The Tribes of K'haren - Completed

Chapter 5.1

Nume got up early in the morning when Kran was still asleep. The gseirut was standing next to him, grazing. Since Nume didn't want to wake her friend up, she decided to go for a walk. After all, their gseirut couldn't fly for very long anyway so there was no use in leaving early.

She entered the forest and waited for a moment so her eyes could get used to the darkness inside. Here, the forest was much denser than it had been around their camp. Well, their tribe's camp, Nume thought. She started walking slowly, making sure to walk straight ahead so she wouldn't get lost. The sun was rising behind her back as she walked on and on.

After a while, Nume got to a lighter part of the forest. She climbed over the stem of a fallen tree and tried to remember what the place looked like so she'd have something recognizable on her way back. But when she turned to look at the path she'd just been walking on, it was gone. Nume immediately recognized the pond she'd seen two days ago.

'Hello again.' the voice said.

'How...?' Nume asked.

'Guess.' the voice ordered. Meanwhile the woman appeared, she just dived out of the water in the pond and hovered above it for a moment before she once more moved towards Nume. This time, she set food on the ground and came closer, leaving a wet trace on it.

'Magic?' Nume guessed. The woman smiled.

'You've been looking for me.' she concluded.

'No.'

'Yes, you have.' the woman insisted. 'So, what else do you need to know? I've told you everything already.'

'How can you have told me everything if I don't even know your name?'

'Good question.'

'So?'

'So what?'

'Won't you tell me?' Nume asked.

'Tell you what?'

'Your name!' she grew impatient.

'Oh, of course I will.'

Nume waited. 'And what is it?' she asked after a moment of silence.

'It's just an ordinary name.'

'Yes, but, what is your name?' Nume insisted angrily.

'Oh, my name is Sethara.' the woman said amusedly. She stood in front of Nume and had to look up to her for the phraio was a whole bit taller than her.

'Hello, my name is Nume'

'I know.'

'How...'

'I can read your mind, remember?'

'So my name is spelled all over my mind?' Nume asked.

'No. But you wanted to tell me so you thought about it so it was there.'

'So you basically know exactly what I'm just about to say?'

'Yes.'

'Then why do I even talk to you?'

'I don't know, maybe because you might not be able to keep up otherwise?' Sethara said. Nume wasn't quite sure whether that was meant in an insulting way or not. 'So, is my name the reason why you've come looking for me?'

'I haven't...' Nume started. 'Well, forget it. What are you?'

'I'm me. I'm the last of my kind. All others have died. I've told you about that race in K'haren that hurts so many others, remember? They have killed most of my friends. I try very hard not to seek vengeance but... However, now I've got you to help me, you are their last chance.'

'Do you mean the dragons?' Nume asked.

'I mean the only race in K'haren that knows what cruelty is and yet won't turn from it.'

Nume sighed. Everything Sethara said just made her more confused than she'd been before asking. 'If you want me to help you, why won't you tell me properly and why can't I tell my friend about you?'

'Because there are things in the world that you don't understand.'

'That's not helping.'

'Nor is your comment.'

'Fair point.'

'I know it's not easy for you to see but if I told you, you would fight the truth so you must find it by yourself. That's also why you mustn't tell Kran.'

'How do you know his... oh, right, my mind...' Nume said.

'He's all over it. And you're worried he might have got up and come looking for you. Maybe you should return to him now.'

'But' she started, but Sethara had already disappeared again and the pond had gone with her. Nume sat down on the tree stem for a moment. Once she was sure of where she'd come from, she started her way back.

When Nume returned to their little camp, she couldn't resist letting her hand glide through the gseirut's fluffy fur.

'Morning!' Kran said with a smile. He seemed to be relieved to see her.

'Morning...' Nume muttered. Somehow the meeting with Sethara still lay heavily upon her shoulders and although she always liked seeing Kran she didn't feel like returning the smile.

'Is something wrong?' he asked jauntily.

'No...' she replied. He understood. If she didn't want to talk, he wouldn't force her to and Nume was very grateful for that.

'So, shall we leave then?' Kran suggested. Nume agreed, thinking that the flight might lighten her mind. She couldn't have known that this was exactly what Kran was aiming at.

There was no reason for them to stay any longer, they could just as well have their breakfast on the gseirut's back. She quickly packed her things and grabbed the improvised flag she used to lead the gseirut. Then they both climbed onto the creature once more and this time, it left on its own. Nume was glad that she didn't have to make it panic first and she gently stroked its neck.

They had had enough time the day before to discuss where they would go next so after turning a few clumsy circles and regaining some sense of orientation, Nume led the gseirut straight north. Meanwhile, Kranprepared their breakfast before reaching over to hand Nume a piece of fruit. She gratefully accepted it. They had decided to go north east but since they had flown straight to the east previously, they now headed straight north to compensate for that.

It wasn't safe where they were going, they hoped to pass the foothills of the Dragon Mountains to then sneak up north to places where no phraio had ever gone to. There, they were sure, nobody would come looking for them. They had also considered going south but the south was too hot for their young gseirut and the west was blocked, too, because that was where they came from. They didn't want to risk meeting another, or even their own, tribe. Straight east didn't work either because the Endless Sea's border was too close. There they couldn't land to rest and would thus be doomed to die.

All the stories of dragons and their one and only actual encounter had scared both Nume and Kran as children but now they were confident that no dragon would attack a lonely gseirut. After all, dragons lived in packs, they couldn't all have fed from just one young gseirut and the two phraio wouldn't be more than a mouthful anyway. Of course they were still scared, but they just really needed something to believe in.

// There you go, hope you liked it! Don't forget to vote and leave a comment, thanks!