Cecil's yawn echoed off the walls of his little watch post. Another day nearly done, and then home to his wife's embrace, a hot meal, and a cozy bed. He rubbed his eyes, trying to force them to stay focused on the distant horizon, but the bright light left him seeing zooming spots and there was one of those frustrating threads of distortion that doesn't go away no matter how many times you blink.

He tried gently tilting his head, side to side, to make them settle out of the middle of his vision, but when his head moved, the thread stayed still. He shook his head gently, trying to clear his eyes and his mind. He took a sip from his canteen, looked in the dark for a moment, and then gently scanned the horizon. On about the third try, the church bell rang. As he turned for the door, he heard a deep, rumbling, polite cough.

"Ahem."

Cecil peeked back in the door, his hand gently gripping the hilt of his sword. Never hurt to be cautious. Before the window sat a large scaly head, a polite smile dancing across its lips.

"Do you know where I might find Sir Alden Darwin?"

The hand dropped from his sword, Cecil quietly returned to the window. If a dragon wanted you dead, you were. He was not dead, and he hoped to keep it that way. "I'm afraid he has been captured, ransomed by privateers."

"What?!" Flames danced between the dragon's teeth, as he spat the word, but he caught himself. He gently soothed the now cowering guard before him.

"Steady, steady. I know you're not to blame. Where might I find them?"

Cecil sputtered for a moment - "I could but----" his voice trailed off. He took a deep breath. "While I certainly don't like them, I would not wish them dead. I used the word captured with great intent. We have had some rather bloodless encounters with one another lately, and peace seems imminent, but not yet here."

"Hmmmmmmm.........." the pensive sound continued for what seemed like an impossibly long time. "What is your name, brave guard?"

"HA! Cecil the Brave, apparently!"

"Well Cecil the Brave" - he cringed at the idea of trying to explain that he was joking - "I, Glassmaker promise to you that I will do everything within my power to preserve that peace."

"No killing." Cecil wished he could've sewn his own mouth shut as soon as the words tumbled out.

Glassmaker tilted his head slightly, and a smile flashed across his lips, showing a staggering number of glittering white teeth. "Cecil the Brave indeed! Very well Cecil. A friend of Alden is a friend of mine. I cannot promise you no killing, but I can promise you that it will be my last resort."

A claw as long as Cecil's forearm poked through the window, and it took him a moment to realize that Glassmaker had extended his pinky, and wanted to shake on it.

"Deal!" Cecil's grin was wider than his whole head. "They can't have taken him far. They have 3 castles dotted up the coast, starting 100 miles north of here."

Glassmaker's running start took him to the air with staggering speed. His voice boomed "When I return, we will have to discuss when you can visit for tea!"

The adrenaline still pounding in his ears, Cecil half walked, half staggered home shaking like a leaf the whole way. Who could he tell? Would they believe him? He stopped. Tea. What do you bring a dragon as a housewarming gift? He grinned to himself. "Guess I'll just have to ask Alden when he gets back!"

It had been eighteen years since I last saw Bre'teria, and in that time, I'd never once heard her call me 'her' human.

"Do not test my patience!" Her great silver-scaled form bellowed, her wings flared with her fangs bared. "I shall reduce you and your ilk to nothing if you do not comply!"

Baron Crawford, a fat and pompous man of self import, balked at the threat with what looked like a boar leg in his hand. It seemed like he was actually considering freeing his captive for a moment before his sneer crept out. He took a disgustingly large bite of cooked boar meat and had the audacity to actually laugh at the majestic creature at his gates.

"I think not." He crowed before swallowing, standing at the edge of his hundred-foot tall wall around his estate. "Not without some...incentive."

His cackles were drowned out by the bellow of one pissed off dragoness. "Incentive!? The impudence! I shall rend flesh from bone, sunder your lands and salt your fields! Your incentive is that I shall be quick if you release my. Fucking. Human!"

I honestly expected the argument to go on longer, but Bre'teria smashing the castle gates. The deafening impact shook me from the top of the wall. Crawford fell on his ass in the most undignified way.

The slaughter that ensued was horrifying and glorious. Rather than kill the fools before her as a dragon, Bre'teria cast a spell on herself to make her human.

Gods, that silver hair was as mesmerizing as the last time I saw her.

It took her minutes to tear through Crawford's guards with her bare hands. She was a blur of Amazonian splendor as she kept true to her word. Limbs flew whimsically through the air as the cries of grown men echoed around the Baron.

Each spray of blood on his courtyard paled him by another shade.

"M-make her stop..." He cowered as he crawled on his knees toward me. His gems, gold, and jewelry scraped against the stone. A lone ornate dagger rested at his hip.

It was at this point I thought fitting to reveal I'd liberated myself from the chains that shackled me. His idiocy was abundant, and I felt responsible for making him aware. "No? You pissed off a dragon. I couldn't stop her if I wanted. You imprisoned me for my reputation alone, yet made no effort to prepare for the feats I'm renown for. Why would I worsen the world by letting a fool like you pollute it?"

