Name:

 

Read at @tellshorttales

The Remingale Dragon

 

The sun spikes up from the darkened horizon leisurely lighting colours to the dark blue spring night sky waking up fresh breeze and resting soil to tools of shed from their sleep after a working. The stone walled town in the end of valley slowly wakes up along with residents , the rattling doors, skirmishing water with tubs and bucket , morning whispers of town’s women , rhythm of men and their woke up tools in their job . The town briskness keeps high as the morning starts to light up. Rooster’s over the roofs wakes up those who missed the morning charm and calling them out from the dreamlands. The town of Remingale slowly wake up to the day in early spring along the luscious forest around and by the valley.

Dachir a boy of teen in his early years of manhood returned at last from the dreamland to world of living on cock’s last calls before they retire to their hens. He got down for his bed, wiping his entire body to tidy himself with the wet cloth and the bucket of water his mother placed for him early morning in the room. He just his waking lately on a brisk day from his work in Traven pub that took until midnight, with half woke brain dach settles down near the open window to bath in morning sun and breath the fresh dew along the table to have his share of breakfast.

After bidding wish to his mom dach left his home and city through the east gate under the valley’s shades of green. He walked on the stone roads and mud roads until he reached the tower under the mountains shade one that doesn’t show being used by military or guards not even used by a family to dwell but it express the persons lives there with its cared walls and polished windows. Dach neared the towers door barge opening it’s outer walls gate, he quietly knocked the knockers announcing his presence to the dweller dach doesn’t get any response then he pulled the chain beside the vines creeping on the arch ringing the bell loudly to the resident. An angry roar echoed the tower walls “Damn! Who is it at this time , can’t they let me concentrate on my work even at this distance from the city” the loud voice become mild while opening the door there stood an old man with a wrinkled and unkempt long beard upon seeing dach the oldie amazed “dach! Why are you here we are not scheduled to meet until two weeks after” dach followed with a “Mr.grizz it’s the day after promised two weeks, have you not seen the suns and moons run around ?” with a visible snout grizz welcomed dach inside the tower.

A well kempt place one that shows how much the owner cherishes and love it. Dach Sat upon the window porch as he always do, while grizz bought some hot chocolate to have for dach and himself while they chat. Mr.grizz, the plumped short bearded fellow sat by the table asked the nostalgic boy “Any new adventures boy?” called down by the question dach contemplated “Every week is an adventure in this town”. dishes, devices and everything rattled with laughing grizz’s stomping hands, “HAHAHA indeed never a dry well for new faces and tales of adventures in this boulevard of gateway to voyages”. The table rattled more vigorously then the plump figure started to care down his beard with all the running thoughts and devised to the boy “This town is truly blessed or made to be a bait as it stands on the trails of vast vicious trails of the realm” he snorted out with all his breath. “It’s a town of people cherishing what they have” young figure voiced sipping out a share of cup. “huuhp a well dweller can’t appreciate the vast ocean” puffed the plump one “it’s a well visited by sailors of these vast lands, never a silent mouth to be entertain” . Both got into their usual remarks back and forth ever a new one to argue around.

Dach taking his last sip from the cup told grizz “A traveller from mercog visited the Traven yesterday” “What! Did he visit here from all the way across world?” exclaimed grizz “apparently yes! He’s been making his voyage on the valley mountains to it’s edge for years seeking new tales and things” dach finished his words placing the cup on grizz’s table and making his way to the map hung on the wall shining brightly on light from windows.

G-“So he travelled half the world seeking new things hmmm interesting, I hope he has open mind otherwise he is in for a hard life hahaha”

D-“He told a story about how he passed by legred peak along fault rise river”

G-“are you serious boy , it’s not something you should be joking to me”

D-“I can make enough jokes about you for a life time worth with just plums, I tell what I hear”

G-“My ten years of research will soon bear fruit if that fella accepts my requests”

G-“Come boy! You can help me clean the tower roof some other day but now we have to catch the guy before he gets bored of this town”

D-“So, you understand that place is boring with regular routines, yet you claim ignorance to that”

G-“A calm place is a blessing between the lands enriched in chaos, well dweller! Come off we go to town”

Securing the tower grounds, they made their way to town on quick steps.

