A Dragons Form

Once the fire was successfully run through, Mr. Dragon began to slow down, carefully avoiding any of the last flickers. Though not out of actual pain, but likely out of worthless instinct leftover from his last life.

It’s still so hard to consider, am I truly here now? Or is this some sort of weird dream? Or is it a sort of false life after death, meant to reward me for my virtues in life and make up for the unfortunate circumstances of my death? Is there a way to prove a thing like that?

There was, but Mr. Dragon was obviously unaware of it. He was actually unaware of a fair bit regarding his situation, but he would doubtless learn to truly exploit the powers of a dragon sooner or later.

“Hey Mairi, where are we going?”

He was also unaware of the conversation happening on his back, perhaps because of the distance between them and his raised head, or perhaps because he was ignoring them for various reasons.

“Well, based on these stars, I think that direction leads to the plains I saw earlier.”

“Well that's certainly a good thing.”

“Yeah… ummm, I actually have something else I want to talk about.”

“Well what is it? I’m afraid I have no talent in the Magic of the mind.”

“What was with you earlier? When we were first starting to go through the fire, you seemed real nervous and even made a point to stay at the back of our little line. But after a bit of Mr. Dragon here roaring, you suddenly got all courageous and just jumped out without me, then when you saw Mr. Dragon, you seemed totally composed.”

“Is it really that strange? I felt the mana in the air’s general disturbance, with that disturbance coinciding with a fire, I felt worried we may had been found by something… other. Once we got close however, that sense of otherness became less pronounced, and I felt confident that it, at the very least, was something we could behold.”

Getting fed up as the metaphorical third wheel in this conversation, the little girl chose to speak.

“Why can’t we hold them?”

Shari and Mairi both chuckled a bit, before Shari responded.

“It’s… hard to explain, but some things out there they… they aren’t really something us mortals can truly understand.”

“Like a really hard question?”

“Sometimes, yes.”

“?”

“Don’t worry the poor girl Shari! Don’t worry kid! There are just some bad things out there, who are sooooooo ugly, they make you feel awful just by looking at them!”

“Oooooh! Do they smell bad too?”

“Who knows~?”

Mairi’s tone was playful, and the little girl giggled a bit.

“They probably also have terrible singing voices!”

Shari joined in as well.

“Rooooaaarr.”

Mr. Dragon, who was evidently now listening, joined in.

Terrifying!

Much to the chagrin of Mairi.

“Heehee…”

The girl seemed quite happy with the whole situation, perhaps it was the stuff of her dreams? As far as I could guess she had never seen a dragon before, so this was likely a rather exciting change of pace.

“So where ARE we going?”

Shari finally returned to a topic worth discussing. In response, Mairi pointed towards their destination once more.

“Remember that cave network where we left Armos and the artifact? I was gonna take the long way around for safety and supplies. But it should only take us a bit of time to get there quickly with the help of Mr. Dragon.”

“So this has been a mere loop? With little in the way of results?”

“I think it’d be better to call it a… return to home base, to regroup and replan. Besides, we were gonna go back eventually anyway. We have yet to find it, or even a way to TRACK it, so I think we should cut our losses and come up with a new plan.”

“We do now.”

“...?”

“A dragon being here could mean a great many things… depending on how it got here of course. If we’re lucky, the source of ALL our worries is a secret he could help us find.”

“Roar!”

“Eep! What the-”

“I think he’s trying to say ‘I’d be happy to help’.”

Mr. Dragon nodded a bit in approval. He was rather happy as a result of that interaction, however it cannot be confirmed whether this was because he was pleased to be understood or pleased to not have to furiously explain his intentions.

Man this Shari girl is so nice… even Mairi seems pretty reasonable, despite her fear of me. I wonder if all elves are like this?

This contemplative mood continued onwards, while he galloped forwards. Each step shaking the ground with his power and size which would hopefully fit in the cave he continued towards.

Will I ever be able to talk to her and Mairi properly though? From what she said, taking a more bipedal shape is possible for dragons… but I’m not a normal dragon. What would this bipedal form even look like anyway? Like my old body? Or something else? Strangely enough, I almost hope it’s something else… cause my old body was so unimpressive it was embarrassing.

“Hey Mr. Dragon? Could you turn left now… bit more… bit to the right now… thats it!”

