Hello all this is me Night Fire and as promised here is chapter two of falling stars but I do apologize for the long LOOOOONG wait but I didn't know why it would take me so long to write this but hopefully the third chapter doesn't take as long as the second one took. I hope you do enjoy it and give me feedback in what you think of it. for now laterz :D
Discovering a new Star
CH. 2
Looking back to the past hour that transpired I thought now how this day could get even stranger as I rinsed my bloody hands with a bottle of water staring in front of me to see the patient I treated and barely saved. After the initial shock of seeing a actual feral dragon stumble out of the cockpit injured and bleeding it took me a minute to pull myself together and barely save the life of the alien pilot. Even though the dragons' jumpsuit which I would assume was one was tattered to shreds I had to cut it off because it was in the way and I could use some of it to bind the dragon in case it woke up and tried to kill me. I checked my phone to see it was close to 12:00 A.M. and realizing that I needed much sleep I carefully dragged the heavy alien close to my tent so I could keep watch of it and so that it wouldn't be able to try and sneak up on me as I slept.
I sat down next to the camp fire soaking up its comforting warmth also thinking on how I was going to try and get the dragon into my house since mother would definitely freak out seeing a extraterrestrial unconscious in my pickup and no doubt calling the feds and maybe even demanding on how I found such a creature in the first place. I can just even imagine our house being quarantined with people in astronaut suits like in that movie E.T. I could try and hide it in the shed but then again if it were to waken in there it could hurt itself if it were to thrash around with all the dangerous equipment in there or mother finding it and having a similar theoretical situation happen but with just the shed, maybe.
I decided I might as well wing it when it came to that but for now I might as well and get some sleep in for the the night and plan on for tomorrow morning where I can think much more clearly and hope I'm not killed in my sleep too.
I woke up to the biggest luck of my life not with me still being alive which was a bonus but a text message I received from my mother.
'I want you to make sure everything is kept as it is and keep the dogs fed and bathed while I'm off for the month. I'm trusting you removed the tree from the path while I'm away. Oh and don't open the door to strangers!'
That's all it said. But reading it and rereading for good measure it is safe to say that I don't have to worry about a freaked out mother for a month and hopefully by that time I could find a place or way to hide the dragon when she does come back or that I'm not found on the floor of our living room bloodied and dead. So I started to pack up everything into the back of the pickup occasionally peering at the sleeping dragon to be sure it was still alive. Making sure everything was accounted for and nothing important would go missing I looked to the next obstacle which would be the heavy dragon lying down on the ground nearby the campfire thinking how I was going to carry it into the backseat of my pickup without injuring it.
Dragging it and Bridal style would be bad so I decided to piggyback it there. So placing the dragon onto my back was a bit hard because how it weighed but I was able to carry it somewhat comfortably but did notice the drooping wings and tail which could be a problem. When I did get it to my truck I had to mind the bandages on it and the fact the wings were being no help almost making it impossible to maneuver the dragon into my truck but with a lucky shove it was in the truck and had to shove in the wings and tail so the door didn't shut on them. Now that I think of it I'm grateful my father got this piece of tin can for me as the backseat was roomy enough to fit the damn alien. Checking once more that everything was in order I picked up the water bucket and doused the fire pit then slugging the bucket in the back. I stepped into the truck revving up the engines as I drove it out of the small clearing and into paved road towards home. I made sure to keep watch for any police cruisers that could be hiding and watching my speed limit as well since I definitely did not want to be caught with the alien in my truck.
I reached my home in a couple of minutes noting the lack of my mothers car in the driveway signifying she left still surprised at my apparent luck so driving it into the driveway I activated the garage doors impatiently waiting for them to open albeit slowly. Driving into the spot I prompted the doors to close once again waiting for it to shut while turning off the engines and getting out of the truck. I turned on the garage lights illuminating the somewhat dark room with it's yellow glow just staring at the door in which my concerns lie. I sighed opening the back door of the pickup and having to drag out the alien out of the backseat once again carrying it piggyback style closing the door with my foot then slowly walking to the door of the living room. I almost accidentally dropped the creature on the floor when our Yorkie Bentley started yapping at the dragon on my back.
"Hey Bentley no! Stop it! Go back to bed I don't need you waking it up!"
