I woke up in a cage. Not too surprising, I suppose. It’s the same cage I fell asleep in earlier, after all. I got up, stretched, curled my tail, and spread my wings. Oh, right, I should probably mention: I’m a dragon. Currently, I’m being held captive by a jerk of a wizard, who thinks he can do experiments on me. And considering I’m the one in the cage, I guess he’s right. I thought today would be another day in what’s my new “normal”, but I was wrong.
My scales are blue, but with the lack of food and overabundance of stress, they were not looking as good as they should. They were dull and slightly gray, instead of the deep blue with a glossy finish they were before. My horns were smooth and swept back, a bone white with a slight gray tint, and my wing membranes were a similar color. My underside scales were a more pale, sky-blue color, and my tail had a cute arrowhead-shaped spade at the end. Along my back, all the way down to the end of my tail, were twin rows of ridges. Both tail spade and back ridges were made of cartilage so they were stiff, but pliant enough that they didn’t harm anything. They looked kind of like I’d seen on alligators. Standing up to stretch, the cage bars let me compare my height. I was about three, maybe three and a half feet at the shoulder. On most people, my shoulder would be about the level of their waist. I think this put me at around the size of a large-ish hound? I didn’t have a mirror, but I knew my eyes had golden irises, with slit pupils. I didn’t mind the lack of a mirror, I didn’t like looking into my own eyes. Doing so made me feel like my reflection was accusing me of letting myself end up in this whole situation.
The wizard Elimaio came in, this time pulling a chain that led to the manacles made of light on a human, who was unconscious on a floating disc of magical energy. Well, at least I might get a break, if he’s got a new captive to toy with. But that means someone else is going to have to deal with the crap I’ve been going through, and that ticks me off even more than the “experiments”. And yes, I snickered at his name too when I first heard it. The wizard was less than amused. By this point, Elimaio hasn’t bothered talking to me when he’s not planning something, so the newbie was tossed in the cage next to mine unceremoniously, and the wizard was on his way. I guess the chains weren’t considered necessary anymore, as they disappeared once the door slammed shut.
Once we were alone, I sniffed at the figure through the bars of the cage. I don’t know what I was expecting, he smelled… healthy enough, I suppose? And without the stink of incense and various ingredients Elimaio used. Probably not another magic user, probably some random traveller who had the misfortune of “trespassing” too close to the tower. Knocked out and dumped in without so much as a bowl of food and water like I had. Well, if I had questions, maybe they’d be answered now, since he was waking up.
I figured I’d break the ice. “He didn’t hurt you too bad, did he? You don’t seem to be hurt.”
“Wha…? You… You can talk. And you’re… Are you actually a dragon?”
“Well, I’m not two leprechauns in a costume, I’m pretty sure.” Yeah, I’m a little snarky, sue me.
“Sorry, just… it’s been a weird day. All my days have been pretty weird, lately.”
“If they’re all weird, then it’s normal they’re weird. It’s amazing what becomes normal, isn’t it? So, what’s your name?”
“Oh, my name’s Tola. Yeah, the town nearby said something about a wizard causing trouble, but they neglected to give a few details…”
“I’ll bet. This jerk’s pretty hard to predict. Thinks really highly of himself. You’re not in for a good time.”
“I kinda gathered. Nothing good usually comes from waking up in a cage.” There wasn’t much else to talk about, so we just sat in silence for a bit. It was a bit awkward, but I guess the events had taken more of a toll on him than he admitted. He had moved to sit against the back wall of the cage, knees up, arms on his knees, and head on his arms. Now, there was a soft snore coming from him, so he must have drifted off to sleep. So much for something new, maybe I’ll try to get a nap as well.
Elimaio did come back and provide food for his “guest”. “I am not such an ungracious host as to not provide, even for a heinous lurker about my domain. No doubt you were hoping to abscond with whatever valuables you could come across.” The speech went on for a while, and was as one-sided as you’d expect. If Tola even looked like he was going to try to talk up, he was shot a withering glare while the wizard imagined worse and worse hypothetical motivations. Everything from simple espionage to flat-out assassination. After what felt like hours, he seemed to have gotten enough of his own voice and wandered off back to his study.
