Chapter 1: Escape

“My Lord, over here!" I hear her powerful, imposing and yet so subtly scared voice call me. I do not have time to answer her, as my mouth is busy breathing heavily due to the stress and tension of the situation. My legs are running as fast as the wind, but I am not sure I am running fast enough; I somehow manage to tell Sol I wish I could use my wings, but she reminds me I need not overwork them in case we get attacked or surrounded.

The beautiful marble walls do not look as marvellous any more... especially if you imagine they are going to be painted red soon. We keep traversing empty corridors that were not so empty just a few hours ago: there used to be people walking around, nobles talking between themselves about politics and what not, kids playing games and flying around joyously, guards quietly observing the scene from the corners of the room... but now there is no-one. It is just me and Sol... though I suspect the situation will worsen if we do not move fast.

My name... is Red. I am a fire dragon, and the heir to the throne of Flammaria, my kingdom. Although aggressive and somewhat harsh towards other nations and dragon tribes, my kingdom has been at peace for hundreds of years. All changed a few hours ago, when we were suddenly attacked by thunder dragons of the kingdom of Thundaria. They appeared out of nowhere, broke through our initial defences and entered our very capital... and the forces we have here are not sufficient to defeat them. Our capital, our kingdom, our kindred... is doomed. Unless...

“My Lord, are you already tired?" Sol asks me kindly, a bit unimpressed. She has always genuinely cared for me, even though it is difficult to recognize this aspect of hers behind her perennially inexpressive eyes.

“Even if I were, Sol, I cannot ask for a breather: we need to reach the dungeon post-haste! I cannot rest while knowing people are dying and suffering!" I reply, stress making me sound angrier than I should be.

I turn to face my retainer: she still tries to look as calm and distanced as possible... though even she cannot hide the fear in her eyes. I do not know if she fears more for herself or for me... most likely for me.

The thunder dragon Sol has been my retainer for as long as I can remember: she has served my father the King dutifully for as long as she lived and served under my direct command ever since I became of age. Even though she is from a different tribe, my father trusts her with his own life... and so do I. She is thoughtful, powerful, resourceful... and beautiful as well, to be honest. Her tall yellow body, her long golden hair, her cold yellow eyes... I always dreamt of them when I was a kid. Needless to say, I once had a crush on her... though now is not the time to remember those happy memories: if my eyes are pointed towards the past, I will not see the enemy in front of me in the present.

“My Lord, there is no need to wear yourself out: we are currently at risk of being ambushed, after all. It might be prudent to replenish our stamina, even if for a moment." she replies, ignoring what I just told her.

“Yet another reason to keep on moving and not allow the enemy to catch us off-guard." I end the argument, dead-set on finding whatever Father so mysteriously talked about. I know Sol is aware of what Father's looking for as the two spoke in private for a short while before sending me on my quest, but when I asked her what we needed to find she simply answered “It is complicated to explain." and cut the conversation short. I wonder why she acted so oddly, but in the end it does not bother me: I am not interested in the technical details anyway.

Now, returning to my quest... it seems we somehow managed to completely avoid the battle going on in the main hall; I thought I knew all secret passages in the castle, but evidently I was mistaken. I find it rather curious how I never managed to find that hidden hallway behind the armour stand in the kitchen... though, now that I think of it, that piece of furniture did not seem to belong in such a room. I briefly wonder how did Sol find out about its existence before deciding to dedicate my absolute attention to the path before me.

Still, I cannot ignore the noises coming from atop us, from the main hall itself: the familiar sound of incinerating fire, the rough noise of thunder exploding without control, the dying cries of people whose lives have been ended... I would like to believe those belong to the enemy forces, but I doubt they really are. After all, the enemy's numbers are overwhelming: my father's knights may be strong and valiant, but they are not invincible... it is only a matter of time before all sword-wielding men in the castle will be eradicated... and, most likely, most if not all of the helpless bystanders too.

“We are about to reach the entrance to the dungeon." Sol whispers me, careful not to make any noise that might alert the enemies above us of our position “Have you ever been down there?" she asks me, almost preoccupied.

“You should know the answer to that question." I reply, confused “No, I have never been in the depths down below... why are you asking, exactly?" I inquire, interested.

“Oh, nothing. I was merely trying to converse." even though she turns away, I can still hear a sigh of relief exiting her razor-edged jaws, almost as if she were... glad. Either she is extremely stressed... or she is hiding something from me.

I am about to force her to explain her mysterious demeanour when I notice, at the end of the corridor, an iron fence blocking a hole in the wall around the size of a normal dragon: I have seen that opening a good share of times in my life and I know where it leads to... which makes me question once again why did Sol inquire me if I had ever went through it.

The dungeon below the castle... a place my father never wanted me to venture into. I had explored my castle countless times as a cub but that place had always been forbidden to me... even though my father never explained to me why. It sounds even more suspicious when you consider he loves to explain things to me, especially dangerous ones. However, that warning was not necessary: the entrance to the keep had been sealed since ancient times... by a mere iron fence, from the looks of it.

As soon as we reach said fence I ask my retainer how, exactly, does she plan to open it. “Certainly not through a key or a dumb magic word." she answers as she draws her spear from the sheath on her back and starts cutting the iron bars with it “It will take some time, but I believe I can free the path. I am counting on you in case we are discovered." she adds as she finishes cutting the first bar and moves on to the next.

If we are found out, I will have to defend us both... that is what she just said; a part of me wishes we do not get spotted... the other egotistically desires it. I unsheathe my sword, “Justice", from its golden decorated scabbard, and inspect it: the expertly crafted longsword has been my ancestors' pride for generations, who never lost while brandishing it. Its grey draconium blade never required repairs, for it is stronger than any other metal; it is so strong, in fact, that it can cut common iron swords like they were paper. It is decorated by six shining gems: a ruby, a topaz, a turquoise, a garnet, a sapphire, an amethyst and an emerald; they are said to gift and inspire courage and determination, sense of justice, purity and calmness, bravery, integrity and loyalty, perseverance, and kindness respectively... all of the gemstones have been inserted in this order along the centre of the blade itself, and an old legend says they have been enchanted by a powerful pyromancer to shine and burn whenever a malevolent presence is nearby... which is exactly what is happening in this very moment.

I look forward, towards the stairs: a platoon of yellow-scaled armoured dragons is charging towards us, weapons drawn; how did I not notice them before is beyond me. I have never seen thunder dragons before, apart from Sol, so I take a few seconds to look at them: apart from their slightly smaller bodies, the yellowish colour of their skin and their snake-like fangs, they are very similar to us fire dragons. They are still the enemy, however, and I will not allow them to live a second longer now that they have invaded our kingdom. I prepare myself for battle as I briefly recall all the battle tactics my instructors have taught me over the course of my life.

[1-01 – Glorious battle – “Glorious Morning: Techno Remix 2.0" by Acrion, originally “Glorious Morning" by Waterflame (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PgsxlvgeQg)]

As all Flammarian heirs before me, I have been instructed everything there is to know on the art of war: I always hated theoretical studies, but at least now I know what I am up against. A standard Thundarian platoon, if memory serves correctly, is divided in two groups: an air one and a land one... exactly what I am looking upon right now. Needless to say, the dragons in the land group do not have wings... which would make them very weak were it not for their flying brethren who support them from above. I should eliminate the flying dragons before I move on to the land ones... but getting close would prove rather difficult due to their long spears.

“Do you really think you are powerful enough to take on me, the heir to the throne of this kingdom?" my voices echoes throughout the corridor, almost paralysing my incoming attackers “I shall show you what real power truly is! Fear the wrath of the lives you have claimed! Volcanic barrage!" I roar as fireballs as red as the Sun itself are shot from the inferno that is consuming my own body: it takes them a few instants to cover the entire room and fill the enemy flying space, preventing the winged dragons from escaping. Despite their best attempts to avoid my superior firepower, all my targets are hit and blasted away as they cry in pain, their bodies consumed by the flames... and to think I once used that power to cook raw meat.

The battle is not over yet though, as around ten opponents still remain and are determined to fight me despite witnessing the demise of their friends and comrades. They are courageous, I will give them that... but that courage will not last long.

As I charge into the enemy myself, I formulate a battle plan: they are pointing their lances at me, which would make direct confrontation challenging if not even impossible, but I remember studying that Thundarian armour rarely covers the back... if I were to attack from behind, my chances of winning would rise exponentially.

Before I can reach the enemy platoon, they suddenly stop and lunge at me with their lances, hoping to pierce me as if I were meat ready to be skewed, but unfortunately they found me prepared: I use my wings to propel me upwards and then behind them, landing gracefully behind their wall of lances. Before they can turn around and retaliate, I cut a few of them from behind using my sword, spilling blood both on my blade and myself One of my opponents lunges at me with their spear, but I am faster than them and I manage to slash away the point of their spear before it can hit me... in a flash, I grab the spear blade in mid air and throw it against another one of my enemies, hitting him in the head and presumably killing him.

The battle lasts a few seconds before ending abruptly: the few dragons that are still alive and well attempt to run for their lives, but I am in no mood to spare them and I kill them all before they can distance themselves enough from me. My father taught me mercy, yes, but not for this cowardly scum.

