Hascose sighed, as the High Dragons yelled back and forth, and looked at the entrance to the cave for the sixth time in as many minutes. His brother, Kalmin, and his sister, Arima, were running late… Again. He told himself it wasn't a problem, that no one would dare mention that little weak spot of his father's, but he couldn't help but cock his head and eye his father with some scrutiny.
Alaric presided above the meeting from a ledge that sat just above Hascose's own massive height. The long, blue-tipped plumes crowning his head brushed against the crystal roof of the cave, sparkling with the multi-colored light shining through the crystals. His lion-like tail, the length of his body, rested against the floor, its twitching the only sign that Alaric was a living, breathing creature and not an archaic statue of tarnished marble. He exuded an ancient and powerful aura, one the other dragons, strong though they may be, would never dare to challenge.
Hacose turned his head and once more studied the dragons that were in the room. Every one of those gathered were a power in and of themselves. They were called High Dragons, those born with enough power that they could take on the form of a human if they so wished. Dragons were among the most dangerous creatures in all the world, but these were much more powerful than any a human had ever faced. Well, faced and lived to tell the story of anyways. Their sizes varied, from the smallest, horse-sized, female light dragon Irradia, to Shell'i'mik, an ancient water dragon that almost met Hacose's height.
Hacose sighed again. How he wished that he might be playing with Arima alongside his younger brother, Kalmin instead of here. Hacose would have frowned if he could when he considered Kalmin. As a rule Royal dragons only laid and hatched one egg at a time. With two eggs, the first to hatch should have mercilessly killed the other that was still fighting to be free of its shell, dragons weren't exactly merciful creatures even as hatchlings. He and Kalmin were an oddity for this reason as he had not even attempted to harm Kal. In fact, he tried to help Kalmin break free of his shell.
Kalmin, however, had needed no help and had burst from his shell just in time to kill a bored, roaming mountain lion crouching behind the newborn Hacose.
Hacose would have shook his head if not for the fact that would have brought unwanted attention. Kal was the most dangerous dragon he had ever met, or he would be if not for the fact that he was playful and carefree. Kal's favorite pastime was playing Hunt-and-Run with Arima.
The great dragon prince watched in amusement as three fledgling light dragons raced into the cave. One landed easily on Alaric's nose only to leap out of the way of one of his playmates and swoop out of the cave, the other two close behind. The cave had grown silent as all eyes had turned to watch the play-fighting of the young light dragonlings. Light dragons were protected by the other species at all costs. They were virtually pacifists and were a very trusting, playful species, not to mention capable of incredible healing feats beyond any other species of dragon and falling short of only the Unicorns themselves.
A white owl screeched in the vacuum of sound, and collective murmur echoed through the great cavern. Venus swooped before Alaric and dipped in the air slightly in a gesture of deference, and a show of unnatural intelligence, before circling Hacose and wheeling back toward the mouth of the cave.
Kalmin back winged twice before stiffly landing at the lip of the cliff. Sunlight glistened off his scales as he strode past the great water dragon guarding the opening, his arched neck almost hiding the tiny human straddling his back. One of the High Fire Dragons hissed, her golden eyes narrowing and onyx dipped, ruby scales shimmering in the cave's light.
Arima smiled as she slid from Kalmin's back, her violet eyes crinkling. "Greetings, my brothers! I do apologize for tarrying your good pri-"
"Arima."
The great voice vibrated through the cavern, shuddering the floor. All whispering in the assembly stilled as if a great hand closed their mouths at once. The High Water Dragon shifted to block the mouth of the cave, shutting out all light except that emitted by the lightning, moon, and light dragons. Arima blinked against the sudden darkness. Her eyes adjusted quickly, but she knew she could only see a gray fraction of what the dragons could. "Yes Pops?"
"You're late." Alaric's voice was barely stern, and Kalmin let out an ill-tempered grunt as he strode to Hacose and sat between his claws.
"Yeah, blame that on Kalmin. Silly brother couldn't find one little human in the-"
"Arima."
"Yes Pops."
"We are in Wyer. You would do well to show respect."
