Every Ending Is A New Beginning

Theia's long hair swishes around as she slashes at a birch tree within the meadow; her fists covered in a golden white light that streamed up her arm like a flickering flame. The bark from the tree splinters off, leaving a hole that cuts through half of the trunk. She follows the slash with a circling backfist; knocking out another half of a tree. She then pauses, facing the rest of the forest with a determined expression. She shouts out into the depths of the forest, "Light Dragon..." taking in a deep breath, gathering magical energy in her throat, "Roar!" Finishing the spell's incantation she unleashes a large beam of light that destroys a small section of meadow in front of her.

Panting heavily, Theia drops to the ground and gazes up at the sky in defeated exhaustion. Her mind busy replaying the steps and flow of her ethernano during her training exercise; hoping to find something that could make her spells that much better. Her thoughts are brought to a close when a large figure head moves overhead to block her vision, cooling her from her previous exertion. "You have improved greatly child. In only nine years you have been able to fully execute the wide array of spells I've taught you." The deep voice booms from over Theia's head.

Theia smiles softly and sits up, crossing her legs and facing the dragon before here. "Thanks dad, but I have a lot of room to grow before I am as strong as you...My Dragon Claw's light isn't moving at a high enough speed, and my Roar isn't nearly large enough. I was only able knock down four tree's deep..." She says and gestures to the section of meadow where she was just training. She takes a deep breath, releasing almost a growl from the back of her throat as she plops back down with her back on the grass. Small beads of sweat roll down her forehead, causing the stray blonde hairs to stick to her skin. She brings her hand up in front of her face and notes the irritations and scratches on the skin's surface from using her magic up to its current limits. She clenches her fist in determination for a better tomorrow and then turns over to face the dragon that is patiently lying down in the grass beside her.

"I see the perseverance within your eyes. There is no need to worry Theia, you will continue to grow stronger, for life is never stagnant and you will push yourself harder than anyone else." Zhulong says as he looks on his adopted daughter with admiration, his head propped up on crossed legs that are lying in the grass. He then turns his snout towards the sky with a contemplative look. "Theia, there is something I must share with you... It seems as if I will need to go away for a little while..." Zhulong hesitantly says with a short sigh, gazing back down to gauge his daughter's reaction. He is met with tilted head and perplexed stare, silently asking him to explain further. Taking in another deep breath, the dragon explains, "You see, problems arise in this world that are unforeseen and unwanted. Being creatures of longevity and power, dragons have taken on the responsibility of protecting this world from those problems." Standing up from the reclined position on the grass he uses his claw to sweep the loose hairs from out of his daughter's face, and then begins to wander to the top of a nearby hill, gesturing for Theia to follow. "Now just as you humans have a leader to follow, we dragons have a king as well. Now in only times of great uneasiness does the Dragon King call a meeting, but it seems as if something has left him unsettled, for he has called an emergency meeting as of this morning. This urgency has me concerned, and so I must leave today to for the convocation."

Theia remains silent for a moment, picking up heavily on her father’s uneasiness at the news he must have heard."Don't worry dad, things will be alright! I am sure the dragon king is just taking precautions in case something actually does happen, so you shouldn't worry so much." Theia says with a forced smile and a light punch to the dragon's scale covered leg. Deep down she was rather worried herself… It wasn't the fact that Zhulong was going to leave her, she had adventured into town by herself many times before without the dragon's help and knew how to take care of herself. It was the fact that Zhulong rarely ever was uneasy or fretful, and so the fact that this summon by the Dragon King had him so rattled meant that something big was going on. Doing her best to leave the dragon with little worry while he was gone, Theia reassured him, "Well while you are at your little meeting, I will be doing my best to train hard and get even stronger! Maybe I will even go into town again and see if I can find someone who will spar against me! That way I can impress you when you get back! Speaking of, um... when will you be getting back?" She inquired while rubbing her arm in a bashful admittance of worry.

Smiling slightly at his daughter's 'subtle ways' he looks out over the field of green, admiring the way the sky begins to blush with hues of orange and red as the sun sets down over the horizon. Zhulong looks down as he becomes lost in the thoughts of the future. "There is no real answer to that my child, I apologize. I have no knowledge of what the Dragon King has foreseen, and so I do not know what needs to be discussed. It is because of this that I will be taking you to an old friend of mine, my old pupil actually, that will help you advance in your training and watch over you while I am away. I had stopped by his home on my way back here, and he has agreed to do me such a great favor. I hope that is ok with you?”