+++++++++

"Leave it to a man to grow impatient and finish first." Bre'teria's airy sweet tones rippled across the stone. Even veiling her presence as a human, she was brimming with power and majesty.

And sass.

"My lady," I bowed after tucking the last of the dead baron's rings in my pocket, "I would never dare to offend you in the same way twice."

She stared with a sultry smirk a half a dozen paces from me, her lean arms crossed over her chest. "No, I'll be seeing to that." Her tone was borderline threatening. I didn't doubt she spotted me pocketing the jewelry I'd looted, so I wasn't certain what deserved this response.

The next few minutes ticked by as she stared me down uncomfortably. For her? For me? Possibly both. I certainly felt knots in my stomach.

"Why did you really save me?" I asked with a timidity I hadn't shown since my apprenticeship. "Your human? Your fucking human? When did that happen?"

She hissed as her eyes glowed with her magic. For a second, her draconian fangs were bared before she composed herself. She was proud, even by the standards of her kind, so such a confession was probably wounding.

"When the egg that held your daughter began to hatch. It takes eighteen years for a dragon egg to mature. I thought you'd like to be there when she's born."

They'd taken her while she was asleep. They had to; they wouldn't have stood a chance otherwise, not with her breadth of skills and magic.

Now, Courage was blindfolded, bound, and gagged, slumped against a wall, clad in rough-spun clothing that wasn't her own. Her hands were injured, several of her fingers broken; no hope of using any magic to free herself, not without help.

"...I'm telling you," one of the bandits was saying, his voice fading in and out of Courage's wounded consciousness, "she's familiar to me. I know this woman."

"Yeah," another one joked, his tone implying something salacious, "I'll bet you do. A body like that, I wouldn't mind knowing her too."

A third voice spoke up, one with authority. "The people paying for this made it clear, hands off, no damage that ain't necessary. Had to bust up her hands so she couldn't do any sorcery, but that's it. You touch her, and I'll sell you to make up the difference in value."

Courage gave her head a slight shake, trying to snap herself back to awareness. She'd been captured, that much was clear, and it sounded like it wasn't a whim that had led to it - this was a job for these men, someone had paid them to take this risk. Courage certainly hoped they'd been paid well, and that they'd already spent it, because they seemed to be missing one important piece of knowledge: her partner.

"Go tell the rest of the lads," the third voice said, "to get the wagon ready and figure out amongst themselves who's goin' on the delivery. I'll take a dozen; don't want anyone stealin' our prize from us on the way."

"Right, boss," the second voice said, and Courage could hear his footsteps leave the room, a heavy wooden door slamming shut behind him.

"I'm telling you, boss, I know this wench." The first voice spoke again, his tone suspicious, and she could hear footsteps approaching her now. She felt a hand wrap around her chin and begin moving her face, tilting and turning it to take in her features. It surely wouldn't be someone recognizing her as Princess Marielle; there was nothing left of that soft little girl now, nothing but the name that only a select few were allowed to use. Long blonde hair chopped to shoulder length, and all the roundness of her face gone, burned away in the crucible of her life to reveal the angular steel underneath. Marielle had been harmlessly pretty; Courage was, at this point, dangerously beautiful, and deeply unrecognizable as what she had been once.

"Wait..." The voice spoke again, and the hand let go of her face, the boots moving away from her again. She heard the sounds of clanking metal; possibly her armor, and her weapons. "I do recognize this woman. This armor, the sword. This is..."

"Well? Spit it out," the leader's voice said, his tone impatient.

"I was a soldier for the kingdom of Harrenscourt. You know, the place that got burned by a red dragon about five years back?"

"Aye, you've mentioned that before."

"Well," the first voice said hurriedly, "the dragon had a rider, someone directing it and fighting alongside it. A woman."

There was quiet for a moment, though it was only quiet to those who didn't have Courage's skillset. She could hear what was coming, could hear the wingbeats growing closer through a window nearby; she could feel what was about to happen. The brigands couldn't, though, as wrapped up in sudden revelation as they were.

"You mean to tell me this woman...she's..."

The leader's voice was cut off by an earsplitting roar. Courage couldn't help herself; she began laughing, the gag muffling the sound. A second later, the air was rent by a deep, menacing voice, shouting loud enough to be heard in the neighboring kingdom.

"WHERE IS MY RIDER? I SENSE HER HERE! YOU CANNOT HIDE HER FROM ME! RELEASE HER NOW, OR FACE THE WRATH OF FER'ATHA THE RED, THE SCOURGE OF HARRENSCOURT!"

The two men were silent. There was a beat of hesitation, and then footsteps approached Courage again. She felt fingers slide beneath her blindfold and her gag, pulling them out of place. She could see the rough-looking men standing over her, see their wide, fearful eyes and the sweat suddenly springing from their brow. She flexed her jaw, licking at her lips a bit to restore moisture to them, and as she did, the leader spoke.

