The Dragons of Undari

Chapter Five - The Cloaked Seven

"Wow," Mera gasped as she looked at the man's saddle shop in Indiski, "this place is bigger than I thought it would be".
They had left Undari's center for Indiski at daybreak, Zeff riding on Riao, exclaiming the whole way there about how amazing it was to ride on the back of a dragon while Iridi and Mera were carried in the claws of Solimar and Lunimar.  Mera wasn't sure how, but the man had somehow packed all of his saddles, fitting them into a large cart that he pulled himself.  She knew that he was fit, but after seeing him for the first time in the daylight, she saw how muscular the man was.  His shirt clung tightly to his muscles, making just about all of them visible.  He wore overalls attached to rough denim shorts, which came down to his knees.  His calves were immense, Mera thought, from pulling his cart full of heavy saddles all over Undari.  He wore heavy boots, boots which she would assume ground soldiers would wear during battle.  A roaring dragon with an armored rider was etched into his shoulder with ink, which moved with his arm as he opened the door to his shop and let the group of three in.  After landing at the entrance of Indiski, the dragons had decided to go and hunt so that they would not draw attention, and because they were quite hungry.
"Thank you," the man said, walking back and forth from the cart on the street to unload and hang the saddles he had onto their shelves in the building, "many years of hard work went into this building and into the merchandise within".
"Do you need any help with those?" Zeff asked.
The man grunted and shook his head, "No".
Patiently, the group waited as he placed the last saddle on it's shelf, then closed the door.  He wiped his hands on his shorts, then tromped through the main shop room into a room that was labeled: Workers Only.  When the group didn't move to follow him, he waved them in the room, disappearing behind the wooden door.  Before entering along with Iridi and Zeff, Mera took one more look around the main shop room, taking in the sights and smells.  It was quite clean, large, and beautiful compared to the man who oversaw it.  Granted, he was handsome and he was large compared to her, but cleanliness wasn't his main concern.  The interior of the shop was almost completely wooden, its walls were the same stone as the outer part of the building, its flooring was polished wood.  Saddles hung all over the walls, and about seven or eight shelves stood in the middle of the large room, saddles sitting on them.  All saddles were labeled with a price and a description for what creature it was made for.  She was quite impressed with the man's skill for saddle-making.  Noticing that she was separated from the group, she hurried into the room that Zeff and Iridi entered.  The atmosphere, smell, and the look of the room was completely different from the shop room.  Where the shop room was homey, smelled like leather, and was mostly made of wood, the back room smelled of smoke and sweat, and was completely made of stone.
"What is this room?" Iridi said, leaning against the wall and looking around.
"This is where I put together and make saddles," the man replied, gathering his tools and supplies. "You don't need to stay in here the whole time, I just wanted to ask you a few questions before I begin. Since you girls are paying for custom saddles, you both get the opportunity to personally customize them. Do you want anything special on them?"
The girls thought for a moment, both of them deciding what they wanted, and then they described it to the man, handing them one object each to hang on the side of each saddle.
Nodding, the man said, "Okay, now I need your dragons to come back so I can get some measurements. I could just double the size of your guy friend's dragon's saddle, but since you're paying extra and you've all been decent to me I want to get it perfect," he placed his tools down on an old stone table, then lifted his hand out, inviting the group to shake it, "my name is Michael by the way".
Mera shook his hand first, "Nice to meet you, my name is Mera, and my companion's name is Solimar".
Iridi was next, "Hello, Michael, my name is Iridi and my companion's name is Lunimar".
Zeff stepped forward, puffing his chest out, envious of Michael's muscular body and beard. To him, Michael was exactly how he wanted to be. He took his hand in a confident grasp, shaking it, "My name is Zeff," he said, deepening his voice even lower, "my companion is Riao".
Michael chuckled, "You're about that age where you start turning into a real man, Zeff. You don't need to put on a show for me".
With his cheeks turning red, Zeff sighed slightly and relaxed, trying not to let Michael see his relief, "Putting on a show? Psh!"
Micheal chuckled and looked back towards the girls, "I'm going to need your dragons to land in the fields nearby for me to go out and take some measurements. Can you call them in for me?"
Nodding, Mera closed her eyes, Solimar, Michael wants you three to come back. He would like to get your measurements for your saddles. Please land in a field nearby and stay low, he will be there shortly.
Heading back now, the large dragon replied, we are all full anyways.
"They're on their way back now," Iridi said, looking at Mera and smiling.
"That should do," Michael replied, grabbing a pencil, a notepad, a marker, and a ruler, "I am going to go out and wait for them, feel free to wander, just be careful, only the tough leave untouched here". The group looked puzzled, and then he added, "There may not be a lot of people around the town, but there are a bunch lurking who are itching to take your belongings. It happens all the time to unknowing travelers".
Zeff pulled out a small pocket knife, flashing it to the girls and Michael, "Don't worry, ladies, I'll keep us safe".
Mera and Iridi looked at each other, then at Michael, who was stifling a chuckle, "No thanks, we got it," they both said in unison as they walked past Zeff and back through the doorway to the shop area.
Before Michael followed, he stopped beside Zeff and put a firm hand on his shoulder, "I don't know what you're trying to do, but I think you're doing it wrong".
Zeff sighed and followed him out into the shop area, the whole group stepping outside into the cobblestone street.
Mera was looking down the street, squinting while trying to read the shop signs, "Let's go check the stores out while we wait. I don't want to crowd him," she nodded towards Michael.
"Actually," Zeff started, "I'd like to help make the saddles also, if that is okay".
The large man's bushy eyebrows raised in surprise, "Sure, I can do it by myself but I'm always happy to teach a young man how to fix and make saddles. They're essential if you're travelers".
Looking at each other, the girls shrugged, then turned on their heels and headed down the street to the shops.
Before they went too far, Zeff ran forward, handing the pocket knife to Mera, "Be careful, okay?"
"Thank you Zeff," she replied, then continued walking.
He watched them walk further down the street a little longer before returning to Michael, who had a small grin on his face, which was almost unnoticeable, "You like her, don't you?"
Zeff huffed, "Yea, I do," then gasped as Michael threw his arm over his shoulder in a fatherly way.
"I like a woman as well, maybe we can help each other," he chuckled.
Looking up at him, Zeff grinned, "Let's go see the dragons".