Once a upon a time, there were two great kingdoms and they were both ruled by a king and a queen. One kingdom was named Darastrix and the other was Pyrrhaxus, these kingdoms were very different from each other because their rulers ruled differently.

Darastrix prosperred under King Ethelwulf's rule while the neighboring kingdom, was always under constant turmoil because it's ruler was a cruel and ruthless man who would stop at nothing until he had conquerred all the lands in the realm of Seraphaeus.

And his name is Niflkaos.

The realm of Seraphaeus was filled with magical creatures and the one that stood out the most was the dragon race. Dragons were considered as sacred and to bond with one was a great privilege for anyone. Usually, the dragon would choose someone of the royal lineage and sometimes, they would choose the commoners and they would compete in a great competition.

The dragon riders will compete in a special arena and the champion will be given the title of Ioth Sargt which means Holy Guardian in Draconian, the ancient language of dragons. The champions were always a male and so far, there was no record of a female dragon rider in the history of Darastrix but fate has it's own way of working as your story unfolds.

You grew up in an orphanage, no one knew where you came from and you were found on the doorsteps when it was raining heavily. Your task was to wash the clothes and bedsheets and hunt every single day, because it requires strength and speed, you gradually grew stronger and faster.

Today's a sunny day and it is also the day that marked your 17th birthday, even though you were somewhat tomboyish, you grew into a very beautiful girl despite the hardships you went through. The only person who truly cared about you was Maria, the person who took care of you since you were just a baby. She was very much like a mother to you and she gave you a strange egg-like object and a letter.

This is the day where you earned your freedom, no longer bound to the orphanage or to anyone in there. You went to the place whenever you felt stuffy or upset, it was also the place where you had imaginary conversations with your parents. You opened the letter that was addressed to you and read it's contents which was filled with what you assumed was your mother's handwriting.

My dear you...

If you are reading this, that means you're already blossomed into a fine young woman and I couldn't be more happier if I could see you right now but I no longer exist. Time is not on my side as I write therefore, I must make haste with the remaining time I have left. My sweet child, you are not an ordinary person. Our family comes from a lineage of dragon riders and my dear child, you are the next in line for the throne of Darastrix.

Klaus and I devised plans to protect you from Niflkaos, the king of Pyrrhaxus because he wanted to kill you to prevent the next generation of dragon riders from being born. I knew I had to leave you somewhere harsh so that you could learn to be strong-willed, we could not bring ourselves to do such cruel things to you but Niflkaos has given us no option as he sent his hunters after us.

The black object that I've placed next to you when you were just a baby is an egg, it is a dragon egg. It chose you to be it's rider and it is a great privilege, if you could learn and master the old ways then you might have a chance to end Niflkaos' cruel reign and avenge us. Once you've become one with the dragon, you can enter the competition and earn back your rightful place from Ethelwulf's son. Your cousin--Leon who will be the next king.

We love you so much, my dear child and we're truly sorry for leaving you alone.

With love,

Helen.

You were sobbing uncontrollably by the time you finished reading but thank goodness no one was there with you. The letter filled you with a burning desire to defeat the murderer who robbed you of your parents, Niflkaos is responsible for this unpardonable crime and you will see to it that he does not go unpunished by your hands. You held up the egg and wondered what it would look like when it has grown into an adult.

I don't know what you look like but I will still love you even though you look fierce and ugly. You smiled as you held it close to your heart. The egg seemed to respond to your thoughts and began to crack, you were surprised as the cracks glowed silver and out came a baby dragon with black scales. It stared at you and went closer, nudging you and you instantly loved the dragon.

You were a hunter so you had no problem living in the wild, the dragon stayed by your side and you taught it how to fly. It couldn't fly really well at first but it gradually got better. After living in the forest for a few weeks, it grew slightly bigger and it could fly perfectly. You thought something went wrong when it started to ram itself into the tree, you started to panic when mist started to emit from the dragon and it cut you when you tried to touch it.

When the mist cleared, out came a very large black dragon with silver lines and markings. You stumbled back in surprise and started to make a run for it but it caught up with you. Hey, wait...! Don't run! A voice sounded in your mind and you stopped. Did the dragon just talked?! You thought to yourself. I am Mercurius, I have waited for almost five millenias for you, you... It spoke again inside your mind.

Please do not be afraid of me, young one. Your mother entrusted me to you because she knew I would hatch in your presence when the right time comes and that time is now! Niflkaos does not know that you have me and Leon is too weak to resist him, you must restore Darastrix to it's former glory before Pyrraxhus destroy this peaceful land! Come, and I shall train you in the ways of a dragon rider!

Mercurius lowered itself and nudged you to ride on it's back, you weren't very sure if it was safe at first but you got on it's back and held on tightly to one of it's spiky manes. The feeling of flying in the sky was greater than you could've imagined, it was so inexplicably great. You laughed in content as you felt the clouds in your hand as if you could grab it.

This is fun! Mercurius chuckled and swooped higher. While flying, Mercurius taught you how to handle him, it was pretty easy but when it came to controlling his powers, it was very hard because Draconian tongue was only spoken by a select few even among dragon riders. You felt honoured that Mercurius taught you how to speak his tongue and you jot down every word he taught you in a little book.

Try saying 'ixen' but be careful where you point your hand at. Mercurius instructed and you did as you were told, facing a patch of grass. As the word escape your lips, that patch of grass was lit on fire. How do you feel now? He asked. I feel fine, why? Am I supposed to feel something? You asked as you laid down on the grass, his tail coiled around you and protecting you.

It's rather strange because you don't feel any effects after casting a Draconian spell... You are special, you. Mercurius covered your body with his large wing and slept. The tournament will be held in a few week's time and Leon would be there to watch, instead of preparing his army against Niflkaos. Luckily, you were already trained and you were close to perfecting your spells but you were just a novice rider.

Nonetheless, you will prove yourself in the arena and defeat Niflkaos for your parents' sake. Time passed by quickly and the day came, you weren't nervous because you had confidence that you could remember all Mercurius had taught you. Since you were only a nobody so you had to start from the bottom and compete with other riders who were experienced.

Your turn came and you sat on the saddle provided by the beast master, Mercurius huffed at the feeling of the saddle placed onto his back and tried to throw it off but he endured it. You were up against a man riding a green dragon, he was smiling arrogantly and you hated guys like that. Because this was the first time there was a female dragon rider, everyone paid attention as the match started.

We shall crush them, have faith in me and yourself, you. Mercurius gave you words of encouragement and you blasted a plant spell at them, rendering the dragon immobile and snarling at you. With a hand motion as if you were pulling something down, the tendrils that held the dragon in place pulled them down on your command.

You were declared the winner of the match and everyone couldn't believe it. The results were the same, match after match, you remained undefeated and you rose to be the new champion of Darastrix much to everyone's shock. News of the new champion spread far and wide even to the barre