Jaesa

- Jaesa's name is short for Jocasta, which in Greek means "purple tinted clouds." It was given to her by a mysterious being she knows as the Voice. (Who is this voice? Jaesa will find out in time...)

- She shares a birthday with both Quartz and her mate, Halvor.

- Jaesa's nickname was given to her by Halvor, just because he thought it was cute.

- Like Halvor, Jaesa has absolutely no recollection of her parents and has never found them.

- Her first three children were named after great virtues.

- She has a Coatl- Alani- as an apprentice and can communicate perfectly well with her. Why?
Jaesa was born with the unique ablity to be able to communicate with all dragons just as easily as any other breed, and she has a non-monotone voice and a face that can show expression other than the crests. Oddly enough, her Fae children seem to have inherited this ability, however her grandchildren may or may not be born with it.

- Jaesa's familiar, a Hibernal Starbear named Rune, is highly skilled in the magical arts and was the first to greet Jaesa, Halvor, Maiara and Quartz when they arrived in Arcane for the first time.

- Jaesa received a prophecy from the Voice when she was just a hatchling, and it has followed her all of her life. Her story is posted below.



THE SWIRLING DARKNESS



Prologue- The Cave

I. HATE. ROCKS.

That was the only thought coming to Jaesa's mind. She'd thought of every escape plan and battle move she knew, and yet none of them would work.

How do you break through the wall of a solid cliff? Jaesa knew a lot of things, but not this. Not only was this rock causing her so much trouble, but if she hadn't been slammed into that rock when she was young, she would never have had to deal with the warring Flights, the rising darkness she had feared of in her dreams, or that crazy dragon hunter and his annoying catchphrase.

Still, if that hadn't happened, she never would have met her mate, or had his children... Jaesa shook her head to clear it and focused again on trying to get out of the cave.

She had always loved her home flight, Arcane, but all her inborn curiosity did nothing for her now. She could really use some Earth flight strength right about now, seeing as her small Fae size did nothing for her.

But, like so many times before, Jaesa was alone.

Jaesa slumped against the wall of the earthen cage, envisioning her mates' kind eyes and warm smile. She could almost hear the voices of her children, even though she knew they weren't there. Her Clan was far away now, facing certain death- and as their Healer, Jaesa should have been helping them. Instead, she was stuck inside this stupid rock.

There was only one option to escape, and yet, Jaesa dared not use it. It was far too dangerous, and her Clan would soon need it for the challenges ahead.

No. There had to be another way, Jaesa thought. There always is. The Voice told me so.

The Voice... Jaesa hadn't heard him since the night of the blood-moon, but Jaesa sorely needed his advice. For the first time, she wanted a dream from him- though they were always laced with painful visions. But if she wasn't going to use his gift to get out of here, she was going to need another idea.

Taking a deep breath, Jaesa curled up on the stone floor, used her scarf as a pillow, and willed the fuchsia light from the glowing rune on her forehead to dim. She shifted into a deep slumber, hoping to hear the Voice in her dreams.

Instead, Jaesa fell into a memory.


Chapter One- The Vision

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The alien scream split the night air, almost as unearthly as the thunderclaps and relentless rain around the valley. Fierce winds howled around the land, breaking trees and crumbling stones. Water raged against its beds and threatened war on the area, the storm fueling its fury.

At the center of the storm, a tiny purple hatchling struggling to fly was blown all around the sky. The hatchling tried to lift herself above the winds, but all of her efforts were for naught as a particularly strong gale lifted her into a swirl of fear-inducing height, lifting her so high that the hatchling almost liked the view- despite the flood of rain obscuring her vision.

And then, in a new wave of terror, she began to fall to earth.

Halfway down, the little dragon slammed full force into a rock. She heard the crunch of her body's impact first, then the clean snap of bone. She glanced at her left wing and found herself struggling not to look away as she saw the unnatural direction it was pointing.

When the hatchling had looked away from her broken wing, she only had a short time to register the horrible surprise waiting below her before she plunged right in it. The cold, heavy seawater began dragging her down deeper and deeper and she could do nothing except panic and flail her uninjured wing.

I'm going to drown, the hatchling thought desperately as she closed her eyes and prepared for whatever afterlife she was going to. Bubbles spewed from the hatchling's mouth in a frenzy. I'm going to die and I haven't been alive for a day. I'm going to die!

