The farther I carry this dang steelback, the more I become convinced that my stubbornness on the matter is a character flaw, and I don’t like that. But we’re almost at Tuiran, and I refuse to acknowledge the fallacy part of sunk cost. We’re practically at Tuiran, and that means I need to step up my caution, since dropping this heavy thing would be quite bad. I’m not sure I’d have a good time getting hit by it, much less some random goblin.
It’s not time for what-ifs though, we need to get this to the square and find a butcher to deal with it, so that’s where we’re off to. It’s quite apparent that people are already up and about doing all sorts of things as we fly over Tuiran. I’m not sure what’s going on, but they’re digging ditches along the roads and not shallow ones either. Those look like irrigation ditches.
As we fly lower to the ground, Raya climbs down my arm and onto the carcass, and with impressive agility, she just- Oh crap! Watch where you’re flying, Kira. I bumped into a building a little, and I might have to apologize to someone. Given the size and weight situation, it was like a wrecking ball hitting the building, so it turns out to have been a fair bit of damage caused, and I will need to find a solution to that. At some point.
Pushing that responsibility to the side, it must also have startled someone because I heard screaming, but the people at street level seem quite unperturbed. I’m sure it came from below, but I can’t see anyone who looks like they would be screaming, which seems a little weird and makes me a little self-conscious... How accustomed to property damage are these people, and how much of it is my fault?
Pushing that aside as well, I reach the square and, with great care, set down the carcass, careful not to create too big a crater from the dang thing touching down. I’m not hearing any stones crack, so as far as I’m concerned, it’s a success!
Now is the time for doing something else, like checking up on Lauren to see how she’s doing after the horrendous talking-to Lily gave her. The vomit thing might also have been a bad experience, but I’m gonna focus on the one I’m not responsible for.
The first place to check is obviously my den since I’m here and she might be snoozing down there, but as soon as I get down there, it’s apparent that the place is deserted and still a bit stinky. Knocking on Jeannie’s door, Tiffy opens and looks embarrassed for some reason, but I’m not gonna question it. They’ve got a musk going on in there, so of course I suggest digging a vent of some sort to get some fresh air in, but that just makes her blush even more.
Focusing on the task at hand, I ask her if she’s seen Lauren around, and she manages to squeak out Joras’ name, and since that was my next location to search anyway, I might as well get going.
Turning around to leave, the door slams behind me and the sound of Jeannie’s laughter can be heard over the sounds of Tiffy telling her to stop making fun of the poor forest lady. They seem like great friends.
Heading back out, it looks like the clouds are gathering even more and it’s getting dark quite early. It hasn’t been this dark since the storm, and all I can do is hope my den is safe from the rain, if it gets bad. If my den does flood, Jeannie and Tiffy are gonna get very wet down there...
There’s not really anything I can think of to keep my den safe from the weather, so the obvious solution is to outsource the problem, and there’s always a guard nearby to send on an errand. Walking up to one, he stares up at me, giving me time to list off the things I want, like a roof built for my den, but big enough to fit me, and he’s doing a great job of listening, but a terrible job of running off to find someone to do it. As it turns out, the guy has demands! Who makes demands of the fearsome Guardian Dragon of Tuiran?!
“I want one of those bumps you give to people.”
A nudge?! Oh, he will receive a nudge, alright! Picking him up and with my neck bent, I bombard him with nudges! Succumb to the overwhelming force of my nudgergeddon, for you have triggered the nudgepocalypse! He’s trying to fend me off as he struggles to contain his laughter, but he is no match for the power of cuddles! It isn’t until he outright tells me to stop that I stop and put him down, but as I release him from my grip, he almost falls over, so I’ll just lay him down on the ground.
I might have gone a bit too far as he lies there, chuckling like a mad little goblin. The obvious thing to do now is to make sure he’s okay, and between chuckles, he manages to say he is and that he’ll find a builder for me. Mission accomplished! Now back to finding Lauren!
