Dragoniers (Ongoing)

Chance Encounter

I made it to the next town just before nightfall and tried to find an Inn to stay at. Surprisingly, they all seemed full and weren't taking any more guests. Might just have to camp out in the woods tonight I guess.

"What brings a young lad like you to this kind of town? Dragoniers aren't welcome here, Kid," a man said from the alley way, by the Inn I just asked.

"I'm looking for someone and I'm not a Dragonier. Why would people think that?" I asked.

"Hmm, you just give off a vibe like you've seen death. Not only that you give off the same smell as them. Not saying you stink, just that Dragoniers spend most of their time in the sky so they smell like fresh air," he said and I guess that makes sense.

"Well, I did get a ride from them in order to make it this far, but I'm not a Dragonier. I'm looking for my father who went missing 3 years ago. I figured since he hates Dragons and Dragoniers, towns like this would be the logical choice to find clues to finding him," I said and he sighed.

"Alright then, come with me. You can stay the night at my place and I'll help you ask around tomorrow, but you'd be wise not to stick around here too long. Some people may not believe your story," he said. I told him that I understood and thanked him.

He led my through a couple alleys and eventually we came out on a street a few blocks away. It almost seemed like he was being cautious for some reason. It can't be that he doesn't want to be seen helping me, because he said he'd help me ask around tomorrow. So why is he being so careful?

Once we arrived at his house I had to admit it was larger than I expected. We headed inside and he relaxed a little bit.

"I'm home, I brought a guest with me," He said and two young kids came running out of another room to greet him. A woman carrying a small infant followed the kids out.

"Welcome home, Dear, you said you had a guest with you?" she asked and I suddenly felt uncomfortable and bowed respectfully to her.

"Thank you for having me. I'm Zion, nice to meet you all," I said and she laughed softly.

"Wow, such a polite young man. You aren't from around here I'm guessing. You must have traveled a long way to get here," she said.

"On foot it's probably about a month of walking from my village," I said. Thankfully the Dragoniers gave me a ride so it was really only about 4 or 5 days. I didn't think mentioning that would be necessary considering how the people here are against Dragoniers.

"Anyways, he couldn't find a place in town to stay so I offered him to stay here tonight. He said he's looking for his father who went missing what was it you said, three years ago?" the man said and asked.

"That's right. He left me a note saying he'd be back in 3 days and even left that much worth of money for me, but he hasn't been back. I decided to go out and search for him, I at least need to know what happened to him," I said and the woman asked if I had a picture of the man and I nodded. After gently taking my bag off I dug my dad's picture out.

"Hmm, I don't think I've ever seen him here, but if he was just passing through I probably wouldn't remember him 3 years later," she said and handed me the picture back.

"I figured that was going to be an issue. If only I were old enough then to go after him," I mumbled.

"Well don't give up, you're bound to meet someone with a better memory than my Mom's," A girl said coming from a different room than the others had.

"Hello, I'm Zion. It's nice to meet you," I said reintroducing myself. She nodded and said her name was Nina. She studied me for a minute and then sighed.

"You're not a Dragonier, I can tell that much. A shame, I thought for sure Dad was about to do something interesting for once," She said and I couldn't help but to let out a chuckle at that.

"People might think I am since I spent a few days on a ship, but I'm definitely not a Dragonier. Not that they didn't try to get me to stay, but I have my own goals," I said.

As we sat down to eat dinner my head started to hurt a little. Almost like it did before at that village. Damn, is there really a Dragon near by? I can't hear it or determine where it is, but the pain in my head is telling me it is a Dragon.

"Is - Is there a Dragon near by here?" I asked trying to stay calm and fight the pain in my head.

"Why do you ask? How do you know about that? You are a Dragonier after all aren't you?" The man said glaring at me.

"I am not," I mumbled and winced as the pain got worse. I grabbed my head, and muttered "Damn it."

"Can't be. Could you be a -" he cut himself off and stood. The mother hurried over to me and wrapped her arms around me gently.

"Just breathe, Zion, take deep calming breaths," After a few minutes of deep breathing it finally subsided and I relaxed a little. The woman let me go gently and also relaxed a little. "Man, I didn't think you were that interesting. Tell me, do you know why some of our cities keep Dragoniers out?" she asked me.

"I had assumed it was just because they either don't approve of their work or prefer Hunters instead," I said and she nodded slightly.

"In a way that's true, but why do you think we don't like Dragoniers snooping around? It's simple actually, we worship the Dragons, we believe in coexisting with them and don't like those who want to interfere or kill them," she said.

"Just like people, there are good and bad dragons. There are also good and bad Dragoniers as well. Some of them still uphold tradition to protect the good and kill the bad. That said, I'm going to leave in the morning. I doubt my father would have staid here with a dragon near by. A dragon killed my mother when I was still a baby and it actually was some Dragonier's fault it happened. So my Dad hates both," I said.

"I see, but I have one more question for you. The Dragon that rests here is an Elder Dragon, known as the Midnight Dragon. None of the other Dragon whisperers we've had here could understand it or tell us if it's hurt or sick. Do - Do you think you can get some answers from it before you leave?" The father asked.

"I just recently started to hear them so I've never tried to talk to an Elder Dragon before. It's not like I can really control it yet either, but if you still insist I'll give it a try. If the Dragon is in danger then that's the least I can do," I said seeing that they're serious about this. They probably won't take no for an answer, besides it'll be great practice and a chance to see what I can do.