This title is printed to order. This book may have been self-published. If so, we cannot guarantee the quality of the content. In the main most books will have gone through the editing process however some may not. We therefore suggest that you be aware of this before ordering this book. If in doubt check either the author or publisher’s details as we are unable to accept any returns unless they are faulty. Please contact us if you have any questions.
The first time I saw the mountain, I was seven years old, and I didn't know enough to be afraid.
It was dusk when my father took me to the edge of the village. The sun was low on the horizon, painting the sky in shades of orange and purple. My small hand clutched his, my feet trailing behind him as we walked in silence. I could feel the weight of the air around us, thick with anticipation, but I didn't understand why.
At the foot of the mountain, my father paused, looking up at the peak that seemed to pierce the sky. "Do you know the stories, Anya?" he asked, his voice low, as though speaking louder might break the spell of the moment.
I shook my head, though I had heard the whispers. Stories told by the elders, whispered around the fire, murmured in hushed voices as the wind howled through the village at night. They were tales of dragons-mighty beasts who had once ruled the skies, their wings darkening the sun, their roars shaking the earth. Of a place called Dragon Haven, hidden deep within the mountains, where the last of their kind were said to sleep, waiting for a time when they would rise again.
"Those are just stories," I had said, not fully understanding the weight of his words.
My father's eyes held a distant look, one I had seen only when he thought I wasn't paying attention. "Not all stories are lies," he said, his voice tinged with something I couldn't quite name. "One day, you'll understand. But for now, you must never forget-there are places in this world that are older than the stars. And the mountain... the mountain is one of them."
I didn't ask him what he meant. I didn't need to. I was a child, and the idea of dragons and ancient places seemed as unreal to me as the fairytales my mother had once told me.
But that was before the signs began.