Heading toward Joras’ place takes me down the usual streets to the north, and the trench digging seems to be progressing at a decent pace, and it makes me curious why they aren’t making them permanent by adding boards or bricks to reinforce them. Asking one of the workers, he informs me that he has no idea on account of being a tailor who is only doing the job because it has to be done fast.
Not the answer I expected, to be honest, but I like that people are working together to get this job done, and I should probably help out too, after finding Lauren. Heading out and leaving the tailor to his ditch digging, the journey toward Joras’ shop continues.
The streets are becoming narrower than normal, and it’s becoming apparent that in the future, I’ll be at risk of slipping on the edges. And if I do slip, I could end up breaking things, which is bad. Dang it, that could mean these streets will become off-limits too. Everything needs to start being more dragon-accessible, not less.
Closing in on Joras’ shop brings up the next distraction. A goblin is waving at me and pointing to the ground. And that just tickles my curiosity far more than I can handle, so of course I investigate what she wants. She’s quick to tell me that a rock is blocking the path and it’s a lot of work for them to dig it out. It’s true and I did just think about helping, but this feels a little convenient for her.
I’m a helpful dragon, though, so digging my claws into the ground and feeling my claws scratch the surface of it, it becomes clear that this is a two-hands job. Clearing some more clay around it reveals a boulder of a decent size, and pushing my claws down on either side of it, it still won’t budge.
Placing my forehead against the ground on the opposite side of where I’m standing, I leverage my powerful neck muscles in tandem with my back and arms to give it a powerful and steady pull. It’s tough going, but as a tripod dragon, I manage to make the ground release its precious rock with a loud slurp. Geez, this thing is heavy.
Now what? I’m not sure what to do with it, so for now, I’ll just put it down next to the goblin who made the request, and it seems my antics have gathered quite an audience around us. It felt like a large boulder, but seeing it next to the goblins, it looks massive.
It’s like one and three quarters goblin long, and asking about specifics, a goblin from the audience steps up and gives it an inspection, letting me know that it’s the largest boulder they’ve extracted. It isn’t really helpful in terms of determining the size of it, but he seems quite enthusiastic, so I’m not gonna ruin it for him. If I were to guess, I’d say it’s almost two Raya’s long and one Raya tall and wide, with one Raya being about eighty centimeters (2.6 ft.)
That’s a big rock and I’m gonna carve a face into it. Using a smidge of magic to empower one of my talons, the project begins and the first step is a smile because it’s a happy rock. Next up are the eyes since seeing is great and just a tiny nose and it’s done! Standing it up and pushing it slightly into the ground for stability, it now stands watch and keeps an eye out for evildoers!
The goblins around me stare at it with expressions that feel more questioning than appreciative, which I’ll interpret as my art working and making people think. It’s even making me think, but mostly about my size and how my arm is more than twice the length of this rock, closing in on thrice as big.
I’m just gonna go ahead and not focus on the day when I become too big to visit places in town and instead redirect my attention back to finding Lauren. Stepping over the row of goblins leads me the final distance to Joras’ place, and with very little distance left to cover, the door swings open and out comes Joras, looking a little too happy to see me...
So the first thing needing to be done is telling him that I’m not interested in vomiting again. It sucked and I don’t want to repeat it. It still sucks and focusing on my magic, I’m still not recharged, but it’s getting better and I even feel better now that I’m back home. Given how much work it was to fight and haul this dang steelback, I get the impression that it was wasted effort and it would be just as good to snooze for a day. Although that would mean fewer treats thrown by Turgai, so it breaks even, I think.
Never mind that. Looking at Joras, he appears quite crestfallen at the news that I won’t be vomiting and I’ll have to have Raya bonk him on the head for that. I suspect if I did it, I would run the risk of severely injuring him.
He’s staring at me with a knowing smile, as if he can see the thoughts going through my head, and when he tells me that he won’t push the matter and that I won’t need to punish him. I can’t help but feel that I’m missing some information in regards to how he knows that. But that does mean the matter is settled and we can focus on other things, which is an opportunity he’s quick to grab.
