Ighnahr sighed as he rose to his feet, the rust-red dragon giving up on a good night’s sleep for the fifth time in just as many days. He crawled out of the canopy that had sheltered him for the night and perched upon a nearby hilltop to gaze at the stars, pondering his father’s last question for him.

What are you so afraid of?

He had little in the way of treasure, no children, no friends, and certainly no partner. If he died, the only thing anyone would feel would be relief.

So why was he so afraid?

Huroumh might be a bluntstone, and he might not even be able to fly anymore, but Ighnahr doubted that would be enough to stop him from accepting a duel. The red dragon had always written off such behavior as foolishness, but now he could not help but wonder if Huroumh ever felt such anxiety himself…was he not afraid?

Huroumh had plenty of opportunities to kill him, and each time he’d been left alive left Ighnahr feeling more confused and infuriated than ever before, with the end of their last fight topping them all. Was honor really something worth dying over?

Up above, a streak of light pierced the sky – a lone falling star. It was hardly an uncommon sight, though this one shone a little brighter than most. Even still, it was gone in the blink of an eye.

For a time he simply stared up at the sky as he allowed his distracted mind to wander.

Suddenly a flicker of movement caught his eye, and Ighnahr swiftly flattened himself against the ground. Far up above him he saw a dragon peer over the edge of the Plateau in a wary and suspicious manner. Ighnahr’s pupils widened to their fullest extent, and he recognized Sharnha just as the dragon dove off the Plateau to glide eastwards.

For whatever reason, Sharnha’s information hadn’t spread across the land as he’d expected it to. He hadn’t heard anyone speak about the great metal shell, and the only thing they knew was that Qnaoro had been found with a single ‘human’.

Alone, the two pieces of information weren’t enough to be particularly useful, but together they pointed to only one possibility: the humans were recruiting allies, with Huroumh and Qnaoro being among their number. Sharnha’s secrecy suddenly made complete sense – he must have leapt at the opportunity to ally with the creatures, and that meant he was almost certainly on his way to communicate with the humans.

Ighnahr tensed and remained still as stone as he waited for Sharnha to put some distance between them. So long as he was careful the black moon would make his pursuit nearly impossible to detect. Apparently the winds were on his side, just this once, but as Sharnha pulled away Ighnahr hesitated; was this really the best course of action?

The Brewer clan had just arrived last night, and while everyone expected the arrival of a few clan members, everyone was surprised to see Vosae herself leading a group of eighteen dragons to the Plateau…including Ighnahr’s own parents.

His father and Vosae were old allies; he must have told Vosae what Ighnahr had told him…and she had believed it, judging by the fact that the clan leader herself had come all the way from the southern end of the land.

Under normal circumstances, a dragon like Vosae would have surely ignored any information that came from someone like him, but the extraordinary nature of the news backed by his father had evidently swayed her. Given the clan’s evident interest in the humans, offering further information regarding their location would surely be enough to earn them as reluctant yet powerful allies, even for someone like him.

If things had gone according to plan, Ighnahr wouldn’t have needed to bother with the Brewer clan at all, but he had to consider the number of allies that the humans had made. It had been nearly half a month since Sharnha had come across the metal shell; enough time to make plenty of allies.

And Huroumh was one of them.

The human-allied dragons would have no reason to try to stop him from dueling his enemy – in fact, they would likely welcome a reduction to their number if it meant a larger share of whatever reward the humans had promised them, but Ighnahr doubted that the humans would stand by and let him kill one of their allies.

The strange beings were an unknown factor, but Ighnahr doubted they posed much of a threat. If they had the strength, then why bother with allies? If they were as small as he heard they were then he could safely ignore them; a weakling was still a weakling, after all, even if they could apparently shape a great amount of metal.

So that meant he had two options before him:

Follow Sharnha, who was most likely on his way back to his human allies, then challenge Huroumh to a duel with the allies of the humans as witnesses.

Or, he could follow Sharnha, double back, then challenge Huroumh to a duel with the backing of the largest and most powerful clan in existence.

The latter plan meant more credible witnesses to see his victory, but of course Vosae would have ideas of her own. There was a chance she might try to ally with the humans just as the others did, but the clan leader was not known for having a penchant for cooperation. No, if anyone would start a fight it would be her, and she had come prepared. If his hunch was correct then she would have no reason to refuse his aid.

Decision made, he ran off the ledge of the Plateau, throwing open his wings into a glide.

Ighnahr would have much rather preferred a victory over a healthy foe instead of a weakened one, but he was in no position to be picky. If he was to be a curse, never to be respected, then he saw no reason to care about honor or dignity. Today he would correct a mistake, and settle things once and for all.

----------------------------------------

Footsteps woke Aurum from his slumber, and the golden dragon raised his head to see Laishaka walking towards him. A glance up at the sky told him that the sun was just below the horizon.

The other allied dragons weren’t quite comfortable sleeping near each other yet, and had gone off to sleep in their own spots, meaning the only dragons in the immediate vicinity were himself, Fortitude, Devotion, Fathom, and Celeste, to use their human nicknames.

“Good morning,” Laishaka said, and Aurum drowsily returned the greeting.

“Did you sleep well?” He asked as he blinked blearily at the human.

