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Dragons Dreams Chapter 1 Origins

Centuries ago in this realm there was a clan of dragons, they had existed peacefully with all those around them for many generations, after a time a great hall was erected atop one of the highest mountains in their territory, for the dragons had worshipped the elements since time began and this was a place to honor them all.

After some time the human clans began to move into the dragons territory, but a truce had been struck between them and before long they were even invited to the great hall to worship the elements. Little had the dragons known that terrible sickness had already entered the hearts of man, greed was consuming their desires, and the humans were craving the hidden treasures they thought the dragons were hiding, as it had been said in legends that dragons were hoarders of great and vast heaps of gold and jewels.

One day a few of the young dragons were out looking for crystals for the autumn gathering when a group of humans approached them and inquired about the hoard, a young female had responded to them by saying "hoards, we have no hoards, we collect the crystals because they store energy. The human struck the dragon and called her a liar, a young male dragon charged between them to protect the female and was stabbed in the chest with a long dagger, killing him instantly, the other two dragons took off immediatly and flew back to the mountain top, as they landed rather hurridly an older male has seen them and asked why they were flying so franticly, the young female with the blood dripping from her jaw told the elder of the attack. He turned at once and went to confront the humans that were in the temple.

As he confronted them a small gathering of dragons and humans had begun to form, listening intently on what was happening, and the whole time the humans still denied any knowledge of why the band of men attacked the dragons. For several weeks life as it had been returned to normal, with no thought of the event ever passing anyones mind. late one evening as those who were worshipping the sun were heading out from their sitting places a young human female had stopped by an older dragons resting spot and started making simple conversation, asking him about how long he had been watching the sunsets, and why were there soo many differently colored dragons, she had been sitting by his small pile of crystals and shiny rocks that he had been collecting for a long time, and was taking them without his noticing as he had been looking out at the sunset while explaining to her about his role in being a sunwatcher. Then to make a good reason for sitting next to his crystals she inquired to him on why he collected them, with a great smile he had told her that crystals were the earths natural batteries and were great at storing energy, as he spoke she lazily thumbed thru the pile and asked why there was no gold or real jewels, other than the small specs that were laying about in the pile, he looked down at her and said, stuff like that is usless to us, why spend time digging for such things. As he spoke to her he had noticed a few of his favorite pieces of the crystals were missing, he suddenly became very upset as they held alot of power, which he had been storing, the young girl gets up to move away and a small piece of one of the crystals falls from her pocket, at once she turns to run off and the great dragon roars in anger at her betrayel, his roaring alerting the guards, both human and dragon alike start running towards the lookout. As both started to enter the dragon corners and confronts the girl, the whole time she continues to deny the theft, as the dragon reaches for her pocket to take one of the crystals to prove to the othes that had gathered that she had indeed stolen, she pulls a dagger that had been hidden in her sleeve and stabs the dragon in the forepaw, ina Blinding rage of pain and anger the dragon pulls back and swipes his talon across the humans midsection, nearly cleaving her in half.

As his forepaw drops to the ground and his rage turns into terror in seeing what he had done, the old dragon begins to turn around to explain to the others that were gathered on what had just happened, just as his body turned to face the crowd a human runs forward and stabs the dragon in the chest, between his scale plates piercing his heart, killing him almost instantly, as a few other dragons begin to roar in protest the massacre begins, throughout the entire mountaintop humans turn on the peacefull dragons and begin killing them, a few dragons notice the slaughter and took flight to escape being killed.

Most that fled had retreated to an old lookout on the opposite side of the valley, while finding and warning others along their way. Throughout the night several dragons kept a vigil out looking for the torches that would mark that the humans were coming. It was not known how many humans actually knew of the old site, but they nevertheless kept a wary eye out. By mornings first rays the toll had been taken, of the five thousand dragons that made up the mountain clan, less than a hundred had gathered at the lookout, it was not known how many others had taken refuge in different area, but most knew to return to the old site if catastrophy had ever occured. Through out the first day a few dragon had come most from the oppisite side of the valley from the mountaintop, some were hiding and fled when they had the chance, others had escaped their torture that the humans were inflicting while looking for the legendary hoard, by attacking and killing the humans or by tricking them. By the evening of the first day of hiding, what had remained of the council of elders had formed and were deciding how to react to the attack, while waiting to see if any others would come.

It was by the evening of the second day that torches of the human hunters could be seen, one of the dragons who was being tortured was let loose in the chance of finding those that had escaped, the trick had worked, the injured youngling flew directly towards the old lookout and the humans had followed. The elders had agreed that what was left of the clan should split, into three separate groups. To help protect the life of the clan and possibly rebuild their numbers. One third of the remaining clan went east, towards their cousins territory in the plains. Another went south, towards their cousins in the rainforests. And the last of the third went northwest, towards their cousins of the redwoods.

An member of the council went with each of the group to act as an ambassador for them, since they were of the few of their clan who knew of the rituals of connecting, a way for each clan to connect and share their heritage with another. Of the group of remaining dragons there around ten young females who were of age to breed or who were already with egg, they had divided themselves between the thirds to help repopulate their numbers. Of this group was a young female named Taleus (tail-e-yus), a vibrant young red dragoness whos energy would permiate everyone and everything, many of the dragons of her clan were tought to use and store the life energy they created in the crystals they gathered, but she was of a few that could charge a crystal jut by standing near it. She was in the group bound to travel north, this was the group that could not fly as long as the others as two of the other females were already with egg and grew tired very quickly.

