The Dragon Healer of Tone (World of Tone) (18 page)

“What’s that noise you’re making, its pretty? “ he said with his head tilted a little.

“It’s humming, a song that we sing to children. You never heard singing?” Seana said surprised at his question.

“No, can you teach me to sing?”

“Yes, I guess that would be a good lesson. Well, let’s clean this area up, and I’ll teach you a little song.”

They finished cleaning the area and sat down. Seana first tapped her hand in a rhythm on her leg then sang.

“The water is our home, a home of all on Tone, We live in peace and love in the home of all, The water is our home, a home for all on Tone, It gives us life, it gives us strength, it gives us all we need.”

Terra smiled as she sang; her voice was so beautiful.

“Now Terra, first hums the song. Close your lips and create a simple sound to match the song’s rhythm.”

Terra did as he was instructed. The sound from his throat was soft but powerful. It began to resonate and quickly filled the cove with a melodic power that Seana and Setilan could hardly belief. As his humming grew louder, Fienna raised her head. His sounds filled the air and then seemed to become a power in itself. The walls of the cove and the sand itself began to vibrate.

“Terra, stop humming,” Seana yelled at the top of her voice, but she could not be heard. Terra had his eyes closed enjoying the feeling of the sound in his body.

“Terra, stop it. The walls of the cove are breaking apart,” Fienna thought to him.

He immediately broke out of his thoughts and stopped humming and opened his eyes. The ground stop vibrating, and the cove quieted.

All three of the others were staring at him.

“What’s wrong?” Terra said in bewilderment.

“You just made the earth move with your voice. You’re a sounder,”

Seana said with an amazed look on her face.

“What’s a sounder?” said Fienna

“It’s only a legend. It is said that in ancient times there were those who could use their voice to destroy or heal. They could call enormous distances and be heard by thousands. They could destroy mountains or heal babies. It was always thought to be nothing more than a myth,”

Seana explained.

“Not anymore,” said Setilan with a smile on her face.

“Terra, you should not sing again until you can find a place that you won’t damage,” Seana said.

“Perhaps you’re right,” he said a little disappointed.

“I think that’s enough for this sun-rising. Will you be here upon the sunrise? We’ll be back if you can be,” Seana said.

“Yes, we’ll be here,” Terra said.

“Come Setilan, we have things to do.”

“What things, I want to stay and have some fun.”

“All right, but don’t be too long.” With that Seana walked into the water.

Far offshore the old Sinut was floating on the surface of the water watching and listening to what was happening. He mumbled to himself, “That’s three.”

Chapter 39 - The Training of a Sounder

(Sound can be either Joyous or Dangerous.)

349 set of seasons since the coming of the Averons

Seana went directly to the king and informed him of Terra’s new power. After many discussions with Seana and his advisors, the king was convinced that they should try to train his voice. He summoned Tram the greatest of the songsters among the sea nymphs. He was informed of Terra and what the king wished him to do. Tram knew of the legends of the sounders, but he had little idea of how to train one.

His first task would be to find a barren area of sea with a small island, a place where no damage could be done. He had remembered one not far from the coast that should be excellent for the purposes of training a sounder.

The next morning he and Seana as well as Setilan arrived at the cove. Seana had warned him of the great dragon, but when they first came out of the water, he was filled with fear of the great beast and retreated back. He saw the largest dragon he had ever imagined. It was monstrously large dwarfing the little figure lying against its side apparently sleeping. Seana and Setilan stopped him and pushed him forward as they came slowly closer to the odd looking pair. The human was also huge when you came close. As he stood to watch them swim to shore, he could see a man that looked more like a tree than a human.

He stood two heads taller than any sea nymph did. He had massive legs that supported a wide body. His legs, hips and body were the same width until they merged into a large chest and even larger shoulders.

His arms were not much smaller than the rest of him. His head was oval-shaped and framed by brown wavy hair that went half way down his back and was tied into a tail with a piece a old cloth. His face was typical of the human faces he had seen in drawings, except his eyes.

They were slightly slanted and seemed to draw you in. His hair was unevenly cut and drooped almost into his eyes. He had white skin and ill-fitting clothes that looked as if they were collected from a pile of old rags. When the dragon sat up, the human suddenly looked a little like the dragon with his thick limbs and body. His companion was huge.

Her body was twelve man lengths long, and her powerful tail was of equal length. Her wings were a blue-green translucent membrane, which folded neatly onto her graceful back. The dragon’s face was light blue with a single series of green armored plates running from her forehead to the tip of her tail. As with all of her species the plates rose slowly into ridges from her head until they reached their peak above her shoulders. Then they slowly flattened out as they reached the tip of her tail where they formed into a heart shape. Her eyes were bright reddish-yellow jewels of unimaginable beauty. Her skin was a series of blue-green semi-translucent scales, which created a mirror like reflection of the sun light.

The two of them, standing there, looked or perhaps simply seemed to be inseparable by any force. As they approached, the dragon wrapped her tail around the man’s body with the large heart-shaped tip flat against his back in what could only be a protective gesture. Tram was being informed, in no uncertain terms; that the man belonged to her and anyone that tried to hurt him would find a potent protector.

He slowly walked up on the beach somewhat awed by the sight and a little frightened being this close to a great dragon. He cleared his throat and stammered a little trying to get out the thought he wanted to convey to the two.

“I am Tram. I was sent by the great sea king to teach you how to use your sounder power.”

In perfect Sea Nymph language, Terra said, “What do you intend to teach me?”