“Kira, you will be pleased to know that the fluid you expelled is an exceptional component in alchemical brewing. I’m not sure what it is, but combining it with potions increases their potency and volatility. The second part of that is something I wish I had known prior to my experiments...”
With that last bit he said, his mood falls a bit, and I suspect that Lauren and Joras now have something in common, and there’s a risk of Lily’s voice being used up from yelling at these two. I’ll need to set up Raya to get yelled at next, so I won’t be in the crosshairs of the stern enchantress.
I am curious about Lily’s craft and the utility of my magic vomit. I wonder if it could be used to create some sort of ink to inscribe glyphs and whatnot onto things, since it seems to be very potent grossness from a magical perspective. As I bring this up to Joras, he starts shushing me for some reason as he checks the house and closes the door before he steps into the street.
“If you tell her, she’ll take it all and my chance to experiment with it will be done. You’ve seen how hungry she becomes when there’s an opportunity to use new materials. And she has already taken all of the scales you shed.”
He might have a point... And I’m not sure I’m prepared to fend her off, given the aggressive way she yelled at Lauren. I’d rather fight another Frosty.
I am curious what sort of effects he has managed to create with the alchemical stuff, and asking him about it, his smile widens and he pulls out a fragile-looking bottle, and it kinda stinks. He opens it up and it feels like a dang punch in the nose! It’s so freakin’ intense that it makes me flinch so hard my head smacks into the building on the opposite side of the street. Geez, even my eyes are teary...
Fuck, that’s disgusting... He corked the bottle again, but I can still smell it... Who knew he could create a weapon of mass destruction and just have it in a pouch? I might have to-
“Joras! What did you do?!”
Oh, well, it sounds like I won’t have to concern myself with punishing him with Lily yelling like that. Aside from smelling a little afraid, he does seem remorseful about my reaction to his concoction, so I doubt it was the intended result. But geez, he didn’t have to create a dragon repellent.
Looking at the destruction he caused, it appears I also shoulder-checked a building into rubble. I’m definitely gonna point out that Joras is responsible for that. Although the rubble does make it clear that I need to search for anyone who might have been caught up in the sudden change in structural integrity.
With gentle claws, I remove rubble slowly and deposit it in the middle of the street, and as people around me notice, they join in, salvaging what can be salvaged and searching. A few take down the mushroom lanterns and use them to light the area with darkness falling quickly. Fortunately, it seems nobody got hurt, so I’ll consider that incredibly lucky. I hope Turo has a few extra houses available...
I’ve done my part, and I just want to go back to my den and sleep off this chemical attack. It’s nighttime now anyway, so it seems like a reasonable plan, but I still haven’t met up with Lauren.
“Lauren, I wanted to ask how you’re doing after all the things that have happened.”
The creak of a window opening on the second floor draws my attention, and there’s more of that stench wafting out of it, but Lauren leans out and looks up at me.
“I’m fine, Kira, but I used some of Joras’ perfume, so I won’t come out to meet you. I’ll wash up a few times to get rid of it and see you tomorrow, alright?”
That was perfume?! These people are absolutely nuts to use something with such an offensive smell, geez... I might have to put my foot down and blacklist that stuff, I really don’t want to be blasted in the face by it again. And I’ve been so careful to not destroy things, but today I’ve broken three buildings... At least the people who helped with the rubble seem to be more relieved that nobody was hurt than angry about the property damage.
I want to stick around some more to talk, but I also want to get the heck away from that lingering stench, so it’s time for me to leave. With my target being the northern gate, I step over the townsfolk and make my way there. The trip doesn’t take long, but it feels like it does on account of my nose still hurting.
