> The Earthen Monster > by Rotiyaz > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > 1: Mud Skin > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A breeze pushes through leaves and branches in the mid-day Sun, birds and insects making their calls, noises, and songs. A large bush rustles violently, frightening off a small gathering of basking lizards. A young blue and purple dragon emerges from the bush, an expression of dejection and frustration on his face. Overall, no bigger than a grown bison, being more long than wide. Sparks had been wandering for hours. He wanted to look in the forests for an uninhabited cave to eat some gems and metals, but hasn't had any luck thus far. He would prefer to avoid the mountains and volcanoes. There was about a fifty-fifty chance of encountering sling-tails, and he wasn't a good enough flier to dodge them for long. He could just climb those mountains, but he wasn't strong enough to fight one of them head-on yet, let alone any dragon that had already been there. What he did have to defend himself was a peculiar kind of breath. Sparks could gather up the heat in his body and focus it in his head. When he was ready, he could release a bolt of lightning to devastate anything in his way. Stones split, trees splinter, and almost any creature he hits with it either dies or is at least stunned from the attack. Be that as it may, he did not want to risk a fight at all. With Sparks' lean build and slim scales, things can turn south quick. After another boring hour of pushing passed foliage and climbing trees to find a cave, Sparks started to lose heart. He may just have to fight some sling-tails and dragons after all. Then it hit him. A scent. And a pungent one. The smell of blood, lots of blood. That sick irony-copper smell that hung in the air like a thick layer of ash. "That smells like trouble." Sparks mumbled to himself. "Keep a cool head. Take to the air and keep your eyes open." He climbed the nearest tall tree he could find, reaching the top in a few minutes. Once there, he took a cautious look around. No hydra, no roc, no adult dragons. Maybe it was an old kill. That would make things easy on Sparks. He leaped from the canopy and started to glide towards the powerful smell. "Maybe whatever died had a cave that I can drop into. That would be a nice change." Exasperated enthusiasm dripped from his monologue. He was getting desperate for those gems. What a crag-head. The scent grew as Sparks glided over the evergreen and deciduous trees. He had a clear view of the valley he was in, the color of mixed greens and the occasional yellow or red of peculiar trees covered the feet and heads of the otherwise grassy and stone-ridden mountain ranges that made the valley. Contrasted with a stark Sun and pungent blood, one is reminded of what the wild is. Like a dragoness, as brutal as she was beautiful. He could hear a faint rustling from beneath the canopy now. "There must be scavengers picking at the kill. It must be a few hours old, then." Sparks glides passed the canopy and swoops to the ground. Crawling up to a wide evergreen, he leans against it and tries to peek at whatever he's been following the scent of. What he sees was more than what he was prepared for. He looks away, shocked by what he saw. "What the scale did I just find?!" Sparks said quietly. He took a deep breath and slowly peeked around the tree once again. Red. Everything was covered in red. The trees, the ground, everything. There were what looked to be intestines splayed out as if they had exploded out from the central mass of torn flesh and exposed bone. This was by no means small either. The pile of gruesome viscera was about as big as Sparks. A deathly chill ran down his spine to think of such a fate for himself. Underneath all of the blood, he could make out some deep brown and grey scales. They were matte and larger than his more serpentine scales. "Is that a cave drake? We compete with those things for ore veins and caves to live in. They're pretty tough to fight. What could've torn this one apart like this? And in the forest, no less?" Sparks furtively whipped his head around, scanning to make sure nothing was coming. It was odd how diamond dogs and other scavengers weren't already here to eat up what was left. He cautiously stepped toward the gore and blood. It was one thing to look at a dead thing, it was another to touch it. He shook a little at the feeling of bloody dirt passing between his claws. He shook again when he touched the torn organs. Sparks felt a little sick to his stomach. He hadn't experienced something like this before. He had heard of dragons and other large reptiles living solely on other creatures, but he never thought he'd ever see the result of such a way of life. Let alone make contact. After getting over his nausea, Sparks noticed something black shining out from within the gore pile. A few more hesitant steps would allow him to see that the pile had a bloody black onyx in it. Not only that, but a few more gems and pieces of metal. Excitement and relief filled Sparks, as he tried to gather up as many as he could carry. "I don't know who to thank, but thank you, whatever you are!" Sparks threw the onyx into his mouth without thinking about the blood clinging to the stone. He shivered at the taste. "Maybe I should've washed it first." Little to Sparks' knowledge, he was being watched. Just out of view, hiding in the trees. Patiently biding time. Sparks grabbed all of the gems and metal fragments he could before cautiously starting his withdrawal. A violent shaking from the trees above alerts him. Surprise was evident on Sparks' face. "Something's here, and I don't think it's scavengers." He begins to run, hoping to avoid whatever might be behind or beside him. Another rustle, and another, and another. The only thing Sparks could see of his pursuer was a quick blur of deep brown. Whatever was following, it was keeping up and was familiar with the forest. "It must have good legs to jump from tree to tree like