"Call it off," he said roughly. The face that owned the voice was no less rough or terse; he was a stocky man, with a week's growth of stubble and shaggy brown hair. His arms looked like he'd definitely done his share of labor in his time - either that, or swinging of weaponry. "Call it off, or I run you through with your own sword, woman."

Courage smirked up at the man. "You kill me, and she will know it. And she'll make sure every single one of you dies in the most horrendously painful way she can think of. And Fer'Atha, she's very inventive. Very clever. She'll invent new forms of torture just for you. So no, I think the only thing I'll be calling right now is your ridiculous bluff. Let me go, and you might live to see tomorrow."

Three members of the Bravery Militia deliberated at their meeting place. Each studied a map sprawled out on a wooden table. A stack of papers documenting all of Crow's Pond residents sat nearby. The Hunter's Guide Against Dragons shook in Gillis's arms.

"We have to meet the dragon's demands. It claims the peasant is more valuable than a horde of gold. I have no reason to believe that, but regardless, dragon's are tenacious and won't stop until their desires are met." Gillis said.

Noa shook her head. "I won't be able to sleep if we surrender the little girl."

"Let's be grateful its asking for a peasant rather than a princess."

"I'd be just as upset if the Dragon asked for a princess," Noa said.

"Would you rather choose the other option and have the dragon pillage Crow's Pond until it retrieves his prize?" Gillis spat.

Raik knocked on the table. "Can we all agree none of us will be satisfied until everyone from peasants to princesses are safe?"

Gillis furrowed his brow at the youngest member of the group. "We're Crow's Pond best defense but are outmatched when it comes to certain creatures. Dragons top the lists. Keeping everyone safe? You'd have a better luck slaying a werewolf on a new moon night."

"For once, I agree with Gillis," Noa said. "We will have some kind of loss because the dragon proposed a chariot scenario. Do you know what that is Raik?"

The young man shook his head.

"Imagine a chariot filled with innocent people moving at a remarkable speed on a pathway. Further down, a person lays passed out on the dirt road. You play a wizard who's watching the event unfold. You can use a spell and redirect the chariot but doing so will lead it off the pathway and into the woods where it will crash and kill every passenger. Or, do you allow the chariot to remain on the pathway and run over the one person?"

Gillis clapped his hands. "In our case the peasant girl is the person on the road; the remaining population of Crow's Pond represents the chariot's passengers. I rather have one person die than a whole bunch."

"But could you live with yourself knowing that you were the reason the person on the road died? We must not forget that the person is a peasant girl is young, perfectly innocent, and undeserving being captive."

The three fell into silence.

Raik knocked on the table once more. "The chariot scenario ends with a period once a decision is made, but our decision can end with a comma."

The other two looked at him wearing a baffled expression.

"Interesting. Go on," Gillis said.

"I agree that we won't be able to successfully defend Crow's Pond from a dragon attack. Her buildings are flimsy and dull blades gather in the armory." Raik drew a breath. "We must give in to the Dragon's demands and hand over the peasant girl. But we won't stop there -- that's our comma."

"I refuse to go along with this plan," Noa interrupted, but Raik raised a hand to hush his fellow member.

"The dragon claims that the girl is more costly than gold. Though the idea is unclear to us, we know that it will care for her. Once she's captive, we wait for days. Perhaps weeks. When the dragon relaxes its guard, we will take the peasant girl back."

Noa nodded in agreement, but Gillis shook his head.

"And then what? The dragon will storm Crow's Pond and reclaim its prize," he said.

Raik cracked his knuckles, "Then we'll have to slay the dragon while we're at it."

The young man's last statement convinced Gillis to nod in agreement.

"There is one issue. We have to convince the peasant girl to be the dragon's prisoner," Gillis said.

"That won't be a problem," Noa said. "Though she might be young, the peasant girl has more adventure in her bones than the three of us combined. When we propose the plan, she'd act as if she was the fourth member of the Bravery Militia."

"Perfect. If she's going to be a part of our group, we must know her name."

Noa smiled.

"Her name is Valari."

---------- ---------- ---------- ----------

Thanks for reading! Please visit/subscribe to r/VegaVisions for more dumb dumb stories.

Belthas heard the roar from inside the tower. He hurried over to the window to see his dragon friend flying in a massive arc over the city. Down below he could see people fleeing in every direction. Guards dropped their weapons and ran for cover in a panicked frenzy. Families shut every window and door to their homes.

He knew he should pity them, but his heart filled with joy at the spectacle. Tears filled his eyes as a dozen more dragons, of all different sizes, filled the sky. Maegor, their leader, slowly descended onto the city's front gate. Behind him, the other dragons landed.

"Hear me citizens of Kerak." Maegor bellowed. "Release my human, and we will leave you all in peace. Do not, and I will reduce your walls to rubble and free them myself." Maegor roared once more and the other dragons joined him. The very earth shook and Belthas was forced to cover his ears.

"What say you?" Maegor bellowed. An eerie silence followed.

