Page 4 of Ava’s Legacy of the Dragons (Of Dragons, Love, and Destiny #1)

Ava stood still for a while until her body came back to life, and then she started blinking and looked around. She was standing alone on the riverbank, the small town where she lived behind her. And before her there spread out a landscape she had never seen before.

She took the glimmering stone in one hand and rubbed her eyes with the other, but that didn't make the seemingly boundless area disappear.

The mountains looked like they went on and on, though she'd never seen in any atlas.

The river made bends that weren't marked on any hiking guide, and there were fields stretching far to the south, even though every map indicated dense forest in this spot.

Her gaze fell to the ground. She was still standing on the pebbles at the shore, but if she took two steps, she would enter the path that wound along the river and led into this vast terrain. The path that had never been there before.

Where would it take her? Why had she never seen this stretch of land before? Was it true what the eccentric people in the village claimed? Was the river the portal to another world?

An unexpected smile stole across her lips. At the same time, she was gripped by a sense of excitement that had been lying dormant somewhere inside her. A question sneaked into her mind and wouldn't let go: Did she dare?

She stretched out her foot, and as soon as she set it on the path, a tingling sensation spread through her body. The tingling swelled, spread to her little finger, and only subsided when she had crossed the transparent boundary.

Instinctively, she pressed the shimmering find to her chest as she put one foot in front of the other, not knowing where this path led, whether it was wise to take it, and what the source of this unbridled joy was.

The path led up a hill and followed the course of the river. With an excited tingle in her body, she climbed the slope and as soon as she reached the top, she paused.

The path led directly over a landscape of gentle hills to a large city nestled in a valley.

She saw numerous old-fashioned-looking buildings stretching towards the sky.

There was a high wall reminiscent of ancient fortifications to protect against unwanted attackers, and dominating the city hill was a medieval-style castle, its tall towers seeming to reach to the heavens.

Ava stood still, looking in astonishment at the buildings, at the life unfolding before the city gates and within the walls, and at the castle. She swallowed.

Was what she saw real? Wait—was it possible she was dreaming? Probably. That must have been it. She slapped herself on the cheek with the flat of her hand and swallowed again. She felt the pain. Did that mean—

"Keep me safe," said a voice in her head. It sounded like the voice that had advised her to press the strange find to her chest just minutes ago. It sounded desperate and frightened, and it tugged at her heart. It gripped her like the cry of a child in need.

Blinking several times, she glanced at the object in her hands. This surely was no simple stone. But then what was it?

"Halt, in the name of the almighty king!" As if out of nowhere, four riders appeared on the path, although Ava had just been alone. The men were dressed like soldiers, and armed like them too.

Had the voice asked for protection from them?

Automatically, she went on the defensive. "Who are you?"

The soldiers saw no reason to introduce themselves. With eyes narrowed as if they could stare at her inner being, they focused all their attention on her. "Who are you? Identify yourself!"

She hesitated. "This must be a huge misunderstanding—"

One of the soldiers grabbed the hilt of his sword hanging at his side and shouted, "Identify yourself, I said!"

"No problem." As aggressive as he was behaving, she figured she'd better not mess with him.

Nervously, she rummaged in her handbag with one hand, although it occurred to her that the men might not be pleased with her ID.

But one of the soldiers jumped off his horse and grabbed her wrist, as if fearing she would draw a weapon.

Judging by the badges on his chest, he was the captain of the troop.

With an energetic nod of his head, he pointed to her find, which she awkwardly pressed to her chest with one hand.

"What do you have there?"

Her pulse quickened as she kept the stone close to her body. She was overcome with fear that the men might try to take it away from her. She wouldn't give it up!

She yanked her wrist from his grip decisively, although she felt uneasy faced with the swords.

"Let go of me! You have no right to approach me like this!

" She wanted to turn around and run the sprint of her life if necessary, but it was too late to simply run away.

The soldiers had already surrounded her without dismounting from their horses, which did make the possibility of simply running away more difficult, to be sure.

