When the kingdom of Acrià is conquered by the Dragon lord, J'nar, Prince of Dunsinaine, with vengeance in his heart and the gift of ice, is the only one who can save them. As the new ruler of Acrià, however, a new problem presents itself in the form of -- Please R & R.

Chapter One: The Prophecy To Be

Glamis Hold, Acrià.

The Year of the Phoenix.

Ki’lan watched the battle raging beneath him from the walls of Glamis; as far as the eyes could see weapons clashed as warriors fought for a cause long forgotten. It had been so for many moons and then the sky had turned gray and a new moon had risen, red with, as the high priests said, the blood of slain souls. Now men entered the fight with a renewed vigor even as their families bid then remain within the hold. For it was said that the red moon was the sign of the Dragon king who, it had been prophesied, would one day come and put an end to the war; he would, however, do so by slaying the entire clan of Thanes leaving Acrià powerless. Thus men who feared death from the Dragon king chose it in the form of a Scraine warrior; for none who left the castle ever returned with soul and body as one. Before now the Dragon king had never chosen sides in a war between Acrià and Avis, for both sides did all to appease him, but on the fourth day of the eight knile, the red moon had risen above the ranks of the Scraine thus proclaiming them the Dragon’s own and ultimately the victors of the war. For did not The Prophecy say that:

When the red moon rises in a starless gray sky

When the dragon chooses his most worthy side

Then shall the battle of ages cease

And the wanderers of Avis be appeased

Ki’lan had always regarded this part of The Prophecy with thinly veiled scorn as it seemed an addition made by the Scraine to scare the foolish and bolster the courage they did not have. This explanation was not without proof for the Scraine had long since been bemoaning the loss of Avis to the Thanes of Acrià and were famous for their ‘superstitious nonsense’. Now, however, as he watched his fellow men struggle to keep the Scraine from the gates of Glamis, he wondered if there was some truth to the words. They were not after all wholly favoring the Scraine and went on to say:

Then the land will be purged of Thanes

The sky will clear and a King will reign

From the East he shall come with a root known

And slay the dragon, seizing Scepter and throne

This part was a puzzle to all for it proclaimed the end of the Thanes and yet talked of the slaying of the Dragon king who was to supersede them. It had long been known that Acrià would be ruled only by the Thanes; for the magic binding them to the kingdom ran deep and strong. So, if the Thanes were to be purged, what then would become of Acrià and its entire people? The Thallons, the Grimk’es, the Morwes and all of Arnlend all depended upon the might of the Thanes. With the Dragon king defeated, the Scraine could not rule for once they were bound to him they would rise and fall with him. This too had come from the prophecy and if it were true Acrià’s only hope of survival against rival lands from the South lay in the hands of a king who none knew of and who could prove to be a foe worse than the Dragon himself.

He sighed surveying the mixture of frozen bodies below him; humans, huroks, griffins and all manner of beasts that had been put to work in the fight lay in the snow, their carcasses an unheeded sign to all. When this was over, for surely it would end, these creatures would not be remembered; their valiant deeds would be forgotten as the snow is forgotten when the Sun comes out in Eteire.

XX

In the Wake of Caldor Castle, Acrià.

The Year of the Phoenix.

“Stop this foolishness immediately! Princes do not act thus...or rather should not.” Y’nel’s voice rang out in the silence of the night and was met with raucous laughter from the younger of his charges, the Prince of Dunsinaine, J’nar Ascencia. Y’nel had been teaching the twin princes for twelve years and had now been placed in charge of them as they made their way to the Golden City to be trained for Knighthood. J’nari Yascencia, the older of the twins was also the more quiet one and only made a noncommittal sound which was meant to be an admonishment of sorts to his brother who had hurled a snow ball at their master and whose feigned expression of penitence did not amuse said master.

“Ascencia, this must end before we reach the city or I shall be forced to take more serious action against you.”

