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Secret of the White Pandorans:: PART TWO

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  As Shanido, Sivu, and Elliona flew towards the desert, Sivu got a better look at the land than he had before. He hadn't fully comprehended just how large Dovabrod was, but having seen nothing but trees and mountains for the last five hours made it quite clear just how vast the land was. Through the sound of Elliona's wing beats and the rushing wind, Sivu say Shanido motion with his paw to land. Sivu nodded and steered into a shallow dive. He descended with grace, and trotted to a stop as he landed. Shanido followed behind, hovering to land instead of running to a stop like Sivu had done.

  "Come over here Sivu, Elliona needs a lot of room to land!" Shanido called over the sound of Elliona's rushing wing beats. Sivu nodded and followed him towards the trees and the two of them stood and watched as she came gliding down, her wings arched from the air beneath them. The force of her wings buffeting the ground was even enough to bend the threes in a circular formation around her. She roared fiercely as her hind legs touched the ground and she landed with a resounding THUMP onto the soft earth below. Beating her wings to steady herself, she let loose one more roar before placing her two front legs on the ground and relaxing her wings. They were held above her for a moment before they quivered and sank to her sides. The wrists of them hung loosely and her five fingers drug across the ground. She was panting heavily and her chest swayed deeply. She approached the two of them and laid down in the grass.

  "I need to rest for a few minutes..." She panted heavily a few times. "My wings ache from landing in small place like this." She looked around, indicating at all the trees that prevented her from landing normally.

  "I'll got gather us some food. Sivu, I understand you are strictly carnivorous, so don't worry, I'll hunt something for you too. There should be plenty of deer around here. I'd like you to stay here with Elli though. She will be too tired to fight off anything, should it attack her, after performing a landing like that." Shanido explained as he set down his leather pouch. "I won't be gone long. I know these woods well." He added before turning and running off into the forest.

  It was a little after noon by the time they had reached this point in the forest, and Elliona basked in the sunshine with her wings laid out at her sides. Curious as to why she spread her wings like that, Sivu came over to investigate.

  "Why did you flex your wings like that?" He asked. Elliona replied with her eyes remaining closed. Only her tail shifted.

  "Being a Cliff Racer gives me unsurpassed strength in the air. I can fly faster than any other species, longer, and farther. I can manipulate the very wind with beats of my wings, and pull out of deadly nose-dives... But all this does come with a cost, you see, my wings are so massive that landing in close quarters takes a vast toll on my energy reserves. It feels like my body is being torn to shreds when I have to land in places like this." She paused and looked towards a nearby mountain. "In the Tropic Canyon, that is where my kind thrive. Our talons can grab the stone so firmly that we can land on the sides of cliffs, and scale to the nearest ledge. We are designed to live in high, mountainous areas, not down in forests like this." She closed her eyes once more. "So in order to soothe the ache in my wings, I flex my membranes out so that the sunshine may kiss them. The warmth fills my blood and relieves some of the pain, but not all... Never all..." She appeared to drift off into a warmth-induced sleep and her breathing became very relaxed and melodic. Seeing that conversation was now impossible, and that he should let her rest, Sivu padded over to a nearby tree and climbed into it. Resting in the branches like a wild cat, his keen eyes kept watch for anything that might threaten them.