“Man, he really likes to hear himself talk, doesn’t he?” Tola asked.
“You have no idea. I don’t even talk anymore. I’m not sure he remembers that I can.”
Tola gave that slight exhalation that was the baby brother to an actual chuckle. He picked at the plate of “food” that had been left for him, some sort of stew and chunk of bread. The smell made my stomach growl, because it had been a while since Elimaio had bothered to put a bowl of food out for me. It must’ve been louder than I thought, because Tola raised his head and looked at me questioningly.
“I think he’s trying to starve me into compliance. He thinks he’s going to break my will and I’ll start obeying him, but it hasn’t worked yet. Even with the collar.”
“The collar?”
“Yeah, this nasty thing.” I raised a paw up to the heavy iron band around the base of my neck. It looked pretty simple, but without a clasp as it had closed shut magically when it was put on. “It’s his favorite little toy. Or I guess second-favorite, wrapped around the neck of his favorite toy. He mostly uses it to shock me when he’s in the mood. It also shocks me when I even think too much about attacking him. It’s… not my favorite.” The last words dripped with as much disdain as was draconically possible. Which turned out to be a lot.
“That’s pretty messed up. Well, I’m not hungry, why don’t you have mine?” I didn’t even have time to protest before Tola slid the tray under the bars, into my cell. I stared at it, wanting to decline politely, but… The smell of it, so close, was making my mouth water like crazy. I didn’t trust myself to speak a word without just drooling all over the floor. “Really, I insist.”
It didn’t take long for me to give in. My tail went from flicking the tip back and forth to full wagging, swaying from side to side as I buried my head into the stew. It had been ages since I’d had anything but the dried-out scraps of raw meat from whatever dish had been cooked that day, something with spices and flavor was nearly blowing my mind. I was licking the bowl clean before I realized how embarrassing of a display I had just put on, a slight chuckle coming from the next cage as I tried to salvage what little dignity I had left by sitting up with my tail curled around my feet. The bread just… didn’t smell like something that would be appetizing to me, so I left it on the tray. Besides, it felt rude to eat every single part of someone else’s meal.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh, just… Sorry.”
“It’s all right… I know, it’s… it’s fine. I’m just not used to having an audience.” Things were a little awkward after that, but a full belly of warm stew is a great way to make yourself drowsy. Combined with it already getting dark, it wasn’t long before I curled up to drift off to sleep again.
When I woke up, the cell next to me was empty. I began my usual routine of stretching and pacing, but stopped when I heard a slight scratching noise. Freezing in place, I tried to listen again for it, and was rewarded with the sound, clear enough to tell that it was coming from behind the wall of Tola’s cell. A moment later, and a small mouse squeezed out from a crack in the wall, coming in for the bread that had been left behind. But seeing the mouse coming out directed my attention to a line, running up the wall between the bricks. Sure, it might be a coincidence, but… Maybe I’d ask Tola if he made it back. I watched the mouse stuff his face, for the break in monotony, if nothing else. Whiskers dancing, the simple animal having no idea of the greater forces at work all around him. No way to comprehend the minds behind the structure he resided in, that created the bread he stole. Whatever philosophical musings were cut short, as the door to the room swung open, Elimaio bringing his captive back to his cell with a grumpy expression. Without a word, my prison-mate was dropped off and the wizard stormed out.
“Welcome back. I saved you a seat.” Sure, the humor might be drier than the discarded bread, but anything to stave off madness, right?
“Thanks, but I wish it had more of a view.” Like I said, humor.
“So, what was all that about, anyway? You look to be in one piece.”
“He really refuses to believe I’m simply a wandering traveller. I tried telling him I’m not from around here, but he claimed I was obviously lying to not know who ‘The Great Elimaio’ is. I mean, is that really his name?”
“Well, it’s the only name he’s told me, so… probably?”
“It sounds like… Nevermind. I guess he caught me smirking, and decided that was even more proof I’m plotting whatever it is he thinks I’m doing.” Huh, so I wasn’t the only one who thought it was silly? Now I really wanted to help this guy.
“Weellll… I don’t know about a view, but I did see something that… Maybe it’s nothing, maybe it’s something, but who knows? You should check out that wall.” I nodded my head to where I had seen the mouse disappear to. “You had a guest come by while you were out.”
