The Dragon Guard: Oceans and Pebbles

by Sarah Hite

  When he and the little Pebblines had caught up to the rest of the group Kwan looked them over and said,“The next checkpoint is not far away. We’ll be there in about a half hour.”

  “Finally, some good news. We have been walking all morning without any rest,” Neela complained.“And I am hungry,” she added indignantly.

  Neela! You had plenty of opportunities to rest. Do not blame Kwan for staying awake when you should have been sleeping, Alamine scolded. She looked over at the Forest dragon. I am sorry Kwan.

  Kwan shrugged.“There’s nothing I can do. She should just be glad I can’t punish her. I don’t tolerate deliberate insolence in my den.”

  No, you may not be able to punish her, but I can. I will have to talk to her father about her attitude. After a brief pause, she added, She and Daro both could learn a lesson or two from your children. Your daughter is younger in years, but far more mature, and I am sure your son well behaved also.

  Kwan chuckled,“Sayden has to be. If anything happens to the prince, he inherits the throne.” Everyone but Lukair was surprised to hear that. Akio had not realized that he was part of the royal family and spoke up.“He would?”

  Kwan turned to the youth.“My son is the king’s nephew. His mother is Princess Saydene Mangjul, the king’s sister.” Akio was amazed, but now he realized why Shaelynn was so important to the council. She was royalty.

  Enough talk, Alamine interrupted, the sooner we leave this rise, the sooner we can rest. They all agreed and began their walk to the checkpoint.

  ***

  Prince Seoung kept on eye on his nephew while they flew, making sure the youth did not strain himself. After a few hours, he alighted in a small field and watched Torak carefully as he landed next to him. Together they walked over to a short ledge that jutted out from the surrounding stone. A sentry stood on top of the stone outcropping and welcomed them. “Your Majesties.”

  Seoung nodded to the sentry. “How far behind are we?”

  “Not far, Sir. The army passed by only a couple of hours ago,” he replied. Mentally he asked, How’s the prince?

  Seoung looked from the other Mountain dragon to the boy at his side. Torak was looking out ahead of them, scanning the ground beyond. He’ll be alright. It will be a while before the headaches stop, but at least he’s up and about.

  The sentry nodded. He looked down at the boy and said, “If you’re looking for the children, they passed by about an hour ago. They shouldn’t be too far ahead.” Torak looked up at him and nodded.

  “What were your orders after everyone had passed, assuming we are the last,” Seoung asked.

  “You are the last, my Lord. I am to accompany you to the rest of the army, and help Torak find the children.”

  Seoung nodded as Torak looked up at him. “Well then, let’s be off.” The sentry nodded and joined them as they took flight. Seoung still kept on eye on Torak as they flew. The boy was unusually quiet, and the prince knew the damage to his brain would pain him for a while longer. Injuries of this type would typically take days to heel completely.

  About a half hour to the east, and just inside the mountain range itself, Kwan was leading the children through a group of stones perched on the edge of a ravine. He did not want to take this path, but the only other option would take them miles out of their way, and would completely separate them from the rest of the army. He looked over the trail, the opening between the stones was narrow; and the boulders themselves were too tall for the children to climb, leaving the route between the stones the only option. “Okay, let’s take it one at a time. I’ll take Javi and Lukair first, then Shanni.”

  Akio and Lukair agreed, but Daro did not. “Why do they get to go first?” he asked, belligerently.

  Kwan looked back at the youngster. “Javi and Lukair are going first so they can watch over Shanni while I come back for the next group. If you want to go instead of Javi, then you can watch her,” he answered, amused. He knew the boy did not care to watch over the hatchling, whereas Javi did not seem to mind. When he did not object further, Kwan led the group through the stones. When they had reached a safe point on the other side, he returned to the rest. He chose to take the youngest first, since they could not yet fly, and picked Nori and Eika next. Tomel and Zema were safely perched on Akio’s back, and Palo and Eira offered to fly over and join Alamine and Lukair. He gave them permission and watched as they took flight before turning back to the siblings.

