Aji, the new blue dragon of Althena, lounged on the soft grass by the side of a lake, looking down into the water. It was not the lake she was used to, but a lovely place all the same. Somehow, it needed an additional touch. She eyed her reflection and dipped a claw lightly into the water. Ripples poured over her watery image and across the lake's surface, decreasing in size and strength until she could no longer detect them by anything other than her magic.
Thinking of her talent, she exerted her will on the water, just as she had so very often in the comfort of her cave. The blue dragon hesitated and shook her head. No, she corrected herself, she never had before. It was Jia, Jia's memories and habits that her mind recalled. She had never used her talent before, seen the beauty in the water that she so dearly cherished. Aji dismissed that unpleasant thought with renewed focus on the water below.
She summoned up a stream, pouring it into the air above and molding it to shape like a potter would a piece of clay. It flowed into the forms of four figures; her family. Two proud dragon forms stood side-by-side, both translucent through the white flecks of the water's spray, and yet she could easily tell them apart. Aji smiled, not unkindly. Laln and Yur were so much like those they had been created from and yet so different at well. From what she understood, Twyla had made changes to them when she created the new dragon tribe, changes for the betterment of them, so that they could better the world.
As she thought of Twyla, her gaze came to rest on the other two figures, standing side by side. The black dragon rested leisurely on all fours, with head lifted proudly. Twin horns curled gracefully back through an attractive mane. The human image next to it had her head raised in a similar manner that spoke of strength uncounted. One could almost see the determination in those eyes, but water cannot recreate life.
Sounds of a scuffle erupted behind her, and the blue dragon turned her head to watch. Laln and Yur rolled around, wrestling good naturedly and laughing like a couple of children. The dragons flattened a bed of flowers and sent a spray of water several feet high as Laln smacked his tail through the surface of the water. Aji raised a wing to shield her face from the worst of the drops, then lifted her head to track the black form in the sky. The dragon darted around gracefully, curling into dives and loops and letting out a roar of sheer joy. Aji smiled to herself. The whole tribe was taking joy in their new form and power. Although they had the memories of the old, they were still very new in the world, and it felt good to exert themselves, at least a little bit.
Feeling a little playful herself, she made a slight gesture with her paw and lifted a column of water from the surface of the lake. Pointing an elegant sapphire claw towards the rolling white and red forms, she willed the water towards them. The column stretched outward and became a torrent which blasted over to soak the two combatants. As expected, they pulled apart, looking startled for a moment before turning their gazes towards Aji, water dripping from their fur.
"Got you," Aji said with a small smile.
Laln shook his head with a grin. He peered out at her through eyes half hidden by the white fur plastered against his head. With his coat wet, the scars he had received from his battle with Nall were evident. Though they could have been healed completely with magic, he had opted to keep them as a reminder not to lose his temper so easily next time. Laln gave himself a shake before assuming a serious expression as he turned back to the red dragon.
"Yur," he said simply, "you're all wet."
"Very funny, oh, it is to laugh," she replied, punctuating her words with a sharp laugh of her own. A fiery aura flared around her form and evaporating all the moisture from her fur. She smugly returned Laln's superior look.
Aji quietly watched her siblings, amused at their antics. Laln purposely began to shake himself off, once again wetting Yur with his efforts and causing an exclamation of surprise from her. His fur, now a little drier and more poofy for his efforts, gave him the appearance of a sheepdog of incredible size. He grinned back at Yur, noting her less than pleased expression.
"Afraid of a little water?" he asked, smiling widely.
In answer, Yur once again reactivated her flame aura, causing it to flare large enough to near Laln. The white dragon yelped tumbled over backwards. Once again dry, she gave herself a conceited preen to put a wayward tuft of fur back into place.
She smirked in Laln's direction. "If you can't take the heat..."
The white dragon snorted with a derisive toss of his head. "That expression is older than Zophar's grandma, Pinky!"
"That's Reddy to you, Whitey," she shot back.
"Ready?" He sent her a look of mock confusion. "Well, it's strange but whatever floats your boat I guess..."
