Eli

Chapter 1: The Journey Begins

The sky had never felt so big to Eli before. He watched his parents fly out to their hunting grounds countless times, but never experienced the thrill of flight himself.

Until today.

The Night Fury would be reaching adulthood in three days. And with his wings fully developed, Eli became overly eager to finally use them. This morning was the very first day Eli was able to begin flying on his own. Before, he had to count on his father for support. But Eli was big enough to fly solo. Banking to the right, Eli swerved as he dodged a naturally made rock pillar. He swerved his body between several more pillars like a snake, smiling to himself. Eli began to beat his massive wings in a excellerated pace, careening his body upwards. The young Night Fury let his tongue dangle freely out of his mouth as he blasted through the clouds, whooping in joy as he climbed higher and higher. Soon, Eli found himself soaring over the clouds like the seagulls he saw flying near his cave. Above the white, puffy bundles of air was a endless expanse of dark blue. The wind blew hard in Eli's face, but he paid no attention. The feeling of being in the air was so.... exhilarating. For the first time in his life, Eli felt truly free. He thought nothing could touch him up here. There were no worries that could reach him. Eli was just perfectly free. The dragon wished he could stay up here forever. He wanted to be a part of the sky. But, all things that go up must go down. With a laugh, Eli flapped his wings with immense power, propelling himself towards the horizon. The Night Fury dived downwards, picking up speed with every second. Soon, Eli was already surpassing mach thirteen speeds during the tremendous downfall. Eli could feel the inertia tugging on him as he maneuvered himself skywards once more. Right before he hit the grassy ground below him, Eli pulled up at the last second. He found himself soaring graciously over the ocean. Large waves rippled from both sides of Eli's body as the Night Fury flew over the massive expanse of water. A pack of Scauldrons began leaping out of the water beside the Night Fury, travelling alongside him. Eli spotted at a young Scauldron and waved at the youngster before speeding ahead of the Scauldron pack. Lifting himself higher in the air once more, Eli began to twirl his body in a elegant fashion, flinging droplets from the tips of his wings in a majestic loop. Eli steadied himself, slowing his flapping. Smelling the sweet, salty air he grew to love, Eli headed back to the den. But not before grabbing some lunch.

***

Landing in front of the mouth of the cave, Eli carried a large grouper in his jaws. Niha was peacefully sleeping in the far corner of the den, initially unaware of her son's presence. Very soon, she smelled the fish and opened her weary eyes, slowly lifting her head up. In addition to her old age, she had been stricken with a terrible sickness that constantly drained her strength.

"You're back already, Eli? I'd assume you'd be out there flying for days on end." Niha said in a weak chuckle, which became a series of raucous coughs. Eli nudged the grouper towards her, a sad smile on his face.

"You can have it, mom. I'm not hungry." Eli said. Niha nuzzled Eli's snout before swallowing the grouper whole. Niha's sickness had grown considerably worse since the last two months, and now she could barely move. Eli laid down next to his mother, resting his head on hers.

"Eli, I... I don't have much time left. You can't stay in the den forever." Niha spoke.

"I'm not leaving you here alone, mom. I promised dad I would take care of you when he..." Eli began.

"I know, Eli... But I'm afraid that you will no longer be safe here. Dragon hunters have been invading these islands for a long time now." Niha said. "There is a island far from here. You will be safe there. No dragon hunter can harm you."

"Mom, please. There is no such thing." Eli protested.

"Eli, that island is real. It is a safe haven for dragons like us. You have to go there, that's where you'll be safe." Niha replied. Her coughing was getting worse by the second. Eli looked out at the horizon, watching the sun slowly fade away in the approaching darkness. Night was approaching. Dragon hunters always hunt for dragons at night.

"Mom, I can't leave you yet. I'm going to stay and take care of you. I promise." Eli stated. Niha placed a forepaw on Eli's cheek, soothly caressing it.

"I know you would. I just don't want you to wake up one morning and.... end up being alone." Niha replied with a mix of love and sadness in her voice.

***

Many more months passed, and it seemed Niha wasn't getting any better. No matter how hard Eli tried, he couldn't seem to make the sickness go away. It was a bright, sunny morning, Eli was out soaring above the heavens as usual. But something felt off from the moment he woke up. Eli couldn't place a claw on it. The Night Fury brushed off the feeling and scooped up a fish in his jaws.

Maybe a bit of breakfast would help.

Eli entered the den, seeing Niha motionlessly lying on the ground. That off feeling returned but Eli once again shoved it aside. Eli figured his mother was taking another nap and placed the fish next to her limp body. Eli nudged Niha a couple of times with his snout.

"Mom, I brought breakfast. Come on, you need to eat." Eli said. Niha, to the Night Fury's concern, was not moving. Eli began to nudge her a bit harder.

"Mom? Mom, are you okay? Mom..?" Eli kept calling, but there was no answer. Panic began to settle in. Eli placed his forepaws on Niha's side and shook her body fervently.

"Mom!? MOM? MOM, WAKE UP! MOM!!" Eli began to exclaim. Nothing had worked. The tragic and brutal realization dawned on Eli like a train ramming into a wagon. Eli's wings drooped to the ground, his ear-like flaps dropping as well.

"M-Mom... N-N-No... Please... Please don't do this now..." Eli murmured, choking up sobs. Eli felt the sting of tears welling in the corners of his bright yellow eyes. For a few moments, Eli stood there, completely and utterly helpless. The young Night Fury slumped over his mother's lifeless body, sobbing up a storm. After a while, Eli finally found the strength to remove himself from Niha's body. The Night Fury looked out into the horizon again, remembering what Nia had told him. Was he really going to try and find this strange island Niha told stories about? Eli was unsure about the island's existance, but he didn't pushed aside his previous thoughts about the mystical place. He was going to find that island whether it was real or not. He was going to do it for his parents. Taking one last look at his deceased mother, Eli tearfully spreaded his wings and took off into the air, heading north.