Autumn, Eighteenth Year of the Xin Zhuo Emperor

A couple of days later Qing and Morha followed the galley road as it began descending from the mountains covered in pine. Suddenly the canopy opened, revealing a fog-covered valley broken up by hundreds of towering stone pillars projecting like a forest of rock.

Morha whistled at the sight. *What is this place?*

*The Ba Valley. * Qing explained. *Once a center of Jiangshan, it is now a bit of a backwater, away from the main trade routes and other population centers.*

*Looks beautiful.*

*The valley is now isolated in Jiangshan, but it is still well populated. I want you to be careful. Remember the last time that you encountered backwater villagers. We will try to move through as quickly as possible.*

Morha grimaced at the reminder of that incident, but nodded. *Understood.*

Carefully the two dragons descended the galley road, then broke off into the woods before it reached the floor of the valley. Like snakes, the two dragons slunk through the fields, past villages and past roads, taking cover when people approached.

They did not count on the swine herder however.

The two dragons were taking a heavily forested, overgrown trail near the opposite end of the valley when they heard a cry and a song, followed by a chorus of grunting and the trampling of many trotters.
Qing immediately directed the pair of them into a large thicket nearby surrounded by trees. As the long and mušḫuššu hid and watched, partly obscured by the mists, a young human walked down the path, using a stick to drive a large herd of porcines. The blue dragon silently gestured for Morha to wait until the herd passed, the purple dragon nodding in reply.

A sea of grunting porcines flooded by, slightly nervous when they passed the bush but mostly ignoring the odd scents. The group was nearly gone when suddenly, among the last members of the herd, a piebald pig abruptly stopped, turned before the hideout and squealed. Loudly. Almost like a scream.

The other pigs immediately stopped and joined in the commotion.

“What is it, Xiao Mi?” The swineherd immediately ran over to the pig, before turning and looking directly at the bush. Morha’s heart stopped as the human ran over, his stick ready in hand. There was no time or place to run, only to hope that the onlooker would lose his curiosity.

“This better not be a prank, Danwu.”

The swineherd quickly lifted his lantern into the darkness of the thicket, revealing two pairs of large wary reptilian eyes staring back at him.

“Monsters!”

With a cry the swine herder dropped his lantern and stick and immediately fled back the way he came, his pigs scattering with him, squealing loudly.

“Alarm! Alarm! There are monsters in the woods!”

Qing watched the human taking off down the road with immense annoyance.

*Well shit.*

The purple dragon leaped out of the bush. *Bloody hell! That’s it! I’m eating that squealer!*

*Morha, we are not killing any humans on this escape!*

*No, no I mean the pig.* The mušḫuššu explained as she ran after the stampeding herd. *If I’m gonna spend another night running and then sleeping behind some rocks, then I may as well grab a bite.*

Soon enough the alarm was being raised across the valley, reflected by the sound of gongs and drums echoing between the mountain ranges. Long snakes of chattering and angry people quickly began issuing from the hamlets, the glow of their lanterns glistening in the dawn sky like shining scales. After the brief detour for dinner the dragons made a beeline towards the Taoyuan Mountains towards the south, cutting straight across woods and fields. The mušḫuššu was noticeably lagging.

*Come on Morha! You’re too slow!* The long called back to her.

*You know, maybe I shouldn’t have eaten that pig.* Morha grumbled as the pair reached the foothills of the Taoyuan Mountains. Qing was already gliding halfway up the granite outcroppings when she noticed the purple dragon having difficulty scrambling up the slickrock face. The blue dragon went back and tried to help the mušḫuššu uphill. But it was too late. A mass of humans soon appeared at the top of the promotory, yelling, wielding spades and flails and holding lanterns aloft.

*Fuck.*

Qing tried leading Morha left, only to run into more armed humans, as did backtracking right. Soon a large crowd of humans had surrounded the pair, their lanterns dangling in the air like so many large fireflies casting ominous glows upon their faces and the dangerous weapons they wielded. The dragons were trapped.

