Spiiro turned to face the mountain range he had finally made his way through, sweat dripping from his brow. He gave the range of peaks a look as if to say "Is that your best?".
He felt a wave of relief pass over him. His journey could finally begin.
The rocky surface beneath him slowly began to change to a welcome soil. He could see over the horizon an incredible grassland. Spiiro exhaled, lowering the hood from his head, taking in his surroundings. The mountains behind him, grassland in front of him, to his right in the distance he could make out another mountain range, and to his left, he could barely make out what resembled a section of trees. He would need to choose a direction, and hope he would find civilization. He took one step forward-
-and suddenly, his mind began to whirl. He quickly spun his body around again, looking at the dense mountains he had traversed.
"I know these mountains..." Spiiro said out loud.
He again turned his body around, taking a view of the large grassy plain in front of him. He stood frozen, the sun glinting off his new steel chest plate. He brought his hand to his face and rubbed his temples. His head was a tempest of thoughts, spinning out of control as he tried to figure out where he was. If he could focus, he may finally know what strange land this was. He closed his eyes, and turned again back towards the mountains.
“The….Cold Mountains….wait a moment…that makes this the Arcantian Grasslands!!.....I’m in Genesaris??!!”
Finally, clarity. A piece of the puzzle had finally been discovered. But just as he smiled at the thought of an answer, more questions hit him.
“What am I doing in Genesaris?...”
What indeed. He still had no clue where it was he came from. Was Genesaris his home? Was he shipwrecked on the way back? His questions only frustrated him. It was time for him to press onward, he would need to go east to find a road if his assumption on his location was correct. Spiiro let out a deep sigh, and began to make his way across the grassland.
He attempted to silence his mind, the time he had spent thinking the past few days had done a number on his morale.
It wouldn’t be long before his concentration was broken by a strange sound..
Spiiro’s footsteps came to a halt, and he brought his hand to the hilt of his broadsword resting at his side.
SWOOSH
It was faint, but Spiiro clearly heard something in the sky above him. He looked directly ahead and up. Nothing.
SWOOSH
This time, the strange sound came from behind him. Spiiro whipped his body around the find the source. Again, nothing. He decided now would be a good time to untie his weapon from the sash draped across his shoulder. As he gripped the blades handle he once more heard a strange sound, this time from behind him. This sound was different; this was a snort of sorts, clearly the sound of an animal. How it had gotten behind him would soon become irrelevant. Spiiro clutched his weapon in his comfortable reverse style and turned to face his new attacker.
His eyes widened. He nearly dropped the blade as he slipped into a state of shock. There, standing in front of him, was a
“Dragon….” He whispered to himself.
It stood on all four legs, only slightly taller than a large horse. It’s scales were a graceful mix of blue and black, with piercing sky blue eyes. It’s black wings folded against its back, as its finned tail gently whipped from side to side like a cat. The beast didn’t move a muscle, and neither did Spiiro as he questioned the intelligence of attacking a Dragon, even if it was small for such a creature. Would he have a choice? He was in a wide open area with no means of retreat. His options were fight or die. Lowering his shoulders and slightly bending his torso, Spiiro readied for an attack. His foe remained stone still, staring a hole through the odd human in front of it. Spiiro couldn’t help but stare back. What did the creature want? Were there more?
The second question burned through him. He took a moment to look into the sky once more, and saw only a handful of clouds. He looked back at the Dragon to see it had taken a step forward. Spiiro raised his weapon again, prepared for the beast to pounce, or worse. But something was wrong or different anyway. This was clearly not an attack, for if it was Spiiro would surely be dead. He and the Dragon locked eyes; he had only realized the beast had the same color iris as himself. The Dragon again took a step forward, closing the distance to a mere few feet between the two of them. Something told Spiiro to lower his weapon. As he did the Dragon seemed to relax its body, dropping its shoulders and letting out a huff. Spiiro took one minor step forward and held out his hand with his palm facing the animal.
“Ok….Dragon…Just don’t bite off my hand…or burn me alive.”
The Dragon nudged Spiiro’s hand with its head a few times, almost as if to see if there was any danger. Spiiro was shaking, and again gripped the hilt of his weapon tightly in case anything happened.
No attack came.
The Dragon showed so little signs of aggression Spiiro was far more confused than he was amazed. He finally took a leap of faith and attempted to pet the Dragon, and sure enough the Dragon welcomed the gesture, pushing its head into Spiiro’s palm.
“So I guess you’re not going to burn me alive….”
The Dragon was so amused by Spiiro petting its head; it dropped to a seated position and almost purred. Spiiro raised an eyebrow. It appeared he had found a friend in the middle of nowhere, and of all the creatures on the planet, it would be a Dragon.
“Ok, I guess having a Dragon around could be...beneficial. What would I call you? Can’t call you Dragon..”
The Dragon huffed in disapproval.
“Ok, Dragon it isn’t….How about….”
Spiiro again looked into the Dragon’s eyes…its sky blue eyes.
“Sky?”
The Dragon again huffed.
“Too tame I suppose. You are a Dragon after all…..What about….Sky-Scorcher! Is that…Dragon enough for you?”
The Dragon didn’t clearly respond, but somehow Spiiro knew the beast would approve.
“Allright…Now what do I do with a Dragon….” Spiiro whispered to himself.
Without warning the Dragon backed off, spread its wings and leaped into the air. Spiiro was so caught off guard he jumped away and fell on his behind. Spiiro watched as the Dragon turned and flew past Spiiro vanishing over his head.
“Well that was fast….” Spiiro said as he brought himself to his feet. “Guess I won’t be-AHHHHH!!”
Before Spiiro even had the slightest idea of what was happening, Sky-Scorcher had fly in behind him and grabbed Spiiro’s arms with its front legs, carrying him off into the air. Spiiro yelped in terror as they ascended towards the clouds.
“NOT SO HIGH!! I JUST MET YOU DRAGON!!”
The Dragon peered down at its cargo and snorted a small puff of smoke towards Spiiro.
“Allright, no more calling you Dragon!! Next time a bit of warning would be much better!!”
Spiiro tried to wipe the fear of falling away from his mind. He couldn’t help but feel powerless as the Dragon carried him over the vast grassland he was set to cross on foot. In seconds he watched it disappear. It was only then he realized the benefits of his new winged friend.
“Spiiro…Allright….just be careful…I suppose I will tell you where to land?”
Sky-Scorcher cocked his head down towards Spiiro, almost as if to nod. Spiiro was going to learn the hard way if he was going to like flying or not.
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