The Journey Forward
#50 of Dragon Hunter Saga
The week long trip to the Land Bridge was uneventful, though seeing the changes in the world since we had last gone through the area was interesting. The campsite where Starburst had dug the pool for Queen Azure was being kept up. From appearances by people as they travel to and from my City. AS it was right on the now well worn path to and from the City it was the best stopping point.
Someone had thoughtfully dug an extra pool out with a fire pit nearby. This second 'pool' had a 'drain' of a sorts that you could drain out the water. The fire pit had a stack of flat stones next to it. So the pool was designed so that you could heat it with the stones after heating them up in the fire. Which once we stopped Zander went to set it up after nudging Starburst to light the two separate fire pits. Sometimes having a fire type Dragon was really handy.
After lighting the fire pits Starburst excused himself and flew back to the ocean, we had been politely informed that the Selkie's would ensure I had fresh food as long as they could reach me. In this case he had to go retrieve tonight's meal from them.
After the water was a good temperature Shadow nudged Zander who shakes his head. "Alright I'm going to find some greens," he waves to the pool before grabbing a collecting basket. "It's all set for you to soak for the evening Gwen, you aren't use to riding all day anymore so it'll probably take another week or two to get use to it."
I nod in agreement my muscles already very unhappy with me, not like they were the first day; but still very sore. After he leaves I slowly take my clothes off feeling every sore muscle from my shoulders down. Shadow was watching my stiff movements and he looks to Alberich who nods his head. "You really do need the hot soak, remind me when we are home for any length of time that you need to spend at least one day a week riding so we don't have a repeat of this."
I silently agree as I carefully ease into the hot water, after leaning back I ask. "Why was Zander annoyed that Shadow had him go?" The man and the unicorn exchange a look and Alberich answers, "nothing of importance Gwen. Just something personal that Zander is dealing with right now." I shrug not understanding and slightly curious now.
Starburst then lands with a side of Tuna in his talons which he passes to Shadow, he looks to me soaking in the water. "I've already eaten Gwen, they had left us an entire Tuna just in case I needed to eat. So I informed them I would be alright food wise for the next seven days." I nod my head as Zander rushes into the clearing cradling something in his hands and rushes towards me.
"Quickly Gwen! No questions take this and carefully set him in the water not putting his head in he's freezing." Zander shoves what is in his hands into mine and I reflexively place my full hands into the water as I look down at them. It was a brown colored Nature Dragon, I make sure his head is above the water level; knowing they are air breathers. Zander was right the little thing was ice cold.
"Are you sure it's alive?" I turn my head to Zander who had stepped backwards till he couldn't see below my neck. He nods his head, "I could feel it's life energy; it's just very cold." He turns his head to Starburst, "why would one be out here by itself? Especially this time of year?" Starburst moves his head closer to me and looked the little thing over.
After a moment he pulls his head back shaking it, "I honestly have no idea. They wouldn't typically travel so soon after a snow storm, not in early Spring when one happened only a week ago." Starburst looks at Zander, "you might want to get that basket. He'll need to eat once he warms up and wakes up, Zander nods his head and rushes back out of the campsite.
Shadow spits the Tuna and slowly starts turning it as Alberich sticks his nose in one of the bags and pulls out an extra towel. He brings it over to me, setting it on the ground next to me. "Here he looks a bit warmer, you should dry him off and then I'll carry him in the blanket to the fire. As his heart beat sounds a lot more steady than it had previously."
I start drying him off and notice he's really the color of autumn leaves, as his color is more of a nice reddish brown that would blend well in the fall in an oak forest. After drying him off I wait for Alberich to pick up the towel before I get up and after first draining the water out of the pool I dry off then put on the dry clothes Zander had set out.
I walk over to look the small Dragon, "I hope he'll be alright." I turn to look at Starburst, "can they survive being frozen?" starburst gets a thoughtful look for a moment then responds, "once he warms up he should be fine. I am not fully sure however, I've never seen one of their kind out in cold weather much less become frozen." I nod my head as Zander comes back into the campsite with a full basket.
He sets it down on a table someone had made and starts taking items out of it. "I'll have you know I got into an argument with a squirrel about his acorns," he waves a hand at the small dragon. "I know they need protein just like any Dragon, yet they are vegan. So I convinced a squirrel to trade some of the fiddle heads I found for some of his acorns." Zander shakes his head, "he got quite a few of them out of me. Fair warning squirrels are shrewd traders."
I chuckle as he pulls out a pot and starts placing things inside it to make into a stew with the fat Shadow collects from the tuna as he turns it. We've learned that the tuna's that the Selkie's hunt have a lot more fat on them than the Tuna's you'd find in a store before the dragon's tore the world apart. So we started using a drip pan under our cooking spit to collect it. It adds amazing flavor to vegetables cooked in it. Alberich just goes out and grazes, and Starburst only eats once in a while.
During the winter I had starburst give a 'class' on Dragon biology for the children in the City. Granted the children at the Hunter's compound had a better version of the class. It seems when dragons were first made/born they already had the ability to use up energy more efficiently than modern species do. His kind wondered if nature decided to make the lives of the 'lesser' species harder by requiring us to eat more often than they need to. I do wonder that myself to a degree, yet not for the same reason he did. I think the Gods' had created the Dragons first, and they were their 'prefect' being. They filled every niche on the world with them, then after watching what their favorite creature. They decided it worked to well, as it seemed that Dragons were the only creature on the world for a very long time.
Now the Older world's scientists would argue with me on this, but it seems the dragon's have a history that is a couple of -Trillion- years old. Also that the current Matriarch is only the third, that they have ever had. The first had ruled during the period when only Dragons existed, and from what was told to me. She was not a nice lady.
When they were first created they didn't need to eat at all, but the first Matriarch changed all of that. She had started a war with the dragon's she had felt were inferior. The smaller varieties, and the ones we would have issue calling a Dragon these days. During this war that Matriarch had a piece of one of the 'lower' beings fly into her mouth and she liked the taste and learned she gained power from it. So she had her people eat their defeated, they became addicted to eating and the next generation had to eat to survive and grow.
I learned from my history lesson that maybe the dragon's needed a ruling council verses a single ruler. To do that however, they would have to agree to it and allow those like our little frozen friend here on it.
Me, Zander, and Shadow start eating and we see the little one stirring, so I stop and walk over to him. He snuggles deeper into the warm towel near the fire but raises his head and spies us all. I hear a tiny and tired voice speak, "oh thank you. Are you the Hunter of Hope Point?" I nod my head and he continues, "oh good I was trying to make it to your City but got caught in that storm. I was hoping to move there, is that possible? Oh! My name is Acorn." I inwardly chuckle at his name since he was the color of an oak forest in fall then answer him.
"Certainly Acorn, we have space for such a fine fellow as yourself. Another of your kind is already living in our fine City her name is Leaf." He perks up a little, "really? I haven't seen another of my kind in years, just point me in the right direction." I chuckle again, "finish warming up then have some food then I'll show you the direction. I would take you, but I am out looking for the Matriarch." Acorn nods his head and cuddles back into the towel falling asleep again. I walk back over to my food and finish my meal glad to see the little guy was doing well.
I look to Starburst, "well looks like your friend might have just gained a boyfriend." Starburst nods his head and then looks to the towel with a protective look on his scaled face. "Only if he isn't going to hurt her," Zander chuckles and slaps Starburst's foreleg. "Now you sound like a dad when his daughter goes on his first date." Starburst glares at Zander, "it's just there isn't many of them. I also don't want my friend hurt if he isn't a good match for her."
I nod my head hopeful that when we send him back that him and Leaf work out together.