NaNo 2015 - A Different Light: Chapter 6

Do not attribute evil to acts that are not evil. Doing so is an evil act in itself.

If you wish to understand the world, you must see it from all perspectives—not just the one you were born with. Learn to be your enemy, and consider what he may think. Then use that in order to shape a resolution.

My fear is the lack of a resolution. If this comes true, people will often act first with violence rather than reason. Then goodwill will cease to exist.

-Blaise Belchat, "A Short Guide to Changing the World"

I would never forget the time I hopped off the bus back in Cypress and headed over to Mav's place. As to why it always stuck with me, I'd never know.

Perhaps it was because Blue had accidentally broken a window trying to get to me when he realized that I was already back, and that spurred an argument between Mav and Fallon.

Mav had already told me that nothing outstanding really happened in the past day that we were gone, though he did happen to complain about the Dragon's seemingly voracious appetite. Maybe that was why I never forgot about it.

The third reason this particular event stuck in my head for so long was that Rufus happened to be in the backyard when I had gotten back. As Blue was in the process of bolting over to the house and smashing a window, Rufus caught the unfortunate demise of having Blue's tail sweep right under him. All I managed to see was a stunned Rufus right after having landed on his own tail.

Ouch. Landing on the tail sucks. It doesn't always happen, but when it does, it feels like some part of me got wedged between a door and its frame.

What alarmed me about Rufus was the fact that he wasn't uncomfortable at all about having Blue stay in the backyard. Huh, I guess Mav or Fallon must have disclosed some information while we were gone.

Anyway, after the incident with Blue and the window, we immediately ate, and Duke set back out in order to buy bus tickets for himself. We both agreed that I would be the one to take Blue up to Anewick, and I trusted that Blue would be able to fly at least as fast as the bus.

Mav was considerate enough to allow me to use one of the showers in his house. It was about time as well—I haven't felt fresh in over half a week, and I felt that this really was one of the things I should have done earlier when I could, during our earlier break in Mav's house two days ago.

I decided to take up the same spot on the couch as I did the other night. Tomorrow was Thursday, which wasn't a big deal for me, though it did mean that Rufus still had school. Well, he wouldn't be watching us leave the town again.

As the day progressed, I noticed that Mav was growing more fidgety whenever either Duke or I mentioned tomorrow's trip for Anewick. After dinner, I decided to put his fretfulness to rest by bringing up the topic in front of him.

"Look, I know that you're probably more than twice as old as me," I started, "but don't think that your anxiety over tomorrow's Anewick trip is going by unnoticed," I said.

Mav put his plate down and sighed. "You know, I want to come on this trip, and so does Vinnie," he said. "We talked about it earlier on duty. Also, my age has nothing to do with this."

"Sorry. I'm not exactly the best at starting a conversation."

"Don't sweat it."

"But back to the point. I don't see why you can't come along," I told him.

"I have a family to take care of," he replied.

Oh. I forgot to consider that. Maybe it was because the only family I really had back in Emerald Glen was my dad, and his values bent askew at times. It's depressing, but after all the attempts I've taken at trying to care for him, I just couldn't get it to work out.

I wondered what he was doing right now. Surely, my unforeseen disappearance must have taken him aback somewhat. Whether or not he had recovered completely by know, I didn't know. Perhaps I should give him another chance and believe that he really does care about me as a person.

"Convince me to come with you, then," said Mav.

I found myself in a jam. "I have nothing to say," I said with a shrug.

"Fine, then get Duke to convince me—no, us, as in Vinnie and me—to come along with you two—three, I mean—to Anewick tomorrow."

I didn't know how to respond to that, so I just decided to do as Mav said and leave the issue up to Duke.

With the question of whether or not Mav (and possibly Vinnie) would accompany us on the trip to Anewick still in the air, I passed out on the couch, uninterested in the ongoing conversation between Mav and Duke. I can find out whether or not he's coming tomorrow.

The moment I woke up to the noises of everyone starting their own day, I instantly went to Mav, who was in the kitchen.

"So, are you coming or not?" I asked him. "And if so, what did Duke tell you, because I was long gone on that couch to hear anything from you two."

