1x1 The Quest - Eclipse and Marine

"It must feel awkward if your parents grant you a name you aren't really attached to," the newly christened Wynn noted, already trying to understand the process that went into naming. "Do you like your name? I hope you like your name. It seems like a nice name, to me at least. And...if you think the name is fine, I will use that." It offered a timid thumbs-up in response.

"I'm ready to go," Wynn answered Sariah's last question, taking a few rather large strides, outpacing Sariah and her horse...before tripping forward, head over shoulders, and landing face-first in the dirt. It lifted its neck up slightly, enough that its eyes could at least be seen, not just the hat. "I am not used to this body. I forgot that I'm smaller now."

Wynn got up, turned around to face Sariah, and dusted itself off thoroughly before glancing at her facial expression. Wynn then gave a request, though the tone made it sound more like an order: "Don't you dare giggle. If anybody asks, that never happened."

 

It was so strange to Wynn having to go down this mountain road as a human. All of the small steps, the bizarre nooks, the sharp corners... it had used the power of the wind to shape them all to keep people away, and now it was learning exactly what it had created, by being forced to travel its own maze. Thankfully going down was easier than going up, but if the initial pratfall was any indication, it would not be able to make this journey quickly.

Sariah's advice helped wonderfully, though. Finding the centre of gravity was what became the challenge here, and after that it could breathe easily. In its enthusiasm, Wynn skipped ahead a few steps of Sariah multiple times, and had to halt while she and her horse caught up.

"So, the road we'll be using..." Wynn asked as they were nearing the bottom, "is it safe? Is it a road travellers often use, or is it left to its own devices? Are there brigands in the area? You said it would be...two hours? That's on foot, right? Will we get to a village before sundown?" It had a lot more questions besides, but...put the most important questions first, Wynn. Get to the particulars later. What it wanted to know most of all is if there would be a need to fight at a moment's notice. Yes, Wynn was ready, but being tense at all times took energy. The less conflict, the better - especially since it no longer knew its own strength.

 

"Hey now, in my defence, I shaped it like that for the express purpose of keeping visitors away without having to resort to scare tactics," Wynn pouted. "You just wouldn't give up until you got an audience for me. Though..." Wynn averted its eyes away from Sariah, a little bashful. "...though you did tell me about that troublemaker. I can't let that slide."

"Have I...ridden a horse before?" Wynn asked. "Not really, no. Anywhere I needed to go to, I would get there on foot or just fly there. But riding on horseback can't be that bad, can it? You make it look so easy. I don't mind walking, though. But, now that I think about it... I bet I could beat your horse in a foot race. Might make the walk to the inn more interesting, right?" A sneaky smile spread across Wynn's face, intrigued by the prospect of a challenge. Dragons are known for their pride, after all, and to them, a contest is an obstacle to be overcome.

"What do you say? I'll let you pick the terms."

 

"Oh no, I didn't mean a footrace on the slopes," Wynn agreed. "That wouldn't be fair at all. I can see your steed is walking very cautiously as it is. I meant when we get to the foot of the mountain, then we can race. Besides, you can't exactly run up here. I know." Wynn didn't smile, though a small flicker of pride danced across its face at the last remark.

"Wait, you... you're letting me practise... on your horse?" Wynn looked really confused, not expecting that sort of offer at all - and unsure that Sariah was sincere, it was slightly wary. "This isn't a trick to make me fall forward into the dust again, is it?" It started watching for a change in Sariah's expression, like if she was trying to suppress yet another bout of laughter. Wynn didn't see the first time, perhaps to spare it further shame - though now it would see what Sariah was thinking.

The mention of being sore for several days made Wynn rather concerned. That concept was not something it had ever experienced, as it had never needed to. Walking around like this was already weird enough; the movements were basically the same, but the shapes and the muscles were all so different. And now to add a challenge on top of that, something that even humans found strenuous to start with... Was this what they called a 'trial by fire'?

"Then again..." Wynn mumbled, thinking aloud and hanging its head, "archery makes one's arms and fingers sore for weeks and I had to learn that...and I'm good at that, so it might not be as bad as I'm imagining."

Wynn then jolted its head up suddenly. "Oh, um, did you hear any of that?" And gave a rather uneasy laugh. "Ha...ahaha...haha..." And tugged its cap down over its face.

 

(She's teasing me. She's teasing me! Teasing me, the Storm Sovereign!) thought Wynn, a little distressed that Sariah was poking fun every chance she could. Were all humans like this or was it just her? Then again, not many could brag about having met a dragon on amicable terms, and certainly not with an arrangement quite like this one. Maybe that was why she was teasing, so she could brag to all her friends later. How...embarrassing. A quest to clear one's own name might end up turning into mockery by a little girl.

...well, 'little girl' by dragon standards, anyway.

"Well, it's not midday anymore, at least," Wynn noted. "I can feel myself cooling down already. It's nice to stay indoors when the sun is highest in the sky. If you arrived here in the morning I'd probably be miserable. ...While I'm thinking about it, you did say you came here alone, right? Why would you come up here by yourself without any help? Were you told to go here? ...Or is this one of those 'pride' things I've heard about?"

There was a tinge of hypocrisy in the last set of words spoken, as dragons value their pride highly and Wynn was losing more of it by the second around Sariah, though it apparently didn't notice the contradiction in its own words. Either it wasn't thinking about it or it thought it was an exception of some kind. ...At least there was the foot race to look forward to.