CHAPTER ONE

The late evening sun found the Durian wilderness suspended in an apprehensive silence. Birds, who had twittered pleasantly moments earlier, now perched in silence, awaiting something to release them from their stillness. Their release came in the form of a thundering roar shattering the silence. As one the birds took to the safety of the sky, calling fearfully to one another in their escape from the area.
Again the dragon’s roar bellowed, heard clearly even above the thundering rush of the waterfall that cloaked her den. Dragon hunters had gathered in front of her cave, armed with swords, spears, shields and as many other weapons as they possessed.
But still the dragon, Dalinqa, remained in her den, aggressively swaying from side to side. Maternal instincts had not allowed her to abandon her nest and so she stayed, emerging from the watery abode with all her fiery wrath directed at the men. The roars of a Mother’s fury were heard for miles around as she fought valiantly to protect her den and the life inside.
Shouted orders answered the dragon’s every cry. Soon the ground where her acidic blood fell was burnt and nearby trees smoldered from her flames. The dragon’s cry echoed through the air, this time her roar was filled with despair and pain, instead of fury. Everything was silent for a moment before a tremendous triumphant cry came from the dragon hunters as the brown dragon fell.
A few miles to the north a solitary traveler looked in the direction of the desperate cry. He frowned sadly, pausing the preparations of his camp long enough to listen. The roar woke within him a sense of loss and regret which he could not place. For a long while he listened to the silence of the forest, imagining in his mind’s eyes the brilliant battle of the prideful dragon. He stirred from his thoughts to tend to his camp before darkness set in and found him without a fire.
Another observed the battle between men and beast. From inside the den, among the embers of an old fire a fortnight old hatchling stirred. The dragonlet watched the fight through the veil of water. Both the movements of her dam and the men became confused blurs but the young dragon knew her Mother’s failure as her cry echoed in the cavern. The young dragon stood as the call echoed and a vision came to mind, carried on her Mother’s cry.
Closing her eyes, the young dragon saw with her mind’s eye, a dark tunnel extending before her. White flames danced along the walls, casting eerie patterns of flickering light on the surrounding walls. The tunnel stretched far ahead into blackness but beyond that the dragonlet sensed coldness and grave purpose. Some deep understanding passed to her in that momentary vision, she knew she had to find what lay beyond the tunnel. She opened her eyes and found her warm den surrounding her again.
Ryth.
The word echoed in the hatchling’s mind with her Mother’s dying call. The small creature called back, desperate to know her Mother’s reason for calling her elder son’s name but the dragonlet’s cry was lost among the cheering. Not daring to call for her Mother again the small dragon crawled from the coals. She crept along the edge of the pool and out of the empty den. Staying close to the rocks, the young dragon passed unnoticed by the men, her blackened scales camouflaging her as the sky darkened. A clumsy gallop carried her to the safety of the forest and she passed into the shadows there, looking back for the first time.
The men had gathered around the body, dressed in armors made of dragon hide and scales. Setting aside their weapons, they began the laborious task of harvesting trophies from the dragon’s body.
Watching the men work, the young dragonlet stifled the call for her Mother to rise and send the men away, sensing that in doing so would bring trouble upon herself. So she turned, fleeing into the vastness of the unknown forest.

Later that night, found the dragonlet alone in the forest. As the cold seeped into her she began to slow but still she pushed on. The night was young but already the dragon felt frozen, her body slowing as she left the warmth of her nest behind. Desperately she searched for warmth now before the cold claimed her as the second victim of the night.
Creeping around a tree the dragonlet spied the coals of a fire and crept closer. The embers were cool as she crept into them, only mildly warmer then the air around them. Disappointed she moved closer to the shape by the cold fire, sensing warmth. Pushing beneath the blanket she crouched there, relaxing as she began to warm.
The man beneath the blanket did not seem so eager to share his bed however. He threw the blanket off himself as he felt a creature curl against him and rolled away, taking hold of his sword as he straightened. His keen eyes pierced the darkness, seeking whatever animal had invaded his camp. At first his eyes were deceived and then he picked out the pale blue of her eyes followed by the rest of her black form.
The young dragonlet cried out first in protest as the source of her warmth moved away and then again as she recognized the danger before her. She pressed closer to the blanket which still held his comforting warmth as she watched him fearfully.
Astonished by his find the man lowered the blade, setting it on the ground beside him and shifting into a crouching position as he recognized the creature as a dragon. He sat motionless for a long while, regarding the beast. He recalled the cry he had heard earlier in the evening and looked at the hatchling with new sympathy. As he moved towards her she shied away from him.
“Come now, little dragon. I will not harm you.” He extended a hand to the dragon.
The dragon studied him and deemed him safe after a long moment. She crept towards him and touched his hand lightly with her nose, taking in his scent. There was something comforting about him and she moved steadily closer.
“I’m not so bad, am I?” The man said, smiling slightly as let her inspect him. “I expect it is little use to you, but my name is Talon.” He rested a hand on her head to find her surprisingly cool to the touch. “You must be cold little one, if you would choose a human to stay warm with.”
Moving slowly he reached past her and picked up a stick to wake the fire. Adding more wood to the coals a flame flickered into life and grew as it caught hold of the wood. From the edge of the firelight a horse shifted, stamping its hoof.
“Hush, Lanyen. All is well.” Talon said softly and the Friesian stallion settled again. He smiled a bit, studying the young dragon. “Pay no mind to Lanyen. He is a brave honorable horse, but restless when he is not moving.” He spoke affectionately of the stallion, as he glanced in the horse’s direction.
Talon caught hold of the hatchling as she advanced closer to the flames, drawn by its warmth. “Be careful young one. I doubt even your kind have scales tempered to handle fire directly.” As he pulled his hand back, the soot covering her scales wiped off, leaving his hand black and revealing white scales underneath.
He reached for the blanket and brushed it over her, smiling a bit as he looked at her white scales glimmering in the firelight. She patiently stood as he cleaned her off until she stood by the fire, her true coloration standing out in the night. Talon sat back, smiling slightly in the firelight.
“I never would have thought you would be white under all that ash.” He smiled a bit and pulled his bag towards him. “Now I bet you are hungry.” Talon reached into his bag and pulled out some dried meat. Tearing off a piece he held it out to her.
She approached and sniffed the meat and then swallowed it in one bite, her teeth grazing his fingers. Talon winced and held another piece out to her. She took it gracefully, being careful to avoid his fingers this time.
After she had eaten her fill he smiled and tucked the food back into his bag. Lying down again by the fire he watched her. Ambling over to him she regarded him with a trusting look in her eyes.
I am Nywin. A soft warm voice spoke in his mind, catching him off guard.
“You speak?” He said in momentary surprise and then feeling foolishly as if he should have guessed that she could.
Of course. She responded pridefully, earning a smile from Talon. But how is it that you understand dragonspeak? I thought all men had forgotten how to listen to my kind.
Talon watched her, his expression surprised. “I did not know it was such a skill, perhaps I just listen better than most?”
Perhaps, but I am glad I found a human who understands our language.  Nywin replied.
“Well then Nywin, welcome to our humble camp.” Talon said resting his head on his hand, with a content smile.
Nywin crawled into the crook his arm closest to the fire. She fell asleep there, her stomach full and feeling warm for the first time since leaving her nest of coals. They both slept peacefully, content with their new companion.