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The Watch Dragon

A few miles from the Shroom village amongst some undulating hills was a community of terrestrial dragons. This type of Dragon is far more numerous and widespread than any other and could often be found in close proximity to shroom villages. The dragon nest was hidden beneath the surface but there were clear signs that dragons lived in the area. At first glance it looked like the hills were dotted with caves but on closer inspection it was clear that these were the entrances to the living quarters of the dragons, small items such as wind chimes and sun catchers were hung in the entrances to the homes and padded throws were placed on the sunniest ledges. On sunny days dragons could be seen sunning themselves on the ledges outside the entrances whilst the youngsters played amongst the flowers and long grass in the centre of the valley. Playing with the dragons were many human children who climbed over the young hatchlings hanging on tails and climbing up the small stumps on the hatchlings backs which would one day be a fine set of spines and sliding down the dragons neck. There was much laughter, noise and boisterous play however, the young dragons were always careful of the children as being so much smaller it was easy to cause harm without meaning to.

These young were dragon familiars, these are humans who serve the Dragons but in return the dragons teach their familiars many things. Those shroom communities which live near dragon nests usually like to have some members of their village as familiars and any children which show an affinity with the dragons is given the chance to become one. Those children that have the patience and character to become a familiar are treated with care and kindness by all dragons and they and their family have the protection of the whole dragon community. Their training depends very much upon how young the children are when they begin. If very young then they will go for a few years simply playing with the young dragons, becoming more and more involved in the looking after them as they get older. During this period of play the children pick up the dragon language fairly quickly, also they will learn some of the body language and gestures used by the dragons. These will be useful later on in life when they become fully-fledged dragon familiars. During their long training period they will learn mainly crafts and skills. These will ensure they have a long career amongst the dragons and remain well occupied.

Underneath the surface of the nest were the dragon’s homes and nesting places. The dragons lived in large airy caves some of which were natural and others which had been burned out by dragon fire or chiseled out by the familiars. When they were ready to lay their eggs they descended even lower into the caves to the nesting grounds where the eggs were looked after by experienced familiars until ready to hatch when the parents were called to witness the hatching so that they could bond with the youngling.

On the highest hill in the valley sits a purple capped shroom with bright yellow spots, this is not a home as can be found in the village but is the outpost where the watch dragon sits to guard the younglings and children. From its vantage point the entire valley could be seen and by raising their body and stretching out their long serpent like neck a dragon could see far into the distance. The watch dragon is usually an older female long past her egg laying years but still lively and active. With their own young grown and having grand-hatchlings there was little for these matriarchs to do, except occasional hatchling sitting, so they took on the task of keeping an eye on the nest’s younglings and the children. These dragons had a rota arranged and they each took turns at sitting atop the shroom watching and listening for any danger which may approach. As dragons rarely attacked each other it was generally human dangers they looked for. Treasure hunters out to raid the dragon’s hoards or steal away younglings. They also looked for the tell-tale signs of Rainbow Chasers. The airships could be seen for some distance and if sighted warning could be given in plenty of time so that the younglings and human children could be hurried inside to safety. Opalwing, the dragon on watch today was still fairly young for one of the watch crew. She had never bonded with a male and was without young. She had spent her years dedicating herself to her art to become a master Jewellery maker. Her work was much sought after and many and important dragon had a piece or two of Opalwing’s stunning jewellery. So as well as taking a turn on watch she also taught the youngsters basic jewellery skills. Opalwing being a skilled artisan used her time with the young to see which of them had the necessary skills to apprentice to the jewellers guild when they became old enough. Many hatchlings and younglings found they had a talent and went on to become artisans themselves, returning to the nest to visit with their mentor and show off their latest pieces.

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