Chapter 5: Discussion
I sat in bed with a blanket pulled up around my chest, awkwardly glancing back and forth between Leah, a blue dragon named Shimmer, and the head of a large green dragon that was looking into the room through a window. His scales were dark green with a few spots of brown scattered throughout. He had six dark brown horns on the top of his head that pointed back and curved gently towards his neck, and he was looking at me curiously. He was too large to fit inside the building, so he opted to sit outside to participate in the conversation. His green eye blinked at me as I stared, and I couldn't help but feel unnerved as he analyzed me.
Leah had returned a few minutes ago with some food as she had promised, and I nervously munched on some kind of meat while the Shimmer watched me with unabashed curiosity. That made it much more difficult to relax, and I was slowly growing more and more irritated with her. I met her gaze quietly, and although I was annoyed, I marveled at how pretty her crystal blue eyes were and that they matched her main scale color perfectly. She was sitting close to the bed and from what I could tell, she was barely shorter than me, but was... longer? Her tail added a lot to her length and overall she was intimidating, if only for her size. Ignoring that though, she had a slender build and didn't seem to be as sturdily built as her dad was. I met her eyes again, and she gave me a small smile followed by a wave that I didn't know how to respond to, so I averted my gaze and focused on the floor.
When I finally finished eating, I took a quick drink of water and readied myself for the questions. Leah handed me some clothes and then had everyone look away while I got dressed. She gave me a simple cloth shirt and a pair of pants that were a bit too big, but they helped to give me a semblance of space between myself and everyone else in the room, so I wasn't going to complain. Once I was dressed and comfortable, I sat, leaning back against the wall, cross legged with my hands resting in my lap. Leah was the first to speak.
"I couldn't find much else in terms of clothes that would fit you and your old set is in need of repair. I hope you don't mind Kiran."
"I don't. It's very kind of you to let me use these, thank you."
"It's no problem, they're spare clothes that I happened to have. Now, let me introduce you to these two. The blue dragon is Shimmer;"
Said dragon gave me a small, energetic wave.
"and the green dragon is her father, Feldspar."
He gave a small nod.
"Feldspar asked me to take care of you while you recovered. He's an old friend of mine and may be able to help answer some of the questions you have. He has a bit more knowledge of the world than I do."
Feldspar snorted and lifted up a claw. He then made several motions before Leah waved a hand at him dismissively.
"Hush Feldspar. You've traveled across most of the world, which is something I haven't done."
He made more motions and I realized that he must have been using some kind of sign language. He turned his head as he made a strange grunting noise, and I caught a glimpse of a large scar running across his neck, near the base of his skull. His inability to speak suddenly made sense.
"Of course I remember! Did you think I would forget something like that so easily? My memory isn't that far gone!" Leah barked back at him.
Feldspar only smiled smugly and the two began to bicker about age and memory. Shimmer moved closer to the bed with a sigh.
"Sorry about those two. They tend to get into arguments. A lot."
She rolled her eyes and then smiled at me.
"So, how are you doing? You were in pretty bad shape when I found you in the woods."
Some of my irritation was still lingering from before and I had to bite my tongue to prevent myself from responding sarcastically.
"I'm… better. I'm not bleeding to death or coughing up blood, which is nice."
"That's great! I'm glad you're feeling better."
She waited for me to respond but I didn't. She shuffled on her claws and looked back and forth between me and her dad as if searching for something to talk about. Light from outside danced across her scales and they seemed to shimmer-
"Well, I guess I know why that's her name."
She was content with our awkward silence as we listened to the pair next to us bicker, but her face suddenly lit up with a… concerned… or was it a frustrated look? I couldn't tell, but she frowned at me.
"Why'd you run away from me in the first place anyway!? If you had just talked to me, I bet you wouldn't have been in so much trouble!"
I felt my pride swell up, feeling embarrassed for how I had panicked and fled. I wanted to deny how I had felt, but she seemed like she genuinely cared, and I didn't want to alienate the dragon that had helped me. I let out a heavy sigh and dropped my shoulders to let the humiliation settle in my chest before answering.
