Shattered Tradition

It is Shadow dragon tradition to choose a new monarch from the current ruler’s children based on the moon.

The child that hatches on or nearest to the new moon is destined to become the new king or queen of their tribe. If an egg has twins within, or if multiple eggs hatch on the same night, then the siblings must compete in a series of trials to see which one the moon—and the Shadow dragon tribe—favors. The favored sibling is then prepared for crowning.

Datura hatched when the moon seemed to have abandoned the sky, and as such, her mother raised her to be the tribe’s monarch when she herself passed away.

Datura was determined to break tradition.

She knew from the time she was a wyrmling that she was not destined for the burden of ruling a tribe of warring dragons. Images flashed before her eyes and filled her sleep, images in which she was surrounded by dragons of many tribes, interacting with them with her claws relaxed.

In those visions, she was not a ruler but an equal to the dragons that she saw; they flew with her, not at a distance.

Yes, Datura knew that she would not lead the Shadow dragons. Her visions told her that her younger sister would take that job. The one time she had said such a thing to her mother, however, the Shadow dragon queen had reprimanded her.

“You are still young, and your powers are unreliable. Every time I peer into the future, I see myself standing in front of you, reciting the spell to crown you as my heir. Do not flee from that destiny, Datura.”

It had been nearly twenty-one years ago when Queen Vespera scolded Datura. She was now approaching her twenty-fourth hatching night, which was considered to be a dragon’s entrance into the agonan stage of life, or adulthood.

It was also the day on which Vespera would mark Datura as her heir.

Datura had three more nights before her hatching night, and she was determined to use every moment she had to try to thwart her mother’s plan.

The moment that Datura woke up, Vespera summoned her into her personal chambers.

Datura went with a sigh, resigned to the long lecture and sand-polishing that would follow her entrance into the gently lit room.

Her mother was delighted to see her.

“There you are, my dear! Why look so down? You’ll make an excellent queen, you know. If it’s about the pressure, it won’t be as bad as you think, I promise. After a while, leading the tribe becomes second nature. Be excited. The entire tribe will be there to support you when I name you my heir! ”

Datura shook her head slightly. She had given up on trying to convince her mother that ruling was not for her. “I don’t really feel comfortable going out in public so soon after…” she trailed off.

“I understand.” Vespera sighed and gently rubbed her neck against Datura’s. “Every member of the tribe knows now that it’s not your fault that you got disqualified from the Games, though. I’m so sorry that I didn’t believe you at the time. I should have known that that stuck-up Light dragon princess was trying to get rid of you.”

“It’s okay. I guess it doesn’t really matter anymore.”

“I know that’s not how you really feel.” her mother said tenderly. Then she brightened. “I made a sketch of how I want to do you up for the ceremony! Come see it and tell me what you think.”

Forcing her tail not to drag too much, Datura followed her mother into her hoard room.

The walls and ceiling were made of black tourmaline, with silver forming faintly glittering stars overhead. It was probably the most beautiful room in the palace. The late Shadow dragon king had collected countless treasures which now filled it, nearly blanketing the marble floors.

Vespera retrieved a scroll from one of the many cubbies that filled the left-hand wall and brought it to Datura, eagerly unrolling it.

In the dragon fashion, the picture had been created with magic. It was a perfect likeness of Datura, covered with fine jewelry and laced with silver paint between the scales.

“Isn’t it lovely?” Vespera asked, as excited as a wyrmling witnessing her first blood moon.

Datura hated when she had to wear jewelry and paint. It was so… gaudy. Most Shadow dragons didn’t overdress, even for special occasions—although tradition dictated that the royal family wore more than the commoners.

“Could we maybe tone it down a bit?” she asked. “I’d really rather not wear earrings or paint around my eyes, and my wings will look fine without all of these cuffs, even though I know those are in style right now.” she pointed at the numerous cuffs that were meant to embrace the outer bones in her wings.

Vespera sighed. “I suppose we can remove those things, but I want you to look nice for your pre-coronation, so please wear everything else.”

Datura didn’t respond, hoping her mother would take the lack of speech as a yes.

Apparently, she did. “Well, now that that’s settled, let’s do round one of polishing your scales!”

