Prologue: The Golden Egg
The Wizard of A'isha sat at his desk re reading the letter that had come days before. He had been waiting here in his dark cold castle for what seemed like years. He got up and walked to the the tall window that sat behind his desk. He searched the horizon for a sign that maybe someone was coming, but only saw a deer run back into the forest after getting a drink from the Ahava River.
The old man dropped his gaze to the floor in dissatisfaction. He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. Was the information that they sent correct, or had he missunderstood them? It must have been accurate or the message wouldn’t have been that urgent.
All of the sudden a tall soldier burst into the room. He was wearing armor and on his shoulder was a black symbol. In his right hand he held a sword and in the other he held a shield with the same symbol on it as on his shoulder. The man standing at the window was startled and he jumped as he turned toward the door. “There is someone here to see you, sir” said the soldier in a low, rough voice.
“Yes, very good, send him in.” said the old man delightedly. He moved toward the door just as a tall black haired, dark eyed man entered the room. When the old man saw him, his expression turned to disappointment.” Oh, hello Siyamak.” said the old man coldly.” I was expecting to see you some time soon, even though I hoped I wouldn’t.
“And why ever not, Ragnar? Even a wizard in your position gets lonely all the way up here.” There seemed to be a tension between the two men.
“Yes, and if you don’t mind my asking how did you get up to the castle? You don’t seem like the type who would like to climb.”
Siyamak smiled and said “You love to remind me of how I lost Kasch don’t you? You still get joy out of seeing me grieved about it.” Ragnar scowled, but Siyamak continued. “Oh well, that’s all behind me now. But even I know there are other ways of getting to your castle than with a dragon. I didn’t come all the way up here to bicker with you though; I came here to seek information. Is it true, there’s another egg? And this one I hear is golden?”
“I see you’ve been putting your nose in places it doesn’t belong again.”
“I wouldn’t call it that. Anyway I believe I have the privilege to know about these types of things. Besides it isn’t every day an egg comes along, and a golden egg is especially rare.”
“Well, I don’t know how you found out, but I supose I was expecting you would. The news about the egg isn’t supposed to be out until quite a while now, so I guess I should trust you to keep your mouth shut. Yet that is hard for even me to do.”
At this Siyamak smirked, “Well, let’s say we make a deal, shall we? I’ll keep quiet if you promise me that I can have that…….”
“You can never give up can you Siyamak. But I supose you have always been this selfish. I’ve already told you, the dragon chooses its owner, and I have no power over it. You already had a chance when Kasch choose you. I doubted giving him to you in the first place, but I knew I had to. And your actions only proved me right. I knew you couldn’t protect a dragon, even if it meant giving your own life. I gave you the chance, and you failed. And all that happened could have been avoided. Now it is time for other boys to have the chance. To have the glory of being a Rider. And I have no doubt that the next boy this dragon chooses will be much more responsible then you ever were. Stories will be told of you and Kasch all across the Empire, and those future Riders will be reminded of you. Of how you let Kasch down and let him die. They will remember you and learn not to make the mistakes that you did.”
“You know what happened that day, Ragnar!” Siyamak eyes flashed with both anger and anguish. “Those soldiers ….those demons, they……”
Again the door flew open and the same soldier as before came in. He first glared at Siyamak, then he turned to Ragnar and said “It’s here, sir.
“Great!” cried Ragnar. He turned toward the soldier, who was about to leave, and said, “Oh, and Tarak,” He turned and faced at him, “Would you mind seeing that my guest” he gestured toward Siyamak, “makes it to the exit safely?”
“Yes, sir.” said Tarak.
Siyamak rolled his eyes as the three of them walked out the door, and said, “You think I am that irresponsible, do you Ragnar?”
“No” said Ragnar as they stopped outside the door, “the thought of you being alone in a castle that holds a rare dragon egg... seems like a place where you would like to wonder off. I just want to make sure there was no possibility of you getting lost. Farewell, Siyamak, and I hope to see you again some time soon.” Ragnar bowed his head, and Siyamak gave him one last blazing stare before Tarak pulled him by the arm down the spiral staircase.
Ragnar watched Tarak and Siyamak climb down the stairs, Siyamak fighting, and complaining the whole way. Once they were out of sight Ragnar started to climb up the stairs in the opposite direction. He climbed up until he reached the top of the tower where the stairs ended at the end of a long dark hallway. At the other end was a door. The hallway was cold and the floors were wet and slippery from water coming in through the cracks in the walls. Ragnar carefully walked down the hallway until he reached the door. It was a big door and was made of the finest oak. Ragnar put his hand over the door knob and whispered, “Absiendo!” There was a small flash of light and the door slowly opened.
The room on the other side of the door was vast. Like the hallway the room was dark and the walls, ceiling, and floor were all made of a smoky colored stone. The inside of the room was also wet and cold from water being able to get throught by the cracks in the walls. The only window was up near the ceiling and wasn’t even big enough for Ragnar to fit through. The room was empty except for a pedestal in the middle. Atop the pedestal sat a giant golden egg. The egg was about the size of Ragnar’s head, but appeared that even with the slightest touch it could break in half. It was every beautiful, and if someone didn’t know what it was it could have been mistakes for real gold.
Ragnar walked slowly across the room to the egg. He examined the top of the egg, then carefully picked it up and rolled it over to inspect the bottom. The egg was flawless except for a long scratch on the bottom of it. The scratch went from the tip of the egg until the midsection.
“Those fools! I can’t believe they work for the empire. They can’t even perform one simple task.” He touched the egg softly with his fingers and he could feel that it was soft and smooth. “Let’s just hope it isn’t permanent.”
Unexpectedly the door burst open and a rush of wind entered the room. Ragnar whirled around to find a man standing in the doorway. He was a young man, about the age of nineteen, and he had bronze colored hair with bright blue eyes.
“Ah, I was expecting you Tupac.” said Ragnar in a loud whisper.
“Have you found who it has chosen yet?” asked Tupac eagerly.
“Not yet. I was waiting for you. Hurry now shut the door and make sure it is locked.” Tupac did as he was told and rushed to Ragnar’s side.
Ragnar took one last look around the room then dropped his gaze to the egg. He put his hands over the egg and said softly, “Carguo ab atdor abi condio deligo” The egg started to glow and images of mountain and valleys apperared.
They both gazed into the egg for a few more moments. Then it showed them something that brought a surprised expression to both of their faces. They both looked at each other. Tupac looked back at the egg then at Ragnar and said in shock, “It can’t be……”
Ragnar looked into the egg and grinned, “But it is.”