“Justice has been made..." I mumble as I put my sword back in its scabbard: even though this was a mere platoon, and an inexperienced one as well, I am still happy to have contributed to the defence of my kingdom.

“My Lord!" Sol calls me from the other side of the room: the fence blocking the path has been removed and she is signing me to join her “The path has been cleared! Quick! We do not want more of them to find us..."

“Was it really necessary to kill those fleeing dragons?" Sol asks me, still calm.

“Are you worried about your kind, Sol?" she seems a bit surprised by my question but before she can explain I answer her own question “I heard the King of Thundaria is vile and brutal: there is no way those dragons would have been spared after failing to apprehend me, the prince... I would like to think I did them a favour, but whether that be true or false does not concern me." she seems satisfied with my answer, as she does not inquire further.

We are delving further below the castle and, to be blunt, it is not a pleasurable experience: the space around me is very little and, in fact, I have to crouch to avoid hitting the ceiling with my horns... not only that, but the air is scarce as well and I am feeling a bit dizzy due to that. Keeping a flame alive in my hand in order to let us see where we are going is definitely not helping, but we do not have a choice. I do not know how Sol is coping, but I hope she is legitimately doing well and not hiding her pain from me like she is used to.

We have been descending for ten minutes at least. We are venturing far, far below the castle and the cliff it is standing on and I believe we are almost on the same level of height as the town surrounding it, if not even lower: exactly, how old is this place, I wonder? I do not have an answer... but, from the amount of cracks in the stone walls around me, not to mention the moss and mushrooms growing on the floor, I am surprised it is still in one piece.

Eventually, the staircase ends in a bigger, darker opening: when I was a whelp, I believed this dungeon to be populated by all sorts of monsters and beasts of unfathomable power... but that does not appear to be the case. A long corridor, just as rotten as the staircase that lead us here, stands before us... I wonder if what we are looking for lies beyond the small wooden door at the end of it; the doors in my castle are all made out of either iron, for unimportant entrances, or decorated gold, for important ones... wood is rare and generally unused in my kingdom, which makes me question this place even more.

Before I can venture further in, Sol grabs me impolitely and orders me “Go on without me." taken aback by her sudden order, I reply, scared by what she might be implying“What? Why should I do that?"

“I can hear soldiers coming down here." now that she mentions it, I do hear some noises coming from the stairs: however, judging from the amount of clanking and hisses that the echo allows us to hear, this does not seem like a mere platoon... it sounds like an entire battalion! Can she really take on all those soldiers by herself?

“I will not let you face them alone." I respond, angered by her decision “We will hold our ground together and send all those Thundarians to Hell!"

“My Lord, please understand." she replies, not minimally fazed “If the enemy is sending even a single battalion down here, they must already know of our position, which means they will send even more backup troops in case these ones do not return..." she does have a point, I have to admit to myself: we are currently cornered, unless there is a way out of the dungeon... or unless... “I will try to buy you some time to find the artefact, but I doubt I can provide you more than a few minutes." an artefact... well, at least now I know what I am looking for... sort of: what is an artefact? Is it... a magical object? An ancient mechanism? How do I know the one I find is the correct one? And what am I supposed to do once I find it?

Either way, what Sol is suggesting is the correct course of action: I must find the artefact and save my kingdom. That is my priority. As much as I would like to join my retainer in battle, I am afraid that will have to wait “Do not let this scum overpower you, Sol: I would surely die of sadness knowing you gone." I wish her good luck, in my own way.

“The sentiment is shared, my Lord." she replies, still not cracking a smile “Now go!" she points her sharp, beautifully decorated lance at the entrance, ready to intercept any and all enemies that dare descend into the dungeon: I am grateful to know that, with Sol blocking the way, the Thundarian army shall not pass beyond this point... but I am also, to be frank, quite disappointed for not being able to support her.

I fly all the way across the room, not any more caring about conserving my stamina: I need to find whatever lies in this place as fast as I can. I open the door, hoping that whatever I am looking for lies just beyond it... but, instead, I find yet another corridor, seemingly identical to the one I just traversed... in fact, it looks like it's the exact same one. Same cracks in the wall, same holes in the stone floor... am I supposed to keep going, I ponder? The door behind me closes by itself as soon as I am in the room, blocking me inside; not a problem, I think, I do not want to turn back anyway.

Corridor, after corridor, after corridor... it seems this hallway goes on forever. I still feel a bit dizzy, even though the space around me is wide and the air is enough for me to breathe easily: I do not know if to attribute this sudden headache to stress or to... something else. For some reason, I am... afraid, as if something could jump on me at any given moment... I should keep my guard up. I power the flame in my hand as much as I can, but it is still not enough to show the entire room. Not only that, I get the feeling the shadows are... moving... as if afraid of the light.

I can take this no longer: I unsheathe Justice and yell at the top of my lungs “Whatever you are, wherever you are, show yourself!" something answers my call: the shadows are shifting, I can feel them moving all around me... the light I am fuelling is faltering even though I am not doing anything... something paranormal is definitely going on.

Without any warning, something hits me from behind: it feels like sharp claws, but I do not seem to be bleeding... did I imagine it? I do not think so... the pain is very much real.

Before I can find out what just attacked me, I am hit once again: this time, not only do I feel pain but... fear as well. As if whatever hit me instilled fright within me just by coming into contact with my armour... but it only lasts a second. I am not afraid... I am not afraid of anything!

[1-03 – Eternal Fire – “Chaotic" by Waterflame (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhN9OdjE4m4)]

“Heat Wave!" I set aflame my own body and release the energy all around me, illuminating the room for a brief second: after conjuring that powerful spell, I turn around and see... something I wish I did not. It looks like an armoured knight, leaking a black, gooey substance from the wounds my attack caused it... it lacks any and all draconian features and something tells me that is because this entity is... otherworldly. Never before have I seen such a creature and no books mention its existence... or something even remotely similar. I once thought dungeons were inhabited by ghouls and goblins but this... not I even I could have expected this.

The creature turns at me, its twitchy movements making it even more scarier, and... suddenly, its helmet, or rather its mouth, opens up right in the middle, showing dark fangs that are sharp, unnatural and, more than anything else, terrifying, and growls at me like no monster I had fought before did: whatever this demonic creature is, it needs to die immediately.

I inspire all the air that I can as I look upwards: I can hear the combustion happening inside my lungs, the power rising inside of me... I roar at the creature, unleashing that flaming tornado almost uncontrollably and setting the entire room on fire. The creature cannot help but growl in pain this time as more and more of that gooey substance drops on the floor and evaporates soon afterwards.

Despite all this, the enemy is still resilient and keeps fighting back: it lunges at me with its claws and manages to hit me once more, causing more pain and fear: now I am sure, the fright this creature is inducing in me is artificial... though that does not make it any less real or intense. I slice the creature with my sword, but it keeps moving as if nothing ever happened: I do not know what to do, everything I have done so far has proven ineffective...

Now it backs away, but not to retreat: it summons what looks like an orb of dark energy in its right claw and launches it at me. I choose to avoid it instead of blocking it, and the orb crashes into the wall behind me, exploding into a myriad of black pyres that die soon afterwards: I thank my instinct for doing the right thing, for once, and remind myself I cannot afford to underestimate this abomination.

“I am done with your games!" I yell at the creature, not sure whether it can understand me or not “It is time to end this, once and for all!" I muster all the courage I have and summon all my strength, wanting to end the battle in this very moment with one last attack; unfortunately, I cannot use my strongest spell, although I would very much like to, since it is not designed to work in small spaces and would most likely destroy this very place with its potency... instead, I use another powerful technique of mine, one that I am almost completely sure will end this confrontation right away.

I breathe fire on my weapon, infusing it with the sacred power of fire, then get in a battle stance: I am now ready to end this battle for good. “You are finished! Blazing Blade!" I run towards the monster, sword in hand, ready to do what must be done: the creature attempts to defend itself with its claws, but its guard is soon shattered by the sharpness of the blade and the heat of my flames. The monster emits a loud cry of pain as the fire consumes its body, but it does not relent its assault and tries to hit me again, in vain: a couple more slashes of mine turn the creature into a living inferno, struggling to stay alive as more of that corrupted sludge detaches from its body and drops to the ground, evaporating into black mist as soon as it reaches the floor. It is only a matter of seconds before the creature drops to the ground itself, presumably dead.

“Checkmate." I can finally smile as I put my sword back into its sheath and prepare to leave that accursed place “I hope your soul, if you even have one, can finally find peace, you wretched monstrosity..."

I start walking towards the door leading to,hopefully, not another empty corridor... but I am too late to notice that something is moving behind me once again. I turn around, but it is too late: the creature is somehow still alive, even after everything I have done to make sure otherwise, and is leaping towards me from above with its big, hollow fangs opened... I try to unsheathe my sword, but there is no way I will be able to defend myself before the monster can hit me. This time, I am done for...

“Supreme Lightning!" I hear a feminine voice shout as the creature above me is drilled by countless thunderbolts, its body evaporating into black fumes before I can even realize what is going on. As soon as I realize what just happened I turn to the door, knowing there is only one woman in this kingdom who can cast such a powerful incantation: Sol is standing right by the door, her right hand extended towards where the creature once was and the other pressing against her now red stomach... oh no.

