Disclaimer: I don't own Golden Sun, Dragonlance, Eragon, Eldest, Raven Quest, DRoP (Dragon Riders of Pern) or anything besides this computer, and Sheba's- Insert inappropriate word here -attitude.
Guide:
"Human speech"
- Dragon mind speech (Telepathically) -
'Human thought'
Human mind speech
- - Draconic Talk (Out loud) - -
Merchants, Dragonets, and Double-Crossing Snakes in the Grass
- - -
The blizzard of two days ago had brought blankets of snow upon the small village. Usually, winter consisted of light snow, and gentle winds due to the valleys surrounding Vale, so the blizzard was quite a surprise for the village's inhabitants. Thankfully, the harvests have been reaped over a week ago, so the freak storm did not bring any loss. In fact, it brought more than its share of laughter, as children rolled around and played in the snow, creating snowmen and other snow-things.
Isaac examined the prints in the snow with a hunter's eye. Definitely deer tracks, and fresh too, judging by the depth and the softness of the snow. He straightened up; brushing snow off his brown jacket made out of cow leather, and wound his scarf around his neck just a little tighter. The icy cold air gave the hunt an exciting feeling. He followed the hoof-prints, keeping a sharp eye out for any animal that may be out in the cold at this time of the day.
Isaac was fourteen years of age, two years from manhood, and just at the right age to be put into the hunting team. This was his first hunt, and he was taking this very seriously, determined to prove to his elders that he was worthy of manhood, as well as to bring back game for the feast tonight. It was the year-over festival, celebrating their successful harvest, and Isaac most certainly did not want to miss it.
He walked forward, carefully stepping so that he would make the minimal amount of sound, one foot in front of the other. Brushing bond hair from his eyes, he nocked an arrow onto his bow, and kept it there, walking cautiously. He turned at a sound just to the left of him, and stopped, freezing. The only sound he could hear was his own heart beating. Loosening the tension on his bow, he continued on, keeping an eye on the prints as well as an eye out for any other signs of life.
Suddenly, something jumped out of a nearby bush. Isaac instinctively whirled, and let loose his arrow. In his haste, he missed by an inch, drove into the snow, and the frightened rabbit bounded off out of sight. The hunter stood there for a few moments, hearing his own harsh breathing and his wildly beating heart, and relaxed, sighing. He found a half-rotted stump to sit down upon, berating himself for the loss of the rabbit. Any game would have been good.
After following the deer prints for another hour, Isaac looked up to the sky, wiping his brow with a gloved hand. The sun was directly overhead, casting a bright glow upon the snow, which reflected off the light, making the forest much brighter than it really should be. Tracking a deer was hard work, he mused. Isaac had not seen any other wildlife other than the rabbit, and he knew that he should be heading back now, as he was too far into the forest, and it would definitely take too long for him to return if he continued on, and missing the festival was out of the question. Sighing dejectedly, he turned and started on his way back, when he heard the crackling of a stick. Whirling around, he nocked an arrow onto his bow instinctively, and held it ready.
With a practiced eye, he scanned his surrounding, his eyes widening at his unbelievable luck. There was a deer, just beyond a tall bush to his left. The light colored coat of the deer rippled as it moved, reaching down with its neck and pawing at the snow to get at the grass beneath the snow. Obviously, it had not seen him yet. Isaac figured that it had to be a male deer, judging from its small horns, placed delicately upon its head. He quickly crouched down, so that the deer would have no chance of seeing him, and shuffled to a position where he could get a clear aim at the deer. All his work had taken him to his moment, and he was not about to botch it.
Slowly, he pulled his arrow back, and let it fly. The arrow whistled from the bush where he was hiding, and straight into the deer's neck. The animal jumped up in surprise and pain, but quickly found itself dead, red blood spilling from its wound on its neck, staining the surrounding snow pink.
Unbelieving his good luck, Isaac was stunned for a few moments as he let the event sink it. He had bagged his first game, and a deer no less. It was not as plump as the fall deer, but it was still deer. He jumped up from his position in the bush, and ran forward, kneeling down next to the animal. His azure eyes were alight with excitement. Wait until Garet and the others see this!
Suddenly, he was struck with a dilemma. How was he to carry this deer all the way back to Vale?
- - -
The festival was in full swing by afternoon. Isaac was enjoying himself immensely. Not only he had gotten many praises when he had gotten back with the deer, but the mayor had also paid him fifty gold coins for his trouble. It was hard to get deer nowadays as the days become colder and shorter. He fingered his money pouch with a happy grin, hearing the coins jingle within. Money was also hard to come by, his family was relatively poor, and he already had plans to spend it. Festivals did not come by often.
