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animeboye · 5 months ago

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Dragon's World Past Chapter 5

Chapter 5: The Mighty Sword of Tourajé

Tourajé’s words made Cyrus happy. He plopped down once more in the grass, thinking about how great it would be if he lived in a world where he wouldn’t have to hide his true self. In that short moment, Tourajé’s dream had become his dream as well.

The three dragons layed their heads down in the grass too. They lay together in a circle and closed their eyes, enjoying the gentle breeze and the calm gurgling of the river. They collectively sighed and before they knew it, they were fast asleep.

Awakening a little later, the four of them noticed that it had gotten a little darker. The sun was beginning to set. They stood up, brushed the grass off of their clothes and returned to Cyrus’ house. Saulstrance, Eig’nia, and Tourajé pondered. They weren’t sure how much longer they would be able to stay in the human realm. They had already been there for a pretty long time. Their master was probably starting to wonder what was keeping them.

Just as Saulstrance was about to say Cyrus’ name, Tourajé’s eye was caught by something. He spotted three men setting up what appeared to be a ring.

“Hey, Cyrus, what are those guys doing?” Asked Tourajé.

“Let’s find out.” Cyrus answered.

The four of them walked over to the men who were setting the ring up. Curious, Tourajé asked one of the men what they were doing. The man explained that every year, the village would hold a sword fighting contest as per tradition. The winner of the contest would receive one hundred and nineteen pounds sterling. While Tourajé didn’t know what pounds sterling were, he did know that he wanted to join in their contest so he asked the men if he could. Upon hearing Tourajé ask if he could join, the other two men stopped what they were doing. They looked at the young dragon turned boy as if he were crazy. They never had anyone as young as him compete. That was because they didn’t allow anyone that young to compete. To enter this competition, the combatants had to be twenty-one or over and despite Tourajé being twenty, in his human form, he appeared a bit younger.

“Listen young man, we admire your enthusiasm but swords aren’t toys. Have you even held a sword before?” Asked the man.

“No, but I can learn pretty quickly.” Tourajé responded.

“That isn’t the point. You can’t compete. Maybe when you’re a little older but for right now, I cannot allow it.” The man said sternly. And with that, he turned around and went about resuming his duties.

The man’s back turned to him, Tourajé glared. Why did it matter if he was young? He was strong, he knew he was. After all, would a “kid” have become Lord Léruc’s apprentice? But Tourajé felt he knew what the real issue was.

“Are you going to be competing?” Asked Tourajé.

“Indeed I am. As will these two.” The man answered.

“Then I know why you won’t let me join: you’re scared you’ll lose to me.” Tourajé said with a cocky grin on his face.

Cyrus gasped. He wished Tourajé hadn’t just said that. The men stopped what they were doing and turned to face Tourajé and the others.

“Excuse me?” The man asked, walking up to Tourajé and folding his arms, trying to intimidate the young boy.

Tourajé didn’t budge though. He knew that if the man knew what he really was, then he’d be the one intimidated.

“If you aren’t scared, then let me join.” Suggested Tourajé, egging the man on.

The man knew Tourajé was trying to get under his skin so he’d eventually slip up and let him join by accident. He wasn’t about to let himself fall for it. He explained again that Tourajé was too young to join. Yet again, Tourajé would not accept it. Noticing this, one of the other men suggested that he just be allowed in just this once.

“But the tradition has always been--”

“I think we can break tradition just this once. Besides, the kid really wants to have a go at it and it doesn’t seem like he’ll take no for an answer.” The man’s coworker said.

The man gave a defeated sigh. Feeling agitated, he reluctantly gave up, declaring that Tourajé could be allowed to enter the contest but that this would be the only time anyone younger than twenty-one would join. In addition, this would also be the only instance where Tourajé would ever be able to compete. While Saulstrance and the others thought that seemed unfair, Tourajé didn’t complain. He agreed to the man’s conditions.

The man laughed. He was impressed that someone so young would agree to that. He half expected Tourajé to pout and whine about how unfair that was. Even though he’d never tell him, the man was beginning to develop a little bit of respect for Tourajé.

“The contest will be held tomorrow afternoon. If I were you, I’d get as much sword practice in as possible before then.” Informed the man.

