The Dragon Healer of Tone (World of Tone) (24 page)

“I’m all right, Witic, my pet. Go back to the cave entrance.” With the sound of her voice, the flier calmed down and slowly moved back to the entrance always keeping an eye on its mistress. On the wall of the cave hung an amulet; she just now noticed that it was glowing. It had done nothing since the four Solans; she stopped in mid thought as the glow diminished. She weakly walked over to the amulet. She had not been able to even touch it since that sun-rising, so many hundreds of seasons before. Pain would shoot through her when she tried, but perhaps now. She reached for it, and a bolt of energy burnt the tips of her fingers. She shouted with pain, “What is happening!”

Chapter 49 - The Dragon Healer

(Helping New and Old Friends Is Always a Pleasure.)

351 set of seasons since the coming of the Averons

Terra had been in a deep depression all the way home from the gathering. He had killed a dragon. None of the dragons present did anything but trumpet his great victory over Voltac, but Terra had gone into sadness so deep that Fienna was worried about him. She had never felt sadness like that, and she realized that Terra had a deep and overwhelming loathing of harming anything. When they returned to the cave, Terra went to their secret pool in the cave’s recesses. He stripped and dove in. He stayed there until sunset saying and thinking nothing. When he finally got out, Fienna felt a bone chilling cold. Terra was half frozen from the water; she was in the outer cave giving him some time. When she felt the chill through his body, she rushed to the pool. There she found him laying naked and shivering on the edge of the pool. She immediately heated a rock near his small body. She was angry with what he had done and let him know it. He finally warmed up, but he refused to leave the pool area. Sunrise after sunrise he stayed near it in a profound depression. He would only see Fienna, and he seemed to be better only when he was physically touching her. Slowly, she convinced him to come into the main cave and then finally the lake.

She swam with him and his natural joy seemed to return. Dawra knew of Terra’s sadness although she didn’t understand it. He was incredible during the fight. His power was overwhelming. Any dragon would have been proud, but he was different.

Since the gathering, a few dragons that had been injured were coming to Dawra to ask how to find Terra. She told Fienna, and they decided that no other dragons should know of their home because Terra was not capable of healing anyone in his present state. So Dawra told those who came that she would contact them when Terra could heal again. Terra finally agreed to meet with the injured dragons. It was unusual for dragons to ask for help since they trusted virtually none, even their own kind. They would prefer to suffer rather than ask for help. This didn’t seem to stop the mothers with their children from coming. Finally, a place on the beach was setup where he would come the sun-rising after the half moon. All dragons knew when and where he came, and dragons of all sizes and colors started to come. Almost all were female or their dragonettes. The four that had helped him at the gathering had since moved into caves around Terra and Fienna’s home.

They would help to protect him when he was healing. Fienna didn’t much like this, but they never came to the crevice and disturbed them.

Only her mother, Lowlack, and Setilan came to their home and were welcomed. As the full moon risings passed, Fienna and Terra’s lives became more settled and routine. Fienna now went hunting without him. Not often, but once in a while, and he was able to be alone. He liked this but only for short periods. He truly preferred to be with her and she him.

Terra had rarely been called to come to an injured dragon, perhaps because they were so solitary creatures. Injury due to accident was the primary way dragons died, usually alone. A bad storm had just ended, and the almost black rain clouds were slowly moving inland allowing the sun to penetrate through small gaps in the clouds. Terra had gone to the lake and was lying on the small beach Fienna had created. Fienna was in the cave doing something. He was finally feeling better. He had realized that Fienna was right, and there was no choice but to kill. Terra always liked the effect of the light rays passing through the small holes creating a moving illuminated area on the ground. As he watched the clouds move across the sky, he saw a small figure of a dragon approaching. Even from this distance, he could tell it was Dawra. She was in a hurry. Instead of slowly spiraling down, she flew straight into the crevice and landed on the flat rock in front of the cave opening. He walked up to Dawra just as Fienna was coming out of the cave.

“There’s been a bad accident. Kindel, a young female with a dragonette, was blown into the cliffs not far from here. She’s near death. I was there, and she looks bad.”

Fienna looked at Terra, and he nodded his head. “We’ll come,” she said.

Terra mounted Fienna and followed Dawra to the broken body of Kindel. As they spiraled down, he could see four dragons gathered around the injured dragon. She was the most badly injured dragon that Terra had ever seen. It was amazing she still lived. There was a cut as wide as his outstretched hand all the way to the bone that went from her neck to her tail along her breastbone. Her tail was bent and broken open with extruding bone. Her neck was similarly broken. One of her left wings was completely mangled with parts of the bones missing. Her right wing was only slightly better. Terra could see up the side of the cliff where she had hit and the bloody trail down the rock to her present position. He dismounted Fienna and walked over to Kindel. She was in agony. Terra had no idea where to start, so he walked to the enormous gash down her breast. He put his hands on either side of the gash, and they started to glow. First, he took as much of the pain away as he could.

With that, Kindel’s moans of agony stopped. Then his hands started to glow brighter than normal. The orange didn’t move across the entire opening; it seemed to flow out of his hands into two streams to form orange cords. The cords weaved themselves back and fourth through the gash until they created a weave of orange ropes along the whole length of the opening. Then the cords began to tighten pulling the two separated edges of the torn flesh together. When the flesh was bonded together, a line of orange traveled up the cut healing it closed. It took what seemed to be forever before the line finally faded, and no sign of the great gash was left. Terra lifted his hands and stepped back.

