March 15th

I sat on a tree stump outside a log cabin. It was the fifth day of traveling, and I had just woken up from my dreams, the first person awake. We were quite close to the Blackstone Mine, and much of the Junior Squad was getting tired of walking.

The last night, we had decided to get some decent bedding, stopping by the house of someone who apparently owed Reco a small favor, who provided us quarters.

Cobaltio was busy writing simple sentences into the dirt with his sharp claws while I pondered the last few dreams, scribbling notes onto paper to make sense of it all.

The dreams continued on from one of my previous dreams, where Sayanica had been nervous, and some girl who Sayanica later called Layas was trying to calm her down. Up until a few days ago, it had been the first time the dreams weren’t of that frozen world. I began describing what happened in the dream...

The great castle gates loomed over me as I stepped out of the carriage with Layas, holding her hand. Unlike my own residence, this castle was separated from the surrounding city via a courtyard much larger than my own, which spread out for a few hundred yards, filled with greenery, hills, streams, and outposts.

However, that was only the surface of the difference. The gates in front of me were nearly the size of the walls that surrounded my own castle, wrought of iron and ornate bronze.

Slowly, I moved my gaze upward, trying to comprehend the sheer size of the castle. There were four wings, formed in a Y shape, with the central living quarters in the center. While the outer wings were built with a mix of blackish-grey stone and reddish, conventional bricks, the center had yellowish bricks, which seemed to spiral upward.

This was the first time that I, personally, saw what the castle really looked like, as color almost seemed to drain from it in that frozen world.

Hovering a hundred feet above the three wings were three watchtowers connected to a central observatory that was built up in a mind-twisting pattern. My own home hardly had any enchantments, let alone flying watchtowers. Sorcerers had grown sparse when our people were cursed.

I gulped and gripped Layas’s hand tighter as the gates suddenly began to move, directing my attention with their loud creak. The two armored guards who blocked the gate shuffled out of its way, and the third person at the gate, a woman wearing a colorful, scarflike accessory over her head, kneeled and closed her eyes, a fist on her chest.

The four emerging people were accompanied by a squad of guards, all but one with their helms on. One, who I presumed to be the King of Vorlaxia, stood above his two family members. He wore clothes similar to my father: a poncho that hung down to his knees, sewn with his nation’s colors: purple, red, and green. Unlike my father’s, his was encrusted with expensive gems that correlated with the colors. The poncho draped over his hands, as was tradition.

Self-conscious, I quickly took my hand from Layas’s and placed both of them behind my back, hoping they wouldn’t notice my bad manners.

Beside him was the queen, a woman draped entirely in a crimson and gold robe, with a veil that covered her face. Her hands were tucked behind her back, revealing nothing about what she looked like on the inside.

Between the king and queen was him, Zatchel. He was about my age, give or take a year. His hair was reddish-black, unlike the king’s black hair. He wore somewhat puffy, dense clothes, and he wore a crimson, bannerlike piece of clothing, which draped over his chest and down to his knees, similar to the poncho. Eight golden stars were patched in a circle on his left breast, representing the Eight-Starred Alliance.

Not far away was a man wearing a simple yellow cloak and glasses. He had a sharp, critical expression and stood close to the queen.

I stared forward, my vision shaky in anticipation, as silence filled the courtyard, my and her looking uneasily at the royal family. I raised my posture, and slowly, with trembling steps-

Zatchel strode forward towards me. I tried not to show my fear as his heavy footsteps resounded through the yard. Eventually, he stopped directly in front of me. His hands began to move, the signs shaky and uncertain as he made them.

Hello, Sayanica. It is a pleasure to finally meet you. I am Zatchel of Vorlaxia...

He stopped mid-sign and looked at his hands, panicked, as if he had forgotten what he was about to say as he was signing it. It was far too relatable for me; I would have done the same if I had been the first to speak.

A-and if you want to walk with me, you may take my hand.

His signing ended as he slowly held his hand out for the last word.

I placed my own on his, and he gently moved his fingers to interlock my own. He began to powerwalk away and scared me when he tugged my hand, forcing me to stumble with him. He glanced at me and signed me a subtle, ‘sorry’ before giving me time to walk to his side.

I stepped past his mother and father by his side, and they gave us the right of way to walk into the castle’s grand hall.

