I sat staring into the fire and let my mind wander. Part of me wanted to transform and go hunt the monster down. Yet, if I was to learn the most, I needed to figure out how humans dealt with issues. It was beginning to dawn on me that this was going to be much more difficult than I had anticipated. I may even need help.

  Millenia of memories, impressions, and pride all stuffed into the dragon dream screamed at me to take that thought back. Dragons were clearly superior. I still believed that, but just maybe my curiosity allowed me to admit there were still things for me to learn.

  Finally coming to a conclusion, I said, "We should go back and get Sir Galbrecht."

  Cami looked at me for a moment before she responded. "You don't just want to transform into... well, you know... your real shape? Surely it would be easy for you to handle."

  "Most likely, but there was something odd about the creature. I wasn't sure what to make of it. We really should go back and get help. I get the sense that Sir Galbrecht's abilities as a paladin will be useful in dealing with this thing."

  "It was that powerful?"

  "Something about it tickles a memory I have. I know it's hard to understand, but I'm in touch with the memories of all my ancestors. Though I can't simply call them back up at will, they do inform my decisions."

  I surprised myself with that admission. It was like I felt an instinctive trust of Cami. I made a mental note to delve deeper into the dragon dream to see what I might find out about a spontaneous bond such as had occurred between us.

  She, at least, had the grace to appreciate being gifted with sensitive knowledge about dragons. "Thank you for sharing that with me. All of your secrets are safe with me, Nico. I hope you know that. I owe you more than my life."

  "Think nothing of it. Now, let's head back to town."

  She nodded and we started walking back through the dark forest. I couldn't help but notice how close she stood to me. I supposed it was only natural that she would look to me for protection—I had given her my oath, after all.

  The town was completely quiet except for a couple of cats attempting to serenade the moon. We cut through an alley and were almost to the inn, when I sensed the faintest flicker of movement. If I’d had my normal senses, I would have picked it up sooner. But as it was, I hardly detected the presence gliding from shadow to shadow.

  Before I knew it, Modessa was behind me and her blade was against my throat. When I attempted to move, I felt the razor-sharp edge cut my skin.

  "And where have the two of you been?” the thief hissed. “More to the point, give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill two self-admitted wild mages."

  Instinctively, my hands flexed as though to extend my claws—claws which I didn't have in this form. I didn't want to fight, though, mostly because all the advantages belonged to the rogue. But if Modessa was determined to kill me, then I was ready to protect myself.

  "I'm not here to fight you," I said.

  She snorted at that. "Oh, trust me, if I decide to end you, it won't be a fight. You'll simply collapse. The day that I can't end a level six monk with a single strike is the day I hang my daggers up and open a coffee shop."

  I had to remind myself that her underestimating me was a good thing. It wasn't normally a dragon strategy, but I recognized that I had to grow and adapt if I wanted to survive in the wider world.

  "I've got information to share. I've been studying the magical monsters of the forest, and there is some type of nightmare creature out there. It's in both our best interests to work together."

  Modessa looked at me with an intensity that made me uncomfortable, but at least she pulled the blade back. "I don't need Brechie's truth-telling abilities to know that at least part of what you say is true.” She pursed her lips. “But once again, why should I care?"

  "It's a type of monster capable of destroying this entire village and killing all the people in it. If left unchecked, things could get out of hand."

  She shrugged. "A few less farmers, and maybe the world will stink a bit less. You're obviously mistaking me for someone who gives a rat's ass."

  It dawned on me then that I had approached this from the wrong direction. Dealing with Galbrecht and Cami had me thinking of humans as typically kind and selfless beings, but Modessa reminded me that most intelligent beings were motivated more by greed than altruism.

  "But you're a thief, right? These creatures are likely a goldmine for you. If you help me find them, you'll get first pick of the loot they drop. That's why you should care."

  She seemed to consider this for a moment, but then she shook her head. "I don't need your help to get what I want."

  “Maybe.” I smiled in response. "Maybe not. I know where the creature was last seen. And besides, if you kill us, you'll have to deal with the mess and explain yourself to Sir Galbrecht. You know he won't just let it drop."

  I was gambling on the nature of the relationship between the two adventurers. Seeing how she tensed up for a moment and then how her expression softened confirmed my guess. Either she feared Galbrecht or... hmmm... humans were odd, but it was natural to be attracted to a strong mate. Perhaps she was in heat and wanted Galbrecht for other reasons. It did make a strange sort of sense.

  "Fine, but I get the treasure. All you get is a ten percent finder's fee."

  I wasn't looking for loot at the moment so much as experience and knowledge about humans. "Okay, but we still need Galbrecht. The creature gave off a strange magical aura. I believe his status as a servant of the divine will help."

  "Your speech is so odd. There's something off with you,” she muttered, “I just can't put my finger on it."