"I'm sorry. I had never seen a dragon before and didn't know where I was. I was… scared, ok?"
She looked surprised at my answer and her anger seemed to vanish just as quickly as it had come.
"Oh, really? You've never seen a dragon and you're lost? I'm so sorry!"
She moved closer to the bed, cocked her head to the side, and looked at me with big, curious eyes.
"So where are you from? How'd you get here?"
Feldspar and Leah picked this moment to end their argument and return their attention to us. I didn't like the sudden spotlight and I shifted nervously on the bed. My throat hitched and at first, I didn't think I'd be able to respond. I tensed up and clenched my fists tightly, feeling worried that telling them where I was from wouldn't end up helping me in any way, but I still held onto a sliver of hope. Maybe Feldspar knew something about my village and could help me get home?
"I'm from the village of Light, wedged between the Land of Fire and the land of Earth."
I closed my eyes tightly as I waited for their response.
"Please, please know something."
I didn't get an immediate response and I dared a small peek. Feldspar and Shimmer were looking at me with various levels of confusion and Leah just sighed.
"I've never heard of any place like that before. Is that across the ocean or something?" Shimmer said.
My heart plummeted into my stomach. They had no idea where I was from. If no one knew where I came from, how could I get home? I blanched at the idea of being stuck here and Leah leaned forward to put a reassuring hand on my knee.
"I want to help you Kiran, but you need to tell me everything about your situation. We may not know where you are from, but maybe we can help if you tell us how you got here?"
I nodded sullenly. Maybe they could tell me something about the black crystal or the strange place I found myself falling through a few days ago?
"Good. Did you cross one of the oceans or travel over any mountain ranges?"
"No, I didn't cross an ocean or pass through any mountains. To be frank, I'm not entirely sure how I got here. A lot happened very quickly and not all of it makes sense to me... From what I can piece together, a black crystal sucked me into some kind of… portal. Then, I found myself falling through some strange place that reminded me of the night sky and… I passed out, only to wake up in the woods not too far from here."
Leah and Feldspar grew visibly rattled when I mentioned the crystal and Leah pulled out a gleaming red crystal from her bag before asking her next question.
"Did the crystal look anything like this?"
I looked over the crystal and nodded.
"Pretty much, except it was black."
Leah shared a quick concerned look with Felspar.
"That's not good, black crystals should never be tampered with. They're dangerous and have many ill, if not fatal effects as far as I know."
She paused as Feldspar talked with her and a serious frown fell into place on her face. Feldspar then made a few motions at Shimmer, who replied indignantly.
"What? No! Dad, I'm old enough to-"
His stern gaze cut off her reply and her entire body sagged in disappointment.
"Fiiiiine. But I'm going to hear about this later!"
She turned to me and smiled.
"My dad doesn't think I'm mature enough for this conversation, so we can talk later. Hope you feel one hundred percent better soon!"
"Oh, Uhm, ok, see you later."
Shimmer waved a wing at me and gave Feldspar a small "hmph" as she left the small house, leaving me alone with Leah and Feldspar. I felt the atmosphere of the room shift and it put me on edge.
"Why did you have one of those crystals? Were you aware of how dangerous it was?" Leah asked.
I almost laughed sarcastically at the question. If I had known the danger we were in at the time, I would have never let Luna hold onto it. I couldn't help but feel anger and frustration about the situation and I responded to the question with venom in my voice, using the two in front of me as a vent for the roiling tempest of emotions inside of me.
"Of course I didn't know! My village was interested in it, but I wouldn't have agreed to the retrieval if I had known what it would do! My friends are dead and I'm stuck here trying to hold onto the hope that somehow I can make it back home. As far as I'm concerned the stupid thing is cursed and I'm never messing with it again."
