Warmth.

It was a cocoon of safety, a nurturing embrace.

The warmth enveloped the being as he floated in a hazy limbo between two worlds.

It felt right and perfect, until suddenly, it didn't. The warmth became stifling, constricting from all sides. Trapping.

Escape!

The creature stirred for the first time, feeling the duality of his nature. Human instincts clashed with draconic power.

His limbs - both arms and legs and small wings - surged against the confining space.

Crack...

The barrier weakened, but held. A new pressure built, this time from within. The creature's chest burned with an unfamiliar fire.

He strained again, pushing with all of his mixed heritage.

FREEDOM!

CRACK!

The shell gave way, and suddenly there was an assault of sensation. His head burst forth, and a kaleidoscope of light and color flooded his eyes. The being froze, overwhelmed by awe as he processed this new reality.

The internal fire surged again, and the creature heaved, coughing up fluids as his lungs filled with air for the first time. Another wondrous new feeling, instinctively right.

He blinked, eyes adjusting. The world came into focus - a blend of human perception and draconic acuity.

Magnificent.

The newborn gazed in wonder. Torchlight flickered off stone walls, casting dancing shadows. His ears - slightly pointed and more sensitive than a human's - were overwhelmed by the sounds of dripping water, and birds chirping.

He inhaled deeply through both nostrils and mouth, tasting the air with a forked tongue. A myriad of scents assaulted his senses - smoke, stone, sweat, and something... magical.

Awe. He felt awed by the sensory onslaught, remaining still as he came to terms with his new existence.

Slowly, deliberately, he began to examine himself. Soft human skin gave way to patches of iridescent scales. Fingers flexed, revealing both nails and the beginning of claws. And on his back, small wings twitched.

Half of one world, half of another. A one-of-a-kind being.

The being let out a sound - part human cry, part draconic trill. It echoed through the hollowed tree he found himself in.

His eyes are full of intelligence despite his age.

He cleaned his body of the gunk covering him and continued gazing around.

The tree he found himself in was enormous and its sides towered above him till he saw leaves covering the top with beams of light piercing through its canopy. While a hollowed tree, it appeared to be full of life, birds were perched on wooden ledges that extended in and vines were growing on the walls. 

He started to wander around, stumbling everywhere he went, not yet used to his body. He saw bugs scattering along the ground and grabbed them with his hand, shoving one of them in his mouth. He wasn't sure why he did this, but it didn't stay in his mouth. Thanks to the vile taste, he spit it out. 

Out of the corner of his vision he saw a furry creature with large ears and legs, his instincts told him this wouldn’t taste as vile as the bugs. He crouched down on all fours and slowly crawled towards it. It appeared to be resting just like he was before escaping his egg. Nevertheless, he maintained his slow approach, some feeling inside him guiding him. When he was within a body length or two he pounced on it, his large incisors piercing its hide. His eyes widened as the rabbit started thrashing but closed when it kicked his face. 

The bug didn't move like this, he thought. The taste of coppery blood in his mouth fueled his attack, primitive instincts taking over once again. A deep rumble rose from his chest, and he felt an unfamiliar heat surging through his throat. Without warning, fire exploded from his mouth in a brilliant, orange burst.

Immediately, the acrid smell of charred fur filled the air. The newly born hybrid stumbled backward, confused by what had just happened and partially disgusted by the pungent odor. His eyes, wide with surprise, fixed on the smoldering remains of what had been his prey.

However, the next scent that wafted towards him made his mouth water involuntarily. A primal hunger awakened within him, overriding his initial revulsion. Cautiously, he crept back towards his unexpected meal, nostrils flaring as he took in the aroma of cooked meat.

As he approached, his keen eyes darted around, catching glimpses of similar furred creatures scampering away into the underbrush. Many were much larger than this one, which was about the size of his head.

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 A rabbit, his instincts supplied, though he had no name for it yet.

With a mixture of curiosity and pride, he extended his hand towards the meal he had inadvertently prepared. His fingers, a blend of human dexterity and draconic strength, eagerly grasped the still-warm body of the rabbit. As he lifted his hard-earned prize, a sense of accomplishment washed over him, tempered by a lingering bewilderment at his newfound abilities.

The young hybrid settled down, ready to savor the fruits of his first hunt. Before he could his ears pricked up at a cracking sound. He turned around his slit eyes locking in on  an orange creature with long fangs protruding past its jaw, it walked on all fours and had a tail dragging on the ground behind it. 

He immediately recognized that it wanted his prey for itself and more than just that he had a primal feeling of rage seeing it enter his tree hollow through a narrow yet tall entrance he hadn't noticed till now. 

The creature slowly approached, growling, trying to intimidate him but he just growled right back. It was his first time and it was a high pitch screech that turned into a growl with clicks that reverberated inside the tree hollow. The creature stepped back and looked up briefly before facing him. For a second there, he thought he’d scared the creature away. It wasn’t going to be that easy. They started circling each other. He wasn't sure why they were doing this, but it gave him more time to size up his opponent. He briefly considered feeling but his mind immediately destroyed that thought. This was his home, his lair, so to speak; where he first saw light and hunted, he would never leave. 

