Every once in a while, Kaden’s Class lead him to do things that would make Eve develop an ulcer. Right now, it was screaming at him that this was the most magnificent Beast in existence and it was his duty to every Beast Master past and future to run straight toward the sea and either tame it or go down in Tavern Tales as the Beast Master who almost tamed the sea dragon (as far as anyone could tell from the crater that remained. Craters were not known for disputing tavern tales).

Ashi was doing breathing exercises, ones in which she repeated screamed “Run” while breathing.

Oceanus was magnificent, lit in silver lightning. Like Suridev, the dragon changed size to fit, and Kaden’s gut feeling was that the smallest size that fit was ‘massive’ and from there it went up to ‘earth-rending.’ The storms didn’t surround the dragon, they issued from it, and now Kaden sensed it was moving toward him with the unstopable momentum of, well, a storm.

Burny hissed and began to steam as a drops of rain exstinguished his fire. King of the Match Lizards was no match for the Emperor of Storms.

Kaden’s fingers tingled with excitement. Actually, his whole arm tingled. Make that his body, with excitement. Also lightning. Lightning coursed down his body, starting from Ashi, who had leveled up her breathing exercises to screaming. “You will die!”

Mayor Ashford has invoked [Mana Screen]. All individuals should seek immediate shelter.

[Mana Screen] made the sky fuzzy, though the hail and wind continued unabated.

“I can’t shut it out,” Kaden said. “I can barely keep from sprinting toward the dragon.”

“Close your eyes. Let my voice be your guide.” Ashi led him along. “It is not far.”

Blind, it felt forever before Ashi prodded him. “Step up. Step up again, and inside. The wards here will block it further.”

Two steps inside, the pull on Kaden lessened, and he opened his eyes. A crowd packed the inn, every soul in town taking shelter from the incoming dragon. Kaden and Ashi climbed the staircase to the second floor and found Sara sitting out in the commons.

“You’re both drenched. Kaden, what’s wrong with you?”

The last dragon hadn’t affected him like that at all. His gaze fell on the scale pattern burned into his right hand. Kaden summoned the [Falcrow] and dispatched it with a question to Suridev. The Solar dragon was the most personable of all the ones Kaden had met. His question was simple: “Why do people go looking for dragon scales?”

It unlocked a [Beast Form] slot for him, but the was Suridev spoke it wasn’t just [Beast Masters] seeking dragon scales. And after what had just happened, Kaden had to get to the bottom of it.

The lights in the inn went out, and only the fire light, the glow of the heatstone, and a furious [Match Lizard] fought the darkness.

Rain pounded down in waves. Waves like wingbeats.

Fear crawled up his spine like frost.

Kaden didn’t even breathe as the rain cut out.

The storm wasn’t over. The dragon was directly overhead.

Someone screamed as a clap of thunder rolled, and then the rains resumed, and gradually slowed. The lights flickered back on. Kaden felt sick, deeply sick, like an illness had crept into his soul. He managed to reach the room at the inn, and found Trella fast asleep inside. For a class derived from Assassins, she slept like the dead, even as Kaden stripped his armor and collapsed into bed, summoning Vip to sleep against his back and Trinity to guard the door.

“You’re already back?” Trella murmurred. “Gods, you’re burning up. Do you need Eve? Is this some status effect?”

Kaden’s teeth chattered and he pulled the spare blankets down, finding a way to sleep at last. His dreams were of wind and storms and hail, and a dragon that blotted out the sky.

###

“He’s not sick, not in a normal sense.” That was Eve. “He has a fever, but his health is maxed out.”

Kaden rolled over, pulling back the covers that buried him. “I’m fine.”

Trella leaned over, her face filling his vision. “You haven’t slept this long in forever. You practically have [Tireless] as a talent, and last night you were either sweating or shivering. Ashi told us about the World Tree. Did that stupid Nature spirit do something?”

Kaden shook his head. “She helped. Told me what the Withered Seed was.”