He would likely go in the right direction immediately if he could see her properly, but alas, he still could not. For whatever reason Shari found the whole situation amusing beyond measure.

This reminds me of… hmmm? That hasn’t happened yet? Has it? No… I certainly don’t remember that boy or that strange looking girl… Oh dear…

“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news Mairi, but it appears as though I am having a vision.”

“Are you-?! I’ll get the paper!”

Hold on, what do they mean by ‘vision’?

Mr. Dragon’s confusion was not answered by anything other than Mairi’s panic, Shari’s tense expression, and the young girls absentminded staring at the moving countryside.

“So what do you see?!”

“A… young girl… can’t say the exact species due to abnormal features and obscure shadows, but she appears to be roughly similar to the elf-form, with two non clawed arms, two straight legs, white skin, standard ears, green eyes, normal nose, and a tallish frame, but she goes against it with black hair, small patches of fur, and a tail of fur and scales. She just seems to be wearing a strange dress, with no sort of shoes.”

“So she may be a dragon’s fit-form then? They often do keep some draconic features if it is not their preferred form.”

“It’s possible, but not certain, she could be under the effect of a specialty or curse… at the very least her body appears comfortable with this structure, so she likely isn’t a recently disguised beast or, if she is form-twisted, it did not change her physique much.”

“I’ll write…non-standardised female… potential species of human… dark elf… astral… blue signal… elf if her skin color was messed with… or dragon fit-form for the type. Is she with anyone?”

Normally, even considering this mystery girl might be a blue signal would be a bureaucratic step in monotony too far, but considering our mission, it’s probably better safe than sorry.

“Yes… she is with a boy, and they appear to be having a laugh at your expense.”

“The boy’s appearance?”

“Unremarkable, somewhat strange looking eyes that appear one blue one red, but otherwise in-line with the elf-form… albeit with dark black hair as well though his is in a strange cut, similar to a bowl in shape… he also appears comfortable with his movements… his face is slightly rounded… and has short rounded ears… actually, his clothes are fashioned from leaves, they appear a bit slap-dash.”

“I doubt he’s a dragon fit-form… if only because the transformation is too perfect, what do you think?”

“I would be better safe than sorry in this situation.”

“Fine fine… So I’ll write… Semi-standardized male… potential species of human… astral… blue signal… or extremely innocuous dragon fit-form for type. Ok?”

“That sounds good.”

“Why exactly are they having a laugh at my expense?”

“Ummm, I can’t remember too much… but it seems like you may have said something extremely silly without realizing? She appears to be enjoying the moment as well.”

“I’m there too?!”

The little girl hopped up and down, pleased to be a part of this rousing new tale, As Shari pointed at her.

“Yes… I suppose, it must not be too long in the future either…as your form has not changed.”

“Yay! Is Mr. Dragon there?”

“Now that you mention it… he isn’t.”

Hmm? What's this feeling washing over me?

“What’s the setting? Any identifiable landmarks?”

“There's… I remember the cave! But it looked even worse?”

Hmm? Why is that feeling getting worse?

“Worse in the sense of…?”

“It was a bit on fire. And… I'm pretty sure I saw blood?”

Everyone, the little girl included, stared at Mr. Dragon.

Ah. I think I might be absolutely terrified now.

Mr. Dragon staggered a bit before regaining his footing and continuing forward.

“Umm, don’t worry too much Mr. Dragon! I’m sure if we’re laughing things must have gone well!”

Or they’re happy they managed to kill me.

“He doesn’t seem convinced by your words Shari.”

“...Well I’m sorry to say this, but that's not all.”

“Seriously?! What else is there?”

“In the next thirty seconds, Mr. Dragon turns partially right.”

“And…?”

“When the clouds over the moon while he’s running, he’ll turn partly left."

Uhhh, I suppose I should turn right then?

Doing as preordained, Mr. Dragon turned partially right.

“Ok then, I’ll watch the moon Mr. Dragon.”

Thanks.

As Mairi began to watch the moon, Shari kept to herself, and considered her prophecy carefully.

I suppose it wouldn't be easy, but what on earth caused this event? Could something have happened? Did Mr. Dragon leave for personal reasons? He seems oddly fearful for a dragon… but I suppose I have met a dragon or two who took the matters of future sight to a truly incredible extent of seriousness. Ah! Maybe?

