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Memoirs of Dragora

Chapter 10: The Unspoken Alliances

The jungle's usual fog had receded since the assault of Krjn, leaving them band of travelers to catch the rare beauty that showed as they saw all kinds of life teeming around and up the trees arching over the path. Dragora looked up to see the picturesque view of the sun shining through the canopy, scattering light across the path and making the smaller plants stand on end to catch the little that made it to the jungle floor. Nij was looking at the various tribes of natives in the distance, rejoicing at the shroud being lifted and being able to hunt with ease. Slypnir was just looking forward down the path, lost in thought and not paying attention to anything else around him. Slypnir found it much easier to navigate, being able to see ahead and not fear a sudden turn in the flowing road, dodging the enormous tree roots that fanned from the trunks. It was dusk when they finally found the end of the jungle and the beginning of the familiar sands that stretched to the horizon, formed by one of many sand dunes within.

Slypnir pulled over to the side to make camp, where everyone jumped out and stretched from being packed in so tightly. Zerion prepared the food without delay and dozed off into a deep sleep after he ate. The two young minks ate quickly, but instead of going to sleep they ran around and played, oblivious to the lack of energy everyone else had.

"I've always wondered what kept Zerion going..." Dragora said to Slypnir, concernedly looking to his sleeping companion who was shifting around in his sleep.

"And now he has nothing to look to is what it seems like. An entire army destroyed by one demon... and was slain easily considering that there were only two of you." Slypnir replied, studying the minks run around.

"Now it doesn't sound like it adds up... those soldiers were just as apt in fighting as we were but they were slain in a mass, yet only me and father took it down. Do you think that there were more?" Dragora asked grimly, having the worry of a much greater army than their own stalking the land.

"There had to have been, for even if they were caught sleeping, after one or two died the rest would have been up to fight." Slypnir stated, looking to Dragora and seeing the worry in his eyes. "If they were headed to Aerinia they're making a grave mistake, the royal guard and the army, plus the militia and the mages will all fight to defend their loved ones, and the masonry of the walls could stand any battering ram."

"You're right, they wouldn't stand a chance... but still, what if we run into them out here?" Dragora answered cautiously.

"A caravan can travel faster than a marching army, and I don't think they would take much notice to such a meager number of people." Slypnir replied, trying to ease Dragora's mind of the danger.

"Well the only thing I can really say in this matter is that this world has changed much, and that where there is peace there is war brewing, so we must find who this army belongs to and what their intentions are..." Nij said, jumping into the conversation.

"But how are we to do that, there was no trace of the battle except for the dead army and one demon, there wasn't even a casualty for us to say the army was full of demons, which spooks me even more." Slypnir stated, trying to think through his knowledge of lore for an army that uses demons.

"Well, there was one army I know of that had every kind of soldier, including demons." Nij said, seeing if Slypnir had knowledge of the army he spoke of. "It was an army that I served in until I met Reftaline and I settled down."

"It must be in your family's bloodline to become mercenaries at sometime or another, Dragora was also a mercenary, although small time." Slypnir said, looking at Nij with an inquisitive look.

"I think I know which army you're talking about, I was going to travel there to sign up before I had heard about their methods of conquering, but after that I could not align myself with those who go after the innocents. Would the army you speak of be the region of Lothgrenier's Unified Militia Unit?" Dragora said, stating his morals with confidence.

"Their methods weren't always that way. In fact, when I was in that unit, we merely knocked out the soldiers and left the civilians well alone. However, it all changed when king Driintlion came to power." Nij replied to his son, telling him the rest of the history in the archaic tongue.

Slypnir joined in when he could, though he was not nearly as fluent as the kin, which still surprised him at how Dragora could speak it, let alone better than himself. After a while, the converse got to deep for Slypnir to comprehend and ended up huddling close to the fire, falling asleep near the minks which had dozed from exhaustion. Dragora and his father, however, kept talking and sharing about their war days, and scooted closer to the fire, away from the chilly air that surrounded them. Soon enough Dragora shivered himself to sleep, burying his muzzle into the sand and relaxing his muscles.

Zerion looked around the dilapidated castle that loomed in front of him, surrounded by crystals of odd color, glow, and stature. He walked forward seeing no way to traverse among the closely huddled wall of stalagmites turning and twisting along the path and lighting the way in the void of darkness that drew so close to the path. Seeing that he was near the gates of the castle, Zerion looked around for something to defend himself with, hoping that the inhabitants were friendly and he would not make use of it. Continuing on with a broken stalagmite in hand, he approached the castle gates and knocked subtly, making sure his feet were firmly planted. The door swung loosely open, seeming aged by aeons of standing firm to all who were not welcome. Zerion peeked in to see a lone man in a chair that looked familiar to him.