That was the last thing on my mind that I wanted happening because it would be an amazing idea to see what a creature I know nothing of would do to me while riding my back. After nudging and commanding the Yorkie away I hobbled through the living room then promptly stopped at the next obstacle where my room was located at.
"Oh you've got to be kidding me!" I swore to the gods above for my sudden misfortune because I forgot my room was upstairs to the second floor and how to get there is said stairs.
"I swear I'm going to either get a sore or broken back after this and I hope this is not going to be a regular thing." I muttered to myself.
I know I'm physically fit but the problem was that this creature weighed twice possibly thrice as much as I weigh and trekking up the stairs will not be pleasant. Taking the first step I winced a bit when the floor board squeaked quite loudly fearing it might give out from the combined weight but slowly I made my way up the stairs step by agonizing step looking up to see I was halfway there until when I took another step the dragon suddenly let out a small but yet sharp growl. I froze instantly in fear and almost would have dropped the creature so I could defend myself but looking at it's face it was still in deep sleep.
It made me wonder why it made that noise but when I looked down so I could continue up I noticed my boot was stepping on one of it's wings, oh that's why. Carefully lifting my boot off the aliens wing I made sure to place my foot down on the floor board and continue up the stairs almost reaching the top in which I could have sworn I heard something being knocked off and clanging loudly on the carpeted floor. I finally reached the top of the stairs but the damn wings were drooping on the floor uselessly making it hard to maneuver the dragon around but finally reaching my room I walked close to my bed and just dropped my whole body along with the dragon with me on my bed hearing it groan audibly and just realizing how stupid that idea was since now I was pinned in between my bed and the dragon.
I tried to pick up the dragon off the bed with me but that became a futile attempt because of the weight of the dragon and the softness of my bed working against my body. I tried to squirm my way out as well but that also gave similar results and now that my back was protesting and me carrying the creature up to my room it began to take a toll on me becoming tired and the fact that I was on my bed comfortably and the creature even though the weight is a bit much was very warm in contrast with my cold room. I began to feel very tired and before I knew it I fell into a deep sleep.
"Hoc est unum quinque septem tribus octo prompissima ataque omni motu perspicuum viridi."
Looking about the cockpit I continued to watch and monitor the systems for any anomalies or mechanical problems giving a few clicks and presses to other non essential systems to ensure they are in working conditions until I heard a reply.
"Hoc est ad unius turris quinque septem tribus octo placet exspectare confirmatio."
I hummed to myself double checking the ships systems once more and checking my flight helmet was in working order then looking back to the small screen to my left checking the warp cores systems if there was any problems. I thought back as to why I volunteered to do this until I remembered that I wanted to do it for the sole purpose to show my family I wasn't their little hatchling anymore and also because it gave me a sense of adventure to know that I would be the first to roam the stars, well actually the nearby planets but the point is that if this prototype warp core worked then we would no longer need the help of Battlecruisers to go anywhere.
"Hoc est ad unius turris quinque septem tribus octo estis viridi ire placeat cursusque inhibebat ad datum planeta."
Those words were like music to my ears checking all systems one final time before disengaging the docking clamps then gently pushing the throttle forward the ship slowly exits the station and into wonderful open space. Seeing that the ship was far enough away from the station to disengage the mass lock I added all 4 of the six pips to engines and with a gleeful smile put the ship to full throttle aligning the vessel to the targeted planet.
I woke with a start trying to clear my mind to the numbing dream until I couldn't even remember what I was dreaming about. Not caring about it I attempted to get up but a sudden weight kept me pinned to my bed. I slightly panicked and struggled to get out of what was pinning me to the bed, finding little resistance I braced my legs to the beds legboards then giving one good heave I was freed from the constricting weight that was on top of me. Feeling the familiar weight connected to my belt I drew my pistol and aimed to whatever was on my bed seeing a strange black form that I have never seen before. I studied it closely seeing that it was breathing evenly then I remembered everything that transpired the past day realizing this was the alien dragon I brought into my home.
