The Draconeques: The Story Of A Nationby CCKuribonChaptersPrologueThe InvasionAftermathThe Start of Something NewExperimentationThe GryphonsProloguePrologue To all who read this story i thank you I'm hoping to write a long story for you all to enjoy. So Without further delays lets get into the story...Enjoy :) Discord – A lack of concord or harmony between persons or things, often leading to strife, dispute and war. The Draconeques were always a strange people. They never entered conflicts with other or even engaged in trade with other nations. They always kept to themselves. In truth they rather enjoyed solitude from the problems that were plighting the surrounding lands. Wars raged on with the Dragons and the Ursa, the Gryphons were suffering from an internal breakdown of their political system, the Minotaur and Timberwolves were competing for land, the Changelings were facing a famine and the ponies had just changed from a monarchy to a diarchy. For the Draconeques however, there was no one individual in charge. Each individual was allotted so much power in making decisions that affected the country as a whole. This system was effective for the Draconeques as they only had approximately two hundred or so individuals. Whenever someone broke a law they were taken before the entire town and everyone decided what would happen to the individual. This was not the strangest part about the creatures however…that was their bodies. Each of their bodies were an accumulation of various animal parts such as Pegasus, deer, lion, eagle, bat, pony and dragon. Some may question how such an array of different parts could even function together but that’s where the most amazing part of these creatures. They had magic. Not the same kind of magic that the unicorns or dragons had, but a unique kind of magic that played an important role in their society. They would will something to happen and it would. If they willed food to grow it would grow it they willed it to rain it would rain. As powerful as ability like this was it did have limits. It could not be used to will a being out of existence and the task could only be accomplished if it was within the power of the willer. No task could be accomplished if it was beyond their ability to produce such a thing. As such no individual had a name but instead a title that suited their role in society. But I seem to have side tracked from my report of these fantastic creatures. This is the reason that they did not need to engage in trade with foreign countries. They were completely self-sufficient. They had no need to ask for other countries to help them or to beg for food they could produce enough to feed themselves or to supply their people with the required material for tasks. As I write this report I know that the times of peace in our lands are dwindling and that soon no one here will remain. I, unlike my colleagues, have been watching the outside world for some time and soon the world will change again…and this time we will not have the privilege of being able to sit on the sidelines. I hope that whoever reads this will know the truth about what happens to us next.i write this in the hope that my people are not demonized by our invaders or that we are cast as the villains by them. This will be my last record of whatever happens to us for society knows what happens next… “History is written by the victorious, The Truth is written by the fallen” -The Biographer Of Time The InvasionChapter 1 The children screamed. The whole town panicked. The town was on fire. No one knew the cause and no matter how hard they tried no one was capable of putting out the fire. The Draconeques with the title of Protector could do nothing to stem the flames as they leapt from one building to the next. There was a scream from one of the burning buildings. The Protector rushed into the building and emerged with two small children and a young woman leaning on him for support. Stumbling out of the building the Protector slowly lowered the two children to the grass and turned back towards the woman.she thanked him for saving her along with her brothers children. At that moment a flying creature swooped by and tackled the Protector to the ground. As the protector struggled the creature pulled a sharp implement from its waist and slashed at the Protectors body. After about five or so slashing motions the Protector suddenly stopped struggling. None of us knew what the creature had done to him. We hadn’t known that the sharp tool was called a hunting knife. The creature stood up from the now still corpse of the Protector. This was the first time that we got a good look at the creature. It had the same type of face as us. Though it stood on all four limbs and had hoofs at the end of each of them. It also had brilliant golden Armour along its back and head. No one knew what this creature was…except me. I had been watching the world for some time and knew that this creature was called a Pegasus. I also knew that the Armour symbolized its position in the royal guard of the pony kingdom. This want an accident…this was an attack. A horn sounded in the distance. Suddenly a large group of these Pegasus swooped in from the sky and began attacking the innocent bystanders. Not knowing what to do I tried to assist the woman and two children though I knew I would be incapable of protecting them.as I rushed to the side of the woman the flames flared up and turned a vivid emerald green. Magic. That was the first thought that went my mine as the flames changed their color and shape to suit the one in control of it. The fire began to twist its form and started to redirect itself towards the largest group of people in the vicinity. The woman beside me screamed and burst into tears at the sight of her friends being consumed by the violent flames. Not knowing what to do I told her to leave the town with the children and that I would send others her way. She sadly agreed to leave the town and ran with the children to the east while I used my historical abilities to erase any evidence that she even went that way. Turning my attention back towards the town I noticed that a strange new type of pony I had never seen before was standing on the top of a burning building, somehow unscathed by the flames that seemed to be bathing its entire body. I couldn’t make it out entirely but I do know that it suddenly flared up a pair of large wings from its back and a bright light engulfed its face as the fire sudden vanished. Under the smoke that was rising from the buildings I couldn’t quite make out what it was but it was clear to me now that it had both wings and a horn. I had never seen one of these creatures before but I knew who it was right off the bat. This was one of the leaders of the pony diarchy. The light flared up once more and the ground began to quake as the town slowly tore itself apart. Buildings fell and the earth broke open as the leader of the invading army began to insert veins of magic straight into the ground and all throughout the village.not knowing what was happening but still not keen to find out I fled the village after the woman.as I ran it occurred to me that the best option open to me was to flee in the same direction as the woman I had directed away. I ran and ran until I had left the town and made my way to the barren land just beyond our borders. I perched myself on a rock and looked back one last time to recorded the events that had unfolded that night and then,with a flash,the town...was gone. AftermathThe cold wind howled over the barren landscape. I had never seen anything like what had just happened. The town, once home to an entire race of miraculous creatures, was gone. The sky was filled with a giant purple cloud. Then an earth shattering boom