  I stared back, trying to keep the smile off my face.

  "Fine,” the rogue turned towards the front of the inn, “let's go wake up Brechie. He's always getting me up at the crack of dawn. Time for some payback."

  I stepped further away from her now that her dagger was away from my neck. She made a bee-line for the inn. Hmmm… she really must be interested in waking Galbrecht up.

  Cami started to follow but I grabbed her arm. “Wait, I think this must be some sort of human mating ritual. You don’t want to get between them.”

  She stared at me and then burst out laughing. “Mating ritual? Um… maybe she does sorta have a thing for him, but trust me, she’s a bit of a witch with a ‘b’. She just wants to get one over on him.”

  “A witch? I only sensed faint magic around her, nothing strong enough to be one who traffics with dark spirits. And what do you mean one with a ‘b’?”

  Cami laughed again. “Oh, Nico, you have so much to learn.”

  She explained what she meant by the expression and my eyes got wider. I didn’t want to let on any more about my ignorance, so I simply listened. From inside the inn, I heard some cursing and then the sound of Modessa’s laughter. Apparently, the rogue had gotten the reaction she desired.

  Cami said, “We should probably stay out of sight till they call for us. When you’re weak, the best thing to do is not get stepped on.”

  While I didn’t think of myself as weak, I nodded. Then I walked up to the side of the inn and plopped myself down. This form was so odd that it took me a minute to find a comfortable position. Finally, I was sitting up against the wall with my stick thin legs stretched out in front of me.

  Cami settled in next to me and rested her head against my arm.

  It was late in the night and neither of us had slept. The adrenaline from earlier had fled. Feeling her warmth against me was like when I had cuddled with Sheraleigh or another of my clutch mates.

  Thinking of my sister brought a stab of pain. I couldn’t forget that revenge was part of my plan. These humans were not my friends—well, other than Cami. I had to keep that forefront in my mind. Now, though, sleep found me.

  Soon, I was lost to the dream.

  Chapter 12 - Shared Lives

  The dragon dream was vast. It would be hundreds of years before I could fully extract even ten percent of the value contained within it. Fortunately, need drove the visions one received more than anything.

  I recognized what was happening as soon as I felt myself soaring through the air. I wasn't really flying; my mind was riding along in the memory of one of my ancestors.

  As always, I wouldn't be able to control what I saw, but instinct told me that in the future I'd learn more. Now I was soaring along, but I felt a strange sensation. Someone was riding astride my back. The sensation of metal armor straddling me was odd.

  Then I knew. It was Tra'vis, my rider, my bonded companion. We'd been through much together. He had found me when I was a young adult in the mountains. No, I had to keep my mind straight. Tra’vis had found my ancestor in the mountains.

  I didn't recognize any of the terrain. And then I realized that Tra'vis was an orc, the idea that he could be anything else was almost shocking to me. So this definitely wasn't the continent of Taleian. This was somewhere else. It was also likely several thousand years ago.

  I relaxed and let the memories flood my mind. Tra'vis had found me while hunting. I was a late bloomer magically and when he sought to attack me my magic awakened. A surge of power had flowed out of me and filled not only Tra'vis but the surrounding mountain range for dozens of miles.

  The further out from the awakening, the lesser the impact but it produced many strange wonders. Looking back now, my ancestor could remember the vein of iron ore which was mostly changed to mithril, and the deeply buried dungeon which had awoken.

  She... yes, now I realized this ancestor had been female. She and Tra'vis had spent more than a hundred years dealing with all the monsters which escaped from that dungeon.

  Something about that felt off. I pushed with my mind trying to shape the dream. I had questions and they needed answers. Once again, my will and my need drove the dream.

  I looked back, twisting my neck to see him. He was both intimately familiar to me and yet a stranger. The dream was always like this, as my mind rode upon these memories. Now, though, I was doing something I'd never been able to before.

  I was actually affecting the dream. Speaking in my ancestor’s voice, I asked, "How is it that you're still with me despite having found me more than two hundred years ago?"

  His voice was gruff, the tusks which jutted up from his lower lip gave him a look which was simultaneously horrid and comical to me, Nico. But me, my ancestor seemed to find the orc's appearance attractive. That might have been the biggest shock.

  "I'm always with you, Wasnera. What kind of question is that?"

  Maybe it wasn't going to be as easy to manipulate the dream as I had hoped. "No, I mean how long do orcs normally live?"

  He shrugged. "Fifty years if the pursuit of glory doesn't end them before that. What does it matter though? I ceased being normal the day your magic awakened."

  "Then this is because of the bond between us?"

  "You are speaking strangely, Wasnera. Is all right with you?"

  "Just humor me, how is it that an orc has lived this long."

