Gux was noticing something as time went on. There was a ruling era of peace in the village, a feeling of calm that came with having a protector, and with it, rather a lot of druids were walking around sporting rounded bellies. Juniper was on her second, and if it was any guess, the next class of students was going to be at least double the size of the current one. It made Gux take a little more pride in training the grove knights, as they had been dubbed. With them as a line of defense, the commune would be truly safe and allowed to grow and thrive in peace.
As the first class came to graduate, Gux was proud to see them testing their skills, hunting down flags he’d placed out there without being detected and giving off impressive displays of weapon work that dazzled the druids around them. Sure, the grove knights weren’t the only ones who knew how to defend themselves, but the precision and speed they could put into a blade was truly impressive for groups who only knew how to sling spells.
He walked home from the graduation with head held high, Zaax on his shoulders playing with a stick like a sword and Lily holding his paw, pride for her family showing in her eyes. However, Gux had a sneaking suspicion she was just as proud of how bad Zaax was with a weapon as how good Gux had proven to be. Zaax was definitely getting quite skilled with magic, and with the growth spurt he’d just had, he was now the tallest in the classroom by a good foot, with magical abilities matching his physical readiness.
Still, he was their little one, and even if most ‘teens,’ as that was about Zaax’s body type, wouldn’t be caught dead on their dad’s shoulders still, Zaax was still enjoying his childhood. Gux watched him fumble around with the club in his hand, then looked over to see Lily gazing at the family of one of the graduates. His wife had a bump forming in her midriff, a young one already tugging on her arm, and Lily’s free hand was subconsciously going to her stomach, almost as if her insides were in pain at the sight.
They had discussed it long ago, before they’d even gotten married officially. Lily wanted a big family, maybe not so big as Gux’s tribe, but definitely at least two or three children. She’d always wanted that, but never found the right guy to be with… and then Gux had stumbled into her life, and she’d started looking into magics to combat the fact that they were… well, different species. There were lots of solutions, but most of them were for ones that were close: dwarves and elves, humans and gnomes… things like that.
An elf and a gnoll, it seemed, were too big a difference, as her reaction to the tea had proven it was going to take something more. Ever since Zaax had arrived in their lives, Lily’s search into conceiving had been out to pasture, but as he was maturing... she’d started asking around again, he knew, even going to Elder Elm to get his opinion on the whole thing. Gux didn’t know what would come of it, but he was curious himself. He loved Zaax as much as he loved Lily, but he did wonder what would happen if they had their own cubs. Would they be elves? Gnolls? Or something new the world had never seen?
Whatever the result, it was going to have to wait, as Gux pulled Lily closer, hugging her around the shoulder and breaking her out of her stupor. “Come home. We celebrate ceremony, my treat! Couldn’t have done without you, and now I show how much it meant.”
His common was getting a lot better, and Lily couldn’t help but smile, remembering his faltering words on day one. “Yeah! Sure, show me how much better you’ve gotten at cooking.” They returned home, and there Gux prepared an array of fruit and veggie feasts for the three of them. They talked and played games, laughed, and Gux even threw a play-fight to Zaax to help the little guy feel like a superhero.
At the end of the night, as Zaax went to bed and Gux was cleaning things up, Lily came up behind him, just hugging him tightly from behind. He stopped, holding her against him and saying “What wrong? I know that hug…”
Lily sighed into his back fur, nuzzling it gently. “I want to have a baby,” she said finally. “And I’ve been talking about it with Elm…” She held him closer. “It’s a dangerous journey, and I might be gone for a long time…”
Gux turned around, but Lily kept her hug tight, turning with him. His face went flat as he slowly turned himself in her grip, hugging her in return, his head propped on hers. “Lily, we face it as one… We married, for better or worse, and we do all we can for family.” He kissed the top of her head. “I want cubs… I want with you. What we do?”
She continued to hold him. “Elder Elm wants to talk to us both… He said to tell you about it all. I was going to surprise you, but after the tea…” Gux’s hug got tighter, and she nodded. “Yeah… I wasn’t going to do anything harmful without letting you know.”
Gux picked her up, cuddling her to his chest while her feet kicked in the air. “I will keep you safe if I can… and bless and send off with all I can if you alone.”
She kissed him gently, placing her head against his chest to listen to his heartbeat… one that beat only for her. She grinned warmly. “Tomorrow, when Zaax is at school and before your patrol, we meet him at the town hall.” Her heart was fluttering with fear and anticipation as she was carried into the bedroom. “We’ll get our answers there.”