  About two hours later, Shanido returned. He had two large melons in his jaws, a leaf filled with all sorts of berries between his shoulders. And using the four blades on his tail, he had a fairly large buck being dragged behind him by its antlers. The sight of the buck made Sivu's mouth water and he hopped down from the tree with great swiftness. He could smell the blood as he approached, and it was obvious that Shanido had killed it with a calculated bite to the neck. As he drew closer, he saw that each of the puncture wounds had hit a major blood vein. Shanido drug the deer closer to the trees and released its antlers with a flex of his blades. He then approached Elliona and placed the melons down beside her, along with the leaf full of berries. He laid down like a cat, with his front legs folded underneath his chest, and nudged her shoulder. She cracked and eye open and sniffed the air. She smiled as she saw the fruit, and immediately went for one of the melons. Shanido looked to Sivu and watched him as he dove into the deer. Only after the two of them had eaten a few bites did he himself eat. The meal went quickly, and quietly and once everyone had finished eating, Shanido helped Sivu to bury the bones of the deer. Sivu made sure to fill his flask with the deer's blood before disposing of the remains. Elliona had since refolded her wings at her sides, and lay watching them. After a while, she appeared to have gotten bored watching them dig in the dirt, and proceeded to clean the specs of dirt from her scales and armor. It was nearing dusk by the time everyone had finished their set tasks. Shanido sat close to Elliona, and Sivu sat across from them. As the night drew closer, Shanido piled together a few logs and some brush between them.

  "Sivu, would you mind?" He said, motioning to the logs. Sivu didn't deny the chance to show off his abilities, so he made sure to light the fire, with flare. He blew a little flame wyvern that flew around the logs a few times before diving into them and setting it ablaze. Shanido and Elliona grinned in unison at his display.

  "A wondrous little trick friend." Elliona said with a smile. "But have you ever seen someone do this;" she said as her good eye flashed white for a moment, then she puffed out five individual flames that hovered in the air over the fire. One was red, the second blue, the third green, the fourth white, and the fifth an eerie purplish-black. She moved her head to the left, then to the right, and finally down. The five flames stretched and wound around each other, forming a sort of rainbow of flame. Then the spiral formed a swirling sphere of energy and finally burst into sparkling embers before dying out completely. Sivu looked on with awe. He had seen dragons in this land do fantastic things with their elements, but nothing like that. He clapped his paws together in approval.

  "I must say, that I have not seen before. How did you manage to get so many colors like that?" He asked.

  "I simply infuse my element with my soul-fire. The end result is multiple colors." Elliona replied.

  "Oh? So then your element isn't fire? What is it?" Sivu asked, his curiosity peaked.

  "My element is Universal." She said proudly.

  "I don't know much about that element, but from what Nero's told me, it sounds similar to the Time element back in my world. It is essentially feeling all the energy around you and being able to utilize it right?" Sivu said, and both Elliona and Shanido nodded. The rest of the evening was spent talking about their pasts, their friends, and their families. When the sun finally set, Elliona stretched one of her wings over Shanido. It reminded Sivu of how a mother dragon would care for and protect her hatchlings. And with the vast difference in their sizes, Shanido really did look like a youngling compared to Elliona. He couldn't help but wonder why she was so protective of him. He knew they were both brought along as bodyguards, but it seemed like her devotion to him was deeper than that. Sivu tried to shake the thought from his mind as he lay down to sleep. Within a few minutes, the campfire died out and all three drifted into their dreams...


***


  About an hour after sunrise the next day, the trio set off once more. Flying towards the desert, they could feel the temperature start to rise the closer they got. Sivu, even being a fire elemental, still felt the heat start to make his large mane feel uncomfortable. Within three hours, they could see the vast expanse of sand before them. It looked like a scar on the land, devoid of almost any trees, save for a few far off in the distance that were part of a rare oasis. As they flew closer to the dunes, Sivu realized that he had never been to the Pandoran Desert before. Looking around at all the sand, he knew how easily he could get lost here if he ever lost his ability to fly. Everything looked the same, no matter which direction you looked. And even though he couldn't see it yet, he knew that somewhere to the north was the ocean. The trio flew on and on, over nothing but the white sandy dunes, until Elliona made a strange signal to Shanido. Sivu wasn't sure what it meant. She had twisted her right paw in a circle, then tapped three of her toes on the palm of her other paw. Shanido had nodded in response to it, and then the two of them pulled into a steep dive. Thrown off by their sudden actions, Sivu staggered for a moment before following in their dive.

