It had been a few years since he’d last visited home. His old home, that is, although it’s been hard to give anything else that name.
He used to visit every year, but as the years went on, he found it harder and harder to. To see that place again, so empty and devoid of life, reopened the pit in his heart that was torn out of him that day. He knew he should do it, but it didn’t make a difference. It would just drum up old memories that needed no reason to see the light of day again. Besides, it was a long journey to make.
He’d thought that was why he’d moved so far away. To make it harder to go back. Give himself more of an excuse as to why he wasn’t going back to pay his respects. But it was different this time. While he didn’t want to count the years, it was so etched into his mind nothing he could do would ever allow him to forget.
It was the 20th anniversary of when he lost everything. And while he didn’t want to, there was no excuse this time. Sure, it wouldn’t be easy, but staying away this time felt wrong. He’d never planned on staying away for this long either, it just never felt like the right time to go, and before he knew it, it was already too late. Besides, it’s not like his old home was going anywhere anytime soon. Cave formations tend to last for a very, very long time.
However, this time he knew he was ready to go back. For some reason, he had a feeling that something would be different. A subtle tension throughout his chest and all of his limbs compelled him to really go. While in the years past, he’d felt sluggish whenever he’d even considered preparing for the long way home, his legs and wings itched to make the journey.
He wanted to leave as soon as possible. He didn’t have anything to bring with him. Obsidian had learned long ago that no matter how much he liked them, keeping shiny and valuable things only drew the attention of humans. If it were up to him, he’d have razed the entire inhabited valley between the mountains where he lived to keep them away, but he knew better than that.
At the moment, very few, if any, humans knew he lived nearby. The mountainside he lived on had plenty of large beasts, but they weren’t of much value to humans. Giant mountain tigers preyed on great horned ibex, much larger and more territorial than the variety he’d seen humans hunt. Of course, he didn’t care either way what ate what on the mountain. It was just easier to hunt when he knew the patterns and activity of his prey. Besides, nothing on that mountain could provide anything near a threat to him. It was the settlements in the nearby valley that he needed to be wary of. Every so often, a hiker would get lost and travel too close to comfort, or a surveying team would attempt to map out one of his preferred hunting grounds. It was easy to deal with the hikers. A few scary noises would turn them away without them ever needing to see them, and the surveyors never traveled too far up the mountain, as the land was too steep and gravelly to farm.
However, with every passing year, the settlement grew larger, and the larger a human settlement grew, the more daring they became. He knew it was only a matter of time before adventuring parties would start patrolling the mountains, searching for whatever beasts had been scaring all the townspeople from expanding. When that time came, he would have to move again, as he’d done time and time again for the last two decades.
Besides, destroying that human settlement would only draw the attention of more humans. While they weren’t all that threatening alone, an army of them could easily overwhelm him, especially since he lived alone. It had nearly happened before. Luckily for him, a powerful storm had appeared, providing him enough cover to fly past quickly enough to sustain only minor injuries. Ever since then, he’d kept as low of a profile as he possibly could.
The moon hung above the mountains, only half-illuminated. It was plenty of light for him to see clearly enough to fly, while not being enough for any humans to spot him unless he flew directly between them and the ever-present celestial body. He impressed even himself with his near-silent takeoff despite his enormous size. He didn’t need to be stealthy anymore since he was never planning on going back, but it had become a point of pride for him. His dark, reflective scales were seamless against the sky, twinkled below him like stars. Perfect camouflage on a clear night.
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He did, however, need to worry about where he would rest during the day. His coloration didn’t net him any camouflage during the day, if anything making him clearly visible from a great distance, strongly contrasting against the light blue sky. No forest animal would be brave or stupid enough to go near him while he slept, but he still needed to worry about humans. While it was unlikely for any humans to find him out in the wilderness, any human that was out that far was more likely to be considerably more powerful than average, or traveling with a large party. If they were to find him while he was sleeping, it wouldn’t matter how tough his scales were. Dragons are notoriously deep sleepers, so he wouldn’t notice their approach, and by the time he would be stirred enough to wake, it would be too late for him to escape unharmed.