The deer had been the largest game that the whole hunting crew had brought back. Several other men had brought back deer as well, but none as large as his. He had run back down the trail, and found another hunter, who helped him carry down his prize. Isaac remembered the look on the person's face when he had proudly proclaimed that he had bagged a deer. He had enjoyed the surprised look immensely, and even more so the praises. The rich aroma of venison and walnuts wafted to where he stood, and he sniffed appreciatively, before heading over to get his share of the meal.
Suddenly, someone careened into him, and he gave a startled gasp, as a hand rustled his hair roughly. "Garet! Stop that, will ya?"
"What a way to greet your friend, Isaac," Came the response. The redheaded boy stopped messing up Isaac's hair, and tossed an arm over Isaac's shoulder in a friendly gesture. At fourteen years of age, the same age as Isaac's, it was surprising that Garet was a lot taller than Isaac, towering over the shorter blond boy. Garet had always been big, both length-wise and width-wise and had been the recipient of many pranks and the butt end of many jokes. But the good-humored boy always took things lightly, joking along with people. Being Garet's friend, however, Isaac knew that Garet was a lot more mature than he looked like. It's just that he never bothered showing that side of him.
"You're no better yourself," Isaac snorted. But he felt inclined to slap his friend on the back, his glove making a loud noise when it came in contact with the other boy's jacket. Garet winced playfully, pushing Isaac away.
"Hey, just an old greeting," He protested, holding up his hands. "By the way, I heard that you bagged yourself a deer. Are the rumors true?"
"Rumor nothing," Isaac snorted again, "I bagged the biggest deer you'll ever see in your entire life." He boasted, "So big, that it took two of us to carry it back."
"Humph, well I bagged something too," Garet crossed his arms, puffing his chest out proudly.
"What?"
"A snowshoe hare," He announced loudly, poking at himself in the chest with his thumb. The taller boy was grinning from ear-to-ear, as he strutted along with Isaac to the festival. "Stuck my arrow in it before it could escape."
"It couldn't have run away anyways," Came a girl's voice, "It was already dead, frozen solid."
"Awww, Jenna," Garet pouted playfully, "you're ruining all our fun. Isaac did not need to know that."
"Riight…" The red-haired girl appeared seemingly out of nowhere, dressed in her best winter robe. She looked flustered and was slightly red in the face, probably due to the glow of the bonfire at the center of the ring where the festival was taking place. Jenna was thirteen, a year younger than both of the boys, but equally as feisty and scarier than she should be. She was the third member of their little group. There used to be four of them, Felix, Jenna's brother, but he had been taken away when they were young, taken away by King Alex when he did a search for suitable candidates for the dragons at his citadel. They had never seen him again, and though they missed him, they got along without him just as well. The there friends gathered together and got in line for food as Jenna spoke again.
"He just stuck an arrow in it to make it look as though he bagged it, and then told everyone that he got lost in the woods, not that it wasn't so farfetched. Garet would get lost in the woods any day, rabbit or not" She stuck her tongue out at Garet, who waved his fist back at her. Isaac found himself caught between a war of insults as his two friends waved their fists at each other over his head. Laughing, he grabbed his share of food when the time came, and quickly got out of line so that his friends would get a share as well.
"Did not! I bagged it fair and square!" Garet called out.
"Who are you trying to convince, me or yourself?" Jenna shot back.
That began a whole new war, full of words and insults and several inappropriate words and gestures. Isaac found himself staring helplessly as his two friends did a mock battle with sticks, before calling out to them.
"I'm going to eat my food at the inn, kay?" He called out to Garet and Jenna, "There's a dance starting. Why don't you two lovebirds get yourselves busy? You're arguing like a married couple!"
He then turned and ran as angry shouts came from where Jenna and Garet were, both blushing like beets. He chuckled, tightening his grip on his food, and ran towards the general direction of the inn.
The inn was the largest house in the whole village. The roof was sloped and steep, so snow would not gather on top of it and cave in the building. Fancy decorations festooned the building, the candles inside giving off a soft glow through the windows. It was a warm and cozy place where visitors stayed, though there are not many nowadays, ever since the Empire, as they called themselves, took over Weyard.
His food was getting cold. Isaac hastened his steps, so that his strides were long and hasty. Just as he got to the door, he heard commotion behind him, and whirled around, surprised. Lights shone from the festival plaza, but that was normal. What wasn't normal were the strange shapes beyond the village gave. In the dying light of day, Isaac could make out lots of people milling around the gates, and surprisingly, the gates opening. His eyes widened. Visitors? Quickly, he started back to the plaza, wolfing down his dinner as he walked. So much for eating in a quiet place. But there were never visitors anymore. He could see people gathering in swarms around the gate, and felt curiosity mounting within him. What were those dark shapes?
As he got closer, Isaac hastened his steps, and as soon as the last of the venison was shoved into his mouth, he ran forward, eyes alight with excitement.
