The Tiragan Prophecy

Prologue

There was a time, long ago, where the skies were ruled by the dragons. Thousands of years ago, the earth was populated by many species, but none as powerful and domineering as the dragon. The great fire breathing beasts were separated by two factions: the Kalugu and the Paruntu. These two species of dragons had fought against each other for generations, forging fabled battles that the people of the land would chronicle via stories, hieroglyphics, cave paintings, and statues. These wars saw lands become obsolete, despaired, and changed forever. When one of these legendary beasts would perish in a battle, their carcasses would eat into the ground, causing a pool of fire and lava to form, and creating the landscape where the carcasses decayed to becoming what we now call today as volcanoes. The carcasses were like seeds to the formation of volcanoes, and that is why certain regions of the world have an influx of these lava spewing mountains (due to the high concentration of dragons in those areas).

The people of the land told stories of both of the dragon factions, and how there was a prophecy by the name of "The Tiragan Prophecy." This prophecy had prophesied that within the Marakatham forest (the biggest forest in the land), the salvation of the Kalugu species would be found, and that once this is discovered, they would win their long term battle against the Paruntu. The Kalugu have passed down this prophecy for years, which caused the prophecy to become more mythologized. The Kalugu were able to coexist with the people of the land, and have gone so far as to being guardians of them against Paruntu attacks. But the Kalugu fleet have become smaller as time waned on, with only over a half of their species still living. For years, the Kalugu dragons have been searching for this salvation in hopes of it changing their fortunes, to no avail. But with an impending war between the two species looming, the Kalugu must find this salvation, before its too late.

Discovery: The Beginning

Ravna was one of the younger dragons from the Kalugu fleet. He was a strong and brash dragon, one that was just learning the basics of combat and survival tactics. In the dragon fleet, the only dragons that were allowed to leave and go solo were the ones that were tasked with protecting the land people or doing any aerial detection for any possible Paruntu attacks. Ravna was eager to be doing things solo. He felt one with the air, but felt he was held back for not being able to fly solo. The Kalugu fleet had decreased in size over the years, with most of the older combat Kalugu dragons having passed on due to age and the battles they fought. Ravna was just antsy to being a part of the fight, not having any idea as to how dangerous or daunting a task combat would be. He was also well aware of the Tiragan Prophecy, something every Kalugu dragon has heard at least a million times during their life span. The Paruntu knew about the prophecy as well, and that was one of the reasons why they were hell bent on trying to wipe out the Kalugu species. Ravna wanted to go to the Marakatham forest himself, in hopes of finding this salvation and becoming a hero for his fleet. But his enthusiasm and fervour was always shot down, with the elder dragons warning him of the dangers of going there alone.

Today, however, Ravna was having none of it. He wanted to fly solo, regardless of what had been told. He wanted to show not just the others, but also himself, that he was worthy and fully capable. As the sky went dark and the other dragons went to sleep, Ravna got up and slowly moved away from the group, just so that his launch from the cliff wouldn't be detected by the others. As he flapped his wings and caught a gust of air, he flung himself into the sky, going at a speed that he wasn't sure was possible yet. As he rocketed towards the dark star lit sky, he noticed commotion coming from the cliff below. He looked back to see some of the other dragons huffing at the fact that Ravna disobeyed the strict rules placed upon the younger dragons. The younger dragons bellowed fire into the air, in support of the rebellious behaviour Ravna was showing.

As Ravna flew over the darkened landscape, he got to see the world in a whole new way. Sure, he had always flew above the ground with the fleet, but flying solo gave him a different appreciation and perspective of what was going on down below. Everything seemed more amplified and grand while flying alone. Things felt insignificant and tiny from up here. Ravna began to swoop around the sky, barrel rolling and diving through the air, avoiding the mountains and terrain that were in his way. He felt liberated and free. As he flew through the air, he sensed that something was behind him, but couldn't see what was there. He continued to fly forward, heading in the direction of the Marakatham forest. He never saw the forest from within, only by aerial viewings while him and his fleet would fly over. But tonight, he decided that it was time to see if he could find the so called fable. As he was nearing the forest, he felt a gush of hot air from behind him. He turned around to see a Paruntu dragon, hot on his tail. The Paruntu dragons differed in appearance in comparison to the Kalugu, with the main difference being that Paruntu lacked horns on their head, and usually had blood red eyes with scales that were usually in a golden brown colour. This Paruntu seemed to look older than the ones that Ravna had seen in passing from his past experiences. The dragon looked like it was chasing down Ravna with purpose, angling towards him while shooting another breath of fire filled air towards him.

