Dracopical Isles: Rise of the Underground

Chapter 2

Morning dew laces the ground like a sparkling sheet. The damp air gives the dawn a fresh aroma as the first chorus of song birds twitter merrily. Happy and green the forest is after its late night shower, soon awake once again with life. The warm morning sun reaches the tower of the Sorcerants, bleeding its light in through the windows. A touch of its golden glow upon his face wakes Emeraldus. He stirs in the nest coming back to his senses from a peaceful rest. Opening his eyes, he sees the beautiful dawn - bright and amber.
Emeraldus soon lifts his head to yawn and to give his stiff, sleeping muscles a good stretch. He turns his head, "Good morning Midna." But to his surprise, he sees her side of the nest empty. "Huh?"
Looking around, she appears to be absent completely from the tower. The desks are untouched, not a single piece is out of place or missing. No wrinkles disturb the rugs, and no doors are left ajar. The bookshelves even look unstirred. She must've headed straight for the outdoors first thing. Emeraldus looks back at their eggs. They don't look like they've been disturbed either, still set comfortably in the space between their spots.
How long has she been gone? Did she leave just this morning? Her spot appears to be cold upon Emeraldus' touch which stirs a sense of unease. 
Getting up to look outside, Midna still remains unseen. Where could she have gone so early? It seems kinda strange for a mother dragon to leave her eggs like this - especially for expectant Sorcerant mothers who don't usually hunt until after the eggs hatch. She couldn't have gone off to go get a drink from a nearby river either. It most certainly wouldn't take this long. 
Now worried about his mate, Emeraldus calls out for her with a mighty roar. Hoping she's within earshot, Emeraldus listens for any reply. He calls again when he gets no answer, repeating every minute, but it would appear that she's completely gone. Only birdsong and the startled cackle of crows can be heard in the distance. 
Emeraldus takes off into the air to look for his mate, scanning the woods below for any signs of her. His dragon senses search the rest of the surrounding area just as frantically for her aura. Eventually, he finds it - leading into a clearing dappled with the footprints of other dragons. Emeraldus comes to land. The surrounding clearing is heavily disturbed with muddy footprints and mounds of slushy earth. A fallen tree lies on its side with bits of bark flaked off below it as if something was struggling underneath. Spilled into the mud is a soggy bag of human spices to Emeraldus' left. - A human? Why would a human be in a place occupied by wild dragons?
The rain had washed away most of the remaining smells, but only faintly can Emeraldus pick up the scent of Alchemy dragons. Their wicked stench makes the big, male dragon bristle, and mingled in with it is Midna's. What did they do to her?
What makes Emeraldus' heart drop like an apple from a tree is the sighting of human hunting tools. A dagger and glove lie just inches away from the fallen tree. A seemingly uprooted stake half buried at the very end of a rope is seen too. Littered around are flakes of Midna's scales scratched off from an earlier struggle. The muddy smear of something big being dragged off into the trees trails away from the scene. Alchemies? Humans? Sniffing again, Emeraldus is puzzled to have completely lost the dragons' smell, and instead to be replaced with human. How could this be? They couldn't have used magic to mask their smell, right? A human wouldn't dare approach a band of Alchemies, unless of course, the human came with its own group - OR unless the humans were around when the Alchemies weren't. The dragons might've picked up on her scent not long after she was dragged away by the humans. A growl utters in Emeraldus' throat as feelings of despair clutch at his heart. Miserable humans - how dare they! 

Very clever was the plan of the Alchemies - it is still coming along perfectly as envisioned. Back at their nesting base within the low-risen mountain ranges, the ring's leader comes before their alpha to share the news. The alpha Alchemy, who is a big, elderly female with a crooked and scarred jawbone, laughs with wicked mirth. "Excellent work, my Alchemies," She smirks, using her tail to wrap around a crumbling chunk of stalactite. "Perhaps now we can finally watch our revenge unfold." 
