THE DRAGON AND THE PHOENIX
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THE DRAGON AND THE PHOENIX
BOOK THREE OF THE REALM OF ZERROS SAGA
THE REALM OF ZERROS SAGA – THE DRAGON AND THE PHOENIX
DISCLAIMER
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
© Copyright 2018 Shoraz Yusuf. All rights reserved.
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY–ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY–TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY–THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY–FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY–FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY–SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY–SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY–EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY–NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
CHAPTER THIRTY–ONE
CHAPTER THIRTY–TWO
CHAPTER THIRTY–THREE
CHAPTER THIRTY–FOUR
CHAPTER THIRTY–FIVE
CHAPTER THIRTY–SIX
CHAPTER THIRTY–SEVEN
CHAPTER THIRTY–EIGHT
CHAPTER THIRTY–NINE
CHAPTER FORTY
AUTHOR'S NOTE
CHAPTER ONE
The Beginning – The creation of the Realm of Zerros
In the beginning there was absolute nothingness; there was no life, there was no death, there was not a single sound to be heard nor was there anything to be seen. There was no movement, and there was not a single ray of light nor a shred of darkness. There was no good, and there was no evil; and even time itself did not exist in any shape or form. It was as if nothing existed except the One; the Architect of a magnificent empire unlike any other, the God of gods – the Creator.
As the Realm of Zerros began to take shape it was without form and void, and was barely even a thought, and then out of complete emptiness and perfect nonexistence, a wave of creation was started, and the great Realm of Zerros slowly but surely began its journey of existence. The fountain of life did not yet exist and as far as the eye can see, and even beyond that, there was an emptiness that was inexplicable.
As the eons passed, the majestic and magnificent Realm of Zerros continued on its path of eloquent creation. And it began to take form and ever so slowly continued its transformation to become the realm that we now know as the world that is the home of the creators of the now nonexistent universe known as the Xerrolux and everything that was within it which included the earth and the race of the humans.
In addition to creating and destroying the Xerrolux, Zerros was also the home of the creators of a plethora of many, many other universes as well as billions upon billions of life forms. Some of these life forms were very similar to the human species, and others were as diverse and different and beyond anything that the human mind could possibly comprehend and understand.
As Zerros continued its transcendent passage of evolution over a period of time unfathomable to the human mind, its lands and mountains had finally formed and on its outer edges the majestic ocean – known as the Ocean of Eternity – continued beyond the furthermost distance that the eye could see and the mind could comprehend and was created to have an ending that in reality didn’t exist.
The first part of Zerros to take form was the beyond glorious Ocean of Eternity whose magical waters flowed from above and below and circled around Zerros in perfect form and harmony, and it looked as if it was created with a purpose beyond comprehension.
As the magical waters touched what would one day become the edges of the unformed land of Zerros and began to carve a river through it, the second part of Zerros began to take form, and its magnificent mountains began to take shape in a manner beyond which the mountains of earth formed.
As the mountains formed, between them were plains of flatlands as far as the eyes could see and unknown at the time, this would be the part of Zerros where most of its future inhabitants would dwell.
As the mountains and flatlands finished forming, one of its edges touched the water that flowed from the Ocean of Eternity into the river that ran through Zerros, and miraculously the third part of Zerros began to take form and the lands of where the Grand Castle would one day stand began to take shape, and the time was coming ever so close to where Zerros was ready to become the realm of those who created the universes.
As eon upon eon passed and the first three parts of Zerros finished forming, its edges touched the river that flowed from the Ocean of Eternity and then the fourth part of Zerros began to take form, and the forest of Zerros, full with its lush and fertile lands was about to be born.
As it formed it was a spectacle to behold as some of its trees were as high as mountains while other trees which were only mere meters high were full of mystical powers which gave the soon to be formed, Realm of Creation, some of its powers to create and sustain the plethora of universes under its control, and stood at the edge of the land of Zerros where the land met the Ocean of Eternity.
As the forest finished forming, one of its edges touched the mystical river of Zerros and so began the creation of the fifth and most unique part of Zerros – the almost eternal and virtually endless, Realm of Creation. And as it formed, it was unlike anything ever before created and was full of mythical powers far beyond what the powers of the mind could imagine.
As it finally formed, the Realm of Zerros was almost complete, and all it needed now were its inhabitants and then miraculously in the middle of Zerros where the flatlands met the forest, close to where the river of Zerros flowed, the fountain of life was created and as it finished forming it stood dormant and as the creation of the Realm of Zerros finally came to an end, the fountain of life lay in a state of dryness for what seemed like an eternity.