"Frack I would have nearly killed it too." Muttering to myself I holstered my pistol back then decided to sit on my swiveling chair next to me looking at the clock on my nightstand to see it was 4 in the afternoon. I sighed to myself feeling my body still trying to wake itself up from that unexpected nap but I couldn't quite grasp the the dream I just had and even worse is I couldn't even recall anything of that dream feeling that there could have been something important about it. Forgetting about it I looked back to stare at the dragon now that I finally have some time to look at it, it definitely was feral looking, being pitch black in color with a few hints of grey discoloration from blood loss no doubt.
I could guess it would be as tall as me if it were to stand bipedal which would be close to 5.4' long. The head had a salamander like shape to it and it had these long flaps probably it's ears and it would sharpen out the farther up it went almost like horns even though they would twitch time to time. The paws were digit-grade in appearance and the claws even though sheathed were most likely very very sharp. The hind legs also gave the appearance of a cat or dog no doubt to hold the creatures weight well and for running and other physical things, the tail was long almost as long as me being thick at the base then thinning out the farther it went, it also had two sets of tail fins for the purpose of flight one set at the base of the tail and the other set at the tip of the tail but the tailfins at the tip seemed to have a crystal blue bone like protrusion from the outermost tips of the fins being as long as the fins themselves and looked very sharp. The wings were something to look at since it wasn't bat like but yet also had no feathers on them but gave the appearance of fur but found out they were very thin scales on it if you examined it carefully but I bet if I were to stretch it out it would give the appearance of a cloak, also on the elbows of the wing joints probably the thumb of the wings was the same crystal blue bone protrusions like the tail fins being as long as each wing and at the same time as sharp.
The wings themselves looked very large seeing as the dragon could fly for long hours without tiring spanning possibly a 42 ft wing span give or take. The body was also sleek in design showing it's build for speed and agility, I could see small dorsal fins running across it's back and tail also to help in flying. But I couldn't stop the feeling even though the body was sleek looking it also gave off this lithe and feminine feeling since it looked a bit wide from the hips and the way it was posed on my bed now that I noticed it must have shifted while it slept. I wished I could see what it's eyes would look like, would it be bestial or human, or probably a bit of both? Everywhere on it's body it had tiger like stripes which was a neon blue color. It was also toned well with the muscles rippling underneath it's hide showing it's strength, definitely not something to mess with for sure else I wanted a severed head.
Where did that thought come from?
Deciding not to ponder that over I lifted myself off my comfy chair and proceeded downstairs to make myself some lunch to fill my empty stomach. I scrumaged through the pantry and freezer grabbing a can of sweet peas and a box each of quick boil rice and mashed potatoes plus finding a nice T-Bone Steak in it's package. Pulling out a few small pots I rinsed them out before filling them with hot water except for one. Turning on 3 burners I placed the pots on them and threw in the bag of quick boil rice in one pot of water and the Package of Steak in the other pot of water. Opening one of the kitchen drawers I pulled out a can opener and used it to open the can of peas which I threw in the only empty pot in and checked the temperature to make sure it wouldn't be overdone. I opened the box of mashed potatoes mix and reading the instructions carefully made a quick batch of it before throwing it in the emptied out Steak pot which I checked was thawed out nicely.
"Lets not forget the spicy additions now." Chuckling to myself I went to the spice cabinet pulling out some garlic, oregano, Italian herbs, Smokehouse maple, and a small package of beef gravy. I threw in a dab of garlic with the boiling rice bag then taking a knife from one of the holders I cut open the T-Bone steak package while at the same turning on the stove top grill. Taking out the steak from the package I seasoned it with the remaining spices I didn't use then threw it on the grill. Listening to the satisfying sizzle I turned over the steak every other minute till it was cooked medium rare just how I like it. I placed the finished steak on a dinner plate then took out the finished rice and peas and put a good amount on the plate as well. Rinsing out one of the pots I filled it partly with hot water and put it back on the stove then taking the package of gravy mix I put in a good amount of the powder with the water then stirred it till it was mixed. After that I took out the pot with the potatoes and scooped some on my plate with the rest. Seeing as the gravy was thick I turned off the burner and put a good scoop of gravy on top of the potatoes.