'Caravans!' It was a caravan of traders and their wares!
Caravans never came anymore, ever since the king banned traveling. Only recently, did the ban lift, only because economy was suffering because of the ban. Usually, caravans would skip Vale, being a small and secluded village hidden by mountains and forests with hardly a definitely route to get here. Isaac had seen a caravan before around four years ago, the year when the ban was placed. Now that there was another caravan, perhaps they would tell them of what has been happening in the world out there. It had been many years since real news came in through their gates. And perhaps there would be plays! Isaac was already planning how to spend his evening as he followed the crowd of people as they moved along with the caravan.
- - -
It was nightfall when Isaac returned from the festival. The year-over festival was more successful than before, thanks to the sudden arrival of the Caravans. Apparently, he was told that the Caravans had come because the sudden blizzard two days ago had driven them off-course. After an hour of standing in the snow, watching the troubadours and their comical plays, the hot sticks of sausages were a treat. Swallowing the last of his sausages, he purchased three sticks of maple sugar candy from a merchant's stall, and eagerly bit into one, savoring the sweetness. Dances had been going on all the time through, and he could see the couples dancing round and around the bonfires. Strangely enough, he hadn't seen Jenna or Garet at all since their parting at dinnertime.
After musing over that fact for a few moments, the blond-haired boy shrugged and continued along his way. They were probably busy enjoying themselves at the festival or dance. He reached into his money pouch, and dumped out his remaining coins onto a gloved hand, counting them as they rolled out. Still twenty-three coins left. Pocketing the money, he decided that he would spend a few more of the coins at the inn, before going home. He was getting a little thirsty, after all.
He headed down towards the inn. Pushing open the heavy door, he stepped in, snow flaking off of his scarf, jacket, and his brand new boots, bought from a trader's caravan. Inside, traders who had finished their wares were around a large table, laughing and drinking and eating, conversing about the trades so far. He felt himself grin as he walked forward, taking off his cap, and dusting the snow off of it, before placing it on the over-burdening cap rack. The air was full of the greasy smoke of candles, and it made his eyes burn a little, though he did not particularly mind. The atmosphere was wonderfully open and happy, though a bit stuffy.
Weaving through the crowd of people, he set himself down at the bar, and ordered a glass of water, as alcohol was out of the question. Marne, his mother, forbade him to consume alcohol. Thanking the bartender, he tossed over a gold coin, and drank from his cup. Sated, he glanced around the inn.
The inn was an old inn, dating all the back to the invasion of Weyard about ninety years ago. It was built in the memory of Raith, the original founder of Vale, and had been in working order, even through the Great War fifteen years ago, and the Empire take-over, around seven years ago. Paint peeled off the walls in some places, and cobwebs decorate many of the corners in the old inn. The bar was the only new addition since the Empire take-over, and it stood shiny and unblemished, looking very out-of-place in this inn of memories.
He turned his attention to the traders. The traders were a hearty bunch, laughing around the round table. It was pretty obvious that the traders had a caravan leader: the man sitting at the place of honor, with his regal robes and his many coin pouches. He recalled someone telling him that the man's name was Hammet, a renowned merchant from Kalay.
"Three more bottles of wine, if you may," Isaac was broken from his reverie by a small and soft voice. He turned, looking to his right where a young boy stood, placing a few coins on the counter. He boy bowed to the bar tender when he brought the wine, and reached for it, though he couldn't reach very far. His head barely reached the seats. Isaac quickly leaned forward and grabbed the bottles of wine, handing them over to the short boy. He noted that the boy seemed rather surprised that he had helped him, and then quickly bowed, taking the wine bottles, and scurrying towards the Merchant table, handing the wine to Hammet. The older man patted the younger boy on the head, and tossed him a coin, before speaking to him. Isaac could not make out of what they were speaking off, and quickly lost interest, turning back to his water, and taking another gulp.
"Thank you, sir, for helping me out," Isaac looked down, surprised. The boy was back, looking up shyly at him. His larger green eyes were slightly unnerving, as even though the boy seemed shy, he remained full eye contact with Isaac.
"It's nothing," He replied, reaching a hand down, gesturing for the boy to climb onto the seat next to him. The boy seemed a little hesitant, but did what he was told, his green eyes never leaving Isaac's eyes. "You are not from around here are you? I haven't seen you around here in Vale."
"No, I'm not." The boy confirmed. They sat in silence for a little bit, until Isaac spoke again, realizing that the strange little blond-haired boy would not say any more.
"I'm Isaac," He offered as kindly as he could, smiling slightly. He figured that the boy wasn't speaking because he was shy. "What's your name?"
"I-" The boy gulped, before continuing, "Iv… I…Ireme. Ireme is my name."
Ignoring the stutter, figuring that it was just a slip of the tongue because of his nervousness, Isaac tried to keep the conversation going. "Ireme is an uncommon name. Are you with the merchants?"