When all three groups set out, the other two had taken flight nearly directly overhead of the human groups to see them leaving in the hopes they would not continue their trek towards the old lookout, during the early twilight hours, the third group fled the lookout, on foot. Quietly making their way down the smooth gravel slopes of the mountain, doing their best to get away without a trace. By mid afternoon of the first day of traveling Taleus and her group had made good time and was already over the next mountain range, they took shelter in the shadows of the rocks jutting out of the mountain to hide themselves from any who may be looking for them.

The first group had flown nearly halfway to their destined location by gliding high on the thermals of the clouds and only stopping for water and resting once, since they had no females laden with egg they did not need to hold back in their quest. The second groups route was laden with troubles from the beginning, the humans had errected a large weapon that could hurl large spears at the dragons and had killed two during their flight to flee, the elder and one of the egg bearing females had died, there had been some unrest between some of the younger male dragons after the death of the second, a few had even turned back and started to attack the group of humans, killing several of them before being killed themselves. By the time the second group was out of sight of the humans, over half of them had been killed.

As Taleus's group zig zagged their route through the valleys of the mountain range on their way northward, one of the young males had taken turns flying to the mountain peaks, to keep a lookout for any sort of danger that may loom, and a constant lookout for any humans. As spring turned to summer the daily hunting for food had become soo much easier that instead of a couple groups, to only a few dragons had gone out each time and brought back enough meat and other foods that the group never went hungry, most of the summers trek continued this way,

It was during one of the hottest day of the trip when a young male was returning from the small peak the group of dragons has passed and another was going to venture up to the next one to keep lookout, when the black dragon had appeared, just as the young green dragon had reach the highest point of the mountain the giant black dragon had come over the peak at such great speed and stealth, that nobody knew what was happening till they heard the crying shriek of the green dragon, all had turned and looked up just in time to see the massive wings dragon to tear the juvenile in half, throwing his body to each side of the peak, then roar his challenge to all who remained in the valley below, his voice nearly as loud las his roar the giant of a dragon calles down to then and says angrily, Who enters my territory without a proper challenge! Was this young drake your champion, i will kill you all! And lept aloft to complete his decree, the oldest of the males turns towrds the attwcking dragon and cowers down, laying his belly and wings on the ground, showing his submission, as the black dragon sees the fall into submission he spreads his wings and lands lightly in front of the old copper dragon, the lowers his down to peer at the kneeling dragon with one massive eye.

For several moments both dragons just remained motionless, lock in that position, when finally the old copper raises his head up and says to the black dragon, Please forgive our intrusion, we meant no disrespect. We are travelling towards our new home and came into your land by mistake, as you can see we mean you no harm no wish to take what is yours, may we please pass thru your land safely. The great dragon laughed, as he did a deep growl escaped his throat, you intrude into my lands, without asking then wish to pass freely, oh no old one, nothing in this realm is free, but i will trade for your passage, what do you carry with you? Looking down at the group of dragons, most the females huddled together, and the brave males standing around them, to protect them if they can. We had to leave our home in a hurry great one, the copper says, we only have what you see, no sachels of crystals or stone. Then i will take her! And the black dragon points to the red female, who was standing in the back of the group, Taleus? But great one, she is one of the few breeding females we have left, please not her. The black dragon snarls and leans in soo close to the copper that the other dragons start to panic, in fear he is to be eaten or killed. No old one i dont want her, i just want to play with her, she can catch up to your, he lifts his head and smirks, to your group. The copper dragon closes his eyes sadly and accepts. The black dragon rises up and say your free to go, and dont worry, nobody else with bother you in my lands.

As the old copper dragon comes up to Taleus he says with a heavy sigh. He says you will not be harmed but you must spend the day with him. for the sake of our clan, will you go? With a slight cocking of her head she looks at the elder and replies. Im not afraid of him, nor any other that calls upon me, but how will i find you tomorrow? Will he lead me to you? The old copper nods his head and moves back towards the rest of the group.

With a slight grumble the black dragon turns his head to face the young red female and speaks out. Come Taleus follow me, and with a single leap shoots skywards back towards the peak which he started his attack from, the young female follows with all the curiosity in the world.

The first group that had set out to the east to find their cousins of the wing had foud their trip the most uneventfull until the morning they had awoke after they had reached the valleys of the flat lands, the night of their arrival they had taken shelter in a small cove of trees to hide themselves until mornings first light from any who may be hunting them. As the few males who had been lookouts first noticed their cousins had moved their clan in an encampment of humans, they were living and working together. One of the males awoke the elder of the group and informed him of this situation, and to all who came to the edge of the trees had noticed, there was no fighting of any kind. The elder was taken back by this but decided to continue his quest, to bring his clan to a peacefull new home, so in the old ways he stepped forward out of the trees and bellowed his call of peace and waited for a response, a few moments later an old female and a human stepped forward from the clearing and returned his call, soon all the dragons that were hiding in the trees came forward and presented themselves, thus starting their new life on the plains.

The second groups that left their home never made it to their destination, between those that returned to fight the humans and those that went astray enroute, not one ever made it to the forests of their cousins of the south.

