Path of Dragons

Millions of dragons waged war all around Elijah, and for the first time in recent memory, he froze. He could scarcely think, much less move. The scope of the conflict was just too much to process, especially when the Eldertalon reached the mass of other dragons, snapped out, and devoured thousands in a single bite. At the same time, countless black dragons descended upon the Caretaker, burying her under a mass of onyx scales.

"We must flee!" screamed Zaka, latching onto Elijah's torso with her claws and yanking him backward. It was just in time, too, because only a second later, a swarm of small, black dragons with glittering wings swept through the area he'd just forcefully vacated. "I will –"

She never got the chance to finish, because a black claw erupted from her chest in a shower of gore. Elijah fell, his wings frozen as he watched a large dragon yank his claw back. Zaka tried to twist, but her body fell limp. A second later, gravity yanked her past the stunned Elijah.

In a familiar voice that somehow carried over the din of battle, the black dragon said, "I am sorry, my love. You have made your choice. I have made mine."

It was the same dragon Elijah had heard during his recovery.

Even as he saw the white form of Zaka disappear into the green mist below, Elijah's mind flashed back to his sister's death. He'd never seen what had happened, but he'd imagined it so often that the image came to mind in only a second. Zaka was not Alyssa. He knew that. But in that moment, they might as well have been one in the same.

And it broke him.

Elijah thought he'd gotten past Alyssa's death, but the reality of it was that it would likely stick with him for the rest of his life. As much as he wanted to move on, it tended to sneak up on him at the strangest times. Sometimes, it was when he was alone and saw something that reminded him of an old memory. Or when his mind wandered. But in this instance, the fact that Zaka was his host's sister cut through his emotional defenses.

He wasn't sure if he was still on the same autopilot-like effect of the vision or if he was fully in control, but at that moment, he didn't care. He flapped his wings, then gathered a dense collection of ethera in his chest, then opened his mouth.

A stream of glittering white power erupted from his throat. It was like liquified diamonds, flashing like millions of microscopic prisms, and when it hit the black dragon, part of his body just disappeared.

There was no smell of burning flesh. No blood or viscera. One wing and a good portion of the black dragon's torso was just gone, as if it had never existed. He locked his eyes on Elijah as if he was confused by what had happened. And then, he too fell.

Meanwhile, Elijah came back to himself, though he had no idea what he'd just done. The power he'd conjured now seemed infinitely far away, and he knew he couldn't summon it again, even if he tried. Instead, he only had claws and teeth as weapons.

And given that he was in the middle of a battle of epic proportions, he knew he would need to use them.

Never was that clearer than when a red dragon swooped in, ready to rip him to pieces. Elijah tucked his wings and dove, narrowly avoiding those flashing claws. But the thing was both larger and faster than him. His only hope of survival lay in escape, and he kept his wings tucked as he plummeted toward the towers below.

At the same time, the red dragon followed, clearly intent on ending Elijah's life. Behind and above them, the battle continued to rage, with the Caretaker having thrown her attackers aside as she pursued the Eldertalon. He didn't flee before her. Instead, he reversed course and, flanked by hundreds of smaller dragons, attacked. Their clash sent shockwaves across the entire planet, and even Elijah was thrown so far off course that he hit one of towers. The balcony he hit only a second later crumbled beneath his weight, and he felt a couple of delicate wing bones break.

The red dragon descended upon him a second later, and Elijah felt claws ripping his delicate, white scales to shreds. He tried to fight back, to slither free, but the red dragon was too big. It was too strong. Elijah attempted to summon the same power he'd used to kill the black dragon, but he failed to touch that strange ability. He couldn't even feel the ethera in his core.

Elijah bit. He clawed. He fought like a cornered wolverine. But nothing he did worked. Until that moment, he hadn't realized just how much he'd always relied on his healing powers, but as he fought and took one wound after another, he definitely felt the lack. Every wound – even the small ones – weakened him a little more until he could scarcely resist.

The red dragon threw Elijah into another tower. He bounced off in a shower of blood and bricks before hitting a platform. He skidded across the surface until he came to a rest. The enemy landed with a thud. It was bleeding, but the wounds he'd sustained were paltry next to how ravaged Elijah's body had become.

It stalked forward, its movements sinuous and lethal. Elijah tried to back away, but the tendons in his legs had been severed. He could only wriggle a few feet before the red dragon reached him.

Then, it spoke, "You dare use the power of the White on a fellow dragon?! You are a disgrace! You have broken the compact!"

"I…I didn't…"

It reared back and struck like a snake, but the second before his gaping jaws clamped down, a shadow fell over them. Or rather, something blotted out the entire sky.

"Enough!" came a world-ending shout.

Everything froze. Not just Elijah and the other dragon. It wasn't even limited to the battle raging overhead. Even the Caretaker and the Eldertalon froze as if time itself had ended. Far above everything loomed a dragon's face.

Sapphire scales glittered in the world's light, somehow overwhelming even the pervasive green mist.

"We are not beasts," the inconceivably large dragon stated. "This war is at an end. If you cannot make peace, then I shall enforce it myself."

Even as the sapphire dragon spoke, a name manifested in Elijah's mind. The Stormbreaker. Even if he couldn't feel it in every fiber of his being, Elijah knew that this newcomer was infinitely more powerful than any other creature he had ever imagined. It was as far above the Eldertalon and the Caretaker as they were above the rest of the dragons.

However, Elijah didn't feel any fear when he looked upon those sapphire scales. Instead, he only felt a deep sense of comfort.

"Do not make me return."

And then, suddenly, the blue dragon disappeared, and the world resumed. The red dragon stopped mid-strike, blinked, then pulled away.

