I walked along the path in front of me that lead the way to a village two miles from here. Karri walking beside me impatiently wishing we could fly. Karri flipped his wing along the low hanging branches, irritation radiating off of him in waves. I looked behind to throw him a look, not breaking my stride, knowing that he was doing it on purpose. He sniffed loudly but fell in step with me, his wings huddling close to his body.
Karri was small for a dragon his age, a dark creature in every sense of the word. The scales that formed around his angular body were dark grey to the point where they turned the deepest black at night. Of course, my night vision was horrid, so everything looked black to me. His eyes were the most precious silver I had ever seen, giving the circumstances, he hated it whenever I mentioned them, but I love them still, even if it shamed him for his loss of sight. I slowed in my step to walk beside him so I could rest my hand under his wing, drawing comfort from him.
We walked silently, taking solace in the nature that formed the words for us, never having to speak them aloud, drawing each other's thoughts from simply just thinking of them. It was one of Karri's abilities, I think, being able to communicate this way. Once he told me he had never been able to do it until his loss of sight. Although, one had to truly know him to catch on that he was blind. He was the most able being I have ever met, and that is saying something.
I was orphaned very young, barely a few months old, I was told. A horde of demons had attacked the village I was in, killing everything and everyone in it, including my family, not even the livestock were spared that night. My first memories were of a barn, I don't know why, it hurts my head to think on it too much. I don't know how I survived, the only one in the village that was so lucky, but it happened that way. A group of merchants passing through had found the decimated village, I heard that they had all decided to leave the place quickly, never giving a thought to look for survivors, But I am lucky that Lorian had persuaded a few to take the time to bury what remained of the villagers. There wasn't that much left. It took the men two hours to find me in a dug out hole in the back of a half-burned house.
Drawing closer to the village, anxiety filled me and I hesitated a step before moving onward, chin held high. Karri turned his head toward me, his beautiful eyes staring into my soul. He was the only family I have, I remember the day we first met too. Evey little detail of that day is etched into my mind and it helped me, I think. Just knowing that the dragon chose to stay with me and be such a good friend tore me form the past and gave me a reason to start over, that is, until I heard something. Something, I desperatley wished I could trust, put faith behind those words. Well, we'd find out soon. Karri chose then to speak to me for the first time in a few hours, turning me away from my thoughts.
"Are you sure this is what you want to do? That man could have been wrong. There's a strong possibility that this woman isn't your sister at all." Karri said, his nostrils flaring. More heartache is not good on one so young.
A pang rose in my chest at the word sister, but I kept my composure as I stopped and gave thought to his spoken words. Ignoring the words resonating from his mind into my own, I hated it when he tried to make me doubt myself. What I hated more is that he always ended up succeeding, but try as I might, I could not get angry at him for it, for every word spoken was lined with truth, even if I loathed admitting it.
"I'm going to do this Karri, I told you not to come," I laid a gentle hand behind his ear, massaging, eliciting a contented sigh from the dragon. I whispered the rest on a sigh of my own "I have to see."
A few weeks ago, while I was on my way through a village, I heard a man telling a few children a story, of course being me, I had to stop to listen. What I heard shocked me to my very core.
I walked through the town, heading for the center towards the marketplace, hoping t buy a few supplies with the meager allowance, I made doing odd jobs along the way. I had my head down, thinking of Karri that I had left behind in the wood, trying my best not to feel guilty, which, I will say now, Is all Karri's fault. He always found a way to make me feel bad about leaving him behind whenever I had to go into a town, or village for supplies, but it was easier this way than explaining that he was a good dragon while simultaneously dodging torches and pitchforks.
Superstitious Bastards. I wasn't paying much attention when a black shape came hurding at me, throwing me off balance and falling flat an my arse. As I was tending to my sore bottom, I looked in front of me through squinted eyes to find a child on the ground in front of me. He seemed unhurt so I stood and brushed myself off before turning my attention to the kid still on the ground.
"Hey, you alright there?" I held out a hand to help him,but the kid ignored it and stood up as fast as he could and took a step back.
" Sorry Ma'am. I didn't mean to but Old man Hob is going tell us a story and I only wanted to get there before he started." He looked down sheepishly, feeling ashamed of his actions, no doubt. At least I hope so, serves him right. I sighed as the thoughts in my head came to an abrupt halt with a shake of my head.
