I want to be a.... Minas
"SQUARK." The young troll mimics, flapping grey-red arms, the rough skin flapping on limbs just starting teenagehood. Her eyes are closed as she tries to sense where her cohort are in the water below. She stands on the jetty of her town, paying a game while they all wait for their parents to get back from the morning's fishing.
"That's not how you do it." Comes a voice from the sea, before it is silenced with an elbow to the ribs.
"Quiet Shreej, do you want Stanny to hear you?" Another voice, this to the left as the young troll Stanny flaps her arms and squaks.
Around her feet, attracted by the sounds and with the expectation of food scamper little lizards, wings sprouted from their back as they look for any of the roasted potatoes that are a common snack of the children of Ettum-Mess.
Stanny stumbles as a tiny plume of flame leaves the mouth of one of the little lizards crawling up her leg, shaking it and yelping.
The kids below chuckle - "That's even worse, how are you going to make the sound of a Minas with that kind of sound?"
Stanny huffs, finally flicking one of the lizards free. She thinks she hears one of her friends and gets into a crouch, about to jump when a massive roar crashes through the community. Stanny opens her eyes as she looks to her friends, and then up, hearing the predatory bird close.
She drops to her knees, pulling Shreej up onto the jetty as she runs her tongue nervously over the base of her lower tusks in nervous energy, pushing her hand out to find the next of her friends. The roar happens again as she hears the creak of the other begin to open up the hidey-cage, even as she gets down on her belly to fully pull one of the larger kids up, still listening out for the massive bird and hoping against hope that she is too small for the Minas to want to eat her.
Lizards jump on her back and tug her hair, making rawring sounds in the back of their throat, unconcerned at the trouble the apex predator is - content just to nag for potatoes.
At last her last peer is up, and they help pull her up, all of them clammoring towards the cage, before pushing it out and under the jetty, the troupe back in the water and safe from harm. They watch as a uncovered boat shatters, massive feet raking through the vessel and leaving it scarred. It lands upon its prey as Shreej whispers in Stanny's ear. "See, that's not how you do it."
Later Shreej would have to nurse a massive bruise for that remark.
Author note:
Made for the "I want to be a dragon" challenge by Haly, the Moonlight Bard/J.M. Dearinger
Comments