Yesterday, when this memory came to my dreams, I had wondered just what could have caused time itself to stop.

But that question was answered, and it now seemed like a petty wonder.

I gently let my journal rest in my lap, then placed a hand on my neck, feeling my windpipe.

“I...” I began, “I’m-”

As if a rock had formed in my throat, the air just wouldn’t come out.

I trembled as I repeated what I said, this time, forcing the air from my lungs. “I’m SA-”

I choked. I tried to breathe out the words. I tried to say something complete. Desperately, I pinched my nose and breathed out. But the more and more I tried to speak, a horrid sensation as if I had swallowed something sharp, caught in my throat.

So then, I couldn’t breathe.

Curse.

I struggled on the ground to breathe the object out, but nothing worked. I squirmed and panicked, regretting my pitiful attempt at fighting my fate. It hurt. It hurt so much. It scared me so much that I cried.

The more and more I struggled to breathe, the horrid object dug deeper and deeper, moving and twisting in my throat like a worm.

As my vision blurred, my oxygen wearing out, I saw Cobaltio nudging me with much the same panicked expression I had.

I slowly raised my hand, then placed it on his head. His scales were warm and solid, sturdy and reassuring to touch.

I focused on smiling at him, staying strong and stoking my hand across his scales to calm the deaf [drake].

Slowly, as I relaxed and gave up, the rock faded away, leaving me on the ground, crying.

I wanted someone to reassure me.

I wanted to feel like I could do something.

How long would I lie to myself to pretend someone like me could be some great warrior. I was a child, and a child nobody liked, at that.

I slammed the ground futilely, over and over.

I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t yell for help when I needed it, I couldn’t really fight worth a damn, with how low leveled I was, I couldn’t make friends, with how little I spoke, I couldn’t help my brothers, I couldn’t cry, I couldn’t even keep a brave face...

I shivered all over, tears streaking down to the dry dirt below...

In my next dream, I was still holding Zatchel’s hand.

We walked through the castle. Servants bustled about, preparing the wedding post-ceremony with haste. There were also mages like the man with the glasses, who walked to form with our escort behind the mage. Many of them carried strange things with them: A creepy fish dissected on a cutting board, a watch that clicked each second with ominous, reverberating clinks, and a dragon scale.

Eventually, we arrived in the center of the castle, where four pillars surrounded a ring with intricate geometry carved into its surface. Zatchel led me to the edge while my escort and his parents stood behind us, and all the others stood far back.

The inscriptions on the ring began to move across it. Through inexplicable movement, they crossed and moved through each other, intersecting in strange, hypnotic patterns, and after a few seconds, they rearranged into an identical image, as if the asymmetrical pattern were somehow flipped on itself.

Then the ring lifted from the ground and began to hover up through the castle. In the center wing, the floors were circular, ascending through stairs that entered many rooms, circling the main ring. Circles seemed to be their thing.

Once we flew high enough, the ceiling unwrapped, the yellow brick spiral opening to reveal the sky above like a flower bud. We continued to move towards the observatory floating high above the castle.

I had not met Zatchel before, but meeting him now, he wasn’t quite what I had expected. He looked even more nervous than me and felt more nervous -he was holding my hand tightly. It was sort of uncomfortable, but it felt like we were the same, which reassured me. I matched his grip strength, unsure what else to do. In response, he released the pressure, probably self-conscious, so I did the same.

He looked over at me as we overlooked the city, far away. How are you? he asked, his signs shaky. The sign language of our lands could be used with only one hand, though doing so that way made the language lose its fluidity.

I’m good.

...

He asked, Where is your dad?

I shook my head. He can’t move right now. I said, not sure why.

So he missed your wedding?

I nodded. And Layas isn’t my mom.

He sent me the sign for confusion.

She is my attendant.

I see. He nodded. Are you...excited? I began to look forward, formulating a response, then saw him signing in my peripheral, facing the same direction, to the rolling landscape and city. I don’t understand it all either. Mom says we will be powerful.

Powerful? I asked. I don’t understand.

He looked back at me. Don’t you know what’s going to happen?

The ceremony?

The magic ceremony. He signed. The children of The Alliance are going to-” he raised his hands up to our eye level and connected his middle finger and thumb, pulling his index finger to make a hexagon. “That’s why we’re getting married.

