> “One more day, one more time
> One more sunset, maybe I’d be satisfied
> But then again, I know what it would do
> Leave me wishing still for one more day with you.”
> “One More Day,” Diamond Rio
The grass was blue. Of all the things that had happened in the past hour, this was the part that Adriel was having the most trouble with.
The grass. Was blue.
It swayed in the breeze, the stalks making ripples and waves that looked so much like an actual body of water that it made her brain hurt. One minute Adriel would swear she was staring at an enormous lake, and the next… no. That was grass. Blue. Grass.
Shaking her head, Adriel forced herself to turn away and glanced over at her husband. Kalrotoss, too, was staring at the grasslands that stretched out below them. They stood at the top of a hill, under one of the tallest trees that Adriel had ever seen. It wasn’t “world tree” tall, but it had to have been almost a mile in height, and its branches stretched out in all directions before dropping low, creating a canopy that blocked out much of the sun, so that the rays filtered in through the leaves and scattered across the ground like light through broken glass.
“Well…” Adriel said slowly, and Kalrotoss glanced back at her. “I guess we should take stock. Any idea where we are?”
Kalrotoss shook his head and frowned. “We could be anywhere. But no, I don’t recognize it. It’s certainly not the Cascades.”
Adriel studied the series of hills that continued to the east before merging into a mountain range that stretched far to the north and south. The mountains were impressive from the foothills where they stood, looking up, but they were still miniature compared to the Cascade Mountains where she and Kalrotoss had given their lives to stop the chaos nova.
Or… they had thought they were giving our lives. Yet, here they were. Somewhere else. Alive.
Adriel glanced down at her clothes, her… well, that was it. She didn’t have any other items, no weapons, no armor. She could be grateful that she wasn’t naked or barefoot, but beyond that, she was bereft of all but one possession. The tiefling held up her hand, studying the gold band that sat comfortably there. It certainly looked like the ring that Kalrotoss had slipped onto her finger on their wedding day, those thousands of years ago. But, was it…? Curious, Adriel tried to mentally activate the item.
:Hello?:
Kalrotoss started, then turned to look at her with an arched eyebrow.
Adriel shrugged, giving a wry smile. “Just taking stock,” She said aloud. “Looks like the rings work.”
Kalrotoss nodded slowly, and she heard his response in my head. :So they do. That… is a relief.:
Adriel had to agree. “What else do you think we might have kept? Any natural abilities?” She gave Kalrotoss a pointed look and he tilted his head, considering.
“It’s worth finding out,” he agreed. He took several steps back, moving down from the hilltop and out from under the great tree before seeming to pause and concentrate.
Adriel waited. Then she waited some more. She was beginning to get worried when suddenly… he was there. The enormous golden dragon that Adriel knew and loved. She let out a breath that she hadn’t realized she was holding. So much of Kalrotoss’s identity was wrapped up in what he was, that Adriel wasn’t sure what he would have done if he had lost that. Plus, she couldn’t deny that she was feeling a little defenseless, here in this foreign world with no weapons or items and no friendly civilization in sight. Having a golden dragon on her side made her feel a lot better, even if he was a fair bit smaller than I remembered, only reaching 20 feet from head to tail.
:Your turn.: Kalrotoss urged through our mental bond, and Adriel hesitated. For Kalrotoss, being a dragon was more than second nature. For hundreds of years before she had ever met him, his dragon form was his default. But for Adriel… her identity was a bit more complicated.
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“I don’t know…” The tiefling replied, hesitantly. “I’m not sure I can.”
