|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Elemental Paradisity Captain
|
 Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2012 7:36 pm
This is where you will post in order to find your dragons. Don't worry about making your own thread or anything, just post in the respected island, and take off on your adventure.
Below is a sample encounter that I wrote for my own character and her dragon. This is by no means the expectation, it's just an example, maybe to give you some ideas of how to go about your encounter.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2012 7:44 pm
Roelerra had been in long wait for her chance to go out and find her dragon, and despite the many arguments against her choice, she remained adamant in her decision. Her time had finally come, and so she made herself ready, and packed well, having been warned that she could be gone for days, and might not even see a Night Fury, but she was still determined.
No new dragon rider had ever been gone for any more than five days, and if that time came, the island would send out a search party to bring them home, but Roelerra assured as she boarded the boat that would take her to the strike class island, that she would return on the back of a Night Fury.
The Night Fury clan was preparing as one of the scouts caught sight of the nearing ship. They weren't against humans by any means, knowing full well what one of their own had done those years ago, but they were a naturally proud clan and felt that their legends needed to be upheld. So as the ship neared, about half a day away, most, if not all, of the clan moved to the higher mountains, knowing that most young humans wouldn't bear the trip up there. However, there was one young dragon who remained in the lower island. Kovu had been told of these humans, and just because he was ambitious and a little hot headed didn't mean that he wasn't curious. So, with their side of the island nearly empty, save for a few wandering Skrill and other shadow and light dragons, Kovu remained as the ship touched the shore.
Receiving good-byes and good lucks from the tribe leader, her class master, and her parents who had joined on the ship ride, young thirteen year old Roe took her first step onto the strike island.
Waving her parents and company farewell, Roe set off from the shore with her pack hung over one shoulder and her staff in hand, ready to begin her search.
Kovu kept to the shadows as it continued to grow darker, but lounging in a tree on the inlands, he caught the scent of something that didn't belong on the island, something that was new. Keeping to the trees, Kovu leaped and ran through the branches, slightly curious to see if it was one of those humans he'd been told about.
Listening as the sounds of the shore and ocean got further away, Roe walked through the trees, first trying to find a good place to set up camp before she went running around trying to find a Night Fury. Turning back though, looking through the trees and out to the shore, she could no longer see the ship that had brought her, she was alone, and she was almost a true dragon rider. With this in mind, Roe walked through a break in the trees, coming into a clearing just as the rest of the light from the retreating sun faded into darkness. The clearing was a good size, so setting down her bag and putting her staff in it's satchel behind her, Roe began to unpack her things. Setting out her sleeping mat and starting to put up the tarp she had in case it rained over it, all was calm as the stars shone in the clear sky above her, but something made her pause. Looking around in the still darkness, Roe stepped back, taking her staff in hand as she listened to something coming, something moving through the brush. Roe kept calm, wondering if fortune could be so kind to her, but there was a crack of a stick as she watched a Skrill fly up through the trees, disappearing into the darkness. Roe sighed, relinquishing her staff as she walked back to her settling camp.
Though the island around her grew quiet again, Roe was not alone. Up in the trees that surrounded her, black wings shifted silently as emerald green eyes watched her with a sort of critical curiosity. He'd never seen one of these humans before, but there was something intriguing, more so with everything she had with her, all of these new and strange objects. He didn't know how long she was going to be around, but he wanted to investigate.
The main of her camp set up, Roe set her bag beside her sleeping mat as she set out around her site to find some rocks and stick to make fire for light and warmth. Coming back after a few trips, Roe dug up a patch of dirt and made a circle of stones in order to contain her fire. However, as she laid the sticks down and tried to use her two flint rocks, she noticed they had gotten wet from the sea mists on the boat trip to the island. Slightly frustrated, Roe left her ground after a few failed attempts at sparking a fire in order to find some rocks that would work.
It was a curious thing, watching this human go back and forth, moving things, setting things up, and making a strange circle out of stones. Kovu watched the human girl strike two stones together, wondering just what she was trying to do, but looking closer, he saw a spark come from them, though it did nothing. Was she trying to set fire to those sticks? He pondered this, watching her leave, though his sharp eyes glanced back at the circle of stones. He sniffed the air with his round scaled muzzle, noting her scent had gone far enough. With hesitation, he dropped from his tree branch perch, landing with little sound as he moved slowly across the ground. He wanted to look around, investigate these strange objects, but he heard something coming, the human girl. He looked back at the circle of stones, firing an ember at it for he hadn't fully developed his fire yet, watching the sticks catch flame as he lept into the air, disappearing into the trees again just as Roe emerged from the brush.
It had been a bit of a struggle, trying to find a set of rocks in pitch darkness, but luckily she managed to find a set regardless. However, as Roe walked back to her camp, she noticed that the fire she had tried and failed to light was alive and dancing within the fire pit she'd made. She paused, looking around in thought, but if anything, it must have lit itself with a stray spark that finally caught.
Keeping the stones she'd found for the next few days ahead, Roe walked back to her sleeping mat, setting her staff beside her as she sat down, going through her pack and taking out a small leather bound book and opened it, beginning to write.
I just landed on the island and set up camp. Day one starts in the morning. I know what I'm looking for. A young Night Fury, preferably male. The more disproportional his wings are to his body, the younger he is. No signs yet, but I haven't even started to look.
She wrote, placing her journal back in her pack, looking up towards the fire. She watched it dance, but glanced beside it, noticing a strange pattern in the dirt. Roe stood, walking towards what she thought she saw, but stopped at the realization of the shape of it. It was a footprint, but not just any footprint. The shape of the heel, the spacing of the claws, she knew undoubtedly it was the footprint of a Night Fury. Maybe...just maybe, had it lit the fire? It was possible, but that had to mean that it was close by...but where?
Roe looked around in silent wait, listening for any kind of sign that she wasn't alone, and much to her delight, she heard something moving in the trees above her. That had to be it, it was still there, hopefully. She didn't want to rush things, actually wanting to go around the new environment and explore, but being able to explore with her Night Fury before her five days were up was a tempting idea. She hesitated for a moment, knowing that she only had so much food, but it should be easy enough to find more, so she went into her bag, pulled out a wrapped fish, and set it out by the dimming fire. She wasn't sure if it would be that simple, but she went back to her sleeping mat under the tarp and sat in wait, trying not to move or anything of the like, wondering if she could get the Night Fury to come out. She held her staff just in case action needed to be taken, but as she sat, she started to fall into a state of weariness.
Kovu had settled himself in the trees again, watching the small human girl go about her business, but he noticed her reaction to the fire he had made. She didn't try to put it out or seemed frightened by it, instead she seemed to almost admire it. He must have done something right.
He couldn't explain it, but there was something intriguing and interesting about watching this human. His curious mind had so many inquisitive thoughts, but he had no intention of letting her see him, because that would mean she might want to take him away from his family and home. But still he watched, though as the young human put away a small square object and started looking around the fire he had made, his foot slipped from the branch he was on, causing him to stumble. He froze for a moment, watching the female look around. She had heard him, but she still couldn't see him. He moved slowly, trying to go unheard as the human seemed to dismiss it, but she went back to her strange mat and went through a larger object. He faintly caught a familiar smell, his scaled ears perking up as he watched her take out what looked like, and sure smelled like, a fish. His stomach growled a little, realizing he hadn't eaten since he'd gotten word about the humans, but what was she doing? She just let it sit there and went back to her mat...and sitting there...was this some kind of strange human thing? She wasn't touching it or anything, just sitting there and watching it. He couldn't quite figure out what was going on, but as he was watching the fish, he watched her, noticing that she was starting to doze off, her head leaning to one side as that long stick she held slowly fell to the ground.
It wasn't long before she fell asleep, and that fish looked too good to let it go to waste...she wasn't going to eat it...Making his decision, Kovu slowly and carefully made his way down from the tree, making sure not to wake the now sleeping human. Touching the ground, Kovu nearly crawled across the clearing where the fish was, and taking one more pause to look up at the girl, still unmoving, he grabbed the fish in his jaws and took off into the dark sky, returning to the mountains where his clan had gone off to.
Day 1
It was morning, the sun well past the horizon as Roe began to stir. She yawned, opening her eyes as she looked around her environment. Almost all at once it hit her, where she was, what she was doing, what she thought she found. She sat up with a gasp, looking around her campsite, catching sight of the long burnt out fire, but focusing through her swirling thoughts, she tried to find the fish that she had set out, but it was no where to be found. She stood, scrambling for her staff as she walked towards the charred fire pit, finding the spot where she had left the fish, but it wasn't there. She didn't want to jump to any conclusions, but looking around where she had set it, she noticed the same footprints that she had found the night before.
A long night of thought spent, Kovu had returned to the upper dwellings of the mountains where his clan had retreated to, earning questioning form fellow members in regards to his whereabouts. He'd pondered revealing his finding of the human, but decided against it and said that he'd been out finding fish. He wanted to more or less keep this to himself. He found the human intriguing, not so much to consider what she was actually there for, but he wanted to learn. Although, his night of thought, into the early morning, continued to bear some questions he hadn't quite thought of before. There was a predominant question that held it's place in his curious young mind...If he didn't go with a human, what was he supposed to do the rest of his life?
Roe had a quiet morning as she prepared herself for a day of exploring and searching, trying to do everything as quietly as possible so she could listen around her, but as she stood, ready to start out for the day, she hadn't heard a single sound that could signify any sort of presence. With frustrated hesitation, Roe began away from her camp grounds in order to start her search. It was her first full day out on the island, and with her pack in hand, she wanted to make some progress trying to map out the island, despite her lack of directional skills.
Kovu had slept rather late into the morning since he'd spent the night before thinking about the human in their midst. Upon his waking, however, his thoughts immediately shot back to his ideas of investigation. He couldn't be certain, but what if the human had left? He leaped to his feet and was starting out of the cave into the budding afternoon, but was stopped by some of his clan members, namely his parents who questions his sudden rash behavior. He again thought about speaking of the girl, but at least for now he didn't want to be discouraged of his curiosity. So again he spoke lies, stating that he had planned to be up early to practice his flying more when the winds were just right and he had to hurry before they shifted. His parents questioned, but bid him farewell as he flew from the cave, though trying to remember just where the human had been.
Roe had spent a good portion of the earlier afternoon attempting to map out the lower side of the island that she was on, always keeping a close eye out for any sign of a dragon, but she hadn't even seen a Skrill let alone a Night Fury since she started out.
Taking a rest for a drink from her cantine, and to catch a bit of a breath, Roe came out to a hill where the trees had started to thin out, sitting underneath one as she admired the open sky above her, imagining what flying would be like once she found her dragon. She closed her eyes at the sounds and feelings of a soft breeze sweeping over the landscape, listening to the leaves of the trees rustling gently, but something else caught her attention. It was faint at first, but it started getting clearer and closer. She could have sworn it was the sound of wing beats, but opening her eyes, she had just enough time to catch sight of a shadow moving across the ground. She looked up, watching a black figure move across the sky. She watched it, barely catching sight of the shape of the wings before she stood, taking off in a stumbling spring to follow the Night Fury flying through the air.
Having left his cave after a small interrogation, Kovu flew through the air in search of the human or the objects that she had set out in the trees, which ever came first. He had a long search though, forgetting just where he had found the human, but after a few lengths of flying, he believed he found the right direction to go. Fluttering more so now because of how long he'd been flying, Kovu found the break in the trees and the strange objects of the human girl. Landing almost in a crash, Kovu skidded on the ground as he huffed, sprawling himself out to take a bit of a rest after all the flying. He'd caught onto flying faster, but he still needed to work on the overall strength of his wings. He took a little bit, laying on the ground to catch his breath, but as he did, he looked around at the strange objects that were left. Wincing slightly at the soreness of his muscles, Kovu stood up, letting his wings drag across the ground as he began to walk towards the human's objects. They were strange objects, walking towards the mat he had watched the girl sleep on. But why was it so different than laying on the ground beneath it? He sniffed at it, catching her scent and many other foreign ones, but as he stepped on it, he felt it depress beneath his foot. It was a thin mat, but between the two pieces of cotton, it had feathers in it to give it a bit of a cushion. His ears perked up at the softness of it, he'd never felt something like that before, and could understand now why humans needed them. They didn't have scales, so the ground must be harder for them. He looked around for just a moment before laying down under the tarp cover, sprawling himself out on the softness of the mat. He liked it, it was soft and comfortable, but moving around, there was a small puff when something small and white came out. It caught his eye, it was just floating there as he looked up at it in laying on his back. His sharp green eyes softened as the fluff floated down towards him, landing gently on his nose. HIs muzzle twitched before he snuffed at the fuzzy feeling, his ears perking up again as he watched the feather float away.
After having seen the Night Fury flying through the air, Roe was making a mad dash along the ground, trying to follow it. Every so often, she'd look up to make sure she could still see it, but just when she thought she'd lost it, she heard a thud on the ground with a growl. She realized she was just around her campsite. She doubted it, but walking slowly and quietly in the beginning of the setting sun, she approached her camp, breathless at the sight in front of her.
She looked at her bed mat, marveling at the figure laying upon it. It was a Night Fury, an actual for real Night Fury. She crouched behind some brush, sitting and watching with the same curiosity he had her, but she had more excitement and amazement in her curiosity. What was it doing laying on her sleeping mat though? It seemed to be just...laying there, but she watched, seeing a feather. The Night Fury was playing with the feather as it turned over and started following it. Roe studied it carefully, watching it move. She could tell it was a male, because his tail fans were larger, and much to her delight, he looked fairly young because of how large his wings were to the rest of him. He had to be at least a year old because he could fly, and he looked rather strong, and bigger than a yearling should be, but his attitude was another factor to be recognized. His personality was perfect, as far as she could tell. Assuming he was the one that lit her fire, that meant he was smart, and since he'd come out to find her stuff, he was ambitious and curious with a want to learn. And watching him play around with the feather that came loose from her mat, she could tell he was playful and young at heart. He was the perfect Night Fury, the one she knew she wanted to befriend and train with, but as she thought, she moved, snapping a twig beneath her as she fell over, being revealed from the brush she'd been hiding in.