After having everything set and ready I headed back up to my bedroom and found that the dragon was still deep asleep on my bed so I sat on my chair putting down the plate of food on the work desk, then rolling to the left I opened up my mini fridge and pulled out a can of ginger ale and saw that my half eaten 2 day old sub sandwich was still in there. Shrugging I opened the can and took a modest gulp relishing in the strong yet sweet flavor before putting it down. I pulled out a pair of spare utensils out of my nightstand drawer and a few napkins as well. I jabbed the fork in the pile of rice until I heard a sudden groan, I froze looking slowly to my bed to shockingly see the dragon stir itself awake but I felt like my whole body paralyze itself stone stiff when it opened it eyes and what I could only describe would be like the most beautiful crystal blue orbs of pure cut diamonds I have ever seen in my lifetime.
Seconds ticked by agonizingly slow as we continued to stare at each other for what felt like eternity and a earlier subconscious question within my mind popped up and obliviously stated they looked human like but that changed when it's eyes narrowed to slits and growling at me and it's demeanor became hostile. Unable to react in time it suddenly stood up in what I could assume was to attack me but it let out a blood curdling roar of pain and just slumped back down on my bed. Attempting to shake off the ringing in my ears I drew out my pistol and disengaging the safety while starring at the alien as it seemed to shudder in pain with it's eyes shut tight. I felt pity for the poor thing seeing it in the state it was in but it did try to attack me earlier though but watching it now it really did look helpless and even more so when it slowly opened it's eyes again to see hopelessness and fear.
"Quid exspectas? Interficere."
I nearly dropped the gun in shock since I would expect it to make growls or clicks to communicate but it spoke in a verbal language and it no she had a very feminine voice in a way of a combination of soft blowing winds and sweet honey but listening to it no her talking the subconscious part of my mind felt like there was something mysteriously familiar about it but I couldn't grasp it. I continued to stare at her not sure as to what I could do right
"-INTERFICERE!"
My whole body screamed out danger and I almost reacted by pulling the trigger but by some miracle my finger stayed from pulling the shot that would kill her and doing something entirely crazy I slowly lowered the weapon down until it was back in it's holster.
"I'm not going to hurt you. Not after what I went through to save you."
I was not sure if she could even understand me or not but she narrowed her eyes at me as if trying to understand what I said or if she thought I was lying to her but a loud rumble broke the tension between us and looking around wondering what made that noise I looked back to the dragoness and noticed she looked slightly away from me and her posture looked a bit cramped and wondering why she was like that another loud rumble resounded and that when I realized why.
"Well seems like someone is hungry." I stated and nervously chuckled when she looked back at me and gave a glare in annoyance but I noticed her attention divert slightly from me to something that was beside to my right. Looking I noticed that my uneaten plate of food was forgotten and looking back to her I noticed her facial expression had this pang of hunger. Again feeling pity and thinking this might help ease her nerves about me I slowly picked up the plate of food and being careful I put it on the edge of the bed as to not agitate her any further when I notice her stiffen a bit when I approached. Sitting back slowly I smiled in reassurance when she gave me a suspicious glare but she diverted her attention from me to the offered plate she was given looking unsure about something.
I stared at her as she continued to glare at the plate but after some uncomfortable minutes she picked up one of the sweet peas in between her index and thumb digits just starring at it not as to what to do with it. Deciding to give her an example I slowly reached out to the plate noting her glaring at me dangerously but ignoring her I grabbed one of the peas then retreating away I made a exaggerated show of popping it in my awaiting mouth then chewing it and swallowing it. She seemed to give me a dead panned glare as if saying she wasn't a little kid, still holding the pea in her paws then looking at it she popped the pea in her awaiting maw and looking at her expression it looked like she was trying to discern if she like it or not. She seemed to shrug then started lapping up the peas quite interestingly and after finishing that she decided to try the mashed potatoes where she jabbed a talon into it as if to test it's texture.
She also lapped that up but made extra sure to keep the gravy from dripping to the plate, or bed, or herself. Finishing it she stared dubiously at the fork that was unnoticed until now and I had to stifle a laugh when she pulled out the fork and looked it over curiously before deciding to fling it behind her back where it imbedded itself into the wall. I glared at her for that and she glared at me back in defiance in which I just huffed in annoyance muttering about having to fix the wall now. She looked back at the rice also giving that another jab with her talon then as if shrugging she gave that a lick and just not three seconds later I saw her eyes widen and she seemed to be coughing, hacking, and spitting the rice off of her tongue and mouth and I couldn't hold back myself as I laughed at her misfortune watching as she ran a paw across her tongue to get rid of the remains while giving me a death glare.
