Wings of Fire: Nighthawk

Chapter 9: The Harbor

They had flown from the meeting to a large island in the Bay of a Thousand scales. The day had gotten hotter, but it was a nice sunny afternoon as they soared over the island. From above on the north side there was a town, many buildings and tents set up with paths and cobblestone paths winding through them. Trees and plants added color to the village as well. The island itself was huge, and there was even a boardwalk on the beach.

"Wow.." Nighthawk said as he examined the land below. "This is a dragon town? Moons."

"Yep. Quite beautiful she is. North Harbor is a fantastic place! You should see my general store. It's perfect, has everything anyone could ever need." Lobster soared with him, Tempest in the back of the group. "Our island is over there." He pointed to it, it was covered in trees but a large manor could be seen through them. "Wait till you see that."

"Can't wait." Nighthawk replied simply. They flew around the island once, towards the center there was a mountain covered in trees and a few homes here and there. A waterfall poured over the side into a river that flowed down the island through the town. "It looks beautiful here."

"Yep! We got everything you could need here. Let's land and I'll show ya around." Lobster guided him to an empty beach where they could land. Once they did he shook sand off his claws and talons. A loud thud was made as Tempest landed behind them. "Oh!" He jumped, startled.

"Gotcha. Ha! Now let's show our tiny Nightwing friend around shall we?"

"Tiny?"

"She calls a lot of dragons tiny. You'll get used to it tough guy." Lobster grinned and walked towards the town. There were all sorts of shops adorned with various fishing decorations. "This one sells antiques, and over there you can buy cooking equipment. My sister is a fantastic chef."

"Noted. Where to next?" Nighthawk was astounded by this. It was nothing like the scorpion den or Possibility. It was clean, it was cheerful and happy. It was just an overall beautiful town and it was a lovely place to live. He liked it already, it felt like an escape. "I like it here."

"Knew ya would! Let's go to the shop." Lobster smiled and walked down the street. There were oil lanterns dotting the street, often lit at night. "This town is old. We're lucky nobody has attacked, but then again we have a lot of soldiers here. And Tempest. She's pretty good at scaring others away."

"You got that right little Lobster!" Tempest boomed from behind.

"Got it. Shop. Let's go. I want to see it."

"Of course. Come on." Lobster led them to his shop. "My pride and joy right here! You need fishing supplies, hunting gear, anything. You just come here and I'll set you up for the right price. We got snacks and drinks too in cold boxes." He opened the wooden door up. The shop itself had an old rustic look to it. The building was made of logs and boards with glass windows on the front. The roof had been composed of slate tiles. There was a flag with a whale on the outside wall and a few buoys, many different colors. Ironically, lobster traps sat on the porch of the structure next to a few barrels. "Whatcha think?"

"Very nice place ya got. Show me around." Nighthawk and Lobster went inside while Tempest sat outside. It was cool, and clean inside. A cold box with drinks sat by the door, and there were many shelves around in a U shape, while in the center we're different spears, knives and such. He reached for one of the glass bottles that wore an orange label. On the center it said 'Moxie.' "What's this?"

"That is Moxie, my favorite drink! It's got a kick to it, bittersweet. Very unique to this island. We brew and sell it here." Lobster smiled at him. "Feel free to try one, first bottle's on the house."

"Maybe later." Nighthawk exposed the store, finding fishing equipment, hunting gear and weapons. Many of which were on sale due to the war going on, encouraging others to join and help fight for their kingdom. "Huh, neat." He picked up a spear. "Very sturdy, you make these?"

"Most of this stuff is locally made. Very little comes from the sand kingdom, as most exports are hard to acquire due to the war."

"It's well made. You got a good setup here, seems cozy." Nighthawk said before sitting up and stretching. "I like this shop."

"Thank you kindly. Now that you seen my home, what do you think?"

"I'm impressed. You live on a very lovely island." Nighthawk said with a rare smile. "Beautiful town, everything just seems so nice and cheerful, despite a war going on. I'd be glad to help defend it."

"I appreciate that bud. This is why I like you, you see what's right and what's wrong. You know what you want to fight for." Lobster said before patting his shoulder. "And with you, I think we might be able to win this war."

"I'd be Honored. Got nothin else to do." Nighthawk said before shrugging. "Now, I believe we have a manor to tour."