The Breath of the Mountains
Yesterday, I learned two important facts. Those two facts had been rolling around in my head for a long time on the path to Dragon Canyon.
First, Alduin is the adorable eldest who tries to steal dried meat from me, gets caught, then peeks with guilty eyes, and wags his tail so hard when praised.
He's cute enough to make me want to pinch his nose even when he's slightly sulky, but in the wider ecosystem, he's the kind of monster that sends all higher beings running the second their eyes meet his.
Second, Masor is the quiet, well-behaved second who flies silently beside me, rustling his scales and tapping his feet in polite reply.
But watching his wingtips slice through trees and rocks like paper, I realized that 'well-behaved' and 'safe' were two completely different things.
And the third.
I was hauling those two of them on the move.
"...".
I lay with my head on Alduin's neck, staring blankly at the mountains stretching southwestward.
The cold wind whipped against my face. Below, the forest swayed like black waves. Beyond it, a path of rocky peaks and swirling mist stretched endlessly into the distance.
Dragon Canyon.
I'd never seen it on a map. No one had ever told me about it. Even yesterday, I hadn't known it had a name at all.
Yet somehow the direction was crystal clear.
There was an invisible thread tied to something inside my chest. It kept tugging me southwestward, pull after pull.
“Ald.”
“Krr?”
“Slow down a little.”
“Krr.”
Alduin slowed down right away.
Of course, his pace was still lightning compared to my own. But the feeling that my waist would snap in two like yesterday was far weaker. It was progress, by my standards anyway.
“Good.”
I loosened my grip on the leather reins a little.
“You’re starting to understand my limits.”
*Lur.*
A satisfied rumble rose from inside Alduin’s neck.
I immediately patted the black scales with my palm.
“Don’t wiggle just because you got praised.”
Alduin’s back gave the faintest shudder before going still.
Beside me, Masor glided quietly across the low sky, scales rustling softly.
Since the day we chopped the trees and rocks, Masor had grown extra careful with his wing angles whenever he came near me.
Even when he spread his wings and approached, he folded them the instant my gaze landed on him and pulled back a little farther.
Thanks to that, I no longer worried my head might suddenly vanish without leaving a clean cross-section.
It wasn’t completely gone, of course.
“Masor.”
“Sssak.”
“Fly a little higher.”
“Sssak?”
“Your wingtip nearly brushed the end of that tree.”
Masor glanced downward. At that instant, his thin wingtip stopped just before grazing the rock outcrop.
I pointed upward with my finger.
“Higher.”
“Sssak……”
Masor obediently rose in altitude.
I let out a small sigh watching him.
“He’s good, but why do all the good kids end up causing trouble?”
Alduin rumbled low.
“Krr.”
“You’re included too.”
“Krr……”
“Don’t sulk just because I killed a lake yesterday.”
Alduin looked away.
Seeing him, I couldn’t help smiling.
Outside, higher monsters bolted the second they locked eyes with us. Yet here, with one word from me, this colossal black dragon wilted like a plucked flower.
Every time I saw that giant dragon peeking at me, it was strange… and strangely cute.
“Still, you’re doing well today.”
*Lur.*
“You didn’t even breathe fire.”
*Lurr.*
“Masor hasn’t sliced anything yet.”
“Sssak.”
Masor gave a short rumble from above.
I nodded.
“This is peaceful enough.”
The words were barely out of my mouth when I wanted to slap them myself.
Calling something peaceful is tempting fate, especially when you’re traveling with two dragons.
We kept heading southwest.
The forest grew lower and the rocky peaks closer.
Different mountains from those near the Cradle of the World.
Snow was almost nonexistent. Black and red rocks jutted out along the ridges, and the ground felt dry yet strangely moist.
The wind was stranger still.
Normal mountain winds should either come up from below or skim sideways along the ridge. This one kept being sucked inward like it had a mind of its own.
Leaves lay in one direction. Grassheads drooped the same way. Even the mist was pulled that way, then pushed back again and again.
