Chapter 23

We made it to the target village without incident, though we did collect a few more orbs and drops along the way. We cleared nearly twenty thousand gold when we finished handing in our orbs to the Guild representative, nearly a third of which came from the gem we got from the death of the proto dragon. We got some peculiar looks from the various people around us who noticed the egg that Kat’ilth’ana was carrying, but no one really questioned it. With our tasks for today finished and our equipment returned to the armory, we took the transit tubes back to the Pact House. We dropped the egg off at our room, placing it on our bed and surrounding it with blankets before heading downstairs for dinner. After getting our food, we chatted a little about how things went today and discussed ways to improve our tactics in the future. Our plan for the day had gone surprisingly well, but most often than not, plans would fail before they could be enacted. As we were talking, Cassandra and Darius entered the dining hall and grabbed food before they joined us at our table.

“Good evening, everyone,” Cassandra said with her usual warm smile, as she sat down. “How did everyone do for the past few days? Sorry I wasn’t able to go out with you, I had new runes become available with my level increase, so I wanted to start using them right away.”

“It’s no problem,” I replied between bites of food. “We understand how important progress with your runesmithing is, and I will never begrudge you taking the time to work on your craft. Besides, we needed to work through our new party dynamic for when it is just the four of us. While you are a part of our group, you will also need time for your craft and may join Darius’s party from time to time as well. I did the same thing when I met Amenthia and then again when we added both Entivala and you to our group.”

Cassandra smiled and replied, “Thanks, I really do appreciate it. I have made some really good progress on my newest runes and am excited in applying them not only to my equipment, but to yours as well.”

“How goes the battle for you, Darius?” Amenthia asked, flashing him a dazzling smile. “I hope that everything has been going well with your group. Did you guys ever figure out why we got separated? I mean, we believe that it was because of our unknown enemy who seems hell bent on fucking with us any chance that they get.”

He shook his head, “Not yet, though when we attempted to enter the same stairwell that I did with your group, we came out in a different area of the map. We emerged where my party had been waiting as we planned, so we can only assume that, for that one instance, the exit was altered by someone to make sure you went to the exit we emerged from and later ambushed us.”

“I figured as much,” I said with a sigh of irritation. “I think that the Umber Hulk was also placed there in the hopes that I would be the one to fight it. I didn’t notice a red gem so perhaps they weren’t planning on killing me, only hoping to put me into the hospital again, no doubt. I do know that before I go to bed tonight, I will be giving Tyr my answer in regard to the Champions Challenge.”

I saw Darius’ eye widen in surprise and he asked, “Do you mind telling me what answer you are planning to give him?”

“Of course,” I replied with a knowing smirk. “I am telling him that I would be honored to participate, and I look forward to seeing the looks on all the other houses faces when we win.”

Darius jumped up from his seat and let out a whoop of joy that drew the attention of most of the patrons of the dining hall. He looked around a little sheepishly and sat back down, while we all laughed a little. I could tell he was happy with my reply and I figured that Tyr would be, too. In the back of my mind, I wondered what would happen with the shadow group trying to change things around here. I also wondered about the individual who sent me the threatening letter. Though they were aware of how I arrived in this world, they had no idea my past or what I would actually want.

“We got a dragon egg from killing a proto dragon on the second floor today,” Katie announced happily. “It is in our room right now.”

Cassandra and Darius nearly spit out their food at the exclamation and I could see a few others were looking at us from other tables. There was a mix of surprise, irritation, jealousy, and envy from the various faces and then their focus returned to their tables.

“Kat’ilth’ana, you may not want to announce that so loudly where everyone can hear,” I admonished, though in a more hushed and subdued tone. “I appreciate your excitement, but it would be better not to create jealousy among our partners in this Pact House.”

She blushed slightly with embarrassment and apologized before returning to her focus back to her food.

“How in the fuck do you get to be so lucky?” Darius said with an exasperated sigh. “I mean, first you landed two of the most beautiful women in our Pact House and nearly landed Cassandra to boot. Then you get a Dryad bound to you, though I do understand that the circumstances behind that were not exactly ideal. Now you have a fucking dragon’s egg. If you hatch it, you will have a powerful creature bound to you that could be a force to be reckoned with.”

I shrugged my shoulders, “It isn’t like I tried to convince them to be with me. Amenthia pretty much had her mind made up that she was mine when she met me. I didn’t even know of the tradition of the elves or their Troth’ish’tal. Once the slab broke, Entivala decided that I was the one she had to be with. Katie was under the influence of half-truths and manipulations that tried to use her circumstances and emotions against her. She has since changed her views on the matter and is trying to make amends. As for the dragon’s egg, I don’t know the first thing about it, or how we would go about raising one. Not to mention where the hell will we keep the thing. I know that they start out small, but they grow to be rather big. What will we do when we couldn’t house it here at the Pact House?”

Darius shook his head, “I don’t know, my friend, but you could always ask Tyr when you talk to him. Do you have any idea how you are going to use it, or who you will want it to bond with?”

“Amenthia,” I replied, generating a squeal of happiness from my blonde companion. “She has the ability to talk to animals, though she can cast it on any one of us. Besides that fact, I think that the dragon would be a nice pairing for her. Ranged attackers can be at risk, so the dragon could protect her and Enti.”

Darius finished his meal and told us to have a good night. Before he left, he leaned over and gave Cassandra a kiss, for which my ladies all razzed him a little. The couple blushed and he said goodnight to her before leaving.

“Are you really going to give Amenthia the dragon?” Cassandra asked with a hint of envy in her voice.