that. Let's see if it can keep up in the air." Sparks begins to lift off of the ground, flapping hard and fast to rise quickly. Ready to pierce the canopy and escape his opposition, Sparks makes a break for the sky. Suddenly a great force took him out of the air, hitting a tree on the way back to the ground. Eyes wide in shock, Sparks takes in his assailant. It was unlike any creature he had ever seen. It seemed to be a creature made from the earth itself. Nothing but wet mud could be seen and felt from the thing. The only things that weren't mud were it's eyes, two dark irises seated in two white orbs, staring with intensity and fervor. It was barely half of Sparks' size, but seemed to dominate nonetheless. Two dark brown limbs had began to pummel the young dragon. Each blow feeling like the weight of boulders are behind them. Switching between head and body, the monster strikes at Sparks with the ferocity of a hungry drake. Several loud cracks could easily be heard coming from him. One powerful strike after another quickly chipped away at the blue dragon's body. Teeth and scales flew off here and there from Sparks' jaws and chest as the beating continued. After finding the fortitude to focus for at least half of a second, Sparks musters his heat and quickly releases a small blue bolt of incredibly hot lightning. The monster flies backwards, sliding a couple of meters further as it slows. An opportunity. Thinking fast, Sparks shovels as many pieces of loot he can fit in his mouth and tries to fly away. "I have to get out of here!" Sparks thought to himself, panicking. He was shaking and dizzy from the beating he just received. Flying would be a task in and of itself right now. But, given his choices, Sparks would rather crash somewhere than deal with whatever that was. His weak flight took him slowly and clumsily up, slowly breaching the trees after several seconds of flapping. With heavy and panicked breathes, Sparks flies away while slowly gaining speed. Back on the ground, the monster would be standing and staring at the young dragon as he fled, letting out a low rumbling growl. The two legged creature bounded back to the bait it had left. The ground beginning to dry as the blood soaks into the soil completely. Looking down, the creature noticed a large mark of charring on its belly. The same spot it was hit with lightning. Wisps of smoke emanated from the wound. Touching it caused the creature to groan in pain. With a swift motion, the creature grabbed the tail of the cave drake and slung it over a shoulder to drag to a hidden cave. Surrounded by bushes and trees, the cave was almost impossible to see from the air. Into the darkness of the cave did the creature go. Inside, the sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing could be heard. A sound sweet to some, and sickening to most. __________-~*~-__________ When Sparks had returned to his own lair to recover, he could not shake the image of the monster from his mind. He was proud of being a dragon, certainly. A mighty elemental being deserving of respect and fear from others. Sparks may not have been the strongest or fastest among dragons, but to ponies and bison and even griffons, few would be so bold as to confront even a juvenile dragon. However, the way that monster looked at him and treated him was completely different. Those piercing eyes, they didn't look like the eyes of a worthy opponent or a fearful creature that felt threatened. It was like he was less of a threat and more of a target. Sparks could almost feel the hate and anger aimed at him when the monster's eyes met his. Sparks couldn't describe the experience properly. He only knew that in that moment, he didn't feel like a dragon anymore. He felt like a little wyrmling. "I'm not even sure if I killed it. It was still in one piece when I shot out my lightning. I didn't smell burned scales or lightning cloud after the hit. Just the smell of charred earth. I sure hope there aren't more of those things. I'd die for sure." The thought of sharing the same fate as the cave drake shook him to the core, the weight of the very real possibility striking him hard. Sparks did not sleep well that night. Or the night after. Or the night after that. __________-~*~-__________ After days of painful and aching recovery, Sparks manages to gain his strength to exit his lair and go to the lava pits for some much needed relaxation. Now that his mind fog is cleared, he can at least fly straight. Fortunately, his wings were not badly injured in that fight. Well, less of a fight and more of a beat down, but he'd never dare to admit his resounding defeat to any dragon, or any other creature. From afar off, Sparks noticed his peers enjoying the lava pits as well. He began to mentally kick himself for revealing himself before his scales could grow back and swelling could go down. Now he has to explain why he is so beat up. "Oh, great. Nice going Sparks. Now you have to tell the other dragons about your bruises and why you haven't shown your face in the passed few days. Here goes nothing." Sparks, with bravado in mind, descended to a pit full of his recognized group of peers. One dragoness with rough gray scales and large build raised her claw up to greet Sparks, the other three would greet him with a mix of calls and waves. "Hey Sparks!" One black dragon hollered, his mouth showing the furnace that was the inside of his body. "Where have you been, blue boy?" One orange dragon openly wondered, saying the very thing that everyone was thinking. Coming up and out of the lava, one yellow dragon would emerge abruptly, the leanest of the group. "Hey there Sparks! Did you know I could hold my breath under lava for 258 seconds?! Whoa, what happened to your face? And the rest of you? Did you get into a fight?" The yellow dragon yapped each sentence quickly. The orange dragon thought about how he was just about to ask the same questions. Knowing the nature of his peer, he let it go. "Hey guys. I just had a bit of a tussle with a... Uh..." Sparks hesitated, his