Ravna swooped to the left, with the fire just barely passing him by. He could feel the intense heat as it dissipated into the darkness of the night. This is different, he thought. Usually while flying with the fleet, no Paruntu would dare to come and attack them, especially during the night. They usually would wait till they saw a weakness in their flying formation, or when there was an elder Kalugu dragon flying solo. But Ravna was annoyed that this Paruntu dragon was trying to attack him, let alone continuously chase him down. Lets make things interesting, he thought. He suddenly stopped flying in midair, and swung himself around so that he would be looking in the direction of the Paruntu dragon. The elder Paruntu dragon stopped as well, flapping its wings to stay stationary in one spot. Ravna looked straight at the dragon, not avoiding eye contact, trying to catch the dragon to see if it would show any sense of vulnerability. But it didn't.

Okay, guess its a fight then, Ravna thought. Before he could make his move, the Paruntu dragon flew headfirst towards him, swinging its body back and plunging its razor sharp claws from its feet and hands towards Ravna. Ravna tried to dodge the attack, but got clipped by the claws on his wing. He didn't expect the claw to do that much damage, but he felt a searing pain go through his wing. The Paruntu dragon tried to attack him again, but Ravna was able to counter this time, pushing the Paruntu away and breathing fire towards it. Unfortunately though, Ravna wasn't able to keep flying, as the pain from the injured wing caused him to pummel towards the Marakatham forest below. Well, at least I'm headed towards there, he thought in his mind. As he fell to the forest below, the Paruntu dragon looked from high above and began to retreat away from the forest, back to where it had came from.

The ground rushed towards Ravna as he smacked into the ground legs first. Luckily, he was able to get a good footing on the ground as he stumbled the landing. The Marakatham forest on the ground level felt very peaceful. There was barely any noise, outside for the odd rustling of leaves on the ground from the movement of a small animal rushing by. He could hear the occasional buzzing of an insect, and could hear a nearby river brook flowing. Ravna tried to get his bearings as he looked around. Though it was dark, he could see that the sky above slightly losing the darkness, with the light of the morning sun slowly rising up. As he walked around, he felt the pain in his wing more and more.

All of a sudden, he heard a cry. But it wasn't the cry of a dragon, nor the cry of an animal. It was a cry from one of the people of the land. He tried to sense where the cry was coming from before another whimper came. He began to move towards the cry, awkwardly maneuvering around trees and foliage in order to get to the source. As he moved towards the whimper, he could continue to feel the pain searing in his wing. Once he got there, he saw it. There in front of him, in a bush that almost looked like a bed, laid a crying toddler of the people of the land. But this was extremely strange sight to see for Ravna. Never had he heard that the people of the land would let one of their own lay there alone, let alone someone this young. He stumbled towards the child, now towering over it. The toddler stopped crying and looked up at Ravna, eyes widened, not in fear, but in awe. What do I do now? That was the thought that was running through his head. The toddler began to shift in its nature made cradle, crawling towards Ravna. Ravna didn't know what to do. Should I move? Should I try flying away? Should I just stand still?

Before he could do anything, the toddler came and put its hand on his injured wing, looking up at Ravna as it did. A strange feeling overcame Ravna, a feeling like he just got a boost of energy and willpower. He felt like an electric current went through his system. He looked at his injured wing and saw that the scar from the fight he just had was slowly healing up. That's impossible, he thought. He looked down at the toddler who was now smiling at Ravna. Could this be the Tiragan prophecy? He knew that the prophecy didn't specify what was the salvation, but this sure seemed like it could be a good omen for the Kalugu's. He wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do, but he decided to bring the toddler back with him. It was the least he could do, and with the miracle that just happened, it wouldn't be wise not to bring him back to the fleet. Also, he didn't want to leave it defenceless in the forest. Ravna put the toddler in his pouch, making sure the toddler was secure and safe before flying off.