I could tell from his expression that he didn’t know what I was getting at, but he’d at least try to humor me. His fingers poked and prodded at the stonework, eventually finding the small hole the mouse had used, being able to hook one in and try to wiggle around. I had thought maybe a stone would come loose, and maybe it or something else could be used to his advantage, but I definitely wasn’t expecting an entire section of the wall to swing open as easily as it did! And I wasn’t the only one.
“Is that… a secret passage? But… Who would put a secret passage in a jail cell? It makes no sense.” I mean, I’d seen some crazy stuff, and I was pretty sure The Great Jerk wasn’t quite all there, but this was not something that made sense.
“I’d say… Who would put a jail cell in front of a secret passage. The bars look newer than the stone. Could be whoever put them in didn’t know this was here… But what about you?”
“Look, if you’ve got a chance to get out of here, you really should take it.” I looked towards the door, afraid it would swing open at any moment.
“Yeah, but leaving you behind?” I almost flinched when he said that. He already gave me his food, and now he was being even nicer to me, in spite of not being human like him…
“Just go!” The words came with a thump of my tail swinging down and slapping the stone floor. “I’ve dealt with him this long, it’s not like he can do anything to me he hasn’t already. Besides, what is he gonna do, accuse me of helping you escape while I’m in this cage?” I hissed that out a bit harsher than I meant to, but mostly because I didn’t want him to see me blushing. I couldn’t even turn to look as I heard the stones grinding against each other, the secret door closing again. I didn’t even realize I’d been holding my breath until I let it out in a shaky sigh.
I had to be told this part later, since I wasn’t there. The passage had been an old servant tunnel, dusty and full of webs, unused for years. Since Elimaio had used his magic for everything, he didn’t bother hiring any sort of staff, and hadn’t bothered actually learning about the passages when he took over the tower. Tola had followed the walls to carefully make his way through the dark, finding another door that let out into the kitchen area. With the wizard in his study and mealtime not for some hours yet, it was the perfect chance to slip out. The golems present didn’t have the intelligence to react to an intruder, or anything outside of what they were designed to react to, so they acted like he wasn’t even there as he made his way out the back entrance and fled.
Making his way past the grounds, the nearby town was his priority. From there, he figured, he could try to tell people about what the wizard was up to. However, the entire time he was travelling, he felt worse about having left the way he did. By the time he made it to the town, his mind was made up. He’d spend a single night, resting and recovering, and in the morning he’d prepare as best he could to come back.
Before noon, he was leaving town once again, heading towards the tower with purpose.
During this time, Elimaio had been furious. He might not have actually suspected me, but that didn’t stop him from taking it out on me. He didn’t have a lot of other directions to vent his frustrations, after all. He had been pacing back and forth, inspecting the bars, shocking me using the collar around my neck, throwing anything he got his hands on across the room, the works. “If you’d just OBEY already, I could have had a guard animal, one that could STOP potential assassins and thieves from getting away! How can you BE so… stubborn?” To be honest, I had stopped listening about the third time he reworded that rant, each time punctuating it with shocks. If he thought I was stubborn before, I was determined to not even give him the satisfaction of yelping in pain, even as my claws scraped along the stone floor, leaving bright lines crossing each other with each new jolt of pain.
It actually wasn’t even that hard, the fact that he was so bent out of shape meant this was an even sweeter victory for me. Every time he calmed down, only to blow up again, I was glad to have done it. Not just for the sake of the one person who’d shown me kindness, but to spite the source of my pain.
The most unexpected thing of all, then, was when Elimaio paced across the room once again, only for the door to carefully, slowly swing open behind him. My eyes widened at the sight of Tola, armed with a dagger and a grim expression. Unfortunately, I made a big mistake at that moment, probably more than one. Even looking back on it, it’s hard to tell exactly how everything happened, because it all went so fast. It’s more like a series of moments flashing in my head.
“No! I told you to leave! What are you doing?” The words escaped my throat before I could realize how bad of an idea that was.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
The shock on Elimaio’s face didn’t last long, as he wheeled to face the direction I was looking, seeing Tola standing in the doorway.