Breaking it away from the cavern ceiling, the alpha proceeds to draw a circle on the ground between them. A single, light shake of the stalactite causes a small shower of rocky crumbs to fall from the fractured base. Into the center of the circle they fall before a pulse of magic lights up the sketch turning the crumbs into a pile of shining stones.
"Take your reward," The alpha growls tossing the stalactite aside with a loud clatter. 
Cigoura bows respectively before coming over to claim his prize, scooping up the stones in his wings. The stones are surprisingly light for their amount. Special magic encases them in the shiny lining on their outside. These minerals are called "dragon stones". They are a favored type by many dragons everywhere. Their magic lining is a healthy source of elemental energy for them. Chewing on a dragon stone chips away at it and the little lining shards are ingested to help their organs produce magic. The stone's tough shell also serves as a great tool to sharpen teeth and for the new, growing ones of teething hatchlings. 
Dragon stones are rather easy to come by for their magic isn't that hard to create, but in the wild, they're just a little harder to collect. 
Cigoura returns to his troops waiting in the lounging chamber, dozing from their late night mission. He turns to the side, opens a wing to the ground, and lets the dragon stones tumble out before them. The rattling noise of rocks alerts the troops and they lift their heads to see the shiny stones. 
"Pick out four," Cigoura nods in approval. "You all earned it."
After each Alchemy collected its share of the stones, Cigoura comes over to one of them in particular. 
"Slim," He says approaching.
The slinky male lifts his head from his dragon stone treat. "Yes Sir?"
"I would like to have a word with you." Cigoura says, motioning with his head to get up and follow.
Slim instantly rises to his feet. "Oh absolutely. Erm, what is this about?"
Cigoura briefly glances left to right at the other Alchemies before replying. "Just a little something specifically for you to hear."
Slim nods. "Okay man - Um, I mean Sir."
Cigoura rolls his eyes. "Whatever, and bring your stones. You'll be needing them."
That ending statement gives Slim a sudden sense of unease. Why would he be needing the stones if they're just gonna talk? Is it gonna be a long talk? 
After picking up his dragon stones, Slim follows Cigoura out of the lounging chamber. What could Cigoura have to say to him that's not for anyone else to hear? Is he gonna praise him for doing his part well from last night? Maybe scold him for all his complaining? Slim has been taken aside to be lectured for his inadequate efforts before, but not ever having to take anything with him. Also didn't Cigoura say that he deserved the stones?
The two Alchemies walk on through the chambers for awhile until they finally stop at the very entrance of their nesting base, bright dawn light adding a glimmer to their silver and gold scales. It is now that Cigoura halts to turn and face Slim.
"Now, here is what I have for you," Cigoura begins as Slim takes a seat on the ground. "First of all, congratulations on doing your part of the mission,"
Slim shrugs, feeling a tad bit of embarrassment. "Hey, it was nothing man, hehe… Just doing my job."
Cigoura's expression drops at hearing Slim forget how to properly address him again, but keeps going. "Anyway, I have been thinking that it might be time you moved on." He begins with an earnest tone. "You know, try something different for a change."
This makes Slim drop his smile and cock his head in confusion, lifting a brow. "Something different? What do you mean.. erm Sir?"
Cigoura shrugs shaking his head a tad. "Oh you know, move on from the ring and go do something with your life. Not every Alchemy is destined for mission work."
This still doesn't click in Slim's mind. What is he hinting at? This doesn't sound like it's gonna be a lecture, let alone a long conversation. "I'm sorry Sir?" Slim says, confused.
Growing a little impatient at Slim not getting the hint, Cigoura growls, "In other words, you're excused from the ring." Finally giving him a clean answer.
Almost dropping his stones on the ground, Slim's eyes widen and his mouth drops slightly in shock. "...Wait, you mean to say that you're getting rid of me?"
Even though he probably should've seen it coming, it kinda comes as a shock to hear this after a successful mission just last night. Is this why Cigoura wanted him to bring the stones - because he's kicking him out? Why doesn't he let the others know? They should be informed of this change, right?
