Zano

WIP








Since coming into this world, we served under the Icewarden's silent command. Our Father gave us life and purpose, and nothing more. We were duty-bound to fight and imprison the abominations of creatures that threatened our land. That snowy, barren territory where not even the most twisted branch could sprout through the layers of ice. It was an unforgiving home to any foolish enough to call it that, but it was the only place we ever felt the warmth of kinship. Standing together, we fought the darkness that seemed never-ending, not knowing or caring if we were winning the war but only the battle in front of us. Connected by the order of the Seekers, hundreds of us scoured the icefields relentlessly to abolish those unnatural, hideous beings not of this world. For countless years, this was enough.



In recent history our battles grew more deadly, our foes more numerous and fierce. It was unknown what caused this sudden change, but we needed to find and stop the catalyst. The elders allowed for a small squadron of dragons to risk life and death in a journey to the unknown. Just five of us were drafted. We had set north to pass through the ever shrinking floes, gathering additional supplies in the tundras where we could. No one knew exactly what lay beyond the ocean. Only the peaks of a distant mountain range could be seen from the furthest of the fractures. Instinct had always said that part of the world did not belong to us, yet we were now left with no other option. The oldest member picked a sturdy looking block of ice from the edge of the floe, then we left our birthplace in silence, each of us resolute in not looking back for fear of the doubts that began to grow in our hearts.

It didn't take long before we began to notice lack of our Father's presence. His aura that had surrounded us since birth dwindled the further we drifted, leaving behind an emptiness more vast than the sea we sat on. The feeling was unbearable. Our language did not contain the words to express this emotion, but I sensed everyone felt the same. The tipping point was reached as the eldest fled into the frigid waters during his post in order to return home. Various levels of punishments would await him as a dragon who abandoned his duty and comrades. That is, if he made it back. None of us mentioned the possibility when lamenting over his soon to be destroyed position. I calculated quietly; between the chill, the weight of the water pulling ever downwards, the predators who lived in the ocean's depths... survival would have taken an act of the Icewarden himself.

We continued drifting.



Whether it was thanks to the residual blessings of Father or not, the remaining four of us scrambled to the shoreline of this new land before our raft melted. Tall, bare trees stood before us and the clusters of leafy vegetation showed this place to be far more fruitful than even the most bountiful tundra. Tiny forms of life scurried in the underbrush and dashed along tree branches. Yet, despite the overflow of nature, this land sent a chill down my spine colder than any winter night. We could all sense it it the distance; a forceful presence from an ambiguous source both similar and so very different to our Father's. All agreed there was no entity comparable to our immortal Father, so it was concluded this pressure we felt could only be the source of the dark creature's surge in power. We continued on as the sun began to lower beyond the mountains that flanked us.

The typical quiet which blankets the night like a coat of snow never arrived. Low plants were constantly rustled, twigs shook and cracked in the breeze, and our heavy footsteps crushed the soft dirt beneath us. When the light of the moon was late to arrive, the most observant of us looked upwards. He froze, signaling the rest of the party to halt and follow his gaze. It was not the stars that had been guiding us with their weak light, but thousands of delicate flowers blooming from the tops of the once bare trees. The view was hypnotizing, twinkling colors shaped into whirlpools and rivers was sprawled before us like stars in the cosmos. If one was not careful, it would be easy to get lost in this ethereal dimension forever. Yet, the way the petals shimmered as they swayed in the air to form a collective mosaic was almost too beautiful to turn down.

In this mere moment of vulnerability, it struck with bared fangs and a gaping maw. It must have been watching us from afar, or maybe from right beside us. The gradually increasing aura of the unknown presence and the host of new flora and fauna to take in had dulled our senses. Pained jarred me back to reality as I defaulted to the combat that had become second nature over the decades. Its skin was tough, a nature-made armor stronger than my claws. A wispy tongue forked out at each lunge it made. My comrades joined our tussle a second later as we all were tossed through the dirt and decaying plant debris. A fight against a being of this size would have been nothing more than training to the average squadron of ten Seekers, but we only numbered four and were weathered by the long journey. Without connection to our Father for support, morale had sunk among us. This was not a battle to uphold our pious duty, it was an ugly brawl for survival.