ruptured the air. The sheer force of the sound knocked me from my feet. And then the wind hit. The wind stung like I had just been slashed like the Protector. Finally, the thoughts kicked in…they were all dead. I slowly climbed back onto the rock I had been perching on. Where the town had one been there was now a crater roughly equal to its size. Using my ability to record history once more I made certain this this sight would never leave my mind. Permanently burning the image to my memories I climbed back down from the rock, huddled behind it, and cried. The night dragged on and on, the sounds of war passed by my ears for the entire night. I heard drums and horns, soldiers shouting, small explosions…and the screaming of the woman I had sent away. I listened to the horrible sounds of the woman being slowly tortured by her captors for fleeing the town while the others burnt to death. She screamed and cried for the children. It was then that I realized that I had inadvertently sent them into an ambush. Had I kept running I would have, no doubt, run straight into the outpost that had been set up by these…invaders. I shivered at the thought. As the night began to fade and the dawn slowly approached the army moved away from the town. They began to retreat and the horns sounded again. The rhythmic sound of hooves marching and wings beating chilled me to the bone. How many had there been? Were there any other survivors? I peeked over my rock and the sight a saw left me stunned. There were rows and columns of troops marching in time to the beating of the drums. Doing a quick series of calculations I worked out that there were at least two thousand troops on the ground. This was unbelievably and that wasn’t even including the Pegasus in the sky. There was no way to accurately count them all they moved far too fast. I remained hidden as the army marched away, determined not to let them have a total victory. By the time the entire army had marched beyond sight it was mid-morning. Unsure of the next move I should make I sat and began pondering. I had two valid options and a plethora of options that would just make life worse…well worse than it already was, at this point. I could both return to the town and look for any survivors or I could flee and try to rebuild somewhere else. Going over my options my best bet was to return to town, find any remaining supplies, and leave. So that’s what I did. I slowly made my way back to the remnants of the town. I was careful to make sure that there were no traps in the event that invaders thought that someone might return. I was right to be cautious. More than once I almost stood on a small green glowing…thing…that I was unsure of. In order to test what it was I took a few steps back and lobbed a rock at it to see if it was dangerous. I wasn’t prepared for what happened next. The rock bounced off the green object, which flared up, and was immediately destroyed by a flash of light. I stood shocked. So that was what caused the town to be destroyed. That strange pony must have made a giant variant of this thing.i now knew what I had to look out for. As I made my way towards the town I noticed that there were literally hundreds of these things scattered around the land. I finally made it back to the town. I looked around for any sign of what had survived. I found a few torn blankets and a leather strap nearby. Fashioning a crude backpack I hunted down supplies, which was harder than you would think as we Draconeques always make our food as we need it we rarely ever store food for long periods of time. I did, however, manage to find a few pieces of bread, some butter and some meat. I believed that would be enough for a few days. Or at least that’s what I thought. I left the town and made my way west, towards the gryphon’s territory. They may not have been friendly with our people but they never truly hated us either. As I made my way through the remnants of the town I heard a sound off to my left and ducked behind the burnt remnants of the city well. Peeking out from my cover I noticed that a small child was lying beneath the rubble of one of the buildings. Checking to make sure it was safe to approach the child I made my way into the ruined house and began to free the child from his prison. As I pulled the rubble off the child I had a thought. Why was this child still here if everyone else had vanished? Was that blast strong enough to eradicate the bodies of our people but not strong enough to destroy this child? I looked at the boy. He barely had a scratch on him. Just what was this kid. I lifted him from the rubble and took him with me as I left the town. And with that I slowly made my way towards the Gryphon’s territory with a pack of food and an unconscious child on my back. Just what this world had in store for me I have no clue but what I do know is this. There is no turning back now. The Start of Something NewIt had been three days since I had left the remains of our town. I had been traveling the barren wasteland that was once my home. As I traveled I had soon learnt that the invaders had done so much more damage than I had previously thought. They didn’t just slaughter our people. They burnt down the forests, they blocked up the rivers, and they scorched the earth, killing almost all of the native wildlife. How could so few have caused so much damage? I traversed the burnt forest with the child nestled firmly on my back. He had not awoken since I had found him. Occasionally he would grunt or move around on my back but that was as far as he went. I was stopped abruptly by a rock face. We had reached the end of our lands. Beyond this was the land of the Gryphons. Night would fall soon so now would be the best time to start searching for shelter. I traced my way along the rock face looking for a cave or alcove or something that would protect us from the elements. I didn’t have to worry about any animals in particular anymore. With the landscape so ruined no animals would remain around these areas for long. I stopped at a small series of cracks in the cliff face. I traced my talon along the cracks and noticed that there was a slight draft behind this wall. I knew that this meant there was a cave system or at least a passageway behind the wall. I searched the immediate area for a means to break the wall open so we could rest. There were only a few charred logs nearby so I grabbed a smaller one and smashed it against the wall. There was a ringing sound but the wall remained intact. The sun was about to set and we did not have any form of shelter. Trying my best to provide what I could for the child I began to set to work building him a small tent like construction. I laid him and the food down near the wall and began searching for strong bits of wood that had survived the fire. I found a few pieces when I heard and earth shattering splitting sound followed by a loud rumble. The sound had originated from where I had left the child. Dropping the wood I ran back to the child. I arrived to see a strange sight in front of me. The child was awake…and standing in front of the once whole wall that blocked our way. I did not know what to say. This child had managed to break that wall that I could not? How had he done it? The child beckoned me to follow him and casually walked into the now exposed tunnel. I did as instructed and followed the child inside as I entered the cave I found the boy sitting next to one of the walls and happily eating the last of our bread. I knew that he needed it more than I did but to ransack the food supply without any thought? Just what was this kid thinking? I took a seat next to the kid and slowly began to think about all the events that had occurred. I closed my eyes only to see the town again. I