Tola recognized the element of surprise was lost. I don’t know if it was his plan, a panicked reaction, or somewhere in between, but he threw the dagger in his hand at the wizard.
The dagger went wide, clattering to the floor behind both me and Elimaio.
I threw myself at the bars, rattling the metal as the lock held the door shut. I don’t remember the throwing so much as just finding myself stopped.
Elimaio’s face twisted into a sneer, one hand raised as he channeled his magic, a glowing web of lines surrounding his hands.
Tola’s body slammed back against the wall, lifting up into the air, as he struggled to get free of the invisible force.
I managed to reach through the bars with a foreleg, swiping my claws at Elimaio. I wasn’t close enough to reach, and the collar shocked me anyway, even worse than before, making me cough and tremble as I struggled to stay on my feet.
Elimaio turned to sneer at me this time, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small stone. One I had seen before, a glowing rune on the surface. With his thumb over the symbol, he willed the collar to shock me again. “Foolish beast. The collar won’t let you attack the holder of your Control Rune. I’m surprised you’re able to talk, though. No wonder you’ve been able to resist this long.”
Tola slumped to the floor, the distraction having let him free. Next to him was a table that had been smashed during the wizard’s tirade, and his hand found one of the broken legs. Rising to his feet, he approached with his makeshift club.
“You’ll never break me. Your will can’t beat this ‘foolish beast’, you’ll continue to lose.” I coughed the words as I fought back the spinning room and my body’s urge to vomit. At least I think it did. I remember wondering if dragons even can vomit, in that moment.
Elimaio raised the stone in his hand again, and I’m sure he was about to gloat, or refute my words, or something. But that wooden club swung through his raised hand and smacked into the side of his face, sending him stumbling. “Tch! I let myself get distracted… Fine, I guess you really DO want to die today, worm!”
Tola was once again held by the magic grip, his struggles getting more desperate as he could only make a faint choking noise, eyes wide as he clawed at nothing in his frantic attempts to get air again.
It was as if time had stopped for me, all I could think was how angry I was, how much I hated this wizard, how I felt guilty for… not convincing Tola enough to stay away? For letting harm come to the one person who didn’t treat me like something to be feared or killed? I don’t really know, I just knew that my entire body was feeling white-hot, and it all came out in a roar, and with that roar was a burst of flame. A sustained gout of fire that went through the bars of the cage door, and parted before they reached the wizard. Even as the metal glowed and sagged, as the stone floor blackened, a ring around his feet stayed untouched, and not so much as a loose thread of his robes was singed.
Elimaio turned his head to glare at me, his arm still keeping Tola trapped. Distracting him wasn’t going to be so easy this time. “Amazing… But did you really think I would deal with dragons and NOT ward myself against fire?”
Tola’s struggles started to fade, as strength left his body, exhausted and losing the battle.
My blood was pounding in my head, I was growling without being aware of it, but I was dimly aware that I had attacked him and didn’t get punished. I launched myself again, not because I had any plan, just because I couldn’t not do it. But this time, the weakened, partially-melted lock couldn’t hold, the door swinging open from the impact. The wizard’s eyes opened, his other hand raised, and he began channeling magic again. A powerful mage like him could easily sustain two simple spells like he was using. It would take him only a second to raise, shape, and channel the energy into the crafted form he imagined.
But he didn’t have a second.
He had an angry dragon instead. My claws thudded against his chest, piercing through cloth and skin. My head shot forward, fangs open, and I grabbed his throat before he could even make a sound from the wind being knocked out of him. He fell backwards, with me on top of him, and my claws pulled down. Slicing through layers of muscle and fat and skin, scraping along the bones of his ribs. Then they lifted, and the points dug between two, hooking in and I pulled. Cracking, snapping sounds added to the wet mix and the gurgle from what was left of his throat.
Tola collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath. I’d say I did a pretty good job distracting Elimaio after all. When the body under me wasn’t moving anymore, I stopped seeing red, vision clearing as I caught my breath. It was like ice-cold water had been poured over me, and I opened my mouth to spit out the… the mess. The sight before him that greeted his clearing vision… I don’t blame him for scrabbling out the door and running. I might not be seeing red, but I was certainly wearing it.
