Harshdeep rumbled his two coppers, “I agree. From the sky, we won’t have to worry about their spears. This will be more of a test for our new dragon monarch. I will admit I’m glad to see you noticed it. One should always take note when prey acts in an unusual manner.”

  Wind-scoured mesas cast long afternoon shadows that streaked the cinnamon-hued sand. In the distance, a crumbling ruin was the lone sign of past civilizations, weathered by the relentless sun. The desert spread out below us, an endless expanse of brown rock and golden sand. What a glorious place to live. It would only be better if the sand were actually gold.

  We made a couple more loops before beginning our first dive. I joined in with them as we drove toward the ground. We were sufficiently spread out so that each of us could take on a groups of a hundred or so gnolls.

  As we dove with our wings pulled into our sides, I felt more alive than ever. This was what it meant to be a dragon—to hunt our prey and show our might.

  My eyes were keen enough to pick out details of the creatures below as the gnolls grew rapidly larger, their hyena-like forms becoming clearer. Coarse fur covered their muscular bodies, muted shades of gray and brown, blending with the rocky landscape. Beady eyes glinted with malice beneath heavy brows, as muzzles curled back to reveal pointed fangs. They raised their spears and knocked arrows to their bows as we approached, guttural cries rising from their throats.

  "Ugly beasts, aren't they?" Harshdeep rumbled with amusement.

  Our voices projected across the sky as we attacked our individual cohorts of gnolls. I snorted in amusement; Harshdeep was right. I might actually be able to get along with a red like this.

  "Nothing my flames can't fix," Belicossa retorted. Her words dissolved into growling laughter.

  Hearing them both speak reminded me that there was something glorious about fighting with others at my wing. We dragons had lost this sense of camaraderie, but I would ensure we reclaimed it. All of Ileria would quake before our assembled might.

  The gnolls let fly a volley of spears and arrows. Most glanced off our scales, sparking brightly but failing to penetrate. A few lodged in the membrane of our wings, quivering with the force of impact. I paid them no mind even as my passengers gave muffled cries of alarm.

  We were dragons - what were such pitiful wounds to us?

  I inhaled deeply, lightning crackling in the roof of my mouth before I unleashed it in a dazzling torrent. Bolts arced wildly among the gnolls, dropping them convulsing to the earth. As we swept overhead, the sandy ground was littered with blackened bodies that still twitched sporadically. My nostrils filled with the stench of charred flesh, singed fur, and ozone.

  More spears whistled through the air, clanging uselessly off our armored bellies. The few archers remaining loosed arrow after arrow to similarly useless effect. Harshdeep gave a contemptuous snort, wheeling around to bathe a knot of them with crimson flames. He chuckled as their dying shrieks echoed across the wastes.

  Not to be outdone, Belicossa strafed another group. The blast incinerated some gnolls instantly, leaving only drifting ash. Others fell screaming, hellish flames clinging hungrily to their flesh as they rolled futilely in the sand to put out the fire.

  By now, most of the gnolls were attempting to scatter and flee into the desert, but there was no escape from the reds' fiery fury. I chuckled at Harshdeep’s and Belicossa’s competitiveness. Apparently, not all reds were hopelessly lazy.

  I gazed over the battlefield. It was spread out over several miles, but from on high, I witnessed the devastation three dragons could do. The sand drank their blood greedily and absorbed their ashes as gnoll after gnoll was blasted into oblivion. Baring my teeth, I roared my challenge to the sky.

  I’d been wrong to worry. My dramatically enhanced stats as a dragon monarch showed. My breath weapon had covered even more of the enemy than I’d expected it would, and few had been able to stand after experiencing my breath weapon.

  I gave the two reds a nod as they both went off to continue the task I’d set for them. This attack raised questions in my mind about how much I needed minions, or even the help of other races. Then I remembered Cami sitting on my back. Our bond was real and a tremendous source of power.

  It was hard to believe, but I would still be only a young adult dragon if not for that bond.

  My thoughts went back and forth as I struggled to find a happy medium between learning new things and raising the standards of draconic might. Still puzzling this problem though, I landed outside the dungeon entrance. With a shake of my head, I consigned such concerns to my future self and focused on the here and now.

  The entrance to the dungeon was wide but not large enough for me to enter in my true form. When Cami hopped off my back, I transformed down to the battle form I’d mastered as a dragon disciple. After so long in my natural form, I wasn’t prepared to return to a squishy human form—not when my Dragon Warrior form was so much better.

  It combined the protection of my draconic scales with the agility of a humanoid form which would be better equipped to traverse the dungeon. I limited this form to only ten feet tall, which should still give me a reach advantage over the gnolls but not take up too much room in the confines of the dungeon.

  At least, that was my hope.

  I began to sense something odd at the entrance to the dungeon, but couldn’t place it. Neither my regular eyes nor my ability to see magic explained what I was feeling. Some of the energy coming from the dungeon seemed to be inverted, almost as though it was trying to hide from me.

