Dragon Medallions: Book 1: the Dragon Master Series

By Megan Pitts and Vicki Shankwitz

Skye, Jailynn, and Phrena, 17-year-old girls, attend high school at Hirkami Castle. One of the girls pastimes was to explore the unoccupied parts of the castle. During one of these searches, the girls happened upon a room full of treasures. There, Skye found a golden medallion with a dragons head engraved on one side. As she held the coin, it flashed blue and made her tingle from head to toe as if electrified. Suddenly, a dragon mark, like a tattoo, appeared on her right wrist. It was not like the dragon coins face, but that of a dragon in a circle as if to eat its own tail.
Later, the three girls unwittingly traveled through a magic portal to the land of Corux. Corux is a parallel world of ancient ways. It is a land of magic, mages, and royalty. And a dragon awakens

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Nov 24, 2015
• ISBN: 9781514427798

Book preview

PROLOGUE

T he dragons flew playfully in the cloudless sky of Corux. Near the turn of the sixteen century in a world far from the reaches of Earth, the dragons happily soared in the warmth of the sun. Diving and spinning as they played together, they were learning the ways of dragons. Births of dragon hatchlings were numerous that year and most had lived to fly above the land they called home.

Corux, a small country on the world of Cesmir, was unknown to all but a few on Earth. Though a magic portal linked the worlds, fewer still had the ability to make the crossing. Corux was a land of dragons, magic, castles, and royalty. The royals ruled the land, but the mages and knights kept the peace. For the most part, the citizens lived in peace and loved their leaders.

Since the beginning, the mages instructed the young children in blue magic, known as white magic on Earth. Those that showed promise became apprentices. In past years, this system worked well, but then things changed. One of the apprentices, Roman, resisted the training, becoming cruel and angry. The blue mages tried to convince Roman that magic was only for good or for the benefit of the community. Roman believed magic was for whatever he chose and for the benefit and power of the user.

Killing his master, Roman and a few of his followers left the mages, and made their way to a nearby island, Creib, where he started his own magic society known as the Red Mages. For the next few months, they returned to Corux to plead their case, but the blue mages forbade their use of red magic. Knowing their cause was lost the red mages kept to themselves, but continued to practice magic on Creib.

As the years passed, Corux settled back into a peaceful, calm country once again. The blue mages continued to teach the young, but were more careful this time. They started anew the Society of the Blue Mages where the best blue mages led the society or school. There they watched more carefully for those that may become angry or rebellious. Meanwhile, unknown to the blue mages, Roman and his followers were taking apprentices of their own to train in the dark arts.

Years later, when he thought the time was right, Roman and his red mages attacked the country of Corux. They flew on their dragons over the Society of the Blue mages’ building and the city of Courant, where the building stood. Dragons and riders tried to topple the building, but the blue mages had a strong ward around it, so it stood unyielding. Very angry now, the red mages unleashed terror on the country of Corux. Red mage’s dragons flew over the cities and spit deadly magic upon them. Fire, ice, and wind assaulted the buildings and the villagers. The red mages on foot attacked the castle, trying to destroy it and the royal family.

As the battle raged, one by one the blue mage’s dragons found their bonded riders who had called them. Soon the area filled with dragons and riders circling in the skies. Below, knights and mages drew battle lines. Quickly the blue mages began returning fire. Dragon and mages attacked each other sending lightning, fire, and whirlwinds across the sky. It was the worst the country had ever seen.

Arrows flew as the archers tried to keep the castle safe. The red mages had grown strong on their island, and easily breached the castle’s wards. Dragons dodged the arrows while attacking the archers, who took cover but were soon few in number. The castle fell and was quickly penetrated by the red mages. The royals survived but barely.

After the long deadly battle, there were few dragons or mages left on either side. As the number of dragons diminished, several blue mages gathered and discussed what they needed to do. In order to save the dragons, the mages must preserve their souls and bodies to fight another day. To do this, several blue mages generated a magic spell which grabbed the dragon’s souls and put them in four golden medallions—air, fire, water, and earth–the four types of dragons. Living yet immobile, the dragons stayed in stasis as a statue. A single pendant was fashioned as a reminder of this day and a hope for the future. Lastly, a slotted golden dragon statue was prepared. All these were parts of what, in the future, would become the Dragon Statue that would awaken the dragons. Only one special person could awaken the dragons and that person was the Dragon Master.

1

A loud bang echoed down the hall as the heavy wooden door slammed behind them. They hoped no one heard the racket as they were in a forbidden area. The three, seventeen-year-old girls stood still a moment waiting to hear an answering door, followed by the footsteps of someone coming to find them. When they did not hear anything, they continued forward into the darkened room. The shadowy afternoon light from the dusty overhead windows made it difficult to see, but the girls hurried inside anyway. With a crash, Skye, Phrena, and Jailynn collided with each other, stumbling, but making it safely inside.

