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Library: The Day I Tamed a Chaos Drake
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Author: anammox
Date:Jan 25 2007
It was bright and sunny day, not a breathe of wind, which was unusual
considering we were by the ocean. I was little green around the gills however
and the weather was not the foremost thought I had. The ferry ride from Laenor
to Rothikgen had left my stomach with a very uneasy feeling. The fair for the
trip was somewhat of a ripoff considering the price of the journey. But alas
this was a minor concern as I wondered where I should start my search for my
new mount target, an adult chaos drake. The first port of call was to find
somewhere to stay, so i headed for the nearest inn and payed for a room.
After a hot bath and a nice haunch of roast beef I decided it was time to
survey the locals and try and get some inside information to begin my search.
As I sat down and started to gulp down my ale, I eyed a scarred dwarf sitting
at a table by himself. He was covered from head to toe in well weathered
leather gear, and afixed to his boots were metal spurs, a sure sign that this
dwarf was my man to talk to. I quickly finished my ale and headed over to his
table. I ordered another ale and one for the dwarf, and promptly sat down
oppposit him.
The dwarf smelt of beasts, not unusual really considering he spent his life
around them, taming them for sale. He had a large scar that ran down the left
side of his cheek, obviosuly from a rough encounter with a target of his
trade. I promptly introduced myself and held out my hand as a proper form of
introduction. The dwarf however looked up at me and snidely said "Well youn
whippersnapper what can I do for you, and be quick about it!". I was taken
back abit but decided this was the information source I was desperate for. "I
am looking to tame a beast, a fierce beast and I was hoping that you could
direct me to an area to begin my search?".
The dwarf then started to size me up, he looked me up and down, then looked
into my eyes and grunted, a deep low grumble. "What beast you be looking for
then, I have tamed most beasts that walk this wonderful world, perhaps I can
give you some tips to assist you?". I did a little sommersault inside as I
felt that my quest was now a mere formality, thanks largely to this smelly
little man. " I wish to tame an adult chaos drake to use a mount!" I supplied
casually, trying to sound like it was no big deal. "What!" the startled dwarf
said aloud, "Are you crazy man? Someone with your limited experience wanting
to tame a beast of this magnitude?". "Yes" I replied with a great deal of
hesitation in my voice. The dwarf laughed, a deep hearty laugh, and looked at
me once more. He sighed "You will be wanting to head out west, some nice swamp
areas over there, choas drakes love the swamps, suits there personality I
guess. One word of advice however, make sure you have a good healer with you,
otherwise you have wasted your trip". I handed over a bag of gold coins and
thanked the dwarf for his help. I quickly moved to my lodging for the night,
getting my gear prepared for travel, there was no time to waste, i would head
of at first light. First I had to locate a healer, it seemed it was essential
i had one.
;It was on overcast day when I set of the next day, I had invested in a map
before leaving Laenor so I had been able to plan my trip based on what the old
dwarf had said the night before. Unfortunately I had no idea how or where I
would be able to locate a healer to assist me in my task. I decided there was
quite some distance between me and the area I was going to begin my search and
quite confidently assured myself I would find a healer before I came across a
drake. The travelling was easy for the first couple of days, and there was not
much in the way of wildlife. It pleased me greatly that there was no real
resistance as i made my way along the coast heading towards the great city of
Shadowkeep. If I didn't meet a healer on the road I would most likely find an
adventuring healer there to assist me on my quest. My journey continued
quickly and easily as on the fourth day I had made my way onto the road that
led me directly to the city of Shadowkeep. Besides the odd ornery squirrel and
bird the trip was uneventful. I was thankful for the work of those before me
that had led to this road being laid.
It was a week after I had set out from the inn when I set eyes upon the
magnificient city of Shadowkeep. It was a breathtaking sight, it was my first
visit to the fabled city. I quicked my pace at the thought of the food and
drink that awaited me inside the city walls. I entered through the south gate
and quickly organised some lodgings for the night. I did not plan to stay
long, long enough to find a healer and then push on. I was getting edgy, i
felt so close, yet still so far from my goal. I passed a fewl gold coins to
the inkeeper in exchange for information on a good place to search for a
healer. He gladly accepted the coins and suggested I try the local hospital.
