Twenty cycles of the moon after the breaking of the sky, the battle for survival continued; the dragons were losing the war. They gathered at the nest to look for options to improve their situation.
'Yesterday we lost Tilon. He was dragged away by an Ente. He died in the eternal night and then returned as an undead. We lost a lot of territory trying to stop him.' Meneol told Reivax and the others present.
There was silence for a moment. Tilon was a young, impetuous dragon, which led to his death. The news did not please any of those present, especially Torla, who belonged to the same clan and generation.
'The new world is full of weak creatures; they seem to dominate the elements of nature, including fire, but they are not very strong in general. I don't think they're the cause of this,' informed Torla.
'I agree; they are weak, fragile, and small,' confirmed Maudre.
'And still, they are the only resource we have left. For the moment, we are holding the line, but with time, we will be exhausted. Chaos never gets tired; time is not in our favor.' Reivax said.
Everybody knew he was right.
'We have already chosen the messengers. Demulaer, will go to the colony near the sea. Floo, will go to the one you find in the vicinity of the enchanted forest. Vrain, to the colony near the mountains. Maudre, you will go beyond the mountains, and Torla, you'll go to the other side of the sea. I assume that seeing the threat we are facing will be enough to convince them to join us. Don't scare them. We want their cooperation.' Levi informed everyone.
There were no objections.
'Expect to meet young, impatient, foolish, selfish, and fearful creatures. Their lives will probably be short and without a long-term vision of things. It'll be like dealing with the younger larvae. Patience is essential.' Reivax said.
The meeting was concluded, and those elected as messengers departed for their respective missions. The others returned to battle. Reivax looked to the top of the All Father and made a desperate decision. He approached the larvae.
'Today we will take a walk,' Reivax told the excited larvae that were swinging from side to side.
'Where are we going, Grandpa?' Uruk was the first to ask.
'To visit the All Father.'
The larvae stopped swinging as if they had frozen; nevertheless, their tails were very active and constantly hit the rock in excitement. For a larva, visiting the All Father meant eating a flame of life; it was every larva's dream to grow up and become a majestic dragon.
'Keep quiet. We will only visit, and I will explain to you how the flame of life is swallowed. You're still immature. Listen to me; you can't eat the flame of life until I tell you, okay?'
The larvae kept silent.
'Do you understand?'
'We understand,' they answered unanimously.
As he doubted the decision he had just taken, Reivax looked again at the top of the All Father.
'Follow me; do not go ahead; follow my instructions. Uruk, it is not the day for your games; this is serious.'
The larvae followed the road laid in the volcanic stone, following Reivax. At the end of the path, a cave opened into the interior of the volcano. The entrance and interior were so large that they could accommodate three or four adult dragons at a time.
'Wow!'
The larvae were astonished to see the inside of the cave: small burning rocks on the walls of the cavern, on the floor, and in the ceiling. They all had different colors, sizes, and temperatures. Each rock seemed to produce a low-intensity melody, like a song that could barely be heard.
'Every mature larva entering this cave must choose a flame of life. By swallowing it, it becomes one with our body; it is the source of our flames and our long life. After consuming it, the body begins to grow and grow until you become an adult.'
The larvae looked around in all directions, attracted by the colors and sounds.
'You can hear the songs, can you?'
The larvae confirmed this with their elongated heads.
'When you are mature, the song of one of the stones will be more intense for you; that is your stone; it is the gift of the All Father to you. You're still immature, which is why all the stones sound the same. But that will change one day. The All Father always gives us what we need, or at least he tries to. Let's go back now.'
'Ahhhh!' complained the larvae.
'When will we be mature, Grandpa?'
'Soon, Uruk, soon.'
The larvae and the old dragon turned around and went out of the cave. Once in the nest, Reivax addressed the larvae and gave them a series of instructions.
'Listen to me, little ones. You are not yet mature, but if at any time I tell you to go to the cave, obey without asking questions. Temma.' Reivax addressed a gray larva with black lines on the head. 'You are the oldest of your brothers. It is your duty to guide them. Enter the cave when I command you; eat the stone that resonates the most with you. The one you listen to more clearly. Remember, the All Father always gives us what we need. After getting your stone, flee, run deep into the enchanted forest, and stay there until an adult goes to pick you up. Have you understood me?'
'Grandfather, is something bad going to happen, right?' asked Temma.
'I don't know, little one, but the Great Father is restless. It's not a bad idea to prepare for the future.' Reivax answered while caressing the larva with one of his old and dull claws. Then he looked back at the top of the volcano, thinking.
"All Father, please let me be wrong and let this bad feeling be just that."
Meanwhile, on the front, the dragons fought unceasingly. The dragons, who acted as diplomatic envoys to the human world, had returned. The southern kingdom and those on the other side of the sea refused to participate. Only the three great kingdoms of the continent, Veldat, Orphem, and the Poem Dynasty, sent reconnaissance teams. Probably just because they had borders with the dragon world and the situation affected them immediately. Demulaer was the last to arrive with the dynasty's delegation, leaving Vrain in charge of explaining the situation as he joined the battle. Moreover, in a very timely manner.
