I soar over the forest above me the night sky stretches to the horizons. The stars accented by a band of nebulous flowing colors, in the distance I can see a massive bean stalk topped by a giant castle. As I try to make out details the space around me begins to dissolve the stars winking out one by one I find myself in darkness for a moment before my eyes shoot open. I am met with the sight of my small cave home and the comforting feeling of two lizards pressed against my left side. I stretch my wings, tail, and neck slowly as to not jostle the sleeping lizards. My attempts at subtlety fail as both lizards' eyes pop open as I begin to move. Seeing me stretching they both close their eyes and fall back to sleep on the floor.

Crawling out of the bedroom I see three of the lizards looking out towards the mouth of the cave, vigilantly watching for any threats. Moving beside them I crouch down as well, looking towards the mouth of the cave I begin to form a plan for the day.

*I need to decide where to put those trait points, that should be done before leaving the cave. I also should dig more of those shelves for the lizards to sleep in, but that doesn't seem pressing since they seem to choose to sleep on and around me. Food is definitely on the menu, those fish filled me up last night but I will need two or three of that size meal to not be constantly hungry. I wonder if the wolf meat is still viable.*

Pulling up my character sheet I mull over my choices whilst also noticing how much I truly gained from the fish decimation.

Race: Celestial Dragon Health: 40/40 Stamina: 100% Stage: Baby Level: 4 Attributes: Traits: (4) Skills: STR: 5 Breath: 2 Aura Sight: 2 CON: 4 (4.25) Claws: 1 Digging: 1 DEX: 4 (4.22) Jaws: 1 Flight: 1 AGI: 4 (4.86) Scales: 2 PER: 4 (4.25) Wings: 3 WIS: 4 (4.15) INT: 10 (10.28) CHA: 3 (3.24)

*So outside of CHA and INT I've managed to bring everything up to four times my initial value or more. When I tested strength I felt that a single attribute doubled my strength and five was roughly five times that initial value, so the gains in power seem fairly linear within the attributes themselves. CON clearly affects health as well as my healing capacity. DEX seems to determine my movement speed or finesse but I have not been able to test that much. AGI I assume is in regards strictly to speed but the change in sprinting speed could be from the change in my DEX. PER is definitely my ability to see and hear in the normal spectrum, those bird calls and being able to see the colors of the birds was a dead give away after that first wolf attack. WIS hmm, it seems to affect my ability to make decisions, that System Message telling me I got a bump in it due to making good choices points to that. INT hasn't changed a full point yet so I have no clue how that could potentially affect me and CHA I can only assume is Charisma from my Dungeons and Dragon days but I have no way of testing how much I'm liked as a dragon. My lizard friends seem to have liked me since day two even if it was apprehensive at first.*

Deep in thought my surroundings pass me by. The other lizards come in and out of the cave a few times at one point snapping me out of my thoughts when one of them lightly touches my nose with theirs. My eye snap to focusing in on them and I realize they have brought me a large berry.

*Huh, so they saw me not eating and chose to bring me food, maybe they view me as one of them?*

I nod and the lizard drops the berry onto the floor in front of me and takes a step back. I slowly extend my neck and grab the berry in my jaws, the berry fitting fully in my mouth but just barely. I begin to bite down and the slightly sour berry juice explodes into my mouth. I can taste all of the sugars within the berry, by far the sweetest thing I have tasted in this short life. Quickly devouring the berry my lips crack into a small smile and I nod. The lizard seems confused by this and tilts its head while maintaining eye contact.

*Huh, maybe my 'smile' isn't much of a smile...*

Closing my lips I nod my head again the lizard immediately reciprocates and then scampers off down to the entrance and disappears from view.

*Now for those traits... I really want to test the change to Claws first and then go from there. I think that will pigeon hole me into choose Jaws as well or I'll be left with an extra unspent trait point.*

With that in mind I pull my right arm up in front of my eyes and allocate the point to Claws.

System Message Trait Rank Up: Claws Rank 1 -> Rank 2

My claws being to extend slightly and thicken before my eyes flicking my Aura sight on I can see that the Aura is becoming more dense in them as well. They don't increase by double in Auric density but it is definitely close. Their length grows by roughly a third fearing that might lead to me having difficulty walking I take a few laps around the caves large chamber. There doesn't seem to be any difficulty created by walking with them so I decide to test them on the cave wall. The claw slides into the rock, there is still resistance but it is significantly less than when my Claws were only rank one. Trying to cut the piece of wall out instead of just brute force digging through it I notice I can fairly easily maneuver my claw through the stone.

*Well then, I can only imagine what that will do to a living being if that's how easily it cuts stone.*

Unsure of how to monitor my Jaw rank increase I just allocate the point to it and try to pay attention as well as I can.

System Message Trait Rank Up: Jaws Rank 1 -> Rank 2

I can feel as my mouth grows larger to house the increase in the size of my teeth, all of them growing noticeably but with no way to tell outside of feeling its hard to tell the exact change. I feel a change in my neck as well, the muscles growing and moving is the best way to describe it. This change ends up with me feeling like there is something stuck in my throat. Attempting to dislodge whatever the obstruction might be I try to cough it out. This leads to strange sounds that I have not heard before coming from my mouth.

*Wait will jaws allow me to make more sounds and eventually talk?*

Trying to say hello with my improved mouth I manage to push out a very loose estimation of 'Hello'. The L's in particular are difficult to pronounce, sounding to myself more like 'Heckah' unable to move my lips into the necessary shapes to produce the proper sounds.