As Ravna flew back to his fleet, he could see in a distance the Kalugu dragons were restless. He knew he was in deep trouble for flying off like this, but if he hadn't, who knows when he would have been given the chance to prove himself. As he approached back to the fleet, he saw his leader, Veerar, waiting for him down below. Even from a distance, Ravna could feel and see the intensity of Veerar's eyes in the darkened night. No one in the fleet ever talked back at him, as he was revered by the Kalugus. Stories of his battles and scars had been passed amongst them for years, almost making him a mythologized being. Some of the tales had said that Veerar wiped out a whole group of Paruntu's in one battle, and that when he returned, there was a glow surrounding him. Ravna was one of the few that never looked up at him like a godly figure, and would always hear the stories with a sense of doubt within him. This sort of behaviour endeared Veerar, as he wanted the fleet to look at him as an equal, not a higher figure.

Ravna flew to the ground, landing in front of his angered and concerned fleet. "Why did you do that!?" one of the dragon's asked him. Ravna looked around to see their faces. All of them showed a variety of concern or anger, but none compared to Veerar's stare. It felt like he was burning Ravna alive just by looking at him. "Never do that again," bellowed Veerar. His voice had reverberated around them, causing all the commotion and angst to dissipate. Everyone looked at Veerar with baited breath as he moved forward to Ravna. As he did, Ravna felt an enormous amount of stress boil up within him. He was always a brash youngster, but he never felt fear that much in his life. Well, till now.

As Veerar got closer to Ravna, he noticed that Ravna's wings were hiding something. "Ravna, open your wings," Veerar demanded. Ravna slowly opened his wings, revealing the toddler that was sitting in his pouch. The Kalugu dragons huddled around to see the toddler, with much curiosity and confusion. Veerar looked at the toddler and then shifted his attention back to Ravna. "I found him in the Maraktham forest sir," Ravna said in a fearful tone. Ravna didn't know if what he did was a mistake or a good thing. All he knew was whatever Veerar decided to do or the way he would react would be the consensus feeling amongst the dragons. Veerar kneeled down so he could be eye to eye with the toddler. The toddler looked at Veerar, smiling and giggling, as it reached out to touch Veerar's face.

As soon as the toddler touched Veerar's scaly face, he felt his body almost freeze all over. His mind began to race, with images flashing through his eyes. After a minute or so, Veerar stumbled back, with the dragons, including Ravna, concerned as to what just happened. "A miracle happened, didn't it?" asked Ravna. Veerar looked exasperated and shocked by what just happened, and nodded as an answer to Ravna's question. Some of the dragon's came to Veerar's side to help him, but he pushed them to the side. He sighed and breathed in air to help calm his self down. "The child had given me a vision. I saw a great light, and then it all came to me. I saw our fleet in battle. I saw the land charred with ash and flames, and myself, dying on the ground. I saw you, Ravna, fighting alongside the rest of the Kalugu, fighting with great honour against the Paruntu. I saw you leading battle as I lay there, with our fleet and the people of the land. I saw you with one of the people on your back with a weapon in its hand. The person turned to me, and I saw those eyes. It was the eyes of this child. However, the child was no child in this vision. They were bigger and stronger, and looked like a warrior. And that is when I was released from my vision," Veerar said.

Veerar stared down at the toddler, who still held its gaze toward him. "This child, you said you found it in the Marakatham?" Veerar asked Ravna, without breaking his attention from the toddler. "Yes sir," said Ravna. Veerar looked at Ravna, "you have found the prophecy. The prophecy is real," he said as the fleet began to whisper and murmur amongst themselves. Ravna felt all that fear that was inside him go away as he heard those words. If Veerar said this, then it must be true. "What do we do now sir?" asked one of the Kalugu's to Veerar. Veerar stepped away from the fleet and looked over the edge of the cliff that the fleet was standing on, staring out to the distance as the sun began to rise. As the sun's glowing light began to take over the land below, Veerar turned back to his fleet, seeing them being curious as what he would say next. "We prepare for war."

TO BE CONTINUED