The Dragon Healer of Tone (World of Tone)

by Adams, A. D.

  A second building that was not much more than a roof with supporting timbers stood behind the house. A small area surrounded by a wooden fence encompassed the building, allowing their beasts to move about. The couple had one plow beast, which was kept here along with five jumper beasts, whose ancestors had originally been caught in the mountains before Obecka made it impossible to go there. Adam and Reicka milked the females each sunrise and slaughtered a male in the middle of each cold season. A waist-high rock wall defined the farm boundaries.

  That sunset Adam returned exhausted from the sun-rising’s work.

  He had managed to save the field. He was a strong man who was able to keep his farm fairly productive despite the rain. For this reason, he fed himself and his family well from his own labor. His mother-in-law had prepared him a good strong stew, which she ladled into a large wooden bowl. Adam took the bowl and a tore off a chunk of bread from the large round loaf in the center of the table. He took his meal to the chair next to his wife and sat near the woman he obviously adored.

  “Um! Something wrong, my love?” Adam said in concern.

  “I had a cramp; it’s nothing.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, yes, eat your supper. I’m fine.”

  The cramps worsened, and Sadi knew it was her time. As Adam paced the main room, Sadi and Reicka were in the bedroom. Time passed slowly as Reicka’s cries of discomfort became louder and louder. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, Adam heard his mother in-law saying, “push, push hard” and then the strong cry of a baby came from the room. Just as he heard the cry, a single ray of sunlight passed through the crude window and lit the bedroom door. The door opened, and Sadi came out holding in her hands a small baby boy who seemed to glow from the light. She handed him his new son, and he held the baby carefully; it was hard for the baby was large and full of life. He wiggled about in his father’s large arms. Adam looked into the face of the small life within his grasp and was struck by the baby’s eyes. They looked as if they were carved from an ancient piece of hardwood that had been colored with age, in deep rich orange and brown tones and gleamed with mirror-like gloss. He had never seen eyes of such color or depth. His son’s small round face glowed with health and strength.

  Adam had not expected such a child because the other newborns he had seen were small and weak with little life within their frail bodies.

  Over the next few sun-risings, Reicka recovered from the birth. The baby was larger than any she had seen in the village, but the birth was much less difficult than she had expected. There was little pain, and it seemed almost a pleasure to birth this son of hers. The baby grew stronger and stronger as the sun-risings passed. He was a quiet baby who cried little, but when he did cry, it could be heard all over the farm.

  Several of the neighbors visited and said they were lucky to have such a fine strong child, for it was not uncommon for a baby to die during or just after birth.

  Chapter 3 - The First Year of Life

  (Life is learned by Stages.)

  334 set of seasons since the coming of the Averons

  For the first three full moon risings, it was the custom not to name a new baby. The child was watched, and a name was chosen based on the child’s personality. In this case, the baby boy was named Terra. He seemed to love to crawl around in the dirt making the name obvious.

  When Terra was seven full moon risings old, an odd thing happened.

  Reicka was chopping some vegetables for supper when the knife slipped. Her index finger was cut almost to the bone. Once she recovered from the pain, she tried to heal the cut with magic, but it was too deep, and she was only able to stop the bleeding. Terra came crawling to his mother as she sat in her chair. He had heard her scream and wanted to see if his momma was all right. Reicka was trying to bandage the cut when Terra reached up and touched her finger. In an instant, his little hand began to glow orange, and her finger completely healed in a few moments. Reicka was so surprised; she dropped the bandage and just stared at her little son. Unconcerned, he moved away to find his toy drum.

  When Adam came home that sunset, Reicka told him the story, but he had a hard time believing that his son possessed magic powers. No man had ever been gifted with magic, let alone healing magic. So Reicka took his finger and pricked it and brought Terra to him. Terra reached for his father’s hand and healed it in the same way he had healed his mother.

  “Reicka, we should not mention this to others.”

  “Why?”

  “If others knew, they might try to take Terra away from us so they could control his power.”

  “I didn’t think of that.”

  The new parents kept the secret of their son’s powers except for one, Sadi, Reicka’s mother. When Sadi was told, she wanted to see the child’s power. Reicka pricked her finger, and little Terra healed it. Sadi was surprised and seemed a little worried about Terra’s power.

  “What’s wrong, Mother?”

  “Well, there is an old legend about a man that would heal the Dragons. I don’t know much about it, but I understand that he would be in much danger even with his power.”

  “Do you think it is Terra?”

  “Oh, I don’t think anything bad could happen to you and your little one.”

  Sadi held an awful truth from her daughter, hoping it would not be true for them. She did tell them that their decision to keep Terra’s magic a secret was right. Sadi knew that if the villagers found out they would want Terra and since they had little respect for the farmers, they might come and take him just to heal their bodies. She knew he had an unusual future in store, but what, she could not conceive.

  As the moon risings passed, Terra’s healing powers grew, and his parents tried to teach him not to show his magic when others were around. Terra was now walking with assistance from various buckets, chairs, toys and any other thing he could reach. He loved to investigate everything, and his mother had to watch him closely to make sure he didn’t hurt himself.

