Finding Thunder

Chapter 4

Month 1

It had taken the troop of Twilight Jubilee very little time to get the story of Lucas and Lillian out into the open. In little under a week with the troop, Lucas and Lillian had found little reason not to trust the troop with their stories. It was while Lillian and Lucas were walking together with the troop to their next village that he told them of his mother's words and showed them the amulet that she had given him. 

The quiet little "oh" that escaped from Prox had the troop looking to the satyr with confused glances. "He seeks the Dragon Lord, Laramie." The troop showed varying expressions of understanding and in the younger members, a bit of awe seeped into their gazes.

"Well, Child of Magic, it is good that you found us," Klyphotise's deep voice rumbled happily. "For we are the ones that can lead you where you need to go. We will pass through the valley near Webekx Summit in just seven weeks time and then Lord Laramie resides East from there in the Brayth Mountains."

"I am grateful that you will lead us where we need to go," Lucas grinned sheepishly. "Considering my Mom only said to find the ones that could lead us where we needed to go..."

A lead them the troop did. Through villages filled with the naga, faun, and centaur to cities bustling with humans, witches, and sprites. Lillian and Lucas met more and more races of the world than they even knew existed. It opened his mind to the full breadth of Magic.

Month 2

By the end of their sixth week with the troop, Lillian had come out of her shell fully. She was never rude to the troop but she kept to Lucas's side as often as she could. He didn't know why she was so scared of interacting with the troop by herself but he was happy that she had come out of her shell finally.

With Lillian's normally out going manner back, she quickly inserted herself into the normal day-to-day workings of the troop. With the eye of a maturing woman, she led the nymphs into creating hair pieces that the numerous villagers were instantly drawn to and designed amulets that Ilaira helped her imbue with healing energies. 

--

With a thud that was felt for miles and the grinding of stone, Zirsidias the Dark landed on his plinth of stone. His body was large and deceptively frangible, with scales of jet black the only thing that allowed him to be seen in the darkness of the was the gleam of his pearl white teeth and talons. 

Laramie's anguine neck rose from where it rested on his front legs. 'Welcome brother,' came the deep sibilant tones of dragon speak. 'Out sisters will soon be with us.'

A chuckle that seemed to fill the space with darkness was his only answer before they both settled into sleep.

--

Lillian enjoyed watching the nymphs and satyrs dance every night.  She marveled at the way they seemed to anticipate the others every move and placed themselves into the next step without having to know what the next step was. She marveled in the music that they made by simply manipulating the grass, trees, and water around them, coaxing insects and birds out to play an accompaniment to the music of nature.

She basked in this quiet time at the end of the day, when her belly was full of food, her body pleasantly tired from a day spent in happy work, and wrapped warmly in Lucas's arms. Tomorrow they would move through the valley that passed between the two largest peaks of the Webekx Summit chain. 

She was looking forward to this part of the journey. Castelis had told them that this is where he and Oreilhya had come into being and that every time they came through the area the flowers would grow up to meet them and reach towards them as if they were the sun itself. They would take three days to move through the valley so that they could reconnect with the land, refreshing their spirits and sharing their energy with the land, keeping it healthy.

--

Lillian stood at the enterance of the valley in awe of the mighty sight. Miles to the North one could see the peak of Webekx Summit. Its top was covered in snow that shone like a beacon in the noon day sun. They ate a quick lunch at the mouth of the valley, Castelis and Oreilhya couldn't sit still and their excitement was infectious.

As they walked through the valley, the twin plant spirits had everyone laughing as they danced and tumbled through the reaching flowers. They would brush gentle fingers of full blossoms and stroke sprouts. Lucas found himself sinking into the magic that was thick in the air around him. He found himself lost in the gentle murmurs of Magic talking to him, teaching him about his magic.

By the end of the days' journey, Lucas was walking on dragon legs and sprouting great sweeping horns from his head. Lillian marveled at the sight of her mate, the horns that grew from his head were intricately patterned with swirls that made one think of air moving and whorls that made her think of water moving around large boulders.

His scaled legs were the green of emeralds and the talons that graced his feet were of the same look as moonstone. What ever had brought them to this point in time, she thanked Magic every day for allowing to be on this journey with her love.

Month 4

Every couple of days the troop would travel to a new town, plying their trade for those wanting entertainment or in search of herbs and talismans. Lucas found himself surprised at just how well Lillian had fit in well with the Nymph troop. Her love and knowledge of plants and helpful fungi made sure that she would never be bored during their long walks between places and her love of hair pieces and jewelry kept her busy in the evenings with making new pieces to sell.

Ilaira, the silver-blue haired Naiad, would take her aside daily and show her how Nymphs made elixirs, balms, and herbal remedies. Castelis taught her how to channel her magic into her hands and use it to find sickness and damage inside of the body.

Her skill in healing was becoming more and more pronounced with the help of Ilaira and Castelis. Her new found skills were in constant practice with Lucas taking lessons from Klyphotise, healing his many scrapes and bruises.

Lucas found he took to the more daring aspects of the troops' life. Klyphotise had taken him under his wing, teaching him the finer aspects of being an acrobat and gymnast. He loved the feeling of his body hurtling through the air; the danger of falling making it even more exhilarating. 

He still found himself sinking into his magic daily, always morphing a new part of his body and finding some new thing that he could do. He could feel the final aspects of his other form just lurking under the surface, waiting patiently for some trigger to let them loose. But there was another aspect that did bother him slightly.

His need for Lillian had grown, he felt a constant need to be near her, to have her nestled tightly in his arms, pressed close to his body. For the years that they had been together, they had never touched the other in an intimate way he now found himself yearning to take her as a mate should to seal their bond.

He had spoken to Isonei and Klyphotise about his worries and fear that he could hurt her if the need grew any stronger. They sat with him for many nights talking about things he could do to lessen his need, too much blushing on his part, and how to treat Lillian gently should she be agreeable to his advances. 

They were nearing their journey's end and Lucas could feel the way his magic became more energized with each day. Each step, each mile, his entire being vibrated with anticipation and joy. 

'Soon, my child, soon,'  he heard the sibilant hiss in his mind.