---Kalama---
The steady beat of horse hooves on the rich earth filled Kalama's ears, but her mind was filled with a stranger's voice.
-I am Aldwine. Keeper of knowledge, protector of secrets, and favored advisor of the mighty king, Balendin.- The voice introduced.
'Okay...So, Aldwine, why are you helping me?' Kala asked, becoming suspicious. 'You sound important, so why trouble yourself with me?'
-You are important as well, although you do not yet realize it. Your survival is of utmost importance- Aldwine stated.
'How would I be important?' Kala asked.
-That I cannot say. You must choose your own path, I simlpy keep you alive.-
Letting loose a frustrated sigh, Kala said nothing more, letting her thoughts go silent, her mind blank, so she could be left in peace. Her heart still ached, but she focused on the trail ahead of her, watching the trees go by without truely seeing. With all that had happened, Kala realized she was exauhsted.
'Does using Dragon Power cost energy?'
-Yes. It will take much of your energy while you are young. As you learn to store your power or take the energy from another place, you will be very tired after using any. Only use your power in emergencies, until you can be safely trained.-
'Could using too much kill me?' Kala asked, worried.
-It is unlikely while I am around, but yes. The power originates from Dragons, the human body cannot properly handle the cost of energy as a Dragon body can.-
Kala nodded to herself, thinking.
'So, I started a fire and turned invisable. Add my visions, what else could I do? I've only ever heard of DragonKin with a single element.'
-As I mentioned, you are important and special.-
'Do you know what else I could do?'
-That is only for you to discover.- Aldwine stated, clearly done with the topic.
'Okay, Fine. Answer this then. Both my parents are human. How am I a DragonKin?'
Aldwine was quiet, clearly thinking carefully before he spoke.
-Those you call you parents, are not the ones to birth you. They were your guardians, but not your parents.- Aldwine finally said.
Kala understood, but her reaction was mild. After the day she had, not very much would surprise or phase her.
'So who are my parents?'
-Once again...-
'Yeah yeah. I must discover it on my own.' Kala mentally sighed.
She apparently had a Dragon keeping her alive, she was on the run, and she didn't even know where she was going. Plus she had to leave everything she had ever known. She was trying to stay optimistic, but it was very hard when she was so scared.
Her vision earlier floated to her mind. The war of Dragons and People, with DragonKin in the middle. She sure was speacial, all right. Her actions and choices would influence the future. Her decisions could be the beginning of a new era with peace, or the destruction of the world everyone knew.
Shivers ran down her spine as she snapped herself out of her thoughts. There would be time to figure the vision out later, right now she had to focus. Her life was on the line.
'Where am I headed, anyhow?' Kala asked, confused.
-To Sleveyn Achlys- Aldwine answered.
It was in a foreign tongue, one Kala knew she had never heard before, and yet, she instantly knew that was where she had to go, and what it meant in the human tongue.
'Mountain of Darkness.' She said, if she had spoken aloud, she would've been breathless with awe.
-Yes. Very good translation. You have never heard Dragon Tongue before?-
'No. That was a first...I just knew though.'
Aldwine went back to thinking. Something that made her feel like she was an unusual creature.
With Aldwine in his thoughts, Kala began to mull over the day she had. She faintly realized she had been fully trusting on the horse to travel, but she quickly dismissed the thought. It wasn't of any importance, and she only had the time to think over the important things.
All in a span of hours, Kala had a vision of a horrid war, got discovered as a DragonKin and betrayed Gray, and learned she was an oddity, even among the DragonKin. As if she didn't have enough to worry about, her family could be punished for housing her.
'Ah damn.'
Resting her forehead against the horse's neck, Kalama began to search for that warmth she felt earlier, the one that started the fire, the one that accompanied her visions, the one that she always had but rarely noticed. She specifically ignored her heart, it hurt too much to begin to shuffle through her emotions.
Grayson's face, the hurt look in his eyes, flashed through her mind. Shaking her head, Kalama hurriedly looked up again.
-He meant very much to you?- Aldwine asked.
'He meant everything to me.' Kalama admitted, sighing aloud.
-He will kill you.- Aldwine reminded her.