Mav flashed a toothy grin and nodded, which made him appear as if he were still a teen. "Yep. So you two are going because of the lingering chance that our supernation will go to war, yes?"

"Eh… kind of, sort of," I said. "Duke has to go because, well, he's Duke Atlas, right hand man of Anewick defense force director of Dragons and Canids, Blaise Belchat. As for me, yeah. It's mostly about this potential war."

"Okay," said Mav, "so he convinced me to go by telling me that I have to be able to defend my hometown in the midst of a Dragon attack."

I nodded. If a war ever does break out, then Cypress would likely be one of the first places to go due to Abner's messages to their council. He seemed like a guy who would report to them—heck, he came out here on their behalf, so I didn't see any reason for him not to tell them.

"Go on," I said.

"I already know I'm fairly decent at fighting and aiming a crossbow," said Mav.

I shook my head. "Decent is an understatement, I think. You seemed a whole league better than 'decent' out there against those bandits."

He shrugged and took a bite out of his sandwich. Once he swallowed it, he continued talking.

"But the point is, there's always room for me to get better, and I feel like going to Anewick and meeting Blaise Belchat is the best way to start."

"What about your kid and wife?" I asked him.

"They completely know what's going on," he answered. "Heck, Rufus even wanted to come along and join the defense force."

I simpered slightly. "It looks like someone's son is following in his father's footsteps to defending their home. Nevertheless, he's still ineligible to serve, though I can see him serving in a city's defense force when he's grown."

"Right that is," said Mav. "Three and a half more years when he turns 16 and graduates, that's when he'll be able to serve."

Sighing, I took a bite out of my own sandwich before downing half a cup of orange juice. "Anyhow, bus leaves at noon today," I said. "I'll be flying to Anewick with Blue. I'll meet you guys at the Anewick station. Buses travel at what, maybe 60 to 70 kph?"

"In that range," said Mav.

"Duke?" I called, listening as my own voice rung all over the house.

"Yeah?" Duke's voice came from his own room.

"How long is the bus to Anewick?"

"About eight, maybe nine hours total."

That equated to anywhere between 480 and 630 kilometers between Cypress and Anewick. I felt that the range was a bit too large, so I estimated that the buses traveled at 65 kph and Anewick took eight and a half hours. That came to about 550 kilometers, give or take several.

I turned back to Mav. His eyes pointed straight to his plate as he focused on a strip of bacon. "You caught onto that?"

Mav glanced up more a moment, blinked a couple of times, and nodded. "Yeah, so we'll be coming in past sundown."

By now, I had finished my serving for breakfast, and I left Mav to continue finishing his alone. That meant no distractions for him in order to allow him to prepare more hastily. I changed back into my cold weather getup and waited patiently for Duke and Mav to finish with their own thing. Rufus left at some point within that time.

It wasn't long until we were all ready to go, and a glance at a clock told me we still had two hours until the bus leaves. Deciding not to waste any time, Duke and Mav both left the house, leaving me to take care of Blue.

"You think we should follow them to the station?" I asked him.

"Depends… if I can land anywhere in the town without getting shot, then yes," answered Blue.

I simply shrugged and climbed onto his back. "Maybe we can survey them from the air. Try landing and you can pull us back up depending on how they react."

Blue remained silent and took off from the backyard, turning around in search of Duke and Mav.

Seeing as how they had just left the house no more than five minutes ago, it wasn't difficult at all for us to find them. I saw them take a glance up at us, give us a wave, and continue on their way to the station.

I guessed that we'd meet there before the bus leaves. If the onlookers move around too much that Blue is unable to land there, then I'll just have to find a less crowded area to put him. I hoped that they would let him touch down there—word about his 'heroic acts' against Abner must have spread around the town by now.

We arrived at the station well before Duke and Mav did, and I told Blue to land in a less crowded spot. Not too crowded that he would be overwhelmed, but not too isolated that I'd have to walk very far.

His landing caused quite a stirring once the majority of the crowd noticed him. Most people in the area gave him a quick glance before returning to whatever they were doing, attempting their best at ignoring the quadruped Dragon. A select few, which I noticed were mostly around my age, kept their eyes focused on him.

