. : D R A G O N B O R N : . (a MCSM fanfic)

Chapter 15: Compass

"There was a whole chapter on him in here," Petra told him.  "He did shatter a kingdom, after all..."

"Petra, mind if I take a look at that?" Lukas chimed in, clearly curious.

"Sure-- assuming Soren doesn't mind..."

"Go right ahead."

Petra pulled the book out and passed it to Lukas.  He held it reverently, laying it in his lap and gently opening it.  "Whoa..."

"It's an incredibly detailed guide," Soren told him.  "Shortly after the war, several historians banded together to write down what they knew of the dragons, before their knowledge was lost... certainly, bits and pieces are missing, but for what it is, it's a fairly comprehensive piece."

"I... had no idea there were so many different subspecies," Lukas murmured, flipping through it.  "I thought the Ender dragon was the only one..."

"I did too, at first," Petra told him.  "But there's a lot more-- one for pretty much every element you can think of."

"No kidding," Lukas agreed.  "Fire, water, earth, air, light, shadow, ice, poison, nature... and of course, varieties common to the Nether and the End..." He frowned suddenly.  "What do they mean by a 'chameleon variety'?"

"Legend has it that one subspecies was more powerful than the others," Soren explained.  "No one's entirely sure how it came about-- some say it was the result of the subspecies mixing when the kingdoms united.  Before the Great Alliance, even the dragons were mostly split up, you see.  This new subspecies could adapt itself to the capabilities and appearance of any of the other subspecies, however it could only utilize the skills of whichever subspecies' form it took.  There isn't much evidence to back it up, unfortunately-- if they did exist, chameleons seemed to be exceedingly rare, and very secretive to boot.  Of course, the war virtually destroyed any possibility of verifying their existence.  But in any case, it's a fascinating concept-- don't you think?"

"It definitely is," Lukas mused, closing the book again.  "That, and... just imagine how different our lives could have been had the Alliance never fallen..."

"Agreed," Soren said.  "The war stole away so much promise... together, man and dragon could have accomplished so much..."

Lukas seemed thoughtful.  "You said dragons are known for their telepathic abilities, right?"

"Yes, that's correct," Soren replied.  "All dragons have some level of telepathic abilities, but as a general rule, the older the dragon the stronger their capabilities become."

"Then I wonder," Lukas murmured.  "We don't have proof the other dragons died out, do we?  They just vanished?"

"Yes, that's right," Ivor chimed in.  "We tend to believe they're all gone because no one has seen a dragon for centuries-- apart from Xann and the dragon we fought, that is.  But there are many parts of this world that we haven't explored... they could well be in hiding somewhere we just haven't found yet..."

"Right," Lukas agreed.  "And dragons tend to be solitary, right?"

"Semi-solitary," Soren corrected.  "Aside from the kingdom, most lived in small family groups-- or clans-- with a large territory where they range to find food.  The only reason the kingdom was sustainable was because we humans introduced them to domesticated livestock-- they didn't have to range to hunt anymore, so it was possible for many dragons to live in one place together."

"Makes sense.  But if dragons lived in family groups with large territories... that would make the chance of encountering another unrelated dragon very small, wouldn't it?"

"Well... yes, I suppose it would," Soren agreed.

"And that would make courtship very difficult, wouldn't it?" Lukas asked, brow furrowed in thought.

"I... suppose it would."  Soren nodded.

"Then to make sure their species survived, wouldn't dragons have had to have some way of ensuring they were able to locate other dragons of their kind when it came time for them to start their own families?"

Soren's brow furrowed.  "That would seem logical..."

Lukas turned to Xann.  "Xann... do you think it's possible that you dragons have a sort of... built in homing beacon?  An instinct that draws you to others of your kind?"

Xann looked pensive.  "Xann never met another dragon, but it not impossible.  Xann not know why he going north-- just that he must go."

"Then... what if this isn't just some random instinct?" Lukas asked.  "What if Xann's intuition is leading us back to the rest of the dragons?"

Ivor cast a curious glance at Soren.  "It's not an unreasonable theory..."

"I suppose the only way we'll know for certain is to see where Xann's instinct leads us," Soren mused.  "Though I must confess, my interest is piqued..."

"Mine too," Lukas agreed.  "What do you think, Petra?"

She did not answer, and Lukas frowned slightly.  Xann, however, gave a quiet chuckle.  "Too much science for Petra.  But Xann think Xann not only one drawn to others of own kind..."

With a little start Lukas grew conscious of the fact that, somewhere along the way, Petra had drifted off, her head resting against his shoulder.  Xann's smirk grew even bigger and Lukas quickly covered his face with his hands to hide his reddening cheeks-- much to his fellow travelers' amusement.