Chapter Thirty Six (Patreon)

*****

Chapter Thirty Six

Map

*****

I told the gryphons about the dream while we made our preparations to leave. They listened intently, with few interruptions. While they may not have believed in it on the same spiritual level Nesh did, their unusually subdued nature made it clear they understood its significance to us. Blue Jay admitted he did believe it was Melakar visiting me, though he was less sure about the god. Sparrow listened and considered it all, and then sighed and shook her head when perhaps she thought I wasn’t watching her. I wondered if that meant she believed in it more than she let on. It would have been hard to accept their gods came to visit a ‘demon’.

Not that I could blame her difficulty in accepting it. Even I could scarcely believe that might truly be what happened. Part of me, and not an insignificant part, was already questioning my conclusions. Surely, that little voice said, it wasn’t really a god. It was just a dream, influenced by my talk with Nesh, and my hope to see Melakar again. 

For now, I decided to set the possibility of divine visitation and all its repercussions aside, best I could. After I’d filled the gryphons in on the details, I made it clear I did not wish to spend the rest of the morning discussing it or answering questions. Instead, I thought it best we get under way, and continue our journey as if nothing had changed. 

And in truth, nothing practical had changed. Even if I had witnessed something impossible, even if I had pledged myself to the stars and their divine wisdom, what was I to do? Build them a temple? No, we had a journal to complete, medicine to purchase, allies to make, and an empire to found. If the stars were as real as they seemed the night before, then for now I hoped they’d be content with an offering of blood, and a dragon who was receptive to their song for the very first time. If they wisdom to bless me with, I was happy to receive it, but until then, I had to continue my own plans.

When everyone was prepared, we took to the skies. As we ascended, I found my thoughts drifting to the other two gryphons who were part of Sparrow’s flight. Pidgeon and Cardinal had remained behind in Melakar’s lair, to recover from their injuries. I hated the idea of leaving them there unsupervised alongside their human allies, for so long. While I doubted they’d be foolish enough to steal or damage anything, I could not be certain they wouldn’t try to see what we were hiding from them. With enough effort, the blockades I put up between the main chambers and Melakar’s former private areas could be removed. All I could do was hope that if they decided to break their word and snoop around in Melakar’s possessions, all the clues he’d left behind would help them come to the same conclusion I had. Then again, if they or their human companions worked for the people who shot him down, they might look to destroy the evidence of his endeavors while they had the chance, and deal with the consequences lately. For now, I could do little more than push the thought aside and hope for the best. 

We followed the lake shore in a vaguely southern direction. The further south we flew, the more the lake expanded towards the southwest. Along the way, I pointed out landmarks. A few more smaller forts dotted other rocky islands. A shipwreck jutted from the shallows along the shore. A few little villages filled with various species littered the shoreline and the lands beyond it, as well.

One of the largest such villages was built in a former logging encampment and surrounding village. It sat on both sides of a small river that poured into the lake. Warm springs fed the river in several places, and prevented it from freezing over completely. The old saw mills remained, but the humans who built the place were now long gone. In their place was an assortment of other peoples, a mixture of the lizard-like va’chaak, the sturdy and vaguely wolf-like gnolls, and the smaller urd’thin. It was one of the few places I knew of where all three species lived together in permanent resident. The va’chaak were there first, as far as I knew, seizing the place as fishing grounds once the humans retreated. Groups of nomadic urd’thin merchants used it as a small base of operations, and so some of their people had settled there, as well. As for the gnolls, there were several competing clans, one of which allied with the va’chaak, and in return, kept their warriors present to help defend the village. 

Nesh stared down at the place in fascination as we swept over it. Much of the village was shrouded by a heavy layer of fog that rose from the warm waters into the chilly air. But strings of colorful woven banners and flags strung between trees were still visible. Their myriad hues stood out through the mist. Beads of frozen fog on spindly boughs of dormant trees glittered in the sunlight. Smoke rose from fires in human-built stone buildings now occupied by other species. Several dozen va’chaak waded through waist deep water with fishing nets, their ghostly forms disturbing the white miasma otherwise smothering the river and the village around it. 

