マ ン
MANN
THE FROZEN HEART | 氷結の心
AN UNTOLD TALE
A young hatchling wandered alone in the frozen wasteland of the Southern Icefield. A clan on the hunt for a habitable territory stumbled upon him in the Fortress of Ends. Despite their limited resources in the Ice territory, the clan took him in. The clan leader bestowed the name Mann to the hatchling, thinking of a rune that represented life. The old leader hoped that the hatchling could one day help the clan find a more permanent home, to thrive and flourish.
Mann was raised to be a polite and gentle dragon, and he soon proved himself quite brilliant. Whenever he was given a job to do, he was intensely focused on his work. He learned quickly. If he wasn't sure about something, he asked questions until he understood. But there was a flaw in his character. Despite his intellect, Mann lacked the emotional capacity for love and closeness that seemed inherent in other dragons. His unintentional coldness made it difficult for him to forge relationships with others, be they hatchlings his age, or adults who babysat him.
Growing up, he learned to accept that he couldn't become close to others, that he couldn't understand what love felt like. He figured that such things were dangerous to his work; he resisted the idea of letting his emotions overtake him in any decision.
If asked, he would say that the combination of his inability to bond emotionally and his strong sense of duty was a boon for his future job. Mann pledged his full loyalty to his clan when he became a staff officer. His talent for always being on top of his work allowed him to earn the trust of the superiors in his clan, even though most of his clanmates wouldn't consider him a friend or partner simply due to his coldness. Mann found this perfectly acceptable. As long as he could complete the tasks ordered to him by his superiors, it was good enough for him.
Unbeknownst to him, a few other dragons in the clan began to harbor jealousy of the leaders' trust in him. They began to hatch a plan.
One day, well into his career, Mann had been assigned the duty of scouting for new territory for the clan to live. He had drawn up a fairly effective plan to carry this out (at least, he thought so), and he had insisted to go on the mission alone in order to save resources. He never believed in the weak sacrificing themselves for the common good. When he presented his plan to the elders, they nodded in agreement. They mapped out a direction and predicted the weather—it wouldn't be too harsh, they told him—and sent him on his way with a small pack of supplies. He shouldn't be gone long, they expected.
Not long after he began his journey across frost, the idea that going solo on this mission was a mistake in overconfidence crossed his mind. Mann had been so willing to sacrifice himself by going out in the middle of nowhere in hopes of finding a new territory that this had become a fool's errand. Day became night, there had been heavier snowfall than he'd expected. It was so heavy that he couldn't smell his trail from the previous day. His sense of direction had been jumbled. With a shudder, he realized that he might not ever be able to return to the clan.
His body too heavy to fly with his dense winter coat, Mann leaped through snow that piled up to his neck. As he pushed on, he reflected on the actions of his clan. He began to recall little details that he now recognized as hidden political conflict. It seems a few of the details in his assignment, of his location and the weather, had been falsified intentionally by a dragon (or several) who had called him a rival. Was this mission, therefore, just a ploy designed for the express purpose of exiling Mann?
Frantically, he pushed the thought out of his mind. His terror at the idea of being abandoned as he had been as a baby made him refuse to believe the possibility. There was no way he could figure it out for certain. Whether that was something to take comfort in, or something frustrating, he couldn't decide. It wasn't like he could just hike back and ask. Days became weeks, and he went around and around in his head with the notion:
I haven't been betrayed.
I haven't been exiled.
This is all my own fault. I was too arrogant.
Even as he began to believe that they were right not to go looking for him (and for him to stop looking to find his way back), Mann's long-stifled emotions finally began to rouse. This was bad. He had been tossed aside yet again. Was he really that disdainful, to have the clan he'd been so loyal to for so long leave him out in the middle of nowhere? This idea made him despise himself.
Every day that the rescue never came seemed to cement the feeling that his old clan hated him. And much like everything else in his life, Mann learned to accept it. Perhaps his rival(s) had convinced the clan leaders that he was no longer trustworthy after he'd gone. Perhaps they had sent out a search party to find him, but he was too far away for them to scout. Who knew? He certainly didn't.
It was easy for him to survive, being a Tundra with a thick coat and taste for any food he could find, but Mann could barely find enough supplies to carry on each day. His small supply sack had long been emptied. He had to nose through several feet of snow to find the smallest bit of grass or lichen he could find.
His memories of everything he knew about the clan was quickly going the same way, leaving only the self-depreciating, sorrowful emotions in its wake. The sadness ate at his heart and soul, and he pushed through the harsh blizzards day after day in attempt to run away from them. He hated that they affected him so easily. Emotions were dangerous—that had long been his motto. They were dangerous and unnecessary. Yet they demanded to be felt. They demanded to be in the spotlight of his attention, as if to teach him what loneliness truly was after he had been abandoned by his trusted clan.