*Well that seems like a bust in terms of increasing my ability to communicate in a way that makes sense, I wonder what other sounds I can produce now though*

Testing a lot of different potential sounds I find that I can let out a small roar, it comes from deep within my neck and seems to rumble more and more as it travels up eventually releasing as a roaring sound. The other sounds that I can reproduce from my memory are very limited and don't seem to have much potential yet.

*So, two points left, Scales or breath... Hmm, I still haven't had my new scales tested so they could already be strong enough to prevent some attacks that come my way, but I doubt they will prevent something like one of those wolf claws. Breath has been amazingly effective though, increasing it's potency by potentially another fifty percent on top of whatever else seems to be happening with it. I want to survive though, not become a tyrant that murders everything before them.*

The last thought sealing my decision I allocate two trait points to Scales. Turning my aura sight on to take note of the Auric changes I crane my neck over my shoulder to watch as my scales improve.

System Message Trait Rank Up: Scales Rank 2 -> Rank 3 (Maximum rank for current stage)

Minimizing the message with barely a thought my eyes are drawn to the swirling Aura as it infuses into my scales. It seems as though the Aura appears from thing air a short distance from my scales before being drawn in. Each of my scales has a small whirlpool of aura forming above it that starts as light and wispy but quickly grows dark and dense as it is funneled down into the scale itself. As the aura is pulled into the center of each whirlpool and funneled into the scale it grows slightly in physical size but increases massively in Auric density. The spectacle of hundreds of small Aura whirlpools dancing over my whole body causes me to lose my sense of time completely entranced by the display. The end draws near as the wispy aura stops forming and what is left in the whirlpools condense down and is drawn into the scales.

Shutting off my Aura sight I look at my scales in the visible spectrum, I'm astounded by the change. Each scale seems to have a depth like looking up into the night sky itself, not quite depthless but seeming to approach that feeling. The red and green nebulas now appear three dimensional, each scale having its own unique nebula that forms an even larger slowly moving picture across my body. I pull my wing across my chest like before to test the changes and my claw slides off the wing scale seeming to not actually touch the scale itself.

*Did I miss?* Flits across my mind as I try again. Clutching the wing within my hand I slowly press my index claw into the scale. I realize I didn't miss on the first attempt the scales unique appearance causes it to look like it's farther away than it actually is. Slowly pushing my claw with increasing strain I watch as the claw stays completely still, not being able to penetrate the scale in the slightest.

*I guess that's not particularly surprising, I wonder if I had reversed this if my claws would be able to penetrate my scales.*

I flick my Aura sight and locate the Sun, finding it past its zenith and beginning its descent. Realizing I still have a good deal of time I decide to continue my project from yesterday and move back into the bedroom. The two sleeping lizards stir as I enter the room, raising and then tilting their heads to look at me questioningly.

*Dig.* I project to them.

They tilt their heads even further seeming to not understand. Instead of trying to communicate further with my mind I move over to the wall next to the first two shelves. Standing up onto my legs I being using my empowered claws to start cutting away at the stone. Noting what I am doing the lizards both move off into the main portion of the cave. I turn my Aura sight on while I work hoping to gain skill ranks in it faster, the pink hue of the world under the Sun's oppressive aura massively diminished while I'm under so much rock. As I cut with my claws I notice that the stone has an Aura as well but it is muted as well as tinted by the oppressive pink Aura.

I dig a claw into the stone noting how the Aura seems to part before the claw. Moving my head closer to inspect this oddity further I can see that the Aura is slightly less dense as it gets closer to my claw. Slowly moving my claw vertically down through the stone I can see that the Aura becomes less dense in front of the claws movement, like the bow shock of a boat through water. Slight ripples of Auric density follow the movement, quickly stilling after the claw passes.

*Wow, so that change in claws makes them affect the aura of what I'm cutting even before the physical claw touches it. Was this happening before but I just couldn't see it or is this only because of the rank up?*

Pondering the implications of this finding I quickly excavate a third shelf. The debris pile this time is exclusively fist sized or larger rocks. The dust from scraping at the rock in my previous excavation is not present at all. The speed of my excavation causing the falling rocks to make a dissonant song. One of the lizards comes back up the small tunnel seeming to investigate the cacophony, seeing the debris pile it runs over and fills its mouth with small rocks. Shooting back down the tunnel it disappears from sight.

The fourth shelf is excavated even faster as I find my stride, quickly slicing the stone into large sections and then shaving off smaller pieces that fall to the ground at my feet. The shelf only seems to take a few minutes before it is completed. Moving down the wall further I start on the fifth shelf, as my claw sinks into the stone a system messages pops up in the middle of my vision.

System Message Skill Rank Up: Digging Rank 1 -> Rank 2

*I wonder if it's possible to have those NOT appear right in front of my face every time. It hasn't been bad yet but I can see a window like that causing just enough of a distraction in the moment to cause me serious harm.*

The system seems to understand my intent as usual and the message moves to the side of my vision, minimizing just above my still present stamina window. It slowly blinks seeming to show me 'Hey new info here!'

System Message: Skill Stamina: 84%

Mentally tapping on the new location for the system message it expands, noting the information I dismiss the message.