  The more I stared at the magical currents, the less I understood what this could be. Activating Soul Seer, I saw the strangest of things. Gnolls didn’t have souls, yet there was a strange amount of what I could only call soul-like energy being sucked into the dungeon. It had odd tints of both human and dragon souls.

  Something was definitely off with this dungeon.

  Cami and I discussed what I was perceiving and then she asked, “Should we still go inside?”

  I thought about it for a moment. “Do we really have a choice? We need to clear this dungeon now—both to secure Harshdeep’s oath and so that Scale Nation can become a safe home for all dragonkind.”

  Then Cami got a sly grin on her face. “You never intended to let Lisella and the others join us in the dungeon did you?”

  I imitated a human expression I’d seen and winked at her. “Patience is a part of life. I need to know if they can wait and I need to know if Galbrecht is going to be turned by Lisella the first time I’m away.”

  Cami bared her teeth. She was definitely learning some dragon habits. Then, with a nod to one another, we cast our spells in preparation for walking into the dungeon.

  Chapter 40 - Small Spaces

  When we went in, there was a brief, disorienting sense of movement. It was something like being teleported, but in other ways quite different.

  “That was uh… something,” Cami muttered.

  I nodded as I flexed my arms, shoulders, and wings. Mentally, I began running through one of the forms Master Edgar had taught me to re-acclimate myself to this body. Adjusting to my human sized dragon warrior form was fairly simple—hardly different from the months I’d spent in my human form.

  Thinking about how much time I’d spent in that form made me shudder. It was more time than I wanted to think about, that I’d been stuck in the little flat-faced form. At least this one had a proper snout and jaw with which could bite down. I needed only a couple of minutes to adjust, during which I took in the surroundings.

  I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, my muscles stretching and contracting with each deliberate movement. Balance was the key to these forms, which were the perfect blend of speed and power, offense and defense, awareness and obfuscation. The forms might be a human invention, but I’d already learned much from them.

  Now, I was reminded—yet again—that while draconic might was the foundation of my power, there were still things to be gained from other approaches. I extended my wings and relished the sensation of my scales gliding over each other. Each step, each stretch, kick, and claw swipe brought me more in tune with this form. I delighted in my mastery of it.

  My eyes, sharp and keen, scanned the dungeon's entry room, taking in its ancient stone architecture. The high ceiling allowed me to stand at my full height, a luxury seldom afforded in human constructions. When I looked up, I noted that the ceiling extend at least thirty feet upwards—which meant jumping at full power wasn’t off the table, though flying wouldn’t be feasible.

  The ancient stone architecture of this place was a testament to the bizarre creation of dungeons. Nothing in the Dragon Dream explained how or even why they were created, yet I could tell from how it felt coming through the entrance that this was a pocket dimension of some sort. That alone gave me certain insights into their construction. Only if the system, or what I was coming to think of as the Remnant of Eternity, was responsible for the dungeons would they be able to break the restriction against extra-planar travel. There was more to it, though.

  Not only did my body feel good as I stretched out, but I still sensed the continued flow of Ileria’s magic here. It wasn’t like on Terra, or in the dream when Tiamat had needed to maintain an open portal to remain connected to the source of her power. No, this felt more like an extension of Ileria.

  It was almost the same sensation as walking into a new room in a human building. Perhaps this was where they got the idea from, as the gnolls certainly weren’t intelligent enough to come up with it on their own. Ugh… I needed to rein in these thoughts if I was going to find balance.

  Looking around, I saw reminders of a bygone era. Each block of stone was meticulously carved and stacked, giving off an aura of solemn grandeur. The walls, cold and unyielding to the touch, bore the marks of time. Moss and lichen clung to them in places, adding a touch of verdant green to the otherwise desolate gray of our surroundings.

  The air was cool and slightly damp, carrying on it the earthy scent of stone and age—a smell that spoke of secrets hidden deep within the earth. The walls bore the weight of ages, etched with scenes of battles long past. I could almost hear an echo of those ancient conflicts.

  They served as a reminder of the ever-present struggle for dominance. Such was the nature of all beings, but none more so than dragons. We dragons were born to rule, to dominate. And here, in this dungeon, I would further cement my ascent to power

  The intricate carvings that adorned the ceiling—though partially eroded, still hinted at the grandeur they once held—were easy enough for me to pick out another twenty feet above me. In some places, stalactites hung like silent sentinels, with occasional droplets of water falling from their tips. These falling droplets created a rhythmic tapping sound that echoed softly through the vast chamber.

  The sound was a subtle reminder of the relentless passage of time, even in this forgotten place.

  Cami asked, “Do you think this is a copy of something from the past or just a fabrication created by a power far beyond our scope?”

  “Or it could be that whatever this place used to be was brought into this pocket dimension,” I replied in the deep bass of my dragon warrior form. “This is certainly beyond the so-called gods. But if, as I suspect, Eternity created these dungeons, then it could be either… or even both at the same time. It could simply be a vision of something which might have been, but which never fully found physical form like Ileria did.”

