It was more animals that woke him up. Nothing nearby, but the noise was constant as life struggled against itself. Stretching and popping sore joints he dragged himself up. Nothing appeared to be out of place and there were no other scents. Poking his head out from cover there was only the smell of earth and old feces from yesterday.

His stomach growled again reminding him that he needed actual food. As much as he wanted to swoop down and grab something his wings were too small to lift him, much less fan himself.

Stepping into the dawn he turned away from the river. There wouldn't be anything for him so he had to search elsewhere. Uplifting rocks and wood he found his breakfast. The insects weren't very filling but they would hopefully be nutrious. Still, they were only temporary only as long as he wanted. The birds and small, scaled things gliding and flying among the trees offered more meat. They only issue was catching them.

Thankfully, despite being mostly knowledgeable about magic, he could still craft weapons or traps when needed. It wouldn't hurt to put a few around the nest. Something like a spike pit, perhaps?

"More thoughts of grandeur. However much mud is involved."

Small traps were possible while his claws were still dull. They were more dexterous and hard enough to carve stone. Making stone tools would greatly increase his chance of survival. Not that he had found there was much to fear since arriving. Granted, that first creature had claws, but it could have been something that hacked into a particularly tough plant. That was unlikely, but not impossible.

Collecting more sticks, ferns as well, he turned back towards his nest. Stones could be gathered at the river and carved to whatever shape he needed. Of course he would need to the right kind of stone for different jobs. Or, alternatively, he could just liquefy the stones into a mold. Less effort but more mess.

Dragging his materials back to his nest he got to work peeling the useless pieces off and setting them aside. They would be kindling for later. The straight sticks he made were set aside and the ferns he'd stripped were used to tie them together. A half-ball was made, a flat stone set into the middle, then another half sphere was tied to it. A hole big enough for a bird to stick its head in could let it reach the stone, but the thorns he collected would dig into its neck.

Satisfied with it he set it aside and, cleaning the mess off his hands with a bit of fire, got to work on a second, then a third and forth. His kindling pile grew, his fingers hurt, but he had enough for now. All that was needed were to set them and bait them.

There were enough places to hang them and plenty of bait. He only needed to find a few low hanging branches and overturn a few pieces of rotting lumber. A good source of worms had also been that uprooted tree. A few beetles didn't survive and more had their legs taken off to keep them from escaping.

As much as he disliked the thought that such lowly creatures would be making up his diet he still put up with it. His magic was building again, almost full after a full night's sleep. All he would really need was a suitably sized specimen.

With his traps set, hunger pains gone, and with nothing else to do he decided to explore a bit more. He knew what was downriver but not the other way. With no real destination he set off in the direction those towering beasts had gone. Of course he didn't take their direct path, that was just asking to get snatched up by some bigger predator stalking them.

Staying in the trees and under ferns he scared off lizards and insects. The footprints could provide temporary cover if need be, but then he would be nothing more than a lump of meat in a bowl. Still, it would be much harder for something to bite him if it had to risk its mouth getting burned to do it. Not that he had seen many animals but none of them seemed to be able to breath fire. Not surprising, given the lack of mana.

Still, it was odd just being in a place so devoid of it but with so much life. The animals were big, numerous, and didn't seem to mind it. Even the plants were familiar despite being alien. Of course, he was the foreign thing in this environment.

Creeping up the river still there wasn't much to see other than more trees. He found out part of it flowed off from the mountain he arrived on. So, there was a definite source of clean water he wouldn't need to worry about. That also meant he would have to get the crystal back across the river and up another part of the mountain. Worse, there didn't seem to be any flat space to climb. Well, he could always dig.

Satisfied and even a little nervous, he quit his exploration and turned back round. Other than discovering a few potential specimens and crunching on the odd beetle he had found a total of bumpkis. No intelligent life, no mana, not even an end to the mountain. It was a foolish thought though, afterall he was technically a hatchling again and covering a large distance was impossible and stupid.

At the very least he could see if any of his bird traps had worked. Maybe even start work on a fish trap. Although a pole and hook would be simpler. A spear even more or even downgrading further to a sharpened stick. That would probably be for the best.

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With a depressingly increasing list of chores weighing on him it took him a moment to clear his head and realize something. The forest had gone quiet. Even the distant cacophony of animals actually sounded distant.

Instinct urged him to hide so he did without question. Ferns could cover him visibly but not his scent. Taking cover by a tree, desperation urged him to throw caution to the air as well as the loose soil at the base. A small pile had arisen around the hurriedly made burrow that he squeezed himself into.

Waiting in anticipation for something he missed he held his breath. He closed both eyes, covered himself with the damp soil, and curled up as tightly as he could. Focusing on his surroundings it didn't take long before a tremor traveled into his hiding space.