"Maegor!" Belthas cried out. "Maegor I'm here!" Belthas heard footsteps in the tower. He turned just in time to see the city's mayor, Rorath, peer through the vision slit of his door.

"I knew I shouldn't have trusted you," Rorath growled "What devilry possessed you to take up with them? Against your own kind and kin!"

"They are my friends, brother." Belthas said calmly.

"Until their stomachs are empty, like your head." Keys rattled and clanked, and the heavy bolt for the door was undone with a loud thunk. The hinges of the door whined as it opened. Rorath stood menacingly, glowering at Belthas. "Go. Go be with your friends."

Slowly, Belthas began to walk towards the door. Rorath's eyes followed him all the while. Meekly he squeezed past Rorath. In a flash, Rorath's dagger was out of its sheath and in his hands. Belthas flinched and froze with fear.

"I said GO!" Rorath belted. "Go before I cut your throat!"

Belthas turned and ran as fast as he could down the winding staircase. He nearly fell but caught himself on the wall. By the time he reached the bottom, he was out of breath. Briskly he made his way through the castle, hateful stares following him through every hall and corridor.

"Traitor." murmured a young girl. "Coward." said an elderly man. "Worm." an elderly lady spat. Finally, he reached the main gate of the inner castle. All that was left to do was cross the drawbridge over the moat, and then it was a straight shot to the main castle's gate. There, atop the parapets, stood Maegor. The city walls were nearly ten meters high, and Maegor made them look small. Under his massive talons, the stones crumbled and cracked.

When Maegor saw Belthas, he let out a small roar. Small for Maegor, at least. Maegor's tail flicked and he shifted eagerly on the wall. The stone towers on either side of the gate crumbled under the shifting weight, and clumsily Maegor stumbled down onto the main street.

Belthas broke out into a sprint towards Maegor, and Maegor dropped his massive head down to meet his embrace. Maegor's head and neck covered nearly half the distance. Belthas barely slowed down before colliding with Maegor's nose.

"Friend." Belthas said tearily. Maegor let out a sigh and Belthas was surrounded by the hot air. It didn't bother him in the slightest. Belthas stepped back to look at his friend. Maegor slowly opened his mouth and his massive tongue gently pressed against Belthas' face. Belthas giggled as he leaned into the tongue, so as not to be knocked off his feet.

Maegor dropped his head and tilted it for Belthas to climb on. When Belthas was halfway up, Maegor flicked his head to help Belthas up the rest of the way. "The others have missed you." Maegor said softly. "And so have I."

Belthas, laying flat, squeezed the scales he was holding onto just a little tighter. Maegor lept over the gate wall, spread his wings, and with a running start, the pair took off into the sky.

I smiled at the sound of Marthlok‘s voice. The knights had ”rescued” me a few hours ago when Marthlok had flown out to get some food because I was craving apples. For some reason those idiots took Marthlok’s absence as an invitation to break into our cave and kidnap me, while trying to assure me I was safe from the monster. So here I was now, stuck in some dumb guy‘s castle. I had tried explaining the mixup, but unfortunately no one knew sign language.

I could hear men screaming, orders, war cries. Their ignorance didn’t surprise me now. I walked towards the next window, wanting to see what was going on outside. One guy had stepped forward, his sword up high, shouting at Marthlok how they would never release me.

I touched the amulet around my neck and locked my eyes on Marthlok, trying to focus. ‘I’m here’, I told him. Still hovering above the grounds Marthlok looked up to me and nodded.“You are foolish men, for you try to meddle with things you don’t understand.“ Marthlok‘s voice was deep and clear. "And now you don’t even try to talk to me but want to fight. All I asked for is to get my human back. Shame.” With a strong beat of his wings Marthlok knocked all the guys over. I smiled. More guards came running out, trying to shoot arrows, just to be knocked off their feet by Marthlok flapping his wings. Finally he flew up to my window. “Stand away there for a second”, he advised me, before ripping out a piece of wall. I climbed over the rubble towards the dragon. ‘I’m glad you came’, I signed and swung onto Marthlok’s back. “Of course. Now come on, let’s go home before the apples rot.”

Apparently, "Heroing Without A License" is a capital offense in the Country of Blister. Emerald wished he'd known that last week, before he rushed into the burning hotel to save the crying girl. Emerald still would've saved her; he simply would've paid the five gold pieces first.

However, he hadn't paid, and now he was facing execution. The girl he'd saved was even forced to testify against him. She'd praised Emerald at the trial; she'd even looked Emerald in the eyes and thanked him for saving her life. Unfortunately, the prosecutor had used the girl's testimony against him, and the judge had no choice but to rule "Guilty as charged."

Emerald had tried to offer payment for his deed. However, the law was clear. It didn't matter that Emerald was able to pay for the license after the fact. It didn't matter that Emerald was from the Country of Dragonbreath. Diplomatic immunity wasn't offered in Blister. The judge cited precedent and various case laws, basically saying, "We set the license price high because we don't want inexperienced people to foolishly try heroing and get themselves killed. Nor do we want to be responsible for unvetted outsiders coming in, getting themselves killed, and having to deal with an angry international bureaucrat."