“I did. Haven’t slept that well in a long time,” Laishaka said, a contented smile on her face as she stretched. A faint gust of wind blew towards Aurum, and he detected something different about her scent…no, it was her partner’s scent intermingled with her own, which meant…

“I know you said humans can have an egg whenever they want, but is now a good time?” Aurum asked incredulously, but the human only made a desperate clamping gesture over her mouth as the rest of the humans began to trickle out onto the deck.

“Later,” she hissed, then paced away a little faster than seemed to be necessary. Aurum tossed his head as he stood up and stretched; it seemed that this was an embarrassing topic for humans despite the amount of offspring they had.

Aurum watched as the humans carried items around the ship in a manner not dissimilar to the busy movements of ants, with Pryce and the Captain directing the other humans around. He was faintly impressed that the Captain seemed to be able to keep track of what everyone was doing; not a single person was idle, at least in Aurum’s inexperienced eyes. Laishaka had explained that they were moving food and tools from the Daybreak to the Horizon, but the golden dragon had a more interesting question on his mind.

“Laishaka, you said that humans didn’t have patterns,” Aurum said, eyeing one sailor who had an odd mark on his shoulder that was shaped very much like a fish.

“We don’t,” Laishaka said, looking up in confusion. “Oh, those are tattoos. Those are made by putting…color into the skin. It’s like drawing.”

“Oh!” Aurum said, eyes lighting up. “Do you think that would work on a dragon?” he asked, twisting his head around as he wondered what would look best on his wings.

Laishaka grimaced, her soft face scrunching up. “I don’t think that’s a good idea."

Aurum blinked. "Why not?" he asked, surprised at the outright dismissal.

"It’s…uh…painful?" Laishaka suggested.

"If humans can do it then it cannot hurt very much," Aurum snorted. “I am not weaker than a human.”

"Er…” She glanced around, and waved Pryce over to explain the situation, though Aurum wasn’t sure why the older human’s input was needed.

Pryce thought for a moment. “I don’t think you should get one either. It’s permanent – that means it does not go away."

"Really?” Fathom asked, joining in on the conversation. “So you don't have to keep drawing it? It’ll just stay there forever?"

Oddly enough, Laishaka shot a glare at Pryce, who only shrugged helplessly.

“Very interesting,” Fortitude said. Their conversation had caught the attention of all the dragons present, as well as a few passing crewmen. “It reminds me of horn-markings.”

Pryce looked to Fortitude, eyebrow raised, “Horn-markings? What are those?”

“Markings made on horns,” Devotion said candidly. “Stomach-juice from animals can…’eat’ things very slowly, and make horns redder. Use clay to protect horn you do not want changed, and you can ‘draw’ on horns.”

“Why didn’t you tell me about this?” Pryce asked, turning to Fathom.

“Not many do it,” Fathom shrugged. “It is difficult to do alone, and it heals in a few months. Usually it’s done by dragons who belong to clans, since they can help each other do that sort of thing.”

“When do you think we can try ‘tattoos’?” Fortitude asked interested.

“None of us brought any tattooing tools with us,” Gordon chuckled, pausing for a moment to speak with a crate of supplies in his arms. “But it would take an awfully – I mean, a very long time to draw a tattoo big enough to fit on one of you, and it would be very expensive.”

Celeste tilted her head. “What does ‘expensive’ mean?”

“I’ll tell you about that later, it’s complicated,” Pryce sighed. “But you still wouldn’t want to get one, because they start fading over time. In a few decades it’ll be all blurry.”

“Oh. That is a shame,” Fathom said, sighing in disappointment. “But if you can make your own markings, then why are some of them so weird? Like those ones on your face,” he said, pointing a talon at Gordon.

“Markings on my face?” Gordon asked, touching his face. “Is there something on my face?”

“Not that I can see,” Pryce said, leaning in for a closer look at the supposed markings. “Dragons can see in infrared and ultraviolet wavelengths of light. It must be some phenotype that was never eliminated…” he paused in thought, rubbing his chin. “Do only some people have them?” he asked Fathom.

“I can see…eight people with strange markings right now,” Celeste noted. “Can you not see them at all? Why do humans have markings if they can’t even see them?”

Gordon shrugged. “Well don’t ask me, I can’t see them. What do these markings look like?”

“It’s hard to describe…” Celeste said, tilting her head as she peered more closely. “The markings are ultraviolet in color, and the pattern is a bit like a splash of…blood?”

“It’s probably not important, but it might be something worth looking into back home,” Pryce noted.

----------------------------------------

The sound of flapping caused Fathom to raise his head – up in the sky, a green dragon gradually made his descent onto the beach.

«This must be the second ship,» the newcomer said faintly as he stared up at the two steel behemoths.

«Who are you?» Fathom asked as he leapt down upon the beach, and was followed by his daughter, Fortitude, Devotion, and Aurum.

«My name is Sharnha – now, I know I did you wrong, but we are both allied to the humans now,» the informant hurriedly added as Fathom narrowed his eyes.

«If you say so,» Fathom chuffed. «I assume the fact that you’re here means you have something important to tell us,» he said shortly.

«Only the fact that Vosae arrived at the Plateau last night with three-quarters of the clan,» Sharnha said candidly, immediately spreading concern among the gathered dragons.

«Why did she bring so many?» Devotion asked, frowning. «I’ve never heard of her taking so many of her clan with her before.»