“That’s one of the places I will take you for your doctoring services.” I twisted my head around to gaze back at Nesh. “Once we have all the supplies you need. I can think of a half-dozen villages and other places to take you, though that’s just off the top of my head. Some are larger than that, but few others have that mix of species in them.” I gestured back at the village with a paw as we flew away from it. “I used to go there with Melakar, now and then. Fascinating little place. But, I’m afraid…” I tucked my paw up against my chest plates. “That I am at the end of my navigational knowledge.” I slowed my wing beats, giving the gryphons a chance to take the lead. “From here on out, I shall defer to your guidance, Sparrow.” 

“Good, because I definitely know where we are!” Sarcasm hung in her voice. She banked, turning to follow the winding westward path of the nearby waterway. “Let’s follow this river until we stop for lunch. Then I’ll study our maps to make sure I knew which we’re going!”

“That’s very comforting!” I dipped a wing, adjusting my course to follow her. 

“Oh, shut your snout, Dragon!” Sparrow snapped her beak. “I know where we’re going, I’ve just never been in this particular region before. I’d rather be safe than sorry.” 

That was a sentiment I saw no need to argue with. Besides, if I teased her any further I risked humiliating myself. We were now as far from the valley as I had ever been, and with every wing beat, I was flying deeper into unknown territory. Closer to the land of my ancestral enemies. It embarrassed me to realize that these two gryphons had flown much further and seen far more of the world than I ever had, despite the fact I was likely twice their age. 

Hell, in all my life, I had seen little at all of the world beyond my valley. It had never interested me the way it interested Melakar, and as I took up Guardianship, I had few chances to fly far beyond the edges of dragon territory. I spoke several languages with varying degrees of fluency, yet never had I so much as set eyes upon the places they originated from, or the homes of the people who most spoke them. Thinking back, I could not recall flying more than a week outside my valley in any direction, even in my youth, when the humans did not dwell quite so close. 

The truth of it was that even Nesh had seen far more of the world than I ever had, despite living only a fraction of my years. I hadn’t really thought of it that way, and the sudden realization sat cold and hard in my belly, like undigestible food. A strange sort of shame clung to my heart. I believed I knew so much, and yet I had seen so little. Nesh traveled from his home to a great city, and then to the edges of his land and beyond in the service of an army. The gryphons crisscrossed nations and territories on their secretive missions. Melakar had visited more places in the last decade than I ever realized existed. And I? I had seen only the edges of our sacred valley. 

Even my son had now seen places I never had. 

I wondered where Vevorek was now. He told us, before he left, that meant to fly north. But whether he had settled there, I had no way of knowing. Had Melakar been in contact with him? It was impossible for me to say. Perhaps, someday, I would go and visit him. At least…if he would still have me. 

If he was still alive. 

I shivered at the thought. If not for Nesh riding upon my back, I’d have shaken myself in disgust. Of course Vevorek was still alive, I told myself. And one day, I would see him again. For now, I would have to content myself with following in Melakar’s wing beats, with seeing the world as he saw it, and picking up the shattered pieces of his great dream. 

When we landed to rest and eat, Sparrow sent Blue Jay to do the hunting. While he was away, she studied one of the maps we’d brought. I joined her, and asked her to show me our destination, and teach me the lands upon which we gazed. Nesh made tea for us to keep the chill at bay. Sparrow pointed out the names and borders of many different realms. 

“This is your valley, here.” She traced her tan-furred paw across the western region of the map. “And all your mountains, beyond it. Then here…” She moved her paw further north, brushing her pads over an expansive area. “This is Shevar. They border your valley and your territory, as does Diandrios.” She swept her paw southward. “Which occupies all of this land, and also borders your territory.” 

Much of that I already knew, thanks to Nesh and Melakar’s maps. But the broad strokes were about as much knowledge as I had. “Where are your lands? Gryphon lands, I mean. I know you’re from the city, but where is Blue Jay from?”

“This direction.” Sparrow unsheathed a claw tip to circle it around a vast swath of land, well to the east. “Different clans held different parts of the region, once. One clan held this plain, here, a few more dwelled in the marshy lands. Kraas’s people are from these mountains and forests, while mine originally lived in these lower mountains, here.” She drew an invisible line over to a long, but narrow swath of mountains, in what was now listed as part of Diandrios. 

“Is that not where Nesh’s people live?” I clicked my teeth, answering my own question before Sparrow could do so. “Ah, of course. Your ancestors decided to join them before they could conquer you.” 

Sparrow ground her beak, then spent a few moments rearranging the feathers of one of her wings. “Not exactly the way I’d put it, but…perhaps more accurate than I’d care to admit. They needed to build passes through those mountains, to make trade routes to the lands beyond. And they needed the resources held within the stone. And it became clear, even to us, that there were going to be more of them than we could ever slay. An alliance was mutually beneficial.”