I tried my best to ignore everyone, taking a seat on a nearby bench with Blue resting behind me, out of the way.

Whoever has the audacity to be the first person to sit next to me on this bench deserves a gold medal, I thought, staring into blank space.

Almost immediately, I noticed someone approaching me. He was Human, around my age, and I couldn't see his parents anywhere.

"Ay," he said in acknowledgement as he took a seat next to me.

Well that didn't take long. "You know, I didn't actually expect anyone to sit here because… you know…" I pointed at the blue figure behind us, and a slight stirring told me that Blue was listening. I didn't bother to turn my head in order to face him.

He just shrugged. "Well, all the other benches are full," he said. "I see an open seat that looks safe enough in my book, and I take it."

"Well then your book must be quite lenient when it comes down to defining what's 'safe,'" I commented.

"Maybe."

I simply shrugged, leaned back on the bench, and continued waiting, holding my head down this time.

"Can I touch him?" he asked.

This time I actually turned to look him in the eye. "Did my ears get that right?"

"I think so," the Human replied, "if you heard me asking if I could touch him."

"Hmm?"

I turned back to find that Blue's eyes were wide open, and that he was eyeing the teen. Of course, he doesn't want just anyone coming up to him trying to feel the cold scales on his body.

"You fine with that?" I asked Blue.

Blue gave a real subtle nod, and I turned back to the teen. "That would be a yes."

The Human reached back over the bench and rested his hand on Blue's side, taking a deep breath as he ran it along the Dragon's body. "Feels just like a regular Dragon," he commented.

I simply nodded as if to agree with him. "Well, the only difference is that he holds a different stance compared to our Dragons. What's your name, by the way?"

"Ewan," he said.

Again, I nodded, and I allowed him to continue running his hand down Blue's side. "So, where you headed to?" I asked him.

"Anewick. Coming back from a vacation."

"Ah, I'm headed to the same place as well!" I replied with growing enthusiasm. "But I can't take the bus because I've got this guy to worry about." I pointed behind myself at Blue. "So, where'd you go for your vacation?"

"Vernon Hills."

My jaw dropped. Nobody simply says he went to the Vernon Hills for a vacation—nobody ever does that! "Seriously?"

Ewan nodded. "Believe me when I say that it feels like hell just to get there. I'm surprised myself that I was able to brave such a journey without injury."

Pretty soon, I spotted Duke and Mav wiggling out of the crowd. I stood up and headed over to them, leaving Ewan with Blue—I hoped neither of them minded.

"You got your ticket?" I asked Mav.

The fox nodded and showed me his bus ticket. "Oh, and by the way, Vinnie's going to be coming as well, as per request of the town officials."

"Where is he now?"

"On his way."

"I advise you to start flying right now," said Duke. "It's a long journey if you're not taking the bus from here to Anewick. If Blue can't fly consistently at speeds of at least 65 kph, then you two will be there late. Do you know Blue's regular flight speed, by any chance?"

I shook my head. "I've known him less than two days longer than I've known you, so I haven't had a chance to measure it. I have no idea how far this place is from Emerald Glen, so I can't estimate either."

"Aye, okay." The Goblin sighed. "Then it's better you leave early and wait for us at the station. I'll let you decide where to land Blue, but know that it's not really hard to find a spot. I think you can figure it out. Also, the road from here to Anewick is one of two roads leading north. The other one goes to Sky Lake City, which is northwest. Anewick is northeast."

"Okay, thanks. I think I'm set. You've got all my stuff packed, right?"

"Yep."

I turned away to find Ewan and Blue engaged in a mutual conversation. I didn't know what would seem stranger: a wolf speaking with a Dragon, or a Human speaking with a Dragon. Needless to say, both seemed to be quite uncanny combinations. A Dragon-to-Dragon conversation (Houston and Blue) would feel much more natural.

"Sorry, but we've got to go," I said, interrupting them. I couldn't care less for what they were talking about.

"Okay," said Ewan, "I guess we can meet in Anewick then."

"If I'm there on time. Perhaps if I'm lucky, you can tell me a bit more about your Vernon Hills expedition."

Ewan snickered. "Well, catch you later then."

