Chapter 253 - Dragon Blooded (Patreon)

I tried so hard to get this one up yesterday but it got to 3am and still needed an edit. Sorry for the delay. Had some bad news over the weekend. For those of you following my zoo, my black cat, Tinki, has been diagnosed with Renal Failure. She's almost 18 now, so it's not really a surprise (though I was starting to think she is immortal), but I struggled getting much done the last few days. Back to normal now so I'm going to aim to have chapters out on the actual release days! On that note, see you Saturday.

Excitement filled Celaine as she listened to the song of dragons, watching in equal parts confusion and amazement, just as all in the temple did. It was not uncommon for wolf dragons to join together in a chorus roar, but she’d never heard them doing so for a dragon keeper trial. Nishari’s roar became strained, but she did not back down.

Then suddenly, the dragons all went silent at once. It filled the room heavier than before. The excitement changed to nervousness as Celaine wondered what went wrong. She looked at Nisha in her arms, but the dragonling was calm, her attention fixated on Hump. She breathed heavily, catching her breath. Something had changed.

Whispers echoed through the halls as her people discussed what was going on.

“They’ve never done that before.”

“Did he anger the dragons too?”

“They’ve never done that before.”

“He’s a demon. Look at his smile. We should have never let an outsider take our trials.”

“He looks too weak to pass anyway. The trial will claim him!”

It was a bunch of nonsense, but Celaine couldn’t help her rising anger. She was getting a little tired of the bias against Hump just for being from Alveron. While the country was not perfect, she had been treated well there. It was difficult to see such distrust from her own people for someone she vouched for.

It wasn’t that she didn’t understand. They wanted to know what was going on. Even the elders appeared unsure, standing guard around Hump, studying him as if they might see some sign.

Celaine swallowed nervously and hugged Nisha closer. Come on, Hump. Show them what you’re made of.

“Relax,” Vamir said quietly. “He’ll be fine.”

Hump’s grin vanished. His back arched until all that kept him there were the bindings. His veins bulged, pulsing red light shining within his skin, shifting as if his blood had turned to lava. Celaine sensed a change come over him. His aura filled the air around him, a mist of purple essence growing thicker and thicker. It swept out with a boom, followed by a sweeping wind that blasted scarfs and hoods from the crowd of onlookers, the room filling with gasps.

Weight descended. The weakest in the hall—those old and without blessings—fell to their seat, caught off guard and unable to stand against the pressure of Hump’s soul. All chatter stopped as people braced themselves, shouts of alarm going up before they realised the source. Then they too fell silent, as all eyes fixed upon Hump.

Celaine just smiled, enjoying everyone’s surprise. Who’s weak now?

In little more than a year, he’d grown this powerful. A Rank 4 wizard and now a dragon blooded—Celaine hated to think it, but she had some catching up to do.

“This… I can hardly believe it,” Vamir said. “It’s as if there is a dragon before my eyes.”

“I think we’re seeing the strength of Hump’s dragon blood,” Celaine said.

***

Hump stared into the eyes of the true dragon unsure how to react. In the end, all he could think to do was offer his greetings in the form of a mental handshake, envisioning himself as a wizard on the road along with his name.

The dragon blinked slowly, red eyes staring at him intently, glistening like the purest ruby heartstone. Peering into them, Hump could not begin to gauge the height of its power.

The world changed and suddenly Hump was outside in an orange sky. The land was sprawled out beneath him—an endless plain of sand in all directions. And above, a giant red dragon was poised in the air before the sun, wings outstretched, great claws spread, its mouth gaped open in a roar. A lord of this world.

It—he—gave his name in the same complex way of the wolf dragons, using a mixture of titles, meanings, and associated emotions. To Hump, he was the Wings of Flame, Skyfire.

Hump stared in awe at the magnificent creature. A true dragon. A being of legend, unseen in Alveron for more than a thousand years.

The image changed again as a silver owl appeared beside the dragon, its blue eyes full of wisdom. At first, Hump was confused at what to make of it. Then he sensed something in it. A presence that he knew. But how could that be possible? As seconds passed, he only became more sure of himself. He had sensed it before, but he couldn’t place it. As if—

Those eyes… They were a deep, radiant blue. Peering into them was like staring into the infinite depths of the ocean. As if all the knowledge in the world might be stored within them. And then Hump knew without a doubt why it felt so familiar. This was the silver owl of his spellbook—the heartstone that had revealed itself to him upon manifesting his soul.

