Minglings: The Dragons by J. Carrarn

Author:J. Carrarn [Carrarn, J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction
Publisher: The Wasteland Publishing
Published: 2023-12-16T16:00:00+00:00

Hidden truths

The following two days passed in a blur. Emma didn't see any odd movements again, and with her mind preoccupied, she forgot about the purple-scaled shape. Working in the bog, dodging Whipper's strikes, and keeping an eye on Daniel kept her busy enough.

Early in the morning of the third day, just before dawn, Emma woke up to the rattling of a torrent of rain that pelted the shack's thin roof. She looked around the pitch-black shack and saw Daniel. He was lying close by, one hand outstretched in her direction. She frowned, but even the other's proximity couldn't curtail her good mood. The rain was what she had been waiting, hoping, and praying for. Now that it had come again, her plan could begin.

The previous days, she would have relished the few quiet moments in the morning. But now it seemed to take forever for the others to wake up and even longer until Whipper came to get them. When he did, she was the first to dodge below his blows and run outside. Letting the rain fall on her, she felt its energy invigorate her, but she tried to hide it.

Whipper kept cursing, striking the slower Kobolds with more intensity than usual. The rain seemed to make the Goblin even more sour than usual, and he snarled and whipped at anyone he deemed slacking. When everyone was finally bunched together in the torrential rain, their feet sunk deep in the mud, Whipper forced them towards the bog.

"Is something wrong?" Daniel whispered as he trudged next to her.

When she didn't reply, he frowned but kept quiet. None of the others spoke much, some using the downpour to wash themselves as they moved.

The water caused the Kobolds to have a great deal of energy, and they got to the swamp much faster than usual.

By now, a wide berth of the trees had been chopped down all the way up to the swamp, creating a pathway. Only the thickest, tallest trees remained, a few marks on their bases showing the failed attempts to clear them. In the distance, the lush purple jungle made way for darker trees with thick clusters of roots connecting them.

The drenched group walked between two of the immense trees and arrived at the temporary cabin. Shallow, murky water was rising and overflowing the brown grass and reeds bordering it while clouds of mosquito-like insects flew around. Emma looked at it and nodded. If the rain continued, it might reach the cabin before noon.

Ahead of the group, Whipper scanned the rising water until he noticed what Emma had long since seen: the telltale eye-bulbs of the three-eyed crocodiles lying in wait. They sat close together, partially hidden between the dark network of roots that grew around the mangroves.

"It seems the crocs are even happier about this rain than you are. I wouldn't try anything stupid! Get to work, and if you come back with less than ten flowers, I'll flay the scales from your miserable hides!" Whipper shouted, brandishing his whip.

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