instinct (1st Draft Unedited)

9: tightrope mind

“Truly, anyone could do what I do,  I wouldn’t be near the smith I am without the materials the queen has gotten for me. And there would be a million that made swords better than I, Taharians could craft blades beyond my imagining! I only use there tactics to keep their name alive, I guess I have some sentimentality to the fact half of my blood is taharian” Nebula didn’t much like bringing up her heritage to taharia the dead race, but when she did the stories she would tell, for living in such a desolate frozen wasteland like the taharian provinces, they were life itself. She sometimes even would sing hymns in their native language. And sunclaw knew her humbleness was fake, no one could craft like she could, no one could replicate the shine in her eyes as she hammered the swords, her unclean study full of mineral and blade type knowledge, she would study weapons made by dragons across all of history, from every corner of every region. The things she made had never been heard of by a dragon alive, and she would still stay humble. Sunclaw grasped her shaky paw, she smiled.

“You are irreplaceable, enzaria knows this” he paused, his voice was quieted now and low.

“And I know it” Every smile from sunclaw was with all his soul, nebula smiled back, a much duller smaller smile but one of love nonetheless.

“If anything you’re the irreplaceable one, we’ve known this. Look at how far you’ve come. The high general of the shiaiya! Every soldier vows to your command. Look how we’ve come, as individual dragons, and how far we’ve come together!” Nebula closed her eyes, to feel his presence standing in front of her, not just see him.

“Oh my gosh i'm a blacksmith for the best of a seventh of the world,” she gasped, seemingly to not accept that fact.

“And you command a country! Did you ever stop to think about the fact you command an entire country!?” nebula put out her paws in disbelief, stumbling backwards by accident and half-falling before catching herself awkwardly.

“You should try stepping on enzaria’s ceremonial porch thingy with like a crowd cheering, that ones the most surreal” Sunclaw whispered, she beamed with excitement.

“I remember you talking about that! Sorry again I couldn’t come, I got bombarded by a crowd and had to stand in the very back, I wish I could have at least seen you” She dipped her head, her voice meek and quiet. 

“There really was a crowd that day” he smiled, reliving that day. She saw how he gleamed, a phoenix in the light. How could she ever.. Match up to him. Nebula sat down, dropping her shoulders and craning her neck upwards.

“You still look conflicted, what is it?” Nebula asked.

“Im left to wonder, Will aaronay be back from the mines by the time I leave? If he isn’t… can you remind him that i love him. Thats all” Sunclaw said, with a complex expression. Firelight from the lanterns and the inferno of an oven in nebulas study lit up the room with colors. It was slowly getting darker, one last night to enjoy with them before he left. Or… with nebula at least, aaronay was in the mines and eclipse… He shook his head, she promised she’d be safe. Poor dragoness, he spent a lot of time feeling bad for her. It was expected for a shaman to be a bit quiet… but her isolation, stranding herself in the middle of the woods without much reason. It must be miserably lonely. It wasn’t like she was unpleasant either, she was a smart girl. Bright and quick witted, but at times she just wouldnt think, wouldn’t speak. Her eyes would just go blank, and she would just placidly sit, daydreaming, drifting in her mind. But now he would go off to war, without even getting to say goodbye.

“And eclipse..? Any message for her?” Nebula asked, placing her feathered crest flat against her head and yawning, white teeth glistening in dying light.