From her sweatshirt pocket, Skye pulled out a small flashlight and shined it around. The light danced around the room as she held it in her shaky hand. She brushed her long auburn hair out of her eyes and the sweat off her forehead. Slowly, she took a couple of breaths to calm herself, and finally she was relaxed enough to move on.

Now with the light firmly directed, the girls went forward. They could see that the room was rectangular and quite large. Only partly furnished, the room had an opulent yet informal look, which showed signs of use from the previous residents. The decorations hanging on the walls were clean, but aged.

One end of the room held a large wooden dining table with seating for more than a dozen people. Elegantly scrolled engraving covered the edges and the spindly legs. The high backed dining chairs had worn tapestry seats with wooden square rods for legs. Nearby were several oak cabinets with stylish plates, bowls, vases, and platters that seemed as if they belonged in another era.

Beyond the dining area, the reflected light showed an area of open floor. Shining the light around, Skye saw where the white tiles had seen extensive use. As Skye’s green eyes took in the room, she thought that these must be remnants from years past when, perhaps, the castle housed royalty or knights. What was the purpose of this side of the great hall? Not dancing, she thought, as she probed the grooves in the tiles. Maybe they had practiced with their weapons here.

The girls continued to stride toward the far wall beyond the grooved area. Resting here were aged maces, helmets, longbows, wooden spears and other weaponry. A great sword hanging above beckoned to Skye as she drew near. In awe of the history and wonders around her, she touched the silver of the blade, which gleamed in the ray of the flashlight. How amazing it must have been to live in a castle, to fight duels, or joust with other knights.

Jailynn, standing nearby, found an old bow and picked it up. It was nothing like the compound bows the students at the school used in their archery classes. This bow was a longbow made from one piece of yew and approximately sixty-eight inches long. This allowed for a full twenty-seven inch draw on the bowstring. This bowstring was made from flax, and showed wear from frequent use, and had a nocking point reinforced with more flax to protect the area of nocking.

Phrena’s brown eyes spotted a helmet from a suit of armor. It looked medieval and intimidating, but it did not frighten her. The silver helmet and nose guard seemed to draw her in with its interesting flame engravings and elaborately cut faceplate. It almost appeared as if she was peering into the face of a dragon.

Moving on, the girls examined the other walls in the room. These revealed more paintings and tapestries than previous walls they had seen. The tapestries showed queens knighting men, men on horseback, and landscapes. Why decorate this room more elaborate than the others? Most rooms were clean and organized making them think that they had occasional use, or that someone cared for the furnishings. Was this room used more frequently, or was it a special room the residents wanted kept unspoiled by the school? Maybe here they could find the key to the castle’s existence and learn some of its history. Much about the castle was a mystery to the girls, and over the years, they had been unable to get any answers. How old was the castle? Who had built it and to what purpose? What was a castle doing in the center of Massachusetts? Who were the knights that had worn the armor?

Hirkami Castle now held a private high school complete with dorms and teacher’s living area. The girls had already moved their belongings into their rooms for the new school year, and were now out scouring one scarcely used part of the castle. Even now, the girls were sure they had not discovered all of the castle’s secrets. Their favorite places were the areas that were off limits. The sign only appeared to utter the words Keep Out! However, to them it read, Please come find my secrets.

Being seniors, the girls had spent the last three years attending school here and roaming the castle. The school only used half of the available space leaving many areas to explore. The top floor of this building was unused by the school but stored old castle relics. On the fifth and sixth floors, the teachers and other staff had their apartments, dining, and social areas. The fourth floor held the library, common area, and meeting rooms. The classrooms were on the second and third floors. The first floor held the cafeteria, common area, lounge, and teacher’s offices. Student dorms were in a separate castle building, Vanwala, behind the one where they stood. The four floors of that building held the dorms and social areas.

Hirkami was a prestigious school for affluent families. They focused on a well-balanced education as well as self-defense and weapons training. Not all that applied were accepted. Phrena and her friends were different than most of the students in attendance. Although prosperous like the other families, the girl’s parents did not allow them use of electronic devices unless it was necessary. In addition, their parents rounded out their education with visits to museums and historical monuments. Phrena and Skye were the shy ones reluctant to make friends with many of the students in their classes, which brought on teasing and harassment from the others thinking that they were snobs. Jailynn was more outgoing, but still cautious around the students. As teens, most of the students’ lives revolved around video games and the internet; the three girls felt like outsiders.

Arriving back at the dining area of the room, Phrena wandered between the chairs and dish cupboards. She peered at the porcelain vases, silver bowls, and silverware noticing the detail of the artistic designs in the vases and the beautiful patterns of the silverware. This would be a great place for royal dinners or knight’s feasts. Oh, the fancy balls and dancing would be amazing, Phrena thought. She twirled and spun about the room as her brown eyes lit up with wonder, and her short, light brown hair flew up around her head as she danced.

