Ankoubis

The morning started like any other. The sun rose in the east, the morning dew glistening as the world was woken gently by the warmth of the celestial body. The beasts of the ground stirred, venturing forth once more in their never-ending pursuit of food. The creatures of the air took to the skies as they sought their prey, their offspring left behind to wait patiently for any success. The forests sighed and groaned as the winds coursed through them, breathing life into them once more. Wide open land dotted with forests and woodlands covered the lands to the west as far as the eye could see. To the north, the silhouette of the mountains loomed ever present, and to the south lay the swamps and desert lands. Rivers and streams filled with all manner of life carved their way across the land, starting their journey in the mountains and hills and ending in the oceans.

Ankoubis always relished the feeling of the wind beneath his wings. Though his home was in the mountains, he felt true belonging when he took the skies. Each day he explored the world he existed in, finding something new on each trip. This day was like any other, or so he thought.

This day he chose to fly closer to the ground over the forested lands to the south, the tips of the trees brushing against his clawed feet. Birds and beasts fled in all directions as he flew past them - they were unfamiliar with dragons in this part of the world. The few remaining were in the north, preferring the colder climate. He chuckled to himself; the northern creatures do not flee like these do.

Coming across a stream, he landed to quench his thirst. The water was cold and fresh. He drank deeply, feeling it run down his throat, cooling his body. As he finished, he heard rustling behind him. Turning around, a small creature burst through the undergrowth panting heavily. The creature, what looked like a child, froze as it looked up to meet his eyes. A moment later, three other beasts burst through. The child turned around to look at the newcomers. They stopped in the tracks to look the dragon in the eye, a low growl emanating from their core. They had short, thick snouts with a rounded bulge towards the end. Large yellow eyes peered forward, looking hungrily at the child.

The child, terrified, ran towards the dragon, taking cover behind his front leg. The creatures growled louder, spreading out and approaching Ankoubis. This poor child is terrified, he thought, very well, he’ll not be eaten today. He lowered his head and neck, so it was protecting the child, and growled threateningly at the beasts. One of them started to run at him but stopped only a few steps after it started as the dragon snapped his jaw at it. Backing off quickly, it began circling him closer to the river. As he turned his head to track him, one of the creatures started sprinting towards the child. He turned his head back towards the attacker and grabbed at it with his free leg, catching it mid leap. He began squeezing as the beast let out a pained howl. He threw it at the one circling him, knocking them over with a loud crack, followed by a yelp. Turning his head to the last one, he roared, spreading his wings, and positioning himself on all fours, preparing to incinerate this remaining one. The creature roared in return before turning and retreating through the undergrowth. The other two escaped in a different direction, limping heavily, leaving a trail of blood behind them.

Once he was sure they were gone, he relaxed and lay back down. The child was still hiding behind his front leg, but with a smile across its face. Now that he got a better look, he realised it was a Dracoduat child. Lizard-like beings that had come into the world sometime after the dragons. He was dressed in well-worn clothing that had slashes and holes in it. Around his waist was a small leather belt which had a little stone knife sticking out of it. He brought his head down to the child’s eye level and spoke.

“Are you alright little one?”

The child nodded, coming out from his hiding spot.

“What were you doing out here? Are you alone? Where’s your mother?” he asked.

The child shook his head, pointing back through the bush he had burst through. “Home” it squeaked.

The dragon chuckled, still very young. “Come on, I’ll take you home. But you will have to lead the way, okay?”

The young Dracoduat smiled, nodding enthusiastically.

“What is your name, little one?”

“My name is Inku,” she said, pointing to herself. “What’s your name?”

“My name is Ankoubis. It is nice to meet you Inku.”

Inku began leading him back through the forest. The trees were fortunately not too dense, and he was able to walk through relatively comfortably. Eventually they came upon a dirt path that looked like it had been used frequently.

“What are those?”

“These are my wings.”

“What do they do?”

“They help me fly.”

Inku looked at them in wonder, “how can you fly? You’re so big!”

He laughed, “I’m afraid I do not understand why. I just know I can.”

“Can I fly?

“I don’t think so little one, you don’t have any wings.”

“Aww, why not? Can I have your wings?”

