Welcome to my Home! (DragonSong)

[Kalak8538]

Eihmo'tei scrambled after Kiara. He was really just confused about this sudden burst of excitement.

"Slow down. What is happening?!"

The rocky slope was hard on paws that were used to the sand, but the Zerdani refused to be left behind.

[DragonSong]

Kiara waited at the entrance to the small cave for the others to catch up, still smiling slightly.

"What is it?" Ras asked as he came up beside her, eyes wide and curious.

She nodded at the dark hole in the rocks. "Follow me," she said, beginning to wriggle inside. Then she paused, saying to Kit, "I ended up leaving through the back entrance, so to speak. "It's on the other side of the rocks, and it's wider. Try to see if you can fit your head and neck in over there."

The dragon snorted and grumbled something about her going mad with desert heat, but padded away, circling around to the other side of the rocky formation.

[Kalak8538]

The Zerdani allowed the four younglings to enter before him. He would bring up the rear, in case there was trouble.

Finally, there was an up side to being to small. He fit easily into the cave with room to stand. He followed along in single file, wondering what could be here to warrant such strange behavior.

[DragonSong]

Kiara turned the corner and quickly stepped to the side, reaching out to guide Ras- directly behind her- to do the same so the others had room. As the children entered the much larger portion of the cave they gasped.

The walls were covered with tiny, gleaming gemstones that gave off a soft light of their own, illuminating the pool of clear water in the center of the cave. Though mostly silver-white, a few of the stones flickered with deep blues or violets. Their glow seemed to dance, throwing fantastical patterns of shadow and light against the walls of the cave and its new occupants.

It was like standing in the night sky.

"What are they?" Perryn asked softly, eyes wide as he stared around.

Kiara shrugged, grinning. "I'm not actually sure. Some kind of geode, I think. But they may hold magic to keep their glow like this."

[Kalak8538]

Eihmo'tei eventually made it into the cavern. What was inside was nothing he, or perhaps any of his race, had ever seen before. Stones that glow like starlight. Their soft light protested against the darkness that surrounded them. It was a beautiful sight.

"Stars? There are stars here!" the Zerdani wondered aloud.

He went to the wall and began touching some, feeling their coolness. No Zerdani knew what stars really were, but many believed them to be floating stones that reflected the moon's light back to the earth. To Eihmo'tei, this cave may as well have been a section of the sky.

"What are they doing here Kii'arah? How did they get underground?"

[DragonSong]

Kit managed to wriggle his head and neck into the cave, up to his shoulders. Just in time to translate the Zerdani's questions, too.

"I'm not sure," she told him with a smile, delighted by his and the children's amazement. "They're not exactly stars. But they are beautiful, aren't they?"

[Kalak8538]

"So beautiful... Not stars, just rocks? How do they glow like this?

The Zerdani continued to observe them. There was something... special... about them. This glowing did not happen by chance alone. Well, he did not know that for sure. Perhaps glowing rocks were commonplace in the outside world. There was just some... feeling... to them. A feeling the little Zerdani could not describe.

[DragonSong]

"I think it's magic," Kiara answered, reaching out to touch one of the rocks. She had enough magic of her own to know the feeling.

"Yeah." She nodded, pulling her hand away and shrugging. "Some mage or another must have been using these rocks as a place to cast spells, once upon a time. The residual magic trickled down here, and-" She spread her hands to indicate the glittering jewels around them.

Realizing that might not be entirely clarifying for the Zerdani, she got Kit to ask, "Do your people practice magic?"

[Kalak8538]

"Mah... Jiik..." he repeated.

"We do not know this... magic. What is it?"

The Zerdani questioned, yet he did not take his eyes off the shining stones. He could not. They were just too wonderful. His eyes were lit up, reflecting the dim lights that shone all around him.

[DragonSong]

Woof. That was a tall order to explain. "Magic..." She frowned. It would be easier to show him. "Well, sometimes, it lets you do things like this."

Kneeling and making sure she had the Zerdani's attention, she held her right hand out and concentrated. A flame flickered to life above her palm.

[Kalak8538]

Suddenly, the stones were not so hypnotizing.

This fire had come from nowhere, almost instantaneously and without fuel of any kind. Kiara held it over her hand so nicely. This was magic? The ability to make fire from nothing? Kit must have had magic as well. Curious, Eihmo'tei went to poke it, wanting to see if it was real, or just some trick. The claw of his finger did not even come close before he felt the heat. He took back the paw. There was no doubt, it was fire.