What was that sign? Magic was a topic I knew so little about, so I assumed it was related to the subject. What is-I repeated the hand motion, making a hexagon with my hands.

He explained as we neared the observatory. “(that sign) means we will become really strong and live a long time, my mom says. The other princes and princesses are about to be married, too.

We entered a balcony just outside the observatory as I signed, I didn’t know that. Is your mother a mage?

He nodded and smiled. She’s the greatest one.

I looked behind us at the woman, who was draped in her red veil. She waved a hand at me as I looked back. She also signed to me as the people walked to another large gate down a walkway, which entered the observatory. She wore gloves. Today is an exciting day for both you and Zatchel! she said, her signs lined with giddiness I wasn’t expecting. Both of your lives will change, just watch! She motioned us on.

I followed her with Zatchel into the room.

There were dozens of mages speaking to each other, taking positions on different floors of the tower. They each stood before altars, some piecing together their mystic artifacts while some signed to others nearby. While my usual image of a mage was that of a stoic study person, they all looked happy and engaged in their conversations, laughing and joking with their signs while others worked, only somewhat preoccupied.

On the other side of the tower, hanging on the wall, was a massive stone circle with eight stars engraved in it. Five currently glowed a bright yellow.

The mage with the glasses signed to the escort of guards, and they moved to the gate. Meanwhile, the king walked up the set of stairs to a chair high on the second to final floor. Layas pulled me to her for a moment before Zatchel and I walked further to the center of the room. She then kneeled down and signed to me, How are you doing?

I let go of Zatchel’s hand to sign, I’m fine.

Are you sure?

I nodded. Zatchel is nice.

She smiled as if what I had said was saddening, then put her hands on my shoulders. She moved her head to mine, and I rested my forehead on hers for a moment. After a moment, she stood back up. I should go to the stands now. Good luck.

I smiled in response.

After that, Zatchel and I were led to a pedestal at the center of the room by the mage with the glasses, and he nodded to Zatchel’s mother, who had walked to a grand podium nearby.

They each turned to face the audience, raising a hand to gain their attention. Slowly, the mages turned to them, quieting their signs.

His mother began to slowly sign and speak while the mage with the glasses relayed what she said to the other side of the room.

“I am truly excited for today. For a long time, The Alliance has preserved peace and advanced our magics for the sake of humanity. We have finally become capable of a ritual as great as this one. We have achieved prosperity, even as our peoples were cursed with disability by the Greater Ones. We have struggled. We have changed, as humans always have. And we are not the only ones to finally seek this. The Dragonborn joined The Alliance only a decade ago, yet they have provided much for us. If it were not for their aid, this (that sign) Ceremony would be impossible. I truly hope that with the (that sign) of our future generation and the reclamation of peace, we can truly do anything.”

She looked back at Zatchel and me. “I know we are running somewhat late, but I can’t help myself from postponing this ceremony just a moment to congratulate my son and future daughter-in-law. Despite the dangers, they were brave enough to volunteer for the (that sign) Ceremony, but more importantly, I’m just incredibly proud of my son. I hope this ceremony provides eternal happiness for both him and his future wife.”

D-dangers? Why wasn’t I told about this?

She cleared her throat. “But, without further ado, I would like to welcome the Dragonborn who let this ritual come to be and the great bishop of the great gods into Divinity Observatory, Hala-Bull Dana!”

A person landed from the sky outside the gates, which had yet to close. She walked in, her presence commanding. She had great, leathery wings, cobalt-colored scales, claws she quickly hid behind her back, and a snout studded with scales and spikes. I had never seen a Dragonborn before, but she was absolutely stunning.

She walked to Zatchel’s mother, then kneeled before her. “I am honored to be the keeper of this ceremony.”

The queen bowed to her. “No, please, the pleasure is all mine,” she said, assuming what the Dragonborn had said.

The Dragonborn stood and nodded to her, then to all the mages across the room, and finally to Zatchel and me.

She walked atop the pedestal, then to a spot between us. She then signed to Zatchel’s mother, Should I begin?

She nodded, before signing to the audience, along with the glasses mage, “As we are running low on time, Dana will perform the wedding ceremony quickly.” She quickly signed, Sorry to Zatchel and me, then took a stand behind her pedestal, along with the other mage, who stood opposite her.

