chapter 22
yeah...I've been working on a looot of chapt
Chapter 22
"Is he alive?" "Can I eat him if he's dead?" "No you can not eat him!" "Aww man." "Shut it both of you he's waking up!" Shadowheart groaned awake hearing these voices speak as he woke up. What was going on? Last he remembered was a wolf saving his life, then the black pits of unconsciousness. Opening his eyes as the voices quieted he saw that they belonged to three dragons about his age, but all he saw was three blurs, before he was out cold again.
Shadow would sleep for a long time until he met the cloaked figure again, in his dreams. The figure stood in the distance staring at Shadow, before walking toward him. The figure's staff thunked onto the ground despite it being grass not stone. Shadow tried to run but the ground seemed to be pulling him toward the cloaked figure making him panic. "Stop running child of shadows, you're their last hope!" came the voice of the figure jerking Shadow awake, and imediatly regretted waking up, he was wrapped in bandages with life crystals held in place by them to heal his body. His head felt like an Ape had smashed a war hammer into it as he groaned in pain prompting an elderly dragoness to walk into his room. Much to shadow's shock she was black of scale, with shadow dragon tribal markings! He stared at her making the dragoness give an old lady chuckle, "first time seeing another shadow dragon other than your self eh?" She asked him as he silently nodded to reply. She also had an odd accent. A mix of Canadian, and Boston accents. Shadow shook his head recovering from the initial shock, "wh-where am I?" he asked her as she removed the bandages from his body. She would purposefully push painfully into his sore body, "Well young one, you're in the rebuilt former Capital of the Shadow dragons. Soulmire" She told him. Shadow would sit there staring at her in disbelief
But before he could recover from that information, a large scared and bulky shadow dragon entered one of those scars had forced his right eye closed. "So you're awake, good. The doctor has given you a clean bill of health though you're going to be sore for a long while, that lizard beast did a number on yous" He said with a new york cityish accent. "I am Wrath young dragon welcome home." He said with a grin as shadowheart stood, "I am Shadowheart." He told the older dragon his body shaky from lack of use, "how long have I been out?" Shadow asked curious, "three months." Wrath said with out pause making Shadow's jaw drop. "Yes I know it's a shock for you, but you were very seriously injured. Some of your wounds refused to either not heal ir would reappear." Wrath stated making Shadow wonder what caused that to happen. He had always took care of his body, "it was like your body was trying to die." Wrath mused and that made shadow cease his train of thought, he remembered how he felt fighting that beast...he wanted to die. "maybe then I wouldn't have hurt Teza." He silently thought but shook his head. "then why am I alive now?" he asked wondering what was the reason. "I dunno it was like some guardian angel or something reached into you and forced it to heal up." it was then Shadow remembered the cloaked figure and his words, "but who's hope am I?" he thought as he followed Wrath out to the courtyard.
Soulmire the Ancient homeland of the shadow dragons. The legends tell of the Sage of the Moons, Shadows, and the darkness had given creation to them. The city had been originally a Dwarven out post, but was abandoned due to to many dangers. But along came the shadow dragons they learned the craft of molding stone with tools made for dragons, and magic to build the ancient city. Spires of Black stone towered over the main court yard. The cave that the city sat in was large enough to fit two Empire state buildings on top of each other. Like how the stars glow at night the cave ceiling of Soulmire is littered with crystals and gems of all colors glowing brightly in lew of the stars. The stone spires covered the cave from the ground, and the ceiling. Dwarven miners had dug tunels into the stone while using their magic to keep the sone from crumbling. Connecting to each of the spires was a maze of bridges an walk ways, but despite the violet beauty of the city, most of Soulmire stands abandoned ad in disrepair. Areas had been completely sealed off due to bridges and walk ways broke shattering others under them, whole spires colasped from age causing more to fall destroying walk ways. Lives had been lost from these incidents pushing the shadow dragons closer to extinction. The dwarven magic that held the sity together for nearly two millenia was fading, it seemed Soulmire was doomed to fade from the world like the shadow dragons.
