A Dragonlings' Haunted Halloween: Dragonlings of Valdier
the trees. He shifted before he was aware of what he was
doing.
    “Bloody Sarafin,” Ha’ven cursed as he
suddenly found himself plastered between the side of the cart and a
pile of hissing fur. “Vox! Shift back before you crush me!”
    Vox’s eyes were frozen on the ghostly shape
of the four-legged creatures. He swiped his massive paw at one when
it came close enough, but it went right through the creature. The
one furthest to the left suddenly stopped and a loud howl filled
the cavern.
    Vox didn’t change back until he felt a sharp
tug on his tail. He turned and glared at Ha’ven who was glaring
back at him. Settling in the seat, he glanced back over his
shoulder as a shudder ran through his body.
    “What was that?” Ha’ven asked Vox in an
aggravated voice. “You usually don’t just shift like that, do
you?”
    “No, not since I was a young cub,” Vox
muttered in a rough voice. “There was something about those
creatures that pulled my cat out.”
    “Well, next time it happens, get out of the
cart first,” Ha’ven snapped. “You almost crushed me and I didn’t
like having your ass in my face.”
    “It looks like we are coming out of the
forest,” Creon interrupted, pointing between Kelan and Mandra.
"Look, the tracks are moving up.”
    “Mandra, your mate needs some serious help
with picking her pets,” Vox called out over his shoulder. “I don’t
like those last ones. I think you should kill those beasts. At
least you could use their fur.”
    “What’s the matter, Vox? Need a new jacket
for your mate already?” Kelan chuckled.
    “I don’t like half of them, but if it makes
her happy, I live with it. By the way, you are not making any coats
out of my mate’s pets,” Mandra replied with a hard tap to the back
of Vox’s head.
    “Why does everyone keep bringing that up?”
Vox complained as the carts moved in a wide circle around what
looked like a miniature mountain face complete with snow. Strange,
black flying creatures sat at different points, making cawing
noises and snapping their beaks at them. “I thought the jackets
were alive! I was just trying to protect Riley. How was I supposed
to know the hideous thing was a piece of clothing?”
    “I don’t know about you, but my dragon is
sending out a warning,” Trelon muttered in concern as they climbed
higher.
    “Mine too,” Creon called out, wrapping his
hands around the bar in front of him. “I don’t sense any danger,
just a feeling of anticipation.”
    “As long as there aren’t any more of those
beasts back there at the top, I’m good,” Vox commented.
    “This is actually enjoyable,” Kelan added as
he sat back. “My dragon isn’t worried at all.”
    *.*.*
    Trelon wasn’t feeling as confident as his
brother. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but something was
bothering his dragon. He reached inside and saw that his dragon was burrowing down as if to weather one of
the violent storms that sometimes formed on their world.
    “Wow! Did you see that?” Kelan muttered as
he gazed at the ceiling as the cart came to a stop at the very top
of the miniature mountain. “Trelon, I think your mate was messing
with the environmental system again.”
    Trelon’s eyes swept across the sky above
them. Large bolts of lightning and swirling clouds darkened the
area above their heads. A fierce stream of wind blew on them as
they sat near the ceiling of the cavern. He lowered his eyes to
gaze out over the cavern. They were in a far corner of it. From the
angle they were stopped at, it gave them a view of the entire
underground area.
    “This is incredible,” he murmured out loud.
“The planning that went into this, not to mention the engineering,
is unbelievable.”
    “I see the forest with those hairy beasts
moving through it,” Vox said in unease.
    “Look over there!” Zoran groaned, pointing
to another section where the faint sound of laughter could be heard
about the rising storm and the loud cawing of the birds. “Abby

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