Dr. Mateo Corino's Arc

Chapter 1 of 1

Dr. Mateo Corino crouched behind a mossy ridge, his crystalline fingers clutching a sample jar. Below him, the floral river shimmered with glowing blooms in every impossible color. He had come to Auster to catalog its wonders, and these flowers were his greatest prize yet. But the river was no longer safe. Deep claw gouges split the cement-like rock along the banks, fresh and pale. A Xalithan Beast prowled the water's edge, its iridescent scales flashing blue and violet in the light. Mateo whispered to himself, charmed despite the danger. "A dragon guarding a garden. How fair of you." He inched closer, jar outstretched. The beast's head snapped up. It roared and charged. Mateo stumbled back, tripping into the mud. A tiny Zyloxian Glider darted past his face, its wings catching the beast's eye. The creature wheeled after the glider instead, snapping at empty air. Mateo seized the moment and snatched three glowing blooms before scrambling up the ridge. He lay panting in the grass, petals safe in his jar but his sample tools abandoned at the river's edge. The beast roared again below, marking its claim deeper. Mateo smiled, then frowned. He had his specimens. But he could never return to that river alone.