A plump figure dragging a boy with enthusiasm beaming through miles away from his eyes lead into town’s east gate and quick marched to south of town stomping the pave ways quaking each stones.

Rummages of quarrel woke a man from his tired less sleep. within moments he’s greeted by a dwarf barraging his room door and a thin figure leaned out from the dwarf shadow offering apologies for the ruckus. The man get down from his bed dusting of the morning shy.

Three of them sat on the table in the house as they agreed in the room. “Now why am I hunted by you two?” the man asked “Why did you travel through legred peak ?” grizz asked him back “interesting, how do you know I’m here in this house ?” questions broke when drac answered “I work in the pub you visited last night and I saw you being flirtatious with the lady carer so we are here to ask your whereabouts”. A lady graciously filled the table with drinks and food “Eat and drink, You really spent a lot in the night” she settled on the empty chair winking, filling the table complete.

“I’m exploring everything these range could provide” said the man eating his share of food “I’m a scholar researching the mysteries of the world” griz replied drinking out of his mug they both starred for a moment and continued “I’m melic, a wandering traveller” the man introduced himself. grizz greeted and replied “I’m grizz, a scholar on a trove”. Melic began to explain the legred peak. have

“I had just break apart from the merchants on to the basin grog I bid farwell and that’s when I saw them. The red plauges of sky and aisle, I couldn’t miss watch their place so I took my next journey to there. I made a deal with reasms of the forest they took me to the fault rise river, we boarded a sturdy rocky and slide through the river the water started to boil just near the peaks range the river rose lifting us to the horizons near the peaks. The reddest skies all above were now below, the glistening red carpet spewed out of the peaks shines for me. It’s all just little red ants enough to make dammed hell for everything living.”

Grizz stroking his beard nonchalantly said “they are worker ants, a type of wreck line breed they are one of the ancient species just as old as a first ancient dragon”

“so the old man knows his book huh! Well I heard someone wrote full book about them, maybe you should read instead of hunting me” without forgetting his food melic bantered. “well I’m that someone, melic” grizz took a swing at his drinking mug. Finishing his food melic “well! If you know all about them then why are you looking for me”. Grizz took a sharp glance at melic then said “as You passed the legred and fault rise you have gotten an aura of the ants that lingers around you more than a month and you still have it, I can tell” . Melic said after silently finishing his food “I’m down for whatever it is, it bound to be a new adventure when a great scholar looks for me hahaha”.

With the new company on tow grizz, melic and dach left the town and on to the wilderness.

 

Half the day passed the forest yet to let a ray of sunshine to the ground. Under a big trunk tree, they settled for a lunch break. It has been quite break but their walk until here is not, all the banter made the silent forest festive.

Melic slowly start a conversation “How can you be sure of me passing the legred and fault raise, oldie”. Grizz after swallowing his mouthful lunch “do you know about cesarics mating rituals ?” “yeah! I have seen them with my own eyes on my travel along”. Melic and grizz start their dialogue while Drac taking his rest and eat his lunch. “the lady you slept with yesterday is half-offspring of a cesaric male” “How!! They can’t mate with no one other than the female cesaric?” “Her mother is a traveller wanted to see what the world could offer, while she was observing the cesarics mating she had a bad luck of meeting a stray male cesaric she couldn’t escape him, it’s her luck she even survived the rituals” “it’s a worse place than a barbaric battle field, how did she survive that?” “you can ask her that when you see her” their chat stopped when a ringing of metals heard.

A silhouette of a figure approached them from the forest shades. A women warrior with an unusual garments, armour and shield. She approached them and quietly sat on a tree root.

Grizz spoke first “would like to join us for lunch” the women slowly shake her head turning down grizz’s offer in silent. She took a some type of root and ate it’s inside. Dach asked her “what’s that armour or anklet you are wearing on your legs?” she heaved a light sigh and spoke “it’s my trophy made from the men who wanted to marry me” “how?” to dach’s she curiosity she explained.