*It definitely seems like the skill gains are not just a progression based system but actually a way of acknowledging how skilled I am in that area. My flight skill gave me a stamina reduction as well but it didn't come until after I successfully landed smoothly. This digging skill up came after I showed a new level of proficiency in digging. My Aura sight seems to not be that way though. I didn't notice more about the wolves or show a higher proficiency when my Aura sight ranked up, I just happened to have it on and then after the rank up it was massively improved.*

During my intense thoughts about how these facets of the system work I finish the fifth and six shelves. A lizard periodically poking it's head in, grabbing debris and then disappearing down the tunnel again. The seventh shelf is finished in quick order and I turn to the debris pile, noting it seems to only be a third of the size I expect it to be. I start piling it up at the entrance to the tunnel and then slowly push it all forwards, using my wings like a plow. I pay attention in aura sight peeking over my wings to make sure I don't crush any of the lizards in the process. Halfway down the small tunnel a lizard begins to climb up into the tunnel. I stop moving forwards as it comes into the tunnel, realizes what's happening and turns around. After it moves out of the way I continue pushing the stones forwards. The sound of the rock waterfall crash through the cave, hurting my ears with the sheer volume. The two lizards on guard visibly recoil from the sound.

*Maybe I could've done that a little smoother...*

I tilt my head down in apology for the painful sound and they nod back in response. The other five lizards shoot over after the rocks have finished their tumbling dance filling their mouths with rocks and then moving towards the cave mouth. Checking the Suns position again I see that it has only moved slightly further down in the sky.

*Wow, I was expecting that to take a lot longer. Hunting during the day still feels like a truly bad idea, but I don't really have much else I could do with my time.*

I move to the back of the cave and start drawing a rough map of the area I know with the cliff and my cave being a the bottom. To the right I show the pond and waterfall with the river moving 'North' away from the cliff. I try to measure with my claw roughly two and a half times the distance from the pond and up at a forty five degree angle where I saw the four giants and the wolf, making a rough line denoting the tunnel through the brush I followed yesterday.

*I really haven't explored much of this forest even though I've been here for three full days. I could try and find the wolf den, but that would be a lot more difficult during the day with my Aura sight being diminished by the sun. I could also travel beyond the pond to see what lies on the other side. Grab a snack on my way through...*

Feeling that would be worth my time I turn to leave the cave. Two of the lizards are standing a short distance in front of me, staring intently at my crude map. They seem to be confused by my drawing on the wall, unsure of how to communicate what it is I walk past them and move out of the cave. Flicking my Aura sight I check for any potential threats in the nearby bushes seeing none I turn to move towards the pond. Launching myself into the air I begin flying towards the pond soaring over what is left of the wolves body primarily just fur and bones left. Using my aura sight periodically I look for potential hunting targets as well as potential threats.

*I don't love being this visible, I can't easily see into the canopy for flying threats with the sun still up. Fortunately the largest flying being I have seen so far was the owl and I believe they are strictly nocturnal.*

I quickly reach the pond and begin circling down to the far shore, a short distance from the edge of the pond. I move to the edge of the pond and dip my tail in, using the same figure eight pattern and varying the speed of movement sporadically. I turn my aura sight on to see if I've got any takers, I can see five fish that have already come to investigate. It doesn't take long before one of them bites. Pulling my tail back and snapping my jaws forwards I manage to grab it around its mid section. Repeating my previous success in quickly putting it out of its misery I arc it over my body and SLAP the aura dissipates from the fish. Still hungry I dip my tail back in repeating the same process another three times before I feel satiated.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x4) Stamina: 77%

Quickly pulling up the messages I distribute all four of the 'tertiary attribute gains' to AGI.

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x4) AGI Increased by 0.41 New AGI Score: 5 (5.27) AGI Increased by 0.37 New AGI Score: 5 (5.64) AGI Increased by 0.35 New AGI Score: 5 (5.99) AGI Increased by 0.33 New AGI Score: 6 (6.32)

Dismissing the messages I decide to test my prior hypothesis on how AGI affects me physically. I sprint away from the pond trying to gauge how fast I'm moving compared to sprinting last night.

*It definitely feels faster, I'm not entirely sure if it is a full third faster or not though. It's hard to tell with no measuring devices. I wish this system had a clock or better yet a stop watch! At least that confirms that AGI does affect speed, I wonder if it affects my flying speed as well. I haven't even tried to max that out though, the fastest I've flown being roughly ten times my initial sprinting speed.*

Realizing the bushes will prevent me from being able to take off I turn back towards the pond, doing a quick sweep in Aura sight of the area for any threats. I don't see anything that I feel could threaten me but do note a significantly larger quantity of small Auras on this side of the pond. I move towards the cliff and put my back to it while I wait for my stamina to regenerate fully. When I see my stamina full again I launch myself forwards and into the air. Gaining altitude as I circle above the pond I take note of roughly how many fish are still in the pond. Even after I killed so many last night the pond is still teeming with fish.

I begin flying away from my cave again East based on my arbitrary orientation I chose for my crude map. The forest flying by below me as air whips past my body I begin feeling the same exhilaration I did every other time I've flown. Pushing my body I continue gaining altitude as I rapidly approach the canopy. Blasting through the canopy I find myself in a completely different world than the one below the canopy. The forest continues in all directions, the cliff being lined with trees on top just like down below. Clouds cover the sky above me, light and grey but thick enough to cover the sun. A bright spot in the distance showing where it is in the sky but preventing it from being overly bright.

Looking back towards where I think my cave is I can see the top of the waterfall that fills the pond and river below. The cliff continues to the West until I cant see it anymore seeming to continue beyond the limits of my vision. To the East I can see that the cliff dips down into the forest eventually. Far to the North, almost at the limit of my vision, I can see what looks like a stone castle raising from the forest.

