Prehnite

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Curiosity—it was the name his god had given him, the emotion that beat most strongly in his heart. Curiosity nudged this Obelisk out into the sunlight, and spurred him on to see the world. Everything was new...and therefore, to various degrees, it was terrifying.

“The lands scream with power...and abomination.

The Earthshaker’s words thrummed in Curiosity’s head. He’d thought they would fade with time, but instead they seemed to grow louder.

“You must protect the rest of our family...or you will all be taken.”

Only...what had the Earthshaker meant by that? Protect everybody from what or be taken by...what? And looming over it all, vague warnings of some terrible threat—it could be anywhere...or anything.

It was no wonder Curiosity’s regard of the world was soon tinged with fear. Dragonhome, at least, held some familiarity for him. The rock that had cradled him in slumber was the same earth he now trod upon; the dragons he met mostly had his deity’s mark upon their eyes.

And they had the Earthshaker’s warmth, too: By then, news of the Obelisks was beginning to spread through Dragonhome, and they recognized Curiosity for what he was. They gave him shelter, showed him what was safe to eat, and sewed clothing to protect him from the elements. He had so many questions, and they answered him with the patience they showed their own hatchlings. It became the norm for Curiosity to rise at daybreak, attend lessons with the clans’ teachers and gatherers and dignitaries, and then fall into slumber late at night. As he dreamed, the information he’d amassed embedded itself into his brain—

But it could not completely crowd out the Earthshaker’s foreboding words.

It would have been so easy to settle down in Dragonhome. Curiosity was comfortable there, and many clans were willing to accommodate him. But the Earthshaker’s words beckoned him on.

And even under all the fear, there was still that sense of wondering that had given him his name. He had learned much about the world beyond Dragonhome’s borders, and he did want to see it for himself now. “Besides,” he assured himself, “the things I’ve learned should be able to help me. I’ll be fine out there. I’ll be fine....”

It was a bright, warm morning when Curiosity found himself standing on the edge of the border. Just one step...and he would leave behind all the comfort and safety he’d ever known. But even then—

“Protect our family. This threat must be found.”

Curiosity took a deep breath. He stepped over the border, and with a last look back, he left Dragonhome behind.

~ ~ ~
A soft rain began to fall. It seeped through Curiosity’s clothing and fur, and he shook the worst of it off as he sought shelter beneath a rocky overhang. The rain was a soft, fine mist that wouldn’t have bothered most dragons, but he didn’t feel like forging through it right now.

He didn’t feel like forging through anything. It had been quite some time since he’d left Dragonhome, and the world, indeed, was as confusing and frightening as he had feared. He’d had to learn a lot of lessons, and they hadn’t always been pleasant. People weren’t always kind. Help wasn’t always forthcoming.

And the Earthshaker’s words still drove him on, telling him that his mission wasn’t yet complete.

In his travels, Curiosity had met other Obelisks and asked them about these words. They didn’t understand these any more than he did. Some thought the threat the Earthshaker had referred to was the Shade. Others spoke accusingly of the Beastclans. Still others thought that the threat was something else entirely, perhaps something still unknowable to dragonkind....

Curiosity knew he had to go on. He couldn’t crouch under the overhang forever, waiting for the rain to pass—

Or could he?

He was tired. It had taken him months to get here— “And where is that?” he asked himself wearily. Lost somewhere on the Windswept Plateau, in the rain-soaked bamboo forests, with no destination, no relief, in sight.

He would go on, he told himself, but right now he couldn’t face the world. He curled up instead, his wings tightly folded against his sides, and called up his magic. A sheet of dark rock crept over him, turning him into a statue.

Even in his dreams, the Earthshaker spoke to him—though this time, the vast voice didn’t urge him on. “Sleep, my son,” it soothed him instead. “Sleep...”

And gladly, Curiosity obeyed.

Awareness returned to him hours, perhaps days later, when he heard a scream. His ears tingled—and suddenly the shell of stone crumbled into dust as he awoke. He shook it off and stood, eyes wide with surprise. The unknown dragon screamed again, but this time, there was another sound: the screech of something enormous, something angry.