saw people screaming and being massacred before my eyes, the town burning…and the explosion. I opened my eyes to see the boy standing in front of me with his head cocked to the side trying to work out what I was doing. It was then that I decided I would talk to him…for the first time. “Yes?” I said “Is there something you want?” “Yep, more food please” he replied “I’m sorry but we don’t have any more food. That was the last we had” “Then why don’t you make some more food?” “Because that’s not my job to make food. I record and write history so that others may learn from our mistakes” “Well that’s silly if you’re hungry what’s wrong with making food?” The child had a point. It was my job to record history…but does that truly mean that I can only do that? Well there is only one way to find out “Alright I’ll try but don’t be too disappointed if I fail alright?” “Ok old man” With that I stood up. I looked at the crumbs of bread that were left from the boys meal. I remembered that it was made of water, flour and yeast. I drew water from the air, yeast from the remains of the bread, which I then willed to grow. Finally I drew the seeds from the ground and ground them into a powder to make flour. Mixing these ingredients I slowly increased the temperature of the mix and it slowly began to rise. After about fifteen minutes we had a stange spherical loaf of bread. The boy applauded and cheered as I stood there in shock. I had actually made something using my will…how. Society always told us that you could only produce things that you were suited to when you matured into an adult. Was that all a lie? Could we actually make anything we wanted so long as we knew how it was produced? I must experiment some more with this new found knowledge. “Thanks old man it’s really yummy” called the boy “You’re welcome” I called back, taking a piece for myself. It actually was quite delicious. It tasted like it had just come out of the oven and was still warm too. “Told you that you could make it” said the boy “Yes you did, didn’t you…how did you know?” “That’s because I do it all the time. My favorite ones are cotton candy and chocolate milk. There the yummiest” “They are quite good aren’t they?” “Yep” “So what’s your title anyway?” I asked “What’s a title?” “It’s what you’re good at. They name you after your talent as you grow up” “That’s silly, what if I don’t like my title” “Well it’s something that you will like because it’s what your good at” “Not true what if I become a dentist? I like cotton candy and chocolate but if I’m a dentist then I can’t eat them any more right?” “I suppose that’s true…” “Then I don’t want one of those titles” “fine then ill just call you discord” “Why discord?” “Because you like to disagree with others and don’t accept anything you don’t like” “Cool” “You’re a very strange child you know that?” “Yep…so what’s your title then old man?” “Me? Well I’m called the Biographer of Time” “That’s too long I’m just going to call you Old Man Time from now on” I thought of this name that he gave me…I suppose it would be easier to explain to people who I was with a name not a title…alright then I suppose ill let the boy have his way “Ok, you can call me Old Man Time if you want” “Awesome…but I was going to call you that anyway” “Yes Discord I know you were” “I’m bored now can we leave?” “No discord we need to sleep first then we can leave in the morning” “Fine but I get more food in the morning alright?” “Alright now please go to sleep” And with that, the boy named Discord and I began a journey together that would change the very world itself ExperimentationTo anyone that is reading this story. Constructive criticism is always welcome just don’t overdo it ok? Also just want to clear something up in case anyone gets confused by the following chapter I am an 18 year old male who is currently attending university and completing his first year of a bachelor of art. I am not the Biographer of Time in this story and as such he does not have to conform to being my age so as such while I am 18 he can be any age he wants. Also if anyone wants to tell me their ideas I’ll be more than happy to listen…I might even change my story around to include them. After all it’s better to have a longer story than a short one Enjoy :) Dawn arrived early that day. The rays of light beamed through the sky where the forest once stood. Awoken in such a pleasant way was a sharp contrast to the events that unfolded over the last four days. The warm light on my furred and scaly body renewed my vigor as I went about stretching out the knot that had formed in my neck from the angle I had slept at. After a small wander outside to see what the night had brought to us while we slept, I turned back to the cave and had an idea. If I could use my…abilities…in ways other than just too record time what else could I do with them? Turning to see Discord still sleeping peacefully an idea popped into my head. Taking a position next to the caves entrance I slowly began focusing on the air near his ear. I snapped my furry fingers together and with a snap the air near Discord separated and a loud click sound resonated through the cave. The poor boy woke with a start. He quickly stood up and darted to the caves entrance only to fall over flat on his face as he tripped over his own feet. I could not help it. I just had to laugh at the sight of the boy in his confusion. Discord picked himself up and shot me a ominous glare. That just made me crack up even more. Walking over to him I offered him a talon to help him back onto his feet. Still with a sour face, he accepted the help and I pulled him back up right. He dusted himself off and then turned back towards the cave. He must have realized the time however as he suddenly turned around and stared directly into the sun. his eyes watered as he made a small pained grunt. “Why did you have to wake me up like that?” “Because I was bored…well that and you just looked so peaceful that I had to do something to ruin it” “You’re a mean old man…” “Ah well sticks and stones my dear boy” “What does that mean?” “Oh never mind” I replied. I wasn’t about to explain the phrase to him while in such a happy mood. With the way the last few days had been it was a nice change to be able to make a few jokes again and have a good laugh. I sent Discord to gather up the rest of the equipment that we had. Seeing as he was awake now I thought that he could carry some of the gear…not that we had much to begin with. As Discord came scurrying back out of the cave I handed him the makeshift pack and instructed him to place the gear into it and then he would carry it as we found a way to climb up the cliff face. “Why don’t you just fly up” asked Discord “Because we can’t fly Discord” was my reply “But I thought we could do anything if we wanted to…” I hadn’t thought of that. What was with this child? He questions everything about our society with such a narrow view…or maybe it was our society that had a narrow view. Not once was anything he had said been wrong. “You know, I’m certain that you’re hiding something from me” I stated with an accusing tone “What do you mean?” he asked, clearly confused by my statement “Somehow you think that we can just do whatever we want…and yet so far you have been right about that” “That’s because I’m smart” “Yes, I suppose you are aren’t you…” Taking the pack from Discord I began to focus on flapping my mismatched wings. Willing them to produce more lift than they were capable of I slowly began to leave the ground. It seemed simple to me now but just a few minutes earlier I was stating that it was an impossibility to fly. Laughing at my own narrow minded view I turned back to where I left Discord only to find him less than 3 feet away from my face. “ARGH” I