I rush towards her to lend her a hand “Sol! Are you hurt?" I ask her to show me her wound: it is not very serious, but it is indeed deep and blood is copiously pouring out of it... there is little I can do apart from sterilizing it with my fire. I doubt she will die because of it, but she could use some professional help right now.

“Do not worry my Lord... I will be fine." she says, far too stoic for her own good “Still... what was that thing that attacked you?" she asks me, confused.

“I am just as clueless as you are." I answer, still unsure of what I just got attacked by “Something followed me across all those rooms... but I could have never imagined I was being stalked by something so rotten." meanwhile, I take her under my wing and help her walk, as she appears to have sustained some minor injuries to her legs as well.

“What do you mean with 'across all those rooms'? You were behind the door we saw in the beginning all along." she replies, even more confused than before.

“Curious... that creature must have done something to this dungeon... a curse, perhaps. I hope it has lifted now that its conjurer has been defeated." I reply, not knowing if there is anything else worthy of being said.

My father never told me what rested in the dungeon, but I bet my whole treasure he would have told me if a demonic being such as the one we vanquished inhabited it... perhaps not even he knew exactly what was down here? Once again, I would like to ask my retainer what exactly did my father tell her... but I fear it would be pointless now: after all, what we are looking for is very close by.

After making it all the way through the room, we hesitantly open the door at the end of it, fearful of another unexpected surprise: the room ahead of us is different than any I have ever seen in my life, but the calming atmosphere I perceive all around me makes me think it is not a trap of any kind. The walls are curved towards the centre and surprisingly polished for a place as old as the dungeon they are in; not only that, but they are decorated by shining runes that, though incomprehensible, at least contribute to lighting the room. The runes extend on the floor as well and lead to what I presume is an altar in the middle of the chamber, made out of the same stones the room itself is made out of. Atop the altar sits a crystal globe, its purpose unknown... is that the artefact we were looking for?

“That appears to be the artefact the king mentioned..." Sol concludes as my spirit is lifted of a great burden: we did it, we truly did it. We won.

The dragoness advises me to let go of her and go get the relic by myself, a suggestion that I decide to follow: I leave my retainer alone and I run for the artefact... though something very odd happens to me while doing so. It felt like entering a gigantic bubble of water... but it does not look like I did anything like that.
I try to turn back, suspecting the worse, and I find myself in great distress when I realize what I can only describe as an invisible wall has closed behind me. I hit the air with everything I have, but from the looks of it I am trapped inside. I shout for my retainer to help me, but she does not do such thing: in fact, her expression does not change one bit... almost as if she expected this to happen.

“Sol! What are you waiting for!? Help me!" I yell at her as she slowly walks towards me, careful not to enter the barrier I am blocked in.

“I am afraid I cannot help you, my Lord." she answers, real fear filling my very heart and Soul “Before you ask, no, I am not betraying you." she clears out my biggest doubt... though I am having trouble believing her in this precise moment “In fact, I am following the King, your father's orders: he wants me to use this artefact to send you very far away, to a place our enemies will never be able to reach... and that is exactly what I am going to do." she adds.
“W-What!? You cannot possibly be serious!" I yell at her “I am this kingdom's prince! If my fate is to die in battle, so be it... but I will not run away while my kingdom is torn apart! I refuse!"

“Unfortunately, you cannot refuse." she replies, still inexpressive “Normally I would agree with you, as I am under your direct command... but I cannot do such a thing under the current circumstances. You are this kingdom's future, this kingdom's heir: as long as you live, there is hope for your tribe and your people. I cannot risk you to die in this futile battle... this is the only way to ensure your safety." a tear finally falls from her left eye “To be fair, the King wanted me to join you as well... and perhaps that is the most intelligent course of action to undertake... but I cannot do that. I am in debt to your father and your kingdom: I cannot leave after everything they have done for me. I know it may sound selfish after everything I said, but..."

“Selfish!? This is beyond the common meaning of selfishness!" I stop her “I will not allow you to throw your life to the wind and I will not allow you to proceed with father's plan! If my fate is to die, at least let me die honourably, not cowardly! As the prince of Flammaria, I order you to-"

“It has been a pleasure serving you, my Lord. I promise to look after you in death if that is the fate this world has in store for me." she ends the conversation as more and more tears stream down her eyes, many more than I have seen her spill in a lifetime “Farewell, Red... may fate be kind to you." I am too late to notice her throw what looks like a pendant towards me... no, towards the sphere behind me: I try to catch it, but I am too slow and it reaches the artefact before I can block it.

The orb suddenly shines a blinding light, much stronger than any I have witnessed in my entire existence: I desperately try to escape once more, but... I cannot help but feel sleepy... what is happening to... me...

I abruptly open my eyes after what felt like an eternity asleep. The first thing I notice is the sky, which looks... very different from the one I am used to: more black and less red, if that makes sense. I wonder what all those white dots on its surface are... but they do somehow inspire confidence in me for some reason.
If I saw the sky before anything else, it must mean I am laying on something: I try to get up but stop upon noticing... a weird structure right in front of me. It looks like two gigantic black spears attached to the centre of an even bigger white circle, with “I"s, “V"s and “X"s written all over it. The two spears, one longer than the other, are pointing towards two distinctive words: the smaller one is pointing towards the letter “X" and the longer one is pointing towards the word “XII"... is it some kind of secret code, I wonder? Or perhaps another language? I do not recall ever studying something like... wait! The castle! What happened to the castle!?

I get up as soon as my memories return and scout my surroundings, trying to figure out where exactly I was sent... but I do not recall ever visiting this... kingdom. In front of me stand lots of tall, transparent buildings of unknown purpose... they are certainly smaller than my castle, but the fact that there are so many of them is indeed impressive. Some of them are small, some of them are large... I hate repeating myself, but I have never seen something so strange and yet... so disturbingly fascinating. Some small buildings, presumably houses, stand in the distance... but they are too far away for me to be sure. I walk around the ledge I am standing on and discover the town does not end there: more tall buildings, more houses, some more weird edifices and bizarre locations... I am in the middle of a town like no other, stranded in a place I never knew even existed.

There is something that bothers me even more than that though: where are all the dragons? Apart from a few small birds flying in the nightly sky, the firmament is practically empty... is this some sort of phantom city? Is there really no-one around?

“What is this place?" I quietly ask myself, my voice keeping me company “Am I... am I still in Draconia? Or am I... somewhere else?" the wind that blows from my left silences my questions, destroys my hopes and makes me feel lonelier than I ever was...

Chapter 2: The Joker

 My initial theories about the city proved incorrect in the span of a few minutes: I initially thought it had been abandoned, but I quickly reconsidered as soon as I noticed some small boxes of various colours moving around the city at remarkable speed, even though they were like stuck to the ground... to be fair, those things are much faster than any dragon I have ever witnessed. I do not know what those are, but perhaps their presence is an indicator of some sort of civilization... or am I being fooled once again?

Actually, no, there definitely is someone here: I can see a few silhouettes walking up and down the streets, always staying away from the centre of the roads where those boxes are moving... are those dragons? If they are, why are they walking instead of flying? I am too far away to understand, and am considering flying down there to have a better look at them...

As I get up and prepare to throw myself off the cliff, a hand grabs my shoulder and pulls me backwards... I hate to admit it, but that scared me immensely. As I attempt to get up after the intruder shoved me away so rudely, I hear an indefinite, neutral voice commentate “I wouldn't do that if I were you."

My name... is Red. I am a fire dragon, and the only survivor of the massive surprise attack that completely destroyed the capital of my kingdom. I alone escaped the previously unconquered city, though it was not my intention to do so: my father and my retainer tricked me into doing so, because they wanted me to live. Now I stand here, stranded in a world I do not recognize as my own, furious and longing for revenge: the Thundarian king will pay for what he has done, I swear it on my honour.

As soon as I get up, I unsheathe my sword and point it at whoever is here with me... and am greeted by a pair of luminous white eyes, who pierce my Soul with their unsettling, yet somehow strangely addicting gaze. The creature in front of me is unlike anything I have ever seen before, though it bears some similarities to me and my kind: they are as tall as me... never mind, they are slightly, almost imperceptibly shorter... and their body is similar in shape to mine, though they definitely do much less exercise than me. However, there are several, marked differences as well: their whole body is covered in fur, like that of a few animals and monsters that roam my kingdom, albeit theirs is unique in that the left side of their body is entirely covered in white fur and the right one is entirely covered in black one; the two sides are separated by a straight grey line that is so small it is surprising I even noticed it. It is also important to notice that its face is very different from my own: first things first, they do not have a muzzle; instead, their pink, heart-shaped nose, which is connected to their small mouth, is almost attached to their face. Their ears are also substantially different, as they are stretched upwards instead of being on the side like mine. The creature is wearing only a long black and white cape with intricate patterns drawn both on the inside and the outside, which would provide little to no defence against my attacks: clearly, they are not here to fight... either that or I am greatly underestimating them.

The entity's voice is very high-pitched, like that of a child, but I can feel a pint of... mysteriousness within it “Why hello there!" the creature greets me kindly, their previously intimidating stance completely gone “Sorry for not introducing myself before, but I saw you looking off into the distance so intently... and I decided to wait a bit before greeting you properly." despite talking rather hastily, it seems as though the creature speaks the same language as I do. Convenient, I think.

