Calgora
Chapter 3 of Guardians of the Universe
The next morning, James, Kate, and Syrris woke up extra early for they had a long 12 hour flight ahead of them. They had to go to lands far of the east on their jouney to find the artifact which holds the magical power to open a protal to hell. As James was waking up, he took some preserved food out of his pack, and ate his breakfast. Kate and Syrris when out hunting for whatever creature they can find and make a meal out of it. James was gathering his things, readying himself so if battle was to come his way on his journey, he was prepared to do so. Approxamately an hour went by and still no sighn of kate or Syrris.
"Thats odd... It never takes those two more than 15 minutes to come back from a hunt" James thought to himself. "Probably talking about the journey or Syrris is complaining about something to Kate as usual" James reasonong with his suspicion.
James went to the cave opening seeing that familiar 300 foot drop at the edge of the enterance. He looked up to the sky, and he noticed something very unnerving. Right above his head there where storm clouds. But clearly this is no ordinary storm. Lots of wind, but no rain. James saw scores of lightningbolts, but not one sound of thunder.
"Where running out of time" James thought to himself. He started yelling "Kate! Syrris! You need to come back now!" He shouted over and over again. About 15 minutes latter, they did arrive.
"What the fuck happened to you two! It's been over an hour. You two scared me"! James yelled in fustration.
"Awwww The wittle human cares for his girls"... Syrris said in a joking tone.
"Oh shut up Syrris! Now is not a time for joking! Fallow me!"
James, Kate and Syrris walk up to the enterance of the cave. James pointed to the sky.
"James, thats a thunderstorm" Kate said. "A thunderstorm with no thunder" Syrris added.
"What does it mean James"?
"The beginning of the end. Where not the only ones searching for this artifact" James said with a very grim look on his face.
"Well then, lets get our asses out of this cave and stop it before it can possibly begin" Kate suggested.
"Wait, let me get my guns and my pack". James said James grabed his weapons, and his pack. He attached his machine gun to his pack and handed it to Syrris. As James crawled into Kates mouth.
James warned Syrris, "Don't loose my pack! I'll loose all means of defense and food.
"No worries I got it" Syrris said with a care-free tone.
"I'm serious! I'll ring your mmmppphhh!!!" Was all James could say before Kate swallowed him, bringing him into her storage stomach. Syrris laughed at the fact James fot eaten before he could finnish what he was trying to say.
"Good thing you swallowed him Kate, or I'd actually beat that big mouth fucker's ass!" Syrris said.
"Oh, he's just stressed out, Syrris. You know how humans are with their little emotions. Kate replied".
"You're not one who usually defends humans, Kate. Why Him?" Syrris asked.
"Lets go, Syrris. We got a very long flight ahead of us. Try not to be too distracted from our goals". Kate said, trying to avoid the subject Syrris was on.
"Goals? Right now my goal is to see why you like him so much". Kate and syrris took to the air, flying east where they are to search for the artifact. They know time is not on their side. It was a 12 hour flight they took. They arrived in an oasis in a desert to rest. Both dragons where exausted from the flight. Anything outside the oasis was nothing but sanddunes, and nothing but pure wasteland as far as the eye can see. Kate regurgitated James, James wipped off the saliva and mucus off of his arms and face. Syrris took Jame's pacl off her left horn on her head and handed it to James.
"There is a watter spring a bout 60 yards south of us if you want to wash up and have a drink James", Syrris suggested.
"Where are we? Looks like a desert simular to the Gobi desert on Earth, my home planet. And damn it's cold here!"
"Yah, we are not far from the dwarven kingdom of Calgora. It should only be a nother 30 minutes. Syrris and I are just exausted and need a break. It's an ancient dwarven civilization, but it's so old and so quitet it's almost like it's nothing but ruins. They are not often hostile. Yet they aren't the most social people here. Lore says they make an awesome brew. You may enjoy that, James. That is, if they welcome us. Also that is, if they're still here", Kate said.
"While dragons and humans do not have the strongest relations with humans for many reasons, dwarves have been pretty kind to us." Syrris said.
