February 20th, 3991
"This seems like an awful lot of baby fruit trees." A lavender-green Rainwing observed, as they approached my latest project. "Is this going to be another royal garden?"
"Not quite, Lustrous," Batty replied, stepping between me and the ad-hoc crowd of volunteers and students, "This is an orchard, and this will belong to all of us. Isn't that right, My King?"
"Indeed, Lady Fruit Bat." I agreed, gesturing to the long lines of saplings behind us. "This is the first of what will be several communally-operated orchards. Today, I will show you some of the farming techniques used in the Sand Kingdom, so that we can become the biggest and best food producer in all of Phyrria."
"Why?" Someone in the back asked.
"Why what?"
"Why do we need to start farming?" The speaker, a young drake barely out of dragonethood, asked. "We can go out into the jungle and get all the food we want. The rainforest provides us with everything we need. Why should we go through the hard work if we don't need to?"
"Ah, an excellent question." I sat down beside one of the larger trees, settling down as I went into lecturer-mode. "How many of you have heard of the Law of Supply and Demand?" None of them, save for Batty, raised a paw or tail. As I suspected.
"Well, to make a complicated subject simple," I explained, "When the Demand for something is high, and the Supply of it is low, dragons will pay more to get it. Take food and water, for example. In the Sand Kingdom, where I come from, both of these are rare, precious resources. Many of us go hungry so our dragonets can eat, and water is carefully monitored so that it isn't overused and our wells dry up. But what the Kingdom lacks in food and water, it makes up for in gold and iron and other valuable minerals. The other kingdoms trade with us, selling food and other trade goods in exchange for these valuable metals. Trade makes us rich, and helps keep the kingdom functioning." Some of the dragons were nodding along, understanding, but others still weren't getting my point.
"I want to trade our extra food for those goods." I continued. "We need easily accessible iron and gold and materials that can't be found in the jungle. We should be good neighbors, by sharing our abundance with those less fortunate. And perhaps most importantly, we should take a more active role in the affairs of Phyrria. We have the capability of doing great things in the world, and changing how the other Tribes see you."
The assembled crowd looked at each other, perhaps a little skeptically. Not that I could really blame them - they'd been living comfortably for a long time. They didn't have to work hard to feed themselves, to build their homes, to be entertained. They'd been stuck in a peaceful rut for so long, they didn't see the need to improve and do better. But that wasn't enough for me, not while there were things to do. At least Batty got it, as she nodded understandingly.
The rest of the session was dedicated to going over the basics of tending an orchard and fruit preservation, things that I managed to pick up over the years of idle conversation with idle farmers bringing their harvests to the Palace. Not all of it would be applicable to farming in a jungle, but surely some of it would prove useful, and at the very least it would get them thinking about ways to improve the harvests. After about an hour's lecture, the crowd eventually dispersed, leaving Batty and I to once again tour our gardens. She came up to me after the last guest, offering her neck. I sniffed, catching an unfamiliar scent that had hints of incense and wood. "Sage?" I guessed.
"Patchouli." She answered, looking adorably smug. "I finally stumped you."
"I admit defeat, my lady." I bowed to her playfully. "Clearly, your nose has no equal." She giggled, gently pushing me aside. As someone used to being the most clever dragon in the room, being outsmarted by the little Rainwing wasn't aggravating. If anything, it made her more attractive in my eyes - having a mental equal who could keep up or surpass me made me want to be better, to increase my A-Game, so to speak.
"Now that's it's just you and me," She asked, "I've been wondering, what do you plan to do after Blister is gone? As a King, I mean. You do plan on staying King, right?"
I blinked, a little surprised by the questions. "...Yeah," I said, "I mean, yes, I intend to stay as King. This place has been growing on me, and I think I'm starting to get the hang of this job. As for what comes after Blister... Well, I'm not entirely sure. There are a few projects that I want to work on, I suppose. But I'm open to suggestions."
She nodded, and was quiet for a time, looking off to the distance in thought. I still wonder if I look that cute when I'm in deep contemplation like that.
"Do you think," She asked, choosing her words carefully, "That you'll take on a Queen, have dragonets of your own? Not right now, of course, but in general, in the future."
I looked at her, trying to gauge what she meant by it. Her scales were blue, her expression curious and thoughtful. Was she really asking if I wanted to get married and have kids in general, or was she asking if I wanted to do those things with her?
