Dragon Sorcerer 1- Chapter 30 (Patreon)

Chapter 30- Into the Streets

Once we were all inside, Lisella stared at me for a minute. I think she was expecting me to suddenly accept her as my mentor. There were some clear advantages, and I'd started to think about it. If nothing else, seeing the number of guards around reinforced her influence.

Then seeing the variety of enchanted garments she had and the way in which she easily paid out the gold for this entire wing of the inn proved she had assets which could be useful. What self-respecting dragon would refuse to accept wealth when it was there for the taking?

The big thing holding me back was the raid on my home, including the murder of my sister. I found that my anger burned hot sometimes and cold other times, but I never forgot about it. Yet, perhaps keeping her close so that I could get my revenge would be for the best. There was a certain irony which I found pleasing in making those who took my home from me give me a new home.

"Priestess Lisella, if I agree to accept you as a mentor it is only on an informal basis now, since it can't me made final until we sign a contract at the university. This is correct, yes?"

She was suddenly all focused on me. She stood up from the chair where she had been sitting next to Liam. "That is true, but if I become your mentor now, I will be doing so in good faith. I won't hold back from you now except for secrets which I need you to sign a binding contract before I can disclose them to you. I would expect the same from you, Nico."

"And my responsibilities now would be to learn from your instruction, follow your guidance as it relates to the university, and protect you as needed. Is that an accurate summary?"

Her eyebrows scrunched up. "Well, I think it's really more that I'm supposed to protect you. But, seeing how capable you are, I won't restrain you unless we are fighting truly powerful foes. It also doesn't have to be all work. We can become friends and who knows what else."

"But those other parts are not required."

The corner of her mouth drooped. "No, of course not. I'm not one of those. But it isn't like it would be suffering on your part."

I nodded. "Then, Priestess Lisella, will you become my mentor?"

I sensed Cami at that moment and looked away before Lisella could even respond. She was standing against the doorway. Her blond hair was disheveled and her clothing wrinkled, but I still smiled. Seeing my bonded up made me feel so much better.

"Nico, can I speak to you for a minute?"

I still couldn't decipher human expressions or even their verbal cues, but the connection between us filled in for that gap. I'd done something which upset her. My draconic heritage roared within me that she should burn for being upset with me, but I quashed that. There was too much to learn, and Cami was too important.

"Oh sure. Sorry, Lisella, I'll be right back."

I then walked over to the doorway where Cami was standing. She said, "Come in."

"Uh, isn't that the room that you share with Modessa?"

"Yeah, but she isn't here right now." Then a little louder, as though she wanted to make sure everyone else in the common area could hear her. "I just wanted a little privacy with you."

I shrugged. Maybe she was still feeling tired and needed to rest. She had been badly hurt, so I followed her into the room. She waved me to a chair and then shut the door behind me.

When I sat down, she went and sat on the edge of one of the two beds in the room. They were stacked atop each other like chambers in a hive. I admired the ingenuity of human design. I guess they weren't entirely useless.

As soon as she sat, she said, "I don't think this is an issue, but just to be perfectly clear. Nothing is going to happen, at least not now or not yet or whatever. I just wanted to tweak Lisella's nose and needed to talk to you in private."

I twisted my body and looked at the door then back at Cami. "Uh, you didn't even touch her nose, how..."

The petite blonde shook her head at me. "Uh, just stop talking, Nico."

The world seemed to spin around me. Just a few days ago, Cami was the perfect image of a servant. She was respectful, deferential even. What had come over her? As I sat there silently, a bigger question popped into my mind. What had come over me that I was accepting this?

Her expression softened. "I'm sorry. We just don't have more time before she'll find a reason to check up on us. Are you sure about accepting her as a mentor? I mean after everything she did?"

I felt concern through our connection. There was a strange tangle of emotion which I was completely unqualified to understand, but the concern at least I could recognize. "Oh, I get it. Thank you, Cami. You are a good uh..."

"Friend?"

"Uh... I was going to say bond mate. I think this bond between us makes us something like clutch mates... except... well we aren't trying to kill each other. We are here to make each other stronger."

"So you see me like your sister?"

Something seemed off about the way she said that, so I figured I should dispel her concerns. "No, I would never kill you. I had to kill two of my sisters when they tried to gang up on me. The only sister who never tried to attack me was Sheraleigh. No, I don't see you as a sister. This bond between us makes us much closer. The higher I fly, the better off you will be and the same for your successes."

