Territories part 2

Adrenaline is running through me. I can't feel anything and everything is shaking. I about died. With some struck of luck a tiny healing dragon was able to save me from splattering on this mountain side. Every fiber of me is telling me to not go up the mountain again.

I figure I will fall right through the clouds so I barely push on them. They push back as if it was a fluffy pillow.

"I've wondered what your clouds felt like but never this." I say squishing the large cloud.

"You know I love a good chat about everything but this big cloud is sucking energy so we gotta move. Now please." Pearl pleads.

"Oh right. Sorry." I say grabbing and climbing onto the cloud. 

I'm kneeling on this big incredibly fluffy cloud while holding glory stick up in front of me. Pearl grabs ahold of it and pulls me up the mountain side. I can see the cloud I'm on start to shrink ever so slightly the higher we go.

"So what's the plan?" I ask.

"I heal him and force him to join us. Nicely though." Pearl says through her clenched teeth.

"At least you plan on being nice." I say a little concerned.

We make it to the ledge again but Pearl sets me up on top of the cave entrance. Then she goes down to the entrance.

"Hey!" She screams into the cave.

No response.

"Hey! I know you're in there!" She screams.

"Leave me alone!" The eternal fire dragon bellows. He charges again. "This is my territory!"

Pearl is nimble and small. He tries to get her but she flies up around his legs. Weaving everywhere and anywhere around this dragon til he surrounds himself in flame. Pearl's whole body glows while she bursts through the flames and lands smack on the bridge of his nose.

"You listen here buddy!" Pearl snarls. "I know you are hurt. I'm not leaving til you're healed! You got that?!"

"What about joining us?" I ask quietly.

"And you're joining us! After you tell me what your relationship was with my granny!" Pearl adds.

"You pesky little-" The fire dragon stops mid sentence. All the flames engulfing him subside. "Hold on. Are you from the eastern mountains?"

"Granny tried teaching me that stuff but it never stuck. So maybe?" Pearl's confidence falters. 

"Laylyn brood. Are you from the Laylyn brood?" The fire dragon asks more gently yet aggressively.

"Yea! That was my brood's name!" Pearl perks up a little.

"Was?" The fire dragon is a little taken back.

"Yea... I'm the only survivor of my brood." Pearl sinks back into herself.

"Oh child." The eternal fire dragon says lowering his head to put Pearl on the back of his claw. "This granny you speak of, did she also go by the name Gretchen?"

"Yea! Her human gave her that name. She really liked that human but told me how sad it was when they passed." Pearl replies.

"Yes she did like him. Gretchen would tell me stories of her adventures with that fellow. When he past she stole my cave and cried in it for 3 days. The amount of healing water that came from that cave had half the mountain turned into a lush jungle." The eternal fire dragon explained with a small chuckle.

"So you knew granny well." Pearl comments.

"Not too well. She would show up on a whim and pester me." The dragon states. "She demanded she heal me even after I try to fight her. Gretchen was so nimble, I always had thee hardest time catching her. You are a lot like her in that aspect. "

Pearl looks a little shocked.

"There is no doubt about you being her granddaughter though. You're as stubborn and honest as she was." He states.

"Granny always told me I was strong willed." Pearl replies. "Now I will heal you but you're not to hurt my friend."

"You have too many demands." The fire dragon grumbles. "I'm going to deny your healing."

Pearl squints her eyes at him for second. "Fine, no harm to Ragon then. He is my friend who is going to take down Gilton and Tundra with the rest of us. As for joining us, I will convince you later along with figuring out yours and granny's relationship."

"The rest of you?"

"Yes there are more of us. An ancient water dragon, a savanna drake and a secluded swamp dragon. We are working on recruiting a few more and one of them, is you." Pearl nods happily.

"You have all of those breeds in one nest? And you're all getting along?" He asks.

"Yea! Well, me and the ancient one got into a fight this morning so it's not easy. Ragon keeps us together pretty good." Pearl smiles at me.

"So this runt here is the human that summoned you?" The eternal fire dragon asks looking my way.

I duck into the clouds to hide a little.

"No he didn't summon us. Apparently he got summoned here." Pearl explains. "We just so happen to cross paths. And we all like him so we are on a journey together to take Gilton and Tundra down."

The fire dragon eyes me while he ponders on what he heard.

"Very well. I will not harm that tiny human."

"Yippee!" Pearl shouts. She flies over to me. "Can you get off? I need to use this."

I climb off the smaller cloud onto the rock. I'm relieved to not be in immediate danger anymore. Pearl pulls on the cloud til it is over the fire dragon. She begins to pull chunks out of the cloud making it rain on the dragon. I don't see any difference on the outside of him but he starts to stand a little taller and move a little smoother.

"I feel great!" He laughs. "It's been ages since I felt this good!"

"I'm glad I was able to help." Pearl smiles.

"You definitely are your grandma's granddaughter. She taught you well."

"I didn't learn everything from her though." Pearl tears up.

"There. There. How about since I'm in a good mood, I tell you how your granny and I met." The big dragon now seems more docile.

"You mean it?" Pearl asks.

"Yes." He lays down looking out over the cliff to the setting sun. Pearl curls up on top of his claw. I'm still over the cave entrance too scared to get closer. He points out into the distance. "You see that mountain over there?"

"The double peek one?" She asks.

"Yes my territory reaches from the ocean to that double peak mountain. It spans a couple days flight north as well as to the south." The fire dragon explains. 

"Your granny taught you the importance of leaving others alone in their territory right?" He asks.

"Yes. If you go into other's territories, prepare for a fight. Thats why it's best to not leave the mountain tops, which is our territory." Pearl explains.

"And yet here you are." The fire dragon grumbles.

"Granny tried." Pearl says with a shrug.

"Well Gretchen, your granny, was quite the rule breaker herself. I was trying to take a nap in the sun by a lava lake. Til I heard this awful screaming. I look up just to be flown into and thrown part way into said lava lake. She frantically healed me while telling me some sob story of how she just had to sneak out and how she isn't use to the thicker air."

"Granny snuck out!?" Pearl's jaw drops.

"All the time! Not sure how they didn't kick her out to be honest. Your granny would come out just to tell me hi and random things. Quite the talker she was." Reminisces the fire dragon. "Tell me something. Your granny, did she go down in a fierce fight?" 

Pearl tears up. "Yes. She was giving me a lesson when the thunder showed up..."

"Easy now." He says nuzzling her gently. "Do you know the importance of why we choose our territories?"

"So we have a place to live?" She asked confused.

"That too. Us dragons choose our territories so we will have an advantage in a fight. I choose this mountain range for the active volcanos. Your brood choose the high mountains because they can handle the cold thin air. I bet most of the dragons Gretchen was fighting where struggling and she was knocking them right out of the air."

Pearl ponders on that thought. "You're right they did seem pretty weak. But she..."

"She did what she wanted to child. None of us could stop her even if we wanted to." He nuzzles her again.

"Thank you... do you have a name?" Pearl asks looking up at him.

"Nope." He turns a little redder somehow.

"Granny had to have gave you a nickname." Pearl eyes him down.

"Time for you two to go. Sorry kid." With two claws he grabs me then flings me off the mountain.