He stood up and melted back into the crowd, and I climbed atop Blue's back without wasting any more time. Blue took off once I was set, and I guided him to follow the road that led northeast out of Cypress.

I didn't turn back to look at the town.

About three or four hours into the flight, Blue decided to land us for lunch. Once again, I passed on eating anything until we would arrive in the city. There, I would be able to feast on whatever I wanted—it's Blue's time to hunt right now, not mine.

We were at a large lake, the other side of which I could not see from where I stood. Nobody else was around, and the road connecting Anewick to Cypress was just a few hundred meters away from us. If anyone passed by from there, they would have easily spotted us.

Blue decided to go looking for something in the lake this time, saying that he couldn't find any deer or other land animal to hunt. He moved into the lake to where the water was about as high as his legs, dipping his maw into the drink several times in hopes of catching anything.

Predator, I thought. Surely, he'd need a better way to catch some prey—bait, stealth, swiftness, anything of the like that would allow him to actually move close enough to a seemingly flavorsome fish.

Why couldn't the bipedal Dragons of the Realm just get along with their quadruped Empiric counterparts? I asked myself.

I decided to first list off all the physical similarities between the two. Most turned out to be physical attributes—scales, wings, fire breath. That was when the venom from that Goblin's shop in Seldovia came to my mind once again. I knew for sure that no biped Dragons secrete venom in any way; the question was about quadruped Dragons.

"Blue, I've got a question for you concerning the rest of your kind," I said from the lakeshore.

"Uh huh, Ace, go ahead," said Blue before dipping his maw in the water once again.

"Are quadruped Dragons venomous?"

Blue didn't take more than five seconds to come up with an answer. "Some are. I'm not, and neither is Abner. I don't know how it would affect a Canid or a Human—probably in a really bad way—but I do know that it won't have any effect on other Dragons, bi or quad."

That was all I needed to know. So the only two physical differences I knew of were their stature and the fact that some quadrupeds carried venom.

Then came the mental similarities. I didn't allow Blue to represent the quadrupeds as a whole because he was, simply put, an anomaly. There's a reason he hates his home on the east side.

So to put it short, I found no mental similarities between bipeds and quadrupeds. Perhaps that was the reason for this schism.

My musing was cut short by an abrupt yelp from the lake, and I caught a glimpse of Blue flailing in the water. He regained his composure, spewed a stream of fire into the lake, and dipped his head in to come up with a fair-sized fish before the ensuing cloud of steam engulfed him.

Blue popped out of the steam and came out of the lake. "That's not the best way of doing it."

"Something wrong?" I asked.

"I have been plagued by a pike!"

I grimaced, wanting to guffaw on the inside. "How does that happen?"

"I was trying to lure something in using a smaller fish I had caught, and I guess I stuck too close to the bait when the pike came. It grazed me by surprise so I boiled the water and killed it."

Well, that was quite embarrassing. Surely, a pike isn't tough enough to cause any harm to a Dragon, considering that it would have to get through the tough scales.

I guessed Blue should have been thankful that I was the only person who saw it.

Because of the steam, we decided to move to a different location. The road to Anewick was still visible from where I stood, and Blue decided to continue fishing.

Several catches later, which took about five minutes, Blue declared that he had enough to make it to Anewick. To me, it felt like he could have eaten over three times the amount he just had, but who am I to judge someone who knows more about himself than I do?

We continued flying along the road to Anewick, and I must have dozed off several times in the few hours that remained. It was quite dull, finding nothing but fields, forests, and a single strip of road that ran cut the terrain in half. There was the occasional cluster of about four or five farms along the road, but those weren't really worth noting either.

The sun was already below the horizon when I spotted city lights. I also just noticed that the landscape was coated in white—I didn't even notice how cold it was until I spotted the snow. Even then, the cold didn't bother me too much.

"There's Anewick," I said to Blue.

"Yep…" he muttered.

We decided to do a quick flyover to survey the area, and get a general glimpse of how the city was structured. I figured that hardly anyone would notice us flying, seeing as how it's impossible to tell the difference between a biped and quadruped in the air. In addition, I haven't even spotted Duke and Mav's bus yet.