"Show me what you have there, or I'll show you what rights you have!" The captain spat on the ground.

Running away was off the table. Another plan was needed. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to calm down, even though her heartbeat felt like it was twice as fast as normal. Best to stick to the truth. After all, she hadn't done anything wrong.

"This belongs to me. I found it on the riverbank."

"Hold me close to you," the voice in her head whispered. "Don't give me up."

Who kept speaking to her? Heavens, she wasn't going crazy, was she? Was this entire world just an illusion of her desperate mind longing for distraction?

"Why are you carrying the stone with you?"

The soldiers thought the find was just a stone too? Even though it glowed so intensely? An uneasy feeling crept over her. Something strange was going on. If only she could understand what ...

"I—"

"Don't tell them anything. Keep going before they realize what I am. Get me to safety."

The voice in her head sounded real. And it was so desperate—so urgent and pleading—that Ava wanted to give in. She had to.

Whatever she had gotten herself into, she definitely wouldn't be able to take a Sunday stroll to the city.

She carefully studied the uniformed men who were staring at her like bloodhounds.

She didn't need to pay attention to her queasy gut feeling and her rapid heartbeat to understand that she was in danger.

Acute danger. If there was one thing she could rely on, it was her survival instincts, even though it had been years since she'd needed them in this sleepy town.

The captain took another step towards her. His hand rested on the hilt of his sword, which was still in its sheath. "I'm asking you for the last time: What kind of stone is that?"

Her senses sharpened as she watched the captain, and her pulse quickened even more. This heartbeat was certainly not what Aunt Helen had meant when she advised her to finally make something of her life and experience an adventure.

Her aunt. That was it! She would simply play the part of the lost tourist, which was somehow true anyway.

"I live in the small town back there and accidentally came across this path. But I really need to get back now. My aunt is expecting me." If she didn't want to enter this hidden area and didn't run away like a criminal, maybe she could just leave.

She tried to turn around, but the soldier grabbed her wrist and the three riders drew their swords as if Ava were a serious threat. They tightened the circle and didn't take their eyes off her for a second while their leader tugged at her wrist.

"You're staying right here!"

"Let me go!" She tried to free herself with one hand without dropping her discovery, but his grip was unyielding. With narrowed eyes, he leaned forward and eyed her suspiciously.

"Why did you really come? Are you planning an attack on the king?"

There was still a king here? What kind of old-fashioned world had she stumbled into?

Wait. She couldn't let his words unsettle her. If she acted unsure, the soldiers would believe she really was up to something. "I'm not planning any attack! I'm from the city behind the river, I've already told you that."

The uniformed men exchanged brief glances. Another jumped off his horse, came over to them with large strides, and whispered something in the ear of the leader, who eyed her skeptically. She thought she heard the words "portal" and "outside," but wasn't sure.

The captain widened his stance and pointed to her discovery. "Give us the stone and you can go!"

She didn't need to hear the voice inside her to know that this wasn't an option. She wouldn't give up the stone. She couldn't! It was like a foreign power, a bond that had formed in seconds. She and this strange find belonged together.

"This is my stone and I'm taking it with me."

The captain was so angry that a vein stood out on his forehead, making him look even more threatening. He yanked her towards him. "Then you will—"

There was a deafening roar. A loud beating filled the air as if someone were shaking out a bedsheet, and a strong wind blew.

Strands of hair came loose from Ava's loose bun.

Her scarf threatened to fly away and her jacket almost fell to the ground, but she managed to grab both at the last moment.

Searching for the cause of this gust of air, she narrowed her eyes, but the sharp wind brought tears to her eyes.

She turned to the side, her gaze swept the sky, and she let out a scream.

Rising directly above her was a huge dragon!

Its scales, illuminated by the evening sun, shimmered white and blue.

It was almost as big as five elephants, and its broad, leathery wings could have encompassed the crown of a tree.

It had a mouth that was large and lined with sharp teeth.

But the most frightening thing about it was the large, snow-white eyes and the cloud of smoke that came from its throat and drifted upwards in small dark clouds.