Sleeping on the go had become a regular ritual for Giu.
It took a bit of experimentation, but the canine finally managed to find a comfortable enough napping position in between all the bouncing and riding over rocks. In doing so, Tea had become his living pillow, despite the latter’s complaints. Not that he really listened. With the temperatures fluctuating the closer they got to Seladon, Tea stood as the closest thing to a heated blanket for miles. Plus their lap was soft.
“I could just throw you an actual blanket, y’know,” Tea pointed out as they guided the reins.
“Aren’t you supposed to be driving, T?” he said back. “You worry about the road, and I’ll worry about staying cozy.”
The pixie groaned. Though he did enjoy the teasing, it wasn’t the only reason he insisted on using them like a pillow. As long as Tea was distracted by him, they weren’t thinking about Angelita. At least not while they were awake.
“Fang, remind me to bill Gi for being a dummy later,” Tea said.
The twimono gave a snort in response. It was still a mystery how much the thing actually understood what they were saying. But at the very least having it around was useful. Whenever they had to stop for camp, Fang doubled as a guard. So far, nothing had dared challenge the giant beast.
Moving through another ridge that led them through a mountainous valley, Giu caught the scent of food on the wind. Grilled meat. Nothing he recognized, but the smokey aroma helped him to finally spot their destination. Immy’s hometown.
“Heads up, canine,” Tea said. “We finally made it.”
He gave a small nod, sitting up to scan through it all.
The neutralist city of Seladon. At the end of a long stretch of greenery, black stone pillars stood decorated with blue light. The ground below them dipped considerably as a series of waterfalls led from the city to an ever-flowing river below. Fang had to climb along sections of mossy lichens and mushrooms to avoid the water. This was Immy’s hometown? He’d always imagined something more country-like.
Between the glowing buildings and the massive pit all the water led into, the city felt so…alien. Even the people. He didn’t spot a single canine or rabbit among them. The vast majority in Seladon were instead reptiles.
“Welcome to Neutralist Territory, Gi,” Tea said, guiding Fang into the city.
It wasn’t the only mount riding around.
Carriages came about being tugged by creatures with scaly bodies and fin-shaped heads. Their tiny wings fluttered as they moved, seemingly useless given how large the creatures were. Still, it came as a bit of a shock to see so many of the beasts around. They almost looked like- Giu practically jumped up.
“Holy-!”
His jaw fell at the massive statue standing in front of them. Giant wings stretched out covered in water, which seemed to be continually spilling into the pond at its feet. Several kids splashed about within it.
“Oh. That.” Tea smirked. “What, you never seen a dragon before?”
He marveled at the beast. That was supposed to be a dragon? He’d always seen them depicted as little cartoonish imps or wild caricatures. Even the ones the Dragons used. But this statue. The way it stared him down. How he could almost feel heat resonating off its body. It felt so…life-like.
“Guess I should be glad it isn’t real,” he said.
“Who told you that?”
He instantly looked at Tea. They snickered.
“I really hate you, Tea.”
They pawed his shoulder.
“You’re always so gullible, Gi.”
Giu groaned, their cart riding past the splashing children. He made a mental note to get the pixie back later.
Since they were finally in Seladon, it was time to resume their search for Immy in earnest. And that began by finding the blacksmith she spoke about. One which Giu hoped would be a bit easier than trying to find a needle in a haystack. They stopped by a nearby group of lizards to ask for directions.
“We don’t really know his name,” Giu explained, “but we heard he’s the best in town. He even outfitted Imona Alis, I’ve heard.”
Considering the people who were after him remained a mystery, he chose against asking for Immy directly. At least not to random strangers. Thankfully, the lizards did have some inkling of who he was searching for.
“Are you talking about Mr. Stone?” one asked. “He’s the only non-exclusive blacksmith.”
“Maybe. Does he serve canines?”
The lizards exchanged confused looks.
“Never mind that,” Tea came in. “Any idea where we can find him?”
“Oh, um, he lives down by…Draconis Way, right?”
“Yeah, I think so,” chimed another.
“Just look for the big sign,” another came in. “Stones n’ Swords. Can’t miss it.”
Tea nodded in gratitude, Fang lurching forward just as Giu gave his thanks.
“Gi, do me a favor,” Tea said. “Stop acting like a tourist.”
“Huh?”
“You’re gawking at pretty much everything. You’re gonna draw attention.”
He groaned. “Not my fault I’ve never been to Neutral territory before.”
Tea rolled their eyes in response.
***
It took a bit more asking around to narrow down where exactly Draconis Way was. During the entire trek, through the city, Giu noticed one bit of oddity that he couldn’t help but linger on. As they were approaching the home of Mr. Stone, curiosity finally got the better of him.
“Hey, Tea,” he said.
“Hmm?” they asked, parking Fang next to the Stones n’ Swords signpost.
“What…is that?”
He pointed out into the sky. What he’d assumed at first to have been the Seladon version of the flying train. But the thing hadn’t moved in the slightest. Not on its own, anyway. The way it changed position was more akin to a star or the sun. But it didn’t shine like any of those.
“That some kind of weird moon or something?” he asked.
Tea shook their head.
“That’s…Angelita, Gi.”
“Huh. Oh. Ok.”
It took a few moments for realization to finally dawn.
“Wait, what?”
He immediately whirled in the thing’s direction. The spec in the sky. So high that he could barely make out any details.
“That! That’s Angelita!”
His brain could barely process the information. The pixie nation. Tea’s old home. It was in the sky! When- How- A flood of questions came to his mind, but a weight fell on top of him before he could ask any.
“Gi!”
He snapped from his thoughts.
A pair of yellow eyes stared back at him, a gleaming dagger pressed against his throat. Tea flew over, a bottle at the ready as they glared at the attacker. A salamander that had Giu pinned to the ground.
“Not one more move,” the reptile hissed. “Not unless you want him to lose a head.”
Tea growled, Giu simply blinking at his assailant. It was easy to tell from the voice alone.
