(Selma Helland)

Selma rubbed at her head as she made her way down the hallway of the palace. Last nights oracle had done her head in and the rush of the morning from the royal families worries about her and the meetings with the Dwarven ambassadors from Dhum Darihm and the Elven ambassadors from Nomgolir had to be postponed by two hours, after Nafir had taken the Emperor aside to tell him about something. Then the kind old man had rushed out with a full group of royal guard trainees in official apparel to fetch someone simply because no one else could be spared.

It had been a hectic morning made annoying by the fact she didn’t remember a word she’d said when the attack hit her yesterday evening. It wasn’t usually like getting a sledgehammer to the face like it had been, usually she could at least remember the words she’d said. It was usually just a few uttered words she vaguely remembered as poems. She was just glad she’d been granted the Gift of tongues ability she’d gained when she was summoned. The language spoken in this empire was apparently called Shakarin, a middle eastern sounding language with an almost french like flow to it.

It was well suited to singing and once she’d finally mastered it after a month thanks to her ability she’d gotten to go to a theatrical performance being held in a grand theater. It, much like most of the architecture of Alocia was much the same as those in the Iranian style but adding in the strongest elements of the sturdy buildings from Europe and the smooth and harsh lines of ancient Persian buildings. She’d been awed as she’d been studying archaeological architecture in collage before she’d been summoned.

She winced as another throb of her headache made itself known and she stopped in the hallway just in time to hear a familiar voice. It was Magistrate Nafir, he had such a kindly voice reminding her so much of Christian Kohlund from back home. Then the second voice became clear to her, she stopped a bit, this was a new voice. Smooth and silvery, steady and precise yet had a this near primordial quality to it. Like Jeremy Irons impersonating Anthony Hopkins if she had to put actors to the sound but it still wasn’t the proper way to describe it.

“I trust my ravens will be allowed to fly and check on my children when I want?” The voice asked and she began to move towards them. Noting she was heading towards the great hall as she followed the voices.

“Of course, of course. Please as this invitation was rather sudden we have two more ambassadors that the Emperor must meet. Might I direct you to enjoy the gallery? Empress Sabirah has a passion for art I’m certain you’ll find something to occupy your time there and if not I’m certain the gardens might pique your interest.” Nafir said just as she managed to see the following guards move into a separate hallway leading to the curated collection on display there.

“Really now? I must admit I’ve not been much for art of the visual nature but if it comes so highly recommended then I must view it for myself.” The stranger's voice echoed as she sprinted as silently as she could manage. She didn’t even know why she was hiding but she didn’t want to get caught off guard and possibly do something foolish.

The two chatted good naturedly as they continued on to the starting hall of the collection. Staying out of sight Selma waited until the man was alone, though one guard had been left behind to guide him. She peeked over a corner and stared at the man. He was clearly elven and dressed like some seventeenth century noble but his bearing was strange to her. She’d seen how the other nobles naturally moved with grace and this man certainly did so as well but it was like sometimes it was half remembered at times. That and the air around him made him rather unapproachable.

However his hairstyle reminded her of Ragnar from that Vikings show she’d seen which clashed with everything else. She snorted as she thought of a bumbling barbarian trying to act like a foppish noble.

“You know I can hear you right?” The man suddenly said, his back still to her while he looked over a painting that depicted a caravan moving over sandy dunes. The two ravens on his shoulders didn’t even look her way. She froze a little and swallowed before sighing in relief internally when he moved one of his hands to gesture for her to join him before it joined the other at his back.

Moving up to his right side she looked over at him and was a little surprised when one of the ravens jumped to switch shoulders so that both ravens were on his left shoulder. Elves had much more feminine or gentle features to their faces but his was rugged and defined by a strong jawline at least for an elf. “How do you do my lord. I am Selma Helland.” She said bowing to the visitor.

“Felix Aesir.” He said offering her his hand to shake while not taking his eyes off the painting. She was a bit apprehensive of having a sideways conversation with the man. However this was the first time someone had just introduced themselves and offered a handshake instead of bows or other gestures of greetings.

