Azuranja

He shook out his new fur, a bright and hideous red that faded to blue at the pawtips. He ran a blunt claw through his soaked mane, a grey, striped pile of weight that would have almost certainly kept him upon the ground if his wings were not already vestigial.

Everything was gone.

He and his fellow Glitched, or the “Latte-Stained M-Gaolers” as the wardens of the Ice Flight insisted on calling them, had done battle with the gods. They were so close…

Stripped of their power. Cast into the mortal world, doomed to meet the same fate as the other Exaltees. All that work to transcend Sornieth’s puny existence, all for this to occur?

Azuranja buried his heavy head in his mane, hopelessness and loss weighing upon him greater yet than his corporeal form, and sharper than the relentless chill.

At least he had this nice warm pelt to lie in. Ah, this was surprisingly comfortable.

<—>

A brightly-coloured Spiral burst into the door of the cabin, a scroll gripped tightly under one of its six arms. Lion knew this one. From the nearby Fandragon Integration Program, he remembered, and one of the more feisty ones too.

It landed atop a high shelf, where it barely avoided hitting its head on the ceiling. It grabbed and unrolled the scroll, cleared its throat dramatically, and read:

“Attention, all dragons of the Wind Flight. This just in from ya boi, the Windsinger. With help from our exalted, we have successfully neutralised the threat of a certain glitched race of Gaoler. Now you will no longer need to worry about this. Honestly, we couldn’t have done it without the Icewarden’s help - he’s such a cool guy. Haha, geddit? Because he’s cool, and he’s from the notably cold Ice Flight… Whatever. Thanks for sticking around, my children!”

With that, the Spiral rolled up its scroll, flew down and dropped it at Lion’s feet. It waved and raced out the door.

Lion picked up the scroll, scanning its contents. Sure enough, the courier was surprisingly punctual with the delivery of this news. Perhaps because of its importance - a Glitched had been spotted prowling the Millmeadows for quite some time now. Hopefully, it would go away like the other foreigners.

The Mirror smiled, readjusted his mask, and turned to relay the news to the remainder of the community.

<—>

The cold wind was beginning to pick up. It was uncomfortable, but Azu could feel his pelt blocking the brunt of it. After all, this was why he was heading south.

No other dragon would stray so far this way. The southernmost point in the Wind Flight… with its strong winds and icy chill, there would surely be not a soul here as he awaited his fate.

A lone windmill turned next to the cliff face. It looked almost comically small, against the vast, turbulent backdrop. Lightning crackled in the overcast sky as the grey sun began to slip below the horizon and rain began to pelt down. Curious, he walked towards it. It could be a good place to stay.

To his left was the vast cliff, the waves from so far down below barely audible. To his right was a motley collection of bamboo huts and tents, within which he saw… Light? Movement? He wished to join. He wanted to join. He turned and-

No. They would not want him. They would not welcome him, a confused and disoriented traveler who was barely accustomed to his own body, let alone social interaction.

He let them be, turning instead towards the cliff face. He would climb down and find a cave there, where the waves were booming and constant and the cliff face perpetually soaked. Indeed, there were footholds all the way down. If he eased himself down, being careful not to fall, he could reach the bottom within half an hour.

<—>

Another small log joined the campfire, the light devouring it in a feeble attempt to grow. Arglyth watched, huddled close around it.

A wave crashed outside the cave, rumbling like the storm. He also heard, outside, a… roar? It sounded like an unfamiliar dragon.

He threw some more kindling into the fire, then rushed outside. A frigid sheet of rain immediately hit him, and the cold smell of brine filled his nostrils. Near him, balancing on a rock edge that was about to fall, was a Gaoler.

The wave hit the rock, making it crumble. In a burst of panic, Lyth concentrated all his remaining magical energy and shut his eyes. Blinking them open, he saw… a platform of arcane energy holding the Gaoler where the ledge once was.

Lyth almost lost control of the platform in relief. Instead, he moved it, slowly, gently, towards the cave. The sopping-wet Gaoler was curled up in fear. The Banescale poked him with one claw, to which the Gaoler responded with a nervous grunt.

“Come on, let’s get you inside.” Holding his wing above the Gaoler to shield him from the rain, he used one leg to help prop him up and lead him into the warm, dry cave, in which they both collapsed.

Hopefully, he thought, with spring the cold would fade soon. The Mistral Jamboree was usually the herald of this. Within a few days, this would be signaled by the winds picking up.

He hoped that summer would come early this year.

<—>

By morning the storm was gone. Azu blinked, some water still clinging to his fur.

The Banescale was still on top of him. He moved slightly and slowly, so as not to wake him. He slid off onto the floor.

The change in texture must have been clear, as the Banescale awoke, looking up into Azu’s eyes. He smiled, lifting himself off the ground, yawning and stretching his wings.