“You don’t have to worry! I’ll get so much practice in that I’ll beat all of you no problem!” Tourajé boasted, trying to make himself seem impressive and intimidating.

The men had a hearty laugh at the boy’s declaration. They wished Tourajé luck and went back to setting up for tomorrow.

That night, Saulstrance, Eig’nia, and Tourajé stayed at Cyrus’ house. They sat around the dinner table with Cyrus and his parents. This marked the first time the dragons had ever eaten dinner the human way. Usually, their parents would just go hunting for dead animals in the human realm and bring the carcasses back to their realm for their families to eat. Behind the table was a fireplace. The fire illuminated the otherwise darkened room. For dinner, the six of them had roasted chicken with a side of mashed potatoes. To drink, they had cups filled with water.

As they ate, Cyrus told his parents that Tourajé would be entering the contest tomorrow. They were just about to take another bite of their food when they heard the news. They paused for a moment, stared at their son for a moment, then turned to Tourajé who was looking back at them, confused as to why this was such a big deal. He understood that no one under twenty one was allowed to join but was it really that surprising that they allowed him in anyway?

“Tourajé, do you even know how to use a sword? Do you even know what one is?” Asked Cyrus’ father.

“Well…no…” Tourajé answered both questions, feeling a little embarrassed for joining a competition for something he knew nothing about.

“…Oh, dear…” Cyrus’ dad said worriedly. “You’re going to have a lot of preparing to do before tomorrow. In that case, I’ll help train you. After dinner, meet me behind the house. I’ll teach you how to use a sword.”

“You’ve used a sword before?” Eig’nia asked.

“Of course. I use to enter these contests myself.” Cyrus’ dad said.

“Dad used to be pretty good when he was younger. He doesn’t compete anymore but he should still be able to help.” Cyrus explained.

Smiling, Tourajé graciously thanked his new friend’s dad for offering to train him. He quickly finished his dinner and rushed out to the back of the house, urging Cyrus’ dad to hurry up.

Cyrus quickly finished his dinner as well and went to join Tourajé outside. He saw Tourajé standing there, staring up into the night sky. He walked over, stood next to Tourajé, and joined him in sky gazing.

“So, do you really think you’ll be able to win tomorrow?” Asked Cyrus while still looking up at the sky.

“In all honesty? Not really. I mean I didn’t even know what a sword was until a few hours ago.” Said Tourajé, sounding surprisingly unsure.

“But then why did you want to enter so badly?” Cyrus asked, not understanding what Tourajé was trying to accomplish.

“Well, I think it was because I want to challenge myself. That, and because I want to learn as much about this world as I can.” Explained Tourajé.

Just then, Cyrus’ father stepped outside. In his right hand he held a sword. He asked Tourajé if he was ready to train. With an eager look that was all too apparent on his face, Tourajé ran up to his friend’s dad and declared that he was ready. Cyrus’ father handed Tourajé his sword, instructing him to take it.

As Tourajé studied the sword that he held in his hand, He rested his other hand over the blade. It was smooth and cold to the touch. There were a couple nicks in the blade, no doubt meaning that it had been used quite a bit and was probably pretty old.

Tourajé couldn’t explain it but holding that sword made him feel stronger. It also made the dragon feel more confident. He had to wonder if perhaps this was how it felt being human. As a dragon, he was much stronger than anyone in this village but as a young human boy, he wasn’t quite as strong as most of them were. Tourajé pondered if maybe it was his human side beginning to take life.

“So Tourajé…” Smiled Cyrus’ dad. “How does it feel?”

“It’s…incredible.” The dragon-boy said awestruck. He swung the sword once, causing both Cyrus and his father to step back.

“Careful!” Cyrus’ father exclaimed. “You don’t want to swing that around anyone. Unless they have the proper protection, it could seriously hurt them.”

“Really? I’m sorry…” Said Tourajé shamefully.

“That’s okay. You’ll learn. For right now, let’s get your training underway.”

Meanwhile, inside the house, Cyrus’ mother showed Saulstrance and Eig’nia where they’d be sleeping. It was a small guest bedroom with only two beds, meaning that two of them would have to share a bed. Cyrus’ mother sat on the edge of the bed on the left hand side while Saulstrance and Eig’nia sat on the right.