  "What is it? What's going on?!" Sivu called over the rushing wind. Neither of them responded. Shanido dove so fast he appeared to be a blur, then at the last second he flared his wings open and landed in seconds. He ducked behind a dune and Elliona swooped down and used the dune as a slide to land. She kept her wings half unfurled as she motioned to Sivu. He landed among them quickly. "What's going o--" Sivu was cut off as one of Elliona's massive wings folded over him and the other over Shanido. She laid down low to the sand, her nostrils stirring up small puff of it as her breathing labored. Sivu couldn't understand what was going on, until he heard a high-pitched SCREE! Peering through the gap between her wings and the sand dune, Sivu saw a flock of six Gryphons flying overhead. Four had ordinary sparrow coloration, but one resembled a jackdaw, and the other looked like a great horned owl. The owl one surveyed the landscape with his keen eyes, then screeched at the others. They landed about 300 feet away from the three dragons. Elliona sunk lower into the dune, cutting off Sivu's view of the Gryphons.

  "Are you sure you saw the, flying over this way?" One said, its voice cracking like a raven.

  "Maybe the heat was playing tricks on your eyes Cal'dariin."

  "Shut up Magnus! I know I saw them! Three of them! One black one, and two red ones."

  "Y'meir, can you see anything?" There was a long pause.

  "No..." The voice was deep, and sounded like a wise elder. "But I can sense the presence of something large nearby..." Elliona's sides flexed, and Sivu felt her hind legs tense up like she was going to jump.

  "It could be the Sand Viper..."

  "Hey! Watch what you say moron! You want to jinx us and have that thing swallow us whole?!"

  "What should we do Y'meir?" The silence followed for another long moment.

  "We'll search further south. The dragons fear this desert as much as everyone else does. And only those Glow-Scales live here. We'd be wise to avoid their settlements, there are far more of them than us." There was a group agreement, then the sound of flapping feathers filled the area and soon a resounding screech echoed across the desert. After waiting about ten minutes longer, Elliona raised her wings and released Sivu amid Shanido.

  "What happened? Those were Gryphons, but why were they out here? I thought they rarely left their mountains?" Sivu asked.

  "They usually don't. But lately there have been hunting parties of six or more that travel across the land and intentionally hunt dragons. If they can find a small enough group, like us for example, they won't hesitate to attack." She paused, and glanced at Shanido. "I picked up the scent of the big owl one, and immediately told Shanido to dive and head for cover. We didn't have time to relay the message to you, we only hoped that you would be wise to follow, and you did. But we narrowly avoided them." Elliona explained.

  "Why didn't you just kill them? You're big enough to have taken on four by yourself." Sivu suggested. Elliona shook her head.

  "I wouldn't have risked fighting them. It is true, I could have killed four or five of them by myself, but they had an Apex Hunter with them. That owl one, the one they called Y'meir, he was a strong fighter, and he smelled of dragon's blood. I would have been too tired after fighting off his underlings to fight him with full strength. And if I faltered for even a moment, he could have harmed- or even killed -Shanido or yourself. I couldn't risk that happening, so I used my wings to hide you two, and my powers to camouflage myself. Thankfully, it worked." She said.

  "Yes, but not entirely." Shanido stated. "Y'meir could sense you." Elliona nodded.

  "Wait, I thought that his underlings said that he sensed the Sand Viper? Not you, what is the Sand Viper? Some sort of snake?" Sivu asked.

  "The Sand Viper is said to be a snake-like being that is 5,000 feet long, and has the head and hood of a cobra, but skin made from hard stone. The spines along its back sprout precious gems, and it is said to swallow mountains whole. Our legends tell how the Sand Viper created the desert while it was searching for the body of its mate. It was unable to find his body, so it kept circling the desert for thousands of years, thus forming the soft sand and rising dunes. But it's just a story, the Sand Viper doesn't really exist." Shanido explained with a shrug of his shoulders.