"Truth be told," I answered, "I don't really know. I never put much thought into it. I mean, I've never even really had a girlfriend before. Working with Burn in the Palace wasn't exactly giving me a lot of opportunities. But now..." I shrugged. "I'm King now, so I feel like I should, for the good of the Kingdom and all. But at the same time it isn't something I want to rush into. If I were to take a Queen, I'd want her to be someone I loved and respected as much as I'd want them to love and respect me, as my parents felt for each other. I didn't think I'd ever have hatchlings of my own, but now that I have a duty to eventually, the one thing I'll make sure to do is make them work and train for the throne. I've seen what entitlement does to dragonets, and I'll make sure that my crown is earned, not given."
Batty nodded, evidently agreeing with my sentiment. "Well, I hope whoever you pick as Queen is just as amazing as you are."
"I'm sure they will be," I said flirtingly, smiling at her, "Even if they don't know it yet."
She smiled back at me, her scales turning a particular shade of pink I'd never seen before. She looked down at herself and saw the color she was showing, which quickly turned back to a bright embarrassed pink. "Oh, uh, sorry!" She said quickly, "I just, um, realized I had to water my rhododendrons! Toodles!" With that, the little Rainwing scampered off, leaving me a very confused Sandwing. Just what was THAT supposed to mean? Did I overstep my bounds?
Clearly, I had to go to an expert...
"So, when she said that," Fox asked, "Did she look like this, this, or like this?" His scales first went bright pink, then rose-pink, then all the way to magenta. We sat together eating an early dinner, the cloudy evening sky a beautiful tapestry of blues and oranges and reds.
"I don't know," I sighed with exasperation, "The first one, I think. Why does it matter?"
"Oh, you big, simple Sandwing," The little Rainwing chuckled, "It matters a lot. The differences may seem subtle, but they're very important. Bright Pink is the color of playful flirtation. It's the color of two young, single dragons sharing drinks and complimenting each other, testing the waters, seeing if they're compatible, you know?"
"I thought they did a little rainbow display," I said teasingly, "Or is that just you?"
"That's all me, I admit it." He chuckled. "You give me crap now, but back in the day, I started flashing my scales during the lunar festivals, and the guys and gals would be all over me."
"Guys and gals? But I thought you said you have a boyfriend?"
"I do."
"But, you've been with females."
"Yeah, so? I like both."
"But if you're dating a male, doesn't that mean you're more into one than the other?"
"Not really. I mean, it's like... it's like bananas and oranges." He picked up one of each from the bowls of fruit between us. "Some dragons only like oranges, some only like bananas, and some like both or neither. Now, I'm a dragon who likes both, but sometimes I get different cravings. Sometimes I want a nice, ripe orange, but other times I might want a big, firm banana. When I was a younger, hungrier dragon, I'd go and snack on as many bananas and oranges as I could get my paws on. But now that I'm older, I've learned to really savor them, enjoy the moment."
He unpeeled the banana and took a bite. "Right now," He said after swallowing, "I'm eating a banana, and it's a really good banana. It's ripe and sweet, and doesn't have any spiders hiding inside. I'm going to keep it for a while. I still like oranges, and there might be an orange in the near future, something I'd have with the banana, but it'll be something that ends up complimenting the banana. Am I making sense here?"
"... You have a boyfriend but you might want a girlfriend too? That's something you can do here? Wait, is it anyone I would know?"
"I feel like we've gotten off track." He said quickly, embarrassed pink paws putting away the orange as he finished the banana. "Where were we? Oh, right, pink. Now, rose-pink is much more romantic, much harder to find. When a Rainwing turns that color, it's like saying 'I love you', but moreso. It's like, I dunno, telling the world that this other dragon has connected to you on a much deeper level, emotionally and spiritually, you know? It's pretty rare to find, as most Rainwings - at least, Rainwings you and Batty's age - don't get that deep into a relationship. Hell, even in my life, I've only been with two dragons that made me turn rosy."
"Your age'? How old are you?"
"Thirty-nomnomnom." He filled his mouth with an orange, as his scales turned green. Liar. I thought, but let it slide.
After he finished, he continued, "Now we come to the big one, the good time, magenta-pink. It's the color of The Mood, the color of sexy times. You see a Rainwing or Rainwings that particular shade, they're either about to or just got done with doing the deed. As someone with a lot of experience in the field, if you can get Batty or Maggy to go Magenta on you, dude..." He waggled his eyebrows, a wry smile that was as subtle as a sandstorm.