  One sun-rising while Adam was in the far field, his neighbor Johhan came riding up. Johhan was a towering man with a long red beard and hair. He had a huge barrel-like body with powerful round short legs.

  When he approached, you couldn’t help but notice him.

  “Adam, how have you been, and how’s that new son of yours?”

  “Oh, we’re fine.”

  “How are you doing?”

  “Well, very well, except one of my animals was killed two sun-risings ago by a slese cat. I thought you should know. It was a tri-color with red and yellow fur and a black stripe down its back.”

  “Who saw it?”

  “One of my sons; it happened right in front of him. I thought I’d better warn you so you could keep your family safe.”

  “Thanks; I remember one killed old Tarac a few seasons back.”

  “Yes, the body was a terrible sight, all cut to pieces.”

  “Well, I’d better go warn Reicka and get my bow. I’ll see you later, thanks again.” Johhan rode off to tell the next neighbor, and Adam headed back to the house. Suddenly, he heard a scream from the house, and he began to run.

  When Adam was in sight of the house, he saw Terra petting a slese cat. He was holding himself up with one hand on the well and the other was petting the cat as if it were a farm animal. Reicka stood near them looking terrified. Then Terra lost his grip on the well’s side and started to fall. The slese cat curled its tail around his small body and held him up. When Adam reached his wife, he could hear the slese cat purring to Terra and gently rubbing its head against his arm.

  Adam, out of breath, could not believe what he was seeing.

  “By the moon, what is happening?”

  Reicka still terrified by the sight said, “I, I was in the house with Terra. He was playing in the corner with his drum. I went into the bedroom. I came out. The front door was open, and Terra was gone. I went to the door and saw the snarling slese cat jump at Terra, but it came to the ground just short of him. It stopp
ed for a moment and then started to purr like a kitten. It then moved toward him, just brushed its fur against his little body, and then curled up beside him.”

  Adam walked toward the two and slowly bent down to grab Terra.

  The slese cat lifted its head and licked Adam’s hand.

  “He’s completely tame! Come over, Reicka.”

  “I’m afraid.”

  “Don’t be; come here.” Reicka approached, and Adam carefully took her hand and moved it toward the cat. The cat again reached up and licked her hand. Reicka then reached for Terra and picked him up.

  She held him tight and started to cry softly. The slese cat curled around her legs and started to purr.

  That sunset Reicka had invited her mother to dinner so they could discuss the sun-rising’s events with her. As they sat by the fireplace watching Terra sleeping on a fur with the slese cat curled around him, the conversation centered on Terra’s magic. After explaining the sun-rising’s episode to Sadi, Reicka said, “Adam, he has much greater magic than I do. I have never heard of anyone who could tame a slese cat, let alone by simply looking at it.”

  “I agree,” Sadi said.

  “I know, I know, he has much greater power than I thought, but I’m not sure what to do. If the people around here find out, who knows what would happen.”

  Sadi spoke up, “May I make a suggestion.”

  “Yes, of course mother, that’s why we invited you.”

  “I believe you should take Terra to the old one in the Mur valley caves. She is supposed to know more than anyone about magic and the old stories. She might be able to help.”

  With concern in his face Adam said, “That’s a long dangerous journey. Are you sure that’s what we should do?”

  “I know of no other who could explain his magic.”

  “Reicka, what do you think?”

  “I think we should go, Adam. We need to know how to train him and what to do when people find out. You know they will. Terra will one sun-rising help someone and the knowledge of his magic will spread like wildfire.”

  “I guess you’re right, my dear.”

  “When should we leave?” Reicka asked.

  “After the harvest, we can’t afford to lose the crop I just planted.”

  So, it was decided that after the crops were harvested Reicka, Adam, and Terra would go to see the old one.

  Chapter 4 - The Birth of a Dragon

  (The New Beginning.)

  335 set of seasons since the coming of the Averons

  Dawra was a young green dragon of power, grace, and beauty. Her body was ten man lengths long, and her powerful tail was of equal length. She possessed wings of a yellow green translucent membrane stretched between a strong but light, bony frame. One fully extended wing was the length of her body and tail combined. Her wings folded neatly onto her graceful back. Her powerful back legs were three man lengths long. She used them for hunting, and they also served to launch her great body into the air. Her front legs, or perhaps arms would be a better description, were half as long as her back legs but no less powerful, with four strong taloned fingers on each. Dawra’s face was a light green with a single series of yellow green armored plates running from her forehead to the tip of her tail. The plates rose slowly into ridges from her head until they reached their peak above her shoulders. Then they slowly flattened out as they reached the tip of her tail where they flowed into a heart shape. With a single whip of her tail, she could cut a half a man length thick tree down. She had four nostrils; the inner two were for small fire streams; the outer two for breathing.