By midday the following day Taleus had returned to her group, they had made it a fair distance from where they had left her with the black dragon, she had no troubles catching up as she was able to fly, unlike those other females in her group that were heavy with egg, but it would soon change for Taleus. The black dragon had bred with her, in a way punishing the group of travelling dragons further. Out of the many species of dragon that had made up the various clans the most feared and hates of them was the ferocious black dragon, they had never interbred, never mingled with the other dragons. By breeding with Taleus he had made her an outcast, her egg would be an abomination. Other than telling the elder of the group she had kept her secret to herself, for she had know she would be shunned or even driven away, and being in unfamiliar territory would most surly mean certain death.

As the nights cooled and the air became crisp the travelling group of dragons finally entered the the realm of the tall trees, the redwood forests of the northwest. The egg laden females had grown larger and slower as the time to lay the eggs grew near, even Taleus had swelled, but none had asked who the Sire was, as it was known that many of the young males in the group had liking for Taleus. The third day of making their way through the dense forest the group came up a small clearing. The elder of the group had arranged the others to occupy only half of the clearing by sitting side by side with himself and only the strongest male of the group by his side. Do not move, do not jostle the elder spoke quietly, as were being watched even now. After a few quiet moments the elder growled out the calling of peace, to see if any would answer, none came. All the dragons sat patiently in the clearing waiting for an answer, just as the sun was beginning to dissapear behind the mountains a lone female, well beyond breeding age appeared. She slowly made her way into the clearing and sat facing the copper dragon, less than a tail lengths away, there she bowed low to him and said in a soft voice. You have honored us by showing patiece, may we do the same, but i must ask, why are you here, and with soo many with you? We have not seen a travelling group as big as yours in some time, where are you going too? The old copper dragon bowed low in return and spoke with a firmness in his voice, like nothing he as used the entire journey. Forgive us my cousin, but me and my clan have fled our home, our brothers and sisters were tortured and killed by the humans, for nothing more than shiny metal and rocks. This is all that remains of us. Then bowing soo low his muzzle nearly touching the ground he spoke softly. We seek to live here with you, our cousins of the north. Will your clan grant us this request. The old female dragon rose up from her bow with a look of cunfusion and curiosity, and without a moments hesitation turned and quickly left clearing without saying a word. The old copper dragon fearing rejection slowly lowered his body onto the ground and laid his muzzle across his forepaw, thinking of where else He and what was left of his extended family could go and live in safety.

As the old copper rose up to leave the clearing the elder white dragon returned with a few others and surrounded the copper dragon, before he could say his appoligies for trespassing the white dragon came up and nuzzled him. Then her companions approached the sitting group welcoming them as the white dragon did the old copper. Over the next several hours as dusk fell the group was led to various places to rest and make their nests, the egg bearing females were shown a spot that was set higher into the mountains to protect the eggs from intruders so they may gestate in peace. As a female came up to Taleus to show her the path to the nesting grounds she lowered her head and said, i really should nest away from the others, for when my egg comes i dont want it smashed. Worry not young one the bigger female spoke softly, eggs are too rare to us to have any smashing going on, you can rest assured, no harm will come to you or your hatchling. Taleus nods her head in acceptance, but as they travel up the path to the nesting areas asks the older female. I would prefer one near the top of that is acceptable, i do soo miss looking out over the valleys of my home. The green scaled female turns her head to look at Taleus and asks, where are you from young one? We were from the mountaintops in the valley of the sun, where on any given day you could see as far as the valleys were wide, i had never seen soo much rain till we got near the great trees, its strange to not see the sun as often. The green dragon chuckled, you willl get used to it here, on any given day you may see the sun for only a few minutes, or maybe every other day.

After the two female dragon had reached the nesting area and Taleus had looked through a few different empty dens set into the mountainside she chose one that had plants that look like great ferns growing over the front. Yes, she said to herself, this will do nicely. The green dragon poked her head in and watched Taleus inspect every nook of the nesting den, the said quietly as not to disturb her concentration. Until you can learn to hunt here in your new home there will be others that will help you catch your meals, just come to the clearing when your hungry, then she dissapeared from the front of the den.

A few moons had gone by and the group of dragons had adapted well into their new home, learning how survive in the forest, learning how to hunt on the ground instead of in the air. One of the most importsnt things the elders of the trees had told the newcomers was if they must travel by wing, to go on foot to the valley towards the sunrise, as there were humans in the valleys by the big water. They had been there for a long time and did not come into the forests. By staying on the ground and learning to stay off the wing they didnt come hunting.

The warming days of spring had seen several eggs laid, some by the native dragons of the area and some by the new residents. Taleus had laid her egg and hidden it well in the pile of branches and fern leaves, some of the other female dragons who had not laid an egg had come to many of the brooding females and offered to keep their eggs warm in turn while they hunted. Taleus had kindly refused each time and just finished by saying, oh its nicely tucked away, no need to worry. One day during Taleus's long hunts the green female dragon who had shown her where the nesting dens were at had come to check on Taleus, upon no answer she ducked her head into the den and had noticed it was alot warmer than most dens, Taleus had tightly packed branches and leaves of various trees and plants into layers around the entrance to the den, keeping the heat of the day confined inside the den. She thought to herslf. Now i see why she never wants another to stay, a very clever idea! But thats not why she had come, she wanted to see the egg. When the females lay their eggs the eggs coloration can sometimes show who they mated with as it will be the colors of the scales of its parents. As the dragon slowly made her way deeper into the den she noticed another webbing of leaves and branches covering over the egg, but her curiosity was getting the better of her so she had to look, she just had to know who the sire was.

