When the vision returned, the cold crisp air told Darin that he was in memories of winter. His ancestor looked at the caverns, where the stone glowed with warmth then sighed. Turning around, he headed for the mouth of the cavern and took flight. A shiver ran through him at the first cross wind, it would snow soon and so too would come the lean times. The great trees were bare now, ash skinned giants who slept and dreamed of spring.

The sky was gray with clouds, the sun only breaking through for moments at a time. There was a faint haze in the distance, snowfall, flurries as it were. That didn’t bode well for hunting, most animals hid away from the storms. Darin could feel the hunger in his ancestor, a need to find food. Spotting herd beasts ahead, they made a silent landing on a branch and observed. There were five females, a large male and a scraped up younger male. The young buck seemed healthy, despite his prior injuries, he would do well in the coming year. His older counterpart though was not fairing so well, his rear leg seemed stiff but showed no sign injury.

“Age is setting in and his joints are wearing out. He’s sired young for the spring, but would be lucky to see the spring himself. It is a simple choice which to cull.” His ancestor whispered to himself. Darin was surprised by the whispered monologue. His host hadn’t even considered the females, who lacked natural weapons. The young in spring, he mused. Oh, of course. They would be pregnant by now, giving birth in the spring. With a simple motion, his host leaned forward and launched himself into the air.

His ancestor was quite a skilled hunter. For the last stretch of his hunt he came in silence, gliding well above his prey. A quick turn of his wings and he dove onto the beast’s back. His claws dug into it’s hide, as his prey reared up and cried out in alarm. The rest herd bolted for the safety of the woods, but for the old buck it was already too late. His beak darted forward, snapping shut on the back of the animal’s neck. There was another cry of terror, but it ended mid-way with a loud crunch. His host let go as his prey fell, landing on the beast, rather than under him. He watched in silence as massive ribs lifted once, twice, and then…never again.

“We thank you for this meal.” He intoned. His voice sounded respectful, but not merciful. The next two minutes was confusing for Darin, to say the least. His host went around the kill checking; hoofs, hide, horns, blood, muscle and bone. Each and every part he checked, he did so with is tongue. The blood tasted like hot chocolate, of all things, at least that was how Darin’s senses interpreted it. He didn’t mind the taste as much, but the situation made his stomach twist. There was just something wrong about being forced to drink hot coco, from a fresh kill. His ancestor had quenched his thirst, but otherwise had seemed disappointed with everything else he had tasted. After a few moments of eying his kill, he tipped back his head and sang. He was loud, he was earnest, and in truth…he seemed a bit off key.

“Join us now, a feast has come.

Waste not food, the deed is done.

We share our prize, we share our strength.

So hunger will not claim our kin.

As our Mother teaches, I too shall abide.

So join me at the feast here, and share food by my side.”

After a few verses of the song, he waited and listened. Nothing was heard, except the cold wind cutting through the trees. He shifted a bit, as he looked around and then took up the song again. When he heard a twig snap he turned around to look, but what he saw caused him to drop the song. It was a wolf, well some sort of wolf anyway. The over grown gray fur that ruffled in the wind seemed normal enough, but sickly look and the teeth gave it away. With extra long canines and a double row of teeth, this clearly wasn’t the normal variety.

“Vermin.” His host snarled. “You know better then to enter our forest, rat-eater!” His body tensed, getting ready for battle. A moment later, he heard the brush behind him move. He took flight in a panic, weaving to avoid the jaws snapping at him. Once he was far enough from the ground, he circled around and took stock of his foes. Three rat-eaters paced below him, their eyes shifting between his kill and himself. Drawing in a lung full of air, his host let out a wordless war cry. He was getting ready to attack the mass of fangs and jaws, when he heard an echo nearby. He raised the war cry again, and hopeful that his ally would join him before it was too late.

If he left the beasts alone much longer, they would sink their dirty fangs into his kill. Darin could sense the fear and anger in his host, the heart beat and the slightest shift in his wings. Just before the attack, something else shot by him and cut low across the ground. A lithe streak of gray, went down the length of one wolf bathing it in flame the entire way. It cut past the next, swerving only as much as it needed to avoid snapping jaws. Like it’s kin, the second wolf was blessed with fire and pain. The third wolf however, was about to have their revenge. As the brave dragon angled away from it’s first strafing run, the wolf leapt on a perfect intercept. Darin’s host however, would have none of that. Diving at the wolf, it seemed like it was a but a second too slow. To Darin’s surprise, his beak flashed out and snapped shut on the wolf’s tail. A loud snapping sound filled the air, as his ancestor back winged desperately, slowing the wolf mid-pounce.

