[ - O N E - ] - Kahlisa
“A good warrior must always be focused,†Galiriel’s smooth as silk voice whispered in Kahlisa’s ear. She was crouched deep in the underbrush in the bountiful forests surrounding Dragon’s Tower with two other warriors in training, Raylind and Laegon. Kahlisa was crouched down low beside Geliriel and Raylind and Laegon on her right side. The senior warrior was watching all three of them with calculating eyes that made Kahlisa want to squirm, but she held tight. It was imperative that they made no noise as to not alert the creatures they were trying to hunt.
The four unmoving bodies were surrounded by green as far as the eye could see. Tall, ancient trees swayed in the breeze around them making eerie sounds and the wind whistles through their leaves. The underbrush was thick all around them except for select places where it had been trampled down and turned into roads by many years of travelers walking by. The forest floor was dark; the tall trees did an excellent job of blocking most of the sunlight struggling through. Only in few places did the light win the struggle and touch the forest floor below. Dragon’s Tower was a silhouette in the background, barely visible through the green foliage. A few feet in front of the four hidden elves stood some of the most magnificent creatures that walked the earth of Orulia, dragons.
There were three of them in the small clearing, one for each of the trainees hidden in the underbrush. It was Dragon’s Tower tradition, one that the dragons knew well, that once warrior trainees came of age their last task before truly becoming a warrior was to fight a dragon. If they managed to defeat it, make it surrender under their blades, the dragon shall pledge their life to the warrior creating a bond unbreakable by even the strongest magic. Should they fail, they should hope they get eaten by said dragon otherwise great shame shall hang over them for the rest of their lives.
Orulian law states, as agreed by all inhabitants of Orulia in ancient times, that dragons should not be harmed during these ordeals. They shall only be subdued and in turn can do anything in their power to fight back.
“This is your last test younglings. After this, you will be warriors,†Galiriel said and a rush of excitement rushed through Kahlisa’s veins. Kahlisa was eighteen now, and after years of training with Geliriel alongside Raylind and Laegon it was finally time for her to become a warrior. The young woman knew nothing outside of her life at Dragon’s Tower and the day to day training that Geliriel put all her trainees through.
Geliriel was like a mother to her, for she did not know her real parents, and she loved the senior warrior dearly. Kahlisa had asked Geliriel many times who her parents were but the woman just shook her head and smiled, saying that when the time was right Kahlisa would know.
Before Kahlisa was brought into her life, Geliriel was general of the Dragon’s Tower army and one of the most respected warriors in all of Orulia. With a small child in the picture Geliriel realized that is was time for a less dangerous job. She had retired her position and took the training instructor’s job. Even with this change in position, Geliriel was still a respected warrior. The current General, a dear friend of Geliriel’s, consulted her in all matters and so even though the senior warrior did not hold the title, she still took on many of the General’s roles. Kahlisa had asked Geliriel if she regretted giving up her position because of her but Geliriel just laughed and looked at her in that special way she always did, like she was looking straight into her soul, and told her that she would never regret taking Kahlisa in. That was the end of that discussion.
Kahlisa was quickly brought back to the present when she realized that Geliriel was speaking again.
“Remember. Focus on the target. Dragons are hard to catch and only the greatest warriors can do it. Remember your lessons, remember what I taught you. Raylind, go first,†that was all the advice Geliriel was going to give them. The elf had never been very expressive.
As the words left Galiriel’s mouth the blonde haired elf sprung to his feet and stealthily headed for a green scaled dragon sunbathing on a rock in one of the few places where the sun actually touched the forest floor. His practiced steps made no noise as he practically floated over the leafy debris of the forest floor. Despite his imposing size the elf was very stealthy. Kahlisa used to be afraid of Raylind because of his size and his piercing blue eyes. He was one of the few elves she knew who refused to grow his hair out past shoulder length, this somehow made him scarier. However after Kahlisa had first spoken to him all those years ago she realized that Raylind was really quite social and bubbly. His personality did not at all match his appearance. His fighting style on the other hand did. When he fought Raylind was brutal and unforgiving. His strength was marvelous and compensated for his lack of speed. He held no mercy of his opponents. Kahlisa had always found it fascinating to watch him fight.
The dragon Raylind was trying to capture was unaware of his presence until the young male was on his back and working at getting the rope tied around its mouth and neck. But the smart creature wasn’t going to go down without a fight. Dragons were known for many things but being passive when attacked was not one of them. The strong being unfurled its unbound wings and used its powerful legs to spring into the air. One, two pumps of its wings and it was off, taking Raylind with it. The two broke through the trees and disappeared into the cool morning air. As the trees once again closed overhead they disappeared from view.