It was like some unseen giant was breathing in and out very slowly.
I straightened my back on Alduin’s back.
“The wind is weird.”
Alduin lifted his head a little.
“Krr.”
Masor circled back from ahead.
“Sssak.”
“You feel it too?”
“Sssak.”
“Good sign or bad?”
Masor stayed silent a moment, then lifted one foreleg as if offering it to the air.
Positive.
I twisted my lips.
“Good one?”
“Sssak.”
“Then lucky me.”
I said it, but my body kept growing heavier.
Alduin looked fine on the surface.
Masor still flew quietly.
But I was different.
Just riding Alduin sapped my strength.
There was a leather saddle tied to his back, but the shaking never stopped.
The wind kept slapping my face. My hands throbbed from gripping the reins. My waist felt stiff, as if not mine.
My spirit gave out before my body did.
If the first one stops breathing, mountains, forests, and lakes can vanish.
If the second shakes his wings wrong, the surrounding terrain can quietly be sliced away.
All day I worried about that, so the path ahead felt safer than my own stomach.
“Let’s rest.”
Alduin tried to turn his head.
I tugged the reins.
“Keep looking ahead.”
“Krr.”
“And rest.”
“Krr?”
“Not you, me.”
Alduin’s eyes widened in surprise.
I pressed my forehead.
“Why.”
“I can get tired too.”
“Krr……”
“Stop those pitiful eyes.”
Masor descended beside me.
“Sssak.”
“You should rest too.”
“Sssak?”
“You’ve been flying the whole time.”
“Sssak.”
“Don’t pretend you’re fine.”
Masor gave no answer, but his wings folded a little lower.
I snorted at the sight.
“See? You’re tired.”
“Sssak……”
“Hiding it won’t help.”
We stopped on a wide flat rock at the base of the mountain.
Mist lay low here.
Even though it was called flat, it was flat only by human standards. For Alduin it was a broad rock he could plant his feet on. For Masor, just enough to crouch and sit.
I carefully slid down from Alduin’s back.
The moment my feet touched ground, my knees softened.
“Ah.”
I rested my hand on Alduin’s foreleg.
“My legs.”
“Krr?!”
“I’m fine.”
“Krr……!”
“It’s not that I’m not fine, I’m fine.”
Alduin looked confused.
I waved my hands.
“Humans get tired after long rides.”
“Krr.”
“It’s not just you.”
*Lur.*
“It’s a little your fault.”
Alduin’s eyes flickered again.
I laughed and tapped his nose.
“I’m joking.”
Masor landed beside the rock.
When he folded his wings, the steel-colored scales made a crisp “Sssak.”
My body twitched on reflex.
Masor looked at me.
“Sssak?”
“No.”
I waved my hand.
“Now every time I hear your wing sound, I get a little tense.”
“Sssak……”
“Don’t get hurt.”
I pulled dried meat, a stone pot, and a few root vegetables from my pack.
I set out water containers too.
Masor naturally lifted his razor-sharp foreleg.
I said immediately, “No.”
“Sssak?”
“If you cut it, it’ll be too thin.”
“Sssak.”
“I’m making soup. I don’t need paper-thin slices.”
Masor obediently lowered his leg.
Alduin curled into a ball, using his body as a windbreak.
Thanks to that, the misty wind eased a little.
I placed the stone pot on the rock and looked at Alduin.
“Breath.”
Alduin’s eyes sparkled.
I raised a finger.
“Small.”
“Krr.”
“Just enough to warm the pot.”
“Krr.”
“Not to warm the mountain.”
Alduin exhaled carefully.
A thin veil of red heat wrapped the pot. Inside, the water began to simmer.
I finally nodded in satisfaction.
“Good.”
“That’s enough.”
*Lurr.*
“Don’t get too proud just because you held back the breath.”
Alduin still looked pleased.
I stared at the bubbling pot and stretched my shoulders, rubbed my wrists, and loosened my stiff waist.
Beyond the mist, wind still blew.
Or rather, it was moving.
