Firstborne

Chapter 5: revelations

Her Body positively ached, her head throbbed horribly and lances of pain shot through her nerves like thousands of tiny red hot needles. Her mind, only seconds ago blessed with peaceful unconsciousness, was snapped back into reality in an instant. A very painful instant that is. She jerked bolt upright, gasping in pain, blinking her eyes rapidly against the sudden light. "Woah!" she heard a surprised voice yelp, and she heard the sound of chair legs scraping away from her. "Yep! She's awake!"

She was sitting on something soft and pillowy, and she felt the soft weight of blankets laying over her legs. I'm in bed. Everything slowly came into focus, her vision becoming more clear as it caught up with her premature awakening. She was sitting in what looked like a large canvas tent, with the flap closed and a candle lighting up the interior, though the yellow of sun bled through the whitish cloth. She turned to see who had been talking a moment earlier, and nearly jumped out of her skin. Sitting in a rickety chair only a few feet away from the bedside, regarding her with warm yellow eyes, was a Min'eral. "AH!" Iris cried, scooting away to the opposite end of the bed, eyes wide with fear and confusion. She noticed that she no longer had scaly skin, and to her disappointment her tail was gone as well. Was everything a dream? Another voice came from behind the Min'eral, and a second lizard-like figure stepped into view, peering at her over the shoulder of the first. Their beady green eyes glittered with amusement. "She's awake alright! And from the sound of it has some pretty good lungs as well."

Iris shook, her eyes darting around for an exit of some sort, terror surging through her brain. Why on earth was she sitting in a bed surrounded by Min'eral?! And where was Katrina and Lucas? And the biggest question of all, what had even happened that night?! She stared at them, not daring to make a move, waiting for something to happen. Her head throbbed terribly, though she tried her best to ignore it. Then, the silence was broken by a familiar voice. "It's okay, Iris. They're here to help you."

"Tourmaline?" Said Iris shakily, not taking her eyes off the Min'eral. Her locket buddy was no longer speaking in her mind, but her voice was audible. "What do you mean? What's going on?!"

The yellow eyes Min'eral gave a huge sigh, rubbing her head tiredly. "Oh Roaravei, we have a lot of explaining to do."

"Iris, you can trust these Min'eral. They want to protect you guys, not hurt you."

"Protect us? Protect us from what?! And why were we attacked last night?!"

Silence met these words. The two Min'eral threw a glance to one another that plainly said how should we go about this? Iris waited impatiently, her heart slowly coming back down to a normal speed, but her head still ached. Whatever was supposed to be happening at the moment, it didn't seem like she was in immediate danger. Finally, the yellow eyed Min'eral turned to her and she sat up straighter, giving them her full and undivided attention. "Well, I don't know if we are the ones who should tell you. That task was assigned to the general."

Iris folded her arms, mumbling. "And who is this 'general?' exactly?" she asked, raising a hand and twisting a lock of hair without thinking. The Min'eral sat up, groaning as her sore joints popped and stretched. She held out a hand to Iris, who slowly, hesitantly took it. They helped her to her feet, and led her to the entrance of the tent. Iris swayed on her feet slightly, and her headache was still prominent, but she could manage. "Be patient. You're about to meet him."

If Iris though she had been dreaming before, it was nothing compared to her bemusement while the Min'eral lead her through the camp. There were massive tents staked to the stony ground all over, cooking fires laid with spits and weapons were also commonplace. Training dummies made of sacks stuffed with straw were riddled with slashes and arrows, and a couple of black withered patches suggested fires. But the thing that dumbfounded Iris were the hundreds of Min'eral casually milling about, eating breakfast while chatting with one another, or sharpening their razor edged weapons, and much else. Iris gawked at them all in utter confusion, and she reached over and pinched her arm hard. Nope, not a dream. At one point, a Min'eral with smooth glossy skin the color of blood looked up from their weaving and waved to the Min'eral leading Iris. "Morning, Shilga!" They called happily. Shilga raised a hand to return the gesture.