The Story of Pindus

This is a sad little story, but it is my favorite.
--Berylindra--

Keegan was a young dragon, born of a non-flying race in a land then called Emathia. He had taken up residence in a discreet little crevice, far from the areas frequented by men. He was startled from a nap one day when a hind-calf burst into the cave, full of fright.

It froze before the dragon, and Keegan quickly recognized its predicament. Before the calf was a dragon, and behind it came a hunter. Now some say that Keegan would have eaten the calf had he been truly hungry, but perhaps not. Whichever the case, Keegan took pity on it.

Without a movement, Keegan comforted the hind-calf, then "spoke" to the hunter. "Leave the hind-calf alone," he said gently but firmly. "Hunt it no further."

The hunter, whose name was Pindus, was first startled, then quite shaken when he realized that the voice had spoken to him from within his mind. Believing the voice to be that of an angel, he leaped onto his horse and departed. When he was gone, Keegan sent the calf out and he saw no more of it.

Pindus, however, drawn by curiosity and a reasonable mind, returned the next day. Keeping a respectful distance, he politely inquired who might have bade him forego the hind-calf, and why.

Keegan studied him for several moments and found to his surprise that he liked the young man. From the lad's thoughts he discovered that Pindus was in fact the son of Macedo, king of Emathia. Pindus, however, had relinquished his governing of the kingdom to sate the greedy jealousy of his brothers. Even his personal possessions had been given to them.

Therefore Keegan answered, "The calf was in dire straits and I took pity on him."

Pindus was delighted, more certain than ever that it was not an angel who had addressed him the day before. "An honorable reason, that," he said. "My name is Pindus. Might I ask to whom I am speaking?"

Now Pindus was a prince by heritage, and he was currently a hunter by profession. While we dragons can easily hear what IS thought, we can no more predict what WILL BE thought any more than you can.

Keegan hesitated so long that Pindus began to fear he should not have asked. It was this distress, and the lad's sincere curiosity that finally brought him forth and he showed himself to Pindus. "I am called Keegan."

Instinct is powerful and Pindus could not help being afraid, nevertheless, he stood his ground. Still, for prudence, (and even somewhat for manners), he offered the dragon a rabbit and a bird he had taken on his way there. One would have been his dinner that evening and the other given to a friend, (and both together were barely a taste for the dragon), but to appease his fear, Keegan accepted.

Pindus took readily to conversing without words, (something which we have found most humans shy away from), and they talked together for some time. It quickly became apparent to both of them that they liked each other very much. Pindus invited Keegan to come away with him, but at this Keegan balked.

Most dragons are solitary by nature, generally speaking, and Keegan certainly didn't want to be mobbed. They discussed the problem, and eventually came up with a solution.

Pindus was greatly loved by his fellow villagers, and they would trust his judgement in most matters. If Keegan came with him into town, Pindus could introduce Keegan as his "conquest," a dragon he had tamed. They would keep their conversations a secret, and Keegan would not be expected to talk with anyone else.

Some dragon species take easily to such an arrangement, others do not. The smaller, non-flying races are less threatening to humans, and therefore less apt to experience serious difficulties. Tiberius Ceasar "owned" such a dragon, and others were even worshipped in temples. (Temples, however, can be dangerous places - read Bel and the Dragon to learn why.)

Keegan finally agreed, insisting, however, that he would come and go as he pleased. Pindus became greatly admired by the townsfolk for his "pet" and for his ability to 'keep it in line.' Already a talented hunter, with Keegan's tutelage, Pindus became truly remarkable. No one in his township ever went hungry.

It is a great sorrow that some people, being so insignificant in their own eyes, are only able to feel exalted by demeaning others. Such was the case of Pindus' brothers. Jealous now of the love and admiration Pindus received, they began once again to plot his death.

Pindus was aware of this, and though he tried repeatedly to make peace, they would not be consoled. He took pains to be cautious, slipping out their grasp on numerous occassions. Keegan also thwarted several attempts, but his protection only made the brothers angrier than ever. The brothers were persistent, and Pindus, required to follow a wounded quarry, finally found himself ambushed with no outlet for escape.

Keegan, hearing his cry for help before it was uttered, rushed to his aid. Too far, too late, Keegan stumbled as the death stroke fell, feeling the pain of it as though he had taken the blow himself. In grief and fury he burst upon the murderers with the force of a hurricane, felling two with his arrival, his claws sinking through their backs to their very hearts.

A third was too stunned to flee and died where he stood; a fourth suffered a broken back from a lash of the tail, while the fifth had to be pursued a short distance before he too was brought down. Keegan returned to the one with the broken back and he lived just long enough to repent his deed.

His fury spent, Keegan had nothing left but his grief. He lay down beside the body of his dear friend, mourning silently in the fashion of dragons. So great was his love for Pindus and so deep was his melancholy that he did not stir when a friend came searching and found them. The fellow viewed the scene silently for several long moments, then left as quietly as he had come.

He soon returned with the greater part of the village and they discreetly picked up the bodies of the brothers and carried them away. This accomplished, they came back for Pindus, but Keegan still hadn't moved. They stood together a stone's throw away, murmuring softly to one another.

Keegan knew they were afraid to approach him, but so loathe was he to bid farewell to his friend that he lingered another hour. At last Keegan took pity on them for their own grief and, with a last look at Pindus, moved perhaps twenty feet away to allow them access. Solemnly he watched as they carried away his friend.

When he could no longer see them, he returned to his home where the hind-calf had started it all. Lying down, he gave himself to his grief. Not until the following morning did Keegan consider the fact that he had killed. They had not been just any men either, those brothers, but royalty, leaders of government. And so he waited.

Later that same day he was surprised to see a hind at the entrance of his cave. Now, hinds are simple-minded creatures, but they possess a great curiosity and are not incapable of compassion. Against better sense, that hind which Keegan spared had come to investigate his sorrow, (for when a dragon grieves, nearby creatures cannot help but sense it).

Full grown now and experienced, the hind should not have dared such a thing, so Keegan was touched and allowed it to stay. Indeed, he found its presence a comfort. Together they waited for the arrival of men, dragonslayers who would avenge the deaths of the brothers and make the world safer for humans.

No one ever came.