Fyre

11

Late Morning//Wind Campsite

Adrianna chose a small yet strong basket from her collection. After inspecting it and determining that it was suitable for gathering the herbs she needed, she set off out her house and toward the southern forest plains.

The sun beat down hot on her back as she exited the Wynd campsite through one of the massive stone pillars that stood marking the four exits for North, East, South, and West.

Carefully and quickly she made her way through the nature, darting past rocks and slipping in the shadows when another creature scurried by. Adrianna hadn't planned what she would do if she encountered a stray dragon, but since this was Wynd territory, she was not worried. The most dangerous thing she could possibly meet in Wynd territory would be a lion, but they would not attack without having a reason to.

Adrianna gulped at the thought of having to gather the herbs at the very edge of merged territory. She hated the feeling; bending down to skillfully pluck the stems of growing plants, all the while looking out into an unknown strip of land which seemed vast and dangerous.

After a long time of running Adrianna slowed to a purposeful walk. It took time to reach the southern edge of Wynd territory, yet it was the closest end to the campsite of Wynd. In the corner of her eye, Adrianna spotted the patch of the herbs she was looking for. She had planted them herself months ago, and they were finally ripe for picking.

She creeped toward them, looking around her for any nearby animals. This particular plant was tasty to rodents, but only once they were ripe. Adrianna didn't have much time to harvest them before the nearby critters polished them off. So she set her basket on the ground, crouched down, and extended her hand in preparation.

A large screech suddenly ripped through the sky.

Then another.

And another.

It was joined by many other voices- loud, shrieking, screaming words or nothing at all.
Adrianna's eyes widened in confusion and fear.

The sounds were coming from very close- just past the trees in front of her, which separated the herb gardens from the plains of Fyre. The noises were accompanied now by the shouts of humans- yelling so quickly that Adrianna could not make out what they were saying exactly.

It could only be one thing.

Have you ever seen a hunting mission? Nixi had said earlier, an intense gaze in her eyes.

The Healer's curiosity got the better of her, and she started to walk forward.

You haven't accidently walked into one?

Adrianna wanted to meet that fierce gaze with her own knowing one.

She reached out both arms to brush away the vines that blocked her vision from the sounds coming from the large area in front of her.

What are they like? She had asked Nixi.

She didn't know what she thought they were. She knew that they had to be bad, because they included death, but she didn't realize to what extent.

Whatever she expected, whatever she had thought of as Hunting missions for the past fourteen years of her life, she was horribly wrong.

Terrible.

She emerged from the trees and vines, and stopped dead in her tracks.

The grass gave way to dirt, and Adrianna wondered why there was suddenly no grass anymore- before she realized that it had all been burned away. Blood littered the floor, as well as bodies. Dragons and humans and other smaller animals caught in the crossfire ran around as fast as they could. Larger adult dragons were forcefully pushing the younger and smaller dragons into the sky or into the nearby vegetation in order to escape the killing. The newborns who were not quite able to fly yet plummeted to the ground, screeching, where they were immediately attacked by the Hunters before their mothers could save them.