“Mr. Dragon, are you aware of what a fit-form is?”

Mr. Dragon shook his head, still with it still rather wrapped up in fear. Her next words were especially tense, hoping for a certain reply.

“Are you… under the age of fifty?”

Is that too young for a dragon? I can’t be too disrespectful.

Shari’s little worry was in fact, exceeded in force by her companion, Mairi.

“Don’t say such things! I swear Mr. Dragon, she is merely joking, and I’ll-”

“Oh do be less cowardly won’t you? Those who lie for themselves and the people around them in a situation of stress are nothing but weak fools, incapable of so much as helping themselves, much less the people around them.”

Mairi and the little one were both rather shocked by this heavy handed response. Not aware of the reasons behind it, which do not have anything to do with the current situation, so I will not write further on the matter. It is important to note that, while my report is built on the principle of ensuring all facts be known and recorded properly, I have always felt that personal secrets of little consequence should be allowed some degree of privacy. It is my business to know, but not my business to spread such information out… unless it is especially interesting.

Why did I have to think about that… Hmmm? Mr. Dragon seems to be nodding?

“Are you agreeing with what I just said?”

Mr. Dragon shook his head for no.

“So you are under fifty?”

Mr. Dragon nodded for yes.

“Are you under forty as well?”

Mr. Dragon nodded.

“Thirty?”

The answer was yes.

“Twenty…”

Yes. Again.

“Ten?!”

Netolla moved his head left and right for no.

“Fifteen?”

His head shook for no once more in frustration, like a writer contemplating why they must write and record such a tedious display.

“So between fifteen and twenty huh…?”

The little one popped in out of excitement.

“Seventeen and a half! No! Eighteen and a half!”

Causing Mr. Dragon to think for a few moments.

Hmmm, I stopped keeping track after a little while… but at this point I’m pretty sure…

He nodded for yes. At that moment, a feeling of euphoria was felt thoroughly in two individuals, one below the age of ten, and the writer watching this tedious display with annoyance.

“Wait, does he mean yes for nineteen and a half, or eighteen and a half?”

This feeling was cut short however, thanks to the one known as Shari.

“Ummm, I’m thinking nineteen and a half?”

Mairi herself now joined the game, a lonely feeling in great quantities now overwhelming her fear of insulting the dragon she sat upon.

“Ah! Better luck next time Honorable elder sister~”

“Do you never tire of saying such a statement time and time again?”

“IT'S EIGHTEEN AND A HALF! EIGHT! TEEN! AND! A! HALF!”

The sheer excitement the little one felt was beyond any and all measures expected, born in part from something new to talk about, and in part apparently because she was now ‘winning’ the ‘game’ that didn’t have a prize. Perhaps wanting to congratulate her, Mr. Dragon nodded his head, and then roared in the most grand way he could think of.

“Congrats! You win!”

“YAAAAYYYY!”

Shari began happily jostling the little one's hair, as they both smiled happily.

“Uhhh, are we just going to ignore what he just said?”

Mairi however, had finally come to a realization of the gravity of Mr. Dragon’s age.

An explanation

THIS is the truth of all truths.

WILL you understand it?

BE it natural or formed, all dragons have a life cycle.

A dragon born of dragons, or a natural dragon, to be raised by their birth parents as they wish.

ROYAL, or pure dragons, formed of magic, serve their creators for a minimum of thirty years.

TEDIOUS study is done on both types, as they are the only monsters capable of reproduction.

PAIN is not felt at first, with Royal dragons and they are born full sized.

IN natural dragons, they start small, and grow over a space of one hundred years.

THE sizes and looks of dragons are, by their very nature, inconsistent.

ASSessments done over the millenia show the average size as, coincidentally, Mr. Dragon’s.

TO be clear however, the largest dragon was around a fersah, or fifty melds, long, so ‘tis no rule.

EXPLAIN’ing the logistics required to grow to such a size is an exercise in futility.

AGAIN, as explained in the tale of Mardi, slayer of the Jabberwocky, dragons look like wyverns.