Kovu had been enjoying himself, running around as he chased and blew at the feather. He moved around carefully following the feather's every motion, but something caught his attention. He stopped, the feather landing light on his head as he sniffed around. He could smell something, much like that of the human objects around him, but not quite. His tail twitched lightly, but no sooner had he decided to dismiss the scent, he heard a snap of a twig. His ears shot up as his eyes grew sharp, turning in the direction of the noise with a hiss, but he stopped as hie eyes locked with those of the human girl's. Had she been watching him? And for how long? It was like the night before when he'd been watching her...was she looked to befriend him like his clan knew the humans to do?
Roe regretted having moved as she found herself on the ground. She'd obviously gained the attention of the Night Fury as he turned hissing at her, but as they locked eyes, he stopped, his eyes turning soft again as they stared at each other. She couldn't assume the feeling was mutual, but looking into his eyes, she felt something, like they were meant for each other. She held her breath as she thought, daring to move in order to approach the young dragon, but no sooner had she got up on one knee than did she watch the Night Fury take off in a leap, the white feather he'd been playing with floating softly to the ground as it landed in the dirt in front of her.
In the growing evening, Kovu flew back to the mountains where his clan still remained. He didn't acknowledge anyone as he ran to a secluded chamber, trying to think. He paced back and forth, his thoughts reeling of his first real encounter with a human. As he thought though, he couldn't quite explain to himself why he'd flown away from her...why did he? She didn't show any signs of hostility, didn't seem like a threat or anything of the like...she actually held interest in her eyes and what looked like, admiration? That still didn't change his thoughts of if he went with a human, then he would be grounded, he wouldn't be free. But if he stayed, then he'd have no more freedom in having to stay on the island...would going with a human open more doors instead of closing them?
Having caught herself a fish for dinner, cooking it over her open fire, Roe thought about the young Night Fury she had seen. He was absolutely perfect; strong, smart, playful, ambitious. And looking into his eyes, his fascination seemed to match her own. She couldn't help but think that he was supposed to be her dragon, she just knew it. Putting away her things and walking towards her sleeping mat, she stopped, listening, trying to listen if he was in the trees. There was silence, nothing more than a rustling breeze and the faint sound of thunder. She sighed, laying on her mat to sleep for the next day.
First day completed, I finally came across a Night Fury. He was perfect, in every way, I just hope I can find him again. He flew away when I tried to approach him, but he'll be back, I have a feeling. But I have to get to know him...Kovu...he fits the name perfectly.
Day 2
Roe woke to a startling crash as the sky lit up above her in the early morning. A thunder storm had moved in over the night while she had fallen asleep. She sat up, looking up to the dark clouds as a rain drop fell on her nose. She moved under the tarp she put up just as more and more rain drops began to fall, until it was a full on rain storm. She sighed, knowing better than to go exploring in weather like this, but she wanted so much to find the Night Fury she christened Kovu. But even if she knew where he was exactly, it would still be dangerous business going out in a storm like this. Sure, there was no howling winds, but the rain was enough to make the ground slippery and dangerous, and if she were on a rock slope of some kind, she could slip or something of the like, and she very much wanted to stay in one piece. This was only her second day out, so she still had time, but she knew she'd be running out quickly before the island sent out a search party to find her and bring her back home. She was not leaving without that dragon.
The storm at the base of the island was nothing compared to up above where the mountains bore caves and shelter. The wind was ferocious and the lightning was terrible. No one would be able to fly out in these conditions. Kovu had woken up earlier that morning in order to continue to sort things out, but running to the edge of the cave, he was met with a wall of rain. He'd been told never to fly in a storm, not unless he was very well conditioned for such an anomaly, but he was just over a year old, so there was no telling how battered he would get out there. With a huff, Kovu remained inside the cave, wondering if the storm would let up soon, but as he thought, he still continued thinking about the human girl. He couldn't shake the feeling, but maybe...just maybe he wanted to go with her. Being able to travel the world, get away from the island he knew he'd spend the rest of his life on...it was a very tempting idea. There was no telling when another human would come along, and if they'd be the same as her, and her certainly didn't want to spend all his days on the same island like he knew most of his clan had. He wanted fun, adventure, and even that sort of bond that couldn't be shared between clan members. He remembered hearing stories as a hatchling of the one of their kind that had befriended a human all those years ago. They said he became one of the greatest Night Furies known to their clan and then some...he wanted to be that Night Fury, he wanted to be the one that could be remembered in stories, and that's just what he intended to do.
With hesitation, Kovu broke the news about his investigation of the human girl to his clan, trying to explain all that he had been thinking over. There was much debate and arguing over what his decision should be, but with a determination he'd never felt before, Kovu asserted himself, making it known that he wanted to make his own decision, he didn't want it made for him.
It wasn't until late in the night that the storm had finally faded. Roe was beyond disappointed that an entire day had gone to waste, but it was better than hurting herself or getting killed. Having stayed remotely dry, despite the few runs she made to get a bushel of berries or something of the like, Roe settled herself for another night's sleep, ready to begin her search again in the morning. Now she was running out of time, she only had less than three days to befriend her dragon, and she'd already made such a big deal about coming back with a Night Fury, she didn't want to be the joke of her tribe if she returned without one.
It stormed all day today, and there was no sign of the Night...Kovu today. I'm down less than three days now, I have to work fast, but I can't rush anything either.
Day 3
The ground still moist from the storm passed, Roe woke to a fresh morning. The leaves were still lightly dripping with left over rain drops, and a heavy dew covered the ground as the surrounding air was filled with a scent of cleanliness and renewal. She couldn't explain it, but there was something about the fresh surrounding environment that felt enlightening and invigorating. Today was going to be a good day, she could feel it.
The cave walls dripping from all the mists that had been blown in, Kovu remained asleep, the continuous sound of rain and soothing thunder having lulled him into a comfortable sleep. He needed it, considering the lack he'd had the past few days, and as he stirred, he didn't rush, his eyes opening with a contented yawn. Some drops of water dripped on him as he stood and stretched, shaking the accumulated moisture from his scales. Without haste, he walked through the cavernous labyrinth, standing at the mouth and looking out at the shimmering landscape, sniffing in the air with a lifted muzzle. There was something odd about it, he couldn't quite place. Something was going to happen that day, he could feel it.
Having spent the majority of the morning to herself, Roe went through some up keeping as she found a dry patch of ground in her clearing, cleaning out her bag to let somethings dry that had gotten wet during the storm. Taking out the clothes she'd worn the day before, she figured it would be a good time to wash them out. With the rain, the fresh water around the island was sure to be clean and washed out itself, and she needed to catch some fish too. So with her clothes and net in hand, and her staff in it's satchel, Roe started out in the early afternoon, trying to remember just where she'd seen that lake those few days ago.
With the high noon sun out and warm, Kovu had spent a good portion of the morning laying out on the mountain's peak to warm his scales. He'd never had to spend so much time shrouded from sunlight before, so he felt himself cold and sore from having curled himself up for warmth while he slept. Sprawled out on the flat warm surface of the rocks, wings stretched out as he lay on his back, Kovu felt much better knowing his scales would continue to retain the heat he'd absorbed. He'd just about dozed off again when his ears perked up at the sound of growling. He looked up, his stomach growling again. He turned over, licking his chops with his forked tongue as he shook some gravel from his scales, walking to the ledge of the peak as he looked out, basking in a breeze as he stepped off of the ledge. He fell for just a little, enjoying the free falling feeling, slowly opening his wings as he rose into the air again, looking around as he leveled out, in search of water to fish for a little bit.
Washing out her clothes had been a successful venture, with the clean fresh water, but catching fish hadn't granted her such fortunes. Managing to catch two smaller sized fish, Roe figured it would be best to go back to her camp for now and try fishing later, knowing that she had to keep looking for her proclaimed Kovu. With clean clothes and a nearly empty net, Roe started back through the trees, hoping that she would be able to see the Night Fury at some point.
As Roe began to walk away, out on a ledge above the lake, a large Skrill lurked in silent wait, watching the fish in the water, trying to aim for the opportune moment to swoop in and grab one from the water, but no sooner had it perched itself on the ledge, ready to jump, a young Night Fury swept in and grabbed a fish from the water, scaring all the other ones back into the depths of the water. Kovu held the fish in his claws, happy at the size of his catch, but no sooner was he beginning to fly away, than did he hear a disgruntled, angry roar behind him. He barely had enough time to look behind him with sharp before he caught a flash of grey scales.
Roe had made it a fair distance from the lake she'd failed at, but she stopped at the sound of roars and struggle. She listened for a moment, almost recognizing one of the roars...it sounded like that of a Night Fury, if anything. She dropped what she had, taking her staff in hand as she ran back through the trees, continuing to the sounds of fluttering wings and growling and snarling getting closer. Sprinting as fast as she could, Roe came back through the break in the trees, both amazed and outraged at what she found.
Kovu tried to pick up his speed at the feeling of something behind him, but he'd been caught off guard when something grabbed at his wings, throwing him to the ground. Kovu hissed and roared, landing on the ground with a thud and flailing wings as he looked up, bracing himself for the Skrill that was heading straight for him. Kovu turned, using his tail to try and swing it out of the way, but the Skrill stopped itself, grabbing onto Kovu's tail, swinging him around and throwing him into a tree. Kovu hissed again at the pain, trying to stand as the Skrill landed on the ground in front of him, but he couldn't bring himself to his feet. The suddenness of the attack was so startling, he didn't have time to brace himself, and it hurt, but even as the Skrill continued to come closer, opening it's mouth in order to fire, Kovu looked up at the sound of something coming towards them.
Roe couldn't stand by and watch the young Night Fury get attack any more. He was so young and small compared to the Skrill, she had to do something. Staff in hand, Roe ran as fast as her legs could carry her as she charged towards the Skrill. Gaining all the momentum she could, and aiming and timing just right, she dug her staff into the ground as she lifted into the air, catapulting herself over the ground and kicking the Skrill in the head with all the force she had. The dragon roared at the blunt blow to it's head, stumbling away as Roe landed on the ground in front of the Night Fury.
Kovu watched the human run towards them. What was she doing? He couldn't believe that she would have attacked like that, but she did, and it seemed to be rather effecting, but again, what was she doing? Why was she trying to help?
Roe held her staff in front of her, watching the disoriented Skrill carefully as she panted. She had just a few moments, turning back to the Night Fury behind her. She called at him, telling him to go and fly away, but she gasped, turning back at the roar of the Skrill. It's left eye twitched in pain from the blow it had taken, but it started towards her now. Roe grunted, turning as she moved her staff around her expertly as she swung at the Skrill again, landing another hit in the same place. She knew if she kept hitting it on the left side of it's head now, it would get more and more disoriented, but being a strike class dragon, she knew she had to be swift and fast. She'd gone up against a Skrill before in her training, but it hadn't been under genuine pain and anger, so this would be a challenge she'd need to act on. The Skrill hissed at the blow, stepping back and shaking it's head, but that didn't stop it from glaring at her, lunging for her with snapping jaws. Roe used her staff to get herself up over the Skrill's head, landing on the dragon's back as she ran over it, trying to get behind it now to keep it moving so it couldn't attack. The Skrill's flat body made it easy to move on, but it roared again, rearing up and throwing her to the ground. Roe huffed at the hard landing to the ground, but not before she looked up at the Skrill coming towards her again. She moved on the ground, quickly getting herself to her feet as she ran, the Skrill gaining behind her. She ran towards a tree, readying her staff as she dug it into the ground again, catapulting herself up into the branches as the Skrill ran into the base of the tree. Roe held on at the force of the collision, but looked back out to the Night Fury who still remained under the tree. She called out to it again, telling him to run and fly away, watching the Skrill below her move, getting back to it's feet after running into the tree.
Kovu watched the young human girl fearlessly combat his attacker, and she was actually winning, but there was no telling how long she could hold it off. He didn't want to leave now, wanted to watch in further intrigue at how well the human fought, but he figured that wasn't the best for now. With reluctance, he looked at the girl as she called at him, locking eyes with her once more before wincing as he got to his feet, taking one last look before flying off into the air, leaving the battle behind.
Roe watched the Night Fury take off, relieved that she'd been able to get him out of harm's way, but that still left her and her opposer beneath her. She didn't necessarily have to defeat it, just had to get it subdued long enough for her to make a run for it. She could only assume that the blow to it's head from running into the tree had just about done it in, so all it needed was just a little more force. Taking a moment to catch her breath, Roe watched beneath her as the Skrill wearily stood, shaking it's head again, favoring it's left side. She waited just a little longer, trying to aim it just right before she jumped from the tree, her staff above her head as she swung down, striking at the Skrill's head again. The dragon roared out in pain again, collapsing to the ground once more as Roe landed with a stumble, falling to the ground herself. She watched the Skrill lay there, breathing heavy and wings limp, but by no means was it going to stay down for long. Wincing just a little at a sharp pain in her ankle, Roe stood, beginning to run as fast as she could from the dragon, hoping she could get away in time before it could get up and look for her.
Kovu flew away as fast as his wings could carry him, not wanting any reencounter with the Skrill if it decided to take off after him, but still, he couldn't help but feel guilty at leaving a human to fight alone. She seemed formidable enough though, he just only hoped that he had done the right thing in listening to her. He stopped at a rock ledge, landing with a huff from the speed of his departure, catching his breath as he struggled to stand, looking out over the landscape he'd left behind. He couldn't hear any more sounds of struggle, didn't hear the Skrill roaring, or even worse, didn't hear the human screaming in the late afternoon. He sat, reflecting on what had just happened, continuing to think about the human. She tried so hard to save him, but why would she do that? She must really be persistent in the quest she'd been sent out for, and the way she fought, it was really quite interesting. The more he thought about it, the more he couldn't help but feel like he needed to go with her, but still, that was a big change, and a big question to ask himself.