But that didn’t bother him too much. While the distance was vast, he was incredibly fast. At his top speed, he didn’t fear archers or crossbowmen, as their arrows weren’t nearly fast enough to catch up to him. A fact that had saved his ass a few times before. His cruising speed was nothing to scoff at either, although not quite as fast. He would only need to spend two or three days tops sleeping before he reached his old home, and he’d already rested two. If he risked staying in flight during a few daylight hours, he could easily reach his destination with no more breaks. And that was exactly what he planned on doing. From what he remembered, the nearest human settlement was far enough away that he could make a low flyby over the peak of the mountain to the side of the cave. Of course, the human settlement would have grown in his years of absence, but if the ones he’d been living near were any good of an indicator, not enough to make his landing dangerous.
As he neared the crest of the mountain and the sun rose even higher than him, he rethought his plan. Maybe some scouts could be searching the area. But he quickly stuffed his doubts back down. While the humans had shown interest in the area before, the orcs in the forest had always held them back. There was no way their influence would reach so far into the forest.
Once Obsidian finally passed the peak, he realized just how wrong he was. He didn’t expect for a human settlement to pop up so far into the woods in just a few short years! And what bad luck he had, flying right over their walls! With his already low flying altitude, the humans spotted him instantly, sounding alarms and readying their defense. In only moments he felt arrows pelt his underside like hail. His scales were easily able to stop them from penetrating his skin, but that didn’t mean it felt good. Besides, that wasn’t his main concern. Now that they saw him in broad daylight, the humans would send a party strong enough to threaten him at the very least. At worst, they could send an entire army! He wouldn’t blame them if they misinterpreted his failure to remain stealthy as an act of aggression, as he would think the same if a normally reserved creature so blatantly showed themself.
It scarcely mattered, though, as by the time they gathered their forces, he would be long gone. Though it pained him to think this may be the last time he would be able to pay his respects to his lost family. Not only because the humans spotted him, but because this new settlement was so near his old home.
Instead of flying straight towards it, he took a roundabout path in an attempt to confuse any humans that may be tracking him. Once he believed he was sufficiently out of their range, he landed. The open sky was too dangerous during the day, so he would have to continue on foot. Unfortunate, but necessary. As he drew closer to the cave, he noticed something strange. Something that shouldn’t be possible. Approaching the cave, his suspicions were confirmed. He could smell it.
There was another dragon here.
As he entered the caves, he could see the trademark signs of habitation for a young dragon. Claw and horn filing marks on the walls, and shed scales hidden in corners. Even stranger, there seemed to be signs of human habitation in the cave as well. Signs of a fire pit near the mouth of the cave, and inside a smaller chamber were drying animal pelts. That only put Obsidian even more on edge. That shouldn’t be possible, a human and a dragon living inside this cave at the same time? Perhaps the human had set up camp for a few nights while it was away. But that made no sense. Why would a human set up drying racks at a temporary camp?
Suddenly Obsidian had a horrible realization. He hurriedly scanned over the pelts, and to his relief, found none of dragonskin. While that was a slight comfort, it did nothing to answer his questions.
As he heard the pattering of claws on stone enter the cave, he realized his questions would be answered sooner rather than later. Careful not to make a sound, he pressed himself into the corner of the chamber, half hiding and half defending his back. He could tell from its footsteps that it was small, and likely not much of a threat, but he’d prefer not to have a confrontation anyway. While it was small, its claws and jaws were sharp and strong, and he didn’t think he had it in him to hurt a whelp.
As the footsteps neared the chamber he hid inside, he began charging his lightning. He didn’t plan on firing, but it would be enough to intimidate.
Nothing could have prepared him for the face he saw illuminated in the pale blue glow.