She stared at me for a moment before saying anything.

"You really think of me like that?"

"Yes." I said, looking her straight in the eyes.

She smiled. "You're so sweet, Nico."

I averted my gaze. An odd emotion came over me. Was this embarrassment? It didn't seem possible. Dragons didn't get embarrassed. We simply ate anything that might have embarrassed us.

"Well then, let's get to it. I'm going to train you in human culture, but we need to get out of here."

"I think that taking Lisella as a mentor will solve that problem. She had resources, and I know I'd like to get my claws on some of her gold."

Cami hopped up and hugged me. It was an odd human gesture. Only our connection, which gave me the absolute assurance that she meant me no harm made me comfortable sitting there. Otherwise, I would have reacted as though she were attacking me.

When she broke off the hug, she said, "So you're just using her?"

I got a long, sly smile.

She put her finger to her mouth. "You don't need to say anymore. We can work with this. Just promise me. It's always us against the world. You don't ever even have to let me ride you."

"What?"

"Never mind. It's nothing. Don't worry about it. We just need to get permission to go shopping. Both of us need new clothes and probably some weapons and armor. We have to figure out how not to let the princess come with us."

The window to the room, which was on the second story opened as the wood shutters were pulled back. I was immediately up, standing between Cami and the window as I began casting Force Darts. I felt the magic around her as she began the same thing.

Then Modessa's head popped in. "Don't shoot. I was just going to say that I think I can help you get your day on the town without Lisella following you. With my help, you might even be able to slip whatever minders she insists on sending."

I was instantly suspicious and began running through the conversation I'd had with Cami to figure out if we had disclosed any secrets that were dangerous. As I did, the rogue climbed through the window. Well, I guess that was okay. It was her room after all that she shared as Cami's mentor.

Modessa grinned and looked at us. "So you wanna get out without Lisella knowing? I can get behind that."

Cami seemed nervous. "Why would you help us? Isn't she your teammate?"

Modessa chuckled and shook her head. "Lisella is a teammate, but she's also my rival. I don't let her feel like she's getting the upper hand. And you won't need to know this for a long time, but at our level, there is a great deal of competition for the best resources. Some of those are things which even money and titles can't get for you. Besides, helping you two out would be fun."

I felt a bit uncomfortable with the intense look she gave me, but managed a nod before turning away.

"Call it my way of helping young love. I may have missed my opportunity, but that doesn't mean the two of you have to."

Now I was beyond uncomfortable. "Cami is my friend."

"Yeah, I heard about how fiercely you protected her. We could all use more friends like you. And it doesn't hurt when they're tall, dark, and mysterious, does it, Cami?"

Cami cleared her throat. Judging from the rush of blood to her face and the way emotions flooded our connection, I think she was as disturbed by the rogue's suggestions as I was. I was glad when she changed the subject back to business. "So… um, what do we need? What kind of help can you give us?"

Modessa smiled mischievously. "Well, first off I can create a distraction while you two go on your shopping spree." She paused, then added,"Oh and I can provide the gold as well."

Cami seemed taken aback. "Uh..you'd really do that for us? Why?"

I put my hand out. "Wait, gold?" I felt that inner pressure. I could fight it no longer. If there was gold to be had then, I needed it. It was the way of the dragon."

Modessa shrugged and grinned wider. "Let's just say that it pays to have friends with connections in certain places." Then she became serious. "But this isn't without its risks. You two need to remember that whatever happens today has consequences that may reach beyond your expectations."

I stared at the woman, trying to read more meaning into her words. She was clearly very good at hiding things. But when she handed a bag of coins, the size of a grapefruit to Cami she said, "This is an investment in my apprentice. Remember, nothing in life is free. I expect you to use the money and get the best gear you can. I assume you'll want to equip Nico too, so you may have to find some bargains. Use whatever methods you need to get that done."

Modessa stopped and seemed to think for a moment. "Okay, I'm going to cast a spell over you. This is one of the strongest I can cast, so don't take this lightly. It is a sort of invisibility but better in some ways and worse in others. It will cause people's eyes to naturally shift away from you so that they don't notice you. That is, unless you do something noisy to draw their attention. It will last for a good hour, so you have plenty of time go get out."

