There weren't always Dragons in the Valley

'There weren't always Dragons in the valley.' Ayala remembered her grandmother telling her one bright moonlit night. They were searching for a spot to make camp when she lagged behind the others, captivated by the lush Valley below. It was her first time traveling with her family.

They were the Mea Kalepa and held an important role amongst her people, transporting food and supplies traded between the villages. This position was passed down from her ancestors for generations.

Looking over the same cliff where they always camped for the night she remembered the story. The warning.

Not that long ago their people harvested fruits and medicinal plants from the valley when black clouds rolled across the sky, the only light left flashed for mere seconds at a time as the deafening sound of thunder whipped through the night as they struck the earth.

Some say they crashed from the heavens, creatures of immense size, covered in black scales ripping the earth and destroying everything in their path. Others claimed they sprung from the ground, clawing their way to the surface roaring to the beat of the thunder-like drums.

No one knows why the fighting started, or who made the first move, but soon all they could do was try to escape. Men and women fled in all directions, hoping to make it out unscathed.

Countless lives were lost. The survivors limped home, waiting and praying that more would come.

At the time she didn't understand. At only 10 years old she couldn't think of a reason why they would fight.

But now she understood a little better. There wasn't one reason to explain what happened that day, no one truth even amongst her people. Perhaps people were injured accidentally and in a panic, someone thought they needed to fight for their lives, leading to a full-on fight. Regardless why they came and where they were from remained a mystery.

She had never seen one of them, one of the dragons. In the 8 years since she began traveling she would stare out at the valley and wait. Tonight was no different, with her legs dangling over the edge of the cliffside Ayala watched, scanning the land below for any movement.

Even in their human form, it wouldn't be hard to set them apart from the people on the island, they all had intricate tattoos flowing from their neck down to their fingertips on one side of their body.

It was because of this that tattooing the arms and neck were a thing of the past, no one wanted to be mistaken for one of them. Only a few of the elders, those who had received their tattoos before the Dragons came, who spent long hours blacking their tattoos. Creating a solid color against the skin.

Staring down at the mark on her shin Ayala rubbed her forearm where it should have been. The skin tingled as if it waited for its turn, its chance to display the markings of her people. Marks that would never come.

"There you are. Why don't you come to bed?" A deep voice whispered against her neck, strong arms wrapping around her shoulders, pulling her from her thoughts and memories.

Smiling nervously Ayala gently tapped the arms wrapped around her, Koukakala always tried to draw her attention away from the valley. His family were among the strongest warriors in her village and always joined them, offering protection in case the tenuous truce with the Dragons broke.

"You know I can't do that."

"Right, because you are so intent on seeing one of them for yourself." he sighed, rolling his eyes as he moved to her side.

Ayala bumped him with her elbow. "And because we are not yet married. You're always trying to start trouble."

"What trouble, everyone already knows about us. It's is only a matter of time." He said, so sure she would say yes.

Glancing sideways she thought about what life would be like with him. He was a few years older than her and was one of their people's strongest warriors. The mark showing his status sat at the base of his chest, fanning over his ribs.

Long black hair fell in waves over broad shoulders, framing a strong jaw and eyes of honey. He was certainly handsome, and easy to talk to. It wouldn't be the worst situation, being with him for the rest of her life.

But something didn't feel quite right. Even when he first declared his love for her when they were children she couldn't shake the sense that it wasn't meant for her. A life in the village, bearing his children and growing old by his side.

There had to be more out there for her, just waiting for her.

Calloused fingers swept stray strands of reddish-brown hair back from her face, tucking them behind her ear.

"Regardless, nothing has been made official." she whispered, unsure if she wanted him to hear it. "If my grandmother asks for me please tell her I will be in shortly." She added, patting his knee.

Disappointment shadowed his face. If it had been up to him they would have undergone the ceremony when they were 14. But her family had insisted they were too young, they had more than enough time and she should become better established amongst the other traders.

"Very well. Just don't be too long, we don't want them to see you up here and assume we are breaking the truce." The last part meant to scare her needlessly, this was an established trade route for her people. Traveling took much longer because they had to skirt the valley below carefully.

With a small nod and smile, he left her to her own thoughts. Time forgotten, hours passed by until the moon was high in the sky and the valley below was glowing a faint blue. With nothing to show for her efforts, A'ala was about to turn in when a faint rumbling filled her senses.

"Rock slide!" One of the men call out who was standing watch outside the cavern where they laid camp. It sounded close, too close. If she didn't make her way back or find shelter she would be crushed.

It was too late. She could see the side of the mountain coming down fast, too fast to make it back. The cliff was steep, figuring the rocks would bounce off, she started to climb down. Moments after her head cleared the ledge the first pieces of earth rolled off, narrowly missing her.

Determined to clear its path Ayala tried to climb to the side when the ledge broke off, joining the rock slide along with her.

So this was the end, her end. She thought, reaching up to the moon, watching as she fell further from her family, from her future. In what felt like a mere moment, her body hit something hard, and the lights went out.

...

What is she doing? Koa thought to himself from the treeline. From the moment he caught sight of her a few days before, he followed their group, watching each night as her eyes combed the valley. But for what?

It wasn't like humans to be so openly curious about them. They usually made side glances whenever they passed by the valley and kept as far away as possible. But not her.

With his heightened sight, he could see the red tint to her hair, and the bronze of her skin from being in the sun. With eyes the color of the earth, she glanced past him, not knowing how he longed to feel them on him.

But why did he? He had never been interested in any of them, even the few he'd met during the occasional discussions about trading food and medicinals. And yet he couldn't take his eyes off of her, nor could he stop himself from feeling agitated whenever that man approached her.

Even from this distance, he could tell she wasn't fully comfortable with him. But that shouldn't matter. How she felt, and who she chose to spend her time with. None of it should, but it did.

It took all of his willpower to stay hidden in the shadows as another man's arms slid around her. It was forbidden to interfere with the humans, to involve himself in their affairs. He needed to leave, once she was behind him he could forget all about her. Her and this clawing desire.

Hours, after he went back to camp Koa, watched her, admiring her diligence. Her ability to stay in the same place for hours, waiting without making any sudden movements or sounds. She would make a good huntress, half the game was making yourself a part of the landscape, invisible.

With his senses focused on her, he didn't notice it in time. Didn't sense the shift in the mountain, the start of the slide until it was moments from overtaking her.

Jumping out from the treeline he ran as fast as he could dodging the larger bits of debris. Sliding to the ground, he grabbed her as she slammed into his body. Seconds before the rest of the mountainside could hit them he flipped her under him to protect her fragile body.

He couldn't explain why he moved, why he didn't watch her become buried under earth and rock. It would have been less painful, less trouble.

No interference. That was the one rule concerning humans. The one thing they had asked when the truce was made, No interference.

But he couldn't let her die, not before he heard the sound of her voice, a sound that was no doubt as beautiful as her eyes. In the midst of their burial, all he could think about was the softness of her skin against his, just her scent was enough to make him crave more, make this worth it.

This was his end, because now that he knew what it felt like to have her in his arms, he would never let go.