The gate is blocked by people, and I’m feeling a little moody, and I don’t want to wait, so it’s time to see if I can step over the wall. I’m technically taller by a fair bit, but my belly hangs a little low compared to my shoulder height, so it’s possible I’ll cause another destructive event, but folks will just have to deal with that.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Stepping up to the wall, I rear up and push some magic into my hind legs to jump over, and at the apex of my jump, I beat my wings to gain a little help to clear the wall. To my surprise, I mostly made it. My tail did slap against the wall and break a few of the logs, but that’s repairable. I should be able to do it without causing damage the next time, so it was worth it.
I’m not gonna linger here, though, so I’m off to my lake to clean out my nose and get rid of this rancid smell of evil. Taking off and leaving Tuiran behind and rushing to the lake, my nose looks forward to the cleansing waters I’m about to expose it to. And as soon as I reach the lake, I waste no time before submerging my face in the purifying liquid of salvation. Sucking in water through my nostrils feels wildly uncomfortable, but it’s so much better than the lingering, torturous stench of that so-called ‘perfume.’
Sweet, uncomfortable nostril water...
With relief calming my nerves, nose, and my mood, it’s time for a quick rest before heading back home. Getting up and trudging to my old nesting tree, ignoring the weird tent I pass by, I feel a moment of nostalgia thinking about how I used to sleep in this lovely tree. But now I’m far too big to even consider climbing it, in fact, if I stretch my neck, my head will poke through the canopy. I’m gonna give it a nudge for being such a lovely tree.
The sound of feet meeting rocks alerts me to the fact that the weird tent was not unused... I’m not feeling very diplomatic right now, so I’ll leave the choice of what happens now to them.
“I’m not in the mood for a fight, so if you attack me, I will reduce you to ash.”
Turning my head to look at them, the frontliner looks ready to battle as they use hand signs to communicate with the others, leading them to ready their weapons too. I have no idea why these jerks think they can defeat me. From the looks of it, they have a defensive frontliner with a shield and a torch, some sort of mage with a shining staff, a healer, and an archer, so they’re bound to be annoying.
Instead of giving them a chance to have the opening strike, I turn around, whipping my tail at the frontliner, making sure to use my good tail blade. I have no idea why they would attack me given my coloration. The light from the frontliner''s torch dances on the shiny surface of my scales, but given his reaction time, it must look to him as if my tail appeared out of nowhere.
He tries to block it, but the blade cuts through the shield and bisects the frontliner before either of the casters have a chance to protect him. To the archer’s credit, she manages to fire an arrow at me, aiming for my eye, but a quick twitch, and it impacts my scales. Somehow she managed to break through my scale with that arrow, but shooting me in the head isn’t all that clever because that’s where my dragon bone skull is located and that thing is tough.
Given the risk to my eyes, I don’t really feel like giving her a chance to fire again, so it’s time for me to fire. The healer manages to throw up a barrier to protect the archer from my flames. The sudden light from my bright flames elicits grunts of discomfort from the jerks, causing them to flinch, but not enough to disrupt the barrier. The bigger problem for me is the unattended mage. Judging by the large icicle forming, I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume it’s a frost mage, but it’s also human, so they might not be limited to ice.
Keeping my flames going, it becomes clear that the healer is struggling to keep the barrier up. Keeping an eye on the mage pays off as the icicle flies toward me and it’s going straight for my chest. Since I don’t feel like being impaled again, I stop spewing flames and drop to the ground, spreading my wings low to not let the icicle pierce them.
The mage throws another icicle at me, this time aiming low, and since the archer is no longer pinned, she starts firing arrows. Pushing magic into my scales, I feel them strengthen as I get ready to attack again.
I told them that I didn’t want to fight, so instead of trying to be clever, I’m just going to be brutal. Charging the healer, he throws up a barrier to protect himself, but the force of my claws impacting it causes it to crack. However, I don’t get the opportunity to finish the job as icicles and arrows hit me. Even with my scales empowered, it hurts and I can smell my own blood, making it clear that they are making progress in wearing down my defenses. The icicles embedding themselves in my side spread their cruel coolness, but I can’t let that distract me.