“It’s so hard for me to believe that you two kids are really dragons.” Said Cyrus’ mother.

“Why is that?” Saulstrance asked.

“I haven’t seen or even spoken to another dragon in almost twenty years.” Cyrus’ mom answered.

“Not even your family?” Asked Eig’nia with a bit of concern in her voice.

Cyrus’ mom shook her head. “Not even them. When I met my husband, Thomas and discovered that I would be having his child, I couldn’t return to the dragon realm. Our world doesn’t think too highly of half-dragons. I couldn’t take Cyrus back with me and risk his safety so I decided: from then on, I would be a human woman by the name Miranda and raise my son as a human as well.”

“But Cyrus knows he’s a half-dragon.” Eig’nia said, confused by the last part of Miranda’s story.

“I know but I couldn’t hide that from him. Ever since Cyrus was born, I felt that it wouldn’t be right to hide from him what he and I really are.” Miranda answered.

Cyrus’ mother, who had revealed her human name to be Miranda, stood up and headed for the door. Eig’nia also stood up and went to lie down in the bed Miranda was sitting on. She pulled the covers over her and shut her eyes.

“Good night, Saulstrance and Eig’nia. And…can you do me a favor? When you return to the dragon realm, can you please not let anyone know you met me? Please? I just don’t want anything to happen to me…or my family.” Miranda asked, almost sounding as though she was pleading.

“You don’t have to worry. This is just between us.” Saulstrance smiled in an attempt to assure her that he’d keep his word.

“Thank you.” Miranda smiled back, grateful for their kindness. She closed the door and retired to her own room.

For Tourajé and Thomas, most of the night was spent practicing swordplay. Cyrus watched for awhile as his dad tutored his new friend in the art of swordsmanship. Eventually, the half-dragon began to grow tired. He turned in for the night, leaving his father and Tourajé to continue their training.

The training lasted for two more hours before both Thomas and Tourajé decided it was time to call it a night. Tourajé handed the sword back to its rightful owner and the two of them went back in the house, more than ready for a good night’s sleep.

The next day, Tourajé woke up before everyone else. He decided to get in some last minute training before the contest began. He would train for ten minutes, take a break for another ten, and then train again. He continued this process until it was time for the competition.

The citizens of the village had all gathered around, anxious for the competition to begin. There was a small ring in which seven men stood inside, brandishing their swords. These men would be competing in today’s contest.

Saulstrance, Tourajé, and Eig’nia, along with Cyrus and his parents squeezed through the crowd and Tourajé took his place among the seven men. The chatter died down as soon as Tourajé stepped into the ring. All eyes were on him as people wondered what he was doing. They didn’t have to ponder over it too long though for as soon as all the contestants had gathered together, the holder of the contest who was one of the men Saulstrance and the others met yesterday, announced the beginning of the contest.

“Before we begin, I’d like to announce that this year’s contest, we will be experiencing something that, until now, had never been allowed to happen: everyone, meet our youngest ever contestant…what is your name?” The man said.

“Tourajé.” Answered the young dragon.

“Tourajé. And Tourajé, exactly how young are you?” The announcer asked.

“I’m twenty.” Tourajé answered again.

Despite that Tourajé had been truthful, the villagers didn’t believe him. He looked much too young to be twenty. They assumed he was more around fourteen or fifteen. They also didn’t believe Tourajé was his real name. They wondered if he was either making up the name or if he was from another country. The younger members of the village didn’t like that Tourajé was allowed to compete when they themselves were never allowed to. They jeered and protested, claiming how unfair it was that someone who wasn’t even from their village was allowed to compete in their village’s competition when they never could. In spite of all that, the competition commenced.

The line ups for the matches were drawn up and handed to each of the participants. The first two opponents entered the ring with swords in hand. As they fought, Tourajé looked over the piece of paper with the line ups written on it. He noticed that his match would be the very last one of the quarterfinals. He also noticed that his opponent would be a man named Robert. He looked around at the other men who were competing, wondering which one of them was Robert. As he looked around, he noticed one of the men in attendance was the man he met yesterday, the one who was setting up the ring. Tourajé had figured he would be one of the contestants. He hoped that he’d get a chance to face him.