screamed, rolling backwards through the air as Discord started to laugh his head off “Gotcha old man” he laughed “I don’t understand…how are you flying? As a matter of fact how can you even use our brand of magic at all? You’re clearly not old enough to understand how it works or even what it is.” “I don’t know I’ve always been able to use it, and I don’t know what it is but I do know it’s fun, watch” he stated as he started to twist and contort his body through a series of odd aerial maneuvers. As he finished his maneuvers he slowly floated back towards me spinning his arms backwards as if he was swimming through the air on his back. “So how did I do?” he asked “T-T-That was amazing” I managed to stutter out. This child adapted to everything so quickly. I had only just learnt how to fly and already he was showing off. “Just how old are you anyway?” I asked “I don’t know” “What do you mean you don’t know? Didn’t you ever learn how to count? “Nope, I know I’m this many though” he said as he landed on the ground and made eleven straight lines into the ground. I flew down next to him and looked over his shoulder to see what he was doing. “You’re eleven” I told him “Is that old” he asked “No not really. You’re still just a little kid” “I know…how old are you then?” “Well…I’m not quite sure myself but I would say I’m going on to 40 or so years of age” “You are old then. I only called you old because of the beard” “Hey don’t make fun of my beard…I love this thing” “Ha you’re weird” “So are you” I retorted “Yep, its fun isn’t it?” With an exasperated sigh i shook my head. This kid clearly wasn’t going to understand what I was meaning any time soon. “Alright then, if you’re so good at flying then you can carry the bag this time” I stated With an audible moan, Discord picked up the bag and joined me as we both took off into the sky together. The GryphonsHey everyone that is reading this. I went on a bit of a writing spree and ended up with 3 chapters done instead of sleeping... I hope you all enjoy this story I'm only just starting to get to the part that i personally think is where it gets good. After all who doesn't love a good fight scene, meddling in the politics of a foreign nation and a 5 year time skip? Oops...seems like I've just given out a few spoilers...well I hope that's enough to get you all to keep reading...because that's all going to happen in the next 3-5 chapters...depending on idea flow...and what you all think of my ideas currently. Don't forget to be happy and I hope you all have a wonderful day/night. Now on with the show...uh I mean story. The cliff face was not at large as I had first thought. We easily made it up in less than ten minutes of continual flying. Though what occurred at the top was less than impressive. As Discord and I alighted on the top of the cliff a loud cawing sound could be heard for the distance. Unsure of what the noise was I huddled discord behind me as I began to survey the landscape for any signs of danger. From my left I heard the rustling of wings and another caw though much deeper this time. I quickly forced Discord down to the ground along with me as a large figure burst from the ground nearby and leapt at where we were previously standing. Pushing Discord along the ground I rolled in the opposite direction from him and sprung back to my feet. I quickly snuck a glance at the creature and saw its feathered head and sharp talons. This was a Gryphon. The gryphon swung its talons in my direction. I jumped backwards and rolled to my right as it leapt straight towards me again. Seeing an opportunity I leapt towards the gryphon and tried to throw it on its side though it noticed what I was trying to do. Immediately it took a step back and then lunged forward as soon as my momentum ceased. Trapping me in a firm grip it began to swing its head backwards. I had forgotten about its sharp beak. I panicked and fell back on the only thing that I thought might work “Political emissary” I screamed Immediately it hesitated. “I’m a political emissary from the Draconeques” I said, trying to convince it that there was no reason to harm me. “How do I know you’re not lying? I’ve never heard of an emissary traveling with a child before…or even a Draconeques emissary for that matter” “I promise you I’m not lying” I stated “I’m traveling from our land because it was invaded by a foreign army. That’s why I have the child. I rescued him and fled here. I figured that the gryphons where the safest choice in regards to protecting this child from any more violence. I also thought it would be the best choice to inform your leader of the actions that occurred so close to your boarders “I reasoned. I hoped that was convincing enough that it would at least not harm the child. “Hmm…very well then. I'll cease this violence for now but this does not mean that I trust you on your word alone” he told me. Now that the fighting had ceased it was easy to tell that this gryphon was male “That’s good enough for me” I replied. Anything was better than being pecked to death for no reason. “So what are you doing here?” he asked “I already told you our land was invaded” “That wasn’t what I was meaning. I want to know why they picked you to bring the news. Your not strong, fast or impressive. I'm almost certain that there are others that are better suited to travel than you” “They didn’t pick me…” I replied slowly. “Then you lied to me about being an emissary” “No I didn’t… it’s just that…that we are the only survivors…that is why we weren’t sent…we are all that is left of the Draconeques species…” I told him sadly. “You mean to tell me that your entire race was eradicated instantly?” he asked, astonished by the news. “…yes…” I don’t think he knew to take this news. “An attack of such magnitude so close to our boarders…and not a single one of us knew. How did it happen” he asked “They came under the cover of nightfall” I replied “they surrounded our village and burnt our buildings. By the time that any sought of defense could be mustered they had taken out our leaders and guards. Then a large pony with both wings and a horn used some form of magic. I fled after that so I don’t know exactly what happened but shortly after I left the town…vanished” “You mean it was teleported?” “No… it was destroyed instantly” I told him “the magic from before seemed to be some sought of explosive or something” "Did you atleast see what this pony looked like? Anything like color or size?" "No...It was dark and I couldn't make much out through the smoke and flames" “I see” he stated “well I suppose we can take you to Beakador. If what you say is true then we might be capable of offering you lodging as a casualty of war” “ I thank you then, for offering your services as an escort. Might I ask you name?” “My name is Talonius” he replied “I am a commander of the gryphon army, Boarder Division. I am currently in charge of securing our borderlands until such time as is deemed no longer necessary.” “very well then. Shall we depart then?” “one moment” I replied. I scanned the area and spotted Discord hiding by a tuff of grass. “you can come out now Discord. This man isn’t going to try and hurt anyone anymore” "I had forgotten about him...though I suppose we did change the topic quite sharply didn't we? Discord popped his head up from the tuff. He quietly made his way to my side. As he reached me I took a step back and gently pushed him towards the commander. Discord just stood there staring at the commander…and the commander just stared back. “He has intelligent eyes” said Talonius “I bet he would love riddles” “Oh please no. I don’t think he needs anything like that…he would just drive us all crazy with them” I laughed “Oh come now I’m certain he isn’t as bad as what you make him out to be” Oh how those words would come back to haunt him.