“Is the painting really that interesting?” She whispered under her breath as she rolled her eyes only for this Felix to grip her hand a little tighter and didn’t let go.

“You can’t see it can you?” He asked looking at her sideways then he smiled a kindly smile and his hand became gentle as he spoke again. “Look again.” He said then and looked at the painting.

Feeling a little taken aback she did and gasped. She could see so much more, the shifting of the sands under the mounts feet as they trod the path. The oppressive heat and gentle wind and the sheer sense of serene peace. The painting looked alive before Felix let go of her hand and the painting looked diminished somehow, lesser than before. “What was that?” She asked.

“The painter imbued the painting with so much passion and feeling those that can sense mana can feel and even see what he envisioned as he painted it.” Felix said looking at the painting with a slight smile on his lips then he seemed to breath in. Like the breath one takes before asking a stupid question but one’s curiosity didn’t let the question go unasked. “So you’re the visitor from another world huh?” He then said almost teasingly and Selma jumped in surprise.

“Ho-how did you know?” She asked before she was about to use Identify on the man before her until his finger flicked her nose.

“I suggest you don’t do that. Using Identify on others is considered rude in high society I’ll have you know.” He said with a slight stern quality to his naturally commanding voice. “Which is why I use Analysis.” He said as he turned to her and placed a finger to his lips with an impish smile.

“They won’t detect it even if you're at a lower level like with Identify.” He said impishly and she just stared. He was the first man with a disability she’d seen since her arrival.

A nasty scar made a line down from his left eye brow to the middle of the cheek. A sleek near metallic looking eye patch covered just the socket with three thin straps out of the same material used to keep it in place. “Wh-what happened?” She asked shocked and simply blurting out her mental question.

“A brat with a whip.” Felix said matter-of-factually as he shrugged and then simply offered her the crock of his elbow. “Come, won’t you be my guide in this place?” He asked with a mischievous smile on his lips.

Not having much time to process she was taken and swept up in Felix’s pace and before she knew it she was his guide. Telling him what the empress herself had told her when shown the gallery for the first time. To her surprise Felix turned out to be an easy going man, once you got used to his mischievous teasing at times and the strange way he seemed to think in, something she chalked up to him being a Dark elf apparently. The races couldn’t all think like humans right?

Then they came to a sad painting of an elderly woman sitting at a window overlooking a beautiful scenery by the sea outside it. It had a melancholic quality like when one wished for better days one knew wouldn’t come.

“It always fascinates me.” Felix said as he granted her the sight he’d shared with her when the paintings turned out to be more than they appeared.

“What does?” She asked curiously as she looked over the painting and how it came alive.

“The duality of your species. You humans have so much potential for good. With aspects like kindness, generosity and some of you even have an overwhelming urge to protect others. Yet you allow those who hunger for power, the greedy and deceitful to rise above the others. This innate cruelty that you humans have… served a purpose while you were hunters and gatherers but now there is little need for it when you must depend on one another.” He said and she noted his mood had turned contemplative.

“You really have such a poor view of humans?” She asked a little taken aback by his blunt and rather sudden change of topic.

“I do.” He replied simply. “When a species justifies the murder of thousands if not hundreds of thousands as missions from their god or as a mission of mercy and liberation. It sickens me how you all simply cling to such excuses to justify your actions.” He said and he looked at her, his eye not showing a hint of emotion before he got an evil little smile.

“You're vicious and cruel little bastards and I’m amazed you’ve been allowed to get as strong a foot hold on this continent as you have.” He said before his smile turned kind. “But your potential for good is still always there.”

He gestured towards Selma who wasn’t really sure now where the whole conversation was going. “Take your old world for example. Its ruled by the apathetic rich, incompetent governments and missions of mercy are usually used as a pretext to getting the resources the area provides. Do you really think that the races of this world will tolerate such a thing?” He asked with a knowing look in his eye.