Kalrotos lowered his draconic head to her level and stared at her with a large golden reptilian eye. :Stop making excuses.:
Adriel rolled her eyes. Okay, fine. I deserved that. She nodded grudgingly and followed Kalrotoss down the hill a ways, not wanting to hit anything if - when - she grew. Then Adriel took a breath and closed her eyes and… concentrated. She remembered the first time she had changed into a dragon, discovering her true identity. The tiefling hadn’t become a majestic creature of gold scales and great, powerful wings, but a different kind of dragon, one that was more akin to the children of Kalrotoss’ aunt, the goddess of conquest. Known as blood dragons, these creatures had long, snake-like bodies with no wings, though they were still fully capable of flight. Most of them had scales in shades of dark reds and violets, which was partly where they got their name. They were feared and hated by many and were the mortal enemies of Kalrotoss’ kin. It had taken Adriel a long time to come to terms with that, to accept that what she was would not define who she was, and even longer to stop questioning Kalrotoss’ love for her in the face of her true bloodline. Even then, she had never felt truly comfortable as a dragon, and once she learned to take other forms, she tended to prefer those. Now, here she was, trying to become a blood dragon again.
For a long moment, nothing happened. And for a longer moment… nothing still happened. Adriel was letting out a sigh of frustration, reading to give up, when something… shifted. She let out a squawk and fell back, landing hard on a particularly sharp rock that dug into her back. :Ow!: Rolling over, she shook herself and kept her eyes closed as she internally took stock. Four legs? Check. Scales? Check. Elongated snout with sharp teeth? Oh, yeah.
Adriel was just taking a breath of relief when she noticed that the ground below her had started to rumble. Startled, she snapped her eyes open and then her mouth dropped open in shock. The entire world had magnified in size! The tree was now several miles tall and the rocks around her had become boulders. Even Kalrotoss had grown, and he was at least as big as she had ever seen him, towering over her.
Adriel was left disoriented by the sudden shift of her perception of the world, and the rumbling in the ground continued as she tried to process the change. It wasn’t until she heard the chortle in her mind that it clicked what was causing the rumbling - Kalrotos was laughing. His great rolls of laughter shook the ground below her and caused the rocks to shake and rattle.
Glaring up at the massive dragon, Adriel struggled to her feet, but when she looked down, she froze. Her feet weren’t the strong, sharp claws of dark red scales that she had been expecting. These feet were dainty and covered in opalescent scales that shimmered with flashes of blue and violet. Frowning, she turned her head to take in the rest of her form. Instead of a long, snake-like body, she had the shape of a golden dragon, like Kalrotoss, but her scales were the same pearlescent shades of mostly blues and violets. And her wings… she had wings. When had she gotten wings?
The greatest shock, however, wasn’t that she had wings. It was that the wings weren’t like Kalrotoss’ - great stretches of golden scales. Adriel’s wings were multicolored and iridescent filament, akin to that of a butterfly.
Adriel suddenly flashed back to the first friend she had made when she started adventuring as a young orphan teenager, all those years ago. A wise owl had become her familiar, then later transformed into a small faerie dragon when she began her studies as a summoner. Eventually, it was revealed that this companion who had been by her side for years was actually a piece of her own soul, cut free and given form. When Adriel discovered her true heritage as a blood dragon, the transformation required that her soul be made whole, and she’d had to say goodbye to her loyal friend. In truth, that loss had been even harder than the transformation itself. It didn’t matter that her familiar would always be a part of her. Adriel still missed her dearly.
Comprehension dawning, Adriel turned back to stare up at Kalrotoss’ laughing form. With understanding came the ability to process her new perspective of the world around her. The world hadn’t gotten big: Adriel had shrunk.
She was a faerie dragon.
Still chuckling, Kalrotoss lowered his head to the ground before his wife and his voice was warm when it spoke in her mind. :Hello, Tyglia. It’s good to see you again.:
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On the branches of the enormous gillaburrow tree perched a small bird, about the size of a canary but with feathers of glowing red and orange, like embers of a fire. Cocking her head, Reylei stared down at the two dragons on the ground far below her. They had only just arrived in Egandia, but already their powers were returning. There was a story to be told here, and Reylei would relish the chance to watch, to observe, and to report back to her goddess.
As the mated pair that were the golden dragon and the faerie dragon took humanoid form once again and made their way to the east through the Blue Grass Sea, Reylei launched into the air and followed them towards the city that sat on the eastern coast.
Three days later, when Adriel and Kalrotoss boarded the Deep Runner on the way to the larger western continent of Egandia, they were welcomed by the captain’s cabin boy, a young kitsune kit who introduced himself as Rey.