Curiosity crashed through the bamboo towards the commotion. He saw a huge shape in the meadow ahead; his first thought was that an airship had crashed and its green sails were flapping loose. And then it moved—

It was a bird—but one bigger than most dragons, larger even than Curiosity himself! A crown of feathers bristled angrily about its head. It let out another piercing screech, lifted a taloned foot, and drove it towards a small copse of trees.

The crash of splintering wood was tremendous. Curiosity blinked; he saw a slim shape backpedaling through the wreckage, frantically trying to find another place to hide. Another dragon, much smaller than Curiosity, and definitely small enough to fit into the giant bird’s gullet—which, evidently, the bird was trying to do.

Curiosity let out an impressive roar. One thing that made it even more impressive was that behind it, there was not a lot going on: He had learned some combat and self-defense tips from various clans during his travels, and he now scrabbled through that mental mess, trying to assemble a feasible plan. Could he scare the bird off? Or could he perhaps distract it while the smaller dragon fled to safety?

The bird made that decision for both of them. It wheeled about with surprising agility and then leaped forward with a single sweep of its wings. Curiosity had a brief moment to stare in surprise at the deadly talons rocketing straight towards his face—and then he shut his eyes.

Blammm! The crowned roc, to its consternation, found itself smashing into a statue. Both of them went bowling across the meadow. The roc quickly recovered, getting to its feet. Its golden eyes blazed with rage as it looked around for the offending statue—but it was gone. And so too was the Obelisk...

And then with another skull-cracking impact, Curiosity hurled himself down from the sky, aiming for the roc’s head. The collision, while glancing, was still forceful enough to send the bird reeling. It shook off the confusion and advanced towards him again, stabbing with its hooked beak. Its strikes actually ripped his clothes a few times, even closed harmlessly on his mane. He ducked beneath the cruel beak and, with a great heave, headbutted the roc.

This attack caught it right on the underside of the beak. It backed away, blinking furiously. Curiosity braced himself for another attack, fervently hoping he wouldn’t have to actually draw blood....

But the roc decided that it’d had enough. With another defiant screech, it turned away from him, its feathers smoothing back. The ground shook with its footsteps as it moved away from him in huge strides, and then its wings beat the air and it soared into the sky.

Relief flooded Curiosity, turning his legs to jelly. He sat down hard on the grass. His mind was still reeling from the fight, and it took him a long moment to remember the smaller dragon hiding among the trees.

“Marvelous! Absolutely marvelous!” The voice burst, piping and excited, from the nearby copse. As Curiosity turned to look, the dragon popped up from the wreckage. He was disheveled, several splinters still sticking up from his clothes and feathers, but didn’t seem to be hurt.

He came gliding across the grass, beaming brightly at Curiosity all the while. “Now, I’ve seen a lot of things in my rambles, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a lone dragon fight off a roc! Even the warriors I know tend to have a tough time with ’em. Here, friend, what’s your name?”

The words came bright and fast, like countless fish leaping out of a stream. Curiosity blinked as he struggled to parse them all. “Um, I’m—”

“As a matter of fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen magic quite like that. Turning to stone, very handy! I could’ve used that trick back there. O’ course, I don’t think it would’ve helped me much, anyway. That bird would still have swallowed me whole.

“Anyway, I reckon it’s Earth magic? Hmm!” The smaller dragon blinked as if seeing Curiosity, really seeing him, for the first time. “I’ve never clapped eyes on your like before. What sort of dragon are you?”

Most dragons would have been annoyed at such a direct question, but Curiosity had heard it before—his kind were not yet well known throughout Sornieth. “I’m an Obelisk, created by the Earthshaker,” he explained. “He brought us out of the stone only a few moons ago. And we have been tasked with—”

“Say no more! Now that you mention it, I think I did hear words on the wind....Thought it was just made-up tales; looks as though I was wrong. But how exciting! This is a momentous occasion; I should set it to music as soon as I can!”

It was at that point that Curiosity noticed the lute hanging at the dragon’s hip. Like its owner, it didn’t seem to have sustained significant damage from the roc attack.