  "Well the Gryphons sure believed in it. Why would they believe in dragon lore anyway? They obviously didn't know that you were a Pandora-Drake. They called you a 'Glow-Scale'." Sivu added.

  "Who can say for sure. In some of our ancient texts, we can see carvings of dragons and Gryphons on the same side. And something unknown on the right. Perhaps they were our allies once, but when their queen was slain by a dragon, they turned on us, amid it's been that way ever since." Shanido said. "But we should keep moving. We want to arrive at the Clan Village before sundown. The cold is unbearable here at night." He added, and the three of them set off once more.

  For two more hours they flew across the desert, until they caught sight of the village. Since Shanido had been summoned by Furoes, and since the closest entrance to the Twilight Everglade was in his clan village, they headed to the Sanimoes clan refuge. As they approached, Sivu could see three massive dunes, with several large spikes of stone protruding from them. Glints of something shiny reflected light from places in the stone, and upon a second look, Sivu could tell it was a crystallized mineral of some kind, but it was a brilliant golden amber color. A few date palms grew close to the oasis, along with some reeds and other desert grasses. There were dwellings built here, but it was hard to see them from up in the sky. From the sandstorms that constantly buffeted the desert, piles of sand sat upon the roof of each house, acting as camouflage and making the building almost unnoticeable. As they began to descend, Sivu could see that there were several buildings, 20 at least. They were squared in shape, and had hooked edges on their roofs. The windows were made from glass that had been reinforced with metal edges, and looked to be about two inches thick. Upon each door hung a different colored banner with a symbol on it. Shanido was the first to land, and he was immediately met by all of the Pandoran in the village. They all showered him with affection, and the young hatchlings rushed forward to watch Elliona land. They giggled as the wind from her wings created currents of air that sent them bouncing on the breeze. When she landed and folded her wings, she laid down and allowed them to climb all over her. Sivu landed, and was surprised to be met by at least a dozen females.

  "Hey look who it is girls?!" One said.

  "Yeah! It's that awesome singer from the Blue Moon Festival!"

  "You really rocked man!"

  "Awesome work!"

  "Totally fantastic voice!"

  "I love your music, will you be holding another concert anytime soon?" Sivu was shocked at all the adoration, his only experiences with fans in the past had been bad ones, but the dragons and dragonesses here on Dovabrod were so different.

  "Sorry ladies, but that was a special, onetime thing." He said, and was immediately met with a symphony of 'Aww's' from the females.

  "You sing?" Elliona said, looking over at him with a raised eye ridge. The children still climbing all over her. Sivu blushed slightly, but shook it off as Shanido approached him.

  "Sivu, I thank you greatly for accompanying me thus far, but this next length of my journey must be done alone." Sivu raised a paw to protest, but Shanido stopped him. "Please, this matter is for the ears of royalty only. I ask that you respect that, and leave me to this. I assure you, I won't leave without you, and you'll be given whatever you need while I'm gone. All you have to do is ask someone and they will help you. But as if you need my influence to do that, you have enough devoted fans here to have them build you a temple." He chuckled. "I may be gone for a day or two, so just enjoy yourself until I return." And with that, he turned and left, heading towards the Forge.


***


  Shanido entered the Forge and looked around. The fires were burning strongly and glowing liquid metal sat bubbling in the smelter. He knew Furoes had to be around here, he would never leave his forge unattended like this. He didn't have to wait long though, for the loud, resounding CLANG of metal meeting metal echoed on the other side of the Forge. Then a flurry of sparks shot forth, followed by words being chanted in the ancient language. Shanido walked around the boiling forge and saw Furoes hammering away at a helm with his Pandorite hammer. As he hammered, he sung ancient words into the armor.


"Great fire from the earth,

Fill this metal with your soul.

Let the flames burn bright,

As my hammer brings you forth.

I shall sing these words,

Into my work.

So that they may protect,

So that they may preserve.