"Yes, I am," Ireme confirmed, nodding his head.
"Would you like a drink?" Isaac offered, seeing as the boy looked still a little uncomfortable. When the boy denied the offer with a polite smile and a shake of his head, he continued. "So are you the son of a merchant?"
"No, not at all," Ireme shook his head, placing his hands in his lap, his back straight. Isaac realized how stiff he looked. "I am Caravan Leader Hammet's servant."
'A servant!' That explained a lot to Isaac. The mannerism, the politeness, the eye contact as well as the slight shyness. He continued the conversation the best he could. Taking another gulp of his drink, he spoke again.
"So where are you from?"
At this, the younger boy paled immediately. He opened his mouth, and then closed it again, causing Isaac to wonder about the boy, watching him with a suspicious gaze. When the boy did not speak for a few more moments, Isaac decided that this must be a delicate subject, and quickly tried to switch topics.
"So how long have you known Hammet?"
"Since last year," Ireme answered immediately, relief etched over his face. It was obvious that he was grateful in this change in topic. The younger boy finally broke eye contact with Isaac, looking down at the bar table, fingering its smooth surface with his finger.
It became apparent that Ireme did not want to speak any more. Isaac decided to let the silence take over. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, nor was it a comfortable stillness. It was just a silence: a silence that just was there. Ireme did not seem disturbed either, fingering the bar table, as well as occasionally casting a glance towards the merchants' table, in case he was called. Suddenly, he jumped off from his seat, giving Isaac an apologetic bow, and sprinted off in the direction of Hammet.
Isaac was not surprised by the younger boy's actions. He was a servant after all. Isaac had never actually met a servant before, and he figured that they must all be somewhat like Ireme, though it disturbed his slightly that the boy was so young. Judging by his looks, Ireme should only be about twelve years old, and looked even younger with his short build and his baby-like face. Were all servants so young? Was it right to have such young children working like that? As he pondered over that, there was a loud thump, followed by lots of footsteps.
Isaac looked up, startled, as the merchants began to file out of the room noisily, getting their coats and hats back on. Ireme was there too, helping Hammet into his elaborate coat. Were the merchants leaving already? Looking out the window, Isaac could see the moon casting a baleful light upon the plaza, where the bonfire still blazed brightly. They couldn't be leaving.
Just then, a sudden movement caught his eye, and he looked on as Ireme waved to him, gesturing for him to follow, before filing out the door with Hammet in front of him. The inn was suddenly quiet as the merchants left, leaving Isaac the sole inhabitant as well as the bar tender and a maid scrubbing the table. Curious, he jumped off his seat as well, taking his hat from the hat rack, and dashed out the door after the merchants.
In the darkness, he could make out the line of people marching towards the bonfires far at the plaza. As he walked on, snow crunching beneath his boots, he could hear lots of loud laughter and talking. As they neared the plaza, he saw Hammet gesturing towards Ireme, and the younger boy nodded, before racing off at an almost inhuman speed towards where the caravans were parked. Isaac rubbed his own eyes, seeing the little blond blur racing towards the caravans. Deciding that his drink must have contained traces of alcohol, he ventured onwards towards the square.
The merchants were already there, the troubadours lined up with them. People were gathered around them, eager for more entertainment. Isaac wormed his way through the crowd, pushing past people and apologizing, until he got to the front. At the other side of the circle, he could see Jenna and Garet waving at him, and he waved back with a happy grin, just as Hammet cleared his voice. The crowd ceased their chatters, and paid full attention to Hammet.
"Ladies and Gentlemen," He began in a loud voice, "It has been a wonderful night, full of festivities and joy. Alas, it cannot last. Tomorrow, we will have to take our leave at the rise of dawn," This was met with many groans, but Hammet shushed them with a wave of his hand. "But before our leave, I would like to confer with you about something a little more solemn, unfitting to this occasional, but nevertheless, the subject must be brought to light."
There were a few murmurs of nervousness from the audience, but otherwise, they listened.
"It has come to our attention, that the Empire has exerted its rule for too long. Its merciless tax collectors have been most uncooperative during the harsh years and its insensitive ruling will bring about the demise to our world."
The next lines brought many cries from the audience, none of them objecting the claim, of course. Isaac added his fist to the air, calling out his discontent with the Empire. It was a unanimous thing here in Vale, that the Empire is much hated. So hated, in fact that the men threatened to take arms every time the tax collectors came about. Recently, the tax collecting had stopped, perhaps because Vale was so secluded and perhaps because Vale was so violent, but nonetheless, life here had been a lot better than before. The Empire was hated, period, here in Vale.
Their cries were silenced when Hammet raised his hands again. He looked around the audience with a stern eye, before continuing, his voice loud and booming, carrying all the way over to the fringes of the crowd.
