Private Tales Here There Be Dragons

[Kaia Thesius]

"You know," she took out the graphite stick and tapped her chin with the blunt end. Her journals and scrolls were now in a somewhat organized pile. "If our history is to believed, our people were not so unlike yours now. They say long ago we can from across the seas. Settled on the beach like you all. Fled to the mountains because of the monsters and things that liked to hunt humans for sport. It wasn't until thirteen souls sacrificed themselves to the dragons for help that we finally stood a chance against those who already lived here."

Looking down, she sifted through a journal in her lap. Its pages filled with writings that he would be able to read due to that rune and her dragon's magic. It was filled with writings and various formulas. Perhaps only her love of numbers could eclipse her affinity for words, language, learning, and history.

Tempest casually flicked his tongue in Lothar's direction.

Kaia leaned forward slightly. "Tell me more about where your from. And your people? Can you all do magic...like you did? And between you and me? I prefer to sleep outside. Close to the water. Tempest would protect me anyway," reaching to the side, she let her fingers play lightly along the rough scales of Tempest's neck.

 

[Lothar]

Lothar tried not to flinch as the Dragon flicked it's tongue.

It was not the first such creature that he had met, but it would be a lie to say that the Dragon did not bring a distinct discomfort to him. Something within his soul, something that he had taken from another, called for it. For the magic it bore.

A feeling he starkly pressed down. "Not all, no."

He said truthfully, glancing at the Dragon for a brief moment before he continued.

"Where I am from, those who can do magic are taken as children and trained." Lothar began to explain. "We are raised to use our abilities so by the time we become adults, we are strong."

In those words the whole experience sounded almost good, though it was anything but. "Vel Anir, that is the cities name, was nearly wiped out a few centuries ago."

He continued. "Mages like us are what stopped that."

A smile touched his lips, and then he looked to the Dragon once more.

"I imagine that they would." He chuckled. "I have not met a Dragon quite so...friendly."

Lothar admitted, recalling that the last one had done its very best to kill him.

 

[Kaia Thesius]

"Tempest is more friendly than most but...our dragons are usually only friendly to their bonded rider. Even we're taught from a very young age to respect them and those of the Wylds."

She was pretty the rumors around Prince Kaveh's dragon were true. How many people had looked at the prince wrong and been swallowed up or squished?

Probably a lot.

Plucking up a small bound book, she offered it between them. "Here. This gives a small history of Thanasis. It might help answer some of your questions. It's one of my favorite books as a child so as long as you promise to give it back." She gave him a mock serious gaze as she held his eyes with her own.

"Are your people friendly? Will they take kindly to us showing up when we get back to your camp?"

 

[Lothar]

Lothar glanced at the dragon for a moment, forcing a smile on his face.

None of the unease disappeared.

The level of comfort Kaia displayed with the beast was...something, and he was unsure if it was overconfidence or if what she said was entirely true. Either way, he wasn't going to chance it. Better to follow her along the path of Kindness than argue.

"Oh. Thank you." The Dreadlord said as he took the small book, one of his bandages poking out from beneath his sleeve. "I'm a slow reader, especially in a foreign tongue."

He flashed her a smile. "But I'll make sure it gets back to you."

As he tucked the book away, his expression faltered.

"They are...uhh...weary." He said, interpreting Anirian nature as kindly as he could. "Malakath has not been easy."

To say the least. "It would be best if I approached them myself first when we near."

 

[Kaia Thesius]

She frowned, seeing those bandages. Probably from the beasts of the continent. A few soft strokes to Tempest next to her. A quiet look in her green-blue eyes and she looked at a memory.

All that her brother, Errune Thesius, had lost. Pursed lips fell into a small frown. Eyes refocused on Lothar.

"Malakath is not an easy place."

The light in their clearing was beginning to wane. Pinpricks of stars making their way out of the deep indigos of the sky and beyond that thick canopy of jungle. "Here, I'll get some bedrolls and some dinner."

She hadn't been joking about sleeping under the stars. By the waters and by Tempest. And if Lothar was there too? She didn't see a problem with it. "We'll start heading back to your people at first light. Hopefully...we won't have any predator attacks tonight."

 

[Lothar]

"No, it is most certainly not." Though in a lot of ways Lothar felt far more comfortable here than he ever had back home.

His life in Aniria had been...harsh, to say the least, and simply because of the Academy. The last two years had been easier, but still a nightmare in some way. At least here in Malakath he was useful, respected even by those around him.

Even if their numbers were dropping every day. "Ah, thank you. I'll come with."