Selma was startled as she stared at him. “How do you know so much about my old world?” She asked suspiciously, was he the second type of visitor to this world like her? A reincarnator?

“I’ve met two reincarnators over my lifetime. One on the way here, a rather naive Satyr girl in over her head without even knowing it and… a hero, used and betrayed by the people who supposedly were his allies.” Felix said as he looked at her sadly, moving one hand up to run a finger up along her jaw line as if in contemplation.

“I pride myself of being a reasonable judge of character Selma. I will not describe you as a saint but I feel you are genuinely good... so I will give you some advice you should take to heart.”

His words made her stiffen a little, this wasn’t really the way she’d thought his words would take but now she was rather worried the man was insane or just thinking in a manner a human might prescribe as insane. “The humans around you will look at you in one of two ways. You are human like them or you are alien. Do not let your guard down around them and gain enough power to stand on your own Selma, do not rely on the mercy of others. This world is crueler and harsher than even your old one is. Do not end up like Robert of Wolfsgard did.” Felix spoke like it was from experience and she had to admit the situation was getting a tad too real for her to handle.

What he’d just said flew in the face of her experience with the royal family and those around her but she could see the truth of his words in his eye. Others actions must have made the man before her think this way and she wasn’t stupid enough to disregard the hard learned lessons others wished to impart to her. She’d take the lesson to heart at least and give it a good think over before she decided how to use the lessons meaning for herself.

“Well aren’t you a gloomy and distrustful elf?” A young man said behind Felix. His dazzling smile and hazel hair and eyes, the princely handsomeness of his face and noble bearing said it all. It was Aldren Alocia, the crown prince of the Alocian empire.

“When the second day of my stay here in Veta I lost my eye to a human brat claiming to be noble.” Felix began and she saw something else in his eye now, a cold fire snuffed out as soon as it arose. It made her realize the elf before her hated humans or perhaps an aspect of humans he saw as the majority of humans suffered from.

“It does make one mistrust humans wouldn’t you agree?” He said as he turned to look at the prince without a hint of respect for the boy which took Aldren aback a bit. However Felix’s words made her gasp as she realized Felix had told her about his eye in the beginning.

The crown prince wasn’t used to being spoken to as an equal safe his own family or the highest members of the empire, though those only behind closed doors. “You curr! Show some respect!” The guard that had been quietly following Selma and Felix around the gallery said as he readied his weapon before suddenly a flash of light appeared behind him and then he tumbled, falling to the ground, paralyzed.

“The fact you can’t handle a simple rank two spell shows you are weak.” Felix said coldly as he looked down into the eyes of the guard barely managing to look up at them. “So I suggest you stay silent from now on.” Felix’s tone wasn’t a suggestion that was for sure, Selma feared the elf would kill the guard if he so much as spoke up again.

“Please master elf, don’t mind the man. He’s dedicated to his job and I am the son of the emperor.” Aldren said respectfully and gave a slight nod of his head, then exchanged a look with Selma. They both thought the same two things. Felix was clearly dangerous and what the hell was he doing here?

“Oh? My apologies.” Felix said his tone turning respectful as he bowed gracefully to Aldren. “I had thought I was simply to meet with your father today. Magistrate Nafir hadn’t mentioned you.” He said before stepping over to the guard and with one hand raised the man up and dusted him off.

“I do apologize my good man. I am rather new to this empire and have yet to have the distinguished honor of seeing the royal family before. The blunder of etiquette is all mine.” He said kindly as he even ran his fingers along the chest armor of the guard like he was dusting him off.

The man simply stared at Felix, his face showing he had clearly no idea what to do. Aldren though got a curious glint in his eye. “Felix… which house do you hail from?” He asked but Selma had known him long enough now to realize that wasn’t what the prince wanted to know.

“I’m the current head of the Aesir household. Magistrate Nafir has kindly taken it upon himself to grant me access to a building he owns for myself and my two children.” He said respectfully but it was more like it was as respectful as he could get away with. His tone didn’t show any malice or intent to look down on the prince it was more like he was simply calm and giving as good as he felt he was required to do.