Cigoura circles behind Slim to rest his tail on his shoulder. "Why don't you look at it this way? Escape from humility, find a mate, find something more suitable for your.. different brain."
"Bu-But Sir," Slim stammers, turning his head to look over his shoulder at the elder with his wide eyes. "This is my home. Can I not get a different job?"
Cigoura furrows his brow. "Your 'different job' is somewhere else. You do not fit in a ring, and that's that."
Slim turns his discomforted glance to look outside. Out there on his own? But where would he find another home? Alchemy dragon nests are hard to find, but even if he did find one, the chances are low on him being accepted into their clan. The many Sorcerants that live in the area would love to harass him as well - especially that big, green mate of Midna's, if he ever found out what happened to her.
Cigoura's shove from behind catches Slim's attention and he stumbles forward a little.
"Come on, get going," Cigoura growls. "I'm not gonna be patient with you, now scat!"
Slim lowers his head as he reluctantly heads for the outside. He turns a glance back at Cigoura who has a fixed scowl.
"You're sure this is best..?" Slim utters one last question sullenly.
Cigoura curls his lip impatiently. "You're not gonna make this easy, are you?" He then lunges at Slim with a hostile snarl, snapping at him from behind with sharp teeth. Startled, Slim takes off running with a yelp, almost stumbling down the rocky pathway that leads up to the Alchemy nest. Cigoura gives one last roar after him as the slinky male disappears into the woods.

Following the scent of Midna's dragged body through the forest, Emeraldus desperately tries to find his mate. Is she still alive? - he certainly hopes so. 
The trail eventually leads to a human village. Grassy terrain gives way to concrete as the forest ends. Emeraldus lifts his head to the sound of nearby voices. Peeking through the narrow space between two buildings, Emeraldus can see them - humans. A horse-drawn carriage or two passes by, pedestrians stroll casually for their destinations, and salespeople call for attention to their products - bread, eggs, fruit, and other breakfast delectables, as well as jewelry and cloth. A dragon hunter would take his prize to be sold to a butcher for meat and products such as horns, scales, and magic extraction. The thought puts a growl in Emeraldus' throat as he continues to follow his nose along Midna's trail. The many buildings set side by side along the streets hide Emeraldus from the view of the humans as he sneaks on by. It doesn't go very far in human territory until the trail turns into the back alley of one building in particular. There's a unique scent to this place, and noisy, wooden cages stacked on top of each other reveal a collection of poultry - a dozen chickens clucking absent-mindedly in their claustrophobic containers. Two goats tied to a wooden stake munch on a pile of hay left out by their post, and a box of farm-raised rabbits crouch motionless in their cooped space. The air smells of spices and cooking meat, as well as the stench of live animals. Emeraldus approaches the alley with caution, listening for any signs of a nearby human, but still highly concerned with finding Midna. He ignores the startled reactions of the animals noticing the big predator crawl on by. At the very end of this little farm collection is a spot reserved for the dragon catch. Fresh Cacovern carcasses (a much smaller variant of dragon notorious for its lack of intelligence compared to most other breeds) hang upside down by their ankles tied in a rope noose, and a wooden crate of dragon eggs lie neatly in straw bedding, but what catches Emeraldus' eye is a bigger catch all wrapped up in a hunter's net. Familiar sapphire scales bring Emeraldus' heart to a sudden stop. He scurries over to get a closer look and sees what he had been dreading - lying motionless, smeared with a mixture of mud and blood, is Midna. 
Panic seizing his chest, Emeraldus desperately tries to shake her awake. "Midna!" He cries. "Midna I found you! Wake!"
Her limp body doesn't move an inch, neither does her flank rise with breath. Her pretty scales feel cold, drained of body heat and of any remaining life. What completes the disaster, is the sight of a human spear plunged into her belly. 
Emeraldus' heart is overtaken with grief and he lets out a mournful roar to the heavens - Midna... is dead.