The Heart of a Dragon
I'm not quite sure what it was that changed or what it was that changed me. No, I take that back- I know exactly what it was- a book. What I can't explain is what is so special about this book. All I know is that my life felt forever changed.
It had been a long time since I felt like myself, years really. I don't remember the last time I've felt this clear-headed. Some how things had finally clicked and I was back to myself again.
Ardent was not a beautiful girl, a woman to be honest. Ofcourse all that could change with a flick of her wrist. Magic seemed to be woven into every inch of her being. She used it wisely although often in the manner of a child.
Today's look of choice was long, flowing turquoise hair. Her pale aquamarine eyes barely stood out against her silver-green tinted skin. A long azure velvet dress graced her body.
Today she was five foot three.
Looking out a small window in her huge stone castle, Ardent whispered to herself, "I wonder where he is."
"I'm right behind you, silly," came a voice over Ardent's shoulder.
"I thought I told you not to use your magick in here," she said quite plainly. "We have to be careful, for only the gods know who's watching us."
"Not so," replied the owner of the voice. "I've placed hands full of these crystals in trees all over the forest." He handed Ardent a small, white crystal just barely big enough to fit into the palm of her hand.
"Now we can watch Them watching Us."
"Nice trick, Deignian, but won't they notice us watching them?"
"I've cast a spell over the crystals so that we can play back any moment in time we wish. That way we don't have to constantly monitor the crystals."
"Neat trick, but you didn't answer my question."
"R-ight," the small elf answered, his cheeks obviously burning a darker shade of green then normal. "Errr... I suppose when you want to replay a moment you should place another crystal directly in front of it. That should filter out any nosey-bodies you don't want watching you."
"If you're sure," Ardent said as she got up and kissed the elf on the cheek. "Thank you, Deignian."
She was quite positive she had never seen Deignian turn that dark a shade of green before.
"You're quite welcome, Ardent," he finally mustered after a few seconds of embarassed silence. "Let me know if there's anything else you need."
"Speaking of-," Ardent's eyes lit up as she spoke, a thought occurring to her. "Silver's been sick again and I think Sapphire is swallowing fireballs. Could you take a look?"
"Oh dear, I'll head straight down to the courtyard to take a look. I might have to stop back at The Store," he shuddered at the look Ardent gave him, "to pick up some more fire repelent for Sapphire. This earth atmosphere is just not the right place for a Tarzapian dragon."
"Yes, yes, I know. Something about the place brings out their ancestral being... Imagine a world filled with dragons the breathe fire!"
"Anyway," Deignian sighed at this, "I must be off to look at those two. I'll have to look in my guild book for a cure for Silver. Don't see many llamas in this part of the world, you know."
"I know, I know. Goodbye dear soul."
There was a chill in the air as the world shifted so that where a five foot elf formally was standing there was nothing but the chilling breeze.
"I hate it when he leaves without saying goodbye," Ardent sighed as she glanced out the window once again.
It was spring time, no- nearly spring but still late winter. How many years had passed she wasn't sure. It still felt like only yesterday when she arrived on Deignian's home world. How lucky for her to have arrived right into the arms of another Tarzapian.
Ardent didn't remember much about her home planet and most of what she did remember was thanks to Deignian. He taught her a lot about Tarzap. It was a small planet, not quite as big as Earth. The whole world was covered in water, with just a few spots of land at the surface. At first glance you wouldn't believe any humanoids could live and thrive here.
But they did. Deep below the surface there was what Deignian said was a huge civilization. Protected by a dome of magick, the Tarzapians could swim through the air or walk, just like the humans on Earth. You'd never know there was a massive ocean surrounding it all.
Deignian recalled that there was even a rose garden grown with magick, in the castlegrounds. He once told Ardent that everytime a rose was picked or cut just like magick, one would return in it's place.
She wished she could see that. She wished she could return to the planet she never really got to call home. She wasn't even sure why she had been sent away, why Deignian refused to take her there. "It's dangerous," was his constant reply.
Thinking back to that day.... she tried to remember leaving Tarzap but she could not. It had been too long, eons. Earth was just barely a newborn planet when Deignian brought her here. So long ago...
She tried to remember arriving at Deignian's home, but blast, she couldn't even remember the planet's name. Secretly she believed Deignian wouldn't tell her the name of the planet for fear that it might give away Tarzap's location.
Why didn't he want her going there? It was her home world, afterall. His, too, when it came down to it.
This site was created November 1, 2001
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