*Is that where the giants came from?*

Picturing the the wolf being killed again I shudder slightly. I circle back towards the cliff and begin my flight back towards my cave feeling a little better about my understanding of the area surrounding my home. As I'm crossing back over the pond far below me I feel exhaustion begin building between my wings. On a whim I decide to circle back down to the pond and try to catch some more fish for later. I land on the West shore of the pond and begin my fishing technique, it takes me what feels like twenty minutes to catch five more fish. I dump all of the gains into STR this time remembering that the Fish had that as a Primary distribution.

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x5) STR Increased by 0.4 New STR Score: 5 (5.4) STR Increased by 0.37 New STR Score: 5 (5.77) STR Increased by 0.34 New STR Score: 6 (6.11) STR Increased by 0.32 New STR Score: 6 (6.43) STR Increased by 0.31 New STR Score: 6 (6.74)

Grabbing the five fish with my mouth I take off into the air above the pond. Circling back towards my cave after I get enough altitude to clear the dense bushes. The flight back takes almost no time and I land outside before climbing the slope into the cave. The lizard guards react to my presence by coming forwards and nibbling on the fish I have hanging from my mouth. I drop all the fish on the ground and then pick up three of the fish and continue moving up the slope. The lizards both begin feasting on the two fish I left.

*I should've gotten more. They are definitely going to eat these three if I leave them unattended. I guess that 'free' labor isn't so free...*

As I reach the main cavern another lizard comes out from the bedroom, seeing the fish it shoots over to me but doesn't immediately start nibbling on them like the first two did. Resigning myself to not getting much of this meal I drop all three on the ground, picking up one with my left claw I toss it over to the lizard. It slaps off the ground and slides towards the lizard, as the fish stops in front of it the lizard tilts its head to the side maintaining eye contact with me. I nod my head and it immediately begins devouring the fish. I turn so that I am facing the cave entrance and begin eating one of they two remaining fish.

Savoring the meal this time from the safety of my cave I realize that this is actually quite nice. I have company, ya they can be a little needy but at least I'm not alone constantly worried about being attacked while I sleep. One of them even brought me the most delicious berry I've ever had. I eat half of the second fish before my stomach feels sore from a little too much overindulgence. Leaving the half fish I move back into the bedroom and decide to nap while the sun goes down.

I wake to the ground shaking, thunderous booms coming from outside the cave. The four lizards sleeping around me all snap awake at the same time, all four of them shooting out into the main cave. Following them into the main cave I flick to my Aura sight trying to determine what is causing this and my heart drops. Standing outside of the cave are two giants their massive Auras consume my vision through the rock. The seem to have stopped moving and are now standing outside of the cave entrance. I can hear their voices now that they have stopped walking around. Surprisingly I can understand the language they are speaking.

"I'm tellin' you Nulvilm I seen one of them flying around!", The booming sound of it's voice crashing through the cave. "I seen it come down by that pond only a hunn'ed feet o'er there."

"Baldren, I believe you that's why I'm here. I'm just saying that the odds of it actually being a baby celestial dragon are not very high and this is the only cave we have seen so far and I am NOT sticking my head in there to find out!" The second's booming voice replies

*Are you FUCKING kidding me!? The one time, ONE TIME I fly above the trees I get spotted!?! I KNEW going out during the day was a bad idea.*

Now knowing that I am the reason they are here I run back up into the bedroom placing my back against the wall for the small amount of comfort a solid object at my back produces. Not daring to show myself knowing that if these things are hunting me they will not stop if they see me. Relying on Aura sight to see what is happening I watch as one of them drops down to their knees and peers into the cave. Being so close I can see the dense portion of the giant that must represent its brain, this close I can see that the aura is actually moving within the dense cloud. Focusing more intently on it I can see small tendrils of dense Aura snaking down through the rest of its body. The dense Aura seeming to flow down into its body and then back up into its brain along these tendrils.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Unsure as to what these tendrils represent and why the Aura seems to be moving I turn my attention back to the lizards. I can see six of the lizards, all standing at the top of the caves slope, fortunately leaving them out of the line of sight from the cave entrance. From my spot in the bedroom I don't see the seventh lizard's Aura. Scanning the portions of the terrain outside that I can see past the massive Auras blocking most of it, I see the lizard's Aura. Barely able to make out its Aura as it passes between the legs of the giant my breath catches in my chest.

*Please stay hidden, please stay hidden!*

As if my mental pleas alerted the second giant it turns. The giant clearly sees the lizard as they takes a massive step towards it clearing the entire open area in front of the cave in a single step. It raises its arms above its head and then brings them down rapidly, stopping roughly at its own waist. The lizards Aura opens into a empty hole around its middle before I lose sight of it behind the giants Aura.

*NOOOO!* I mentally scream.

"Baldren, I caught one of those tasty lizards! I haven't seen many of them around recently, this might be the last one around!", The second giant ecstatically booms.

I can see the first turn from their kneeling position and then exclaim, "They tiny but definitely tasty!" He picks himself up off the ground, towering above the cave. Moving to his comrade they both stand shoulder to shoulder for a moment, before beginning to move away.

