Out of the Desert (Dragonsong)

[Kalak8538]

"Owowow..." said Eihmo'tei as Kiara squeezed him. His entire body was rendered sore from his ordeal. What was probably meant to be a hug felt more like a punishment, with Kiara scolding him with a worried tone.

He sat up, with very little strength to do much else. "Everything... hurts... Just need to sit."

Looking around, Eihmo'tei got his bearings. His unconsciousness left him disoriented, but now he could remedy that. He listened to the rain pound against Kit's wing. Although his head was inside, the Zerdani couldn't help but worry about him.

"Rain is harder here than it is home... Kit, are you alright?"

[DragonSong]

The dragon huffed. "Course I am. It's just a little water." His scales were hard and slick enough that the water sort of bounced off him, but she knew his position couldn't be entirely comfortable.

Kiara smiled at his grandstanding and reached out to pet his nose. He rumbled affectionately and sniffed at Eihmo'tei. "Aside from some pretty nasty bruises, looks like you'll be alright," he said.

The children seemed to relax, shifting slightly so they weren't hovering so much. Then there was a massive crack of thunder and Tala squeaked, launching herself forward into Kiara's arms. The others immediately surrounded her and Eihmo'tei, reaching out for comfort.

"Shh, shh," she soothed, patting the girl's head. "It's just a storm. We just wait it out."

[Kalak8538]

Eihmo'tei was incredulous at first. Kit seemed like he was just being noble. Then again, the scales he was covered in were like stones, and he was very big. Maybe he really had no problem with it. The thunderclap made the Zerdani's hair stand on end. That loud sound replayed the traumatic memory in his mind. He shook out of fear. The fearful faces of the frightened younglings came into view.

"You would make a good dad."

Eihmo'tei had no idea why those words popped back into his head, but he knew what he had to do. He was an adult, and they were younglings. The Zerdani began to rise. He still shook, but not from fear. The soreness made it hard to use his muscles, yet he persevered. Now on his feet, he put his arms around the heads of the young ones around him and brought them close into his chest. He pet their heads, making calm and consoling sounds.

[DragonSong]

The children calmed slowly, wrapping their arms around Eihmo'tei and Kiara and seemingly trying to cling as close to them as possible.

Kiara gave the Zerdani a small smile. She knew he must still be hurting, but he was putting the children's comfort above his own. She nodded at him slightly, petting Perryn's back as he clung to her.

"How about another story?" she asked quietly, hoping to distract their young charges.

[Kalak8538]

Another thunderclap made Eihmo'tei hug the younglings even tighter. He was frightened of it himself. His droopy ears perked up at Kit's translation.

"Ooh! Do you have a story, Kii'arah?" he asked.

This was just the thing that was needed here. Hopefully, it would distract the four younglings from the raging storm outside. The Zerdani was just excited to hear stories of the outside world. He moved around to help his young human friends get comfortable.

[DragonSong]

"Well..." Kiara wrinkled her brow in thought. She tried to recall the stories her mother had told her as a child. "Alright then." She settled back against Kit's side and began to talk.

"Many ages ago, when the world was young, a star fell to earth. He was afraid, because he knew he could not survive outside of the heavens for long. But it just so happened that a human child stumbled upon the place where he fell, and she offered to help him. She took the star in her hands and pressed him to her heart until he became a part of her.

The star was happy. He'd always wanted to see the world he watched from so high above up close, and now he could. For many years he and the girl traveled the world. The girl grew into a woman in this time, and one day she met a young man. They fell in love, and they were happy."

She paused, trying to remember how her mother had told the next part.

"But the star was worried. He could not feel love as mortals did, and he was afraid his only friend may forget about him. So late one night, he let his light fill the young woman and took her with him into the sky. For another while, the girl was happy. She played in starlight and watched the world go by below.

Then she grew sad, knowing her love was missing her, and asked the star to take her home. But stars can be jealous creatures, and he refused. Heartbroken, the girl wept, and her tears became a rainstorm, and then a flood. The water poured from the sky and formed a massive body of water, and in the water her earth-bound love saw her reflection. Thinking he could join her in the new-formed sea, he dove into the water."

Tala's eyes were wide and she drew in a soft breath. Kiara smiled and continued, "Of course he didn't find her there, but he searched for so long that he became a part of the sea and could not leave. He looked up to the sky and saw his love, and he reached for her. Knowing he still wanted her, the girl ceased her crying and began to glow, brighter and brighter until she outshone all the stars around her. She reached for him in turn, knocking stars out of the sky."

She shrugged. "And that's why the ocean has waves, and reaches for the moon when she is full. It's also how we get falling stars, it's the moon reaching out to him."

[Kalak8538]

Eihmo'tei was enchanted by the story. Although it was probably just a legend, the naive little Zerdani took it as a history lesson. The moon had always been an important part of his people's culture. This must have been the reason why they were so drawn to it.

"Ma... Magic? Is that magic? That brought her into the sky? And the light... Is that also magic?"

[DragonSong]

Kiara shrugged again, smiling a little. "Yeah, I suppose it's magic. But that's kinda the point of the story, we can never really know."

"I liked it," Bibi said, snuggling against her side. Tala and Perryn nodded.

"But it was sad," the younger girl added quietly, leaning into Eihmo'tei. "It's sad they can't be together."

Kiara winced. Maybe not her best choice of story. "Well, yes...but like Eihmo'tei said, it's magic. Maybe they can be, somehow..." She trailed off a little awkwardly.