I had Killed. I killed someone. I tasted his blood and flesh, felt it in my claws, the warmth against my scales. It tasted good, like fresh meat, but I didn’t feel good. Maybe dragons can’t vomit after all, because in spite of how I felt, I didn’t. Looking back, I was in shock. I don’t really remember thinking much, just… retreating into my cage and curling up and shivering. I didn’t have anywhere to go, the cage was all I’d known for so long, even though I couldn’t stop staring at the body. Smelling it. Tasting it until saliva washed it out of my mouth.
I dimly remember using the water bowl to wash as much as I could off my paws. I didn’t want to feel it. I didn’t want to clean myself with my tongue. The poor excuse of bedding that was in my cage took the rest of the mess as best as I could make it. Eventually, the adrenaline crash caused me to curl up and sleep in the corner.
When I awoke, it was to the sound of boots stomping heavily through the tower. Several pairs. One was even in the room. The figures were in uniforms, I recognized seeing the symbol from before I had been captured. The coat of arms for the kingdom, I think, so these must have been guards of some kind. I was still in shock, so when they were talking, I couldn’t really bring myself to pay attention. Why should I? But then the one who seemed to be in charge did something that made me take notice. She knelt down, and picked something up from the mess. The Control Rune that had been knocked out of Elimaio’s hand, which was why I had been able to attack him. And the moment she held it, I felt the same instinctual unease as I had felt towards the wizard. I knew that if I tried to fight or resist, I’d be punished for it. She must have noticed me paying attention, because she held it up as she took a closer look at me. “Huh, at least this saves me a lot of work. You know what this is, don’tcha? Yeah, that’s right, you be a good monster, now.”
My mind was too blank to form words to respond. What did it matter, anyway? She was right, I was a monster. I just let my head sink back down to rest on the floor. Some time later, I suppose they had finished whatever investigation they had been doing, and started to leave. The Captain, as I heard her called, waved to me and signaled me to follow. She only seemed mildly surprised to see that I obeyed. Why fight? She’d just shock me anyway, and it’s not like I had a reason to stay. Avoiding the shock was only the slightest bit better than staying, and it wasn’t worth fighting. At the time, nothing seemed to be worth anything. I just dimly followed, plodding, one foot in front of the other, the world around me being a haze I barely noticed.
It was a long walk back towards the larger city. I guess the smaller village nearby was too small to have a dedicated guard station? I didn’t really care, as a general statement. About where we were going, or what I’d do once we got there. As it turned out, the latter was “not much”, as I was put into a caged area that was either jail cell turned storage room, or storage room turned jail cell, I couldn’t tell which. I know at some point I was fed some scraps, left over from the guards’ dinners, which I only bothered to eat because they were there and the hunger was enough to be a sharp distraction from the thoughts I’d been wallowing in. At some point, probably the next day, the guards had brought in someone with fancier clothes. The scent reminded me a bit of Elimaio, and I almost growled, but instead all that came out was a sigh. This time, I paid a little more attention.
He was an Official Mage, sent to inspect me for Unauthorized Modifications or something along those lines. I was a little curious what he’d find, but perhaps he wasn’t very good at his job, because according to him there wasn’t anything special about me. One hundred percent dragon. No need to destroy me on the spot.
This time, I paid a lot more attention.
In the next couple of days, I overheard enough to piece together a bit more about my situation. Elimaio, in addition to his crimes of kidnapping, torture, and unauthorized use of magic, was also something of a tax dodger. Tola, it seems, had ran to fetch guards and tell them what happened, and as such he had been awarded a nice bounty for his trouble “and heroism”. The Crown, meanwhile, would be destroying any contraband. This included any experiments, since it was safer than determining just what sort of enchantments were left on them. Since I didn’t register as having any magic other than the Control Collar, I was not an “experiment”, I was an “asset”. Which brings me to the last part of the process: selling off all remaining assets in order to recoup the unpaid taxes. From what I gathered, I already had a butcher lined up to purchase me, in order to make a sizeable amount of gold from selling my hide to leatherworkers, claws and fangs to jewelrysmiths, meat to the especially fancy chefs, and whatever else to whoever would buy it. I thought about speaking up, but that would just earn me a reclassification as “contraband experiment”, and wouldn’t exactly help my case any.
