Dragon's Tears

The couple ran through the woods when the sound of approaching footsteps caused Tristan to stop them both. The two look at each other in worry, then he pushed her behind him protectively.

“Serenica!”

Serenica narrowed her eyes and focused on the two figures closing in on them. Instantly she recognized them as her sister and her mother, she released the breath she was holding, and ran out from behind Tristan sprinting towards her family.

“What is happening in the village?” Serenica asked apprehensively.“We were on our way to go help.”

“Don’t go back; the village is under attack. They are killing everyone,” Adrianna pleaded.

“Who is killing everyone?” Serenica answered in alarm.

“Felinian soldiers,” Aranayia answered through gritted teeth as the girls stopped in front of Serenica. She pushed roughly on her right side as blood dripped through her finger tips staining her white dress crimson. Gasping loudly, Adrianna quickly pushed in the same spot to help slow the flow of the blood. Aranayia’s eyes scrunched and her face distorted in pain. The air was silent except for the heavy breathing of the women as they looked in the direction of the burning village.

“Why would soldiers of Felin attack us? We have done nothing wrong and certainly didn’t provoke them,” Adrianna asked breaking the tense silence.

The neighboring kingdom of Felin was as known for being peaceful in its land disputes as well as for its military power and massive wealth. Felin, commanded by King Cassius and his sons Thomas and Lucius Therin. King Cassius has always been a noble leader, fair to his kingdom and took his relationships with the neighboring kingdoms very seriously. Ashbourne has never had any issues with Felin or King Cassius who was a recognized consumer of their famous Ashbornian wine.

Serenica looked toward the village in defeat; in the distance, she could see that people were running for their lives, attempting to find a place to hide. There were soldiers on foot and horseback, killing the villagers as they fled. Buildings were burning, and the smoke covered the area in a deep fog, giving the evening an ominous feeling. Felin was not here to take prisoners; they wanted to destroy the village and all of its occupants.

Tristan looked helplessly at the wounded Aranayia and then back at the city. Finally, he turned and looked at Serenica with a determined expression. “You guys go. I’ll buy you some time.”

“No....” she pleaded as tears of pain filled her eyes.

“Serenica, I would go insane if I knew you died. Get out of here. This is the least I could do for my fiancé.” He responded as he gave her a small smile.

“Serenica, we have to go now!” Aranayia said as she gave a look of appreciation and a weak smile to Tristan. She and Adrianna turned and walked away from them, deeper into the woods.

Tristan grabbed Serenica and looked at her sadly. He wiped a rogue tear from the corner of her eye and pulled her tightly into a hug. “I love you. Remember that. Now go, before I change my mind.” He gave her one last kiss, turned, and sprinted towards the village.

Serenica stood there helplessly and watched as her best friend, and now fiancé, disappeared into the village. The tears streamed down her face, and her body shook with fear for him. Eventually, she shook her head in denial, grabbed the bow off of her arm, and stepped back toward the village.

“Oh no, you don’t! He isn’t sacrificing himself, so you can die. LET’S GO!” Adrianna screamed as she pulled her sister, kicking and screaming, away from the village.

The women didn’t speak as they continued their journey; only the sound of Serenica’s sniffles filled the air. Orange and red hues filled the night sky from the burning buildings in Ashbourne. The wind blew heavily, carrying the smoke for miles, and the burning sensation filled their noses, forcing them to cough.

“Where are we going?” Serenica asked frustrated.

“We need to get as far away from here as possible and find a way to bring help back to the village.”

“Adrianna, it is going to take us days to walk anywhere, the village will be gone along with everyone in it!” Serenica yelled as they continued their determined walk away from the town of Ashbourne.

“We have to try; we can’t abandon them,” Adrianna refuted.

Suddenly, the sounds of crackling leaves and a groan were heard from behind her. Serenica gasped in horror when she looked and realized that the noise was from her mother falling to the ground. Relaxing her protective stance, she sprinted to her mother’s side and kneeled to help lift her up.

“Your sister is right Adrianna, there is no saving Ashbourne anymore,

Aranayia shook her head, took a deep breath, and looked at her daughters. She carefully pushed away Adrianna who was frantically working to seal her wound. “I know you are trying to heal me Adrianna, but I am dying. You will not stop that. I am only slowing you down. I need you to listen to me and listen well.” She looked directly at Serenica, grabbed her by the shirt, and pulled her closer. She then took Serenica’s hand and placed something in it. A sharp edge poked into her hand, causing Serenica to wince in pain. She quickly opened her palm and looked down. In her hand was a single earring. The earring was red and shaped like a teardrop; it instantly lit up the night as it glowed red, then dimmed and returned to a normal red gem. The girls looked at each other in confusion and then back at their mother.

“What’s this?” Serenica asked her.

“Serenica, the Dragon’s Tear has chosen you. You need to find the other five bearers of the tears. It is up to you all to kill Krizrotrath and save Aihorane.”

“Mother, that is an old myth? What are you talking about? This is the present, and we are in danger and need to get moving!” Adrianna exclaimed. Her eyes were alert as she whipped her head around, checking the direction they had just come from for any enemies that may be approaching.

“It’s real. You two need to go to Estme and find the second tear. Find the Rogue... Go now! They are following us; you will not make it alive if you don’t run now. Leave me and go!” Aranayia ordered as she pushed her daughters away from her injured body.

The distant sound of running footprints caused the women to look up in panic, they knew that the soldiers were closing in on them.

