Though it took almost three weeks to fully harden, the soap turned out exactly as Elijah had hoped, which was to say that, while it was a little harsh, it did the job. So it was that, after spending almost two years on his island, he was finally able to reach a reasonable level of cleanliness. After that, he collapsed onto the bed, which was made of pleasant-smelling moss and leaves, he looked up at the softly glowing flowers above him and let out a satisfied sigh.

It had taken a long time, but he’d finally achieved a level of comfort that should have been impossible. So, of course it couldn’t last.

“Elijah,” came Nerthus’s soft voice.

Elijah looked up to see the tree spirit standing in his doorway. “What?” he asked. Then, seeing the troubled expression on Nerthus’s face, he sighed and said, “Please don’t tell me the tower is about to burst again.”

“It’s called a Surge,” Nerthus said. “But no. The local tower should be subdued for some time yet. Perhaps for as long as the Grove persists, if your Domain continues to grow.”

The boundaries of Elijah’s territory had continued to expand, but the growth was slow, and even if it kept going at the same rate, it would take months for the tower to be subsumed into his Domain. Hopefully, it would happen quickly enough that Elijah wouldn’t be forced to challenge it again. He could acknowledge that his previous experience within the tower had been valuable for his personal growth, but that didn’t mean he was eager for a repeat.

“Here’s hoping, then,” Elijah said, making a show of crossing his fingers. Nerthus clearly didn’t understand the gesture.

“Yes. Of course. The reason I’ve disturbed your rest is more troubling than the tower, though,” Nerthus said, nervously looking down as he shuffled from one foot to the next.

“That doesn’t sound good,” Elijah said, sitting up. “What’s going on?”

“I have been…contacted by a powerful being,” Nerthus explained. “And she made a request that I don’t think we should turn down.”

Elijah didn’t like the way that sounded. He sat up. “Powerful being? That’s a bit vague, man. Can’t you be a little more specific?” he asked.

In a clear effort to compose himself, Nerthus took a deep breath. “A dragon.”

“What? A dragon? Like a huge reptile with wings and –”

“Dragons are technically not reptilian, though they do share some characteristics,” he said. “But if you ever meet one – which seems likely, if you are to fulfil the request – you should not liken them to lizards.”

“Why?”

“Because they are touchy about that sort of thing, and you do not wish to anger a dragon.”

“I think I probably already know the answer to this,” Elijah said. “But why not?”

“Because a suitably upset dragon is fully capable of destroying this entire planet.”

“Gotcha. Don’t piss dragons off,” Elijah said. “So – if they’re so powerful, then why would one need to make a request of me?”

Nerthus answered, “Because this planet is young. Its Ethera is weak enough that a fully-grown dragon couldn’t survive here. However, that is not to say that they couldn’t destroy this whole planet from afar. Or if they set foot on the surface.”

Elijah sighed. He certainly didn’t like the sound of that. Nor was he thrilled with the implications behind the statement. It felt like Nerthus was telling him that if he didn’t do what this dragon asked, then he would run the risk of having his entire planet destroyed.

“What does this dragon want?”

“Something was stolen from her,” Nerthus said. “In fact, it is, at this moment, only a few miles away. She wishes for you to retrieve it.”

That sounded very vague to Elijah, and he said as much before asking what, precisely, had been stolen.

“Her daughter,” Nerthus said. “She is barely past the hatchling stage, though even that should have been plenty to survive a new planet such as this. However, she was abducted soon after her arrival and brought to the settlement across the strait.”

“Why?” Elijah asked. “I mean, if dragons are so powerful, why would anyone do something so stupid?”

Nerthus sighed. “I have mentioned this a few times, but this universe can be roughly divided into two philosophies,” he said. “On one side, there are those who see the world as theirs by right. They consume, using any means they can to progress. On the other are those like you who, instead, seek to harmonize with the natural world.

“The first way is faster, but it comes at a cost. Once a resource is used, it is gone. These devourers must continuously seek new sources of power,” Nerthus went on. “They are, in a very real way, a spreading virus that will consume the universe. The worst of them adhere to the Church of the Devourer, a Transcendent being older than your world and much more powerful than anything you can imagine.”

“But these…devourers, their way works, right?”

“Certainly.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“And the other side?” Elijah asked, already guessing the answer. Still, he wanted it confirmed.

“Preservationists seek to cultivate relationships with sources of power,” he said. “For instance, if a devourer were to encounter this Grove, he would harvest the ancestral tree and use the wood to fuel his own advancement.”

“How?”

“Potions. Rituals to temporarily provide an ideal cultivation environment. Sacrifices. They might even consume the wood via mastication,” Nerthus explained. “The methods are many and varied. But the results are the same. They get a little stronger, and this Grove would cease to exist. Once they’d wrung every ounce of power from it, they would move on to the next. And the next after that. Over and over until they reached the pinnacle or there was nothing left.”

“So, I’m already a preservationist, huh?” Elijah asked. “Or does harvesting the berries in this Grove mark me as a devourer? What if I was to –”

“You wouldn’t have been offered the druid archetype if you were the sort who might become a devourer.”

“Oh.”