As she lifted the egg covering up she only seen a very dark red, her first thought was that Taleus had mated with one of her travelling companions, as she was carefully setting the egg covering back down she had noticed the bottom of the egg was fading from the dark red to black. None of the native dragons had been told of the encounter with the black dragon, but the damage was done. The green females eyes widened as the horror filler her eyes, even here black dragons were feared as mindless killers even tho none of the natives in this area had ever seen one. The green dragon carelessly dropped the egg cover and left the den, as she was quickly heading down the path towards the other gathered dragons Taleus came over the top of the ridge and noticed her leaving the den area. She quicky took flight and glided down to her den entrance, the green dragons scent was everywhere, this was something the the green had forgotten and the dragons where Taleus was from had still used. At once Taleus Rushed into her den and seen the egg cover laying loose over her egg, rage was boiling within her at this moment, a rage like she had never felt before. Taleus carefully covered her egg again with its woven cover to keep it warm, then slowly backed out of the den, inspecting everything else as she did. Once outside she angrily took flight and shot rapidly down towards the valley floor to where the other dragons were laying about, as she landed she noticed the older green dragon talking with other females that had gathered, she immediatly went to confront her.

Other dragons that seen her walking by had never seen Taleus in such a mood, some cowered away while others got up to follow her, as Taleus reached the spot where the green dragon was sitting she took an attacking pose, her wings tightly folded against her back, her tail held high, then spoke loudly so all could hear. You have entered my den, when you have been asked not too, you have come near my egg, when again you have been asked not too, and yet you push you way around, what gives you this right? To do as you will. Are we not your family or do you live for hurting others.. The green female turned her head away farom Taleus as she responded, I was only offering to help, which all females do when we dont have eggs of our own, if you had been brought up proper you would know this, instead of acting like a lone male looking for his mate. And ive seen enough, that abomination of yours should be destroyed, before it hatches and tries to kill us all. A few of the other gathered females began staring at Taleus with glares of hatred. Taleus leaned forward while raising a forepaw to strike a hard blow, and said softly so only the green dragon could hear. If you come near me or my hatchling again, they will find your entrails strew across the valleys from here to the great water! Just as she was going to give her a warning strike the eldest of the female dragon walked up and said loudly, Nobody will be killing each other, and Nobody will hurt your young, no matter what color or species he is, he is welcome to our home, just as you and your clan were. The the elder turned to the greeen dragon and said firmly. You will keep your snout out of all the dens, until you have your first egg you are not part of the brooding pack anymore, now go and make yourself usefull. Then the old white dragon walked back to her rock and laid down to nap.

The rest of the year went smoothly, with little to no situations at all, the new part of the clan had begun learning how to fit into the new soceity, doing their part to help with the hunts, how to work the moist earth and make dens and caves that would not collapse from the water. The first signs of spring also brought the hatching of last years eggs. White, copper, green and even a yellow hatchling was born, but all were wondering about Taleus's egg, it had not hatched yet, and nobody knew how long a black dragon was in the egg for. It was on the fourth day after the rest of the eggs had hatched that her egg split, A loud chiprish squeal was heard and a small hole appeared at the top of the egg, moments later the young male hatchling was staring at his dame. She had slowly looked him over as she bent down to clean his birth sac off. Her thoughts had run wild in the last few day, of what her hatchling may look like, was it a boy, a girl, would it be all black or red, she just knew in her heart she would do all she could to make this dragon the best it could be, regardless of anything else.

His loud squeals of hunger had drawn all the other females from their dens and made their way to see the feared dragon. Taleus fed the young dragon all the pieces of meat she had piled up for him, his belly bulging out she nudged him towards the entrance of the den for the rest of the clan to see. As he slowly was pushed past the branch and leave covering blocking the doorway all the gathered dragons grew silent, even the green female who had snooped her way into the den was there and just fell silent, the hatchling was all red, like his mother. Some of the other females started spouting rude comments to the green dragon who had started it all, she just sat there the whole time, saying. Its true his egg was half black, with that Taleus went inside snd fetched the young dragons eggshells, they were indeed red and black. As she set them on the ground next to her son the elder white dreagon came to stand in front of the young red and said, he still may turn colors, its not unheardof, the little dragon looked up at her and said with a squeaky voice, i may change colors? Then cocked his head sideways. Taleus came up and sat directly behind him, wrapping her tail around his legs, and said softly. Yes son, your sire was a black dragon, not a red like me, so you may grow to look like him, but dont worry, its not a bad thing as you are what you are, as are we all.

A dark blue female that had been herding her hatchling along finally made her way up to the group of gathered females to see what the comotion was about, there she had noticed that the young dragon had finally hatched, then looking up at Taleus she said. What is his name? Taleus looked up at the sky then down at her son.

His name is Taku..

Chapter 2 The Dawn of Life.