I keep my focus on the fleeing healer, lashing out with my head as I go for a chomp, but my teeth are blocked by that damn barrier again. The healer finds himself between my teeth, the only thing keeping him alive is the barrier, and if it falters, he’ll find himself very thoroughly penetrated. It doesn’t take long before my venom starts interfering with the magic of his barrier, and I can feel it weakening.
So pushing magic into my jaws, I feel my muscles become empowered and the barrier crack under my assault. My jaws snap shut, crushing the healer''s legs off, sealing the rest of his body away inside my mouth as he screams in pain.
Instead of thinking too much about the healer, it’s time to turn the frost mage into an ember mage. Turning to face the jerk, he tries to flee my flames, but as far as success goes, he isn’t having any. The scorched body of the mage falls to the ground and the archer is nowhere to be seen, but these jerks are far too willing to attack me to be left alive. As far as I know, the archer would show the same compassion to a goblin as well, and I don’t want to hear that leaving this one alone led to the death of one of our hunters.
The archer’s scent still lingers, and I’m feeling a little vindictive because this was my first home here, and they tainted it with their stupid adventuring.
Giving chase takes me further into the forest and the archer has run quite a bit ahead, but given that I’ve already been destructive today, I don’t see much reason to stop now. Instead of running around the trees to search for paths big enough to fit me, I just trample through to create my own path. Add to that my larger legs, the archer’s scent is becoming more intense by the second.
The bastard is right in front of me, and as she clears a root, she jumps with a spin, firing an arrow my way. Lowering my head, the arrow impacts one of my horns harmlessly as my charge continues. She jumps again, but this time is the last time she’ll ever do that as I’m far too close. Bashing my head into her body knocks the air from her lungs as she falls to the ground, gasping for air. Her breathing carries the scent of blood, tantalizing my senses.
For a moment, I hesitate to go for the kill, wanting her to have seen the errors of her ways, but as I approach, she spits her vitriol at me, and I doubt she’d take a second chance even if she were given one. So instead of lingering on that moment of mercy, I bring my jaws down and chomp off her head. Given how much I’ve used my flames and my lack of familiarity with the undead, it’s time to use that as an excuse for treating her remains as a snack.
The pouch she carries does lead to some wariness, though. It’s not clear whether she’s carrying any potions, and if she is, then they could be tainted, and I’d rather not eat any of that grossness. Picking up the body with one hand makes it quite easy to snap the belt strap holding her pouch up, and with it falling to the ground, I don’t feel like there are any other things to be concerned about.
Making quick work of the meat, it’s time to return to the lake to make sure none of the others rise up as undead. Turning around makes it pretty obvious where the lake is, as the path of destruction left in my wake is somewhat significant, with trees knocked over and soil torn up by my claws. My trek back to the lake is quite pleasant, as the sensation of my feet sinking into the loose and cool soil is very enjoyable.
It could be useful to send some goblins out here to gather wood and help them drag it back to town. It would be a lot of firewood for the winter and maybe even some building materials, which will be useful given how much chaos Joras has caused.
Reaching the lake makes it apparent that I may have gone a bit overboard with the flames, considering there’s a shiny lane of blackened ground leading to a small cone of uncharred sand and rocks. Tapping the scorched area reveals it to be solid and tough, and I think I might have made crude glass.
That will be something to explore as well, but for now, I need to be responsible and get rid of these corpses. Going for the mage first, the corpse of the healer reminds me that I didn’t pay attention to where the healer went as I spewed flames at the mage, but it seems like he got launched from my mouth and was burned to a crisp in the process. That’s rough, buddy.
Well, that’s enough mourning jerks who chose to attack me. And now it’s time to get rid of most of the evidence, and given the crisp appearance of the mage and healer, I doubt their potions survived the heat. Their equipment certainly didn’t.
Given how big I am, all they amount to is one bite each, so I won’t have to linger, but seeing the aftermath of the unnecessary battle does annoy me somewhat. This little beach will never be the same again.
