This was actually a side story from one of my unpopular fanfics, but since some of you might like a story which solely focuses on dragons, I decided to post it on its own and see if people are actually interested in this. If not...well, I tried at least.
It was a gloomy spring day, heavy grey clouds filling the skies. The grey giants looked like they had swallowed the mountain peaks, enveloping them. The mountains of the Spine were barely visible. It was close to dusk, the light slowly fading away from the sky and land. Once in a while, lightning illuminated the dull, grey sky, strong bouts of thunder often following, shaking the hushed atmosphere. The vast forests situated at the base of the mountains stretched far and wide, basking the view with different shades of green. Pine trees, fir trees; all different arbores could be sighted, mixing in a random pattern.
The upper heights of the mountains were decorated with tall fir trees that offered a streak of colour to the steep and ragged cliffs that couldn't support any other form of vegetation on them. The fir trees were taller compared to the ones found at the base of the mountains, somehow adapting to the harsh conditions which they had to confront.
It was a still landscape; only the wind blowing through the corridors created by the mountains moved the leaves in the trees to disturb the peace that was brought before the storm. Every being which lived in the forest was searching for a place to shelter from the upcoming storm, afraid of the rumbling thunders which warned about what was to come.
But, despite the monotone landscape, a speck of gold could be seen gliding gracefully across the landscape. The graceful gliding was brought to a halt when the being swooped into a steep dive as it accelerated towards the ground, looking like it was going to crash. Birds flew out of the trees as the sound of animals scattering in panic alerted almost all the residents in the area of the impending danger.
You are a fast one, but there is no escape from a predator of the sky thought Sinedar, his golden eyes fixed on his prey, a pudgy deer that was moving fast despite its bulky body.
Usually, a dragon should take his prey by surprise and kill it before it had realized what had struck it, but because Sinedar was a young dragon, failing was part of learning the hunt. Because of this, the hunt – which is the art of stalking and opportune strike – turned into a chase among the dense forests.
The dragon kept following the deer idly, enjoying the thrill of the hunt as he followed his prey while at the same time he was careful not to hit some of the bigger trees that got in his way. When a clearing could be spotted ahead, the dragon ascended briefly before accelerating towards his prey with astonishing speed, digging the claws of his hind legs into the deer's flank, all while manoeuvring his body around so that he wouldn't hit any branches that could hurt him in the process.
Crack! The sound of branches cracking and the desperate cries of the deer filled the area, alerting any animals nearby that someone just lost its life to sate a predator's hunger. Sinedar roared with pride as the buck lied limp in his claws.
He released his prey – which fell motionlessly onto the ground – before he landed. He followed, dropping to the ground with thump. Satisfied of his accomplishment, he sat on his haunches to regain his strength as his breath slowly regained its normal rhythm.
Sinedar was a medium sized dragon for his age. He was roughly 5 months old, his body being the size of a rhino. The golden scales covering his body sparkled like suns, bright spheres of molten gold. The thin membrane of his wings was a lighter shade of yellow, accenting his scales perfectly. His muscular hind legs provided the necessary force to lift his body from the ground and his now bloodies paws were equipped with sharp, ivory claws. Trailing along his spine to the tip of his tail were different size spikes adorning his back bearing the same colour as his claws.
It's not how I thought it would turn out to be, but at least I got myself a fine meal, the golden dragon thought before proceeding to examine his injuries. He didn't notice any serious injuries; only minor small bloodied cuts that could be seen along his wing membranes which were more irritating than painful.
Well, it's better than the last time, and these will heal in a short time, Sinedar said to himself, tucking his wings to his body after he examined the wounds with his snout.
He began to feast on his kill, eating as fast as he could before the light would completely fade. Even for a dragon's enhanced sight, it would be hard for him to spot anything from a distance unless it provided some kind of light. Normally, night wouldn't be a problem if the sky was clear, but given the circumstances it would soon be pitch black and he didn't know how far the hunt had taken him from home.
After the dragon ate as much as he could from the carcass, he observed the mess he had made. He gave a draconic grin and then licked the blood off of his snout. He felt a light touch on his back and he turned around. Nothing. He sniffed the air but he couldn't smell anything but blood and rain. Rain! Sinedar looked up to the sky and was met with an unexpected force colliding with his snout, sending tiny droplets of water in different directions.
Sinedar snorted in irritation and more drops of water pelted his head. A chill swept through his body as a gust of wind whooshed around him. Bewildered, his cocked his head to the side and looked at the forest in front of him. His eyes widened when he saw a great torrent of downpour rapidly approaching him and he took to the skies, beating his wings furiously to avoid being smashed in the trees by the powerful air currents that came before the rain.
He was blind to where he was going, the night dark hiding everything and the rain running into his eyes didn't help. His energy was quickly depleting as he struggled against the rain and wind.
Blasted weather!He thought grittily. Realising the distance back to his natal cave was too far, he decided he should find a shelter of some kind from the weather but a part of him wanted to keep going so that he could reach his parents and sleep in their warm embrace so he kept flying.