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Selma on the other hand replayed his words since they met all over again in her head. It might explain that he was so peculiar if he was worried for the safety of his own children this entire time. Such worries might make anyone seem rather off but it didn’t explain the look the man got in his eye when she was sure he didn’t think anyone was looking. Cold and emotionless with something else simmering underneath it. She was sure he was close to being insane, though perhaps he was a functioning lunatic? Was there even such a thing?

“You mentioned Robert of Wolfsgard… might you be referring to Robert the Benevolent?” Aldren asked cautiously.

Felix raised the eyebrow over his ruined eye and stared at the prince. “The Benevolent? Is this Roberts death recorded as about twenty or so years ago? Also known as Robert the Brave?” He asked and at the princes nod Felix laughed, hard. It was like he’d heard the funniest thing in the world to him, he had to catch his breath once his chuckles had subsided.

“Robert wasn’t benevolent, he was driven by duty and love for Aona. He was far from benevolent, more like he was a fool.”

The words seemed to anger Aldren slightly, she knew that he’d been raised on stories of great heroes and warrior kings of the past and even the few close to the present. Robert had been one of his heroes and Felix had just… well it wasn’t slander but certainly wasn’t what many would consider the truth.

“I’m sorry but are you saying the stories of Robert the Benevolent are untrue?” Aldren said and she noted the clench of his jaw noting his annoyance.

“I’m saying Robert wasn’t as benevolent as you might think and his story isn’t even his.” Felix said still lightly chuckling but sounded a little sad now.

“How dare you! He is a great hero in the service of the light! He sacrificed so much for the people of Wolfsguard and even some of the the demonfolk. He overthrew a war hungry tyrant and died shortly after from the wounds he took protecting his allies.” Aldren almost shouted but kept his voice down, anger now clear on his face but he soon looked confused, just as Selma did.

Felix was staring at him like he’d just said the biggest and most unbelievable lie with a straight face. “He died from the wounds he took protecting his allies?” He then asked, his voice clearly restraining something. Both Selma and the prince nodded to him and he let out a bitter chuckle.

“Yeah I think I’ll start calling her the whore of injustice and lies. Hmpf. Justice and light my pale ass.” He mumbled in a low but angry tone as he just simply walked away from them deeper into the gallery. The two ravens still perched on his left shoulder glaring at the two of them as he left.

“What was that about?” Selma asked confused, deferring to the individual born in the world she now inhabited.

“I have no idea but I think that man is very… off.” Aldran replied as the two were left alone, the guard hesitatingly moving towards Felix’s receding back though he didn’t look all that comfortable as both ravens glared him down.

“What is Magistrate Nafir thinking? Bringing a man like him here?” The prince then said in a sigh.

“I think part of the reason he’s off is most likely because he’s worried for his children.” Selma said softly. At Aldran’s look she explained. “The second day he was in this city he lost an eye to a noble and now he’s in the palace waiting for an audience while his children were put somewhere else.” She said with an uneasy smile.

“Well at least I can see why he isn’t so fond of us at the moment.” Aldran said with a sigh. “But I can’t believe what he said about Robert. I doubt he actually knew him.” He said narrowing his eyes in the direction Felix had gone.

Selma had learned about the gods at least those worshiped in Veta, Felix had just casually blasphemed without anything happening to him. She’d had to wrap her head around a world with actual gods and goddesses in it so she’d thought even the hint of a blasphemer might cause divine retribution but in Felix’s case it didn’t seem so. She sighed as well, the world she was now stuck in was so familiar yet alien at the same time.

‘I need a wiki or something.’ She internally sighed not for the first time. She felt in over her head, especially with the whole Oracle business. Then she remembered Aldran and his usual schedule. “Prince Aldran… Why aren’t you out in the field training?” She asked looking over at him.

“Hm? Well Nafir told me I should invite a new guest of his over to see the training but now I’m not so sure.” Aldran answered as he furrowed his brows a little. “What did he seem like to you?” He then asked her.

