“What now?” Cami asked. All of the emotion seemed to leave her body. I knew what she meant, too. There had been a sense of build up as the elixirs started to work. Then the pain. I would have to explore that. In fact, it prompted my response.

“We wait, but much of the dragon way is about patience. You’ll become accustomed to it. What I’m curious about now, is how the pseudo-riders were able to wear those rings without feeling the pain of their soul being drained. A portion of my soul was used to form seeds within Rollie and Patch. I can say at least for me, that the sensation was quite noticeable.”

Cassandra said, “You mean it hurt?”

I stared down my snout at her. “I wouldn’t go that far, alchemist-minion.”

She got a grin on her face. “I’m sure my lord, would know best.”

Ugh… I hated that feeling of knowing that I’d handled something poorly. “I will admit there is much to learn here, and I will call upon your expertise. Perhaps it is time for us to magically examine the ring I kept.”

Before Cami or Cassandra could reply, a notification popped up.

A potential challenger for your domain is approaching.

I looked up and a half dozen miles away; I saw a large dragon headed my way. He was likely even larger than I was. The closer he got, the clearer it became. He was definitely larger. This could be bad, but he was a red. I’d be cursed before I’d allow a red to wrestle my lair from me. For all, I knew, this was some spawn of Draconis come to exact a misguided revenge.

Then, as I stared, I noticed something which I had initially missed amidst my musings. Upon the dragon’s back was a rider in red armor. This couldn’t be a domesticated dragon, he or she was far too large. The more likely possibility was that this was a dragon from the clan.

Still, my lair was not set up to repulse a dragon. While it was the duty of minions to die for their dragon, I had no intention of letting them die without a need. So, I called to Cami telepathically. She leapt to my back. I squatted back and then sprang into the air. My wings caught the air and beat as I willed the magic of the world to lift me from the ground.

Within seconds, I was streaking straight at the dragon, wanting to meet them before we were over the island. They actually had been slowing their approach so, I was able to meet them a good mile off of the coast. I came to a halt and hovered upon the thread of magic while my wings beat, adding what little lift they could. She, for I could not tell that it was a she, did the same thing. For a red, she was quite an attractive dragon, but power was always attractive and it practically oozed off of her.

I gauged her to be nearly ancient but not quite. I could have used Identify, but that wasn’t how things were done between dragons.

Mentally, I sent a message to Cami: “Brace yourself.”

Then just as I pushed my Dragon Fear out, I felt waves of it hit me from this great red. We are naturally more resistant to Dragon Fear, but even we aren’t immune. Instinctively, from many lifetimes of experience which were in the dream, I recognized the proper way to greet another free dragon as an adult.

She was strong. Her dragon fear had to be a higher level than mine, but not by much. It was probably also augmented by her greater age progression. I knew I was holding my own, though. My mind evolution seemed to add a keenness to my Dragon Fear, which hadn’t been there before.

For just an instant, I was tempted to dump some DKP into leveling up Dragon Fear. I would be able to outdo her that way if I wanted to, but it didn’t feel like the right way to handle this matter. So we both hovered as the waves of fear rushed over us. I felt Cami clinging onto my back. She shared a portion of my protection, but was clearly taking it harder.

Finally, acknowledging that she was stronger than I, I said, “I am Nicosandumas. This is my lair. If you wish to claim my hoard, you will have to pull it from my cracked, dead claws.”

“Well met, young Nicosandumas. I am called Beliciosia. You have grown much from what was first reported to us by Edgar Lev. It is good so see that you honor the old ways. Perhaps it would be appropriate for our bonded to speak upon the ground while you and I hunt together.”

It had been so long since I’d heard a true dragon speak. She didn’t sound like my mother, but I couldn’t help but make the comparison. She was greater than my mother was the last time I saw her and greater than she still would be, as it would take a couple of centuries of aging for my mother to reach the point Beliciosia was at.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Cami asked me, “Are you sure about this?”

“She went out of her way to make sure that I knew they were from the Clan of the Dragon. If the horrors are truly coming, we will need allies, and it would be nice to speak to one of my own kind. Not that I don’t enjoy your company, of course.”

“I guess she is a rather attractive dragon, if I’m able to judge such things.”

A torch flared to life in my mind as I suddenly understood the nuance of what was happening here. “It isn’t like that, Cami. I am not drawn to her in that way, even if she wasn’t a red. She is not a rival for my affections. I now realize that I have mishandled some things and just now recognize that the kiss to your forehead might have been misunderstood. My awareness of human mating rituals is still a bit uncertain.

“I simply meant that it would be nice to speak to a fellow dragon, and specifically to a bonded dragon. There is much I could learn from her, I expect. But you are my bonded. No other in this world will ever be closer to me.”

Satisfaction surged through our bond and Cami said, “Thank you for saying that.”

