Chapter 21
When Eirwin had told Heather that he wanted her to come somewhere with him. She wasn't expected it to be a wildlife reserve. She didn't expect that such an elegant creature as himself would be interested in going near such a place.
It seemed though that his reason for being there had to do with something that his friend had said to him. So she could only guess that it would be to gather information. Did it have to happen on a Saturday though? There were a lot of other things that she had been hoping to get done over the weekend.
Part of which would be doing more research related to the time key but in the comfort of her home. Not out in the heat staring at the larger open land in front of her. She had only been able to keep the morning for herself before he had appeared to pick her up near one. The trip that they took to reach the destination took about five hours which meant that it was already starting to get dark.
If there was at least one bit of information that she was able to gather about Eirwin while they were driving was that he wasn't much good when it came to small talk. He had very little apparently to say to her and preferred the silence which didn't enjoy as much. Her answer to this was to hijack the radio and at least put on music.
"Is it really that important for me to be coming here with you?" She asked after they stepped out of the car he had rented for the occasion. Eirwin knew that the car he usually relied to drive around in the city wouldn't be useful for the type of roads they would be driving on.
"Yes it is. You don't know much about beithirs, but they absolutely hate dragons and don't like them invading their territory even on peaceful terms." Eirwin explained with a grimace. He really didn't want to be here, but he knew that he was the one who had to do this. He knew the questions that he wanted to ask and the best way to gather the information.
"And you need me here because you think that I can somehow help against that kind of creature?" Heather asked not quite understanding how the dragon had come to that conclusion.
"I would assume that they are something you have done research over, yes?" Eirwin asked as he swapped out of the shoes he had been driving in to put on boots that he knew would be better suited to trek across the dirt and grass. He had asked the other to dress in a similar fashion with a t-shirt and sweats that even though they were going to be rather warm would help to protect the skin.
"My research on them is rather limited. I am aware that they hate dragons yes and are overall not that sociable and can be rather sadistic creatures when they want to be. I believe though that some of that has shifted since they are now living among humans." She elaborated. She did remember some time ago reading article that talked about how beithirs had been hired in some circumstances to catch violent or cruel criminals since they had no qualms themselves about using unsavory methods to get ahold of their prey.
"I'm sure then that there is something within your brain of knowledge that will help us to deal with them then. If nothing else they might be more willing to listen to you since you're home." Eirwin told her as he straightened out the clothes that he was wearing and looked again at the path that they would be taking.
He wasn't all that thrilled about it getting dark either, but he knew that there would be more annoyance if he woke up the creatures during broad day light which was their preferred time to be sleeping.
The dragon hadn't bothered to pack anything for himself as he knew that he would be able to rely on his hyper senses to navigate the dark and see anything that he needed to. For Heather though, he packed one since he knew that she would need the light to make sure that she didn't lose track of him or step on anything that she ought not want to.
Heather really wanted to go back and suggest trying this another day, but seeing how the other was ready to go in even though it was getting dark, she didn't really have much of a choice but to follow after the dragon knowing that he would do it regardless of what she thought.
One thing she could say though was the way that the flowers and trees stood to either side of the path that they were on was that it made for a beautiful one to travel over. It helped to ease some of the annoyance that she was feeling at the current matter.
Maybe she could get special reimbursement for this trip as she didn't think anything about this type of work mentioned on the contract that she had signed. If ended up being a waste of time and she didn't get the chance to see or learn about anything amazing, she might very well bring it up once they got.
They hadn't been walking for more than twenty minutes before a terrible noise that sounded liked distorted thunder echoed above them. Heather didn't quite know what it was right away, but Eirwin knew the moment he heard it.
"Get down!" He boomed as he turned around and pushed the woman to the ground and off to the side. He probably did it rougher than he had been intending to but he knew that there was no time to explain the situation to her. The way the hairs stood up on the back of his neck told him that he had to act first or else it would be too late.
The sound didn't go away however and echoed out again. Why was he cursed to be in such a weak dragon's body?