A Storm is Coming

In the Ancient Forest, two men gathered inside a small tent, dim and secluded from the rest of the biome. One is a hunter from Astera and his companion is a Guild official. At first glance, there was nothing unusual about them, just two people talking about the day's hunt. But they were not there for small talks.

"Mr. Bohn, thank you very much for accepting my invitation. I know you have other duties to attend, but this is urgent. Very urgent, I might add."

"Sure. What will be today's topic, hunter?"

"Just one day ago, I came back from a gathering mission to hear a person or two mentioning a name in fear while chatting… Alatreon, I think that's the name."

Mr. Bohn's eyes narrowed upon hearing the hunter saying that particular name, "Pardon me? How did they…?"

"Know of the name?" The hunter cut the man's question, "I don't know. I didn't stop to ask them as I was too busy trying to get back to my lodge. The next thing I remember was me sitting on a sofa, trying to find that name on my encyclopedia of monsters. But then I remembered, the book had no entry for the creature, and if I'm not mistaken, the mere mention of the entity's name is forbidden."

The Guild official nodded. Of course, his encyclopedia book, made for run-of-the-mill hunters, wouldn't have such forbidden name in it. Speaking the name of a Black Dragon in public was outlawed, let alone writing it in any book designed for the common people. But then, why would people in the New World speak about the Blazing Black Dragon, if only in secret? Did they receive word that the Alatreon was on the move after centuries of no sighting of it? Mr. Bohn himself was largely unaware of this news.

"Let me guess; you summoned me here so you can ask me more about the Blazing Black Dragon, and whether or not the information has any relation to the whispers in Astera," Mr. Bohn shook his head. "My boy, if you know what's good for you, I suggest you stop thinking about it before you get yourself into trouble."

"Is there something I should be aware of, sir?"

-O-O-O-O-O-

Moving its wings along the deep ocean current felt like flying in a very thick cloud. The Alatreon was no stranger to such a sensation. After all, it had spent its long life flying across the planet, searching for the cruelest, most inhospitable places to settle in where it wouldn't be disturbed by anything. It knew how wind currents worked in different biomes; some had gentle winds, others had harsh gales.

Out of all lairs this Alatreon possessed, the underwater crag field, located exactly one kilometer below the ocean surface, was its favorite hideaway. The oceanic biome had a sparse amount of life in it, and should a monster like a Lagiacruz attempted to invade, the Black Dragon could always repel it without causing extensive damage to its surroundings.

This crag field lay next to an underwater volcano, from which a stream of fresh bioenergy could be extracted for the Alatreon's personal uses, such as rejuvenating itself after a day of hunting prey items.

But lately, it sensed that the bioenergy flow was being interrupted.

No, more like something was intentionally interrupting the flow, seemingly directing it to a faraway land.

But why? What was it?

The Alatreon suspected that something wrong was at work. Normally the change of bioenergy flow within the stream happened only once in a few centuries… but lately, the flow had shifted with an alarming frequency, occurring once every ten years. With each passing decade, the bioenergy stream channeled more and more energy to that land, and the Black Dragon found itself intrigued by the mysterious portent.

The Alatreon wondered whether other creatures, including other Elder Dragons, were aware of this phenomenon.

Maybe it could go out and investigate the cause of the disturbance? Or would it be preferable to just sit there and pretend nothing was wrong?

After a few minutes of weighing the choices, the Alatreon chose to visit this faraway land.

-O-O-O-O-O-

"Pardon me, my lady. I wish I hadn't dragged you into this, but…"

"But the letters from the Guild back in the Old World do not lie, Mr. Bohn. I know His Immenseness's handwriting when I see it. Don't worry; you are just performing your duties as a Guild official, so there's no use blaming you for this bad news."

The 3rd Fleet Master was correct in calling the latest development as bad news. Ten days after Mr. Bohn's arrival, letters written by the great wyverian of Dundorma spoke of a huge black shadow flying in circles in the sky, as seen by many travelers. Sometimes this shadowy figure would land on a cliff overlooking the city as if waiting for something to happen; other times the entity would fly around a storm cloud as if preparing to attack Dundorma. The last sighting of the unknown creature occurred on a cold, rocky bay. All eyewitnesses declared that the creature flew across the ocean…

…Heading all the way to the New World, bringing with it a huge dark cloud.

His Immenseness wrote in his letters that the description provided by those witnesses were vague at best. One witness claimed that it saw bright orange embers from the shadowy figure, while the next one claimed it was actually a bluish mist, and the next one instead talked about red sparks coming from the creature's body.

And after hearing a handful of people discussing the Alatreon in hushed tones, Mr. Bohn could not hold his curiosity for long. The 3rd Fleet Master, meanwhile, was more concerned rather than afraid.

"The reports are all disjointed since no two witnesses offered the same depiction. But the telltale signs are definitely here."

"Which one are you talking about, my lady?"