Unfortunately, the damage had already been done. Elijah felt his vitality draining away with every second, and unconsciousness threatened to still his mind. Darkness crept into his eyes, and even as the red dragon flapped his wings and made his way toward the others far above, Elijah finally succumbed.

For the briefest of moments, he knew nothing. He was nothing. And then, suddenly, his mind came rushing back, followed closely by his senses. He was surprised to find that he was once again in his human body.

It took a few seconds before he felt some semblance of normality, and when he did, he pushed himself upright. Kneeling naked on the elaborately tiled floor, he looked around. He was back where he'd begun, with Kirlissa tending to something in the distance. Upon a closer look, he saw that she was working on an abstract painting of pure light. Three-dimensional and multi-colored, it didn't look like anything he'd ever seen. However, it elicited a feeling of deep sadness that echoed the phantom emotions from watching Zaka die.

The dragon was no one to him, but to his host, she had been family. With the added parallel of his own sister's death, he felt more emotionally vulnerable than he had in years.

"What you are feeling is normal," Kirlissa said without looking over. She gave a minor flourish, causing another streak of pink light before cocking her head to the side. She didn't look pleased with the result, so she sighed and waved her hand through the collection of painted light. It scattered, and she finally turned to face Elijah. As she approached, her bare feet barely making a whisper on the tiles, she said, "I experienced similar emotions when I went through that memory. Partially because of the deaths of Zaka and Miskar, but also because it was one of the lowest points in the history of my people. Millions of dragons dead, and only because of the Eldertalon's greed."

"Can you explain?" Elijah asked, rising unsteadily to his feet. Now that he was back in some variation of his own body, he felt oddly light, but also weak. Clearly, despite lacking in power compared to other dragons, his host – Miskar – had been far stronger than his current form.

"What do you think happened?" she asked, approaching with her stereotypically elegant gait.

He took a deep breath. "It was a civil war," he answered. "The Eldertalon was warlike, while the Caretaker wanted peace."

"An accurate assessment, but missing some key pieces," Kirlissa said. Then, she went on to explain that the event he'd lived had occurred after draconic society had begun to wane. Some dragons – like the Caretaker – chose isolation and a focus inward as the solution, while the Eldertalon espoused expansion. "Tensions continued to mount for centuries until it exploded into war. What you saw was the last battle, but it had been ongoing for nearly a millennia at that point. Both sides had seen countless casualties, which was the only reason the Eldertalon and the Caretaker agreed to the duel. It should have ended there, but the Eldertalon used magic upon his sister, nullifying the duel. That was why the Stormbreaker intervened."

"What happened afterwards?" Elijah asked.

"The war ended, and the Eldertalon as well as his followers splintered from the Empire of Scale," she explained. "They settled in the Umbra, where they spread across the entire realm. It took eons before they returned, but that is a tale for another day. Tell me, young one – what did you learn?"

Elijah didn't know how to answer.

A thousand small details swirled through his mind. The glimpse of the First City of Dragons was eye-opening in a hundred different ways. The alien cityscape was awe-inspiring, and seeing so many dragons – some of whom were more powerful than he could imagine – definitely reaffirmed his place in the multi-verse. He'd only taken the first steps on his path, and despite his achievements, he had a long way to go.

But there was more. The conflict between the two sides had seemed clear before he'd gotten an explanation from Kirlissa. In that same situation, what would he do? If he truly believed that his people were doomed – as he assumed the Eldertalon had – would he choose the path of war?

Humans throughout history had made that choice, both on societal and personal scales. Hungry men stole bread. Kingdoms who couldn't support their people attacked their neighbors. And an empire of dragons used their natural might to take what they needed from other societies.

"It's complicated," he said at last. "It's not about good and evil. It's about survival."

"So it was," Kirlissa agreed. "Despite their differences, the goal was the same for both sides. Until it was not. Greed is insidious, not because it is powerful, but because it rides on the back of necessity. Sometimes, it is difficult distinguishing between needs and wants. Sometimes, we do not even try to tell the difference. Dragons are no less susceptible to greed than any other, and the Eldertalon's path was destined to end in ruin."

"Why was I shown this?" Elijah asked.

"Multiple reasons. Some are simple. Every dragon needs to know our history," she answered. "Other reasons are more complex and will only become evident as you age and progress. Mostly, it is meant as a warning."

"About what?"

"That is for you to decide, little one," she said with a motherly smile. "The Path of Dragons is not a journey of a single step. It is ongoing and ever evolving. It is up to you to decide where it takes you."

"That's frustratingly vague," Elijah admitted. "But I suppose it wouldn't mean as much if you gave me the answers."

"This is true," she agreed.

He sighed and considered what he'd experienced. Everything was too wrapped up in emotion – both lingering from his host and from his own life – to figure things out. But that was okay. For now, just having gone through it was enough.

"Anything else I need to know before you zap me back?" he asked.

She let out a small laugh and shook her head. The metallic strands of her golden hair tinkled with the movement. "No, child. I did not expect you to return to me so soon," she stated. "My only advice is to keep going. You have potential, but that will only take you so far. You must work if you are to become a dragon of consequence."

"So, same shit, different –"

Elijah was cut off by a lazy wave of the dragon's hand. His consciousness immediately went black, and just as before, he hovered in nothingness for an indeterminate amount of time before suddenly springing back to awareness. As expected, he was back in the cultivation cave, which was all but barren, both of ethera and life. The Leviathan's Bones remained, but everything else was gone. Explore hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire

More importantly, he received a notification as soon as he came back to himself:

He couldn't help but smile at that.