The first few years of young Taku's life were very different than most young dragons, since most of the other females were afraid of his heritage and feared he would attack and kill their young, even by his third year he has not changed any colors and had remained a full red dragon. His time was spent learning from his mother and a couple of the older females of the clan, on the necessities of forest hunting and honing his skills at remaining invisible to the outside world. Every other day when taku's dame would take him form the comfort of the dragons valley to hunt she would also teach him how to hunt on the wing, as she had told him oafter their first time out. We were not made to hunt on the ground son, we are creatures of the sky and should always be ready to survive there. By his fifth year of life he was spending more time alone on his hunts, bringing back a share of his kill to his mother. It was during this time he had ventured towards the setting of the sun on one of his hunts when he had come across one of the elder males of the clan, perched above a rocky lookout, keeping an eye on the valley below. I didnt know any dragons came towards the big water, why are you perched here, said the young dragon. The elder brown dragon nad nearly blended perfectly with the rocks he rested uped looked over at Taku and quietly replied. Just over the small hill in the next valley is a village of humans, we all take turns watching them to see if they are moving ever closer to our home. That is why we dont go this way to hunt, as to not alert them of our presence. Taku slowly crept up to the edge so he could get a better view of the valley below, as he got nearer to the edge a gust of wind blew up from the valley and all the smells of the valley and beyond hit Taku's nostrils at once, flooding him with new things which he soo wanted to find out what they belonged too. Knowing he dare not proceed any further forward in this area Taku turned back to find a different route to explore the forbidden area.

Over the next few hunting trips alone Taku had searched every valley to the south to find a walkable way down past the ever watchfull centuries, he had found that there were three that kept a constant lookout from different valleys that led to the human village. One evening while making his own den near his dames he had hasked her to tell him the story of the humans from where her clan came from. Taleus must have told him the story near a hundred times by now and Was curious why he wanted to hear it again. My son, she said as he came back the entrance of his den, why do you want to hear it again?Taku replied, I was out hunting towards the big water and the lookouts told me there was a human village the next vallet over, i dont care to see them but want to know what to do if i do. Then he leand in close to be sure no other could hear and said. I really want to see the water, ive only heard stories and would like to see it for myself. Taleus sat up on her haunches and went back into her den, knodding her head for Taku to follow. As they entered her nesting chamber she reached under pile of brushes and leaves and pulled out a clear rock, holding it in a forepaw she held it out to Taku and said, I want you to hold this, this was your grandsires his name was Theelius. As Taku grasped the finger sized crystal he could feel it thrum with energy, looking almost frightened he held it out so his mother could take it back. What is that he said with a frightened voice, ive never felt anything like that before. Taleus carefully tucked it back under her nesting pile and turned to face Taku. Where we come from we used to collect the clear stones, we used to use them to store energy, so we could use them at a later time if needed. It was things like this and shiny metal that the humans in our area trapped and killed us for, as far as anyone knows it was all left behind. In a panic i swallowed this one, to protect it as your grandsire had stored near a lifes worth of energy in it. Taku perked up and asked, but how do we use it? Taleus lowered her head and said softly, i dont know, i was never shown. I just want you to know my son, why our family, our kind was hunted and killed. Then she turned and went to lay in her nest, her memories returning to haunt her.

Late that evening Taku took flight from his den heading towards the distant mountains, he had devised A plan to et to the water. At first he just flew high enough to skim the trees but the farther he flew from his clans home the higher he got, in all his times of flying he never flew much higher than twice the height of the trees, as it was plenty high to track his prey, but this night he planned to fly as high as he could. As he entered the next valley he turned to fly parallel to The coastline he had planned to fly some distance southward and as high as he could go then just head out over the open water and return at a gliding angle, so he could see what he had only heard of. As he flew upthe air grew colder at first then his breathing became labored. He felt if he only flew a bit higher he could touch the lights in the sky, after a short time at the being soo high he leveled off and looked downward, thankfull to just glide on the winds as his wing muscles were burning. He turned towards the open water and headed out. Taku had known his journey had taken several hours and knew the sun would soon be rising, so as he got near the coast he started looking for a place to rest and take shelter for the day, he knew if he could find a spot where he could hide with out much trouble he could spend the day overlooking the water and investigating all those things from the stories he heard, he just had to make sure the century dragons didnt see him nor any of the humans from the village.

Coming upon an area that was jagged and steep Taku noticed a huge boulder that Looked to have cave of sorts beneath it, as he circled around to the other side so he could see what the back side of the boulder he felt the wind die down, as Taku circled back around he crossed over the edge of the cliff the rush of wind coming up the cliff nearly knocked Taku into the boulder. After a moment of trying to correct his flight the dragon just spread his wings wide and floated on the uplifting winds. Thinking to himself Taku said, i could spend hours here! Turning back to the boulder Taku precariously landed at its base and began peeking inside small cave, it just looked like natural water erosion had dug out the cave, but it would work to his advantage. Taku folded his wings tightly and slowly entered the hole, seeing that the larger rocks had formed natural walls holding the massive bolder atop him in place he ventured deeper. After making his way completely inside the dragon had noticed that the cave was about four times his width and three times his length. A small smile escaped his lips and he turned around and made his way back to the entrance, then laying down at its entrance to rest a while Taku said softly to himself. This, this place will be my home. Waking up just before the sun began to set Taku had noticed his body had felt different, unlike anything he had felt before. Was it from the hard flying, or from laying in the direct sunlight. Both of which he had never got to do before. Living in the forest he may get maybe three or fours hours of flight in a moons cycle, and the sun. He might get direct sunlight only half of that time. Here at the coast, with the cool breezes he had slep in the sun nearly the entire day, and his flight muscles had cramped from the long hours of working and gliding. After standing up and stretching out he turned his head back to look into the cave and panic gripped him! His scales were darkening, turning black. After craning his head back and forth looking his entire body over the dragon had noticed most of his scales had blackened, except for his underside where he could see himself, it was still a crimson red. He laid back down and thought to himelf while he watched the sun sink into the distant horizon.

