I felt like a bit of fantasy this week so I selected “Dragon Force” by Lucia Ashta. Once I got past Ashta’s rather strange names of places and things, it was a pretty good read. After only a few chapters I noticed that the story has strong religious undertones, giving it an almost parable-like feel.
The adventure is set on Planet Origins. It has two suns, the Auxle and Suxle, and a purple moon known as the Plune. The population of this area of the planet are the Ooba people. For centuries they have been ruled by chieftains. The current chieftain is named Pumpoo.
Ages ago, the Ooba fought with the Aragon people and were forced to move to this part of the planet. According to Pumpoo and his forbearers, the Ooba are sworn protectors of the dragons that live in the higher elevations.
No one questions why the huge, fire breathing, flying beasts need protectors. If Pumpoo says it is so, then it is so. It is an honor to be allowed to join the elite Dragon Force. The dragons rarely leave the highest elevations, but when they do the Force is there to calm them and keep the people safe.
As the story opens we meet 17-year-old Anira, her brother, Rone, and sister, Traja. They are forced to live a very private life on the far edge of the village. Pumpoo has decreed that twins are strictly forbidden and any born would be put to death. Anira’s mother has managed to hide Anira and her brother.
That is all the more important since Anira is invisible. She has spent her entire life hiding in plain sight and she longs for a normal life where she could have friends and find purpose for her life. Little does she know that her wish will soon be granted beyond her wildest dreams.
Pumpoo has called all for volunteers to join the Dragon Force. Rone and older sister Traja are accepted as trainees but Anira can only sneak around the fringes and observe.
It is during the swearing-in ceremony that Anira notices Pumpoo draining energy from everyone but her. Could he be using the forbidden force known as Faithum? Why would he forbid it and then use it?
Later, Anira grieves her strangeness and walks to the very edge of the forest to where the trees give way to the high mountains. There she discovers a badly wounded baby dragon. It is small and obviously stunted, so she surmises that it was pushed out of the nest but survived.
She names the little red dragon Rosie and takes her home. Their mother treats Rosie’s injuries but insists she give the dragon to Dean, the leader of the Alpha group of Dragon Force. But when she tries to do that, Rosie refuses to leave her side. It isn’t long before Dean realizes that Anira is there, and against all her fears Anira feels that she can trust him with her secrets.
Before long, Pumpoo makes his first move to gain even more power. Dean and his Dragon Force members have been preparing for this and soon find themselves in battle with the entire Ooba village. That is when Anira’s innate Faithum power appears and she is able to quell the battle. Dean reveals that everything on their planet possess Faithum and by banding together they can defeat any evil.
Soon they are aware of the presence of the Shadow People. Their ability to communicate with and even ride dragons put a whole new light on Faithum and the battle against Pumpoo. When the final confrontation comes it will take the combined faith and determination of the Dragon Force, the Shadow People, and the fearsome dragons to destroy Pumpoo and free their planet. At last, Anira and her siblings are free to explore their unique status and how they fit into the amazing story of their people.
Sometimes it feels good to leave reality behind and venture into the wild world of fantasy.
AT A GLANCE
Book: Dragon Force (Complete Series)
Author: Lucia Ashta
Publisher: Lucia Ashta
Year published: 2020
Number of pages: 608
Dragon Force saga full of twists and turns