Theia mentally trips up on the notion that she will be staying with a stranger for who knows how long. Someone who she had only heard small snippets about from the stories of her father, yet had never gotten a good sense of what this “old pupil” was really like. But she trusted in her dad’s judgment and knew that this man was the second best teacher she could have when it came to learning her own special form of magic. Theia purses her lips and nods her head, agreeing with Zhulong and his plan.

“Don’t fret now Theia, he is a man of honor and strength; and the only other pupil I have deemed worthy enough to teach my magic to. The fact that he is able to control such power shows that his heart is true, remember? He will help you become stronger, and help teach you things about the human world that I could never do,” Zhulong convinces, reflecting on times where he was unable to accompany Theia into town for fear of retaliation due to his origin. “I do not know how long this convocation will last, but I will promise you that if I do not return by the night of the third sunset, I will send out a light of my own into the sky so that you know I am okay." Zhulong says as he nudges Theia with his snout, eliciting a giggle from her. "No need to worry about me, your dad can take care of himself. I am a mighty dragon, am I not?!" He says with a boisterous laugh and he nudges Theia again in a playful manner.

Tired from her training, Theia throws back a few soft punches to her father's face before she collapses on the bridge of his snout, hugging him in adoration. Although only a fraction of his size, Zhulong feels the radiating emotions coming from the love of his child. Theia speaks up softly, "I love you dad..."

Leaning down to slide the girl off of his nose, the dragon smiles at his daughter; the sunset beginning to cast a sense of warmth over all of her features. "I love you too my child, but we must be going now. We have quite some distance to travel.” He turns his body, giving Theia the room she needed to climb up his arm and lie flush against his back. She wraps her hands in the flowing golden hair of Zhulong’s sideburns, her knuckles turning white from her grip on what ultimately keeps her in place on the journey. She doesn’t even pay attention to how long they are flying, or even where they land, as her mind has gone into autopilot from the overwhelming amount of new information and change that had come her way in only a few hours.

The smell of pine and smoke alert draw her from her haze as she realizes that Zhulong had brought her to what appears to be a glamorous wood cabin hidden in a mountain forest. She could see a tall, muscular figure standing next to a glowing fire with his hands shoved deep in a wool coat. The man in front of the cabin was looking almost as emotionally numb as Theia felt right now, as she watched him bow in respect to the glorified beast. He give the two time to say thier goodbyes, his onyx beard seemed to flash in the flickers of the fire’s light, remaining stoic against his hard jaw line; where as his golden eyes were flickering just as wildly as the flames between Theia and the topaz dragon she was climbing off of.

Theia hit the ground with soft feet, the fallen pine needles acting as a cushion that she was not used when compared to the floral meadow she had come to call home. Her eyes were beginning to fog over with anticipation of his departure, as she choked out the only words she could say, “I’ll miss you…” She wasn’t quite sure what made her say this now, as Zhulong had left her many a time before to go on trips; but this time it was too uncertain. There was an ominous feeling about it that didn’t sit well in Theia’s heart.

“And I will miss you as well my child... Remember, look to the sky if you ever feel lonely. It is the sun and stars that holds our strength and love. It is that same light that shines within you and I. It is what connects us. Remember that Theia." He gives her another warm smile, backing up away from the house, casting one last longing glance at the delicate features of his daughter as he lifts off the ground and begins flying into the outstretched sky.

Theia nods as her eyes begin to well up with tears. She doesn't dare speak, for fear of letting her emotions overrun her composure, but she is saddened at the possibility that her dad might not come back. The world she lives in doesn't think too fondly of dragons, and only sees them as means of destruction. It is out of this fear that dragon's are being hunted out into extinction, not only by humans, but by other dragons as well. The dragons that help humans are seen as vile creatures who betray their own race, and so dragons such as Zhulong are a big target out in the world.

But Theia knows in her heart what the truth is. She knows that not all dragons are destructive. They aren't vile creatures. They are powerful and cogent, but loving and harmonious. She knows that Zhulong would never threaten any living creature, and will fight till the end to protect this world. Theia knows this to be true. And she knows that he will come back to her. He has to...