The Adventure Begins

A day. A night. Another day.

S’re stayed near the tree line to remain hidden but close enough to the road in case Jasper returned. A small range of Tunk’ta had walked down the trail. People riding various types of burden beasts went by, oblivious to her and her curious hatchling. At least there had been no predators– or visions.

She was already out of the rations she had brought with her. At least she wasn’t thirsty with the river so near, even bathing once, much to the youthful joy of her hatchling. He was a good hunter, stealthy and clever. He attempted to offer his kills, but she dared not build a fire, not when at least one War dragon flew by overhead every day and night, randomly circling the area on lazy patrol.

Another restless night. Another weary day.

She’d had enough of waiting. She would go in the morning.

Dreary and dull, perhaps it was the hunger clouding her judgment, but she thought she could use the thickening fog to hide her while she attempted to at least catch a glimpse of Randel. That seemed like it would work in her favor. Surely she’d notice such a massive animal, even in this.

Her hatchling still slept. Figuring he would be a problem, she slipped away and walked for some time within sight of the road. Thankfully, the damp hour ensured it was deserted.

At last, out of the mist around the trees, she could see the buildings. There were only 3, several stories each, and a great field behind them that vanished into the vapor. Dragons snorted and chatted with each other where she could not see them.

Sneaking closer, she was hoping to see more of the field, perhaps the tell tale signs of a Tunk’ta buried in the ground. The fog was simply too dense and wandering blindly through a field with War dragons seemed far from a smart idea– even as a Tamer. If nothing else, they would give her away with their curiosity.

Glancing about, she saw no obvious guards. Other than the dragons chittering and trilling to each other, there were no other sounds. The place felt deserted with the ghostly fog drifting through the spaces between each building.

Perhaps, she thought, she could spy Jasper instead? Creeping close to a building, she peeked through a window too clean to be abandoned. Just a storage room. Trying another window, still she saw no one.

A presence behind her caused her to gasp, but before she could turn, a large hand gripped her loose ponytail, wrapping it around before jerking her up and slamming her against the wall as hard as her hearts slammed into her ribs. She heard the cock of a gun. Not knowing her bounty required her alive, her breath hitched, her chest tightening when she felt the icy press of the metal against her temple.

“Just my lucky day,” the soldier started eagerly before taking a deep sniff and chuckling. “They were right. Elves do have a smell.” Letting go of her hair, he twisted her arms back to bind them, his solid body holding her still. “You’re under arrest, traitor. Don’t try anything. My dragon hasn’t eaten today, and I’m not that attached to the bounty.”

Marched to another building and shoved through the door into a communal eating area, all eyes turned to her before there was a flurry of activity. Taken to the last building, she was forced into a small metal cage in the middle of the room, cuffed to the bars. Two guards were commanded to remain with her while the rest went back to their common house, the lieutenant atwitter about the money they would all receive.

She recognized the one who had found her by his voice, still on the subject of her smell. Leaning against the bars to sniff at her, she felt his finger twirling her hair. His lewd and brazen comments made her skin crawl and press her knees together, pulling away from him as best she could while staying quiet and keeping her eyes down. Thinking she was a thief was probably better than knowing she was a Tamer, and she couldn’t afford to be shocked by odd sensations right now.

The other guard leered at her as well and did not discourage his friend, but instead steered the conversation to hopes of early retirement on the reward money. Anything to be gone from the outdated outpost.

The first one was now running a finger up her ear, making her flinch away to his amusement. As far as he was concerned, anywhere could be tolerable with a H’elfling to make his bed smell so sweet.

Not a full anxiety-ridden half hour ticked by when a loud commotion outside drew their attention away from her. Startled voices cried out, causing the guards to peer at each other. The one nearest the door opened it to see what was going on.

He let out a scream as he was knocked down by a large black mass, copper eyes wide and wild. The hatchling leapt off the soldier, giving a squealing roar.

The standing guard reached for his sword when the air shimmered with intense heat, making him cough and cover his mouth and nose. A ribbon of viscous liquid fire spewed across the walls, chemically ballooning into a roiling inferno that crawled along the ceiling. The wood caught flame immediately, causing both soldiers to cry out in panic.

The hatchling rushed to the cage. His serrated teeth were no match for the metal, and he growled in frustration. When he heard one of the guards approach, he whipped around, snarling at them, the air growing hot enough to shimmer again. Glancing at each other, they both decided backup was in order, fleeing out the door while the smoke grew thicker in the room.

Coughing, S’re crouched low to stay out of the acrid haze. She was getting light headed and faint. The cuffs that held her were too solid even for her most aggressive attempt to escape, scraping her wrists raw before she had to give up, dizziness overwhelming her while she gasped for air on the floor. The ashes that floated down around her touched her skin with the tenderness of snowflakes, reminding her of all her favorite moments with her favorite person.

