Sunrise, part 1: Contact
#2 of Sunrise
After nearly an hour of hiking and climbing, Ryn at last pulled herself up over the lip of the mesa. "Whatever's up here had better be worth-- Oh. Oh, wow." Curled up on a large swath of incongruously verdant moss, basking in the mid-afternoon sun, was the largest and most majestic creature she'd ever seen. It had the unmistakable shape of a dragon, but beyond that it was quite unusual indeed - covered in soft, sky-blue fur, with a vaguely leonine visage, a thick mane and large fluffy tail of pale gold, and enormous feathery wings in the same golden color. And beyond the visible traits, there was a palpable sensation of pressure, as if the dragon's commanding presence in the world was enough to make the air itself try to give it more room.
As Ryn stood there, awestruck, the dragon opened its eyes and spoke. "You are welcome here, Ryn." The pressure abruptly abated, and Ryn stumbled forward half a step. The dragon smiled warmly, radiating infinite patience as Ryn struggled to assemble her thoughts into coherent words.
"How did you, you're, uh. You're a celestial." She blinked, seemingly surprised at the fact she'd managed to string a sentence together. "Solar, right? Because of the colors."
The dragon chuckled and nodded in affirmation. "An astute observation. Although I suppose I would expect no less of you, given your enthusiasm for all things draconic. And by your bashful posture, I suspect you're wondering if the things you've heard about solar dragons are true." Ryn nodded meekly at the dragon's guess, and it continued. "Rumors that we can and will mate with literally anything, for instance."
The dragon let Ryn squirm in embarrassment for a short while before lowering its head and half-spreading its wings in a formal bow. "I am Azuriel, terrestrial emissary of the Sunrise Covenant. And as to those rumors, I have two facts to offer. Firstly, I have a cousin who is half-river. Secondly, I have invited a lonely lynx to my home to do whatever she desires with me."
Ryn stared for a moment as she tried to process those statements, before remembering herself and nearly falling over in a hasty bow. "Elder Azuriel, I am honored and humbled by your presence."
Azuriel laughed. "Such formalities are hardly necessary. Your respect is appreciated, but it would please me if you could consider me your peer while you are here. I do not wish you to act out of deference. If it helps, address me by my nickname."
Ryn nodded absently, as a few thoughts finally meshed. Those eyes, that voice. Invited, nickname. "That was you the other night, wasn't it? Zuri." Then she scowled. "Okay, fine, but how do you know who I am? How do you know so much about me?"
Azuriel grinned back at her. "Now that's more of the irreverence I was hoping for from you. Just because I've been a guardian of your planet for the last thousand years doesn't mean you need to put up with any of my... shenanigans. Right?" Ryn couldn't help but laugh at that. "But I do owe you an explanation. Fundamentally, it comes down to the fact that you use the same email address in a lot of places. In some of those places, you identify yourself as Ryn Ketra. But on the more interesting corners of the internet, you go by the moniker Scalechaser89. I do hope my lack of scales in this form is not too much of a disappointment to you." Now it was Azuriel's turn to laugh at Ryn's shocked expression. "Is it really so surprising that I'd be interested in a messageboard for aficionados of silicone simulacra of dragon anatomy? Incarnations of primordial forces need stimulation too, you know. In any case, I was quite charmed by your enthusiasm, and I very much enjoyed your stories. And videos."
Ryn fidgeted, harboring a complicated mixture of pride and utter mortification. She took a deep breath, let it out. "All right, fine. I'm sloppy with my identity management. But if you're not too ancient to comprehend the internet, why not just email me, or send me a PM, or something? Why the mysterious-stranger-in-a-tavern shtick?"
"It got your attention, did it not? And here you are. If a stranger had emailed you claiming to be a celestial dragon and asking you to meet them in the middle of a national park half a mile from anywhere inhabited, would you have given that any credence at all?"
"I... guess you've got a point. Ugh, though I guess it was just as dumb to follow a mapkin here. I mean a nap on a... a map on a napkin."
"I am quite partial to 'mapkin', actually. " Azuriel curtailed his amusement, noting Ryn's evident discomfort at the realization of her situation. "Be at ease, Ryn. If at any point you wish to depart, I will take you to the entrance of the park and give you the means to return here at any later time, should you so choose, with no further exertion on your part. You should feel no pressure to stay here. I mean my invitation to be accepted or declined freely, as a gift, and I apologize that my motives were not entirely unselfish in offering it."
Ryn nodded slowly, the tension leaving her posture. "I understand. And I believe you." She looked the great dragon over, and smiled. "And I think I'd rather stay, for now. Thanks."