Over the next couple of days, while paperwork slowly crawled through the system, I thought about ways to… well, do anything, really. However, I was never out of sight, and the guard on duty always held that damnable Control Rune, meaning even a low growl got me a shock for my trouble. I was beginning to think my last chance would be to try something when the cell door was opened in order to take me out, if that even happened.
“Sir, I don’t know what you’ve been told, but you’ve already been paid your bounty.”
“I don’t care, I’m claiming that dragon. I have the forms, I’m claiming Right of Conquest. Read it yourself.” Now that was a voice that really made me sit up. Tola? Here?
“Okay, look, I don’t know what your game is, or who told you what. So, I’m gonna do you a big favor here, and pretend I didn’t see that document. Because maybe you haven’t been told, but you can’t just claim what you want. You claim all or nothing.” The Captain clearly didn’t have a high opinion of Tola. I suppose it made a little sense, he’d “lucked into” the reward he got. “Besides, in order to claim this, you’d have to return the bounty you’d already been paid.”
“Oh, I know. I have it right here.” The sound of a bag full of coins clinking hit the desk. I couldn’t see the exchange from my cell, but I could at least hear it. “And I’ve already been informed of both the debt, and the rules. I’ve ALSO been informed that I have the right to draft a payment plan in order to make arrangements, and that Right of Conquest can NOT be refused.”
What was he talking about? What was he getting? The loud sigh of defeat from the Captain was enough to get my tail swaying from side to side, as I pressed against the bars to try to get a look.
“I’m telling you, you don’t know what you’re getting into, but fine. We’ll just repossess it all when you fail to pay anyway, and you’ll be in jail without a coin to your name.” Papers rustled, I suppose the Captain had to check to make sure everything was in order.
“I’ll pay it, but I want the dragon. Now.” That was quite the firm tone in his voice. But why would he want me? That’s the part that didn’t make any sense. I mean, he SAW what I did…
The Captain sighed again, putting the paperwork into the drawer, before getting the key to the cell. She opened the door, and then placed the Control Stone into Tola’s hand. “You’re an idiot, but the damn thing’s your responsibility now. It so much as craps on someone’s shoes, you’re the one paying for it. Don’t say I didn’t try to warn you.”
I saw him pocket the Stone before he knelt down, holding his arms out, and I couldn’t help but rush forward, pressing up against his chest, a deep purr in my chest. Huh, dragons purr. That was the first time I’d ever had a reason to, I guess.
My tail wouldn’t stop swinging from side to side, standing beside Tola, while the guards fetched various bits of paperwork, handing the stack to Tola. “Here you go, receipts for what’s already been sold off. The funds from that will be applied to your debt, whatever hasn’t been sold yet is yours to keep. Hopefully you do better with that tower than the last guy, or we’ll see you soon…” The last bit definitely had as much malice as the Captain could put into it.
Once everything had been sorted out, we were shooed out of the building, so they could get back to their Very Important Duties, which I knew from watching consisted of gossiping about the serving girl in the local tavern, and playing cards against each other. It didn’t really hit until we were leaving the gates of the city, what all had happened.
“Wait, I… Tola, what did they mean about debt? What did you do? What was all that about conquest?” I’m sure I had plenty more questions, but they were pretty much all variations of the same basic themes.
“Well, over the last few days, I’ve been busy with research. Looking into local laws. First I worked to find out what was going to happen to you, after I found out you had been taken away. The bounty I got wasn’t enough to purchase you, but then I found out about the ‘Right of Conquest’. It’s an older law, but if someone defeats a lawbreaker, and there’s no other claim on the land and possessions, the victor can lay claim to it in return for their ‘service’ of having brought them to ‘justice’. At some point, it got amended to include all debts as well, because noble families were abusing it to set up a figurehead, ‘defeat’ them, and ‘claim’ everything while claiming all the debt of the house was erased. So, basically, everything that Elimaio guy had is now mine, and since you were his, you’re now… technically, mind you… mine?”
“Yours. Huh. Well… Better than the butcher, I suppose?” Did I really just trade one captivity for another? A quick death for a slow one? Is this all I can hope for, after all?