Roe ran as fast as she could, the pain in her ankle not apparent yet with her haste in trying to get away. She tried to listen through her panting and huffing, hoping that the Skrill wasn't following after her, but as she neared her camp, she figured that it was safe for now. Stumbling through the trees, Roe stopped, trying to catch her breath as she leaned over to brace herself on her knees, but she winced, feeling a pain in her ankle. She realized now, as she tried to walk, that her right ankle had suffered some sort of sprain, probably from jumping from the tree. Limping now, Roe walked back to her mat, collapsing to the ground in a huff, full of adrenaline and fear at what she had just done. In the setting sun though, she had to admit, that was really fun, fighting off an untrained Skrill like that...she couldn't wait to tell everyone at home.
Resting for a little bit, trying to take time to sort his thoughts, Kovu thought it would be best to go out and search for the human, just to make sure that she was alright. After all, she sacrificed herself for him, she practically saved him, though he still wasn't quite sure why. He stood, scanning the surrounding area just to make sure there was nothing to hinder his flying as he took off from the ledge, flying slowly so as to catch any sight of her as he flew towards her camp sight. He flew close to the tree line, scanning through the greenery and foliage, but not before he stopped at what he thought was her scent. He landed, looking around for her in the trees, but noticed somethings laying on the ground. There was something with holes in it that smelled of fish, and then a small pile of something that smelled of her. He wasn't sure what this meant, but he gathered the objects in his claws and started off flying again, catching the scent of human and fire in the growing evening.
He was pleased to see her within her clearing as he landed silently in the trees, setting her objects next to him as he watched her. She seemed to be doing something to her foot, wrapping it with something, and as she stood, he noticed she had a limp. She must have gotten hurt, and it was at his expense. He scowled at himself for putting something in harm's way at his cost, but she didn't seem to be in too much pain. She wandered around her clearing for a moment or two, picking things up and putting them away, all the while limping with her favored leg.
Roe finished putting everything away that she had set out to dry, trying to finish things up so she could rest her leg. She hopped it was nothing serious, for she still had just a little more time to find her Night Fury, but as she put things away, remembering she'd left her net and clothes out in the trees somewhere, she figured that resting for the night would be best. So with that, she went back to her mat, the fire crackling and dancing as she sat down, taking out her journal in her bag as she began to write again.
Day three...I found Kovu again, but he'd gotten in a fight with a Skrill. I managed to fight it off, but I told Kovu to fly away. I don't know if he'll ever come back since he'd been attacked, but I can only hope. I just hope I find him before that Skrill finds me. I don't know if I could take another attack like that.
Kovu watched the human put the same square object away again, watching her fall asleep like she always did. He listened around, not hearing any sign of that Skrill that attacked them, but there would be no doubt that it was out looking for them. She was injured, she couldn't fight very hard like she had when she saved him, so quietly he emerged from the trees, setting his found objects on the ground beside him, but not before he made his way towards the fire. He basked in the warmth, his emerald eyes staring over at the human. He yawned, laying himself down beside the fire to sleep for himself. For some reason, he felt comforted, knowing the human was around, knowing that he could protect her injury if he needed. He didn't know why...but he liked being around the human.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Elemental Paradisity Captain
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Elemental Paradisity Captain
|
Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2012 7:46 pm
Day 4
Kovu began to stir first that next morning, his ears twitching as his eyes opened slowly, looking up around himself, realizing where he was. He remembered he'd spent the night in protecting the human, and frankly, he felt good about it. He leaned up, looking over to her, noticing she was still asleep, but still the thoughts of her injury lingered in his mind. what else could he do for her...? He sniffed around, not catching any scent of food or something of the like, and he knew he was hungry, so that meant she must be hungry too. That could be something he could do, but how could he bring back more than one fish at a time? That would be a monotonous task, but he remembered the thing of holes that smelled of fish. He walked over to it, sniffing at it again, wondering how the girl used it. He picked it up in his teeth, looking at it for a moment, and pawed at it, his ears perking up at his foot getting caught in it. That had to be it. Smirking at his cleverness, Kovu picked the net up in his claws, taking off towards the lake in order to catch him and the human some fish.
Roe stirred later that morning, opening her eyes as she sat up and stretched. She went to get up, but winced just a little at the dissipating pain in her ankle. It didn't hurt as much as it had the day before, but it was still rather painful. She had so much to do though, she had to go and find her things in the trees somewhere, but sitting up, she noticed a small pile of something beside a tree. She stood, limping over to the tree, pausing at the realization that it was her clothes, the clothes she had dropped the day before. How in the world could they have gotten there? She assumed there was one way, but listening to the sound of wing beats coming closer in the air, her assumption was confirmed as she turned to see the Night Fury land beside the charred fire pit, her net full of fish in his claws.
Kovu had had an easy time catching all the fish he had. He wished that the humans would have come sooner with such an incredible device. Catching a multitude of fish at one time was much more efficient than having to go back and forth in order to catch the same number. But as he landed on the ground, setting the net beside him, he looked around, noticing that where the human had been asleep, the mat was empty. He turned around though, his ears perking up at the sound of something behind him, his eyes locking with those of the human again.
Roe looked at the Night Fury in front of her, hoping that he wouldn't run off this time around, but that was kind of hard to assume he would if he brought her stuff back. There was no way of her knowing that he'd spent the night with her for protection, but the fact that he brought her net back, and it was full of fish, that seemed like an offering of some kind, if at all. She wasn't going to approach him directly, instead she'd go about this inadvertently. She walked towards him, but didn't aim herself for him, instead going towards the net. She was pleased when he remained on the ground, though he moved away from her slightly, but he watched her as she picked up the net of fish, and dumped them out on the ground. She continued to move around him, going to her fire pit and placing more sticks in the middle of it in order to start a fire.
Kovu watched the human girl, trying to remain calm as she came towards him. He didn't know what she was doing, but she wasn't coming towards him, instead she was moving towards the fish. That must have been the right thing for him to do, to bring back the fish as he watched her dump them out. He was pleased at his catch, and continued to watch the female go around him, placing some more branches and such with in the circle of stones she'd made that first night. He watched her stand, but lit the fire himself before she had the chance, earning a smile from the human. His ears perked up at the feeling of accomplishment, and as he watched the girl take one of the left over branches, and take a fish from the pile, he sat contentedly beside the fire just as she did, taking a fish for himself.
Roe was beyond ecstatic at the Night Fury, watching him light the fire. He stayed around, he wasn't going any where, and that made her all the more happy. The more they could get used to each others presence, the more they could bond. She didn't know if this would be it, if this would be the day she could return home after so long, but she needed to remain calm in order to keep the Night Fury calm. So she took her fish, and put the stick through it, sitting on the other side of the fire in order to start cooking her food. She was pleased to see the Night Fury settle himself, taking a fish for himself, beginning to eat. She got a better look at him now, noticing the pure black of his scales. There didn't seem to be any kind of color or shading to his scales besides black, save for a small blotch of lighter scales around his right eye. She absolutely adored him, he was perfect, and sitting as she turned her fish over in the fire, she couldn't be more contented, just knowing that he could feel the same contentment.
Kovu reveled in the taste of fish as he started eating, having been hungry for quite sometime, ever since he'd been attacked the day before. He felt himself getting calmer and calmer around the human as he ate, and for some reason, that was comforting to him. There were no tensions, not even questions roaming through his thoughts at the moment, it was just pure relaxing and contentment as he sat and ate in front of the human, and he liked that. He did think though, just a little, remembering stories he'd heard of humans before. How they were rash and greedy, and were searching for power. There had been a few of his clan that had encountered humans before, and only a few less that had actually left with humans, but he couldn't help but think how wrong his clan were about humans, or at least about this human. They couldn't all be the same, this human saved him, and probably his life, and sitting in front of her now, he only wished he could do the same for her, to return the favor.
Roe was relieved to when she started eating her fish. She'd forgotten how hungry she was through all the excitement the day before, but she only wished, as she sat across from a Night Fury, that she knew how to keep going. She didn't want to out right ask him to come with her, she just wish she knew if he would agree or not. She didn't want to run him off like that, in fact, she'd rather leave him here as a friend than leave with an enemy. She realized her intentions were a little rash before, but now, sitting here with him, she just wanted to befriend him more than try to force him to come with her.
Kovu had eaten his fill of fish, laying on the other side of the fire now as he looked around, sniffing into the air around them as the human ate. The sun felt amazing as it was high in the sky, but there were too many trees around, the shade was kind of annoying. He wanted to go somewhere open, and continuing to sniff into the air, he caught the very faint smell of salt water, the ocean. He remembered some of the times he'd been out on the beaches of their island, and it was fun. The sand was warm and fun to play in, and the waves were fun to chase. Did humans like to play?
Roe had eaten enough of her fish, and was very pleased to be full and not starving. She set the stick she'd been eating on down by the fire, but noticed the Night Fury in front of her. He seemed a little ansy, like he wanted to do something. Roe stood up, immediately earning his attention. He stood with her, his eyes wide with excitement. He turned in one direction, looking back and forth from the direction he faced to her. What was he trying to tell her? Did he want her to follow him? There was really only one way to find out, so making sure she had her staff with her, Roe began limping in his direction, earning a soft cry of approval as he began to head towards the trees.
Kovu was pleased that the human understood. It was weird not being able to communicate directly with something, but he thought they'd be able to manage. So with the human, slowly, but surely, beginning to follow him, Kovu made his way through the trees, getting excited at the thought of playing out on the ocean. He really wanted to know if humans liked to play and have fun, and if they did, what kind of fun? Did they like rolling around in the sand, or chasing fish? There was no telling, but he wanted to get to the shore, but he had to keep close to the human so she could keep following him.
In the growing afternoon, Roe continued to follow the Night Fury through the trees, beginning to hear the ocean waves coming through the trees. Why would he want to go to the ocean? There was really no telling, considering they couldn't talk to each other, but he really seemed excited about something, so what else could she do but follow? They continued walking, and within moments, the trees started to disappear as the grass beneath her feet began to change to sand. The Night Fury got more and more excited the closer they got, and when the trees finally disappeared, and they were on the shore of the beach, he roared with excitement, leaping out into the sand, beginning to roll around in it. She smiled at him, finding his antics to be cute and funny.
Kovu was elated to be out on the beach in the warm sun and sand. He loved the feeling of the soft sand on his scales, and rolling over, looking up from the ground on his back, he saw the human in front of him, looking at him as he looked at her upside down. He watched her smile at him, and he smiled back, turning over as he threw sand everywhere with his wings, scrambling in the shifting sand to get to the water. He called out to her, trying to get her to follow him. Maybe humans didn't like to play...
Roe watched him roll around in the sand, it was really interesting to see him playing around so naturally, he was almost like one of the herding dogs back at home. She walked through the sand, deciding it was best to take her shoes off as she got closer to the water, but watched him sprint towards the water himself. The sand was soft to her skin, and the water looked really nice. He seemed like he wanted to play, and maybe he wanted her to play with him. That was a fun thought. She followed him into the water, running just a little bit despite her ankle, and leaned over, flinging some water at him as she got further into the water.
Kovu had started towards the water, but turned and watched the human take somethings off of her feet. His ears perked up as she started towards the water with him, and he wondered if she was going to play with him after all. He waded into the water just a little, enjoying the feeling of the waves lapping against the scales of his legs, but he looked shocked as the human leaned down and flicked water at him. Humans did like to play! She kept sweeping water at him with her arms, and she actually chased him when he ran away. He never would have thought he'd be playing with a human, but he was, and it was fun.
Roe laughed at the expression the Night Fury gave her when she splashed water at him, but she gasped as he splashed water at her back with one of his wings. She was wet now, but it didn't very much matter, and she didn't really care...she was playing with a Night Fury. It was so much fun, playing with him like they were friends. Well, they kind of were, at least she liked to think so, and chasing each other back and forth in the water, splashing each other and stuff was the most fun she'd ever had in her life. He was like a giant dog, and it was really fun. She even found a stick floating in the water that she almost stepped on, and when she threw it to get rid of it, he ran and got it and brought it back to her like he was playing fetch.
Kovu found it rather amazing that humans could play like he did, but when he brought the stick back to her, she threw it again. He didn't know why, but he kind of liked going to get it, and trying to find it in the water while he splashed around. She seemed to have fun with it too, it was like a game of some kind. He'd had fun before, but never like this, it wasn't like playing with his flock when he was a hatchling, it was funner than that, and much more entertaining. It was like they were learning from each other.
Roe felt like they had been on that beach for hours, and they kind of were, for as they started to wear down from all their playing, the sun had already begun to set. They'd been out there playing all afternoon, and it felt really nice to have played and got along with a dragon as amazing as him. She knew that that day meant she'd completed her mission. She befriended a dragon, the one she knew she could train alongside, and it was a good feeling. The two of them remained on the shore of the ocean, Roe sitting beside the Night Fury who laid on the ground, both content in watching the sun in front of them set on the water. Tomorrow was the day that her home would be sending out a ship to come get her, since she'd spent so much time trying to find him, so if this was it, she had to say something. She looked at him, and he lifted up his head looking at her as she held out a hand to him. He didn't flinch, didn't move away, but instead placed his muzzle in her hand. That was it, that was the bond.
Kovu had enjoyed their day of play, and found himself exhausted, but in a good way. The kind of exhausted when a lot had gone on, and there was so much fun to be had, it was just, fun. He basked in the warm sand that he laid in, listening quietly to the sound of the ocean waves in front of him, looking up from watching the sun set to the human beside him. He watched her reach out a hand towards him, and knowing the last thing she would have meant to do was hurt him after saving him, he leaned in and touched his muzzle to her hand. He couldn't explain it, but there was something about the touch, something almost magical. It was nice, the way two worlds were coming together in his eyes, but he looked up to her at the sound of her voice.
Roe felt something between them at the touch, and taking her hand away she asked if he could understand her. He nodded, which was interesting. He probably couldn't understand everything, but they were very smart dragons, so she wasn't surprised if he understood her even a little. She paused for a moment, looking into his emerald cat eyes before asking if he knew why she was there. He thought about it for a moment, before nodding again.
