Valeria was the first off, the boat. She had been eyeing the beach for the past half hour and was excited to explore the island. The sand she could see was black like obsidian. She had forgone shoes during much of her journey across the sea and didn’t bother wearing any now. That was a decision shared by many, and many regretted it almost immediately. Others who dared the beaches barefoot were yelping loudly. The sand was hot enough to even make her dance between her feet. Compared to the slightly chill water of the ocean and the deck of the ship, the sand on the beach was like active charcoal. She could easily tolerate the heat with her levels and stats, but it didn’t take away from the surprise.

A warm power passed over her, and the small pain in her feet vanished. She glanced back and saw Luke walking up to her. He was looking toward the inner parts of the island, and despite the smile on his face, she saw the tension in his eyes. The dragon had promised sanctuary, but it was hard to trust such a being. Something that had lived through generations of people and ignored for so long. Luke had done something to earn protection, and she trusted him. He had met with the dragon and had trusted the being. That said a lot considering what he could see.

“Should we go, now?”

Her voice was barely more than a whisper, but Luke could both hear her and read her lips if needed. He nodded and spoke just as quietly back.

“Yes, but I feel uneasy. Warren claims that several other beings have been following us, and I can detect a handful of deities looking this way.”

His brow furrowed as he got close enough to avoid most people. She detected the hint of doubt in his voice.

“Do you think the dragon will dislike it?”

“Toroken has agreed to aid us, and I would use his name here. He has treated us with respect and deserves the same in return.”

Luke’s reprimand sounded eerily like her father's. It made her clench her first in a very familiar and instinctive motion.

“Don’t do that. I really don’t want to think of my father when talking to you.”

She shuddered a little at the thought. Luke’s forehead wrinkled and his lips pursed together tightly.

“Sorry, but you need to treat Toroken right. He will protect our people. Is that not enough to forgive his species.”

She nodded but it was stiff. Dragons had a bad and, more importantly, dangerous history. They had killed her father, and even though she never really cared much for him, she still didn’t like it. The idea that something could come down and just kill or destroy whatever they wanted to. Luke was right though. Plus, she shouldn’t judge a species based on the actions of an individual. She still couldn’t shake the image of

“I will, but only once he earns it. Words are just that.”

Luke sighed but nodded. He was a stubborn person when it came to his ideals, but he usually conceded when it came to her.

“Fine, let us do just that. He is waiting to meet you as we speak.”

He waved a hand toward the inner part of the island. She couldn’t really see far inside. Trees separated the rest of the island from the beach like a wall. The trees somehow felt lively with leaves that looked a bit too green, and bark that had the newness she would normally attribute to polished metal. Compared to the black sand, it was an odd sight. This would be a strange home, but one she hoped would last forever.

“Lead the way.”

She said the words a little playfully while holding her hand out for him to take. Luke smiled and took her hand gently, squeezing her fingers a little in the process.

“I would be honored to do so, my lady.”

He played up the formality, mimicking what they had heard among human nobles. It still made her face heat up, and she swatted at his shoulder lightly. Even with all of the stress and tension, or maybe because of it, they made sure to find the time to enjoy each other’s presence.

People had always said that power came with responsibility. But no one ever mentioned how disproportionate it was. There was just so much she needed to do. Even with Luke and half a dozen others at his level, she still couldn’t see an end to her duties. Finding a home was the first step, and it was probably one of the easier steps too. After all, the next step would mean that she would need to meet with the leaders of the other races.

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That next step could wait until after she advanced. And another year on top of that. She needed a break, and hopefully, find the time to get formally get married to Luke. Their engagement had already gone on for far too long, and she was annoyed by how many people thought that it was a sign their relationship was failing. She let Luke pull her toward the forest and away from those concerns.

Luke turned their walk into a small tour of the island. He along with two others had explored the island and met with the dragon. She had been too low-level to join them with a dragon in the mix. As such she marveled at the beauty of the place. Rivers cut through the island in many places. They stemmed from a mountain in the center in a way that reminded her of a spiderweb. The island was large though and had more than just forests. There were probably three distinct forests on the island. Each was separated by a grassland. With the way, the rivers separated the island into parts it almost felt like an intentional design.