'I deserve it.' Kala replied. 'I hurt him deeply.'
-That does not deserve death.-
'What good was it though? I don't know what I'm doing, and I'll be the cause of a war.' Kala said.
-Start of a war?- Aldwine asked, his curiousity caught.
'Dragons damn it. Yes, I will cause a war.' Kala said, cursing her mental woe-is-me rant.
-How are you certain you will start this War?- Aldwine asked.
'I had a vision about it.' Kala replied.
-How can you know you translated it correctly?- Aldwine questioned.
'Trust me, unfortunately, I'm rarely wrong.' Kala said, thinking back to the vision.
Screams echoed in the back of her mind, the heat of fire wrapped around her skin, welcoming her. Jet black wings sprouted from her shoulders, a dark tail helping her keep her balance. The world was filled with bright colors and she smelled smoke and burning flesh. Ash floated around her like snow, and she caught a red ember in her hand, watching it smoulder into another gray fleck of ash. The air was thick, but she had no trouble breathing. Using her wings, she lifted her body off the ground and shot up, hovering in midair, looking around. Buildings burned and bodies layed motionless beneath her.
"General Kalama. We gathered all the Trackers we could." A male DragonKin announced, flying beside her.
"Good. Any losses?" She heard herself asking.
"No General, Ma'am. Your plan worked perfectly. You chose this battle wisely."
"How many Hatchlings did we recover?" She asked the guy.
"Only one. She's young and frightened. She's being flown back to camp now."
"Very well. We're done now." She said, but also thought, seeming to throw the thought away from her. She heard multiple answers in her mind, and DragonKin taking flight.
Taking a deep breath, she spoke to the people who remained alive.
"Listen closely! This was a warning! I am Kalama, and I declare war upon all who dare challenge the DragonKin, and upon this kingdom! The DragonKin are done hiding! We will fight for our brothers and sisters, we will protect our own, and we will earn the right to live! We are not lesser, we are equals! Remember this the next time you try to kill our hatchlings, for every life you take, we will get the blood due to us!"
With those, Kalama turned and flew after the retreating DragonKin, and her vision grew dark.
Kala pulled her thoughts back to the present.
-I see. You declare war. I must speak with the king. Do not die, child of the Dragons.- Aldwine said, before his mind left hers.
Kala suddenly felt very alone without the warm presence of Aldwine's mind.
"Don't die. Right. Easier said than done, Aldwine." Kalama said to the air.
---GRAYSON---
The trackers, he noted, were in complete sync. They fanned out and searched every inch of the field until the forest. A smaller group had begun searching the town, going from door to door, asking about Kalama. Soon, the entire town would know about her. Her home would deny her, her friends betray her.
'Friends? Thinking back, I was the only one she ever talked to.' Gray relized.
The Captain and Gray had been in the town, the other group searching the forest. If she was as spontaneous as she had seemed, she wouldn't have gotten far.
'Please have a plan.' Gray asked, looking up at the sky.
"Something on your mind, Son?" The Captain asked.
"Uh, yeah." Gray replied, caught off guard.
"Do not worry, Son. Those DragonKin are sneaky. There is no blame on you for not seeing the truth." The Captain said.
"Er, yeah. Thank you sir." Gray said, putting his head down.
"Grayson!" One of the boys from earlier called out, running up to him. "I just heard about Kalama. I mean, damn. That must seriously hurt."
"You know her?" Captain asked.
"Everyone did, Sir. Only Grayson really Knew her, though. She wouldn't talk to anyone, go to church, school, or go swimming ever. She was always quiet too." The boy said.
"Thank you." The Captain turned to Gray. "Do you know where she would have gone?"
"No. Er, maybe." A plan to buy kalama any time whatsoever was forming. "There is a small clearing and pond we used to visit to the South. We'd go there together and talk. She said she felt safe there." Gray said.
His eyes grew foggy as he fought back the pain. Even if he was protecting her, he was still telling people about their place, the only place he saw her relax and smile.
"You are doing the right thing, Son." The Captain said, placing his hand on Gray's shoulder.
"Yes Captain, Sir. I know that." Gray replied, shaking away the sadness.
