Dragon Sorcerer 2- Chapter 62 (Patreon)

Bonus points if anyone catches the slam against some changes in a popular game. They aren't new, but new to someone who's been playing the game for 35 years.


Chapter 62- Waking and Planning

My chest felt tight when I woke from the dream. That had been intense. It was as though I had been in the midst of a massive battle. Yet for all of the power that was being thrown about and all the might which I hoped to someday obtain, there was something far more significant which this trip into the dream revealed to me.

For a few minutes there, I had actually felt the mind and memories of Reegor. My draconic ancestor was one thing, but how was it possible for me to see the world from the memories of a human? It made no sense and nothing I’d ever experienced within the dream before told me that was possible.

I sat upon my bed. It was quiet finally. Judging by the lack of light outside, it was close to dawn, but the sun had not risen yet. At least the humans in this dorm had finally fallen asleep. Now, I had some thinking to do and plans to make. It wouldn’t do to meet with the adventurers if I wasn’t prepared.

I looked over at the small table in my room. Several books on magical theory were open. I frowned as I saw them. Magic came so easily to me, but magical theory did not. It was frustrating and seemed so illogical. How was it that I could so easily do something yet, understanding how or why it worked was beyond me?

Thinking back to the dragon dream, I tried to feel again what Draconis had felt as he used magic. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that Draconis hadn’t actually used much in the way of magic. He fought with his body, using strength beside dragon fear and his lightning breath.

That was until the end when he was wielding the storm against the horde. Despite it being just a memory, I could still feel the sensation of all that electricity in the air. It wasn’t unpleasant just odd. And to be able to do so much in a single instant. That flash of several hundred lightning bolts all at once had been a weapon apart from even the impact.

I also had a better understanding of what Draconis was. That wasn’t my ancestor’s name, or at least it wasn’t the name he had first owned. It was more of a title for the greatest dragon in the world. How it was achieved was not something I understood yet, but had the impression that it was an arduous process.

I could only see the first two Draconis through my ancestor because one had lived before the dream was even birthed and neither were my direct ancestors. This made me realize that there must be a Draconis alive today. Perhaps if I could find him or her, they would be able to explain what was happening with the dragons and the bond, for that matter.

The system must have had a sense of humor because I got a notification then.

Secondary Optional Portion to Quest Updated: How the proud have fallen?

Find Draconis- if you dare.

I would have cursed at the system if I’d thought it would have done any good. An extra portion to the quest, no hints, and a vague warning. Someone was definitely mocking me. For now, though, I pushed that aside as I thought about what else I could learn from this dream.

There were three big takeaways in my mind. The simplest of which was that I really needed to work on my power. Draconis had been so much more than me. I expected that of a wyrm, but the gulf was bigger than I had ever imagined. I would spend some DKP and grow a bit more, but I really needed more challenges to grow. I also realized that I didn’t want to follow the exact path that Draconis had in the dream. Physical was good, but I was at this university based upon the supposition that I might be able to learn more magic from humans.

At least that was why I had originally agreed to come. I would have fled at my first opportunity if it had only been nervousness about the adventurers which brought me here. They were strong and possessed a great number of magical items on their persons, items which I sometimes longed for when I didn’t keep my thoughts clamped down.

Even seeing that Lisella had a bracelet which granted her enough strength to tear metal with her bare hands was a reminder that the power of a human was not summed up in their body or stats, but also in all of the little items they created. That had been in the back of my mind when I’d thought of bringing Daggin here.

Now, I had to stay to solve the mystery of how the dragons had fallen and then to wreck vengeance upon those responsible, but I might as well learn another path to power. I had been granted classes like a human now, and not just pseudo classes but real ones, which would boost my stats and make me more powerful than any dragon before me if I parlayed this correctly. At least that was my ambition.

The second thing I took away from the dream was two-fold. I had already realized that dragons had magic within them which they didn’t tap on. How else would something our size fly? It had been driven home again when I’d used DKP to boost Cami’s spell. It explained why she had more mana than I did despite the fact I was a dragon.

So I needed to learn how to tap that magic within me more directly. I also realized the power of the bond companion. Cami was going to need a great deal of training if she was going to be worthy of becoming a dragon knight. I assumed that was an upgrade from dragon rider.

Strangely, instead of being worried about being seen as a mere horse for Cami, I was now entranced by the idea of how she could add to my power. The two of us working on concert, both casting spells while my draconic form protected us… yes, that was a truly pleasing thought.

The final take away was more concerning, though. Draconis had been adamant in his opposition for young dragons to be bonded with humans during their awakening. I didn’t like to think of myself as some child which needed minding, but I could be pragmatic enough to realize that to Draconis that is exactly what I would have been.

