《Lost Dragon》 1. Unexpected guest The local police continued investigating an accident that happened two days ago on the roadway near Wyntara. An unidentified individual was run over by a truck, going to Adverton with a plastic load. After the collision, the person was pushed into oncoming traffic and got hit by a car again. According to the witnesses, the person stood up by themselves and walked into the nearby forest, where they fled the scene. The driver of the truck pleads not guilty and blames the person for attempted suicide. The victim''s identity is still unknown. According to unaudited reports, the affected person was dressed in a carnival costume with horns and a tail. If you have any information related to this incident, please contact the authorities. And now, about the weather...
The basic layout is done, shadows are fine, highlights can wait... What else have I missed? Ring-ring. Who the heck is calling me this late? Oh, it''s my groupmate. "Hello, Dan. What do you want?" "Hey, Roy, how are you? What about joining our studying party? Have you done your project yet? If you have, it will be even better." "Crap, I totally forgot about it. Man, the studies are closer than I excepted..." "Yeah! So, it''ll be next weekend, at my place, see you! Bye!" Ughh, a new academic year will start soon, and I still need to earn more money before it starts. And this summer project in groups. There''re too many things on my plate. Anyway, let''s take a break, as long as I''ve got distracted from work. And I have the rest of the pizza that I''d ordered today. It''s getting darker. It''s time to turn the lights on... Wait. The pizza box is empty. Why?! "What the heck? Where''s my pizza?!" I yell into the blue. I''m sure I''ve left at least a half of the pizza. And I''m sure that I live alone. Am I going crazy? Honestly, it''s not something new: I''ve already found that my food supplies have been reducing drastically for the last few days. Yesterday I checked all the windows and doors, locking them. But the food keeps reducing. And I keep hearing strange noises during the night. Of course, it all can be just noise of an old house, but what about food? Heh, maybe it''s some kind of a ghost, why not? At least something would happen in this sleepy old town at the edge of the world! Eh, I miss my life in a big city... Anyway, let''s eat something and get back on track. But, geez, how tired am I. Drawing art after art, which usually doesn''t have any artistic and aesthetic value, is really tiresome. This state has worn me out completely. And I''ve got more troubles here with this ''ghost.'' Anyway, back to my room... While I''m lazily going upstairs, something catches my attention - an old door to the basement is left. I don''t remember opening this door at all - I haven''t used the basement for a long time. I giggle nervously. Am I trying to act with the same amount of stupidity as a typical horror movie character? But, on the other hand, what in the world can happen to me in this boring-boring life? So, against any logical reasons, I decided to check the basement. At first glance, everything seems fine. Some items look as if they''ve been moved, though I barely remember their state last time. After a slight hesitation, I keep moving forward, looking around carefully. A soft rustle in the corner. The heck?! Instantly, I turn to see a source of the sound, but it''s nothing here. I make a few steps back. Please, let it be just my imagination. Is something actually happening here?! At the same time, a rational part of me argues against it - what if it''s only a mouse? The house is pretty old, and I don''t really care about the basement state. Commonly, small animals can start living there on their own. Suddenly, I hear sound of rain. Hey, the forecast promised rain way later, not now! I can say goodbye to all my ruined plans to go for groceries. Though, it''s too late anyway. Terrific bang! Phew, it scared the hell out of me. An open window creaks and thuds a few times again. Is it just a gust of wind?! Stop making that horrible sound! I thought that I''d die from fear. And, obviously, if I forget to close the window, any stray animal can enter it with no problem. Though it can be a larger animal, like a dog - I