“in our tribe if a male want to marry a women they have subdue by force or loose their life and become the womens trophy or their house hold items, I’ve been collecting my trophies since my coming of age”. she caressed her first trophy on her neck hang as choker armour “when they killed by my hands on the duel I gave them a chance to be within my life wearing their jaws as armour instead of cups and plates on my house”. She show her leg calf to dach “they’ve been protecting even after the passing, tribe leader my papa banished me out saying I should find my suitor elsewhere they couldn’t loos another male from our tribe”.

After taking her breath and finishing her lunch she went away into the forest shades. Grizz told his companion it’s also time for them to resume their journey. By evening they slowly approached a place that resemble a scorched ant colony mountain. Grizz lead both of them to a tree that gave them a place to hide and observe the scorched place.

“Do you know where the flying ants go?” Grizz asked melic “I don’t know why you asked” while keenly observing the place grizz answered “They are trying to expand their reach beyond the valley, they group and spread out on high currents. When they fell on land they burrow deep and tunnel their way to legred mountain.” “isn’t it a pertaining doom that can devour the entire world.” Melic amazed and panicked at the same time. “It may be but there are natural predators to the ants, they lure it or find them and feast on the ants. Ants are the basic nutrients for a dragon youngling.” While saying this grizz took a round polished stone throw it near the scorched place centre “Now, melic go and fetch the stone for me” he slowly strolled to it mumbling, “what am I, a pet.”

A slow slithering on the sand could be hear, an unusual aura began to form on the ant mounds. A squid like animal began to appear on the mound shadow, slowly appeared undoing it camouflage. What has been invincible is now an unusual animal to melic, without bothering it he neared the polished stone and picked it up. Sudden gust of wind wallowed from the mound near to the stone. Melic saw some red dots appear on the sky above when he followed the wind direction, It slowly approached the land he stands. The unusual animal stood above another mound, it’s nose slowly points to the sky aiming for the red dots that’s getting bigger and then turned into ant. The unusual animal turns around pointing it’s tail, the tail opens like flower bud with 9 tentacles then they start to gather the air around and puffing up. Melic getting amazed on the sight remembered the red dots and looked up which is now clearly seen as red ants from legred mountain, Shocked by their appearance here before him melic stood there. The tentacles finished collecting the air, sudden charge in air made melic to woke from his shock. He dashed to grizz’s hiding spot as the ants fall on the ground on scorching flames. After taking a breath he joined grizz on the observation. Three big ants are burning away like a charcoal on burner not even leaving cinders. With astonishment, melic and Dach observed the ants demise while grizz alone makes keen notes of the peculiar animal’s behaviour. The animal killed all the ants with inextinguishable flames. It puffs up the tentacles with air then charge the surrounding are then release the air and liquid mixture like a mist, which got ignited by the charged air. Grizz keen observation revealed it all to him, when the pyro show finished killing all the falling ant grizz showed a face of fulfilment.

 

Melic who remembered his anger on Grizz shouted “why did you made walk to a death trap!!!” on a unmoved reaction Grizz replied “It’s a new experience for isn’t it ” melic couldn’t make a return bite down his anger “You yoU you …!” when the animal returned to it’s invisible state grizz made the group to return “Let’s get back to town”.

 

On the return banter melic asked about the unusual animal. Grizz told his tale of how he came across this animal when he was returning from legred and fault raise and he couldn’t see the animal after two days, until his acquaintance who passed through legred and fault raise to meet him they saw the animal again. He understood the aura of red ants is needed when the ant colonies and ant get burned to crisp on the animal spotted sight. He made observation the flames that burned the ants where dragon breath fire. The unusual phenomenon picked his brain the solve the mystery and his case study concluded it’s definitely a dragon. Today he found out it’s new type of unknown dragon species which now known thanks to melic, it’s a small dragon that has dragon fire sack on back which produces the fuel and it’s mouth which ignites the inextinguishable flame which can even burn and melt the ancient dragon scales.

Grizz had observed on what it eats on the forest and how it dwells in the forest by tailing it’s track and collecting evidential material of it’s habitat. Grizz was gleeful as he now understood how a dragon makes it fire breath.

They reached the town just before the moon shine could be seen above the mountain. Dach bid them farewell and trotted to his home while melic and grizz went to a pub to celebrate this milestone.

The town is slowly getting to sleep as the inhabitants finish their daily work and head to their home for the night.

 

The frontier town gains it’s strength on night for the next day.