Due to being five aspect monsters, they are above all other monsters or I suppose if the legends are to be believed, monsters are simply the incomplete forms of dragons. Their power is roughly equal to the highest level of natural Angels, the offspring of us Gods and the occasional hero, surpassed only by Divine Dragons… and blue signals. Their greatest weakness is perhaps how limited they are, as they are only masters in the use of the five aspects of magic used to create them. Like monsters, they are the absolute masters of those aspects. Unlike any other monsters however, they are perfectly capable of using other aspects, just not as well as their main five.

My brother, the God of Energy, and lord of the monstrous dwellings, has become quite the master of knowledge of these creatures, and in his wisdom has insisted that I explain the creatures as much as possible, for the sake of the future generations. I am always thankful for his understanding and wisdom on these topics. Though I must admit I was rather unsure at first, as these tales are meant to explain the events as they occur, rather than some sort of nature journal. But he convinced me to always include at least a cursory explanation on the flying lizards if it comes up.

A return to the tale

By all accounts, Mr. Dragon’s age did not add up, either he was a dragon of extreme power and size for his age, or he was under the lead of someone, or something else.

Could his master have died when he was young?I suppose that could be possible, but from what I heard, Royal Dragons whose master died always end up… strange.

Mairi continued on this track of deep thought for a few moments, before finally a measured question escaped her lips. She certainly wanted to ask more, but fear of unfortunate consequences kept her from saying much, and even this question was one asked only after fearful deliberation.

“Say, Mr. Dragon… do you have a master?”

A quiet followed, as Mr. Dragon seemingly slowed down a bit, before getting back to a normal pace.

Uhoh… what is that supposed to…?

Mairi fidgeted a bit, scared for the outcome of her question.

What does she mean by… master?

Unfortunately, given his status as one from a world far removed from hers, he had no context for what she was talking about. As for why he slowed down, I cannot say myself, but I have heard some mortals tend to prefer thinking when they are still, while others prefer thinking while they are moving. So it was likely in relation to that instinct.

Does she think I’m a slave or something? Are most dragons slaves? Or does she mean master like some sort of teacher?

Mr. Dragon was certainly confused, but not enough to panic, he knew nothing of dragons nor their status in this world, so he was willing to accept a certain amount of unknowns. But by that same logic, he was also willing and ready to reject those norms, after all, he had no reason to follow the lead of a species he had not even been a part of until that very day.

Hmmm, I guess my teachers were technically ‘Masters’ right? But again, she might be thinking about something else… Actually, if I remember right from some shows, monsters and demons can form pacts or something right? Maybe this world actually operates similarly to one of those fictional worlds?Maybe master could just mean… person you made the pact with? But wait… in other shows, I remember hearing a ton about how dragons are all free spirits… or curmudgeons that horde gold. So which is it? I suppose it’s a bad idea to go about things based on a story, but that's all I got right now!

Shari, watching Mr. Dragon’s expression carefully, decided to finally speak.

“Do you understand what Mairi is speaking about, when she says ‘master’?”

Mairi, who at this point was shivering out of fear of Mr. Dragon’s lack of response, stared at Shari with an iron look of anger and fear.

OH! Now that I can answer.

In a way that almost mocked her fears, Mr. Dragon shook his head for no. Sparking immediate thought from Shari.

He really doesn’t know what a master is? Does that mean he merely doesn’t have one, or that his master, for whatever reason, abandoned him at a young age? I suppose he could be affected by his master’s death, and have memory loss, but that's all I can think of.

Mairi on the other hand, sighed in relief, glad to know she had not angered a monster beyond her power.

“Umm, Mr. Dragon… are you gonna eat us?”

The little one stated, not caring for the expressions on Shari nor Mairi.

EH?!

Was perhaps a thought shared by all three of the others. Though with their physical language completely different, Shari simply looked at the little one with a bit of shock, while Mairi immediately turned to Mr. Dragon with a look of rampant fear, sweating wildly, Mr. Dragon himself merely began to furiously shake his head for no, while coming to a complete stop.

“Oh? You aren’t? Yayyyyy!”

It should be noted that, while they had yet to reach their destination, they had long ago outpaced the flames, so while the sudden stop was comical in nature, there was no sort of danger.

“Were you under the impression that Mr. Dragon would…”

“I mean, dragons eat lottsa people right?”

“Don’t say such rude things! Dragons are not so brazen as to attempt wanton massacres without reason!”

Does that imply they have massacred folks?