Oh great fire from the earth,

Bless this great work."



  "I'll never grow tired of watching you do that." Shanido said with a smile. Furoes looked up at him, then doused the glowing helm in the trough of water. Steam filled the air as the hot metal met the water and the sizzle drowned out all other sounds. Furoes closed the doors to the boiling forge and set his hammer down on his anvil. He smiled at Shanido.

  "It is secret, that only I have learned. How to use the ancient tongue, to forge armor and weapons that never dull, never break, and always carry their enchantments." He said, his deep voice booming like thunder. He retrieved the helm from the water and showed it to Shanido. "A fine piece is it not? Three days I've hammered away at it, and now it is finally ready to be adorned by an artisan, and called a true Pandoran work. But seeing my wares is not why you came here. We have somewhere more important to be." He said, placing the helm on the anvil. Shanido nodded and followed him as he headed into his house. Many of his finest works hung on the walls, including the first set of royal armor he had forged upon a stand. Furoes headed to the large fireplace in the back of his home, and whispered a word to it. Then, all at once, the stones peeled back to reveal a hidden passageway. Furoes invited Shanido in first, then followed after him, closing the secret door as he went.

  The two walked down the corridor until they entered a a vast cavern filled with glowing plants and crystals. As always when a Pandoran entered the Twilight Everglade, their blue markings gained a faint glow. The two made their way through the paths, until they came to the hidden chamber. Furoes opened the door, and led Shanido inside. The interior had been expanded a bit, and furnished to accommodate someone of royalty. And in the back of the room was the massive amber crystal with four white Pandorans sealed within it. A hole remained where the fifth one had been, but since the crystal had been found, the most skilled miners had been set to work on extracting the dragons trapped within. Shanido looked around the room, and saw what he had been summoned for. The white dragon sat at a table, covered in books and scrolls, and was reading several of them. His scales shone like moonlight, but they weren't like Neffertity's scales. They were more luminescent. Several blue markings adorned his face and body, and his horns and claws were a brilliant silver. He had four long horns that curved upward, forming a W shape. His crest consisted of arching plates that ran the length of his body, similar to Elliona's, but they were far sharper. His wings were massive in comparison to his body, and the tip of each one bore a small hooked talon. The tip of his tail looked like two layered blades, that formed an arrowhead shape. He had two short whiskers on his snout, and five spikes on his cheeks. And his eyes were a blazing red color. Shanido approached him cautiously, unsure of how exactly to speak with him.

  "Hello there." He said, and the dragon merely glanced at him.

  "I have already said that I will speak only to one of royal blood. Begone from my sight." His voice was so melodic and smooth, like someone singing. He turned his eyes back to the book before him and ignored Shanido.

  "Well, I hate to tell you this but- I am the Prince..." Shanido said with a disappointed sigh. The white dragon raised an eye ridge and looked him up and down.

  "You?" He said, incredulously. "But you are a young one, and a halfbreed at that. I can see it in your eyes, your impure blood. You may look like a Pandoran, but you are not one. You are a disgrace to this race." He said, curling a lip in distaste. Shanido boiled with rage having been insulted in such a manner. Not only was that an insult to him, but to his father, brother, and mother. And he wouldn't stand for it. His amber eyes narrowed to almost complete yellow slits in his black eyes, giving him the appearance of a Toxic-Blaze. His lips curled back in a fierce snarl and he flared his wings as he tail twitched angrily. Seeing what was about to happen, Furoes jumped in front of Shanido and pushed him back a few steps. He looked Shanido directly in the eyes.

  "My Prince, I beg that you suppress this anger and act dignified, as is your position as Prince. He is a fool to have judged you like that, but you must understand that he speaks the way he does because of his age. Please sire, don't lose yourself." Furoes said, and Shanido's eyes returned to normal. He shook his head and blinked at Furoes. Then closed his eyes and bowed his head to him.