There’s still the frontliner to deal with, and I didn’t burn him, so he has probably still got some potions on him. Given his newly acquired bisected body, removing the belt pouch is remarkably easy, and it practically comes off on its own, making my job quite easy.
With him taken care of, there’s no reason not to go for a dip in the lake and wash the blood and soot off my face as well as I can. The clouds make it dark enough that I can’t tell how much discoloration of the water I’m causing, but that’s okay. Then I can pretend that it isn’t my fault.
I do feel a little sad that none of these people smelled like the cultists, meaning they were just regular adventurers, and if they had been more receptive, like Turgai or Punchy, we could have worked something out.
I do have to go a bit far into the lake to fully submerge my body, and doing so makes it clear that I’ve been pelted by quite a few attacks. The cool water feels a little painful whenever it touches one of my wounds, and there are a lot of little painful moments. Spreading out my wings makes it clear that I did not succeed in keeping them safe.
There are a few holes in my membranes, and it’s pretty obvious even to someone as inexperienced as me that if I try to fly with damage like this, my wings will be torn to shreds. So it’s time to walk back to town.
Looking up at the sky fills me with unease as the clouds cover the majority of it, leaving me unsure of the time. And since this is a rare moment of experimental potential, I pull the magic flow away from my eyes, which cloaks the world in darkness. It turns out that I need some magic flow to my eyes to see in the dark, and I figure the opposite is true too. So, trying it out, I push magic into my eyes, watching the world brighten. Well, by comparison anyway.
It’s still quite dark and it’s somehow easier to navigate by the magical glow of everything around me than what I can physically see. Oh! I wanna see what my smoke looks like! Releasing a quick puff reveals the dancing red magic of my smoky magic combining with the blue and teal of the wind to create a beautiful purple mixture.
I’m curious what will happen if I do the same toward a tree with its pretty brown magic, and when I puff smoke toward one, it dances around the tree, as if it’s being sucked into the bark. From the looks of it, the tree does absorb the magic as it mixes it into its own and spreads it through the trunk.
That makes me a little curious and could answer a bit of a question I’ve had for some time. So, releasing a small jet of flame toward the tree, just enough to catch it on fire a little, I watch the magic and how it progresses. And it looks like the two forces fight, but it’s a battle of attrition, and the tree is winning, consuming the magic of my flame.
That is fascinating, and if that’s what has happened to all of those small fires I’ve started, then it’s starting to make sense how I haven’t burned the forest down yet. Wait, not ‘yet.’ I’m not going to burn the forest down.
Although I am curious how much fire it would take for my fire to consume the tree... No! Kira, we’re not burning down the forest!
With my flame dying down, I am going to give it a quick lick to see how my venom interacts with a tree’s magic. And it seems to not do all that much. The magic retreats away from the venom and the bark seems to form a protective barrier, refusing to absorb the moisture. I didn’t bring any way, but if I had, I could have tried checking if my venom functioned as a sealant for the bark. I have no idea how that might be useful, but it is interesting!
A pull on my magic draws my attention away from the tree, so it can have a moment to rest for now. I’ll be back for more experiments, tree.
“Kira, where are you? I checked your den, but you weren’t there. I washed the perfume away, so it’s safe to come home.”
Lauren feels quite worried, so no more distractions! It’s time to go back home, and the mention of that toxic chemical warfare reminds me of why I went out here in the first place, so I deserve a pat on the back for doing what I came for. Maybe even scritches for being such a good and focused dragon.
Instead of lingering on that, the journey back begins and, weaving through the trees, I cause significantly less damage than when chasing the archer. My running speed does mean that the trip back is over quite fast and as I clear the tree line, I spread my wings, which reminds me of the wounds as they catch the wind. Okay, folded wings it is. Geez, that hurt...
Even just that tore up the tears some more, so flying is definitely not on the table. Dang it, that means I’ll have to go through the northern or southern gate. And since I’ve caused a bit of a ruckus in the north, I think I’ll just avoid that by going south.