The first match came to an end with a man named Thomas being crowned the winner. Thomas helped his opponent back to his feet and thanked him for a fun challenge. As they cleared the ring, the next two combatants stepped in.

“You may begin when ready.” Said the announcer.

Tourajé and the others watched in amazement as the two men fought. The way humans battled seemed so much different to them than the way dragons did. Tourajé also noted that it seemed as though humans also had much more diverse ways of battling each other than dragons.

After the last two matches, it was time for Tourajé to step into the ring. He could barely contain his excitement. As he entered the ring, to his surprise, he noticed that his opponent for this match would be none other than the man he met yesterday.

“Wait. You’re going to be my opponent?” Asked Tourajé with surprise in his voice.

“Now, now, don’t sound too alarmed. My name is Robert and I requested that I face you. After all that boasting you did yesterday, I just had to see for myself if you were really as good as you think you are.”

The announcer entered the ring and presented Tourajé with a sword.

“Tourajé, as this is your first time competing, you’re going to need a sword. So I ask that you use this one.” Said the announcer as he handed the sword to Tourajé.

Tourajé stared at the blade in wonder. He gripped the handle tightly as he felt power surging through his fingertips. Just like yesterday, Tourajé felt like he could do anything while holding a sword.

“Now Tourajé, since this is your first time competing, I am obligated to tell you the rules: you and your opponent are each given a sword. Your goal is to either knock your opponent’s sword out of their hands or knock them out of the ring. Causing severe harm to your opponent or worse, killing them is not allowed. There is no time limit. You either lose when you fall out of the ring, lose your sword or give up. Is that understood?” The announcer explained.

Tourajé nodded. The rules seemed simple enough. All he had to do was get this guy out of the ring or make him lose his sword. Didn’t sound too hard.

“Very well. You can begin when ready.”

Tourajé and Robert both gripped their blades. They circled around the ring, anticipating each others’ move.

“Just so you know boy, you don’t have a chance of beating me. I may be old but I’ve fought in these competitions for over twenty-nine years. And seeing as how this is your first and only time competing, you don’t have even a slim chance of winning.” Robert boasted.

Although he didn’t want to admit it, Tourajé knew Robert was right. He didn’t have a chance in beating him. If this guy really fought in this as many times as he said he did, then this match was over as soon as Tourajé got in the ring with him. Regardless, Tourajé couldn’t just give up. Even though he knew he would lose, he still wanted to give it his all.

Tourajé charged at Robert, his hands gripping the sword’s handle as tightly as they could. Robert took a defensive stance and just as Tourajé was about to swing his sword, Robert blocked with his sword. The swords clanged together as Tourajé struggled in a futile attempt to break through Robert’s defense. Tourajé withdrew his sword and tried again only to experience the same result. With his sword, Robert pushed Tourajé��s back, causing the dragon-boy to stagger back. With Tourajé off guard, Robert knew this was his chance to strike. He went on the attack and before Tourajé knew it, the sword flew out of his hand, landing at the edge of the ring.

Tourajé’s mouth hung open. He looked down at his hand that had been holding his sword. He couldn’t believe how quickly that match went. It was over. He lost.

“And the winner is…ROBERT!!!” Announced the announcer.

Everyone in the village clapped and cheered for Robert. Tourajé lowered his head, went over to his sword, and grabbed it as he left the ring. He didn’t say anything or look at anyone. He just solemnly took his leave.

Tourajé went to sit down by the riverbank. He tossed the sword on the ground in frustration as he proceeded to lean against a tree. Feeling ashamed for losing so quickly, he slouched down and buried his head in his legs.

A short while later, he heard someone call his name. It was Saulstrance. He and the others had come after him, unsure why he left so quickly.

“Tourajé, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” Asked Eig’nia, concerned for her friend.

“No, I’m not.” Tourajé pouted.

“Well what’s wrong? Is it because of the fight?” Eig’nia asked again, trying to figure out what had made her friend so upset.

“Of course it is…I knew I wasn’t going to win but I didn’t think I’d lose that quickly.” Tourajé said sadly, feeling ashamed of himself.

“But Tourajé…” Cyrus’ mother chimed in. “We think you did pretty well. Especially for a dragon who had only been human for about two days. You shouldn’t be sad. If anything, you should be proud.”

