Regalis Legacy: The Sanguine King

Chapter 4

Heartstones

The first Core I approach is dark blue and swirled with small glowing stars. Uncertain, I press my snout to the smooth stone trying to gaze into it's depths.

Touching the surface reveals memories of another dragon; tall and blue, with shiny gold wings. Sorting through them is almost like looking back at memories of my own, but through the senses of another. The stones do not record thought, so there are no monologues of internal discussion, but every sense, every emotion, even the rhythm of the dragon's heartbeats, created each scene.

There is a sense of openness with every stone I touch, as if each is a capsule waiting to be filled with energy. A container shaped from the moulded pages of a diary. Each of these stones was once filled with energy; storehouses to assist their makers. Now they sit, abandoned, empty.

For the most part, we explore the memories in the heartstones the same way we explored the physical lair around them, with focus on things that are entertaining rather than useful. 

My nestmate chooses a name from one of the Cores; Claret, for the color of their skin.

We practice with luth, the name given to the type of energy that feeds and supports our kind. The information in the Cores expand on what it is and what we can do with it, but not where it comes from.

Claret's wings start growing in before mine. Two fleshy lumps are the first signs of the strong shoulder muscles needed to defy gravity. I'm left to continue exploring the heartstones alone as Claret spends more time conserving energy and less time running around.

The entire lair is beginning to become familiar and boring. More and more I begin to notice gaps in the information of the heartstones. As if the views offered are carefully tailored to allow us to only learn so much.

Claret does not see what I see.  When we share thoughts, they can feel my uncertainty, uneasyness, but their mind does not wrap around the obvious gaps like mine does.

It is a long while before Claret felt up to moving around. After days of exploring alone, I was excited to have my friend back. 

The Verdant Keeper interupted just as I was leading Claret away from the nesting area, turning them towards the exit instead. I followed the two of them to the ledge where the Keeper was able to step up easily and began instructing Claret on how to use their fledged wings to jump higher.

Claret makes two attempts and I find myself hoping this practice session will end soon so that we can go back to reading heartstones together.

When Claret pulls up on the third attempt, just barely making it over the ledge, my muscles go stiff.

There's a pain in my chest as I watch them walk away, but I don't try to chase them. I already know it is impossible to get over the ledge without wings. I am far too small.

Besides, they will come back soon.