As his mind drifted towards the familiar cave, a huge flash of lightning followed by a loud rumble sent him into full awareness and he landed as soon as he found a clearing, fearing for his safety as multiple bolts of lightning could be seen cutting through the stormy sky at different time intervals, followed by ear-splitting bangs.
Sinedar hit the ground with a loud thud but he lost his balance and hit ground face first, covering his lower jaw, neck and belly in mud. He was a bit disappointed that he somehow managed to fail at such an easy thing such as landing, but he didn't think much of it as he looked up at the sky, growling in frustration. It was completely black, exempting the times when forks of lightning lit up the sky.
He snorted and began to move, sometimes bumping into trees and different objects as he tried to find shelter as fast as possible. After some time, fatigue began to accumulate and Sinedar was growing increasingly tired but he didn't stop. Moving incoherently through the forest, the golden dragon continued his search. Rain continued to pelt him and some was beginning to slip through his scales, chilling his sensitive skin.
He eventually crashed to the ground under a tree with a frustrated wail, his limbs sore from the prolonged effort. The tree's thick foliage did little to protect him from the elements but it lessened the force of the wind around him. He didn't move from his place for some time, shivering because of the cold weather. In time, he gathered up what little energy he had left and curled up into a ball, the tip of his tail touching his snout, to preserve body heat.
The pressure of the rain was starting to lessen but the temperature was getting lower, forcing the exhausted dragon to find an alternate solution of shelter rather than to sleep out in the open.
He sluggishly got up with a low growl to signal his displeasure and checked on his surroundings. He was surrounded by trees and there was no visible place that could shelter him from the heavy rain, but as a bolt of lightning illuminated the landscape, he could notice that he wasn't very far away from a cliff face.
Getting his hopes up, Sinedar started to move as fast as he could towards the newly discovered refuge but the lack of light wasn't helping him so he had to wait for a few more bolts of lightning to light up the sky to see where he was going.
When he arrived near his objective, he quickly began to inspect the cliff face in search for a place that could at least shield him from the unforgiving and cold rain that was draining his body temperature rather quickly given the fact that his scales didn't completely shield him from the water drops and a drop or two could make their way towards his warm and sensitive skin located under his natural armour.
After some searching for any warm and cosy caves that he could sleep in, luck struck the dragon. In front of him was a middle sized cave which could provide the necessary shelter from the bad weather. Sinedar rumbled happily and moved towards it. When he reached it, he realized that it would be a tight squeeze. As he shuffled his body into the cave, the golden dragon was forced to lower himself onto his belly so that his wings would not touch the cold ceiling.
It's not home, but it will suffice, thought Sinedar as he coiled his body, preparing for sleep.
Sinedar was suddenly roused from his sleep by an angry growl that came from outside of the cave.
Grrr! What now! Sinedar growled angrily. The golden dragon opened his eyes to see what the cause of his disturbance was. He looked outside the cave and noticed that the rain had stopped and the clouds dissipated, revealing a full moon that was shining its light across the landscape and thousands of twinkling dots that covered the serene night sky.
At first he thought that his mind was playing tricks on him and that he was still a dreaming but it was proven otherwise when he heard something approaching his location. He quickly got up from the comfortable position and using his sharp senses he could make out the form of the invader. It was a large bear, a bit smaller than him, but still a formidable opponent if the two of them would engage in a fight.
Sinedar eyed the bear carefully as it got closer, trying to predict the animal's reaction. The bear raised its nose and sniffed the air, smelling the strange creature that was residing in what appeared to be a good shelter from the bad weather but didn't get any closer as it feared that the creature may suddenly attack.
The dragon got bored of the bear's impassive attitude and decided that it wouldn't do any good to end its life, taking into consideration the exhaustion from his earlier ordeal and this would be just another waste of energy. With a loud roar, he sent the bear on its way, the brown creature running for its life. Sinedar snorted, amused by the bear's reaction.
That was a wise decision on your part. Life is more valuable than a shelter.He then let out a louder roar to prevent any inhabitant of the forest to approach that cave. It was his place for now. He slowly closed his golden eyes and with a low growl he fell back asleep.
He woke up the next morning feeling refreshed. He slowly got up, yawning and stretching his body. The cave was not really comfortable so he was forced to sleep in a rather awkward position. For this reason, his left wing was numb. As he left the cave, a cool rush of wind brushed against his scales, making the dragon quiver with anticipation of the approaching day.
After a little while, he looked up and tried to guess what time of day it was but the sun's light blinded him, forcing him to shut his eyes tightly for a moment. Bright spots danced across his vision as he slowly opened his eyes again. After he got used to the light, Sinedar started to explore his surroundings. He walked around the surrounding forest, trying to find anything that was familiar to him. He felt unsure, having never explored this part of his parent's territory.
I must be somewhere near the edge of our territory. He shrugged at the thought, grateful that he wasn't in the territory of another dragon.