should be cautious... Okay, I need to check if there''s any damage and go out. It''s great that I''ve noticed it before the rain. I can''t imagine how hard and expensive it is dealing with flooding. What a dusty floor! Wait, what?! I can''t believe my eyes - there''s a giant footstep in the dust. The footprint is twice larger than my hand! To be precise, several footsteps of an animal which I can''t recognize. I''m not sure, but for me it looks like a dinosaur''s foot. It can''t be real, can it..? A slight creak from a pile of boxes. The chills run up my back immediately. But if it''s just a cat, it''ll be fine. Yeah, it can be just several tiny footsteps, and my tired mind starts seeing weird things. Heh, it''s not very bright here, the lamp has got too dirty. The pile of boxes in the corner creaks again. It''s getting annoying. After taking a deep breath, I peep behind them. Ugh, it''s really dark there. So what do we have here: shelves with dusty boxes, a lot of bigger packages, ... ...And a big shadow with red glowing eyes behind them. And it noticed me! What the heck?! I shouldn''t have gone here. Crap, crap, crap, what should I do now?! In fear, I step back and bowl over a small box with an enormous amount of rumbles. At sight, the creature jumps on me, knocks me off. Ugh, it hurts! The red glowing eyes are staring directly at me. I close my eyes expecting anything ...but nothing happens. After a second, I slowly open my eyes and look at the creature. Wait, is it a human? A girl?! While she''s pressing me down, I can have a better look at her. Red hair is falling on my face. The red eyes with vertical slit pupils are scanning my clothes and arms. A nervous breath out reveals a row of pointy teeth. She looks ¡­scared? Lightning illuminates the basement. And, almost immediately, a roar of the thunder. That was too loud! Suddenly, the girl covers her ears, jumps up from me, and dashes to the corner. But accidentally, she falls stumbled over the box that I''d dropped before. With a small sob, she''s trying to stand up, but another thunder bang causes a wail of several car alarms. Then, I hear a faint moan - the girl curls up and covers herself with a tail. A tail?! In flashing lighting, I''m able to look at this creature full-sized. A long red reptile tail lies over the girl''s body, trying to protect her from the outer world. Arms look human but are partly covered with red scales. Oh, she has some spikes on the elbows. Her clothes are dirty and damaged, if these pieces of fabric covering her chest and crotch can be called "clothes." Scaly digitigrade legs, which remind me of a dinosaur, are drawn up, and I can clearly see four big reptile toes with huge claws. That explains the footstep shapes... She''s hugging herself with her arms and the tail, quaking with fear. Is she terrified of thunders? I can see several grazes on her legs and torso. In addition, is she injured?! And I can hear soft sobs. What a poor girl... But what to do now? Help her?.. She attacked me, but she could have some reason to do it. Ughh... It reminds me of the situation from early childhood when I was lying under the blanket, terrified of a car alarm. It was in almost the same thunderstorm. Okay, I''ve decided. Clearly, she needs help, and I''ll help her. First, the window. Cautiously I''m moving toward the window. Reducing the outside noise will probably help. And it''ll save me from the possible flooding of the basement. Okay, now it''s closed. I still can hear thunders, but not so loudly. Does it help? I look at the girl again. She''s still lying motionlessly with slightly shivering. It''s hard to tell if she peers at me or not. What else could I do to soothe her? I don''t want to get close, what if she keeps acting that aggressive way? But the memory about the blanket... It §ãame in handy in my childhood. Maybe I can try? I should have this old blanket somewhere around... Oh, here it is! Okay, I''ll try to cover the lizard girl. Carefully, carefully... Huh, she definitely has scales. She shudders when the blanket touches her but doesn''t react more than it. Will she be okay? Will the house be okay? So many questions... Before leaving, I look at the girl again, and, apparently, the figure seems more relaxed than before.