The booms of their steps shake the cave as they walk away from the cave to the north. My mind reels, realizing that it's entirely my fault that lizard died. I move out of the bedroom cautiously, joining the other six lizards in the main cave watching the retreating forms of the giants through Aura sight. Even after they are beyond the limits of my Aura sight I wait. The image of the giant finger guns and the wolf's aura bursting playing over and over in my head. One of the lizards darts forwards, making it to the front of the cave before turning and coming half way back and nodding back to us. I nod back to it acknowledging that I understand but I can't bring my legs to carry me forwards.

*They've done nothing but be good companions staving off loneliness and now I have repaid them by bringing death. I NEED to get stronger it's not just about my survival at this point.*

Finding the courage to finally move I leave the two remaining lizards in the usual guard spot. The other four having left the cave during my fear induced paralysis. Walking slowly down the slope in front of the cave, I note the sky darkening, a light orange reflecting off the cloud cover above. I reach the spot where the lizards Aura dissipated and see a huge hole in the ground, easily half the width of my torso it ends in a sharp point, the sides of the hole stained red.

*Was it some sort of spear that the giant used and I just can't see it in my aura vision? It must have been massive for the point to make a hole that large.*

Moving away from the hole I scan the area for the other four lizards, I can see their Auras a short distance off to the North. They are spread out across the forest, two of them seeming to hang up in the air like they are climbing up in the bushes.

*Maybe that's where the berry came from? I need to figure out how I'm going to get stronger. My most effective method so far has been the fish and based on my search of the pond earlier it didn't even look like I had affected their population. I could go use that for some immediate gains and then maybe try to lure a predator and try to take that down as well.*

Beginning the short trek to the lake I watch as the sky changes from a light orange to a dark orange slowly darkening as night falls on the forest. Sweeping the forest with my Aura sight and seeing no large Auras I begin fishing, dipping my tail in and drawing fish over to the edge of the pond. My first attempt I try to use only a small amount of my breath, focusing on keeping the spread contained. I use what I feel is five percent of the organs capacity, easily blanketing the area around the fish that had come to investigate.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x4) Stamina: 77%

The message appearing again above my stamina, slowly flashing alerting me to it containing unseen information. The bodies of the five fish bob to the surface shortly after. Reaching out with my right wing I scoop them up out of the water, depositing them a short distance away from me. I dip my tail back into the water falling into the motion easily, more fish react to my tail and I repeat the same process. Exhaling a small amount of breath, covering the pond slightly further than where the fish are, and then watching as the bodies bob to the surface.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x10) Stamina: 94%

Briefly noting the number I scoop them up with my wing and deposit them again. Returning my tail to the water continuing my previous motions. My mind starts to wander, thinking about the lizard and how it was described as 'tasty' by the giants.

*So that would explain why I haven't seen any others in the forest in my travels so far. I've seen plenty of rabbits and other animals I haven't been able to identify but the seven... six lizards are the only ones I have seen. That makes me feel even worse about bring death to them again. I need to keep them safe, they are the only thing that has shown me kindness in this world so far and without them these past few days would have been much more lonely*

I'm pulled from my thought as one of the fish takes a nibble of my tail. Breathing out, the dark purple smoke with slight reds and greens blankets the area above this new group of fish.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x14) Stamina: 98%

Repeating my previous actions of scooping up the fish and depositing them into a pile I note that the pile is growing larger quickly. Deciding to try and bait the trap I eat one of the fish and scoop the rest up with a wing. I cradle them in front of me with my wing underside facing up, creating a large basket. I move a few paces away from where I was sitting and drop them on the bank of the shore. Moving back to my spot pressed up against the cliff I take stock of my surroundings, paying close attention to the canopy above. I notice a few owls in the distance perched in the canopy but none that look very close. Moving my eyes to scan the ground I don't note any large wolf Auras or giants. Feeling relatively safe I continue my fishing, dipping my tail into the water I continue thinking about the lizards and how to keep them safe.

*I could dig small fortifications for their guard posts that they seem to always be in. I'm not sure how I would communicate its purpose to them though. I also could expand the cave system to have a smaller passage for them to move more safely in as well as potentially making a small area that they could see out through, It would have to be my size though so that might open them up to other animals I haven't seen yet.*

A nip at my tail brings me back to the present and I exhale onto the top of the pond.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x19) Stamina: 100%

Noting that I'm at the same amount of fish from the previous night I scan the pond to see how many are still left. The pond is still teeming with life a massive quantity of fish still existing at the heart.

*Huh, I could've sworn I had done a number on the pond last night and now I've gotten the same amount again but it doesn't seem to have impacted it at all.*

Scooping these five fish up with my wing as their bodies surface I deposit them next to me, scanning the canopy again as I do so. The owls I noted earlier have moved closer. One of them perched above the pond.

*Well then here we go.*

Moving my tail back into the water I focus on the owls, trying to pretend like I am fully invested in fishing. After a short period the one above the pond swoops down, entirely silent to my ears and snatches two of the fish from the pile I had deposited a short distance away.

*Wow, not only completely silent they are incredibly fast. I don't know if I will actually be able to catch one. When I managed to latch on to that one two nights ago it may have been even more luck than I initially thought. It might be better not to anger them...*

A nibble on my tail brings my attention back to the pond exhaling onto the surface of the pond again.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x20) Stamina: 100%

*Hmm only managed to get one that time, unlucky or are they learning?*

I snatch it up with my mouth, choosing to eat it in one massive bite over trying to scoop and deposit it. Dipping my tail back in I take stock of the current level in my breath organ.