He laughed again, “Mine do not come off unfortunately, otherwise I’d happily show you how to use them.”

“What are you?”

“I am a dragon.”

“What’s that?”

“Well, that’s me” he said, raising himself proudly and puffing out his chest.

“Where is your home?”

“A long way from here, in a cave in the mountains.”

“What’s a mountain?”

“It’s a big rock that sticks into the sky.”

“We have one of those, but it wouldn’t fit you.”

“No? You’ll have to show me when we get there then.”

After some time, they arrived at a small village. The huts were constructed of mud, with thatched rooves keeping the occupants safe from the elements. Inku started running towards the huts shouting “Mum, mum! Look what I found!”

An adult Dracoduat emerged from one of the huts and ran towards Inku. Hugging her tightly, she drew away and started scolding her.

“How many times have I told you not to run off on our foraging parties? The Enckhar’s could have eaten you!”

“It’s okay mummy, my friend saved me, he scared them off so good!”

“Which friend?” As she said that, she looked up behind her daughter and saw him. Her eyes widened and shouted “Help! We’re under attack!”

Dracoduats emerged from the other huts armed with crude spears and axes, shouting their war cries. Ankoubis prepared to defend himself but felt guilty as he did. Why? Surely, they know they wouldn’t stand a chance. He lowered himself to the ground and growled fiercely, he didn’t want to fight them, their deaths would mean nothing.

An arrow flew towards his shoulder, whistling through the air. It struck his scales and glanced off into the forest behind him. Three spears came next, one aimed at his other shoulder, the other two aimed at his head. Dodging the first two with ease, he caught the third spear in the air with his teeth. Staring at the oncoming warriors he snapped it and snarled, stopping them in their tracks. He could tell they were weighing their options carefully.

“Die foul beast!”

He turned his head towards the sound. A young warrior, wielding a stone hammer with both hands rushed him from the forest nearby. Before the dragon could react, the warrior smashed the hammer into his forearm, landing with a loud crack.

Ankoubis roared in pain as he pulled his arm away. He could feel one of his bones had been broken. Reaching out with his other hand, he ripped the weapon from the warriors’ hand and threw it. It sailed through the air, smashing through one of the huts, collapsing most of the structure. He picked up the warrior and brought him to eye level. He opened his jaw and roared as he prepared to release the inferno deep within him. The warrior was thrashing furiously, struggling to release himself from Ankoubis’ iron grip as he stared down his throat.

“Stop!” a voice thundered from the crowd.

Ankoubis paused for a moment. That voice was too loud to have been natural. He could hear Inku screaming, tugging on her mother’s clothes saying, “don’t hurt him, he’s my friend!” He looked around for the voice in the assembled crowd, who had their weapons raised hesitantly, though they refused to take their eyes off him.

For what felt like an eternity, there was a silent stalemate. The warriors exchanged glances between each other and the dragon, unsure of what was going to happen next. Barely a muscle moved. From a hut near the back of the village, a figure stepped out and began pushing through the crowd. This being was not a dracoduat, that much was clear. Long red hair flowed down from her head, tied off in several braids. Ears that were slightly pointed poked through the folds of her hair. Her tanned skin was smooth and clear, with barely a mark against it. She was wearing a green linen shirt, with a leather belt hanging from her him carrying an assortment of items, most interesting of which was a quill. As she walked through the crowd, she put her hands on the weapons the warriors carried, lowering them gently. Her piercing green eyes never left Ankoubis’ gaze. The warrior in his grasp continued to struggle, though Ankoubis took no notice of him.

“Please, put him down.” She said in a calm but authoritative voice.

“Why would I do that?” he replied, irritated.

“Because there is no need for anyone to die.”

“He attacked me, I believe I am owed it at the very least.”

She looked at his forearm, which he was holding off the ground limply. “Is your arm broken?”

He looked down at it, wincing slightly, then back to her. “Yes.” He grumbled.

“Well then, let me offer a compromise. You release him, and I will heal your arm.”

“And how do you propose to do that?”

“Magic, naturally.”

Ankoubis was taken aback, “you can wield magic?”

“I can, let me show you.”