I''ve managed to get back from the basement, but there''s still the thunderstorm... And there''s still the dragon inside my house. So, seriously, is there anything I can do about it? Ughh, I want to take a photo, but there''s too dark. And I''m not sure if I want to go back again. Maybe I can call a friend? Or the police? Indeed, the best thing to do is to call the police. But what can I say? "A girl that looks like a half-lizard is lying in my basement, scared of the thunderstorm, please send help?" It''s ridiculous! And honestly, I''m really interested in trying to communicate with this girl. Where is she from? Why does she look like a mix of a human and a reptile? So many questions...If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. After all the stress, I start feeling hungry... Hmm, that''s a good idea! I quickly call for two ultra big pizzas with a lot of meat and start waiting. The hallway keeps illuminated by flashes of lightning. The rain is so heavy that the neighbor''s house is barely visible. I hope there will be no accidents with fallen trees, and the electricity won''t be cut off. But, despite my foreboding, thunder is getting farther and farther away, and the rain is getting weaker and weaker. Oh, and the pizza is delivered! Ugh, the delivery guy looks a little upset. Of course, I''d be also upset if I was soaked to the skin. I''m sorry for ordering pizza during this miserable weather... At least, the pizza was packed well. Despite being hungry, I should take one pizza to the basement first. It''s clear that the strange girl isn''t a wild cat that I can simply feed to gain the trust, but maybe it''ll help a bit. And I hope that girl won''t jump on me again. Ugh, where is she? I can''t find the girl in her previous spot. A tense situation... Huh, and she took the blanket with her. At least she liked it, I''m glad about it. I slowly put pizza on one of the boxes, open it and carefully move back to the stairs. Uh, that anxious feeling of being watched, please be just my imagination... Only on the top, I allow myself to look around. And for real, the glowing eyes peer at me from the corner of the basement. "Hey, do you want to eat?" I wave to her cheerfully, inviting her to the pizza. The eyes slowly hide behind boxes. I''ll...go away, okay? Anyway, should I eat too? I need to ease my mind for a moment - if I keep thinking about it, my head will explode, for sure. But, ughhh... How can I stop thinking about all of this? Why did I even help her? Why was I sure she was frightened, and why was she all on her own? Eh, so many questions... Hmm, the pizza is actually pretty good. I should order it from time to time. Oh, and I should put the kettle on. Anyway, why was her attitude clear to me? Obviously, I don''t have any mind-reading power or anything like it. But it feels like I can. So strange... I wish we could have a talk after all. Oh, and the weather is getting better. So the thunderstorm is already over? Maybe... Maybe it was a weird dream or hallucination. A lizard girl, it can''t be possible! After turning off the kettle, I turn back to the table and freeze to the spot. No way... A familiar red-haired head peeps from the doorframe. Ugh, she''s looking at me. Uugh, I hope you just want to get more food, don''t you? Wait, did she eat the whole pizza herself? I try to pick up all my courage... "Will you join my meal?" I mumbled, pointing at the box with the pizza. Surprisingly, the girl doesn''t run away and carefully crosses the kitchen. Please, don''t get too close to me... Though, her tail is clamped to her legs and shivers a bit. Does it seem like she is more scared than me? The girl intently peers at me again, quickly grabs a piece of the pizza, and steps back. In a moment, she gobbles it up so fast that I didn''t even notice how. Then, she embarrassedly looks at me and grabs another piece with less shyness. So, it''s not a hallucination. Huh, under better light, the girl looks way less scary than I imagined. She''s just barely taller than me. And, I suppose, it''s only because of her digitigrade legs. Oh, and I thought she was severely wounded, but it appears as if she just has several cuts and grazes that need treatment. But the amount of scars that she has is terrifying. And some of them are huge. Despite all her problems, she is definitely not an average human, so why am I not afraid? All I feel now is only a ...relief? Looking at her eating pizza with an obvious enjoyment is a kind of satisfaction, though. But am I actually sane? Or it''s just because I''ve been drawing really bizarre stuff recently, so that''s why I''m not shocked? I really don''t know... By the way, it''s good that she became much less scared and angry, but, actually, that pizza is supposed to be my next breakfast. Ugh, and she has eaten the whole of it. But I simply can''t get mad at her when she''s so happy. Well, I''ll just order another one later. Hmm, I can take an opportunity and speak with her. Maybe I''ll finally get some answers. "Hello, can I ask you some questions now?" The reptile girl shivers and looks at me in a panic as if she''s forgotten that I''m here. Immediately she dashes to hide behind the doorframe. Crap! My best chance to a conversation has been lost. "W-wait! At least, what''s your name? Please, don''t be afraid..." Suddenly, she peeps from the doorframe for a moment, gazes at me, and drops a word: "Red." ¡­And she''s gone. What was that? A nickname? What a strange girl... Well, at least she can talk. I reckon I have no other choice than to call her Red from now. "And my name Is Ray, nice to meet you..." I answer to the empty hallway. But I have so many questions! I guess, if I feed her enough, she''ll eventually become more friendly. At least, last time, Red didn''t attack me. Maybe someday we will be able to talk...