It took a little over an hour for them to walk from the beach to the mountain in the center. She gazed up at the mountain that was weirdly a shade of brown, at least the rock she could see was. A good portion of the mountain was covered by grass or moss. It seemed like a foreign object that had been lodged into the ground. Even with all that the strangest thing she noticed was far smaller.

About halfway up the mountain, she saw regular indentations on the side of the stone. They were oddly shaped half circles…

“Are those windows?”

She raised her left finger and pointed at them as she asked Luke the question.

“I’m not sure. They weren’t here last time.”

Luke said, shrugging his shoulders and dragging her toward the mountain. She could see a cave opening, but her eyes were drawn to the old man standing outside of it.

The man looked old and had a beard that ran all the way to his waist. He looked like a Beastkin, one of her people, but she instantly knew what he was. The dragon had given himself a visage of ursine Beastkin with rounded ears. His appearance wouldn’t be that unusual, except for his body. His skin and hair were bronze and gleamed with the shine of new metal, and his body was shaped like a perfected man. Not an ounce of fat obstructed his muscles, and she realized after a second, that no cloth did either. The old bearded dragon was naked, and she couldn’t help but look. The dragon had done a very good job in making his body. Luke’s hand came up a moment later to block the sight from her vision.

“Toroken! Please, if you take a form like ours, you need clothing! Just think about what kind of impression you left on my lovely wife.”

Luke shouted the words, but she could tell there was no real anger behind it. He continued to pull her toward the dragon too.

“Clothing, of course! I had the feeling that I had done something wrong but couldn’t figure out what.”

The dragon’s voice was deep, and it felt like the mountain itself was talking to her. The ground even shook a little with each word.

Luke lowered his hand, and she was a little relieved and disappointed to see the dragon in his clothes. Toroken had chosen to wear plain robes that seemed to be made of bronze, yet they swayed with the breeze like normal cloth. There was no fancy embroidery or anything, but she thought that single robe would be worth more than any king’s wardrobe. Now that the dragon wasn’t nude, she focused on his face. His hair was short and bronze like the rest of him. He had a few wrinkles around his eyes which was the only real sign of age. His eyes stood out though.

His eyes were not metallic like the rest of him. They were like small lanterns and orange light moved within dark brown irises. It seemed like they were containing his real appearance within them. When she met that gaze, she felt like she got a glimpse of the real dragon for a second. Luke wanted her to be polite, so she treated the dragon-like any other noble.

“Hello, I am Valeria, Daughter of the Dry Grass.”

She bent her knees in a small curtsey and dipped her head a fraction. When she looked back up, she was a little disturbed to see Toroken mimic the motion.

“Hello, I am Torovelkenelanal, though you may just call me Toroken. I imagine it would be difficult to pronounce my true name.”

The dragon was right. Even after hearing the name spoken, she didn’t think she could repeat it and decided not to try either. Toroken wasn’t done speaking either and met her suspicious gaze with a warm, gentle gaze of his own.

“Young one, I thank you for trusting me. For chasing after a dream that I would.”

She saw it then. As Toroken spoke, his gaze softened into one she could recognize. The gaze of an old man watching a child chase after a foolish dream. Valeria was nearly a century old, and it had been a long time since someone last saw her as a child. She had advanced quickly so she still looked somewhat young, but even with that in mind, she still appeared to be an adult easily into her late twenties or early thirties. To a dragon, she was a little better than a baby.

“Your mountain seems different from last time.”

Luke commented as he gazed deeper into the cave. She followed that stare and saw a very neat hallway. Crystals that emanated light lit up the dim passageway and highlighted what looked like stone doors. The doors were obviously sized to fit her people like Luke.

“Ahh yes, as I understand, your people will need shelter while you build yourselves some proper homes. It was a tiny effort to fill the mountain with rooms.”

The dragon ran a hand through his beard while smiling at them happily. The gesture was worth a lot, but it also revealed how little the dragon understood of them. They had a dozen different skills to help make buildings, and there was plenty of material to work with on the island. It was still a kind gesture so she forced a smile. Luke did not and began chuckling and laughing at the old dragon. She punched him in the side. Hard, since anything else wouldn't do anything.