He told her.

"I've never much liked people doing things for me." Meaning, no one ever really had. "And I prefer to keep talking."

The Dreadlord flashed a smile. "I think there's quite a lot left to say."

This was the first time they had ever met anyone from so far away. The first time they could talk to someone. The book was all well and good, doubtless he would read it well into the night, but why step way when things were going so well.

Besides, he was not eager to return to Makai's watchful gaze. "Plus, I need someone to keep me safe."

He flashed a smile at the Dragon.

 

[Kaia Thesius]

Tempest peered down at him, giving him a warm chuff of air while his dragon tail flickered like a wild cat before it pounced on prey. Kaia pushed to a stand and gave Tempest one last pat. The large beast flicked its tongue toward Lothar before turning and dipping beneath the surface of the river's water.

Kaia thought there was something catching about Lothar's smile. And his different colored eyes were very interesting. She wondered if it was a common trait among people of the continent.

Makai and a few of the guards cast the pair glances from across the camp. The guards more of mild interest. Makai with a heavy glare at Lothar's back. Kaia bent, scooping up her myriad of books and scrolls and drawings, trying to balance them all.

"Would you...mind helping me with these?" She asked Lothar, her pile of quills and charcoals still at their feet. "They should have a meal going at the central fire." Chin tipped toward a group of guards hovering over a stove atop the smoldering wood.

 

[Lothar]

"Of course." Lothar said as he bent down and gently scooped up the heap of quills and charcoal. Each piece was carefully organized within his palms, not simply cast into a grip that would see them break or snap.

His head turned towards the center of camp, and he nodded as they began to make their way over.

"If I may ask." The Dreadlord said as they walked. "What is it that brought you to this area?"

Much of Malakath was still an utter mystery to both himself and the Colony back home. They had managed to map out a small sector of the land around them, but anything more had been met with disaster after disaster. The country was almost as hostile as the beasts it occupied. "Is there a city nearby?"

He asked. "We have yet to find any other settlements, aside from those belonging to the Kivren."

Though that was not what they called themselves. The mermaids had been one of the few to communicate and trade with the Anirians.

 

[Kaia Thesius]

His tenderness with her supplies did not go unnoticed. She felt a warmth spread in her chest. Perhaps he really saw her when so many others didn't. Or didn't understand her.

"Thank you," she murmured and ducked her head, turning her attention pointedly toward the fire they walked toward. The guards around the fire gave them mild looks of curiosity before going about their business.

"Just be careful. The Kivren can turn sour, quickly. But I suppose I would take 100 kivren over one jarlax so at least you have that," the warning snapped from her lips before she could stop it. With Tempest being a water dragon, she'd had her fair share of dealings with them. Their generosity could be fickle at best.

"Here, let's drop this stuff off first," she motioned to her tent and went in first, holding the flap open with one boot for him to follow before she put her items carefully down on a small, foldable desk. There was a map spread across one end with points of interest scrawled in her meticulous handwriting.

"This is where we are," she pointed to a location near the river and waited for Lothar to join at her side so he could see. "We are going here." Her finger skated along the surface and ended a little south of where they were. Then tapped once, twice.

"There looked to be some kind of ruins a previous scouting mission picked up and myself and Makai were tasked with exploring it. Seeing if there were any threats to our home." It was clear, Kaia was not thinking of threats at all. She was nearly buzzing with the energy of exploration. Learning new things about old cultures. The light in her face, in her eyes transformed and she leaned in closer to Lothar a thousand things more on the tip of her tongue to tell him but then a moment of bashfulness.

A small clearing of her throat.

"I like...I enjoy learning very much." She admitted quietly, tamping down on her energy. Or trying to. "What do you like to do...for fun?"

As always, curiosity got the better of her, eyes that seemed a darker blue, like the ocean at night, studied him in the waning light of the tent.

 

[Lothar]

When she spoke of the Kivren, Lothar only nodded.

They had already experienced the capriciousness of the mer-folk more than once. Dangerous in their own way, but so far perfectly self serving enough to keep them as friends. The Governor at least seemed to think the benefits outweighed the dangers.

Most tended to agree.

Stepping into Kaia's tent, his eyes darted quickly over everything inside. Her things set down only a few seconds before she turned his attention towards the map.

The moment he saw it, Lothar committed the parchment to memory. Both of his eyes focused with intensity, drawing along the rivers and the lines of where the landmass sprawled. He guessed, quickly, where the Colony might be, though could easily have been off by a hundred miles or more.

