Anthu

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Anthu jumped up from the warm rock he was lying on. Through a slit in the cave rays of sunlight were already shining through and pooling at his feet; How long had he been asleep?

Anthu usually woke up at the crack of dawn, when the only rays of sunlight to wake him up were cold ones. The cave must've been darker than he was used to. He stood up and stretched, grumbling. It was probably already almost noon; The sun was much brighter than he was used to when he woke up. Intolerably bright. He stretched once more, his crooked wings drooping at his sides. Those wings had been crippled on one of his first adventures; There had been a rockslide on one of the cliffs he'd been walking past. Thankfully, the rocks only damaged his wings.

Anthu would've been like this for life, moaning and groaning as he trudged around, his wings by his sides. But he wasn't the type to give up. After a full day of complaining, he decided to do something that his pride didn't often let him do: Ask for help. Three days and two nights later, he had a pair of mechanical wings that he wore over his crooked, twisted ones, and a little mechanical kind of cast that he wore over a part of his tail that he didn't even realize was bent from the rockslide (bonus: It came attached with a little lantern, for when it was dark). These features helped him fly and move his tail normally, but even though his wings were fixed, Anthu still preferred to do most of his journeying on his four feet.

After he put on his mechanical things, Anthu set off to travel. He never liked to stay in the same place for long, and even though the rock he'd been sleeping on was warm during the day, he was happy to say goodbye to that dank, dark cave. It smelled of fungi and rotten logs and death and- Well, you get the point. It was not a pleasant scent.

Anthu walked out of the cave and explored for about 5 hours. By that time, it was already afternoon. That was when it started to rain.

As you know, Anthu was always on the move, and had been for quite some time. He was very experienced, and a little weather didn't trouble him. He took off his mechanical doohickeys and put them in his sack so that they wouldn't get wet. He didn't seek shelter. He just kept going.

Although a storm couldn't hurt Anthu much, it wasn't good for most animals. It was starting to rain more and more, and the land started to flood. Again, not enough to bother Anthu, but bad for the little critters. They all went to seek higher ground, but many didn't make it. Here and there he saw squirrels hanging on to pieces of driftwood and drowned sparrows that made him shiver.

Among these unfortunate creatures was a family of wolves. The mother was dragging her pups one by one onto dry ground, then hopping up to join them. But by the time she had finished fussing about them and had her tail tucked around her now warm and dry offspring, the flood had reached them. Anthu watched them with pity, up to his chest in water. It was then that he realized that perhaps he should start seeking higher ground too.

So he followed the wolves, watching them from a distance. He quietly observed as the mother gently placed each of her precious young on a slippery tree trunk, clucked his tongue as he witnessed a pup yelp and fall off of the trunk into the roaring water. The mother wolf was too busy escorting one of her other children to the safety of the trunk, encouraging them to dig their claws into the wood so that they wouldn't slip off the wet surface. Then she counted her pups.

The wolf reared back with a surprised bark, then glanced down at the rushing water, trying to locate her final and missing pup. When she couldn't find him, she let out an agonized howl. But she couldn't stay and look for her baby. The rest of the pups needed to be safe. Reluctantly, the mother wolf kept going, leaving her pup behind. She would have to wait for the storm to end to look for him.

Anthu waited until the heartbroken mother had left, then hopped easily down the stones and rocks until he reached the place where he last saw the pup go under. He reached in and deftly hooked a claw on the furry body he felt underneath the water. He scooped the lump of downy, dripping wet fuzz and placed him on the same tree trunk he fell off of, using his body to block him from falling back into the water. The pup let out a tiny, hacking cough that nearly shattered Anthu's heart into pieces. The wolf baby looked up at him. "Mama?"
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The storm was over, and Anthu was in a cave with the now dry pup. "Mama?" "I am not your mother." "Mama?" He tapped the confused pup's back. "I'm going to take you back to your mother after I get some food into you. We're going to find her, ok?" Deep in his heart Anthu knew there was no truth to his words anymore. He'd already fallen in love with the pup. But to take him to the poor wailing mother wolf he had seen was the only right thing to do. He sighed and looked down at the pup's innocent eyes.
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Two talonfuls of goat milk later, the pup was ready to go back to his mother. Anthu carried him on his shoulder, off to find the she-wolf and her pups.

When they did find the pup's mother, the young wolf refused to return to her. Anthu didn't admit it, but he was secretly overjoyed.

The wolf grew up with Anthu, and together they were travelers. They explored. They journeyed. They adventured.

Anthu had decided to name the wolf Ronos. "What do you want to be named?" he had asked his furry friend. "I named myself. My parents didn't care whatever I did, so I ran away. An unnamed young dragon. And then I named myself. I named myself Anthu. 'Anthu' means that I'm diligent, you know that? And persevering. A persevering worker. One that finishes what he starts. One that enjoys the satisfying feeling of a job well-done." The wolf looked up at Anthu expectingly. The dragon was deep in thought. Then he lit up. "How about Ronos?" he had suggested. "Ronos is a unique name. Just one letter away from Cronos. It means that you're a leader. A powerful one. A conquerer! And everyone fears you." He poked the wolf playfully. The wolf gave him a look. It seemed to say, "Ronos. I like that. Ronos is a good name."

And so, they traveled together. Dragon and wolf. Wolf and dragon. Anthu and Ronos.

Unfortunately, as all animals had to die, so did Ronos. And he died for his friend. He died for Anthu. And truly, reader, to die for your friend is the most honorable way of all to die.

It happened at a cliff. There was a rockslide, just like the one that crippled Anthu. And this time it would've killed him.

But Ronos
jumped
in
the
way.

He pushed Anthu away from the rocks, and was crushed by them instead. The last thing Anthu heard from his friend was a whimper and delicate bones snapping. The roar of grief from Anthu could be heard all over the countryside.

Finally, Anthu wiped his eyes and took off his mechanical wings. He wasn't going to let a death stand in his way. He skinned Ronos and threw the cloak over his head. He would scale this cliff. He would show it who was boss. And he would do it without his wings. He would climb up on all fours just like Ronos would've had to do, using his paws because he couldn't fly alongside Anthu. He would stay loyal to his wolf friend. He would climb up that cliff. And he did.

And now, if you climb up that very same cliff today, you might happen to see a long, strong branch, and waving from it like a flag, the skin of a once-handsome silver wolf who died to save his friend, his best friend, who was a dragon.



Lore by swaggiep34!

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Art:



By nappez!




By SweetToothArt!





By NightTerr0rs!

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