Essentially, Blister was making an example out of Emerald, to let other kingdoms and countries know "we mean business."

The execution date was set for one week after the trial. Dragonbreath was notified, merely as a courtesy. This was Blister's blunder. Emerald was married to a dragoness, and when she heard that her Mate was to be executed over "a mere scrap of paper," she was...displeased.

So, when Is'ti'ti crash landed on the wall and began bellowing burning blasphemies before Blister's bishops, Emerald wasn't surprised.

"Release my human hunny-bunny, and we will leave you all in peace. Do not, and I will reduce your walls to rubble to rescue them myself!"

Blister's bishops quicky conferred. They solemnly summoned the judge. After all, he was the one who gave sentence; the bishops preferred to be in the background.

The judge stood before Is'ti'ti, and he tried to summon his courage. In his courtroom, the judge ruled. Before this dragon, however, the only power he had was that of his office...which wasn't anything Is'ti'ti cared about.

"Lady dragon, I am confused. Our nation holds no prisoner of your concern, I assure you."

Is'ti'ti scowled. "You are 'holding' our HUSBAND, who you have promised to KILL today." Smoke began rising from Is'ti'ti's nostrils, a sure sign that her rage was being kindled.

Upon hearing the word "husband," the judge became disgusted. "No human would marry a dragon! No self-respecting man would ever be such a deviant! Such a thing would be against every moral codex ever written!" As the judge finished, the bishops all nodded in agreement.

Is'ti'ti smirked; she knew how to deal with these types. With a small click of her claws, she initiated a spell she had crafted, and she transformed from draconic into humanoid form.

To label her humanoid form beautiful would be a massive understatement. Her humanoid form stood a dominating eight feet tall. Her reddish golden skin shimmered in the sunlight. Firey red hair draped her back like a cloak of burning coals. Her eyes glistened like the purest diamonds of her hoard.

Is'ti'ti's smirk only grew larger as she approached the judge. "I can assure you, there are members of your race who would be so devious. I can certainly smell your response to seeing us in this form. And you're resisting your own urges as We speak."

Is'ti'ti placed a hand on the judges shoulder and gripped. Her sultry smirk changed into raging fury in an instant. "Now bring our husband here before we turn this wall into an ASH HEAP!"

Is'ti'ti flung the judge with a flick of her wrist. Just because she was in humanoid form didn't mean she was weak! The judge sailed backwards through the air, crashing into the bishops like a ball into bowling pins. However, with his adrenaline spiking, he managed to retort.

"Your scoundrel of a husband is within our walls!" The judge cried, going momentarily insane. "If you burn our walls to ash, he will burn along with them! Either way, OUR law will prevail!"

The judge started laughing like a maniac. Apparently he wasn't suited to be a bowling ball. Is'ti'ti sighed. The normal method wouldn't work, apparently.

Meanwhile, from his vantage point in his cell, Emerald could see everything happening on the wall. He tried sending mental transmissions to Is'ti'ti, but she was too far away. All Emerald could do was wait. He smiled, knowing that he would have quite a pleasant evening. Is'ti'ti always became frisky after transforming and expending magic. Emerald would always joke to Is'ti'ti that she was actually part succubus, to which she would just smirk and toss him into their bed.

Back on the wall, the judge had passed out from too much mental gymnastics. Is'ti'ti cast two spells. The first caused her to start hovering. The second caused the stones in the wall to start hovering as they separated from each other.

Is'ti'ti eyed the bishops. "Now. Will you bring us our husband? Or will I have to dismantle this city stone by stone?"

The bishops fled in a panic. They were simply too frightened to do anything else. Is'ti'ti groaned. This was going to take awhile.

Several hours, and many self-righteous guards later, Is'ti'ti reached the jail where Emerald was being held. The jailer, a dutiful man, spoke to Is'ti'ti.

"I'm afraid I can't let you just walk in here and take him." The jailer pointed at Emerald. "I think it's ridiculous to sentence a man to death for rescuing a young girl from a burning building. In fact, she was my own daughter! However, I cannot shirk my duty to guard this man."

Is'ti'ti looked at the jailer. He was still a younger man, though old enough to reasonably have a daughter of twelve. Is'ti'ti thought for a moment, then asked, "And what are we supposed to do? Just let your rulers kill our hunny-bunny, just because your rulers have some ridiculous law?"

The jailer merely shrugged. "I'm merely a humble jailer. I have a duty to perform. Though, I suppose you have one as well. Besides, the walls here, at least what's left of them, are known to have ears." The jailer positioned himself into a fighting stance with an obvious opening.

Is'ti'ti didn't miss the cue. She rushed forward and cast a sleeping spell on the jailer. As he slumped, she caught him, careful to not allow his head to hit the floor. She then broke Emerald's shackles and kissed him deeply. After it, Is'ti'ti scolded Emerald gently.