As she neared the dragon, one of the warriors wielding an obsidian club stepped in front of her. A necklace of teeth jangled quietly around his neck.

“What are you doing?” he snarled at her.

“Calming the situation. What does it look like?” She replied without breaking eye contact with Ankoubis.

“Why? If we let him go, he will bring the Enckhar’s back with him!”

“Does he look like an Enckhar?”

“He looks like their leader! Look at those evil eyes and the teeth! The only difference are the wings!” He shouted, looking around to the rest of the group.

Inku came running through the warriors to stand next to the stranger, angry tears rolling down her cheeks. “He saved me from the Enckhar’s. He said he is a dragon.”

“She’s right. He is no more an Enckhar than you are a rattler.” She smiled. Some of the warriors gasped and laughed quietly to themselves. Clearly it was some form of insult, though the dragon was unsure of the context.

Ankoubis saw the chief’s muscles tense as he moved to raise his weapon, his face filled with rage. He saw the strangers’ eyes glowing with a maroon rage that he had never seen. In his head he heard a voice. You will calm you and your warriors down. The voice matched the voice of the stranger, though the tone was far more terrifying. In the blink of an eye, the chief’s muscles had relaxed.

“Lower your weapons, Balagan says he’s safe.”

The warriors looked around at each other once more, confused at the sudden change in heart of their chief. They lowered their weapons slowly, but not fully, still weary, but ready. Ankoubis could see the chief struggling to break whatever held him, though he didn’t know what it was.

“Now” the stranger said, “please put down Agius. He really doesn’t need his ribs broken any further.”

Ankoubis looked at the warrior in his grasp, who had stopped struggling and started to pale. He lowered the warrior slowly, who limped back slowly to the crowd holding his ribs. Two warriors dropped their weapons and assisted him off to one of the huts at the back of the village.

“Wonderful, your arm please.”

Wearily, he placed his arm on the ground, hissing as it made contact. Inku walked just behind this Balagan, looking worriedly at him.

“Well, it’s definitely broken.” She said, running her hands along the length of his arm, inspecting the damaged area. “I must admit, I’m surprised it did break. It must’ve been quite a hit.”

“It was.”

“Is he going to be, okay?” Inku asked, sitting on his other hand, her legs dangling above the ground. She looked up at him with a look of concern.

“He will, he’s much stronger than you think.” She smiled; a charming smile altogether different from the smile she gave the chief a moment ago.

She began uttering words in a language he was unfamiliar with. There was a rhythmic chanting to it, the same phrases repeated several times. Her eyes were closed as she ran her hands along the wound. As she chanted, he could feel magic coursing through the ground and in the air. The scent of sage and lavender filled his nostrils as the magic focused to a point. The stranger changed her words as he felt the bones in his arm crack once more. He let out a sharp hiss but did not move. The sensation he experienced was unlike any other. His skin crawled as it returned to its normal shape. The muscles and sinew underneath healed with waves of sharp pain. His bones ground against each other as they fused back together.

Lifting her hands from his forearm, she stepped back and opened her eyes to look at her work. His arm was completely healed, not a sign that it had just been crushed moments ago. He wiggled his claws without any pain. He snorted, “huh.”

“Will that suffice?”

The dragon looked at her and nodded.

“I’m glad. Now, let’s try this again, shall we? My name is Balagan of Clan Eshmun. This is the tribe of the Grey Onyx.” She put a hand across her chest and bowed her head. Some of the warriors followed suit, the others were still weary.

“I am Ankoubis.” He bowed his head in return, though he did not know what it meant.

“Are you okay now?”

“I am little one. It seems Blagan has healed me completely, see?” He wiggled his fingers in front of her face as she giggled.

“Balagan.” She said, calmly but assertively.

“Balagan, my apologies. How did you do that?”

“With magic. I’m sure you are familiar with the Tendrils.”

“Of course, though I thought dragons were the only ones who could use it.”

“Not so. We can, as can little Inku here with enough training.” She looked at the child, “did you smell the sage and lavender when I healed his arm?”

“I did!” she replied excitedly, taking another deep breath through her nose. Some of the closer warriors who could overhear the conversation started sniffing the air, though they could not detect the lavender or sage, only the mud. “Can you smell it?” she asked looking at Ankoubis.

