Loneliness Feels Odd Now

There was no sign of the dragon-girl anywhere in the house, as Mai calmly double checked every room, before coming across a little scribbled note left amongst her emptied bed sheets.

'I've gone, See you.' - was all that was written on the small bit of paper Mai found.

What?! Where would have been... No - why is much more important...!?

Since she hadn't snuck past her to use the door downstairs, Mai figured Lygawa had used the a-jar window to slip outside, while that explained the how, she had absolutely no idea where she'd gone off to, or why she'd vanished so early too.

She next went to Nullawhy's, but there was no answer after tapping on her door either.

Did they go off somewhere together...? I doubt it...

A half stunned and numb wander about the village, throughout the whole cloudy morning, turned up no sign of either dragon, so Mai returned home, and waited at the dining table.

What could have possibly made Lygawa suddenly want to leave like that....?

The clouds kept the outdoors dim, while making the indoors mood fittingly dark too, as Mai worried on into the day.

The house is so... quiet...

Night came and then went, but Lygawa still hadn't returned.

Mai thudded on Nullawhy's door again, and was answered this early morning.

"Huh, you're still here..."

"Yes... - what's with that? I'd expect those words of Lygawa, but not you?! And you dare interrupt me so forcefully and early too!"

She reacted to Mai's disappoint with upset, but then grew concerned as Mai just stood there.

"What has happened now?"

"She's not here?"

Mai looked around her, inside the other dragon's house.

"No... I have not seen Lygawa... since I was out hunting yesterday... why?"

"You saw her... yesterday?"

Mai stepped forward, eager to hear more.

"Early in the morning; she was flying high, but I now assume she didn't tell you... wait - have you not seen her since then either?"

Mai shook her head.

She flicked her orange eyes about, but they settled on Mai again.

"Did she not inform you at least?"

Mai shook again.

"Such a flippant and erratic thing she is... not returning is particularly odd though..."

"I can't even think where she'd go..."

Nullawhy offered Mai entry to her smaller, but comfortable home.

"Do you think she hasn't quite gotten over her sickness, and has overdone it, or had a relapse?"

Mai had thought about that earlier, but with no clue to her direction, she could hardly start a search for her troublesome housemate, if she had grown ill again.

"Can you locate her?"

Mai didn't bother to sit, turning back to the other reptile.

"I have strong detection abilities, as I can track another's magical power from a great distance and very accurately too."

She said confidently.

I assume that's how you first found us here...

"But she is either too far at the moment... or at a significant loss of power again..."

Mai pressed her further.

"You did see which way she was going yesterday though..."

"You're right, so we should be able to plot a search... mostly northward I believe..."

Mai went for the still open door.

"Then shall we?"

"Alright... but is there need to hurry?"

Nullawhy shut her door and joined Mai's quick pace.

"It's nothing... I'm just worried for her, that's all..."

"Me too..."

Nullawhy and Mai walked out of the village without another word, making for a less seen area for her transformation.

Nearing their first destination; Mai received another sudden round of muddled 'sights', and while placing them together wasn't difficult; the outlay was much harder to take.

Nullawhy noted her sudden and now lingering stop and looked over to her with more concern.

"You look... pale, what was it you saw?"

Mai didn't want to give her 'vision' word; as seeing Lygawa all alone, trapped in a dark and confined space, while crying in utter misery and pain, was something she didn't want to see or think about again.

"We need to find her..."

"Indeed..."

Nullawhy glowed brightly for a moment and became her true form, as she lay low on the fine grass and looked to Mai.

[Please carefully climb up...]

Mai was offered the different dragon's side to climb on, but even when laying down, Nullawhy was still bigger than Lygawa, however; with her pointed and protruding scales, there were plenty of hand and foot holds to get upon.

Mai clambered up, finding a suitable space along Nullawhy's back, between the black spikes along her spine, to stay on neatly, with no lack of rough scales to get a good grip onto if she needed them further.

[Are you safely secured?]

"Yeah..."

She twisted her neck to look back and make sure herself, before taking to the air with her first ever passenger.

Going up into the air seemed pretty simple for the big magical reptiles; as Nullawhy was just as easily able to get high amongst the clouds as Lygawa was, and in no time she was gliding over the forest with her dark red wings with blackened tips.

[I saw Lygawa about here, heading in this very direction...]

She went into a stable glide.

"How far dose your 'detection' work anyway?"

Mai asked as the red one scanned the horizon.

[Many miles...]

She focused on something.

"Is it her?"

Mai asked hopefully.

[No, it is Grasis - who still lingers in the forest... but he is alone and should not bother us...]

She kept her orange eyes locked onto a point below them, till they'd flown by a good distance away.

"Will he eventually recover?"

Mai asked her, curiously.

[Oh yes, we didn't give him too severe a beating... We Dragons are quite sturdy, and good at recovering from most injuries.]

A minor flap gave them a little lift over the bubbles of cloud that thickened below.

"He did have a few broken bones though..."

[They should reset and heal - thanks to our magic power. I wouldn't think he would still be unable to fly at this point...]

"Geez, what would it take to seriously hurt or kill a dragon...?"

[I would advise against finding out; as Grasis is still very capable of inflicting harm. And if you were thinking about Lygawa: even if she has troubled us so... I would prefer if you did not harm her.]

Wait... did I just say... that aloud...!?

Mai felt her face blush with embarrassment.

"Oh no - I certainly wouldn't..."

[We still require most things humans do; such as food, water, air, blood and energy - so taking enough from us, for a period of time, and we too would die.]

Nullawhy answered anyway.

"I'd never try too, sorry for asking..."

[It is no problem.]

She turned her red head back to wink at Mai, then resumed her calm cruising.

A little period of silence later, Nullawhy suddenly changed course, and drifted back closer to the clouds below.

"Are we...?"

[Yes, I believe I have her 'magic aura'.]

Passing through the clouds found the pair near several sharp mountains, not surprisingly somewhere Mai was unfamiliar with.

"Where are we?"

[I know not what the humans name this place, but we Dragons call these the Razor Mountains.]

They were fittingly sharp and jagged, but thin and aligned as many of them all ran along together, like colossal fan strips across the land.

Nullawhy kept her decent, angling toward perhaps the biggest of these spiky mountains, before spying a small cleared patch lower down and circled over it a couple of times.

[I cannot see her, and other Dragons are also about this area, but I believe she is in here.]

The red dragon delicately touched down outside a large cave entrance.

A proper dragon's cave...

It was certainly big enough to accommodate her, but it was dark in there, and nothing seemed present, but Mai carefully got down from her latest ride and onto her own feet on the ground, while Nullawhy stood as a watchful guard.

"Are you sure it's her?"

[I am quite positive.]

Standing before the grand carve from the hillside, Mai felt a cool breeze emanating from its darkness, but that was all, so called out.

"Lygawa... are you there?"

Her little echo was all that responded.

Nullawhy next gave a short roar into the cave, that echoed about into its depths too.

Next Mai could feel a little tremor, which soon increased into a rhythmic set of thuds, as something large came hurriedly out of the cave, rushing straight for them both.