The next morning we got up out of bed and gathered our belongings. Tromping downstairs, still tired, but rested, we sat at a table for breakfast before we left. Patsy was there with a smile to greet us.

"This breakfast is on the house lads."

She said this as she sat down one of the largest plates of bacon I had ever seen in front of us. All we could do was stare at the plate, then up at Patsy and drool. Finally coming to my senses I managed to ask the question we were likely all thinking.

"What's this for, Patsy."

"For what you did," she said as she touched one finger to her nose in a knowing motion.

We still stared after her for a moment, then back at the pile of bacon. I shrugged and we all started digging into the food. It was so good. Perfectly crispy, greasy, salty, still hot, and for crying out loud, it was bacon. As we were digging into our crispy fried pile of heaven, Patsy came back around with another dish stacked high with freshly baked biscuits. Next to that, she laid down three dishes, one filled with butter, and the others had some kind of fruit jelly in them. One was definitely a peach flavor, and the other tasted like strawberries. Spreading first the butter onto the hot biscuits and watching the butter melt into the fluffy insides, then spreading on the sweet jelly and taking a bite seemed to make the world a little brighter, and combined with the bacon we were eating, I thought I heard angels singing softly in my ears. We ate about all we could stand of the repast and made a respectable dent in the giant pile of both bacon and biscuits she had set in front of us before we stood up to thank her. I went ahead and stored the rest in my bag of holding, and practically waddled over to Patsy to thank her. You never know when you'll run into a bacon emergency after all.

After bidding Patsy a fond farewell, we left the inn. We walked back toward the front gate and when we were about fifty meters away from the town entrance, I heard someone calling from behind us.

"You weren't just going to leave me here, were you? And after I jumped through hoops of fire to get a day off right after a disaster like yesterday?"

"Ah! Commander Harlow! We honestly didn't think you'd be able to get off after yesterday, but we were going to wait down at the gates for a little bit for you."

"Honestly, I wasn't sure I could either. The only thing that convinced the mayor to let me have the day was the testimony of those thugs that were with Gregory, and the fact you took him in without killing him. The rest...was harder to explain, but when I told them it was you I wanted to talk with they let me off to go see what you had to say."

"That is great news. We need to talk and we can't do it here. So if you'll follow us, we will show you where we are going."

"You can't tell me in advance?"

"Sorry sir, but no I can't. Can't take any chances. But if you come with me, I promise you'll understand."

"That's asking a lot of trust on your part."

"I know, but if I haven't earned your trust at this point, I doubt there is anything else I can do to gain it."

Harlow looked over at Rutherford, who gave one firm nod back to him.

"Alright. I will trust you. I've known Rutherford for many years. He does not idly give out his trust. If he is willing to follow you, then I will as well. Let's go."

We walked out of the town and back the way we had come from where we left Al'Doran. The walk was a little over two hours and it mostly passed in silence. Once we reached the forest I took out the scroll Al'Doran had given me and broke the seal then we entered the forest and walked to the clearing.

"So we just came to this forest?"

"We are meeting someone here. But I'm not sure you would believe me about who until they get here."

He looked at me with not a small amount of confusion at this point and a little bit of concern.

"Don't worry, Commander, no harm will come to you. I promise you that we only want to protect your town. Were we followed Vokin?"

"Not that I can tell. The land was pretty flat, not a lot of places to hide while followin' us."

"You know he's gonna be mad, right?" Tristan said.

"I know. But you realize what that thing was, don't you?"

"Yeah," He replied resigned, hanging his head slightly when he said it.

"We don't have much choice at this point. We can't just let it go now."

"Excuse me, but who is going to be mad, what thing are you talking about, and why am I getting more and more confused by the moment?"

"I'm still not sure you'll believe me without seeing."

"Look, I followed you all the way out here to a forest where I'm sure you and your band of friends could just kill me for my stuff, and throw the whole town into disarray because I trusted you. Whatever it is can't be that big of a deal."

We all looked pointedly at each other, then at Harlow.

"OK, but don't say we didn't warn you. You see Commander..."

I then proceeded to explain how I was reincarnated to this world from mine, got to choose my race, still retained my memories from the previous life, and got plopped down in a dungeon with an egg that I was told would kill me if it died, then the egg hatched and out popped a baby dragon making me a Dragonrider, then I was found by Al'Doran and brought to an island to train to be a Dragonrider and now I'm forming a team to help me fight off Shadow Beasts.