The blue dragon growled, lowering her head and beginning to summon a waterball. *Be very careful.* She warned her companion. *Watch for my signal, and when I say run, you-*

“They’re longs, not monsters!” A human suddenly cried out.

“That’s not a long, it’s some strange purple-furred dragon!” Another retorted. Quickly the mob began arguing among themselves.

“Are you sure that is not a qilin?” A solemn voice rose above the din and interrupted the dispute. The crowd fell silent as an old, dignified gentleman stepped forward, stroking his beard while clasping an ornate jian. He was clearly a leader, a magistrate or elder. The leader leaned over and stared carefully at the Morha and Qing, frozen in preparation for a fight, carefully scrutinizing the pair.

Then suddenly the magistrate backed off, grasping his jian chest. “Rocwan you fool! These aren’t monsters, these are heavenly messengers!” He gestured over to the purple dragon. “Can you not see that this creature is a message sent down by the abodes of the gods in our time of greatest need? The long heralds its importance!”

Tensed like a cat, prepared to bolt, Morha was dumbstruck. Beside her, Qing’s mouth was agape, the large ball of water that she had been preparing to summon quickly dissipating in her paws.

*What is going on?* The mušḫuššu asked her companion. Qing simply shook her head.

“That one ate one of my pigs!” Rocwan complained defensively to the magistrate, who shook his head in exasperation. “You should be honored! She saw fit to bless you and your life! We need to beg forgiveness for bringing such insults to them!”

Abruptly the entire crowd surrounding them dropped their weapons, fell on their knees and knelt.

“Forgive us for our rudeness!” The elder announced to the skies. “These heavenly beasts have come to us and we thank the heavens for this boon! ”

“We thank the heavens for these creatures!” The crowd replied.

Morha turned to look at Qing, who shrugged. Instead the blue dragon turned to the magistrate, slightly hastily.

“Can you let us leave? We have urgent business to attend to in the South.”

The elder seemed shocked at the question. “You are a sign from the Heavens! We cannot let you leave so soon!” Fearlessly, he put his hand on Morha’s arm, causing the mušḫuššu to flinch slightly. “At least give us a few days to know your reasons for visiting! Come! We can provide food and rest during your time here.”

“No really, we appreciate the offer but-”

“Some good rest would be nice, Qing.” Morha interrupted. The blue dragon threw her paw against her forehead.

The magistrate was beside himself in wonder. “The heavenly creatures speaks our tongue as well!” A collective gasp ran through the onlookers. Collecting himself, the elder turned back to the purple dragon.

“What is your name, my lady?”

“Morha.”

“You are a beautiful and unique creature, Morha. Where are you from?”

“West, from Babil.”

“That is a long way from which to travel, Morha. You must be a powerful and wise figure.” The magistrate raised his arms into the air. “Rule over us! Impart upon us your wisdom!”

The large crowd cheered.

“Wait what?” Qing interrupted.

Members of the crowd were already pushing the mušḫuššu towards the nearest village, largely ignoring her companion. “Come, come! We must honor your presence and appreciate your beauty!”

Before Morha quite knew what was happening, she had been taken to the village, brushed, powdered with talcum, oiled with perfume, and finally covered from head to paws with ornaments: a large, silver-plated necklace with gems hanging from her shoulder, a choker with dangling chains around her neck, bracelets around her paws and tail, and finally, a large but light silver crown with prominent horns and more dangling gemstones was placed atop her head.

After dressing her up, the humans stepped back in awe and the purple dragon, now decked out in jewelry. Someone held up a mirror to her, and Morha looked back upon herself shiny and regal as a goddess.

The people of the valley cheered.

“We, the people of the Ba Valley, dub you the Queen!”

“All hail the Queen of Ba!”

“Hail! Hail!” With that, the mušḫuššu’s new subjects knelt before her. As fresh worshippers came, bearing wine and roast pork, Morha beamed at her sudden turn of luck.

*A gal could get used to this.*

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箏鼓和鳴 - 權御天下

From  chickenzaur!

Original: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/55211535/

Happy New Year!