Several rows down from Raiden Maïcher’s vendor stall, Vesper found a quiet spot away from the commotion, and sat down on a tree stump between two rows of tents. She rolled open the scroll and read. Fate had finally caught up. The beginning was exactly the same as in her grandfather’s book. It chronicled the First Age of Noominia, telling about the queen of the fairies and the battle between Dauntless the unicorn, and the shadow dragon:

A million stars were born,

But gone was the dearest unicorn.

For he killed them both outright

With one strike.

     The last time Vesper read, “For he killed them both outright with one strike,” the horn of Dauntless had crashed into their school. She remembered the sound of it. Her body could still feel the thundering crash that shook everything, and the shock wave of nerves and adrenaline that hit her body.

     But here in Nnoom, nothing happened. She heard no crashes, and no break in the swell and music of the crowd. She flipped the paper over and saw a new story on the back. This one was not a chronicle—it was a prophecy. Vesper kept reading:

~ PROPHECY OF THE UNICORN PRINCESS ~

From stardust, which rose so far,

Comes the one called Evening Star.

In our queen’s care, she will shine bright

’Til Noominia needs a unicorn’s light.

When the darkness here grows great,

And the fairies’ glow grows dim,

The shadow’s clutch will not abate,

Through the cracks, the dark seeps in.

In the darkest shadow hour,

The kobalin king will rise to power

And bid the shadow dragon rise,

To destroy the silent, sleeping tower.

Aina will weaken until the time

She can stay no longer.

Noominia will lose its mother fine,

And the darkness will grow stronger.

Until the evening star appears

The way to salvation remains unclear,

For on the star our future rides,

To return the light, and turn the tide.

Only she can see the dragon’s heart

And transform it with her lightning spark.

     “No wonder everyone here is freaking out,” said Vesper to herself. But when she got up and looked around, no one was freaking out. In fact, she did not see anyone upset about anything. Maybe they didn’t know. Maybe they did, but they didn’t believe—or care.

     Vesper stood up and headed back to the gate to meet Froke. She took advantage of being able to blend in with the many unicorn costumes, while Froke was quite easy to spot, standing awkwardly at the gate amongst the much smaller fairy folk. The markets were buzzing and music played. Waves of laughter splashed against the wooden stalls. A calm excitement reverberated through the crowd. It was as though the colours and sounds of Nnoom erased the heavy words of prophecy Vesper just read, which she knew were coming true.

     Just then, a black cloud blocked out the sun, and just as quickly, the sun returned.

     Vesper looked up and saw the dim light of the Noominian day. Then, a glint of light caught her eye, and she looked down: her necklace was glowing.

     An instant later, the shadow dragon crashed into the middle of the market. Its claws, wings and tail destroyed several huts and sent their wares flying in every direction. Its violent impact immediately crushed fairy folk of every creed, and everyone at the festival began screaming and running for their lives. Dark fog swelled out from the shadow dragon’s mouth and belly, filling the laneways and byways that connected the tents and huts.

     In the commotion, Vesper pushed her way through the panicking crowd toward Froke, who spotted her at once and waved her over. Vesper looked around for George and, through the smoke, she saw him flying low across the lanes in Froke’s direction. If they could meet, Vesper thought they might make a plan. But there was no time to think, and she was having trouble forming words for fear of slowing down. She ran toward Froke.

     The dragon chomped down on a group of fairies and then took a bite out of a cart full of illumees. Anything that glowed was a target for the shadow dragon, and here, just about everything glowed.

     As she weaved her way through the panicked crowd, Vesper recognized the caravan of boofaloo near the gate, and saw Fanderblathe commanding his tiny army of mottonballies who swarmed in panicked circles.

     Vesper witnessed Froke take a quick step toward Fanderblathe, his arm outstretched. He wouldn’t hurt him, would he? Vesper thought. She heard Fanderblathe berate Froke and threaten him again.

     “Get away from me, you rock, or else! Lower your hand and back away! This mayhem could only be your fault!”

     And so Froke stepped away and lowered his arm just as a market table full of plants and soft fruits found its mark, landing squarely on Fanderblathe and his caravan of mottonballies, covering them in a slimy, but tasty, goo.

     Froke shrugged and turned his attention back to Vesper and George.

     Several fires had started from the dragon’s smouldering skin, and the tents and wooden carts where it had landed were already burnt and turned to ash. The fairy folk and the dwarfs threw as many illumees as possible in the dragon’s direction to distract it. The shadow dragon bellowed a piercing screech. Some fell to the ground in shock, some panicked, and some froze on the spot.

     Vesper reached Froke near the gate.

     “Have you seen George?”

     “No, but Vesper, you must go!”

     She scanned the chaos for George. Then she spotted his wings through the smoke as he flew down into a cluster of huts near the gate. “George!” Vesper yelled, but he couldn’t hear her through the screams of fear and wails of sorrow. George had flown back into a vendor stall to pick up two elven children he saw stranded and crying, and flew them back to the safety of their parents.

     “George! We have to go!” Vesper yelled again.

     He did not hear her over the shrieks of terror and the rumble of the dragon’s destruction.

     George returned to help another child he saw hiding inside a vendor’s hut. The smoke and fog filled the field and billowed through the lanes of the stumpy shack where George had entered. Above the row of stalls, the shadow dragon’s head rose. Just as George was about to exit holding the dwarf child, the dragon stomped down upon the vendor stall and crushed the structure onto George, ending George’s quest—ending his life.

     “Noooo!” Vesper fell to her knees. “George!” Vesper knew she had failed him. The shock of the moment hit her in the chest and she could not breathe. Finally, she gasped for air and screamed. Vesper could see George’s brown wing feathers jutting out of a pile of rubble that used to be a doorway. The children who had been hiding inside the hut would not make it out.

     The stare of the shadow dragon’s serpentine eye fell on Vesper. And in that moment of recognition, it roared a fierce and frightening bellow, full of smoke and fire.

     Froke scooped a weeping Vesper off the ground. “You need to get into the woods and hide!” said Froke. “Head toward the tower and Froke will meet you there. Froke will stay to lead the dragon away.”

     Froke set her down on her feet as smoky fog filled the field where they stood. Vesper just nodded and ran in the direction Froke had pointed. She glanced back once and saw Froke bravely throwing carts full of illumees in the dragon’s path.