It was not unheard of for being gone for a couple days at a time but he didnt want his dame to worry so after the darkness of the night filled the sky Taku took flight from the cave he had been resting in and made his way directly towards the valley of his clan, he didnt want to waste time going qthe long way around but instead chose to just fly higher, like he did when he left on his journey to the coast. He knew the century dragon only really kept watch on the valleys and not in the sky, and using the cover of darkness he flew, high above and over their lookout spots. After he had flew well past their location he made a quick and rapid decent down to the valley below, to where his mother had made her den in the mountainside. With a soft voice he called, mother are you there? After a moment Taleus answered suprisingly, Taku..where were you today? The other young males were going to practice today and came looking for you. Please come outside mother he said softly, we must talk. Come back when the sun is up Taku she had said, im with egg again and am very tired.

He had a look of suprise mixed with shock, he never thought he would have a sibling, but he had not learned much on the ways of mating and such, he was just told when he had reached his maturity he would have the desires to seek a mate and have young of his own. Tho he had never thought that far. The next morning As the sun came up Taleus had rememberd that Taku had wanted to talk with her, so she left the comfort of her nest and made her way to the entrance of her sons den. Taku are you here, she said softly as she nosed passed the moss covered entrance. Please mother do not come in i dont want to frighten you, i will come outside, but first are there any others around? Taleus backed out of the den and looked all around, up the mountainside, down the valley and even up to the sky. No son there is nobody around, now stop this nonsense and come out here. Taku slowly nosed past the moss, exposing his now all black scales that covered everything but his chin and belly plating. Taleus gave the look of expectance when she finally said, well it was known one day you may shift colors, but i must say i like how you turned. Then as he slowly backed into the den to hide himself she asked, how? When?. Taku lowered his head and said, do you remember me saying i was going to go explore the big water, i did. And while napping in the sun in a cave that overlooks the water the warm sun did this to me, when i awoke i was turning black. Taleus looked up at the fog covered sky and said, yea you sure wouldnt change here, but there are alot of things here we cant do. Do you wish to go and show the others here, or are you going to sit in that den of yours all day? I remember what the others had said when i was just out of the egg, that if i changd i would become this monster and kill everyone, that is not what i want.

Taleus leaned in close so only her son could hear her words, yes your sire was a great black dragon, but he neither harmed our clan or me. The things he does are done to protect his home and his clan. He was not a monster, neither are you. The she nuzzled he son and turned to head town the slope to the area where the dragons gathered. As more of the clan gathered to see why Taleus had come to the center her son made his way into the clearing and stood next to her. Some of the drsgon backed off in fear, some to offensive positions to attack him if he dared to try something. Then finally the elder white dragon entered the clearing and approached Taku. Making her way around the dragon as if inspecting him she said. So you change had happened, i must say you do not look like what was expected but i can say this for sure, you have your Sires color, but you still look like your mother. Taku chucked and replied, yea i noticed other than my belly then lifted his head up for the others to see, his neck and belly plats were the matching crimson red that his mother was. After lowering himself down to relax the white dragon spoke loud enough that every dragon in the valley could hear. You may have changed colors, but your still the respectable dragon you were before, then turned her head to look at the gathered dragon, and are still part of this clan. If anyone challenges my words,speak now! Nothing was said, by anoyone. So the elder dragon turned to return back to her clearing.

A few of the dragons nodded their head to Taleus and Taku the left the clearing, others just turned and left. As Taku started to leave Taleus turned to follow him and said. Will you hunt for me today my son? I am hungry but my belly hurts too much to try for myself. Taku turned his head back to look at his dame. Of course mother and headed out into the underbrush to find them a meal. As he reached the edge of the dragons valley his pace quickened, his wings folded tightly against his back he poured on the speed, fast and faster he ran. Just as he reached the top of the hill separating the next valley he launched himself skyward, he flapped his wings twice then folded them tightly again. Keeping his arms and legs held tightly to his body he became like an arrow shooting through the sky, as his body decended downward he scanned the grassey valley below looking for his prey, he cought a glimpse of movement near the edge of the trees just ahead of him, a large male deer with his pack of females were making their way out into the grass covered valley to feed, but before they knew what had happened three of the females were gone! Taku had slightly spread his wings to control his decent and at the last moment spread his claws out and snatched three deer, one with his hind paws and two with his forepaws, then a moment later he angled his wings and the speed of his downward decent shot him skyward again, without even scaring the deer off.

