The Scars We Bare

Chapter 6

It had been over two weeks since Ralph had gone missing and even though they were doing everything they could, they just could not track him down. Hachi had followed his trail to the tree but then his scent just disappears. Hachi was having a lot of trouble sleeping now that his imprint was gone.
"What do we do now? We have done everything possible and we just cannot find the boy." Chimur asked in a hush whisper. Jack and Mimi were sleeping in a room near the living room, where everyone else was gathered. "Maybe he got eaten." Rain muttered and shook his head. He knew these kids would be nothing but trouble. "Don't say that." Ako hissed and smacked his shoulder. "For all we know it's true." Rain looked at her, "Don't tell me you got attached to these children." Ako looked away from him. She didn't want to admit that she felt like they were her own children to raise. Oidoas was silent as he waited for Ako to answer Rain's statement. Ako bite her lip before she let out a breath, "Fine. I got attached. I see them as my own." She didn't expect it to happen so soon bht now all she wanted was Ralph to be returned safely. Oidoas wasn't ready. His heart still ached for their own son and their unborn child. But if they made his mate happy then he was going to find this child. "Maybe he was taken to the other side of the Forest where Maddrair rules." Chimur spoke up. They had all avoided that thought but now it was time to take it into consideration. "Well we tried. He's gone forever." Rain shrugged his shoulders and turned away from the group to go do something else. "Whose Maddrair and why does he have my Ralph?" Hachi asked. "Ah, you're young. You don't know the story." Chimur spoke up and looked at Hachi, "You're not going to like what I am about to tell you."

Ralph stared up at the sky.
It was a clear night and the moon was just rising up from the horizon. Berry was his keeper since she was the one who found him. He learned that each group of humans were slave to one dragon, who was ruled over by the Alpha. He learned how to clean dirt from underneath scales. He learned that Berry liked hers polished a certain way and her teeth needed to be brush after every single meal. But he didn't have it nearly as bad as the others. Most of the dragons here were male and did not care what happened to their slaves. Berry on the other hand preferred hers to be in tiptop shape, especially if she brought home gold and other jewels that needed to be sorted for her collection. Ralph fit in perfectly well. Berry didn't really change into a human like some of the other dragons did.
She took her new slave, along with a few others, to a spring area. "I want you to remove my old back scales." Berry told Ralph as she stepped into the springs boiling hot water. "Yes ma'am." He nodded and swiftly climbed onto her back, "Where are we?" He walked around from the base of her neck, looking for old scales to remove. "The Healing Springs of Oidoas' Forest." Berry mumbled quietly. She shifted slowly and let out a heavy breath. "You brought us here?" Ralph questioned as he kneeled down and grabbed a loose scales, tugging at it with all his might. "I don't mind human help but eventually I want much younger and stronger slaves. Once you are too old, I bring you here and leave you on your own. Oidoas' Forest is the safest place to be." Berry admitted and turned her head to look at the young boy, "How do you think I got these scars?" She gestured to her face and blind eye. "You got into some kind of fight?" Ralph asked as he wandered a bit more to find another scale. "I got into a power struggle with my Alpha. He believes in working you until you keel over dead. I believe to let you live your old life out in freedom. Once my Alpha learned what I was doing with parts of his collection, we clashed in a fight. I lost my eye and he lost his ability to fly. Out of respect, he gave me my own slaves and I can do whatever I want with them." Berry explained and straightened out her neck back into the water. "Lost his ability to fly? You destroyed his wings?" Ralph turned to look at the female dragon as she hummed in reply, "They could be healed with the proper treatment but he refuses any doctors help. My eye could not be saved. Human, I must ask you, why do you smell of a male dragon?" "What do you mean?" Ralph strained out as he was struggling with a couple of scales that had grown on top of each other and was causing Berry an irritation. "I mean you smell like some male dragon I know. He's name is Hachi." She shuddered a bit under his touch as he continued to mess with the two scales. "Oh yeah! I know Hachi!" Ralph exclaimed "He and his friends are caring for me and my brother and our best friend." He stumbled backwards after successfully pulling out the two scales. Berry mumbled softly to herself and stretched out her wings into water. "I'm sure if we stay here long enough, he'll catch your scent."

Not too far away from the springs sat a bit of a smaller dragon, often times his was mistaken as a female. His glowing red eyes shined in the dark forest as he watched Berry in the water with her little slave. He absolutely hated her with every fiber of his being. How could Maddrair love such an ugly female? How could Maddrair love her over him? He's been nothing but loyal to Maddrair ever since he started his own clan and Maddrair just picks a random female that showed up! She destroyed his wings! His tail wrapped around a nearby tree and squeezed as his thoughts of rage turn to murder. If he got rid of Berry, then surely Maddrair will no longer be blinded by her ugliness. Murder her in Oidoas' Forest and the blame will fall to someone else. Stargazer slowly slinked his way forwards towards the springs, his grey hide made camouflaging in the dark forest too easy. His red gaze never leaving Berry. The small human was somewhere down on the ground, both were facing away from the forest.
Stargazer slowly opened his mouth and launched himself at Berry's neck! She cried out in surprise and pain as she was shoved out of the hot springs and into a nearby boulder. Claws were suddenly at her soft underbelly and began to tear through her flesh with ease. She couldn't see who was attacking her as they stayed on her blinded side. "Berry!!" Ralph shouted and she cried out "RUN!" Out of fear, Ralph backed up and then took off into the forest as fast as his tiny legs could carry him, tears streaming down his face "HELP! HELP!!!" he needed to get someone's attention before Berry died! He ignored the tree branches that smacked against his face or pulled against his clothes trying to stop him. He screamed again with all his might, "PLEASE HELP!!!" As he screamed, his shoe caught onto a root that was hidden in the dirt and he crashed down to the ground, hard. Ralph began to sob uncontrollably, curling into a ball as the bloody images of Berry's body began to flash through his mind. She was going to die and there was nothing he could do to save her!