“Aside from the part where they took your lands away.” 

“They did not take them away.” Sparrow ruffled herself up, then tapped the map. “There’s a city here. A gryphon city. A city the humans and their knowledge and machinery helped us build.” 

“In exchange for ruling you.” I licked my nose, relenting when I realized I was coming across far more hostile than I’d intended. I wanted knowledge, not an arguement. 

Sparrow sighed, rubbing her beak with a paw. “You’re exasperating, dragon.” 

I shifted my weight, curling my tail around my paws. “I apologize. Please continue.” 

Sparrow canted her head, her crown feathers raised. “You’re apologizing to me? That’s different.” She narrowed her eyes a moment. “What am I missing?” 

I took a deep breath, glancing down at Nesh as he approached with a drinking bowl filled with hot tea. “Nothing. I…did not mean to…imply…” I waved my paw in a circle. “Whatever I’ve implied. Whatever you’ve given up, as a clan, clearly seems to have been worth it, considering how well you’re thriving within the human empire. And I did not wish to argue with you, it’s just…” 

“Ella’s pride tends to take control of her mouth.” Nesh patted my forepaw as he seat the bowl down in front of me. Hot coils of steam wafted from it. “And her heart.” He set his hand against my chest, gazing up at me. “It’s taken her some time already just to come to terms with the fact that dying to keep us out of her valley a little longer isn’t the solution.” 

Sparrow dipped her head. “Understandable. Pride…” She waggled her half-unsheathed claws in the air. “And gryphons…well…we are also prideful creatures.” 

I smirked at her, lifting my frills. “I’ve noticed.” 

“I’m sure you have.” She set her paw back down. “Plenty of us would have rather fought to the death than allow the humans to share control of our land, but…”

When she trailed off, I picked up for her. “They’d have wiped you out, and none of your current kin would be alive today. And eventually, some other clan would have allied themselves with the humans, anyway.” 

“Precisely.” Sparrow picked up her paw again, this time tapping a claw tip against my chest. “Which is exactly what your old mate realized, I suspect. Some day, far from now…you dragons will either be dead and gone, or you’ll be working with some human nation. Better to be serving as their allies, than their pets.” 

I ground my jaws, but did not immediately reply. The very idea left my fire glands tingling, and the bitter taste of unspent fire bile upon my tongue. I’d have incinerated the very concept of being some human’s pet, if such a thing were possible. “I…realize that. As did Melakar. But that is why I need an empire, to force them to make an alliance.” 

“I doubt you’ll force them to do anything, but I know what you mean.” She took the drinking bowl from Nesh when he brought it too her, and sipped her tea. She looked like a pet bird drinking from a water dish, but I decided against pointing that out. “Most of those lands I pointed out are now shared by gryphons and humans, sometimes other species too. Though gryphons remain the dominant population in those areas. Kraas’ homeland, for example, remains almost exclusively gryphon.”

“And the gryphons Melakar met with? Do you know where they dwell?” I tilted my head, staring down at the map. 

Sparrow gave a little chirp. “I think they’re here.” She set her bowl down and pointed out a marker on the map. “But I’d have to read through more of his notes, find the actual clan names and so on. They’re probably connected to Blue Jay’s clan, since he recognized that Mantle.” 

“Wonderful,” Nesh said, his voice flat. He sipped his tea. “They’d best be better behaved than he is.” 

“I wouldn’t count on it.” I curled my tail tip around Nesh’s legs, careful not to trip him up. “Blue Jay’s lived in the city for years. If anything, his wild relatives are probably worse.” 

“Well…” Nesh leveled his stare at me. “At least you’ll fit right in, then.” 

I released Nesh’s legs from my tail, only to coil it around his midsection, instead. “Aww, Nesh, your aggression is getting slightly less passive. I’m so proud of you.” 

Nesh only chuckled and patted my tail. “I suppose they can’t be that bad if Melakar made such a binding alliance with them.” 

“Either that, or he saved their ruler’s child or something.” I mulled it over for a few moments before I returned my attention to the female gryphon sitting near me. “That’s probably enough geography lessons for now. But if you’re willing, I should like your help in learning everything you know about…” I swept my paw over the map. “All this.”

