A faint, unfamiliar scent carried by the gentle breeze flowing down the cave system's sprawling tunnels brought the young dragon out of its musings as its stomach rumbled noisily.

It had burnt through much of its energy reserves escaping the confines of its egg, and while the remains it had just eaten would keeping it going for a while, it would need to find a sustainable source of food quickly if it was to make up for its early hatching.

The smell wafted over again, teasing the dragon and awakening its predatory instincts.

Sucking in a deep breath through its nostrils, the dragon followed the smell of potential prey and moved toward the crevice opening before cautiously peeking its head out.

While it was a newborn, its instincts screamed at the young dragon to be cautious and keep an eye out for potential predators or dangers.

After examining the cavern-like tunnel it found itself in, to the point the dragon was nearly certain there were no threats nearby, it crept forward a little more.

Even though the cave was quite dim, the only light emanating from the walls, the dragon could see as if he was under a bright sun, his draconic eyesight able to make use of limited light, expanding his reptilian-like pupil to almost match that of a human's as they used the limited light to its uttermost.

The only things of note in the tunnel were a rusty, metal object glowing with a faint, azure hue, a small heap of what seemed to be ivory-coloured ash and, most interestingly to the little dragon, a pile of pristine-white bones, a strange, unknown skull laying nearby.

Intermixed with the bones, that the dragon somehow knew did not belong to its kind due to their strange shape and small size, sat a few badly damaged, black scales. They were similar to its own but less teardrop in shape.

The dragon felt like its insides were sinking and it almost staggered, feeling short of breath.

Its worst fears, that those who were meant to protect and nurture it were dead, all but proven to the little lizard.

While it couldn't see any bones that would belong to an adult dragon, the fact that so many scales were present, alongside the corpse of, what it could only assume to be their attacker, combined with the lack of their presence all but confirmed his earlier assessment.

A small part, tiny in comparison to the rest, was relieved that it had not been abandoned, that there wasn't something wrong with it, but for some reason, the dragon felt it was wrong to feel that way and it quickly pushed the sensation onto the fact that the assailant fell and was no longer a threat to its life.

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A sense of loss washed over the dragon as it suddenly realised that it didn't have a goal or plan other than survival.

With the information that it could pull from its bloodline's memories, parents were meant to pass on the skills and abilities, useful for survival as well as social situations, that had not been engraved into instincts or the bloodline. This process should have taken decades and enabled the dragonling to develop at a relatively slow pace while it attempted to find its calling.

A snarl crept across the young dragon's face as it snorted, releasing a puff of black mist from its nostrils, while flickers of white lightning flicked harmlessly from its body as his distress was given a physical manifestation.

Its survival was in question and while, at least for the moment, it didn't have a purpose, that didn't mean it could afford to waste any time.

The dragon's stomach growled again as if confirming its thoughts.

Before anything else, the dragon needed to secure food and water. After that, it would need to find shelter and define a territory so that its newly discovered resources were not put in jeopardy while it grew and learnt as much as it could about the world.

Looking again at the black scales, the creature couldn't help but release a growl.

Due to its size, the growl wasn't very intimidating and, to some, could have even been considered cute, but the intent behind it was clear.

Though it had never met is parents, or had any bond with them, the dragonling still felt a sense of loss which fed the spark of anger deep in its chest. Those things had been stolen from it and while it assumed the assailant was dead, that didn't mean there weren't others.

It would discover the truth of what happened and, depending on what it found, it would avenge its parents.

The dragon's eyes narrowed as it added its first none essential goal to its mental list.

Even with this, the urge to lash out was strong, but the dragonling knew that it couldn't be rash and so, forced itself to check the tunnel once again before slowly sliding out of the crevice.

Instinctively, its tongue darted out, returning just as quickly, before being poked into a small organ at the roof of its mouth.

The scents in the air became stronger, and it knew which direction it had to travel in.

As he passed the azure sword, a familiar feeling washed over the dragon, and it had the urge to curl around the blade however it knew it was not edible and its stomach forced it onwards.

The dragon swore to itself that, apart from the answers it sought, it would also return for the sword the only physical memento of its birth that existed, as it cautiously stalked down the tunnel and out of sight.

There was the occasional passageway leading off to the side, but with the use of its keen sense of smell and taste, the dragon wasn't distracted and quickly arrived at the remains that marked the edge of the final barrier its mother had set up, the Domain of the Immortal Dragon.

Familiarity with the residue essence, the fallout energy from the spell, even if it was almost overpowered with the stench of death, caused the dragon to frown as it debated moving thought the remains, or climbing the wall.

The scent of death was strong, but for some reason unbeknown to the dragonling, it wasn't scared. It was clear from the remain's placement that he wasn't entering a dangerous area, but leaving it.

A splash startled the dragonling, sending it scurrying behind a large rock.

Taking a deep breath, the dragon's eyes sparkled with anticipation.

It wasn't alone.