“Yes, lovely.” That was Sara. “You have a Quest to regrow a Demon who tried to kill you and got her core ripped out by Ashi. Did you by any chance send a message to Suridev?”

Kaden nodded, which made the world spin. “I could barely resist Oceanus’s presence. Every ounce of me wanted to run to him, knowing damn well he’d kill me. Something’s wrong, and my gut says it has to do with that third scale.”

“That at least explains our visitor.” Sara said.

The door creaked open.

The whisper of claws on carpet had Kaden open his eyes. A golden lizard the length of a hatchling iguana perched on the end of the bed. “Suridev?”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

*Not exactly, kid. Just a suicidal [Sun Lizard] doing me a favor.* The mental voice matched the Solar Dragon, though distant. The [Sun Lizard] leaped off the foot and crawled over the blankets to stick out a forked tongue at Kaden’s hand. *You actually did it. Three scales. Of course, I gave you the most important one, but you got two more. Death, whew, you got guts. And Fire. Oh, well, that explains a bit.*

The [Sun Lizard] turned in circles, whipping its tail back and forth until Burney raised himself in a dominance display, and burst into flame.

*Got yourself a sparky one, huh? Real [King of the Match Lizards]. Cool your scales, sparky.* Suridev’s sun lizard backed up a few inches but continued to twitch. *Ok. So, you were after scales for a skill. Congrats on the skill, don’t try to be a dragon.*

“Yes,” Kaden said. “[Beast Form] was worth getting burned by the scale. Also that Fire Dragon was an ass.”

*You say I said this, I’ll say you lied. Not every dragon is as glorious as, say, me. And some dragons are less glorious or intelligent or rich or worshipped, but have more raw power. Haven’t met the Death dragon, but I’m willing to bet it was a trip.*

That was an understatement. Kaden shared the logs from when he’d received the scale. “Nearly killed me.”

The [Sun Lizard’s] tongue flicked out at his hand, touching the black scale outline. *Then you add Fire. Fire’s probably the strongest dragon there is. And THEN you go near Oceanus in his natural form, yeah, think I got this one. You’re sick from over-exposure to dragon mana. That part will sort in a week or two, and you’ll be stronger. So it’s good news/bad news.*

Kaden did not got this. “What’s happening? And how do I fix it?”

*Those scales aren’t just an illusion. They’re a nugget of us. Of power. That’s why smart adventurers have always been after dragon scales.* The Sun Lizard touched a claw to each scale. The Solar scale, the first Kaden received, glowed briefly. *Every scale does something different. That fire scale makes you more resistant. Death made you more deadly. Solar…you’ll figure it out in time. I’m proud of what I did there.*

Kaden hadn’t seen any benefits from the Fire Scale. “How do I avoid being drawn? And why is it even happening?”

*Us dragons? Real dragons, not lizards with aspirations—I’m looking at you, sparky—we’re mana. Our scales work to hold it in. On you, it’s doing the opposite, sucking in dragon mana and pumping it into your body. No offense, kid, but you’re not a dragon, and there’s side effects.*

“What do I do?”

*Stay clear of powerful dragons. Stick with us smart, stylish, wise dragons. You’ll acclimate eventually and then your body won’t be so hungry for more. I could introduce you to better dragons. For a price.* Suridev’s tone had switched from light-hearted to business serious.

“We’ll talk. We’ll negotiate.” At the mention of negotiation, his [Negotiation] skill activated, offering warnings about how devious dragons could be. “Thank you.”

*I meant to tell you, but the whole business in Omnor went Princess Pear-shaped. Come find me, I got work for go-getters like you.* The [Sun Lizard] stepped back. *Now, don’t panick. I promised this little guy he’d get to be a dragon-hatchling, and warned him what would happen. Only one way that gets done.*

The [Sun Lizard] coiled up in a circle, his tail wrapping around his body, and began to glow brighter and brighter until Kaden’s eyes hurt. Sara didn’t blink, staring as the lizard incandesced.

When the spots cleared, a golden egg six inches long rested on the bed. Kaden picked it up, cradling it close. The egg was warm, the surface smooth and it radiated solar mana.