Then she leaned out the window. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Once I cast the spell on you, you may be able to sneak out the front door, but Galbrecht is frustratingly good at seeing through shadow magic. It would be far easier if you thought you could manage the climb down the wall."

Cami moved over next to her mentor and looked out the window. She grinned. "I used to climb trees with my brothers out in the orchard. I can manage this."

I wasn't nearly so certain. The fall would be a long one for Cami. I spoke before my brain had even processed the content of what I was about to say. "You could hold on to my back and ride down. I'm a lot stronger than you and so clinging to the brinks won't matter for me."

Cami stared at me with the oddest expression on her face. Then she shook her head like she was telling herself no. "I better try on my own. I don't think you're ready for me to ride on your back."

Modessa watched the exchange but didn't say a word. I doubt she had any more understanding of what Cami was talking about than I did, but it wasn't my place to tell Cami she couldn't try climbing. In fact, thinking about it, I needed a strong partner, not one I had to carry all the time.

Once Modessa cast her magic, we were quickly out the window. Cami managed to climb out with far less trouble than I would have expected. Her competency brought a smile to my lips. Then I stepped out and simply let myself fall. I had almost forgotten about my slow fall ability. There were definite advantages to being a monk. I just needed to learn how to apply these talents in my dragon form.

As soon as our feet hit the pavement, we just stood there and stared. I had never seen a city this size before, and it almost took my breath away. Everywhere you looked, buildings seemed to be reaching for the sky. The dragon in me snorted because they most weren't more than forty feet high, but it was still far more than what I'd seen in Cloverdale.

As for the streets, they were bustling with life. Cami also seemed to be in awe of her surroundings. She gripped my arm tightly as we walked down the street, her eyes wide with wonder. I took a strange pleasure in her hands upon my arm.

Modessa had given us directions to an open air market not too far away and so we set off in that direction. As we walked, I couldn't help but feel that the city was watching us: an odd pair of travelers who obviously didn't belong here. Then I remembered Modessa's magic.

No one was actually watching us. That was why it seemed do odd. Several groups of people almost walked right into us because to their eyes we weren't there. It became a bit of a game for Cami and me to see how close we could get to someone without them noticing us.

The closer we got to the market, the more stands there were. Everywhere you looked there were different vendors selling a variety of goods from exotic foods to handmade clothing. The smells alone were enough to make my mouth water!

I grinned. Food was here and the people just had it out on wooden trays at the fronts of their carts. It was as though they were offering it up for a dragon such as myself.

When we walked past a cart offering meat pies, the smells were simply too good for me to resist. The vendor was an old man with a long beard and mustache. He smiled when he saw a mother and two young children walk up on his left side. He was obviously happy to have some customers.

I reached out and grabbed one of the meat pies while his head was turned. It was so warm that it felt like it might burn my fingers, but even in this form I was tough enough to touch a hot plate.

Cami covered her mouth as she was about to squeal. One of the young children was pointing at us, but neither adult saw us. I admired the potency of Modessa's magic as once the meat pie was in my possession it seemed to be just as cloaked as we were.

Cami tugged on my arm and pulled me for a good block till we stopped in an alley. "You can't just go taking stuff like that?"

I looked at her, confused. "It was laying out for the taking. Don't worry, I plan to share some with you."

She shook her head. "It's stealing."

That word ground into me like a rock stuck between two scales when you couldn't quite reach it. "Dwarves steal. Dragons simply lay claim to what is theirs."

Cami frowned at me and for a moment, I felt her disappointment as it surged through the connection. "Nico, rule number one. If you're going to live amongst humans, you need to know that stealing is not generally acceptable. There are times it might be necessary, but we can't take food from that old man. He depends upon selling those pies to make his living."

"Ah, so you want to protect him because he reminds you of those humans from your nest." I was confident I'd figured out her motivations.

I quickly found out that I was dead wrong. I had no idea of what she'd been thinking. From there, Cami proceeded to lecture me about personal property and the value of hard work. It seemed she was okay with taking money or other objects from three groups of people. The rich and nobles were the first group. She simply believed they had too much for their own good. Then there were criminals. She explained it that anyone engaged in criminal activity probably had stolen most of what they had, so it was okay to do what she called 'liberating' the good for a better cause. Finally, she was quite firm in saying that we could take anything we wanted from anyone who attacked us, so long as we didn't attack first.

The human world was tiring with its bizarre rules, but I was determined to learn more about it.