“But most people are somewhere in between,” Nerthus admitted. “And though I may not like it, I can’t blame people for grasping at power. However, there are those who take things too far. That is what we’re dealing with here.”

“How so?”

“Dragons are some of the most powerful creatures in the known universe,” Nerthus answered. “The people who kidnapped the young one intend to drain her.”

“Drain her? That’s…wait…they’re going to use a sentient creature as fuel?” Elijah asked. “That’s…I mean…is that even allowed?”

“Of course not!” Nerthus exclaimed. “But there are those who will do anything for power.”

Elijah shook his head. The idea was abhorrent, but he could understand the motivation. On Earth, people had done horrible things for money and power, so the idea that some would be willing to sacrifice a sapient creature just to enhance their own cultivation wasn’t all that surprising. Greed, it seemed, was a constant, even in the wider universe.

“What am I supposed to do?” asked Elijah.

“The task is simple. Retrieve the young one.”

He waved his hand, and a notification bloomed before Elijah’s eyes.

A powerful entity has offered you a Task:

Objective:

Rescue the Child

Reward:

Blessing of the Dragon, Kirlissa

Do you accept?

“This looks like the tasks I did in the tower,” Elijah said. Then, he looked up at Nerthus and asked, “How?”

“Sufficient power gives you the option of offering official tasks through the System,” he said. “I am merely the vessel by which the dragon acted.”

“What is the Blessing of the Dragon?”

Nerthus shook his head. “That, I do not know,” he said. “It could be a useful item. It could be ethereum. Or anything else. There is no limit, save for the level of power of the offered reward.”

“Which is?”

“Enough to make a difference. Not enough to change the fate of this world,” Nerthus said. “So, will you take the task?”

“I have one more question,” Elijah said. “Why me?”

Nerthus cocked his head to the side as if confused. Then, he said, “Because you are a druid.”

“Yeah, no – I know I am. But what difference does that make? I’m sure there are lots of druids.”

“No. There aren’t. Perhaps a few thousand satisfied the requirements of that archetype. Of those, only a couple hundred managed to survive. It is a prestigious and rare archetype. Even more so because you have managed to gain power so quickly. Usually, druids are much slower and far less combative. The more action-oriented of the archetype tend to die early deaths.”

“Oh. That’s…I don’t know if I should feel good about myself for surviving or terrible for all the people who died.”

“Both,” said Nerthus.

“Still – that doesn’t answer the question. What makes me being a druid so important?” Elijah asked.

“Dragons trust druids.”

“Why?”

“Mutual benefit and aligned philosophies,” Nerthus stated. “That is not to say they are one entity. Dragons tend to be…proud, and though dragons and druids have often allied with one another, there is still some level of animosity. However, with something of this nature, there is no better ally than a druid.”

Elijah still didn’t quite understand. It was just an archetype, which in turn, was just a means to get some useful spells. But he wasn’t going to argue with the tree spirit’s assertion.

“Okay – I thought of another question. How did the dragon contact you?”

“Very painfully,” Nerthus answered. “I barely survived the touch of her mind.”

“Oh.”

“So, will you accept the task?” the tree spirit asked.

Elijah was torn. He had seen how powerful the people across the strait were when they’d killed the guardian. So, what chance did he have of going up against an entire settlement? But then again, could he sit on the sidelines and let an innocent person die? Sure, that person was a dragon, but that didn’t really matter.

She was just a child. What kind of monster would he have to be to ignore her plight?

And then there was the reward. The Blessing of the Dragon was a bit ambiguous, but Nerthus seemed convinced that it would be worth it. Besides, if dragons were so powerful, then a blessing bearing their name was clearly something worth pursuing.

Just like that, Elijah knew what he would do. So, he accepted the task, then told Nerthus his decision. The tree spirit seemed relieved, but he was also clearly worried.

“I need to get ready,” Elijah said.

And so he did. He didn’t have much in the way of supplies to gather, but he did grab his staff. One thing he’d discovered was that, so long as he was wearing an item – even if it was something like a knife stuck to his belt or a pack secured to his back – it would transform right alongside him.

That would have been good to know before he’d challenged the tower, but back then, he’d just assumed it was just his staff that transformed with him. So, he’d never even tried it. Now he knew, though, and so, he could prepare accordingly.

After stuffing one of his woven satchels full of berries and mushrooms, Elijah stuck his pilfered knife into a homemade sheath at his waist. Then, after checking everything a second time, he bade goodbye to Nerthus, who wished him luck. Then, he set off across his island.

Soon enough, he reached his destination.

The boat hadn’t been in the water since he’d helped kill the trio of invaders who’d infiltrated his island, and the months that had passed since then had left it a little worse for wear. Still, it wasn’t rotted, so he figured it would hold together at least long enough for him to reach the other shore.

However, Elijah wasn’t going to set off until after dark. So, he settled down to wait. In that time, he focused on what he planned to do. He didn’t know the layout of the settlement – which, by that point, had become a proper city, with thousands of residents – but he hoped he could figure things out when he got there.

It wasn’t much of a plan, but he didn’t know how else to accomplish the task at hand.

Eventually, night began to fall, accompanied by a light drizzle. Elijah looked to the west and saw dark clouds on the horizon. There was a storm coming, and he could only hope that he had the means to survive it.