Winged

Chapter 6

Hej grabbed Stracony's nose and tugged in the direction she wanted to go, letting the 'giant' Sokol lead her out of the forest they once were, into a open field that propped the large silhouette of Miibli against the sky. The drums of the Grohg people boomed in a threatening rhythm, rattling the ribcage surrounding his hearts.

"Ahh, home sweet home. Yoh NEED to meet my gramps! He'd be stoked to have a giant around, yoh know. I need to show yoh off to the village first! Come on, slow poke!"

Hej hopped from Stracony's back and climbed down his leg to the floor, where she proceeded to sprint towards the village. So... I'm guessing the houses are going to be smaller, accounting for their size. I might want to be careful...

Entering the village, Stracony was dumbfounded at the size of the houses. They were gigantic. The drums were everywhere, beating in a beautiful music that flowed through his body like water. The sky was now a deep crimson as the sun set below the horizon, and the Grohg hopped in glee towards stores and cafes that littered the plaza underneath the volcano. The street was made from coarse gravel, with gutters that glowed from the tiny rivers of lava they incubated. The houses were unlike the ones he was used to; instead they were made of stone which was coded in a fluffy moss - a moss that shimmered iridescently ever so slightly. Hej greeted her fellow people in the street, some carrying bags full of bread and meats and some holding swords or other weapons. The whole town, however, was watching Stracony closely. Some in suspicion, others in awe.

"Hej, why are the houses so big; if I may be a bit crude?"

"Oh, well, us Grohg need the space for our machines. I'm not sure yohr aware of that term, but it's basically just an appliance run by heat from this here volcano. If yoh were to look up, yoh could see all the steam we're letting out of the buildings."

Looking up, he was indeed able to confirm the steam streaming from the tops of the surrounding buildings. He noticed some small details of the town. To the stone being a beige color, to the windows seeming so delicate and intricate he was sure a good flap of his wings could cave them. He peered into a window to see what seemed to be a thin piece of shiny material moving in a circle, spitting steam sideways and spooling a bundle of thread effortlessly. It almost looked like magic to him, how the city breathed in the heat of Miibli and expelled steam from its lungs. The houses even looked alive, with rigid eyes and doors curled into smiles - lights which bubbled and filled every inch of the place.

"Wow. This place is..."

"Pretty, right? Now just wait to yoh see our elder!"

"Elder?"

"The elder! Yoh know, the gal who is in charge of this whole place? Does some war things, runs the mining operations, overlooks the creation of weapons..."

"No, I did not know. But now I guess I do." I would be at a loss if Hej didn't let every last detail of her thoughts pour out of her mouth like a waterfall.

"What? So sokol don't have Elders?"

"No, not typically."

"Darn. Well ours is named Samji but everyone calls her Saj. She is like, super pretty, so make sure you don't fall for her, yoh know!" Sokol furrowed his brow at the last comment, like he'd ever fall for a Grohg. Not that it wouldn't work out, but the logistics of that relationship is something he didn't even want to get into at that moment. Not to mention, his thoughts had rarely strayed from the chestnut eyes of Uroda.

"So how do you... power everything? And are you the only... things... down here?"

"Oh, yoh don't know much, do yoh? I wonder why? They not teach yoh anything where yohr from? Well, there are monsters and things of the such. Dragons, for instance, are a threat, but we keep them away with our machines and energy. We call it Healik, the energy that's produced from the lava. It's kind of hard to look at but yoh will get the idea. We infuse our weapons, do everything with it. There are also other societies, but a general rule is we keep to ourselves."

"I guess it was the same for us... Strange I never even heard of your kind before. Where I come from we rarely hear of other beings outside our own. Though, there have been the Slayers who come down to this land..." Stracony hummed, grabbing his head. Why would the kingdom keep secret about life down here?

"Slayers?"

"Oh, well the Sokol also have trouble with the dragons. We have a sect of soldiers who are trained specially to deal with them."

"So yoh all must have found another source of Healik?"

"What?" Stracony stopped, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I mean, the only thing that can hurt a dragon is Prodlink. Nothing else us Grohg have tried even works."

"What about the four main weaknesses?" Stracony asked, perplexed.

"Weaknesses??" Hej choked, then burst into laughter, bundling over and slapping her knee.

"What? What's so funny?"

"W-Weaknesses? Dragons, having weaknesses! What a joke! My silly friend, even the one thing we can use in Healik barely works! All we can do is slightly scratch under the surface! Their scales are resistant to lava, their bones are made of the strongest material known to this world! If they had weaknesses, they wouldn't be a problem for us! They only have immunities, and something that leaves a dent."

"B-But..."

"Sounds to me those Slayers or whatever have been keeping yoh in the dark."

The words struck like a cold fist. In all of his research, all of his findings, nowhere was he informed of this. He found comfort in the weaknesses, in ways he might be able to protect himself. Protect Uroda. But now, he was useless. A sudden, but violent, urge to learn about this Healik washed over him like wave crashes into a shore during a storm.

"How do you... harness this Healik?"

"Yoh are too pretty to be worrying about all that. That stuffs for warriors. How bout we meet with the Elder and we'll see what we can do for yoh."

"That was rude, Hej."

"Well I get rude when I am bombarded by questions. Do yoh know how tiring it is to walk that far with these tiny legs?"

Stracony flapped his wings in indignation. Whatever, he'll do whatever it takes to figure out Healink. He'll become the warrior he needs to be - become strong like Uroda. Maybe then he can stand on equal footing with her - have the right to call himself her partner.