“I’ll do my best.” Sparrow spoke while studying the map. 

“I can help with that, too.” Nesh took another sip of tea, leaning against my tail. “What are you most interested in? The regional geography, or politics? Alliances, rivalries, populations?” 

“All of the above.” I picked up my tea bowl, and drained the warm contents in a long gulp. “I need to know everything.”

Blue Jay soon returned with enough food for us all to eat our fill. By the time we’d finished our meal, Sparrow had plotted a course for us to follow the rest of the way to Tivos. She estimated it would take a few more days flight, but little more than that. We were making good time so far, and as long as we kept up a similar pace, we shouldn’t need to push ourselves any harder. That was good. I did not want to leave Pidgeon and Cardinal in Melakar’s lair any longer than was necessary, let alone the humans. I trusted them even less than I trusted the other two gryphons. At the same time, I did not wish to wear myself out before we had to make the same flight home, either. 

Sparrow took the lead when we returned to the skies, and kept that position for the rest of the day. At first she flew a few wing-lengths ahead of me, only to fall back and fly at my side. “Would you rather I led from your side, or out ahead of you? My instinct is to fly ahead of you, but we mostly kept pace while you led. I do not know what dragon culture dictates, and I do not wish to seem rude.” 

“Fly ahead if you wish, that is fine.” I pumped my wings in steady rhythm, keeping pace with her. “You are more maneuverable than I, so if I need to make sudden course adjustments to match you, it is likely safer for you to fly in front of me. Besides.” I turned my head to flash her a wicked, frills-up smile. “From behind, you do not present an unpleasant view.”

Sparrow gave a musical warble of laughter. “Thank you.” She retook the lead, and as she passed in front of me, flicked her tail and brushed its feathers across my nose. “I shall take that as a compliment, even coming from a demoness!” 

I nipped at her feathers just before they were out of reach. “As you well should!” 

“Wait a second!” Blue Jay dipped a wing, flying up alongside me as Sparrow moved away. “You get to tell her she’s got a nice ass, but if should do the same, I get yelled at?” 

Sparrow called back to him, her voice drifting on the winds. “If you put it the way she did, people might not yell at you so often!” 

“She has a point, bird.” I snapped my teeth at Blue Jay as he drifted away, then glanced back at Nesh. “I hope you’re taking notes on how to talk to a female.” 

Nesh leaned against my neck, adjusting his flight goggles. “Actually, I don’t think human women would appreciate being told either of those things.” 

By the time the sun was setting, we were flying over a great swath of flat lands than we had at any previous point in the journey. Though the valley floor was quite low and even, it was enclosed by distant mountains. Here, there were a only a few vague, rounded hills to break up the vast monotony of snowy plains and barren, slumbering forests. The snow base was thinning out, as well. Though the air had not noticeably warmed, it was clear enough that we were heading into lands were the winters were a little less harsh. 

Since there were no caves or ruins to avail ourselves of, we had to make do with spending the night out in the open. We picked the top of a small hill, and Nesh and I worked to clear away all the snow from a section of frozen earth. Sparrow took a turn to do the hunting for us, and Blue Jay worked to gather firewood. We met the encroaching darkness with fire, and the gathering cold with warmth. We chatted around the flames for a bit, until the day’s fatigue caught up with us and we let the fire die.

With no shelter, we relied upon the gryphon way of doing things, and their enormous white blanket. Sparrow and I spread it out upon the ground, where the flames had chased off the worst of the chill. When it was ready, I held up a corner with one forepaw.

“Alright, Pillow.” I waved for Blue Jay to head in under the blanket. “You first.” 

“Oh, no.” Blue Jay glared at me. “We’re not going back to that Pillow nonsense. Blue Jay’s bad enough.”

I only tossed my head. “Just get in there, Pillow. Then I’ll settle against you, and we’ll call the others in. After all, you’ve fur and feathers enough to insulate you from the cold ground, and I haven’t.” 

“So does Avalek!” He stomped a forepaw, wallowing in his own obstinance. 

“Yes, but she’s half your size. I’d squish her.” I lowered my head to bump his beak with my nose. “You, I can lay on just fine.” 

Sparrow hissed at him from across the blanket. “Just get inside, Kraas. It’s cold out here without the fire!” Her feathers were all puffed up against the cold.

I smirked at Blue Jay. “You heard her, Pillow.”

