A very, very large and strange dragon. With an elongated head and neck, there was plenty of space for the many gills moving with each breath the creature took. Cassandra didn’t even know if she should have been surprised, scared, or amazed, but she was all of that at the same time. The dragon let out a long, high-pitched growl that echoed along the cave’s walls, and more of its body came out.
The front limbs weren’t anything like what she had seen before. She had thought they were short, but unlike the dragons’ short paws, those were longer and more retractable.They were obviously half-way between arms and fins. Even the “fingers” of the creature had curved claws and were tied together with webbing. It didn’t actually use it’s limbs to move around, his body was crawling almost like a snake. Cassandra retreated further, not even daring to blink for one second. She felt like her own breathing was way too loud.
The creature didn’t lose her for a second. It was completely focused on her as it was coming out of the water, more and more of its body crawling out. Cassandra had wrongly judged it’s size. If she had to compare it with the dragons she had seen before, it’s head was about as big as Glahad’s, but there was no real comparison in terms of its body. It would have been like comparing a cat to a snake. While it’s neck was very thick, the rest of its body didn’t grow in size at all. It was all the same width, but very, very long. It felt like the end was never coming, and the body almost had to spiral onto itself to find enough space, as Cassandra kept retreating further and further away.
She was grateful the cave was so vast, because there were few rooms inside the Imperial Palace that could have welcomed this creature comfortably. How old was this creature to have gotten so big? Its body was meters and meters long! When she finally spotted the little legs, she realized those were in no way meant to walk either, but just to stabilize the end of the body. They were thinner and shorter than the front paws.
Finally, the tail came out, almost ridiculously little and simple compared to the rest of that majestic creature. Cassandra was at a loss for words as they were just staring at each other. This thing was not a dragon as the Dragon Empire knew them. It was something similar, maybe a related species. Cassandra exhaled, realizing she had been holding her breath for a while now. Thank the Gods, this creature wasn’t menacing at all. It only stared, and had only growled once, if it was a growl.
Cassandra had seen much scarier dragons, so she wasn’t exactly afraid…more cautious. She could tell when a beast was angry or menacing, and that creature wasn’t either of those. She highly suspected it had actually saved her life by bringing her here, which showed a high form of intelligence.
She decided to take a slow step forward, to see how the creature would react. It didn’t seem panicked in any way, and actually, came gently to her. She could see it’s thin nostrils moving a bit, smelling her. Cassandra suddenly realized what the shimmering on its scales was, it had been disturbing her for a while now. Salt! Was that water salty? Could it be linked to the actual sea? The creature kept moving its iridescent scales and, just like it’s size, Cassandra had been wrong about its color as well. It wasn’t dark, but actually more of a shimmery grey. There were some other colors shimmering in the light, making her think those scales were opal-like. Just like the stones of that cave. Was this the Creature’s lair?
An idea was beginning to grow in Cassandra’s mind, and somehow, she started to really believe in it. She remembered what she had been taught when she was much, much younger. She hesitated, putting an arm out and extending her hand, though she was a bit scared and probably crazy to do so.
The Creature didn’t try to sniff it as Krai would have. Instead, it slid it’s long body past it, making Cassandra touch it’s strange, polished scales. She chuckled, impressed. The Creature began circling around her, making one, then two rings with its body, keeping Cassandra inside. It still wasn’t menacing, but she felt like it was establishing some sort of protection around her. Cassandra smiled.
“I think I know who you are,” she whispered, amazed.
The Creature didn’t react to her words, but after taking a deep breath, the young woman started singing.
She used her native tongue, careful about her voice and her words, and sang the Mermaid’s Requiem. After listening to her for a few seconds, the Creature started singing a high-pitched song too. It sounded like a wind blowing against some glass, a high-pitched but gentle sound. When she was done, the creature put its head closer to her, and after a slight hesitation, Cassandra gently caressed its head. Her heart was beating like crazy, almost certain she was right. All the legends from her childhood were taking form in this amazing creature in front of her.
“You’re really... the Water God,” she whispered.
