In a land only reachable by dragons, a small clutch of dragon eggs lay warming under the egg protector’s watchful eye. Swirls of magic emanate from the shells. The red dragon knew his pupils would hatch soon. His eyes roved over the colorful shells landing on the largest of the bunch. The protector, Maugon, hadn’t seen such an enormous egg in many long breeding seasons. The egg, swirled bright blue and hot pink, concerned the egg protector. Others might consider the size a blessing of a large strong hatchling but not this protector. Despite all Maugon’s concern, he closed his eyes wanting to rest as much as possible before the eggs hatched.
A sharp crack broke the long held silence, and Maugon inspected the eggs. A jagged golden line ran down the side of the blue and pink egg. Small pink claws poked their way out as the shell crumbled. Two hatchlings clambered over each other out of the remains. Maugon let out a huff of smoke. He hooked the first small twin, a young male with a bright blue body and hot pink accents, with its wing dropping it upon his foreleg. The other twin cried out unused to being alone. Maugon snagged the hot pink twin with bright blue accents, laying far from her brother upon his leg.
“Oh little hatchlings, you will have a difficult time once the rest of your clutch hatch.” Maugon rumbled. “Rare indeed are dragons of the heart, and they will not understand.”
The twins crawled upon his foreleg searching for each other.
The protector shifted the young male to face his twin. “You’ll find Chila that way, Bakuin.”
The twins curled together snouts resting one on top of the other.
“You have a long journey ahead of you, as there is for each age. Mine feels so long ago I don’t quite remember it. Though, I suppose I can tell the two of you just what is in store for you,” Maugon said. “First, I shall tell you of the Great Dragon’s last journey.”
A point comes in every dragon’s life when they know it’s time for their last journey. The more powerful the dragon’s magic, the longer it takes to reach the time. For many ages dragons grew and bore offspring. Dragons ruled the lands passing the curtain of mist until they forgot where they came from. Eventually the elders settled in one place, sending their offspring out to explore other worlds through the mist.
One by one the elders returned through the mist as their times came until only one female remained. Ages came and went. The Great Dragon advised each new group of elders, sharing wisdom from the long-forgotten past. Lonely ages passed as she waited for her last journey with no creature to reminisce.
But then a red moon came and whispered in her ear and she knew her time had come. For the first time in ages, she rose from her nest intent on making her last journey a glorious one. Elders flew with her, singing the most mournful song ever sung, for as the Great Dragon passed from their land so too flew their connection to the root of their being.
The Great Dragon flew through the great mist into the endless ocean. The strength of many young dragons failed, and they returned home. Longer and farther the Great Dragon flew as if the red moon had called her home. At long last the eldest of the elders turned to go back, and the Great Dragon fell.
The eldest of the elders could not allow the Great Dragon to leave in such a state. Together they moved the earth to blanket the Great Dragon. The red moon glowed bright, lighting the tears of the elders as they fell into the sea. For the first and last time, the tears of the dragons made something new. Life formed deep in the sea. Plants and animals grew unchecked until one race rose to rule over them all.
The eldest of the elders returned to their land, recording the path to the Great Dragon upon the walls of her nest. They planned to lead the next age of dragons back to honor the dragon who’d passed down so much wisdom, but the strength of the dragons waned. Those who made the journey with the Great Dragon could no longer pass through the mist. Tales of a new land, Astritala, faded into legends.
The legend remained alive in each new age as young dragons ventured forth to find Astritala. Then came the day of the red moon. Two young dragons ventured through the mist, intent on proving the legends true. Following the path they memorized from the Great Dragon’s lair, they flew until their wings cried out against them and they knew they could no longer make the return journey. Onward they flew, the Great Dragon’s land their only hope.
Astritala appeared just as they faltered. One last push and they fell to the ground, unable to move. Two glorious lights passed through the sky. The first full of bright light and warmth, the other pale and cold. They chased each other repeatedly as the dragons regained their strength.
Glad they were to have landed where they did for the earth could not contain the lifeblood of the Great Dragon. It bubbled and flowed freely, fusing the land with magic the Great Dragon once held. The two dragons worked to tame the lifeblood’s flow. They cut a deep trench only for the lifeblood to spring from the ground, burning them with its potency. Retreating they licked their wounds, again thinking of how to best honor the Great Dragon.
Returning to the fountain of lifeblood, they beheld a strange and beautiful sight. The earth at the base of the fountain had turned to glittering stone. All colors the dragons could name glowed with the brilliance of lights in the sky. Knowing the land could not survive the strength of the Great Dragon’s lifeblood, they lay on either side of the fountain to split the flow. How long they stayed none can say, but mountains rose beneath them, forming peaks to hold the two halves of lifeblood before two rivers flowed from the mountains through the heart of the land.
Finished with their work the dragons searched for the stones at the base of the fountain intent on taking the most beautiful back to the Great Dragon’s lair. Search all they might, but they found none. The dragons even requested the help of the land people to find the source of the fountain. In the end, the dragons returned to their home empty-handed but full of tales of a new people who they’d tasked with the care of the lifeblood. The elders called them the Children of the Great Dragon.
The strength of the dragons increased, and though the Children of the Great Dragon would never set foot on Astritala again, they sent others in their stead. Three more dragons volunteered to find Astritala to see how the people of the land fared. Once the red moon returned, they took flight following the same path. Unbeknownst to the others, a fourth dragon left. She did not request permission for her journey, for she knew the elders would not approve. She believed an easier path to Astritala existed, she just had to find it.
The first three dragons made it to Astritala, and like their predecessors collapsed. When they recovered their strength, they did not know where they were, for Astritala had changed from the descriptions of their forefathers. Where once only the ocean existed, now islands rose from the sea where fountains of lifeblood escaped from the earth. Upon Astritala itself, the rivers of lifeblood blessed the land. No longer were the rivers running on the surface, but the dragons could feel their magic deep in the earth. One river encouraged dense vegetation and animal life while the other river cultivated arid lands.
The three dragons searched Astritala for land people the Children of the Great Dragon spoke about. Land people lived in the forests, but they were not like the descriptions the dragons knew. These people had little love for the rocks and deep earth. Instead, they lived in the trees and walked often under the lights of the sky.
Through long searching the dragons eventually found the original land people. They had dug deep into the mountains caring for the lifeblood and only came out on special occasions. The people greeted the dragons as old and trusted friends. Content in knowing the original land people were well and with stories of a new people, the dragons returned through the mist. The elders gave them the title: Children of the Great Dragon.
The fourth dragon arrived upon Astritala after the others left. She had traveled through other lands full of strange and interesting creatures, nearly forgetting the purpose of her journey. Once she realized the others were gone, she took up residence on the largest island near Astritala. The power of the lifeblood drew her, and her experiments created powerful creatures similar to the ones she’d seen on her journey. She spent years observing the interactions between her creatures and those who came from the land. Then returned to share her stories.
The elders were angry with the actions of the fourth dragon. They did not give her the title the others received, for when the Children of the Great Dragon returned, the heart of the lair had shone as red as the moon when the Great Dragon left. No light shone when the fourth dragon entered the lair. They banished the fourth dragon from entering the Great Dragon’s lair again. No other groups went to Astritala.
“But their anger has faded with time. The new age of elders consider the fourth dragon in a more positive light. There are rumors of a dragon who followed the fourth dragon’s path and now lives upon her island.” Maugon sighed as he moved the now sleeping twins into a nest away from the other eggs. “By the time you are old enough, I’m sure you will make it to Astritala. The two of you hold more magic than I have seen in a long time.”