  “Alright, let’s take it slow you two. Single file now,” he directed. Nori followed him through the rocks with Eika on his heels. They continued slowly, stopping briefly when loose stones fell over the side. Kwan looked back at the children when more stones fell. Eika had all but stopped. She looked around nervously and back stepped as a stone fell right in front of her. Kwan was about to tell her that it was all right when he noticed a crack in the stone that was not there before. He gasped as it slowly spread in front of her and wormed its way toward them. “Nori, go, go toward Javi. Go! Eika, stay there,” he cried, pushing Nori away from the fracturing stone. Mentally he asked Javi to get the boy and take him to safety, but did not get the chance to explain why. The fissure spread quickly and screeched as the slab of stone gave way. Confused, Nori had only moved a few feet, but as he realized what was happening, he yelped and scampered away from the edge. He tried to jump to the solid stone on the other side but did not make it.

  Another cracking noise forced Kwan to look behind him. The stone under Eika was beginning to give way as well, and there was nowhere for her to go. Before he could reach her, the stone fell, taking her with it. She hit a narrow ledge below and dug her claws into the stone, trying to stop her fall. Knowing Nori was closer, he leapt over the fissure and reached down to the boy, who was having trouble keeping his hold on the stone. Akio and Javi joined him, having both heard his cry. “Get Eika,” he ordered Akio when he saw him. Akio nodded and leapt down to the lower ledge. He dug his claws into the stone and reached down to help her. “Javi, get the rest of the kids and take them to Lukair and Alamine. The youth nodded and flew off.

  Unbeknownst to them, Kwan’s sudden cry did not go un-noticed. A group of dragons were approaching the area and heard him. They flew to them quickly and landed in time to help Kwan pull Nori to safety. Akio knew someone was there, but he was too busy trying to get to Eika-- who kept slipping farther down the stone-- to notice who it was. He tried his best to reach her, hoping desperately to get to her before she slipped off into the ravine. Unfortunately, she fell before he could reach her. “No!” he cried as she fell from the stone. A red blur paced him as he cried out.

  The blurred figure dove, quickly catching up with the child. Eika, calm down. Fold your wings. She did as she was told and the other dragon caught her. He held her tightly and opened his wings to slow their decent. When he had all but stopped, he angled away from the wall of the ravine and slowly gained altitude.

  Meanwhile, Akio climbed back up to the ledge and joined the rest of the group on safer ground. Seeing him first, Neela ran over to him. “Where is Eika? Where is my sister?” Akio did not answer; he was not sure how. “You just let her fall?” she accused when he hesitated. “You just let her die!”

  “I did not!” he snapped and turned away to ask Kwan what had happened, and found him speaking with Prince Seoung and the sentry they had passed earlier. He knew that Torak had been with the prince, and now knew who the red blur was. The adults had stopped their conversation when they heard Neela’s accusations and Seoung spoke up. “Your sister will be fine. She-

  Neela did not let him finish. “How do you know? She cannot fly!” Seoung studied her but did not respond. Instead he, Akio, and the other adults watched as a red blur streaked passed the canyon wall. The dragon landed behind her and released his hold on the dragonet in his arms. Eika shook herself and ran to her siblings. Neela was surprised to see her and turned to look at Torak when he said, “She’ll be alright, because I caught her.”

  “Torak! Are you alright?�
�� Akio asked him, worried. He nodded. “My head stopped spinning, and my reflexes are better, but my head still hurts.”

  “Are you sure you’re going to be alright?” Seoung asked approaching.

  Torak nodded. “We’ll see you tonight.” Seoung nodded and the three adults took flight. Torak watched them leave before turning back to the children. “Well, that was enough excitement for one day. Let’s move away from this canyon and find a safe place to rest. What do you say?”

  Predators

  Elder was the first to wake the next morning. He stepped out from under the ledge he had slept beneath and looked out over the land beyond. The early morning light cast thin shadows across the ground, changing the colors of the night to lighter shades of morning. The trees slowly dwindled into the grass beyond. However, this grassland was short and was home to three times the trees as the grassland they passed through before. Just beyond the trees was the river they would cross today. He looked up at the horizon and admired the bright shades of pink and orange that lit the sky.