  "Thank you Furoes, I don't know what came over me, but I won't let it happen again." Shanido said, then he walked past Furoes and stood strongly and proudly before the white dragon. "I AM THE PRINCE, and you would do well to respect that fact. I don't care how old you are, or what your ranking. Queen Moonbeam was my mother, and she gave her life to ensure that I would survive. If you do not believe I truly am the Prince, then challenge me by Ancient Rite. I know the words, and I would bleed for a thousand years before I would allow you to insult me like that again." He said, standing as tall as possible. The white dragon rose to his feet and approached him. He was about two and a half times larger than Shanido, and his large wings and massive horns made him appear much larger. He stood before Shanido as he raised his wings above his head. The membranes were tattered, and bore a deep, blood red color with veins of purple all throughout them. They cast a faint red glow down upon Shanido's face as light somewhat passed through them. Then it appeared that he was about to strike him down, but instead the mighty dragon bowed before Shanido.

  "I pray that you forgive my prior transgressions, my Prince..." He said deeply. Shanido closed his eyes and nodded.

  "I shall forgive you." He paused. "But only if you tell me who you are, and why you were sealed in that crystal with the others." The white Pandoran sat down upon a pile of nearby pillows and motioned to Shanido.

  "You may want to rest yourself my Prince, for my tale is a long and complicated one..." The Pandoran said. Shanido nodded and sat down on the adjacent pile. "Very well, I shall begin...

  When I came into this world, I was much like you and the others. My scales were black, and each night the moon would bless my body with its great glow. As I aged I sought to become a scholar, and learn all that I could. My travels brought me all over this land, and beyond. I have even crossed the great ocean, and seen things you would not think possible. We are not the only ones who could build structures from stone..." He paused, and glanced at the scrolls on the table. "For two days, I have been reading those records, and learning about everything that has transpired since I was sealed away... It came as quite a shock, when I discovered just how long it has been since the moon kissed my scales... When I reached adulthood, and I completed the Trials of the Warrior, my view changed. No longer did I desire knowledge, but adventure is what I sought. And I wasn't alone... They;" He inclined his head towards the others still trapped within the crystal. "They were my best friends, and together we set about exploring the land. We found wondrous places, and met extraordinary creatures over the years... But I still felt like something was missing from my life, that I lacked a purpose. So together, the five of us went to the Council of Elders, and asked how we could impact the world..." His expression grew grim. "The answer they gave us was a condemning one...

  The Council ordered the five of us to infiltrate the Dremoran Citadel, and kill their Queen..." Shanido's eyes grew wide. He knew that something tragic had happened to the Dremoran Queen, but he had never suspected she was murdered. "When we came to the citadel, times were good. I've seen pictures of what it looks like now, and it was very different back then... All the buildings were carved from white marble, and gold and silver embroidered every wall. Satin of the finest make adorned the homes and shops, and fantastic carved crystals lit up the city. The Solar Nightstone, as it was called, was a giant sapphire that had been blessed with magic to glow like the sun during the day, and like the moon at night. It was a true sight to behold, and the Dremorans themselves were very noble and gracious creatures. When we came to the palace, we told them we were emissaries, looking to have an audience with the Queen so that we might sign a peace treaty... We had been at war with the other races for so long..."

  "Wait- you were at war with the other races... But- the only war recorded in history between the races of Dovabrod was over-"

  "Yes... I have been frozen in that crystal, for over 10,000 years..." The white dragon said, and closed his eyes. "Everyone I knew is long dead and gone, and the only ones who remain are my four friends there in the stone... Without them, I would truly feel alone..." He paused, and collected himself. "But, as I was saying... The royal Dremoran court sent our message to the queen, but when they returned they said that the queen would only meet with us if we proved ourselves trustworthy. When we asked how we could prove it, the court said we would have to live among them... It didn't seem that bad, until we asked how many days we would have to stay... They told us that we would not being staying for a few days, but for 20 years."
Here's part two.
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