Shadows at Dawn
#2 of Losing You
Part 2 of 2 (Shadows at Dawn)
I panted as the sun finally came over the horizon. I shivered again in a contrast of heat and cold. Wiping the sweat from the feathers on my forehead I leaned in and rested a hand against Demi again. His body seemed to be burning up. I knew that dragons had inherently higher body temperatures, but this was obviously feverish.
My head throbbed and I simply pushed the thought out of my mind. I wasn't going to give up! I listened close, hoping he would talk in that marvelously deep voice again, but it was only a hope at this point. His tribe had left him here to die, but I was determined to save him and prove that they were wrong. I wanted to be able to save a life... Especially after Tiran...
Another shuddering breath left his mouth and I watched intently, waiting for his chest to rise again. I sighed as it did, then went back to the herbs that I was crushing. The mint stung at my nostrils slightly, but I ignored it and continued on. By noon I could see that what I was doing had had little effect. Demi was still dying.
The wind died down, but the trees still whispered around me, their voices beyond my understanding. I touched a hand to my chest, knowing that I would only have one chance to save him, as it were. I crawled over and placed one hand to the laboring chest that was covered in blue scales. Taking a deep breath I also touched the silver mark on my chest and felt a small surge of magic.
It was weaker than it had been and tears again came to my eyes. Magic was dying in this world and I held one of the last remaining artifacts. It reminded me of Tiran again, but I forced that thought away. I briefly wondered about the silver and the last vestiges of magic it held. At one point it must have been a powerful amulet for it to have lasted this long. It must be enough to save a life!
Clearing my mind again I breathed calmly and let the metal take control. It burned slightly and the light leached through my eyelids, leaving light spots on my eyes. It was an odd, detached feeling that hit this time. I simply felt far off, as if lost in thought.
I wondered about many things, yet nothing stayed in my mind after it had passed through. It was as if I was just a thought myself, passing unseen through others.
Then it was over. I blinked and my eyes cleared slightly. The blades of grass around me were soft, cushioning my resting form. The sun was past noon and I watched as it dipped even more.
I glanced left and right, then panicked. Demi was no longer in the clearing. There were no signs of him being moved, the grass still lying flat where he had been.
'What's going on?' a voice questioned. It was distinctly draconic and I glanced around, trying to find the source.
"Where are you Demi?" I called, unable to locate where it had come from.
'I'm... I think I'm inside you.' I stared, stunned for a second, then looked down. A muzzle pressed against my chest feathers and I looked on in amazement. My body was slowly changing, feathers receding and becoming scales.
A pressure pushed from the inside of my skull and I gasped as it pushed outwards. I lifted my hands and felt hard bone sticking out. Tracing the length of it, I finally realized that they were horns. My neck popped as spines rose slightly, more bumps then anything else. My eyes fuzzed over for a second and I could feel a change there as the world changed slightly in perspective.
Further down my tail feathers wrapped together, lengthening and hardening. I watched in marvel as scales formed in midnight black around them, turning into a lengthy tail. My toes popped slightly and I gasped as the thickened out and the scales began spreading there.
"What's happening?" I asked, slightly panicked.
'Your transforming into... me.' Demi replied, sounding slightly shocked. I glanced back down and watched as the last of my feathers vanished underneath hard scales. Then a mental shove hit me, hard.
I gasped as it seemed like I had been physically shoved. Then, trying to turn my head to see what was ther, I realized that I couldn't move anymore.
My hand lifted and flexed in front of me and my mouth opened, breathing in the dawn air calmly. My body then stretched as my back crackled, joints relieved.
"It seems that I have control right now." Demi stated. "Shall we get out of this forest?"
'Yes, let's.' I replied, much calmer now that I knew what was happening. I could feel a rope that seemed to be connecting me to something beyond my range of sight. I felt that if I pulled I would be back with my body.
Demi stretched once more then calmly walked out of the clearing. It seemed he had been saved from death. Sharing a body with someone like Azure was a small price.
In fact, he chuckled at the thought, it might be a perk.
THE END.