There was always an adventuring Tarmalen available for the right price. After
a brief stop at the local bank where I refilled my money pouch I headed over
to locate a healer, the anticipation was becoming to much, someone had to want
to help me, if not I would just keep offering more and more money.
I entered a dark room and the smell that greeted me told me iI was in the
write place. I quickly surveyed my sorroundings, and was greeted with a number
of quizical looks. I was obviously not injured so they just stared at me,
inquiring whether I was okay in the head. "I am looking for a healer to come
on an adventure with me" I quickly presented to the gathered healers. There
was a stifled silence, followed by the odd murmur. "I am willing to pay 500
gold coins a day for anyone that offers there service!", I had to start of
conservatively, if I could come out of this with a drake tamed, and not to
much gold spent from the coffers then it would indeed be a very worthwhile
trip. Still no-one responded "Okay 1000 gold coins a day!", I was almost
pleadding with them, someone just had to say yes. I looked around and was
about to present my next offer, one I did not really want to make, when a
young fellow down the back stood up, he was covered from head to toe in a
brown robe. "I will come with, goodness knows I need some adventure in my
life!". He strode towards me confidently "Shall we be on our way?" he asked as
he approached me. I smiled, this was all working out very well indeed.
We left together and headed back to the inn where I was staying. Upon entering
I purchased a room for the night for my new travelling companion and we orded
a meal and some ale. When we sat down I examined the healer closely. It was
quite clear the robe was used to conceal himself from others, but what I could
make out was that he definitly had a bird like appearance, and I concluded
that I hate met someone from the race of Ducks. I was excited, this trip was
turning out to be a real learning curve. My elders in the guild would be most
suprised at how much I was learning from this trip. After recieiving our meals
and drinks the yound duck across from began to change, he almost seemed to
warm to me. "So what is your adventure?" he asked out of nowhere. "Well" I
started considering my words carefully "I am on a quest to tame a beast" I
finished carefully, not revealing the true nature of my quest. "What sort of
beast?" he asked not even lifting his head from his plate of food. "A chaos
drake" I replied nonchalantly. His head shot up and he looked at me for a long
time in silence. I swore to myself, fearing I had just blown my oppurtunity.
Then he relaxed, and a smirk covered his face. "At least this will be a
challenge!" he quipped. I smiled and nodded, well handled I thought to myself.
Everything was going according to plan.
We set of early the next day, we were so close to the goal that now I could no
longer contain myself. I bought supplies for us both for the trip there and
back. According to the map the trip was not long, but finding a drake and
taming, well they were the unknowns. The trip towards the large area of swamp
on the soutwestern part of Rothikgen proceeded quickly. The road from
Shadowkeep was easily traveled, as was the cart road that turned off a bore
stright towards the swamp. The map although expensive was most definitely
paying for itself. After 2 days of traveling from Shadowkeep the scenery began
to change, the trees became sparser, the air grew thicker, and the mosquitos
began to appear. It was a sure sign that we were entering the fringes of the
swamp. My heart quicker, not much longer now, surely. Of all the times I had
prayed to lady luck now was the most important. I just had to find a drake. I
decided to implment a fairly strict search method, covering as much area as
possible each day. My travelling companion just nodded his head at my
suggestions, almost willing me to just hurry up and get started.
After setting up camp for my first designated search area we set of for a day
of searching. My young friend turned out to be most resourceful as we had
several near misses with aggressive man eating plants and ornery birds, not to
mention the occasional quicksand patch. Thank goodness for ducks I found
myself muttering. The search was slow going and that night I reviewed my plan.
There was no way we could cover as much ground as I thought we could. The
swamp was just to thick for it. I noted this to myself, lesson learned. The
next day began much like the one before, a few near misses as we dodged plants
and beasts alike. The quicksand was not so much a problem anymore, the near
misses from the day before had taught us both a great deal. No more mistakes
in that area. After another ardous day with no drake sighting I was preparing
to call it a day when I heard a deep hissing sound coming from the north.