*Hmm only down roughly a third, well that is significantly more efficient than I though it would be...*

Dipping the tip of my tail into the pond for the sixth time, I begin the now familiar process. Paying more attention to the owl I see that it has finished the two fish it already took and is perched above the pond waiting. I can see the second owl flying through the canopy towards it. Another nibble bringing my attention back to the fish.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x26)

As I reach my wing out to scoop them up the first owl swoops down again, snatching another two fish before rapidly ascending back into the canopy.

*I can't believe that they are completely silent! Is it a limit of my ability to hear them or are they truly just completely silent!?*

This second snatch and grab is just as quick, seeming to move so fast that it is difficult to fully track their movements. The second owl follows behind the first, swooping down and grabbing a single fish from the pile now only half the size of when I first dropped the fish there. Using my wing like a basket again I deposit the eleven fish in front of me into the now much smaller pile. I watch both owls stop eating as they focus on me. Feeling incredibly vulnerable I quickly move back to the cliff wall and continue fishing, hoping they will take the easy pile of fish over me.

*Maybe I over judged my own capabilities in thinking I could bait a trap and actually manage to take one of them down.*

Dipping my tail back in I begin to allocate some of the fish. Starting with CHA to bring it up to the same level as my other attributes. Doing a single fish at a time it ends up taking only three fish to raise the score to four.

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x3) CHA Increased by 0.3 New CHA Score: 3 (3.24) CHA Increased by 0.28 New CHA Score: 3 (3.28) CHA Increased by 0.26 New CHA Score: 4 (4.08)

*I guess I should've expected that based on last night but I was expecting it to take more than just three of the fish, I guess I'll just bring that up to five and then focus on the other attributes*

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x5) CHA Increased by 0.24 New CHA Score: 4 (4.32) CHA Increased by 0.23 New CHA Score: 4 (4.55) CHA Increased by 0.21 New CHA Score: 4 (4.76) CHA Increased by 0.21 New CHA Score: 4 (4.97) CHA Increased by 0.2 New CHA Score: 5 (5.17)

*Took a bit more than I expected but that leaves me with sixteen more fish to distribute.* I feel another bite on my tail, exhaling a breath I go back to my thoughts.

System Message: Level 0 Fish (x20)

Expecting to only see sixteen fish available seeing twenty surprises me. looking out to the pond I see another four fish bobbing in the water.

*Right, that makes sense.*

Scooping the fish out of the water and dumping them on the bank in front of me I watch as the owls in succession swoop down and grab more fish from the pile.

*So my other attributes at four, CON, DEX, PER, and WIS. CON is an easy choice, if I bring that to six my Health should be sixty, it will also give me an opportunity to test that confirm that hypothesis.*

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x9) CON Increased by 0.23 New CON Score: 4 (4.48) CON Increased by 0.22 New CON Score: 4 (4.7) CON Increased by 0.21 New CON Score: 4 (4.91) CON Increased by 0.2 New CON Score: 5 (5.11) CON Increased by 0.19 New CON Score: 5 (5.3) CON Increased by 0.18 New CON Score: 5 (5.48) CON Increased by 0.18 New CON Score: 5 (5.66) CON Increased by 0.17 New CON Score: 5 (5.83) CON Increased by 0.17 New CON Score: 6

After burning through nine of the fish my CON score hits an even six.

*Well that's satisfying. Took quite a bit to get there, only 11 fish left, seems like I can get one of the other two to six or two of them to five with just what I have. WIS seems to have benefited me a lot, allowing me to recognize a bad idea before deciding to act it out. Maybe if my WIS was higher the seventh lizard would still be alive.*

Guilt wells up inside me the lizards Aura splitting as what must have been a massive spear stabbed through it. The image burned into my brain even when I close my eyes. A nibble at my tail brings me out of my melancholy. Breathing another breath over the pond I watch as two more fish float to the surface. Dragging them to the shore I drop them next to the previous four fish next to me. I look around to find where the owls are and almost jump when I see them both staring at me from the other side of the swiftly dwindling pile of fish. Making eye contact with them I do the only thing I can think of and nod my head. Their heads tilt almost ninety degrees to the side both looking at me with what I can only determine to be confusion.

*enjoy* I try to mentally project. Unsure of the reception of my message I dip my tail back into the pond and continue to fish, not taking my eyes off the owls. After a moment of staring the larger of the two goes back to eating the fish, the smaller of the two follows suit shortly after. Twin nibbles at my tail make me turn towards the pond and breath onto the surface. My breath organ feeling roughly half full after that breath I decide to hold off on fishing more before investing the points and seeing where I'm at. Four more fish float to the surface giving me fifteen total to allocate. Turning back to my stats I choose WIS to pump up to five, only using four of the fish in the process.

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x4) WIS Increased by 0.24 New WIS Score: 4 (4.39) WIS Increased by 0.22 New WIS Score: 4 (4.61) WIS Increased by 0.21 New WIS Score: 4 (4.82) WIS Increased by 0.2 New WIS Score: 5 (5.02)

*PER should be my next target, being aware of what's going on around me could've been the difference between being spotted or not during that flight. If the math continues to be four fish per attribute I'll be able to do PER and then DEX as well, ending up with all my stats at five from this trip. That should leave me with another three fish to allocate.*

Moving ahead with my plan I distribute PER first.

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x4) PER Increased by 0.23 New PER Score: 4 (4.48) PER Increased by 0.22 New PER Score: 4 (4.7) PER Increased by 0.21 New PER Score: 4 (4.91) PER Increased by 0.2 New PER Score: 5 (5.11)

The process taking the expected four fish and I move onto DEX.