  "It is but one of the many gifts I gained from being bonded with you." He tilted his head back and laughed although it sounded something like a roar. It occurred to me then, that if we were really flying through the sky like this, that I shouldn't be able to hear what he was saying so easily.

  "Ours was a rare and spontaneous thing. I remember the years we spent arguing with one another, then learning how to deepen the bond. You gained some small things from me, but I have gained your great life span, so I don't have to leave your side."

  "Just how much do we share?"

  Even as I asked that last question, I felt the connection breaking. I was waking, but no, I didn't want to. Dragons were good at sleeping for a long time. We were the best actually. Bears hibernating in the winter were mere amateurs, so I couldn't understand how I was being woken.

  The last image I had in the dream was of a massive blue dragon—my ancestor, no doubt—diving at a number of giants in brutish armor and wielding everything from spears the size of small trees to massive war hammers. A bolt of lightning erupted from her open maw with such intensity that even through the dream it felt like it was searing my cornea. Then it exploded into the side of the mountain and rock fell everywhere.

  The ground broke up beneath the giants’ feet and they began to slide down the mountain.

  Something jumped off my back and I watched as Tra'vis spread his wings.

  Wait… his wings? Yes, the orc had miniature dragon wings which sprouted from his back. His armor was even made to accommodate them. His hands flashed and a sonic based spell formed around him. He gave a war cry that caused the side of the mountain to shake. The rockslide before had been bad, but now an avalanche of snow, rock, and ice came crashing down upon the giants.

  When I woke with a snarl, Galbrecht was leaning over me. "Wake, up."

  As I snarled, he leaped back. Perhaps the way I growled like a feral beast had something to do with that.

  Behind him I heard Modessa laughing. "Geeze, I've heard of heavy sleepers, but that is ridiculous."

  I sat up slowly, trying to remember the dream… and yet, it was already fading. But I had the distinct feeling that I had learned something important, just that I couldn't remember all the details. It had something to do with the bond between a dragon and a lesser being—something ancient and powerful.

  Yet, it was also something incomplete. When the paladin shook me once more, it was gone.

  I glared up at Galbrecht, who looked both amused and concerned. "You were out for a while. We've been trying to wake you."

  The sky was a blaze of red and orange which danced off the clouds, with the sun barely visible, little more than a tiny sliver of gold. It seemed like it gave off trails of heat as it rose. The morning was crisp, despite the moisture in the air from the nearby forest. The sounds of birds singing reminded me even more how different this was from the desert I was used to.

  I stood up. Dragons may be slow to wake, but once roused I was ready for action. "How long was I out?"

  Modessa shrugged. "Maybe four hours. I wanted to wake you, but the broad shoulders here with a nobility complex over there insisted that the 'children'—as he called you two—needed their sleep."

  I might not like being called a child by a man younger than me, but who was I to argue with some extra sleep? I felt a bit of rumbling in my stomach, but the fish I'd eaten last night should stave off most of my hunger. It was the pressure a bit lower than my stomach which felt the oddest.

  "You should go in and clean up. Relieve yourself in the privy, and I'll have the innkeeper prepare us some breakfast. Never embark on a quest while hungry if at all possible. Those were wise words from an old teacher of mine. You never know when your next warm meal will be coming."

  Again, I wasn't going to argue, so I stood to go inside the inn. The only thing I wasn't sure about was what Galbrecht meant by ‘the privy’. I tried to signal Cami, but she headed toward her own room, instead of following me.

  This must be some odd human thing, but the more I thought about it the more I felt a pressure building up in my bladder. It was almost like when I'd had to make it rain, as dragons liked to call it. Except, I never really felt that much pressure from it. Ordinarily, I would simply have launched myself into the air, flown overhead, and then... well... I would have made it rain.

  That wouldn't quite work as a human. I scratched the side of my head. I honestly had no idea how humans handled that particular issue. I had the tiny worm that hung down in front of me. Considering its pitiful size, it was no wonder that humans wore pants to hide them.

  A dragon would have died of embarrassment if that was all the larger their member was—at least young dragons, who liked to boast about such things. I stifled a giggle. I could freely admit that I was not so old that I didn't find humor in such things.

  A moment later, Galbrecht came up the stairs to find me standing there in the hallway. I must have seemed confused because he asked, "Have you used the privy yet?"

  I didn't want to answer the question the wrong way, but had no idea what he was talking about.

  When I didn't answer, his eyes got wide. "Oh… you don't know what a privy is, do you? You must have really lived out in the boonies. I guess if you've been wandering since your mother passed, that explains why."

  He scratched his chin but seemed at a loss for words to explain what this privy was, or how I was to use it. He finally said, "Let me just show you. It's a small room with a bench inside. The bench has a hole in it that leads to a chute, which in turn carries your... well, you know. Anyway, it carries it away to a pit outside the inn which is periodically emptied.”