“Fienna, I need you to help me straighten her neck. I think she’s having a hard time breathing,” Terra thought to her. Fienna slowly and gently lifted her head and moved her neck into a natural position. Terra then placed his hands on the area of her neck that bones were protruding from. The area began to glow, and the bones pulled back into her neck. Then the muscles grew together, and finally her skin came together leaving no mark of the injury. Kindel was finally able to breathe normally and speak.

“Thank you, dragon healer!” she said in a raspy voice.

Terra looked at her for a moment, thinking about what she called him.

“Good name for you,” Fienna thought to him.

Terra yelled to one of the dragons standing and watching, “Please get her some fresh water.”

A yellow female took off immediately and returned with her hands cupped with water. She walked over and slowly spilled the water into Kindel’s mouth. She pulled her tongue in and out slowly swallowing it.

“Kindel. We have to move your body and stretch out your wings, so I can heal them properly. I will try to block the pain, but you will still hurt,” Terra said.

“I understand,” she replied.

“Fienna, I’m going to hold onto her tail and try to stop some of her pain. Can you move her and stretch her wings out?” Terra thought to her.

“I’ll need some help from these others.”

With that Fienna went to her mother and asked for her assistance.

The two of them moved toward Kindel. They gently pushed her body over so that she was lying on her stomach. They then pulled the two wings out into their normal extended position. Terra had great trouble trying to keep the pain in check. Finally, he approached the most damaged wing. Parts of bone and membrane were missing. Virtually ever muscle was injured, and every bone broken. Terra almost became sick at the sight of it. He knelt down and placed both hands on her wing.

His whole upper body began to glow. The orange glow infused her entire wing. The other dragons gasped as bones began to grow and replace missing sections. In one area, a whole bone began to grow from nothing. Once the bones were regenerated, the muscles began to slowly reform. As they all watched, muscle stretched themselves out and reattached to the bones. New tissue formed. Finally, the thin membrane slowly reformed and stretched across the wing making it whole once more. Terra sat back on the sand, and the glow left him. Fienna rushed over to him and rubbed his back with her nose.

“Are you all right? I don’t want you hurting yourself. We’ll leave if you’re too tired to continue,” Fienna thought with great concern in her voice.

“No, I’m fine. I just need to rest a little while.”

“Take all the time you need,” she thought as she continued to rub his back.

It didn’t take long before his strength returned, and he got up and walked to the other wing. This wing was not nearly as bad. It had no missing pieces just broken bones. He healed it quickly. He then moved to each limb, which had various injuries and healed them. Finally, he placed both hands on her side and again his whole upper body glowed, but there was no visible glow on Kindel.

“What are you doing my love?” Fienna thought to him.

“Her insides are hurt. They’re fixed now.” He backed away and sat down next to Fienna’s tail and leaned against her. She felt him taking a little strength from her.

“Take as much as you need; I feel strong,” Fienna thought to him.

“I could not live without you. Never leave me Fienna,” Terra thought in a love so strong that Fienna almost stopped breathing from its intensity.

“You know I will always be part of you. We will never be parted.”

she replied with the same strength of love.

Kindel slowly rose off the blood soaked sand where she would have died. She was still covered with her own blood. She looked at the Dragon Healer who was also covered with her blood. She slowly rose to her full height, which was a quarter smaller than Fienna. She carefully turned to face the two of them. Kindel spread her wings. They were whole. A little pain was still present, but she was completely healed. She walked to Terra and Fienna.

“You gave me back my life. I will be able to raise my child. These things I will never be able to return. I will be at your service anytime you need me. I vow that nothing on Tone will ever harm you if I can prevent it. Is there anything you want from me now?” Kindel said loud so all could hear.

“Go to your child; she needs you my friend,” Terra said in a gentle voice.

Kindel spread her wings and launched herself into the air. She flew by him once more waving her wings to him. The other dragons that had been watching each in turn walked by him and bowed their heads before taking off.

The yellow stopped instead of passing and said. “Dragon Healer, I have never seen anything like this before. Others will hear of what you’ve done. You have made many friends this sun-rising, including me.”

As she started to walk away, Terra asked her name.

“I’m called Hiecal,” she said as she launched herself.

Dawra suddenly turned her head when she said her name.

“She’s the oldest living dragon they say. She is supposed to know everything about the dragons. It’s said she will never die. That she’s been among us since the beginning of time. It’s been said she has not revealed herself to any living things since beyond known memory,”

Dawra said in an amazed voice.

Terra and Fienna washed themselves in the sea before returning home. He was tired and went into the cave to lie down and rest. Fienna went hunting and brought back a large runner. She started a fire and placed the meat next to it as Terra did. When it was burnt like he preferred it, she called him, and they both filled their bellies to bursting.

As the two relaxed, the name “Dragon Healer” was spreading.

Within a full moon’s rising, Terra would be known to all dragons as the

“Dragon Healer”. He would now and always be the “Dragon Healer”

not just to the dragons but to all.

Chapter 50 - The Healer of All

(A Gift should not be used for the Few but for the Many.)

351 set of seasons since the coming of the Averons

Terra’s healing time for the dragons had become an event that he enjoyed. Fienna was at best neutral to the whole thing. She disliked sharing him with others, especially other dragons. Their home had become a refuge from the world. Sometimes they stayed in the crevice for several sun-risings without leaving. They would play in the lake, bathe in the waterfall in the secret part of the cave, and of course, relax.

All in all, their home had become a small paradise for them both. One morning as they were sunning themselves after a swim in the lake, the ground seemed to start moving. It woke them both out of a light sleep.

Terra stood up and could not understand what had happened. It didn’t last long, and everything seemed to be fine now, so he lay back down against Fienna’s side and closed his eyes.