Nothing is ever destroyed

The sky is salmon-pink as the sun sets. A few early stars twinkle in their secret morse-code, leaving messages for those with the knowledge. It has been a mostly clear day and only now does a bit of cloud start to build in small patches. A chilly spring night lies ahead, but it is nothing that Adiona and Juno cannot handle.

Having weathered a few winters, both of them had grown into their crests and their markings were almost fully developed. Juno’s darker neck is her most contrasting feature but if you looked closely enough, you would see her feathers speckled with fine pale spots like stars. Adiona meanwhile has fine dark stripes running the length of her neck and torso. She is also peppered with fine pale spots. They both liked to reflect on this, thinking perhaps they were meant to find each other on that stormy day. That they might be sisters, not by blood but by soul. Touched by the stars and sent to find each other.

They still had a little more growing to do to reach their adult size but they were generally left in peace by many of the dinosaur denizens of this world. Since their spell under the wing of Candela, they had taken to travelling again. They had found family in each other, but the stories that their caretaker would spin of the other dinosaurs out there filled their heads with ideas. 

Namely it was the mysterious Therizinosaurus of the deep woods that fascinated them the most. A mistress of intense charm and serenity. Feathers patterned with an indecipherable language. And an ability to grant wishes. 

Or so they say.

Neither could fully explain why this mythical dinosaur had captured their hearts so much more than the others out there but it had become a personal quest now. 

And so they find themselves in the twilight of a spring day, marching along a fading and crumbling human-made road. The small township behind them used to be home to humans; it is now overgrown and an oasis for travelling wildlife. Adiona and Juno had not stayed this time but they took the opportunity to eat and drink. A few other travelling dinosaurs had chosen to settle in for the night, taking shelter in the buildings (that were big enough). They knew better than to travel alone at night.

A huge metal sign lays lopsided on one side of the road. So overgrown that it’s words were partly obscured. All that remained is ‘NAT NOL FOR ST’ but it made little difference to Adiona and Juno. They had not learned ‘ancient script’ but they knew of dinosaurs that had.

“Do you think this could be the forest? The darkest woods where light dare not venture?” Juno gently coos. Her voice is so soft and delicate.

“Every wood we have encountered has been dark. That is the very nature of woods,” Adiona replies with a slight chuckle, her voice smokier than Juno’s.

“I know. But maybe it *could* be. Wouldn’t it be interesting if we should meet her?” Juno would not let her enthusiasm wane.

“And what would you say to her if we should cross paths?” Adiona smiles at her star-touched sister.

At this question, Juno is caught out. She makes a visible shocked face, with eyes wide and mouth drawn tight.

“OH! Y’know…I had not thought of that…and a first question has to be good, you never want to ask a stupid first on your first meeting…” Juno ponders out loud.

Adiona smiles to herself, knowing this question will occupy Juno for some time. 

===

An hour passes and the pair begin to enter the forest, still treading the human-made road. But before they can get too deep, they are drawn to a strange little…’structure’…beside the road. In the days of humans, this small clearing would have been some simple off-road parking for visitors. The ground underfoot was not loamy and soft like the forest, it still retained the harshness of the large grit that was suitable for car tires. To one side is a former drinks and snacks station (it has been emptied of sugary treats for some time), overgrown and derelict. 

Right in the middle of the clearing is an initially ramshackle stack of flat rocks and shale, with thick branches leaning against them. It has been there long enough for some things to grow on and around it, but other foliage and flowers have been carefully selected and then scattered there. At its base are small, sun-bleached bones. And finally, draped over it are all manner of human trinkets - colourful lanyards, whistles, a compass, a smartwatch with a cracked screen, and empty sweet wrappers. 

Adiona and Juno are drawn to it like moths to a flame.

“Oh my goodness…what…what is it?” Juno asks in a whisper.

“Why are you whispering?” Adiona immediately questions, though she somehow still sounds awestruck.

“I…don’t know…” Juno continues to whisper.

“What?” Adiona asks, still awestruck but genuinely unable to hear Juno’s already soft voice.

By now they have both reached the little structure and and are examining it closely, but being careful not to touch it. The human trinkets catch whatever light is available from above, all harsh lines and edges. They reflect back into the pairs eyes. Hypnotic and mesmerising. The silence builds, their minds filling with questions. 

“Its one of hers, isn’t it?” Juno finally breaks the silence.

“What do you mean?” Adiona creases her brow.

“Don’t you remember? From the stories? Offerings have to be made to her and then she can grant wishes. This must be a place to make offerings or leave messages!” Juno whitters excitedly, her tone rising.

Adiona looks skeptical at first, but can start to understand the logic. This is an open clearing that can be seen from above, through the trees, and from the roadside. If a needy dinosaur waits here, then eventually she will turn up. Its like a landmark. Fascinated by the concept, Adiona lifts her head from the little landmark and looks towards the trees. Birds. Fliers. There must be messengers who can notify the mysterious one. 

“Juno, I think you might be right-“ Adiona begins.

What happens next is a comic tragedy.