Gux placed her on the bed, curling around her once more, protecting her with his body as he nodded. “We see what it take… I do anything for you, Lily.”
“And I you, Gux,” she said, kissing him gently. Despite the celebration, neither wanted to do any more partying… and they felt they’d need their energy for the morning.
The next day the pair dropped off Zaax at school, waving him off to play with the others and learn well, before they went to Town Hall. Elm was waiting for them in his private chambers, a smile on his face that only widened when he saw both of them enter. “Ah! Good! This is an endeavor that should be undertaken by two hearts fully committed… no sneaking around or surprises.” He stepped forward, shaking Gux’s paw. “You, my friend, have done a service to this place rivaled only by the founder’s own actions when she established it. You are a treasure to this community, and there should be more of you.” He then turned to Lily. “And you, who believed in him when nobody else would, who showed us all the light that can be hidden in the bloody, brutal darkness of the gnolls… we owe you a debt of gratitude as well. It is why I have looked into your little… fertility problem.” He let out a sigh, unfolding a large map that was sitting near the cushion he’d been sitting on when they entered. “What do you two know about dragons?”
Gux shook his head, admitting he’d never seen or heard of one, while Lily shrugged. “Umm… They breathe out the elements in a deadly fury, they’re big, powerful, and pretty much every single part of their body is magic?”
Elm chuckled. “Yes, all of those are true… but there’s one thing that not everyone knows. Dragons… they can mate with everything. Humans, dogs, horses, lions, chimera… Gnolls… There’s even at least one case of a nest of half-dragon bees, though how that came about I will never know.” He shook his head, trying to get the image out of it. “Now, while this is true of all dragons, just taking a dragon’s stuff and working with it… it wouldn’t do enough. You could maybe get some fertility aid, but it’d be much more likely you’d just grow some scales or something.” He pointed on the map to a place far to the north, a cluster of trees surrounded by mountains. “However, right here, on the World’s Crown, there’s said to be an ancient dragon older than time itself.” He nodded sagely. “The Ur Dragon is said to be descended from Io itself, born not of the endless feud between the two children that ripped free from the great creator’s body when he was cut in two, but the child of his own flesh and blood.”
Both Lily and Gux were now lost on this one. Lily knew a lot about gods and goddesses of the forest, but all this talk about dragon deities had her confused, and Gux… He only knew of one “deity” and he actively fought its hunger every chance he got.
Elm looked at them, realizing the story was missing the mark, and decided to hurry it up a little. “This Ur Dragon, which we have confirmed with our own scouts, lives within the forest at the World’s Crown. You must make the journey, through harsh, unforgiving lands and dangerous peoples, survive the freezing, biting cold, enter the primordial forest, and then… I suggest talking.” He laughed. “Anything that old only got that way by being incredibly dangerous and powerful… This world doesn’t take kindly to letting a weak elder continue on.” He looked at them slyly, and when they didn’t seem to immediately laugh at his words, he took it to heart. “I don’t know if it’ll want a trade, or to talk, or if the secret is some part of its body, but… Another couple, with a kenku male, were able to make the journey, and their family thrives.”
Gux and Lily both swallowed their nerves, looking resolute for each other. Lily was the first to speak. “For a chance to show my love how much he means to me… I’ll give it a shot. How far away is this?”
“About… 600 miles, give or take.” Elm looked solemn. “You’ll be gone a long time to get there, though… with your magical skills, getting back should be no problem.” He tapped his cane on the ground as he thought. “Oh… If you hike quickly, I’d say you’d only need to find a home for Zaax for a month. Or only one of you could go, but… I wouldn’t recommend it.”
Lily’s heart sank. That long away? Would her little one be alright? Gux, however, laughed. “Only one month? I expecting longer… Juniper probably busy, but can ask anyway. If not, many grove knight families be happy to help.”
Lily shook her head. “Gux, Zaax is in the prime of his growth as a druid… If he gets put with a family that doesn’t know he likes to run with the wolves on a regular basis, or about those aggressive impulses, or the whole goodberry thing… We’re not just giving someone a pet to look after for a few days. It’d be our son, for a month!”
Gux looked at her firmly, his face the picture of serious. “Lily… You trust me, yes?”
“More than anyone.”
“You want to do this?”
“I do. With all my body and soul.”
Gux smiled. “I do too… question not if, question is when.” He then turned to the Elder. “We talk about it… plan. But you know when we go.” They both left then, talking to each other and planning. There was a lot that was going to go into this trip, but… in the end, if the prize was what Elm said it was… it’d all be worth it.