“Oh, very well.” Blue Jay heaved an exaggerated sigh. As he wriggled in under the blanket, he called back to me. “But keep calling me Pillow, and I’m going to nip you in your sleep!”

“You do, and I’m going to squeeze something exceedingly tender in your sleep.” Once the gryphon was inside, and laid down, I followed him. I flopped down partly against his back, ignoring his grunt of protest. “Besides, all this cuddling for warmth was started by you gryphons anyway.” 

Blue Jay wriggled under me. “We cuddle against one another, not atop each other!”

“Close enough.” Once I was comfortable against the warm gryphon, I lifted my wing for Sparrow to come and settle herself beneath it. “Your turn, Sparrow. Nesh, you’re after her.”

Sparrow crawled in behind me, and flopped down against my side. Her weight was not at all uncomfortable, and more important, her warmth was quite welcome. Other than inconveniencing Blue Jay, I had a more selfish reason for this arrangement. Snuggled between two gryphons simply seemed like the warmest way to spend a cold night. As long as I trusted them now, I may as well make use of all those feathers. 

I lifted a foreleg. “Alright, Concubine, I’m ready for you.”

“That makes one of us, then.” Nesh chuckled to himself as he joined us, dragging his bedroll in. He clambered into it, then settled himself down near my chest, under the protection of my foreleg. “Just no one step on me if you’ve got to get up in the night.” 

“Speak for yourself.” Blue Jay gave an irritable chirrup. “I can’t get up, even if I need to. At least not until this exceedingly heavy dragon gets off of me.” 

“Now, now,” Nesh said, patting the back of my paw. “That’s hardly the way to earn her affections.” 

“You’re the concubine,” Blue Jay said, his voice a soft mutter. “Maybe I ought to be trying to earn your affections.” 

“There’s a sight I’d find awfully amusing.” I lay my head down, smiling. “But then again, I’d also find it amusing to see Nesh kick you right in the-”

“If it’s all the same to both of you,” Nesh said, cutting me off. “I’d rather go to sleep then do either of those things.” 

“As you wish, Nesh.” I lifted my head and curled my neck enough to bump Blue Jay, Sparrow, and finally Nesh with my nose, all in turn. “Good night.”

The next day we were back in the sky shortly after dawn. The closer we were getting to our destination, the greater the urgency to reach it. Not that I was excited to visit a human city. I’m not sure any of us were looking forward to this, save perhaps Nesh. If anything, the closer we drew to Tivos, the more anxiety’s cold fingers twisted my belly. Never in all my life had I dared venture to any human settlement larger than small, nomadic villages. Now here I was, flying towards the home of my enemies, a place I could not help but imagine was well prepared to blast dragons from the skies. I just wanted to get it over with. 

I told myself that after I’d visited them the first time, all the rest would be easier. Once I knew what to expect, I’d be better prepared for my next visit to their lands, to their cities. But that didn’t make it any easier for me to convince myself everything was going to be alright. I already knew I was going to be on edge for a while. I’d just have to resist the urge to shred or incinerate all my perceived enemies before they could train their cannons and other fire-belching weaponry on me. 

For the time being, I tried not to think about it. I distracted myself with idle conversation while we flew, talking with both Nesh and the gryphons. We spoke of random topics, from human foods the gryphons enjoyed, to the weather and climate of the lands we were entering, to the sort of leisurely activities we might each enjoy when the summer heat returned to bake the lands. The gryphons and I were both surprised to discover the other enjoyed swimming. Nesh, meanwhile, preferred to sit alongside the water with a book. 

Nesh and Melakar would have made fast friends, I was certain.

When conversation faded, I studied the landscape. The land remained mostly flat as far as I could see, a stretch of frozen plains and winter-barren forest larger than any single flat area within the scope of our valley. In the distance, I sometimes spotted great herds of prey breasts browsing through the snow and amidst the dormant trees. Some of them were familiar to me. I recognize some deer and elk species. They had also antelope I was less familiar with, a bit larger than those of the mountains. We even fly near a herd of immense beasts with shaggy brown fur, and small horns. Some of them looked as large as Sparrow, at least from a distance. I decided against telling her that. 

As the morning progressed into afternoon, the snow cover faded away. First the thinning snowpack was visible only as bits and pieces of dead grass and brush poking through it. Then there were patches of dark ground visible from the sky, amidst the ocean of white. Little by little those patches grew and grew, until they overtook the land. Then, it was the whiteness that was patchy. Bits of lingering snow cover mottled the brown earth and dead grass, giving the ground below us a strange, uneven patchwork appearance. 