  Her mouth held a row of sharp bright teeth from which a flame of tremendous proportions could be generated. In a single blast, she could engulf a farmer’s entire house in searing flames. Her eyes were bright red jewels of unimaginable beauty. Her skin was a series of dark green semi-translucent fireproof scales which she kept shiny and clean with frequent ocean swims.

  Dawra was preparing her nest. She would soon be laying her egg and wanted everything just right. The father was the great blue dragon Hectise, but in the custom of the dragons, he would have no active part in taking care of the egg or raising the dragonette. The dragons’ mating was similar to other animals. Dragons could mate as many times as they wished, but it was usually done only when a female was ready to produce an egg. She would screech a high-pitched scream when suitors were needed to start the courtship.

  The males vied for the females by aerial acrobatics and provided fresh killed animals for the females’ enjoyment. The females eventually picked a single male from the admiring group. After the selection, the dragons flew to one of the many high cliffs and landed.

  They would then take off together gaining as much height as possible.

  There they would couple; plunging down until they almost struck the ground. Just before plunging into the ground and dying, they split apart and flew from each other in a beautiful arching motion.

  Dawra had mated only twice, but her first egg was destroyed in an accident. Once a dragonette was born, a female dragon would not mate again until she was ready to take care of another small one. This usually was sixteen set of seasons since it typically took a young dragon that long to mature. The dragons lived three to four hundred sets of seasons before they stopped mating.

  Dawra lived in a cave that she thought was perfect. The cave was high on a coastal cliff and faced an opposing cliff that created a V-shaped crevice. This protected the opening from high winds and storms. A small stream with fresh, cool, and drinkable water flowed through the cave from a small hole in the back. It rounded the edge of one wall and flowed out the corner of the cave opening where it dropped into the sea.

  The nest was a pile of sand surrounded by rocks, which Dawra had carefully arranged on the floor. She had learned with the loss of her first egg not to place one on the many terraces in the cave. Her first egg had started to rock and move when it was close to hatching, and it rolled off a terrace and was destroyed by the fall. She heated the rocks with her flames every two to three hours. The egg lay in the center of the pile on the soft sand surrounded by the heated rocks, keeping it warm and safe.

  That sunset Dawra felt it time to lay her egg. Dawra had no pain during the birth, and by morning, the new mother was lovingly caring for a beautiful blue-green egg, half the size of a full-grown man.

  Over the next two full moon cycles, Dawra carefully took care of her egg. She constantly tended it by rolling it gently in the sand until it started to move. At first just a little then more and more violently until it cracked. After a few moments of struggle, a blue-green female dragon emerged. Her eyes were bright orange, the color of the sun at dusk. Dawra was so pleased she hopped from foot to foot and screeched with pleasure. She had her first child; the first blue-green dragon in generations. It made her special to her mother and the Dragon world.

  Dawra had already picked her name for the shape of the egg foretold the sex of the dragonette. Dawra chose her mother’s name, Fienna. Her mother had died in a terrible storm just a few full moon risings before.

  She was trying to fly into her cave during the heavy rains of a storm, and a powerful gust of wind had blown her into the rocks to the left side of the entrance. She fell fifty dragon lengths to her death on the rocks below. Dawra was very sad, for dragons knew love and sorrow.

  Chapter 5 - The Tragic Accident

  (The Pain of a Child is the Pain of the Parent.)

  336 set of seasons since the coming of the Averons

  Fienna, the young dragonette, grew slowly. She was intelligent and constantly explored her cave. Her mother was always bringing things home that her daughter could examine. In one case, it was an odd looking thing that the humans used. It contained turning wheels and other odd things. Neither of them understood what it was for, but Fienna delighted in taking it apart and playing with its innards. They rolled and spun to her amusement; one even bounced up when she pressed it down and let it go.

  One sun-rising while playing wi
th her hop-up toy it popped onto one of the high terraces in the cave. Her mother was out hunting and had told her never to go onto the terraces. Fienna wanted her toy back, and as many children, she ignored or forgot her mother’s orders. She slowly climbed and hopped from one terrace to the next until she reached her toy. It was on the edge, and as she reached with her mouth to pick it up, some loose rocks under her feet moved. She felt herself falling over the edge and instinctively started flapping her underdeveloped wings.

  Although she was able to slow her fall, she hit one of the lower terraces hard. Fienna rolled from that terrace and onto the next one hitting her left wing. The pain shot through her like a bolt of lightning. She started to screech so loud that a passing male dragon named Lowlack heard her.

  Lowlack was a three hundred set of seasons old bronze-colored dragon in his declining time. He still had one hundred set of seasons or so of life left, but the younger dragons always won the mating rituals, and he was losing his strength slowly as the seasons passed. Even his fire was not what it once was. When he heard the screeching, he landed at the mouth of Dawra’s cave. This was risky since mother dragons were known to kill intruders, even males larger than themselves. He carefully peeked into the cave and saw Fienna on a terrace screeching and holding her left wing close to her body. Lowlack cautiously looked around to see if the mother was present and then stepped inside. He moved toward Fienna and nuzzled his nose against her small body.

  “Are you all right?”

  “My wing, it hurts. It hurts.”