"Which is why you are here, the thing that was controlling Gregory was a Shadow Beast and it said it wanted to take over the town and others nearby, which means there may be other Shadow Beasts taking over people in other towns, hence the unrest."

Harlow just stood there staring at me for a long time.

"You're right, I don't believe you."

"I knew you wouldn't, but if you can wait here you will see the proof for yourself."

"How long do we have to wait?"

"Based on how long we've been here already, maybe another hour at the most."

"If you're lying to me then I have to say don't ever come back to the town."

"Why would I lie? What could I possibly have to gain from bringing you here and having you sit with me for a while? If I had wanted to kill you I'd have done it by now. No sense dragging it out. If there was something going on in town, why would I have worked so hard to keep Gregory alive? If I had wanted to join Gregory I would have just done it and taken over your town. I don't have an agenda here except to keep people safe."

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

"True, but if you didn't want to get your hands dirty...you know what, as outlandish as this all sounds, you haven't lied to me yet. I will trust you. Though you are asking me to swallow a really big story."

"I know Harlow. I really get how big this is. You have no idea what kind of torment this has been to keep a secret from literally anyone. What kind of isolation I have been going through in being ripped away from my home, everyone and everything I know, only to be tossed down in this world like some kind of rag doll to be found by things wanting to kill me from the day I started, not knowing a thing about this world, the creatures in it, how it works, or anything else, and then told I can't tell anyone about it because of some kind of creatures out there I hadn't even seen at that point that would descend on me like pigeons on a bread festival if they knew I even existed. I can't make friends, not really. I can't get close to anyone. Finding Tristan and convincing Al'Doran to let me have him stay with me was like pulling teeth, same with Vokin. It wasn't until we finally convinced him that I needed a team to keep me safe because all the other Dragonriders are dead that we convinced him to let us find Rutherford and that was only with the use of an oath given by Tristan and Vokin. Tristan is like my kid brother now, Vokin and Rutherford have shown their loyalty so I am happy to call them brothers as well now, but it has been a lonely existence, walking around lying to people to protect this little secret. I know what you are being asked to believe. I know what it would look like to bring you out here and have nothing happen. And that is why I am so confident right now. It's why I haven't faltered in bringing you in for a minute. Because my convictions about this are too strong to stop."

"I-I'm sorry Callan. I am sorry you have felt that way. I still find it hard to believe, but I can see the conviction in you and I will choose to believe and stay here with you."

We waited around for a little over an hour before the sound of the beating wings was clear. Harlow went white and drew his weapon.

"No, no, don't do that, put it away, it's OK, he is a friend."

"A friend?! That is a DRAGON!"

Aeolith ran up to me and nuzzled my face with hers. She was really getting big now. She was about as tall as I was. Soon I would be able to ride her instead of Al'Doran. She looked over at Harlow with his weapon drawn and snarled showing teeth, puffing up, and putting herself between Harlow and me.

"I did tell you that part. Just put your weapon away and wait. Aeolith, this is a friend. Don't hurt him. Calm down."

Reluctantly, he sheathed his sword. And when Al'Doran landed he turned to look at us.

"I see there are two people you have brought. Did we not send you after only one person for the party? Must I decide which is best and we kill the other?"

"Whatever gave you the idea I would want you to kill someone when we brought them to you?!"

"The secret must be kept, young rider. Your life will be in danger otherwise."

"Well, that is why the other person is here, actually. We ran into an issue in town."

"What kind of issue?"

"A Shadow Beast."

Al'Doran became noticeably upset at this proclamation.

"I see you survived. Tell me everything."

So once again, I recounted the story of Gregory and how he had been acting strange, and then the unrest as he gathered people to join his cause, then finding him at the warehouse ending with the Shadow Beast fight and how I destroyed it.

"You were lucky indeed, young rider. The Shadow Beast likely underestimated you because you were not with your dragon. But this is indeed disturbing news. Still, I do not see why you have brought this other person."

"This other person is Commander Harlow, of the city guard. He needs to know what we know. We cannot just sit in silence while the Shadow Beasts kill people."