Kahlisa watched her mentor through long locks of her blonde hair for any signs that Geliriel disproved of Raylind’s actions. The senior warrior looked fairly pleased with the action, as pleased as Geliriel could look that is. She motioned with an armor-clad arm for Laegon to go on and pursue his own dragon. Clearly they would not be waiting for Raylind to return.
Laegon didn’t let what Raylind had done phase him. The dark elf broke out of the shadows almost as if he was a shadow himself. With his almost grey looking skin and long mane of black hair that was an accurate description. His red eyes flitting between the two dragons left as if trying to process which was the better choice. Laegon may have been a dark elf, distrusted by many, but he had proved himself on numerous occasions to Kahlisa. Laegon was not a bad person. To those who did not know him the dark warrior could seem very cold and distant but if Laegon cared about you enough-and Kahlisa liked to think of the two of them as friends so she assumed he cared about her-he would stop at nothing to protect you. He was a formidable warrior and an excellent friend and overall, despite his dark elf origins, a very caring person.
Laegon finally chose a large, deep red dragon currently weaving quietly through the trees at the far side of the clearing, hunting down a deer. The dragon was so engrossed in the task that it did not notice it was being hunted while it hunted. Laegon could easily encircle the rope around its neck and pull it tight. He was about to reach back for his dagger to hold it to the dragon’s neck, effectively capturing it, when a green blur fell from the sky. Raylind and Laegon and both their dragons tumbled through the forest. Each elf was trying to regain control of the captives while the dragons were doing their best to escape their grips.
The two dragons were entangled with each other and rolled in a tumble of wings and claws through the forest floor. The large bundle of powerful muscles and chainmail like scales powered through the underbrush and knocked down a few saplings struggling to reach the light in the dark forest floor. The bundle hit a few of the older trees too but their strong trunks held strong and, while swaying a little at the force, managed to bounce the tumbling dragons away. The two elves were trying their best to not end up pinned under their dragons as they worked to detangle themselves and their dragons.
Laegon was the first to pull his red beauty away from Raylind’s dragon. He and the dragon tumbled away with Laegon landing on top. The dragon tried to fly away but Laegon had its wings pinned to its sides with his long legs. His pale face had a look of concentration on it as he tried to hold his struggling dragon in place. He pulled out his dagger and this time, without any interruptions from the struggling pair a little ways away, he held it to the dragon’s neck. With the slightly curved, shining blade firmly placed there the dragon instantly seized its struggling.
Laegon let out a whoop of victory and slid off the red scaled body. He quickly and effectively released the dragon from the bindings, all the while apologizing for hurting it. Once the dragon was released the giant stood on its clawed legs and bowed deeply to Laegon. The dark elf returned the bow and once again climbed the dragons back. The two stood to the side to give the other struggling pair some room.
Raylind wasn’t so lucky with his dragon. The blonde was having some trouble gaining control of the wild beast. His dragon may have been small but it put up quite a large fight, throwing him into trees and rolling him to be squished under its body. Kahlisa watched with interest as Raylind held on the dragon with all he had and waited as the dragon struggled. Soon the green beast was far too exhausted to fight anymore and Raylind held his blade to the creatures throat. Like Laegon and his dragon before them the two bowed and stood aside to wait.
“Very good, both of you,†Geliriel said, sounding content with what had just happened. “Kahlisa it is your turn now,†a pang of worry shot through the long-haired elf at her mentor’s words. Galiriel’s face was as hard to read as ever but Raylind and Laegon both gave their friend encouraging smiles. Kahlisa stood taller and walked out of her hiding place. She was going straight for the largest dragon in the clearing, also the last one. A black scaled muscular being with long claws and twisted horns. It was covered in many deep scars including one rendering it obviously blind in one eye. To many the dragon would seem unbeautiful, perhaps even useless with its blindness but to Kahlisa the dragon was strong. The scars just showed that it had been in many battles and had come out victorious in all of them.
Kahlisa made certain that the dragon had seen her coming and as she had hoped it would do, it fled through the trees. The dragon was on wing but it flew at a level that Kahlisa could easily reach. With its large size the dragon was having trouble maneuvering through the tight trees but Kahlisa had spent many afternoons exploring these woods. She knew every nook and cranny, ever twist and turn, every leaf and stone that made this forest what it was. For this reason alone, catching up to the fleeing dragon was an easy task. The greenery flew by in a blur as she perused the creature. Her mind built her a map of her surroundings and her feet carried her though it with practiced ease. The light armor she was wearing allowed her to fly through the forest on foot so fast that soon she was neck in neck with the dragon and even sooner still she had ran ahead.
Much like a monkey, Kahlisa quickly climbed the nearest tree and paused until the dragon was beneath her before jumping down onto its massive expanse of a back, locking her knees around the creature and reaching for her dagger. The dragon let out a defiant roar and rammed into the nearest tree, clearly it wasn’t giving up just yet. Kahlisa struggled to keep hold of the dragon but she was thrown off down to the forest floor. She was glad that
Geliriel and the others weren’t there to notice this as she was sure she would have died of embarrassment. Kahlisa however did not have time to dwell on such thoughts seeing as her dragon was quickly getting away. In a matter of seconds Kahlisa was in hot pursuit once again.