«How should I know? It’s not like I could just walk up and ask them myself,» Sharnha said defensively. «The only other thing I can tell you is that they were quick to ask if anyone had seen Qnaoro and his human, but that’s hardly an unusual question.»

«Who did she bring with her?» Fortitude asked, her spines stiffened in concern.

«I don’t know all of their names,» Sharnha said, «but I heard she brought Hakra, Manthk, Apanth, and that new dragonet of hers, Icahna. I wasn’t able to learn the names of the others,» he said, a little regretfully.

«Those are the older and more capable members of her clan,» Devotion frowned, «it sounds like she’s expecting trouble…the others only know about Callan, and none of them know about the ship yet, correct?»

«Of course not,» Sharnha said, tossing his head emphatically. «I didn’t hear anyone mention anything about great metal shells like these,» he said, gesturing a wing-thumb towards the ships. «Everyone knew this was going to be the largest gathering in living memory. I don’t think she needs much more of a reason to bring her best fighters. Besides,» he added, «if they did know about the ship, why go to the Plateau? Even a blind search would give them a better chance at finding this ship.»

«...You have a point,» Devotion admitted. «Though they might have gone to the Plateau first in case something unexpected had happened. Either way, she’s expecting trouble somewhere or somehow. You were not followed, were you?» she asked, her gaze fixed squarely upon the informant.

«Please, I’m not an idiot,» Sharnha said, puffing out his chest indignantly. «I even stopped in several places to travel on foot or to swim through rivers. I would have arrived much earlier if I hadn’t bothered to do that.»

«Hm…regardless, we’ll have to be on guard,» Devotion chuffed. «Now, one of you summarize everything to our human allies. They seem to be getting anxious.»

“I thought most dragons lived alone?” Captain Siebert asked once Fathom had translated Sharnha’s information.

“Most of us do, but there are some who live in groups,” Fathom explained. “The Brewer clan is the largest and most powerful clan, but the clan itself is only made up of twenty dragons. They can’t do anything against hundreds of other dragons,” he said reassuringly.

“How bad is this news? Is it worse than you expected?” Siebert inquired.

“We did not expect her to bring so many of her clan,” Fortitude explained, “but it should not matter very much. They still do not know that there is more than one human here, and they do not know about ships at all. We do not need to change our plans,” she said in summary.

“But we can send «Sharnha» – this green dragon who just arrived – back to the Plateau,” Fortitude continued, “Then he can lead our other allies back here. It will be good to show them your ship.”

“Weren’t you planning on going to the Plateau tomorrow?” Gordon asked.

Fortitude shrugged. “We gain no advantage by waiting here, and it would be nice if we could show them that humans can predict an eclipse. If Sharnha leaves now, he can bring the others back hours before it happens.”

“We’re just about done shifting the supplies as well,” Sibert said. “I suppose there’s no reason to wait. Lieutenant Baker, prepare to set sail. The ten volunteers I selected yesterday will remain behind and make whatever preparations we can.”

“Understood, sir,” Baker saluted, and set about ordering the men to finish up their tasks.

«What strange speech,» Sharnha muttered, «How under the sun can you understand those words?»

«Be grateful you don’t have to learn it yet,» Devotion grumbled. «go back to the plateau, bring everyone back to the ship,» she ordered.

«Everyone?» Sharnha said, drawing his head back in surprise. «Well, I suppose there is no use in waiting. Can I bring something with me to prove that I know where the humans are?» he asked.

Pryce thought for a moment. “How about a group photo?”

----------------------------------------

“Say ‘cheese’,” Scott said, starting the timer of several cameras before racing down to the beach, the young man quickly joining the cross-species photoshoot.

“Why did he tell us to say ‘cheese’?” Fathom asked through slightly parted jaws.

“Human culture thing,” Pryce said through clenched teeth. “We have to show our teeth to make a noise like ‘cheese’, and that looks like a smile. Saying cheese is just telling people to smile for the camera.”

“Okay, but why cheese? Isn't there a better word you could have used instead of gross, spoiled milk?” Fathom grumbled, causing stifled laughter among the crew as several clicks sounded from the cameras.

“Well, that turned out pretty well,” Gordon said, passing the laminated photograph to Jane.

“I wonder how many textbooks this'll be in,” Jane mused as she dropped the photo and a handheld mirror into a satchel, then offered it to Sharnha. “You open and close it like this,” she said, demonstrating how to open and shut the satchel.

«How useful,» Sharnha said, opening the bag to carefully inspect the photograph and his payment. «Though these are far more impressive. Is there anything else I need to do other than bring everyone here? No? Then I best be off!» With that, Sharnha launched himself into the air, his silhouette rapidly disappearing into the distance.

----------------------------------------

Ighnahr landed upon the plateau with hearts racing – Sharnha had slipped free of his pursuit, infuriatingly enough, but a metal shell could only be on a river or a beach, and Ighnahr had nothing to lose by checking the coastline.

And that was how he found not one, but two unfathomably enormous metal shells sitting upon the beach. The dark made it hard to discern much detail, especially at such a distance, but Ighnahr was certain that he'd seen several dragons lying on top of those shells.

He'd turned around right there and then. Judging by the lack of pursuit he hadn't been noticed, at least. Now he was finally back at the Plateau, and it was time to speak with the Brewer clan…and his parents.

«Stop right there, wretch,» Hakra hissed, stopping his approach.

