From: Dominus Fenix (dash53@aol.comorbid) Subject: [PW!] Dragonsong Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon Date: 2000-11-10 19:37:01 PST Recap: Dante and Chet battled it out in Viridian Forest, only to end a draw, and Dante has now returned home to Mt. Celadon, to decide his next move. And yes, I'm back to writing, albeit for a little while. (OOC: I've changed his home from "Celadon mountains" to "Mt. Celadon" for better clarity. OOC2: I've decided to name the Abra/Kadabra/Alakazam clan that butchered the Shiro the "Mentu".) ---------- Dante stood atop Mount Celadon, its uniquely flat surface provided him a perfect place to sit and watch the moon, like he first did as a Charmander, so long ago. He remembered his first sight, his baby-eyes widening in amazement at the Pokéworld's only satellite. At the time, it seemed brighter than the sun, its light illuminating the pitch-black night. That memory hit him harder than any attack, for he then realized that those times were gone, along with most of his family, friends, many of his kind - his world. Dante paced and brooded, the crimson and black Charizard letting out occasional puffs of smoke as he walked. He took out the Shiro scripture, written so long ago, even before his birth. And he took great personal joy to the fact that he was the one who would fulfill the prophecy, but it warmed him little. Dante brought his flame-tail close enough for him to see, but not for it to damage the book. He sat on a nearby rock, and began to read. At a time when the lands were young and the earth and fields were full of plenty, began the legacy of the Shiro. The Charizard clan raised their brood within the sheltering caves of Celadon mountains, where the first Shiro Charizard had discovered the beautiful land, after the great divide that seperated the two mother and son continents. Noble and mighty, the clan of the Shiro had attained dominance over the entire Celadon mountain range in a few hundred years after their arrival. The prey-beasts were in plenty, and the Shiro did eat, and their numbers did dwindle. And yet, order and relative peace was controlled by the five lords that inhabitied the territories. Each selected from the best of the castes, they would sire suitable heirs. And each lord had a different color of scale, so that they would be recognized. The fiercest of them was Crosis, the Purger, mightiest and strongest of the Purgers caste, keeping order within the Shiro and protected the homeland from threat. Midnight black in color, he and his caste dwelled on the very top of the mountains, gazing out into the world. The most noble and cunning was Darigaaz, the Igniter, leader of the Stormer caste, who captured neighboring lands from other clans and species; they overpowered and outhought their enemy. Their skin was blood red, to prove their ferocity, and for red was the color that stained their scales. The strongest and bulkiest of the lords was Dromar, the Banisher, of the Banishers, for he and his ilk constructed the stone structures that the Shiro lived in, along with maintaining the caves. His regime was simply put: work or die. Their scales blue, a sign of endurance, for they were trained under waterfalls, the bane and weakness of the Shiro and all Charizard. The wisest and learned of the lords was Rith, the Awakener, leader of the Awakeners, they were brilliant and ancient, for Rith, conceived the idea of talon-script, and the Shiro then had written language. They taught the Charmander, Charmeleon, and young Charizard the ways of life and history. Their scales were of a green hue, because their lessons were taught not in a cave or a roost, but in the green, open air - and at the end of every lesson, they would ceremonially burn down a tree, giving due homage to Rith's sire, Krayt, who had long, long, long ago learned that plants were meant to burn. But the these lords, the leaders of defense, military, labor and education, paled in comparison to the lord of lords, the god-king of the Shiro, the revered Ur-Dragon, Treva, the Renewer. He was called as such for he was the first of the Shiro, landed in the Celadon mountains, thousands of years ago. The Ur-Dragon was older than any Awakener, but, he, had managed to keep some youth with him in the millenium he had existed. He symbolized where the Shiro had come from and where they were: he was black and red in a vibrant mix of colors that made him stand out. The red, the preserving flame; the black, the ash that remains. He had a voice like rolling thunder, his counsel like oil on tanned leather, and his hatred like earthquakes. And so, this council of five was held at the heart of Mount Celadon, in seats carved not of wood, but of rich, black obsidian, with Treva at the head, and each lord accompanying him. Five lords there were, but six were at the obsidian table. The sixth was for the successor, the heir, the scion of Treva: for he would lead the Shiro to new greatness, and for he would unite the clan, lest it fall. For the sire of Treva shall bear his likeness, and reign god-king over the lands... And so, Dante stopped his reading and paused, gazing into the scripture that he held in his talons. Under the talon-writing of Rith, the Awakener, who had personally written this copy for his father, Keralld. Rith knew of Dante's status, and had given it to the young Charmander at birth, though he did not know its signifigance. Dante closed the text, and returned to his lair to put it in its proper place. "I can not believe that they're all gone...." said Dante as he returned it to its hiding place. "My entire clan...wiped out by the Mentu - they will pay for this, I swear by all that it is holy, that these deaths will not go unchecked," he said with a low growl in his tone. ------ Dante returned to the top of the mountain, and jumped off, spreading his wings as he fell. He gave a burst of power, and he flew off to search for dinner. He powered his wings, and flew higher, until he spotted a Pidgeot - a large one, with deep brown feathers, and bright gold feathers at the head - just the kind that Dante liked. He tried to fly silently, trying to make his leathery wings flap quietly as he could. He gained alititude, and inhaled deeply for a crippling Flamethrower attack to launch at the Pidgeot; but when he got closer, he discovered that a diminutive human was riding on it. "C'mon, Winger! You gotta go faster! I wanna get to Cinnabar 'fore it erupts! We have to help them peoples - otherwise, I won't get extra credits for my Junior Pokérescue badge!" The Pidgeot replied with a "Pidgeooot!" and flew faster. Dante wondered what a Junior Pokérescue badge was, but if Cinnabar Volcano erupted, much of the Charizard, Charmander, and Charmeleon population would die out.......and he could not let that happen. Dante spat out the fireball he was preparing, and followed the human and Pidgeot toward Cinnabar Island. TBC.