Peak flew back to the smattering of leaf-made huts at the edge of the river, carrying me in his talons, with Bright leading him.
"Stay here", she told him as they approached a hunt that was larger than the rest. She flew down and entered the hut as he still hovered in the air, holding me in his talons.
After a moment, Bright emerged from the hut with a brown-and-green TreeWing following her. She gestured with one of her wings for Peak to land, and he did.
He shoved me out of his talons towards the brown-and-green dragon, who caught me with their talons.
"Tend to them", Bright snorted at, "and make sure they don't escape".
The brown-and-green dragon, who was male based on their features, led me into the leaf-made hut, where the green dragon from earlier was sprawled out on a patch of leaves collected from the surrounding trees on one side of it. Based on their features, I could tell that this was a male. His wound was covered with a mess of vines and leaves and one of his wings was shredded beyond repair.
He led me to a spot next to the battered TreeWing where I lay down and extended his forearms.
"May I take your bag? It'll only be a bit."
Reluctantly, I gave him the bag, which he took with him to the other side of the hut and set on the ground gently before gathering something in his claws.
"What's your name?" I asked.
"Alder", he replied without even looking at me, "a Healer of the Community of Woods before..." He trailed off.
"Before the VolcanoWings?" I finished, and he nodded solemnly.
He turned around and padded over to me, with what looked like to be small berries of different colors still on their vines and crushed green leaves of varying sizes and textures in his claws. He placed them on the ground in front of me.
"These are berries herbs with painkillers in them", he explained. "Give them to Oak."
He gestured to the dragon next to me, and I gave him a look.
"Issa fine", Oak slurred. "I'll take 'em."
Alder snorted and nudged the bundle with his claws to him. Oak ate them as fast as he could, possibly trying to get the taste of leaves out of his mouth.
Behind me, the shadows had lengthened as the sun began disappearing beyond the horizon. Orange light streaked into the hut and on us dragons.
"It'll be a bit before they take effect", Alder explained to Oak, referring to the concoction he just gave him. "Once they've kicked in, I'll begin working on that wound of yours."
"Issa fine", Oak slurred again, and his brown eyes were beginning to droop, as if heavy stones were starting to weigh them down.
I was also tired from my long journey (and also getting up before dawn), but I didn't want to sleep. Not after getting a glimpse of what was happening across Eukarya.
I could fall asleep right now and never wake up if the VolcanoWings descended on this camp during the night.
I shuddered.
Did the VolcanoWings also target the capitals of the world like they did with mishmashed camps like this one?
Did they suffer the same fate as the Undercurrent's base while I was gone?
"You thinking about something?" Alder asked. He apparently noticed me shaking as he watched Oak fall into a deep, drugged sleep. The moons were coming out, beginning to wash the forest in an ethereal silver light.
YOU ARE READING
These Alien Dragons
Science Fiction(Note: This is the old version. It is preferable if you read the current/new version.) For all their life, J. Pappas has been a reader and a writer. They have written about many things - cats, owls, humans, and dragons; they've read stories about di...
