Chronicles From the End of an Age

The Element Sage - 11Yrs BTA

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Ruban pulled into a gradual dive, slowly descending past the mountains. His deep, sea blue scales glinted in the bright sun like sapphires. Two slightly curved horns adorned his head, and his tail was reminiscent of an eel. The lighter scales of his underbelly were the colour of the shallow sea. His wings were spread wide, but each beat was slow and tired. As he looked down upon the valley, he felt himself smile. After years of searching, he had finally found it.

The valley below was soft emerald green. Great mountains rose around it, shielding it from the worst of the weather. A waterfall fell from one side of the valley, the spray forming a shining rainbow that outlined the beginning of a river that split the valley in two. Ruban spotted hundreds of different animals within the forest below. Herds of deer, families of wild pigs, and he even spotted a large cat with orange fir and stripes stalking along one side of the valley. Fish schooled in the deeper parts of the river, and hundreds of coloured birds screeched through the trees. This had to be the place.

Ruban focused his eyes on the waterfall, searching along the cliff face for a small cave. He found it along a ledge, nearly directly behind the waterfall, like a dark blotch along the otherwise light grey wall. He beat his wings once more, skimming over the tops of the trees and frightening several of the birds below. He absent-minded snapped at one, missing. He wasn't too upset; he wasn't really hungry. He was however incredibly thirsty.

The dragon came in for a landing near the base of the waterfall, where it fell into a wide pool which then flowed into the river. Large stones nearly half his size occupied the bank, all wet and slippery which made it slightly difficult to grip onto as he leaned his head down, pushing his muzzle into the water and gulping it down with deep draughts, echoing relief down his parched throat. He sat back when he felt satisfied, looking around the small pond with a sigh. For once there were no other dragons around to judge his eager drinking. The looks of confusion and sympathy he received from the simple action were always painful.

He sighed as he looked up to the cave, anxiety rushing over him. He was sure he had found the right place. It matched the detailed image that had been placed in his head by a friendly mind dragon several weeks ago. Every question he had asked lead him here, every query, his entire search. But what if it didn't work? What if he didn't find his answer?

He gave a shuddering sigh, turning his head to look up at the cascading waterfall, a longing in his heart. His greatest wish. His one goal. All he had ever wanted for the first eleven years of his life... all he had ever wanted was to be connected to the element of his species. To be connected to the ocean. To pull the power of water from his gullet and out into the air. To be able to breathe in the life of his species. But he had hatched without that connection, hatched as one of the element-starved, or more accurately water-starved. It was a rare occurrence, but he happened to be the one that had landed with it.

But now... now he may have found the one dragon that could help. Ruban looked at the cave again, his conviction returning. If he didn't find the answer here, he could always look somewhere else. There had to be a way of connecting with his element somewhere, and he wouldn't stop until he found it. With a rumble, he gave a wing-assisted jump to land on the ledge leading into the cave. Small droplets of water caught his scales, sliding down in droplets. With his scales, he barely felt them.

As he walked into the cave he was struck with awe once again. The rugged walls were glowing with blue crystals, each giving more than enough light for the young dragon to find his way. The scent of wet rocks followed him into the cave, reminding him of his home, and despite how damp the surroundings were Ruban found it pleasantly warm.