Chapter 1 #3
I nodded as I noticed how tired Da appeared. His dragon wasn’t nearly as large or strong as Father’s or mine. Could he fight? Absolutely. But he had to work harder at fighting the wind.
I joined my fathers, and we each started on our bread, adding berries with it. “Father, I wished to discuss something with you.”
Father nodded as he chewed.
“I know how difficult it can be to take point. I want you to know I am more than happy to switch off with you. I’m not saying your dragon isn’t capable.
I only wish for us to get to wherever we’re going safely, and I know that having to fight the wind for hours on end will weaken even the strongest.”
Father nodded while he hurriedly chewed.
“Thank you, son. I will need your help once we reach the open water. There is no way of knowing how long it will take us to cross the large sea. I’ve never flown that far out, only up and down the coast at a time or two.
” Father seemed to collect his thoughts for a moment.
“Something tells me we should go towards the cold. That is the way to our next stop, but not our final one.”
I could certainly do that. We ate our bread, finished the berries, and drank a skin of water between the three of us before we all lay down on the blankets and slept.
It was dusk when we woke, and Father and I went hunting in opposite directions.
I returned with a pair of deer, and Father with a deer and a boar.
Da had gathered wood and more fresh berries, as well as found some water that his dragon had said was safe to drink.
Which meant he’d used his dragon’s fire to heat it, and it had cooled enough for us to consume.
We feasted on our kills, and after discussing it more, we agreed on a plan.
After the second day of resting and eating our fill multiple times, we waited for nightfall to once again set off.
There was a village not far to the north, and we did not wish to take any chances of being seen; thus, we set off once more under the cover of darkness.
We flew through the night, and when the sun poked over the horizon behind us, there was nothing but water as far as we could see. We continued on, flying northward until we all saw it. Father let out a loud bellow, Da and I both calling back. We had seen the land in front of us.
We kept high, not sure if there would be others there, and when we finally reached the coast, I knew we’d made the right choice to remain as high as we had. Father led us inland, and when we could no longer see villages, we descended in order to shift and rest.
We only rested one day, and later that night, we took off again, having regained enough strength to set off across the sea.
Father had said something was guiding him, and Da and I would not go against that.
We followed, and after two days in the sky, another change on the horizon appeared.
As we flew closer, I recognized it was larger than the last landmass we had stopped at.
The coastline was void of villages, and the land beyond it lush and green. After resting for two days and three nights, we set off once more. Father told us the coast wasn’t where we needed to be, that our safety would be in the mountains.
I sensed Father’s excitement, and it was noticeable that he was flying harder this time. We moved through the sky as fast as the three of us could, and the sun was quickly dropping in the sky in front of us when Father called out once again.
The terrain had changed many times as we flew toward the setting sun, and when Father descended and his dragon called out from the ground as Da and I joined him, I took that to mean that we’d reached our destination.
I looked around, taking in the surroundings through my dragon’s eyes. We were atop a mountain, the area full of trees but also larger clearings that would be ideal for a small village. Father shifted, Da and I quickly doing the same.
“This is the place. We’re supposed to be here—claim this mountain for future generations.”
“Here?” Da asked, glancing around. “Right here?”
Father looked at his mate and nodded.
“Ferdinand, there’s not a thing here. There’s no village, nothing. How will we survive?”
“Egon, my mate. My greatest love,” Father said, pulling Da into his arms. “We’re dragons. We do what we do best. We hunt. We are strong. We build a house. Aleric and I will have a structure up for you before the season changes.”
I looked around. There were certainly enough materials to do such a thing. But I wasn’t sure we’d have one erected before the season changed. Now wasn’t the time to voice my thoughts though. If Father wanted a structure, I’d help him build one. Da deserved that and so much more.
“I’m going to go hunting. See what I can find for a meal,” I told them.
Father nodded while Da seemed to wish to argue.
I simply wanted to give them a moment or two to work things out.
We needed to eat, to replenish our strength.
Hunting was the most logical thing for me to do. At least, I thought so.