"A creature with black scales and huge wings, capable of wielding multiple elemental powers. A creature that changes color and appearance depending on what element it currently uses. Not to mention the dark clouds which herald its arrival."

The feminine wyverian then turned to look at the window of her office. "There's no denying it. This beast is certainly the Alatreon, the Blazing Black Dragon."

"Stars above, how are we going to deal with such a legendary monster?"

"I have faith in our best hunters, Mr. Bohn, in particular the Sapphire Star who once trained under our Field Team Leader. I know they'll triumph over the beast, even if they have to make sacrifices."

-O-O-O-O-O-

The sky felt drier and lighter than the deep ocean. There was plenty of light to help it see clearer and farther, and the freedom of movement made it easier for traveling.

By flying according to the wind currents, the huge beast was able to conserve energy and travel quickly without having to beat its wings too often. Its ability to influence the weather also gave it a bonus.

The Alatreon expected to see more Elder Dragons flying across the sea alongside it, but unsurprisingly, there were none. The other Elder Dragons had already headed to the new land a year before the Black Dragon, and if the tiny sparks of bioenergy they left behind from their flight were of any indication, they migrated by forming a large group.

They were flying together.

Of course, they'd rather fly in a group instead of going alone, the Alatreon mused. Safety in numbers isn't a concept solely applied to humans.

It, however, had no need for companionship in its journey. The Black Dragon was confident in its raw strength and elemental mastery; nothing and no one could defeat it.

And so, as the Alatreon approached the foreign, faraway landmass, it could make out tiny details which dotted the New World. A vast jungle blanketing the majority of the land with towering trees at the center, arid and sandy plains separated from that jungle by sparse oases, jagged cliffs located further away from the jungle with what appeared to be volcanic veins, and…

Wooden constructs.

No, not just wooden constructs. Those were signs of human civilization, and they had established a crude settlement out of wood, iron, and stone. A far cry from the tough and impressive fortresses they've created in the Old World, the Alatreon thought.

Clearly, these humans were relatively new to the New World for their numbers were no higher than a few hundred people.

As the Alatreon flew closer, it could make out boats, both large and small, sailing from the aforementioned settlement to another landmass. Unlike the jungle-covered landform, this other region was covered by snow. An alpine biome, judging by the looks of it. The huge beast could sense an intense flow of bioenergy emanating from both lands as well as various scents, indicating the presence of rich and nourishing environments filled with exotic flora and fauna.

So, two human settlements located in two different regions, both of which belonged in the New World.

Not very threatening, the Alatreon thought as it flew behind a thick cloud. It was slightly curious to find out what the humans were up to in the New World, considering that they didn't seem to be running out of living space in the Old World.

-O-O-O-O-O-

There was a beautiful oasis located next to a shaded canyon on the arid plains.

The Alatreon felt the need to take a rest for a moment before continuing its flight across the New World.

Landing elegantly on the ground, the Black Dragon took a minute or two to inspect its immediate locale. The plant life surrounding the oasis was lush and green despite the intense heat of the arid plains. The fauna was quite diverse, too. Many of them fled the scene at the arrival of the Alatreon, although a few bigger animals chose to stand their ground and eyed the beast with wary stares.

The Alatreon did not care. It was only there to have a drink and probably a brief rest before departing.

As the Black Dragon was busy nourishing itself, its ears picked up rustling noises that didn't originate from the local animals. It lifted its head to see the animals tensing up, their heads swirled left and right as they searched for the noisemakers. The Alatreon waited for a few minutes, expecting to see the unseen thing to leap out of a bush to attack it, but after seeing the other fauna returning to their previous standpoints, it decided that the noisemakers were gone and went back to drinking.

Until it accidentally spotted a gleam of metal shining from behind a tall shrubbery.

The Black Dragon froze. Plants wouldn't normally have metallic shine coming from their branches.

No, not plant branches, but humans. Hunters!

Its scales turned bright orange as it finally became aware of the hunters' presence. In a flash, the Alatreon took flight and shot a fireball at the shrubbery. Bingo! Even though the hunters managed to roll out of the way before the fireball hit them, they nevertheless exposed themselves. There were three of them, and their eyes widened in shock as the Alatreon spewed out a jet of flame to cover its escape. The hunters once again evaded the attack, but in the confusion, they lost track of the Black Dragon.

As for the hunters, the reconnaissance mission had yielded the proof they needed for the leaders at Astera; the Blazing Black Dragon had arrived in the New World.

The dark shadows which put the residents of Astera at unease for the past week had been identified. But the mission was still far from complete; the hunters would have to keep a close eye on the Alatreon and determine the reason behind its presence there.

Could they hunt it? They could try, but it wouldn't be easy, for the Blazing Black Dragon was the master of elemental powers, and it would deliver judgment to whoever dared to slay it.

The hunt must not be carried out by unproven hunters.