This was to protect her. He couldnt let her be caught and killed. He'd share any secret to protect her.
They arrived at the clearing quickly, dispite the heavy undergrowth. The smell of the forest spring washed over Gray, and he smiled, instantly at peace.
A moment later the peace was replaced by sorrow as a hand landed on his shoulder.
"This the place?" The Captain asked.
"Yes sir." Gray replied.
"Search the area. Miss nothing." The captain ordered.
Gray walked into the clearing towards the spring. Next to the clear water, Gray stared at his reflection. He looked the same, but the image looked different.
'Why?'
Grayson wondered. His eyes caught something in the tree above him. Looking from the water to the tree, he saw a simple leather bag. The one Kala had brought ages ago.
The memory flashed through his mind.
"Hey, Gray?" Kala said, sitting on a tree branch above the water.
"Yeah Kala?" He asked, looking at her reflection in the water.
"If something ever happens... I just... I want..." She trailed off.
"You want what?" He asked, looking up at Kalama.
"I..." A slight blush rose to her cheeks. "I..."
"Yeah?" He asked, beginning to climb the tree.
Kalama bit her lip, causing Gray's heart to thump in his chest. She was unknowingly attracting him.
"I want you to read this." She said, holding up a journal.
He reached for it but she dropped it in a bag.
"Not now. If something ever happens to me, I want you to read it then." She said, tying the bag to a limb.
"Nothing would happen to you. I'll protect you. That's what a Tracker would do." Gray said.
Kala smiled weakly.
"Okay. Promise not to read it though?" she asked again.
" Okay, okay. I promise." Gray said, rolling his eyes.
The memory faded and Gray shook his head, scaling the tree easily.
Sitting on the branch Kala had sat on thousands of times before, he untied the bag and took the journal from it, before calling out to the Captain.
"Sir! I found something!" Gray yelled, quickly tucking the journal into the waistband of his pants.
Heavy foot steps thunder towards him, and the Captain appeared underneath.
"What is it?" He asked.
"A bag. I'm pretty sure Kalama put this here." Gray said, dropping it down.
"Good eye, but son, don't call it that. Dragonkin are not to be treated as us, understood?"
Gray bit back his anger, Kala had every right to be treated the same as they were.
"Yes sir. My apologies, sir." Gray said, jumping down from the tree.
After a thorough search of the clearing and surrounding woods, they were called back to the fields. It was dusk, and they would leave by dawn to follow the trail towards the mountains.
"Go home and tell your family good bye. We will be gone for a long time." The Captain told Gray.
Gray returned home, unsaddled and cared for the horse, and wearily stumbled into his house, disappointed with the small amount of time he was able to stall for Kalama.
His mother greeted him with a hug, his father with a pat on the shoulder. They ate supper in silence, until Grayson's younger brother discovered the journal on the floor. It had fallen out of Grays pants.
"What's this?" The boy asked as he picked up the journal.
Gray turned in his seat and quickly snatched the book from the boy.
"It was, er, is Kalama's. She left it for me." Gray said defensively.
"Read it." His mother said gently.
Opening the journal with shakey hands, Gray began to read the words written in Kalama's neat, curvy writing.
Gray,
So many times I've wanted to tell you this and so many times my courage has failed me. I am so afraid I will lose you forever if I tell you this, so in a note, when I am already gone, will these words be said.
I am a Dragonkin.
I've wanted to tell you so very badly, but I've been too afraid.
My power is that I can see the future.
And I have seen yours. As a Tracker. Sword in hand, defending a woman.
I have also seen your children. A beautiful girl with eyes like yours and flaming red hair. And a boy, with my eyes and your hair.
Oh, how many times I have fantasized them as ours, because...
I love you Grayson. I love you more than you'll ever know.
But we cannot be, for our fate drags us apart. I beg of you now, be safe.
Yours forever, Kalama.
When the note was read, tears began to fall from his eyes. Slow at first, then faster, until he was sobbing uncontrollably.
His mother wrapped him in her arms while his father read the note. He slammed the book down in anger and held his head in his hands, understanding but not able to imagine his son's pain.