Blood And Fire

Chapter 1: Meet the Heroes

Nick opens his eyes. It is dusk, his usual waking time. He is hungry - or thirsty. The two are synonymous for the adolescent. His dirty blonde hair flips about his pale forehead as he rouses himself to a standing position.

From where he stands, the entrance to the cave is barely perceptible. The grey opening is partially occluded by a massive dark silhouette. The large object moves. Now Nick is confronted by a pair of glowing ruby orbs.

I'm hungry too.

The thought is received by Nick from the owner of the fist-sized illuminated eyes.

"We'll find something to eat soon," Nick promises. Although speaking is not necessary, Nick often transitions between telepathy and the spoken word. He strolls up to the big, wedge-shaped head. Nick scratches behind his friend's ears. The dragon emits a low crooning sound. Then Nick looks back towards the dark end of the cave. "Sparx! Sparx, you here?"

There is a sudden, audible pop and then a small cascade of shimmering golden flecks announce the arrival of Sparx. She is only the size of Nick's hand and is fluttering in the air above his head. The rapidly darkening cavern is now treated to the basking glow of Sparx. She is like a hovering lantern, though it is impossible to discern whether the light originates from within her or merely surrounds her as if she is always the focus of a spotlight.

Now that Nick's face is bathed in Sparx's light, his smile is revealed on his boyish face. His canine teeth are pronounced and come to sharp points, but the expression is not in the least bit menacing. Instead, it tells of his delight at the sudden appearance of this most unusual friend.

That is not to say that his other friend is any less unusual. Drake is actually one of a kind. That is something that the dragon and Nick share in common. Since birth, the pair had known each other. They had both come into existence at precisely the same moment. Though they were geographically half a world apart at the beginning of their lives, Nick and Drake had become at once conscious of one another and linked for life.

"Bzz! Screek! Bzz!" exclaims Sparx in her pixie language that reminded Nick of a combination of the tweets of birds, the buzzing of insects, and the squeaks of small rodents. He had yet to be able to understand a word of it. Fortunately, Drake had had better luck with the translating.

She says she has something to show us.

Nick looks from Drake back to Sparx. "Sparx, you know how hungry we are when we first wake up. Let us feed and then you can show us whatever it is," Nick states as he gives the pixie a skeptical look. Pixies are very excitable by nature and Sparx would often prod Nick and Drake for attention, wanting them to see this or that. She could be very insistent, making it seem urgent. Many times Nick would jump on the back of Drake's neck and he would take flight, following the glowing pixie only so she could show them her reflection at the edge of a river.

"Kreee! Woo!"

"Now what?" Nick looks back to Drake for the interpretation.

Sparx says it can't wait.

"I'll bet," Nick mutters under his breath. His hunger is growing and his good mood diminishing. Nick hefts the large leather riding saddle onto Drake's back at the place where the dragon's neck meets his body. Drake lifts his head as far as his long neck will allow, accommodating Nick as he fastens the straps snugly at the base of the dragon's thick throat. "All right, Sparx. You win. This better be good."

The Pixie is already anxiously flittering towards the mouth of the cave. She then moves slightly back in the direction of her companions only to jerk forward again. Her hummingbird-like movements are accompanied by her constant jabbering as she coaxes Drake and Nick to follow her lead.

Once the saddle is securely in place, Nick approaches Drake from the dragon's left side. He puts his left foot in the corresponding stirrup, grabs the ridge at the back of Drake's neck and deftly hoists his right leg over the top of the saddle while simultaneously rotating his body to a forward facing position. Feeling the weight of his rider, Drake turns his head so that one gleaming ruby eye could make sure Nick is ready for takeoff. With his wings still tucked neatly at his sides, Drake rises up off his haunches and individually flexes the talons on his front paws. Nick holds fast to the reins as Drake arches his back. Then, as the dragon comes back down on all fours, he starts to gallop toward the star-speckled night. Sparx is whirling all about them, literally flying circles around the dragon.

"Ok. You got us out here," Nick shouts above the rushing air and pounding of dragon feet so his eager little friend could hear him. "Now, show us the way, Sparx!" He can't help his amusement at the pixie's enthusiasm. Sparx momentarily hovers in front of Drake's muzzle, and then disappears in a brilliant explosion of tiny sparks, like a mini firework. Drake sneezes a short burst of flames as an involuntary reaction to some of the pixie dust tickling his nostrils.

I hate it when she does that.

She reappears over the ridge of trees that delineate the boundary of Aldin Forest. Drake leaps from the generous perch of ridge at the cave's entrance and swoops down the slopes of the cliff, extending his jade colored wings to their full span. The dragon's powerful muscles flex and with a single beat of his mighty wings, they ascend dramatically, leaving the side of the mountain far below. Drake pauses for a moment at the top of the climb, dragon and rider briefly outlined with full moon backdrop. Then the sleek, dark green wings tip so the left angles towards the heavens and the right to the ground below. They bank in the direction of the canopy of trees and glide after the twinkling pixie.