The creature falls silent, as if expecting me to say something; I realize my jaw is hanging wide open and quickly close it, before apologizing for my idiotic behaviour as I put my weapon back in its sheath “I am deeply sorry, please pardon me. I was just wandering... what, exactly, are you. You definitely do not look like a dragon..." the creature fakes anger as they immediately answer “I'm not a dragon! I'm a cat!"

“A... cat? To be honest, I never heard of such a creature." I tell them, prompting them to sigh as they reply “It's fine, it's fine... there are no cats in Draconia after all, huh?" my body fires up upon mentioning of my homeland, curious and preoccupied at the same time “How do you know where I come from? Am I still in Draconia after all?"

“Unfortunately for you, no, this world is not the one you came from. This world's name is 'Earth', and is much different from the one you know." the cat explains, much to my dismay “As for how I know where you come from, Prince Red... I know a lot of things." they chuckle, but I do not find that remotely funny “I presume you won't tell me how you got that information, am I correct?" I inquire, unsure of how to handle this weird person.

“I mean, it's only the second chapter: we don't want to dish out spoilers too early now, do we?" they wink at me, but I do not understand the joke... in fact, I do not understand a word he just said “Excuse me, could you repeat that last phrase?" I try to make him repeat himself.

“Don't worry, I was just joking. Except on the 'I can't tell you anything' part: that was serious." he shrugs off my request. I can only hope he is telling the truth and that he is not hiding any important information from me.

“So you will not tell me... fine by me. What do you want from me then? I doubt you are here just to make conversation." as I say those words, I realize I am very thirsty: now that I recall, I have not drank anything since morning... I ponder whether to ask the creature for help or not, but they answer my question before I can even formulate it “So you're thirsty, huh? Would you like to drink something?" even though the cat's response, which is far too precise to be a simple guess, is indeed somewhat puzzling, I decide to answer positively, just to see how they will react “Great! I've got the right thing for you right here!" they reach out into their coat's inner pockets and pull a small object out of them: it is a metallic cylinder with red and blue words written all over it, some bigger than others; there are also two small paintings of horned creatures, but, albeit they are similar to some monsters that roam my land, they are completely unknown to me.

“Try Red Bull, the totally-not-sponsored beverage that gives you wings! Now with ten-percent less fat." they somehow open the container and try to get me to sip the brown liquid that is stored within, but I decline “P-Pardon me, but I have to decline: I already have wings after all." for some reason, the cat bursts in laughter, almost spilling the entire beverage in the process, but that only lasts a second or two; they turn to me, their gaze clearly looking for a challenge “You don't want to drink it? Fine! I'll drink it instead!" they try to taste the odd liquid, but their expression suddenly turns into one of disgust as they spit the liquid out before they can even swallow it “Bleah! I've never drank something so bad in my entire life! I bet even venom tastes better than this... thing!"

I hear something... vibrate inside the pockets of the cat's coat, which prompts them to reach out for it and hold it close to their right ear: it looks like a small black box, but I cannot describe it further... apart from the fact that it is making the cat behave very weirdly. It appears as though they are talking to an invisible and inaudible person, something only a madman would do “Karma here." who is Karma, I wonder... is that their name? Now that I think of it, I never asked for their name: that is extremely rude, even by my standards. “What do you mean they won't pay us!?" they are suddenly inexplicably ired for some reason “I sponsored their- ...it doesn't matter if we didn't agree to anything! ...What do you mean bad publicity doesn't count? I can't do anything if their beverage is disgusting! No, you listen--.aargh, fine! Look, I'm busy now so we'll talk about this later, okay?" they roughly put their small box back in their pocket as they throw the metallic cylinder into the abyss behind them; the cat is still angered by the pretend conversation they just had and is looking away from me, probably due to embarrassment “Just... forget about what you just heard, okay?" they say as they make what looks like a cup of clean water appear out of nowhere in their right hand and offer it to me.

“Sure thing..." I instantly forget about everything I just heard as I sip the familiar, refreshing drink: truly, that is what I needed most in that moment. A few seconds to take everything in, not the liquid itself if that was not clear.

“My name's Karma by the way." they say as they find the courage to look at me face to face, a quiet, though slightly unnerving calm in their eyes; I do not think I need to introduce myself, as the creature already seems to know my name, but to respect standard social customs I do it anyway “My name is prince Red Blaze. It is a pleasure to meet you."

“So, prince Red...you asked me why I'm here, what I want from you... do you still want me to explain?" I am grateful they brought that question up again, since I would have probably forgotten I even asked had they not done so “I would like to, yes... but will you do it?" I inquire, already used to the creature's bad habit of purposely not explaining anything.

“Yeah, sure." they simply answer as we both sit down next to the cliff, our legs dangling carelessly above the city below us. Before I can ask what I want to know in particular, they inquire, unsettlingly... almost cruelly “Your homeland's been invaded, your people either slaughtered or captured, your friends killed mercilessly and your family, well... who knows? How do you feel, knowing that you haven't been able to prevent any of this? Do you feel powerless? Hopeless? Clueless? What will you do now that you-" I grab their cape before they can finish that wretched sentence and force them to look at me in the eyes “I would stop talking to me like that if I were you! My people may not mean anything to you, but they were everything to me! I never wanted to leave, I never wanted to survive... if we were to die, I wanted to be first in line! I do not know why my father wanted me to survive, to defy the code of honour I respected all my life... all I know is that now he and Sol are dead, and that there is nothing I can do..." I slowly let him go as my anger is replaced by sadness and grief.

The cat reacts to my burst of ire by chuckling ominously, as if they were expecting this to happen “They're not dead... not yet, at least. You can still save both of them... you can still save your kingdom." I look at him, confused and hopeful at the same time: all I can see is their white, soulless eyes, studying me, paralysing me “That's why I'm here: to allow you to make a choice. You can choose whether to give up, and accept what fate has laid out for you... or let me help you, and shift your destiny to your liking." his gaze suddenly loses intensity as the creature looks into the distance, concerned by something “Look who decided to show up... perfect timing too." before I can do anything, the cat throws himself forward, seemingly falling off the cliff; however, before they can fall off, they position themselves in front of me and save me from something small, quick and dark...

The impact blinds me for an instant, but when I regain my sight I am already prepared: sword in hand and fireball in the other, I am ready to fight whatever is attacking us... except I cannot see anything. Furthermore, contrary to any prediction I could have made, the cat is still standing right in front of me, defying all the physical laws I know of: a pair of rainbow-coloured wings sprout from their... actually, no, they are not connected to their body in the least, as they are floating by themselves without performing any kind of movement. To be frank, they look more like tattoos than wings, but that is not the biggest issue at hand: I am more curious as to how they can fly without needing wings... at least, normal ones.

“Close one, huh?" ignoring my stupor, they throw me something small and turn the other way “Wear it: you'll understand as soon as you do." the little thing lands at my feet and I recover it post-haste: the shape is that of a ring, but it is made of a strange black metal... it also resembles a long, sinuous snake biting its tail. As soon as I wear it, I am hit by a strong headache... but the pain is gone after a moment's notice, allowing me to see things I could not just a moment before.

Dozens of huge black birds, much bigger than any normal volatile in fact, are flying around, some closer to us than others: though they are not doing anything at the moment, I have a bad feeling that is not going to last for long. Soon, they will attack en-mass. Upon further notice, the truth about these things is clear to me: they are the exact same type of monster, though under a different guise, as the one that attacked me in my castle's depths; they have the same kind of monstrous fangs, at least. Whether they can do what the one in my castle did is currently unknown to me, though I assume they share some similarities in that sense.

“What are these creatures?" I ask the cat, preparing myself for battle.

“We call them 'F.E.A.R.'s, with a dot after each letter." they say, though that does not explain a whole lot. However, they do warn me soon after “You can't fight them, it's useless: you're not in the 'Astra-grid' with me." I try to ask for further elucidating, but the 'F.E.A.R.'s, or whatever their name is, are now ready to mount an attack: it seems as though my explanation will have to wait...

“Allow me to get rid of them." the cat says as they start flying around to avoid the creatures' charges “I won't participate in other fights for a long time, and I want to make a good first impression." surprisingly enough, I can see them smirking from all the way here... I do wonder if they are taking this fight as seriously as they should. Most likely not.

[0-01 – A Joker's Parade – “Night of Nights" by COOL&CREATE/BeatMARIO, originally “Flowering Night" from Phantasmagoria of Flower View by ZUN (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vS_a8Edde8k)]

“Hello ladies, gentlemen and people in-between! Welcome to Karma's super-simple guide to madness! I'm your host, Karma, and today we're going to learn how to battle in this world!"

“Who are you talking to?" the dragon naively asks me.