Realising his parents were awaiting for him to come back, he stretched his sore wings then flapped them several times to make sure he was able to fly effectively. Even though his wings pained him a little, he dug his claws into the soft earth and used his muscular hind legs to propel him as he took to the skies, flapping his wings furiously to gain altitude. The pain made itself apparent as the dragon flapped harder but he had to push on. He knew if he didn't get home soon his parents would start to get worried and probably begin searching for him which wasn't that bad except the fact that he knew they would discipline him for being reckless. Various threats were lurking in these forests; threats that were especially dangerous for a young dragon such as Sinedar. Trying to push the uncomfortable notion aside, the golden dragon tried to think about his sister, but to no avail. Feeling a favourable air current, he veered to the left in hope of alleviating the pain.
The onrush of air made the pain subside for a bit as his wing beats slowed down, allowing the currents to do the job for him.
He continued to glide for a while enjoying the freedom he had while he was in the air, occasionally giving a hard flap of his wings to maintain the altitude which kept dropping despite the favourable air currents and his occasional wing beats. He soon stopped his wing beats and continued to glide towards a place not far away from his position, in which no trees grew. It wasn't the best choice to make a landing, but the dragon's small stature allowed him to touch down without any problems. He carefully manoeuvred his position in the air, and beat his wings slowly to slow his decent despite the pain which annoyed him more than it actually hurt.
When he was close enough to the ground, he unfurled his wings to their maximum length and landed on his hind legs with a small thud, then quickly placing his front legs on the ground, a grumble escaping his throat.
That went better than I expected, Sinedar snorted as he tucked his wings back against his body and began to explore the area around him.
Luck shined upon him as the sound of a stream caught his ears. He quickly moved towards the source of the noise and recognized the stream as being the one where he was playing with his little sister not to long ago.
Realizing that he almost reached his destination, the dragon let out a roar of happiness and proceeded to drink from the stream to quench his thirst. He only managed to drink a bit before he was interrupted by a familiar thud.
He quickly scanned the area around him to search for the intruder. Everything ranged from green, which were the leaves of the trees, to brown, which mainly belonged to the trunks of the trees. But among the different shades of green and brown, Sinedar noticed a speck of blue approaching his location fast.
He barely had time to recognize the figure as it plunged into its side, throwing him in the small stream, making the dragon yelp in the process. The blow was powerful, but much of the force dissipated when Sinedar was thrown into the water because of the force of the impact.
Sinedar tried to get up and make a run for it despite the pain coming from his right flank, but was pinned down by what appeared to be a larger sapphire dragon which was growling at him. He tried to communicate with him but it proved ineffective as the dragon had its mind closed from everything.
Sinedar panicked and tried to break free by kicking with his hind legs and moving his wings, but to no avail. The other dragon was bigger and more powerful than him, and if a fight would start between the two of them Sinedar would be gravely injured, or even killed, a prospect that frightened the younger dragon.
Realizing that aggressive actions won't lead him anywhere, the golden dragon simply laid limp, hoping that the other dragon, if he had any intention to fight, would have the decency to spare his life if he saw that he didn't want to put up a fight.
The sapphire dragon let out a loud roar as he leaned his head towards Sinedar's neck. Sinedar thought that he was going earn himself a bite and closed his eyes in the anticipation of the attack, but to his surprise it never came.
As he opened his eyes to see what was going on, Sinedar noticed that the sapphire's dragon nostrils were twitching as he sniffed his neck. Sinedar was bewildered by the older dragon's actions and tried to move, but before he was able to do something he received a quick nudge from the dragon, then he heard a deep yet very familiar voice speaking in his mind.
Dead! He then licked Sinedar on the neck. You did not learn a thing from what I have taught you, did you? If you are pinned, try to use your tail to imbalance your opponent or distract him enough to make your other move.The sapphire dragon named Serkath nuzzled Sinedar encouragingly and allowed him to get up.
Noticing that the golden dragon almost slipped on the wet rocks, Serkath chuckled. Do you need some help? Looks like you do.
Sinedar growled in frustration; was not in the mood for satirical comments. He dug his claws on the bottom of the river and, with the improved balance, he managed to get up. He let out a surprised growl as he found himself back in the water in the next second.
He snarled at Serkath, annoyed by his actions. What was that for? I'm not in the mood for games, father.
As soon as he got up he jumped to the river bank to make sure that no drop of water would touch his scales again if Serkath knocked him over again. He fixed his eyes on the sapphire dragon who was growling strangely, apparently laughing at his son's clumsiness.
That isn't funny! I was convinced that you were another dragon, ready to attack me for trespassing your territory, said Sinedar with a bit of irritation, shaking his body to remove the water droplets
The sapphire dragon became serious again as he approached his son.
Now that would be a surprise. From where did you get this idea anyway? I showed you the boundaries of our territory when you were smaller so you should have an idea when you are about to leave it. Noticing the sun's position, the dragon unfurled his wings, preparing to take off.We should get going. Your mother awaits your return. I presume you will tell me what happened along the way.
Circling above the golden dragon, Serkath wondered why Sinedar was having difficulties flapping his wings. He chuckled as he realized what the problem was. Now, don't tell me you can't fly. You truly are a hatchling…
Blood rushed through Sinedar's face. To hide his embarrassment, the dragon beat his wings with force and used his hind legs to launch himself into the air.
Tell me if I should continue or not.