Beyond the warm slopes of Emberpeak, past the black rocks and little cracks where wisps of steam curled from the earth, there was a path Emberlyn had never followed before.
Naturally, this meant Emberlyn wanted to follow it.
The little Fire Dragonling trotted happily down the mountainside, stopping every so often to investigate something interesting.
A shiny stone.
A beetle disappearing beneath a leaf.
A stick that looked very much like another stick she had already inspected.
The farther Emberlyn travelled from Emberpeak, the greener the world became.
Dark volcanic rocks gave way to moss-covered stones. Tall trees appeared beside the path, and tiny flowers grew between their roots.
Then Emberlyn noticed something strange.
The forest ahead had disappeared.
Not because there were no trees.
She simply couldn't see them.
A thick white mist filled the valley below.
Emberlyn stopped at the edge.
"That's a lot of cloud," she said.
The mist slowly curled around her paws.
Emberlyn took one step forward.
Then another.
Soon the path behind her vanished.
"So..."
Emberlyn looked around.
"...this might have been a bad idea."
But somewhere ahead came a tiny frightened squeak.
Emberlyn's ears lifted.
Then another.
Something was lost in the mist.
Emberlyn forgot all about turning back.
On the other side of the hollow, Nymira had noticed something strange too.
A little stream she often visited wasn't behaving like a stream at all.
Instead of bubbling cheerfully between the stones, it had become little more than a trickle.
Nymira followed it upstream.
The water led between tall ferns, beneath twisting roots and eventually into a wall of thick white mist.
Nymira stopped.
The mist smelled of water.
Warm water.
Lots of it.
She stepped carefully inside.
Droplets gathered on her scales.
The deeper Nymira travelled, the warmer the mist became.
She could hear water somewhere ahead.
But she couldn't see it.
Then—
Bump!
Nymira stumbled backwards.
Something small and warm had walked directly into her.
Two enormous eyes appeared through the mist.
Nymira stared.
Emberlyn stared back.
Neither Dragonling moved.
"Hello," said Nymira.
"Hello," said Emberlyn.
There was another frightened squeak somewhere nearby.
Both Dragonlings turned towards the sound.
"You heard that too?" asked Emberlyn.
Nymira nodded.
Without another word, they headed into the mist together.
They soon discovered a family of tiny moss mice huddled together on a rock.
Water surrounded them.
Their burrow beneath an old tree root had flooded, and the rising water had cut them off from the dry forest.
"We need to get rid of this mist," said Emberlyn.
Emberlyn puffed out her chest.
A tiny spark flickered near her mouth.
Warmth spread through the damp air.
For one wonderful moment, the mist thinned.
"I did it!"
Then the warm air met the water.
Pffffffffff.
A fresh cloud of steam rolled across the hollow.
Emberlyn disappeared completely.
Nymira blinked.
"Emberlyn?"
"I'm here."
A little red nose emerged from the fog.
Nymira tried very hard not to laugh.
"My turn," she said.
Nymira stepped towards the flooded ground and concentrated.
The water trembled.
Tiny streams began winding back between the stones towards their old channel.
But more water kept flowing into the hollow.
For every little stream Nymira guided away, another trickled in.
Nymira stopped.
"We're fixing the wrong problem."
Emberlyn tilted her head.
Nymira pointed upstream.
"We need to find where all this water is coming from."
Together they followed the sound.
Trickle.
Splash.
Rumble.
The mist grew warmer.
Eventually they found an old mountain spring hidden beneath a rocky ledge.
Or at least, they found where the spring was supposed to be.
A fallen tree had crashed across its channel during a storm. Stones, branches and thick roots had become tangled beneath the trunk.
Warm spring water had nowhere to go.
It spilled over the blocked channel and spread across the colder forest floor.
And everywhere the warm water met the cool air...
mist rose.
Nymira examined the blockage.
"That's why my stream disappeared."
Emberlyn pushed against the fallen tree.
Nothing happened.
She pushed harder.
Still nothing.
"I think the tree is winning."
Nymira walked around the trunk.
"We don't need to move the whole tree."
Beneath it was a thick old root twisted tightly between two rocks.
Branches and stones had become trapped behind it.
Nymira nudged the root.
It wouldn't move.
Emberlyn touched it with one paw.
"It's very dry."
An idea began forming.
"Maybe it doesn't need to move very far."
Emberlyn crouched beside the root.
She took a careful breath.
A tiny spark appeared.
Not a roaring flame.
Not a great burst of fire.
Just enough warmth to slowly heat the old root.
Nymira guided a thin stream of spring water around it.
Warmth.
Water.
Warmth.
Water.
Slowly, the dry root softened.
Nymira pushed water beneath it.
Emberlyn pressed against it with both front paws.
The root moved.
Just a little.
A stone rolled free.
Then another.
Water rushed through the tiny opening.
Nymira guided it towards the old stream bed.
Emberlyn pushed again.
Crack.
The tangled branches shifted.
Suddenly—
WHOOSH!
The spring burst through.
Emberlyn and Nymira tumbled backwards as clear water rushed between them.
For a moment, they simply sat there.
Then Emberlyn started laughing.
Nymira laughed too.
The water raced along its old path, carrying leaves and tiny twigs through the hollow.
The flooded ground began to drain.
And slowly...
the mist began to lift.
Sunlight appeared first.
Golden beams slipped between the trees.
Then came the ferns.
The mossy stones.
The flowers.
And finally, the little moss mice scampered from their rock towards their dry burrow.
Emberlyn watched them disappear beneath the roots.
"We did it."
Nymira smiled.
"We did."
For the first time since bumping into each other, the two Dragonlings could see one another properly.
Emberlyn looked at Nymira.
Nymira looked at Emberlyn.
"You're very wet," said Emberlyn.
Nymira blinked.
"You're smoking."
Emberlyn looked down.
A tiny curl of steam rose from the end of her tail.
They stared at it.
Then both Dragonlings burst into laughter.
The two new friends sat beside the restored stream while sunlight warmed the hollow.
Emberlyn dipped one paw into the water.
Nymira watched.
"Is that cold?"
"Very."
Emberlyn immediately pulled her paw out.
Nymira laughed again.
Nearby, the moss mice began carrying dry leaves back into their burrow.
The forest sounded different now.
Water bubbled between the stones.
Birds called from the branches.
Drops of water fell from leaves still heavy with mist.
Emberlyn thought about how she had tried to solve everything with warmth.
Nymira thought about how she had tried to solve everything with water.
Neither had been enough.
But together...
A tiny spark had softened the root.
A little water had found its way beneath it.
And something neither Dragonling could have done alone had suddenly become possible.
Emberlyn looked towards the path leading back to Emberpeak.
Nymira looked towards the stream winding towards the Moonlit Pool.
Their homes were in different directions.
But now there was a place between them that belonged to both.
The Misty Hollow.
Although, Emberlyn thought, it wasn't particularly misty anymore.
"Will you come back?" she asked.
Nymira smiled.
"Of course."
Emberlyn grinned.
"Good. Next time I'll show you Emberpeak."
Nymira looked towards the distant mountain.
"Is there much fire?"
Emberlyn thought about this.
"Yes."
Nymira sighed.
Emberlyn laughed.
And together they followed the little stream until the path divided and it was time to say goodbye.
That morning, two Dragonlings had entered the hollow from opposite sides.
Each had brought something different.
Neither had been enough alone.
But somewhere between fire and water, they had found the answer.
And something else too.
A new friend.
Because in DragonZone, even the most unlikely kinds of magic can belong together.
Sometimes the best way forward is to bring what you can do together. 🔥💧🐉
0 comments