ProloguePrologue To all who read this story i thank you I'm hoping to write a long story for you all to enjoy. So Without further delays lets get into the story...Enjoy :) Discord – A lack of concord or harmony between persons or things, often leading to strife, dispute and war. The Draconeques were always a strange people. They never entered conflicts with other or even engaged in trade with other nations. They always kept to themselves. In truth they rather enjoyed solitude from the problems that were plighting the surrounding lands. Wars raged on with the Dragons and the Ursa, the Gryphons were suffering from an internal breakdown of their political system, the Minotaur and Timberwolves were competing for land, the Changelings were facing a famine and the ponies had just changed from a monarchy to a diarchy. For the Draconeques however, there was no one individual in charge. Each individual was allotted so much power in making decisions that affected the country as a whole. This system was effective for the Draconeques as they only had approximately two hundred or so individuals. Whenever someone broke a law they were taken before the entire town and everyone decided what would happen to the individual. This was not the strangest part about the creatures however…that was their bodies. Each of their bodies were an accumulation of various animal parts such as Pegasus, deer, lion, eagle, bat, pony and dragon. Some may question how such an array of different parts could even function together but that’s where the most amazing part of these creatures. They had magic. Not the same kind of magic that the unicorns or dragons had, but a unique kind of magic that played an important role in their society. They would will something to happen and it would. If they willed food to grow it would grow it they willed it to rain it would rain. As powerful as ability like this was it did have limits. It could not be used to will a being out of existence and the task could only be accomplished if it was within the power of the willer. No task could be accomplished if it was beyond their ability to produce such a thing. As such no individual had a name but instead a title that suited their role in society. But I seem to have side tracked from my report of these fantastic creatures. This is the reason that they did not need to engage in trade with foreign countries. They were completely self-sufficient. They had no need to ask for other countries to help them or to beg for food they could produce enough to feed themselves or to supply their people with the required material for tasks. As I write this report I know that the times of peace in our lands are dwindling and that soon no one here will remain. I, unlike my colleagues, have been watching the outside world for some time and soon the world will change again…and this time we will not have the privilege of being able to sit on the sidelines. I hope that whoever reads this will know the truth about what happens to us next.i write this in the hope that my people are not demonized by our invaders or that we are cast as the villains by them. This will be my last record of whatever happens to us for society knows what happens next… “History is written by the victorious, The Truth is written by the fallen” -The Biographer Of Time
The InvasionChapter 1 The children screamed. The whole town panicked. The town was on fire. No one knew the cause and no matter how hard they tried no one was capable of putting out the fire. The Draconeques with the title of Protector could do nothing to stem the flames as they leapt from one building to the next. There was a scream from one of the burning buildings. The Protector rushed into the building and emerged with two small children and a young woman leaning on him for support. Stumbling out of the building the Protector slowly lowered the two children to the grass and turned back towards the woman.she thanked him for saving her along with her brothers children. At that moment a flying creature swooped by and tackled the Protector to the ground. As the protector struggled the creature pulled a sharp implement from its waist and slashed at the Protectors body. After about five or so slashing motions the Protector suddenly stopped struggling. None of us knew what the creature had done to him. We hadn’t known that the sharp tool was called a hunting knife. The creature stood up from the now still corpse of the Protector. This was the first time that we got a good look at the creature. It had the same type of face as us. Though it stood on all four limbs and had hoofs at the end of each of them. It also had brilliant golden Armour along its back and head. No one knew what this creature was…except me. I had been watching the world for some time and knew that this creature was called a Pegasus. I also knew that the Armour symbolized its position in the royal guard of the pony kingdom. This want an accident…this was an attack. A horn sounded in the distance. Suddenly a large group of these Pegasus swooped in from the sky and began attacking the innocent bystanders. Not knowing what to do I tried to assist the woman and two children though I knew I would be incapable of protecting them.as I rushed to the side of the woman the flames flared up and turned a vivid emerald green. Magic. That was the first thought that went my mine as the flames changed their color and shape to suit the one in control of it. The fire began to twist its form and started to redirect itself towards the largest group of people in the vicinity. The woman beside me screamed and burst into tears at the sight of her friends being consumed by the violent flames. Not knowing what to do I told her to leave the town with the children and that I would send others her way. She sadly agreed to leave the town and ran with the children to the east while I used my historical abilities to erase any evidence that she even went that way. Turning my attention back towards the town I noticed that a strange new type of pony I had never seen before was standing on the top of a burning building, somehow unscathed by the flames that seemed to be bathing its entire body. I couldn’t make it out entirely but I do know that it suddenly flared up a pair of large wings from its back and a bright light engulfed its face as the fire sudden vanished. Under the smoke that was rising from the buildings I couldn’t quite make out what it was but it was clear to me now that it had both wings and a horn. I had never seen one of these creatures before but I knew who it was right off the bat. This was one of the leaders of the pony diarchy. The light flared up once more and the ground began to quake as the town slowly tore itself apart. Buildings fell and the earth broke open as the leader of the invading army began to insert veins of magic straight into the ground and all throughout the village.not knowing what was happening but still not keen to find out I fled the village after the woman.as I ran it occurred to me that the best option open to me was to flee in the same direction as the woman I had directed away. I ran and ran until I had left the town and made my way to the barren land just beyond our borders. I perched myself on a rock and looked back one last time to recorded the events that had unfolded that night and then,with a flash,the town...was gone.
