Alize

Alize

~

~ Born to be Different ~

As the daughter of Aconitum and the granddaughter of Lasgalen and Galanta, Alize was raised to expect greatness. Even as a hatchling, each day she would train alongside her siblings in an effort to discover and hone the innate magic that had become synonymous with the Celestial Runner bloodline. However, as she watched her brothers and sisters each - in turn - find their unique gifts, Alize was left without the slightest hint that she herself had access to this highly revered magic. Feeling as though she didn't belong, often times she would run away - usually to her favorite isolated hilltop far from the constant reminders of that which set her apart from the others. It was here that she would gaze longingly and tearfully into the vast reaches of the heavens - sometimes asking the cold void aloud the questions that were always rioting in her head:

What is wrong with me?
I train just as hard as everyone else - am I not fit to carry the gift of magic?
What is my purpose?

But of course, the stars could not answer her, nor mend her broken spirit. Yet, as certain as the galaxies followed their destined courses through the cosmos, Galanta was always the one to find the young dragon and ease her tired soul with softly spoken words. For, she too, had looked into the endless mantle of space when the future was daunting or uncertain. The elder dragon would walk lightly to Alize's side and greet her with eyes that sparkled gently with wisdom and knowing. It was as if she knew precisely when to appear to bring the estranged child home.

"Worry not, Starling,"
Her lilting voice would almost sing.
"Your time will come, and it will be more wonderful and beautiful than you could possibly imagine."

And all Alize had to do was look into Galanta's eyes - shimmering so radiantly that they seemed themselves to be made of a newly birthed nebula - to know that she would be alright.

Even as the years passed, the magic still did not awaken. It was with such bittersweet sadness that she watched her brothers and sisters each mature in their respective calling, one by one taking their place in the Celestial Runner family. Regardless, Alize trained ten times as hard - becoming expertly skilled in unaided combat. It was her fierce desire to protect that drove her - and that eventually would awaken the true power which lay dormant within her. Soon she was old enough to find a home of her own, and with gilded uncertainty she set off to begin the next chapter of her journey.

~ Awakening ~

It was as she crossed the dappled glades of the Viridian Labyrinth that the beginning of her destiny would unfold. While she took a moment to rest atop a fallen oak, a small whimpering reached her ears from below. Suddenly alert, Alize glanced down toward the distressed sound. There, she saw a young Alstromeria Fox warding off a group of hungry Shatterbone Vultures that had sensed the vulpine's weakened state. The poor creature looked as if it had gone days without food, and its thin magenta skin clung tightly to its tiny ribs. Without pausing for consideration, Alize leapt from her perch in a mighty flurry of rage - wings outstretched to their full span, claws and teeth bared threateningly. The vultures immediately recoiled, instinctively terrified of the much larger predator, and took their leave post-haste. After the birds had vanished from sight, the lithe Skydancer let her wings fold gracefully to her sides and relaxed her vicious expression. She turned warmly to the mortified fox, who had cowered down nearly flat to the earth in the wake of such frightening events. Feeling her gaze, it let out the tiniest, most pitiful squeak:

"Please, d-don't eat me! I'm poisonous, I swear!"

Amuzed, Alize laughed gently.

"Don't worry, small one,"
She purred.
"I would never hurt such a magnificent creature.
Now, let's get you something to eat."

Upon hearing the unexpected compliment (or perhaps at the mention of food), the small fox perked up - head and tail held as high as its worn body would allow.
And thus began an inseparable friendship, as dragon and vulpine set out to find a place to call home. Little did Alize know that something powerful had begun to stir within her - for this was the first time that she had ever truly needed to protect another life.

~ Meaning Found ~

The unlikely pair eventually made their way through each Flight territory, tirelessly searching for a place that didn't seem to exist. Alize wouldn't allow herself to settle anywhere that she didn't feel a sense of belonging, and as history would have it, true belonging was something she had yet to experience. The little Alstromeria Fox, who had appointed himself familiar and called himself Tozo, would regularly complain about the constant trek to nowhere.

"But - the Dragonhome had such comfy caves..."
He whined, fliting restlessly around the Skydancer's head as she lay outstretched beneath an ancient column of the Sunbeam Ruins.
"And, the Windswept Plateau had the best parties."
Alize opened one electric blue eye to regard the small creature as he ranted.
"And what about the tricksters of the Tangled Wood? Oh, how I loved their pranks..."
Tozo stared off into the distance, likely reveling in fond memories. The fox had felt quite at home among the mischievous ways of the Shadow Dragons.
But the fondness was short-lived, as he quickly remembered that he was complaining.
"AND to think! You haven't found one place that suits your unattainable standards - "
He stopped himself short, glancing apologetically at the dragon who held his gaze solemnly.
"I'm sorry,"
He whispered.
"I know you're just trying to find the right place."

Suddenly, the wind changed direction and the temperature fluctuated. The tension in the air was nearly tangible, and a sense of foreboding crackled like tendrils of lightning along the Skydancer's spine. She abruptly lifted her head at the sensation, eyes now wide with alarm. She could feel the every movement of the air with her feathers, as if her senses had become drastically heightened.
And then it came.
A voice, echoing in her mind. Soft as a whisper, yet at the same time as thunderous as the howling of a storm.

Please! Help us!
Someone. Anyone.
They came in the night - they killed her.
They killed everyone.
Mother. And father...

And then the images.
Scenes flashing before her eyes.
A mother weeping for her slain child.
A hatchling curled under the lifeless bodies of its parents.
A clearing, somewhere in the Light territory, stained with blood and silenced with sorrow.
But just as Alize could no longer bear the horrors before her, time stood still and the sun moved backwards in the sky.
And again, a voice - this time spoken softly and in a way that imitated Galanta herself:

The future is not yet written in stone, Starling.

As abruptly as it had begun, the wind came to a stop and the electricity dancing through her veins faded. Heart racing, the truth dawned upon her. She had received a premonition - something that could only have been borne of a powerful magic. And now, for the first time in her life, she knew exactly what her purpose was.

~ Belonging ~

It was then that Alize and Tozo would finally find their home. Following the stars by night, the Celestial Runner made her way to the clearing that the magic had shown her. There she found a clan of dragons, unaware but yet unharmed. She quickly recognized faces and voices that she could have otherwise had no way of placing. This alone was proof enough to the clan that her warning of impending danger should be heeded. Together, Alize, the dragons of the clan, and even Tozo (or at least he likes to think) combined their magic to build an impenetrable barrier around the Sundial Terrace. Tragedy was averted, as the sinister Rougeclan could not prevail against the powerful spell, nor did they have the advantage of surprise. Alize led the charge that drove them from the Sunbeam Ruins, her magic manifesting in bolts of lightning as she fought to protect her new friends.

Once the dust had settled, the clan felt as though the least they could do was offer their "guardian angel" a place within the family.
She had finally found somewhere that she could truly call home.
And in her elation, she could have sworn that she heard Galanta's melodious laugh echoing from the stars:

"You see, Starling? You have always had a purpose."

~