By the time we landed for the evening, the snow was gone completely. The air did not feel much warmer, but it was nice not to have to dig through snow just to make a spot to sleep. We made our camp out in the open again, with a small fire to keep the chill away and warm the land upon which we’d lay. Nesh shared the last of his tea with us, under pretense that he could buy plenty more of it once we were in Tivos. I was fine with that. While we had brought a considerable amount of coin and other valuables from Melakar’s hoard with us, I didn’t have the first clue what to spend it on. I wanted to be able to buy all the medical supplies we could carry, but after that, I’d let Nesh purchase whatever else he wished for himself. Tea, treats, clothing, books, hell, he could even purchase himself weaponry if he wanted. I knew he wouldn’t, but I’d have allowed him just the same. 

The next morning began with a warning from Sparrow. She sat on her haunches, with her map unfurled before her, waiting till we’d all gathered around. Once she had our attention, she fixed her gaze on each of us, one at a time. “We should be there by late tomorrow morning. Which means today, we’ll be crossing territory claimed by both Diandrios, and Shevar.” She traced a claw along a winding river on the map. “Now, a bit further southwest, this river marks the official border. We’re heading here.” She tapped a city marker, south of the river. “To Tivos. But all this…” Sparrow circled a wide swath of map. “Is contested.” 

“That’s putting it politely.” Nesh folded his arms, glancing up at me. “It’s a frontier, where people with ancestry from both countries and their various regions live. Simple villages and such, mostly. They usually get along just fine, but…both our leaders and theirs say the land and its associated resources belong to them. Hell, even that official border has been contested in the past.” 

“So you’re squabbling over a section of land, and ignoring those who actually live there.” I scratched my neck with a wing tip talon. “Much like what I suspect you’ll soon be trying to do to our valley.” 

Sparrow clicked her beak for my attention. “You can comment on the way the world works later. This is mostly for your benefit, dragon, it’s just a reminder for the rest of us. Military presence, from both sides, is low. Mostly because neither side wants to risk doing something the other considers a serious act of war. So for the most part, the armies stay out of the middle of the contested areas.” 

“Let’s be honest with her.” Blue Jay shifted a wing to brush it across mine. “As far as contested areas go, the current focus is on your valley and the lands beyond it. There’s far more land to claim, more important trade routes through the mountains, and far more resources there than there are out here. That’s also where both countries can potentially expand their own borders considerably. The area we’re about to past through is also governed by a truce that limits the number of troops, artillery, and so on that each side can position in this area. There’s no such truce for the larger frontiers that encompass your valley.” 

Nesh crouched down before the map, tracing his fingers across the vast swath of land that was the Valley of Gods Blood and Earth Flame. “You know, Ella, a long time ago, this whole part of the map would have just said, ‘Beware: Dragons’. Trade and travel alike were routed far, far around any place known for dragons, or monsters. But…it’s been a long since they’ve printed that on this part of the map.” He stood back up, putting a hand on my foreleg. “The more clear it became that they weren’t many of you left to threaten our outposts and encampments, the more troops they moved out there. Now both countries are racing to try and claim as much of that land as they can, and to fortify it well enough to hold those claims.”

I growled at the thought, thumping my tail. “Which is why most of your army is there?” 

“Not most.” Blue Jay chirred, flattening his crown feathers back. “But certainly a sizable contingent. With more on the way. More than Shevar can spare, or so goes the theory.” Blue Jay waggled a paw. “They’ve outpaced us in weaponry and technology, but we’ve more people.” He set his paw back down. “None of that’s especially important right now. What matters right now, to us, is that the areas we’ll be passing through risk a higher chance of test provocations, or retaliations.”

“Why is that?” I licked my nose, glancing down at Nesh. Nesh only shrugged, and Sparrow picked up for Blue Jay. 

“Because, with fewer troops out here, there’s less risk of things spiraling out of control.” She stretched a wing, preening it, then spat a loose feather near the map. “If you want to send a message, do you fire a cannon at a single squad of soldiers on patrol near your own lands, or do fire at entire regiment? If you want to retaliate for some skirmish but don’t want to escalate it further, do you send a armed sky-crawler to lob a few shells onto the farms outside a village, or do you bombard a military camp crawling with soldiers?” 

