THE FALL
PROLOGUE*
*The Fall*
*"In the eighth age of the flame, the skies burned with silence."*
She fell—not like a star, but like a curse.
Banished from the inner realm of majesty, the once-revered Zubara dragon clan maiden, Zeriah of the Emberscale, plummeted from the Astral Heaven realm to the dust-veiled lands of the Inferior Earth realm. Within her womb lay the legacy of fire—dragons’ blood mingled with that of royal men.
*Tiye , the fallen maiden*
*Tiye’s POV*
"What did I do to deserve this? Was love my only crime? From the heights of light to the shadows of shame—what more can they take from me? They tore my wings, cast me down like dust beneath their feet. Oh, Heaven, was I born to burn? If I have done wrong, let the stars bear witness to this injustice."
The last thing she felt was not pain... but betrayal. Then came the stillness.
CHAPTER 1 : Ashes and beginning
-
The morning sun filtered weakly through the cracks in the thatched roof as Tiye stirred, pain clinging to her body like a second skin. Her eyelids fluttered open, and she found herself lying on a woven mat inside a humble wooden hut, the air thick with the scent of herbs and firewood.
She sat up, confused and frightened. Her voice came out as a whisper:
"Where… where am I?"
A rustling sound came from the doorway, and a tall, grizzled man with a hunting bow slung over his shoulder stepped in. His beard was grey, his eyes steady and kind. A bundle of sticks rested in his arms.
"You're awake," he said calmly.
"Who… who are you? Who am I?" Tiye asked, holding her aching head.
The man set down the bundle.
"My Name’s Makonnen. I’m a hunter. Found you four nights ago by the edge of my farmland—unconscious, bruised, and clutching your stomach like your life depended on it. You didn’t say a word."
Tiye’s eyes darted to her belly. Her hand moved there instinctively. The faint heartbeat of her unborn child was still there.
“I don’t remember… anything. Just... falling.”
Makonnen looked at her long and hard, then nodded.
“Rest now. Whatever you fled from, it ain’t chasing you here.”
---
[Scene transition — Four Years Later]
The once-broken woman now moved with quiet strength. Her son Kael , was a wonder even to the old man. Strong, sharp-eyed, and uncommonly alert for his age, Kael moved through the woods like he was born of the wind.
At only four, he helped gather firewood, sensed danger before it came, and even calmed wild animals with just his gaze. Makonnen would often mutter,
"That boy... there's dragon fire in his veins."