Dana signed, Please, step to the inscriptions.

Zatchel and I took a step back into small circles marked on the pedestal.

She opened a large book she had walked in with and turned it to a page about halfway in its contents. Then, she slid a stick from out of her sleeve, which was connected by another, and another, and so on. The sticks floated in front of her and formed a basic divine circle, two squares, one smaller and another large, connected by sticks on their corners. The divine power of the ‘circle’ caused the book to float in front of herself.

She then looked to Zatchel’s mother and signed, I’m not fluent enough in your language. Could you interpret for me?

She nodded, then nodded to the man with the glasses.

Dana began to read the passage from the book in front of herself. As she read, she retained eye contact with Zatchel and me, as she had already memorized the lines, the book a mere formality:

“We have been gathered to this matrimony to show our support for these two seekers.”

Why was my family not here?

“To unite in solidarity their two families for the greater peace of us all.”

Why were they not here?

“Long will each one be wedded, through thick and thin. These two have wandered as their own representative for long, and now, they will be two for longer...” she then added, “forevermore, in fact.”

I clenched my fists, scared. I didn’t feel good about this.

As Dana continued speaking, a drumming began to fill my ears. “If these soon-to-be united families, the Vorlaxia and Underam, wish to, they shall now give their kin their blessing or curse, now. You may stand and sp...sign.” The Dragonborn corrected herself, then looked about the room.

Why weren’t they here?

I, for one, would like to say my part. Zatchel’s mother signed. Then we will continue.

The Dragonborn nodded, then moved to the right to give Zatchel’s mother the stand.

If we were ever in doubt...

My vision grew blurry, and I lost focus. I began searching the crowd for Layas. She was family, at least. If she could just raise her hand and smile, I would have felt better.

Dizzy, I looked around the room. The first floor: nothing The second floor: nothing The third floor...n-nothing.

Where was she? Where was Layas? Did anyone else care about me? About what was going to happen? Did they not know how important this was? How important this was to me?

I continued to frantically look around the observatory, the drumming pounding harder and harder in my ears.

A hand touched my shoulder, snapping me to the present. Dana signed to me, Are you alright?

I shook my head, tears forming. Not far away, Zatchel looked at me with a confused and sorry expression, unsure if he should move to comfort me.

What’s wrong? Dana asked.

Where is everyone? I signed back.

She tilted her head. Where is who?

My Dad, my mom, my brother, my sisters...Layas.

She looked around the room, concerned. They aren’t here?

I shook my head once more.

She nodded, then signed, Just give me a moment. She then said to Zatchel, Hold her, will you?

He quickly stepped to take my hand and wrist with both hands, a determined expression on his face.

His mother had finished her speech and quickly began to sign with the Dragonborn, since she had noticed what was going on.

Is something the matter? she asked.

The Dragonborn signed, No, she is worried about her family.

They said that their king was dying and needed tending to. Why would they avoid their own daughter’s wedding?

I don’t know. Perhaps they still dislike you for your use of magic. Or maybe they don’t trust the ritual to succeed.

After everything we have been through to reconcile...the Underams still do not trust us?

Dana sighed, shaking her head disapprovingly. Let’s just finish the ceremony. They will see their folly when their daughter returns home a god.

Dana kneeled down to me once more, then rubbed my shoulder. It will be over soon, alright? If you need anything, don’t be afraid to ask.

Slowly, I nodded.

The drumming had not died down, though. Even as I calmed, I could hear it in my ears, constant, vibrating, scary.

She stood then signed some things for my mother. They decided to finish the ceremony in haste.

They went back to their positions, then Dana began to sign to Zatchel. With the...your family’s support given, it is now time for you two to give your support. Zatchel of the noble Vorlaxia family, do you take Sayanica of the noble Underam family as your new partner and wife.

He cautiously nodded, signing, Yes.

Dana turned to me. Sayanica of the noble Underam family, do you take Zatchel of the noble Vorlaxia family as your new partner and husband?

I looked to him, then to the door. Why...why had she left me?

I slowly nodded, looking at the floor. Yes.

Dana sighed, shaking her head. I expected her to finish the vowing, but she first signed to Zatchel’s mother once more. Should we not wait for answers from the Underam family? This is an incredibly rude gesture, and the poor girl looks distraught.