"Interesting... well, I gotta go wash up. Don't need to smell like I was in the belly of a dragon ya know. Might scare these folk, not to mention I stink..." James said.
"Oh come on! As if you don't enjoy it! Kate rhetorted back".
"Just for the sake of honesty, sliding down your throat is the best part"! James yelled back as he was walking to the spring.
"Thats one weird human you have there, Kate", Syrris said.
"He isn't my human. He is litterally someone who lives out his life fighting a neverending battle with hell".
"Whatever you say Kate" Syrris said with a smirk. Kate didn't see Syrris's little hint. However, Syrris knew Kate had a little secret of her own. And Kate always liked badasses. 20 minutes passed by, and James came back after he washed up.
"Im ready to go if you two are".
"What the hell took you so long?" Kate asked.
"You try washing dragon mucus out of your clothes then you'd know why", James said with a fustrated look on his face.
"HAHAHA! Silly human, dragons don't wear clothes" Syrris said.
"And thats why you'll knever understand", James added. Kate lowered her head down so James could then climb up on her neck so they can go to the Ancient dwarven kingdom of Calgora. Kate and Syrris took a few experamental wing beats just to stretch their already exausted muscles out a little. Then both took to the sky. About a half hour passed by and they arrived at the large sandstone gates of Calgora. Two guards in makeshift watchtowers in the sandstone. The two guards drew their bows and arrows, aimed directly at James, Kate and Syrris.
"Idenify yourselves or we will shoot", the guard on the left side said.
"I am Kate, I'm a member of the dagon council. I wish to speak to the dwarven elders".
"I'm Syrris, also a member of the dragon council".
"I'm Jame's, an aquaintence of Kate and Syrris". Both of the guards lowered their bows. They both placed their hand on a lever. Somehow, the gates opened by some magical force of some sort. The guard gave further instruction.
"Pass through, but be warned. First sighn of hostility wee see from you we will kill you".
The three companions walked in, several guards stood infront of them. Kate lowered her head so James can easily slide off. The guards seemed somewhat suprised that James, a human accompanied the dragons. One guard walked to James, and reached his hand, and spoke not in common tongue, but dwarven. James seemed confused. The dwarf raised a bronze sword and repeated his words again. This time he said it in a hostile tone. Kate interupted, James heard Kate speaking in dwarven. The guard lowered his sword. Kate said
"James, he says no outsiders are welcome if they're armed. He says, the dwarves will give them back once we take our leave".
James eased his hand to his pack, opened it up, and handed his machine gun to the dwarf. Next his grenades, flashbangs, claymores, his knife, and his side arm. The Dwarf went to store them in the armory, and the three where allowed to go though. They traveled through a series of sandstone tunnels, with one guard leading them. There was two large chambers, the guard said in Dwarven that these would be their resting guarters. The two dragons nodded. But the guard still seemed to be confused about James's presense. James pulled some of his food out, opened the package, and began eating. He hasn't eaten in over 12 hours.
Syrris said "hey let me have some I'm hungry!" James shrugged his shoulders and held an open package to Syrris.
"BLLAAAHHH! That smells horrible"! "It's the chemicals and preservatives in it to keep the food from spoiling you smell", James explained.
"Relax Syrris. Let James eat that shit while the Dwarves bring us good food". Kate said.
"I hope they do! Or I may have to eat one of them little people" Syrris said.
"And get us all killed. What a fucking wonderful and briliant idea, Syrris" James said.
"Shut up human, or I'll place you on the menu! Syrris scolding James."
"Technically you two eat me all the time. So I've been on the menu from the start, and why is it always you who complains, Syrris? I've never heard Kate complain, and not once do you hear me complain".
"I wouldn't piss Syrris off James", Kate suggested.
"Yah, and he's damn close to doing so". Syrris said. A few Dwarves came in with some live steers for the two dragons.
"Hey Syrris, food is here". Kate pointed out.
A dwarf went to James, and spoke dwarven, as usual.
"What did he say Kate"? James asked.
"He said is there something you'd like to eat or drink? You may want to try their mead or their ale" Kate suggested.
"What does it taste like, Kate"?