As for bonding during the process of awakening magic that was exactly what happened between Cami and me. Now, I was beginning to wonder if our bond was flawed. Perhaps that was why I had been so gentle of late. I hadn’t killed a single of the adventurers and had even accepted one as a mentor.

There was a great deal to unpack there. I didn’t feel like I was being controlled, but would I even realize if I was? That was sort of the purpose of mind controlling magic, wasn’t it? For example, any idiot who designed a charm spell so that the target automatically knew it had been charmed  after the spell ended couldn’t have more than the intelligence of a 5-year-old child.

I probably needed to try doing some things which would not be acceptable in human society to see if I was, in fact being influenced. Even thinking about me taking on human traits was enough to make my stomach twist up into knots. Learning their magic or even gaining human classes was about power, but their customs and habits were often disgusting and illogical.

I wasn’t going to solve this sitting here on my bed, but at least I was informed of the possibility now and knowing is half the battle. Well, that is, if you don’t count the fighting or the need for power. Cause if that’s the case, then simply knowing about a threat is more like one percent of the battle, well unless it’s knowing about a trap…

Ugh, I was becoming as pointless as a human with my wandering mind. I needed to focus. To that end, I pulled up my status sheet and started thinking about my DKP. Even after using the 4 DKP for Cami’s spell, I still had 225 more to spend. As I thought about that, the system reacted again, but this time it was a bit more useful.

Previous Options and New Options for DKP are available. Do you wish to review all available options?

I thought about that. I had no idea how many there would be, but there were three things that I needed: combat, movement, and social skills. The need for combat skills was obvious. Movement abilities were more about keeping a little something extra in case I ended up having to escape Urgoi Isle. As for social skills, tonight, I had been made painfully aware of how little I understood humans. I never would have considered spending any DKP on that, but if I was going to be here for a couple of years at least, it might be worth at least looking at.

I couldn’t go around using dragon fear on everyone that I wanted to be able to charm after all.

So I thought, “Show me offensive combat options which I’m able to use at this time and which don’t exceed more than fifty DKP.”

Shocking Aura: All non-bonded beings who come within ten feet of you will be shocked for 2-12 electrical damage. They will continue to take four electrical damage every second that they stay within the ten-foot range.

Cost: 5 DKP

Repulsive Breath: You gain an alternate breath weapon which expels a cloud of gas in a 90’ cone. The gas pushes against any physical object in the area. Those unable to resist are bowled over and forced to move back up to 90’ at maximum speed.

Cost: 5 DKP

Draconic Roar: A variant of your breath weapon which uses the same cool-down. You open your mouth and roar at the top of your lungs. A cone of sonic energy blasts forth in a 90’ cone with a 120 degree arc. All creatures in the area must resist or be stunned. Those who resist the stunning must resist or be deafened. Those resist being deafened must resist or be knocked flat. Do direct damage is caused by this attack.

Cost: 7 DKP

Dragopomorphic Breath Attack: This will enable you to use your draconic breath weapon while in human form. All range and area factors are reduced by 50%. Damage type factors are reduced by 25%. Cool-down for using the breath weapon is doubled. This ability must be upgraded as your breath weapon is upgraded. It is currently set to Adult. 150’ range, 2.5’ width, 15-88 damage in base form.

Cost: 50 DKP

Claw Path: Note you may only choose one path, Claw, Scale, Wing, Breath, or Mind. Claw Path is the most aggressive of these. It will open new abilities such as significantly sharpened attacks and the ability to pierce even dragon scales.

Cost: 100 DKP

You are only being offered this option because you have reached Mature Adult- Early.

Well, the last one exceeded my guidelines, but it was interesting to know that this was a thing. I had some vague recollections from the dream, but they now made more sense. I wasn’t ready to commit to a single path of development though, and even if I was, Claw didn’t really feel like me. So, I discarded that option.

Frankly, I was a bit disappointed with the options available to me, well except for one. I’d felt naked without my breath weapon. So I instantly triggered, Dragopomorphic Breath Attack. The 50 DKP drained out of me but I didn’t even notice that as my throat was on fire.

The sensation spread down into my lungs and then up into my mouth. I clamped my jaw down, but the muscles trembled as I tried not to bite this tiny human tongue off. Thankfully, the sensation only lasted for a minute or two, and then I felt whole again. It wasn’t going to be enough to take out powerful foes, but I could build it up. That and the surprise factor of getting a mouthful of lightning couldn’t be underestimated.

I almost forgot about the rest of the options as I felt a deep-seated need to go outside and test this. There were training areas at the edge of the campus which were warded to enable students to practice with dangerous magical techniques. Yes, I needed to try this out right now.

I hopped up and left without even changing my clothes. Humans were too fixated on that, anyway. Then I started running across the campus. I had to see this.