'Floo, be careful,' cried Demulaer.
'Hmm? shit.' It was the only thing that Floo managed to say before being dragged inside the miasma by the branches of an Ente.
Two dragons came to the rescue, attacking with their flames both the Miasma and the branches of the Ente. They had hurt floo, but they managed to release him. He was rescued from the ground by the enormous Baham, while the others joined their flames to reduce the Ente to ashes.
The envoys of the kingdoms stayed for a week to familiarize themselves with the situation. They collaborated slightly with the dragons. Especially the magicians.
'Humans seem to be weak, but that skill they call magic is very useful. I never thought my flames could grow so much. Amazing.' Levi commented while taking a break.
The dragons had been fighting for so long that they found themselves in need of establishing rest shifts.
'Yes, and soon we will have thousands of them fueling our fire. With their help, we might be able to overcome the eternal night' Torla confirmed.
A week later, the first human soldiers arrived at the front. The alliance began to gain territory slowly. Humans fought in a more "wild" way than dragons. The shadow magicians entered the miasma in complete abandonment of their lives. This attitude surprised the dragons.
'I see. Meneol, be aware of humans; those who abandon theirs and sacrifice them without hesitation will not hesitate to sacrifice you.' advised Reivax. The more he knew about humans, the more his fears grew.
The battle continued, and a month later, the initial advance of the alliance lost strength. Humans falling into the miasma had altered the normal pattern of attack in the eternal night. There were too many zombies, and undead emerged from the humans fallen in the miasma; this made the work of the shadow magicians difficult. Mortality within the miasma increased exponentially. The human response was to send more shadow magicians to the front.
'Myasma seed, run,' cried one soldier.
The miasma seed fell to the ground, covering it with concentrated miasma. The black mud reacted with the earth, creating a miasma fog. Several humans were trapped inside the black cloud. A dragon tried to control his fire to burn the miasma without harming the humans, but some casualties were inevitable. Hundreds of Entes threw miasma seeds that day; the alliance lost territory that week. They were forced to take a step back.
'Leader Meneol, I understand your doubts, but I can assure you that your people are not in danger. We can use our magic to increase the strength of the dragons. Our magic can connect them directly to the great father from a distance. Think about it; it would be like fighting in your nest with all the support of the All Father. You said yourself, The closer to the All Father, the stronger you get. Thats an advantage we cant waste—argumented Lidia Van Flunken, Mage of the royal court of the dynasty.
Humans were pushing the dragons to allow them to fill the base of the All Father with diagrams carved in the stone; they even wanted to place diagrams in the caves inside the All Father, where the Life Stones rested.
'No,' Reivax's response was sharp. 'I won't allow it. Caves are the future of the larvae. Don't let yourself be manipulated, Meneol; humans are not to be trusted.' 'Their contribution to the battle says the opposite, Reivax. Hundreds of them die every day.'
That argument made Reivax hesitate. However, something inside him was screaming not to trust the humans.
Eventually, they were granted access to the All Father's base. The magicians of the court of the dynasty dedicated themselves to shaping diagrams all around the All Father. Lidia, Melan, and Clinton, who was always covered in a veil and now called himself Jude, were leading the process. Jude was the creator of the diagrams, along with other members of the court. His contribution became indispensable to ensuring the success of the plan, which in turn guaranteed his survival. After all, the spell that broke the barrier between the worlds was his work to begin with.
'These diagrams will restore the barrier. But they won't be enough. We need a diagram inside the volcano,' assured Jude.
Several months had passed since they began their hard work. Thousands of diagrams had been shaped on the rocks at the base of the volcano.
'The dragons will not allow it, but we have already taken action. We'll have to move fast. How long will it take us to complete the diagram?' asked Lydia.
'A couple of weeks, if we do it quickly, it must be large, precise, and cover the whole cave, if possible,' replied Jude.
'I understand. We will move on to the next phase. It's your turn, Robalt.'
One of the present men took off the veil that covered his face. The legendary mage titled Liev Tower Master, Robalt, Lord of the Winds, showed his face, surprising Clinton/Jude.
"How much hypocrisy," Clinton thought as he laughed in his mind. This was the same masters who so despised the Warlocks at Liev's Tower. The same master who allowed one innocent magician to be killed and another to be exiled now took part in the greatest arcane magic spell in history and in a world-shattering genocide.
'Make sure the dragons play along. If we manage to get the other kingdoms to send their titled master to the front, even better. Take Esmirna with you. She'll activate the dragon's diagrams. According to our calculations, their long lives should be enough to stop the progression of the miasma for the time necessary to complete the spell.' Ordered Lydia.
A woman about forty years old, thin, with black hair and white skin, approached Master Robalt. Robalt nodded to Lydia. A stream of wind surrounded him and Smyrna; they both flew in the direction of the front lines of the battle.
Meanwhile, in the nest, Reivax looked at the top of the All Father with great discomfort. An unpleasant sense of danger invaded him. He watched the larvae play; they had already become accustomed to knowing that the dragons were facing the eternal night. Reivax opened his fauces, trying to spit fire unsuccessfully, only a little amount of smoke came out of his throat. "I'm just too old," he thought as he sighed.