“Not often we get visitors down here! I’m Arglyth, by the way, but you can call me Lyth. Want breakfast?”

Azu nodded. “Azuranja,” he replied, lying down once again.

Lyth dropped a dead seal at Azu’s feet. It looked quite well-preserved. He cut off a bit with his claw and tore it with his teeth, barely swallowing the tough meat. “So, where’re you from?”

The Gaoler hesitated. “Not… around here,” he finally said. “Elsewhere.”

“Well, if you want, I can get you up to the Fandragon Integration Program. They might be able to identify where you’re-”

“No. Not… fandragon.” He hesitated, before mumbling, “Glitched.”

The Banescale blinked in surprise, pondering for a second, then relaxed. “So, you used to be Glitched, but then the gods won the war against you and you’re now a normal dragon?”

“...Mhm. Put it that way.” He poked at his seal, barely touched except for the chunk Lyth had taken out of it.

Lyth took another bite out of his bit of seal. “So, you’re now harmless and friendly and a normal dragon?”

“...Yes. Fodder.”

“You don’t have to be fodder! Look, I’ll tell Lion you’re here, and we’ll keep you around.”

Azu grunted, lying down on the floor again and trying to go back to sleep.

Lyth turned towards him. “C’mon! It’s warmed up outside, so it’s really nice! You’ll freeze to death in here!

Lifting himself begrudgingly off the ground, he lumbered over to the mouth of the cave, past the shelves stocked high with preserved food and trinkets. He finally arrived outside, lying down again on the ledge.

The sea spray was still present, crashing against the cliff face and soaking him every now and then. The weather was warmer, however, and the sky was clear and the sun was warm upon his fur. The wind was beginning to pick up, forcing the small plants growing on the ledge to intermingle with Azu’s fur. He sighed, rolling onto his back and smiling. That, he was pretty sure, was meant to show that he found it pleasant.

It seemed like Lyth got the message.

<—>

Lion heard a knock on his door. He opened it, to see Arglyth, one of the newer ones, on the other side.

“Yes? This had better be quick.”

The Banescale sat down, smiling nervously. “Well, I’m just letting you know we’ve got a formerly Glitched visitor. Down by the ocean.”

“WHAT?!” The Mirror roared, letting ice escape from between his jaws and bite at the front of Arglyth’s snout. “You know I hate visitors, and I’ve got quite enough already! Why, of all things, a GLITCHED?!”

“He seems pretty nice. You should go say hi-”

“Get out.”

“But-”

“GET. OUT.”

“Okay, okay. Please, though, consider opening the borders slightly.” With that the Banescale left.

Lion let out a low growl. Why did everyone insist on bringing unsettling friends over to the Mill? It was quite crowded enough with normal dragons.

He almost wished that the winter would go on forever. That way, the borders would forever be closed, and dangerous change would never be risked.

He feared that summer would come early this year.

<—>

Lyth flew down into the cave again. This time, he had a sheep between his claws. He barely managed to stay aloft with the strong winds and the pounding rain. Summer would come late this year, the winds seemed to foretell.

Landing in the cave and holding the still-warm sheep between his jaws, he saw that Azu had already started a fire.

They had been living together for a few weeks now, and Azu was reluctant to leave. This was concerning - no dragon could spend their whole life so secluded.

The rocks above the cave rumbled. They sounded… loose?

The Banescale put the sheep on a spit above the fire, then sighed. “Azu… You know you can’t stay here forever. You need to get out there, above the cave, and meet the others around the Mill.”

“Do not! Comfortable here!” The Gaoler turned over, readjusting his position in what looked like a desperate attempt to remain comfortable.

He walked over to him, and sat down. “If you want to get accustomed to life as a normal dragon, you’ve got to interact with others. You know that, right?”

“Mhm. But I… not a normal dragon.”

“I get that. Maybe I phrased it wrong. If you interact with others, they’ll like you. If you don’t, they won’t know you well.”

He growled slightly as another wave roared against the cliffside. But… this roar was lasting longer than usual.

Rockslide!

Within moments, the entrance to the cave was completely covered with boulders. The fire illuminated everything starkly.

Azu got up, ran towards the entrance faster than Lyth had ever seen him move before and pushed. The boulders began to budge. Lyth ran over and pushed as well.

They finally pushed one boulder out enough to see cracks of grey light leaking from between. With this, the ceiling rumbled, and another large stone fell. Lyth felt a sharp spike of pain on his wing. He turned around, and a rock had fallen onto his wing. Azu dragged it off, relieving the pain but tearing off some of the membrane. That wing would be unusable for a while.

He ran to the shelf, where he used his teeth and one leg to construct a sling out of a few sticks and some cloth. It would get better in time. He resumed the pushing effort.