Rizzzz! Hiss! Crack! I wake up from a horrible noise. Omg, what''s going on? Ugh, I''m so tired of it! How long it will be? Suddenly, all noises are gone. Anyway, I''m awake, so let''s investigate. It''s not the first night full of loud random sounds. I just can''t get used to it... It feels like living with a cat. A spoiled giant scaly cat. What a wonder how many sounds Red can produce for no reason at all. Clearly, after our first encounter, she has started to investigate my house way more confidently - many doors are being left open and peculiar noises at night are becoming louder. But there has to be a limit! It looks like Red has been here. Hmm, it''s just a simple storage room. How has she managed to produce so much noise? Oooh, no way, the vacuum cleaner is totally crushed. It was a present from my parents! They''d given it to me after they''d left me to live here alone. Damn lizard! I guess she had accidentally turned it on and got scared. I ask loudly if she is okay, but, obviously, there''s no response. I''m not sure if keeping the girl in secret was a good idea. Maybe I''ve just watched too many fantasy movies. But I still hope for the best. Eh, what time is it? Omg, it''s almost eight. Well, at least the lizard might make me wake up in time. So, what to do now... Okay, let''s go for groceries. Oh, we have lovely weather today! Wet grass looks so pretty in the sunlight. Though, I''m still concerned about leaving the house. What if Red does something dangerous while I''m out? I need to get back as soon as possible...
Surprisingly, my house is still here, standing still. Anyway, let''s follow the plan. While cooking breakfast, I feel a familiar gaze. Ugh, I don''t want to turn around. I don''t know if it is Red or just my imagination, but if it''s her, I genuinely don''t want to frighten her again... I guess Red simply got hungry again, doesn''t she? I''m not good at cooking, but I still can make a simple breakfast like fried eggs and sausages. Now a bunch of veggies, and it''s done. I''m still nervous about turning around, but I have no choice. Hmm, no one here. Am I slightly overthinking things? Well, one plate for me, one for the dragon. Oh, this is way more moreish than I expected. Maybe I should find more recipes - cooking is funnier than I thought before. I try to kill some time surfing the internet on my phone, but it looks like Red won''t join me today. Maybe I was too optimistic about the idea of shared meals. Anyway, there is a piece left for her, so I hope she won''t eat me today. Heh... Honestly, what am I doing? My only hope is that she is intelligent enough so she won''t kill me, and so far, she still hasn''t tried it again. But sometimes, it still feels like living with a wild tiger. So, it''s time to work again, and I head to my room. Though, I''ve got an idea... Before going upstairs, I quickly return and peek into the kitchen. And here she is! Eating. Obviously, she notices me immediately. Gosh, she looks so embarrassed! I smile and wave at her, and scurry away with a fit of giggling. My strategy works - what a relief. Maybe it''s not so as bad as I thought...
