The Curse's Breath

Chapter Twelve

The forest started thinning after a few more paces. The sounds of roars, snorts, growls, and grunts reached Celni's keen ears. At last, the trees gave way to the edge of a cliff, and Celni was able to get a clear view of the dragon camp.

"Well, Miss Sotira, we're here," Keltaril said with a small grin, as he led her up to the drop off. "What do you think?"

Celni scooped a sharp breath down into her lungs, awestruck at the beauty in front of her. She could hardly find words to describe it.

The cliff they stood on dropped down about four hundred feet, and surrounded the dragon camp like a barrier. The river that ran through the forest had waned to the point where it trickled over the edge of the cliff in small drips. The rocks were worn away by a ghost of a waterfall, the once roaring water haunting the white lines on the stones.

Luscious flora coated the stone walls and spread down onto the ground to create a peaceful, picturesque landscape. Early morning sunlight drifted down onto the tips of green leaves, creating a depth to the scenery that caught her eyes in a trap of beauty. Moist forest air hung like a blanket in the sky as it put a glistening sheen on everything.

Finally Celni spoke. "It's amazing," she breathed. She pointed with her tail. "Are those your nests?"

Circular heaps of rocks dotted the ferny landscape below, looking like a large, stony version of bird nests. She noticed structures made of logs and other natural materials also stood in the area, which surprised Celni. She didn't know dragons were able to construct buildings, no matter how primitive those buildings were.

Keltaril's ears flattened, and he hushed her, even though there was no one close enough to hear them. "Don't call them that!" he hissed.

"W-why?" she asked, startled.

"It may not be a big deal in the eastern lands, but here, everyone finds it offensive. No one wants to be told they do the same thing as birds." He said the word as if it was distasteful.

Although she wanted to laugh, she decided to drop the matter and look back down at the territory. Dragons, looking tiny from this distance, colored the natural landscape with splashes of color. Various shades of blue, green, black, purple, and red drawing closer together caught Celni's eye. The dragons were all congregating in the center of the valley, excited roars lighting the air with energy.

"What are they doing?" she asked, intrigued.

Delight lit Keltaril's eyes as he turned his head to look at Celni. "What a great time for us to get here! Someone started a ranking challenge!"

"Ranking challenge? What's that?"

"You'll see," he said. "Come on!" With that, he lifted his wings and leapt off of the cliff.

Celni slowly edged closer to the drop off and peered over, watching Keltaril's crimson form glide gracefully downward. She hesitated, taking a step back. She still hadn't gotten the hang of flying. If she messed up even slightly, it could mean the end of her time here. After all, what dragon couldn't fly?

Keltaril popped back up in front of Celni, flapping his wings at the right angle so he would stay at the same level as her. "What's wrong?" the fire dragon asked, blinking his orange eyes at her as he tilted his head.

"Oh, uh... nothing. I'm just not sure it's a good idea to use my wings when I'm injured," she fibbed.

"Oh wings, I'm so sorry! I'm so stupid, forgetting like that." Keltaril landed next to her, his eyes anxious and ashamed. "Here, there's a hidden path over here." He guided her over to the right, taking her to a large bush dotted with tiny, vividly blue flowers. He parted one side, revealing a natural rock staircase that led down to the ground. It was just barely big enough for a dragon, so they would have to go one at a time.