“I don’t know… I think he’s a mage of some sort and a good one at that. You saw how fast he managed to take out the guard at the slightest provocation right? I think we should look at him like a dangerous and cornered animal. At least in how we approach him.” Selma said frowning a little.

“But…” She started and paused and at Aldren’s urging look she continued. “I don’t think he intends us any harm if we don’t harm him back, that and he reminds me a little of those roguish types that don’t mean ill."

She wasn’t sure she should be thinking of Felix like that but being cautious around him was clearly something she needed to be. “I’m not saying he is an animal just… he seems on edge, on guard for something he views as an inevitability.” She said contemplating it some more.

“Human’s haven’t been the kindest to him, I think.” The kindly voice behind the pair made them jump from being startled before they looked over and saw Magistrate Nafir standing there with a ponderous look to his face. “I think perhaps he was close to Robert. He spoke as if from experience with the man and I know by his own admission he isn’t very fond of Aona… with good reason I feel.” Nafir said as he almost waddled over to them, showing his age a little.

“Why do you say that?” Aldren asked with curiosity. “Are you saying that the story of Robert the benevolent is untrue?” He hurriedly added.

Nafir shook his head a little. “No, not wholly untrue but the facts must have been skewed somewhat. We both know Wolfsguard isn’t the all holy place it tries to be. Take their Arch Magos Mario Hawkfield for example.” He said with a pointed look at Aldran who frowned knowingly.

“Yeah the last time he came here as an ambassador he left that cuckold scandal in his wake.” He said frowning, Mario hadn’t left a very good impression on the young prince by Selma’s judging of the prince’s face.

“A Duke had to get a new wife because of it. It was a scandal that almost ruined relations between our empires. You’d think the man would show more decorum being one of Roberts companions.” Nafir said and Selma noted the pointed look at her.

She gasped as she came to a realization. “Was that why he told me to be careful of all of you?” She asked and Aldren looked unhappy while Nafir stroked his beard thoughtfully.

“Perhaps this Felix Aesir has more secrets than I thought.” He said speculatively as he looked off in the distance.

“Whats that’s supposed to mean?” Aldren asked and Nafir proceeded to tell them what had happened between himself and Felix just the day before.

“He’s… remarkably stable considering all that happened just yesterday. His wound looked old too, like it was healed over.” Aldren said cupping his elbow with one hand while the other took hold of his chin.

“Ah yes he told me his daughter had snuck into his storage ring to steal a healing potion to use it on his eye.” Nafir said smiling kindly and Selma smiled a little, a man with a daughter so worried for him couldn’t be all bad.. right?

“She’s a cute little thing but… I guess I should tell this to the two of you as both of you will be in the room when your father interviews him. This will not go farther than the two of you, you understand.” He said pointedly and firmly as a bubble of noise canceling magic appeared around them.

“Why so cautious?” Aldren asked as he looked around noting that no one was around them anyway.

“Felix’s name is Vlad von Carstein in truth. He is a… a holder of classes usually persecuted or distrusted. Hell one of them he isn’t even the correct species to be.” Nafir started to say and Selma stared in shock while Aldren looked furious.

“I don’t think treating him badly or poorly is a wise idea. He might have insights to share and maybe we can even change a few things with his help.”

Selma noted the worried look in Nafir’s eyes, she knew he had recently had a grandson who came of age and unlocked their first class but it hadn’t been mage like Nafir and his son had been. The details weren’t public but she knew it wasn’t a very well looked upon class.

“And why not?” Aldren asked heatedly. “If what you are saying is true then he might have classes we sentence to death for just having. What makes him so special?” He asked and Selma was also in agreement, though Felix didn’t come off to her as evil he wasn’t right either. This mistique that Nafir was putting around Felix or rather Vlad scared her.

