Dragoniers

The Mountains

We met back up with the Dragon Hunters group at the edge of town and started our hike towards the mountains. Everyone was quiet as we walked. Probably to focus on where they were stepping and due to lack of things to talk about.

"So, if Hunters and Dragoniers were once the same group wouldn't that mean we have already broken the treaty we had with the Dragons?" I asked after a while. They might not have anything to talk about but I had plenty of questions to ask.

"No, since there are a number of us who still hold the treaty with respect. Though that number is slowly declining. As for the Hunters, most of their groups aren't from the original Hunters that split off from us. They're mostly villagers and normal people that have lost their families or homes to a Dragon, people like your Dad for example," Jordan said.

"Still it's only a matter of time before the numbers flip and if that happens it could be war again. Shouldn't we try to avoid that at all costs?" I asked.

"Unfortunately, many people don't think that far ahead. They love the thrill and the money and that's all they're after," One of the men from the Hunter's group said.

"Doesn't make it right though," I mumbled, "That'd be like of we killed every animal in a forest and the plants just took over without them there to keep them at bay. Dragons are a part of nature and if we kill them all something else would lose balance. Further more, if we kill every Dargon except Elder Dragons then eventually the dragon's will die out. We should at least consider adding their children or young Dragons to the no kill list."

"That's a valid point, but who's going to stop them you? The Dragons? Us?” Their boss said.

"Have the government make it a law and enforce it. There are already areas that punish those who harm a Dragon that isn't causing trouble, so why not make it a law everywhere?" I said, "At the very least, us Dragon Whisperers should talk to the Dragons and see what they want us to change or do about it."

"Hmm, he does have a point, but it'd be nearly impossible to talk to every Dragon, Dragon Whisperer, or even every leader to get them on board. No one has ever been able to talk to Elder Dragons, the whispers would probably be on board, but the leaders will all have their own opinions. If even a few of them decide not to do it then the people not on board will just flock to thoss areas and keep doing it anyway," the same man of his said.

"You can't say no one has ever talked to them. They did communicate once before with us and that was when the treaty was agreed upon. There could still be a chance someone out there can have the ability to communicate with them. As for the rest you're probably right, though it would narrow down the areas they can hunt and if we can keep dragons away from those areas there won't be anything for them to hunt right?" I said.

"They'd still find a way whether legal loop holes or illegal work arounds," he said. His boss finally stopped our argument saying he didn't want to listen to us the whole way there and that we should focus on the task at hand. We were coming up on our first climb of the trip.

I wonder how they discovered this dragon if it was this difficult. Were they just mountain climbing and stumbled across it or did they notice something from the ground or air and climbed up to investigate it? Either way just from this first climb I knew it wasn't going to be easy.

"Not too late to turn back now, Kid," The leader of the Hunters said as Mitch and Jordan helped me up over the ledge. I rolled my eyes at Mitch and sighed.

"I'll be fine, thanks for your concern though," I said. Why does this man not seem to want me here and why does he not like me? Could it be just a normal Dragon that he's trying to pass as an Elder Dragon? But why would he do that? Is it some kind of trap for us? We'll have to be careful while we're up here, just in case they are planning something.

As we continued up the mountain the air was getting thinner and Jordan was struggling a bit. I won't lie that I was too. They said we only had a little further to go for our first camping site. It'd be at the base of our second climb.

Once we had base camp set up and were out of the cold Mitch checked to make sure Jordan and I weren't showing signs of Altitude sickness. It might sound crazy since we practically live in high altitudes, but the cold air on top of the altitude was a bad combination. Plus the reason we're climbing and not taking our ships is because the ships can't go that high, so we're going higher than we do on the ship. Thankfully we are both fine and we just needed a little time to adjust.

Even with the tents it was still freezing so we kept our winter clothes on, wrapped ourselves in our sleeping bags and tried to get some sleep. In the morning the others woke us up, we ate some food, and geared back up to start our second climb. This climb should take us up to another ledge and that is where they found the Dragon resting.

This climb was no walk in the park, instead it makes that first one seem like a piece of cake. Any holds you find are iced over so you had to be careful not to slip. I was also nervous since I was last and one of the hunters was in front of me. If I slip I have no doubt he'll cut the line and say he had no choice. They clearly don't want me up here so it was a very real concern for me. I'm hoping I'm just being paranoid and that they wouldn't do something like that, but I'll still be careful and try not to do anything to piss them off.