The other woman looked to Zatchel, who in turn looked to her with a pleading expression, gripping my hand empathetically.

Then, she nodded. The wedding is not tied to the ritual. We can finish this afterward.

There was a gasp among the people onlooking as Dana, and his mother announced that the wedding would be postponed, as my Underam family had failed to give their consent. His mother had to have a quick conversation with the king to explain everything, and he seemed to understand, allowing us to continue without finishing the vows.

It helped ease my nerves, but...

The drumming wouldn’t stop.

Dana signed to me next. Please, the two of you, stand on the two inscriptions, and under no circumstances will you walk out.

I made sure I was in the center of the circular inscription below me, then Dana used her divine circle again, the squares folding over each other, creating a ring that bound my legs, keeping me in place. I panicked for a moment, but she signed, Stay calm. I trust you won’t step away, but if you did, it could spell catastrophe for the people here.

I slowly nodded, placing a hand on my heart.

As the mages prepared the (that word) ceremony, I felt my drumming heartbeat, wishing Layas was here to help me, to calm my anxiety.

But...something felt off. My heart was singing but...

It wasn’t the drumming.

I tried to remain calm. I didn’t need to be worried about being married. All that I needed to do was wait as the mages did whatever they needed to.

Sticks began to float from the many mage’s sleeves while Dana walked to the side, letting Zatchel’s mother take the grand podium. All of the sticks began to merge together, into many hexagonal rings, which formed into a donut shape, with me and Zatchel standing below the hole. Then, the rings morphed into circles as the mages threw strange items into their center, which all disappeared as if sucked into something invisible as they passed the middle.

The rings began to move and accelerated quicker and quicker.

On the other side of the room, I saw another star glow to life in the eight-starred circle.

That means we are the last to finish, Dana signed to Zatchel and me, it is almost ready.

A minute later, the rings span around so quickly that they almost seemed to be one solid object. It wasn’t long before I wondered whether it really was a solid object, a donut that flickered slightly.

Zatchel’s mother signed to some of the mages, so they moved their outstretched hands. They made the circle bend in on itself from the outside, forming an impossible shape, the donut’s inside and outside visible yet fully formed. I didn’t quite understand what I was staring at.

Dana spoke to me over the deafening winds the shape swept through the room, hoping to ease my confusion. “That is the divine circle, the most elaborate vessel of divine power ever conceived.” She looked up at it with a nervous expression, then smiled at me, her draconic eyes meeting mine. “Any moment now, and the seven other circles will all be prepared. Then, the Ascension Ceremony will begin, and a portal to the Greater Realm will open.

I nodded. So that was what that hexagon sign meant -ascension.

It was then that I was struck by lighting alongside Zatchel.

It didn’t hurt or anything, but it startled me, making me panic once more while he shook it off as if he had expected it.

Dana pointed to the eight-starred circle once more, directing my attention. The two remaining stars had begun to glow now. “It will only be a minute, and their great ritual will finish. Remain calm, and everything will be fine.”

As I noticed the stars’ glowing, the drumming came to a crescendo.

It pounded in my skull as if I were being slapped over and over again, making me lurch. I looked to Dana, hoping she would be able to comfort me again, but she was preoccupied with everything else going on, looking at the marvels of magical advancement abound.

I shook my head, unable to alert anyone about my distress. I felt like this was wrong, horribly, horribly wrong. Everyone else was tense or excited, but I was scared. I had to just be imagining things, imagining the horrible thumping in my ears.

I tried to kneel, but the magical ring around my legs bound all but my hands from moving. I tried to yell out my agony, but a rock caught in my throat. I hoarsely breathed, my eyes unfocused as fear swept over my body, making me shudder and gag and plead silently for help.

Pounding, pounding.

It rose as sparks of blue energy coiled around the divine circle, building up in an infinite loop. The pounding was all I could hear now. I tried to plug my ears with my palms, but it did nothing. I screeched without opening my mouth, crying in agony and absolute terror.

Ill omen.

“Sayanica?! Sayanica, what is wrong?!” Dana asked, yelling over the howling wind once more.

I signed to her, my hands shaking violently of an accord not my own. Drumming, drumming! I swished my head about as if I were trying to shake away my tears, wishing someone, something, could help me.