“Deathless.” Nafir replied and stared at Aldren who stared right back without comprehension. The old man waited a few long moments before sighing. “He is deathless. If we kill him, he’ll just come back angry at us and if I’ve read the man correctly destroying this empire will be… not easy but doable with enough time for him.”

Selma’s eyes went wide. “Like a lich? Wouldn’t that just mean we need his phylactery to kill him fully?” She asked, knowledge from her dungeons and dragons games coming back to her, that had been the spark for her choice of education as an archaeologist focusing on architecture.

She didn’t want to really go into the destroy the empire bit because the thought of one man or elf in this case having such an ability was rather… terrifying.

Nafir looked at her and smiled kindly. “The deathless title is to show that such a simple thing isn’t enough to kill him and according to him a god has already tried.” He said sighing and both of them went pale as they stared at Nafir.

“I saw his soul.” He then said and he looked shaken as he looked into Aldren’s eyes. “I believe a god tried to destroy it. I’m amazed he’s still walking to be honest but that is why I feel we shouldn’t act rashly here. He’s functioning on will alone, I don’t think even he realizes that. A soul that damaged should leave a man bed ridden and in agony.”

Those words made the two look at one another and then swallow. “If.. if that is what you say Magistrate.” Selma said bowing her head a little to Nafir.

“By the scorching sands.” Aldren grumbled a curse he was fond of. “So you wanted me to invite him to the training of our knights?” He then asked after running his hand over his face and through his hair.

“I think you’ll understand why if you do.” Nafir said with a mysterious smile.

It took half an hour to even find the guard who’d been following Vlad around. The man was on one of the paths outside the palace just staring off into space with the palace gardens before him. The palace itself was easily almost five square kilometers and two kilometers of that was the palace gardens. A vast tended to garden with half of it dedicated to farming delicacy's and the other a sort of curated jungle forest.

“I’ve contacted one of the guards and I’ve instructed them to bring Felix’s children to the palace. Perhaps they can help us find him.” Nafir said sighing wearily.

“My prince? Magistrate and Oracle? What are you all doing here?” A gruff voice that Selma thought fit the man it belonged to well. It was Knight commander Dunleavy, around him were his three sons, Andrew, Alexander and Robert.

“Ah!” Nafir said happily. “Paladin Dunleavy.” The old man had a happy tone while the knight commander grimaced a little. He had managed to reach level fifty while being a paladin devoted to an ideal instead of a god or goddess. According to Aldren it was a momentous achievement to have pulled off, Selma still wasn’t really understanding the interplay of classes in this world or how many levels one could consider superhuman when compared to humans from earth.

“I am simply the Knight commander.” Dunleavy said bowing his head a little. “But my question stands Magistrate Nafir. Along with another for you prince Aldren, why aren’t you on the training field?” He said in his baritone voice that Selma felt belonged to those no nonsense generals that she’d seen in movies.

“Ah that is my fault Theodore. I invited a visiting noble and we’ve seemed to have lost him. I’d intended for the prince to invite him to the training field.” Nafir said wearily.

“You invited a noble and lost him? When there’s a Land Drake on the loose?” Alexander asked with a raised eyebrow and slightly heated tone. His hair was black like his mothers and he had the whole mysterious, tall dark and handsome vibe going for him. Selma had also heard from Nafir that Alexander was apparently a rather talented candidate for joining the elite mystic knight order of the empire.

“Yes, I’m afraid Felix is rather an elusive man… or should I rather say Baron Aesir.” Nafir said helplessly. It didn’t get past her how Theodore stiffened at hearing the name but the fact a land drake was on the loose frightened her.

They were larger than even the huge shire horse breed, like dragons without wings these beasts were fierce and some even barely tolerated their riders. Each had to be made to submit to their riders or to be raised by their rider for their entire life.

“Felix Aesir?” He asked coldly before he looked over to his sons and directed them with a simple jerk of his head. All three had grown angry or hostile expressions at hearing it and Alexander even looked like he’d tear Felix apart if he met him first.