"We have endured this for too long. The Dragon riders have become nothing but lackeys of the Empire and the king, Alexius II. We must fight back and bring about the demise of the empire, before the empire becomes the end of us."
There was a sudden unrest in the crowd as people conferred amongst themselves. Isaac knew the reason. The people, though they often wished for the demise of the Empire, were not sure if they wanted to get involved with this. Invoking the Empire's wrath was a risky thing. They have spies everywhere, always ready to flush out the traitors. In fact, Vale had decided that they had not been wiped off the map yet simply because they were not much of a threat to anyone. Sure, the townsfolk knew a little psynergy here and there, but not enough to pose a real threat. Isaac shook his head. Hammet didn't know all of this: there was no way in which he could have, and he couldn't help but feel sympathetic for the man. He had probably lost all of the trust the people had showed before by that one sentence.
Seeing the unrest, Hammet quickly spoke again.
"But we will fight fire with fire," He announced as loudly as he could, bringing back the people's attentions, "We will fight them with dragon riders!"
Suddenly, there was a deathly silence over the crowd, slowly, the people took in the words, and all of them glaring suspiciously at Hammet. Isaac found himself glaring along. The village had no love for dragon riders, and will never have any love for them.
Dragon riders were the main cause of their problem. When king Alexius dictated his rule upon all of Weyard, he had used the dragon riders to forcefully take children away from Vale and all the other cities on Weyard, 'Searching' them as candidates for his own batch of dragon eggs so that they would become his evil minions or the like. Felix, Jenna's sister, had been taken four years ago when the riders came upon their village, claming that Felix had some 'great power' residing within him, and forcefully took him away along with many other children from the village. He, Jenna and Garet were only spared because they were on a study session with Kraden at Mount Aleph, and were not at the scene at the time. Isaac felt an immeasurable anger towards all dragon riders, and he believed that the rest of the town folk felt the same.
Feeling the heat of their glares, Hammet wiped a few beats of sweat off his brown, and proceeded to hold his hands up, backing away nervously. The Caravan Leader seemed very fazed by the village folk. "I-it's okay," he began. "We just need two of your children to-"
His voice was cut off by angry yells from the audience. Isaac found himself yelling along, protesting. Did Hammet know what they had to go through for the next few years? Children were dragged away almost every year to the darn citadel, every single year up until the year before, when the dragon riders ceased to come. Every year, the people have to suffer their children wrenched away from their parents, and watch them weeping, flying away forever aboard those wretched beasts. Isaac wiped away a tear from his face, and yelled along side of his fellow villagers. How dare Hammet even bring this up?
'This is sure to leave a bitter taste in our mouths,' He thought resentfully, 'The nerve of him, coming along like this and demanding for more lives.'
"Do you know what you are asking of us?" Yelled one villager. "You are asking of us our blood and flesh! How can we grant you that?"
"And what do you know about a hard life?" Asked another angrily. "You're just a bunch of merchants!"
That statement was met with plenty of agreement as people began shouting all at once.
"You know nothing of battle!" Said one. "And war!" Said another. "And pain!" Said the last. This caused some more agreement from the folk. Isaac felt a sort of satisfaction as he realized that Garet was the only who quipped the last one, an angry expression on his face.
"We are not going to rush into battle and rescue a few darn dragon's eggs for you. We don't give a pile of dung for that sort of insane, selfish plan."
Nodding to the newest remark, Isaac was just about to yell out something, when a certain blond beat him to it and left him stunned.
"SILENCE!" Came the great yell. The village people immediately silenced themselves, staring incredulously at the small figure that had just taken hold of the situation. Emerald eyes glaring at them all, Ireme looked truly angry, panting hard and his fists clenched, shoulders up and tense. He gritted his teeth and glared at the village folk, his green eyes darting from person to person, making eye contact with every member of the audience.
"By Megaera's Sword, we are not asking for you to kill yourselves and sacrifice your children for dragon riders!" He cried exasperatedly into the crowd. "We just want you to see something that we have, and see if you think our plan will work! By Thor's Hammer, you people did not even give us a chance to show you our secret weapon!"
The secret weapon part got the crowd's attention. Isaac felt himself quite numb from all the excitement so far. How little Ireme had gotten control of the situation in a blink of an eye he'll never know, but he was sure a good attention-getter. Personally, he thought that the 'secret weapon' part of the speech was ingenious: curiosity killed the cat after all, and the village folk sure did not want to die at the hands of curiosity.
"Ah, erm, that's right," Hammet said shakily. He gestured to Ireme with a hand, giving the boy a grateful look. "Show them the eggs."
There was a silence as Ireme bent down. For the first time, Isaac realized that there was a pouch sitting right next to the blond boy's legs, and as Ireme undid the straps of the bag, he felt the curiosity mounting. Eggs? What kind of eggs? Dragon eggs? Some new kind of creature's eggs?