"Of course Po- Father." Arima hurried to the other end of the long cave, keenly aware of the judgemental gazes of the assembled dragons and completely unconcerned. The High Moon Dragons perched on outcrops beside her father's jaw glowed a pale white, allowing her to clearly pick out the irritation, pride, and amusement on Alaric's face. She swallowed, knowing she would be hard pressed to escape a scolding later, and took her place on his left, head held high. She knew that even if the dragons hid it, they were scared of her. She was the first human since the Dawn-of-Dragons that had been adopted and raised by the great beasts. And she was the first to have been adopted and raised by an Emperor dragon, as his Blood-Daughter no less.
Arima had been around the massive and beautiful creatures for as long as she could remember. She had been taught how to hunt and fight by Kalmin, Alaric, and, one of the few dragons to live among the humans for any period of time, Aarnik, an old wind dragon. She was taught how to read the winds and the currents to predict weather, and how to swim by Shell'i'mik, the most ancient of the water dragons. Light dragons taught her different herb lore and how to heal. Moon dragons helped her learn to read, write, and gave her access to their extensive libraries. She learned stealth and agility from Mohandas, the most feared of the Shadow dragons.
Arima grew up around creatures that were feared by people, creatures that could sense that fear. It caused her to have no fear of her own. She was reckless and daring, but she also knew how to read subtle hints in the body language. She knew that a slight flick of the end of a dragon's tail or the subtle rattle of neck scales hinted towards irritation and/or a breath attack. She knew that a well aimed word could calm the most aggravated dragon or anger the calmest dragon. Arima had learned to read what words were having what effect and how far she could push before retreating tactfully, not to say that she always did.
That said Arima was not without defense should things get out of hand. She was, for a reason even the Moon dragons were unaware of, immune to the breath attacks of all dragons. The Poison dragons, who even other dragons were careful around for fear of death, held no such dangers for Arima. She was unable to be burned by the flames of any flame breathing dragon and the Lightning dragons' lightning only tickled slightly. The "suffocating" shadows of the Shadow dragons only offered solitude and comfort. Even the healing golden flames of the Light dragons didn't close wounds or bring color back to her cheeks as it should.
Arima was an oddity, albeit an oddity that had managed to wrap almost the whole Weyr around her little finger. Most of the dragons feigned irritation and anger, but almost all of them didn't mind helping, teaching, or playing with the energetic human. Cadmara, High Dragoness of the Fire dragons, was one of the few that actually disliked the fiery girl. Arima was well aware of the fact and, for that reason, often used another power that had developed. She would summon the mighty red and black dragoness to her side for simple things such as reaching an herb hanging from the ceiling to dry. Cadmara would have long since killed the 'insolent brat' if it weren't for the fact that Arima's father was the King of Dragons and Cadmara's mate absolutely adored the girl and her 'spunky personality.'
Alaric called the meeting back to order and the High dragons, once again, began to argue. Arima shook her head, amused that the 'greatest creatures on the planet' couldn't even run a simple meeting in an orderly fashion. She saw Hacose snort quietly out of the corner of her eye, and winked at him. She barely managed to stifle her laughter when she saw him roll his eyes and sniff indignantly.
Hacose was impressive, Arima thought. Even in comparison to Alaric he didn't fall short by much. He was only slightly smaller than Alaric and very nearly as strong. They exuded a similar aura, one that said, "I am king! Beware what you do and say!" That is where their similarities ended though. Where Alaric had thick fur, Hacose had thick skin covered in tiny, knobbly scales like a manta ray. Where Alaric has a feathered crown adorning his head, Hacose had several sets of ivory horns and a tall silver-grey frill that ran down the length of his neck. Hacose's wings were leathery and adorned in swirling, circular runes, while Alaric's were feathered and plain. Even their tails were different, Alaric's like that of a lion and Hacose like that of most dragons. Hacose lived for his Wyer and his duty, and spent most of his time training for the crown. But when the bull-snouted dragon felt his wings cramping with the effort of keeping it all in order, he whispered between the secret isles to frolic and play with Arima, even going so far as to occasionally help her with her pranks. He lacked the ability to do much hiding, being huge as he was, but if the serious, straight-laced heir to the throne of Dragonkind asked you to find a Sisi fruit loaded with maggots, you didn't ask questions. You found the fruit and moved on with your life.