Finally, the boulder was dislodged, and toppled and fell into the turbulent water. The two were out on the ledge, looking up to see yet more rocks falling.

“We need to leave ledge!” Azu said. He turned to re-enter the cave.

Too late. Rocks hit the inner part of the ledge, and it crumbled, tossing the two into the sea.

A wave of cold hit Lyth as the sound became muted and he was submerged. He couldn’t swim up without his wing. He desperately flailed his legs and remaining wing, feeling himself pulled deeper and deeper. Azu, unfamiliar with this, was also sinking.

In desperation, he called upon his inner reserve of magic, channeling it with all his might, in case it would do something, anything, to pull them up.

Something surged. Azu’s eyes were glowing in bright cyan as Lyth’s magic seemed to pick up, seemingly supported by something. With a new wave of hope, he continued to channel his magic.

They burst out of the water, hoisted by a platform made of arcane energy. Not just that, though, but… something else.

Azu stood at the centre, in deep concentration. Lyth relaxed slightly out of exhaustion. The Gaoler faltered slightly, but was still able to hoist the platform, which then threw them over the high edge of the cliff to the foot of the Mill.

<—>

Azu shook himself out, exhausted. Lyth was looking at him in awe.

“That. Was. Awesome!” The Banescale nudged him, still incredulous.

“I guess… Leftover magic. Useful. Amplifies. Creates, too.”

Lyth grabbed Azu with his good wing and dragged him into a tight hug. “Thank you! You saved my life!”

Unsure what to say, the Gaoler pulled him closer. Finally, he replied. “We… friends now?”

“Yes, absolutely!”

A Nocturne emerged from inside the mill, walking towards them. “Well, this is all very sweet, is it not?” She let out a cackle.

“Excuse me, Packrunner? We’re having a fluffy moment over here!” Lyth’s tone was light.

“Whatevs. Azu could do with a makeover. Right now, he looks like fodder.” She hauled a chest over to him. He touched it, and felt some magic surge through him before the lights decorating the chest winked out.

He looked down. To his surprise, his fur was shifting with beautiful galaxy-like decoration. He grinned. “I love it! Thank you… Packrunner!”

He suddenly had an idea. He gestured for Lyth to follow, and walked over to the edge of the cliff. He waved his paw around a bit, throwing about some flashy magic, before chucking it to the ledge, where it dislodged some soil and rock and shaped it into a platform that autonomously floated. “Lyth, make it go up and down?”

The Banescale hobbled over, breathing some Arcane magic into it. “There. It now changes its elevation based on the choice of any dragon on it.”

Azu smiled. “Now, we get up and down without danger!”

Packrunner giggled. “I guess that’s just what teamwork can do!”

<—>

The multicoloured Spiral returned to Lion’s study, another scroll in hand. It looked particularly excited. The Mirror sighed. What were the dragons of this Clan up to this time?

“Attention, all residents of the Southern Mill and surrounding territories. This is Arglyth writing. I would like you all to meet Azuranja, the new resident of the Mill. He was formerly a Glitched, but now he is virtually powerless compared to his race’s former might. He is very friendly and able to hunt and forage competently. He has recently built an elevator alongside myself to allow for flightless dragons and Beastclans to get up and down the cliffside. Be sure to pay him a visit and say hi!
“P.S. Lion, if you’re reading this, this is your call to invite more diverse populations into the vicinity of the Mill. Azu has not caused any harm whatsoever. What’s the harm in making this more of an open shelter for everyone?”

It rolled up the scroll and began to perch on Lion’s shoulder. “Y’know, Lyth has a point. You should try being a bit more open in future.”

He thought for a bit. “Yes, I saw what that Gaoler did,” he finally snapped. “And I guess it was pretty impressive.”

“You like the cold, don’t you? That’s why you prefer winter. Because it’s uncomfortable, but you don’t risk overheating or your magic failing.”

“...Yes.”

“But, if you’re scared of the summer, you’ll never know what it’s like to have a pool party! Or a beach day! Or a nice walk in the Earth-Flight bush! Or the Brightshine Jubilee!”

“True. Your point being?”

The Spiral blinked. It was rather disconcerting, watching a three-eyed creature blink.

“Obviously, you have to let go of your stupid past and accept new things! Azu’s waiting for you to give him a warm welcome and not shoo him away like you did the past five-or-so times!”

He fell silent.

“...You do have a point, Sel. I’ll go greet our new friend.”

He got up, leaving the hut. A warm wind was blowing, caressing his wings and racing onto his face. It was unusual, such a warm wind in this part of the world. Unusual, but good.

He took a strange comfort in the fact that summer would come early this year.




^^ lore by me!





Art by ShiverStar