Mist was pulled one way, then pushed back.
In. Out.
I stopped stirring the pot.
“……”.
Something felt off.
At first I thought it was the terrain. Wind can act strange between mountains and canyons.
But this wind was too steady.
Pushed. Pulled. Again. Again.
Like breathing.
I slowly lifted my head.
“Masor.”
“Sssak.”
“Scout around.”
Masor stood at once.
“Watch your wings.”
“Sssak.”
“Higher.”
“Sssak.”
Masor slipped into the mist.
His faint steel-colored body vanished in an instant.
I kept stirring the pot.
Alduin watched beyond the mist beside me.
His golden eyes narrowed.
“Why.”
“Krr.”
“What is it?”
Alduin said nothing.
He only lowered his body a little.
It wasn’t fear. It wasn’t retreat.
It was the stance that blocked my front and allowed him to lift his head and spew fire instantly.
I looked at him and narrowed my eyes.
“Ald.”
“Krr.”
“What did you feel?”
Alduin gave a short rumble.
“Lur.”
I set the leather pouch down.
“Good sign?”
Alduin stayed silent.
“Bad sign?”
Again, nothing.
I sighed.
“Then it’s the ambiguous one.”
Right then, from beyond the mist, a faint “Sssak” sounded.
Slightly faster than usual.
Masor had returned.
He was half-hidden in the mist, wings folded.
The moment I saw him, I knew.
Masor had seen something.
“What.”
“Sssak.”
Masor pointed beyond the rock with his foreleg.
I covered the pot and stood.
“Ald.”
“Krr.”
“Look at the pot.”
Alduin glanced between the pot and me.
I said firmly, “Don’t touch it.”
“Krr……”
“Don’t steal the dried meat.”
Alduin looked away.
I followed Masor past the flat rock.
The mist wrapped my ankles.
The rocks were wet, dotted with small puddles.
At first I thought it was just rainwater.
But when we reached Masor’s stop, I lost my words.
A vast pool lay ahead.
It was too big to call a pool. A small lake sounded right.
Mist floated above it. The water at the edge lapped quietly.
“Why is this here?”
I didn’t understand at first.
Masor silently lifted his foreleg and pointed at the edge.
A perfect circle of flattened rock sat there.
From its outer edge, a huge groove stretched outward.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Like claw marks.
I slowly shifted my gaze.
The lake wasn’t round.
One side was wide; the front was split like toes.
The edge rocks had been pushed aside. Rainwater pooled in the center.
And the whole thing formed one shape.
Footprints.
“……”.
My mouth slowly opened.
“This.”
I lowered my voice.
“Are these footprints?”
Masor’s scales gave a tiny rustle.
“Sssak.”
I turned.
“Ald!”
Alduin lifted his head from beside the pot.
“Krr?”
“Come here.”
Alduin stood instantly.
The pot wobbled.
I shouted, “Pot!”
Alduin quickly blocked it with his tail.
Luckily it didn’t topple.
“Slowly!”
“Krr……”
Alduin approached carefully.
Every time the black dragon’s foot touched the rock, a low rumble spread.
And Alduin stood beside me, staring down at the giant footprints.
I kept looking between Alduin’s foreleg and the one in front.
Alduin was huge.
A house-sized body. One foot was enough to crush a person.
Yet the nearby footprint was strangely off.
If Alduin’s tracks were animal prints, these were terrain.
Where the sole pressed, a pond formed. Where the claws passed, a small gorge was gouged. The edge rocks had been pushed into perfect circles, as if by giant hands.
One side had broken trees pressed root-first. In the center, mist pooled and the bottom vanished.
A few houses would fit inside one footprint.
Or maybe a few dozen.
I had no idea.
“……Ald.”
“Krr.”
“Touch one foot.”
Alduin tilted his head.
“Just compare.”
Alduin carefully placed his foreleg near the edge of the footprint.
I watched and lost all words.
Alduin’s foot was huge.
But next to this giant print it looked small.
Like a young beast testing its own paw beside a giant’s.