AftermathThe cold wind howled over the barren landscape. I had never seen anything like what had just happened. The town, once home to an entire race of miraculous creatures, was gone. The sky was filled with a giant purple cloud. Then an earth shattering boom ruptured the air. The sheer force of the sound knocked me from my feet. And then the wind hit. The wind stung like I had just been slashed like the Protector. Finally, the thoughts kicked in…they were all dead. I slowly climbed back onto the rock I had been perching on. Where the town had one been there was now a crater roughly equal to its size. Using my ability to record history once more I made certain this this sight would never leave my mind. Permanently burning the image to my memories I climbed back down from the rock, huddled behind it, and cried. The night dragged on and on, the sounds of war passed by my ears for the entire night. I heard drums and horns, soldiers shouting, small explosions…and the screaming of the woman I had sent away. I listened to the horrible sounds of the woman being slowly tortured by her captors for fleeing the town while the others burnt to death. She screamed and cried for the children. It was then that I realized that I had inadvertently sent them into an ambush. Had I kept running I would have, no doubt, run straight into the outpost that had been set up by these…invaders. I shivered at the thought. As the night began to fade and the dawn slowly approached the army moved away from the town. They began to retreat and the horns sounded again. The rhythmic sound of hooves marching and wings beating chilled me to the bone. How many had there been? Were there any other survivors? I peeked over my rock and the sight a saw left me stunned. There were rows and columns of troops marching in time to the beating of the drums. Doing a quick series of calculations I worked out that there were at least two thousand troops on the ground. This was unbelievably and that wasn’t even including the Pegasus in the sky. There was no way to accurately count them all they moved far too fast. I remained hidden as the army marched away, determined not to let them have a total victory. By the time the entire army had marched beyond sight it was mid-morning. Unsure of the next move I should make I sat and began pondering. I had two valid options and a plethora of options that would just make life worse…well worse than it already was, at this point. I could both return to the town and look for any survivors or I could flee and try to rebuild somewhere else. Going over my options my best bet was to return to town, find any remaining supplies, and leave. So that’s what I did. I slowly made my way back to the remnants of the town. I was careful to make sure that there were no traps in the event that invaders thought that someone might return. I was right to be cautious. More than once I almost stood on a small green glowing…thing…that I was unsure of. In order to test what it was I took a few steps back and lobbed a rock at it to see if it was dangerous. I wasn’t prepared for what happened next. The rock bounced off the green object, which flared up, and was immediately destroyed by a flash of light. I stood shocked. So that was what caused the town to be destroyed. That strange pony must have made a giant variant of this thing.i now knew what I had to look out for. As I made my way towards the town I noticed that there were literally hundreds of these things scattered around the land. I finally made it back to the town. I looked around for any sign of what had survived. I found a few torn blankets and a leather strap nearby. Fashioning a crude backpack I hunted down supplies, which was harder than you would think as we Draconeques always make our food as we need it we rarely ever store food for long periods of time. I did, however, manage to find a few pieces of bread, some butter and some meat. I believed that would be enough for a few days. Or at least that’s what I thought. I left the town and made my way west, towards the gryphon’s territory. They may not have been friendly with our people but they never truly hated us either. As I made my way through the remnants of the town I heard a sound off to my left and ducked behind the burnt remnants of the city well. Peeking out from my cover I noticed that a small child was lying beneath the rubble of one of the buildings. Checking to make sure it was safe to approach the child I made my way into the ruined house and began to free the child from his prison. As I pulled the rubble off the child I had a thought. Why was this child still here if everyone else had vanished? Was that blast strong enough to eradicate the bodies of our people but not strong enough to destroy this child? I looked at the boy. He barely had a scratch on him. Just what was this kid. I lifted him from the rubble and took him with me as I left the town. And with that I slowly made my way towards the Gryphon’s territory with a pack of food and an unconscious child on my back. Just what this world had in store for me I have no clue but what I do know is this. There is no turning back now.
The Start of Something NewIt had been three days since I had left the remains of our town. I had been traveling the barren wasteland that was once my home. As I traveled I had soon learnt that the invaders had done so much more damage than I had previously thought. They didn’t just slaughter our people. They burnt down the forests, they blocked up the rivers, and they scorched the earth, killing almost all of the native wildlife. How could so few have caused so much damage? I traversed the burnt forest with the child nestled firmly on my back. He had not awoken since I had found him. Occasionally he would grunt or move around on my back but that was as far as he went. I was stopped abruptly by a rock face. We had reached the end of our lands. Beyond this was the land of the Gryphons. Night would fall soon so now would be the best time to start searching for shelter. I traced my way along the rock face looking for a cave or alcove or something that would protect us from the elements. I didn’t have to worry about any animals in particular anymore. With the landscape so ruined no animals would remain around these areas for long. I stopped at a small series of cracks in the cliff face. I traced my talon along the cracks and noticed that there was a slight draft behind this wall. I knew that this meant there was a cave system or at least a passageway behind the wall. I searched the immediate area for a means to break the wall open so we could rest. There were only a few charred logs nearby so I grabbed a smaller one and smashed it against the wall. There was a ringing sound but the wall remained intact. The sun was about to set and we did not have any form of shelter. Trying my best to provide what I could for the child I began to set to work building him a small tent like construction. I laid him and the food down near the wall and began searching for strong bits of wood that had survived the fire. I found a few pieces when I heard and earth shattering splitting sound followed by a loud rumble. The sound had originated from where I had left the child. Dropping the wood I ran back to the child. I arrived to see a strange sight in front of me. The child was awake…and standing in front of the once whole wall that blocked our way. I did not know what to say. This child had managed to break that wall that I could not? How had he done it? The child beckoned me to follow him and casually walked into the now exposed tunnel. I did as instructed and followed the child inside as I entered the cave I found the boy sitting next to one of the walls and happily eating the last of our bread. I knew that he needed it more than I did but to ransack the food supply without any thought? Just what was this kid thinking? I took a seat next to the kid and slowly began to think about all the events that had occurred. I closed my eyes only to see the town again. I saw people screaming and being massacred before my eyes, the town