“No-one important..." I dismiss him before continuing my explanation “So, let's talk about attacking and defeating your opponents: guess what, that's how you're supposed to win! There are three types of attacks: normal attacks, special attacks and finishers-" I am interrupted by one of the flying pests, who tries to attack me by literally crashing into me... but still manages to miss me completely. “Pathetic... but that can be considered a perfect example of a normal attack! Literally anything that doesn't drain energy from you is a normal attack... allow me to give you another example." I stop in mid-air and reach in my pockets for my tarot card deck: it's been a while since I've been using it, and it's helped me quite a lot in the past! I nonchalantly throw some cards at the creatures around me, knowing they'll 'magically' return to their place of origin once they've served their purpose: thankfully, even though my accuracy is... well... not the greatest, the cards' enchantments do their work and all my projectiles deviate their trajectory and pierce the closest enemy to them. Everything touched by the cards explodes in sparkly white lights and black gooey blobs: a true spectacle indeed! Too bad you guys can't see it. “See? I'm totally fine! Even though the cards are magical, since I'm not using magic myself, I'm not feeling tired... well, not too tired anyway: I'm not used to flying aimlessly like this!" despite my amazing first strike, there are still many enemies left... which means I have the perfect opportunity to teach you what special attacks are!

“Now, moving on to special attacks: these are more powerful than standard ones, but require some energy to be performed... which means you can get tired real quick if you're not careful. Some of them are magic-based, but not necessarily: weapon techniques and the likes are still counted as special attacks. Let me show you..." I draw some more cards from the never-ending deck, around ten or so but I don't bother drawing an exact amount, and throw them in the air in front of me, visualizing what I want them to do in my head: the cards accurately position themselves in a circular formation, waiting only for me to pronounce the words that would activate their power. Before that, though, there are still some ulterior hasty preparations to make: I have the cards emit a faint white light from their back and connect them all with it, creating a full-fledged circle; some random ancient symbols appear in the middle of it, all still made of that same faint light. “Dies Irae!" I shout as a big bright light appears in the middle of the circle before sprouting into multiple rays of light, that seek out and destroy the rest of the 'F.E.A.R.'s before they can retaliate or run away; if you care, I'll have you know the explosions are even brighter than the cards' ones! Oh, and before you ask: this all happened in the span of a few seconds, though it probably felt like ages on your side; too bad, but at least it looked cool on my end...

“That's it?" I ask aloud, surprised the enemy's already been dealt with “I mean, I get that I'm overpowered and all but still-" I notice the dragon is trying to get my attention: he's pointing downwards, towards the road below... and now I understand why.

You see, as I said before, when those creatures beautifully exploded, pieces of their bodies turned into... goo, I guess, and precipitated: it seems as though they are somehow recombining on the ground into something else, something that looks very much like the 'F.E.A.R.'s I just fought... but bigger. Twenty times bigger at least. As soon as the creature finishes being created (or recreated? I'm not sure) it leaps into the air and charges at me full-speed, its jaws already opened and ready to eat me... yeah, like I'm going to let that happen...

“Now that I think about it, this looks like the right time to talk about finishers!" I say as I dodge the incoming bird like a toreador would with a bull... sort of “Finishers are basically this world's equivalent of 'coups the grace': really strong attacks that usually don't leave anything standing once everything's been said and done... literally. Using them requires a huge amount of energy, which is the reason why you should always use them last: after all, you wouldn't want to faint in the middle of a battle, right?" man, I've had to dodge this damn thing at least thrice since I began talking: it's getting pretty annoying to say the least. I guess it's about time to end this lesson--I mean, battle.

I re-position away from the beast and create four circles of light, each bigger than the other and move them so that they are positioned in a decreasing order; a huge luminous light appears in the middle of the biggest circle, ready to be fired. “This is a game you won't ever win! Requiem Cannon!" just like a magnifying glass would amplify solar light, so the magic circles power up the laser beam that passes through them, primed to disintegrate every enemy it touches; upon noticing it's impending doom, the monster tries to fly away... unfortunately for it, though, my cannon is far faster and pierces through its body like a skewer would to meat: after a brief cry of what a normal person would assume to be pain, the creature's body is quickly reduced to ashes that instantly disappear, as if they were taken far away by the wind. Good luck merging together after that!

“Oh, and before I forget: if you guys are wondering why everyone has to yell the name of their special attacks before executing them, well... it's complicated. The writer probably thinks this will make them easier to distinguish between one-another... I, on the other hand, find it rather cringy; whether you like it or not, though, I doubt things are ever going to change so... get used to it!" I mutter between myself as I casually return to the clock tower Red's waiting me at.

“What were you doing up there?" I ask the cat, whose wings immediately disappear in a shower of rainbow drops as soon as they touch the ground “Why were you talking aloud while fighting? More importantly, what were you talking about, exactly?" to be honest, I only understood that he was recapping basic fighting lessons to... someone. It is clear they have a bad habit of talking to people who are not even here with them... though that is surely not the thing that most unsettles me about them.

“We all have our secrets, don't we?" they refuse to give me a straight answer.

“You seem to have more than anyone else though." I reply, causing them to chuckle faintly “True, true... but enough small talk! Let's discuss more... important matters." once more, they sit on the ledge and invite me to do the same before continuing “Let me start by explaining to you what those creatures are... I believe it to be the most pressing matter at hand." their expression and voice have suddenly become almost terrifyingly serious... the quickness to which this cat changes their mood state is truthfully astounding “Afterwards, we can talk about that offer I mentioned before and everything that surrounds it... I'm sure you'll be very interested in everything I have to say..."

“You cannot possibly be serious!" I move a few inches away from Karma, skeptical about most if not all of the things he has said “Do you honestly expect me to believe anything you have said?"

“Actually, yeah." they reply, casually looking the other way “I mean, you should've guessed by now I'm more... resourceful than a normal person. What I offered you now wouldn't even be the craziest stunt I ever pulled off..." they seem rather confident in themselves; unfortunately, I cannot say the same.

“I... I am not sure." despite what I said, I truly want to believe what they are offering me is real: I turn towards them only to be greeted by a cold but resolute stare “Think about it: you won't get another chance like this. If you really think you'll find someone, not in this city mind you, but in the whole world who'll ever give you another chance like this, you're wrong. I'm giving you a once-in-a-lifetime, all-inclusive opportunity to reclaim everything you've lost, from your family and loved ones to your honor and pride. I'm giving you an opportunity, and, if you believe in fate and in yourself, you'll take it." what Karma is saying is correct... and frankly, I am tempted by their offer. It may not be the safest option I have at my disposal... but it is the only one I wish to undertake.

“How much time do I have to prepare, you said?" I once again ask, evaluating every aspect of this bet.

“Roughly six days and a half, starting from tomorrow." as they answer, their smile widens as they realize I will accept their offer “If you're wondering, today's Sunday... but that will only last one more hour: I'd suggest you find somewhere to sleep before the day shifts." a useful piece of advice indeed, though a kind of obvious one as well. Alas, I do not know where to start looking for a bed or a house to stay in... but the cat seems confident enough that I will be fine.

“Oh, and before you sign your contract..." I widen my ears, ready to listen to any useful piece of information they might be willing to share “I should tell you that the ring I gave you before serves another purpose, apart from allowing you to see F.E.A.R.s: it can also allow you to disguise yourself as a human! This way you'll be able to walk around without anyone suspecting your real identity... just like a superhero!" shape-shifting into a human, an inhabitant of this land... that is something I did not expect I would have been able to do. Now that I think about it, that would allow me to explore the city undetected, which would grant me a tactical advantage I did not think I would have had... there is only one problem: what does a human look like? I can see darkened silhouettes moving up and down the streets, but I can hardly imagine their physicality or their clothing from up here... will I turn into something disgusting or hideous?

The cat explains me how to activate this function: the only thing I need to do is to calm my emotions and decrease my power output... that should instantaneously turn me into a human; on the other hand, they explicate, a sudden shift in my mood could potentially transform me into my real self without me even realizing it: this ability requires more caution than I had anticipated.

It takes me a while to master the notions Karma has taught me, but eventually I find out I can concentrate better if I keep my eyes closed and focus on the darkness I can see when I do just that: this way I can focus less on my body and ignore the rapid changes in my characteristics that would otherwise unsettle or even frighten me. “Alright, you're finished: open your eyes." the cat instructs me: as I do, I realize not only my body, but my clothing as well has changed.

I am now wearing a red, sleeveless garment the cat calls a 't-shirt' with the image of a glorious, flaming black dragon drawn on it, a small black coat that covers my otherwise unprotected arms and torso from the wind, which Karma likes to call a 'jacket', long, cozy red pants that appear to be called 'jeans' and red and black shoes that appear to be made of an unknown, though somehow comfortable material. Everything feels much different from the battle armor I wore just a moment ago, and am not sure it will prove very effective in battle... though that is not why I am wearing it after all.

However, what surprises me the most is definitely my new aspect: humans seem to be very similar in height and physique to us dragons, but this body feels a bit weaker and more frail than my draconian self; the little skin I can see is pink and soft, but it seems as though I retain the same number of fingers as I previously did... at least my hands do... I probably will have to check my feet later. My wings and tail have completely disappeared, which means I will not be able to fly in this form... the loss of my wings could prove bothersome but, although it certainly could be an advantage in combat against unsuspecting foes, the loss of my tail does not disturb me in the least. I can sense my face has flattened, becoming sort of like the cat's but not quite... at least it is not engulfed by fur; I would like to have a mirror in front of me to picture it better, but unfortunately I do not have said privilege.