__________________________

About three hours later, an aching and very tired Datura left her mother’s chambers. While the miserable polishing process took place, she had thought about what she might do to avoid the event.

She knew that her sister Luna would make a much better queen than Datura could ever hope to be. The problem was that Luna, only hours younger than Datura, had hatched a few minutes after moonset, and Shadow dragons generally avoided crowning the ‘daylight hatchlings’.

So focused on her thoughts was Datura that she smacked headfirst into another Shadow dragon walking the halls—Luna herself.

Luna was a lovely dragon and a wonderful sister. Her scales were not entirely black, instead containing the faintest shading of dark, dark blue. Her eyes were lined by the usual silver scales that appeared on Shadow dragon royalty, but they were whiter than most. Her eyes were golden, like Datura’s, but the shade was a deeper, purer gold, more comparable to a sunrise than a harvest moon.

“Whoa, there, Datura! Are you too distracted by your impending pre-coronation to watch where your feet carry you?” Luna asked good-naturedly.

“Good night, Luna.” Datura said tiredly. “Would you come to the prey-house with me? I haven’t had breakfast yet.”

“Of course.” Luna eyed Datura before falling into step with her. Concern and curiosity flashed across her face. “Where have you been all evening?”

“Mother’s room.” Datura replied, quickening her pace as her stomach moaned.

“Ah. Now I know why your scales are so blindingly reflective.” There was a smile in Luna’s voice.

They walked in silence after that. Upon arriving at the prey-house, Datura selected a raccoon and took it back to her chambers.

“Luna, I really don’t want to go through with the ceremony. I don’t think that my future is supposed to take that path.”

Luna nodded. “I know that. But… what are you supposed to do about it? I can’t think of anything that would convince Mother—or our tribe—to choose me for the ceremony.”

Datura paused for a moment. “Would you cast an anti-scrying illusion on this room?”

Luna nodded and shut her eyes for a moment. Her breathing slowed and the silver scales under her eyes glowed briefly. Then she opened her eyes and nodded. “It’s done.”

“I’m not exactly sure what I should do, Luna. Something I do know, however, is that you would make a much better queen than me. I also know that you actually want to be queen.”

Luna opened her mouth. “I don—”

 Datura cut her off. “Don’t try to fool me. I seen the disappointment in your eyes every time Mother talks about making me her heir.”

Luna snapped her mouth shut and nodded. “I might not be the best at future-seeing, but I really do feel like I’m meant to be a leader. I guess we’re kinda stuck in each other’s dreams.” She sighed. “Sometimes I wish that I was born first, or that I was you.”

“Yeah, same.” Datura mumbled.

 Shock vibrated in her chest. “Wait.” She looked at Luna. “What if you were me in three days?”

Luna cocked her head. “What on Dranix do you mean?”

Datura leaned forward and whispered her idea into Luna’s ear.

Luna’s eyes widened as she heard the plan. “You’re loony! How would we ever keep it up long enough?”

Datura smiled. “I have no idea.”

____________________________

Three nights later, it was Datura’s—and Luna’s—hatching night. In between Datura’s frequent prep sessions with her mother, the sisters prepared their plan. There was only an hour left before the pre-coronation, and Datura was getting her paint done by Vespera.

It was a ticklish process, having a dragon claw lightly tracing silver paint onto and in between her scales. Vespera scolded Datura several times for jerking away from her claws.

Next came the jewelry. Before long, Datura felt that she would have difficulty flying if she tried to lift off of the ground. Each piece she wore was made of palladium or silver, with diamonds or starstones as accents. Jewelry coiled around her tail and horns, embraced her ankles, bedazzled her claws, and draped around her neck. She positively hated it.

Once she was finally finished, she took a steadying breath and looked at her mother. “Would you go ahead without me? I’ll be there in a minute. I want to talk to Luna.”

Vespera eyed her and then nodded, her orange-gold eyes slightly suspicious. “You need to be at the Moon Circle within the next five minutes. I’ll see you there.” With that, she swept out of the room, wings held gracefully high despite the many cuffs that gleamed silver against her black scales.

Luna came into the room mere moments after Vespera left. She wore jewelry, but it was much more subtle, only a single pair of silver bands curling around her horns.

“I won’t be able to cast the anti-scrying illusion this time, or I won’t have the energy to go through with tonight. Would you check the future and make sure that we still have good chances for success?”