She was overwhelmed with emotion, almost to the point of crying. She had never questioned its existence, but having the deity-like being right next to her was an amazing sensation. The creature sang softly again, making Cassandra chuckle, a tear escaping her eye. She took a deep breath.
Though it was a beautiful moment, she didn’t have much time for that. She couldn’t forget the crisis that was going on outside this cave, and how her family needed her. She extended her arm to caress the scales again.
“I need your help,” she whispered in her native tongue. “I really need to get back to the others... to my family.”
She wasn’t sure he would understand her, but just then, the creature looked up, at the long slit in the ceiling. Just as she thought, there was something up there. The exact moment when Cassandra looked up, she very clearly saw a shadow for a second. What was that?
“Kyun!”
Cassandra jumped, as the Baby Dragon suddenly jumped out of the water, flapping it’s little wings and chasing the water.
“Kian? How did you get here?”
She ran to the Baby Dragon, who happily jumped in her arms with many little squeaks. Kian kept rubbing its head against her chest while Cassandra looked at the pond again. This was definitely connected to the lake somehow! If so, how deep and wide was the lake under the surface, and beneath which room could it have spread?
“Kyuuuu...”
Kian seemed to have just noticed the gigantic Creature, and very boldly jumped from Cassandra’s arm to run to it. Without any fear, the little dragon hopped onto the first ring of the body, under the Creature’s eyes. Its white eyes were on Kian with a bit of interest, watching the Baby Dragon’s moves. Kian jumped higher, onto the second and higher ring, and glanced at Cassandra. Was he showing off? She tried to call Kian, but the little dragon ignored her and turned to the head of the body it had just climbed.
The Water God seemed interested in the Baby Dragon and brought it’s head closer, sniffing it. However, a sniff from such a big creature was like a gust of wind to Kian, and the tiny dragon was pushed away. Just as Cassandra feared it might fall, the dragon started flapping its little wings and looked up. Now that she saw them together, there was a bit of resemblance in their body shape, though Kian was still more like Krai.
“Kyun!”
The Baby Dragon started flying higher, looking suddenly attracted to that slit in the ceiling. The Water God, looking curious about the Baby Dragon, followed its flight up, extending its body to raise it. Cassandra immediately saw her chance. With a silent apology, she climbed on the creature’s body just like Kian had done before. She was bigger than the Baby Dragon, but still no bigger than a kitten compared to the gigantic water creature. If it felt her climbing on its scales, it didn’t show any discomfort at all. Cassandra struggled to keep going, with her aching muscles, overall exhaustion, and the climb that was becoming more and more vertical and abrupt. Whatever was above them, she silently prayed it wasn’t going to be another terrible place to fall into.
Just when she had finally climbed past the second ring, she realized she wouldn’t be able to climb up the “neck” of the creature. Just then, it seemed to finally spot her, and before she could do anything, it pushed her up onto its head. Leaving Cassandra hanging on by its horns! Cassandra couldn’t help but let out a little scream in fear, but Kian apparently took it for an excited cry, and made a similar high-pitched noise, all happy and flying around her.
The creature kept going higher, understanding her goal, and Kian’s. As they finally reached the breach, Cassandra realized it would be just large enough to let her through, but there was no way the creature could follow her. She bit her lip, and Kian jumped through the crack above her, disappearing between the two edges. She was worried for a few seconds, but then, she heard the dragon happily squeak from somewhere above. With a sigh of relief, she found a grip as soon as she could, ready to climb up. Just then, she looked at the creature, whose eyes were very close. She smiled at it.
“Thank you,” she whispered, and then, with a push from the creature’s head, she climbed up.
Despite the creature’s push, Cassandra struggled to reach the upper level. She was really tired, hurting all over, and not sure about what she should expect next. She just hoped that the crack in the ceiling wasn’t going to lead her into another deadly trap. She had almost died too many times today already. The only reason she was feeling a little bit better was Kian. Though she had no idea how it had found her and gotten there, the little dragon being all jumpy and fine meant Kassian ought to be safe and sound somewhere out there as well.
