Chapter 12: The First Lesson
621 Words
Morning sunlight poured into the Sanctuary of Stormfire.
Verra stood in the center of the ancient chamber.
Around her, the statues of former rulers seemed to watch silently.
Elder Rowan stood several meters away.
Beside him were a handful of trusted warriors and healers.
Everyone had gathered for one reason.
To witness the beginning of the True Luna's training.
Verra took a deep breath.
"How do I control it?"
Rowan smiled weakly.
"If I knew the answer, I would have mastered it myself."
Several warriors chuckled.
The tension eased slightly.
Then Rowan became serious.
"The Dragon Storm responds to emotion."
"Not anger."
"Not fear."
"But balance."
Verra nodded.
Easier said than done.
She closed her eyes.
Immediately she felt it.
The fire sleeping inside her chest.
The lightning flowing through her veins.
The power was alive.
Waiting.
Listening.
Slowly she raised her hand.
Golden flames appeared.
Small.
Controlled.
The resistance members exchanged impressed looks.
Then sparks of lightning began dancing around the fire.
Everything seemed stable.
Until—
A memory surfaced.
The Narra Tree.
Daven waiting alone.
The promise she never kept.
The pain in his eyes.
Suddenly her emotions shifted.
The fire reacted.
The lightning intensified.
"Lady Thea!" Rowan shouted.
The energy exploded.
BOOOOM!
Golden flames spiraled upward.
Lightning erupted across the chamber.
The entire sanctuary trembled.
Verra gasped.
The power was escaping her control.
She tried to stop it.
Tried to suppress it.
But it was too late.
The fire and lightning merged together.
The air itself began twisting.
A deafening roar echoed throughout the sanctuary.
ROOOOAAAAR!
Everyone froze.
A massive creature emerged from the swirling energy.
A dragon.
Made entirely of golden fire and crackling lightning.
Its enormous wings spread across the chamber.
Its eyes burned like twin suns.
The resistance warriors stared in complete shock.
Some immediately dropped to their knees.
Others couldn't even breathe.
"A Dragon Storm Spirit..." Rowan whispered.
The legendary guardian described only in ancient texts.
The creature circled above Verra.
Protective.
Majestic.
Terrifying.
For one brief moment...
Time itself seemed to stop.
Then the dragon lowered its head.
Its glowing eyes locked onto Verra.
As if recognizing her.
As if acknowledging its master.
Verra stared back in disbelief.
"What are you?"
The dragon released a powerful roar.
The entire mountain shook.
Then—
It vanished.
The flames disappeared.
The lightning faded.
The sanctuary returned to normal.
Only silence remained.
Verra nearly collapsed from exhaustion.
Rowan rushed forward and caught her.
Everyone looked around in disbelief.
The dragon had existed for only a few seconds.
Yet its presence felt unforgettable.
One of the older warriors finally spoke.
"Did we really see that?"
Nobody answered.
Because they were asking themselves the same question.
Rowan slowly looked toward the statue of Aurora Dragona.
His face had gone pale.
The ancient stories were true.
The Dragon Storm Power wasn't merely awakening.
It was evolving.
And if the legends were correct...
The appearance of the Dragon Spirit could only mean one thing.
The True Luna was far more powerful than anyone had imagined.
Far away...
Inside the Dragon Fire Palace...
Geneva suddenly dropped the black crystal she had been studying.
A strange chill ran through her body.
For a brief moment, she sensed something.
Something ancient.
Something terrifying.
Something that should not have awakened.
Her crimson eyes narrowed.
"Thea..."
Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away, Daven suddenly stopped his horse.
His wolf stirred violently.
A strange warmth filled his chest.
For a split second he thought he heard the roar of a dragon carried by the wind.
Then it vanished.
Leaving only one certainty in his heart.
He was getting closer.
Closer to the woman fate had chosen for him.
And closer to a truth that would change everything.
- Writer