Datura grimaced. “I probably shouldn’t. I have the feeling that some of this jewelry is enchanted. I don’t want to risk doing normal magic without finding out what kind of spells are on them.

Luna sighed apprehensively. “Then I guess we’ll just have to do this.”

She started chanting under her breath, using the modified version of a spell they discovered in the Library of Shadows.

“Let there be a strong illusion

 one that causes some confusion

 as to which of us is which

 I want to make our appearances switch.”

After Luna finished the spell, shadows gathered around her scales before flowing from her to Datura. The fuzzing darkness blocked her vision for several seconds before dispersing. When she looked down at her front feet, they were a dark, dark blue color. Not a single ring hid her silvery claws.

She looked up and saw the face that usually only greeted her when she stood in front of a mirror, bedecked with the jewelry that she herself had been wearing moments before.

It was all an illusion, of course. Datura still felt the heavy jewelry covering her own body, and her tail felt longer than it looked.

“This is the strangest illusion I’ve ever cast.” Luna remarked in Datura’s voice. She looked exhausted.

“Agreed.” Datura replied. “We need to go now.”

The sisters walked side by side out of the palace and to the Moon Circle. Datura did her best to use Luna’s usual gait, and she saw Luna doing the same.

Once they reached the Moon Circle, which was packed with Shadow dragons and bathed in the light of a full moon, they split from each other, Luna going to stand in front of the Dias of the Red Moon, where Queen Vespera sat. Datura sat beside the Dias, in a line side by side with the lesser Shadow dragon nobles. Curling her tail tightly around her legs, she tried her hardest to fill in the hole of apprehension that filled her chest.

Vespera began the ceremony a few seconds after Luna sat in front of her.

“I have gathered you hear today to witness the pre-coronation of Datura. Born under a ‘new moon’, she has proven worthy to bear the mantle of queenhood. I proclaim this to the Shadow dragon tribe and to the ancestors of my royal family.”

Vespera wore the amulet of Shadow dragons around her neck, which was said to house the sylphs, or spirits, of the kings and queens of Shadow dragons who had ruled in the past. Once she proclaimed these words, the amulet began to glow white with moonlight.

She continued speaking.

“By the power that I have inherited as the Queen of Shadow dragons, I call upon the sylphs of my ancestors to show us whether the dragon in front of me deserves to rule this tribe!”

The amulet grew brighter, and as it did, the sky darkened. As one, the gathered Shadow dragons looked up and watched a red shadow pass over the moon, coloring the landscape all around them.

The amulet became blinding white before extinguishing as a shadow swallowed it. And there, in the light of the blood moon, a silvery-white horn formed on Luna’s head, in between and slightly farther forward than the horns by her ears. The Ruler’s Mark.

The moon returned to its normal white color, and as it did, the illusions surrounding Luna and Datura vanished.

A collective gasp filled the Moon Circle. Vespera’s face wore shocked anger.

“How dare you deceive me!” she snarled.

Luna straightened. “I cannot deceive the Ancestors, and they have approved my pre-coronation. The Ancestors do not believe in forcing a dragon into rulership against their will, according to records in the Library of Shadows. Datura had no desire to become queen.”

Anger turned to hurt within the orange-gold eyes. “The Ancestors may approve of your pre-coronation, but I do not approve of your tactics. Luna, as you are the new heir to the Shadow dragon throne, I cannot punish you. However.” She turned to Datura. “I exile you for six years. During this period of time, you are forbidden to enter the Shadow dragon territory. At the end of your exile, you have permission to live with us once more, as long as you do not commit any more offenses. It is a grave crime to defy your queen.”

Datura stiffened, then nodded. “I understand.”

She had suspected that such a thing would happen if the deception succeeded. She looked at Luna’s agonized expression before shaking off the jewelry that held her down. The only regret she would have after leaving is that she would not see her sister for at least six years—that thought pained her to her core. But, in truth, she was glad to leave. She did not approve of war, and she did not approve of the tactics that the Shadow dragons used in war. She would not have been able to lead her tribe. She would join the Peacekeepers and take their cause as her own.

She spread her wings and flew away from her home and her childhood. The Peacekeepers were waiting for her.