Darkness.
A black void.
Was he alive?
Everything hurts.
His body and his mind ached with waves of pain.
He must still be alive, that's what pain means.
"..."
Muffled voices.
His chest hurt more.
Why? Was he not breathing?
No. He wasn't.
His lungs burned for air.
Suffocating walls surrounded him. How did he get in here, this tight space that trapped him? He pressed against it and wiggled the best he could but his body felt so weak and wrong. He felt more limbs than he was used to, a different shape and length.
The walls were as strong as his need for air.
Jack could feel himself fading. Slowly dying again.
*Crack*
A thin jagged broke along the side of his prison. He couldn't see it but he could feel it. He presses his face against it and pushed as hard as he could.
Several more cracking noises and his nose pushed through. Air filled his lungs and brought him back from the edge of death.
His face felt longer than normal as he rested and breathed. Waiting for his aching and tired muscles to calm down.
"...!"
"..."
More muffled voices he couldn't make out.
It wasn't World. Thank goodness.
What did World even do to him? Jack wasn't sure. But he knew he had been thrown away. Like a foul snack thrown into the trash where it would never be seen again. It had opened a tear in between realities and tossed him in. At least that's what it had looked like. Millions of realities passing by in seconds.
And World had dropped him into it.
Was there a way back? Did he want to go back?
Where did he end up? Why did he feel wrong?
He pushed against his prison and struggled. Pressing all he had against the walls.
*Crack! Klk!*
The walls broke around him and he fell over limply in a mess of limbs. He felt air on his body. He could barely move under the weight of his own body.
A gust of wind flowed over him and something big and warm gently nudged him.
He couldn't even open his eyes. Had he ever been this weak before?
Once a long time ago when he had grown ill. But he felt weaker than even then. It felt like his body wanted to give out on him. He had to make himself breath. Short, rapid breaths was the best he could do. Any attempts to take bigger longer breaths made his lungs panic and try to give out on him.
A series of big deep growls of odd patterns rumbled above him. Followed by a different one from another creature.
Where was he?! Was he in danger? His [Danger Sense] wasn't blaring him any warnings.
He felt so tired. The need to sleep was strong but he fought against it. He knew what would happen if he didnt. Sleeping would kill him.
-
Selen looked down with worry at her two hatchlings. The first one hatched and looked healthy. A healthy male dragon with beautiful snow white scales like its father and bright blue eyes like hers that looked up at her in wonder. He looked so small and cute.
Her attention turns to the other one that had a difficult time hatching. Her heart clenched in worry.
Frail, thin, weak and fighting to live.
Black scales covered every inch of its body. Neither her nor her husband had black scales.
She nudged the frail one and then the healthy one. The second one let out happy and curious chirps, nuzzling her in return. The first one didn't make a noise and didn't even twitch. Just breathing short breaths.
Hearing the front door close she looks to see her husband walk in with his brother who is a doctor. Selen was thankful that Galerus's brother Kemok was their neighbor. Galerus had run out of the house in a panic when he saw the black hatchling come out of its egg.
Both Galerus and Kemok have white scales and green eyes. Almost looking like twins but their horns gave them away.
"How is he?" Galerus asked as he laid with her. The hatchlings between their bodies.
"Hasn't moved but he's still breathing." Selen tells him and looks to Kemok.
Galerus's brother is examining the black hatching without stepping too close. Green eyes taking in its condition.
"Do what you need to, Kemok. I'll allow it." Selen gave him permission. Her base instincts whispered at her to attack Kemok since he was near her hatchlings. But they were just base instincts that wouldn't help her right now.
Kemok nods and steps closer, a bit nervous considering she could still bite him. Mothers protective instincts.
He gently touched the hatchling with his muzzle and smelled it. Moving back he sat down before the two new parents.
"Scales are soft, shallow breathing, no reactions to probing and frail body. I've seen hatchlings in similar conditions before. It's rare and they never make it past the first night." Kemok knew that wasn't what they wanted to hear but he wasn't going to lie to them or sugar coat it. They needed to know else it could crush them harder when it died.
"Isn't there anything we could do to save him?" Galerus asked as his claws dug into the bed they laid on.
As they talked the white hatchling would try to get to his brother to play. Whenever he'd get close one of his parents' tails would gently push him back.
Kemok shakes his head at the question. "Healing potions could give it time but even then its chances of survival are low. But to save you the heart ache i coul-" kemok stops talking when Selen gives a threatening growl.
"We are not putting him down! We'll do whatever it takes to give him a chance!"