«I know where the humans are,» Ighnahr said, ignoring the disdainful look the brewer clan guard shot him. «Take me to Vosae-ǂ, I have something she’ll want to hear.»

«Is that so,» Hakra snorted. «We’ll see about that.» The blue dragon turned and made his way towards the rest of his clan, apparently granting him passage.

Ighnahr awkwardly followed the guard-turned guide, and he had to keep his spines from flaring up as he soon found himself surrounded by twelve dragons – including his parents.

«Greetings, Vosae-ǂ…father, mother,» Ighnahr said, lowering his head diffidently.

The elder clan leader’s scales were half-white with age, and her sky blue eyes were certainly intimidating, but no one would have said that the clan leader looked well. Swathes of hide hung loose from her body, and the bags of flesh under her eyes were evidence of her diminished state.

image [https://i.ibb.co/6XRk2zf/vosae.png]

(Art by Rackiera)

However, despite everything, she was still the clan leader, and Ighnahr did not forget that for an instant.

«Ighnahr,» Igansa said flatly, her bright blue eyes filled with contempt.

«Did you find something?» Anzath asked, his father’s gaze as piercing as ever.

Ighnahr nodded. «Early this morning I saw Sharnha depart under the cover of darkness. I followed him, and found something interesting.»

«You speak as if you want to trade, wretch,» Vosae growled.

Ighnahr froze, tensing involuntarily – not that there was anything he could do, surrounded by half the clan that he was. «You see the humans to as enemies, don’t you?» he asked, hoping that he was right. «Huroumh is my enemy, and he is one of their allies. All I ask is that you allow me to duel him free of interference, and I will guide you to the humans.»

Vosae sat, impassive as the stone she rested on. She gave no indication that she was surprised even when he said he knew where the humans were. Instead she snorted at the end of his proposal.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

«Let me guess,» Vosae drawled. «They're somewhere to the east, yes?» she chuffed, seeing his eyes widen in surprise. «We both know that the humans used a metal shell to float over the ocean, so it’s hardly a leap to realize that they’re somewhere nearby, given that they were the ones to decide on the location and date.»

«Perhaps,» Ighnahr admitted, «but I can save you the effort of searching, and I am not asking you to sacrifice anything in return.»

Vosae did not immediately respond, but silently regarded him for a few moments. «Very well,» she said, and gestured to the east with a partially unfolded wing. «We cannot all leave at once without arousing suspicion. We’ll leave individually, then rendezvous at the Great Hollow.»

Ighnahr stood frozen for a moment, baffled by the sudden compliance, but he soon nodded his acceptance before launching himself into the air.

«Why did you accept his help?» Hakra asked incredulously. «He's just a curse who can't even beat a dying ember of a dragon. He’d be a hindrance at best, and at worst he could be lying to us; what if he's trying to draw us away from the Plateau?»

«I don't like it either,» Manthk grumbled, «It's not right to deal with a curse.»

Vosae lightly shook her head. «Regardless of what you feel, besting Huroumh is the one thing that dragon wants, so I don’t see any chance of him betraying us. Besides, allowing him a fair duel is the least I can do for you two,» she said, turning to Anzath and Igansa.

«Appreciated,» Anzath nodded.

Igansa only huffed in disdain. «Likewise, though I would caution against any positive expectation of him.»

«Noted,» Vosae said, and turned to address her clan. «Leave by order of seniority, starting with Hakra. If someone asks you where you’re headed off to, pretend you have gone to hunt. Ensure that you are not followed above all else, understood?»

They all nodded, and Hakra dove off the side of the Plateau.

----------------------------------------

“Both ships are ready to set sail, Captain,” Lieutenant Baker reported.

“Congratulations, Lieutenant; you are now acting captain of the Daybreak. I leave the ship in your capable hands.” Siebert paused. “Something the matter, Lieutenant?”

“I know a few more men wouldn't make much of a difference,” Baker said cautiously, “but I'd still feel much better if you took a few more men with you, Captain.”

“My decision is made.” Siebert paused, then quietly said, “It is quite unnecessary to risk the lives of good men for a marginal increase in safety.”

“...understood, Captain.” Baker touched his hat, then boarded the Daybreak. Over the course of minutes the anchors were raised and exhaust began to puff out of the smokestacks.

“Good luck!” The departing crew shouted as the ship gradually began to drift away, and those who remained returned with cries of “See you back home!”

“Well, ‘suppose I can't say I didn't sign up for whatever happens next.” Gordon chuckled as he pulled out a cigarette.

“What is that?” Celeste asked as she peered curiously at the lit object.

“Oh, this? It's just a cigarette,” Gordon said, and Celeste stared, eyes wide in horror as he puffed out a lungful of smoke.

“Hey-” Gordon yelped as Celeste flicked the cigarette out of his hands and onto the beach. “What the hell?!”

“Are you-” Celeste abruptly paused. «Father, what is the word for crazy?»

Fathom stared at the smoldering cigarette butt. “Crazy.”

”Are you crazy?” Celeste demanded. “Why are you breathing smoke!?”

“It's normal!” Gordon cried.

Fathom slowly turned to Pryce. “Please tell me that this isn't normal human behavior.”

Pryce sheepishly rubbed his neck. “I think about…four in ten adults smoke?”

Fathom blinked.

“That must be why they do not live very long,” Fortitude chuffed.

“What reason could you possibly have to breathe smoke?” Fathom cried.