“Go,” Aranayia demanded a she waved the girls in the direction of the water town of Estme.

Serenica and Adrianna stared at their mother and whispered their goodbyes. The girls looked at each other and nodded in acknowledgment, then stood to their feet. Serenica slid the earring into her ear and fastened it. She looked at her sister and motioned toward the woods. They twisted in the direction of Estme, gave their mother one last look, and ran deeper into the forest.

Aranayia lay on the ground and attempted to catch her breath. She quickly pulled a dagger out of a pocket in her robe, hid it, and waited patiently. Footsteps grew louder as soldiers approached her, but she remained still as she coughed up a little more blood.

“General Soladore, I found the Oracle!” A soldier announced proudly as he approached the woman. He stood to attention and watched her as a second set of footsteps grew louder.

A tall man decorated with war metals approached her. He had short white hair and a large scar down his left cheek. “Oracle Aranayia, I presume?”

“You have something that we are looking for, and we will retrieve it. Make no mistake.” The general smirked at the injured Oracle. He knew she would be unable to resist, so he approached her slowly.

Aranayia looked at the man with rage filled eyes. The pain radiating through her body was intense, and she was starting to have issues maintaining her breathing. “You will get nothing from me.” She declared. Revealing the knife, she kept hidden, she stabbed herself in the heart. She gasped loudly, and then her hands slowly fell to the ground with her final breath.

“NOOO!” the general screamed as he watched her take her final breath. He clutched his fists together in anger as he looked down at the dead Oracle. With hatred in his narrowing eyes, he looked at the soldier, who was frantically attempting to think of an excuse as to why he had allowed this to happen. “Why didn’t you check her for weapons?” He demanded through clenched teeth as he stormed towards the soldier.

“General, I...”

The furious general never gave him the option to finish the sentence. He unsheathed his sword and slammed it into the heart of the unsuspecting soldier, killing him instantly.

“Get the Oracle back to Felin!” He yanked his sword from the man he just killed and sneered. “Leave this pile of garbage here to be eaten by the bears,” the general ordered as he stared at the corpse. “Go search the village, it has to be here!” demanded of the other soldiers, and he turned and walked back towards Ashbourne.

* * *

Serenica and Adrianna were sprinting through the woods at top speed. Their clothes were in tatters, their hair was tangled filled with leaves and twigs, and they had multiple cuts and bruises on their legs and arms from the thorny bushes.

“Serene, it’s getting darker, and I am exhausted. We need to stop for a while. Is there someplace we can take a break?” Adrianna asked, fatigue lacing her words.

Serenica looked around with understanding. “Let’s move closer to the mountainside; we may be able to find a cave we can rest in,” Serenica suggested.

They cautiously made their way through the woods, allowing their eyes to adjust to the darkness, until they found a small cave. Serenica then used a large stick and part of her dress to create a torch, lighting it with two rocks.

With the torch in hand, she motioned for Adrianna to stay back and entered the cave. She carefully inspected the cave for any animals or even humans who were hiding from the law. Once she reached the back of the cave, she released a breath of relief at the cave’s emptiness and called for Adrianna to enter. Adrianna entered and moved to the back with her sister. They both took a seat and leaned their backs against the cave wall.

“We have no oil; the torch will be going out very soon; get your bed made up now,” Serenica ordered. She knew that the torch would probably burn out in a matter of minutes. She then began to move rocks and pebbles out of the way to make room so she could lie as comfortably as possible.

A short while later, their torch had extinguished, which resulted in the girls sitting in total darkness.

“Serenica?” Adrianna’s fearful voice filled the air.

“Yeah, Adri?” Serenica asked as she closed her eyes.

“Do you believe what Mom said?”

Serenica took a deep breath and attempted to gather her thoughts. “I don’t know, but I do know that Estme is one of the closest cities we to us, so it can’t hurt to go there anyway. We have nowhere else to go; we can’t go home because there is no home anymore. As long as we stick together, we will get through this.”

“Promise?” Adrianna asked without bothering to hide the fear in her voice.

“Pinky promise,” Serenica said as she rolled on her side and yawned. “Get some sleep. We have a long way to go, and this will not be a simple journey from now on.”

“Sure, Serene,” Adrianna said as she lay flat on the ground and put her head in her hands.

A short while later, the cave filled with the silent breathing of the girls as they both slept. Occasional mumbles and murmurs came from Serenica as she rolled around and flailed her arms. Adrianna heard the noises and followed them until she finally laid her hands on her sister.

“Serenica, wake up!” She pleaded as she shook the girl slightly.

Serenica jumped up and frantically looked around. Darkness surrounded her, which caused her to scream in fear. “Serenica, please stop screaming,” her sister pleaded as sobs wracked her body.

Eventually, Serenica heard her sister’s pleas and stopped screaming. She felt around on the cave floor until she finally found her sister’s hand and pulled her into a hug. “I’m sorry, Adri, I’m ok. Please don’t cry.”

“What was that?” Adrianna asked once she finally stopped crying.

“It was a horrible dream,” Serenica whispered into the darkness. “I dreamed of a black dragon. This dragon flew through the sky and spat purple fire. I watched it destroy buildings, people, and forests.”

“Krizrotrath?”

“I don’t know...” Serenica spoke softly. “Let’s try to sleep again. Maybe we will have better luck this time.” She hoped as she rolled over, put her head in her arm, and drifted back into a peaceful sleep.