Yur laughed out loud, leapt at him, and knocked the dragon to the ground. Before long, the two rolled around again as if the whole water experience had never happened. Aji watched them a few minutes before her brow furrowed in thought, as much as a dragon's could. The image was a familiar one, judging from her memories, but it wasn't quite right. Her memories of Nall and Ruby told her that the two of them loved each other. They just wouldn't admit it. In fact, they seemed to go to great lengths to prove otherwise.
Aji felt none of this from Yur and Laln, the two seemed to be playing, nothing more. Any love she could sense between them was of the type a brother would have for a sister. She wondered if that was another one of Twyla's changes. If it was, there had to be a good reason for it, since Twyla only wanted the best possible dragon tribe there could be.
"Its good to see you all in such high spirits," said the voice that belonged to the woman who occupied Aji's thoughts.
Aji turned her attention from the two playful dragons towards the woman who walked towards her. Twyla had a smile on her face, seemingly in high spirits herself. It struck Aji that this particular sense of pleasure appeared to be something that Twyla had not experienced often. The woman absently straightened her hair as she walked towards Aji, still beaming with a vigorous light. The blue dragon smiled down at her.
"I see you're back," Aji offered.
Twyla gave the blue an affirmative nod of the head and watched the other two for a moment. The blue dragon felt a sense of approval in Twyla before she turned her attention back to Aji.
"How do you feel?" Twyla inquired.
"Very good, thank you." The blue bowed her head in sincerity. "It's nice just to have the opportunity to be with my family. I hadn't realized how lonely we all were before you came." She scratched herself under the chin. "And as the time passes, I can feel my power grow. I will be at full strength soon, I think."
Twyla nodded again, thoughtfully, as she ran a hand through the light blue fur of the dragon. "That is good," she said.
"Twyla, I have a question." Aji watched her friend closely, knowing this to be a touchy issue with her, but the blue had to know more. Her memories, both hers and not, showed her another side to the perplexing woman.
"Ask." Twyla's speech came crisply, as much a permission to speak as a command to do so.
"What are we doing here?"
It was as much of a philosophical inquiry as a literal one. Twyla looked at their surroundings as she pondered the question. They were, quiet literally, in the middle of nowhere. A few rocks, a few scrubs, a mountainside, and that was about it. The tribe had stopped here after their departure from Neo-Vane, apparently picking a direction at random, and stopping when Twyla decided. Apparently done with her examination, the black-haired woman turned her gaze back to the furry blue one above her.
"We're waiting, Aji, that's all. We've already had one distasteful encounter with the former dragon tribe, and I'd rather not repeat it. Now that we have all the crests, we need only wait for the power of the old to completely transfer to the new. Then they will be too weak to try and fight us, and we won't have to harm them anymore. The true dragon tribe of Althena will be able to take its rightful place."
Twyla became more animated as she spoke, face taking on a fevered glow and determination filling her poise. Her back straightened and her fists clenched slightly. Her cloak and her long ponytail swayed with every gesture she made. She struck a magnificent figure as far as Aji could tell. The blue dragon felt the resilience rise in her own heart--the need to claim her place in the world, the need to help the world in the best way she can, the need to do what was right whatever the cost. Twyla shook her head as though pushing away unwelcome thoughts. She once again smiled to Aji.
"Come," she said, "even dragons need to eat."
Twyla strolled off to break up the rolling pair of Yur and Laln.
Dragons are large creatures, with wing spans greater than anything Lunar had ever seen. When need be, they can fly swift and far, rivaling the fastest of birds. Thus it was less than an hour later when they spotted a prospect for a meal fit to whet the appetite of their tribe. Keen draconic eyes had picked out a downed form in a field. They had noticed a herd of cows not too far away, and it was not improbable that this one had been a part of the band.
Twyla signaled them from Laln's back and together the dragons winged downward. Laln lead them in a graceful circle around the motionless steer. He beat his wings twice strongly as he neared the ground, then settled on all fours in the long grass of the field. The other dragons landed beside him. Twyla dismounted, giving him a pat on the leg in silent thanks, and inspected the herdbeast before them. The stench of blood was strong, and she soon discovered the cause for its death. Jagged ends of a broken bone portruded from a shattered limb. She sniffed lightly. The injured beast simply could not keep up with the herd. Probably died from blood loss and dehydration. It wasn't wise to leave the comfort of the herd for any reason. Death would soon follow. And thus the weak were culled from those who truly deserved to survive.