"You could've helped, you know."

Emerald chuckled. "I know. But I enjoy watching your theatrics almost as much as you enjoy doing them. And don't try to deny it." Emerald caressed Is'ti'ti's humanoid ears, sending shudders through her.

Is'ti'ti gently bopped Emerald on the back of the head as she caressed his back. "You really are a deviant. Our deviant. But this is neither the time nor the place. She whispered in Emerald's ear, "But there is a place."

Without another word, Is'ti'ti and Emerald left Blister. They went back to Is'ti'ti's home, and proceeded to know each other very well for the next three days.

WHUMP!

Captain Ivor unceremoniously dropped me onto the floor of the throne room, the chains around my wrist clanking loudly as they hit the ground. King Lawrence got out of his throne, walked over to the two of us, and said to Ivor, "Why is the side of your head bandaged?"

Ivor rubbed his wound and winced. "The girl bit my ear off."

Lawrence facepalmed. "Oh, for the love of--go get that treated already."

Ivor bowed and walked out of the room as I hissed at him. Lawrence sighed and knelt down beside me to say, "How long are you going to keep this up, June?"

I scoffed. "That depends. How long is forever?"

"I tolerated your... eccentricities for years now. When you became obsessed with the forest, I had it registered as a national landmark. When you insisted on learning to make potions, I had the royal apothecarian take you on as an apprentice. But this has gone too far. You're running around the forest in a cobbled together ranger uniform, living like a wild animal, assaulting the captain of the royal guard!"

"Feel like you're ignoring the part where you had me banished to the forest for making out with a baron's daughter."

Lawrence groaned in frustration and paced around angrily as he continued, "You are a princess, for God's sake! Your demeanor is reflective on all of the royal family! Your misbehavior is taken as evidence of--WILL YOU GET OFF THE FLOOR ALREADY?! I have had it with your tantrums!!"

I smirked. "I would, but it's really in my best interest to stay low."

"What do you mean in your--"

BOOM!

The doors to the throne room were blasted off their hinges and sent flying. Lawrence narrowly ducked to avoid them while I calmly watched them soar over my head and destroy the throne. Through the smoke that clouded the entryway, a dragon with burnt ochre scales emerged and stared down Lawrence murderously. Then she looked at me and happily said, "Hi pumpkin!"

I waved back and responded, "Hi mama!"

My mom turned her attention back to Lawrence and growled, "Take those chains off of my daughter or I'll flay the skin from your body and roast your exposed flesh."

Lawrence looked like he was pissing himself, but still found the anger to glare at me and say, "You allied yourself with the dragons?! That--that's treason! I'll have your head for this!"

I got on my feet as my mom replied, "First of all, June didn't ally herself with us, we adopted her. Second of all, my brother Ganymede burned the guillotine on the way here. Now you can either let my baby girl go or you can die screaming."

Lawrence got up and drew his sword. "I'll not let my kingdom fall to such--"

FWIP!

A blow dart lodged itself in Lawrence's throat, sending him falling back to the ground. From behind my mom's legs, a woman in her own makeshift ranger uniform appeared and smiled at me. My fiancee, Tulip. As she picked the lock on my chains, I said to her, "So how does it feel to be back in the castle after all this time?"

Once my chains were unlocked, Tulip took them off my wrists and purred, "Just as I remember it: empty of anything interesting save for you." I happily pulled Tulip into a kiss as my mom lowered her back and interjected, "Come on, you two. You can be adorable at home."

Tulip and I stopped kissing and got on my mom's back as I announced, "Bye Lawrence! Hope I never see you again!" With that, my mom turned around and flew out of the hole in the castle wall to begin the journey home.

"I would like to talk to you about the two types of dragon. About the difference between good dragons and evil. I'm sure you know that good dragons do not care about hording treasure. They don't have endless piles of useless trinkets they protect religiously, in contrast to evil dragons, who amass sizable hordes of gold, silver, gemstones, rare artifacts and magical items.

However, this is a misconception. There isn't really "good" and "evil" dragons. It is merely a difference in what they value. The dragons that most humans would describe as evil are obsessed with things, with material objects that have great worth. Dragons that humans would describe as good are obsessed with people. A "good" dragon does not have a horde, but a territory. In that territory, the people are its treasure. They know every man, woman and child. They watch their lives from afar, seeing generations unfold and grow. Seeing a babe grow into adulthood, to fall in love and create new treasures, is one of a dragon's greatest joys in life. Some will leave it like that, while others will make their feelings known. On special occasions, holidays and festivals, they may fly down to feel what it is like to be surrounded by the beings they love so dearly. They protect them from invaders and interlopers, find food in times of famine and rescue those in peril. Often such dragons are worshipped as guadians by the thankful populace.

