Chapter 1:Pursued
#2 of Pursed Series
Xenorosth grumbled as he entered a new neck of the woods. Xenorosth, only a small, blue, non-anthro hatchling, was feeling misplaced. He wanted to be in his lair, his mother and father at his side. At only five feet high, he was easy prey for any other dragons around. He could be made a slave. The thought of it made him shiver. He wanted to be free and untamed in the realm of darkness.
Seriously though, Xenorosth needed to focus on the most basic requirements for now. He needed food and water. The forest itself was Xenorosth's shelter, though a cave would have been nice. For him it would be easy to catch a deer or two. He would also eat fruit as well.
Water might be a problem though. Xenorosth was being pursued by two other non-anthro dragons. One had scales of sapphires. The other had scales of coal. He wondered briefly about the sapphire-scaled pursuer. She looked very similar to him. His scale color matched hers perfectly. His body configuration did too. Xenorosth's eyes however were red, like the coal-scaled dragon. Hers were blue. Bother pursuers were at least nine times his size.
Because he was being chased, Xenorosth figured that he should fly. Though that was the easiest way to get his resources, he would risk giving away his location. If he did, it would almost spell disaster. It would be almost a 100 percent chance of being put in chains.
"What a mess," Xenorosth grumbled to himself. He sniffed the air. He assumed that the two dragons following him were too far away to be located by smell, as he couldn't catch either of there scents. He pushed his fears away and proceeded to roam in the forest, only being illuminated by the wan, pale moonlight. Walking in the darkness was not new to Xenorosth. At home it was always night when he was awake. Actually, the darkness made Xenorosth feel better. It made him feel safe. However, he couldn't let his guard down with the two beasts on his tail.
Xenorosth's growling stomach made Xenorosth incease his speed. Every so often, he got a nice thwack on his head from a low branch. Thankfully, his hard scales made it so he didn't even feel them. Occasionally he snacked on a few berries he found. It was too bad that the little spheres did little to cure his hunger.
After an hour of impatient searching, a tree with purple fruit came into view. He peeled one of them to find that the fruit was ripe to perfection. This pleased him greatly. Grinning, Xenorosth snapped at one of the fruit and he ate it in only a few bites, though it weighed over five pounds. He savored the juices that flooded his mouth. After he ate five of these, he curled up planning what to do next.
He quickly established a new goal. He needed water. The fruit certainly helped, but he needed more then the juices to survive. After a small rest under the fruit tree, he got up and started off into the wilderness once more.
Xenorosth was very lucky, for not one hundred feet away, he found a pond. It was clear enough that you could easily tell that it was much deeper then he was tall, even with the only light being the full moon. Xenorosth approached the lake cautiously as if a fish was going to eat him. Then he sipped the water. It was cool and refreshing.
His drink was short lived, however, as Xenorosth caught something in the corner of his eye. He raised his head. He gasped, instantly recognizing what he saw. "I've been found!" Xenorosth hissed. The blue dragon had found him! Xenorosth knew he couldn't fight the massive dragon, and trying to hid himself with his size was almost impossible. He decided the only thing he could do to prevent capture was try to flee.
The blue dragon flew high from her original location. Her massive wings carried her fast, the distance between them dwindling with each passing second. Xenorosth broke into a dash, running as fast as he could. There was no way he could out fly someone with such speed. Xenorosth found a path . He quickly took a left on it. No time to decide which way to go, as he heard her land right behind him. This encouraged him to move faster. He hit a fork and took the right path. There was now mountain on his left and the woods, getting thicker as Xenorosth went further along the path.He thought he was a goner, but when he looked back he found that the dragon was merely walking! Soon he found out why.
Xenorosth came to a halt looking up a 50 foot cliff side. He couldn't slip into the woods at this point. They were far too think. He doubted that a doe could get in from this spot. He tried climbing the rock face that was in front of him, blocking him from escape. He only got a few feet off the ground before a rock came loose and crumbled. As a result, Xenorosth landed on his back very hard. He got up, finding his soon-to-be captor was right behind him. "So I'm finally caught," Xenorosth mumbled, hoping that the blue dragon didn't here him.
As he was approached, Xenorosth turned to face the one that had been chasing him for what felt like forever. The dragon put the tip of her tail on her prize. Xenorosth stared into the dragons eyes, trying to be strong. Then the dragon started humming. This was not an ordinary tune though for as soon as the sound hit Xenorosth's eardrums he felt weaker and weaker. Xenorosth tried to resist. "I can't give! Not this easy!" Xenorosth thought, but the struggle was futile. Xenorosth could not defy the stronger force. He was forced into an unwilling sleep, cursing how easily he was tamed.
Xenorosth opened his eyes. He didn't move though. He found that he was warm and comfortable where he was. He drowsily surveyed the room quietly. He found that he was in a nice cozy cave. He lifted his head slightly. He found that he was laying on a cushion. The blue dragon was curled around Xenorosth protectively, watching his every move. Xenorosth yipped realizing this and tried to escape. "Oh no you don't!" the dragon laughed. She took her tail and wrapped it around Xenorosth's leg before he could escape. Xenorosth grumbled as he was dragged back unwillingly to her side. "Don't worry. I am not going to hurt you. Ariel is my name, but you may call me mother." She said sweetly, nuzzling the hatchling's side.
Xenorosth was very confused at Ariel. He wimpered, very confused. Seeing this, Ariel sent an image into Xenorosth's mind. Xenorosth saw himself with Ariel, cuddling each other for company. They were relaxing after a long day of trying to find prey. They had already ate there kills while out in the forest. A black dragon entered the room. In response Ariel hissed distastefully. They were obviously enemies. The black dragon tackled Ariel. Ariel tried to protect Xenorosth, but in the middle of the fight Xenorosth was hit in the head. Xenorosth tumbled to the ground, unconscious. Ariel roared and raged at this. She teleported Xenorosth using the shadows of the lair. Then she resumed fighting off the black dragon.
As the image vanished before Xenorosth, everything started to fit like a puzzle. Xenorosth didn't like it though. Still, he found his mother. That was enough to make him content for now. "Do you understand now, young one?" Ariel asked hoping to make her point without sounding harsh. He only nodded, still uncomfortable with what he just saw. Ariel nuzzled Xenorosth Xenorosth purred a little. He was glad that his newly discovered mother was about ten times his size. It made him feel secure. "So what now?" Xenorosth asked, worried "You have me but the black one is still out there. Ariel only seemed to amused as if the answer was very obvious. "That is up to you" she chuckled.
The night went on as Xenorosth snuggled with his mother. The black dragon didn't penetrate Xenorosth happiness at this time. Only one think concerned him. Peace. He didn't know why he believed Ariel was his mother, but he trusted her. He was no longer feeling misplaced. He would take what was in store for him later. He finally felt at home.