“Only technically! I mean, you’re free to go if you want! You… You risked yourself to help me out back there, after all. Stood up to him for me. The least I could do is help you how I can. I couldn’t leave you behind like that, is all.”
I followed beside him in silence. I still wasn’t sure what to think. Freedom… I couldn’t really be free. Not only did I not know how to live in the wild, I still had that collar. I still felt that same feeling of dread and unease, now towards Tola. It churned in my stomach to feel that towards someone who’d shown me such kindness. I hated it, the thought, the feeling… But what could I possibly do?
“Oh, by the way, they gave me this thing, do you know what it is?” The Control Rune was now in his hand. The sight of it made my heart race. He couldn’t… really be thinking of… Could he? “Oh, wow, that is a reaction. Okay, so, what is this thing?”
“It’s… nngh. It’s the Control Rune for my collar. The holder can use it to shock me. Punish me, train me, whatever. It also prevents me from even trying to harm you. I couldn’t even claw in Elimaio’s direction until you knocked it from his hand, during the fight.” My head stared at the ground. Why deny it? He HAD to have known, perhaps it was a test.
“That’s… disgusting…” He set the thing on a rock, taking another in his hand, and swung it down. On impact, the small runestone shattered, pieces flying in every direction with a flash of lightning and a bang. I hadn’t realized what he was doing so I didn’t have time to shout, or know what to expect, but a similar bang came from the fused clasp on the collar, the two halves popping apart and falling to the ground. My neck was bare for the first time in… How long had it been?
I simply stared at it in shock for a moment, dumbfounded. Finally, words found me again. “What the hell did you do that for? You… You saw what I did to Elimaio! I could do that to you, now! What if I lunged at you, what would you do?”
Tola clearly didn’t expect that sort of response. After a moment, silently watching my face, the confusion and panic, he replied. “Are you going to do that?”
“Wh–!? No! Of course not!”
“Then why should I be scared that you will?”
My mouth hung open. “I… Y-you SAW what happened! What I’m capable of! I’m… I’m a monster! I’m terrifying! I’m horrible!”
“You’re free. I don’t think you’d do that kind of thing, not to me, and not to anyone who didn’t really deserve it. You defended yourself. You defended me. Humans can kill each other too, and we don’t call each other monsters for defending ourselves and others.” He stood his ground, and then he knelt down, placing a hand on my shoulder, staring me in the eyes.
I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know what to do. Eventually, I broke his gaze, looking back down at the pieces of the collar.
“You know, I never got a chance to ask your name. What is your name?”
The question caught me by surprise. “I… I don’t… have one. I guess Elimaio was planning to name me after he broke me into obedience, but… Well, that didn’t happen.”
“Huh. Well, if you’re going to stay with me, we’ll have to figure something out.”
“Stay with you? Like, in the tower?” He couldn’t really be offering what I thought he was, could he?
“Sure. I mean, it might be my name on the paperwork, but the only reason we prevailed was because both of us fought him. We made a pretty good team, I think. You’re free to stay, you’re free to leave. The choice is yours.” His hand stroked across my scales gently, and I looked away before he saw me blush.
“You rescued me again, you know. Like one of those knights in the fables. My hero.”
“Does that make you my princess?”
I chuckled a little. “Possibly…”
“Well, why don’t we get moving then, Princess?” He stood up again, waiting for me.
I looked up, meeting his eyes again, my tail wagging. I don’t know how to explain it, but I finally felt… good. Happy. “I heard them say you’re… responsible for me?”
“Yeah, like I said, I’m technically, on paper only, your owner? But that’s just something they put down, I don’t actually OWN you own you.”
“No, I understand. But… it might be best to pretend you do. People are going to be scared of a dragon, after all. And if I try to talk to them, it’ll only make them more scared. So, for all they know, I’m… I’m Princess.” My tail must’ve swung a bit harder when I said that, because it got a chuckle out of Tola. So I smiled. “I’m Princess. I… like that name.”
“Princess it is, then. Come along, girl. We’ll have a lot of work ahead of us to get things set up, after all.”
With that, the two of us walked towards the tower. It would take time to clear it of more than just dust and broken furniture, but bad memories too. However… I felt like it would be worth it, for the memories we’d make now.