“What… Who is that?” Hump thought at the dragon. “I don’t understand.”

The image vanished, and once more Hump was before his eyes. He felt them studying him, peering into his soul as if searching for something. Then, just as quickly as he had arrived, Skyfire was gone. His presence disappearing in an instant.

“Come back!” Hump called, reaching out with his mind. “Please, I need answers.”

But Skyfire was gone. Whether it heard or not, it would not hear him now. All Hump knew was that its appearance had something to do with the Book of Infinite Pages and the heartstone it was formed around.

Hump felt a new intenseness in his mind. The world changed, and once more he was in the Great Tree, surrounded by vibrant green trees. Owalyn stood before him, taller than any man and radiating Hunter’s intent. Hump fell to the ground before her glare, weighed down and unable to resist.

“What did Skyfire want with you?” she asked.

Hump’s mind went blank before her pressure. He forced himself to remain calm. The fact that Owalyn was familiar with the dragon was no surprise, but there was an edge to her voice that made Hump wonder at their relationship.

“I don’t know what he wanted,” Hump said. “He appeared in my mind as eyes, and then I saw him poised against the sun.”

It was mostly the truth.

“He said nothing?” she asked.

“Nothing. He vanished when I asked.”

Owalyn stared into his eyes, then the pressure on his body vanished. Hump rose back to his feet. A change came over her, and the Mother stood before him instead, her presence a ray of warmth. Suddenly all the pain and tiredness were washed away, and the fog in Hump’s mind was lifted.

“You have passed the second trial,” Owalyn said. “Congratulations, Dragon Blooded.”

Hump took a moment to collect his thoughts, his heart racing even in the strange, projected form he took in the tree. He decided to try his luck at some answers. That dragon knew something about his spellbook—it had to.

“My thanks,” Hump said. “If you don’t mind me asking, who is Skyfire? All I could tell was that he was very powerful.”

Owalyn smiled sadly. “An old friend, at least he was once. It is rare for him to visit the mortal realm now. You should be honoured.”

“I am honoured,” Hump said, then frowned. “But also confused. Why did he come? Was it because of my wolf dragon telepathy?”

“Even I cannot guess at the mind of a true dragon,” Owalyn said. “And it is not my place. If fate wills it, he will reveal himself to you again. Until then, focus on the path before you. I will speak no more on the matter.”

Hump nodded. “I understand.”

Her demeanour shifted, the sadness leaving her. “You are the first outsider in centuries to be blooded. Take pride in that. I suspect you will find the boons that come with it most useful.”

“I’m sure I will,” Hump said. “Thank you.”

“You earned it through your own strength,” she said. “And you deserve it. It was thanks to your efforts that I could reach my Celaine in time. You did well.”

“Ado said you have been busy battling the lich’s curse,” Hump said. “Are you well?”

“I am angry,” she said, the shadow of the hunter coming over her briefly. “Irila’s power have infected my land and I must spare no effort in removing it, but remove it I will. Go now. I must speak with my Chosen.”

The Great Tree vanished, and Hump felt himself back in his body, though now there was no pain. He kept his eyes closed, his heart pounding louder than ever. His blood roared in his ears, feeling super-heated, enhanced by the power of dragons. It almost felt as if it was boiling, but it did not bring discomfort, only excitement. He could already sense the power within it, infusing his soul with strength far beyond his previous. It was another source of essence, only this time, it was in his blood, his muscles, his bones. He could sense it at work in all of them, another well for him to draw upon.

Hump focused on bringing his breathing back under control and steadying the storming waves in his body. He had succeeded, but it would take some time to tame this new power. Already, he could sense an element of intent to it. His control would suffer in the short-term, but that was a small price to pay for the power it would bring. He’d always preferred that style of magic anyway.

Focusing on his breathing, he slowly brought the waves back under control.

“Wizard Humphrey,” Elder Rena called.

Hump opened his eyes, caught off guard by her voice. Suddenly, he saw everyone staring at him strangely, and realised he’d manifested his soul.

He retracted his power quickly, feeling embarrassed. In his excitement, he’d forgotten there were a room full of people watching him. The feeling only worsened as he watched them tending to those that had fallen, whispering to each other and casting nervous looks in his direction. If they were apprehensive about him before, they’d really dislike him now…

“Sorry,” Hump said. “I got a little lost in the moment.”

Elder Rena’s face wrinkled as she smiled. “That’s quite alright.”

