Being born into a life of luxury is what everyone desires. What most people get, however, is a mixed bag at best. I was no different.

My parents were not rich. There was the opposite. They came here as refugees and their haunting tale of chance and death stuck with me whenever they speak about it.

Some people talk about how they lived through minesweeper. That they got very nervous each time they clicked and bemoaned their fate when they failed.

My dad got to watch his neighbor fail. The 40 something-year-old shop keeper who likes to lie about expiry dates simply vanished as an explosion overtook him.

Well, mostly vanish. The thumb that smacked my dad in the forehead told him it was less magic and more explosion.

Despite the line of soldiers behind him, rusty AKs in hand, my dad ran the odds.

He made it, along with five others.

One stopped to gloat, his cheer was loud as he screamed his joy to the skies. The snap of rifles cut his celebration short. It was both ironic and horrific that his falling body set off a landmine.

My dad had run straight out of the field. He was shielded by that blast. From the bookkeeper of his village, and the soldiers never saw him vanish into the underbrush of the forest.

From there, he then fled out of his home country with millions of others. Then, he reached our country. A stable country.

He fell in love and he started a family. He met my mother, a fellow refugee who had it easier, but still lost everything.

All against the odds, he always said.

He only desired that we, his children, would strive to be our best and to reach towards our dreams. Dreams were good, but Dreams without a backup plan were stupid.

For example, becoming an astronaut was a great dream! An excellent dream!

How many people actually got to go up?

Yeah, there were more lottery winners then astronauts.

So I looked into game design and computer sciences. Both were solid parts of society. A computer for my day job, game design as a hobby.

Eventually, I would be able to make it out on my own. A solid plan with a high chance of success. My mom and dad were both pleased.

I was pleased.

Until my 18th birthday.

Sure, there were dragons. Sure, there were the extra species that had resided with us in peace ever since the world wars changed the world.

My best friends were a dwarf and an elf. Though it was weird how the calm and peaceful one was the dwarf and the loud and annoying one was the elf. What were the odds?

We had always talked about learning true magic from the dragons. Creatures of immense power that even modern military hesitated to engage. That was when they were facing just a single dragon. A group meant that if they were generally left alone as no country could afford to lose their army.

The problem wasn’t the dragon’s but their elders. Elder dragons were commonly called God Dragons for a reason. The problem lay in the fact that elder dragons were rarely different looking from their lesser counterpart.

Like minesweeper, it was all about math and luck.

You could analyze their bodies, their magic, their affect on their fellow dragons. But was that really an elder dragon? Or was it simply an older, stronger dragon leading a pack?

The last country that poked at them was Ethiopia and now their country was in shambles. Anyone was more then a hundred men at arms could legitimately attempt a military coup.

True magic was the best magic. That was what we all said during childhood. That was what the elder dragons used to earn the moniker of god.

Of course, I desired to learn it. But I also trampled on those dreams until I no longer craved it.

Less than 1% of the people were chosen to be their disciples. Regardless of race. Human, dwarf, elf, merfolk, lizardfolk, etherials, etc, etc.

The statistics were like one in a billion were chosen. The day was called Dragon Day and it signaled a dramatic change in your life. Much like winning the lottery.

So I did what my father taught me. Accept the odds, move forward.

I had applied towards three universities, and I started tinkering with my friends on our board game. Project Freelancer, a game about running and shooting things and kill the target before your friends could. A card-based game of competitive, action-filled fun!

So when I got up for my birthday, I only wanted to spend time with friends, family, and more cake then what was deemed healthy.

What I didn’t want, however, was to wake up and have my parents screaming at me.

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They ordered me to dress and brush up frantically. They were scared and that scared me.

I did as they asked. I was young and dumb, not young and stupid. My dad expected obedience during times of crisis. He wasn’t afraid of making sure I understood the pecking order.

Following orders is what could separate a man from a life and death. Both my parents had a plan out, they made it. A lot of their neighbors didn’t have a plan, and they no longer heard from a lot of people.

So I washed up, dressed up, and hurried downstairs. My family was there. Parents, siblings. My fellow children were wide eyes but silent.

My parents nodded at me. My mom fussed about my clothes. They were yelling at each other about my dress code.

This was nonsense. Why would I break out my suit for my own birthday?

My dad then held my shoulders. He was more serious then I had ever seen him and I froze under his cold eyes.

“Remember we love you,” he said with emotion. My family gave me a hug and I was starting to panic.

I had lived through 17 birthdays. They were generally relaxed, happy affairs.

This was not a happy affair. It was also the opposite of relaxed. In fact, I was starting to freak the bunnies out. I never swore in the house. My father disciplined and my mom read minds. She always knew when I had uttered a swear and they would not tolerate it!

I was confused and turned around and then pushed out the door.

My loving family locked those doors as soon as I was outside.

I was getting ready to rant at them when I noticed why they had locked the doors.

I nearly shat myself. It was only the saving grace of my morning routine that prevented me from making a smelly mess.

In the skies that covered my vision, hung dragons. They beat their wings and seemed to effortlessly stay still in the air. Which was a feat considering the size and weight of a dragon.