It won’t take long to reach the gate by running, but with how much my claws dig into the ground, I won’t be able to use the roads. Well, I could, but they wouldn’t be roads afterward, and I’m sure I’d get a stern talking-to for breaking the trade routes.
Reaching the road leading to the gate means I have to slow down and walk cautiously again. It’s not easy to avoid my claws digging into the soil all the time, and I don’t manage it perfectly, but that’s what the road repair guy is for, and he’s got job security for the foreseeable future.
The two guards at the gate wave at me with smiles on their faces, and that just brightens my day. The people here are awesome. Before entering the town, they each get a nudge of appreciation. Next up is getting to my den and blaming Joras for everything bad that has ever happened. It was very rude of him to create a dragon repellent.
The streets are, as I feared, narrower because of the ditches, so it’s taking some effort to keep my feet closer in line, so I don’t slip on the clay. I usually have a pretty wide walking stance, but geez, having to work on that is difficult.
I’m beginning to think that I should have tried regenerating my wings, but the pain from that nonsense is worse than being pelted by arrows and icicles... I’ll have to see if I can have Lauren heal it with her magic champion powers instead. That’s a lot more comfortable.
At least the goblins around me are kind enough to walk in the ditches instead of trying to go under me as I continue my struggle toward the square. It doesn’t take me an entire day to reach my den, which I appreciate, but I’m far too close to that being the case with all this cautious walking, and I’m about ready for a snooze as the concentration is wearing me out.
As soon as I reach the square, I take a moment to appreciate my ability to take a wider stance again and celebrate by running in a circle with a few jumps, I love having room to move!
It’s good to be home, and the noise from my jumping seems to have drawn a bit of an audience who joined in on the spontaneous celebration. Stopping my dancing session, I take a moment to lie down and watch the people around me. Watching a bunch of goblins holding hands and jumping around in a circle together is a delight.
“Lauren, I’m home and if you aren’t busy, I could use a little healing.”
That didn’t help her feel less worried, but she’ll be fine. I can tell she’s getting close, on account of her not being quite as clean as she implied, and that stench lingers, but it’s within tolerable limits. I’ll just leverage my long neck to keep my head further away from her stinky stank.
“What’s wrong, Kira?”
She looks even more worried now, so instead of beating around the bush, I just let her know that she still reeks. She’s quick to think up some compassionate words to calm my discomfort.
“Stop being such a child, Kira. We need to get those arrows out of you. By the Gods, did you fight an entire squad of archers?”
I haven’t counted the arrows yet, but her comment does make me curious, and looking back and counting, it seems I’ve been hit by forty-four arrows. Geez, that’s actually a lot. She grabs hold of one and pulls it out, and it does certainly hurt. Good thing I’m a big tough dragon, though, otherwise, I’m not sure I could handle it.
Watching her work seems to spark interest in the dancing goblins as they all join to de-arrow me. It’s a little weird how comfortable I am with having people climb all over me, but it feels normal.
“These are high-quality arrows, Kira. They are giant-killers. If you look at the head, you can see they’re engraved with magic and made to bury deep into their target.”
Looking at them, there’s no magic left, and they appear perfectly mundane, although they are pretty. We should give a few to Lily so she can enchant them again for our hunters. I’m sure they’ll be useful for hunting.
It takes a while for the gathering of goblins to finish removing arrows, but when they finish, they line up in front of me and stare at my face. Oh! They want nudges too! And they shall have them! Beginning my glorious task of doling out nudges as payment, I feel Lauren pull on my magic as she begins a quick prayer.
The sensation of magic flows through me as she touches me, but my wounds aren’t healing. I do feel lighter and energized, but I’m still bleeding.
Interrupting my nudge-session, I take a look at her and she’s glaring at her hands before she repeats the process, but this time, I don’t feel anything other than magic being pushed into me.
“I can’t heal...”