The giant creature suddenly thrashed it's legless body, successful in finding a victim beneath it. Scales met flesh as the three of us struggled to carve wounds into this beast. Shadows danced along my vision that were becoming increasingly difficult to decipher. A flash of teeth, an outline of a matted mane, the swipe of a tail. It was a two on one fight now, and only we were nearing the end. The beast could sense it too and became over-eager to take us down. In a grand gesture it lurched towards the closet standing dragon. My brother in arms didn't attempt a dodge he knew he would fail, but instead twisted his head downwards and aimed his last attack. The piercing screech was drowned as blood rushed from the holes drilled into it's accursed mouth. With the sacrifice paid by all my comrades, the serpentine-like mass had fallen. I took steadying breaths as the battle frenzy wore off and engraved the fights of fallen into memory; remembered as proof their duty was fulfilled. Where was the duty in this slaughter, in a forsaken place where not even Father wishes to dwell?

I looked towards the land serpent's corpse and sneered. Shade touched, I realized. Almost everything in this new territory had that faint stench of darkness, but it was clear this one in particular had concentrated amounts. Curse this iceless land! I still had to continue on, alone. Taking a foot out of the churned mud pit, my legs began to falter. A wary premonition came over me as I tried again. One foot up, down. It took too much concentration, not even a hatchling would have this much difficulty. The skin where the beast made it's initial assault pulsed. It felt hot, yet it was far too early for an infection to fester. My mind briefly wandered to the poisonous plants native to the icefield's northernmost tundras. Perhaps this midnight predator had eaten too many red berries before it attacked, I lightly thought as I slouched to my haunches. Perhaps this is for the best. We knew we weren't going to return anyways, those old croons just wanted to do something novel to appease Father. With a sigh I laid into the wet dirt, gazing up once again at the deceitful blooms which hung over me, untouched by the death below.

--

I came to consciousness and quickly regretted doing something so ill planned. My head ached with a thousand sores, not one of them remedied when I remembered my whereabouts. My fallen brothers. A strange pressure wrapped around my shoulder forced me to open my eyes; a slow torture I inflicted upon myself. Upon a delayed inspection, I found what covered my wound was a primal weave of soft plants, holding in an ooze that both looked and smelled like snot. A clean smear across my matted and soiled fur, which had been discolored by deep purple splotches. Sickly tendrils of green showed from underneath my skin. These results, caused by what I assumed to be a poison, had changed me into something unrecognizable. The snow would no longer provide it's white mask to aid in battle, instead becoming a background that would evict me from any attempt at blending in. As the only plus to this horrendous transformation, the darker colors could prove to be useful in camouflage during my time in this foreign land.

The scent of other creatures slowly wafted in my direction and for the first time since coming here I could distantly recognize it; one of the most civil of the beasts from the icefields. Centaurs, or a relative species close enough to share blood. Glancing around in a hurry, I didn't see any signs they stuck around. The corpse of the slain giant was replaced with dozens of hoof prints that marked the ground. Earth was shifted over my comrades with stones stacked on top as if to weigh down their spirits. A movement caught my attention. Against the trunk of a nearby tree swung a thin stone, strung from a low branch by the vines I often saw wrapped around fallen logs. On it, symbols which I did not understand were crudely carved. Only a few of the Seekers cared to learn the Centaur's language, if that's what these creatures used, and I was not among them. A stone with meaning had the same weight as a stone without. Ignoring it, I focused on what I must do.

Slowly, carefully, I stood. Almost as poorly as a dragon with frozen legs, but seeing that I appear to be alive I have the duty to carry on our mission... my mission, now. The sun bore down through the spears of bark, indicating midday. I would continue on this path; locating the source of the intimidating presence that constantly hung in the air was the first priority. After that, only Father could say, if he knew of my trials at all.