“It helps me relax!” Gordon retorted defensively. “And you dragons can spit fire! That's worse than smoke!”

“Our fire goes out, not in,” Celeste hissed. “These are opposite things!”

“Why are you all so against something that you haven't even tried?!”

“By that logic you should try eating rocks, just because you haven't tried it before,” Fathom shot back.

“I suspect they have very efficient lungs, like birds,” Pryce explained, “but like birds, this also makes them very sensitive to noxious gasses, including smoke.”

“So what,” Gordon huffed, crossing his arms, “am I not allowed to smoke near a dragon?”

“You can breathe poison if you want,” Fathom snorted. “Just do it somewhere far away from me.”

“You do not breathe smoke, do you, Laishaka?” Aurum asked suspiciously.

“Err…” Jane stammered. “Well…not often…?”

“Before you ask, I don't smoke,” Pryce said to Fathom as Aurum gave Jane the most disappointed look he'd ever seen on a dragon.

“Great,” Fathom grumbled sarcastically as he rubbed the side of his face with his wing thumb. “I never thought I would be relieved to hear someone say that they aren't a smoke-breather – that's literally a draconic insult, by the way.”

Captain Siebert cleared his throat. “Perhaps we should prepare for the several hundred dragons who will be here tomorrow.”

“Yes, we have a plan for that,” Fortitude said. “We believe that it would be best if the other dragons do not learn about rifles yet. If there is a fight, let us handle it. It is better to settle things between dragons, so do not interfere unless we cannot win – I will tell you if that is the case.”

“Sensible,” Siebert nodded. “In that case, we’ll take shelter in the ship until the fight is over, or if you need our help. Are there any…physical preparations we should complete?”

Celeste tilted her head, then sat on her haunches to examine her foreclaws. “My talons are a bit dull. Do you have any tools to sharpen things with?”

“You mean a file?” Gordon asked blankly. “We’ve got a few of those, let me get one for you.” He returned a minute later, and offered the metal file to Celeste.

*Sssshk*

Celeste blinked, then ran the file along her index talon a few more times, then experimentally ran the sharpened nail along the edge of her wing membranes. “Oh, now that is sharp,” she purred, and eagerly began sharpening her other talons.

image [https://i.ibb.co/9v2DDV0/image.png]

(Art by Bloov on Discord)

Upon seeing her success the other dragons turned to Gordon, an expectant look in their eyes. “I’ll, uh, go and get one for each of you,” he said nervously.

Soon the dragons were marveling at the sharpness of their talons, with some testing them on nearby trees before re-sharpening them once again.

“How convenient,” Fathom said, flexing his talons. “Faster and easier than using rocks.”

«This feels a little unfair,» Kharno hummed. «Oh well. Anyone want to go hunting with me?» she asked, and soon flew off with the twins by her side.

…only to return immediately. «There’s a group of dragons approaching from the west!» Kharno called out.

«I knew we shouldn’t have trusted that idiot. He must have been followed,» Fathom hissed.

“What’s going on?” Captain Siebert demanded.

“There’s a group of dragons to the west,” Pryce said severely, “we don’t know who they are yet.”

“Inside the ship, now!” The Captain ordered, ushering all crewmen inside the Horizon.

“Should we move the ship?” Scott asked.

Siebert shook his head. “We can’t outspeed them. Shelter first, plan later!”

“We’ll talk to them first, then we’ll let you know if they aren’t hostile,” Fathom said, positioning himself between outside the door of the ship. Likewise the other dragons began taking up various positions around the vessel, with a few sitting on the deck.

«They’re all blue,» Fortitude rumbled. «Which means they must be the Brewer clan.»

«Wait, two of them are purple,» Devotion said, squinting at the skies. «With pale scales…I think those are Anzath and Igansa.»

«Ighnahr’s parents,» Fathom growled. «He must have given them Sharnha’s information.»

«We’ll talk about that later,» Devotion growled. «Jooral and I know Vosae best, so we’ll handle the discussion.»

Fathom nearly protested at her sudden decision, but her tone left no room for rebuke, and the silence that followed proved that the others felt the same.

«Impressive,» Vosae said when she finally landed upon the beach, her fellow clan falling into place beside her, though Anzath and Igansa landed together a short distance away – the two elders possessed deep purple wing membranes, but their pale scales resulted in a light mauve coloration across their bodies.

Vosae scanned each of the dragons present as she waited for the dust in the air to settle, her gaze lingering on Aurum, Fortitude, Devotion, Helsha, and Kharno in particular. «Are all of you gathered here as allies of these ‘humans’? Even you, Ghorrah-ǂ? Jooral-ǂ?» she asked, calling out across the distance that separated the two groups.

«Indeed, Vosae-ǂ,» Devotion rumbled tightly.

«I must say, Anzath-ǂ, you rather undersold these metal shells,» Vosae said, glancing back at the light purple elder.

«I do not think anyone would believe such a story to begin with,» Anzath said, his eyes wide as he took in the ship, an expression shared by all the newly arrived dragons.

That was a good sign, Fathom thought, and he felt himself and the others gradually begin to relax as the Brewer clan exhibited no outright hostile intentions. Still, he doubted that curiosity alone could explain Vosae’s presence, and he knew better than to let his guard down around these dragons.

