Page 1 of Ava's Love of the Dragons
Chapter 1
Elora's footsteps echoed through the throne room as she paced back and forth. She targeted a vase, which shattered into a thousand pieces a second later, and then the pillar in the center, causing chunks of stone to crash to the floor.
One of the guards followed her destructive fury with an anxious look, his head tucked between his shoulders. "Magistra, I beg you, do you intend to reduce the entire castle to rubble and ashes?"
She whirled around to face him, a dangerous glint in her brown eyes. "Watch your tongue, novice!" She didn't need to add a threat; he immediately stood at attention next to his colleagues, staring straight ahead. A bead of sweat trickled down his temple. He didn't even flinch to wipe it away.
"Why did you let her escape? Didn't you understand that she could seal our doom?" The next vase shattered into countless pieces, some of them rattling against the tall stained-glass windows, but the panes didn't break.
The guards said nothing, didn't even move a finger, the blood draining from their faces. Before the mage could attack them, an adept in a long white robe hurried in. He stopped at a respectful distance and bowed deeply, kneading a scroll in hishands. "Forgive me, Magistra, I've brought the prophecy you requested."
"Read it! I want to hear the exact wording!"
He opened the parchment scroll. "Prophecy from the year 22 before the Magic Wars, spoken by Nathan of the Old Folk, recorded by Helwin the Gray." He cleared his throat. "A prince with darkness in his heart will plunge the realm into gloomy chaos and nearly erase the kings of the sky. An era of darkness and despair will reign for eons, war and discord will rage between peoples and rulers, and no dragon will be born again.
“But in the distant future, from the mists of oblivion, a woman from another world will discover an egg and bring it to us. With her, lost hope will return, and with her, light will enter the realm of dragons. And when she has fully developed her power, she will be able to defeat the mightiest of all living mages and avert disaster. So it is written, so it is woven with the threads of fate."
Elora let out a hate-filled scream that made the guards flinch. A chandelier fell and crashed loudly onto the stone floor, the candles breaking and pieces of wax flying into the corners. "We must stop her before she develops her powers! Where is she?"
No one answered until one of the guards spoke up timidly. "The dragon fighter took her away."
"I saw that myself! Where did he take her?"
"We don't know."
"Am I surrounded exclusively by idiots? Do I have to explain to you what her rise could mean for us? For our entire people?"
The men ducked their heads. Outside the castle grounds, they inspired fear and terror, but inside the castle and in the presence of their leader, they transformed into fearful sycophants.
The double doors were thrown open and Arthur entered. He had freshened up and changed clothes, presumably to shakeoff the disgrace of the guardian escaping him in the arena. He had apparently succeeded, for his facial expression couldn't have been more arrogant. He wore a fine, large coat over the white robe of the mages. But his was embroidered with gold threads at the edges. After all, he was far more powerful than all the others who fought under Elora.
He spread his arms and walked towards Elora, his lips curled in mockery. "Don't get upset, dearest. We'll find her and then I'll destroy her on the spot. With a single spell." He snapped his fingers as if the matter could be so easily resolved, before reaching out his hand to her.
Elora pulled her arm away before he could touch her. "Why didn't you do that in the arena?"
"Because you wanted a show, dearest, to demonstrate our superiority to the people."
A vertical vein appeared on her forehead, throbbing dangerously. None of the guards dared to move or make a sound. Arthur, however, stepped closer unabashedly and placed a hand on her forearm.
"And that was a good plan. We couldn't have known that the dragon fighter would be able to break through our barrier. But now we know, and we've strengthened the protective spell. It won't happen again unless we want it to."
She snorted, her mouth twisted in displeasure, but the vein on her forehead disappeared.
Arthur's tone became ingratiating. "Sit down, dearest, and have a sip of liqueur."
"I don't want to drink anything and I don't want to sit down. I won't relax until that damn guardian is dead!"
"I suspected as much, which is why I've already sent out messengers to search for her. You know how quickly they'll track her down. And in the meantime, before they return, I'll tell you what I've been thinking." He raised his eyebrows suggestively,and she responded by jutting out her chin and giving him a disparaging look.
"Do you have a plan?"
He nodded, his narrow eyes flashing menacingly. "It would be an honor to submit it to you." He bowed subserviently and pulled aside his coat with pointed fingers, as if it were the skirt of a ball gown.
The mage exhaled loudly. "I hope your plan is a good one, because we can't let that cursed Arcane traitor escape again!"
"I assure you, Magistra, she will not succeed in doing so."
Chapter 2