I then dove back towards the island and settled on a spot far from where the construction crews were. I could practically feel the eyes of the domesticated dragons upon us, but as of yet, none of them had dared to take the air while we were there. I wondered if they were having to restrain the wyrmlings.

After both Cami and her rider dismounted, they started to move a distance away. The man stopped for a moment though and bowed to me. “Great one, I am Turan Lev, uncle to Edgar Lev. You have my word that no harm will come to your bonded or your hoard while I am here. I will fight with my last breath to protect what is yours just as if this were Beliciosia’s hoard.”

I lowered my head slightly in response and then leapt into the air to join Beliciosia. We flew straight north without speaking. I simply followed her. She was clearly very comfortable with her size. I gauged that she had to be more than one hundred feet long so, that was saying something. It was hard to see just how much bigger she was than we while we were dueling, but now I could appreciate the facts.

I felt the need again and so I did cast Identify this time.

Beliciosia Elder Red Dragon (88% to Ancient)

Bonded to Lev Turan

Affiliation: Clan of the Dragon

Significant threat- engage only if no other options exist

Class: N/A

Hmm… that was an interesting outcome. It told me much of what I expected, but also more. She didn’t have a class. That was unexpected. I knew that none of the dragons in my memories did, but she was so connected to the lesser races, I would have expected the dragons of the clan to gain classes just as I had.

“Are you done using magic on me? I may not be an elven spell weaver or a human wizard, but I can sense magic just as well as any dragon.”

I felt something I hadn’t felt often in my life. Shame. I apologize. I have apparently, spent too much time around humans.”

“Bah, apologies are for the weak, unless you are insincere in it. Actions are the way a dragon speaks. Now, before we talk, I have something I want to show you.”

Then she sped up, and I had to push harder, calling upon the world to move me faster. There were limits still and while my speed increased with each bit of age progression I made, the pace she set still strained me.

We flew to the northeast for about two hours before I saw something on the water in the distance. Oh, there had been plenty of whales and even hints at bigger things under the water, things which raised a desire within me. They were prey as were all things to dragons, but they were the type of prey which could fight back. No, these tiny dots in the distance sat upon the surface of the water.

No sea creature had this sort of appearance. If I had to guess, these were ships, although their cut was different from that of the human ships which now belonged to me under the command of my minion, Amos.

Beliciosia slowed. “They are elven vessels. Spies for the clan discovered information that they learned of a new bonded dragon in the empire, in Urgoi, to be specific. They were dispatched to learn what about the allegiances of this bonded dragon. I can’t say for sure, but I expect that they would have tried to recruit you or failing that to kill you. They might have been okay if you joined the clan because we have famously stayed out of the affairs of nations, but they would have never stood for you being a tool of the human empire.”

I snorted at that. “As if. And speaking of the clan’s separation from the politics of nations, did that include the slavery of dragons?”

“Much of what you reported to Edgar has been conveyed to us magically. I am aware of your outrage. You’re young. Such things will pass. I only wanted you to see these ships and be aware. There are more pieces in play than you know about. The elves are only one of the other forces.”

“I don’t care about what the lesser races do. I only care about protecting dragonkind and Ileria, which is ours.”

“It is our place to safeguard this entire world. I was told that you might be a new Balance Warden. If that is the case you should understand such things. Both the gods and the eldritch horrors seek to claim this realm for their own purposes. While, I believe that the gods would be more palatable to most beings, it would still be a bondage of sorts. They are not physical beings and do not understand what it means to live as we do.”

“Yes, and this is the world of dragons. Our ancestors kicked the gods out, why would we give it back to them?”

She looked at me strangely for a moment. I could almost feel a bit of pity from her. “You will find that we bonded dragons are not as affected by the Pact as others, but even with that said, I still have trouble caring about much beyond Turan Lev and the clan. I believe in stopping incursions, but mostly, I leave the gods alone. Let them bring meaning to the lives of the little races with their short lives. What I won’t tolerate is the absolute destruction which the horrors desire.”

“So to you we are simply guard dogs, not the rulers.”

Now she scoffed at me, exhaling a small bit of flame and smoke. “You want to rule the world?” She kept going before I could even answer. “Even the grandest of wild dragons don’t want that. You met Draconis, correct?”

“Yes, I did.”

“And did you think that he lacked in strength?”

“No.”

“If he wanted to conquer a nation, perhaps even all of Ileria, he might be able to, but what then? By our nature, dragons are greedy for wealth and perhaps for strength, but we don’t desire political power. Having a few hundred minions is already tiring, as I’m sure you’ll find out someday. Control also means responsibility and above all else, we dragons are lazy.”

I wanted to argue with her, to point out that this was only a trait of reds, but there were there were echoes of truths learned in the dream within her words.

When I didn’t say anything, Beliciosia shook her head. “You have much to learn. But for now, I would have us go hunting. How does seafood sound for dinner?”