  After a minute he turned and went to a shallow cavern in the side of the cliff. He approached quietly, not wanting to alarm those within. He stopped in the opening and studied the royal family. Seoung was asleep by the far wall and Torak was curled up with Kyeon. Elder sighed; he did not want to wake them, but it was time. He knew they were exhausted and would all need to rest when they arrived at the Eastern Caverns. Seoung, Sir. It’s time to get up.

  Seoung slowly opened his eyes and looked at the clan elder. “Already?” he asked.

  “I’m afraid so. When the other council members wake, they will meet briefly before we leave,” Elder replied. “Should we wake them?” he asked motioning toward the king and his son.

  “No, let them sleep. I will wake Kyeon before the meeting. Torak…Torak will sleep as long as we let him. He’s still recovering from the over-extension. He may be difficult to wake even then.” Elder nodded and followed the prince out into the morning air.

  Together they began waking the warriors and preparing them for the next leg of their journey. They met Ketowa on his way to check on Pai. The young dragon was slowly recovering and could now speak mind to mind without trouble, but he still could not eat whole foods and had some trouble breathing. Hana was with him when they arrived. Pai looked up as they approached and asked, Has there been any word of Shaelynn?

  “I’m afraid not,” Seoung answered sadly. He was as concerned for her as the young shaman was. Knowing what had happened to her, and that she was still recovering when she disappeared made it all the worse. He severely hoped she had not fallen to the poison; Moon would never recover from the loss.

  The older shaman looked him over and allowed Hana to help him to his feet in preparation for the downward climb. Then he joined another shaman to help the rest of those who could walk. The two council members joined Aarto as he checked on a group of warriors. When he was done speaking to them, the three dragons joined the rest of the Southern Council, except for Seoung, who went to wake his brother. After the two had joined them, they discussed their plans for crossing the river. The wounded who could fly, would fly over the river and wait on the other side. The warriors who were helping to transport those who had been more severely wounded were to make several trips until everyone was across. Then they would rest for a short while. Alani thought it was imperative, that they reached the Eastern Caverns as quickly as possible.

  “What about the children?” Aarto asked. “I know some of them can fly, but the younger ones will need help. Akio and Torak can carry the Pebblines, but the younger Ocean dragons and Shanni?”

  “We will have someone help them with the younger children,” Alani answered. Kwan looked up at her, “My Lady, I’m afraid they will have to be a larger breed. These three children are half the size of any Forest or Ocean dragon. We could not carry them, even for a short time.”

  Elder agreed. “Shanni is merely a hatchling, but she is still bigger than Shaelynn. She is almost too big for me to carry, and may have to be aided by an Ice or Fire dragon.”

  Alani nodded, understanding. “Are the children awake yet?” she asked.

  “Most of them are, ma’am. Akio and the older children are awake and have gathered outside. Shanni, Tomel, Zema, and Torak have yet to join them,” Haru answered.

  Seoung look over at his brother. “I assume we should wake him then?”

  Kyeon sighed. Unfortunately. If we were back home I would let him sleep as long as necessary, but we don’t have that option right now. Let’s try to wake him up.

  The council separated in order to get everyone ready. Aarto went to make sure the children who were waiting to leave had eaten, and were ready to go. Kero left to wake Alamine, who had slept in. She had been examined by Pali earlier that morning and had been told to go back to bed. She was recovering from the fall, but could still go into labor easily if stained. Kyeon and Seoung went to wake the prince.

  They approached the small cavern and found him exactly in the same place he had been earlier; he had not even moved. Torak, it’s time to get up, Kyeon told him.

  Torak did not move, nor did he open his eyes. The adults looked at each other; they knew he was tired and knew it would be several days before he would readily wake up. Kyeon carefully approached his son. He slowly lowered his head and nudged the boy. Torak, wake up. He nudged the boy again, and he slowly opened his eyes. He laid there for a moment before lifting his head, which he instantly dropped back to the ground as the cavern spun around him. Kyeon looked at Seoung who sighed. The boy’s recovery was going to take longer than they had thought. “I’ll go get Ketowa,” Seoung offered and left the alcove. Kyeon carefully laid back down next to the youth to wait for the shaman.