I sipped my palm wine, trying to hide my embarrassed smile. I still didn't know what I wanted, even then. Fruit Bat or Majestic. Brains or Brawn. Adorable cutie with shared interests and responsibilities, or sexy amazon that's a better version of my crush. There were so many factors to consider, that if I wasn't focused on running a kingdom and creating inventions, it would be taking all my mental energy to figure out. It wasn't like I was planning on having one-night stands with either of them: I wasn't Scald, and they weren't golddiggers.
"Do you... I mean, do you think it would work between us?" I finally asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean... they're Rainwings, and I'm a Sandwing."
"Yeah, so?"
"Well, a lot of dragons have a big problem with dragons of different Tribes 'intermingling'. Hybrid dragons tend to have a pretty bad rap, not being accepted by any Tribe. I'm not saying I want hatchlings right away, but as King it's something I have to consider long-term, and-"
"And you worry that we won't accept inter-tribal pairings?"
"Well, yeah, basically. Unless I went back home and picked up a Sandwing girl and made her queen, but I feel like that would be even worse! Then you'd have no representation!"
"And at what point have any of us made it seem like we care about any of that?" He snorted. "I mean, we're Rainwings, number one. If two adult dragons are digging each other and decide to go romp around in a hammock, what do we care? Just put in the egg in the hatchery if you don't want to keep it. Number two, you're the king, Xero. You can be with whoever you want. There's been plenty of queens who had multiple hatchlings from multiple partners, or who've even had harems. If you want to mate with a gardener or a soldier or pick up a Sandwing princess, it's not going to bother us. Well, maybe Magnificent, but you've already proven yourself to be a far better leader than her."
"Can't imagine that's a high bar." We both laughed at that.
"My point is," Fox continued, "That we Rainwings are very easygoing and open-minded when it comes to romance. So long as you're into it, and your partner's into it, you can do whatever you want. And if that means you want to marry Fruit Bat, or Majestic or whoever, you shouldn't let what other dragons say keep you from being happy."
I nodded, considering his words of wisdom. I was in no rush to commit to anything or anyone, even as my options became more and more apparent. Most of my life, I'd accepted that I'd be alone. I'd never thought I'd get an average Sandwing lady, let alone date someone of a different Tribe. But now I had options, now I was someone the ladies would be interested in. But as King, I knew I had a responsibility. I could be building a dynasty that lasts for generations, and could make or break the future of the Rainforest. If anything, I was thankful that I was still in the very early days of my reign. I had other, more time-sensitive things to worry about...
It took me a few days to realize that my subjects were getting strange ideas about me.
It started innocently enough, when a couple young dragonets presented me with a small figurine of myself, made with coconut shells and kiwi fruit skins. It was flattering and, honestly kinda cute, that these little kids were inspired to create art for me. It was a small thing, maybe the size of a scavenger or an egg, a mini-me armed with my crossbow up, wings flared and tail arched up ready to strike as some victorious Spirit. I still have it to this day, perched atop a bookshelf along with many other trophies I've accrued over the years.
On its own, the little statue didn't bother me. But it didn't stop there.
I started noticing that Rainwings weren't just referring to me as "My King" or "Your Majesty". They were starting to call me things like "Your Holiness" or "Your Majestic Holiness", or "The Animus King". Word of the chant from the RFC testing had spread, and now my subjects were getting this idea in their heads that my scientific knowledge and excellent craftsmanship was magic, and that I had been blessed by the Spirits to lead them into some golden age. I suppose I can't blame them for thinking that, considering the progress we were making in such a short amount of time. Everything was lining up perfectly, everyone doing their jobs with utmost efficiency.
I think I started to feel the pressure pile up on me. It's one thing to look at the Throne from the outside, and think of what you would do. It's another to actually have that power, and yet another to realize just how much other dragons depend on you for, well, everything. It made me question myself a lot more, especially in terms of self-worth. I wasn't one of them. I became King through a fluke. I came to this place in the wake of my greatest failure, when everything I'd worked for up to that point went up in smoke. They put so much trust and faith in me, and yet I found myself questioning myself more and more, and it was starting to mess with my head.
The night before our next meeting, I dreamed I was back at the Sandwing Palace. A great and terrible battle had taken place not too long ago, as all around me were the bodies of Sandwings, Rainwings, Nightwings and Seawings. They were riddled with arrows, torn apart, laying in pools of their own blood. It was almost impossible to make my way through the field of corpses, each step mere inches from caving in a chest cavity or crushing a skull. There was no sound as I walked, no whistle of wind nor call of birds or beasts as I passed.