It felt good to vent some of my anger, but I felt a twinge of regret as Leah looked shocked and recoiled a bit. Feldspar frowned and growled, filling the room with a low rumble. I winced internally, knowing that they were trying to help me and I had responded poorly by yelling at them. Embarrassed by my outburst, I looked away from them, trying to hide my shame as I silently berated myself. Leah gave my knee a small squeeze before replying with a voice filled with understanding.
"I know that you're frustrated Kiran, but yelling at us won't fix any of the problems you face. I'm sorry that this misfortune has fallen onto you and that you have lost some of your friends because of it. It seems that you have been through much in a short amount of time."
I was thankful that she was being more patient than I was and nodded quietly before I made a small attempt to defend myself.
"I know, and I'm sorry... I didn't mean to yell at you two. As you said, a lot has happened recently and I'm trying to make sense of it all. Please forgive me."
Feldspar snorted dismissively and I got the sense that he accepted my apology, albeit begrudgingly. Leah put a hand up to her chin thoughtfully.
"I'm sorry about your friends, but do you know why you were sent to retrieve the crystal in the first place?" Leah asked.
That was a great question and I wasn't sure if I wanted to answer her.
"Well… there's currently a war between some of the larger nations where I'm from. The hope was that the crystal would give us the power to fight off the threat of either destruction or absorption. That didn't pan out very well though, because I have no idea where the crystal went..."
"I see. Interesting."
She turned and talked with Feldspar for a moment.
"I'll be honest, this is out of our knowledge base and ability to resolve. My advice would be to travel south to talk with some of the council members that reside in Warfang. They should know more about your situation and it would be good for them to know about your home. If the war there could somehow reach here, they would need to know so that they could prepare."
That bit of information caught me off guard and I felt hope stir up inside of me.
"Warfang? Is that a city? Some people can help me?"
Leah held up her hand to stop my barrage.
"It's the capital of the dragon realms. The council there is the head of the current government and they are full of experienced, wise folk. Some of the members have had exposure to dark crystals, so I'm sure they'll be able to help you."
My heart fluttered as hope blossomed in my chest. I felt a wave of relief wash over my shoulders and I couldn't help but get excited at the prospect.
"How do I get there? How far is it?"
Leah crossed her arms and shook her head.
"Oh no, I know what you're thinking. You're not going anywhere until you're fully recovered. You can afford a few days of rest."
"But what about the war? If it's a possible danger to this land, isn't it something that should be addressed quickly?"
"Yes... but I have a feeling that you are a unique case. Do you know of any other dark crystals in your world?"
"...No."
"And do you think that it's likely for someone else to somehow make their way here?"
"…No."
"Then I don't think a few days will make much of a difference. You can wait."
I wanted to argue with her with every fiber of my being, but I knew she was right. I could barely walk right now and would need to get my strength back before I traveled again. It also seemed unlikely that someone else, let alone an entire army, would somehow get stuck in the situation I was in or find their way here. There wasn't a reason to rush, aside from my desire to leave. Reluctantly, I agreed with her.
"Fine, but I'm going as soon as I can. If there's any chance for me to get home then I'm going to take it."
"Of course. I won't stop you from leaving. But if you're willing to wait a few days, you can travel with the monthly caravan that comes from Warfang. I'm sure Feldspar could arrange for you to tag along with Shimmer because I would advise against traveling alone. There are dangers that you could run into, such as rogue apes, shadow apes, or even a creature that's looking for easy prey, and it's much safer to travel in a group with armed guards. What do you think?"
That piqued my interest. Traveling with a group would be slower, but she was right about it being safer. This world had a lot of dangers that I was blind to, such as whatever the heck shadow apes were, and waiting a few extra days would give me a chance to learn more about this village and the land itself. If anything, the rest would allow me to finally deal with the topic I had been avoiding for several days, that being the death I had dealt to my team, and my friend, Luna.
"That… makes a lot of sense. I don't want to sit around, but if you can get me a spot I would be grateful. If anything, you've been more than kind to me so far and I owe you."
Leah smiled kindly and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder.