«So, I assume the humans are hiding in that shell of theirs?» Vosae asked. «Will they not come out? I did not think they would be so shy, judging by the number of allies they have gathered.»

Fortitude glanced at Devotion, who nodded. “...they do not seem to be enemies,” Fortitude called out to the ship, “but be careful. Do not get too close to them, and stay close to us.”

----------------------------------------

“If our allies believe it is safe for us to go out, then Doctor Pryce, Doctor Callan, Mr. Gordon, and myself will speak with the dragons,” Captain Siebert said, “the rest of you will remain here with the rifles, be ready for anything, but friendly fire will not be tolerated – that includes our dragon allies, understood?”

“If I may,” Pryce said, clearing his throat. “I advise against firing unless one of us is in immediate danger. As Fortitude said, it is normal for dragons to fight dragons, but peace will be far more difficult the moment one of us harms or kills a dragon.”

“And what counts as ‘immediate danger’?” Campbell asked, eyebrow raised.

“That will ultimately be up to your discretion,” Siebert said, lips pressed into a thin line. “But know that your actions will determine the future of our peoples. I recommend giving our allies a chance to protect us before firing, but I know that this is not an easy distinction to make.”

“...they do not seem to be enemies,” Fortitude said, her brassy voice penetrating the ship’s hull. “But be careful. Do not get too close to them, and stay close to us.”

“That’s our cue,” Gordon said. He cranked the door open, and the four of them stepped out with arms full of tools – items that Pryce and Callan had decided would be of greatest interest to the Brewer clan.

As Pryce stepped out onto the beach, he saw that the clan indeed consisted entirely of blue dragons. Each individual possessed a slightly different shade of blue, though some were more accurately teal or turquoise in color. Now that they were close, he could see dark red patterns on their horns that bore a superficial resemblance to flames – evidently the horn-markings that Fortitude had told them about.

One dragon stood before all the others, her frosted scales contrasted against the dark indigo blue of her wing membranes. It was the starkest contrast of color Pryce had ever seen on a dragon, but it wasn’t the only thing unique about her appearance.

She was the first dragon he’d seen who looked old. Her eyes were sharp, and she looked far from weak or senile, but her hide was wrinkled in some places and hung loose in others in much the same way as skin would on an aged human.

Pryce recalled that she was only about a decade older than Devotion or Fortitude, which meant that her somewhat haggard appearance must be a result of something other than senescence – excessive stress as a result of her role, for example, could explain her aged appearance.

“I will introduce you, since they can’t understand you anyway,” Fathom said, before Siebert could make his introductions. «The one with black and white fur on his head is Pryce, he is the first human I met about eighty days ago. The shortest one is Jane Callan, the one who Qnaoro found, the tall one wearing the shiny things is the leader of the second group of humans, and the last one is the partner of Jane Callan.» He paused, then seeing the Brewer clan’s confused expressions he added, «Pryce and Jane Callan can understand some of our speech, but they cannot pronounce it very well, so one of us must speak for them.»

«I suppose we should introduce ourselves,» Vosae said. “Vosae-ǂ,” she said, gesturing to herself with a wing-thumb. «Those two are Anzath-ǂ and Igansa-ǂ,» she said, gesturing to her two fellow elders before signaling the others of her clan to follow suit in what appeared to be order of seniority, with a five-year-old grown dragonet being the last.

«You mentioned a second group of humans?» Hakra asked, eyes narrowed. She was the second eldest of Vosae’s daughters, though Vojan, the eldest, was notably absent. If Fathom had to guess, she had likely been left behind to manage the clan’s affairs in the absence of Vosae.

«There are two groups of humans, each who arrived on their own metal shell,» Devotion explained, casting a look at Fathom that said to let her convey the rest. «Pryce and Jane Callan were the only survivors of the first group. The second arrived yesterday to help the first.»

Vosae’s eyes darted to the pile of churned up sand, evidence of the Daybreak’s landing. «I see,» she murmured, peering at the humans. «And where is this second metal shell now?»

”She is asking where the other humans and the second ship are.” Devotion said, translating Vosae’s question. “Should I tell them the truth?”

“I don’t see any harm in it,” Siebert said. “It will be good for them to know that killing us will not prevent humanity from learning about your kind.”

Devotion nodded, then turned back to Vosae as she gestured vaguely to the east. «The humans decided that it was best to send some of the second group back home so that they could tell all of the other humans about us, while the rest of the group remained behind to assist the first group,» she explained, then tilted her head. «We were planning on sending a messenger tomorrow to bring those at the Plateau here. How did you find us?»

«Anzath here told me that someone had found a great metal shell,» Vosae said, clearly noticing Sharnha’s absence, «Naturally, I had to investigate, and there are only so many places such a thing could be found.»

«Then you must know where Ighnahr is,» Fathom said, his voice a low rumble.

«Hardly,» Vosae chuffed, tossing her head. «Why would we bother with that curse? He’s probably out there blindly searching the shorelines like we were. We merely had the advantage of searching several locations at once – that is how Eosha here found you this morning, before she returned and led us back here.»

Devotion narrowed her eyes. «Is that so,» she said, a silent question in her eyes as she glanced at her partner.

«You’ve been awfully civil for someone who’s brought so many people with her,» Fortitude said, head tilted skeptically. «Let us get to the point; are you here to be an ally?»