“I suppose that makes sense.” I arched my neck. “In our history, when we squabbled with other clans, or with gryphons, it was often preferable to limit bloodshed to just a few feuding dragons, or small flights designated warriors, sent to battle each other. Helped to keep the entire clan from devolving into war.” 

“Exactly.” Sparrow clicked her beak. “Neither Diandrios nor Shevar is ever likely to back down from one another, but both are willing to accept limited skirmishes with controlled losses, along a contested border in place of open war.” 

“Controlled losses.” Nesh’s face twisted into a scowl, and disgust dripped from his voice. “Limited skirmishes. I hate those terms. Tell the mother who lost her son to some battle that only lasted an hour that it was a ‘limited’ skirmish. Or, tell the boy who lost his father to some…” He waved his hand, spitting. “Retaliatory shelling, that it was ‘controlled loss’. The whole idea makes me sick.” Nesh folded his arms, his jaw clenched. “I worked some of those, you know. Had to amputate some poor village’s legs, you know. You think he has happy to give them up just so our militaries can continue their…their ‘limited’ skirmishes, in the name of preventing a greater war?” He sighed, shaking his head. “Poor bastard.” 

I curled my foreleg, and pulled Nesh against me in a hug. “At least he had you there, to save him. Better to lose his legs than his life.” 

Nesh hugged my leg, sighing again. “I know, but…sorry. I sort of…went off on a tangent, I realize.” 

“Nothing to be sorry for.” Blue Jay padded over and put a hand on Nesh’s shoulder. “I don’t think anyone likes the idea, but the dragon’s right. Without people like you, the losses would be even greater.” 

Nesh offered the gryphon a grateful smile, patting his paw. 

I held Nesh against me for a few more moments, contemplating his quiet strength. Somehow, Nesh kept finding new ways to impress me. I already knew what he did for his army, that he practiced medicine, and closed wounds, and tried to save lives after battle. He’d even tried to save those who had died fighting me. I knew their deaths still weighed heavily on him. I feared he believed himself a failure for his inability to save any of them, even if he had absolved me of my part in it. He understood why I’d killed them, just as I understood why they were trying to kill me. 

But this was one of the first times I’d heard him speak of something so specific, so visceral. The first time I’d really considered the kind of horrible things Nesh had done just to save lives. I forced myself to try and imagine him in that role, soaked in blood, sawing some poor screaming human’s mangled legs off just to save his life. The idea made me cringe, my ears flattened back and frills low. It reminded me far too much of Melakar’s last moments, and the final breaths of other dragons I’d seen slain in my younger days. 

I struggled to put myself in Nesh’s place. If another dragon had their paws blown apart, if the only option was to remove their limbs to save the dragon’s life, would I be able to do so? I told myself I would, and yet, I had never faced a decision quite so horrific. What if, later, you realized another way to save them? Did Nesh ever fear he’d taken that man’s legs mistakenly? I did not know, nor did it seem right to ask him. Yet if he ever wished to speak of such things, I would happily listen. 

For now, I simply hugged him tighter against my chest. “You’re a good person, Nesh. Don’t ever forget that.” 

“I…well…” Nesh returned my hug best he could, clearing his throat a few times. “Th-thank you, Ella.” 

After our hug ended, Sparrow gestured at her map. “I think you get the idea. Just remember, we’ll be flying over potentially dangerous lands. I’m going to keep us as far from the villages and towns as I can. Ella, I’d like you to fly between Blue Jay and I. We’ll keep a safe distance, and I’ll call out any course corrections in advance. But I want it to look like you’re in formation with us. Should be a little safer that way.” She held up her paws, her pads towards me. “Now, I don’t actually expect us to have any trouble, or be in any danger. But, I’d rather operate out of an abundance of caution, than overconfidence.” 

“I agree.” I gazed down at her map after releasing Nesh from my grasp. “Show me our route.” 

Sparrow traced a claw tip in a line across the map. “We’ll pass by a few frontier villages, and then a few border villages. They’ll be in sight, but that’s about it. I don’t want to get too close. Then we’ll land here.” She tapped the parchment. “The land gets more rugged, and we should find some shelter. It’ll make a good staging point to plan our approach to Tivos. It’s the largest city in this region. It’s become a resource and trade hub, of sorts, but I’ll spare you the details of our trade partners.” 

“I appreciate that. It’s too early in the day for my brain to go numb.” I pushed myself to my paws. “Ready when you are.”