Manica, the Fire Demon
Origin
In the City of the One Prince, fire drakes are a common subject for myth and legends. These mysterious creatures appear from time to time above the City, high in the Skydome.
However, to the population's despair, they can cruise at shorter altitudes, ready to pick up a snack in their huge talons or with their fiery breath, burn to a crisp any wouldbe attacker.
Many stories attest of their intelligence and the Fervent druids are convinced of their scientience as creations of their god - Axara, the Molten Dragon.
One such story or myth, belongs to the Fervent faith and lends credit to the drakes being full of intelligence and mistchief.
A Fervent Myth
To Fervents, drakes are sacred creatures - a manifestation of their god Axara, the Molten Dragon. Hailing from the Firelands, drakes appear over the city's Skydome in times of abnormal volcanic activities.
Some have surmised that the harsh conditions of the Firelands become even harsher at these times and push the drakes out of their territories for a while.
The story starts with a young Fervent druid, a halfling by the name of Misty Lalouette. Misty had been tasked by his harsh master, Father Beginor Sprightfall, to go out in the streets during one of the severest heat wave to befall the City.
Drakes had been spotted by the hundreds in the Skydome and no one felt safe to come out from their dwellings.
Beginor had selfishly tasked Misty to find and fetch a rare form of Mistbane that only flowered on the shores of the Onyx Lake during heat times.
Beginor needed the plant for an all-important potion, and the sightings of hundreds of drakes would not deter him from postponing his experiment. Thus, he sent Misty out in the blistering heat to retrieve the plant he needed from the lakeshore.
Misty, however, was no ordinary halfling. Despite his youth, the young halfling was gifted and well versed in druidic magics. As he stepped outside Blind Square and faced the dangers ahead, he had the idea of transforming himself into a small bronze drake.
The disguise worked as he flew the 5 miles journey to the shore of Lake Onix. Once arrived, Misty did try to gather the plants in his drake form, but found that the drake's body he was inhabiting was not able to lift the Mistbane plants without bruising them.
He needed his halfling hands to do the job properly and quickly.
Looking around, and being seemingly alone, he changed back into his natural form and started to work on the plants immediately.
This is when he heard a tinkling laugh high up in the branches of the tall white skeletal tree to his left. Misty nearly dropped into the lake from fear, and when he looked up he noticed a small bronze dragon looking down on him.
Dumstruck, Misty just smiled back waiting for his forthcoming end, which he hoped would be swift and painless.
The drake started to laugh their pealing laughter again.
'What other tricks can you?'
The drake looked Misty up expectantly as they lowered their neck to peer at the halfling through a lower branch.
This is when Tricksy Misty saw perhaps a chance to live another day and turn the situation to his advantage. Still smiling at the drake, he slowly took his flute from the side of his robe and started to blow a lively tune through it.
The drake laughed again and started jumping from one of the branches to the next, entranced by the sweet sounds coming out of Misty's instrument.
When the tune stopped, they uttered one single word: 'More!'. Seizing his opportunity, Misty answered he could not play again until he had finished his work. The drake looked peeved and repeated 'More', but Misty held firm and the drake stood patiently while Misty picked up the plants his master needed so badly.
Once his rucksack filled, as promised, Misty played the drake another tune - this one soft, heartfelt and tender. The drake was entranced by the tune and when the song finished, only had one word for him: 'More!'.
Once again, Misty said that he needed to work and get back to his master who needed the plants. At these words, the drake was not pleased, and smoke started to pour from their flared nostril.
However, Tricksy Misty held fast and the drake agreed to accompany him back to Blind Square and the Temple of Axara.
Misty was tired by now and could not fly as a drake as he had done before, so Manica - as it was the drake' s name - came down beside him and Misty was able to climb on her back for a ride home.
Manica landed right in the middle of Blind Way, and as promised, Misty took out his flute and started playing for the drake.
This time the tune was a lullaby that his mother used to sing to him when he was a child, before the Well, before he arrived here in the City of the One Prince - a song from home somewhere in green Frencal.
It could have been the soothing tune or the longing transpiring from the tune, but by the time the flute sung her last note, the drake was transfixed to the spot, their eyes half lidded, their stare looking at stars beyond our ken.
Slowly, Misty stepped back towards the temple doors, back to safety, the drake still rooted to the same spot. The halfling did not hesitate, opened and closed the doors behind him, then ran up to the safety of his garret room. When he had enough courage to look trough his bedroom window, there was no sign of Manica - they had flown back to their b rethen and was never seen again.
Yet, some says that when a flute is played at night, they have seen the shape of a small drake alighting nearby. It stays still under the Skydome until the music is done and then disappears.
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