"Hello? May I come in? I mean no harm..." He said shyly to the old figure in the chair, nodding its head in approval and motioning to the seat next to him.

Zerion set the makeshift club down by the door frame outside and walked quickly through the closing threshold, walking over to the empty chair and sitting down.

"Here... let's look into your past so you can find a new guide in life, for everyone gets lost in darkness some time, and only if they rely on someone will they have a light to guide them through unscathed." The shy voice stated, almost as soft as Zerion's own.

"What do you mean find another guide? And why rely on someone to guide you if they are just as able to get lost as I am?" Zerion questioned firmly, seeing what was beginning to unfold.

"You shall see." the build said, removing her hood to reveal a ferret, who's fur was similar to that of the crystals outside and two different colors of eyes, with one being white and black, and the other being deep water blue and rufescent carmine.

She lifted her small hands above the table, and began turning its surface into a moving recollection of Zerion's past. Memory after memory, scene after scene passed before his eyes, even some he had forgotten or locked away in his subconscious mind. He smiled at the image of some and frowned upon others, seeing all his triumphs and defeats pass before him, until he came to one that stood out to him. Indeed the name Herfrund had come back to him as he laid his eyes upon the image of the battle he appeared on. He focused on this scene, forcing the ferret to halt her advance into the depths of his mind. The battle played out in his side's favor until they broke through the castle doors, greeted by a lone sentinel holding a sword twice as wide as he was and slightly taller than its wielder. There the lone draconian stated his name and asked everyone to halt for their own good, but they pushed forward. Troop upon troop assaulted the lone defender that stayed his ground, all being forced back by the grand blade that he smashed into them and driving it into the stone floor, creating powerful shock waves and riding them with the sword into the legions of stunned soldiers. Zerion lost his focus then and jumped back, seeing greatest defeat being at the hands of his best friend's brother. The ferret placed her hands on the table from the sudden movement and stopped the flow of the scenes.

"So that master of space was Dragora's brother... then he will surely have to face him, I must warn him of this!" Zerion said aloud rushing toward the door.

"We will meet again to discuss your guiding light then, for I can assume that this one is adjourned..." the ferret sighed, letting her hands rest back onto her lap in disappointment.

Zerion shot up out of his sleep, already full of energy and anxiousness of what he had witnessed in his dreams. He looked around seeing that it was still night and he could tell Dragora had just gone officially to sleep by the light snoring that was coming forth from his maw. He took a piece of parchment from Slypnir's bag and wrote down the information to make sure he didn't forget. Zerion let himself relax as he cuddled next to his sleeping companion, kissing on the forehead, and fell back asleep only to be brought back to the dream world he was in before.

"That was quick, did you tell him?" The ferret questioned, her hood still down from before.

"He was already asleep, so I wrote it down to remember in the morning." Zerion retorted simply, sitting back down in the seat.

"Well then, let's get back to finding your guide, shall we?" the ferret replied, curious what the event was about.

Zerion let his mind forth once more while the ferret started the flow of his life's recollections again. The scenes went beyond the battle now, flowing into more recent times such as the construction of Luma caverns, a vast underground waterway for Aerinia's waters, and the destruction of the golden forest, a grand forest made up of maples and oaks, ebonies and mahoganies, in order to prevent the blue-leaf plague which had risen up there from reaching the woods that surrounded the region. The memories eventually came upon the time before they left, and Zerion realized how much he had known Slypnir and Dragora. Though they were not as built as he was, Slypnir was always more talented in magic and Dragora in his speed and use of weapons of all kinds. It was there that Zerion shut off his mind from the viewing surface, seeing it fade back into a hardwood texture.

"As you see, they do not have to be stronger than you to be your guides. Everyone has their own strength and weakness, but it is only through our coming together that we can overcome our weaknesses and support each others' strengths." the ferret stated, letting her hands rest on the table.

"I understand now... I've been traveling with my guides all along, and we've supported each other all the way through." Zerion sighed, seeing his bearing shift toward his friends to look up to, not an army of those he never knew.

"Our time here is now officially concluded. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to make preparations to go traveling, mayhap we will meet again." the ferret replied simply, waving her hand in the air with a light blue aura surrounding it.