In the white haze his his loneliness, he stumbled upon the body of another dragon partially buried in the snow. Upon closer inspection, Mann realized that this was a Ridgeback, a young one judging by her size (almost as big as him!) and facial features. And she was still alive, if in a forced hibernation in the hoarfrost due to the cold. He couldn't tell how long she had been lying where he had found her, but he didn't want to think about it too hard. In his old life, he remembered disliking children, but at that moment, he knew that a young companion was better than none. He was tired of being alone. So he spent a good long while digging her out of her burial place and, that done, covering her against the cold with his own body. He warmed her with his magical breath and shivered with all his might to revive her.
After nearly an hour of his efforts, he succeeded. Mann was so overcome with emotion when he saw her glistening gaze meet his electric-blue eyes, he actually cried. The tears froze in the hair on his face. She didn't seem able to talk yet, so he named her Aisling, with the hopes that one day he—rather, they would be able to escape from the frozen bottom of the world.
Aisling was highly intelligent, just like he was. She learned quickly how to talk. She watched and seemed to analyze everything. Her face held little to no expression. And she grew quickly. She devoured everything Mann could find for her to eat, which was normally plants, although it seemed to give her some indigestion. As she grew in size, she taught herself how to hunt small animals, something even Mann had trouble with and tried to refrain from doing.
She seemed to notice him squirm at the sight of her eating a small animal that she'd killed for herself. Emotionless as ever, she told him that hunting and killing prey was essential for them to live in such harsh conditions. Weaker creatures, such as burrowing mice and rabbits, had to sacrifice themselves for the stronger creatures, such as dragons, so that the strong could survive. Every day was a test of survival, she insisted. If they ate the little animals, their sacrifice wouldn't go to waste. If he wanted to leave this wasteland, she said, he would have to do the same. Her emotionless way of answering him reminded Mann of himself when he had made decisions for his old clan.
As the winter storms blew even harsher, Mann put Aisling's natural tunneling abilities to good use. She dug a shelter large enough for both of them underneath several meters of snow, and there they settled in the winter. The longer they stayed together, the more Mann felt like he couldn't agree with her sentiments on efficiency. Sacrificing the weak wasn't something he stood for. Efficiency had never been worth it to him in the past. (On the specific topic of hunting lesser animals, consuming flesh gave him indigestion anyway.)
While in the shelter, Mann told Aisling the story of his old clan, and how he'd been so devoted to its members. He also told her that he knew they would be wasting precious, scarce resources if they went searching for him, but in his tumultuous heart, he felt like it wasn't right of them to leave him. Deep down, though he didn't realize it, he felt as though he was much too important to the clan for them to simply abandon him.
Aisling seemed awkward when she tried to comfort him, as if she didn't quite understand how he felt, or why. Mann then asked her why she had been alone when he found her, if she could remember. With her same casual, unemotional manner, she answered that she was being a burden to her original clan, so she expelled herself, not caring about the consequences or how close to death she had come. What a stark contrast, Mann noticed; while he felt that his old clan's dumping him unacceptable, she volunteered to go into exile as if it were the natural thing to do.
What if, he began to think, everyone saw me as a burden and I was too blind to notice? The very notion depressed him, made worse by the fact that even if he was aware that he was a burden, he wouldn't have the guts to leave for the clan's good. He deeply feared abandonment and rejection. Before Aisling, he never let anyone get close to him, rejecting them before they could reject him.
Mann sensed that, although his Ridgeback companion was growing closer to him, Aisling was frustrated with him for some reason. He never wanted to be lonely again, so he simply followed her decisions, as much as he disagreed with them.
The two stayed together for the entirety of winter.
Spring finally arrived. Much of the surface snow was melting from the warm sunshine. Mann had completely forgotten everything about his past, except the painful memories of his previous clan. Once it was finally warm enough to move, Mann suggested that they begin to look for away out of the barren wasteland. Aisling agreed, seeming reluctant. Because of her enormous size, she could carry Mann on her back while he rested, which saved them some time.
After flying aimlessly for several hundred miles, they came to the mountain range at the northeastern side of the region. Evergreen forests grew all around the mountains, and baby plants were beginning to push up from under the melting slush. An oasis of life in the midst of a icy, dead desert.
Bending down to eat the first fresh greens he had in months, Mann suggested they rest for a day or two before gliding over the mountains. The trip would be a long, exhausting one, especially for Aisling, who would carry him. When he heard her sigh, he folded his ears back—she must have thought him a huge burden. Nevertheless, she dug a new, small lair in the wet, slushy earth for them to stay in.
The following day, Mann was alone in their temporary lair while Aisling was out on the hunt. He discovered tracks in the still-melting snow, dragon prints. Were they tracks of friends, or foes? He followed after them, trying to sniff each print to catch a scent. It was a breeze that carried a familiar smell to his nostrils. He lifted his head to see, in the distance, a large group of dragons. He paid careful attention to the dragons that seemed to be getting the most attention, most likely the leaders. With a start, he realized that they were his old clanmates. That was his clan!