Arima smirked at the memory. Hacose had aided her in pranking the uptight Cadmara. In simple terms, maggots like fruit just as much as they like meat. Cadmara still hadn't forgiven her for that one; though, to be fair, she hadn't forgiven her for being born human either. Arima watched the stuck up red and black Fire dragon shuffle sideways to put a little distance between herself and her mate Jwali. Jwali put up with much where Cadmara was concerned, but he let her do very little in regard to Arima and absolutely adored the human girl. If Arima needed help convincing any of the dragons of something, Jwali was who she went to. Jwali was a respected fighter and a wise strategist, and even Alaric tended to give more weight to his words than he would with many other dragons. His infatuation with Arima seemed to come from a combination of a farsighted, strategic mind that could see the use of this halfbreed ally and a sharp, ironic wit that delighted in the antics of this brash, reckless child. What Arima didn't know was that Jwali recognized the instinctive wisdom and skill that the human girl possessed, even if she seemed to rarely make use of such things in a proper manner. Jwali knew that Arima caught more than she let on and that she used what she saw, heard, and caused to her advantage. He also knew that dragons looked very amusing when biting into a maggot-infested Sisi fruit.
"SILENCE!!!" Alaric bellowed, interrupting Arima's thoughts and the bickering dragons. The cave fell instantly silent and Arima had to fight to keep from laughing at the assembled dragons' terrified faces.
"You sound like a hoard of hatchling humans," Alaric growled, his lashing tail betraying his anger. The assembled dragons swallowed nervously, an angry Alaric was dangerous for all involved. "I called you here to speak of the treaty being formed with the humans, elves, dwarves, unicorns, and the fae and what part we will play. I did not call you here so that you might argue amongst yourselves over this decision." Arima's head snapped to where her father presided over the meeting in shock. "We will be forming a treaty with them. Dragons who are willing and curious will be forming a magic bonding with a chosen companion and for their companion's lifetime they will help to protect and serve Efthemia. I will go through with this with or without the support of you and your clans," Alaric continued. "However, know this: should you or any of yours get in the way or try to prevent this from occurring I will remove them from the picture," His eyes narrowed dangerously, "permanently!"
The High dragons all stared at their King in shock. He was serious. All were unsure of what to say until a calm male voice spoke up, "You are wise, my king, to make such a decision as this." All eyes turned to the red fire dragon whose spine-scales fade to black. "The creatures that you mentioned are all becoming much more advanced with magic. And they view dragons as a threat, many thanks to you Earth dragons and your treasure hoarding habits." Aghor, the High Earth dragon, and his mate, Tivona, growled at him in response. Rolling his eyes at them, Jwali continued, "not only that but they will want our islands when they find the wealth that it contains. They view us as monsters, beasts that kill for no reason but gold, jewels, and such other worthless trinkets. And while we are powerful, it would take many years for them to win even if they all came to kill us, we are not unkillable. We also are slow to grow in population, while they reproduce like so many rodents. It is a wise thing that our king does in proposing our treaty."
The dragons slowly but surely began to murmur their agreement, as they calmed and started to view the logic of such a treaty.
"My Lord."
A low murmur, mostly groans, rippled through the assembly.
"What is it, Catfish? Do you want to challenge my father for his rulership? Maybe give him a sinus infection before he sends you into oblivion? Perhaps you c-"
"Arima," Alaric warned. "Continue, Cadmara."
Jwali eyed his black, spiny mate with a certain amount of reproach. Cadmara ignored him and did nothing more to Arima than giving her a withering stink eye. "Shocking as it may be, I would never dream of challenging the Emperor. And while I will not get in your way, I must implore you to reconsider. Have not the humans slain thousands of our kind? And they are naturally quite underhanded and deceptive. Why should we trust them to uphold their end of the bargain?"