As Taku returned to the dragons valley with his catch he had made the decision to fly just above the treetops instead of trying to carry the three deer while walking, as he glided to the edge of the mountainside where the nesting dens were to bring the fresh meat to his mother, Taku was surrounded by a few of the males of the group. A greenish brown dragon rushed up snarling at Taku saying in an angry voice "what are you doing! Breaking the rules of this valley by flying, especially to the nesting dens!". Taku had piled the bodies of the three deer by his mothers den and slowly turned to face the angry dragon, and with a calm voice replied " some of us are not afraid to live, maybe you should try it sometime" then moved his hesd closer to the green dragons so no other could hear what he was about to say " come at me again like this and i will rip you in half!" then slowly turned back to his mothers den to feed on one of his catches. As his dame came from her den she noticed the three other dragons surrounding her son, as she lifted her head up to inquire why they were here Taku looked up from his meal at his mother and just shook his head back and Forth. For a moment she just looked between him and the other dragon. After gulping down the haunch from the deer Taku said softly to his mother " i can no longer stay here, i will not be far away if you need me, but i will not live like a wingless dragon in my own valley". Taleus looked mournfully at the kill her son had brought "shall i go with you" she said softly." No mother, they can protect you better here in the hidden valley" Taku replied." But i will make sure you do not go hungry, fresh mest will be here for you when you need it". Taku then leaned in and nuzzled his mother cheek then slowly turned to head up towards the top of the mountain, all the while the three males watched from their spots unmoving.

As Taku started over the other side of the mountaintop the old brown century dragon approached Him and said "what was that about?". Taku slowed his pace and looked at the century, " they were angry at me, i flew into the valley instead of walking, as i was carrying three deer i didnt want to tire myself trying to pack them". "where are you going now." asked the brown dragon. Looking up at the sun Taku said "ive found a new den, away from those that hate and fear me, im going there". Before the century could say anything else Taku launched himself from the ground and glided down the hillside just above the trees.

Chapter 3 Solitude

It had been several days since Taku had left the valley of his clan, to escape the persecution of the color of his scales and to protect the who brought him into this world. Several days of learning new area to hunt, places to get fresh water from and most importantly to do it all while staying hidden from the human village just over the next valley. He had seen their small wooden creations floating out on the water while the humans would drive it in circles pulling nets around, abviously hunting for fish, and of course something that had Taku's undivided attention! He had seen some of the drsgons take small fish from the river that flowed through the valley but had never tasted them, but these fish were huge, some as half as big as the humans that were pulling them from the water.

Taku had spent near two moons working on his new den, hollowing out the back and sides, even making a separate chamber off to one side. He had found that the entire cliffside was either solid boulders or more lage ones like the stone that hid his den from view. The head sized rocks were kept and put off to one side while each wall was expanded outward then stacked atop each other to make a solid wall. Taku had learned from making his own den back in the dragons valley that using large plant leaves and mud he could create a waterproof barrier in his den and had done this in several layers before putting the rock wall up. The last thing to do was to make himself an escape route, even though his new home was on a side of a cliff he knew he could still be captured. In the sleeping chamber that had been dug out and stone reinforced Taku had dug an opening into the roof, the after securing the walls with the stones that were left from the expanding of his home he used the same method of creating a waterproof barrier but with interwoven branches to hold the leaves in place and cover the top with old logs and such, concealing it from view.

The last thing Taku had to do was get rid of the fresh dirt and pebbles that had been excavated of the newly expanded den, with mounds piled in several corners of the den to wait for rainy or foggy days when the gound outside would be wet. During those times Take to to slowly digging thru the mounds to look at the contents, not like when he was working to expand his home and just piled things with a feverous rush. He had remembered the stories his mother had told him. Of finding the clear stones his clan used to store energy in. As the rains would come the dragon would push pile after pile of dirt and rubble out and let the rains carry it away to blend with the rest of the cliff. None of the clear stones were ever found.

Now that the dragons home was completed to his liking he started new things that had captured his interest, the first by far was the ocean. After learning to glide on the winds that blew off the water, Taku could easily glide from his home and land on the beach without beating his wings once and on the return trip just flap his wings on the initial launch and glide all the way to the entrance of his den. The dragons first time making his way into the saly water was by no means a calm and orderly event! He had gotten his body near half into the surf when a wave crashed over him, be it from the sheer panic of the unexpected wave or the floundering in the surf till near exhaustion, the dragon didnt enter the water again for almost a week. For near a full cycle of the moon Taku took his time learning how to get into and out of the water in the waves. It took almost the same amout of time to learn how use his wings to propel himself through the water. By the end of his first summer as a nomadic dragon Taku had mastered the art of swimming and hunting in the ocean, even though there were still soo many new things to try and hunt in the water the dragon had gained a taste for fish, especially the salmon he seen entering the ocean from the nearby river, especially since it only took a few to make a filling meal!

As the season grew colder Taku had noticed more and more groups of humans crossing the beach below his lair, and again noticed them returning a few days later with the fresh kills of their journey being carried back. He thought to himself "why do they need to kill soo many, why not just hunt when its needed". Since his knowledge of human cultures was soo limited he did not know that the humans stored away food for the winter months, when fresh game was harder to find. Taku had watched this behavior till the snow started to cover the higher peaks of the mountains, then it seemed the humans had gathered enough and the daily journeys ceased. "This will be something i will have to get closer to understand". That very same night a cold spell hit the area of his home, it was the coldest time the dragon had ever experienced, the next morning Taku went in search of vines, leaves and small branches to make a natural looking door for his den, another cold night like that was too much to bear.