“I agree with her.” Said Cyrus’ dad. “You know, I remember the first time I lost in that contest. I felt the same way that you do right now. But I kept practicing and practicing until I got good enough to win.”

“Yeah but you were still allowed to compete. I can’t anymore.” Tourajé replied.

“Perhaps not.” A voice said from behind them.

The six of them noticed Robert standing behind them. They asked Robert why he was there if the contest was still going on. Did he lose a match? Robert laughed heartily, assuring them that he didn’t. He had made it to the finals which were going to take place within an hour. In that time, he wanted to find Tourajé so that he could talk with him. He sat down next to the disappointed boy and grabbed his sword.

“Listen, you shouldn’t feel so upset. For your first time with a sword, you weren’t that bad. Your sword skills do need work but I think you’ve got potential.” Robert smiled at Tourajé.

Tourajé looked at him, sighed, and then looked away. Robert released a sigh of his own. He guessed there was only one way to get through to Tourajé: share with him his own experiences from when he first entered the competition.

“You know, I didn’t win the first time I took part in this competition. Heck, I didn’t even win my second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth times. But even though I didn’t win, I knew I was getting a little better each time. As long as you keep practicing with the sword, you’ll become even better too.” Robert said empathetically.

“You really mean that?” Asked Tourajé.

“Of course! Now I do have to stand by what I said. You can’t compete in this contest anymore but…how about this? Keep practicing with that sword. Grow stronger, and when you think you’re good enough, come back and challenge me again.” Robert said.

Tourajé smiled. Robert smiled back, feeling glad that his words had gotten through to him. The two of them shook on it and Tourajé promised him that he’d get stronger so that they could sword fight again.

Everyone returned to the contest where the finals were about to take place. Both Robert and his opponent fought as hard as they could. In the end, Robert was victorious. Applause erupted from the villagers. Saulstrance and the others joined in. Everyone who had taken part in the contest reentered the ring and joined Robert and his opponent in enjoying the applause. Saulstrance gave Tourajé a little push, urging him to go up there and join them. Tourajé looked back at everyone who were all urging him to go up there as well. Taking in a deep breath, Tourajé ran through the crowd and leapt into the ring. To their surprise, Saulstrance and the others noticed that Tourajé was smiling. This made them smile too. It made them grateful to see their friend back in good spirits.

Some time had passed. The sun was setting on the small village and the three dragons knew that it was time for them to be going home. They couldn’t wait to tell their leader all about what they experienced in the human realm. However, before they were able to do that, Robert had something he wanted to do for Tourajé. He had asked to borrow Tourajé’s sword for something. Just what that something was though, he wouldn’t say. He returned some time later, apologizing for taking so long. He handed Tourajé something wrapped in cloth. When Tourajé removed the cloth, he noticed that it was his sword. However, there was something different about the sword. Tourajé noticed that his name had been carved into the blade.

“That sword is yours now. Take good care of it.” Robert smiled.

“I will. Thanks Robert.” Tourajé smiled back.

The two of them shook hands and bid each other farewell. Saulstrance, Tourajé, and Eig’nia, along with Cyrus and his family returned to the forest in which Cyrus had found them. They didn’t want anyone to see them opening a portal back to their world.

Inside the woods, Saulstrance and his friends bid farewell to Cyrus and his family. Cyrus asked them if they’d ever come back. They assured the boy that they would and that this wasn’t the last time they would see them. Just as they opened a portal and were about to step through, Cyrus asked them to do something for him: he wanted to see them in their real forms as dragons. Since no one else was around, the three of them didn’t see the harm in it. They closed their eyes as they felt their bodies begin to change back. When they opened their eyes, the noticed the look of surprise in Cyrus and his parents’ eyes. As hard as it was for Cyrus’ parents to believe that these three kids were dragons, it was even harder for Cyrus himself to believe it. After all, aside from his mother, he had never met a dragon before. He smiled to his friends and waved goodbye to them. He told them that they better come back and that he’ll be waiting to see them again.

“Goodbye Cyrus!” Saulstrance smiled, before stepping through the portal.

As the last of them stepped through the portal, it closed, leaving the half-dragon boy and his family standing in those woods by themselves. Although he had only known them for a short time, Cyrus had come to really like the three dragons. He knew this wasn’t the last time he’d see them.

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