"If this is about the Sisi fruit-"
"Arima, please." Alaric turned his eye toward Cadmara. "Your hesitancy is acknowledged. The deaths of our kind were taken into account in my weighing of this decision. I have spent years on this, High Fire Dragon. And our kind has slain as many of theirs. This is a way where we may be able to get to know one another as allies."
Cadmara bowed her head, eyes smouldering.
Arima, about to stick her tongue out at the dragon, caught sight of her father's withering glare and nodded a couple of times as if in agreement with what had been said.
Alaric raised his head to its full height, "Then all here understand and are in agreement!?!?" The assembled dragons rumbled in agreement. Alaric scanned the crowd of assembled dragons and nodded, "then I declare this meeting of the Wyer over!! Depart and may The Almighty's blessing and favor be upon us!"
With those words, the dragons rose and began to migrate out of the cave. Arima stood, and silently tried to slip into the crowd, only to hear her father growl in Common Tongue, "Arima!" Arima swallowed and turned to face her father as the last of the dragons disappeared, leaving only Alaric, Hacose, Kalmin, and herself.
"H-hey Pops." Arima greeted, her eyes a brilliant violet, "Did you need something because if not I promised Mohandas that I would meet him right after the Weyr gathering for a lesson, and you know how he gets when I'm late."
Alaric growled and narrowed his eyes.
"On second thought, Mohandas can wait."
Kalmin and Hacose both shook their heads in amusement, a human gesture they had picked up from their human sister.
Arima sat criss-cross right where she was, facing her father. "Let me guess, you want me to be on my best behavior so as to help reflect positively on this treaty." It wasn't a question.
Alaric hummed in approval, the vibrations swelling throughout the cavern. "Very good, Arima. You are learning to pay attention to the hints that are given without words. Yes, I would very much like that. However, you are never tame-"
"I blame that on the dragons I've been raised by!" Arima interrupted innocently.
"HEY!!" Hacose and Kalmin retorted at the same time.
"It's not our fault you have more energy than can be put to use productively," Hacose continued in an almost-purr.
Arima blinked innocently, dark blue bleeding into her eyes, "I never said any names now did I? I could have been talking about any of the Moon dragons, Light dragons, or even Aarnik now couldn't I?"
Alaric chuckled, shaking his head at his sons' slack jawed carp impersonation. "I blame the two of them anyways. They are the ones who encouraged your actions… Along with Jwali."
"What!!! WHY US?!?!?!" the brothers chorused again, the cavern shaking at the combined rumble of their powerful voices.
Alaric looked at them calmly. "Who teases and encourages her sarcastic replies? Who taught her how to fight and be independent? Who plays games with her? Games that help her develop stealth and agility, both of which she uses when she performs pranks? Who snarks at her in an effort to get a rise or a snark in return? Who--"
"WE GET IT!!!" Kalmin howled loudly, his tail whipping in irritation.
"So we are a bad influence." Hacose shrugged, his tail also lashing, though his tone was relaxed. "To be fair, you are the one who encouraged us to spend time with her, making you at least partly responsible."
Alaric blinked and shook his head. He tilted his face so that his eye met Hacose's."I suppose you are right. I did encourage your relationship. No matter, Arima, I need you to try and behave and…" Alaric's voice trailed off as he saw that his human daughter was no longer sitting in the place that she had been.
"Sorry Pops!" Arima's voice echoed from where she stood at the exit of the cave. "You know that trouble is my middle name. Plus I have an awesome prank prepared and 'best behavior' would require me not pulling that prank." Arima flashed a smile towards her shocked family. "Mohandas promised to help me figure out how to move silently in leaves and thus I have to go. Have a great day." Smiling once more, she turned and raced to the abrupt drop that occurred four feet from the exit/entrance of the cave. Still laughing at the sight of her family's shocked faces, Arima leapt just as she had earlier that morning, arms outstretched.
Alaric, Hacose, and Kalmin reached the edge just in time to see a dragon-looking shadow engulf Arima and both dissipate as if they were never there. Silence ensued for several minutes before Alaric turned to return into the cave, muttering, "I still blame the two of you," as he went.