Requiem of the Fallen: Dragon Child

Bestial

Reminders:

This is the Draigana language.

~

Lycans. The worst sort of creature to encounter on a dark snowy night.

They came in packs of seven, all as big as a horse and with fangs the length of my foreclaw. Growling hungrily as they stalked toward our group, the Fey soldiers gathered into formation, pointing their spears at the large wolf-like beasts.

Lycans were one of the best-known creatures in the land, considering the fact that they were born as a race from one cursed human. They had the appearance of a white-furred, short-snouted wolf with carefully pricked ears and strong hind legs, ending with a short tail for balance. The Lycans were also the wildest race, known to be especially volatile.

I growled a low warning in my throat, then sent Leon and Megaera a look to make them Shift while the other two confronted each other. We may not have had the advantage of numbers, but there were benefits to flying.

And I wanted the young one away from either of them; not only were the Fey and Lycans unscrupulous in their methods, but the Fey were fanatical about having an edge over every race. If they managed to capture even one of us, there was no saying what could happen. The reason Lycans were easier to deal with was simply because they killed to eat; youngsters were favored because they were easier to take down.

The biggest of them was only faintly outlined against the snow and the blizzard that conveniently cropped up while we remained at impasse. I had to assume that this was their leader, and hope that it would not be old enough and smart enough to have friends waiting for stragglers or escapees. Raising my silvery-white wings slowly for a downstroke that would send me into the air in an instant, I eyed Leon and Megaera to see that they were doing the same.

"Take her quickly," I rumbled as the pack readied to spring, "I'll distract them." The red dragon nodded as he eyed the solid black spikes on the joints of my wings, matching my horns and claws; a sign of maturity. They were even tougher and stronger than my teeth, the better to pierce the scales of enemy Draigana, or the occasional Lycan too big for his fangs.

They lifted off at the same moment the Fey remembered us, and I jabbed my joint spikes close to the ear of a guard, obviously green at his job because he flinched. Before he could recover, I had already launched into the air.

For a moment, all my mind was filled with was the sensation of freedom and belonging in my element. Then I flapped my wings to catch up to the siblings, maneuvering myself in front of the group. Leon growled, his instinct making him want to lord it over me because of his size. I was not taking a chance with his blunders again tonight; I brandished my tail threateningly, and did not let my gaze falter from what was ahead of me until I sensed him pay attention to his sister. This time, I selected a safe resting place, a deep drift of snow that could be formed into shelter.

We landed, and I irritatedly smacked them aside and began to dig a hole into the snow, packing it all down into a cave. Once I could fit, I made the other two Shift back and cuddle with me as they did before this disaster happened. The flight tired me, and I settled into my sleeping position.

Listening for anything other than the howl of wind and the crunch of snow under my claws, I soon settled into an uneasy sleep.

*****

The next morning was bright and crisp; cold, if Megaera's shivering was anything to go by. Leon was very silent and stoic as the two readied for another long flight. Hopefully he was thinking hard about what exactly got us here.

All throughout that day, I constantly scanned the ground below for any indication of hostile territory; not even the Fey could resist marking the borders of their cities with excessive greenery. My nose was also alert to any Lycans in the area, for they were known to track and wear down any food that couldn't get far enough away. Hunting was a touch-and-go issue: I knew that the young hatchling would need food much more often than we did, but there was too much danger just after the confrontations. When Megaera started to snap at her brother if he got too near in his musings, I consented to a small respite.

There was a river bend that my brother and I used to rest at whenever we chanced to come this far north in our nearly life-long travels. It was wide and shallow, attracting lots of game and any local wildlife. Swinging my tail to the right, I and the others veered towards it. There was much relief between the two siblings when we landed.

But I knew we couldn't stay long; I had finally remembered the humans who captured Megaera a few weeks ago. Like all the inhabitants here, the humans were a tough and resilient bunch, unwilling to give up even in the best of times. They probably sent out trackers as soon as they could get them. I sighed tiredly; yet another problem I was forced to deal with if I had to keep those two safe.

We did not linger past lunch. As soon as we all had our fill of food and water, I bade them fly with the fastest wind under our wings. This time, we drifted slightly towards the east, towards the southernmost Draigana settlement of Helmund. It was the one least covered in ice, and still had a few houses to shelter us.

That night, we remained in our dragon forms as we readied for sleep. Megaera's scales were tougher and smoother now to my touch, so they should keep her reasonably warm for the night. Nevertheless, I curled my tail around her and myself, so she would share in some of my warmth.

I did not notice the way Leon's eyes changed when he saw me do this, nor the way that he looked at the two of us sleeping peacefully before allowing himself to succumb to slumber.