Another, stronger one, announced whatever was approaching. His heart beat harder with every step and his body shook from the weight of whatever was outside passing by. Then he heard it, a whistle that reminded him of the time he encountered an undead wyvern. The memory still haunted him as an adult so hearing something so unnatural only made his mood worse.

Whatever it was it was obviously not here for him. After it got comfortable wherever it was, whatever it was, decided to drink from the river as he had. He couldn't see outside and that was fine. As much as he wanted to know what to look out for the silence from the forest would be warning enough. That was, if he weren't a dragon whose curiosity extended to their greed.

Slowly moving one foot in front of the other he moved to the entrance of his hiding spot. Whatever was outside was still drinking so it was safe to assume its back was to him.

Poking his head out he saw the tail first. It was thick, hanging above a pair of powerful digitigrade legs with draconian feet. The body was similarly thick, undoubtedly it would have been mostly muscle but it was hidden by a layer of reddish downy-like feathers. As if it weren't strange enough he saw a pair of tiny arms hanging at its sides, clenching and unclenching with each drink that washed down the tree trunk sized neck. Then there was the head that confirmed it was a predator. Forward facing eyes, large teeth uncovered by the pulled up lips, and a pair of flaring nostrils that had undoubtedly found his scent.

"Wait, how can I see its eyes?" He thought dumbly. Blinking the confusion out he understood how humans must have felt in his presence. "Oh. It's looking at me."

This thing, something he had no trouble comparing physically to a dragon, was staring down at him. Piercing brown eyes studied him while he tried to resist the urge to run. It wasn't difficult, given he was frozen to the spot.

Whatever small mercy the gods of the world saved for him was used when the beast turned away. He kept his eyes on it, watching the muscle ripple, expecting it to bulge for a turn and scoop him up in those massive jaws. But it kept walking, following the same path he had in search of something no doubt bigger than him. For once in his life he could overlook something looking down on him. He would undoubtedly come back once his power returned and tear the thing's jaw off and blind it, but that was a long time away.

For now he pushed himself again as he ran down the riverbank. Back through the returning noise of the forest and into the ferns where the trees were still laid up against the one. Finally, down in his burrow where the crystal still rested. Moving it aside he made space and carelessly shoved dirt to the side so he could lay beside it. Now, curled around it once more, did he feel some comfort.

"I have to get out of here." He whispered to his reflection. "This is no place for a dragon. This is no place to die."

Fear eventually left him as he got his breathing under control. Looking back at it, remembering how that animal seemed to be grinning at him as he was frozen, left him feeling like something had stabbed him. First came the icy shock of fear, but now that he realized his blood was still flowing, that he was still alive, came the burning fury that willed him to fight back.

"I'll leave this cursed world." He promised himself. Staring at his reflection again the reflection was distorted enough to make it appear it was an older face snarling at him. "I'll leave it in ruin, blackened from my fire and white after I force centuries to pass over every living thing and reduce them to dust! This world, my home, belongs to me and I will see everything gone that does not recognize me."

For the time being he stayed in his nest. Looking out from the shadows towards the mountain where lingering trails of smoke still rose up. An opportunity and the promise of safety should he need it.

Movement caught his eye and he found it was merely one of his captive beetles squirming. Piercing it with a claw he looked down on it just as the thing earlier had done to him. Instead of some satisfaction he felt sick.

"Comparing myself to an animal. Fearing an animal." Even though his shoulders drooped he still wore a scowl. "I'm the smartest thing alive, yet I can't help but feel as if I know nothing."

He had made his traps, caught his own food, and evaded danger as well as finding shelter. But for all that he was never in any danger. Nothing had distracted him nor was there anything to distract him. The creatures here struggled against themselves daily and were made to simply kill each other or kill their attacker. They couldn't even the playing field with magic or dominate another with minions or armies.

The thought that all his knowledge essentially meant nothing, not just to the animals around him, but to the world, did little to help his mood. Even the beetle with its legs removed and a foreign object piercing it still struggled. Nothing and everything did not recognize him. Even as a hatchling the world knew not to go near him or the others in his brood would swarm out and devour everything in their path like locusts.

That brought a smile to his face. Remembering when his sister's did that and flattened a town. It was before he met his mate, but it was also what drew her out. He remebered how they feasted themselves on the brood's broken bodies. His sister mourned but she wouldn't get any sympathy for raising such pathetically weak blood. Atleast his daughter had survived. A testament to her own power and his despite being alone she still surpassed her full blooded cousins.

"Tomorrow," he spoke to the insect before snuffing its life out between his teeth. "Tomorrow I'll grow stronger. One life, one lifetime, until I can return home."

As much as he wanted to continue planning for the next day the itch on his nose was bothering him. His scales weren't as hard when he was younger and that had apparently allowed the native insects to attack him.

"I had better not get some wild sickness." He muttered, scratching the mosquito bite. He silently apologized for laughing at the lesser races for slapping themselves to kill the bugs.