The tournament administrator counted out a hefty amount of coins and placed them into a velvet pouch.

"You did such a good job!" Ori still gushed. "You're so strong. Will you buy us orange ice?"

Although Fia felt enticed to try the frozen treat, she did not want to waste money on frivolities. "No," she dismissed Ori, still staring at the money behind the desk.

"How about lemon ice?"

"Sorry, I need this money to get home." The other dragonette pestering Fia made her lose track of the value. At least she could trust the Malakow officials to count it right.

Bagwis gave Fia a quizzical tilt of his head. "Don't worry, Ori. I'll buy you and Fia whatever flavor of citrus ice you want."

Fia salivated over the gold coins more than the prospective, sweet treat. The clink of claws from behind made her attention break away from the clink of cash.

"Fia!" Diwa cheered. "We heard you won second place!" The green dragoness walked up to the desk with a black dragonet hunkered at her side.

The silent Viliant did not spare Fia any kind words, not even a glance. As he stared down at his claws, his mind connected to hers over telepathy. Good job, Fia. I expected no less after I taught you.

"Why aren't you happier?" Fia scrutinized him with narrowed eyes. "I just won enough money so you don't have to work anymore."

I don't want Diwa to suspect that I was faking. Viliant tapped his front claws close together. A wave of guilt washed over his mind, but masked under that feeling, he felt truly happy and proud of Fia.

"You're quite the lucky dragonette," the dragon guard said as he balanced the overflowing sack of gilded blossoms in his claw. "The prize money is just enough to cover your mentor's debts."

"Huh?" Fia's breath hitched.

The guard curled his tail in a smile. "Here's the remainder after the debt has been paid." Between two pinched claws, he dropped a small, bronze coin into Fia's outstretched paw. "One bronze bud," he said. "You can tell Sage Rokirith that he's now welcome back to the city anytime." The dragon restored the fat, velvet pouch to the official coffers.

"What?" Fia roared. "But all that's mine!"

Viliant snapped to full attention. "Why, that bastard!" he growled, ambiguous if he referred to the guard, the former sage, or both.

"You can't do that!" Fia reared and wedged her front claws against the desk. "Please, I need the money more."

"She really does." Diwa stepped forward to allay the guard's concerns. "Don't make a child pay. I'll take care of Rokirith's debt." The dragoness tried to better explain over telepathy, This dragonette desperately needs the prize money. Her mind beheld their grand cause, not just to send Fia home, but to alert all the dragons of Carlinoa about a grave danger.

The guard was not swayed to alter his decision. However, the honesty from the dragoness inspired him to be frank too. If the sage's pupil didn't win the prize money, we would've detained her to bring him back to the city. That's the only reason why we let her enter under the name of a criminal. Now, run along and deliver the good news to the Sage Rokirith.

The group of dragons slogged away, their claws and tails more heavy than usual. Not just Fia, Viliant, and Diwa, but also Ori and Bagwis had been affected. "I don't understand," moaned the gray dragonette. "I thought Fia won second."

Bagwis wrapped a wing around Ori. A slight grumble sounded in his throat as he cleared it. "Excuse me, but why does Fia need money?"

Fia repeated herself, more slowly in a dire tone. "I need to get home. I was… separated from my parents," she said to keep the story more simple and less scary in front of Ori. Just to Bagwis, she added, I was captured by the humans in Syene. That's where I met my best friend Viliant, who was also welcome to share this telepathic space with them.

I'll find work along the way, he reinstated. That was our original plan anyway.

The perturbed, purple dragon could only imagine what the dragonets had gone through in the Kingdom of Syene. Now that he better understood their situation, he knew how to help them. Bagwis bowed his head. "I work on the docks. If you're looking for work, I might know a ship that's preparing a route to the south."

Fia and Viliant shared a look before the pink dragonette answered for them. "Yes, please! That would help us a lot."

Bagwis led them through the crowd, straining his neck to spy an acquaintance of his.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

***

The purple dragon recognized someone that he knew. Bagwis led Fia and Viliant over to a human in a different mode of dress: leather pants and a woven shirt. His attire appeared to be designed for practicality when compared to the festive feathers. "Hello Pako! You're freighting a shipment to Aethara, right?"

"Aye. We were supposed to leave last week," explained Pako the sailor, "but we've been lagged at port. More ship's been lost on the river, to the cursed pirarucu. We're looking to hire a couple strong mages for cheap."

"Let me introduce you to these dragonets. The green-eyed one is looking for work."

Viliant stepped forward, his jowl slightly curled to reveal the point of his fangs as he glared up at the human. Fia stayed close by his side, reminding him, We're going on a human ship. Let's not burn bridges.

