The boys were sitting in front of a fireplace looking through some old books from the library. They had firmly decided to wait until El and Ada returned from their mission. Arcada desperately tried to send the kids to bed a couple of times but gave up in the end and just handed them a stack of books about elemental magic.

- By the way, I wanted to ask for a long time: why all the spells and dimensions’ names are in Latin? – Nick stared at the old wizard.

- Ah right! It is all in Latin, I haven’t even noticed… - Sam rubbed his chin.

- Hmm, in what? – Arcada replied thoughtfully.

- In Latin. Latin language. – the older twin explained.

- Oh! That’s how you call the Prolanguage at Terra Maria… I see. This is an ancient language of the first witches and wizards. They were the first to master magical energy and document it all. After they developed teleportation techniques, they and their descendants spread this knowledge, Prolanguage and its dialects to most other Terras. El didn’t tell you anything about ancient history?

- Not that we asked… - Sam awkwardly smiled – Who were those ancient witches and wizards?

- The First Forty-six. They used to be the rulers of Nulla Meridianus. It used to be an ordinary Terra many centuries ago…

- Yes, El told us about that. Then there was a star explosion or something like this… - Nick interrupted.

- Exactly. Good, she told you at least something. Ages ago monarchs of Nulla gathered to find a way, how they could save their world from their dying star. They experimented with energies and human abilities and discovered that some of them could connect the mysterious magical energy and use it according to their will. Those were The First Forty-six who later saved Nulla and established thirty ancient noble houses that still rule over Nulla Meridianus. – Arcada took a sip of something that Tarnan considered to be tea.

- Oh, so, the stuff that Ada says about her noble family is not just boasting? – Sam chuckled.

- It is not. Iduna’s family is the last direct descendant branch of The House of Vesti.

- And you? – Nick looked at the old wizard with interest.

- I am as well. My ancestors belonged to The House of Alsinde. But unfortunately, I am the last descendant of blood. – Arcada’s eyes filled with sadness.

- So, you use this Prolanguage for the whole magic? – Nick quickly tried to change the topic as he noticed that the last question left the magician upset.

- Hmm… Almost. Dark magicians have always been outcasts among the magical community. That’s why they prefer to use their own language. We call it The Language of Fallen. You can ask El about it later.

- Or you can ask the one who taught her this language. - Deas entered the room - Get up, I have a task for you. Help Varana to harness the dragons.

- The dragons? - Sam got very excited.

- You want to send the children to those giant, carnivorous creatures? - Arcada frowned.

- Right, I want to send you all and hope that the dragons will do the deed. - the young man grinned.

- Why do you need dragons at night? - asked Nick.

- I want to raise the dead from the surrounding lands. They will be my army.

- Like the monsters of that other necromancer? - Sam shivered.

- Silly child. That necromancer tortures and kills those animals to then put a very perverse form of life in them. I wouldn't do something that disgusting. All I need are empty vessels that I am going to fill not with life but with my will to fight for Terra Terrorem. Now go, don't make the Lady wait.

- Are those dragons dangerous? - Nick asked the old wizard after Deas had left the room.

- Well... Shouldn't be too bad if their master joins us. – the man shrugged.

A long and narrow tunnel connected the castle with a giant barn. Two huge, strong dragons were already waiting there. The boys' mouths opened in surprise as they had entered the barn. Previously they had seen dragons only in books of fairy tales and couldn’t imagine how majestic those creatures were in real life. The mighty animals shook their long necks. Both dragons were around 6 meters high, dark red, had long metal horns and metal spikes on their tails.

Lady Varana had already ordered to bring two big leather sets of saddles and bridles. She walked between her pets and patted them. The Lady was a tall middle-aged woman with wide shoulders and long gray hair. Her husband, Marlik, looked rather ridiculous next to her. He was a short, thin hectic man who pretty much reminded a Chihuahua. Now he was also running after Varana, trying to tell her something. Seemed like he was disturbing one of the dragons, so the huge animal knocked him down with its powerful tail.

- Hmm, aren't those two from Terra Ferrum? - Arcada asked the woman who bend over her helpless husband.

- Right. A couple of Ferranian Spiked. - she replied proudly - A smuggler I know brought me two eggs years ago.

- Oh, that explains a lot... - Arcada sighed.

The hectic man meanwhile got back on his feet and started quickly mumbling again.

- Flying at night! My love! It is a bad idea! Those are not completely trained! What if they disobey? No! You can't fly! No!

- Lapis Compedibus! - Lady waved her hand.

The man froze with his mouth open and turned into a stone monument before he managed to finish his phrase.

- My love, sometimes you are so irritating… Put him somewhere to a safe place, I’ll disenchant him later… - Varana ordered to servants – Come, old man. One of those boys will help me and another – you. We need those dragons in an hour.

Sam was about to explode with a whole bunch of questions about dragons. He stepped towards the Lady, but his brother grabbed his hand and pushed him back.

- You will stay with Arcada. – Nick strictly whispered.

- But!

- I don’t want you to be turned into stone as well!

- Okay, reasonable. – Sam nodded.

Varana waved her hands and commanded the dragons to snuggle to the ground. Two mighty creatures obeyed. The Lady and Arcada grabbed heavy saddles and climbed on the backs of the creatures. The twins helped with bridles and numerous fasteners. They both were slightly afraid to come that close to the dragons. Big jaws with sharp fangs were more than impressive. Big dark brown eyes carefully followed every movement of the brothers.

Sam closed one more fastener, stretched out his hand, and touched the neck of the dragon. The scales were rough and hard but very warm. The boy felt the animal breathing steadily.

- Those are my favorite! - Varana declared proudly – Ferranian Spiked is one of the biggest dragon kinds of all Terras. They are hard to tame, but it is worth it.

- What other kinds do you have? – Nick asked quietly.

- Well, of course, Terrorian Mutated but those are very unstable. I also have Solisian Sand Dragons – the woman glanced at the old wizard - and Montenian Rockclimbers and some Silvisian Pixy Dragons. Unfortunately, smugglers can’t always get the eggs I want, otherwise, I would have much more.

After the dragons were harnessed, the Lady, as promised, disenchanted her husband. He was slightly offended but didn’t dare to argue with his powerful wife. He asked Varana minimum a hundred times to be careful and observed with Arcada and the twins how two giant creatures soared into the air with the Lady and Deas on their backs.

The rest of the evening the brothers spent in the main parlor sitting at the fireplace. They heard loud blasts of cold wind, sinister moaning, and nails or even claws scratching coming from the outside. Arcada said it was normal for the awakening of the dead, but it was quite clear, the old magician didn’t feel very peaceful as well. Sam looked out of the window only once and saw something, that he had previously seen only in movies about zombies. Fortunately, El and Ada returned soon enough, which made the boys feel a little bit safer.