Dew was collecting along the latticework that Mike had constructed to house the Dragoons. It was warm inside like hot blood. There were a lot of Dragoons sleeping in the early morning after their nightly hunt. Scents of Musk filled the pasture and the number of corpses outside had steeply risen.
The Nyankin Chief saw the scene from his hut, he sat on a log with the foal near his feet. Fire kept the hut warm, warm enough to match the heat of the Dragoon's laying in a pile. Steam rose from every opening throughout the village, the fall had triggered a drop in temperature and everyone had turned to sharing body heat or keeping fires.
When the light crest the horizon for the second time there were birds sounding nearby. The morning caws grew loud, they held their tones in glee. Hunting season was in full swing, fledglings and expecting Mothers would require a lot of food.
There were more than a hundred Dragoons in the forest outside of Town, Vella's daily checks on the Nyankin village had left her with an idea of the Pack's numbers. Thirty to forty of the Dragoons were in the pasture under the covering. When she came this time, she brought a new friend.
Vella had taken Honey out of the Casino, there were unforeseeable consequences to her visitation. Even though Honey had been calm and gone to sleep like all the others, her scent and aura were keeping everyone asleep, even the guests that had arrived early.
Productivity was taking a huge hit. On the second day, Vella had woken up to Honey laying in their bed. It kept the girls asleep again but Vella had spent a lot of time around Mike, she had a tolerance for Cannabis.
Vella had remained asleep a lot longer than she had felt comfortable with, letting the other girls sleep was probably for the best, giving her the chance to spend some alone time with Honey. Many of the new hires had the capacity to run the Casino and the girls would take up the slack after some time, Vella had little to worry about after she had left.
She carried Honey to the Nyankin Village, though, in her opinion it was more or less to keep her from disrupting the Casino for the second day in a row. Like a wrecking ball chained to people's ankles as they entered, her aroma put them into dense states of unconsciousness, to the point of confusion. Almost all of the guests lost consciousness at some point and the business couldn't function with Honey present for any length of time.
In the North, the Nyankin Village was far enough from the walls of Lonestar City, Vella knew that Honey was better off in the sunlight and fresh air. Sharp winds blew her around while she was being carried, Honey didn't weigh very much, as such, the fast moving winds tried to carry her away.
They landed by the River, the Stoners had been left to dally in the muddy fields. Like the Dragoons, they had chosen to sleep together in the shelter. Honey's arrival stirred them all into a frenzy, even in their deepest sleep, a single scent had roused them all.
The Villagers were busy leading several smaller groups of Dragoons out to hunt, they would bring them along both as mule and means, hunting beside them. Those that were incapable of hunting were busy working the fields along the Stoners once they had awoken.
Sweat accumulated on the Villagers, it dripped down their bodies while they gripped their shovel handles tighter. Deep cuts, each space threw large chunks or rocks. Clearing the pastures had yielded a lot of loose rock and debris. Many minerals were stacked to the sides of the pastures near the roadside to be collected later.
Vella's hands held onto Honey when she landed and when the Stoners finally saw Vella, they rushed to her side once again. "Sister." The four female subordinates in the group were the first to arrive, they had been near the roadside directing their attentions elsewhere. "Who is this?"
"This is Honey. She's here to keep out of trouble." Vella wasn't sure how else to put it, she stood next to Honey and pointed to the field. "Honey, you should go relax in the Sunlight."
The Village Chief noticed the Golden Woman standing next to Lonestar City's City Lord. He strode out of his hut and Brize, the baby Dragoon, followed beside his knees. "What brings you here today? Who is your friend?"
Vella was already use to introducing people, the abundance of new hires and her former brothers and sisters in arms all required delicate explanations to the residents. "This is Honey. She is very special, please allow her to observe the Village and participate however she is capable." Her eyes tracked Brize while he skipped across the grasses after the Chief's shadow.
It was cute enough to make her smile, she brushed the hair from her face and knelt down to pet him. There were several groups of females among the Dragoons that looked like they were about to birth, the packs population was growing rapidly and some of the older foals had begun to experiment with flight.
Their skipping motions were a precursor, bringing them to the brink of understanding and ushering them into the air. The Males hovered nearby watching eagerly to take their young out to hunt. It was tedious to bring their kills back, the Dragoons themselves had no interest or need for the leftovers after consuming meat. Dragging carcasses across the region wasn't exactly a beast behavior, the Dragoons had a tendency to devour their prey while they still bled warm blood.
Honey watched from a distance, she stood rooted to the ground, figuratively. The Sunlight from two sides was glorious on her amber toned skin. The fields were filled with a sweetness, a calming and gentle smell put everyone into a relaxed state. Honey was learning to control her release of energy, the trails of energy that escaped her all carried the medicinal effects that she carried as a plant.
More than a hundred in total, the Pack of Dragoons was more than the people of the Nyankin village could care for. Vella knew that Mike worried about them regularly, she didn't know what to do with them but something had to be done. After matching each of the Villagers with Dragoons, she found a use for about fifty at the Casino, or for guards and Girls as Protectors.
