her naturally scaled heels clapping the marble floor, she walks up to him, grips his chin and tilts it upward. Her powerful grip sent pain through his lower jaw as she turns his head staring at his neck and clavicle.

         “Oh, I have a fine specimen right here,” she says before releasing him with a firm shove.

         Drake stumbles back as he rubs the pain in his jaw. Despite her raven, curly hair, and her beautiful complexion, she carried a sadistic nature to her that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand.

         “I’ll need time to prepare,” Mahogany says addressing the king while sneering at Drake.

         “You may proceed.” Radius says.

         Then she walks past Drake and exits the chamber.

         “As for you,” Radius says, “You may roam the halls if you wish. Without your powers you won’t accomplish much. You will be fed on a regular basis, I’ll leave that to my daughter.”

         “How very generous of you,” Drake sarcastically replies.

         “No, this is what you would call… mercy, as very little will be shown when you’re dealing with Mahogany. She likes to…take things apart to see what’s inside. No matter how much they scream.”