Done with this strange ritual he started climbing some vines, his instincts telling him to seek the high ground. He tested his wings feeling them push the air as he climbed higher. The creature was looking at him still but started backing up towards his catch. Reaching the height several times his height he jumped off and opened his wings. A natural-born killer had taken to the skies only minutes after entering this world. He glided down awkwardly, his body failing to maintain a level position in the air, but nonetheless he was approaching the creature who had now gone into a crouched position. Clearly looking to grab him out of the air, he reached for the rumbling he had felt inside himself earlier and released a burst of flame out of his mouth, covering and blinding the creature as he landed on its back and ripped into its neck biting chunks out and scratching in a furry. The creature started bucking but he held it tight already through the creature's outer layer. The creature realizing this wasnt working somehow released spikes of fire along its spine.  While he was blinded and felt a slight this didn’t have any other effect on him. The creature tired and collapsed on the ground successfully squishing his arm under its back. This made him scream in agony, the primal instincts within him told him to bite the creature's vulnerable throat. With his arms still under the creature he bit into its neck and didn’t let go till he felt the pulse stop through its blood. Exhausted, his arm remained pinned under the creature as he caught his breath. He had never had this sensation before it was pain, he realized as the adrenaline wore off. 

He continually tried to pull his arm out, catching his breath every few minutes before trying again. He even tried breathing fire at it before realizing he had severely exhausted whatever gave him the power to do this, only creating a plume of smoke. After staring up at the sky, watching the light slowly fade between the leaves before being replaced by a dimmer glow with small specks in the black sky. He started to think instead of trying to muscle his way out. He thought about what he hadn’t tried. He angled himself and to the point where he could use his larger legs to push on the carcass and slowly, it rolled over, freeing his arm. He realized he could no longer feel his arm and stared at it curiously as he felt a tingling in his arm and soon he was able to feel his fingers. He even bit his arm to see if he could feel that and sure enough he could. 

Completely exhausted and cold, he curled up into a ball still covered in blood and closed his eyes. Oddly missing his old cramped egg. 

He woke up to the heat of the light shining on his scales and the brightness seeping through his eyelids. His body still ached, but more importantly, his stomach growled. While his earlier prey was covered in insects and small rodents he didn’t care for he had a whole feast in front of him. He sliced into the belly of the creature using his short but sharp claws when a bunch of long, slimy pink things poured out. He tasted it but quickly spit it out. Disappointed he tried cutting into a hind leg and the bit into it. His mouth filled with oddly warm blood as he swallowed his first bite of food. He didn’t mind the taste but couldn’t quite tell what was missing. This brought back the amazing smell of his first prey. 

Sparks shot through his mind, and he immediately realized the problem. He cut out the next slice and pulled the fire out of his chest expelling a little out of his mouth thankful that there wasn’t just smoke this time. The meat immediately smelled amazing, and he devoured it quickly.

Over the next hour, he tried different parts of his enemy. He realized the head, coat and some insides were not to be eaten he mentally logged this and then separated these parts. 

He burned a large part of the corpse and ate till he couldn’t anymore. As he was eating his last bite near the middle of the creature's back he found a golden gem that radiated heat. A glassy film swept over his eyes, pupils dilating as the object captivated his entire being. With a sudden, primal surge of strength, he lunged forward and wrenched it free. As soon as it was in his hand, he felt a surge of heat and power move through his body, centralizing in his chest. The gem slowly lost its power, and he left the trance he was in. His aching muscles felt stronger than ever, and even his arm felt better, though not back to normal yet. Still holding the gem he realized he still wanted it though for a reason he couldn’t explain. So he set it next to the rest of the corpse he hadn’t eaten.

Now full and healed, he could succumb to his insatiable curiosity and explore his home. With newfound energy coursing through his veins, he padded along the gnarled inner wall of the ancient tree. His claws clicked softly against the wood, leaving faint scratches in their wake.

As he moved, he quickly realized the small animals like the one he had killed earlier were all gone, having fled in the wake of his fiery display. That just left him and the birds that perched higher up inside the hollow tree, their occasional chirps and rustling feathers the only sounds breaking the silence.

Oddly, he felt more at ease this way. While some potential food had vanished, his home was now truly his to enjoy. A sense of ownership, primal and instinctive, swelled within his chest.

Soon, he approached the hole where the orange creature had come from. As he drew closer, his breath caught in his throat. He quickly realized there was a lot more to his world than just his tree.

Peering outside, his eyes widened in wonder. A sea of emerald ferns carpeted the entire ground, their delicate fronds swaying gently in a breeze he could barely feel. Smaller trees surrounded his large, hollow home, their trunks pale compared to the rich, dark bark of his tree. Vines crisscrossed between them in an intricate, living tapestry, creating shadowy paths and mysterious alcoves.