She grabbed Jailynn, who stood shorter and thinner, and twirled her. The two whirled and spun across the tile floor to a tune that only they could hear. Their tennis shoes made little sound on the tiles, yet were poor dancing shoes. The soft soles stuck to the floor instead of sliding, and occasionally squeaked as they twirled across the tiles. Suddenly, Jailynn and Phrena stumbled, falling loudly to the floor. Phrena sat chuckling while Jailynn quickly stood, straightened her clothes, and patted her medium length black hair. Jokingly, Jailynn brushed off the imagined dust indignantly, and then laughed at their antics. Realizing what they had done, the girls covered their mouths. They lightly giggled again, but straightened and became serious hoping passersby in the hall had not heard the racket. Phrena rose and they again searched the room, but moved more quietly than before.

Watching her friends, Skye shook her head and chuckled. The girls had known each other since childhood and were close. They had gotten into many scrapes together, but had always protected each other. So far, their adventures in the castle had gone undetected, but that may not last long. Once, a guard had peered into the room the girls were searching, but they had gone unseen by him. The security guard had popped his head in, scanned the room, and then continued down the hall. However, with the amount of commotion they were making today, someone was bound to find them.

Skye was the tallest, most attractive, and thinnest of the three. Her red long hair fell below her shoulders and framed her face pleasantly. When she smiled, which she did often, her green almond shaped eyes sparkled. She was adventurous and curious, yet relaxed and not easily ruffled. Then there was Jailynn whose shoulder length hair was black and more wavy than curly. Upturned brown eyes showed her mischievousness, but also the warmth she felt for her friends and family. She, too, was thin, cute, and feminine, but she was more muscular and athletic than Skye. The shortest of the three, Jailynn rose above the perceived disadvantage by her gregarious, often comical ways. Phrena was medium in height, average in looks, and stocky. Her light brown bob haircut hung just below her jawline. She had brown eyes, and a face that would be called more cute than pretty. Very down to earth, Phrena was easily exasperated, protective of those she loved, and enjoyed her junk food.

Coming back to the present, Skye looked at her watch. It’s 4:00. We better hurry or we will be late getting our class schedules.

Immediately, the girls hurried toward the door out. Skye, her long legs striding quickly across the room, arrived first. She slowly cracked opened the door and scanned the hallway. Seeing no one coming, the girls left the room and headed down the hallway. They tried not to make much noise, as their footsteps echoed off the shiny wooden floor. Many doors lined the long hall and at each one they passed, the girls held their breath, hoping a teacher, janitor, or security guard would not hear them. Marble statues stood on small pillars between each door as if guarding against intruders.

Phrena glanced at the statues and whispered, I guess they don’t mind we are here, but it still feels like we are being watched.

The girls shivered and continued towards the exit. Arriving at the door, they again opened it a crack, and peered into the stairway to see if they were alone. Finding no one, the girls stepped in. Now they just needed to go down four flights and then enter the common area.

The castle, located in Secreden, rose high on a hill overlooking the city. Distinctively the style of Medieval Europe, this particular structure had slight variations. At first glance, it almost looked like a fort with its high gray walls looming over students standing below it. Instead of the round towers normally imagined, this castle had numerous square towers scattered along the outer walls with seemingly no pattern. Sparsely spaced, its windows were uninviting arrow slits, and dark and light gray bricks encased these high arched windows. Random red bricks appeared throughout the walls causing them to look like blotched skin. The top of each tower ended with slits for archers to use in battle. Directly above the slits were buttresses decorating the tall towers. The battlement sat at the top, comprising of a parapet with gaps for archers to take aim. The parapet appeared to have square fingers, which outstretched toward the sky. The main doorway to the castle held a large wooden double door silhouetted by a huge archway that reached to the top of the castle. The top of the roof was flat and looked big enough to park a plane. A strange staircase led into one of the nearby towers. On top of each tower were blue flags with the school’s dragon mascot on them. Unlike most castles, a smaller curtain wall encircled the entire building. Giving Hirkami Castle a fortress appearance, this wall completely and symmetrically traced the building, was only one story high, and repeated the same square, fingered pattern as the towers. Between the castle and the wall was a walkway that led to the main door.

To the back of the castle was a covered bridge that led to another building, the Vanwala Castle. In the 1800’s, when the surrounding area met up with the castle’s property, the owners decided to turn it into a school. As many of the rooms were to remain in their original condition, the Hirkami Castle contained insufficient space for dorms. A second building was built and had more of a Germanic look to it. Spires rose from the top of the towers with little windows protruding from them. Flags with the school’s dragon symbol on them hung from the point of each spire. These towers seemed to be placed on each corner of the eight-sided building. Behind the spires, the roof arched diagonally like a trapezoid and flattened out to a flat surface. This building was done in rust colored bricks with the spires being dreary gray. The castle rose four stories tall, but appeared much smaller than the towering castle in front of it. Windows dotted each side of Vanwala with blue or green shutters on each side. Stairs on the backside of the structure led to one of the school’s fields nearby. Vanwala had more color and cheerfulness than Hirkami, and it was clear by its welcoming nature that