"Think nothing of it, Kiran. If we're to survive in this world, we have to be willing to work together and be generous with what we have."
Now that was not a philosophy many would agree with. Often I would hear the exact opposite from the leaders and people in my village. We were a small nation fighting against people more powerful and resourceful than us which left little room to share or to be kind to those that wandered through or got caught in the middle of the mess. I could think of more than one occasion where we ignored or refused to help foreigners passing through as they were searching for refuge or assistance because we didn't have the luxury to help. To see a group of people that lived differently was… refreshing, and I admired the ideal, even if I felt it was impractical. From my position on the bed, I gave a small bow.
"At the very least then, if you're willing to be so kind, let me thank you by offering my service. If there's anything I can do to repay you both while I'm here, don't hesitate to ask. I mean it."
I heard Felspar chortle again and I looked up to see Leah smiling.
"Well, if you're so inclined, I think it would be good for you to help Shimmer with some of her chores while you're recovering. She tends to do odd jobs for others around here, and I'm sure she could use another set of hands."
Leah then mumbled a few words quietly.
"Ancestors know that she needs someone to keep her focused."
"Sure, I can do that. When would you like me to start?"
Leah and Feldspar glanced at each other.
"Not today. I think it would serve you best to rest until tomorrow. In fact, Shimmer can come by in the morning and snag you before she starts on her chores, as long as Feldspar approves of you joining her."
Felspar gave a curt nod and then made a motion toward something outside of the house.
"Ah, I almost forgot. Kiran, we have your sword and a few of your belongings at the town hall. If you head there tomorrow you can get them from a mole named Pimvon. He'll be at one of the secretary desks inside of the main lobby."
I had forgotten about my sword and wondered if they had recovered the rest of my belongings as well.
"Shimmer didn't happen to bring back a pack with her, did she? I dropped it at some point when I was trying to make my way here."
"I'm afraid she didn't. If it wasn't with you when she found you, it's not here." Leah said.
"Ah."
I took a deep breath and settled into the new reality that I was in. I had a small hope that I was holding onto now and it was staving off the despair that was overwhelming me earlier. With nothing else to talk about, I thought back to our previous conversations and a few questions worked their way to the forefront of my mind.
"Do you mind if I ask a few questions, Leah? There are some things you mentioned before that I'd like to learn about."
Leah made herself comfortable in her chair and turned back to Feldspar.
"You can go now if you wish. I can answer his questions alone."
Felspar nodded and closed the window with his claws. I then heard a familiar thumping noise as he took to the air. After a few moments, the room was quiet once again.
"Well, Kiran, what did you want to know? And do keep in mind I still have some questions for you as well."
Leah leaned forward intently. Several questions ran through my mind, but I settled on one that had been bugging me since I woke up.
"You mentioned something about a healing crystal when you first came here. What were you talking about?"
"Ah yes, the healing crystal. I suppose it would be good to explain them to you if you've never seen or heard of them before."
Leah pulled the red crystal from before out of her bag.
"This is a healing crystal. Dragons are able to harness the energy stored within to heal their physical wounds. As it turns out, they also work on you, which is… strange. I haven't seen another race able to naturally use crystals like that. You are different in that sense."
"So… the crystal stores energy…? Do you mean chakra?"
"Chakra? What that?" Leah asked.
I took a moment to figure out how to answer her properly. It was a complex subject that I wanted to keep simple for both of our sakes.
"Well, chakra is the natural energy that our bodies produce that we can use for… techniques. I can use chakra to create or manipulate different elements, and I have an affinity for wind. Does that make sense?"
Leah gave me a firm nod.
"It does. It sounds very similar to what dragons can do, and although some cheetahs can use magic, the energy source isn't from our bodies. Apes were able to artificially harness the power of the crystals for their own purposes, but that's not what you do. Perhaps this chakra explains why you were able to heal from the crystals...? Whatever the case may be, they work, which is a blessing for you."
I nodded, glad to have something else positive happen to me.