«Jooral, you cannot expect me to honesty answer that question when I have only just met these creatures,» Vosae said in reasonable tones. «I was hoping to learn more of their intentions before making a decision.»

“She is asking about human intentions,” Fortitude translated.

“Tell her we had only intended to explore unknown lands; we didn’t know there would be intelligent people here,” Siebert said.

«And what were you planning to do if you found these lands to be…appealing?» Vosae asked, lowering her head to peer closely at the humans – or at least, as closely as she could, with Fathom and the others standing between them.

“She’s asking what we would do if we…liked these lands, I think,” Pryce said, earning a nod from Fathom. “We can’t lie about this,” he said, warning Siebert. “It would be too blatant. We’d be idiots if we went exploring with no intent on using what we found.”

“Tell them that we planned to have humans live here,” Siebert said, “but we can’t do that without settling on an agreement, now that we know these lands are taken. Be sure to tell them that we are willing to help each other and trade with dragons in exchange for being allowed to live on your lands,” he added to Fortitude.

«Hmph. How generous of you,» Vosae rumbled. «And what exactly would you offer to trade?» she asked, eyeing the ship with a prospective gaze.

«There are three lands in the world,» Devotion began, and Pryce, hearing his cue, picked up the globe and handed it over to Fathom, who gave it to Vosae for her perusal – but not without warning her of the item’s fragility. «That is called a “globe”, and it is a miniature representation of the entire world,» Devotion went on to explain, «Our land is the smallest of the three, while the humans live on the middle sized one.»

Vosae flattened her spines as she spun the globe around by the base. «This is…a fascinating creation, but it doesn’t make sense,» she said suspiciously. «It’s not possible for them to have created this before their arrival, and they couldn’t have known how to make this if they only arrived eighty days ago.»

«Someone would have seen them,» Manthk agreed, his eyes narrowed.

«The humans have tools called ‘cameras’ that can record sights,» Devotion explained as Fathom showed them the group photo. «They used other tools to fly a camera up through the heavens and take pictures of the world below. That was how they learned about the existence of our land in the first place.»

Several of her clan flicked their spines, clearly skeptical at such an idea, while Vosae seemed more thoughtful.

«It’s a ridiculous claim, and yet…I suppose does explain everything very neatly,» Vosae said, her eyes returning to the ship. «And they didn’t fly here because…they couldn’t. Or at least, it was easier to send things on this metal shell of theirs.»

“She’s fast,” Siebert muttered after hearing Pryce’s translation.

“Must be why she's the leader,” Pryce whispered back, and turned to Devotion. “She’s right, we could have flown someone here, but it would have been dangerous, and they wouldn’t have been able to come back on their own.”

«Quite impressive,» Vosae rumbled. «I imagine brewing alcohol must be a trivial thing for you humans, given all the tools you have at your disposal.»

“It is,” Siebert nodded. “Humans have been brewing alcohol for thousands of years, and I hear it’s your specialty. We could make an agreement to only trade alcohol with your clan, if you would like.” Seeing her reluctance, he added, “You can try some, though we didn’t bring any particularly good drinks with us.”

Gordon uncorked a bottle, then handed it over to Devotion, who offered it to Vosae. The clan leader stared at the proffered gift, but made no move to accept it.

«It’s not poisoned,» Devotion said, pouring and swallowing a portion of the bottle’s contents.

Vosae cautiously accepted the gift upon seeing this proof, but she only gave it a light tasting before handing it to Hakra, her expression unreadable. Her daughter had a more thoughtful expression on her face, but likewise passed it onto Manthk after a light sampling.

«Well…» Manthk said, «Let’s say we believe those claims. This…alliance you are proposing, what will it entail? That is the important part, after all.»

“We have tools, and we know how to create many things dragons cannot,” Pryce said. “If you help us live on your land then we can teach you these things, and if you want to move to other lands, we can help with that too.”

«But it is not easy to traverse the ocean, is it?» Vosae asked, «if it were, then the majority of the first group would not have died.»

“The second group had no problems crossing the ocean,” Siebert said. “It would not be very difficult to help dragons travel across the ocean, if that is what you want; the first group was only very unlucky.”

«I see…well, it is not a bad offer,» Vosae said, after a moment, «But what would you have done if there was none of our kind to help you? Surely you have some means of defending yourselves against any predators?»

“A clever way to ask about any weapons we might have,” Pryce added onto the end of his translation.

“We have ways of defending ourselves,” Siebert said, his hands clasped firmly behind his back. “We do not need your help to survive, but it would make things much easier and safer for us if we received help from your kind.”

The clan stared at the humans with a dubious look in their eyes, clearly finding the claim quite skeptical. «Surely they must be bluffing,» Hakra said, earning murmurs of agreement among her fellows. «They look…harmless, to say the least. How many of these humans live on their home land?» she asked.

«Fifty thousand thousand,» Devotion answered shortly, stunning both clan members and their allies who hadn’t learned that piece of information yet.

«Fifty thousand…thousand,» Hakra said, disbelief written across her face.

Vosae narrowed her eyes, then raised her head to its full imposing height. «I believe I have heard enough to see the full story now,» she boomed, «You humans are capable, and others will surely wish to trade and cooperate with you. That alone is not a bad thing, but you won’t stop there, will you? You’ll make yourselves useful, and sooner or later we’ll end up reliant on you.” She chuffed, tossing her head. “It’s an old tactic, but it never fails.”

