forum “What do you mean, war?” (very low fantasy/historical O/O, closed.)

Started September 28, 2020 by @Mojack group

tune

Max seemed relieved, or at least satisfied with her answer, looking back to the Citadel. He didn't want to go anywhere near the dragons he could spot around the city, but if passing by them was his only way to get home…he could manage.

"Will meeting you mother take long? Will she know how to get me home?" He asked, his hand drifting to his wounds as he picked at some of the flaking blood. The area was still sensitive, but he did it anyway, it left his hands with something to do rather than wish he had a better weapon with him.

“Mother’s pretty good with meetings,” Vasuki said, as she began to walk forwards. “They usually don’t take long. Especially since she’ll be alerted in advance.”

“Most likely, yes. We haven’t left our island in many years, but we do have maps. And when it comes to taking you home, we do have many ways to do that.” Adding on, in silence, she subtly flicked her wings up, as if to point out the possibility that he’d go home with a dragon. Even if that was unlikely, given Vasuki and her people’s reclusive and secretive nature.

Max followed a step behind his new acquaintance, keeping close to Vasuki's side, but only close enough that he had a bit of room between him and the other dragons he didn't trust as much. Faintly he nodded as well, in response to her. There was no way in hell he was going to ride a dragon anytime soon, but he wasn't going to say that to her face at the moment.

"Well then…we should go meet her soon, I don't think we should keep her waiting." He finally added, looking up at Vasuki for a moment.

“Alright, but let’s get your injuries treated first,” Vasuki said.

The walk towards the Citadel wasn’t as long as it seemed, though the closer one got to it, the more details you could notice. The Citadel itself seemed to be highly decorated from the outside, almost a display of art with all the pillars and how the building itself was structured. The doors were big - there wasn’t even much of a door, just a curtain in an open arch. Vasuki ducked down as the curtain brushed against the tips of her horns.
If you were to think the outside was embellished, the inside was even grander. There seemed to be many floors to the Citadel, many hallways, and all sorts of citizens within the main area of the Citadel was well. It was by no means a quiet place.

Vasuki took a turn into one of the hallways, glancing back to ensure her human companion was following.

Max followed with a look of new wary curiosity, taking in everything he could, but also watching for any potential threats. It was an instinct he had grown into as he flew during the war, and crashing onto the island didn't mean any of his instincts left him. As much as he tried to stay on guard though, the sheer detail in all of the citadel was drawing his attention. He slipped around the curtain that he assumed acted as a door to the area, following Vasuki as they ventured further into the new space. The Citadel seemed to be a happy place, and as much as he wanted to think that the gorgeous place was empty and serene, the chatter and noise of life was making him realize different.

Eventually, the two would arrive at what seemed to be a wooden door. There were a lot of doors actually, in the hallway - but this door appeared to be decorated with paintings of plants. The door wasn’t completely shut, but Vasuki knocked anyway, lifting a hand and curling it before knocking twice. It wasn’t long before a new voice emerged.

“Come in.” The voice was calm, it wasn’t loud - just enough for them to hear the answer at this distance.

Vasuki pushed the door open with her head and walked inside. Inside was a room, clearly belonging to someone who liked plants, just judging by all the flowers in the room. Not a single one was wilted - they were all perfectly taken care of. The room had a pleasant sort of lighting to it - not extremely bright, mostly relying on natural light from the windows.
But in front of them was a set of three desks, messy - but also organized, in a way. Upon the desks were books and some sheets in which pictures had been drawn, but very detailed pictures. Upon further inspection they looked to be diagrams, some of plants, some of dragons, and some of..humans?
But there was also a chair at one of the desks, and that chair was occupied by a person. A human, in fact. Or, a dragon in human form- but her companion wouldn’t know that, Vasuki realized.

“Hi, Usael,” Vasuki greeted, once she got close enough. “Are you..busy?” Her tone had noticeably softened - became more quiet.
Usael had curly hair, noticeably white. She turned from her work to face the two of them, adjusting her glasses - but it would seem almost redundant for her to have them other than for show, because her eyes were a pale colour - almost immediately identifying the fact that she was..well, blind. “No. I already knew you two were coming.” Across her ebony skin, she appeared to have small faint scars on her lower face.

Vasuki nodded, then looked to Max. “This is Usael. She’s one of our doctors, but one of the best on the island.”

Max was extremely curious about everything as they walked down the hallway, and it took much effort not to ask about anything he was questioning. He was more focused on the throbbing headache that was accompanying every step they took further into the new strange space.

Watching Vasuki open the door, his attention was immediately drawn to the multitude of plants laid around the room. Max never had much of green thumb as a child, but even he could tell that these plants were well cared for, as none even seemed wilted or undercared for. His eyes wandered around further before he finally looked towards the center of the room, freezing almost instantly in his steps. Sitting behind a sprawling set of desks sat a human. A human that he had been told didn't exist on the island.

His mouth opened in slight surprise and he looked to Vasuki, starting a sentence before promptly closing, then opening, and closing his mouth once more. His headache seemed like a minor detail the longer he processed the situation, still confused by the fact that there was a human, named Usael, mere feet from him, seemingly calm around the dragon that towered over them.

"I…um…I..thought you said there were no other humans on this island?" Max finally asked slowly, prying his eyes from Usael as he looked towards Vasuki again, "Unless…I'm missing something?"

Usael chuckled, finding something amusing about the situation. “Oh, you didn’t tell him?”
“Not on purpose,” Vasuki quickly cleared up. “I just wasn’t so sure on how to explain it.”
Usael smiled. “I meant no harm, child. What better time to get an explanation out than now?”

“Well..” Vasuki mumbled. “You may have noticed that there were humans on the way to the Citadel. Humans among dragons, in your eyes.” She looked at the ceiling. “And you seem to think that Usael here is a dragon. Do you remember what I said earlier, about dragons having multiple forms?”

Max took a long moment to think as Vasuki explained. Yes, he had seen other humans outside of the citadel, and he had thought of them as just that, humans. But he hadn't expected a human to be a healer of dragons. He could feel the embarrassment shining through as he realized what the 'humans' really were. They were simply dragons..in a different form. While it didn't make sense to him, he could see the connection now.

"Dragons. The humans I've seen are dragons," He replied, a quieter edge to his tone as he looked to Vasuki. He knew it shouldn't have shocked him as much as it did, but he felt more alone now that he was back to being the only full human on the island.

He pressed his eyes shut as he sighed, both to alleviate his headache and to take a moment to think. "I would ask how it's possible…but I don't think I could handle an explanation at the moment."