burning…and the explosion. I opened my eyes to see the boy standing in front of me with his head cocked to the side trying to work out what I was doing. It was then that I decided I would talk to him…for the first time. “Yes?” I said “Is there something you want?” “Yep, more food please” he replied “I’m sorry but we don’t have any more food. That was the last we had” “Then why don’t you make some more food?” “Because that’s not my job to make food. I record and write history so that others may learn from our mistakes” “Well that’s silly if you’re hungry what’s wrong with making food?” The child had a point. It was my job to record history…but does that truly mean that I can only do that? Well there is only one way to find out “Alright I’ll try but don’t be too disappointed if I fail alright?” “Ok old man” With that I stood up. I looked at the crumbs of bread that were left from the boys meal. I remembered that it was made of water, flour and yeast. I drew water from the air, yeast from the remains of the bread, which I then willed to grow. Finally I drew the seeds from the ground and ground them into a powder to make flour. Mixing these ingredients I slowly increased the temperature of the mix and it slowly began to rise. After about fifteen minutes we had a stange spherical loaf of bread. The boy applauded and cheered as I stood there in shock. I had actually made something using my will…how. Society always told us that you could only produce things that you were suited to when you matured into an adult. Was that all a lie? Could we actually make anything we wanted so long as we knew how it was produced? I must experiment some more with this new found knowledge. “Thanks old man it’s really yummy” called the boy “You’re welcome” I called back, taking a piece for myself. It actually was quite delicious. It tasted like it had just come out of the oven and was still warm too. “Told you that you could make it” said the boy “Yes you did, didn’t you…how did you know?” “That’s because I do it all the time. My favorite ones are cotton candy and chocolate milk. There the yummiest” “They are quite good aren’t they?” “Yep” “So what’s your title anyway?” I asked “What’s a title?” “It’s what you’re good at. They name you after your talent as you grow up” “That’s silly, what if I don’t like my title” “Well it’s something that you will like because it’s what your good at” “Not true what if I become a dentist? I like cotton candy and chocolate but if I’m a dentist then I can’t eat them any more right?” “I suppose that’s true…” “Then I don’t want one of those titles” “fine then ill just call you discord” “Why discord?” “Because you like to disagree with others and don’t accept anything you don’t like” “Cool” “You’re a very strange child you know that?” “Yep…so what’s your title then old man?” “Me? Well I’m called the Biographer of Time” “That’s too long I’m just going to call you Old Man Time from now on” I thought of this name that he gave me…I suppose it would be easier to explain to people who I was with a name not a title…alright then I suppose ill let the boy have his way “Ok, you can call me Old Man Time if you want” “Awesome…but I was going to call you that anyway” “Yes Discord I know you were” “I’m bored now can we leave?” “No discord we need to sleep first then we can leave in the morning” “Fine but I get more food in the morning alright?” “Alright now please go to sleep” And with that, the boy named Discord and I began a journey together that would change the very world itself
ExperimentationTo anyone that is reading this story. Constructive criticism is always welcome just don’t overdo it ok? Also just want to clear something up in case anyone gets confused by the following chapter I am an 18 year old male who is currently attending university and completing his first year of a bachelor of art. I am not the Biographer of Time in this story and as such he does not have to conform to being my age so as such while I am 18 he can be any age he wants. Also if anyone wants to tell me their ideas I’ll be more than happy to listen…I might even change my story around to include them. After all it’s better to have a longer story than a short one Enjoy :) Dawn arrived early that day. The rays of light beamed through the sky where the forest once stood. Awoken in such a pleasant way was a sharp contrast to the events that unfolded over the last four days. The warm light on my furred and scaly body renewed my vigor as I went about stretching out the knot that had formed in my neck from the angle I had slept at. After a small wander outside to see what the night had brought to us while we slept, I turned back to the cave and had an idea. If I could use my…abilities…in ways other than just too record time what else could I do with them? Turning to see Discord still sleeping peacefully an idea popped into my head. Taking a position next to the caves entrance I slowly began focusing on the air near his ear. I snapped my furry fingers together and with a snap the air near Discord separated and a loud click sound resonated through the cave. The poor boy woke with a start. He quickly stood up and darted to the caves entrance only to fall over flat on his face as he tripped over his own feet. I could not help it. I just had to laugh at the sight of the boy in his confusion. Discord picked himself up and shot me a ominous glare. That just made me crack up even more. Walking over to him I offered him a talon to help him back onto his feet. Still with a sour face, he accepted the help and I pulled him back up right. He dusted himself off and then turned back towards the cave. He must have realized the time however as he suddenly turned around and stared directly into the sun. his eyes watered as he made a small pained grunt. “Why did you have to wake me up like that?” “Because I was bored…well that and you just looked so peaceful that I had to do something to ruin it” “You’re a mean old man…” “Ah well sticks and stones my dear boy” “What does that mean?” “Oh never mind” I replied. I wasn’t about to explain the phrase to him while in such a happy mood. With the way the last few days had been it was a nice change to be able to make a few jokes again and have a good laugh. I sent Discord to gather up the rest of the equipment that we had. Seeing as he was awake now I thought that he could carry some of the gear…not that we had much to begin with. As Discord came scurrying back out of the cave I handed him the makeshift pack and instructed him to place the gear into it and then he would carry it as we found a way to climb up the cliff face. “Why don’t you just fly up” asked Discord “Because we can’t fly Discord” was my reply “But I thought we could do anything if we wanted to…” I hadn’t thought of that. What was with this child? He questions everything about our society with such a narrow view…or maybe it was our society that had a narrow view. Not once was anything he had said been wrong. “You know, I’m certain that you’re hiding something from me” I stated with an accusing tone “What do you mean?” he asked, clearly confused by my statement “Somehow you think that we can just do whatever we want…and yet so far you have been right about that” “That’s because I’m smart” “Yes, I suppose you are aren’t you…” Taking the pack from Discord I began to focus on flapping my mismatched wings. Willing them to produce more lift than they were capable of I slowly began to leave the ground. It seemed simple to me now but just a few minutes earlier I was stating that it was an impossibility to fly. Laughing at my own narrow minded view I turned back to where I left Discord only to find him less than 3 feet away from my face. “ARGH” I screamed, rolling backwards through the air as Discord started