“I forgot myself Y’nel, you have my most sincere apologies; it will not happen again.”

“Do not call me Y’nel! I am not your age or range mate. You will address me as Master So’nar henceforth. Is that clear?”

J’nar rolled his eyes but said, “Crystal.” Then under his breath, “Y’nel.”

His brother made what sounded like a laugh then gave him a shove. It was a sign for J’nar to stop. And stop he did for he listened to no one as he listened to his brother.

XX

The Golden City, Acrià.

The Year of the Scorpion - Feast of the Scorpion.

“Their Royal Highnesses, J’nari Yascencia and J’nar Ascencia.”

The princes descended a wide staircase in view of the entire court of the Golden City. From a distance they looked identical but upon closer inspection one would find that their eyes differed vastly; J’nari, like their father possessed green eyes with flecks of silver glinting in their centers. J’nar on the other hand had glowing, electric blue eyes which flashed gold when their possessor was angry. Aside from their eyes the princes were indistinguishable in every feature from their frosted blue-black hair which they wore long to their pugnacious chins which spoke defiance more than words could.

“I feel like a dolt or much worse a debutante.” J’nar sighed rolling his eyes at the spectacle of fawning females whose eyes seemed to claw at them like vultures. “I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them came up and asked me to dance...perhaps I would curtsy and she would bow.”

“Tis better to be a dolt who is considerate and than one who is not. All these people are here because of us, t’would do you no harm to at least act interested.” J’nari admonished softly.

“They are not here for us, brother dear. They merely want to feast upon these victuals placed before them and hope that we shall be served as one of the courses.”

J’nari could not help smiling at his brother’s cryptic humor, all the while knowing that he meant no harm by his words; he had always said things to shock and irritate but never went out of his way to be spiteful.

“Don’t walk so fast, the orchestra of growling stomachs has only just begun. Tis not everyday one gets to hear such harmonious music.”

J’nari bit his tongue to keep from laughing at J’nar’s droll words and the serious tone he assumed as he said them. He quickened his pace slightly, however, knowing J’nar would join him. He did.

They reached the bottom of the stairs simultaneously and made their way to the high table where the High King was waiting to begin the feast. He frowned at them, a silent sign of recrimination for their tardiness but was met with identical impassive expressions as the princes took their seats.

“Fair people of the Golden City”, the King started with a resigned look on his face. “Appreciated guests of our Royal self, welcome to the eighty-fourth feast of the Scorpion. We have been led to this new moon and thus must give thanks and hope for a year as great as and even greater than the last...” He continued along this vein as many minds drifted, more to the feast to come than not.

XX

Glamis Hold, Acrià.

The Year of the Scorpion.

“It is time Your Majesty.” R’duia, Thane of Verno said to his cousin, Theban, Thane of Glamis and King of Acrià.

“I fear it is too late R’duia; a new moon has risen and it is red only on our borders. The dragon is coming, I can feel it here.” He pointed at his chest upon which rested a golden pendant inscribed with many spinning dials.

“We can not give up so easily…the men…they are ready on your word.”

“Then let them fight. It will do no good…but let them fight.” He sighed then dragged himself back into his chambers.

“It is too late…” R’duia murmured the words to himself as he watched the retreating back of his cousin.

A/N: Hello everyone. Did you enjoy that? Well there’s more where it came from if you would all be so kind as to review. That was a pretty direct hint, don't you think? Lol. Well I just hope you enjoy it as much as I did typing it.

P.S: This only my second fantasy (I deleted the last one ‘cause it was weird and I wanted something different) sigh Nehoot. I hope you’ll read and review as you are wont to.

P.P.S: Ok you notice the space up there where a name is supposed to be well I need an answer from y’all. What do you think about drum roll please …. Tyana, Acreolle, Elise (pretty normal, right), Elnori, Auroris… Well anyway you can give me your own suggestions if you think these ones stink.

On that note.

Cheers!

Starox