Flying to and from the City a few times during the day, she slowly settled the problem with the Dragoons overpopulation. As the first sun was setting, Vella hadn't seen Honey or the Stoners after her arrival, they were no where to be seen. Only after using her nose did she find them. They were sitting in the Dragoon shelter in a meditative state.
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Mike flew slowly, he picked a place to sleep about halfway and slept like a baby. It's one thing to take revenge in your heart but when you finally fulfill that long and burning desire for reprisal, even the most hardened of killers would find elation. There were piles of corpses in his storage ring, having found a place to sleep, he went through his spoils and sorted out the garbage.
"Resources beyond resources and they still felt the need for conquest and bloodshed." As he pulled out item after item to sort and paw over, Mike appraised his haul.
Thirty-five tons of Elemental Earth, more than a few hundred kilograms of random seeds, thousands upon thousands of Herbs and Harvested Animal parts. Qilin Horns, Dragon Scales, Observer Eyes, Jaet Hool Ears and Tusks or bone from more than a hundred species of large beasts, there were a great number of treasures he couldn't pass up. With the wave of a hand, he had stolen generations of work from the Ornians, turning it to pocket change.
"This.." Mike held a small object in his hands. It was a picture of Earth, a Polaroid. Five men stood around a gaming device with corded controllers in their hands. They were smiling and giving victory signs. Behind them was a banner, 1st Annual Championship was written across its heading.
'How could I think the circumstances behind my arrival here were unique.' He laughed at his naivety in the past and set the picture down next to the few objects that looked like they belonged to the men in the pictures. A Hat, Action Figure, Water Pistol and broken Brush were all that remained. No doubt they were people who had lost their lives after running into the Ornians. Mike once again praised his good fortune and took a giant hit off his pipe.
He held a gemstone, it was a crystal, nearly flawless in composition against the starlight. "Fate?" Mike let go of the gemstone and then grasped it quickly before it could fall. He got to his feet after capturing the gem in his hand. "I will make my own destiny."
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Garlan, second in command of the newly formed mounted guard unit in Lonestar City was circling overhead and working to coordinate his movements better with his teammates. In the distance, a black figure flew rapidly in their direction. It was most glaring and hard to miss, the black figure glinted in the sunlight and clashed against the clouds.
The Dragoon knew instinctively who it was, even with Garlan atop its back, the Dragoon flew at its fastest speed to intercept the incoming figure. Garlan held on to the saddle strap and stuck his feet back into the stirrups. He wasn't sure why the beast was acting against his orders and if it had the urge to fight the figure then Garlan would be forced into the fight as well. He could only helplessly hold on and ready his spear.
"Whoa.. Whoa.." Garlan used the phrase that Vella had taught him for the Dragoon to stop. It didn't work. He felt like he would be flung off the Dragoons body, he hunched down, squatting against its back and making them both more aerodynamic. It helped stabilize him as the Dragoon flapped its wings in desperation.
The black dot became a black figure wrapped in a cloak, his heading didn't change and the fact that the Dragoon was flying directly toward him did nothing to alter his approach. When they were within shouting distance, the black figure disappeared and reappeared on the other side of the rider.
Captain Garlan kicked the side of the Dragoon to turn sharply, the Dragoon didn't like it but understood the move. As if to turn on the head of a coin, the Dragoon swung its body in a hard one-eighty.
The maneuver threw the Captain from its back like a rock from a sling. He tumbled as he was falling, a delicate yell persisted as he was falling.
When he was about to hit the ground he heard a voice. He knew that voice.
Looking up, Garlan saw Mike's face from under the cloak. "City Lord! Thank you thank you!"
"You should work on your dismounts, you were way too high." Mike laughed and set the man down, he whistled and the Dragoon came to his hand, seeking attention.
'Haha..' Mike's laughter and mood seemed fantastic.
Garlan was thankful that the City Lord was in a good mood. "How do you do that?"
"What? Whistle?" Titan thought it over and laughed. "Well, you just put your lips together and blow. If you put your tongue to the front you can make the air turn a sharp pitch. I whistle differently than most people, that's why the dragoons come to me when I call. If you put in a little bit of energy into the call it can sound for longer and become very distinct." Mike demonstrated and the Guard tucked his ears back.
"That's very loud." His cringing face turned.
'Ah' Mike rubbed his head. "Yeah.. I suppose it is but that's sort of the point isn't it?" He spread his wings and was preparing to leave, when he saw the spear in the Guards hands he took it.
"Sir?" Garlan was confused.
"Use this one instead." Mike handed him a spear from his collection. It was at least four grades higher. "If you're a leader, you should look like one." He passed another item overflowing with power to the man.
It was a strap of some sort.
"What's this?" Garlan asked, it was golden and textured like fine silk.
"I'm not all too sure. The label on the shelf said its called the Harpsak Fold. It didn't have any other information but for some reason its aura matches yours." Taking into account Garlan's weight, Mike wasn't too disappointed in the man, at least he would inspire confidence afterward.
Mike let go of the golden strap and flew into the City, his first stop was the Casino. The House was somewhat empty, morning had only just begun. Ships would be unloading their cargo or personnel up until lunch.
Habrick was sitting outside of his Office.