to laugh his head off “Gotcha old man” he laughed “I don’t understand…how are you flying? As a matter of fact how can you even use our brand of magic at all? You’re clearly not old enough to understand how it works or even what it is.” “I don’t know I’ve always been able to use it, and I don’t know what it is but I do know it’s fun, watch” he stated as he started to twist and contort his body through a series of odd aerial maneuvers. As he finished his maneuvers he slowly floated back towards me spinning his arms backwards as if he was swimming through the air on his back. “So how did I do?” he asked “T-T-That was amazing” I managed to stutter out. This child adapted to everything so quickly. I had only just learnt how to fly and already he was showing off. “Just how old are you anyway?” I asked “I don’t know” “What do you mean you don’t know? Didn’t you ever learn how to count? “Nope, I know I’m this many though” he said as he landed on the ground and made eleven straight lines into the ground. I flew down next to him and looked over his shoulder to see what he was doing. “You’re eleven” I told him “Is that old” he asked “No not really. You’re still just a little kid” “I know…how old are you then?” “Well…I’m not quite sure myself but I would say I’m going on to 40 or so years of age” “You are old then. I only called you old because of the beard” “Hey don’t make fun of my beard…I love this thing” “Ha you’re weird” “So are you” I retorted “Yep, its fun isn’t it?” With an exasperated sigh i shook my head. This kid clearly wasn’t going to understand what I was meaning any time soon. “Alright then, if you’re so good at flying then you can carry the bag this time” I stated With an audible moan, Discord picked up the bag and joined me as we both took off into the sky together.
The GryphonsHey everyone that is reading this. I went on a bit of a writing spree and ended up with 3 chapters done instead of sleeping... I hope you all enjoy this story I'm only just starting to get to the part that i personally think is where it gets good. After all who doesn't love a good fight scene, meddling in the politics of a foreign nation and a 5 year time skip? Oops...seems like I've just given out a few spoilers...well I hope that's enough to get you all to keep reading...because that's all going to happen in the next 3-5 chapters...depending on idea flow...and what you all think of my ideas currently. Don't forget to be happy and I hope you all have a wonderful day/night. Now on with the show...uh I mean story. The cliff face was not at large as I had first thought. We easily made it up in less than ten minutes of continual flying. Though what occurred at the top was less than impressive. As Discord and I alighted on the top of the cliff a loud cawing sound could be heard for the distance. Unsure of what the noise was I huddled discord behind me as I began to survey the landscape for any signs of danger. From my left I heard the rustling of wings and another caw though much deeper this time. I quickly forced Discord down to the ground along with me as a large figure burst from the ground nearby and leapt at where we were previously standing. Pushing Discord along the ground I rolled in the opposite direction from him and sprung back to my feet. I quickly snuck a glance at the creature and saw its feathered head and sharp talons. This was a Gryphon. The gryphon swung its talons in my direction. I jumped backwards and rolled to my right as it leapt straight towards me again. Seeing an opportunity I leapt towards the gryphon and tried to throw it on its side though it noticed what I was trying to do. Immediately it took a step back and then lunged forward as soon as my momentum ceased. Trapping me in a firm grip it began to swing its head backwards. I had forgotten about its sharp beak. I panicked and fell back on the only thing that I thought might work “Political emissary” I screamed Immediately it hesitated. “I’m a political emissary from the Draconeques” I said, trying to convince it that there was no reason to harm me. “How do I know you’re not lying? I’ve never heard of an emissary traveling with a child before…or even a Draconeques emissary for that matter” “I promise you I’m not lying” I stated “I’m traveling from our land because it was invaded by a foreign army. That’s why I have the child. I rescued him and fled here. I figured that the gryphons where the safest choice in regards to protecting this child from any more violence. I also thought it would be the best choice to inform your leader of the actions that occurred so close to your boarders “I reasoned. I hoped that was convincing enough that it would at least not harm the child. “Hmm…very well then. I'll cease this violence for now but this does not mean that I trust you on your word alone” he told me. Now that the fighting had ceased it was easy to tell that this gryphon was male “That’s good enough for me” I replied. Anything was better than being pecked to death for no reason. “So what are you doing here?” he asked “I already told you our land was invaded” “That wasn’t what I was meaning. I want to know why they picked you to bring the news. Your not strong, fast or impressive. I'm almost certain that there are others that are better suited to travel than you” “They didn’t pick me…” I replied slowly. “Then you lied to me about being an emissary” “No I didn’t… it’s just that…that we are the only survivors…that is why we weren’t sent…we are all that is left of the Draconeques species…” I told him sadly. “You mean to tell me that your entire race was eradicated instantly?” he asked, astonished by the news. “…yes…” I don’t think he knew to take this news. “An attack of such magnitude so close to our boarders…and not a single one of us knew. How did it happen” he asked “They came under the cover of nightfall” I replied “they surrounded our village and burnt our buildings. By the time that any sought of defense could be mustered they had taken out our leaders and guards. Then a large pony with both wings and a horn used some form of magic. I fled after that so I don’t know exactly what happened but shortly after I left the town…vanished” “You mean it was teleported?” “No… it was destroyed instantly” I told him “the magic from before seemed to be some sought of explosive or something” "Did you atleast see what this pony looked like? Anything like color or size?" "No...It was dark and I couldn't make much out through the smoke and flames" “I see” he stated “well I suppose we can take you to Beakador. If what you say is true then we might be capable of offering you lodging as a casualty of war” “ I thank you then, for offering your services as an escort. Might I ask you name?” “My name is Talonius” he replied “I am a commander of the gryphon army, Boarder Division. I am currently in charge of securing our borderlands until such time as is deemed no longer necessary.” “very well then. Shall we depart then?” “one moment” I replied. I scanned the area and spotted Discord hiding by a tuff of grass. “you can come out now Discord. This man isn’t going to try and hurt anyone anymore” "I had forgotten about him...though I suppose we did change the topic quite sharply didn't we? Discord popped his head up from the tuff. He quietly made his way to my side. As he reached me I took a step back and gently pushed him towards the commander. Discord just stood there staring at the commander…and the commander just stared back. “He has intelligent eyes” said Talonius “I bet he would love riddles” “Oh please no. I don’t think he needs anything like that…he would just drive us all crazy with them” I laughed “Oh come now I’m certain he isn’t as bad as what you make him out to be” Oh how those words would come back to haunt him.