Attributes earned for slaying: Level 0 Fish (x4) DEX Increased by 0.23 New DEX Score: 4 (4.45) DEX Increased by 0.22 New DEX Score: 4 (4.67) DEX Increased by 0.21 New DEX Score: 4 (4.88) DEX Increased by 0.2 New DEX Score: 5 (5.08)

*Interesting, so those gave me almost the exact same gain per fish. The amount gained must be based on some sort of formula involving my current stat.*

System Message New Level Achieved: Level 5 Advancement Available 5 Trait points unlocked

*Um Advancement? That's a new one, What am I advancing exactly? Mentally choosing the option that has been brought up I get another message.*

Instead of the usual succinct message I am used to this contains a large amount of information,

"Stage advancement is now available, To advance in Stage find a safe location and confirm Stage Advancement. This process will take an extended period of time during which you will be vulnerable. Continue: Y/N"

*Umm, okay. Well I guess I'll minimize that for now and do that back in my bedroom.*

Looking to the owls I see that they have made a sizeable dent in the fish that are in front of them. Grabbing the four fish that have now washes up on the shore I being my trek back to the cave. I arrive at the cave a short time later, my eyes flicking to the hole where the lizard was killed as my chest tightens. Forcing myself to look away I make the short trip up the slope into the cave. As I reach the main room of the cave I see the usual lizard guards and drop the fish in front of them nodding, they nod back and begin nibbling at the fish. Moving past them and up into the bedroom I pull the advancement window up in front of me choosing yes.

"Warning: Current area not large enough for stage advancement. Continue anyways? Y/N"

*No! Why does the area have to be large enough?? That doesn't really make sense. I hope the main cave room is large enough...*

Crawling back out to the main cave I move to the back where I had begun drawing a basic map. I pull the advancement window again and choose Yes again.

The world goes black instantly, I'm surrounded by the infinite darkness again with a light shining down from above.

Click Click Click

I can hear the high heels clicking closer from behind me, I turn towards it and realize that I am still in my dragon form not the human form I was given the last time I was here.

"Well well well," She says as she steps past me. "I didn't expect you to survive even this long, let alone make it to an advancement stage! Hopefully this time you will ask more questions..."

"You really want me to fail don't you?" I respond coldly.

"Come on now, don't be like that! I just think you made a poor choice in being a dragon that's all, If you had chosen basically any of the other races you would've started in civilization with people there to help you instead of bumbling through trying to figure it all out."

Her response surprises me, I expected her to continue laughing at me or ridiculing me not to be helpful.

"Oh, well I guess that makes sense. So what is this whole advancement thing?"

"There we go, asking questions! If you had chosen a different race this wouldn't be happening for a much longer time but with dragons you advance on a much more regular basis. It increases your stage giving you access to more of your innate powers as a dragon. You'll be going from Baby to Wyrmling. It will increase your size but more importantly it will massively increase your power. Those attributes that you've been 'farming' are proportional to your stage." She states, seeming for the first time to be honest and open with me. "Like your strength attribute, as a baby a strength is very tame, but as a wyrmling it will grow by a factor of three. Most of your other attributes will as well but that will be based on the choices you make."

"Wait so STR really is just strength, Like any RPG?"

"Yes, I can see the questions coming so I'll just cut you off and answer them. Constitution as you figured out is your health and your regen. Dexterity is pretty self explanatory, you haven't had much use for it yet but you will. Agility is your reflexes and in a way your speed, but that is also based on your strength. Perception you figured out pretty quick as well, it increase sight and hearing but also your ability to process those stimuli. Wisdom affects your reasoning, watching you make bad decisions was quite entertaining. Intelligence is pretty self explanatory, it covers your memory capacity as well as your general ability to understand things, you started at ten because Dragons are considered an intelligent race, almost all sapient races start at least at ten. Well, goblins start at three but I don't think you'll have to worry about that. Charisma you guessed correctly as well from your previous experience, it's how well you interact with others and how they respond to you. If you hadn't leveled that you probably would've been killed by those owls." Her rant coming to a close I feel at least semi-satisfied in my deduction of those abilities.

"What about how leveling works and how the attribute gains work?" I question hopefully.

"No, that one is on you to figure out. Nice try though, any others?"

"What's with all the giants?"

She laughs finding that question absolutely hilarious, but she doesn't answer me. Her laughs slowly dying down before she wipes tears from her eyes. "Any others before we get going?"

"Am I telepathic?"

"Yes and no, all dragons have a certain level, but that varies based on your upcoming choices."

"Do I have parent dragons?"

"Yes not plural though, your progenitor deposited fifteen eggs as they passed through this area. You were the thirteenth to hatch the twelve that hatched before you have already been captured or slain."

"Wait so the other two haven't hatched yet, and where can I find the ones that have been captured?", I jump on the idea of having siblings to help fend off my loneliness.

"Yes but trying to find them before they hatch will probably just end up with you wasting years. Your progenitor was very old and could cover large distances very quickly. The ones that have been captured are being held in multiple different cities. Your kind is hunted relentlessly for your capabilities, if you are found by dwarves the will try their hardest to capture you. For elves you're kill on sight." Her response disappointing me greatly.

"Where is my progenitor now?" I ask hopeful again.

"North", She smiles.

"The North of my map or was that wrong?"