The young girl decided to do things differently this time. She quickly tied a long rope to the end of her arrow and once again ran after the dragon. Once she was a head of it again she planted her feet and skillfully shot the arrow in a tree ahead of her. The dragon realized to late what was happening and quickly became entangled with the rope, pulling Kahlisa with it.
Kahlisa maneuvered her way into the dragon’s back and tied the rest of the rope around, creating a sort of harness. She held on to it as the dragon continued to ram into the trees around it, trying to knock Kahlisa off. The girl-or woman for after this she could no longer really be called a girl-held on the reigns for dear life as she tried to reach around and hold the dagger to the dragon’s neck. After a bit more struggling she finally managed to and the dragon surrendered.
Feeling triumphant Kahlisa slid for the back of the dragon and released it from the ropes. As the dragon rose to its feet a deep voice ran through Kahlisa’s head. The ancient voice sent chills down her spine and caused excited goose bumps to rise on her arms.
Hello there young elf. By the ancient laws that dragonkind agreed to long before you were born I now pledge my life to you. Kahlisa, elven warrior and future Keeper of Orulia, I am now bound to you. With that the dragon bowed low in front of a stunned Kahlisa. It took her a few moments to snap out of her shock and she bowed low in front of the dragon, completing the bond.
My people call me Fayd, use this name is you wish. Or create your own. I do not mind,†Cell spoke as he rose from the bow. Kahlisa smiled.
“Fayd is a beautiful name. We should head back to the others. We were planning to fly our dragons together for the first time. I did not hurt you did I?†Kahlisa spoke quickly out of excitement, burning through many topics as her lips moved a mile a minute. Usually calm and controlled the rush of adrenaline still pumping through her veins made Kahlisa’s brain buzz and her words speed up. Fayd did not reply for he could not easily decipher the human’s quick words, instead he chuckled deeply and crouched down so the elven warrior could climb onto his back. It hit Kahlisa then like a sack of stones, she was truly a warrior now. The thought made her smile brightly.
Fayd quickly ran through the forest on foot, as to not spoil the girl’s first flight, back to the others waiting in the clearing. The dragon wasn’t as fast on foot as he was on wing but he was by no means slow and the pair quickly arrived back to the group.
“Kahlisa! Congratulations!†Geliriel exclaimed as the two broke through the trees. “Congratulations to all of you. You are now truly warriors. Go on, fly your dragons and then get ready. Tonight we will celebrate! I will let the General know of your triumphs, be sure to return to Dragon’s Tower by nightfall,†Geliriel smiled at each of them in turn, pride clearly shining in her eyes.
“Aren’t you coming with us?†Raylind asked, confused.
“No young one. This is for you to do alone. I will meet you three back at the Tower later,†Geliriel nodded her farewell and the warrior bounded away through the forest. Moments later her retreating figure on her own dragon, Naceron, could be seen high in the sky.
“We finally did it!†Laegon’s excited voice broke the silence and the three new warriors all beamed. It was rare that Laegon ever got excited but the prospect of finally being a warrior had all of them grinning like fools. Even Kahlisa, who often tried to keep her emotions hidden, was bursting with excitement.
“Shall we?†she asked her companions and the three took to the sky on the back of their dragons. If Kahlisa thought running through the forest was exhilarating she knew nothing yet. Flying was the most amazing thing one could ever feel. Sure she was scared at first but once Fayd reassured her that he would not drop her and no harm would come to her while she was on his back, she relaxed and began to enjoy the ride. The wind was blowing her blonde locks out behind her and she closed her eyes and breathed in the pure air around her. The mid-autumn air was frigid, especially this high, but the warm body of the dragon below her helped warm her up. Besides, cold was the last thing Kahlisa was thinking of as she tried to take in everything around her. The ground was a blur below them as they flew at high speeds through the air. Kahlisa could hear her companions letting out whoops of excitement around her and she joined in on their excitement as Fayd did loops in the air. Kaleth, Raylind’s dragon, and Syrralen, Laegon’s dragon were soon trying to pull each other out of the sky and Fayd, not wanting to miss out on the play fighting, quickly joined in. The three spiraled through the sky, nearly missing a few trees, laughing all the way.
However there was one thing that kept plaguing her thoughts. Fayd had called her “future Keeper of Orulia†back when they had forged the bond, but the Keepers had been gone from Orulia for nearly two decades now. In fact, nobody had heard from them or anybody at the Capital for years. Why would Fayd call Kahlisa a Keeper? She made a note to ask Geliriel about it later.