Surprisingly, it was the seemingly easygoing Shari who snapped. Once more, I should say there is a reason for this, but unless it comes up again, I see no reason to reveal secrets of a private nature.

“It’s alright Shari, she doesn’t mean any sort of rudeness, I’m sure.”

In another odd twist, it was the seemingly cautious Mairi who was defending the little one, out of a conceived empathy not quite truly there. As she presumed the little one was in some way as nervous as she was.

But wait…

Though she instantly came to a realization a moment later.

“Is there a reason why you were smiling when you asked Mr. Dragon that strange question?”

She said as though it were perfectly natural to not have a reason to smile while asking someone if they plan to murder you.

“He’s a big ol’ dragon right?!”

“Y-yes he certainly is.”

“So he’s gotta do all the cool dragon stuff cool dragons do! Like eating people!”

I don’t wanna eat anyone!

Shari was simply staring into space for reasons I am now considering explaining, because I did not realize that apparently she could not resist the urge to call back on her past every five seconds, Mairi was looking confused at the little ones joy at the prospect of being eaten, and Mr. Dragon was shaking his head furiously in protest to the very concept.

“Ahhh, you don’t do all the cool dragon stuff?”

He once more, shook his head for no.

Ah, I think I understand it now… she is a young child who grew up with the legends and stories like many her age, she has no real concept of pain or suffering, so to her, the idea of dragons doing as she was taught is inherently exciting… even if it comes at a cost most steep. Because to her, that cost is not even something she can fathom.

Shari moved to explain things more thoroughly, once she came to a full realization of the little one's personality.

“Now remember, not all dragons eat people, in fact, the dragons who don’t eat people are just as exciting and interesting as the dragons who do.”

“Really?!”

“Yes! Though the dragons sometimes do hurt people, it’s only ever the bad ones!”

“OH! Ok~ don’t worry Mr. Dragon, I’m a good girl! I really really promise!”

“Now remember, how do you think poor Mr. Dragon felt being told he might do bad things for no reason?”

“Ah…”

Eyes now turned downwards, the little one looked guilty.

“Does… does this make me a bad one?”

“No… no it couldn’t possibly. Just… apologize and reconsider your actions from now on… please?”

Shari’s voice carried the now apparently mandatory wistfulness… for reasons that are etc I will etc because etc. Once more, and I swore I would write it into this very report, making it prudent of her to not continue testing my then waning patience.

“Sorry for being all rude Mr. Dragon…”

Uhhh, it’s fine kid, just don’t say scary stuff like that ok? I don’t wanna find out I’m trapped in the body of a species that likes causing suffering or something…

He now continued at a leisurely pace, an awkward silence keeping any and all speech down to a minimum. Which was certainly nice for my report, as I could then have the opportunity to not other, more important details.

Firstly, the three had now traveled roughly one leuga, or thirteen seros from the burning forest, and had reached a rather picturesque field of flowers, which Mr. Dragon trampled right through, perhaps not noticing them in the dark of the night, and perhaps not paying attention enough to bother trying to see anything, because he was to busy trying to balance those on his back. The forest itself was now beginning to truly burn down, as the flames grew so large they consumed that which allowed them to continue living and growing. It was now only a matter of time before its death. Perhaps that is the fate of all living things, perhaps not, but it was certainly an event which could be used as a metaphor for something or other by someone of a pretentious nature. Be that as it may, just as I began considering a quick return to my domain, to ensure the new chapter of the report was properly saved, a new thought process of some importance began.

Hmmm, now that I think about it, how can they hear each other so well? I definitely haven’t been tiptoeing my way through here, so it’s strange they could ask me questions and communicate so fluidly.

For reference, the noise Mr. Dragon’s run made was comparable to that of a stampede of elephants.

Maybe their long ears aren’t for show? Does having big ears magically make you that much better at hearing? Does that even make sense?

The teenager who had been transported into another world, and then transformed into a dragon (though not necessarily in that order), said.

Do they hear way farther away as well? Or are they just good at separating out background noise?

At this point, any thoughts about the cause of said awkward silence were now entirely replaced by desire.

This fit form… does it somehow let me talk to them? If I get that, surely I can ask right?

And so, Mr. Dragon gained the life goal of creating a fit-form, so he could answer this question he made on a whim.