As I approached the gate, the ground started to shake. A shadow rose up from behind the gate, three long necks emerging out of a horribly misshapen torso. Two scarred, ragged paws grabbed the ramparts, marked with stitches and clearly not belonging to the same body.
"YOU DID THIS!" The left-side came down, revealing Burn's mangled, rotting face.
"LOOK AT WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO US!" The middle head became Oasis, her broken jaw dangling and oozing black, rotten fluids.
"TO YOUR HOMELAND!" Blister's face came from the right, so pale and glowing as to be ghostly.
As they crawled over the gate, I looked up at the moon and stars above them. A thousand points of light swirled and coalesced into the shape of a dragon, light and darkness both familiar and utterly terrifying. I realized in the back of my mind that it was the thing within the Eye of Onyx, the spirit that tested me and found me wanting. Talons the size of constellations moved up and down, infinitesimal strings coming down to the undead hydra, puppeting the foul corpse and urging it forward. The behemoth stepped onto the desert floor, and the corpses began to shudder and shift, turning to look at me with dead, empty eyes.
"YOU ARE A TRAITOR!" The hydra and corpses decreed as one. "YOU ARE A COWARD! YOU ARE UNWORTHY OF YOUR CROWN, AND YOU! SHALL! BE! PUNISHED!" A giant rotting paw rose up into the sky, and came barreling down at me with the speed and ferocity of skyfire. I couldn't move. I couldn't scream. All I could do was stand there and watch my impending doom descend upon me.
I awoke with start, gasping for breath. Perhaps it was a sign that I was getting used to my new home, in that I immediately knew where I was. Outside, lightning flashed just above the Village, the roar of thunder so loud that the treehouse shook. In the corner, a dragon-shaped shadow was cast where nothing stood. I opened my mouth, preparing to spit fire at whatever foul thing that was haunting me.
"Easy there, Xero! It's me!" Maggy's form manifested out of the darkness, forelegs raised in defense. "It's Maggy."
"Maggy?" I sighed, falling back in bed. "What're you doing in my room?"
"I'm sorry," She apologized. "I didn't mean to frighten you. The Guard and I have been taking shifts watching over you while you sleep. We're supposed to stay outside your window, but the storm's a cold one from the north, so I came inside. If this bothers you, I can leave-"
"No, no, it's fine." I sighed, rubbing my eyes. "It's smart, I get it." I doubted that Blister or Nightshade knew I was here, so the odds of an assassin waltzing into the Palace and getting me were low, but it's better safe than sorry. Besides, in that moment, I was comforted knowing that my protector was here.
"Having nightmares?" She asked, looking at me curiously.
"Yeah," I sighed, trying to get comfortable, "Dreaming of home. My old home, that is."
"Your old boss, too?"
"Yeah."
"Burn, right? What was she like?"
I closed my eyes. "She was a monster. She hated dragons, and she liked to hurt them for fun. And I was a fool to she'd ever see me as anything more than a useful lackey."
I heard footsteps. "You liked her? Romantically, I mean?"
"I did, once. Before I knew what she really was." I rolled to my side, feeling sleepy again. "I just wish she was more like you."
"You do?" The footsteps stopped.
"Yes. I wish I served a princess with your heart. You care about your underlings, about animals, about the kingdom. You would've made a far better queen than any of the princesses."
"Is that who you saw in your dream, Xero? The ghost of your boss haunting you?"
"...Yes," I admitted, "Among other things."
There was a pause, and then she asked, "Do you mind if I tried something?"
"...Sure." I sighed.
Something climbed onto my bed. I opened my eyes as purple arms and wings wrapped around me, covering me like a comforting blanket. I thought of protesting, but then I remembered my sun-times with Batty, and relaxed. The Rainwings were a more cuddly, touchy-feely race, and while this felt intimate, it didn't feel sexual.
"I used to have nightmares as a dragonet." She explained, resting her head against mine. "Gallant would cuddle up with me as I slept, just like this. 'If the bad dreams want to get you,' he'd say, 'They have to go through me first!' I don't think he ever had nightmares, and when we cuddled, I didn't either. So if Burn's spirit wants to continue bothering you, she'll have to go through me."
I smiled, closing my eyes and placing my paws on hers. The last thing I remember before sleep took me again was her tail gently coiling around mine, and feeling safer than I had since I lived with my parents. And from then on, Maggy would insist on cuddling up at night, "for my protection and peace of mind".
So when I look back on those early days in the Rainforest, and hear stories and legends about me waking up with a different Rainwing day and night, I can't help but laugh. Technically, they're not wrong...