Seeing the birth place of his race Shadow was over whelmed with joy, sorrow, and pity. The Once grate capitol of the shadow dragons was dying, every where he looked he saw Shadow dragons trying to live out their lives, but the fact that their race was so close to extinction showed on their faces. Even the younglings knew that when the last spire in Soulmire falls....All of them would die. 'You're their last hope.' The words of the figure sounded clearly in Shadow's mind. How was he to stop the death of a city? And why him? "wrath, I thank you for what you have shown me...but would you mind if I had a moment alone? I just need timeto...let it sink in." Shadow said, but didn't wait for a reply and shadow walked to one of the weakest bridges in the city, far away from the others. Taking a deep breath shadow closed his eyes and blasted the bridge with shadow element, causing it and the ones under it to collapse under him. The next thing he heard was a thunderous thud.
Though his face was hidden under the shadow of his cowl. The man who had saved shadow earlier stood there opposite of the shadow dragon scowling as he tapped a piece of the bridge next to him and caused it and several others to meld back into a bridge. When it did the man walked down the bridge toward shadow, and grabbed the young dragon by the horn, then they were gone as the bridge continued to fall smashing into the ground.
Shadow suddenly felt a stone wall smashing into his back causing him to yelp in pain before the room they were in the onyx stone in his staff glowing brightly showing his canine features and the room they were in, "WHY! WHY ME?!" Shadow yelled at the figure before the wolf before him removed his hood showing the pitch black fur with a crescent moon on it's back on his fore head. "No way...you're..." "the sage of the moon....yes young dragon, I created the shadow dragons, the wind, poison and the fear dragons. And to answer your question, You are the only heir to be born of the shadow empire's last king. Also...just call me Dante." The sage stated and sat down on a chair of shadows he created, "but the books said you'd be a dragon!" Shadow stated shocked, "over several millenia the facts tend to get a little mixed up...But yes I am the sage of the moon. Master of all things in the night under the moon...or so the books say." Dante would state with a mild chuckle, "And how am I the only heir to the shadow throne? I thought the king lived over forty or fifty years ago?" Shadow asked and Dante sighed rubbing his hands together sadly, "you're not the heir to the throne...the shadow empire is dead and gone...Soulmire will soon be nothing but rubble. What your inheritance this place...the true power of the shadow empire." Dante stated and panned his hand arund shining beams of pale light around the room showing Shadow all the shadow guardians of old, "this place is the tomb of the guardians..all the elemental kingdoms have them. A place to honor the fallen guardians, and to teach the next generation." Dante explained his mismatched eyes staring at shadow. "Shadowheart, Son of the Shadow king Kage, and descendant of Hellura the first queen and guardian of the shadows." Dante said before standing and walking to a black soul gem that faintly glowed violet in pulses. "Soulmire is the kingdom of the shadow guardian...if you do not take your rightful place as shadow guardian...you and the entire race of shadow dragons will disappear...forever." Dante stated sadly, "but you can create a new generation of..." "I can't...sages cannot create unless the ancestors allow us, and even if they did. it took almost a thousand years for shadow dragons to reach the power they have today." Dante interuped shadow his fist clenched acting like a upset father unable to do anything for his child. "But I can't restore an entire race! I'm only sixteen!" Shadow shouted making Dante flinch out of shame, "I know...but there is no other choice!" Dante shouted back before shadow fire was being launched at him only to be absorbed by the crystal and it would suck shadow dry leaving him with just enough energy left to sustain his heart beat.
The crystal would suddenly flare to life in violet and launch it's light up a tunnel into much larger shadow crystal, that crystal would hum to life rusted gears below the city came to life the rust falling away as the entitre city seemed to wake up and the spires rose even higher the stones seemed to grow younger and less worn out as the city was bathed is violet light, "YOu have claimed your birth right shadow...now live up to it. It's the only way you and Teza could even be together." Dante said as shadow launched himself weakly at Dante, "sorry my child...but there is no one else." Dante stated before his staff reappeared in his hand and with a flash of pale light dante was gone leaving shadow to smash into the wall to weak to even stand as wrath burst into the room, "So it is true...." wrath whispered.