"So, now that I know how I was healed, can you explain what the mark on my shoulder is?"
Leah shook her head.
"That I cannot tell you. I am guessing that it has something to do with the dark crystal, but I can't say for sure. You'll probably be able to find more information in Warfang."
"Alright, I'll ask about it when I get there."
I added the question to a mental list and asked the next one that came to mind.
"So, I had Farleigh fever. How do you contract the sickness? What does it do to someone?"
"The fever is usually gained through ingestion of food that is carrying the sickness. There were some berries in one of your pouches, so I'm assuming that you ate some, correct?"
I nodded. I had eaten a few on my initial journey to the village, which was a basic mistake that I shouldn't have made.
I can't believe I was that stupid... I can't make a mistake like that again.
"Then that would explain where you acquired the disease. It's not usually deadly, but it has been known to cause a variety of issues, including fainting and hallucinations. You were suffering from its effects more than most because your body was already dealing with a heavy injury and exposure to the cold."
I sighed and gave Leah a sad, sarcastic smile.
"So I should avoid eating strange plants?"
She smiled back and shook her head slightly.
"Absolutely. You wouldn't want to eat something poisonous, would you?"
"Of course not. I could only imagine the result of that kind of mistake."
She chuckled a bit before I had to clear my throat, and then I asked another question.
"You mentioned something about apes earlier. Who are they? From what I've heard it sounds like they're bad news."
"Ah, the apes. It's a long story, so I shall keep it brief. Before Malefor returned, the apes split into two factions. Those who wanted to continue the war in pursuit of vengeance and power, and those that defected and desired peace. The apes that kept fighting were either cursed by Malefor or banished to Dante's Freezer, a frozen island to the north. Occasionally some of them make their way back and cause issues on the mainland, which is why I asked you about them."
"There was a war recently?"
Leah sighed heavily and I saw the age in her features for the first time. Her head sagged, her eyes lost some of their sparkle and there was a visible weight on her shoulders.
"Yes, over fifteen years ago. I'm not particularly fond of that time so I'll keep it brief. A dragon named Malefor was determined to destroy the world and spent many years killing all who opposed him. Malefor almost succeeded in his task, but two dragons, Spyro and Cynder, stopped him before he could succeed. After Malefor was destroyed, there was a war with the creatures that he had created called grublins. They were still loyal to him despite his destruction, but the guardians, along with Spyro and Cynder, led an army that finally defeated and destroyed them. I know you must be curious, but if you have any more questions about it I suggest you talk with someone else. I only have poor memories of that time."
I took that as a warning not to press further. I had more things I wanted to know, but the change in atmosphere made me feel guilty to pry for more. Instead, I decided to leave things be and rest some more. All the emotions that I had gone through and everything that I had learned took a lot out of me and I was struggling to wrap my mind around everything I was being told.
"I think that's all I have for now. I know you wanted to ask me some things, but if it's alright with you I'd like to get some sleep. I... have a lot to sort through."
Leah nodded and seemed to shift back to her former self.
"Fine, but I would love to sit with you and discuss your home sometime in the future. For now, though, I'll be right outside this door if you need my help. Don't be afraid to ask for me."
"Ok, thank you."
Quietly, she got up from her chair and left the room. I slowly laid down on the bed with a heavy sigh and began reflecting on the day. There wasn't much to do just yet, but there was a lot to learn, and I resolved to get as much information as I could from Shimmer while I was helping her tomorrow because it seemed that this world had its history of conflict and I wanted to make an attempt to familiarize myself with it before I met with the council.
I yawned and settled back into the mattress and pulled the warm blanket over me. Although my mind was buzzing with information, I found it easy to close my eyes and relax, and it wasn't long before my thoughts mellowed out and I drifted off to sleep.
Edits on 9/19/2021 - Grammar and Spelling Fixes
Edit on 9/27/2021 - Added details to Shimmer's description.
Edit on 10/25/2022 - General changes to sentences and grammar/spelling fixes.