“May I?” Ashi asked.

Kaden fought the feeling in his gut that wanted to clutch the egg and hide it. He offered it to her.

Ashi’s skin flushed golden as she drank in solar mana. “It will be powerful. You will keep it, will you not?”

“[Sun Lizards] are from the islands where [Ruby Hydras] are. Trinity is different. I don’t know if he’d be too happy in Verona.” Kaden hadn’t thought that far ahead. “I need to get up and get moving, and work this off.”

“I was listening!” Sara said. “Rest. Recover. We’re hitting the seas soon and there will be no rest there.”

Eve put a hand on Ashi’s shoulder. “I’d like to hold the egg, please.”

Ashi passed it to her. “With care, Evelyn.”

“It smells like summer,” Eve said. “It feels like laying in the sun in the grass. I’d like to tend it. Did the lizard say who should tend the egg? I could tell it was speaking but not what it said.”

Kaden shook his head. “Suridev didn’t give orders, but I’d bet he knew I’d take it. Eggs can go into Inventory right up until they hatch. If you get tired of it, give it back.”

Eve’s broad smile said she wasn’t going to get tired of it. “Vip, keep him warm. I’m the closest thing to a Healer you have. Healer’s orders: rest. Recover.”

“No Dragons,” Sara added.

Kaden could do that.

###

After five days, Kaden felt mostly recovered, though bruised and sore in his soul, like he’d been put through a press. Eve brought him mostly soups in bed. When Kaden finally got dressed and made his way out, the mood in Krebat had turned chill.

Kaden made his way to the dry docks, letting Trinity hunt fish by the wave shore. Rocky made an excellent counterweight for cranes, and [Shipwright] Cohn and his crew let Kaden watch—and even saw a board or two.

His [Building] skill was low, but boards were boards. All three masts had been replaced, new Spars hung, and now the builders rushed to tar the hold and test enchantments. Sara came looking for Cohn with Skully lurching along behind her. “Are we ready for cargo?”

“We’re ready. We’ll get a Sea Mage to flood the dock and load this afternoon while we make the last touches,” Cohn said. “That skeleton can’t come near this ship. I just finished repairing it. Not one step closer, you understand?”

Skully stepped back.

Sara cursed again. “Oceanus was seen as an omen. No one wants to sail, especially not Captain Senegal.”

Cohn nodded. “It’s seen as an omen because it was an omen. Oceanus didn’t just pass by, he came straight for the town. No voyage will end well until we have another omen. Give it a month.”

“We’ll be in Xiao within a month,” Sara said. “We sail with the two ships, we sail with the cargo we have. With four of us onboard, we are an armada, and that’s before we count Trinity.”

“Your funeral,” Cohn said. “I got your terms for the other lumber and they’re acceptable. Elgarath Trading ok’d the repairs.”

Sara shook his hand, then looked to Kaden. “Someone—you—brought far more lumber than expected. I approached Elgarath Trading about making a Fleet Alliance, they refused. So S&K Holdings bought a minor stake using lumber. There are twenty five ships their fleet. Guess which one they wanted to peg our stake to?”

Kaden had a decent idea. “The broken, unable-to-sail one stuck in port?”

“Correct.” Sara began to grin, and her Cosmic horror’s psuedopods shook as though laughing. “That gives me the right to authorize repairs, but the crew won’t sail right now.”

[Shipwright Cohn] looked at Sara with a new appreciation. “They’re up for repairs next week, but Senegal’s cautious. Too cautious. Topaz Trading tried to hire him to make local runs but he’s unreliable. If the wind blows wrong, he doesn’t sail. If there’s blood on the moon, or blood on the deck, he doesn’t sail. If a [Match Lizard] sneezes, he doesn’t sail.”

“That will have to change in time. For now, it’s acceptable that we get repairs started.” Sara looked to the docks, where cargo carriers lined up. “Kaden, what do you think?”

He thought the sooner they started, the sooner he could meet new beasts in Xiao. “Get ready. We’re going to sea.”