Chapter 62: Battlefields and Fickle Phases
The team walks alongside the dragon-kin, Ka’Lula, as they approach the village. Her clawed hands are clenched tight around the edge of her crate, now only half-full after the rocky descent, but still packed with raw gems, glimmering ore, and ancient treasures.
Penelo chatters non-stop at her side, gushing about Pip’s incredible powers, the local cuisine, and how great hot baths felt after long walks. Ka’Lula doesn’t say much, her amber eyes flicking between the village lights below and the stars overhead.
Then a small voice rings out from a nearby window.
"LULA! LULA’S BACK!"
A child’s face disappears from the window, and in seconds the whole village is stirring. One by one, people emerge from houses and porches, then all at once. Soon the narrow village path stands crowded with villagers of all ages. Some carrying lanterns, others platters of food or mugs of water. Many just have tears in their eyes.
"Lula!" a woman cries, running up and wrapping her arms around the dragon-kin girl’s waist. "We missed you, sweetheart!"
Lula’s lower lip trembles. "I’m sorry," she whispers. "I didn’t mean to burn anything. I didn’t mean to scare anyone. I just... I don’t know what’s happening to me..."
"We don’t care about the houses," the village chieftess says firmly, now roused from sleep in a floppy nightgown, one slipper missing. "We care about you."
Lula bursts into tears.
Pip whistles softly and steps forward, offering her a flower someone had dropped. She takes it with a shaky smile.
The villagers beg her to stay. They say they’d rebuild whatever she burned. They’d douse fields. They’d buy more buckets. She was more important than buildings.