The Prophecy of the Dragon Tamer

There weren't always dragons in the valley, there was a time when all things were peaceful and serene. Life was simple and bland, with no adventure or risk, everything was perfect. A little too perfect in my opinion. I always had this foreboding feeling that something terrible was about to happen, but everyone just brushed it off. My story begins before the dragons, they'll come in later on, don't you worry. Oh, dear, where are my manners, I am Scarlett-feather, my real name is ruby but I like to be called by my witch name. I have reddish-brown hair, a few freckles, and bright green eyes, the tale-tell sign of a witch. Now back to my story, when I was a wee lass, I would always get into trouble when I practiced my magic, catching things on fire, letting loose the animals, I even made it snow once, in the middle of summer. my parents always said I would do great but reckless things, and oh my, how right they were. I was around fifteen years old when I had my first dragon sighting. We had been hearing of strange attacks by giant lizard-like creatures that spit fire, from the nearby villages, and my parents were worried, they wanted me to start practicing my magic so I can protect myself, and possibly the village.

I was at the edge of the woods, practicing my magic by shooting blasts of water at my father's helmet, and after almost twenty tries, I finally hit it, but I hit it a little too hard, and I'd sent it flying far into the woods. I went to go get it, but I couldn't find it in all the tangle of leaves, trees, and vines, so I decided to stop at a nearby pond for a breath. I bent down behind this big rock and sat by the water when all of a sudden I hear a strange sound I'd never heard before. I get curious and peek around the rock. There it was, the most beautiful creature I'd ever laid eyes on. It had pale blue and golden scales, bright golden eyes and the wings were massive and so elegant, its neck was long and slender, it had short but thick legs, and large sharp horns and claws. It looked quite young. If I'd known anything about dragons then, I would have noticed it was about my age. I'd never seen a dragon before, so I didn't know if it was dangerous or not. I tried to approach the beautiful creature, but as soon as it saw me, it bellowed loud and shot upwards, and flew off in my village's direction. I tore through the woods, chasing the magnificent beast, and exploded through the leaves, just in time to see my village burst into flames. I don't even realize I'm running till I notice I'm at the front gate and my lungs are burning from the smell of smoke and the ashes in the air. I ran straight to the center of the town square and screamed loud to get the dragon's attention.

It circled a few times before it saw me and dived down to land directly in front of me. As the dust settled from the impact, I notice it wasn't attacking, it just sat there and looked at me, I stared back, deep into its golden eyes, unable to look away. It bent down close and huffed in my face, making my hair ruffle in its breath. I stood motionless, looking for the perfect moment to strike this beast down, but as its hot breath washed over me, I swayed and dropped to the ground into a deep sleep.

When I awoke, the dragon was gone, everyone was gone, and smoke filled the air. Debris scattered the ground, I sat there trying to wrap my head around what just happened. For while I was asleep, I had odd and frightening visions, visions of dragons, lots of dragons, heading towards our land from a strange portal in the sky, burning everything in their path. It was like I'd seen the future, it was like I'd . . . connected with the dragon!

It took me two years after the incident to finally start up my new life and to become strong enough to defend myself, now you'll discover present-day, seventeen-year-old me, with my little cabin, and farm, and training with large swords, heavy armor, and a new spell staff I created.

I stand in a smallish clearing in the forest, not far from my decimated village, a circle of training dummies surrounding me. I say a simple spell to make them move as if they were alive, to give myself a bit of a challenge. Ever since the encounter with the dragon, my magic and determination grew. I had many more visions in my dreams since then as well, but they were always the same. A large swirling hole of purple, red, and blue, with black in the center, dragons start streaming out rapidly, burning everything in their path. I have spent every waking moment replaying these dreams, trying to find something to help me find where this will take place. Then right as I'm about to give up, I find it. Two large mountains, with an enormous tree in the center, its roots wrapping around them as if holding them together. I keep this image in my mind as I examine every map I have, looking for this monument in my visions. I don't have many maps, and the maps I do have are quite old and worn, so I wasn't able to locate them. That's when I had the idea that I should try to find a village, "maybe they'll have some maps I can borrow" I thought aloud. I looked around and found my trusty old and worn-out backpack, "hello old friend, looks like I'll be needing you again." I pick it up and dust it off, then I go around gathering food, weapons, and everything I'd need for a long journey. I get everything and start to leave, but I stopped and turned around to give my cabin a little wave, then started on my way.

This is where I'll take a little break from my tale, you should too, get a drink, maybe a snack as well. For the next chapter, we'll need our strength for fighting dragons and sea creatures and mysterious things that lurk in the dark. So I say, fair-well my friend, until the next chapter.