“Uh. Hi,” I eloquently began and promptly chocked as I suddenly forgot every drill about manners towards the dragons. Damn education system. They should have prepped me better!

I was saved when a particularly large dragon descended.

“Child, you have been chosen to learn about the truth of existence itself. True magic will be yours!” the dragon bellowed in a deep and wise voice. “Accept me as your master and I promise you the world at your… urk!”

I blinked as my brain processed what just happened.

“Oh no, you don’t Finkleton!” A second and enraged dragon yelled as it dove down and bodychecked the first dragon at full speed.

Finkleton screamed as he flew into my neighbor’s house. Then into the next house. He was eventually persuaded to stop by the seventh house.

I absently noted that a few dragons had their talons out, protective magic most likely. Which meant that my neighbors live! Homeless, but alive…

“I apologize for this. I am High Moon, daughter of the ethereal plane. If you accept… Gah!”

I literally froze. Deep arcane energy swept around me and locked me in place as High Moon was bombarded by nearly three dozen fireballs the size of my house.

Her smoldering corpse was hissing and popping. Then it exploded outwards and High Moon regenerated right before my eyes. Her form was restored within a minute and her rage had her gather and return spellfire.

My energy barrier held and I was no worse for wear.

“How childish,” a voice whispered in my ears. His voice was barely a sound but was still clear and well annunciated. “They are all children. What you need is a wise dragon to guide.”

The voice vanished and I watched in awe as half a dozen dragons swoop down in a tight formation. At their center was another dragon that was promptly powered bomb into the earth. A ring of three houses deep formed as the dragon made a large crater.

That seemed to start a war. The skies filled with magic, screams, and explosions.

“Hahaha. How lively,” a deep and amused voice said as he snapped his finger. The binding magic around me vanished.

I turned my head and blinked as I saw a well-dressed man stand beside me. His suit was a rich black, pinstriped, and he was both sexy and proud. I wasn’t attracted to men, but if this man asked me out I don’t think I could have said no.

He looked at me and smirked. I blushed. Damn it body!

“Don’t worry. I have that effect on people.”

I nodded.

“Curious at why these elder dragons are all here?”

I nodded and stopped. Wait. These are all elder dragons!?

The man smiled. It was beautiful and I swear the world became brighter with it.

Yup. I am now officially gay. Damn. I was pining after Sarah, but I guess that was moot now.

“I am a man of true magic. Now like how these children are. They channel it, as best as they can. But like children playing with clay, it is… cute. I however am an embodiment of it,” the man explained as he snapped his fingers again and everything stopped.

The dragons all turned to see their next victim and stilled.

High Moon was the closest. She bowed her form low and, as one, they became a chorus. “Hail Bahamut. Long may he live.”

The other dragons followed suit. They either descended or outright fell down. They all bowed, however.

Okay. I was gay for the god of all dragons. That was respectable right? My parents would have to accept this.

“You are a cute one,” Bahamut chuckled. That didn’t help me. His smirk told me knew that I knew that he knew. Sexy bastard.

“Come, you will learn true magic and fulfill your destiny,” Bahamut said as he put his arm around my shoulder and guided me into a swirling black portal. It was accented by lighting red energy.

“What destiny?” I managed to whisper. My heartbeat exploded to full throttle and it honestly hurt as he approached the questionable portal.

“Why its very simple. You will learn true magic, fight off the old one, and save dragonkind. Oh, and the world.” Bahamut replied.

My answer was drowned out in the transfer between planes.

The other dragons wait until the portal closed before they got up.

High Moon watched the speck that was once a portal. The small knot in space and magic wavered and then vanished. Clean and efficient. That was her god, Bahamut, he who ruled.

High Moon stared at Rigglemore. The one who had initiated that fireball barrage. “This is your fault!”

High Moon gathered her energy and let loose with dragon fire. Nearly two hundred other dragons’s followed up and Rigglemore was reduced to ashes. Bastard would regenerate but it would be harder and more painful without a physical anchor.

The dragons argued and fought for another three days. Three days of wild magic and stray fire.

No one died, however. A feat of magic that also wrecked a full quarter of the city.

An hour after the last dragon left. The second set of dragons descended. The military, the municipal services, the federal services, all stopped as a dozen dragons hung in the air.

They gathered power for a full hour and in a flash, everything was restored. Then they left.

The various services rushed around, but it was if nothing had occurred. Except for the part where it was recorded and shown on live TV.

The Mayor was on site, smiling and moving with the people. He was cheerful, but damn did you hate the potential of Dragon Day. Sure they cleaned up after themselves, but they were a menace!

I of course knew none of that.

I had popped out on the other side and the man was replaced by the most beautiful dragon I had ever seen. He towered over me and magic lifted me as he took to the air.

They were hovering over a mountain of some sort.

“Time to learn child.” Bahamut's voice rumbled the very air. With a beat of his wings, the god dragon flew up and up and up.

I stared in shock as we left earth and in moments, landed on the moon.

I took a deep breath and noted the silence and weightlessness of lower gravity.

Okay.

I stared up at my new teacher.

I was ready to learn.