  It did not take long for him to enter the little cavern; Seoung was right behind him. Kyeon looked up at the older dragon, but said nothing and turned back to Torak. The boy’s eyes were open but they were unfocussed, and his breathing was unsteady. Ketowa sighed. He could tell just by looking at the boy what was wrong. “How long has he been like this?”

  Since he woke. It took several tries to wake him, and when we did, he could barely lift his head, Kyeon replied.

  “Mmm.” While Ketowa was thinking, Seoung went to inform the Southern council and Elder of the possible delay. After he had gone, Kyeon slowly stood and sat down a few feet away, allowing the shaman to examine the boy. Ketowa circled the prince, looking for signs of impaired brain function. When he found none, he lowered his head to look Torak in the eye. “Torak, can you hear me?” Torak did not answer, so he tried again. “Torak? Blink if you can hear me.”

  The youth blinked and looked up. He shook his head and tried to focus on the shaman, but only managed to make himself dizzy. “That’s a good start. Here, can you look at the light?” Ketowa asked, using a small shiny rock to reflect light into Torak’s eyes. His pupils were sluggish but responsive, and Torak pulled away from the light. Ketowa sighed and shook his head. “Torak, look at me. Can you tell me how you feel?”

  Torak again tried to focus on the shaman, but it was a vein action. He lowered his head to the floor and said, Everything’s spinning. It won’t stop spinning. It’s making me dizzy…nauseous.

  Ketowa nodded. “He’ll be alright, but I would advise allowing him a few more minutes of rest before having him stand. I will also have someone find him something to eat.” Kyeon nodded and watched the shaman leave.

  Elder and Seoung arrived moments later. As the prince joined his brother, Elder asked about Torak. To his surprise, the boy answered. I’ll be alright, as soon as this blasted room stops spinning. He was clearly irritated; his answer made Kyeon smile.

  Aarto walked in just in time to hear his response. He set a chunk of meat down and said, “I hope so, Akio might get mad if you leave all the children to him.” Torak snorted. He knew he was being teased, and he gladly accepted his breakfast. While he ate, the southern council member informed the Middle Kingdom’s Royal Council that the army was beginn
ing to move out. The children were waiting for Torak to join them, and Alamine had joined the little group as well. Kyeon asked him to tell Akio, Lukair, and Alamine that Torak would be there in a few minutes; Aarto nodded and left to deliver the message. Likewise, Elder left to inform the Southern council that the children would soon be on the move.

  When Torak had finished his meal, he attempted to stand. He pulled his forelegs beneath him in preparation for rising and made it halfway up before a sudden bout of dizziness brought him back down. Kyeon noticed and joined the youth as he tried again. The king watched over him as he struggled to stand. I know, I know. It will get easier with time, he said as Seoung helped steady him; together they made their way outside.

  Torak stumbled a few times, but his head slowly stopped spinning and he gained his bearings. As they neared the children Kyeon was surprised to find Alani with them. She turned at the sound of their approach, and upon seeing Torak, said, “Good, I was beginning to wonder if I should call in a replacement.”

  Akio ran over to Torak and asked, “Are you alright?” Torak shook himself as another dizzy spell tried to overwhelm his senses. “I will be, eventually. Is everyone here?”

  “You are the last to arrive,” Akio answered.

  Kyeon looked down at his son. Are you sure you’ll be alright?

  Torak nodded, “I’ll see you tonight.” Kyeon slowly nodded and turned to leave with Alani and Seoung. Torak waited until they were gone before turning to Akio and adding, “Just do me a favor, make sure I don’t walk off a cliff.”

  Akio gave him an odd look, but Lukair replied, “Dizzy spells, huh.” Torak nodded, “Very annoying dizzy spells.”

  Their conversation was stopped when Neela asked rather impolitely, “If he is sick, then why is he in charge of us?” Eika batted her sister with a wing and trotted over to Torak where she nuzzled his leg. Neela stared at her younger sibling in disbelief, but turned to Daro when the boy said, “What I cannot figure out is why he is always with the Middle Kingdom’s king.”