“Wow.”
I muttered blankly.
“Is this real?”
Masor didn’t move at the edge.
His scales stayed quieter than usual.
His body remained half-hidden.
He simply stood fully revealed, watching the traces ahead.
Masor was big too.
A steel dragon the size of an elephant.
But in front of this footprint he looked like a small animal.
I looked at myself.
There was nothing to say.
I was just a dot.
“Dragon Canyon.”
I slowly opened my mouth.
“The ones who live there aren’t all just your size, right?”
Masor said nothing.
Alduin said nothing.
But Alduin didn’t retreat.
His golden eyes cooled. A very low heat moved beneath his black scales.
I lowered my voice unnecessarily.
“Ald.”
“Krr.”
“Are you scared?”
Alduin turned to me.
His eyes blinked strangely.
Then he gave a short rumble.
“Lur.”
It wasn’t fear.
I realized that instantly.
Alduin wasn’t scared.
The moment the footprint’s owner appeared, he was ready to jump on my back and take off immediately.
Lowering his body wasn’t retreat.
It was the stance that blocked my front.
“……Ah.”
I looked up at Alduin’s neck.
“So that’s it.”
Alduin looked back beyond the footprints.
I quickly tapped his scales.
“No breath.”
“Krr.”
“You haven’t done anything yet.”
“Krr……”
“You can’t burn just by looking.”
Alduin gave a slightly displeased look.
I raised three fingers.
“Do you remember the lake I killed yesterday?”
“Krr……”
“You remember.”
A small “Sssak” came from Masor.
I turned.
“Don’t laugh either.”
“Sssak.”
“You can slice mountains with your wings too.”
Masor quietly looked away.
I stared at the footprints again.
Was this the moment for the word “awe”?
Alduin didn’t feel scared.
To me Alduin was still the eldest.
But the footprints gave a different kind of feeling.
This wasn’t about strength.
It was too big for my understanding.
Even with my eyes, my head couldn’t keep up.
One footprint was a whole little world.
Something like that really passed through this mountain.
And probably where we were heading.
“……”.
The mist grew thicker.
At first I thought the mist trapped inside the footprints had been pushed up by the wind.
But I realized.
The mist was coming toward us.
Slowly.
Pushed. Pulled. Again. Again.
Like breathing.
Alduin’s body edged forward a tiny bit.
I naturally stepped back behind his foreleg.
Masor descended beside me and folded his wings.
“Sssak.”
His scales trembled low.
I swallowed hard.
“Wind.”
My voice came out small.
“This isn’t just wind, right?”
No answer.
The mist grew even thicker.
The rocks at the mountain base, the edges of the footprints, and the path we’d just walked all blurred.
Even the place where the pot sat vanished.
I grabbed Alduin’s scales.
The black scales were warm.
Thanks to that warmth, my fingertips calmed a little.
Then.
Beyond the mist, something opened.
Eyes.
At first I thought there was only one.
A single huge blue light slowly emerged from the mist.
But another one was there.
And below them, a pair.
Lower still, another pair.
Three pairs.
Six eyes glowed faintly between the mist.
Far away, one would expect them to be tiny.
But I knew their size.
Each eye was huge.
Bigger than Alduin’s head.
Or maybe even bigger.
I held my breath.
The eyes didn’t move.
No blinking.
They simply watched us from beyond the mist.
Like mountains with their eyes open.
Masor’s scales trembled faintly.
“Sssak……”
Alduin rumbled low.
*Lurrr……*
It wasn’t frightened.
It was a warning.
Protecting me in front of me, beside me.
I gripped Alduin’s scales tightly.
“Ald.”
“Krr.”
“No breath.”
“Krr.”
“Not yet.”
I stared at the three pairs of eyes beyond the mist and whispered very softly.
“Not yet.”
The mist pushed again.
The three pairs of eyes didn’t vanish.
They only grew a little clearer.
Only then did I understand.
We thought we were heading to Dragon Canyon.
But the canyon was already watching us.