Kovu was a little taken aback when the human started talking to him. They'd shared some exchanges earlier that day, but no more than her yelling at him or something of the like, but through all of that, he'd just about forgotten why she was actually there....she did want to take him away from his home...what was he supposed to do with that? He'd thought that would be a great thing, but now that it was actually happening, why...what was he thinking? He can't leave, this is his home, his friends, his family. He might never get to come back again if he left now, and what would his clan think if he did leave? What was he doing? He couldn't leave...he can't...Kovu leaned up at Roe's question of what he thought. That was it, she did, she wanted to take him...he couldn't let her. He thought frantically for a moment, before his eyes settled on the sky above him. He couldn't leave.
Roe paused at her last question...she noticed a weird look in his eyes. They were sharp and distant now instead of the wide eyed enjoyment she'd seen all day. He started looking around, maybe he heard something? But no sooner had his sights settled on the sky than did he jump to his feet, taking off into the air, leaving Roe in a cyclone of sand. She coughed as she stood, the sand falling around her as she looked around in the dull darkness, watching the figure of her Night Fury fly away from her...that was it...she blew it...
Kovu flew frantically back to the mountains where the clan was preparing to move back to their lower dwellings, knowing that the human would be leaving soon from past human visits. He didn't even stop to talk to those who questioned where he had been, just stormed through the caverns, not even with a direction to go. He thought rapidly, wondering why she would have the nerve to ask him to leave his home, how she could expect him to leave him home when she never has to leave hers. Why would he even want to go to her home any ways? Why can't she leave her home and come back here? ...Why couldn't she...? He stopped in his rapid thoughts....he liked her, she was an amazing human...he wanted her to stay, but she couldn't, the humans never stayed.
He came back today, and we spent the most amazing time on the beach. He's so playful and young, I know he would be the perfect training partner, but I ruined it. He was too young, he probably didn't want to leave his home and his family. I'm glad I got to meet him...but I'll be going home without a dragon tomorrow...
Day 5
Waking up solemnly that morning, Roe began packing her things in order to be ready for the voyage home. She wasn't sure when the boat would be arriving, but she knew that by now, the village had made full preparations to come get her, maybe had even anticipated having to come get her. That was a more than discouraging thought. What was she supposed to do now? There was no telling when she could go out to find another dragon again, if at all. What would be the point of that? There was no way she could find another bond, she just knew it. The bond she felt with the Night Fury was amazing, and in all honesty, it felt irreplaceable, but there wasn't much to be done about that now, with the morning growing later. The boat would be on the shore in a few hours, there wasn't near enough time to try and find him, if he was still close by. So with a heavy heart, Roe made sure she had everything packed and ready to go for when the boat arrived. She made her way through the trees, the same path that she and the Night Fury had gone down in order to get to the shore, and she set her pack down in the sand, turning her face to a soft breeze, letting her hair flow with it. She knew it would still be a while before the boat got to the island, so she wanted to get one more look at the island, from a view she'd almost gotten to in her first day of exploring. She remembered seeing a mountain side path that one would be able to see almost the whole side of the island from. It'd be a nice way to lock the memory in, and she could see the boat coming for miles. With her staff in it's satchel, Roe began to walk back through the trees, wanting to get a good final look at it. Maybe in a year or two, she could come back. She knew she would never forget that Night Fury, she just hoped the feeling might be mutual.
Having spent an almost sleepless night within the mountainous caverns, Kovu woke later that morning, his thoughts still reeling from the day before. He'd thought about it though, and he couldn't stand how he'd left things, just flying away from her. If at the very least, he wanted to see her again, just to say goodbye. He knew that most humans always left on their fifth sunrise on the island, and he really did want to say goodbye, so with the good intentions in his mind, he left the caves once more, flying out into the late morning, pointing himself in the direction of the clearing he'd spent so much time around. However, when he neared the clearing, he couldn't find her scent, nor the scents of any of the objects she'd had with her. Landing in the same place, looking at the remaining stone circle, Kovu stared at the empty space, her mat and covering were gone, her round thing that she put stuff in...it was all gone...she was gone...Well, that was it then, there was nothing more to be done. With an almost sort of reluctance, he walked back through the trees, wishing he'd been just a little sooner that morning, maybe he could have caught her before she left.
In silence, Roe had made her way through the base of the island and began up the mountain's side in her waiting for the boat home. She knew it was a fool's effort, but she still continued to listen around her, hoping to hear any sign that the Night Fury might be around, perhaps even just out of habit. She started up a path that led up towards the mountain's summit, admiring the views that began to open up around her. She hadn't even made it so far up, but she could still begin to see the large expanses of the island spreading out in front of her. Despite the sort of emptiness she felt in having scared off the Night Fury, she felt a sort of contentment as well, knowing that they had reached some sort of bond. It was more than just a day at the beach they shared, and having just that memory if anything was enough for her, even knowing that arriving home with her friends in full anticipation to see if she succeeded or not wasn't going to be very fun. Roe continued walking in a sort of despaired contentment, but not before she stopped at the sound of what she thought and hoped was wing beats. She looked up to the sky, not seeing anything that was flying over head, but not before she heard something land behind her on the rising rock path. She turned around, almost in excitement, subconsciously knowing that it had to be the Night Fury, but as she spun around, she was faced with the snarling face of a Skrill, more distinctly, the same Skrill that she had fought just the other day. She brought her staff from behind her, holding it out in front of her as she faced the Skrill, ready to fight again, but she hadn't expected the Skrill to be so quick in it's retaliation. It spun around, snapping out one of it's wings as it struck Roe, knocking her to her feet as her staff flew from her hands. The Skrill kept it's wing stretched out, catching her staff on the appendage as it flung it's wing upwards, sending her staff flying away from their fight, and away from her use. Roe watched in fear as her staff flew across the sky, knowing she would never be able to find it again, let alone use it when she needed it. She got to her feet, facing the Skrill again, but they both knew she was defenseless...She turned, taking off in a sprint, though it was less than so since her ankle still had some pain from their previous encounter. The Skrill followed after her as she ran, catching up quickly, but Roe only had the mind to keep going. She didn't know what she was going to do with no where to go on the thin upward mountain path, but she could only hope that she would come up on a cave soon, or something of the like to try and loose the Skrill. But her fortunes didn't seem so forgiving as she tried to keep running, feeling the Skrill getting closer and closer to her. She wasn't sure what happened next, but she only blinked before she heard herself scream, feeling nothing beneath her. She looked up, watching the Skrill looking down at her...she was falling from the mountain path. The Skril knew she'd run, and she did, giving herself only more of a height to fall from as it threw her from the ledge.
Having walked from the clearing that he hoped to find the human in, Kovu sulked in his journey back to the caves where his clan remained. He didn't even feel like flying, but he wondered why not being able to say good bye to her had taken such a toll on him. He never imagined himself getting attached to a human, but here he was, moping because he actually did miss her...maybe he should have gone with her, there was no telling what could have happened if that moment before he flew away had gone differently, but he stopped, something catching his attention. His ears flicked at what he thought was her scent. It was faint, but it really did smell like her. He followed it, almost a bit too hastily, but he didn't find her, instead her found that stick that she always had with her...what was it still doing here? Was she still here? All her stuff was gone...he sniffed at it, picking it up in his mouth endearingly, but all of his questions were answered as his ears shot up at the sound of a scream.
Roe fell from the ledge she'd been running on, holding herself in a ball, afraid to look around, afraid to let go of herself. She knew there was no saving herself, even if she had her staff, it would be impossible to stop herself from falling. She knew it, it was all over, the people coming to get her would have to come looking for her, and they'd find her body strewn across the ground below her, but no sooner had she felt herself falling to her death, knowing that soon everything would go black, she felt everything stop around her, she couldn't even hear the wind going past her ears. She was almost certain that she'd already died, she just hadn't quite made it to wherever she was supposed to go, but feeling herself breath, and feeling something beneath her, she hesitantly opened her eyes, seeing everything moving past her, not as if she were still falling, but as if she were moving across the landscape. She looked around her, catching the breath she'd thought she lost, feeling something smooth beneath her. There were black scales underneath her hands, and black wings spread out around her...she was alive.
Having almost collapsed from the huge addition in weight, it took a little configuring and stamina to continue his flying, but Kovu looked up behind him to the human on his back, having caught her in her falling. Roe looked around, noticing the green eyes looking back at her, gasping at the realization that she'd just been saved. He even had her staff in his mouth. Roe smiled, unable to contain her joy. She moved around, hugging the Night Fury around his neck, but they both tensed up at the sound of roaring behind them. Roe looked behind them, noticing the Skrill still above on the mountain's ledge, lunging from it's perch as it came down towards them. Roe leaned over and took her staff from the Night Fury's mouth, situating herself like she'd always watched the others fly around on their dragons. She wasn't sure if it was a mutual thing, but it had to be when she felt the Night Fury relax beneath her, as if he were preparing himself. Looking behind her again, watching the Skrill get closer, Roe lifted up on the Night Fury's shoulders, almost not believing that he listened when he began flying upwards. However, that didn't stop the Skrill behind them at all as it continued to close in on them. Roe leaned over, looking at the Night Fury below her, earning a similar expression of excitement, watching him nod to her. Roe leaned back, holding on as she looked behind her, readying for what was sure to be the best moment of her life.
She leaned to the left, holding on as the two began to turn in a spiral, dodging out of the way of the first fire of the Skrill. She grabbed onto his shoulders again as he began to fly upwards, climbing into the sky past the Skrill, trying to show off his speed. The Skrill roared again, grunting as it flew after them. Roe had a feeling she knew what game he was trying to play. He was young and hearty, he could easily out fly the Skrill, he just needed to wear it out. That sounded perfect. He continued to climb into the sky, both of them listening to their pursuer behind them as he turned over on his back, beginning to turn towards the ground. Roe held on, watching the sky turn around her as she felt the air rushing through her hair, watching the Skrill stop with an abrupt halt as they shot past it again. Things seemed to be going well, but beneath her, Roe could feel the Night Fury wearing down faster than they both hoped. It was her extra weight, she was certain he wasn't used to carrying any more than his own weight, especially being so young still. She needed to help out, try to get the Skrill away from them once and for all. She'd been letting the Night Fury take control of the flying, but she had an idea, taking hold of his shoulders and motioning him upwards again. She held on as the chase continued vertically, Watching the Skrill climb up after them. It was almost perfect, with the Night Fury wearing down, the Skrill was able to get close enough, so with her staff in hand, she jumped from the back of her black scaled mount, facing over with her staff above her head, striking down on the Skrill beneath her. She hit the left side of it's head again, noticing that it was still sore from their first encounter, and the blow to the tender spot seemed to do a good amount of damage as it flailed in the sky, reeling with pain. The Night Fury roared when he felt the human leave his back, but looking behind him, seeing her strike the Skrill, he understood what she was doing. He turned over himself, his eyes growing sharper as he aimed down at the snarling Skrill, hurling himself in a somersault as he swung down with his tail, using all of his weight to hit the Skrill in the head.
The Skrill roared with the pain of it's throbbing head, struggling to stay airborne as it flew away from the falling duo. Roe had been falling, only hoping that the Night Fury would have been able to tell, but she smiled at the black figure coming down beside her, returning to his back as the two stopped in the air, watching the Skrill flutter away in defeat.
Both of them landing on the ground with a huff, Roe slid off of the Night Fury as she landed on the ground, sitting against the black figure as he laid down beside her. She could feel him breathing, it was heavy and worn out, but looking at him, she could tell he'd had fun in their venture. She would have never thought something like that would happen, and looking back, it all felt like a dream. But if it weren't for the weary, but excited expressions they held in their faces, she would have thought so.
Kovu laid on the ground in a huff, trying to get his breath back, but watching the Skrill fly off in the distance, he couldn't help but feel a huge accomplishment. He'd never fought before, in fact, as a hatchling, he always lost against those in his flock because he never worked on his claws or teeth. He was always a flier, but having won because of his flying, that felt like a huge achievement. But the human...it was like he wasn't even flying with someone on his back. Yeah he could feel the extra weight, and it wore him out faster, but she moved with him, and she understood what he was doing...it was weird to think that they could have been so in sync, but it felt like they were. Looking at her now, knowing what they'd just done together...he couldn't even remember why he'd flown away from her the day before. He liked her, and maybe he did want to go with her, but did she still want to be his friend after he ran away from her?
Roe took a deep breath, setting her staff on the ground beside her, looking out to the vast ocean around the island, catching sight of something small coming over the horizon. It was the boat from her island, the tribe leader and her class master coming to retrieve her from her failed attempt at finding a dragon, but looking back to the Night Fury beside her, holding out a hand, she realized at the touch of black scales to her hand, that she hadn't failed at all...her training was just beginning.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:22 pm
Arrival
Alastrim leaned over the edge of the great Viking ship, closing his eyes and resting his chin on the deck while his arms hung limply overboard. The other seamen (as well as some VIPs) looked on to the rather pathetic display with a mixture of pity, amusement and satisfaction in some cases. Earlier on in the day described as either typical or eventful depending on the person asked, Alan has been the very picture of barely restrained energy, excitement, and confidence nearing arrogance. Now, though… Well, the sea, wet weather, and waves had taken its toll on the young lad who was mostly unaccustomed to drawn out voyages. He could hardly wait to get to the island where all the dragons would be more apt to toast him than douse him.
After a while of tossing waves and lurching, an inharmonious jumble of Viking shouts sounded from around various nooks in the ship. Alan looked up hopefully, just as someone clapped him heartily on the back. From his vantage point, the island looked amazing. Foreboding, dangerous, and menacing in his hyped-up mind, but amazing all the same. There was no doubt that Stokers lived upon that island, as even on the beach there were patches so badly scorched that no vegetation grew. On the wind, ash and the scent of smoke drifted, and in the dying sunlight the glow of embers lit up the undergrowth. In the back of his mind, Alan knew that having such a strong breeze on an island prone to blazes was probably a recipe for some sort of catastrophe, but he couldn’t bring himself to will it away. It’d probably make the flight on the way back that much quicker.