Kemok nods in understanding. "I don't like the thought either, I'm sorry for mentioning it but its mandatory to ask in these cases." His gaze turns to the other hatchling making squeaks and growls of protest from under its fathers paw. A thought nagged him as he looked between the two hatchlings. "I've seen hatchlings have varying degrees of color but never like this. One has the scales of his father and eyes of his mother while the others color is not even close. Id check to see if his eye color matches but i dont want to risk damaging his eyes if they are underdeveloped."
Selen narrows her eyes at him due to what it sounded like he was insinuating.
"I dont mean that, Selen. If it was that then something like his horns or scale patterns would be different. Its just his colors that are wrong." Kemok corrected. "If its okay with you maybe i could bring a scanner from work and give them a more thorough check on them. It can pick up health issues that even we can't pick up."
Selen looked to her husband and he nodded. "I think it would be best to be thorough." He tells her and nuzzles her.
"Bring it tomorrow then. And maybe you should stay over just in case anything happens. If you don't mind." Selen tells him.
Kemok smiles and lets out a small laugh. "What kind of brother would I be if I didn't?"
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
"You can use the guest room. You know where it is, right?" Galerus goes to stand up but his brother waves at him with a paw.
"Second door down the hall. I know. I'm going to go raid your fridge later, want anything?" Kemok goes to the open doorway and looks back.
Galerus sighs and Selen smiles as she rests her head between her two hatchlings. One gave her joy as it excitedly nuzzled her muzzle and the other filled her heart with worry as it still hasn't moved.
"No, we are fine. But maybe you could donate a healing potion to your dear brother?"
Kemok smiled and nodded. "I was going to give you one even if you didn't ask. Ill be back soon." He leaves to head back to his house to get that potion.
-
Jack could tell there were big creatures around him. Three of them? One of them was higher pitched and kept getting closer and further. No there were four of them. There was a small one.
He had nothing else to do other than focus on living. It felt like there were fifty different things wrong with him.
How did he get here?
Right. World.
One of the creatures left. He heard it leave.
One of the creatures moved right next to him.
After a minute the two creatures starting growling at each other. It sounded weird how they would growl at the other. It wasn't like how normal animals would like he had seen, growling threatening at the same time. They sounded like they were replying. One would growl and after a second the other would growl back. It reminded him of two people talking.
A language of some kind? What were these animals?
Soon the one that had left came back and the one resting next to him moves away.
More growls and replies.
Then one of them lifts his head up and opens his mouth with claws. He tries to fight away but he couldn't move.
Liquid floods his mouth and down his throat without warning. He chokes, wanting to spit it out as it went down both pipes. Air! Breathe!
Jack panics as he feels himself fading again.
Suddenly the liquid stops and his mouth closes.
He tries to squeeze the liquid out of his lungs by breathing out.
Suddenly the liquid is absorbed by his body.
His lungs were clear again and he returned to breathing rapidly.
Was that a healing potion? It acted like one but it tasted different. It must have been since his body hurt a little less. It helped but not by much.
More! Pour me more!
He would open his mouth if he could. Or open his eyes. Or vocally demand more. Or do anything if he could.
The growls continued and the one that came back left again.
Jack focused back to himself. His body.
The best he could do is twitch. Small ones.
Head? Check.
Arms? Check.
Legs? Check.
Spine? Che- wait.
Jack felt something was wrong about his spine. The upper half. He twitched his spine again and felt two other things twitch too.
Two extra limbs? They felt wide in a weird way.
He moves on to the rest of himself. Specifically the other part that he could already feel connected to his lower spine. It felt like his spine continued far more than he was used to.
A tail maybe?
What the hell happened to me?
After a while he felt just enough strength come back to him thanks to the potion.
Opening an eye the best he could he manages to open it a crack.
Bright light flooded his vision but it soon dims enough to see.
Yellow scales and white scales. Big bodies. Sharp claws. Big wings. Curled around him.
Dragons!
Fear filled him.
He's seen a dragon once. It had burned a whole village down and ate people. It had taken a whole army to take it down!
Next to him in the corner of his vision he could see a baby dragon. White scales, blue eyes looking at him in curiosity.
He nearly jumped out of his skin if he could when it started moving towards him.
A yellow tail suddenly scoops the hatchling up and moves it back. The hatchling lets out a whine of protest.
Why did one of the dragons save him from its hatchling? He was weak and easy food. Was there something wrong with him that could affect the hatchling? It certainly felt like something was wrong with him. Many wrong things.
White catches his eye. Down on the ground where he lay was broken bits of white.
Egg shells?
Around him and mostly under him. He could feel the bits under him.
Over where the hatchling is is a broken egg.