His third guess was correct. Ireme, before all the people of the village, proudly pulled out two oval-shaped eggs from the bag and set them before them all. They were both rocking slightly. One of the eggs, a mottled gray one, had a large crack on it, while the other one, a flamboyant red and orange one, had a piece chipped off, a claw pushing itself through the egg shell before th crowd's eyes. Isaac gave a startled gasp as the red one fell over, another crack appearing over its shell.
"Dragon eggs!" Someone next to him breathed.
Indeed, they were dragon eggs. They were hard to come by now, as all of the existing eggs were currently in Alexius' citadel, where he found suitable candidates who will bond with the telepathic creatures. These eggs must have been hard to get, as Alexius kept the citadel under close watch with dragon riders and other guards. And before his eyes, he was seeing what no one from the village had ever seen: a dragonet hatching from an egg.
Indeed, when the first scale of the dragonet could be seen, the crowd held its collective breaths as the dragonet gave the egg a shove, sending red egg pieces flying everywhere. A leg, then a tail came out. Then, the dragonet poked its head out, blinking its red eyes sleepily. Judging from the hide and the horn shapes, it had to be a Mars dragonet, a dragonet aligned with the element of fire. Kraden had educated the village quite nicely about dragons. The Mars dragon let out a warbling sound and proceeded to crawl out of its egg, egg goo covering its little red body.
Judging from a distance, Isaac figured that the dragon was about the size of a large dog. It was strange in shape, it's back ankles backwards, and it's front forwards, completely the opposite of human arms and legs. His had a long neck, and its body seemed a little weird, with scales and a leathery substance. Its tail was long, and at the end, it split into two tips, both steaming off a little smoke. A few small horns protruded from the back of its head, and when it opened its mouth, Isaac could see rows of sharp teeth. It let out another warbling sound, cocking its head curiously at the crowd gathered around it, as if you say "Huh?" and sniffed into the air.
People cooed at the small beast, animosity towards the merchants forgotten. Parents lifted children above their heads so they could get a better view. Even though the village had no love for dragon riders, a baby animal was a baby animal, and the dragonet looked so innocent. Isaac could understand completely. The dragonet had a way of making things better.
Suddenly, the little dragon swerved, as though sensing something. It sniffed in the direction of the opposite end of the crowd, and let out a startled yelp, before scampering over. Her crowd followed it with their gazes, and-
Gasps could be heard. Isaac stood on his tippitoes so he could see, and when he did, he gasped as well. The dragonet was now on its back legs, eyes fixed adoringly on none other than Garet. A forked tongue slid out of its mouth, as it licked the redhead on the cheek, the dragon being large enough so that its head reached Garet's shoulders. Garet chuckled a little, and rubbed the dragonet on its head, before looking around with an elated expression.
"I think the little critter likes me."
"Well that's obvious," Isaac heard Jenna retort. "It's slobbering all over you."
"I was always popular with the ladies," Garet said, petting the dragonet on the head, which invoked Jenna to speak again.
"Have you ever considered that the dragon's a boy?"
The crowd laughed at this as Garet blushed beet-red, before petting the dragon again. Suddenly, he let out a gasp, and clutched his forehead, his brow furrowed and his eye narrowing.
"Something's weird with my head," He groaned, all of the humor before gone. He rubbed his temple gingerly with his hand, and proceeded to sit down into the snow, as though disoriented. Ireme rushed forward to help him, while Hammet explained.
"That's probably the feeling that you'll get when you bond to the dragonet," He said with an approving look towards Garet, "You seem to have a lot of potential."
Suddenly, the other egg let out an astounding crack. People turned to it eagerly, though some of them still hung around Garet and the first Mars hatchling. Another red claw could be seen from the mottled gray egg as the dragonet inside pushed its way out to freedom. This time, out came another Mars dragonet, it's scales a darker red color. It let out a small growl, and suddenly, unfurled its wings. Immediately, Isaac figured out why the dragonets looked so weird: the awkward and leathery part of its body was the wings. Thousands of tiny blood vessels pumped blood through the fragile wings of the dragon. The dragonet crawled forward, eyes scanning the crowd. Unlike its predecessor, it did not sit around and look cute and pretty. Instead, it made a beeline towards another person Isaac knew all too well: Jenna.
- - -
Several hours later, Isaac found himself in bed, brooding over the night's happenings.
Jenna and Garet bonded to dragons!