Twyla appraised the find quickly. Though the cow was well sized and had been healthy beyond the broken limb, it was still too small to fill the stomachs of four dragons. "I suppose this will do for an appetizer," she finally said.
A small bundle stirred next to the cow. It blinked open large eyes and bleated loudly at the sight of the dragons. The calf pushed itself back on long gangly legs and tried to squeeze beneath the body of its dead mother.
"Poor thing," said Aji.
The calf recoiled against the form of the dead cow, shaking and now bleating even louder.
"What shall we do with it?" she asked, leaning in closer to Twyla as she got a better look at the infant.
Without bothering to turn around, Twyla stated, "Like I said: this will do for an appetizer."
Aji started at the tone. It was nearly the same one she had used when they left the malformed red behind. Twyla had pointedly told the unfortunate creature not to try and follow them, but her words fell on uncomprehending ears. In the red's mind, they belonged together, or so the blue dragon surmised. Aji had suggested that they bring her along, she wouldn't take much effort to care for. Aji would do it herself. But Twyla said that the red was not a true dragon and would not live long anyway. There was no need to extend her misery, misery that was compounded when her family abandoned her.
"But Twyla," Aji said quietly, "it's still a child; an innocent."
"Oh Althena, Aji," said Yur, rolling her eyes, "it's just a cow."
But a small, vulnerable child nonetheless.
Aji sighed. "We could bring it back to the herd, it will be safe there," the blue offered. "It can stand, maybe even run. It might have a chance to survive without its mother."
Twyla looked over her shoulder to Aji and shook her head firmly.
"It's more meat for us, and we do have to eat," said Twyla. "It's not just the life of one calf, but possibly the lives of many more. The small things add up, and for now, the tribe must be fed to keep up its strength. We aren't ready to reveal ourselves to the rest of the world yet, and there may be trouble. Althena's old dragons did not appear often, so people may be frightened by us. It's important that we are healthy and able to show them our true intentions."
Twyla knelt by the panicked calf, beckoning it forward with a smooth hand.
An innocent. A child who had already lost so much.
The calf lifted its head to meet the raised hand. Large dark eyes met the gaze of Twyla's own, and Aji could not help but see in the briefest of instants that there was something alike between them. Pain. Suffering. Loss. Their skin touched and there was a jolt. The calf's body went rigid with shock, then crumpled into the stillness of death. Wisps of steam rose from its smoking forehead where Twyla had touched it. The sorceress nodded, satisfied.
Aji looked at the dragons around her and saw no distress in their eyes. They all watched the incident with a simmering calm, a readiness held in check, perhaps even hunger. What was wrong with her? Aji didn't understand. As Yur had said: it's just a cow.
But a child nonetheless. A child who had already lost.
Aji raised a claw and brushed it against her bowed head. Her mind ached. She thought again of the malformed red, then the calf. Begging eyes turned to frightened eyes, and those to hardened steel as they peered out from the marble calm of Twyla's face. All alike, and yet different.
The sorceress looked back towards the dragons waiting behind her and smiled to them. She said, "Come my family, let's eat." But beneath the warmth of her love, Aji felt the forbidding ice that formed the core of Draco Twyla.
Yur and Laln moved forward, already scrabbling over who would get the choiciest parts of the cow. Laln called the brisket and Yur the round. Aji had to admit that she was hungry, and she did like meat. She hustled her way between them, bidding for the ribs. Twyla herself had calmly pulled out a dagger and begun cutting some meat from the calf's hide so she'd have her own meal before the dragons finished theirs and began looking for more. The calf's blood was still bright red, and flowed as Twyla skinned the body.
Aji flicked the raw tatters of the cow's flank into her mouth with her tongue, trying as she did so to push the unwelcome thoughts from her mind. Twyla was right, they did have to eat, and the taste of the meat tantalized in her hopes of more. But why did the death of an animal have to bother her so much?
An innocent.