“I can. It is a nice smell I’ll admit. Though it looks like everyone else can’t.”

“That is because they do not have the Gift.” Balagan replied. “Only those who have been blessed by the Tendrils are able to harness its presence. Though all of them carry some small mark.”

The chief walked up to Balagan, having broken free from whatever had addled his mind. “Don’t you dare do that again, Aederyn.” He growled. “What is this about my Inku being able to use magic?”

“We think she can use magic, and we want to train her to use it properly.” She retorted. It was clear they have had some issues previously. The chief looked shocked and angered at the same time, not sure whether to direct his joy at Inku or his rage at Balagan. The rest of the village remained motionless, seemingly dumbstruck at the dragon conversing with their chief and his daughter.

“How do you know so much about magic?” Ankoubis asked.

“I am a student of the Tendrils. I hope to uncover its secrets.”

“And why are you here?”

She laughed “I’m afraid that question has a long answer, and I am hungry after healing your arm. Will you join us for dinner?”

The chief looked at her wide eyed, but said nothing.

“As long as you have some deer for me to eat.” Ankoubis replied.

“We can get you some.”

The chief walked off and started giving out orders to prepare the evening meal. The crowd broke from their trance and started scurrying about. “If you are to make yourself useful, Ankoubis, get us some wood for the fire.”

“As you wish.”

He walked off towards the forest to find some large pieces of wood. He had seen fires before and knew they needed wood to burn, but he had only ever seen them from very far away. Picking up a few small dead trees, he ripped them from the ground and carried them back towards the village.

The villagers who had started piling up smaller pieces of wood looked at him and laughed. “That’s going to be a big fire!”

Placing the trees down near the pit, he began breaking the tree down into smaller pieces. Some of the stronger dracoduats walked over and began rolling them down and placing them carefully. One of them started to bang two rocks together, creating a clack and sending small pieces of fire towards the wood. Balagan brought his head forward and blew gently. Tongues of fire flicked out from beneath his teeth as the logs quickly caught fire. The dracoduat who was trying to start it his way jumped up startled, “that’ll do it.”

A short time later the villagers call came together having completed their tasks. Ankoubis saw the warrior Agius walking towards the fire. He was no longer discoloured, and his ribs looked like they had been healed. Probably Balagan. Agius bowed his head towards Ankoubis, who returned the gesture though he still didn’t know what it meant. Soon the smells of various meats and roots filled the air as the fire took hold. Soon the sun set as the dracoduats began singing and dancing. Ankoubis could not help but smile.

Balagan returned a short time later, carrying a full deer on a metal pole. It was glistening in the light of the fire, dropping with fats and oils. The dragon stared hungrily.

“Here you are, one full deer. There’s a few more being prepared now.” She handed the deer to him.

“Thank you” he said, devouring the deer within moments. “Delicious, those next ones better come quick.”

Balagan laughed, “don’t worry, there will be enough. Now, to answer your question. Put simply, we are here because we want to discover more about the world than we currently know.”

“Who is this we?”

“That would be my race, the Aederyn. Our ancestors to the best of our knowledge, were born of an event involving the Tendrils, what exactly that was we do not know. Those early versions of our species started evolving faster than normal, and, well, we are the result. Then, eventually, we discovered we could use magic through rituals, like the one I performed on you to heal your arm. As for this we I speak of, well that would be the Quadrad I serve on, the ruling council of my people.”

“I see. And how come I have never heard of you before?”

“We have taken great effort to hide ourselves from all. Though that was only until recently. Now we venture forth and seek to spread our knowledge with the dracoduats and humans. Not too much too quickly, but just enough to help them develop. Our other objective is to locate the sources of the Tendrils, and to teach those with magical potential to control their powers. Though these are few and far between.” She paused a moment. “Actually, we have been hoping to come across you for quite some time. We have something to propose.”

The din of the night seemed to fade into silence as Ankoubis’ focus centred on the conversation. “A proposal? For what?”