“By controlling your voice, you should be able to send messages long distances, move rocks, and it was said that sounders could destroy as well as heal with their songs alone,” Tram said a little timidly.

Terra stood looking at him for several moments. He had no great interest in learning to send messages a long distance. After all, he could send thoughts to Fienna anywhere, and he did not need to talk to anyone else that badly. As for healing, he could do that with a touch now.

Destroying things disgusted him. He never had any desire to harm anything except that one time, but he could not remember quite when or why he had wanted to harm something.

“Fienna, what do you think?” Terra thought to her.

“Perhaps you should try, it wouldn’t harm anything, and I’m curious about this sounding power of yours.”

Tram was becoming very uncomfortable as Terra stared at him. It seemed he was looking into his soul with those eyes. Finally, Terra spoke.

“Very well you can teach me. Let’s get started.”

“I don’t think it’s such a good idea to do it here. A lot of damage may happen. I have found a small island just outside of view of this cove. If you follow us, we can go there and start.”

Terra had seen this island when he and Fienna flew back from the underwater palace.

“I know the island you speak of. We will meet you there at full sun at the next sun-risings. I don’t feel like lessons this sun-rising.”

“Very well, sir. I will meet you at the specified time,” Tram and Seana turned to go back to the water, but Setilan stayed saying she wanted to play with the pair. That sun-rising the three of them swam, played, and cleaned Fienna’s great body. She so loved being rubbed down in the water.

The next sun-rising Fienna landed on the beach of the small island just before full sun. The island was not much more than a small rock protruding from the water surrounded by a small sandy beach. They settled into the sand in their usual positions. In a short while, Tram and Setilan appeared out of the sea. They slowly walked onto shore and to the unlikely pair. As they approached, Terra could see Tram carrying something.

“What are you carrying?” Terra said as he stood up to greet them.

“This is sea moss. Your voice is too powerful for any of us to hear without protection. We will have to stuff this in our ears to decrease the sound.”

Fienna did not care for this idea but agreed. Terra took some of the moss, found the tiny ear holes just behind Fienna’s eye ridges on either side of her head, and stuffed the moss in. She found it uncomfortable but did not complain remembering how Terra’s voice had started the rocks to move in the cove. First, Tram instructed Terra to duplicate the tones he sang one at a time in the lowest whisper he could sing. As he did, the tones were so pure, powerful, and absolutely beautiful that you could not dislike them. Trams had never heard such perfect tones, and even though Terra was barely whispering, the tones were louder than anything he had ever heard. He could only imagine what his voice could do at full strength. As the lesson progressed, Tram taught Terra a short song. His voice sent the song across the water. Slowly at first, the beauty of the song attracted a few sea creatures, but as Terra continued, more and more came to the water’s surface. By the end of the song, the little island was surrounded by creatures of every description. They were so enamored of his voice that even mortal enemies tolerated each other to hear the sound. Even sea creatures that were unable to hear were listening or perhaps just feeling the vibration.

Over the next several full moon risings, Tram taught Terra all he knew of songs and singing. He learned so fast that Tram had nothing left to teach him by the end of the second full moon. Terra now could control his voice. He no longer made the rock vibrate although he could if he wished. The songs he sang were indescribable, and the reactions of those around him as he sang were unique. He could make one sad or happy. He could make even the sea creatures cry when he wished.

There was only one he sang love to though, Fienna. They were bonded by an invisible chain so strong that no one could ever break it, and when he sang to her, it was with a special voice. Tram thought Fienna was really the only one who could hear all of his love songs, for he sang them beyond the hearing of all but the dragons.

“Terra, I have nothing left to teach you. You are far beyond my skills now. Whatever you do with your voice is up to you,” Tram said with a sad expression on his face.

“Why are you so sad?”

“I will miss hearing your voice. It is beyond beautiful.”

“We can still practice together. Perhaps you could write me songs to sing.”

“Yes, I could. That is a fine idea. I will write songs for you and come and teach you how to sing them. Yes, that’s what we’ll do.”

“You come with Setilan when she comes with Seana for our lessons.”

“I will start writing a new song as soon as I return to my music room.”

That sun-rising Tram left happy, and he was a good as his word. He would write Terra song after song and teach them all to him, and Terra, in turn, would entertain them all with his singing.

Chapter 40 - Fienna is Presented to Dragon Society

(A Child Moves into Adulthood.)

350 set of seasons since the coming of the Averons

Soon the dragon gathering would be held, and it was time for Fienna to be presented to the society of dragons. Fienna had grown to a graceful and powerful dragon. She was already larger then her mother and still had four more seasons of growth ahead of her. She would be as big as her father or perhaps even larger. This bothered Dawra; she felt that no male dragon could possibly attract her daughter’s attentions. No female dragon would ever mate with a male smaller than herself. Dawra actually felt more secure about her daughter’s future knowing that Terra would always be with her. The bond between the two had grown so strong that Dawra felt nothing but death could separate them and perhaps even that could not. Terra was a human, but his powers grew by the sun-rising. Dawra knew little of magic, but he was beyond even the stories she had heard.

“Fienna, upon the sunrise we must go to the dragon gathering,”

Dawra said with pride in her voice.

“It’s time? We will be ready in the morning,” Fienna said to her mother with excitement.

“Terra can’t come. He cannot fly through the winds.”

“I took Terra on a flight two full moons ago. He was fine.”

“You did what! He could have died, and so could you.”