Suddenly, the boat jerked and the dragon rider in training gave a start as he looked around, more accustomed to lurching than the sudden movement the ship had just experienced. Oh. Land. A weight in Alan’s chest eased before dropping straight into his stomach. This was his time, his responsibility, and his dragon at stake. Looking at the dragon island one more time, Alan pushed his nerves away with the rational going something along the lines of, ‘If I can pass shield training with the Bouldermiester, I can survive a few days out here.’ There was nothing he could do to reassure himself about riding a Nightmare- His success at coming back with a dragon depended entirely on finding a worthy companion. If he couldn’t do that, then there was hardly any point in sticking around. As the expert Vikings lowered a type of gangplank from the ship to the sand, Alan made his way over to the captain gave the obligatory ‘thank you’ before heading down the gangplank and stepping into the surf reluctantly, though he knew that it’d be unreasonable to expect them to go any closer to the dry sand. He stared down at the sloshing waves distastefully and went back on his previous decision. There was no way he was sailing on the way back home.
There had been rumors flying around on the air currents that said more Vikings were coming their way, but few of the island’s inhabitants expressed any sort of concern at all. After all, this was a location full of none but the most fiery of creatures or the less interesting Terrible Terror sort. Very few Vikings set the goal of capturing one of those little ones. As it was, the Monstrous Nightmare known only by description of his pointy spines (His acquaintances said they looked like a bunch of ‘Ribs’, leading to an unwelcome moniker) was in the group confident in his abilities to evade capture, and, at the moment, was very, very, very bored, looking for something (anything) interesting to do. Frightening gangly children or springy teens seemed like an overly reasonable way to spend his time. Too reasonable, perhaps, but he rationalized that nothing could be worse than his current state of inactivity, save perhaps the travesty of adding hunger to the mix of boredom as well.
He lifted himself up with his forelegs, shaking some dry leaves off of his wings and huffing a cloud of smoke from his nose at the same time. The Nightmare sniffed the air, but there was too much soot currently floating around to get a clear direction to fly in. Instead, he’d have to rely on sight and guesswork. His next destination would be the coast on the far side of the island where visitors most often showed up. Energized by the thought of entertainment (and food- the coast meant fish, obviously) the dragon took a few quick steps before using his powerful wings to lift into the air.
Though it went against his very nature, he knew that he’d have to be quiet, at least initially when finding the small sack of bones. Otherwise, he shuddered to think about it, he might be chosen as the best, which he obviously was, and a good candidate for a dragon companion, which he absolutely was not. To avoid such a boring and restrictive fate, he’d suppress his instinct to set himself on fire and go for a more subtle approach… If that was even possible for him.
Alan sloshed his way out of the surf, lugging his measly supplies behind him as he concentrated on getting somewhere more pleasant than the murky part of a half-scorched, darkened beach, with wet and sticky sand getting all over the place… His complaints concerning any place with salt-water were endless and would continue until he cleared the beach or dried off. It would probably require both.
Whatever his mood, his next move was clear. Before he went searching for dragons or exploring the island he would need a campsite. Preferably it’d be somewhere dry but not prone to catching fire, concealed but not impossible to find, and near a source of his basic necessities that wouldn’t anger the dragons if used by a human. Everyone was always telling Alan that his standards were far too high, but if he didn’t find a campsite within half-an-hour of walking or so, he’d just find somewhere that wouldn’t spontaneously burst into flames and set up shop right there and then. It’d be good enough, though not ideal, for a short camping trip.
The recent dragon-training graduate approached the edge of the beach and fought his way through the initial tangle of half-dead trees. Luckily for him, natural and unnatural paths formed presumably by Terrors and other Vikings presented themselves once a few moments into the forest. It was as good a sign as any that there would be useful commodities along the way, so Alastrim picked one and followed it. He ended up traveling through a small variety of landscapes. There was a recently collapsed wall that was too precarious looking to sleep under. A small clearing looked passable until Terrors set the whole patch of dry grass on fire. Several tall trees seemed to be good potential treehouses until Alan remembered that it needed to be sheltered and easy to get out of in case of fire. Although he made an excellent climber, he wasn’t willing to match his chances against a burning tree. He even found a pond that looked clear and deep enough to take water from, but was unpleasantly surprised to discover that the water was as hot as any fire he’d ever encountered.
Approximately the half-hour later that he’d promised himself, no perfect campsite had been seen, nor any that was better than the location that he currently found himself in. There was a living tree with some low hanging branches near the edge of a clearing with a dirt floor, the grass recently burned away. Alastrim couldn’t see any outright signs of habitation, at least none by any dragon larger than he, so competition shouldn’t be a problem. There was no dripping water, nor any risk of spontaneous combustion. If his ears could be trusted, there was a source of running water not too far away as well. The only downside was it’s openness. Alan had just stumbled into the place. It wasn’t difficult to find, was accessible from all sides, and unhidden from the sky. It wasn’t quite an even trade-off, safety for comfort, but dragons were not typically deadly unless threatened. Alan nodded slowly to himself. Not ideal, but it would have to do.
He wasted no time with idleness and hung his stuff on a branch low enough to where it would not hurt him if he fell from it. That was where he’d be sleeping. Now all he needed was a small fire and to find the source of running water that he’d heard. All the other necessary supplies were already readily available. Alan allowed himself a small bit of satisfaction. Things were going well.
The Monstrous Nightmare circled around the beach where obvious traces of a rider’s arrival could be seen. There were footprints leading into the forest and there were some trees torn apart where the kid had apparently entered. Obviously he hadn’t taken many precautions to conceal his presence. Considering the dragons in this particular area of the island, the ones that he knew at least, that would probably be a mistake… But not a deadly one. His acquaintances could be just as annoying as he was, but maybe he could get to the boy first.
But… The dragon really was very hungry. Quickly he dove toward the water and caught a fish in his mouth, swallowing it on the fly. It should be enough to hold him over until later. He flew over the forest in lazy arcs, looking around for his target more precisely now that he was in closer range. However, all he could really recognize was a sizeable group of dragons of his own kind hanging around in one spot, looking pretty suspicious. He was curious, so he went to go see what was going on.
Alan made his way through the thick tangle of undergrowth that insisted on ensnaring his feet and slowing his progress. The air was cooler over here, maybe because it was nearer to water or maybe because the sun was even further from the horizon than before. If the almost-full moon was not out, he would be unable to see a thing at all. As it was, it cast a white glow onto the top of everything but left hazy darkness in the shadows, making it very difficult to walk.
The sound of the river was getting nearer and clearer. It was further than Alan had anticipated, but still close enough to reach in a hurry especially if he already knew the way. The tangling plants gave way to soft grass which a little ways in the distance gave way to rocks and pebbles. Alan looked around. Enough wood was near to last him the entire five days (if necessary) and he’d be able to gather it on the way back from the river, getting everything in a single trip.
Good, Alan thought mildly, it’s a good spot. He started down the grassy slope and heard more than a little rustling. Much more, he realized, than could be caused by just him and a little grass. Instinctively, he whirled around and lowered his center of gravity, glaring suspiciously at the dense woods he had just exited. For a moment, it seemed like he had been imagining things, like it was just the wind and his own nature causing the sound. However, any doubt was dispelled the moment he caught sight of smoke drifting past the edge of the tree without a visible source of flame. Alan placed his water bag on the ground and slowly approached the edge of the forest when a dragon emerged quickly. No, actually, two Monstrous Nightmares came slithering into the clear area and approached down the slope. And Alan had left his weapons in the bag.
Alan shook his head slightly, clearing the imaginary hair and very real anticipation (or anxiety) from his face before raising his hands, palms facing outward in a gesture of nonaggression that were ready to curl into fists at any time. He had been taught well enough to not strike first, no matter how badly it went against his first instinct, but he wouldn’t bet that they were here to make friends with a Viking. Especially when it was two-on-one. Besides, he couldn’t “place a gentle hand on their snout” if there were two of them.
The Monstrous Nightmare who had been searching for the curious gathering set himself down in a group of three of his own kind, lightly perching on a branch that gave heavily under his weight. Every single one of them was familiar to him; they were all young Nightmares that lived near here. They had situated themselves in a tall bunch of trees and seemed to be watching something. None of his acquaintances acknowledged him at first and, to him at least, the silence was awkward. Finally, he got tired of waiting and inquired curiously, “What’s up?”
A quiet wave of low growls and murmurs went though the group of eavesdroppers who had apparently been waiting for someone to ask. A series of excited ‘whispers’ bombarded the newcomer. Eventually ‘Violet’, the one referred to by the bright underside of her wings, shushed the other two and explained concisely, “The first one to make the Viking-ling run like a newborn Terror or scream like a baby Thunderdrum gets two extra fish from every participant for seven days. You in, Ribs?”
The Monstrous Nightmare bristled at the crude-sounding nickname (couldn’t they call him something cool like Spines or Needler?), but confirmed his interest with an enthusiastic nod and a, “When have I ever not?” The other dragons sounded pleased and returned their wide-eyed attention to the distant riverbank where the action was beginning to pick up. Two Nightmares, it looked like Stripes and Curly from here (also named for obvious reasons), approached a small-ish Viking and roared loudly enough to be heard from their considerable distance. Which was too far, in his opinion. He gave his fellow watchers a little warning before taking off and gliding as quietly as possible (not very, considering his large wings, strain put on the branches, and personality) to a closer perch.
Apparently, the ‘surprise hunt’ tactic hadn’t worked on the kid. He was standing his ground and showing few signs of fear, though it didn’t look like he was breathing very much, which only proved to frustrate the dragons on the ground. They moved in more closely darting forward and back fluidly to test their target’s reactions. The human didn’t do much besides look between either of them. Finally, Curly got tired of waiting and snapped his teeth at the Viking, aiming to wound, and it would have, had the kid not slid back at the last second to evade. Then, he stomped his booted foot right down on the attacking dragon’s nose. To a dragon like a Nightmare, the blow was nothing more than an annoyance, but it still caused its victim to reel back in surprise and pain. With a growl, Curly called on Stripes for an offensive.
Stripes jumped forward and swiped a clawed forearm at the human who ducked under it, getting a small hit on a wing fold. Curly caught him by the scruff of the coat and flung him away when the kid tried to turn around and whack him. He landed on his back and rolled sideways to evade a smashing tail. He got up and ducked another hit, jumping over a striped, snapping jaw and landing on it. The boy held on tightly, clamping the mouth shut, surely and solidly.
The distant Monstrous Nightmare watched on and stifled his laughter. That was one of the more annoying things that could be done to one of their kind. What fun it was to watch!
Alastrim held on for dear life, though he’d never admit the amount of trouble he was having keeping hold of the dragon. By now he was convinced that he’d encountered a few of the aggressive type as proven (he thought) by the group assault and first strike against an unarmed opponent (him).
The Nightmare that he didn’t have a hold on seemed to be freaking out just as much as the one he was currently ‘riding’. He looked up and down and circled them nervously seeming to look for an opening to help. Muffled noises that might be growls or roars emanated from the clamped jaw of the dragon who had resorted to flailing his head and other limbs wildly to free his mouth. It only made it worse, really. Alan definitely didn’t want to let go when he was sure to go flying as a direct result. If he was more talkative as a whole, he’d surely be screaming his head off.
Eventually, something seemed to be communicated between the two. They both calmed and Alan glared as best he could at both of them. The one held by the Viking took a deep breath and quickly shot steam out of his nostrils. Alan loosened his grip immediately because it was hot and it burned. Its companion, that possessed unusually curly patterns on its wings, flicked him off with his tail, much as someone would flick a bug that they really didn’t want to touch. Disoriented, Alan landed face down on the grass and caught a tail in his stomach as soon as he tried to stand up. He skidded down the hill and landed in the cold, cold water of the swirling river.
For a moment he was blinded by the shocking sensation of his head suddenly submerging, but Alan had a decent doggy paddle and was able to anchor himself, face above water, on the edge. He spat some water back into the river and glared as the two dragons retreated, their pride pretty well wounded.
By the time Alan pulled himself out of the water the two Nightmares were gone and he was just about ready to bang his head against the wall. How could he let such an opportunity just go by? He was supposed to be ‘befriending’ a Monstrous Nightmare, not getting into brawls with them. Although, Alan realized, they hadn’t used any fire. None had been used at all. He could use it now that he was dripping wet and cold, but it was unusual. It would require some further thought that Alan was too grumpy to spare. Now that he was near the water, he hurried and got his water and firewood before heading back to his chosen campsite to get some rest.
Just as he was arriving, something occurred to Alan that made him stop in his tracks. He’d just managed to insult the pride of two Nightmares. Perfect.
The Monstrous Nightmare returned to the tall bunch of trees with the other dragons coming back from bullying the Viking kid. All of them landed and one of the trees tilted sideways when the other three dragons swarmed to the same perch, teasing relentlessly but good-naturedly about the scene they had just witnessed. Of course, the two friends attempted to defend themselves but it was mostly lost in the friendly exchange of jabs. The straight-spined Monstrous Nightmare added his own voice to the cacophony, “The shrimp got you good. Did-“
“Shaddup. We got there before any of you did. Especially you, Ribs-“ Stripes said aggressively. ‘Ribs’ twisted his face into something akin to a pout.
“-Yeah,” Curly cut in, coming to the defense of his friend, “We’ll get him tomorrow. Be ready with the fish.”
A sharp voice interrupted the smack-talk. Violet said, “You, too. Careful, someone else might get there first.” The rest of the group looked over curiously. Violet looked surprised and expanded, “What? You two weren’t really being serious there-“ He glanced around challengingly “-Were you?”
The cacophony restarted with all the dragons involved claiming that no, they were not being serious there and all could do better than those two right there. “I mean really,” ‘Ribs’ said, “There wasn’t even any fire involved.” A jumbled cry of assent went up along with several emphasizing fireballs and the dragons dispersed to their separate hideouts. ‘Ribs’ lit himself up and flew back across the sky to where his older relatives were waiting at home.
Alan settled into his campsite for the night after drying off in the light of a small fire, the bark and thoughts weighing heavily upon his back. He thought it might have seen fire in the distance, like the little bursts of flame he had seen earlier from the ship, but dismissed it as little more than Terrors playing around. Anyway, he doubted that any ‘predators’ or such would look in his particular clearing in his particular tree on his particular low-hanging branch, so he’d sleep as soundly as he usually did when fire-breathing creatures roamed about. But as a precaution, because Alan did not consider himself particularly naïve or stupid, he’d sleep with one eye open, so to speak, and keep his gauntlets firmly planted on his hands; for safety and the small comfort they provided on an unfamiliar island. There’s a shooting star, he thought as he drifted into unconsciousness. Whatever. I don’t need any wishes.