With a shift of her hand, the bindings around his wrists and ankles came undone. Hump sat up stiffly, massaging his wrists as he looked over the room, all eyes watching him. His body burned all over, though it was no longer the sensation of his dragon blood, but his muscles protesting whatever transformation he’d been through. He found Celaine and Nisha amongst the crowd and smiled.

“The Trial of Resolve is complete,” Elder Sulamir called. He looked at Hump with amusement in his eyes. “You gave us quite a show, young man.” He frowned as he met Hump’s eyes, then leant in as if noticing something. “Interesting.”

Hump looked at him curiously. “What?”

“One of your eyes has turned red, even the white.”

Hump’s eyes widened. “That’s a little conspicuous, isn’t it?”

“You will learn to control your marks, just as all dragon blooded must.”

“Someone comes,” Elder Ashera interrupted. She raised a frail hand and pointed at the temple doors.

A grating sound filled the room as the great stone doors shifted, all eyes turning to stare. A woman, clad in the black scales of the dragon keepers stepped through, followed by a wolf dragon and other bonded. They all looked exhausted. Their hair slick with sweat, and each breathing heavily.

The hall buzzed with conversation, one word in particularly standing out to Hump—Yunillia. The leader of the dragon keepers had returned.

“Keeper Yunillia,” Elder Rena said. “You choose the moment of your homecoming well. Welcome.”

The woman gazed around the room, taking it all in before her eyes found Hump. It was enough to know she was immensely powerful. He felt it to his bones.

She turned back to the elders. “What’s going on here? Our dragons sensed something strange as we neared home. We thought something happened.” She looked around. “You are undertaking a Trial... for this boy?”

“The Trial of Resolve is complete,” Elder Rena said. “This is Wizard Humphrey of Alveron. He has just passed the second dragon keeper trial.”

Yunillia directed an anger-filled glare at Hump. “He caused this? Who is he?”

“An outsider,” Elder Ashera said, hardly hiding her contempt.

Elder Sulamir cleared his throat. “I suggest we reconvene elsewhere to discuss this,” he said. “The trial is over. Let us end things here.”

“Indeed, it seems there is much to discuss,” Yunillia said, not taking her eyes from Hump. “I didn’t expect to return home to a potential keeper as well as a lich at our threshold after all.”

With the ritual over, the crowd gathered in closer, trying to speak to Yunillia and the other returning keepers. There was little focus on Hump after that. Ado approached him, giving him a quick congratulations, guiding him back down the central aisle with an arm around the shoulder.

He felt shaky on his legs, his movements feeling a little different than before. After a few steps he realised he felt lighter, and his limbs moved more fluidly.

“You did well, lad,” he said. “We’ll catch up once the meeting has concluded. I’ve got a lot of questions for you too.”

Hump nodded. “Sure.”

Ado shook his head. “I’ve got to admit, you surprised me there too. I knew your summoned spirit was powerful, but I didn’t realise just how far your reach was.” He clapped Hump’s shoulder. “Get some rest. We’ll talk more soon.”

He left him with Celaine and Vamir. Looking at Celaine, he frowned. Something was… different. Nishari jumped from Celaine’s arms excitedly, taking her place in his own. She felt lighter than before. The effects of his dragon blood were already showing.

“I like the eye,” Vamir said. “Very intimidating.”

Hump snorted. “Is it really that bad?”

“I’m not sure I’d call it bad,” Celaine said, leaning in for a better look. “You’re going to freak Bud out though. You look possessed.”

“That sounds pretty bad.”

She shrugged. “It’s all about perspective I suppose. You’ll figure out how to hide it quickly though, don’t worry.”

Hump turned to watch as Yunillia and the other keepers left the hall, a crowd following around them. He noticed a few glance his way, turning away as he caught their eyes.

“Seems I caused quite a stir,” Hump said.

“Not every day we see an outsider trigger a chorus roar from the dragons,” Vamir said.

“Ah,” Hump said. “I thought that was just in my head. No wonder.”

Celaine laughed. “At the very least, you showed them your resolve. They won’t doubt your strength anymore. How are you feeling?”

“Stronger,” Hump said, flexing Nisha. “And tired. Ado told me to wait for him at his cabin.”

“I’ll come with you,” she said. “See if we can figure out exactly what your dragon blood does.”

They waited for the majority of the temple occupants to leave first, the entire time Hump itched to get out. He’d passed the trial, but all he could think about was the silver owl and Skyfire. He’d always wanted answers about the Book of Infinite Pages. Perhaps he’d finally received a clue.