“Whenever you turn into a human, you'll be wearing the same clothes you did before you transformed... and the same will happen when you transform back into a dragon: amazing, right?" the cat smiles cheerfully as they finish explaining this new power of mine.
“Amazing indeed... though something bugs me ten times more." I turn to the cat and hope to all the deities I know they will answer this next question “Why are you helping me? Please, do not get the wrong idea: you have been very useful, and the assistance you swear to provide me will prove invaluable in the coming days... but I fail to see a motive to your actions. I cannot understand why someone who can do the things you can would spend their time helping me... no, helping someone else in general."

My question is greeted by silence at first, then by a slow, unsettling chuckle... followed soon after by an uncontrollable maniacal laughter “Oh, you're so funny... are you really still wandering what I truly want?" I should be used by now to Karma's soul-sucking stare, but it appears as though my brain refuses to learn the notion “I want entertainment. True entertainment, the kind you could never get bored of. Everything gets boring after a while, you know?" they move even closer, making me wish I could still use my sword in this restrained form “But you? You show potential, far more than anyone else... 'the right man in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world', after all. That's why I want to help you: I don't want to see your potential wasted. I can provide you with power, hope, and all the opportunities you may need... but I expect you to pay me back for everything I do for you. The best way to do that is to simply stay alive and fight..." just like that, they turn transparent and then disappear completely, leaving only the memory of their eternal gaze in their place... and the echo of their disturbing laughter in my ear.

I spend a minute at least trying to sort out everything the creature known as Karma has explained me: despite having lasted only half an hour or so, the conversation I had with them was one of the weirdest and most unsettling ones I have ever had. On one hand, they are childish, senseless and even friendly... on the other, they are incomprehensible, mysterious and dreadful: clearly, they are not to be taken lightly... and the fact that my future now depends on them and their mood swings does not make me feel at ease in the slightest.

Still, I believe I have spent far too much time up here on this tower: it is finally time I do something productive and explore my surroundings... and perhaps find a suitable place to sleep at while I am at it. I get up and stare into the abyss below: the city has not gotten any quieter since I first arrived, and it does not look like the situation is going to change any time soon... good, that means I still have some time.

Spreading my arms like wings, I let myself plummet as my real ones sprout from my back and my body regains features I never knew I would have missed; my fall soon turns into a slow glide as I aim for an optimal small building that, although somewhat distant, should be close enough for me to reach...

Chapter 3: The Rabbit

I land on the plain roof of the habitation I chose a few minutes ago; not only was the landing spot mostly devoid of obstacles, save for a huge white plate supported by metal bars on the corner of the edifice, but the near-absence of lights in this specific area allowed me to sneak right in without anyone noticing... at least, I believe I went unnoticed. I hope luck is on my side at least for the remainder of the day...

I transform into my more human-like appearance soon afterwards, still suspicious of potential witnesses, and search for a means of reaching the street below without recurring to flight... thankfully, there are some stairs I can use on the side of the edifice: these are made of metal, unlike the ones I am used to that are made of wood or marble and are generally positioned indoors, and their purpose seems to be to connect most of the windows present on this side of the building to the ground... the only downside is that they do not reach to the roof, for whatever reason. I could still drop down to the highest set of stairs, but the noise would no doubt alert any nearby humans of my presence... there are no other apparent alternatives, though, so I guess I do not have a choice.

The distance between me and the stairs is of approximately four to five feet and I easily cover it without hurting myself in the process; I do indeed produce a quite noticeable noise though, so I rush down the stairs as hastily as I can, trying to limit the amount of sound I am bound to make. A few windows suddenly light up, but by the time that happens I have already made a final jump and landed on the cold and dusty ground; my heart pounds fast as I leave that accursed alley before any of the tenants can notice me...

My name... is Red. I am a fire dragon, and the only survivor of the massive surprise attack that completely destroyed the capital of my kingdom. After barely escaping my castle with my life still intact, I somehow found myself in a mysterious world I have never heard about... but that is the least of my concerns at the moment: right now, I must find a place to rest for the night... afterwards, I will have to prepare myself for an important day to come...

I catch my breath under a light pending from a tall pole in the corner of the street and inspect my surroundings, which look quite different from up close than they did from above: the road is surrounded by buildings whose poverty can only be compared to the one of the people that live in them, while the centre of the street is illuminated by many poles like the one I am standing next to.

Some of those coloured machines, or at least I believe they are machines, occasionally wander around on their fixed path at high speed, careless of any human that might have chosen to cross the road in that precise moment... unless said human walks on certain peculiar white lines that connect the opposite sides of the road: in that case, the machines stop and let them pass, only to resume their otherwise unstoppable path as soon as there is no other human in sight. I decide to walk on those white lines as well, as doing otherwise could increase suspicion by the locals... or earn me an early grave.

The humans that are still awake at this hour of the day all look more or less the same, but perhaps that is only because of the darkness that enshrouds even the most well-lighted corners of the city... though it could also be because I have never seen one of them in my life. I decide to inspect at least one of them up close, if only to visualize how my body and visage have changed, and my gaze instantly falls upon an old, judging from his appearance at least, grown man that is approaching my position: his height is more or less the same as mine, but unless he plans to use his belly as a pillow I would recommend him to spend some more time exercising. His attire, a black jacket and a black pair of trousers, indeed looks very formal... but far less practical when compared to my own clothes, that protect me from the cold much more effectively; he is also carrying a brown box made of leather in his right hand whose purpose is, most likely, to easily bring along even more items. As for his aspect, he has short, almost non-existent grey hair and small brown eyes, which are much more... round than draconic ones: clearly, their purpose in the human world is not unsettling the enemy with their rigour and sharpness. He does not have a muzzle, and just like the cat he breathes through a nose... though his is more round and hideous, and looks more like a small red ball than anything else, really. His mouth does not possess any fangs at all and is not intimidating in the least... and the hair growing below it is utterly useless and even loathsome; to be honest, this man is the complete opposite of beauty as we dragons envision it: in fact, his sight is so terrifying I hastily check my own face with my hands to make sure it is not like his... and, while we do share some similarities, at least my nose is much smaller and sharper than his. I still retain some of my fangs, though they are somewhat downsized, but I doubt anyone is going to notice them as long as I keep my mouth shut. I also do not possess any hair above or below my chin, and learning said notion helps me relax quite a bit.

The human fails to notice me even though we are quite close and instead keeps walking in the direction he has chosen for himself, without a clear intent in mind... from the looks of it, Karma was right: humans really are as they described them...

“Whether you're going to accept my offer or not, you should at least know what the inhabitants of this world look like... just so you know what to expect." they say as they look away, clearly disheartened, and immediately change the topic “...No, you know what? Who cares, you're going to see a whole lot of them anyways... let's talk about what they are like instead." they pause for a second before continuing “Humans are pathetic, worthless creatures that traded their honor and dignity for comfort and laziness: that's what they are. They're all fools, the worst kind of fool in fact: they all have the potential to become something more, something unique, but most if not all of them willingly refuse to ascend to greatness because they believe the life they're living is perfectly fine the way it is... needless to say, they're wrong. They refuse to realize theirs is a broken world, populated by the ignorant and ruled by the corrupt: you, my friend, won't find no joy in the eyes of the 'mature' men you'll meet... but, if you look closely enough, you'll be able to find some in the heart of their children, who against all odds still remember what true happiness feels like..." they chuckle grimly before adding, in a tone that is so dark it sends chills down my spine “But that happiness won't last long: in time, they too will abide by the fabricated rules this world imposes, whether they like it... or not."

At first, I believed the cat was exaggerating when they spoke of the inhabitants of this world... but the more I look at them, the more I realize they were perfectly right: all the humans I see look desolated, depressed, unhappy... and I doubt tiredness is the main reason behind their bad mood. The fact that none of them are even spending one second of their time looking at me when I walk near them is strangely disturbing: it appears as though everyone is so busy minding their own business that they fail to notice even someone as suspicious as me... though, now that I think about it, maybe that is not too inconvenient.

I have been walking in the same direction for a few minutes at least, unsure of where to go or what to do: the decrepit houses looming over the street like trees in a haunted forest have almost disappeared, replaced by smaller and much brighter buildings that appear to be shops and restaurants of some sort; the fact that this city is so bright and lively at this hour of the day feels astounding to me... it is a shame I cannot say the same about the people I encounter, though. Although most of the names of these locales are alien to me, I can at least understand what they are specialized in: groceries, jewellers, clothing shops, boutiques, bars, liquor stores... but then there are 'pizzeria's, 'drug-stores', 'hairdresser's, and, strangely enough, a whole lot of 'cafeteria's all called 'Starbucks'... although I do not have much time to investigate at the moment, I have to admit I am intrigued by what these stores and eateries might be dealing in. Still, the fact that there are so many shops of the same kind in the area feels a bit strange to me: the amount of competition between the shopkeepers must be tremendously high... far too high, in fact. It is rare to find more than one shop of a kind per district in the capital of my kingdom, as there are unspoken rules of respect and solidarity between those in the trading business... rules that clearly do not apply in this town.