First Day
Alan woke up blearily before the sun had even fully risen, not quite ready to face the day, but more than coherent enough to get a head start on the day’s activities. He was relieved that his wake up call came in the form of a sun rather than a dragon and got to work, grabbing a bite to eat and packing a small amount of supplies for a day on the go. Figuring that it’d be best to travel light and return later, he brought only the bare minimum he would need for the day. If anything happened to him, he could always return and pick up the rest of his supplies, which he had hidden carefully.
He set off toward the river, assuming that it might be a good place to start. Last night there had been no shortage of dragons in the few minutes he had spent there, and all dragons needed water and fish. If he followed it upstream he was sure to find something interesting at least.
It was easiest to take the same path as before, and surely enough he found himself in the same sloping area as before as well. He paused and listened, but there were no obvious sounds of pursuit. That was great. Now he could relax. Monstrous Nightmares did not habitually wait to ambush Vikings looking for water. Good to know.
Alan wandered (but it was a determined wander, he would claim) upstream well into the afternoon, paying little attention to the nice surroundings, only taking notice of landscapes when they were singed enough to warrant avoidance. There were quite a few patches along the river where a something or other had killed the grass. Soon, Alan found two possible causes. One (speculation): The hot springs that he had noticed were becoming more frequent and occasionally spilled over. Two (more likely):A fairly sized pack of Terrible Terrors was in competition within itself for a single fish and they were fighting fiercely, though not too apparently violently, for the prize. Yes, fire was involved.
The Viking looked on mildly and curiously but soon moved on. However, the Terrors were more perceptive than he had thought and swarmed as soon as he reached their smelling range. Hel no. They were not getting his food. He didn’t even have that much. Alan raised his pack far above his head, attempting to wade through the sea of little flying reptiles and to restrain his urge to kick them out of the way. It wasn’t really working; there was little way to dissuade a hungry Terror from grabbing food and their persistence did little for his temper. They were biting and hissing and being very unpleasant in general. Then, they all suddenly dispersed downstream, flying a little ways before looking back nervously and vanishing through the undergrowth with their food.
Alan stood still for a moment, listening and feeling for the cause. There was no need to work hard to achieve his goal. The crackling and popping sounds of inflamed gas could be heard from a decent distance and all he had to do in order to see the source was turn around and look into the sky. A Nightmare- because no other dragons set themselves on fire- was diving right in toward him, showing few signs of stopping.
He… Really hoped that this was not one of the dragons from last night.
Early, early in the day, before his other Monstrous Nightmare acquaintances had the good sense to be up, the straight-spined one rose to get a head start on the day and competition. Usually, if it were not so early (in a teen’s mind, evening was an appropriate time to wake up- presently, it was afternoon) and against the point of waking at such a time, he’d circle this side of the island and see who was up and about, greeting as he went. On this particular morning he wasted no such pleasantries, more determined to see the location of their target than any acquaintances. If he found the kid and managed to scare him appropriately, he would just herd him over to his friend’s places as proof. If he woke the sleep-loving-lazies (and scared them just as much), it’d just be an added bonus upon the greatness of his day.
And look there! Right by the riverbank, just like last time. It couldn’t be easier to find him all tangled up in a mess of Terrors. Unfortunately, he was intercepted in the air by Violet and her posse, made up of the dragons Split and Solo.
“Hey,” She started, “We were getting worried that you’d never get up.” She smiled as his eyes narrowed in irritation. “All three of us are getting concerned about the other two and would like to offer an alliance. If you agree, if any one of us wins, we’ll all split the spoils. What do you say?”
‘Bad deal’ and ‘bad idea’ summed up his opinion of the offer, and he said as much. “No way. I’m going to win anyway and I’m not going to split the prize with any of you dousers.” Dousers in water, that is.
Violet shrugged gracefully and nonchalantly, as if his answer had absolutely no impact on any aspect of her life whatsoever. “Alright, well, I’m going to warn you of the other two.” She was referring to Curly and Stripes, not anyone in the near vicinity. “We think that they’re planning something. You know how that gets.” Yes he did. Those two couldn’t plan a meal if they had a year to do it. Spontaneity was their best friend. Out loud he responded, “Whatever. It won’t make a difference.”
They split ways after that, Violet for some reason not going toward the human that they all knew was there. It was unusual, but with Violet he never knew. He, on the other hand, did head toward the river, almost reflexively catching himself on fire as he dove down. He was almost there, prepared to chase the kid as soon as he turned to run, when someone else (it looked like Curly) came straight out of the forest and swiped the kid from right underneath him. It was too late for him to pull up and give chase, so he instead landed harshly on the ground, denting and singing the soil.
He looked up, only to see two distant figures taking off high into the air toward the center of the island.
The Monstrous Nightmare huffed in annoyance. Those two were a bunch of sore losers, but if they thought that they could keep anyone else (especially him) from winning the contest by hiding the boy, they didn’t know him well enough. But- Oh, look. The boy dropped his bag. He’d better take it if he didn’t want the Terrors to eat it instead.
Well, apparently the dragon from before was not one of the dragons from last night and apparently the dragons from last night really wanted to kidnap him because they were double-teaming him to do so. It was a good move to take off quickly because as much as he wanted to, he could not fly.
Alan scowled up at the one holding him, both cursing and thanking the strong grip it kept on his shoulders. On the ground he could see the trees thinning and the landscape becoming more rocky. He was being held backwards and could not quite see where he was being taken, but he could assume that it was into the mountains where many dragons preferred to make their homes. His guess was confirmed by the slope he soon saw on the ground. The rock was a pale grey ranging to grayish blue to darkest black and it was littered with dead- possibly petrified or simply charred- trees and clogged with steaming ponds. Alan tried to twist around for a better view, but the dragon carrying him put on a sudden burst of speed and did a few loop-de-loos for good measure. If it was an attempt to disorient him, it worked. When eventually Alan was unceremoniously set down on a cliff’s ledge, he didn’t really have any idea what side of the mountain he was on or where he had just come from. The island didn’t have any distinguishing features to be seen from his vantage point, so there was no way to judge based on that. It was also noon, so the sun was not going to help until it got a little later. He drew his lips into a thin, angry line and gazed at the two dragons who were deep in deliberation about something or other: probably him.
As if feeling his gaze, they both glanced at him then returned their attention to their conversation. Why had they even come after him in the first place? It had been an unprovoked attack both this time and the last. Maybe he had been trespassing, but they hadn’t seemed to care that he had remained on ‘their land’ after they left. Maybe he had looked like a threat, but Alan would not have been able make himself less threatening (or so he thought) without lying down and playing dead. He was getting really tired of being chased down; he was supposed to be doing the searching if he remembered correctly. So why in Odin’s name was he having such horrendous luck? It would be more trouble than Alan initially anticipated if Nightmares reacted unpleasantly to visitors simply due to the fact that they disliked the idea of being ridden, which was the only reasonable conclusion that was occurring to him.
He began to appraise his ledge. There were rocks from pebbles to grapefruit size littering the flat surface. The drop below to the next ledge was probably enough to give him a broken leg or at least an unusable ankle. And his pack was nowhere in sight. Alan rolled his eyes in exasperation. The only way it could get any worse was for it to start raining.
Alan decided that his best chance to get down from here was to do it soon and while the dragons were paying little attention to him. First, he placed one boot on the wall followed closely by his left hand. Alan’s hold was steady, so he started down carefully. At about a fifth down to the next ledge he heard wings flapping once again. By now, Alan had begun to associate that sound with unfortunate events, at least during his time on this island. Just as expected, mere seconds later Alan was removed from the wall, no questions asked by the dragon that did so.
“Let me go,” He shouted, struggling viciously against the harsh grip. “You overgrown Salamander! Release me!” He snarled and shouted and struggled until he was dropped in a different location, the fall knocking the breath out of him. In the few seconds that he had to remain silent, he scrambled to right himself and grabbed a rock and chunked it at the two dragons. It missed, totally and completely. “Hey!” He yelled, but was ignored. As the Nightmares flew further away to somewhere or other his complaints fell on deaf ears and his stones fell without hitting their targets.
Eventually they vanished from sight and Alan slumped against the wall in frustration. There they went and here he was. Now he had to get somewhere else at least before he could find a dragon- a decent, non-annoying one unlike the two that had kidnapped him- and get off of the island. Alright, he’d just start climbing down again and try not to break anything in the process. But he’d take a little break first.
“Hey Ribs!” Curly called to the somewhat peeved Nightmare that he and Stripes had interrupted earlier. “Ribs, Ribs,” They closed in on their acquaintance and circled around him, “Hey, you’re not upset, are you?”
“We didn’t mean to if you are,” Stripes offered.
“It’s just that we need some time to set up our next try. Isn’t that alright?”
“Yeah, once we’re done we’ll let you have the next try. Right?”
“Right.”
‘Ribs’ scowled at the nickname and at the pair’s excuses and at their sad attempts to smooth things over. He wasn’t that gullible, nor was he incredibly accommodating. The Nightmare scowled and whacked Curly’s nose with his tail sharply, “You could have at least waited a minute or two or asked. Or,” He accused, “Were you afraid I’d win without you getting a second chance? You two already had your shot!”
Curly sat on his haunches and rubbed at his smarting nose with his claw, looking suitably chided. Stripes hunched over and slunk over to his friend, looking irked but unremorseful. “Just let it go,” Stripes demanded, “It’s not a big deal. We’re going to bring him back soon. Way before the search party will arrive.”
“The little snot will be back in no time. You won’t even know that he’s gone,” Curly added nasally.
They regrouped and backed off from the still fuming Nightmare, but not without a final jab, “And don’t look for him either. That would be cheating.” The two of them looked at each other like they were done and ready to leave, but ‘Ribs’ wasn’t having any of it. He leapt toward the pair, baring his teeth and snarling smoke.
“Cheating? I’m not a cheater! Kidnapping’s cheating. Not fair you-“
“Cool off, Ribs. We didn’t accuse you-“ Curly attempted to smooth things over.
“No, let’s go,” Stripes sniffed, “He’s not even going to listen. Let him cool off later. Meet at the spotted rock.” With that, they shot up into the air, followed closely by the angry one. He kept up closely, actually gaining on the two until they reached a few yards above the trees and split up in opposite directions.
The Monstrous Nightmare in pursuit hesitated at the decision presented to him and took a second too long. The two flew off into the distance, too far to follow easily. A roar escaped his maw as the energy and anger seeped out of his being. He landed on a tree to think. It was difficult for him to tend a grudge without prolonged contact, especially when they had just run off like cowards. His rage had mellowed out to mild resentment and as far as he was concerned their denial confirmed their guilt.
The Nightmare’s first instinct was to go wait for the two of them at their designated meet up spot, but he considered that cowardly and didn’t really see what purpose that would serve. His second instinct was to track down the kid to see what exactly they were planning with him and to make sure that they hadn’t killed him by mistake. He wouldn’t help the kid- as it was so ‘aptly’ put earlier it would be cheating- but it would be better for him than sitting around.
Actually, the plan was a very good one and easy to execute due to the fact that half the mountain could hear the slightly more than occasional bout of shouting in human language. Well, that was probably an exaggeration, but it was very loud and entertaining if one was looking- or listening- for it.
The Nightmare landed on a sturdy ledge, just above where he found the kid hanging onto a sheer cliff for dear life. As soon as he landed, the kid looked up, extremely startled, and slid a good few feet on the wall in his surprise. This prompted another round of shouting that wasn’t directed at anything particular except gravity and his unenviable position, though it somehow seemed to help him regain his grip in the rock. The dragon was relieved. Having to save the Viking-child would do little for his reputation.
Grip ascertained, the boy felt slightly more comfortable, or at least comfortable enough to hold a one-sided conversation it seemed. However, the dragon did notice that as he was speaking, the kid made no attempt at further progress down the wall. The glare was suspicious and full or recognition, but perhaps the Viking realized his vulnerable position. When he spoke, he had managed to hide much of the hostility from his tone, but had little luck with gentle diction.
“Are you with the ones that brought me up here?” He demanded to know in as calm a voice as he could muster.
The Nightmare didn’t answer. He just started laughing uncontrollably. Fire may or may not have been involved.
Alan cursed something or other to Thor this time as he scrambled down the rock face to avoid the spray of fire from the Nightmare’s laughter. He managed to avoid the worst of the fire, but could not prevent the knuckles on one fist from getting singed nicely. That would make things difficult. The only good thing that had happened from the laughter was that it had confirmed the dragon’s status of not being with his kidnappers. Otherwise, it was greatly unappreciated.
“Watch it!” He shouted as soon as he was out of the way. “Are you trying to knock me down?”
Slowly, the laughter and chuckles died down to nothing and the dragon had the decency to look sheepish. But then he looked at Alan again. Perhaps he found something in his expression that was hilarious- he absolutely was not pouting or screwing his face into anything resembling a scowl- but the guffaws started up again. Thankfully, this time it was limited to smoke and small sparks.
“Stop mocking me,” Alan demanded as soon as he realized that the laughter was at him and not with him. “This is no problem- I’ll finish this in no time at all.” He was referring to his situation of being stuck on the mountain.
The dragon gave him a very incredulous look, clearly disbelieving the boast. Of course, this could only lead one thing: proof in favor of one side or the other. “I’ll be back to the river by-“ Alan thought for a moment for a reasonable assumption “-Tomorrow before nightfall. If not I’ll…” Again, he hesitated. What was an appropriate wager? He knew that he could make it in that time, even if he had to circle the island to get there. Yes, he was that confident. “Actually, you decide. Figure out some way to tell me later,” Alan said, then allowed a challenging smirk to come over his face. He wouldn’t really need to know anyway, because he had no intention of losing. “Deal?”
