The Dragon's Nest

Chapter Four

As Kihomina got used to her new name, things didn't change. The hunts would still go on, word from different dragon lords still came to the wood. Nothing out of the ordinary had occured. Kihomina and Tamina were on their backs, looking up and identifying shapes in the clouds. "Oh oh! That one looks like a rabbit with three eyes!" Tamina pointed up and the two giggled. It did, in fact, look like a mutant bunny.
Kurenai watched the two quietly. She was unfamiliar with this sort of contact between human and dragon, especially one so held together for this peirod of time. How did they do it? Normally, dragons couldn't stand humans and humans couldn't see them at all! How was it held up together? Toma jumped up onto the branch Kurenai sat atop of and looked at Kihomina and Tanima. "What's on your mind Kurenai?" The hennin dragon asked quietly, not wanting to disturb her. "How do they do it?"
"How do they do what?"
"Keep a bond of two breeds so tight?"
"Simple, they enjoy their similars and differences that they barely notice that they aren't the same."
"No wonder." Kurenai said quietly. This was the first human female in the clan and the one she bonded with was the least likely out of all of them and yet, they became the best of friends. Friendship is a weird thing when it comes right down to it. Kurenai hopped down from the perch and sniffed the air. Toma jumped down beside with her, concerned. "What is it Kurenai?"
The female growled lowly. "Something doesn't smell right." There was a loud thud outside the wood, followed by another, after another. "Everyone get inside!" Kurenai and Toma heard Theran yell at the dragons outside of the cave. Kihomina and Tanima scrambled up and into the cave out of fear, followed by Monosia and Nazumi, who had been out hunting. Kurenai and Toma ran for the entrance and practically jumped inside. Tanima and Kihomina curled up together in the darkness to escape view. Cocona and Nazumi hid beside them.
Theran and Monosia sat in the shadows, Kurenai behind Theran and Toma behind Monosia. They watched outside of the cave and sniffed the air. The scent was closer and the thuds louder. They watched as a large clawed paw slammed onto the earth beneath it. Monosia stood in fighting stance, the paw alarming her. A head came down, a peircing scarlet eye looking in the cave. "Nicohima." Breathed Toma. Theran looked at her with a concerned expression.
"Where is the child?" A scratchy, deep voice bellowed in the cave. Monosia gritted her teeth, growling. "What child?!" She yelled furiously, as if she had no knowledge of the child they hid. "The child named Mina." The voice bellowed again and stomped in foot in frustration. "We know of no child named Mina!" She bellowed back. A large, earthy growl erupted from the dragon name 'Nicohima'. He was a large, black gallow dragon, known for destruction across the clans. He was the enemy of many clans, including the Fire Guardian.
Why was he looking for Mina? It didn't make sense! And how had he found out? Had he been spying all this time?! Monosia stepped forward to the dragon and roared. "She is here, and I will find her. And you will pay for your lies." He growled out and took off to the skies, leaving a giant claw print on the pasture. Mina popped out of the circle that Tanima encased her in. "Is he gone?" She asked, her voice quivering. The dragon had scared her quite an awful bit and she knew that it was now after her.
Monosia walked over to the frightened girl and nuzzled her. "It's alright, he can't hurt you. He will never hurt you." She nuzzled her again before sitting. "It is time you know our enemy. His name is Nicohima." She said and sighed. "Monosia." Kurenai said cautiously. "It has to be said Kurenai, or she will never know the dangers of him." The female alpha said to her as Kihomina sat.
"Long ago, when Theran and I were hatchlings, our clan alpha was Nicohima. He had terrible ambitions to control the land. He wanted to train all hatchlings to follow under his order when the time was right. Theran and I were smarter than that." Theran laid down next to his mate, nodding. "We didn't follow his rule and when we grew, we fled. Our parents were to blame for our disappearance. They were killed by Nicohima." Monosia bretahed the last part, holding back a whimper. "We started our own clan. Kurenai and Toma joined us shortly afterward, as they were clan mates of ours and they had found us."
Kurenai and Toma nodded, their eyes closed. Kihomina was confused. "What about Nazumi and Cocona?" Monosia smiled. "They were newborn hatchlings when we found them, we practically raised them as our own. We found them seperately but on the same day. They grew up to have Tanima." Nazumi nodded and smiled at her mate. "What became of Nicohima?" Kihomina asked. "He was already dark hearted and merciless. When his flight either got killed by him or fled, he went on a rampage. He destroyed five clans and battled against the dragon lords. Of course, he was only one, and there were twelve. He lost." Monosia sighed.
"But for all this time, he has been only resting, and now that he has found out about the dragon child, you Kihomina, he is out to kill again." Kihomina was confused again. 'Why? Why is he out to kill me?" She asked. "Long ago, when there were only five dragon lords, which were Fire, Air, Earth, Water, and Arcane, the Arcane lord made a prophecy that a clan would raise a child of their own. A human child. And this child would bring down the rise of a great evil." Kihomina's jaw dropped. She was the child. And Nicohima was the evil.
How was something of her size to bring down the size of Nicohima?! Nevermind how many he had forced into his flight! "I can't be the prophecy! I'm only fourteen!" She said frantically. She couldn't bring down a dragon all by herself! Monosia sighed and rested a paw on the girl's shoulder. "As I much as I hate to say it myself, yes you are. I hate knowing that you could be killed become of Nicohima but it is true. You must fight him, and we will train you." Kihomina got a look of disappointment and fear. "I can't...."
Monosia looked her in the eyes. "Yes you can, we will train you to fight the strongest to beat the strongest. You are our last hope of freeing this land from Nicohima's wrath, Kihomina." The alpha nuzzled her forehead. "But for now, we rest. It is night fall." With that, everyone went to their respective corners. "Are you sure she will be alright, Monosia? We practically just set the whole world on her shoulders." Theran said, laying down. Monosia nodded and laid down next to her mate. "She will be fine." They set their heads down and fell into slumber.