Of course, times aren't always happy in a dragon's territory. In times of plagues and disaster, the roars of a dragon can often be heard, a fury against a unfair world that would snuff out so many of their precious people. And occasionally, people will need to move away from a dragon's territory. While a dragon loves every one of their people, they will allow them to leave, for same reason they don't horde them in a cave like the other kind of dragon. If you were accepted by a dragon as their treasure, it matters not how far you go, or how long you are gone for, you will always be their treasure. Even if you leave to find your fortune in the capital and fall in love with the heir to a wealthy guildmaster who becomes your husband.

An "evil" dragon will burn down a kingdom to get back a single stolen coin. What do you think my godmother would do to you once word got back to the village how bandits kidnapped me? Shh. Do you hear that? It's the growing sound of wingbeats. A dragon comes to reclaim the treasure you so ignorantly stole. What will you do now?"

Old Hogan was the one who found them, huddled and scared on the side of the Laneway heading into town. Poor Hogan was heading back from his favorite pub when he happened upon the wretched thing, cold and weak from exposure.

I was asleep, having stoked the fires of the Maesters rooms and ensuring all the doors and windows were locked when Hogan barged into my room.

"Yoan, we have a problem!"

Hogan half whispered, half murmured as my door banged open. I shot out of bed, the twilight of sleep washed away by the rude surprise. Clothed in nothing but my gracious skin, Hogan promptly turned around and closed the door before then knocking politely...before opening the door and stating again;

"Yoan! We have a problem and sorry I didn't knock."

Still naked, I began to dress and question Hogan about the problem 'we' had. Since I was asleep, in my room, and couldn't fathom what could be the problem I assumed that Hogan was just drunk and confused.

"Ok, Hogan. Explain to me 'our' problem so I can fix it. Did you beat a wench at the pub again? I have only so much coin to spare for your shenanigans."

Hogan huffed at me as I said this, shaking his head.

"Naw, Yoan, its na' that. At all. I have plenty of coin myself to pay a Death tax. Naw, 'tis here is something worse. It's a human, and its Branded."

I was listening to Hogan half heartedly, absent-mindedly dressing myself. I had slipped a few golden Dakas into my pocket as he spoke, smiling at the sheer absurdity at Hogans words. It was the tinkling of the gold in my pocket, the rattle of the silver candlestick as I bumped into my nightstand on the way out of my room when Hogans words dawned on me.

"Branded?" I croaked out, freezing as I crossed the threshold of my bedroom.

Hogan had his beat up hat in his hands, staring at me with almost tears in his eyes. The single candle he held sputtered and died. I took a sharp breath, trying to slow the sudden rise in my heartrate. Humans were like vermin to the Horken and Dyads, who viewed Terragia as sacred. The Humans, they spread like a disease across the vast continents of Terragia since their arrival via the Heavens thousands of years ago. They dug and burned and built, destroying to support their society and people. Hogan, poor Hobbled Hogan was wounded by one of them during The War.

"Where is this Branded human, Hogan? What trouble have you brought home at this time of night?"

Hogan nodded and just turned and headed up the dark hallway of the Servant Quarters. I heard him begin to thump up the stairs into the Hall of the Maesterium, as I dutifully followed him toward this Human he was speaking of. In a way, I was excited. In another, I knew deep down there was trouble coming.

Only Drogons branded anything, and only Drogons scared the Maesters.

Dave was worried, his little human was running late from her trip to the mage enclave. He circled around the city from above, trying to detect her mana and struggling. (Cassie, be safe!) He scoured the streets with his sight, attempting to glimpse her familiar red hair and silver dress.

His patience was running out by the second, it was almost dusk, she had left the cave at dawn yesterday! That was it, those humans surely did something to Clarisse, he had to rescue her! (If she's hurt, I'll burn this place into nothing!) His mouth began sparking with rage.

He started out by setting fire to the several flags and the decorative plaza to show he meant business. Once the humans were stirred, he landed on the main building of the guild, sinking his claws in the roofing. "Hear well, for I give no second chances!"

He saw some old humans gather down below, good, this must be the leaders of this place. "The mage Clarisse, set her free and I shall spare this hovel." These vermin looked confused, but he would not be fooled, his charge must be in peril.

"For fuck's sake, is he a moron?" A woman was pushing her way through the crowd, the overgrown lizard was committing a mistake that would cost her dearly. "I still got five floors to read through!" When the dragon craned his neck to threaten the grandmaster, she had to think fast.

A wooden clog hit his nose and he finally heard Clarisse. "Dave! Come on! I just fell asleep in the library, alright?!" The unamused mages watched as the woman picked the footwear and stepped on the dragon's outstretched paw. She turned to face the crowd and bowed her head.

"I apologize for my guardian, he can be overprotective. We'll pay compensation for the mess." Dave pouted at her words, he liked his hoard and didn't want to lose his gold. "Hey-!" She poked his chin with her staff to silence his protests. "Shush! You break, you buy, remember?"

The elders demanded extra gold as moral damage, and a vow from the dragon to not wreck the place again, with a counter vow to keep the woman safe during her visits. With things settled relatively amicably, Clarisse kept her right to visit and Dave got a dent in his savings. "Let's go home, I'm sleepy."

