The Human-Born Dragon Child

I hear wailing in the distance. It’s not from any other dragon that’s for certain. I wonder what it could be…

“Pethynth, brother, I am going to see what this creature that is making this atrocious noise is.”

“Alright, brother, be careful of the dragon hunters, I still believe it is a ruse that they aren’t chasing us anymore.” I chuckle.

“Of course, brother, I am always careful.” I leave our den at the top of the mountain no human dares climb, and venture into the forest below to find that wretched wailing creature.

I venture low into the forest, where I find a human baby. It seems to be in distress. I get close to it, inspecting its size. Its as big as my nose, I can practically squash it with my paw. It stops crying as it feels my breath on it.

The creature reaches out for me, and grabs hold of one of my nostrils. I am bemused by this. It screeches in what I assume is their form of laughter. I pull my nose away but the creature is holding on too tightly and I pull it off the ground. It swings from my nostril for a moment before I realise and set it down.

I look around to see if there are any human hunters on the way, but none seem to be amidst the trees. I look back at the creature and inspect it better. It appears to be a tiny human, perhaps one of their child. I reach for it, my paw being much bigger than this baby, so much bigger that I could squash it with no effort.

It looks at me with its wide eyes and plump face. I cant squish it, I sniff around for a trace of a parent. Nothing. I pick it up by the fabric on its back and decide to bring it back to the den.

“Brother, I have found an abandoned childling in the forest. That was what was causing the wretched wailing. I’ve brought it back for our heat and food.” I give it some water and berries that we had foraged from our last outing to the forest.

“You brought one of them here!?” Booms Pethynth. I make myself small.

“I am sorry brother, but it was looking cold and hungry, abandoned in the forest. Left to die.” I argue.

“As it should! Its kind is what forced us into hiding. It’s his kind that has our spieces almost to extinction. We should kill it and eat it for sustenance.”

“No. I brought it here and I decide what we do with it. We are keeping it and taking care of it.” I stand taller than my brother, even though I am the youngest.

“Alright, but I have no part in its care. It is on you to keep it well fed and heated.” I nod in agreement.

I turn back to the child. Its eyes are fluttering shut as if it was tired. I pull it into the crook of my neck and surround its tiny body to keep it warm.

The next morning I listen to the sounds of the forest to determine if the childs parents are looking for it. I wait a while before determining that this childs parents are not looking for it.

“Brother, we must raise this child together. It will not survive on its own in the forest. We must protect it and teach it that dragons are not bad.” I plead with Pethynth. He reluctantly agrees to let me keep it.

As the days go by, I feed it, and bath it, and give it a name: Uthos. I notice him getting bigger and soon he is running around the den playing with my brother. We teach him how to track for food and how to find a good watering hole. We watch as he learns how to make fire from fallen tree branches. We teach him to speak our dragon tongue, and tell tales of the human hunters.

He grows to be strong and fast. And as he forages the forest for berries one day he comes accross some hunters that perrished in a battle with other dragons. He comes back with fabric on his back and weapons in his arms.

He teaches himself how to use those weapons with much dismay from me and my brother. We tell him that the other dragons will not wait to see if he attacks if they find him wearing hunter fabric and bearing hunter arms. He tells us that he will be careful and he wants to help the dragons defeat the hunters.

One day, Uthos comes back to the den with slashes and burns on his arms. He says they come from both the humans and the dragons. He tried explaining to the dragons that he was on their side but he was met with fear and hatred. The humans saw that he was friendly with the dragons and brandished their weapons at him in anger. We told him not to leave the den for a while.

The next morning, Pethynth and I awoke to Uthos having left the den once again.