The dragon paused and just watched him. It might have been unnerving, but for some reason it wasn’t so Alan just took the opportunity to climb all the way down to his next resting place. It was more of an indent than a ledge, but he was at no risk of falling as he slept, as was necessary due to darkness and growing weariness. For one, the indent was slanted in toward the mountain and he could wedge himself in with ease. Otherwise, it wasn’t an obvious ledge, which meant that hopefully dragons wouldn’t think to look there. He wouldn’t be very comfortable, but that was alright for now.
When the Nightmare did decide to climb down and give Alan a response, he could hear every careful step he took. Finally, their faces were level and the dragon gave a nod and a growl. Deal. That was good. Alan held out his hand for a handshake, not really expecting one but curious to see how the other would react. To his surprise, a bright scarlet tail wrapped around his arm up to his elbow and shook him a little. It was doubtless that the dragon thought he was being gentler than he actually was, but Alan was stunned enough that he had gotten a handshake and his arm wasn’t broken. If the dragon had perfect manners, he would probably have gone into shock right there and then.
“Ah,” Alan began once he freed his arm, “Is there any way I can identify you when I see you next?” He didn’t want to mistake this dragon for another. “What’s your name?”
The dragon pointed with his tail to the spines on his back. A guessing game was the only way to go, he supposed. They were very sharp, straight, strong, and arranged in neat rows. “Spike?” No. “Spines?” No. “Pointy?” Big no. “Spear?” No. “Needles?” A reluctant no. Once more, the dragon pointed at the spines on his back, but then pointed to Alan’s side, poking him right in the ribcage. “Bones?” No, but he was getting closer. “Ribcage?” A little closer. “Ribs?” Alan asked incredulously and got a sad nod in response. “That’s a terrible name,” He said without remorse, “You need a nickname or something,” But he didn’t offer to think of one. He’d ask later if he came up with one. Luckily the Nightmare agreed as he was still nodding sadly.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Ribs, I’m Alastrim. It’s a terrible name. People call me Alan,” The Viking said with a grimace matching the other’s at the names repeated out loud. It had gotten really late in the time he’d been up here and now the moon took a higher position in the sky than the sun and Alan figured that he should get some rest lest he break his neck.
Ribs understood the disguised dismissal and took his cue to leave, lighting himself on fire as soon as he pushed himself off of the wall. Alan continued to watch for a moment or so before frowning and leaning back into the crevice he would temporarily call home.
He turned his thoughts to the day that had just ended in order to distract himself from the discomfort and the hunger that had begun to gnaw at the edge of his awareness. He had encountered countless Terrors, two obnoxious Nightmares, and one slightly less annoying Nightmare that still retained the faults of being uncoordinated, showy, nosy, and uncommunicative among others… Though Alan could concede that the last point might be based in the fact that he was trying to speak with a dragon. At least Ribs was decisive, good humored, and not thoroughly idiotic like some others he could mention. Alan thought that maybe, possibly he wouldn’t mind spending more time with that particular dragon if it came down to it and he managed to pick out another name. However, judging by the strange way all the Nightmares had seemed to act, they probably wanted to dissuade people from training with them. That would make his life more difficult.
Alan turned over and squashed his thoughts. Though he had been trying to distract himself, there was no way he’d get to sleep while doing so much thinking. Before long, he began to doze.
Many hours later, Ribs returned and woke Alan through the sheer brightness of his wings. Did he ever lay off of the flames? The Viking wondered blearily, as he was unable to form thoughts much more complicated than that. He felt something drop onto his legs but didn’t bother to check it. There was no motion and it wasn’t too warm, so it probably couldn’t hurt him. After the Nightmare left, Alan turned to face him, still lying down. Huh, he’s really bright. Sirius is really bright this time of year. Not a bad name for a star… Or a dragon. That was the last information his addled brain could connect before he drifted back to sleep.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:29 pm
Second Day
Alan was rudely awoken by a growling stomach, for a second day in a row much earlier than he would usually be conscious. His frown stretched unpleasantly across his face and he glared at whatever was unfortunate enough to enter his gaze. It didn’t really matter though; it would give him more time to get back to the river. He’d have to keep that thought in mind if he didn’t want to spend the whole day stewing over how there were absolutely no clouds in the sky to block the sun. He sat up, startled, when he felt something on his leg and realized that it was his pack from yesterday. So ‘Ribs’ really had come back. Alan was grateful, he supposed. Now he wouldn’t starve.
He ate quickly and with just as much speed was making his way down the rock face. In the bright early morning light all the handholds were easy to see, but there was some moisture that made it a slippery endeavor. There were a few close calls with his feet slipping straight off into nothing, but he was always secure enough to recover. Eventually the inclines relented in their difficultly and the climb turned into more of a hike. Alan would be lying if he said he missed the difficulty. It had been a very long day so far and the sun had made its way to near the top of the sky, but that was alright because he knew which direction it had risen from.
He just needed to head in a north-ish direction, as he was less concerned about where on the river he reached than actually reaching the river.
‘Ribs’ was woken unpleasantly by Curly and Stripes. They kicked him. It was lightly, but still very unpleasant and unnecessary. He spat fire at them in retaliation and got up in as ready a position as he was coherent enough to take. Their eyes met, and the two friends did not look happy with him. “What do you want?” Ribs whispered with little patience, ushering them away from dragons that were still sleeping.
“What do we want?” One of them asked incredulously.
“We want to know-“ The other started.
“What you did with our little Viking?” Stripes finished.
Ribs blinked at Curly. He blinked at Stripes. “I didn’t do anything with him. I laughed at him but that’s about it,” The Nightmare responded honestly to their question. In his mind, there was no assistance he had given that had not been absolutely necessary and he hadn’t moved the kid at all, whatsoever.
“Don’t lie to us,” Curly said as he looked upset with him.
“We looked all over the cliff where we left him and he was gone! But we saw you coming back from there last night, so we know that you did something with him,” Stripes continued with his reasoning.
The center of their attention growled out his answer, “Stop accusing me of things I didn’t do. I didn’t touch him, I didn’t help him fall off of the cliff, I didn’t kidnap him. I made sure you idiots didn’t kill him, I laughed at him, I made sure he wasn’t robbed. That’s it. Find him like the rest of us.” With that, ignoring the protests of Curly and Stripes, the Nightmare lit himself up and flew away, the smoke curling off of his wings a physical representation of his mood. Who were they to accuse him of this? They should know him better by now.
But now that they mentioned it, he wondered how Alan was doing. Unfortunately, going to find him would require not gathering a following which would require not broadcasting his position like a flare. Reluctantly, he let the fire fade as he returned to the place where he had last seen the Viking. He wasn’t there any longer. That was expected. He’d just glide for a while until he saw a sign or something like that. But… Something about the geography was a little disconcerting. Ribs wasn’t sure that Alan knew which pools would burn him and which holes would spurt water to boil him alive. He’d better hurry at least a little.
The land here was unnerving, Alan decided after a little while of walking through it, very unnerving. It was definitely among the places he’d seen before. He’d been flown over it just the previous day, so he recognized the grayish landscape complete with scattered, dead trees. There were ponds throughout, which thankfully he recognized as hot. Steam rose from them and clogged the air, warming the atmosphere making it uncomfortable with humidity. He would need to be careful to avoid them.
As the land was still slightly sloped, Alan’s travel was easy and he was making good time. He came across Terrors playing in the water, basking fire dragons, and more than a few sleeping Nightmares, all of which he gave wide berths. It was a half-hour before he heard the distinctive sound of flapping wings nearing his location. He looked up at the sky and prepared for the most unpleasant scenario, but was pleasantly surprised when the dragon turned out to be the decent one from yesterday. He took a hand out of a pocket and waved casually, but continued walking.
Alan greeted him as he pulled up beside him and matched his pace, receiving a similar sound in return. He wasn’t really sure what to do or say, well, besides the basics of not being as grumpy as usual, so he just continued on in a companionable silence. Really. Strangely, it was not very awkward at all. Still, for some reason Alan felt like he was wasting time with silence when normally he considered conversation to be a waste of breath.
And so he chatted about nothing in particular, though not in a particularly chatty way. Their communication was based on the degree of affirmative or negative tone in the Nightmares voice and, surprisingly, Alan found that he could follow pretty well. They started out covering the superiority of saltwater fish to freshwater and diverged from there. No real direction existed in their communication, but it worked and was comfortable for both of them. Sometimes they even strayed into time-consuming games of guessing that were uncomplicated at best. They were, Alan admitted, much better than walking in dead silence alone. Actually, if his instincts were to be trusted, the Nightmare was enjoying himself even more than Alan was. The worse Alan did in his guessing, the more energy he seemed to gain, slinking around more quickly and attempting to stifle smug laughter at his clueless stabs in the dark. Even when the Viking did manage to come out on top with a lucky guess of ‘Egg’ or ‘Sheep’, he would just get a thoughtful look on his face and come up with something even more impossible next time.
It kept things interesting.
Talking without a common language was one of the clumsier- but interesting- tasks Ribs had attempted in a while. It didn’t compare to some things (like keeping a fire going during a rainstorm or watching hatchlings) but it was still rewarding to beat Alan over and over again.
“Is it alive?”
No.
“Is it on the ground?”
No.
“Is it in the air?”
He thought for a moment. No…
“What?- Space. Is it in space?”
Yes.
“Do you see it at night?”
Yes.
“It’s the moon,” Alan said confidently.
The Nightmare jumped around to Alan’s other side, pleased that he had made a rash guess, and shook his head no. That meant he won and besides, the human’s frown made him look funny.
“Then it’s stars.”
Yes, because what else would it be?
Alan got a weird look on his face, like he had swallowed a bug or something really, really sour. He was still frowning (he rarely ever stopped) but now he scrunched up his nose and brow as well. His mouth opened and closed, like a fish or like he was thinking of saying something.
The Nightmare watched curiously as Alan took a quick breath and spoke, “How does Sirius sound?” Neither of them thought that that made any sense and Alan sought to explain. “For a nickname— or a name if you really hate that other one. It’s part of a constellation over there,” Alan said quickly and pointed in its general direction.
The Nightmare- Ribs? Sirius?- considered it. He liked how the name sounded: Respectable, proud, and, well, serious. Without a doubt it was better than the name Ribs that sounded harsh and was not an accurate descriptor of his spines at all. He would always reject the notion that they looked in any way skeletal. Sirius on the other hand was in a constellation, which meant it was a star, right. He didn’t mind stars at all.
Sirius nodded decisively. He might not be able to convince anyone else to call him as such, but it would be nice to have another name. It seemed to please Alan, who allowed his mouth to quirk up in a relieved smile. He didn’t seem to know what to say afterwards and he shifted uncomfortably and didn’t say anything for a minute. “Good,” He finally said, “I hear the river.” Sirius supposed that Alan had won the bet because it was only late-afternoon, but he couldn’t bring himself to begrudge the human his success. It wasn’t like the test depended at all on Sirius’s own skills.
He followed closely behind as Alan pushed his way through the forested area surrounding the river. The human didn’t seem to have too much concern for the branches he pushed away or the roots he tripped on, so it didn’t take long to reach the goal. Sirius watched as Alan checked the status of his water (gone), scowled, and knelt down to resupply. It was about time for Sirius to get going.
Sirius placed his tail gently in the water, then flicked it quickly upwards. The cool water he flung splashed the unsuspecting Alan who turned around, spluttering in a half-complete effort to form words. Sirius merely laughed and flew away, leaving the human to deal with his parting gift on his own.
Alan moved quickly and determinedly back to his tree once he and Sirius split ways. He took the same way back, using the river and other landmarks to find his way. The tree remained the way he had left it, though it sported a few more scorch marks than before near the area where he had hidden his supplies. The Terrors had apparently tried to get to it, but Alan had hidden it well enough to withstand the inquisitive creatures.
He sat back as the sun lowered past the horizon and settled in to sleep, munching on a small bit of lamb jerky. It would be impossible to get to sleep until the sunset had passed. The situation was somewhat funny. Without meaning to, he’d gotten his mind set on Sirius as the dragon he wanted to return home with. Strangely, his enthusiasm didn’t grate as others’ did and was even infectious enough to get him playing along. He hadn’t played guessing games (willingly, at least) since he was a toddler. The only problem was convincing him to come back to Berk with him. Alan wasn’t sure how he was going to do that, especially as the Nightmares were proud. They- as a species, at least- would probably refuse on principle alone. But Alan supposed it was probably unfair to assume about Sirius. The best way to find out would be to ask, but Alan knew his tact and eloquence were severely lacking. But now he was thinking too much, which wouldn’t do him any good later. He’d find a way when the time came.
Sirius was cornered by his friends after he split ways with Alan, though they didn’t cut off all of his escape routes. All at once they began to bombard him with questions about where he had been today- which they already knew or they wouldn’t care otherwise- and about what he had done with the human. He tried to respond honestly, but it was very difficult answering all of the questions when they just kept coming and repeating over and over. There was no way he could talk quickly enough to keep up!
Finally- well, it didn’t actually take that long- he snapped, having grown irritated and hurt- not that he would be admitting that- and snarled, “He was climbing down the mountain and I made sure he didn’t die. That’s it!”
“Aww, were you a good Ribby?-“ One of his friends began to say with the implications clear in their tone.
That was completely uncalled for, and Sirius made his dissatisfaction known. He and the offender got into a quick but furious scuffle, only stopping when both combatants’ wings were pinned by those trying to break up the fight or get in on it themselves- with Nightmares, it was always difficult to tell. They stayed there for a moment until Sirius got tired of sitting around and shook everyone off.
He needed to go home. The Viking kid was supposed to be fun, not confusing.
Third Day
Alan woke up at about a regular time and decided to climb a tree. There wasn’t any particular reason he wanted to climb a tree besides the fact that he wanted the lay of the land (finally), but he ended up enjoying it anyway. He might have looked around hopefully for a particular set of rib-like spines, but squashed the thought before it reached the surface.
