Chronicles of Yugure: Plummeting into Uncharted Depths

Day Three

The night before was quite uneventful. I was greeted by the High Sabers' representative and welcomed in with open arms as soon as I mention the Professor's name. They offer me a den of my own that I may stay in as long as I wish to remain in the Third Realm.

A quiet mumbling could be heard throughout the camp site. I could make out few words like "odd," "large," and "green." It did not take rocket science to figure out that they were talking about me, and I know my rocket science.

I was shown a pathway of ledges that one must jump to get to the Traveler's Den. As soon as I reached the Traveler's Den the sabers returned to their own caves. The safety of this natural staircase worried me. I felt much more at ease once I reached the top. My make-shift den that I am currently sharing with the nomad is not much bigger than a not-yet-matured Tyrannosaur's gut.

Yes, we do have one of those on display in Blacktalon's laboratory. I had to study the anatomy of the larger bi-pedal beasts that were thought to be extinct. Yet, I have manage to catch glimpses of a Spinosaurus's sail many leagues away from the Tsume's camp. Every now and then I can hear it call out. The gryphon society in the First Realm knew very well that dinosaurs were not extinct. Although they may not be in all the realms of the universe, Yugure happens to have quite the population of these tall beasts.

I squeezed myself through the opening and find myself in quite a predicament, there is only one bed. Well, it's more of a nest than a bed, but it would make do. Taking out my journal, I began to write about the new species I had encountered that day as well as my new owl friend, Shimo. Shimo had mentioned all the saber species that make up the Tsume pack and I intend to write about each and every one.

The nomad did not appear that night so I tucked myself into the bed, hoping that she would not arrive late. It would be quite awkward to have her find me in her temporary nest. My eyes rested until the sun broke out, which didn't happen until close to noon. I thought it was dawn, by the looks outside my den. The sky is still dark as twilight, but has an eerie whiteness to the rims around the horizon.

I continue my writings for about another three hours. By the time I finish writing about the second species of sabers in the Tsume pack my hands have began to twitch and soreness arose. My eyes are averted from my completed work to see a lovely young saber approach the entrance of the den. Her pelt is as pure as the freshly fallen snow, quite close to as white as Shimo's feathers. Her eyes are a turquoise hue with hints of sapphire, except I can only see one of them due to her mane pushed over to the side which covers her right eye. She gleams with interest as she steps forward, inching her way towards a new and different creature. "Are you the traveler the clan speaks of?" Her voice is a bit rougher than I would have expected. Although it is not brusk or manly, it gives her an authoritative quality. I noticed a grouping of brown feathers that looked like they may belong to a falcon hiding behind her left ear.

"I am indeed," I reply softly, feeling uncomfortable in the presence of the female. "Are ye the High Female?" I ask a tad meekly. I have never had an one-on-one encounter with a saber and I am wishing that I had some experience with it. Her eyes grow a bit softer and she lets out a small laugh.

"If I were the High Female, than you would be a Berlion." Her laughter echoes through the den and back out to the entrance of the cave. "I am Lady Hawk. What is your name, stranger?" Her voice seems a bit less rough.

'Perhaps she liked the compliment?' I think, making a inquisitive face.

I stand to my feet to make an awkward curtsy. Being quite large and the cave being very small, it ends up looking unnatural and I nearly hit the ceiling with my bulk. "I am Enoki, the dryphon," I add my newly created species name, enjoying the ring to it, "And what is a Burrleon?"

My mispronunciation makes Lady Hawk give a face of disapproval, "It is pronounced Berlion and it is a large bear-like creature with the snout of a wolf, paws of a lion, tail of a coyote, and eyes of an eagle. It is mostly just a myth created by adults to scare their cubs into behaving. They would say that they will throw all disobedient cubs into the den of the Berlion to be devoured. I have traveled almost every known realm and have yet to discover one." Her paws situate themselves neatly together. A puff of air could be seen rising out of her maw to blow her mane out of her eyes. She lets out a smirk when I make a face of disbelief. If anyone would find that Berlion, it would be me. "What is that?" Hawk's eyes darted over to my open journal.

A half-finished sketch of a Dinofelis eating a rabbit is shown along with a description of the species. "Ah, 'tis m'species journal. I am to catalog every species that I come across in the Third Realm. M'mentor, Blacktalon sent me to. . ."

"Your Blacktalon's student?" She gasps at the mention of my teacher. A nervous tail flicks behind the female's white pelted body. "I heard about the disaster in the First Realm and his creation of a machine that makes portals that lead out of the First Realm. Gryphons have been gone for centuries, haven't they?" Her face is grave at the mention of that terrible day.

A little back-story of the First Realm before I continue with my entry. A very long time ago, long before my mother was even born, the portals that led to and from the First Realm collapsed. We all assumed that the League of Mist, a dragon gang that wished to take over the Second Realm, which is the dragons' realm, had done this. Since we were allies with the good clans of the Second Realm, that was all we had to go by. It was only just recently that the First Realm was re-joined with the other Realms of Yugure. During those very first years of the reunion, my mother met my father. . .

"Oh, well yes, I am. Blacktalon is m'teacher. He has taught me so much," my desperate try to change the subject before we continue down that dark, gloomy, reminiscence is not the best subject changer, but it does its job. We spend about the whole day talking about different species, ideas, and saber lore. All the while I have been writing every word down in my journal.

It turns out that Hawk has been travelling for almost her whole life. She knows just about as much as Blacktalon. These two could have quite the discussion. Thoughts of Blacktalon and the lab make me homesick as we return back to the camp after a meal at Lady Hawk's favorite spot in the realm, Salmon Falls, which was quite the spectacle with salmon jumping up the waterfall all year round. The homesickness gets even worse when Hawk tells me that I am not even a quarter of the way done with my species catalog for the Third Realm. This is only one of the many known realms, and I haven't even made a dent.

I shall now go back to the Traveler's Den. Hawk tells me she can help me with my assignment. I knew there would be many species to jot down, I just didn't expect it to be this many.