I immediately stop wondering about these meaningless oddities upon noticing the entry to some sort of huge forest right in the middle of the city, which the sign at the entrance calls a 'park': although it does not appear to be relevant to my current goal of finding a decent spot to rest for the night, the ring I wear on my right index finger suddenly tightens a bit as soon as I near it. An ominous and almost imperceptible white light spawns from the black metallic eyes of the snake that forms the ring, directing me towards the centre of the park before fading away in the darkness of the night. If what just happened was yet another functionality of the ring, Karma forgot to explain it to me... or, most likely, blatantly ignored it; however, I, for one, cannot ignore such a clear foretelling and immediately enter the forest to find out whatever the ring wants me to see or do.

The air is definitely fresher, for some reason: not even in my own hunting reservoirs had I ever breathed such pure air... there is no scent of animal or monster faecal matter either, which could mean there are no dangerous creatures that could attack me in my sleep... apart from those 'F.E.A.R.'s, of course. The trees around me are all robust and strong, and appear to be inhabited by several families of birds and other definitely less threatening creatures, but I have a feeling this place is more cheery during the morning and early afternoon than in the late evening. If I fail to find another place to stay, I could even consider sleeping on the grass, in the open, maybe even next to one of the many small lakes and pools that can be found anywhere in these majestic woods, under the black blanket that is the sky.

Someone seems to have had the same idea: a human is laying in the middle of an open area, away from the main road, either sleeping or simply watching the numerous white dots that decorate the firmament. As I turn away from the man, I notice a small group of five... no, six people laughing loudly and shouting as they quickly approach the man and surround him: I need not know their intentions to understand they plan to do something harmful to that innocent person. Both the offenders and the offended appear to be pre-adults, but due to the scarce lighting I cannot quite make out their appearance or... anything else, really. All I know is that these people are definitely harassing this young man, and that is something I cannot allow: I sneakily move behind a tree near the humans and listen intently, wanting to assess the situation before doing anything rash that might hurt the man even more.

“What do you want from me?" the man in the middle asks; although his voice is either not quite mature or simply not very masculine, the man in the middle is definitely a male.

“We're the ones askin' the questions!" the leader of the invasive group replies harshly, with the approval of his fellow companions; both his itchy movements and his crazed tone imply that this one may have drank too much wine or beer, along with the rest of his group if my theory is correct “What're ye doin' on the grass, boy? Are ye a dirty hobo or somethin'?" he asks, his thick accent preventing me from understanding his questions to the fullest.

“What? No!" the man responds, more scared than angry “I was just watching the stars, that's it..." a reasonable explanation, I believe: as I said earlier, I, too, could spend an eternity watching the nightly sky, counting those shiny little points that appear to be called 'stars'...

The drunk men laugh again, not content with his explanation “What're ye, a pussycat? Or just a freakin' weirdo?" he punches the man in the face, who emits a faint cry of pain as he falls to the ground helplessly. “It's 'bout time I had some fun with someone..." the man mumbles as he and the other men prepare to beat the poor guy “I ain't gonna let ye out of here alive, ye bloody-"

“Hold it right there!" I run towards the group, feeling guilty for not intervening before “What do you think you are doing, you cowards!?"

“And who're you suppos'd ta be?" the leader of the gang turns to face me but does not immediately raise his guard “Don't ye dare play the hero, or else-" before he can finish muttering his useless threat, I hit him hard in the face with my fist, sending him flying a few feet backwards towards another one of his companions who helplessly falls to the ground together with his friend; meanwhile, the other four ruffians, having just realized my hostility, finally take me into consideration and prepare to fight me.

Although I could use the darkness to my advantage and attack my opponents by surprise, I instead decide to boost my visibility and take on my enemies more directly like I am used to: I concentrate some of my power in my arms, which immediately transform back into those of a dragon as they are consumed by a fire that does not burn them. I am not concerned by the drunkards' frightened expressions, as they are likely to forget everything tomorrow or, in the worst case scenario, remember me as a nightmare, but I am indeed concerned by the man they were picking on: what will he do once he realizes who... or rather, what I am? Apparently, stare in amazement: he seems to be enjoying the spectacle, astounded by the power I possess, mumbling something alone the lines of “I can't believe it..." more or less every second ... if he has not run away yet, then I doubt he ever will. Explaining the situation to him might prove difficult, but he appears to be smart enough: maybe getting him to cooperate will not be as hard as it sounds in my head.

I spent my whole life training in combat with and without weapons, and that allows me to quickly gain the upper hand against the small group: two men attempt to fight me at once, but are quickly dispatched thanks to my lightning reflexes and iron fists. However, that perennial state of advantage does not last long: suddenly, as I prepare to take on the rest of the bullies, one of them, who seems to be particularly wide and burly, attempts to strangle me with a leather strap or something similar from behind. Before he can gain an advantage over me however, the man's belt is instantly and easily torn by my right claws and soon after his stomach is pounded hard by my left elbow, which miraculously for him is still somewhat human and does not possess the huge sharp spike ordinary dragons feature... I doubt he would have survived if that had been the case. After a couple more hits directed to his face, the giant finally crumbles to the ground, unconscious.

After freeing myself from the remains of the belt, I attempt to catch my breath, thinking the worst has already been taken care of... but I am wrong: the leader of that gang of incompetents charges at me, brandishing a sharp knife with both of his hands, yelling “Die, ye monster!" or something along those lines... but, before I can do anything to defend myself, the human they were picking on suddenly moves between me and my assailant and gracefully performs a backflip, kicking him just below his chin and sending him flying an astonishing twenty or so feet backwards. The man's blade flies uncontrolled in the air for a few instants before being rapidly caught by the man who helped me, who then nonchalantly drops it before shouting to his beaten attackers “Take that! This is what you get for picking on random guys in the dark! Now run away while you still can!" more or less, that is what I was about to say myself, and I cannot even be angry at this man for saying it in my place: the stunt he pulled off a few seconds ago was quite impressive for a wingless person his age.

The ruffians do not lose any time idling and decide to run away as fast as they can, carrying away their unconscious companions the best they can in the meantime: I believe it is safe to say this is a flawless victory... although a rather easy one at that.

After the drunkards disappear from the nearby vicinity, the man that battled alongside me runs towards me, clearly ecstatic “Oh my God, this can't be happening...!" despite the alarming words he is speaking, he does not appear to be afraid or intimidated by my presence “I... I can't believe it! So there are other..."

“Pardon me for interrupting you..." I stop him and direct his attention to a nearby pole of light “But I personally hate conversing with people I cannot even see: do you mind if we move over there so I can see you better?" at first, he does not know what to say, but after a short while he agrees “Yeah, sure." and accepts to follow me; this human is a bit too informal for my liking, but I believe I can work with that.

“Thanks for helping me back there... really, I mean it." the young man expresses his gratitude to me for the umpteenth time in a minute “I mean, I could've solved that problem by myself, but... oh man, I still can't believe it..."

“You are quite skilled, that is true... but that skill will take you nowhere if you hesitate to do something as simple as defending yourself." I admonish him, concerned; I then remember I have not asked him for his name yet and proceed to rectify that mistake “Oh, pardon me for my rudeness: my name is Red, and, as you clearly saw, I am a fire dragon."

“Nice to meet you! My name's Lepris." he greets me, cheerful. When I first saw him, I legitimately thought I had been mistaken about his gender: something in his lineaments, his big black eyes, his semi-long black hair and the way he decided to dress for the evening sort of confused me... but I quickly realized I had made no mistake as soon as I saw his powerful, trained thighs. I have seen lots of powerful women in my life, Sol being on top of the list, but none of them had legs like these... or a chest this flat. Speaking of his clothing, let me point out what he is wearing right now: a pink 't-shirt' with the picture of an unknown black long-eared creature drawn on it, a blue jacket with a fair amount of pockets, which is made out of a different, much softer material than mine, a very short pair of blue 'jeans' that do not even reach the knee and a pair of blue and white shoes that appear to be very similar to my own; overall, this 'Lepris' could not look any more girly than he already is... that said, I do not know anything about human fashion, so I could be wrong yet again... it may be for the best I do not address the issue right away, as that could put me under a bad light.

“I've said this a million times already but... oh my God, I just can't believe it..." he mumbles, clearly referring to me.

“Of course you cannot believe it..." I reply, understanding “From what I have gathered, dragons are not quite common in your world."

“What? Oh, yeah, dragons are really cool..." he scratches the back of his head, kind of embarrassed “But... it doesn't really matter to me if you're a dragon, a wolf, a canary or whatever: what I'm really surprised of is that there are other other-"

“Did you just say 'other'!?" I interrupt him, my heart skipping a beat “Does that mean there are other people like me? Have you met any?" if this kid is saying the truth, that could change everything! “Well, I don't know for sure, but... I mean, there's you! And there's me! Surely there must be others like us... right?" he answers, his eyes filled with hope; is he... is he a dragon in disguise as well? But then, how could he conceal himself so perfectly well without a ring like the one I am wearing?

“Wait, does that mean you are a dragon yourself?" I inquire, amazed by this incredible coincidence fate has laid out for me. He eyes me strangely as he mutters “A dragon? No, I'm a-"

Something hits me. Something powerful, dreadful... my chest aches, my heart burns, my head hurts; Lepris must be experiencing it as well as he has stopped talking and is making the same pained expressions I am. This sudden pain... or, rather, this sudden fear... it is far too familiar: we are in grave danger.