The first feature that caught my eye was the massive lake the city seemed to be centered on. A single bridge with a railroad ran over the frozen lake, and I could barely catch sight of tiny specks gliding over the ice.

All the buildings were situated around the lake. I couldn't tell which one was the station from here, so I decided that I would have to land and ask around in order to find it.

Speaking of landing, Duke was right when he said that it wouldn't be difficult to find a spot. Similar to Emerald Glen, though not nearly as extreme, mountains stood over the city on one side. I decided that it would be best to land there, so I found Blue a little niche near the base.

"Stay here," I told him, leaving the cave. As usual, it was in a spot close enough to the city that I felt that I wouldn't get lost searching for it, but it wasn't too close that any random passerby would stumble upon the hideout.

Within several minutes, I was walking along the streets in Anewick. I noticed that most of the people outside were Dragons, while the next most common race was Waterbugs. I asked around on how to get to the station, and it didn't take me much longer until I was seated on a bench waiting for them to arrive.

Pretty soon, the moaning of an engine caught my ears, and I perked up to find a bus pulling into the station. A line formed outside, while the doors and storage compartments flipped open.

One of the first notable people out of the bus was Ewan, who stretched as he waited to retrieve his suitcase. Then came Mav, Vinnie, and lastly Duke. I saw no reason not to approach them, so I did and instantly greeted them once they noticed me.

"Ay," said Duke.

"Hey," I said back. "I came in a bit early, don't you think?"

"We had a minor delay. We should have been here about twenty minutes ago," explained Mav. "When did you get here?"

"About twenty minutes back, I think. I don't know. I don't carry a clock around with me."

"Anyway, Mav, Vinnie, here's the plan for tomorrow," started Duke. The Goblin then waved me off, saying that I didn't need to listen.

That was when I felt someone tapping on my shoulders, and I turned around to find Ewan with a grin planted on his face. "Hey. Bus ride was pretty long."

"Tell me about it," I said. "Well, I wasn't exactly cramped in a seat for eight hours straight—I was stuck hundreds of feet in the air on dragonback. But anyway, you owe me a conversation about the Vernon Hills."

"Right," said Ewan. "Well, to put it short, you're taking a huge risk if you're going to try to get to the Vernon Hills, even if you are a Dragon or have one to help you. It takes some stroke of luck to make it through those forests, and then even more luck to not end up in the wrong spot. Once you make it, though, it's all worth it."

I nodded. "What kind of tech do they have there? I'm from Emerald Glen, so I've heard a lot of talk from Goblins about it."

Ewan shook his head. "I don't think you'd understand if I told you what it was. I can't explain it in layman's terms either—I think you'd be better off finding out yourself if you ever try to get there. Besides, if I told you, it would ruin the whole shock and awe factor of first stepping into the place. Am I right?"

Well, that upset me a bit, and I didn't bother attempting to make it look unapparent. From the way I spoke so inquiringly about the topic, I felt it safe to assume that he already knew I'd be disappointed with such a response.

"Oh. Yeah," I said flatly. "I guess you are right."

I glanced over to the other three, and I caught sight of Duke beckoning me with his hand. He seemed impatient as well.

"Well, I've got to go now," I told Ewan. "See you later. I'm probably going to be working mostly with the defense force, if you want to know where to find me."

"Ah, so you want to serve," he said. "Well, good luck with that. By the way, I never got your name."

"Chet."

I turned away from him and headed back over to Duke and the two Cypress guards.

"So, Chet, if you can guide us to Blue? I'd like to make arrangements for you guys at the place closest to Blue's niche," said Duke.

"Wait, wait, wait," interrupted Mav, waving his hands. "When did we start calling Ace 'Chet'? Last time I checked his name was—,"

"Shush about my name!" I rudely interrupted him.

Vinnie seemed equally curious about my name. Duke and I exchanged looks before each of us leaned toward one of the guards—Duke leaned to Vinnie's ear and I leaned to Mav's.

"It's a name I had to make up in Seldovia," I explained with a greatly quieted voice so that only Mav could hear. "Apparently I'm Realm-famous, and I'd like to not be that way, so I made up a name for myself in order to avoid that. Just call me Chet unless I tell you to call me Ace."