Selma felt uneasy now and looking over to the curated jungle she saw one of Vlad’s ravens flying out of the canopy and fly straight off towards the mage academy towers. Looking over to the other two who were looking after the Dunleavy’s she decided to sneak away and search that area.

For twenty minutes she wandered aimlessly before she came upon a small clearing with no sunlight managing to pierce through the canopy safe in tiny little beams. There in the center, laying up against one of the land drakes of the dragon cavalry which had curled up around him.

The man looked peacefully asleep with one of his ravens perched on top of the drake as lookout.

She had to gasp at the sight. How had he managed to get a drake to trust him enough to allow for that so quickly? She looked around some more and noted the crashed tree that must have been hit with the drake’s powerful tail most likely. So there had been a confrontation that hadn’t escalated further she wondered as she quietly moved around the sleeping pair.

She made near frantic shushing motions when the raven turned its head to look at her directly and she could have sworn the raven had given her an amused motherly look in return. That made her thoughts stop for a while and she shook her head thinking she must have imagined it.

After nearly ten minutes she mustered the courage to slowly approach Vlad as he lay on the grass with the drake acting like the back rest of his chair. Before her fingers had touched him she noted something that had been bothering her when looking at him at first. He looked like he’d fallen asleep from exhaustion. Had he been so worried he hadn’t even slept?

Before her fingers touched Vlad’s boot she heard him speak softly. “You know, you aren’t really as stealthy as you think.” She froze and then looked up seeing not only Vlad looking at her with a tired but an amused one and above him the drake.

It’s golden eyes stared at her, no through her like it could see her thoughts, her dreams and her very soul. It began to raise its lips to show its teeth and a low rumble began in its throat.

However before anything else happened and to her utter astonishment a gentle hand placed against the drake’s neck and softly spoken words calmed it down. “Now, now. She isn’t an enemy. She’s good and not like the others.” Vlad said and the drake shook it’s head a little making the heavy muscles of its neck jiggle a little before it looked down at Vlad. Who simply smiled up at it before it looked back up at Selma and then snorted before curling up again with its snout nudging a little at Vlad’s thigh.

Vlad chuckled softly as he began to gently run his hand along the drake’s snout like he was just petting a huge cat instead of a scaled killing machine. “H-how?” Selma stammered out in utter disbelief.

“Hm?” Vlad let out as he glanced up at her and then gestured for her to take a seat next to him. “He just sees a fellow predator that isn’t interested in fighting for dominance.” He said cryptically and she slowly moved to sit next to him.

To her surprise the belly of the drake she leaned hesitatingly up against was warm to the touch and just slightly soft or was the word supple better.

She could see why Vlad had fallen asleep, it was comforting in a strange yet kinda scary way. Before she knew it she’d been staring and touching the drakes belly and as she turned around she froze once more. Both the drake and Vlad were looking at her and both looked amused at her.

She felt her face turn bright red before the drake leaned its head against her and nudged her a little. “It seems he likes you.” Vlad said but he couldn’t hide how tired he was in his voice. She thought that perhaps he was more at ease with animals since they weren’t like humans, they didn’t lie.

Looking at him again she realized it wasn’t just one night of not so restful sleep but many that had worn the man down to his current state. Her father had been a workaholic and she could see the signs of someone about to burn themselves out. “The others are looking for you, you know.” She said and Vlad nodded a little.

“I know…” He said before tiredly asking her for more time to rest. “Ten minutes?”

She nodded and without even realizing it she’d begun to pet the drakes head now placed in her lap. “Sure… I’ll nudge you.” She said with a small smile.

“Thank… you...” Vlad let out as he leaned back against the drakes belly and fell asleep. Leaving Selma to stare a bit at him before looking up at the canopy above in contemplation. She realized that she felt more at ease around Vlad than even the kind Nafir who’d become like a beloved uncle to her since her transportation to this new world she found herself in.

Vlad without even realizing it felt a little like a piece of home to her and so she let him sleep, not waking him up until a full half hour had passed. Well that and she was still puzzled if she should be afraid, weary or at ease around him.