The sky was slightly overcast with high humidity, but it was not foggy and so Alan could see a good distance in every direction. Dragon activity was prevalent over many areas, but especially the Petrified Forest that he had traversed the previous day. Alan frowned. He’d like to avoid going back there if possible, but if that place was popular today, then…
Alan nearly jumped out of his skin, fell out of the tree, and cashed painfully into the ground when flapping wings were not enough to prepare him for the roar that emanated from somewhere behind him and almost deafened him with its volume. Luckily for him, he nearly did all of those things, but instead was steadied by a tail when he lost his balance.
He turned around and recognized Sirius, feeling somewhat relieved to see him despite the rude greeting, It was possible that the Nightmare was just saying hello, but there were subtler ways to go about that. Alan wheezed out a greeting and tapped on the tail holding him. It wasn’t the most comfortable place in the world.
Sirius seemed to realize what he meant, and set him down on a branch about halfway to the ground. Apparently, the dragon didn’t want him in the air. That was fine; he’d done what he’d been trying to accomplish.
Alan climbed the rest of the way to the ground as Sirius sat contentedly in one of the lower, stronger branches. “What was that for?” He asked bluntly, hoping to get some answers about the Nightmares’ strange behavior on the island. “Is ambushing visitors a tradition here?”
Sirius had to think about it for a moment, which Alan took to mean that he was on the right track somehow. It was still incorrect, though.
The Viking opened his mouth to take another stab at it when Sirius looked at the sky for a long moment, then looked apologetically back at Alan, then looked back at the sky again. Seconds later, he was gone, having flown away with the most minimal of warnings.
Alan couldn’t deny that he was curious about the reason for the sudden departure and considered hanging around for a few moments. He decided against it. Sirius had found him three times at least without any assistance. In all likeliness, it wasn’t a fluke and he could do it again. With that in mind, he walked off toward the river. It was a good landmark.
Sirius flew quickly toward his destination. He had heard someone calling his nickname loudly in a tone that would be unkind to ignore. After a minute or two he spotted the source. Violet had been calling him. He couldn’t say he was happy to have to talk to her, but as long as she was civil she’d be bearable.
“Hey Ribs,” She greeted cordially, “Split said he saw you jump the human earlier today. Is that true?” Of course it was, he nodded, she wouldn’t be asking if she didn’t know for sure. “Ok. Well, we convinced everyone to take turns so Stripes and Curly don’t get carried away. Solo is up next, so your next time will be in a while.” Sirius had doubts about whether or not that second turn would ever happen. It was the third day already, but only three dragons had approached Alan. Still, rules were not Sirius’s main concern as long as nobody was cheating. He agreed without too much worry.
What was more worrying was the smoke rising from the area he had just left. It seemed to be growing thicker the more he watched it. Without hesitation, he turned to Violet, gave her a quick excuse about watching the show, and left to go see what was going on. And to make sure that no one clumsily killed a dragon rider on accident.
Alan walked calmly, fairly certain if not positive that he was being followed. Nightmares wouldn’t know subtlety if… if anything, actually. They’d probably set the concept on fire as soon as they realized what it was. The only thing he wondered was what it was up to. It was probably more harassment. Actually, the only thing he really wondered was why all the harassment. He tired quickly of being shadowed and glared at the Nightmare, getting a near exact guess from the loud sounds alone.
This seemed to be the cue the dragon was looking for, as immediately afterwards the Nightmare leapt out toward him, famous flames and all. The flames made things a bit more difficult. Alan didn’t want any more burns on his knuckles. He couldn’t punch, but it was possible he could kick if he could move quickly enough.
He tried darting in to do just that, but was stopped when he had to dodge a flaming claw. As he jumped back, he very gracefully stumbled backwards over the uneven ground. The Monstrous Nightmare slithered forward in pursuit and spat a fireball that Alan had to roll to avoid.
This was what had seemed so unusual about all of his previous encounters with Nightmares. None of them used the degree of fire he’d expected. This one did. With the dawning of some slight horror, he realized why. Everywhere the Nightmare touched was catching on fire and spreading and spreading. When the first blast of smoke obscured his vision, Alan decided that beating an aggressive Monstrous Nightmare was not worth dying in a forest fire. Unfortunately, he was already in the forest fire and when he decided to make a break for the beach, the Nightmare instantly pursued, spreading the blaze even further.
If things kept going the way they were, a large chunk of the forest would burn down. Alan didn’t really care about what happened to the forest at this point. He just wanted to avoid a fiery demise. However, the flames jumped faster than he could run. Even when the Nightmare’s pursuit ceased, the problem of being trapped in an increasingly grim situation remained.
The Viking spent his energy on both escaping and finding the best route to do so. The task was becoming more difficult with every moment that passed. Often, he found it necessary to take a quick detour before getting back on track.
It wasn’t good enough. Alan covered his mouth and nose, scowling at the amount of smoke being produced. That and the dryness burned his eyes, nose, and throat. Fire was hot and unpredictable. He might be grateful to Odin, just a little, that none of his clothes had caught on fire yet. There was no time to stop and put them out.
Just as Alan thought he had a clear shot at safety- he could actually see the ocean- his luck ran out and he found himself cursing Odin instead. A burning tree collapsed in his path as he was about to cross under it. At the very last moment Alan jumped back, but he was hit with a spray of sparks. He put the fire out, but when he looked back up the path was blocked in all directions. But he was so close to getting out of there!
He was only able to advance a little further before he was taken down by a blast of heated air, smoke, and coughing. Alan had to close his eyes against the forces assailing them, but he felt something press insistently against his shoulder. Any attempts to push it away went ignored, so Alan was forced to acknowledge it.
Oh, Alan realized, it’s Sirius. He was looking both concerned and annoyed as he tried to get Alan to understand something. When Sirius noticed that the human had recognized him, he butted him with one of his horns in the chest. He lost his balance and grabbed onto the spine for support, which was when Sirius raised his head, taking Alan with him.
And just like that, they were off and out of the danger zone. Well, that involving fire. Alan was basically dangling a potentially lethal distance above the ground hanging on with less than optimal strength.
“I’m going to fall,” Alan told Sirius seriously, “Can I-“ He stopped when Sirius jerked his head to one side, shifting Alan into a more secure position where he could hang onto the dragon’s neck as well. It wasn’t quite like riding a dragon- he still wasn’t sitting or anything- but he was flying.
Sirius took a low path over the forest canopy so that they were hidden by the rising smoke, but remained high enough so neither of them suffocated. He would never live this down if someone saw him. Consorting with the enemy- giving him a ride- wouldn’t go over too well. It wasn’t that he was ashamed to have helped; it was more of the speed and manner with which he had.
Lost in thought over a slight dilemma and confident in his path, he wasn’t really paying attention to where he was going. When he felt a tug on the horn from the left accompanied by a phrase involving somebody named Thor, he instinctively followed the hint and curved his path slightly to the left. A column of water appeared just to his right. Alan coughed up an apology and some soot, but Sirius was thankful for the warning. He hadn’t thought that it might be useful to have two sets of eyes in flight instead of just one.
They landed on the sandy beach and Sirius let Alan get off on his own. The human didn’t look like he was in the best of states, all ashy and sooty and otherwise blackened by flames. However, when he began walking around and shaking some of the excess off of him, he seemed fine, save a bad mood and some hoarseness.
Sirius watched as Alan awkwardly attempted to shake the excess debris away and fail for the most part. The Nightmare was taken aback when the human suddenly turned toward him and said, “Thanks. For helping me.” Sirius nodded- it was no problem, of course he was going to save him- and Alan continued. “Does that happen often? Fire?”
He shrugged. They weren’t usually that big, but they weren’t uncommon. ‘No big deal’, he wished he could say.
Alan looked away and stared at the ocean. They didn’t do anything for a while, but Sirius didn’t really feel like leaving. He knew that Solo had won the contest despite the running involved being ‘running for his life’, a fact which annoyed Sirius to no end. Soon, he’d have to start gathering fish for that loser- winner, he meant.
After a while of sitting, perhaps to catch his breath or gather his thoughts, Alan stood, looked back at Sirius, then walked closer to the surf. He picked up a stone and threw it out into the ocean. For a human he could throw pretty far, but a Nightmare- especially Sirius- could do much better.
The rock- it was a lot larger than a stone- tossed by Sirius sailed much further than Alan’s. A frown deepened on Alan’s face. He took a running start and threw. It was better than his first attempt, but Sirius was still better.
Apparently, the smug look on Sirius’s face wasn’t helping, but he wanted to. Maybe Alan could throw it further if Sirius threw him first. It would be a team effort, but it would still work. Somehow a combination of the look in the dragon’s eyes and the motion of the tail tipped Alan off to his plot. “No,” he said firmly with a slight tinge of anxiety. At Sirius’s curious glance he sighed and explained, “I sink.”
Sirius found that very funny, but tried his best not to laugh. Instead, he pulled Alan away to do something else.
The sand made a good canvas. Sirius wasn’t a bad artist, if he said so himself, but Alan could never guess any of the images. The shells were entertaining enough. Alan found the best ones only because Sirius tended to crush them underfoot before he could judge their worth. He would have liked to go fishing, but Alan wouldn’t touch the seawater. He said something about sand and proceeded to draw maps in the sand, explaining their meaning as he went. Eventually, he got to Berk and spoke with less certainty in all of his descriptions.
Alan’s words slowed until they stopped. Obviously, something was on his mind and he couldn’t speak and think about two different subjects at the same time. He was arguing with himself, if the quick but subtle changing of expressions was to be believed. Eventually, Alan just put his head in his hands, then looked up. “Do you,” Alan asked, “Want to come back to Berk?” He didn’t know if he wanted to. “Would you?”
“You don’t have to decide right now,” Alan added, sensing the gravity of the request and the hesitation it evoked, “I have two more days until they come to get my. Just-“ He got a strange look on his face “-Think about it. And let me know.”
Sirius hesitated, but flew off to think as Alan had implied he should. The question had been inevitable, but the way it was phrased threw him off. Alan had anticipated the difficulty in deciding, giving him time to think. He had also not mentioned approaching any others with the same request. For some mysterious reason, that meant a lot to him. Sirius had some work to do.
Fourth Day
Alan woke up from his sandy bed, having slept on the beach for fear that the fire would revive and for lack of a place to stay. Though it was uncomfortable, it was as good a place as any. His campsite was not going to stay consistent on this trip.
He looked around and was only mildly disappointed to see that Sirius was nowhere in sight. There were two- actually, less than two days until he needed to decide. Alan had decided to leave it up to Sirius, so he was not going to stress out over something that was out of his hands. He walked along the beach until he reached the mouth of the river. Cupping his hands for a drink, he considered the pride of the Nightmares that he so respected and wondered if that would be what caused him to fail.
Suddenly, he looked up. Was that wings he heard again?
Last night had been quite the eventful night for Sirius. The first thing he did was catch a grand total of fourteen fish to hold up his end of the bargain. The second thing he did was fly around the mountain and wonder if he could really leave his home. The last and most difficult thing he did was go visit everyone he spent a significant amount of time with.
Stripes and Curly didn’t seem to recognize that the conversation was potentially goodbye. They just teased him mercilessly in their mind-reading fashion about the competition. He teased back with just as much bite before informing them that the contest was over. Those two didn’t say much after that, but their antics were… endearing. He would miss their antics, unpredictability and all.
Violet, Split, and Solo seemed to cue into the different atmosphere in their conversation, but Sirius didn’t think that they could figure it out completely. Mostly, they seemed smug that they were all in on the deal and he was not. He guessed that they didn’t realize how winning was more important than the prize itself. They were good conversationalists and could be trusted to think of something unexpected.
He visited his family last and spoke with them before going to bed. Sirius was independent enough, but he still liked spending time with dragons that knew him really well. When he did get around to going to bed, he couldn’t sleep for a very long time and was up for most of the night. But it gave him time to think more deeply than usual and by daybreak he had a decision.
Sirius told his parents the whole story and they were quiet for a little while, but they accepted it and wished him the best. One thing that they said stood out to him: “You know what is best. Don’t let anyone else determine your standards of pride and honor.”
It made perfect- almost too much- sense. It felt like the best thing to do, and even if the others didn’t understand or approve, he couldn’t let that dictate his life. Maybe he had been doing that for too long anyway.
Sirius said his goodbyes as he flew overhead to a comical mixture of shock, slight horror, and dawning understanding. It would be more uncomfortable to stick around for a really long time, so he spared them the long, sappy stories. They weren’t for him, anyway.
His morning only got better as he swooped down on Alan. The Viking almost choked on his water, he was so surprised to see him. “What?” Alan asked as he quickly recovered, “You decided already?” Obviously. The human shifted uncomfortably. “Well?” He asked.
The Nightmare shook his head yes in exasperation. He wouldn’t even be here if he had decided no or hadn’t decided at all. Some stress seemed to leak out of Alan and he smiled. “Ok. Thanks. It’s good to work with you, Sirius.”
Sirius grinned toothily as he tried grabbing Alan with his tail. He was the only one he’d seen this morning that called him Sirius instead of Ribs. However, the Viking ducked and gave a slight glare. “You’re going to have to stop manhandling me,” He said.
Sirius wasn’t offended and ducked down to allow Alan to climb on. He wouldn’t manhandle Alan as long as he was quick enough to avoid it. They took to the skies naturally, like they had both been born to do so. His rider wasn’t stressed in the air, nor was he overly controlling. He made his presence and wishes known without upsetting Sirius. Somehow, they both knew that they would work well together.
From the beach there were some roars, and Sirius slowed to listen more carefully. His friends, family, and acquaintances were all giving him a big goodbye. A “Bye Ribs!” celebration would have been the best thing to call it. None were glad to see him go but… They could learn to live with it.
Sirius roared in return. “Bye! I’ll come back if any of you start slacking!”
“I’m slacking!” Someone called and Sirius laughed, turning toward Berk with Alan being as patient as he could be.
It was difficult for Alan to really process the experience he just went through. He had a dragon, he liked Sirius, Sirius seemed fond of him, and he was going home a day early. The Viking made a mental note to fly over these islands occasionally. All the dragons on the beach seemed absolutely crazy- possessed by Loki himself- but Alan couldn’t not come back.
He- They'd succeeded in this first task. He wondered what they couldn't do if not that. The first step was always the hardest.
They flew all the way back to Berk without touching a single drop of water.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