"What else can this magic do?"

[DragonSong]

Kiara closed her fist, extinguishing the flame. "Lots of things," she told him, smiling. "I'm not a trained mage, and my only real gift is with fire, so I can't show you much. I'm sure we can find someone who could show you more in Cerenis."

"What else can you do with fire?" Perryn asked, coming up beside her.

She looked up at him, then smiled. Flicking her fingers, she conjured another flame. This time, she sort of molded it into a bird-like shape, then blew. The fire-bird fluttered into the air and circled their heads a few times, then disappeared.

[Kalak8538]

Fire freely flying around the confines of the cave was a bit surprising, and a little terrifying. Eihmo'tei crouched down low to maintain his distance. However, once it vanished, it was exciting. He laughed aloud, and clapped his hands. He almost looked like a toddler getting excited about a new toy.

From what Kiara had explained, that was the least majic could do. It looked like such a great and useful skill to possess.

"How can I learn this... magic? Can you teach me Kii'arah?"

[DragonSong]

Kiara blinked. "Oh, well... It's sort of something you have or you don't, I can't really teach it if you don't have the gift."

But- maybe he did. If the Zerdani didn't practice magic, it was entirely possible there were those with latent power among them. "Here, give me your hand," she said, reaching out to him.

[Kalak8538]

That response made the little Zerdani doubt himself. One either have magic, or does not, and Eihmo'tei did not like his odds. He was hesitant, mainly out of that fear that Kiara would give him bad news. He feared that he did not have magic within him, and would never be able to use magic like Kiara did. He kept his paws back.

Then again, the Zerdani had lived one quarter of his life without magic. He possessed other skills that even Kiara found interesting. Perhaps he did not need it. Perhaps it was just better to know either way. With a sudden burst of confidence, he gave his paws to Kiara, and awaited her findings.

[DragonSong]

Kiara took his paws with a smile. "You know, it's not a big deal if you don't have magic," she assured him, Kit translating. "Oh, and this might feel a little bit strange."

Closing her eyes, she summoned her power and breathed deeply, letting it trickle through her fingers into the Zerdani, searching. After a few moments, she released him and opened her eyes, letting out a long breath.

"You do have magic," she told him with a smile, a little surprised. "It's faint, but it's there. And I'm pretty sure it's elemental, which means I may actually be able to teach you."

"Really?"

"Oh, wow!"

The children's voices overlapped each other as they crowded around, Kit doing his best to translate for Eihmo'tei over the commotion.

[Kalak8538]

Eihmo'tei held his breath, as he braced himself for the outcome. The process made him uneasy. The sensation was not exactly painful or uncomfortable, just... unsettling. His own anxiety added to this, making his stomach knot up. When she released, it took the Zerdani by surprise. This was it. The answer he was anxious about was about to be answered.

He could not understand, but from how everyone reacted, it seemed like he had the gift. It took the little Zerdani some time to process this. His sensitive ears picked up everyone's speech at once. He never heard the exact wording from Kit, but he got excited anyway.

"Is it true? I... I can do magic?!"

There was still a skeptical side to his thoughts, like he had misread his friends' excitement.

[DragonSong]

Kiara laughed, nodding at him and standing. "Yes, you can. I'm not sure how much, exactly, but I'm happy to teach you." Taking another look around the star-strewn cave, she said briskly, "Alright guys, this place isn't going anywhere. Come on, let's make camp."

Kit withdrew his head from the larger back entrance and she followed after, beckoning for the children and Eihmo'tei to come with her.

[Kalak8538]

"Go ahead..." said Eihmo'tei, gesturing everyone to leave.

"There is something I need to do here first..."

He scanned the walls of the cave, then the floor. He appeared to be looking for something.

[DragonSong]

Kiara hesitated, but how much trouble could he really get up to? "Alright, we'll be right outside," she told the Zerdani, ducking out of the cave.

She stepped back into the sunlight, blinking.

"Could you get them off of me?"

Vision clearing, she laughed as she saw what Kit was complaining about. The children had wasted no time in climbing up onto his back, apparently playing some sort of game that involved skipping between the row of spikes that ran down his spine.