I could barely register it, but Dana’s concerned expression immediately turned to one of abject horror, unlike any I had seen before. No draconic face could hide how truly horrified she was by that one word.

What do you hear?! She signed.

Drumming! I signed back.

What kind? Is it your heart?!

Everywhere, I signed. It’s in my ears, my brain, my mind- I can’t feel anything else.

She didn’t remain calm.

With no hesitation, Dana ran to Zatchel’s mother and signed to her as quickly as she could, fumbling through the signs. She hears the drumming. You need to stop the ritual now!

The lighting around the circle overhead had built up so much by this point that it seemed to have enveloped the whole circle.

Stop the ritual? Drumming? his mother signed back, I can’t read you properly. Calm down!

End the ritual this instant, or everything will turn to hell!

The circle began to shrink in on itself, growing brighter as it did.

I cannot do that, Dana! You and your kind agreed-

She hears the drumming of... Dana struggled to sign all the letters of the name, but it seemed to be spelled Kattarus.

The donut had nearly collapsed in on itself, the sheer condensed power causing light itself to shudder, space seeming to bend to its will.

His mother shook her head. That is only a fairy tale! No such thing cursed our people. It was only a failure of magic! We are almost finished. Just let us-

Dana made a run for me.

The ring binding my legs disappeared as she lunged for me, trying to shove me off the inscription.

“NO!” Zatchel’s mother screamed in terror, holding out a hand in a pointless attempt to stop Dana.

Her hands impacted my chest, sending me falling off the inscription.

My vision was enveloped in blue light, then darkness.

That was the end.

I had written everything I could down, and now I was on the ground, sobbing.

Nobody had said it directly, but I could easily piece together what mattered most to me. I had learned why I was [mute], if only with little explanation and with two conflicting views. That ‘Dragonborn’ lady claimed ‘Kattarus’ had cursed an entire nation, while Zatchel’s mother claimed it was caused by some strange magic.

And because of that, I was stuck here today, nothing more than a pitiful, mute child. I didn’t care to wonder what had happened in those memories, nor what their nature was. I just...

I wanted to do what they could. I wanted to speak to others, to hold conversations, to be with people who understood me.

Nobody could.

Nobody had lived through what I had, nobody had been treated like a fragile tool, nobody knew what it was like to only sit and watch as the people they wanted to learn about spoke to each other, excluding them from the conversation out of convenience, nobody knew how it felt to be so...so powerless, so unacknowledged.

There were times I hated my life, when I wished I was someone else. If I could only be a normal person, it would all be so much easier. But I never would be because events outside my control made me who I was.

A useless, unneeded, entitled child.

I huddled even closer to myself, whining quietly.

They all knew that’s what I was. They all beared through my nonsense just because I could swing a sword, or because I was good at magic. People at home hardly wanted me around, either. The way they saw it, there wasn’t a point in speaking to me. Why would you do that when you can just...talk to someone who can.

Why couldn’t I have been born, at least, in a country where I could speak with my hands, where everyone was just like me, and I was the norm? Was the curse just spiteful, seeing that it could cause more pain if it affected individuals and not groups?

Why...why couldn’t I just be who I wanted to be?

Suddenly, something slobbery flicked across my face, making me squirm backward in surprise.

Cobaltio looked at me with sadness.

“Crybaby.”

I blinked, confused.

“Don’t forget me.”

For...get?

I tried to understand what he was saying, and then I recognized...or maybe felt his tone. Cobaltio was indignant.

‘crybaby, don’t forget me.’

My eyes felt strained as I looked at him, emotions welling up.

‘you...’ I silently mouthed. ‘I...I don’t...’ I pulled him close to me, hugging the [drake] close to my chest. ‘I’m so sorry.’

Cobaltio wasn’t just a [drake]. He was a human like me, even if only a third. When I really thought about it, his fate was so much worse than mine. With me, he would inevitably never be treated like a real person. Nobody would treat a [drake] as sentient, as he seemed to be. Also, unlike me, he couldn’t hear. Perhaps he would struggle less with communication, but his curse may have been even worse than mine.

But he still wanted to help me; someone pitiful. He still...he still asked to help me when I was acting so helpless.

And for that, I was grateful.

‘thank you.’

[draconic bond tier 2] unlocked.