Then, without a warning and without a sign or precursor, the fountain of life dripped its first drop of water and so began the conception and creation of the first Zerrosian. A creation so majestic and powerful that it had the sovereignty to create and take life of all forms, be it the life of an atom, a human, a planet, a star, a galaxy, and even the life of its greatest and most brilliant creation – a universe.
As the droplets of water continued to drip ever so slowly and carefully into the fountain of life, true to its name it was ever so close to giving life to its first creation. As time on Zerros passed in a manner befitting the majestic realm, and the seemingly insignificant droplets of water continued to fall at a pace so slow, that only one with great patience and vision was able to comprehend and understand the true nature of what was about to be created.
Then finally, after a period of time that was unknown to the Zerrosian that was about to be born, the last droplet of water fell and as it came into contact with the thousands of previous droplets, the first Zerrosian took form, and as it was created into a majestic body of liquefied diamond it stepped out of the fountain of life and looked into the horizon unsure of what to make of its newfound life.
As the first Zerrosian began its exploration of the great Realm of Zerros, it looked up at the sky and pondered upon the emptiness and lon
eliness that existed and wondered if there were others like it somewhere in this land of desolation.
Then as it continued its exploration, in the distance it saw a great bird majestically flying in the sky, and then suddenly a loud noise echoed throughout the skies of Zerros, and as the Zerrosian looked up to the skies with great horror and fright the magnificent bird began flying towards it, and as it came closer it was none other than the golden Phoenix; the mythical and magical bird and the true and ultimate ruler of the great Realm of Zerros.
CHAPTER TWO
Flashback: Early twenty–fourth century – Earth
As Luanne looked at the destination coordinates on the console, it read, “Freedom City” and the aircraft was now headed to one of earth’s last human strongholds; the center of the free world – Alaska. As she looked back she could see her captors trying to catch up to her but she was too far ahead of them, and as she increased the speed of the aircraft she could see her captors disappearing in the distance behind her.
She then laid her head back to rest, and a sense of calmness overcame her, and she couldn’t believe that somehow, against all odds, she had escaped her deadly and lethal enemy, one prisoner against dozens of knights; and she somehow felt that destiny was on her side.
As she pondered upon everything that had happened to her, she knew that her dreams, visions, and hallucinations were as real as anything that she had ever experienced. And she also knew that her escape from her captors was beyond anything that she could have done alone and that in a way beyond any conceivable explanation she was being helped and aided by something beyond her understanding and something beyond the grasp of anything that anyone on earth had ever experienced.
As the aircraft continued its journey to Freedom City, she found some medical supplies on board and tended to her wounds as best she could, but all that she could think about was finding the man from her dreams and visions. And she knew without a doubt that he would be there waiting for her, ready to begin their lives together and begin their journey that would one day result in the unfathomable end of the earth as well as the equally, if not more, unfathomable end of our universe – the Xerrolux.
As she dozed off, the autopilot guided the aircraft to its destination and after a couple of hours it had finally arrived and began its landing sequence and as it did so she was startled awake by the robotic voice of the artificial intelligence system of the aircraft saying, “Initiating autopilot landing sequence, please prepare for landing. Initiating autopilot landing sequence, please prepare for landing,” and as she looked outside she saw Freedom City and as the aircraft landed, it was surrounded by a swath of armed lookouts.
“Come out with your arms up, you are completely surrounded,” shouted one of the lookouts from his bullhorn and as he said the words, Luanne opened the door of the aircraft and began to slowly exit it with her hands raised in the air.
“What is the purpose of your visit to Freedom City?” shouted another lookout.
“I just escaped from a band of knights that were transporting me to a betasapien base, and I come to Freedom City to hide from them,” Luanne responded.
“State your name,” shouted another lookout.
“My name is Luanne,” she replied.
“Is anyone else with you?” the lookout asked.
“No, I am alone,” she replied and as she did so, the lookouts saw the injuries to her body and some of them rushed to attend to her while others went inside the aircraft to ensure that it was safe and empty.
As a few of the lookouts took Luanne to the medical section of Freedom City to look after her wounds and injuries, she was falling in and out of sleep from the medication that they had given to her but throughout it all she tried keeping her eyes open so that she would not miss the man in her dreams. And as the minutes turned into hours she finally gave into the medicine and fell asleep on a small cot.
As she slept her mind began wandering into what felt like a dream, but in truth, it was much more than a dream, it was much more than a vision, and it was much more than a hallucination.
In reality, what Luanne was experiencing was something more, it was a message. A message that was beyond anything she could conceive, but as the dreams, visions, and hallucinations, which were all part of the message to her continued to bombard her mind, she realized that she had no choice but to believe in it as it felt far more real and genuine than anything that she had ever experienced or felt in her entire life.