Juno had started to gently investigate the trinkets with her long claws, moving them delicately to toy with the items. She was so fascinated, so absorbed…that she never anticipates the sudden sound of Adiona’s voice. With a jump, her colossal claws swipe through the assembled display. The branches, as sturdy as they were, are knocked over, dislodging the fragile foliage and forcing some of the stones to slide free as well. 

“O-oh-OH NO!” Juno’s voice quickly reaches its highest pitch.

Adiona jumps with the sudden pitch change and they both flap and flail for a second, like extremely large chickens with harpoons for fingers. Neither of them notice the winged figure that ascends from the tree line and disappears into the night sky.

“Oh no no no, what…what happened?!” Juno looks at the scattered items and tries to make sense of things.

“Its okay…its okay….uhhh, we can re-build it…maybe nobody will notice,” Adiona quickly runs through their options. 

Juno shoots her a disbelieving look before glancing down at her own hands - strong fingers capped with giant claws. Yes, this will work…

As if to prove it, Adiona begins to scan and sort all of the scattered items in her mind, forming a plan about which ones need to be put back in place first. She crouches down to try and handle the rocks and slate sheets but finds this too fiddly. The slate especially just seems to slip around in her tentative grip. So she crouches even lower and has to lightly manoeuvre the thin piece of brittle rock into her mouth. Its an unpleasant taste but it only lasts a few moments as she neatly places on the pile of rocks that formed the base of this little landmark. 

“See? It can be done,” Adiona beams.

“But…but it won’t look like it did before…do you…do you think it will matter?” Juno asks sheepishly.

They both had turned out to be quite morally-driven dinosaurs, always leaning towards what felt right and just in their interactions with the world and other dinosaurs. So it surprises them both when Adiona suggests that they leave the forest before they are found out.

“If we’re not here,” Adiona reasons, “when anyone finds out, then…who would know?”

“WE would know!” Juno argues back.

Her little feathery brow is creased in frustration as she tries to handle the branches but she’s also a little angry with her star-touched sister. Even some of her neck and crest feathers are poofed up.

Adiona ignores this for now but there is a little knot of worry on her fine featured face as she continues to help re-build the little landmark. 

===

The slip of moon had moved across the sky and the little landmark was rebuilt. Most of the items sat back in their rightful place (not exactly where they were before but close enough). Adiona had taken some creative liberty and put items where they might complement each other - shared reflections, changing textures, etc. As Juno panicked, Adiona had even gone as far as to find one or two new items to add to the landmark. Some old shoe laces and tent rope added something that could drape over the top once the branches were stacked in a tent shape.

Adiona felt a little pang of pride and smiles lightly.

“We…should really tell someone…I still feel bad…even if this looks better than before,” Juno says the last part quietly.

“I’m sure we will be fine…this is probably not the first time it has been knocked over,” Adiona offers.

“It isn’t.”

The voice is mature but bright and smooth. The kind of tone you could listen to all day.

The feathers fluff up on both Adiona and Juno and they slowly turn their heads to face the origin of the voice. The expressions on their face just drop.

At the edge of the clearing stands two figures. Both of them are Therizinosaurus but one is clearly an adult. The other is only a little bigger than Adiona and Juno themselves, an adolescent maybe a season or two older. His soft grey feathers contrast starkly with a dark night-purple covering and fine fading ripples along his torso. There is the early hint of bright purple feathering at his throat. He stands close to the older Therizinosaurus but a few steps back, clearly a subordinate. The adult however…

“It’s her,” Juno whispers, part terrified and part excited.

The adult stands tall and elegant. Her feathers are a beautiful mocha colour. Dark purple forms intricate patterns along her body, changing from thin stripes on her neck in to swirls and glyphs on her torso and tail. It was easy to see why dinosaurs might think she was bearing the mark of some kind of language. 

“It is not often that anyone cares to rebuild one of these kandylakia,” the large Therizinosaurus walks towards the pair, gesturing at the little thing they had built together.

Adiona and Juno make motions to part aside as the bigger female begins to crane her neck down to take a closer look. Despite finally being in the presence of the myth that delighted her so much, Juno *hates* that someone is standing between her and Adiona. She looks across to her adopted sister with panic in her eyes. Adiona looks a little more resolute but is highly conscious that the ‘mysterious one’ is a large dinosaur, and she is not alone.

After some moments, the female withdraws her intense gaze and takes a few steps back. Adiona and Juno scurry quickly to each other’s sides.

“What prompted you to rebuild it?” the female asks.

“It…it was the right thing to do…” Juno responds with an unsteady voice.

“The…right thing…hmm…” the female muses.

Oh no, it was the wrong answer! Juno takes a hard gulp. Adiona leans against her sister for reassurance. They would get through this.

“Follow me…we have things to discuss,” the female says firmly, making a large sweeping turn as she returns to the adolescent male. He falls in line by her side but looks over his shoulder at Adiona and Juno. They hadn’t started to move yet so he casts a frustrated frown at them.

Like naughty children sloping off to their room after they’ve broken the best dishes, Adiona and Juno slowly follow behind the other two Therizinosaurus, wondering what is going to happen to them next.