Dragora woke up the next morning, feeling his pants tent a little from the contact with Zerion's arm around him like a small pup. He quickly regained his composure, knowing that his father was nearby and tried his best to get his mind off the arousal, merely kissing Zerion's cheek and wriggling free from his sleeping companion, got up to get the caravan ready before the others awoke. Slypnir was the next, having a sensitive nose to the smell of food and seeing Dragora soak the jerky in a softening mixture and making a heavily spiced bread that he never saw before.

"What are you making this morning?" he asked tiredly, stretching and releasing built up cartilage from sleeping on the hard ground. "You'd think sand would be more comfortable than dirt with being able to shift, but it's just as hard here..."

"I know what you mean, but you also have to consider we are still close to the jungle floor. Also, I'm making my own variation of mantou, considering the group has gotten much larger." Dragora replied happily, confident in his cooking with meats and breads.

"If those weren't the only types of food you cook with, I would recommend you as the royal chief chef." Slypnir commented, knowing that Dragora's cooking in those categories surpassed his own.

The two mink girls were awoken by Zerion, who also could smell the delightful aroma of the not widely known exotic dish, and they all went over to the flat rock arrayed with forks and knives they picked up from the tavern. Nij woke up shortly after, yawning and going over to his son, watching him move quickly and precisely with the dishes and food. He looked over at the rock and walked over to take a seat near Zerion. Slypnir eventually saw that Dragora was almost finished, taking one sniff of the potent seasonings and smelling the balance in them, went to sit down with the others. They all ate as much of they could, feeling how filling the medium-sized stuffed breads were,and ravenously scarfing down what they could. The only ones that couldn't finish their meals were the mink girls, despite they were only sharing one.

"How are you going to grow up strong if you don't eat? I bet your fathers hold you back don't they..." Dragora said encouragingly to the young girls who looked stuffed.

"You expect us to eat something to sized for an adult, though it is good, we can't finish it off." the children said at the same time as if they were in fact twins.

"Okay, at least take it along in case you get hungry again." Dragora simply replied, seeing that it did no good to force food onto them.

They cleaned everything up, leaving the crumbs for the desert animals that wandered the dry plain. Once the party was in the caravan they set off toward the two estates, knowing that they had a lot of travel through the rest of the desert to Sylphistrine. By dusk, they reached the center between the two estates, with Zerion taking one girl to the Scathen manor and Dragora taking the other to the Skrith abode. After a while of Slypnir picking more reagents and Nij lounging in the back, both the lords came out of their dwellings and met with each other in the center. After they shook hands and exchanged words, they let the girls go off to play while they kept talking to one another. Dragora and Zerion merely walked over to the caravan quietly, leaving the aristocrats to heir speeches and continuing down the path toward Sylphistrine to deliver the ashes.

"So how did it go? Is that problem all cleared up?" Nij asked the two draconians holding hands.

"Y-Yeah it went well, they're all resolved." Dragora said blushing modestly and pulling his hands to himself, embarrassed for forgetting his father was there.

"They are off to a better start than when we first met them at least." Zerion pointed out, oblivious to Dragora's scales flushing deeply.

"Well, that's good, and there's no need to be embarrassed Dragora, I'm glad you have found 2 companions and that you all share deep affection for each other." Nij replied, looking Dragora in the eyes firmly, but supportively.

"I-I know, I'm just not used to having someone other than these two by my side... you see, in Aerinia it's forbidden, so I've had to keep my feelings secret..." Dragora answered uncomfortably, not used to looking someone directly in the eyes, especially a pair that are so close to his own.

"Wait, what? Did you already tell him?" Zerion questioned Dragora, confused at Nij's knowledge of them.

"Yes, I did..." Dragora retorted, answering Zerion directly and assuredly.

"I won't let a mere preference sway me from the fact that he's my son, nor should they deny any kind of attraction between people, as love to one another is as natural as breathing itself, and shouldn't be strangled, only letting in part of the air." Nij stated firmly, believing in his words as well as criticizing the town's belief system.

"You're right, after this is all done, I'll travel back to Aerinia and confront the court about it, as well as be more prominent about myself and show courage in the face of society." Dragora said, contemplating his father's words carefully.

After everyone in the back faded into their thoughts, Slypnir was vigilant in traveling from listening in on the conversation and feeling pride swell up in his chest from being accepted by Dragora's father and being called his mate.