Senn woke up on his bed. Orange sunlight streamed through his window. How come he was here? The last thing he remembered was hearing the Song at the Shrine.
That's right, his Song! He looked on his small desk and found it there. Slipping it back into his pocket, he went upstairs into the forge. Galleous was hammering away at the anvil. Sensing someone entering, he paused.
"What happened?" Senn asked.
"You passed out. " Galleous replied between strikes. "Fear not, it happens to all of us the first time." He placed his hammer down and walked over to the table. "If you think that was bad, just wait until you summon your Song for the first time." He chuckled as he took a sip of water.
Senn sat down on a chair. "Where's Val?" He asked, looking around.
"She is fine, she went back to her quarters." Galleous said after another sip. "You two will resume training tomorrow." He paused. "If you have properly recovered, of course."
"Galleous," Senn ventured, "Was the Deathsinger the best with the Songs?"
"Ingressus Voltaris was one of the best, yes." Galleous sat down as well. "When the Ardoni were asked to use the Prime Songs during the last Nether Invasion, they held a tournament to determine a champion. They tested for strength, endurance, and ingenuity. But do you know what they should have been looking for?"
"What?"
"Someone who should use them." Galleous said, gazing out of the window.
Senn was a bit puzzled. Why shouldn't a Voltaris be allowed to use the Songs? But he was still a bit dizzy, so he dropped the subject and took out the sword he's been working on. Holding the blade with prongs, he placed it into the furnace to heat up.
"Whoosh!" A big, black shadow swooped past the forge and a big "Thunk" came from outside. A reptilian head with purple eyes poked itself in through the door to the balcony.
"So it's true…" Galleous murmured, approaching Luna.
"Careful, she bites." Abbigail teased as she walked into the room.
Galleous turned gently around. "I am glad you received my message, Abbigail. Welcome. My name is Galleous Sendaris." He bowed slightly.
"How d'you know my name?"
"Senn," Galleous addressed the young Ardoni. Abbigail followed his gaze and found Senn to be the map-borrower back in Biggerton. "Finish your work in the forge. Abbigail and I have much to discuss."
The two headed onto the balcony. Luna sat in a corner, fixing her scales like a cat licking her fur.
"It was no real challenge locating you. Collecting information and knowledge is a specialty of mine after all." Galleous winked, leaning casually against the fence. "First a dragon egg went missing, then reports indicating one hatched, and then I simply followed the trail of things being set on fire…" He glanced gleefully at the Luna, who was trying to spark-clean her legs.
"Yeah," Abbigail aologized. "She has a bad habit of that. I don't even want to know what it'll be like when she learns to breathe fire of her own."
"So you have spent the last half-year hunting down the Unyielding Legion." Galleous continued. "Noble I suppose, but not driven by a desire to save the innocent or help the poor, I imagine. You have a personal vengeance against them." Abbigail scratched her head. How did this old Ardoni know so much?
"You are destined for so much more, Abbigail." Galleous was no longer leaning, but stood upright. "You have known it from the moment you found Luna's egg. How would you like to fight your real enemy?"
"Well, I mean," Abbigail startled, "we have unfinished business with the Legion," She looked at Luna, who's now scratching behind her ears. The dragon paused, her purple eyes meeting Abbigail's brown ones. "But…you're right." Abbigailed turned back to Galleous. "I have been wondering about my place in all this. I just don't know where to start…"
"How much do you know about the Enderknights?" Galleous inquired.
"Very little, I'm afraid. I know they used to rule Ardonia, but there haven't been any in over a hundred years."
"Nobody is born an Enderknight." Galleous explained. "Every so often a human is…" He hesitated, "chosen."
Abbigail said nothing. Instead, she watched as the sun reflected its orange rays off the waters below. The light scattered into rainbows over the clear surface.
"All of this has been very surprising to me." Abbigail began. "One day I'm working on the farm, and suddenly I'm part of an ancient order of dragon knights." She paused. "What happens next?"
"Every time the Enderknights…"
"Clang-a-ling!" The two both looked towards the forge. Senn had been carrying too many things at once and they had clashed onto the ground. He hastily picked them up, as if eager to clear away some guilt.
"Every time the Enderknights return," Galleous continued, "they have done so in numbers, and therefore one must be the Enderking." He looked meaningfully at the girl in front of him. "But now we have the opportunity for something new: an Enderqueen."
Abbigail frowned. All this was happening too quick. "If there are other Enderknights, how can I find them?"
"I assume you recovered an Eye of the End from the recent Unyielding Legion smugglers?"
There was a moment of recognition on Abbigail's face, and she pulled out the Ender Eye from her pack.
Galleous nodded. "It will guide you. I will also give you a weapon from my armory to replace that stone sword of yours." He looked down at Abbigail's hilt, where her sword hung, battered.
"Thank you Galleous." Abbigail returned. "I don't know how I can repay you for such gifts."
Galleous smiled, a faint laugh that was more like a grimace. "Whenever the Enderknights rise, the Nether always follows. If that happens, you can repay me by fighting with us against the Nether. As for your armor," a proudness crept into his voice, "there is only one blacksmith in all of Ardonia who can create obsidian armor. You must venture to the End realm, Abbigail, and reclaim the armor of the Enderknights. There you will become the Enderqueen."
He turned around and entered the forge, beckoning Abbigail to follow. "Stay here, Luna." Abbigail instructed. "I'll be right back."
She followed Galleous, and saw Senn now gently tapping his sword into shape. Together, they went to the underground armory, where Galleous picked out a freshly cleaned iron sword, together with its sheath.
"This is a finer blade of my own making, if I do say so myself." Galleous commented, drawing the weapon out slightly, then letting it slide back. He handed the sword to Abbigail, who weighed it in her hands.
"Thank you, Galleous." Abbigail turned and exited the armory. She summoned Luna, and walked towards the gate of Ataraxia, letting the Ender Eye hover in front of them, showing the way to the next Enderknight.