The Obelisk rallied; before the next tide of words flowed out, he managed to squeeze in edgewise: “Um, I’m sorry, but what sort of dragon are you?” He had seen this particular breed before, but the rigors of his journeys and lessons had crowded out the information again.

“Why, I’m a Skydancer. Name’s Reed, wandering bard. Say, that turn-to-stone magic of yours...Could you do it again?”

“Of course. It’s not very difficult.”

“It’s not?!” Reed’s jaw sagged open. Curiosity had to admit that the Skydancer’s awe was very gratifying. He crouched down, and once again the shell of stone encased him. He allowed Reed to tap on his wings a few times before breaking loose again.

“Astounding!” the bard gasped. He picked up a chip of rock and compared it to Curiosity’s mane. “Thought you’d turn into something green, like prehnite. Ah, this is fantastic. I’m on my way to visit a local clan; I’m sure they’ll be stoked to meet you too!”

“A...clan?” Curiosity felt the familiar chill of anxiety creep over him again. Suddenly, he wished he were back in the stone.

“Yes! They’re a hop, a skip, and a jump away from here. I daresay they’ll be glad to see me too, me not having become roc food and all, on account of you being around to help me. It’ll be grand, you’ll see!”

Despite his misgivings, Curiosity decided that it wouldn’t hurt to at least drop Reed off at the entrance to the lair. He had a bad mental image of the bard wandering off and then getting snatched up by the vengeful roc.

“All right, if you think it won’t be any trouble...”

“Nope, not at all; if anything, I’d say you’ve got a knack for getting out of trouble! Step lively, Prehnite. Best to be there before nightfall.”

“Huh? But my name is Curiosity....”

It was difficult to say if Reed hadn’t heard or just didn’t care. He prattled on cheerfully to his new friend about various topics, from time to time addressing the Obelisk as “Prehnite”. Curiosity was quite baffled at first, but soon decided to stop correcting Reed. After all, there were worse names than “Prehnite” to be had.

~ ~ ~
As Reed had predicted, the dragons of Dandelion Clan recognized him and were happy to see him. They fussed over him for a moment, and when he gestured to Curiosity and said, “Prehnite here saved me from a vicious roc!” the dragons all burst into cheers.

The Obelisk was welcomed into the lair and offered all the comforts of home. Like Reed, the dragons of Dandelion Clan had a lot of questions for him, but most of them were more perceptive and politely backed away when they noticed Curiosity getting nervous. It took him a while to get used to being surrounded by a clan again, but soon he was confident enough to wander around on his own. By then, all the clan members recognized him and were happy to teach him about their world.

“It’s just like being back in Dragonhome! It’s just like being back...home....”

The thought surprised Curiosity more than just a little bit. He’d spent so long being nervous and anxious, he’d nearly forgotten what it was like to feel comfortable, safe...and eager to see what life had in store for him.

And he had to admit, he did not really feel compelled to continue wandering the world. It was not that he was afraid to do so—far from it now, in fact. The feeling had instead been superseded by a new emotion: the desire to protect this place, this clan....

“You must protect the rest of our family...”

Tomorrow was a big day: Curiosity would be formally welcomed into the clan. He had never actually joined one before, so everything about the upcoming ceremony would be completely new to him—but he wasn’t nervous about it. In fact, he was looking forward to it....

“Big day tomorrow, huh? This place’ll be lucky to have you on board permanently, Prehnite,” Reed said, clapping him on the shoulder. In a rare moment of self-reflection, he said, “A clan like this could always use someone keen like you. Sometimes I’m not the only one who gets into trouble, you know?”

“I’ll do my best,” the Obelisk formerly named Curiosity said. Reed winked back. “You’ll be splendid, I’m sure. Ah, it looks like dinner’s ready. Some newfangled recipe...Well, it can’t be any worse than the culinary horrors I’ve cooked up! Would you like to eat with us?”

Prehnite beamed back. “Of course, Reed. Let’s go see what it is!”

~ written by Disillusionist (254672)
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