A part of him cheered for his friend and their unbelievable luck. And to make things better, they were both his friends, in which he should be extremely happy. But another part of him was insanely jealous, as he wished he had a dragonet as well. Before the festival was called adjourned, he had asked Ireme if they possessed other dragon eggs, but that was met with a shake of the head. That part of him tormented him. He sincerely wanted a dragon as well, if only so that he could be with his friends while they trained. Hammet had wanted to train the dragon riders himself, as he knew a little about dragons, and the village folk were very supportive of that, as after Ireme explained the situation to them, they would do just about anything for them. Apparently, the Merchants had found the eggs during their travels, hidden in a forest too dense for Dragon riders to see through. They did not explain what they were doing in a forest like that, but it sounded rather believable, so Isaac had let that go.
Ireme was a great spokesperson, Isaac decided. He had explained with great detail and plenty of suspense about what the merchants plan to do to the Empire. They had already two dragon riders up their sleeves, and after the two Mars dragonets matured, they would launch raids against the Empire. Of course, he said this with a lot more convincingness to it, so much, that all of Vale seemed to support their cause. The few grumblers were tossed aside as the village planned with the merchants on how to defy the Empire, believing that their four dragons will protect them. Isaac himself wasn't quite convinced, but he decided that anything would be better than the Empire's rule. So far, it had brought nothing but misfortune and death to their land. There have been reports of entire villages killed off because they harbored a dragon rider. Vale, being so secluded, though, would probably be able to escape notice for the time being.
But still, I really would like to help.
Indeed, he wanted to help. It seemed that only dragon riders and able-bodied men would be able to be a part of this grand plan. Isaac sighed, and turned over in his bed, hearing the wood creak. His room was a very old room; full of cracks and leaks, and it was always very cold, as he did not have a proper window. But their family was poor: they could not afford something more, so they had given him a giant quilt to sleep under. In a way, Isaac envied his friends. Not only they had dragonets, but they also got to sleep with the Merchants.
His friends, he knew, were not much better off than he was. But he did know that since they have become dragon riders, or Dragonlings as the Merchants called them, they would be sleeping with the Merchants specially, as Hammet claimed that they would need his guidance. He would have to show them a few techniques with the caring of their dragonets, feed the dragonets, and also, their dragonets could not stand the cold, being Mars dragonets and all that.
Isaac knew he was jealous, but there was really no use in brooding over it. Maybe tomorrow, he'll speak to his friends about the dragonets. Turning over again, he snuggled himself into his quilt, and drifted off into a fitful sleep.
- - -
Link me up with Haze will ya, Luff?
- What's in it for me? -
Luff, I'm not joking with you! Just get on with it. I need to talk to Sheba!
- What's the magic word? -
Please! Now make it quick! I've got bad news!
- Okay, okay! Sheesh… Be a little more patient. You know how Haze is: she disappears a lot. Wait a few minutes. -
Fine, but be quick. I have to get this over with before they realize that I'm gone.
Ireme sighed, leaning against the wall dejectedly, his hands on his head. He sighed, rubbing his forehead. What a day, and what a bad day. It was awful. The dragonets have hatched. He shook his head. And they had bonded with those kids! In a sense, the mission was a success, but in a way, it had him worried. What were they going to do now?
- Okay, here's Sheba. -
Immediately, he could feel the other adept's soothing presence. Sure, Sheba wasn't the most caring of all Jupiter adepts, but she was the only Jupiter adept he knew, as well as the only person he could truly call a friend. Unless you counted Luff, but she was bonded to him, a relationship that was just a bit more than a rider and dragon. Sheba certainly didn't show it, but she had a caring heart underneath that stoic exterior.
But her mind bit. Hard.
Mission?
Complete, He responded immediately, letting her do the question asking. Sheba, he knew, did not like excess talk. She liked to get to the point.
Plans?
Confirmed.
Did you reveal yourself to anyone?
Ah…He could feel Sheba's growing suspicion. She was like that, paranoid and suspicious. Ireme sighed.
Not exactly.
It's either you did, or you didn't. Fess up.
Okay, I sort of did. I met a boy with some potential. I think he's the one in your vision. He poked his nose in, so I made something up.
There was silence at Sheba's end of the mind.
So what's your cover story? She finally asked.
Ireme let loose a relieved sigh. So he was out of the danger zone. When Sheba was angry, she was really angry, and she could inflict harm, even if she's in the middle of Gondowan right now. She was very powerful mentally.
My name's Ireme, and I'm Caravan Leader Hammet's servant.
And you didn't reveal anything?
Nope.
Did they suspect anything?
Nada.
Ivan could feel Sheba's relief like a soothing stream of water. So everything was still going according to plan. Now, to break the bad news.
What's the bad news?She read his mind. She just had to have done that.
The dragon eggs hatched before they were supposed to. They felt the presence of their bonded ones before they were supposed to.
He could feel Sheba's dismay, but the dismay quickly disappeared, replaced with a mental smirk and a feeling of 'thinking'. It was as though he could feel the gears in Sheba's head turn.
That may just be to our benefit. So the plans still haven't changed for them?