“Yipe!” The wolf exclaimed, echoing through the woods. Adding insult to injury, the ancestor added a gout of flame at his no…her ass. Both dragons swirled skyward several feet, before they could be counter attacked. One of the smaller wolves broke ranks and ran, but to be fair it’s fur was on fire.

“Pass in the middle.” The other dragon told him, as they darted off to strafe again. Taking another vector to attack, his host swooped in on the same bitch he’d burned before. The she-wolf was fast, but he was faster. As he passed a mere inch or two was all the space between her teeth and his body. Her foul breath was warm on his belly, but his breath was flame on her hide. The darting about and snapping of jaws continued for another few minutes, when it ended only two dragons and three corpses remained. The last wolf was long gone, it would live or die from its wounds, on it’s own.

“Thank you for your help.” His ancestor stated, taking a moment to be sure they had not fouled his kill. When he looked up at his new companion, he froze. The valiant and swift warrior, happened to be a slightly smaller dragoness.

“They needed to be removed from our woods. Normally a hunting party would gather to destroy them. What possessed you to take on three alone?” She demanded. Darin could feel a sense of warmth and embarrassment from his host. The question hung in the air, perhaps a moment too long.

“I’d just made a kill, and I didn’t want them to steal it. They crept up on me while I sang.” He stated. When she said nothing in reply, he added more with a somewhat nervous shift in his tone. “They shouldn’t be here. And I’d just made a fine kill, a wise cull and…yea.”

“A good kill. A wise cull.” She repeated, looking from the herd beast to him and back again. “I suppose then, you had a good reason to take such a large buck from the herd?” She asked, her tone made it clear she expected a good answer.

“Five females and a younger buck remained, this one is likely to have sired the next crop of young.” He said, tapping the large corpse with a claw. “But it’s back legs were growing stiff with age. If it saw another year, it would not have been a pleasant one.” He explained. A few seconds of silence hung in the air before she spoke.

“Well chosen then, young hunter. They call me Ember, for my strong flames. And yourself?” She asked. Her tone of voice had shifted, becoming softer on the ear.

“Well met Ember. They call me Shadow, for the silent way in which I reach my prey.”

“Well met Shadow.” She said, sounding amused. After a long pause, she asked him in playful tones. “Well, aren’t you going to offer me a meal?”

“I. Well. That’s…join me please?” Shadow asked, once the words came out. Flustered already? He’s worse than me, Darin mused. She laughed softly at his confusion.

“Gladly, shall we sing then?” Ember asked. She drew in a breath and tipped her head back reflexively.

“But no one else is coming.” He said with a trace of sorrow. She blinked at him surprised, then sighed.

“Right. They’d have heard the war cry and responded, even if they weren’t hungry.” Her wings drooped for a moment while she thought. “No matter. Sing for me anyway, so it doesn’t feel strange to eat?” Ember asked, before adding more. “Even just a verse or two, if that’s all you’re willing…”

“If it makes you happy, that would make me happy.” Shadow agreed. And so they sang, as one verse turned to two, and two turned to many. The longer they sang, the more sweet their duet became. When the song finally ended, the two were already seated side by side. Ember leaned over and entwined her neck with his, a gesture he readily reciprocated. They ate in silence, taking their time, despite the flurries of snow. Shadow’s emotions were strong and easy to feel. So this is how love begins…

As before, the vision blurred and Darin found himself jumping ahead in time.

- - - - - - -

Author’s note: Seemed like a good point to stop for tonight. There are still at least two major things left for the memories to cover. On the bright side this makes 14 days and 14 chapters. I hope you liked the chapter. In case you were wondering, he is not getting a combat log because 1) it is not him and 2) these are back story memories from the game. Thank you again for all the encouraging comments and reviews. Seeing my humble count of reads, follows and favorites go up has brightened my day a few times.