"Silly human, dragons don't eat or drink anything from plants. But I heard some tales about it being the nectar of the gods".
"Alright, I'll have some".
A few minutes latter, Kate and Syrris where done eating. A Dwarf handed James a mug full of ale. James took a sip. Then he drank a little more.
"Holy fucking shit! Thats damn good ale!" James screamed in suprise. The dwarf turned to the dragons. Syrris spoke in dwarven. The Dwarf laughed and was also pleased to hear what Syrris said. He patted James on the shoulder and walked out of the quartars. Syrris started gagging. Something fell into her palm, then she handed it to James. It was a small sack of a few silver coins and told him to go have a little fun at the tavern. At first James refused the coins.
"Coins are useless to dragons, James. We don't use currency of any form amongst our kind. I actually took it from the last human I ate. Besides, I'd like to have a personal talk to Kate," Syrris explained.
James cringed at the thought of the man being eaten. And not the kind of being eaten in which he enjoys either, but a more unpleasent type which involves actually being digested alive. But he nodded, took the little sack of coins, and went to the tavern. Syrris kinda had a conserned look as she turned towards Kate and said:
"You know, he's a fragile little guy. And I got a bad feeling about this quest, Kate. And there are creatures in the deep places of our world in which the weapons James wields will not help him if we where to come across such creatures".
Kate had a shocked look on her face. "You mean we should leave him? She asked.
"No... It's his job to do things like this. Also, why would you be so concerned about James?" Kate said...
"I'm not worried about James. I'm worried about you!" Syrris replied.
"And why is that?"
"You love James", Syrris said with a grin.
"No I don't". Kate said with a little wimpering in her voice.
"Gotcha... You love him don't you? I knew it. Your voice has a destinct sound to it when you're lying". Syrris said with a smug look on her face.
Kate couldn't say anything. She knew she had been figured out. She growled in fustration.
"Well, he definately fell for you Kate. You should see his expression when he's laying on your neck when you carry him. Also, he's allot happier when you eat him instead of me. But he'll do anything he can to hide his emotions from you. Can't say I'd blame him either. In his mind, if you found out, he'd be dead for sure. A human and dragon in love. Can't say that has ever happened sense the past between the two races is a bloody one. Most dragons aren't even capable of love like humans are. But well you seems you're one of the few of us who are a little different. But what would become of you if James dies and you feel your heart shatter like glass? What would you do when you feel your soul grow cold if he perrishes on this journey? I don't know heartache, but I know humans say it's a pain that cannot be felt by your flesh. But deep inside it's so painful, even some of the strongest hearted men have ended their own lives due to heartache. They say it's so much pain, no form of torture could compare to it. I've even had a human walk up to me begging me to kill him due to his wife dying. If it can drive people to that type of insanity, what would you do, Kate if James was to die"?
"I'd mourn from his death. But I'd know he's safe on the other side. I'd cry, I may even wind up loosing my appetite for a while. However, I know James would want me to keep moving forward". I know what your saying. As far as the whole thing with me loving James. To be honest with you, I don't know why thats so" Kate said.
Syrris smiled. Then she said "I do... You've always been a sucker for the badass types. I'll admit, what James does, the kinds of wars and battles he's been in, it's incredible he is still alive and is here as well. It almost seems like fate. And I believe it is. However, nothing is ever set in stone. James could very well die. He and his kind are so easy for so many creatures to kill".
Kate cringed a little, and said "I know where you're going with this. Your intensions are good. But I'm fully aware of James possibly, hell mabe even likely dying. But I'll protect his life with my own. And if I fail, I'd honor him by carrying on".
"And thats what I wanted to know Kate", Syrris said.
A few minutes went by, and fallowed by a few more minutes of scilence. Kate and Syrris fell asleep. About two hours latter, James came back from the tavern. He could not walk in a straight line, he came up to Kate, crawled under her neck and laid in between her forearms. Then he fell asleep. He actually woke Kate up, but she pretended to be asleep still so James doesn't feel bad. A few moments latter Kate looked at James watching him sleep. She smiled and laid her neck over James and fell asleep as well.