“What’s she saying?” Siebert asked, sensing the change in tone even if he couldn’t understand a word of her speech.

“She’s talking about how much of a danger we are. Retreat to the ship,” Pryce murmured, and the humans gradually began to fall back towards the ship.

Devotion lowered her stance, and her webbed spines stood up menacingly. «Get to the point,» she growled as the others began to tense up.

«Ghorrah-ǂ, surely you are not so blind,» Vosae said reasonably, «What could the humans possibly offer you, when their very existence threatens all of us?»

«They have promised to do their best to heal Jooral’s wing,» Devotion said flatly, which at least seemed to stun Vosae.

«And you believed them? With no proof whatsoever?» the clan leader asked incredulously.

Devotion snorted disdainfully. «Of course not. They have already shown that they can heal lighter injuries, such as Huroumh’s broken wing.» On cue, Fathom half-opened his wings to show their nearly flawless state – a few odd scars were the only evidence that a malunion had ever been present.

«I see,» Vosae said grimly. «And what about the rest of you?» she demanded. «Are you really going to help these invaders infest our lands?»

«The humans are offering to teach us much, and they have been generous,» Xylem growled, «which is more than I can say about you.»

«You would kill such tiny creatures?» Kharno rumbled, her flight membranes sliding over her eyes in an implicit threat. «I expected better from you, Vosae-ǂ.»

«I am mainly here to help Jooral-ǂ and Ghorrah-ǂ,» Lakath said, «but these humans have done no harm to us.»

«I wish to see the change that they will bring about,» Nanzo nodded.

«Don’t bother trying to trick us,» Karoth hissed.

«We all know you’re just afraid of losing your power,» his twin brother finished, cackling gleefully at the clan’s furious expressions.

Vosae stared in disbelief as each of the allied dragons voiced their dismissals, with not a single one changing course. «We outnumber you eighteen to twelve, to say nothing of your…disabilities,» she said, her not-so-tactful statement earning bared teeth from Devotion and Nanzo. «You can’t seriously expect to win against us.»

«Sounds fair to me,» Fortitude laughed, her jaws parted in a wild grin. «Ghorrah and I will just have to work a little harder. Isn’t that right, my wings?»

«Indeed,» Ghorrah snarled. «It’s been some time since we’ve last had to teach a few upstarts their place.»

«So be it,» Vosae spat, clicking in disapproval as Icahna nervously padded forth to touch her mother's side with a wingtip.

«Mother, are you sure that this is a good idea?» she asked meekly. «I have a bad feeling about these humans. They have tools that can do so many things, what if they have powerful weapons we don't know of?»

«Doubtful,» Vosae snorted. «They'd need not bother with these alliances if they had such weapons, and if they did…» she crouched, narrowing her eyes. «All the more reason to kill them now and scare off the would-be invaders.»

«But-»

«Enough, Icahna,» Vosae said, nudging her away. «Icanam, keep her safe and take her somewhere away from here.»

Icahna glanced between her parents, then nodded and dashed to follow her father.

«Oh, one last thing,» Vosae said, then raised her head up to the sky to roar, «You can come out now!»

----------------------------------------

Some distance away, hidden among the trees sat Ighnahr, his spines stretched to their fullest as he strained to pick up their conversation. He’d had to sneak up upon the group on foot so as to remain undetected, so he’d only caught the tail end of their conversation – but even that was ridiculous.

«And you believed them? With no proof whatsoever?»

Clearly the clan leader shared his sentiments.

«Of course not,» he then heard Ghorrah say. «They have already shown that they can heal lighter injuries, such as Huroumh’s broken wing.»

The murmurs of surprise that followed shocked him to his core – Huroumh was healed? Completely healed? He almost fell over at the revelation, and only barely managed to halt himself.

For a moment Ighnahr was paralyzed, terrified at the prospect of facing a Huroumh who wasn’t weakened, but in a state stronger than he’d ever known.

Then he quashed down those feelings, determination flowing through his core. This didn’t change anything. Huroumh couldn’t have fully gotten used to his wing in such a short amount of time. Ighnahr come close to winning before, and with his life on the line surely he would find a way to do it again.

Vosae’s roar tore him from his thoughts – it was the signal to reveal himself.

«Took you long enough,» he growled, masking his fear as he strode out from the cover of the forest. In that moment he had his first good look at the humans, their metal shell, and their allies that stood between them and the Brewer clan.

Then he saw Huroumh freeze.

«I knew it,» his old enemy hissed. «You were with them all along.»

«Not exactly,» Ighnahr growled, «They’re here on their own business; I just need them as witnesses to prove that I was the one who killed you.»

«Getting ahead of yourself, aren’t you?» Huroumh chuffed, and Ighnahr had to stifle a grimace as he saw the previously broken wing in perfect condition.

«I see,» Devotion snarled as she glared at Vosae. «You never planned to work with the humans, did you?»

«I’d sincerely hoped to change your minds,» Vosae sighed, sounding surprisingly regretful to Ighnahr. «At the very least, I’d hoped to get these humans to volunteer more information, but a lizard in the den is a lizard caught, so to speak.» She stood up, joints popping as she straightened her neck.

In the calm before the storm, Vosae confidently delivered a final set of orders:

«Make these ‘allies’ see reason, but take care not to kill them. Once they’re dealt with, we’ll kill the humans.»