gaze going out for a thousand yards. He would be called a liar if he told them the truth. Then they would think he was a coward or weakling for lying about a fight that he lost. What would be a believable lie for them? Something passable as being realistic and difficult to prove wrong. Sparks recalled where he was and tried to think of all of the possible threats to dragons. Then the thought came to mind. "I had been looking for some caves to scout out some gems when a cave drake came out and attacked me from behind. It was big too, almost bigger than me. It got a lot of good hits on me, but I managed to beat it down and take the gems I found in its cave. Hah! The thing never knew what hit it!" Sparks couldn't help but laugh mid-story at how absurd, yet believable it was. The yellow dragon piped up. "Wow Sparks! I didn't know you had it in you. I thought you were all about avoiding unnecessary fights and keeping your scales shiny. Good to see you toughen up like a real dragon!" While the yellow dragon was excited to hear his ally get the better of a formidable opponent, the other two dragons looked on in suspicion and thought that something was out of place. Sparks reacted with a mix of annoyance and validation. Instead of correcting the yellow dragon, he decides to just take the compliment. "Thanks Slash. Means a lot." "And you're sure it was a cave drake? Not some cockatrice or salamander?" The black dragon posed the questions towards Sparks, seeming quite skeptical about the story. "Of course I am, Obsidian! How else am I going to get these bruises and missing scales?" Sparks feigned indignation in hopes of avoiding being found out. "If you say so, Sparks. Either way, you look like you could use some heat. Get on in here." Obsidian waved his thick arm in a beckoning gesture for Sparks to join them. Sparks was glad to oblige. He took a quick inventory of his current company. Slash, the lithe yellow dragon currently swimming around the lava pool has long claws that make breaking rocks and cutting things easy. He's usually talkative and is easily bored most times. There's Fireball, the orange dragon lounging at the edge of the pool, currently opposite of Sparks. He's not very smart, but when you need something done he's the dragon to call. Especially when he gets something out of it. Then there's Obsidian, the black dragon that is belching out volcanic rocks into the pool and scooping up lava into his big maw. He's strong and well rounded. A respected dragon recognized for his competence. The only thing keeping him from being more popular would be his lack of fire breath. Finally, the largest and most intimidating member of the group. The dragoness that stands a firm head and shoulders over Obsidian, and twice as thick. Stone. The only flightless dragoness in the Dragon Lands. At least, that Sparks knew of. By far one of the strongest and toughest dragons other than a few exceptions. And she's staring down Sparks at this very moment. Sparks already understood. She didn't believe him. She thinks he's lying about the whole thing. Sparks prays that Stone will just let it go like Obsidian did. Unfortunately for Sparks, Stone would break the five minute silence with confrontation. She rose from the lava and calmly walked to Sparks. He half expected her to add to the number of missing teeth he had before she spoke. "You're lying to me Sparks. I do not enjoy lies." Sparks was stock still. He looked around for support, but found none, as Slash, Fireball, and Obsidian shrugged as they looked on. "Tell me what really happened." "I don't know what you mean..." Sparks stalled, hoping it would deter the dragoness. Since Stone's face was basically covered in stony natural armor, Sparks had to assume she was upset at him. Maybe feigning ignorance would calm her? "You had the look of someone who nearly lost their life. You have been missing for the passed week. And you claim to have fought a cave drake. I might have believed you if you had any bite marks or gouges from your hide. The damage you have comes from being hit with something blunt. Cave drakes use their teeth to fight, not their tails." Stone slowly came closer to Sparks with each word she said. Sparks would stand up out of fear of what she might do. Unsure of himself, Sparks simply waited for an opportunity to respond. "Sparks, tell me the truth." He could swear she was looking right through him, her gray eyes felt like they were burning holes into him. "Okay, okay, I'll talk! I've lost enough teeth as it is." So, Sparks would recount the actual reason why he was missing for the week before, including the details as to how he coped with almost dying by staying in his lair for several sleepless nights. The reactions of the group went from disbelief, to shock, to sympathy, to shared frustration. Stone simply nodded her head in understanding. "That is all I wanted from you." Sparks saw Stone reaching for him. He flinched before he realized that all she did was pat him on the head. He was thoroughly surprised. "Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?" A devious smile grew on Slash's face as he looked at the group. "We're going to gang up on this Mud Skin monster, right?" Fireball asked as he picked rocks from his scales. "Oh yeah, we definitely are!" Bellowed Obsidian. "We'd be doing dragons a service by keeping that thing from the little hatchlings that have just been hatched. If that thing can kill a cave drake, it can definitely hurt a dragon. Come on guys, lets go scorch some earth!" Obsidian lead the way, fist in the air as if victory was already there. "Yeah!" The group shouted as they began their march to the forests several miles away. With pride and vindication in their hearts, the young dragons moved to avenge their comrade and put honor to their names as the dragons who defeated a mighty foe. Though Sparks was certainly encouraged by their antics, he couldn't shake the ever growing dread slowly choking his resolve. The odds are in their favor. But, they are not guaranteed.