As the nearly life like dream began to take form, her mind prepared itself as it had always done for what lay ahead. And then, like always, since the days of her childhood, when the visions and hallucinations which in essence and reality was the message, crept into her consciousness she prepared herself for what came next.
And what had originally started as nightmares that were as real as anything she had ever experienced from her days of early childhood were ever so slowly tamed, and over time she tirelessly tried to read between the lines for the hidden messages that came from somewhere and someone beyond anything that she could ever imagine.
From as far back as Luanne could remember the nightmares had always existed and were always ready to spring into her mind. And now after many, many years of countless nightmares, dreams, visions, and hallucinations; she was finally beginning to put everything together, and piece by piece it was somehow finally beginning to make sense to her. Although to many others looking in from the outside it was as if Luanne had lost her mind and her behavior was peculiar and outlandish, to say the least.
As her mind wandered and the visions became as real as life itself she saw the fire, and she saw the ice, and as they rose from the ocean, the light was blinding, and she closed her eyes and then as the light disappeared she opened her eyes and in front of her in the Realm of Zerros stood the Dragon and the Phoenix, and as she looked at them it was as if she knew them.
Then suddenly the mighty Dragon roared, and one by one the four dragons began to appear, and so did the diamond army, and as they appeared, the Phoenix saw them. And as she tried to fly away from the army that was quickly approaching her, the four dragons quickly pounced on her, and she fell to the ground and then as she looked into the not too far distance the army of Zerros and the sorcerers began their charge to help their ruler – the Phoenix.
As the diamond army saw them approaching they also began their charge to battle and as the sides collided it was an all–out war.
The sorcerers flew to the aid of the Phoenix and battled the four dragons, but as they fought, the Blue Dragon flew towards the Phoenix and quickly killed the sorcerers. Then the army of the Blue Dragon quickly annihilated the army of Zerros, and as the Phoenix flew into the battle to help her army the mighty Blue Dragon pounced on her and bit into her neck as she screamed in pain, and then the four dragons made their way towards her, and together all five of them battled the Phoenix until she lay dead along with her army on the ground of Zerros.
As the Phoenix lay dead, the Blue Dragon then flew to the portals, and as he did so, Luanne could feel his presence of evil and greed, and it was unlike anything she had ever felt before. Then, as the Dragon entered the portals she felt its voracity coursing through the universes, and its evil was spreading like a virus intent on destroying anything that was in its way.
Then, in a state of sadness, she walked amongst the dead bodies of the army of Zerros and as she looked on the ground that’s when she saw him, and she slowly walked towards him as he lay dead on the ground. Luanne then kneeled on the ground beside him, and as she lifted his head she felt a love for him which was unlike any love she had ever felt before and then suddenly the face of the dead Zerrosian turned into the face of Dean, and Luanne then brought her head down towards his face and kissed him.
She then felt a touch on her shoulder, and as she looked up, it was none other than Galiac, and she felt his warmth throughout her body, and she knew that he meant no harm to her and he then said, “You have to find him, he will be in Freedom City. He i
s a descendant of the beings from Zerros and he is part human and part Zerrosian, and together you will both give rise to the Dragon and the Phoenix.”
“Why must we give rise to them?” Luanne asked Galiac.
“Because this is what is written my child, and this is what is meant to be,” Galiac replied.
“Remember his face, and when you find him you will know it, now go as the Blue Dragon is coming,” Galiac continued saying.
Then as Luanne looked up Galiac was no longer there, and in the distance, she saw the Blue Dragon coming towards her, and as he did so, he was shooting shards of fire and ice from his mouth and destroying everything in his path.
As Luanne saw that she started to run and she began making her way into the forest of Zerros but before she could reach it the fire and ice from the mouth of the mighty Blue Dragon engulfed her and as the agony of the fire and ice scorched her body she screamed in pain and she suddenly awoke and was back in Freedom City.
And as she did so she began gasping for air and one of the guards who was standing at the door came running towards her and as she looked at his face it was the man that she had seen in her dreams, the man who was part human and part Zerrosian, her future husband and the father of the Dragon and the Phoenix – Dean.
CHAPTER THREE
Continuation of flashback: Early twenty–fourth century – Earth
As Dean ran towards Luanne as she gasped for air, he quickly held her in his arms and tried to calm her down.
“Breathe,” he said to her, but Luanne still uncontrollably gasped for air.
“C’mon, you can do it. Just breathe slowly,” he continued saying to her, and after a few minutes Luanne had finally controlled her breathing, and she sat on the cot as Dean sat beside her.
“Are you okay?” he asked her.