" It's alright. No harm done," I smiled at him, and looked around for this story teller. " What kind of story is he going to tell you?" I couldn't help myself, hearing myself ask, I felt curious. The boy grinned, lighting up his face.
" You must be new around here, huh?" He asked and I tilted my head to the side, wondering why he came to that conclusion over my simple question. The boy continued on, as if reading my thoughts. "He always tells the same story, you see. I never get tired of hearing it though, he tells it real good!" I raised an eyebrow, still saying nothing. The boy's smile just grew wider and he came close to grab my hand. " Come on, once you hear it, you'll understand"
It didn't take us long to find the story teller, Old Man Hob, the child had called him. Once we reached the end of the crowd, he let go of my hand and surged forward into the crowd, finding a seat on the ground amongst his friends. Looking behind him, he gave me a smile and a wave, and I couldn't do anything but smile back. His smile quickly grew wider and he turned back to the story teller, who had begun to speak.
I stayed in the back of the crowd standing scanning the crowd around me as I listened to his tale. Obviously, He had told it many times before and at great length and was only mildly surprised to learn quite quickly that it wasn't just a work of fiction for the entertainment of others, but a sort of biography that the man himself had witnessed. Listening to his voice I was appalled and amazed at how well he told it, of demons and murder, torture and self torment. Every word he uttered was told with such feeling and heart it was easy to imagine going through this nightmare with him, as if, I myself had witnessed it first hand. It was powerful.
He looked at each children sitting in from of him in turn, never relenting in his telling, every eye focused on him. I wondered if any of them were breathing. I turned my attention back to the man as he told the crowd of him hiding as the demons tore through his home killing everyone, listening to the screams of falling comrades and his shame of his cowardice that night. I could feel the embarrassment literally wash over me, I almost felt sorry for the man. I couldn't help myself, really, his story intrigued me since I survived through a demon attack too, My mind just tuned him in completely.
I never moved from my spot as I listened as he continued through his story until he came to the part in his story where he had finally moved from his hiding spot and stumbled out of the burning building he Had been in.
" I could barely breathe as I looked around and saw the dead mutilated bodies of friends, comrades that had been smiling and laughing not even a few hours before. I stumbled forward in my haste to leave, to find a reprieve in my nightmare, when I first heard it.
It was the most hideous thing I ever heard but in that moment I could feel hope flare in my chest and I stopped to listen again. I listened and listened but the sound never came, until I finally realized I must have imagined it and started to turn and leave when I heard it again. I followed the sound until I came to an overturned basket, lying near a burnt down home.
I reached toward it and flipped over the basket and that's when I found her. The source of the hideous noise. A child, hidden under the basket, covered head to toe in dirt. She had been told to hide and since her options were limited she had found a basket outside her home and simply crawled under it. So, I gathered the child into my arms and left the village behind, never to see it again."
The old man sighed and let his head fall forward onto his chest eyes closed. The children stunned into a silence so thick, I wanted to scream to break it.
He heaved to the side dangerously til I thought he would topple over, when he snapped his eyes open and looked at the gathering before him.
" Any questions?" Hands shot up in the air everywhere and I bit back a chuckle. The old man though, didn't hold it back and chuckled deeply before picking out hands on by one until he answered everyone but one. A little girl barely four by the looks of it, holding a little doll to her chest. The old man's eyes softened considerably.
" Yes, dear child. What is it?" She flushed and stuttered her question the question that we all had been wondering.
" What happened to the girl in the story? Does she live with you? Did you become her papa?" Aw. What a sweet girl, worrying if the child had someone. The man's eyes grew dark and something flew across features but was gone before I could identify it.
" I sent her somewhere to live because I couldn't take care of her. I was homeless too and not fit to take care of her. I have heard from her from time to time though and she's happily married now, I hear. " He looked away for a moment before turning to the gathering once again. "Alright shows over. Skedaddle." He threw his arms up in emphasis and everyone stood and wondered off.
I had turned to walk away too, that is, until the old man spied me and gave me a look of surprise and recognition. I can't explain it but that look gave me chills, and that's when I heard him speak.
"Kaanan."