[Kalak8538]

Gently, Eihmo'tei scratched the top of Bibi's head. So that was magic... The Zerdani thought about all the great things magic could do. He thought back to the story. In times when they stared at the full moon, Eihmo'tei, as well as other Zerdani, noticed something about it.

"Kii'arah, does... does the moon have a face? Is it her face, the girl from the story?"

The face was only barely visible on the moon, and some Zerdani had their doubts that it was a face. It was too flat to be a Zerdani's, so maybe it was a human's.

[DragonSong]

"Some people say it is," Kiara responded with a smile. "Some say it's a little old man who lives on the moon and fishes for stars." She shrugged. "It's whichever you want it to be, I suppose."

The rain outside was slowing down, the rumble of thunder more and more distant with every clap. That was one nice thing about plain storms, they tended to blow over fast. She tilted her had back against Kit's flank, looking up at the gold and silver threads through the black expanse of wing that enclosed them.

"Should only be a few more minutes now," she told the others, Kit nodding in confirmation.

[Kalak8538]

Eihmo'tei was not satisfied with that answer. There was a definite answer to that question. One distinct fact. He just could not be happy unless he knew the exact answer.

"Aww... Is there no one that knows?"

If Kiara did not know, maybe she knew someone who did.

[DragonSong]

She arched an eyebrow. "If there ever was, they're probably long dead," she replied. "I personally like the girl in love story." She shrugged. "Mother might have had another version to tell you, but I don't remember it."

The thought made her sad- even so many years later, it still hurt to think of her mother. "Kit, how's it looking out there?" she asked by way of changing the subject.

The dragon withdrew his head, leaving a crack in there shelter through which they could see the gray sky and silvery sheets of rain. There was blue on the horizon though. Kit uncurled slightly, still leaving his wing over them but more like a porch roof than a closed tent.

[Kalak8538]

Eihmo'tei stood up and looked outside. He was careful not to exit, due to the (irrational) fear that the storm could come back. He looked to the cloud-laden sky, still thinking of the moon.

"Maybe we can go there... Kit, can you fly all the way to the moon?"

The Zerdani spoke serenely. He seemed lost in a dream as he said this. Perhaps he was already imagining them going there.

"We can go find out for ourselves..."

[DragonSong]

Kit gave a rumbling chuckle. "I can do a lot of things, little one, but I'm not sure even I can do that."

"So modest," Kiara teased, getting to her feet and arching her back into a stretch. She poked her head out from under the dragon's wing then quickly withdrew it as a few water droplets hit her nose.

"At least the thunder stopped," Tala muttered, coming up beside her. Perryn nodded in agreement.

"I didn't like that part," the boy said quietly. Ras snorted at them and Kiara bit back a smirk; he hadn't been any less afraid than the other three by her reckoning.

[Kalak8538]

"Oh..."

Eihmo'tei seemed downtrodden, looking at the ground rather than the sky. The grasses were thoroughly soaked all the around the group. Still, the Zerdani lacked the confidence to leave Kit's protection.

"Is... Is it safe now?" He asked, looking around.

[DragonSong]

Though she didn't love the idea of getting wet, even the little bit that this drizzle would do, Kiara stepped out from under Kit's wing to show the others there was nothing to be afraid of.

"See, it's fine," she said encouragingly. "Blue skies ahead."

At that moment, the gray sky opened to reveal soft beams of sunlight in an azure field. She blinked and stared upward. "Wow. That was convenient."

Kit snorted in agreement. "Great. Now say "smooth flying all the way to Cerenis. And a whole herd of deer will suddenly appear over that hill"."

She glowered at him, then gestured for the others to come out onto the plain.

[Kalak8538]

Although hesitant, Eihmo'tei stepped out into the open. The desert dweller had no problem with getting wet. The fear came from almost being struck by lightning. Using his very sensitive ears, he scanned around. Any thunder that could be heard was far in the distance now, but even that made the Zerdani double take. Kiara was right. All seemed safe.

"No... no..." He looked for a word, but thought of nothing. Instead, he tried to recreate the sound of the lightning's crack. "No KRRSCH?" Eihmo'tei moved his hands around frantically, to emulate the chaos of lightning striking. 

[DragonSong]

Kiara laughed. She couldn't help herself. Even without Kit's translation, she understood the Zerdani's question.

"No, no more lightning," she assured him, smiling. Then her expression slipped into something more concerned and she added, "We really should take a look at those bruises now that I can see properly." She twisted to fish around in her pack. "I know I have a poultice in here somewhere, it should help with the soreness..."

[Kalak8538]

"No... Lat niin..." he repeated.

The Zerdani was glad that his friends cared so much about his injuries, but they were not very severe, and he did not want to trouble his friends on.

"I will be fine, really. Just need to sit. It will go away soon!"

He claimed his injuries were small, but really, even walking was a bit challenging. He tried his best to tough it out, biting his tongue in his mouth to distract from the soreness.

[DragonSong]

Kiara rolled her eyes and muttered something about men being stubborn idiots under her breath. Putting a hand on the Zerdani's shoulder, she forced him to sit she she could dab the poultice onto his bruises.

"There," she said when she'd finished, leaning back and storing the jar away. "See, that wasn't so awful."

The rain had truly stopped now, and the sun was shining bright again. She shaded her eyes and looked up, judging the time. "We can still cover a good bit of ground today," she decided, standing and brushing herself off. "Come on, you lot, up you go." She set about helping the children up onto Kit's back.