Again the hatchling attempted to chew at the bars, soon pacing before her in vocal irritation.

A shadow appeared in the doorway. The hatchling growled but did not attack. Keys jingled, the cage door squealing open, and she felt familiar hands on her, releasing her from the cuffs.

“S’re, come on!” Jasper helped her up with a steadying grip and rushed her out the door as beams began to crack over their heads. Sucking in a deep breath with relief, it caught in her throat.

All three buildings were ablaze to varying degrees. The old wood of the outdated structures invited their demise in the blackening embrace of incineration. The flames reached out to hungrily kiss the leaves of nearby trees parched by a dry summer.

She didn’t get much time to gawk at the destruction. Jerked out of her alarmed reverie, Jasper pulled her along through the chaos, heading out into the field.

The War dragons snorted and peered at the people running past them when a few of them became agitated, feeling their Bonded fear the loss of their lives. Growling, they lunged into the air, their wingbeats fanning the fog, the smoke, and the flames.

Running up a familiar hill, Jasper let out a shrill whistle. “Time to go, Randel! Now, buddy!”

The ground shuddered under their feet as the dragon rose. Though he sniffed the air curiously, he obeyed when Jasper commanded him to walk away from the smoke. As he went, Randel rumbled to the lush mountain that had been beside him. The other male lifted his head to reply and watch them leave.

Together, they watched the fire spreading by the surreal ribbon of deep crimson dancing in the thick, black shroud that mingled with and devoured the fog. Thankfully, the blaze seemed to be headed towards the river and far behind them.

“You know,” Jasper said grimly, “the Serpents’ Law told us not to mess with dragon genetics. I fear we’ve had a hand to play in something very terrible for this world, S’re.”

He turned and took her hand. Unable to hold it in any longer, she threw herself upon him, relief washing through her when his arms encircled her. “Jasper, I was so worried, I...”

He didn’t let her finish the thought, his fingers buried in her hair to pull her down and hold her to his lips.

“I’m sorry I worried you,” he said softly when they parted. She bent down to lay her head on his shoulder. “I wanted to leave right away but I got quite the tongue lashing for how I’ve handled Randel, and he was absolutely right. I needed to give him the time to heal. I was getting ready to leave when I heard them talking about the bounty money. I was trying to figure out what I would do when your dragon bounced right up and just started setting everything on fire!”

Her head snapped up in surprise and locked eyes with him. She shuddered, her breath short. The longer she looked into his warm gaze, the more she saw of him, of the lessons he had learned from experiences she could not fully make out, the way he thought about his life, and the magic that bound him to his dragon, like a great eye open wide, allowing them to peer within each other. The sensations became so intense that she needed to break contact.

He let out his breath, blinking in a bit of shock. “That was ... slightly unpleasant.”

This time, she did not lose consciousness, but she did feel light headed. She had not eaten well in many days. Jasper was quick to have her seated and food warming for her over their small burner.

She peered at her dragon. He seemed groggy, swaying a little as he sat otherwise elegantly, paws together, tail wrapped around him, chest out and head held high. She smiled. “My fiery little hero.”

The dragon perked to her voice. Instead of turning his head, he let his head fall back so that he was looking at her upside down. “He-ooo!”

Jasper chuckled. “That’s cute. And there is no doubt he will do anything to save you. You know, including burn down a forest...”

As she ate, she could see through a hole in the vegetation of Randel’s ecosystem through the small window over their bed. The sky behind them was still brilliantly red, smoke building in the glittering sky as the fog lifted. The fire was spreading further and faster than they had thought.

“S’re.” Her name drew her back to the moment. “I heard a lot of talk while I was hanging around with Jerred, the Tender who helped Randel. You’re bounty number one in all of Zaparow. It’s not even about you being a Tamer, they’re pissed about him,” he nodded to her hatchling. “It’s why I couldn’t even risk slipping away to try to find you. I didn’t dare chance anyone noticing or questioning.”

Hanging her head, Jasper continued so she couldn’t speak.

“I also heard them talking about the state of our treaties. There hasn’t been any official declaration of war between the nations, but Mardarow, Zaparow and Sadgos’Lak all recently announced abandoning their peace treaties. Things aren’t looking so good between them.”

Sucking in a breath, he sat beside her, taking her hand. “We can’t stay here. Your face is everywhere. We wouldn’t be able to go anywhere near civilization and that’s no way to live.”

“Where would we even go?”

He sighed deeply. “I think we should go back into Mardarow. Your face won’t be plastered everywhere. We’re pretty close to the border, I think, we can hop over. If we hope to get in without much trouble, now’s the time. They’re still allowing Tenders through without too much hassle, and I did just have to dig out all my paperwork. I am still a citizen.”