“There is no time!" I yell at him “Run away! Find some cover!" at first he questions me, not understanding the gravity of the situation, but as soon as the light around us begins to fall apart and spread to the near surroundings, something I was not warned would have happened in this situation by the way, he realizes something bad is going to happen soon and finds refuge behind a bench. I would like to have Lepris fight by my side, to see his level of skill... but something tells me he has never been in such a situation before, so maybe it is best for him to watch and learn instead as I take care of the incoming foes.

The darkness of the night suddenly gains a physical form as a multitude of creatures resembling short goblins enter what Karma dubbed the 'Astra-grid' from right in front of me, accompanied by a small group of winged monsters that are quite similar, if not the same, to the ones the cat fought about an hour ago.

Escape is not an option, even if it were possible: dragons never run away from a battle, they fight until every last one of their opponents lies dead on the blood-soaked ground, and I am no exception; from what I can see, Lepris would like to honour the code as well and fight the impending menace, but he appears to be waiting for something to happen before he joins the fray.

I direct my full attention to the monsters that are charging at me and begin running towards them as my body transforms back into that of a dragon; I unsheathe my sword from its scabbard and point it at the enemy, ready to tear their bodies apart. Meanwhile, I try to recall what the cat told me about these creatures that are so interested in me and my power...

“What were those creatures from before?" I ask, concerned “Are they native to this world? Are they a common sight, perhaps? If so, how could even one of them enter my kingdom without anyone knowing?"

“Nobody knows 'F.E.A.R.'s even exist." they answer, mysterious “But I can assure you they've been around for a long time... even in your own world." before I can interrupt him and ask a few more questions, he silences me and continues his explanation “'F.E.A.R.'s are peculiar creatures that inhabit what I like to call the 'Astra-grid', or the collective unconsciousness if you prefer: a world made out of, you guessed it, emotions and feelings. A world that is parallel to the one we're in right now, a world that has existed for as long as life itself has... a world that has given birth to some of the most nightmarish fiends you can imagine, 'F.E.A.R.'s being the most common: they're born out of man's insecurities, inhibitions, damaged hearts and broken dreams... and they feed upon them as well. Some time ago, they weren't very powerful: they preferred to hunt and feast alone, acting more like unseen parasites than actual threats... sometimes they banded together, but they only did that to prey upon more resilient individuals and, even then, they didn't have enough power to physically harm their preys... that has changed, however. Now, they select their targets rather accurately, and prefer to attack people regardless of their state of mind... though most of the people they do target are quite weird themselves. Moreover, all the people they attacked in this period have a little something I like to call 'the power to change the world'..."

“The power to change the world?" I ask, dubious “What is that?"

“Who knows?" they shrugs their shoulders as a huge grin appears on their face “Most likely some dumb plot device we'll keep referencing to make the readers think this novel actually has a deep meaning behind it." once again, their words are incomprehensible to me; I ask them to elaborate, but they refuse as they reply “Look, don't stress over it too much: I could be lying, you know? Still, if something like that really does exist, then you can bet the 'F.E.A.R.'s will be coming for you: just like they did to those other poor souls, they'll forcefully trap you into the 'Astra-grid' and then..."

“And then?" I inquire, a bit scared by their sudden pause.

“...And then you'll die." they answer, a sadistic grin forming on their lips “You see, a massive amount of 'F.E.A.R.'s can cause... irreparable damage to one person's mind: the more you get hit, the more things you'll forget. Eventually, you'll forget who you are, what you're fighting for... all the information your little mind contains will be erased until there's nothing left to forget. Death is a short way from there, trust me." they chuckle ominously before reassuring me “Don't worry though: as long as you can escape the 'EmotionGrid' before you're cast into oblivion, you'll be just fine... and your mind won't suffer any permanent injuries either!" quite a worthwhile explanation in my opinion, but they still have not answered some major concerns of mine.

“What about the one that attacked me in the depths of my castle? Why was that one alone but incredibly powerful while these ones were many but tremendously weak?" they ponder for a second or two before answering “Your city was being attacked in that moment, right? Lots of people died, some even in front of their loved ones... perhaps their sorrow combined just like the remains of those flying pests and decided to, of all people, target you specifically... frankly, I'm surprised you're still alive." they chuckle yet again before adding, unimpressed “But I won't accept anything else from you, dear prince: if you can't beat these idiotic freaks, then you won't ever be able to reclaim what is yours... not by a long shot."

[1-02 – Alternative Battle – “Clutterfunk Part 2" by Waterflame (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFrimAIrU8I)]

I destroy a good chunk of the enemy's front line with a single wide slash of my sword, then proceed to administer retribution to the rest of them: these creatures cannot even defend themselves properly and immediately dissolve into gooey matter as soon as I hit them with my blade... their numbers, however, are overwhelming and even I cannot rectify that. Their bites and scratches, though only slightly painful, are stacking up very quickly and they are worsening with each hit I suffer; on top of that, the winged 'F.E.A.R.'s are sporadically attacking me from above and worsening the situation: if this keeps up, I am bound to lose far more quickly than I could have ever anticipated.

Hoping to gain an advantage over the enemy, I get off the ground and begin flying atop my enemies, focusing more on the ones that are attacking me from the air than the ones who now cannot even lay a finger on me. “Volcanic Barrage!" I unleash a barrage of fireballs on my flying enemies, attempting to get rid of all of them at once: although half of them are hit and succumb to the power of my flames, the other half manages to avoid them and continues attacking me; these things are much more problematic than I initially thought.

“Red!" I hear Lepris calling me: I turn towards him only to see the entirety of the 'F.E.A.R.' ground forces and some of the flying ones as well directed towards him, completely disregarding me: they are no doubt planning to kill him first, and I do not know if he can survive that kind of assault. I fly towards him, ignoring the flying pests that are trying to divert my attention in vain: I refuse to let someone die because they got stuck in a battle they were not supposed to fight... I refuse!

“Lepris, turn into a dragon!" I yell at him “You cannot fight them the way you are now!"

“I can't turn into a dragon!" he replies aloud as he gets into a battle stance “But I can turn into this!" suddenly, his entire body is engulfed by yellow flame-like particles, flames so bright even the 'F.E.A.R.'s are stunned, unable to move or attack... and, to be frank, even I am left speechless: is this what happens every time I turn into my dragon self, I wonder?

[2-01 – Fighter Spirit – “Battle Theme 1" from Etrian Odyssey V by Yuzo Koshiro, Atlus (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh0-Vh1A7Z4)]

The flames all disappear soon afterwards, revealing his completely different body... a body that certainly does not belong to a dragon: he is now covered in very short grey fur from top to bottom, his jacket and shoes have disappeared and his shirt and shorts have become even smaller... no, it is him who became taller by at least ten inches! His fingers and toes have not diminished in number and, instead, have become even longer... especially his toes: if that makes any sense, the length of his feet could be the reason his shoes disappeared in the first place! His face is what changed the most: his big black eyes have become even bigger, his nose has regressed to a simple pink heart and his ears are now shaped like Karma's, if only a bit rounder... not only that but, and I am not exaggerating in the slightest when saying this, they are now as long as his whole body and almost manage to touch the ground itself; they also appear to be much stronger, just like his legs who also increased in muscle size, and now look more like a second pair of arms than actual ears. Now I am sure, this man is definitely not a dragon... but he is not quite human either: he is... something more, something different.

“So, do you believe me now? I'm otherkin just like you!" Lepris shouts at me, extremely content “I can fight these things no problem: just watch me!" he runs towards a nearby monster with outstanding speed and kicks him hard in the face with his oversized leg: the impact is so powerful it causes the 'F.E.A.R.'s head to separate from its body and fly away before disintegrating into nothingness. Another one of those little goblins approaches him from the right but he immediately notices the monster before it can hit him and counters with a powerful blow of his right... ear: I look at him in awe as he proceeds to destroy a couple more of these creatures using only his sound receptors, without even using his arms that, admittedly, have seemingly not become any stronger. Spotting the main horde approaching, he then runs up to them and literally jumps on the head of the front-most monsters, propelling himself upwards into the air; one of the winged beasts charges at him, attempting to hit him, but he uses his ears to grab onto the creature's small feet and seize indirect control of its flight: with some difficulty, he sends the bird flying into another one of its kind, killing the both of them. What happens afterwards is... much less impressive, admittedly: apparently surprised by his plan actually working the way he intended it to, Lepris fails to understand the notion he is actually falling and lands face first into the only, and I underline 'only', puddle of water inside the battle arena, earning a faint chuckle from me.

He may be a bit inexperienced and, at times, even slightly pathetic when fighting, but this kid shows more potential than most of the dragons that form the bulk of my kingdom's army: he will undoubtedly prove invaluable to me were he to help me in my journey... that is, if he does decide to aid me. For now, I land next to him just as he manages to pull himself out of the water, visibly embarrassed “Okay, that could've ended better..." he admits as he laughs nervously.

“Indeed it could have." I say as I point my blade to the remaining monsters, now more determined as ever to win this stupid battle “Are you ready to finish what we started?"

“Heck yeah!" he says as he slams his right fist into his left hand “Let's do this!"