Two eggs? If there were two then where is the other hatchling?
A thought crossed his mind.
Killed. World holding his soul. His soul being cast out into the unknown.
His body was lost. Yet here he is with another body with many things wrong with its shape.
Did… did he have the body of a dragon? Did he hatch from an egg? Their egg? Like that baby dragon staring at him?
Is that why they won't let it near him?
He hatched as their child and won't let their other kid near because it would hurt him while he was so weak?
Jack processed this but didnt know how to understand it.
His soul took the body of a dragon in its egg. Was that even how it worked?
Why is he so weak while the other hatchlings looked healthy?
Was he defective or something?
Both of the parent dragons were looking down at him. When did they do that?
-
Kyn.
That is the name they decided to name the black one.
And for the white one? His name is Kaid.
Selen had almost tried to attack Kemok when he gave some of the healing potion to Kyn. The hatchling choked and she tensed up. Kemok quick stopped and stepped back before things could escalate. The hatchling returned to breathing and all was forgiven.
After Kemok left, she and Galerus came up with their hatchlings' names.
Naming a hatchling that could die before morning might be a bad idea but something told her that wasn't going to happen. She would make sure kyn would survive.
It wasn't till they felt fear come from Kyn did they return their focus on him.
Why was it scared? Did something happen to it?
She felt her stomach drop. Was it dying? Is something happening to it?
She noticed that one of its eyes was open. Only barely, not enough to see its eyes but it could probably see them.
Kain started moving towards Kyn so she moved the White hatchling back with her tail.
"Maybe its sees us and is intimidated?" Galerus mutters to her as he looks closer.
The fear radiating from Kyn rose as his muzzle got close. He smiled and moves his head back, looking at his wife.
"He's fine."
Kyn's eye closed and she frowns. Was that progress? It didn't open its eye before. She hoped Kyn was getting better…
Galderus's smile falters at her worried look and gets up. "I'm going to get the hatchlings something to eat. I bet they are starving."
"I bet they are too. Thanks honey."
As Galerus left the room she played with Kain using her tail. The little hatchling let out cute growls and squeaks as he batted and dove for the tail.
Galerus returns with a chunk of raw meat in his mouth, cold from the kitchen fridge. It was traditional for hatchlings to be fed raw meat before moving them onto cooked food. Like the dragons of old used to eat.
Laying back down he sets the meat down between them. Kain stopped playing with his mothers tail and instantly jumped for the food. Sharp dragon teeth and claws sunk in and chomped down. Ripping a piece off he scarfed it down.
"We're going to have to teach him to eat slower…" Galerus mutters and Selen nods in agreement. Eating like that could give him a stomach ache.
Her attention turns to their other hatchling. Kyn.
If they fed him would he choke? It's what happened with the healing potion Kemok gave him…
But he needed to eat to build his strength.
Taking a bit of the meat she chewed it up until it became mush. Then she lifted Kyns head up and opens his mouth. Takes some of the chewed meat from her mouth she places it in his mouth and closes it, tilting his head up.
This time went better and she saw him swallow it down. Maybe he just didn't expect it the first time?
Selen continues to feed Kyn until he is as fat as Kain is. The white hatchling had eaten his fill, stomach round as he laid there before falling asleep.
Kyn shallows the last bit of meat so she lowers his head back down on the bed.
Seeing him eat made her feel somewhat better about his condition.
Both of them then heard the fridge in the kitchen open.
"Im going to make sure he doesn't take all our chocolate chips…" Galerus quickly gets up and leaves the room.
-
Galerus spotted Kemok with his head in the fridge.
"The cookies are off limits." Galerus tells him as he walks into the kitchen. Kemok jumps a bit at his voice and takes his head out of the fridge. Leftover meatloaf in his mouth he swallows it whole.
Galderus spotted some cookie crumbs on the side of Kemoks lip.
Too late…
"I'll buy you more tomorrow." Kemok gives him a sheepish smile and sits at the table. Galerus joins him and sits on the other side.
"It's fine." He sighs and glances back at the hallway.
Kemok followed his gaze to the bedroom door down the hall.
"I'm sorry, Galderus."
Galerus expression turns dark and he looks to the floor. "Kyn doesn't have a chance, does he?"
"His lungs are too underdeveloped. Among all the other issues he has I have a feeling that is what's going to…" He stops from finishing that sentence. "I've heard of cases like this being survivable but none of them were dragons. And none of them were to Kyns degree."
Gladerus's claws dug into the table at his words.
[The rest of the chapter is missing sadly. But it ends the same way as the rewrites chapter end. I'll fix this as soon as i can find where this end went lol.]