I pulled away from Mav's ear, and the red fox responded with a quick nod. Duke had also just finished explaining the situation to Vinnie, and soon we were all out of the station.

I guided everyone toward the mountains just north of the city, and then to the same cave where I left Blue. Luckily, I managed to find it within minutes of reaching the place—it was literally the first cave to the right if I deviated from the road going up the mountain.

"Actually, this is probably the best spot for him that I know of," said Duke. "See, the path back there actually leads up to the Anewick defense force base."

"Convenient," I commented.

"Quite. Alright, I'll make arrangements for you guys to stay at the nearest place from here. At least until you decide to serve in the defense force, then I can probably find you an open dorm and have the place ready to go within a week. As for food, I've got you covered on that, even Blue."

"You're too kind," said Mav with a wide grin on his muzzle.

Duke shrugged. "Well, hey, you let me stay at your place. I guess this is the least I can do for you."

"Touché, touché," Mav trailed off.

Duke actually managed to find us a comfortable inn for the three of us to dwell. Once the sun was up and the day started, he had already come down from the defense force base to make sure we were awake.

After breakfast, I dressed into my set of clothes fit for hot weather since it was the only clean set I had left. In thin clothes, I had to rush out into the cold environment. While the cool air did nip at my face, it didn't perturb me too much—I guessed the fur coat did help up here. Now I just had to resist the urge to leap headfirst into the snow.

Meanwhile, Vinnie came out dressed in multiple layers of clothes. He also had a beanie over his head and a pair of gloves. "How cold is it right now?" he asked.

Duke shrugged. "Below freezing, that's for sure."

The Goblin was wearing the regular Anewick defense force uniform underneath a comfy-looking jacket with his last name printed on the back. It was considerably less than what Vinnie had on, but still more than Mav and me.

"Should we get Blue right now?" I asked Duke.

"Nay," he replied. "We can get him later. Right now you should meet Blaise."

He led us on the same path we deviated from last night when we went to find Blue's hideout. This time, we continued up the slope to the defense force base.

Having never visited Emerald Glen's defense force base—the thing was all the way up in the mountains somewhere—I had to base my prediction of the place's appearance on Seldovia's grounds. I imagined it as several buildings making up half of the entire place, consisting of dorms and utilities, and then training grounds for each race making up the other half.

Once we reached the top of the slope, I realized that the place didn't look remotely like Seldovia's base. For one thing, it looked like an entire town separate from the city of Anewick. Lodges outlined the entire area, surrounding a huge central building. There were two towers on each side of the entrance, from which one could view the entire city of Anewick so long as there was no fog.

"Well," said Duke, "welcome to the Anewick defense force base of operations."

Vinnie's jaw simply dropped. I studied his eyes and noticed that they were trained mostly on the central building.

"It looks so much more luxurious than Seldovia's," I said. "It seems like there's much more room to move around."

Duke shrugged. "Well, remember that Seldovia's population is over three times that of Anewick's. We get a lot more space here. It follows the same general structure of Seldovia's place. People stay in the surrounding cabins while all indoor activities are conducted in the central building. Outdoor training is done off the grounds in the mountains."

Just then, I noticed a figure coming straight toward us—a Dragon, without a doubt. He was wearing the regular Anewick defense force uniform and nothing else. He had red flame-like scales and stood taller than any of us, which proved to be no surprise since Dragons are generally the tallest.

"Ah, Duke, I see you've brought visitors," he said.

Duke saluted him. "The scraps you wanted should be on a truck coming here from Seldovia. Expect shipments to come in within a week. These three, I met in Cypress."

The Dragon nodded and then turned his attention back to us. "So, who are these three?"

I stood tall and formal. I didn't know if it would be best to use my real name or my alias, so I let Mav and Vinnie speak first.

"Maverick Myers from Cypress," said Mav.

"Vinnie Collins, also from Cypress."

Then came my turn. I took a deep breath and, without thinking about it, announced, "Ace Anatelle, Emerald Glen."

He nodded at the three of us. "Well, I welcome you three to the Anewick defense force base," he continued, "in case Duke hasn't already told you about me, my name is Blaise Belchat."