Pako ignored Viliant's scowl and beamed at Fia instead. "I recognize the pink one! Thought she was about to burn all the docks around the arena." The man's eye glimmered as he looked her up and down, from horns to claws. "That fire magic could keep the fish down for sure!"

"Actually," Fia said, "I'm just a passenger." She opened one of her wings behind Viliant's head. "But my friend would happily work for you. He's even stronger than me! He taught me how to fight."

The scarred scales and ripped wings of the dragonet evidenced his wealth of experience. Viliant splayed his wings out, waiting for the human to assess his imposing appearance positively.

"And his element is shadow," Diwa added for him.

"A shadow dragon? That's one of the greater elements." Pako hopped in his boots and hurried to lead them elsewhere. "You've got to meet the captain. He'll decide whether we hire you on." Pako's eyes darted to Fia. "And take you as a passenger."

Ori and Bagwis bid them good luck and goodbye for now. The purple dragon arranged a spot to meet once they were finished, promising that he would buy all the dragonet's citrus ice. They planned to celebrate Fia's second place and Viliant's first employment.

Pako the sailor led them away from the tournament's festivities, bringing them to a port along the lake. He opened the door to the ground floor of a building. While he held it for Fia and Viliant to enter first, its dim interior looked too cramped for Diwa to fit inside.

"Will you bring your captain out here?" Diwa asked. "The dragonets can't agree to anything without my approval."

"Aye. Wait here." Pako went alone into the building designed for humans.

The dragons utilized the brief time alone to ensure that they were of the same mind. "Fia," Diwa said, lowering her eye to the dragonette's level. "Are you going to follow Viliant around and do everything he does?"

"Absolutely! Why?" Fia blinked her blue eyes innocently.

"It's important for our negotiation," Diwa shared gently. "I don't want to overpay them for your passage if you're going to work anyway. If that's the case, they should be the ones paying you. We can't let those humans take advantage of your kindness."

"Oh." Upon hearing this, Fia changed her tune. "Absolutely not!" she roared.

Pako came back out with a second, better-dressed human close behind him. The captain's jacket had numerous buckles which clanged with the steps of his worn, scaly boots. First, he addressed Diwa who handled the negotiations of the dragonets' rates. Once he understood how much the dragonets were worth, the man stroked a craggy hand through the coarse hairs of his beard. His small, dark eyes assessed Fia and Viliant as he questioned them with clipped, snappy words. "Are you capable of protecting our ship from all manner of attack?"

"Yes, sir," Fia said. Although Diwa had made it clear that the dragonette would not help with the basic labor, she was another dragon mage capable of defending the ship in case of an emergency.

"Anything that crosses me… dies," Viliant said. Though he had yet to accustom his serpentine tongue to speaking aloud with humans, a fervent light flickered behind his green eyes.

The captain tipped back his head and guffawed. "You're hired. We set sail on the morrow."

Both Fia and Viliant's wings and tails lifted as they swung to look at each other. We're really going! she gasped.

Finally, he agreed.

Their new boss said, "I'm your captain from now on: Captain Ulatu. You say 'aye' when I give you an order."

The edge of a growl caught in Viliant's silent throat. His eyes flitted to Fia, his mind a storm of disaccord. I'm only doing this for you, he clarified. After some reluctance, Viliant spat, "Aye."

Captain Ulatu delivered instructions as to where they would meet on the docks tomorrow. Viliant was expected earlier in the morning so that his muscle could help load cargo onto the ship. The captain strode off, in a hurry to get the ship's delayed departure back on track.

"I'll show you the ropes," Pako offered. "I'm looking forward to working with you!"

"Hmph. Do I have to say 'aye' to you?"

"No?" Pako said, a rising note of confusion in his voice.

"Then that's that." The black dragonet sauntered off with Fia and Diwa.

"It wouldn't hurt to get along with the other sailors," Diwa advised. "In fact, being on good terms with them could make the trip a lot easier."

I don't care. I won't bow or say 'aye' to any humans except the captain. An evident loathing already filled Viliant's mind by his deferral to the captain's authority. Only once they left the humans far behind, did his mood restore to the proper amount of high spirits. His satisfaction that the dragonets had earned their passage to Carlinoa Island outweighed his ire.

Viliant stood taller than his usually hunkered frame, his eyes brighter now that he saw a clear path forward. In the agreement, you said that we're responsible for our own rations, Viliant thought, focusing on a new topic with Diwa. Aside from the dragonets' food, their fare was free. We should get ready now—

"Or…" Diwa said, cutting that thought short, "it's time to celebrate!" She ushered Fia and Viliant to a street, almost as crowded as the stands of the tournament. Colorful tents lined both sides of the street where humans and dragons exchanged goods and coins.

At the street's center, Bagwis swept one of his purple wings to wave them over. Ori hopped up and down, excited that Diwa had brought Fia and Viliant back to enjoy citrus ice with her.