Mann drew nearer, scanning each and every dragon. Sure enough, one of his rivals was in his old position as a staff officer. That dragon must have been the one who interfered with Mann's plan and had him exiled. With a loud roar, he barreled forward to confront his rival dragon. Two dozen heads turned, and a few screams erupted, some of them being, "Ghost!"
Mann openly accused his rival of sending him into exile on purpose. However, the rival claimed that it was Mann's own fault that he had gotten lost for so long. Wherever Mann had gone scouting, that area would have been destructive to the clan; it was a no-dragon's-land out there. No one would have been able to survive. Mann looked to the leader for a response, but he received nothing. The other clan members avoided eye contact with him, too.
The rival gave hints that Mann was an intruder to the clan now, and to attack him. Most of the dragons present seemed suspicious and just as baffled as Mann was. He couldn't take it anymore. Filled with rage, he lunged at his rival just as Aisling arrived to the scene. She pulled Mann off of him and, noticing Mann's wounds, turned to address the rival.
"You! You're the one who sent Mann into exile, didn't you?" And without even waiting for his answer, she crashed into him with his head.
All at once, the dragons began to attack, aiming their attacks at the fearsome Ridgeback. Mann was petrified, could only watch as magic bolts flew around his head. A few were aimed at him, too, but Aisling shielded him, seemingly effortlessly. Suddenly, everyone stopped when Aisling pinned the rival down, her claws pressing into his neck, panting into his face with exertion. She interrogated him yet again: "Did you or did you not exile Mann? Answer me!"
Every time the rival said no, her claws pressed down even more tightly. When his throat was nearly pinned shut, he choked out his confession, that he did tamper with Mann's plans. Not knowing whether or not it was a true confession, Aisling took his entire head in her claws and snapped his neck.
Raising her head, Aisling asked the clan members what they planned to do with Mann now that he had returned. The other dragons were much too terrified to stray closer, but then a few elder members took a few steps forward to whisper their apologies to him. As more dragons came forward one by one, Mann began to cry for the first time in front of all those dragons whom he had grown up with. The leader declared that things would be decided later.
A thud caught Mann's attention. Aisling had fallen over into the snow, exhausted from shielding him from his blows. Mann rushed over, much to the surprise of his old clan, and nudged her awake. She said she was going to remain here until the leader made a decision, and she lifted her head to glare at the leader. Mann's tears intensified.
Hearing this, the leader hesitated before saying, "Mann, you may rejoin our clan once again as our staff officer." As the other members of the clan surrounded Mann to apologize or congratulate him, the leader added with a glance at Aisling, "But you can't."
The addition stunned Mann. As the dragons were getting ready to bury their newly deceased member and move on, he wasn't quite sure what to do. He couldn't leave Aisling behind. He certainly disagreed with her views and ways of thinking, but they'd been together for so long. She had done so much for him. He trotted over to Aisling and asked, "But what will you do now?"
Aisling let her head fall into the snow before sighing. "Don't worry about me. You're home now. Go with them; they are waiting for you."
Mann gazed into her icy-white eyes. He remembered the joy he had felt upon seeing those eyes open up for the first time, when they had belonged to a much smaller Ridgeback. They had been through so much since then...
"No."
The other clan members gasped, and Aisling scoffed. "Why not?" she wanted to know. "You need a clan to take care of you."
"I know I do," Mann said. "But not this clan. There isn't one dragon here that I've let as close to my heart as you have gotten to be." He turned to the rest of his, now former, clan and nodded at them. "Go on without us."
As the group traveled out of earshot, Aisling spat, "Why are you doing this? I'm weak. I'm a burden to you. You have a clan that can care for your needs. Why are you throwing it away?"
Mann looked up at the mountain that towered high over their heads. Its peak was hidden among white clouds. He said, "When I said I wanted to escape this frozen hell, I meant it. And I wanted to do it with you." Meeting her eyes again, he said, "We're not out of here yet."
"Are you seriously planning on waiting until I get well enough to fly again?"
Mann nodded, and that was that.
After some time, Aisling dragged herself back to their temporary lair. Over the next week, Mann grazed on grass and hunted for his companion. He found plants to soothe the wounds she'd sustained in the fight. He escorted her into the sunlight to allow her to warm her scales. Finally, she was healed. It was time to go.
While Mann rode on her back, Aisling climbed up over the peaks of the white-topped mountains and soared over the sea that separated the Ice Territory from the rest of the world. They spent their nights on any landmass they could find, eating anything available, before continuing their journey. Two weeks after the start of their journey, they found a clan in the Starfall Isles that accepted them both.
And the rest is history.
Thank you, Aeranautics (#80182)
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PRISM
 
(modular bio template by hylozoist)
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