The dragon unfurled his wings and took off in a gale. While Clarisse felt happy to know he cared for her, his actions needed to have consequences. "I'll write to Garrett." In fact, she was already drafting the letter in her mind. "Please, don't." His elder would whoop his butt for losing his nerves and acting unlike his bloodline. "Too bad, so sad."

The robed man tried to get the dragon's attention as it continued it's rant in front of the castle. He knows that the dragon had seen him as its flaming breath no longer threatened the gate to the castle or him as he stands outside of one of the few ways into it.

"Woah, woah, woah...I am sorry but I think you don't understand the situation here, my good dragon," the small man in brown robes, a leather belt, and matching boots said in response to the dragon's statement. On his hip hung a small metal orb of silver and several chains of beads that ran a riot of colors. He holds his hands up in front of him and acts very defensive in response to the roaring declaration the dragon had just made.

They stood facing each other on the dirt cart path that lead up to and into the castle proper, just a few cart lengths outside the castle's main gate. From the castle walls, many people are hiding and trying to watching the conversation between the two of them as it goes on. There were even a few brave souls with bows and arrows pointed at the dragon from cover.

"I can understand your concern for them but, really, you must understand our dilemma. We just can not understand this course of action you seem to be trying to impose on us." He began. He looked over his shoulder back at the castle while waving a hand in their direction.

"You see, there are several arguments to be had here as to why you should not do this." He smiled up at the dragon's toothy face with warm friendship practically oozing out of him. "First, what about the dragon's that the dwarves have captive? Aren't they a greater priority than some simply humans that live in your caves? Shouldn't you all be doing something about that?"

The dragon comment had got its attention.

The dragon, which had been rearing up it's full height ranting at the castle just minutes before was now turning its head to the man and dropped to all fours. Until the man had come out one of the small door of the gate, the dragon had been making a terrible noise outside the gate for quite a while. It had even been throwing torrents for flame against the walls of the castle in punctuation of it's threats. It kept yelling for it cave people held in the castle right up until the man had finally got it attention.

"Secondly, we simply can not afford the cost of fixing our castle. We are here in the borderlands, trying to survive. As you can see while the castle is fairly strong we have spent far more of our funds on trying to expand the field to support this generation's children."

He tilted his head to the dragon as if sharing a secret. "You see," his voice lowered as if he was trying to speak only to the dragon. "We had a lot of indoor time, if you know what I mean, this last winter. It has us a bit concerned as you can imagine." He had actually winked as he said indoor time.

He straightened, "We just can't spend our little money on such things as repairs right now."

Something touched the dragon's expression as if it was actually embarrassed by what the frankly speaking man was saying to it. An expression that everyone watching saw and caused a bit of a murmur to pass through them.

"Add to that, we are human after all, right?"

This time the dragon's tilted it head at the man, smoke boiling out of the corners of its mouth as it spoke, "Well, yes...you are human..." it said as if not sure what was going on now. As it spoke it's eyes looked across the wall and back to the man.

"Yes. We are," replied the man, pride filling his words. "We are human and you know what that means? You destroy our castle...maybe kill a few of us in the process. We get angry. We come after you in larger numbers."

"Now you have to kill some more of us. Which leads to more of us coming to kill you. Maybe we will, maybe we wont but it wont stop there, right?"

"Eventually, we will kill you," he continued. "But now your kind have to do something about that, as well they should, right?" The dragon bobbed his head in agreement. "Now we have more of us all being drawn in to this little thing over some cave people that decided to take a few goats. Goats that are not theirs in the first place to boot!"

Sadly, "Now we have a war...a bad one. Your kind and my kind hell bent on a fight that neither of us actually started, right?"

"A Race War...the worst kind of war....and none of us want that, right?"

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Once upon a time, in a kingdom surrounded by high walls, a fearsome dragon descended from the skies in a rampage aimed at the castle keep. The king and his army were preparing to attack the dragon, but the dragon spoke up first.

"Release my human, and we will leave you all in peace," the dragon said. "Do not, and I will reduce your walls to rubble to rescue them myself."

The king was taken aback by the dragon's demand. He had never heard of a dragon speaking before, let alone making demands. The king thought for a moment and then said, "Why should we trust you? What do you want with this prisoner?"

The dragon let out a sigh, "I understand your hesitation, but my human is not just any human. She is my friend, and I will do whatever it takes to protect her. I assure you, once she is safe, we will leave your kingdom in peace."

The king thought about the dragon's words. His duty was to protect the kingdom and his people. Finally, he made his decision.

"Fine, we will release your friend to you. But you must swear to leave our kingdom in peace and never return," the king said.

The dragon nodded in agreement, and the king's men released their prisoner. The dragon and his friend flew away, and the kingdom was left in peace.

From that day on, the kingdom remembered the dragon's visit as a reminder that sometimes, even the most fearsome creatures have a softer side. And that even in the face of danger, compassion and understanding can lead to peaceful resolutions.

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