The Jade Dragon: Chapter 19

It's been 3 days since I left the Boulder Canyon.  I'll admit I was running low on supplies.  So, while I was sitting at dinner that night, I wrote down all I'd need to buy.  Unfortunately, it was still a 4 day walk to Umiton, so I could only hope there's a village between here and Umiton.  After I finished my dinner, which was a roasted wild chicken, some boiled catniss roots, and a soup made of the last of my domestic broccoli and some wild goat cheese.  After I had cleaned up, I went to organizing my outfits.  It took some time since I had made so many since my journey began.

After that was done, I got out my sewing kit.  I then took all the dresses that had rips or loose threads and mended them so it was impossible to tell they were ever frayed.

I owe my great sewing skills to my mother.  She insisted that I should know how to cook fancy food, sew dresses and mend, how to preserve meats, fruits, and vegetables, how to clean, and how to make jewelry and high heel shoes.  I never gave it much thought before.  It just seemed like unnecessary knowledge.  But maybe my mother was preparing me for my journey.  I realized that my whole life was strange before I found out the truth.  How it all began was sudden.  It started when I was just three years old...

It was a full moon that night.  Even though okaa-sama(mother) told me never to leave the house, I felt compelled beyond reason to leave.  I walked out of the house on my bumbling legs that were still mastering walking.  I was pulled to a small pond not too far from the house.  I closed my eyes and had the strangest feeling.  It was like something was emanating from my soul.  I opened my mouth and sang.  Then my body started to dance with a grace I knew I didn't have.  Once the moon was at its highest, my mother found me and scolded me.  But, although I didn't notice it at the time, she looked panicked.

The next big incident was when I was five.  I was going to the large pond that had lots of fat fish in it to go fishing.  Then, I was suddenly attacked by monsters.  I was too far from the house to get there before I was killed.  As the monsters were about to pounce on me, I screamed and put my arms over my head.  There was a huge flash of light.  When it dissipated, I was holding the sword I use now in my right hand, the bow I use now in my left hand, and a quiver on my back.  I had no idea where they had come from.  But, because okaa-sama had started training me for hunting with a sword and a bow, I knew what to do.  That incident still bugs me from time to time.

When I was seven I had a really weird incident.  I was following a doe's trail.  Then I finally caught up to it.  As I drew my bow, ready to kill the doe, an image flashed in my mind.  It was of a really handsome man with blond hair, wearing white armor with sapphires studded on it and gold patterns, a white quiver, an elegant white bow, and a beautiful white sword in hand.  When I finally got the image out of my head, the doe was gone.  I was annoyed that that image in my head made me lose my prey, but I was more confused than annoyed by that image.  Now that I reflect on it, that image must have been Ayren.

All my life I had known that I was of the Warrior of White Light's line.  Oddly, or I thought so at the time, my mother refused to tell me anything about the legend.  It wasn't until two days before my sixteenth birthday, the day she was killed, that she told me the legend...

'No one knew where the Hell Dragon came from.  However, upon his descent upon Alteran, it took only 100 years for him to gain complete control.  The people lived in constant fear.  The Hell Dragon, the Hell Generals, the leaders of the Dark Soldiers, and the Dark Army ruled with a choking grip.  All the major cities had to pay massive sums of money to be kept safe from the Dark Soldiers.

No one knew if the Hell Dragon was the cause, but many places became stuck in perpetual hazardous conditions.  Most believe it was due to the Shrines that the Hell Dragon created.  The purpose of the Shrines was to guard the barrier that protected the Hell Palace, home of the Hell Dragon.

The year that the Hell Dragon conquered Alteran was called 0 CE (Chaos Era).  For 15000 years, the Hell Dragon ruled.  Then, on the year 15000 CE, a warrior appeared.  The warrior was clothed in white armor and wielded the sword of Hell's bane, the Sword of White Light.  The warrior was accompanied by a green dragon.  The warrior, together with the green dragon, went to all the Shrines and defeated the Hell Generals, then the warrior destroyed the catalysts that powered the barrier around the Hell Palace.  After a lengthy battle, the white warrior and the green dragon defeated the Hell Dragon and the Dark Army.  Due to his victory, the white warrior was given the name, the Warrior of White Light and the green dragon was given the name, the Jade Dragon.

That year was known as the year 0 HE(Hope Era).  In the year 20 HE, the Warrior of White Light's son was born.  In 25 HE, the Warrior of White Light visited the Prophet of Alteran.  There, he learned of the future of Alteran.  So he sealed his powers and sent them to the Shrines.  Then, he told Alteran that the Hell Dragon would return in the year 1500 HE.  But assured the world that he, the Warrior of White Light, would return 500 years after that.  Then, the Warrior of White Light, the Jade Dragon, and the Sword of White Light, simply vanished.  To this day, their whereabouts remain a mystery...'

That was our family's version of the legend.  I always knew about the common legend, but never the family one.  As I grew older the incidents happened more and more often.  But, at the time, I didn't understand them.  So I wouldn't dwell on them.

Once I snapped out of memory land, I realized it was time for bed.  So I got into the white nightgown I made and got in bed.  This is like a broken record, but my night got interesting.

I was walking through a dark cave.  Someone was walking ahead of me, telling me to be careful and not to look to the sides. Something then catches my eye, it's my mother!  I rushed to follow her.

“Okaa-sama!!” I cried.  “Come back!  Please don't leave me!!”

But she keeps going.  Then, she stops and pulls out her sword.  Suddenly she was surrounded by Dark Soldiers.  I desperately tried to reach her, but I couldn't get close.  As the Dark Soldiers rushed towards my mother, I tried even harder to get to her, but to no avail.  As they were about to overwhelm her my dream changed.

Suddenly, I was splashing my way through thick mud.  Then I saw quicksand pits. But all the trees in the area had thick, sturdy vines.  So I grabbed onto one and climbed to a limb of one of the trees.  I use the vines to get from tree to tree. But I have plenty of times where I nearly sank into the quicksand.  By the time I see solid ground, I'm all sweaty and covered with mud.  I look up and see what looks like a Shrine with vines all over it.  I walk towards what looks like a tall stone.  As I'm about to put my hand on the stone, I wake up, panting.

I got up and did my morning routine.  I decided to wear my dress with a white top half with a strip of pink at the chest line, spaghetti straps, long sleeves that went from my elbow to my wrist, a red bow in front at the waist line, a pink skirt area that went to my knees, and pink high heels with a white bow as a strap.

I had a quick breakfast of bread, cheese, and milk.  After I cleaned up, I packed up and hit the road.  About 3 hours later, I saw a good sized village.  I went in and saw a market selling every type of meat, fish, vegetable, fruit, cooking materials, spices, and exotic ingredients in the world.  I went to the first shop, which was for meats.

“Hello.” the lady at the stall said.  “Welcome to Cassitonita's meat shop! Cassitonita exports food to every town and village in Alteran.  What can I get for you?”

I bought a lot of everything at the entire market and still had plenty of money left, none of which was from the left-overs of the family fortune.  So, I saw what looked like a restaurant and went in.  I took an empty table.  A girl came over with a small basket of little biscuits that smelled wonderful.  She gave me a menu and asked what I wanted to drink.  I told her lemonade.  I decided to order a prime rib with garlic mashed potatoes and broccoli.  After I finished my food I paid the bill and left.

I left Cassitonita and continued on my way to Umiton.  Little did I know, there was a deadly trap waiting for me there...