Nope.
Okay. You're job's done. I think it's safe to call this mission a success. Get yourself killed or a good cover up story, and meet me back at base. We're report to Alexius ourselves. Can't let those stuck-up messengers get all the credit.
No, we can't. Ireme felt himself smirk along. Sheba could be so predictable sometimes, but he couldn't help but admire her ability to turn a thwart in plans into their advantage. Alexius would definitely be pleased.
And Ivan? Keep the name. Ireme was it? We'll come in contact with those kids again.
Roger that, Ma'am. And what's your cover-up?
Selaks. I'm off now. Meet me at base tomorrow. I trust you can do that for me.
Suddenly, Sheba's presence in his mind disappeared, snapping him back to reality once more. Ireme, or Ivan, as his real name went, rubbed his temple gingerly. Talking long distance drained him more than it drained Sheba. She was better at things like these.
- Ireme, eh? What a cute name! -
Shut up, Luff.
- - -
Cast thus far:
Isaac
Garet, rider of Mars ?
Jenna, rider of Mars ?
Felix, Missing
Kraden
Ivan, also known as Ireme, rider of Jupiter Luff
Sheba, also known as Selaks, rider of Jupiter Haze
Hammet, Caravan Leader
Alexius, King of Weyard, Empire
All characters will appear eventually. )
- - -
Random Profile:
Mars DragonsMars dragons are the most adaptable dragons on Weyard. Most of them are reckless, pretty much brainless, by dragon standards, and will eat pretty much anything, though they are strictly carnivores. Mars dragons are the largest dragons on Weyard, and they have the largest wingspans, almost three times their bulky build, which helps them stay aloft longer than any other dragon. A Mars dragon, which flew for three days straight without landing, made the record of the longest flying time by any dragon. The average flying time for Mars dragons is about 12 hours, longer than any other dragon. This is because of their large wingspans, their love for thermals, and their ability to raise the temperature around them so there will be a thermal anywhere they go. They are also the only warm-blooded dragons, though they still clutch eggs. Usually, the female dragon will clutch about eleven eggs per clutch, the record being twenty-seven. The Mars dragons are not very maternal, but their offspring are tough, and usually survive. They mature at around two years old, and keep growing all their life. They can breath fire at the age of three months.
Mars dragons range from a fiery burgundy, to a light orange in color. Usually, their backs are darker in color, and their bellies are lighter. They are fearsome-looking dragons: their diamond-shaped head crest is three times as wide as a human, and twice as tall. They have horns sprouting out from the back of their head, and two tusks sprouting from their jaw. Their neck-ridges are long and sharp, and they have two horns sprouting from their foreheads, pointing forward. Their tails split off into two sections at the end, so that there are two tail-tips, but only one tail, and on the tip of both tips, there are flames, burning brightly. Mars dragons are not born with these flames, but gradually develop them, as they grow older. When they are young, smoke sort of spew out from their tails, and eventually, their tails will ignite. Those flames will be sort of like its anger-meter. When the flames are small and steady, the dragon's calm, and when the flames are large and wild, the dragon's angry. And when the two flames merge and burn into a dark bluish color, the dragon's gone berserk. In shape, the Mars dragon is bulky, with a large belly, and extremely large wings. They are awkward and clumsy dragons, though are quite beautiful in the air.
For powers, the Mars Dragons control the flames. They breathe out flame, the colors ranging from a dark red to a dark blue, dark blue being the hottest flame that a Mars dragon can create. They can control the flame to a certain degree, but nothing fancy. Mars dragons have a tendency to cause volcanic eruptions wherever they go. If the Mars dragon lands near an extinct volcano, it won't be extinct anymore. Their claws are lethal, and so are their teeth. They have large fangs, meant for cutting up flesh, and large canines. Mars dragons can also bellow out smoke, though to a limited degree because that cuts off their oxygen intake. They tend to go berserk when their bonded dies, but that is only from the shock of loosing their bonded and the anger that comes with it. They will cool off in a few days or so, and rebond to someone else. They are the only dragons that will rebond. Mars dragons automatically will raise their surrounding temperature, so in battle, they make the battlefield almost unbearable for any other dragon.
- - -
A/N: Fear the AU-ness of this story… It's like an Eragon, Dragonlance, GS crossover, but with Eragon-like background (The Empire, deer hunting), Dragonlance backstabbers, a touch of DRoP and GS characters and plot, pretty much. The Plot will definitely be GS. Pairings have not been decided yet… And, please Review? Pretty please?
I will also be adding random profiles at the bottom here. This chapter's profile is the profile of Mars Dragons. I don't know what the next one will be, though, so read to find out? Comments and suggestions are appreciated, and I'm not sure how this is going to end, so if you have suggestions for that as well, I'll be forever in your debt. )
