CHAPTER I: INTRO - LIGHT REFLECTIONS (1)

(1)

The flames cornered the entrance of the great fief. Incandescent bursts of fire deplored the citadel. Through the reflection of the bordering lagoons, a tragedy never seen in the South was being perpetuated. The rooftops of the dwellings fell into pieces. The main columns collapsed. An air of despair invaded the interior of the makeshift shelters, where the natives tried to protect themselves in vain. Some of them were hidden in the middle of the underground alleys; others did not run with the same fate, and were forced to flee between the narrow passages of the unfortunate kingdom. Screaming and crying. Ducking their heads. Avoiding being impassively devoured. Women and children were consumed by fragility, and fear seized their innocent hearts, in the presence of the gigantic shadows that had taken over the frightful skies.

A single man was outside the fortress, static, among the bushes. He held his ax with both hands. Floating in a sea of mirage. Contemplating the destructive prelude of the home he had built over the years, with and for love. He was delirious in the cold night, for his mind could not accept what he saw. It was an attack by the same divine creatures who, with their own blood, had once sworn to protect them in the face of every evil.

There were no possibilities of salvation, but even so, the King was going to defend himself. His people were not weak. The catapults of fire launched enormous stones that flew in flames through the cold firmament. These had been located at the top of the Great Wall, along with one hundred and fifty men. The best archers attacked with poisoned arrows, which had been carefully prepared by the Queen. She ordered them to position themselves in the highest lookout points of the kingdom, and in the main towers, they tried to bring down the huge spawns. Thousands of men surrounded the front of the great fortress; likewise, they waited for the imminent fall of the tainted wall to attack the beasts. A robust defense and as always, prepared for battle; but no kingdom could be prepared for an invasion of four hundred dragons.

The sky was covered with reddish smoke, and the men of the land of the brave blared out in pain when the beasts devoured them in their path. Kneeling on their way. But the king´s conviction was greater than their fears. He stood with his people. Guide them throughout the uncertainty. He rose over the crumbling rubbles of the fallen columns, and waved their flag in the heights of his nation, one last time. Rising their hearts with hope. Above all their doubts. Fearlessly, he led the attack. The weakened lines of the militia group stood up once again; transforming into a deadly fire force. Inspired by the unstoppable energy of the king. The brave man, were back on the war.

However, the Queen screamed in helplessness. A trembling agony consumed her from the bowels of the shelter where she was fruitlessly hiding; the most protected place, nevertheless, of the Great Kingdom. She loved her town and acknowledged her people, but she knew well it was only a matter of time before the beasts would eradicate her home, find her, and destroy what remained left of her broken heart.

The King, from the outside, kept sending signals of the attack, and fearlessly commanded the great defense. The place was covered with deadly fire which consumed the abandoned houses, and surrounded lethally his militia group.

“Attack the necks of the beasts! Unsheathe your swords!” said the King.

“Sir, they are tremendously big! We can't hold on anym–”

“Where is your dignity?!” he demanded. “Raise your faces! I have said to unsheathe your swords! Aim at their heads, and attack the necks of those beasts! It's too late for cowardice; it's too late for fear!”

With his ax on his left and his oak sword on the right, he led the defense of his people. From the highest points, the archers managed to bring down some of the beasts. At this point, the catapults of fire had been mostly destroyed by the creatures, as the great wall quickly crumbled.

The kingdom fell, and people fell apart with its broken strongholds; the shattered barriers. Small huts were destroyed, and the air mills crumbled ceaselessly; turning into meaningless dust. The defense was no longer resisting, and the king knew it. He gave an honorable battle, but his strongest points were quickly dismantled. The beasts found the shelters, and the wood that covered the walls of the hidden refugees transformed into fire by the voracious breaths of the creatures. People left in despair, but many of them were trapped on the way. The town started to burn in suffering.

In battle, the King witnessed the end of his best soldiers. His copper ax had been broken, and when he saw his general bending his knees in defeat, he knew the time had come. The King grabbed a new helmet. Took the broken sword of the fallen general with his right hand; threw down his ax, and climbed the stairs of the last stone tower that remained standing.

The beast was looking for the King, and on the way, started to throw bursts of fire that crumbled the bricks of the spiral stairs. The fortress was falling into pieces. The man, however, continued to climb it. Every step he took, could ultimately be his last one. The stairs led him to the top of the tower, where there were no exits. Where there were no escapes. Where the end, was waiting for him. He had no choice, but to face the titanic monstrosity. Slowly, the evil creature ascended over the cold heights of the place; until the dragon stood static in front of the man. Trembling, he took out his new helmet, and showed his face to the dragon. It was the greatest beast of them all. He exposed his immense wings. Showed his sharp teeth. Expanded his giant mouth; displaying the accretion of a gleaming fire from his anticipated roar. The man felt the deepest fear. The dark call, of the death.