Her very nearly missed her question in his study, his head shaking almost imperceptibly as he dragged himself from his focus. "I-uh...fun?"

Lothar frowned for a moment.

"We don't...well, I like reading." The Dreadlord admitted, offering her an apologetic smile. "There wasn't usually much time for fun in my upbringing."

He explained. "I guess I haven't really had much time to find out."

Lothar admitted, a slight redness to his cheeks.

 

[Kaia Thesius]

"Oh," Kaia responded quickly and quietly as he fumbled for a response. Had she overstepped? Then a small smile as he responded with one of her favorite things besides writing. Reading.

"Maybe we can have time to find out together. I mean on the way back to your colony. But if you like reading, I'd love to show you-,"

"KAIA!" Makai's voice cut through their tent.

"Sorry," she apologized to Lothar and ducked back outside.

".......even know him!"

".......but he..."

"........and in a few days that'll be it..."

"Makai, don't be so......"

"Just be ready to move out at first light," Makai's voice was clipped and tight as he stormed back to his tent. Kaia folded her arms across her stomach and stared after his retreating form. He was acting grumpier than Errune. Head poked back in to Lothar.

"Want some dinner?"

 

[Lothar]

"I would lo-" Before he could fully answer, Makai's voice broke through the tint.

Inwardly the Dreadlord cringed, though he kept the easy smile on his face.

It wasn't as though this sort of thing was unusual. Back home Makai would have been praised for the diligence he was showing. Most of his peers probably would have insisted on tying up an outsider, and that would be the worst of it.

Compared to that, Makai's reception was almost...welcoming.

As Kaia stepped back into the tent, Lothar flashed her a smile. "Yes."

He answered, though a frown pulled at his lips.

"If my presence here is too much of a...concern." He gestured towards Makai. "I can leave in the morning. With what you've already told me I should be able to make my way back..."

Though in truth, he did not want to leave. Kaia thus far had proven extraordinarily charming, and what she could teach him about these lands resoundingly fascinating.

 

[Kaia Thesius]

Head shook, light hair framing her face. "No, you're," she took a breath trying to center her thoughts, brows pinched together even as she maintained eye contact with him. "It's fine. I think Makai is just tense. We're supposed to explore those ruins I was telling you about. An earlier group was dispatched a fortnight ago but they never returned."

Kaia shrugged.

"I think he's more worried of what we might find. And we don't exactly talk to or meet outsiders often so," voice trailed off. "It's not you, personally." A small, soft smile. She was trying to be reassuring but assumed she was failing, miserably. At times like these, she wished she was more like her twin. He just had a natural way with people.

Her smile fumbled.

Makai was protective. And she couldn't fault him for that. Childhood friends had a way of being that way. Stepping to the side, she lead the way toward the fire and the pots of stew that were bubbling from the pots with small bowls on the side ready to be filled.

 

[Lothar]

"Ah." Lothar said with a frown, some pieces finally clicking into place. There was a goal here, and he had stepped into the middle of it thrust it aside. He could tell she was trying to reassure him, and a pang of guilt flickered through his chest.

Lothar knew that he would have to go home, eventually, but the reality of these lands was that most in the Colony would already assume him dead. What was the rush in getting back?

He frowned for a moment, considering and then slowly opened his mouth to speak.

"If it is any...help." The Dreadlord said slowly. "I could maybe be of some assistance."

Though he would not reveal the eyes which lay beneath his bandages, that did not mean he could not offer his assistance. The Academy had been stringent, and he knew more magics than those that Isbrand's power had allowed him to steal. "I do not know how common Sorcery is in your lands..."

Hopefully the people of Thanasis were not like those of Rhagos.

"But I am somewhat capable." College Magic would do, for a time at least. "I'd be happy to offer my assistance in finding your friends, considering what you've already done for me."

 

[Kaia Thesius]

This time her blue eyes gave him a careful look. A consideration. Magic without a dragon? That was something unheard of in Thanasis. She'd been right about him. His survival this long on his own? While some would look upon him with, perhaps, fear with this news.

Kaia's born only a warm curiosity.

"Lothar that's...thank you. I'll let Makai know."

It was kind. She busied herself filling the stew bowls and offered one to him, leading them back to the tent to chat some more. They ended up talking well into the night as if they'd known each other a long time. And for the first time in a long time, Kaia was okay with this kind of company and time spent trading stories instead of having her nose buried in a book.

---

The next morning, their camp was packed up. Makai was perched on his own sea serpent. Kaia sat on Tempest's back and looked down to Lothar.

"Are you coming up?"

A slender hand shot down to him.