“Ah. Well,” she said, pausing once more, “we would like to ally ourselves with you, and have you join us in teaching the other races the safe practice of the Tendrils. We hoped, that if you agreed to join us, we could uncover more of the Tendrils’ secrets.”

Ankoubis took his time before responding. “Why would I need to join you in that? I am born of magic, and I wager I know more than you about it, so what benefit would this provide me?” He said smugly. Though he knew it was a bluff. See how she deals with that.

She chuckled, “because we believe that there is still more to be discovered through enquiring thought. Surely you don’t believe you have discovered everything?”

He smiled wryly, “and what you say if I said I had?”

“If you truly knew everything about the Tendrils, there would be no purpose to this existence. Life would bring you no joy if there was nothing left to discover. Half of the fun is experiencing new sensations and discovering previously unknown things. We’ve never seen you this far south before, so what brought you here today? Was it the unknown perhaps?”

Clever. “I must say, it is nice to converse with someone who is at least moderately intelligent” he said, through a wide grin.

“I think you’d be surprised how smart many of these emerging tribes can be. Extraordinarily malleable in my experience, and eager to learn. Take little Inku for example.” She picked up Inku and placed her in her lap. The little dracoduat was too busy eating a piece of roasted meat to have noticed. “She has magical potential. For some reason the Tendrils have made their presence known in her. We don’t know what caused this as usually the Dracoduat race does not have this ability. We want to take her back with us to train her properly, which brings me back to the proposal. What do you say?”

“I will admit, the idea of exploring new ways of utilising magic does sound fascinating. I have never experienced the scent that emerged when you healed my arm for example.”

“So, is that an agreement?” A smile grew across her face.

“It is.”

“Wonderful!” she exclaimed, startling Inku. “The Quadrad will be very pleased with this outcome.”

“I look forward to meeting them, and to seeing the place you call home.”

“It will be a momentous day when you do.”

“When shall I meet this council of yours?”

“How about two weeks’ time. I have some business to finish here with the Grey Onyx, especially if I am to convince her father to allow her to come” she said, tickling Inku.

“Where will I find you?”

“Near the forest of Chuatlia, east of the mountains where you live.”

“How do you know where I live?” he asked, chuckling.

“Truth is we’ve known about you for some centuries, but never had the chance to meet you naturally. It seems today was the day we would, whether by chance or by will of the Tendrils, we cannot be certain. But I am grateful we did. It has been an honour to be the first to speak to you.”

“As it was with you.”

Inku stretched her arms out and yawned loudly. “It looks like I need to get this one to bed!” She nodded sleepily. Balagan stood up with the child in her arms, turning towards him before leaving. “If it please you, you are welcome to stay the night with us here. I have already discussed this with the chief and he has approved. Though I will admit he was hesitant about it.”

“Don’t worry, I have had more than my fill tonight.” He said smiling.

Balagan smiled, “excellent. Well, I will see you in the morning then.”

Inku reached out to Ankoubis lazily and brushed her hand against his claws. “See you tomorrow” she mumbled.

Ankoubis smiled, unsure what to say. “See you tomorrow, little one.”

He saw Inku smile as she was carried off by Balagan.

For the rest of the night, Ankoubis joined the villagers. He exchanged stories with them, telling them about the great northern snowy wastes, where beasts four times the size of Enckhar’s roamed of pure white fur. And the volcanic islands to the south that pour hot molten rock into the ocean, where the ocean dwellers of the deep hunt. He used his magic to transform the flames of the fire into moving images as he told his stories. The villagers looked on in awe as they listened, fixated on the images of dragons, beasts, mountains, and oceans. For the first time in a millennium, he was happy. He had not realised how happy it made him to tell others about his world.

The night disappeared quickly and eventually the villagers began retiring. The last one awake, Ankoubis settled down next to the fire. He could barely contain his excitement. Who would’ve thought that today would end the way it did. I look forward to the months ahead.

Just as he was dozing off to sleep, Inku came out of her hut, she was rubbing her eyes tiredly. Without saying a word, she walked over to him and lay against him in front of the fire. Before long, she was snoring quietly. Ankoubis smiled as he curled around her. The smile remained as he drifted off to sleep, his dreams filled with the possibilities of his magic, and the adventures he would have with Inku.