  Cami nodded. “It does seem more likely that this was a creation of whatever the remnant of eternity is… the system.”

  “I suppose that’s a good point,” I admitted, “but does it really matter?”

  “Would the Remnant possess enough power to run all of this?” Cami asked. “As you said, it is beyond the gods. Nothing Miseria, Temulara or any other divine being has showed us can hope to match everything that the system runs.”

  I smirked. “Even a remnant of infinite power would be infinite, would it not?”

  Cami nodded, letting the gravity of that thought settle in. She stood beside me, her gaze fixed on the shadowy hallways that branched out from this grand entrance chamber. I found it only proper.

  We’d begun this journey together, and if there was any human—or mostly human—worthy of sitting beside me, or perhaps more appropriately astride me, it was Cami. I felt a strange fondness for her growing.

  If I was being honest, I’d started thinking of her as a queen to rule beside me. Perhaps, she would be the queen of the other races—as I was the ruler of the dragons. Who knows, perhaps I’d even become a dragon emperor, if I dared to push myself to those heights.

  My attention was pulled away from such thoughts as I heard the distant, muffled sounds of creatures stirring within the dungeon's depths, a cacophony of growls and snarls that might have unnerved lesser beings. But fear was something we dragons caused, not something we felt. I hardened my heart when I sensed the dark necromantic taint in the power of this dungeon.

  "Can you feel that?," I cautioned Cami in a low growl.

  My bonded mumbled, “There’s a taint in this place."

  “It seems we have company,” I replied. “So many things are falling into place. It explains why the dungeons here are reacting so much more harshly than expected.”

  “You think he has the ability to alter a dungeon?” Cami asked with a low whistle.

  “It’s much easier to alter a process that is already in place than to create something from nothing. He thinks he is more than he’s meant to be, but his reckoning is coming.”

  “Do you think it is a trap?” Her words took the form of a question, but there was no uncertainty in her voice.

  “Without a doubt,” I agreed as I leaned forward, sniffing the air one more time.

  Cami nodded, a determined glint in her eyes.

  We both knew what was at stake. Clearing this dungeon was important, perhaps even critical to the future of Scale Nation, but if the necromancer and lich responsible 300 years of torment for dragons was here, then this was exactly where we needed to be.

  With a final stretch, I unfurled my wings fully, feeling the latent power coursing through me. It was time to delve deeper into the dungeon, to confront whatever horrors lurked within and claim what was rightfully mine. With a confident stride, I began to lead the way, Cami at my side, into the heart of darkness.

  As we ventured further, the faint glow of bioluminescent fungi created a dim light that revealed more of the dungeon's secrets. Shadows danced along the walls, thrown by the flickering luminescence. This created an ever-changing tapestry of light and dark.

  The floor beneath our feet was uneven, with scattered debris and ancient bones, that crunched underfoot with each step we took. The air grew heavier, filled with the musty odor of decay and the faint, almost imperceptible scent of lingering magic.

  The deeper we moved into the dungeon, the more the ambiance shifted. The whisper of wind could be heard, a ghostly breath that seemed to weave through the corridors, carrying with it the distant, discordant chorus of the dungeon's denizens. It was a symphony of growls, hisses, and scuttles, each sound a harbinger of the dangers that lay ahead, hidden in the dungeon's shadowy recesses.

  As we ventured deeper into the wide dungeon hallway, the air grew dense with anticipation. The walls, now lined with towering statues of forgotten heroes and malevolent beasts, seemed to watch our every move. The ground underfoot was a mosaic of ancient tiles, worn by the passage of innumerable feet, both living and undead.

  Suddenly, a guttural howl shattered the eerie silence, and six gnolls burst forth from the shadows, their eyes alight with feral hunger. As grotesque as the sight of them was, with hunched backs and snarling muzzles, it was their smell, which was most overpowering. I would have sworn they’d never felt the touch of water upon their flesh. Just like the ones we’d seen outside, they were wielding spears and bows with a savage grace. I didn’t bother to give them time to react. I pushed out a wave of dragon fear, which gave the initiative to us.

  I moved with a fluidity that belied my massive size, Edgar’s training as well as draconic instinct evident in each strike. My clawed hands were a blur, tearing through the air with lethal precision. One gnoll lunged at me with its spear, but I caught it effortlessly, twisting it from the creature's grip as I crushed the wooden shaft in my hand. I hadn’t really gotten a chance to experience these new stats outside of training, but it was definitely a rush.

  As he staggered backward, I drove the palm of my hand into his chest. His sternum split and his rib cage caved in under the sheer force of my blow. At the same time, I swept his feet from under him with a swipe of my tail and before he’d even hit the ground, I’d ripped his heart out in my clawed fist. His flesh parted before my claws as though it were nothing more than silk.