The rest of the winter found Taku hunting every other day, but having to trek farther and farther from his home to find game,. Now had started to understand, the deer and other large animals were easy to locate when it was warm, but as the temperatures grew colder. They were near impossible to find near the beaches, as they had migrated inland away from the water, where the grass covered valleys were protected from the wind and snow. It was during this time when Taku was out on a hunting day for him and his mother and newly hatched brother when he had happened by accident across a small group of hiding humans, all of them but a small boy had been killed by a mauling bear. Taku had never been that close to a human before, the smells were very different from anything he had experienced before, but he took the chance to inspect them as much as he could, the smell of old fur skins and fresh blood was overwhelming to his nostrils. As he turned to leave the boy sprung up from his hiding place and faced the dragon with a broken spear in his hand. "Get back bear, i will kill you!". Taku cocked his head sideways and spoke, nearly scaring the boy white! "I am no bear, i am a dragon. Pease dont point that at me" shuffling his wings and folding them tightly to his back. The boy took a step forward and said loudly " ive never seen a dragon", then dropped his broken spear and said softly "ive never seen a bear, till today. Father and his brothers were taking me to see one and to hunt it" then started to cry. Taku had felt sad for the boy but got not closer, just said softly "I never knew my sire" Taku shook his head "my father", be happy in the thought little human that at least you got to know yours. The boy stood upright and looked at Taku "My name is Eric". Taku looked down at the boy and in the custom of his clan when a new greeting was made, bowed low to him "My name is Taku" . The dragon turned to go and hunt the bear, he knew it was injured from the attack on the humans as he could smell its blood around the area where the humans were laying. As he turned to leave the boy reached out "please, dont leave me here! I dont know where to go or how to get home..". Taku stopped mid step and gave the human a most interesting look " what would i do with you? You cannot fly, you have no wings!". Eric lowered his head "can you carry me?". Taku was perplexed, he knew he had to bring meat back for his mother, but did not wish to leave the boy alone in the forest, he knew with the dead humans around it would only be a matter of time before it would draw others to the area. The dragon paced a bit while thinking "I could have him on the beach near his village by this evening and be back tomorrow, as sun reaches its peak". Im going to regret this, was all he said before turning and gently picking up the boy in his forepaw, a moment later launching into the sky towards the human village.

Chapter 4 Encounters

After several hours of hard flight Taku had glided down next to a stream that was a couple valleys away from his destination. After gently setting the boy down he set himself to drink from the creek to refresh himself, all the while keeping a watchfull eye on the small boy. With a curious glance he noticed the boy mimicking him by near plunging his head into the cold water to drink. Looking the boy over he seen the child was still covered in blood. At first he was going to have the child climb into the water and wash himself but the final leg of their journey would see the boy possibly freeze, as the weather was cold and the unprotected flight would not do well for him. After a few moments of letting his wings relax on the ground Taku said to the child "come Eric, lets finish this, i need to get you home so i can finish my hunt". As Taku spread his forepaw out to pick the child up the young child replied "take me with you, i have nobody now". Taku paused as he spread his wing to take flight, then looking down at the boy said softly " I cannot young one, you have no wings to fly and i dont know how to care for your kind. With an angry sulking look Eric huddled himself into a ball as Taku held him close to his chest and launched them skyward, a few wingbeats later they weree clear of the tall trees and headed towards the valley of the humans.

Taku had flown westward towards the ocean then curved north as to avoid taking the human child near his clans valley and avoiding the guarding centuries that protected their valley. As he came over the last hill the winds off the water grew and soon the dragon was just gliding in the currents. As they silently sailed past his home Taku carefully turned his head to not bring much attention to what he was looking at but took the chance to look at his home in the cliff, to see if any had been around there, with a small smile he had found it had still gone unnoticed. As the cliff decended down to the beach and spread out into a valley Taku started to decend with it, he would make his way to the next valley on foot with the boy as the valley just beyond was where the human village was located. As they landed Taku carefully set Eric down, the boy had not said another word since their departure from the stream. Eric's mood had gone unchanged, he still held the angry look on his face, he said nothing as he got up and started walking in the direction the dragon had pointed his village was located.

Just as a kind gesture Taku followed the boy through the forest until he could see the clearing of the human village, then lowered his head and softly said " farewell young Eric, your safe now". As Taku started to turn and leave the boy the young child screamed, a scream of terror. As Taku turned his head to see why the child was screaming he seen two humans that were hiding in the bushes not far away come running in their direction. Looking down at the boy Taku seen the anger in his face and knew why he had done what he did. The dragon began to run away from the boy, and as he entered the trees lept skyward to flee. As the dragon took to the sky h felt a sharp pain in his right hind leg, but did not stop to see what had hit him, he just flapped his wings as hard as he could, angling his way out to the open ocean as to not give his true Destination away.

After what seemed like an eternity of flapping, near to the point of exhaustion the dragon looked back to see what had hurt him. A stick! A stick with a sharp point at the end was protruding from his leg, it had been shot upwards and slid neatly underneath his leg scales. He could feel the hot blood trickling from his leg. The wind whipping across the spear was vibrating into the dragons leg, causing immense pain, but Taku had not stopped to pull it out, he just wanted to fly and hide.

Chapter 5