Quickly looking at my companion I inclined my head to the north, he just
looked at me and nodded.
I could feel my heart pounding is we proceeded a mile or 2 to the north. The
hissing was louder with each passing step. I just knew this had to be it. I
quickly went over my training reassuring myself I had everything required to
tame the beast. I stopped briefly, sneaking into the bush to capture a rabbit,
it was important to make sure the beast I was taming was not hungry. I could
hear the lectures from the elders now. Tucking the dead rabbit into my belt we
moved further north. It came out of nowhere, a large whip like crack that
startled us both. I could almost feels it breathe, smell the death in its maw,
but it was not here. I felt a certain dread inside of me, I pushed it away.
This was no time to drop the ball. Peering north I could see a large shadowy
figure lying on the ground. I looked around at my companion "This is it I
whispered". He just nodded, not with great confidence, but he nodded just the
same.
We strode towards the drake, paying careful attention to the sorrounding area,
looking for quick exits and any useful cover. I looked the drake over, it was
definitly an older drake, the poison spike on its tail and the deep shadows
sorrounding it gave it away. I had tamed baby chaos drakes before and knew
them by site. I pulled the rabbit from belt and proceeded towards, lady luck
had smiled on me, this drake was at this time quite placid, not paying myself
or my companion and great attention. I presented the rabbit to it and it
quickly ate it. I smiled, the first part of plan had proceeded smoothly, only
the most difficult part remained. I grimaced, almost whincing at the thought
of what was ahead of me. I nodded at my healer and he retreated away from the
drake, standing behind a large rock to protect himself, but in line of sight
in case he needed to render assitance.
I wielded my whip in my right hand, necessary for bringing the beasts
attention to myself, the drone of the elders trailed of in my head. I focused
but, this was important. The object of my quest lay before me. I wanted to
suceed, I needed to suceed. I concentrated hard on my skill. Only one skill
was required at this point. The fact that the drake had not acted agressively
towards me had meant the whole process could be easy, I stifled a laugh. It
happened the instant I carried out the skill, the drake roared up to full
height. It looked through me, peering into my soul. Its spiked tail whipped
around and came crashing down to beside me, leaving a great dent in the
ground. I swore, I had taken this to easy. This drake was no laughing matter.
I didn't like the idea of me becoming its master. For over a century it had
survived by itself, how dare this impudent little creature try and become its
master. It roared, showing its maw full of gleaming, spittle covered teeth. I
felt my knees knock together. I quickly focused, I had to focus. I carried out
my next skill and anxiosuly waited. The beast started to calm, and I started
to relax. Those classes in clam beast had payed of. I acknowledged my elder
for the training, if only he could see me now I thought.
I looked over at my companion, he raced over and started chanting, healing a
few scratches I had picked up. His eyes were wide and there was a fearful look
on his face."I will get him this time I promise" ,trying to sound sure of
myself. I whispered a prayer to lady luck, she had to smile on me I thought. I
concetrated again and began my skill. I concentrared every inch of muscle on
the task. This drake would be mine. As the skill went of I smiled, almost
beamed. For some reason it just felt different. The drake roared up again, but
almost immediatley it bowed its mighty head. I jumped up and punched the air,
and let out an exuhltant yell. My companion ran out from behind his rock witha
jovial smile on my face "Congratulations" was all he could say. I smiled
again, I knew my elders would be proud. I looked at my newly tamed drake. It
peered at me enquiringly. I searched my travel bag and bought out a crude rope
tether. Fixing it gently to the great beast I preceeded to lead it back
towards camp. My companion fell in beside me and the jokes started to flow.
The apprehension was now gone and we were both mentally and physically
exaushted. I was overjoyed however.
That night at camp I fed my new mount. He truly was a magnificent beast. Now
that he was tamed I could truly appreciate his beauty and awesome power. I
petted him absently and slid down beside him resting on his belly. I took out
my journal and proceed to recount the events of the past few days. Maybe one
day others will enjoy the tale of how I tamed an adult chaos drake.
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