Fasome

The clan of pink and green dragons peered out nervously at the huddled up group of dragons pacing outside their cave. None of them could say these dragons looked wrong per se, but none of them could say they looked quite right either. Their pinks were dulled and their greens just looked..... different. The wisest of the clan, Jubilee, spoke in low whispered tones to her advisors. The clan had taken an oath never to turn away the dragons that looked like them, but no one could decide whether the shy hatchlings outside the cave counted.

After much debate, Jubilee finally stepped outside the shimmering cave walls, walking slow, intentional steps around the hatchlings. She poked and prodded the now stiff dragons, examining their colors, their eyes, and most importantly their strength. The OPWs would overthrow her if she brought in any other weak, sniveling, prissy dragons. They prided themselves in their vicious, deadly attacks. And while Jubilee was the strongest of all, she was no match for the 2 dozen silhouettes watching her intently, claws sharpened in case anything went awry.

---

The morning was slightly chilly, when Sweich woke up on the 23rd day of the 10th moon. But that wasn't the first thing he noticed. The first thing he noticed was the stirrings inside of him, the aching to explore. They were too strong to ignore any longer. He had grown tired of the same cave walls, the same bugs buzzing every night, the same patterns of the sun and the moon. He knew he needed something more, he could not live the rest of his life in this never-changing routine. He gently awoke his love Tlac, taking a moment to admire her bright blue eyes before telling her of his plan.

He was going to leave the clan before the rest of the dragons awoke. His whispered dreams elicited questioning murmurs from Tolac, of how the rest of the clan would survive without their leader, and if the pair would ever return to the only home they had ever known. Eventually, however, she agreed. The two quickly scarfed down food, a familiar teasing grin at their lips as they tease the other for their strange diet. The sun started to creep onto the floor of their cave by the time they were ready, whispering their goodbyes to the sleeping ears of their now former clanmates.

Their pace was quick at first, nervousness sending adrenaline through their clawtips. But over time their speed slowed, appreciating the dazzling new scenery they were experiencing. New plants hid the tails of animals they had never before seen, fish of unusual colors jumped excitedly out of the water, bugs of all shapes and sizes buzzed all around them. As Sweich walked, he couldn't help but feel that what he was experiencing was paradise.

The first dragon they saw was a little peculiar. He was small for his age, but it only took once glance to know that didn't mean he was weak. Fierce determination set into his eyes as he snarled, demanding to know who the pair were, where they came from, what they wanted, every question under the moon. Before Sweich could respond, Tolac's sweet voice calmly answered each of the dragon's questions, easing the palpable tension. After what seemed like an eternity, the strange dragon who introduced himself as [name], guided them through the forested area towards a small clearing, where a handful of other dragons were all resting.