"It isn't right but I meant your North"

Realizing that finding my progenitor would have me travelling past that giant castle I shudder. Fear gripping my whole body remembering how easily the wolf died.

"Any others before we get started?", She askes clearly trying to pull me out of my fear.

"What is this process exactly?"

"Well you'll be presented with choices and you get to choose what you want from things applicable to your race. If you weren't a dragon they would also be applicable to what's called a class but dragons don't get those like other sapient species. Are you ready?"

"I guess..."

System windows appear on either side of her showing different images with text. The one over her left shoulder showing a dragon head that is bulky with large fangs. The scales being much larger each one dominating a piece of the face. A single scale between it's eyes appearing almost to be a nasal from a medieval helm. A scale on each side of its head like massive cheek plates. Over the top of the head is a single scale curved to cover the entire top. The word "Physical" floats above this image. The other showing a more slender head with much smaller fangs the scales looking more like chain mail to the plate helm of the other image. It's eyes are much larger and seem to be more intelligent "mental" floats above this image.

"Here is your first choice, I can't answer many questions on the effects of either but I will answer what I can." She says after giving me ample time to look at both.

"Which one is more powerful?" I ask immediately.

"Obviously physical, just look at it" She says flatly.

"Ya I guess that was a poorly worded question." I sigh back "How about, which one has more potential?"

"There we go", She smiles coyly "Mental has a much larger upper bound but that is only if you reach that far."

"I choose mental then."

I can feel as my head changes, a mirror appearing before me to show me the change of my head to match that of the image.

"Good choice", she says as the mirror disappears ,"That means the next selections are a lot more intriguing."

System Message Trait Mutation Jaws -> Mental

System Message Mana Unlocked

"Wait Mana, Like magic?"

"Yes, exactly. You get to choose two affinities from here. One major and one minor, these are based on your dragon race choice, which once again is the weakest at this level but has great potential. If you had chosen red or black you would've been given very potent affinity options. Instead you get these." She motions and the words Space and Gravity appear over each shoulder.

"Gravity seems pretty self explanatory but what is Space magic?"

"Gravity is as you expect manipulating gravity wells, and in a manner matter as well. Space is related to Dimensional magics, warping space or changing its properties. Once again both of these are incredibly weak at your current stage." She sighs, seeming disappointed.

"What will they be able to do?"

She smiles, "Perfect question, if you had said 'what spells do I get you would've been met with silence' asking what they can do opens the door for me to answer. Gravity magic will allow you to warp the gravity around you, think indefinite flight and floating mountains. Space will allow you to teleport eventually but also allow you to create pocket dimensions, eventually creating permanent portals and massive pocket dimensions."

"Wow, that is a difficult one." I being pondering my choices, pocket dimension and teleportation or the ability to fly indefinitely and make a floating fortress. Teleportation tips the scales for me, the power to escape as well as to be where I need to be could be huge, pocket dimensions is a cherry on the top, depending on its functionality it could allow me to create completely safe areas. My mind wanders back to the lizard. "Space."

"Why are you so attached to them?", She askes as the words disappear.

System Message Affinity Gained: Space

"Attached to who?"

"The lizards."

"Oh, I could feel loneliness begin to set in and they remind me of having a pet. The comfort of waking up with them sleeping on me gave me a weird sense of familiarity.", I respond fondly remembering the first time I woke up with them piled on me. "You said If I asked what spells I would get you wouldn't answer, but do I gain any spells with this? Or is it just potential."

"It's more potential than anything else, but you will find quickly that you can instinctively do some things, like open and close small dimensional spaces. Teleportation and the further capabilities will come through experimentation but you'll understand that more when you begin your inevitable testing.", She smiles "That's all I will say on that. Next is your minor affinity. For you these will be more impactful immediately so choose carefully."

The words 'Raw' and 'Soul' appear over her shoulders.

"Well Soul I can guess at a little, but Raw has me stumped. Any chance you could give me a high level on what they mean?", I ask hopefully.

"You surprise me, after that first interaction I expected you to just scream your choices at me and tell me to fuck off.", She chuckles "Raw is what humans in this world would call Arcane, its the manipulation of mana directly, either to produce force attacks, or create magic shields. At higher levels it allows for manipulation of ambient mana to produce power enchantments on objects and beings. Soul on the other hand is akin to Necromancy, offensively it can be used much like your breath, sapping the Aura or life force from enemies. It can also be used to raise the dead, true resurrection capability will be a long way off for you but raising thralls and the undead will be available fairly quickly. It also allows for a level of Soul manipulation on yourself, but that's a quick way to find yourself hated by all"

She looks off over my shoulder, "Come on! They have been asking good questions and I've been good the whole time. Don't sanction me because of one answer!" She sighs deeply. "Choose."

Looking over my shoulder I see nothing but darkness, "Who are you talking to?"

"Choose." She says no emotion showing where she was previously animated.

"What just happened?"

"CHOOSE!" Her voice booms, but her face is still completely blank of any emotion.

"What the fuck just happened!?"

"You have one more opportunity to choose, or you will get none."

"Fine, Raw.", I say confused by this massive change in demeanor.

System Message Affinity Gained: Raw

"See you at your next advancement!", She says, emotion coming back to her face she smiles. She starts to walk by me, heels clicking.

"Wait, what was that?"

She pauses by my shoulder "We all have limits, I just got in trouble for surpassing mine. Good luck, 3 more days, baby goblin!" She laughs as she walks away

Click click click

The light slowly dims as my eyes become heavy and I fall into a deep slumber.