"Your feelings are admirable, but you are not ready to fight them yet. The magic you used should not be available to you yet. You must have heard the voice of the elders protecting you at that time."

"So how do I get that magic?"

"It is a skill, the last in the line of the Dragon Spirit. It is called Dragon's Hope. It is specifically to be used when all else fails to end the darkness."

"So I could take the skill to help those suffering."

"Young rider, this is not a force to be trifled with. If you had not destroyed the one, it would have found others and hunted you down. We must prepare you more before you fight them."

"I need to be prepared specifically for fighting them now. They are here, Al'Doran, whether we like it or not. And I cannot ignore the suffering that will go on while I play knight on an island. Besides, what better way to learn to kill them than to actually kill them?"

Al'Doran was silent.

"You have a pure heart, Callan Ryder. One I have not seen in a long time. Not since..." He trailed off. "Very well, we must discuss how this will happen though. Your secrecy is still important, but if we can sneak you and Aeolith into and out of towns to kill the Shadow Beasts, the world will be a better place. Commander Harlow."

Al'Doran turned his huge head to the Commander who went even whiter than he had before.

"Uhhhh...Yes, sir?"

"You must help find a way to get the secret of the Shadow Beasts to the other towns. Tell them what you have seen and to be on the lookout. Do NOT however tell them of Callan and his dragon. That must be a surprise to the Shadow Beasts. I will prepare them so that when we return they will be ready to fight the Shadows."

"So there is no one I can tell of Callan and the dragon?"

"We will come to you when the time is right and let you know who to tell so that we can sneak them into the city to kill the beasts attempting to take over. Until then their secret is equivalent to their lives being in your hands. Do not fail us, or I will find you myself."

For all he appeared scared out of his mind, Harlow saluted the dragon giving an affirmation.

"Now, young rider, I will be training you to fight those monsters specifically. After which you will be tested on the first town. Do not fail, or the hope of this world dies with you."

"I won't fail."

"I see you have the fire inside you. That is good. Now we must work to keep this secret for as long as possible. Once we have made the first strike though, the secret will be out. There will be nothing we can do to keep you off of their radar. So you must be swift, direct, and ruthless with the Shadow Beasts when you find them. Even a hint of mercy or hesitation will mean your death."

"Understood." I turned to Commander Harlow after this. "Commander, I am sorry to have to drag you into this, but you were already a bigger part of it than you knew."

"I...I just can't believe it. My whole world is turned upside down. But at least we have hope." His face resolved at this statement. "I will do my part to have everything ready for you. I will be waiting for your return and we will fight with you. You will not be alone, Callan."

"Thank you, Commander. I am happy to hear that. Because I believe this is going to turn bad. And when I return we will need to make some changes."

I was already envisioning a new place where we would be required to build up defenses and have a safe haven for people to come to in times of trouble.

"When I call on you, please let me know I can rely on you."

"You can, Callan. I will also see who I can gather to your side. I am certain there will be others willing to join the cause."

I nodded to him and turned to Al'Doran.

"OK, we can go, Harlow will take it from here and we need to train. Oh and I almost forgot, this is Rutherford. He is the healer we acquired. He is also a cleric, and really good at fighting as well."

"Welcome Rutherford, I am sorry to do this right away, but I must ask for your oath to Callan."

"I will gladly give it," Rutherford said, stepping forward and kneeling.

"By the power of the ancients, do you swear to do no harm to Callan Ryder be it physical, emotional, or spiritual, by your hand or by your words, and further swear to defend him until your dying breath? And do you swear that upon penalty of pain of the oathbreaker to keep your new lord's confidence, and help guide him down the path that is right in all that you say and do?"

"I swear," Rutherford said, true conviction playing across his face.

Just as before, a glow extended from Al'Doran to Rutherford kneeling on the ground and then shot toward me, hitting me in the chest. This time I was more prepared and the results did not hurt as much. The feeling passed again and I looked to Al'Doran.

The giant dragon dipped his head in approval and then lowered himself so we could climb onto him.

"Welcome Rutherford, I am glad you decided to join the team. Callan will need all the help he can get in the coming times."

We all climbed onto Al'Doran's back and waved to Commander Harlow on the ground.

"We will return soon, I promise. Be ready for us!" I yelled down to him.

He waved back and saluted. Then he watched as we took off into the sky.