pt. 2

<Year 2>

It had been two years since he hatched and he now had come to understand a few things. He was something called a 'dragon' but then again not quite. He and his siblings had all been corrupted by the dark mist while in the egg and weren't normal. They had been given dark power, been cursed, or mutated into something else like Zyrtec. He had gained an intense craving for blood that none of his family possessed, but he was still able to eat the usual meals his mother provided. It concerned her that they weren't pure dragons, but she cared for them like they were perfectly fine. She had noticed that her son Zyrtec was, although different, the most like the normal dragon. "Come on younglings, we should get moving." Recently, she had started to take them on a trip, heading away from the cursed land as quickly as able with her children.

"Momma~!" Iressa tripped over her front paws and tumbled head over tail for a moment, looking exhausted. She was an unlucky one, her body infested with dark energy which stunted her growth and cursed her, making her sickly for most of her life. Their mother reatracted her fangs and picked her up in her mouth, continuing forward calmly. "I'm sorry momma…"

"You're fine my dear," She muttered quietly. "It isn't your fault. I'll carry you when you're tired so always tell me when you can't keep going." Zyrtec tilted his head at them, treading near his mother's swinging tail while considering the situation with an intelligence that was unseen in such a young dragon. He wondered on what his mother seemed to be running from so desperately that she'd be impatient enough to carry them when they couldn't walk. Another thing was that she was refusing to fly, sticking to the ground constantly and keeping her head low. Feeling his gaze, she looked back at him and offered a forced smile. "Hurry up now. We can't stop for too long." He looked away from her and examined the area they were in, staying quiet. As this dragged on into the night, she was either holding them in her mouth, on her wings, or on her back, all of them worn out and sleeping. Even as she wheezed, no part of her would allow rest, forcing her to continue on unceasingly.

"Momma." She turned her tired eyes to Zyrtec who had woken up a few minutes ago and was walking beside her. "Where are we going?"

'As usual, his tone and wording makes him sound older than he is. His voice and size are the only things that speak of his true age.' She sighed and said, "Somewhere far away. I've heard tales of creatures that walk on two legs and live in groups that are just as smart as us. If I can get you all there, if we're nice they might let at least you, my children, stay with them until you're old enough." Holding back and baby talking him didn't seem natural to do with how he spoke, so it became an unconscious reaction when speaking to him to be blunter.

"But what about Momma?"

"I can't stay with you anymore."

"Why?" She gazed at him sadly and didn't say anything, hoping to not have to answer that question at all. 'Momma isn't going to tell me.' He hung his head, giving up and focusing on keeping pace with her. The only time they stopped was when they needed food and she had to go catch something, or their mother collapsed, travelling nonstop. Upon stepping out of the dark lands, the only place the young ones had seen, they came across a green grassy field that became a pine forest further ahead, signs of life everywhere. They were mesmerized and their mother was glad she had managed to show them something so beautiful before leaving them. She stepped on the soft grass, missing such a wonderful feeling as she shuddered, filled with joy. Placing Iressa down, she sat and gave them time to play around and have fun in the field, an experience foreign to them. After ten or so minutes passed, she got back up, grabbed Iressa, then moved on, walking again. The rest followed after her slowly, still rolling around playfully. Zyrtec, however, had stopped doing all of that after the first few minutes and was busy familiarizing himself with the terrains and scents, finding something different to focus on.

"This is where we were going. What do you think? Do you like it here?" They enthusiastically responded with 'yes', dancing around. She smiled at them and urged them to continue. Passing through the trees, she regretfully informed them that the previous green area was more of something referred to as an 'oasis' and wouldn't last long. As she said, the trees got darker as they walked, eventually looking dead like the ones they were accustomed to. "Don't worry, we're trying to get where the signs of life never end and are everywhere." Soon they were on a terrain that was devoid of anything but the black ground, stretching out seemingly endlessly. Iressa, struggling not to seem weak, had asked to walk and was barely keeping up. Zyrtec slowed down and walked beside her worriedly, giving her support when needed and ignoring when she complained that she was fine.