No, Jocasta, said another voice- deeper and older than hers. You're not going to die.

The tiny hatchling frowned. Who said that?

I did. A face appeared above her, but whoever it was wasn't in the water; so their face was indistinct. But when they spoke again, it was easy to match their face to the Voice.

I know you aren't going to die, little one. Your destiny- and the destinies of others that shall intertwine with yours- must be fulfilled for the world's future to regain balance.

As the Voice spoke, the tiny dragon hatchling felt a pair of claws gently pick her up from the raging saltwater. Strong wings encircled her as they caught the air, and a pair of eyes glowed above her.

The hatchling stared at the Voice, her huge eyes even wider than usual as she tried to make sense of what he had said. Is...is this a dream?

The Voice hesitated. Of sorts. A more proper name would be a vision, I suppose. But we have no time for questions now, the Voice said, seeing the hatchling draw breath to ask one. All of my own have this talent, but for now there is no time.

The hatchling closed her eyes- but out of exhaustion this time, not oncoming death. Jocasta, she murmured sleepily. I kinda like that name.

I gave it to you for a reason, the Voice murmured as he set her down, careful not to put her down on her broken wing. He spoke to her as he turned to fly away. Now stay. Help will be here soon.

The hatchling watched him spread his wings, then called after him one last time.

Voice?

He paused. Yes?

Thank you for saving me, the hatchling whispered. And thank you for my name.

He nodded, his eyes shining. The Voice's flying silhouette was the last thing the hatchling remembered as she slipped into unconsciousness.



Chapter Two- The Hatchlings

"Are you sure she's not dead?"

"Positive. Look, the healer here has worked for long enough that he knows that she's alive."

"She's barely moved since I brought her here! How can you possibly tell?"

Jocasta slowly woke up, hearing the two speakers quarrel above her. The first voice definitely sounded like a male dragon- but not the dragon who had spoken to her earlier- while the second was a confident and perhaps slightly annoyed female.

Opening her eyes, Jocasta saw the speakers' argument cease as she tried to sit up. "Where...where am I?"

She gave a quick once-over to each of the speakers. Jocasta saw the owner of the second voice first: a female hatchling with a pure white body, creamy golden wings and eyes as bright yellow as sunlight.

The other speaker- the male- looked a little older than the female, but still also a hatchling. He was long-bodied and muscular, with a stripey, sandy colored body and wings the color of midnight. Jocasta looked closely at his face and got the shock of his life when she saw his vivid pink eyes; for he had four of them.

"See? Didn't I tell you our healer was good? You shouldn't doubt him." The white female chided, an eyebrow raised.

"Sorry..." The long-bodied male muttered. His face turned red as he cleared his throat and turned his attention towards Jocasta.

"Anyways... hi. I'm Halvor, and this is Maiara. You're in the Shining Expanse right now- well, the territory of the Light flight. I'm guessing the storm brought you over, too?"

"Um, yeah, it did." Jocasta stuttered, not knowing what else to say. She rubbed her eyes and winced as a sharp stab of pain ran through her left wing. Lifting it, Jocasta saw that it was bound in a splint of willow branches and cream-colored linen.

Maiara frowned with concern and stepped a little closer to Jocasta, weaving in front of Halvor. "Do you want me to call the healer for you?"

"Oh. No, I'll be fine. Thanks."

Maiara grinned. "Well, I'm glad you feel a little better, after that nasty broken wing. What's your name?"

"Jocasta."

Maiara smiled. "Nice name."

"Thank you."

Halvor cleared his throat. "Hey, guys, we should probably get going. Dinner's in fifteen minutes."

Maiara nodded. "Okay. Want to come to dinner with us, Jocasta?"

Jocasta nodded, carefully drawing herself out of the nest. Halvor grinned at her with such a wide smile that Jocasta felt a tug in her gut to smile back, so she did. "Jocasta," Halvor murmured. "I like it. But... can I call you Jaesa instead? I just feel like that would be an awesome nickname for you."

She thought about it for a moment, then replied. "Okay. You can call me Jaesa."

*more coming soon!*

-feverfew cures headaches
-clay and sand cure stomachaches
-potato onions for toothaches
-peppermint helps with indegestion, nausea, colds and headaches
-blue entoloma is a mild sleep aid
-driftwood baron toxins combat wyrwound plague
-chickweed soothes itchy scales
-dandelion seeds used in teas for medication