"That was for the wall." I smiled to myself.
I watched her give me another glare before looking back at the plate staring at the piece of steak and I could see the uncertainty in her eyes most likely from the rice episode but as if steeling herself she picked up the steak and gave that a tentative bite. I swore her facial expression could make anyone laugh from the way her eyes widened like dinner plates before she greedily attacked the steak with hungered gusto also to the point where she even was eating the bone! I swear I bet even a lion or tiger would have trouble breaking through bone like that even when cooked but the way she was eating it like it was just potato chips was a bit intimidating. I swear she cold snap me in half quite easily if she wanted to with those menacing jaws even noticing that the canines of her lower and upper fangs were also crystal blue and a bit longer and sharper unlike the rest which was milky white.
What is with my mind today that's the second time I though of something morbid...
Ignoring it I watched curiously as she licked the plate clean more specifically where the steak was reminding me of doing something like that when I really liked the taste and to agitate my mother knowing it was unmanly as such, and it made me think that such an advanced and complicated creature had no table manners at all and I had to chuckle at that in which I was rewarded with a suspicious glare from the dragoness. When she finished she pushed the plate dangerously close to the edge of the bed and I had to quickly but carefully take it before it toppled to the floor with the rice still there not wanting to clean up a bigger mess. Hoping that the dragoness wouldn't leave I went back down to the kitchen to clean the plate then grabbing a pitcher from the lower cabinets filled it with cool filtered water from the fridge. Heading back up to my room I noticed she was sitting up now carefully inspecting the bandages wrapping around her body then perked her attention my way giving me a questioning glance.
"Tu ad me sanabit eras?"I still could not understand what the dragoness was talking about but a prompt nod of her head to the bandages gave me an idea what she was meaning to say so I gave her a curt nod. I noticed her change in demeanor from the way her body relaxed albeit slightly and her expression soften a bit.
"Gratias tibi ago... Mihi dolet tam rudis superius."
I decided to give her a curt smile just to be nice seeing as how her intentions weren't hostile to me since she woke up then I realized I was still holding the pitcher of water in my hand so I offered it to her. She just stared at the offered pitcher for a minute until I saw her reach out for it slowly and when I saw she had a firm grip on it I slowly let it go, watching her looking at it she begun to drink it eagerly till she finished the entire thing which didn't surprise me a bit. I had to refrain myself by telling her not to down it all in one go but seeing her drink it all easily I only shrugged and decided to do something around my room to distract myself but to no avail and also because there's a darn alien in my own room too. I just sat back down on my chair and just noticed that the pitcher was on my nightstand then looking at the dragoness she seemed to get into a more comfortable position on my bed with a contented sigh looked at me briefly and just like that promptly fell asleep.
"Ok did a dragon just fall asleep on my own bed not knowing where she is?" I whispered to myself just flabbergasted that she would just do that and not even know if I could even be trusted, heck I could even just pull out my gun and just kill her on the spot there if I wanted to and there would be nothing she could do.
I mean the amount of blind trust she put onto me is just phenomenal that I don't even have the words anymore. I just gave a frustrated sigh in response and it also came to my attention that I would have to sleep in the guest bedroom for the night due to the fact my own bed is currently occupied. Looking at the time it was around 5:30 in the afternoon and seeing nothing else to do I decided to check on my inbox on a game called Elite: Dangerous and see if one of the factions accepted my join applications. Seeing none I closed down the laptop having nothing else to do but watch the dragoness sleeping peacefully on my own bed.
"Might as well do the same."
Getting up I briskly but quietly left my room being silent in closing my door as to not startle awake the sleeping dragon then left downstairs to the spare room we had for guests. Opening the door and stepping inside I looked around the room just to find it reasonably sparse with a decent bed, a small night table with a lamp, and a small drawer for guest to put their clothes in. Removing the gun from it's holster I put it underneath the pillow just to feel safe and in case I needed it in a moments notice and decided to keep my knife in it's own holster. Closing the door and locking it I settled on the bed not bothering with the blankets and drifted in a restless sleep.