I nodded, “Yep, I think it will suit her and I suspect that, should she and the animal bond the way I hope, they will become stronger together and virtually unstoppable. In a game I used to play called Dungeons and Dragons, there was a class called a Ranger. They were primarily ranged attackers, who sometimes chose to bond with an animal. Over time, the pair would grow stronger, and I believe that the same could happen with Amenthia. The thing is, how does this work? I mean, I know that in the Dungeon drakes can become dragons over time, but is that how this works?”

“Umm, Pathios, are you sure you want to talk so openly about it?” Amenthia asked quietly. “Kat’ilth’ana hasn’t been told all the details and shouldn’t you check with Tyr first?”

I shook my head, “It’s fine. She chose to stay bonded and unfortunately, we can’t skirt around this information forever, but when I talk to him, I will mention this. Katie, I will get you up to speed later tonight. So, you were going to answer my question, Cassie?”

Cassandra shook her head and said, “No, not in this case. Dragon’s eggs hatch fully formed and realized dragons. They are as intelligent as a teenager at birth and only become smarter as they grow. I can only imagine what will happen as that creature grows.”

“I do have one question,” I said, in a hushed tone, as I pondered how to word it right. “Is there more than one kind of dragon? I know this probably sounds dumb, but in Dungeons and Dragons we had ten different kinds, with four different kinds of breath attacks. Are all the dragons, here, fire breathing or do you have different kinds? I know that they are pulled from various source materials, but I can’t be sure.”

She thought for a second and replied, “I don’t honestly know the answer to that, Pathios. I would suggest the same thing my boyfriend did: Ask Tyr.”

I smiled and said, “Your boyfriend, eh? And just how long have you been waiting to use that in a conversation?”

She smiled and blushed a bit before replying, “Shush, you! For your information we only officially started dating recently. But I have been waiting for him to ask me to be his girlfriend for, like, a week now.”

“Well, I am happy for both of you,” Amenthia said with a smile, as she patted her friend’s hand. “I know I was kinda pushing you towards Pathios, but I am really glad you are happy.”

Cassandra returned the favor and said, “To be fair, I was actually considering it, and if he hadn’t come along, I might still be. For now, I want to see how this goes and not have too many expectations. We are happy when we spend time together and enjoy our time apart as well. It makes the time we do share all the more special. I did want to say that I will be available to join the rest of the party in the Dungeon tomorrow, if you’re going.”

“Fantastic,” Entivala exclaimed, drawing some focus in the room towards her. “I was hoping that we would be able to enjoy some more time together. Besides, it will give you some more time to enjoy your new weapon.”

Cassandra smiled and said goodnight before heading out of the dining hall. With our meal and conversation concluded, we left and headed to Tyr’s quarters. I knocked on the door and a few moments later, heard him allow us entry. We took our seats across from him, near his hearth, though Katie chose to stand behind me rather than sit.

“So, what can I do for you four tonight?” He asked with a tired but warm smile. “I wasn’t expecting to see you today.”

I nodded and replied, “Well, I am here for a few reasons. The first is that I have come to accept the invitation to participate in the Champion’s challenge. I only hope that I can ensure your faith in me isn’t misplaced and that I can help us achieve victory. The second is that we were awarded a dragon’s egg as a drop in our most recent mission, and I have a few questions.”

I proceeded to tell him of our mission to deal with the Kobolds on the second floor and finding that they were working for and worshiping a proto dragon. That the dragon seemed to be using them to collect raw materials for its hoard and consuming the Kobolds to grow in power.

Tyr nodded, “That is a surprise, as eggs are not supposed to appear on the second level, but then, neither are proto dragons. They can be found on some of the much higher levels but then it is an exceedingly rare drop. I think that this is just another example of the various manipulations that have been found in the Dungeon. Still, you have won it and, as such, are free to keep and raise it.”

“Yeah, about that,” I said with some trepidation, “how exactly will that work? I haven’t the foggiest idea on how to hatch it. Then there is raising it and helping it to grow so that it can assist us in the Dungeon. Not to mention what will happen when the creature is fully grown. I have no clue where we will keep such a thing if it gets as big as Trethraz did.”

Tyr laughed, “Yes, I can see how that is a bit frustrating. Incubate it as you would any other egg, with warmth and care. When it hatches, it will attempt to bond with you and, should you succeed, it will be fiercely loyal to you. It can ride on its bonded partner’s shoulder until it is large enough to fend for itself. Once the creature is too large to house here, it will be given a den that will be bound to the transit tubes. When the dragon is fully grown, it will be transported just outside of whatever village you enter and will be easy to find on your map. Unfortunately, we cannot have them in the city, but you will be free to visit them at any time you aren’t in the Dungeon. Also, dragons are very dependent as infants, but as their strength and prowess grows, they will become much more independent and accepting of the separation.”

I thought about that for a moment before asking, “What kinds of dragons are there? Are they like the Dungeons and Dragons style, or have you developed your own?”

“Well, we don’t have ten colors, like they do,” Tyr replied. “Fire for the red color dragons, ice for the blue, lightning for the yellow, poison for the green, necrotic for the black and radiant for the white. Any blending of those can cause mixtures of their abilities. There are also earth based dragons, but they manipulate the area around them rather than breathe fire, and there are sea serpents as well. They usually fire concentrated jets of water as their means of attack. What color was the egg?”

I thought about it and couldn’t recall the specific color. I turned and glanced at the others and they, too, had looks that told me they couldn’t remember, either.

“It is fine,” Tyr replied with a wave of his hand. “It doesn’t matter at this point, but the color will not only tell you the type you may get, but its temperament. The primary color of the egg will signify it’s type, but the color of the spots will give you a hint at the personality.”

He stood and gestured for us to follow. He led us from his quarters to ours and gestured for us to enter. We opened the door and entered to find the egg as we left it on our bed.