I wonder how long it will take to make contact. The last few days passed without visible changes, and the academic year is close enough. I''ve started worrying about the progress. How to stop yawning in the morning... No wonder why I want to sleep so much - it''s so cloudy today. Eh, breakfast, breakfast, what do I want to cook today... Honestly, I should rethink my strategy of "catching" Red if I really want to talk with her. Maybe I''ve got something wrong. Ugh, the weather is dreadful: I can barely see anything in the kitchen. Thoughtlessly, I click the switch... Wait a minute?! I flinch in surprise - Red''s sitting right here, with a nervous grin. Her tail''s skipping from side to side tensely. Oh, she''s staring at me. I wanted to talk with her, but I''m not ready now! I didn''t expect her to be here. "Why? Why are you helping me?" Her voice stumbles a bit. Oh, she really can speak, good enough. Though, her mood is concerning me now. "Don''t act as if you don''t understand!" The lizard girl raises her voice. "It''s obvious that you''re feeding me, but I don''t get why you do this. Your kind tried to kill me so many times! Why do you act so differently?!" She seems totally confused. "My kind? Huh, so you are not human. But, sorry, I''ve never seen anyone like you before. Or anyone who is so different from... a normal human. Actually, I''m really interested in what kind of race you are." I''m trying to avoid direct eye contact with her. "Wait, what?! Uhhh, it can''t be true!" Suddenly, Red stands, rushes and grabs my shoulders, staring right into my eyes. "Do you know names like Londor or Greylakeland? Answer!" She grips me so firmly that it feels like her claws are piercing my skin. "I''ve never heard these names. Uh, stop it!" That hurts! Immediately her grips get weaker, and she releases my shoulders and makes a few steps back. Phew, that was close. She''s dangerously strong... "You don''t know... "Red drops down on the floor, hugging her knees. "You''re not lying, you really don''t know..." What''s going on? "Hey, I''m not mad at you. Don''t worry, I just want to talk." Maybe now we can try to get some answers? Please? Though I''m still scared after this act of aggression. But now she looks calm again. Perhaps it''s some kind of emotional disorder..? Red shakes her head. "I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to hurt you. This world... Ugh, I knew it but didn''t want to believe it..." Ugh, She isn''t even listening to me. That''s definitely a bad mood again. I can barely understand what she''s mumbling. Anyway, it''s impossible to speak with her while she is in this sorrowful state of mind. Hmm, what did my mom use to do for me when I was sad? I turn on the stove and put a pot of water on it. Then I take off cutlery and food. It looks like Red is completely ignoring me. The pain in my chest is her emotion, isn''t it? I''ve thought a lot about it, and it''s probably that I just can feel her despair as if it''s mine. Same as when I saw her for the first time. "Re-e-ed, look at me, please." She slowly turns her head to me. Oh, she''s crying... "I have a strange question, but may you help me with cooking? I can teach you to make breakfast. I need to boil a pot of water and cut some vegetables before boiling the rice. So, can you help me?" I reach out my hand to her. She looks at me without any sign of understanding. But, after a bit of thinking, she wipes away her tears, stands up and takes my hand with visible confusion. "You''re a truly unusual human..." So, we start cooking together. Surprisingly, Red catches on really fast. However, I''ve asked Red to do only simple things. The trick is about switching her focus to something completely different. And looks like it works - she doesn''t look so sad anymore, just absorbed in thought. Now the breakfast is ready! But Red is still gloomy and probably won''t start a discussion. Maybe I can try to break the ice..? "So, are you from another world?" "Probably." Red looks at me with a deep sigh. "Your home feels completely different from what I used to know. There''re so many objects whose purposes I can''t understand. I''ve never seen metal things that move at such speed. Everything seems wrong here." "Well, I can try to explain some stuff..." Oh man, we are finally close to the discussion that I''ve been waiting for the week. When she looks at me again, her glance feels way warmer than usual. "It''s odd, but I feel like I can trust you. You were taking care of me while I was weak. I still don''t understand your goals, but I should be grateful for everything that you''ve done for me." She looks away with sorrow. "Erm, at our first meeting, I thought you were a hunter. Sorry for frightening you." Oh, this sounded surprisingly kindly for her scary look. "It''s okay. I just didn''t expect that ...anything of it, actually. But why are you here? Who are you?" I have so many questions... After another long pause, Red smiles at me. "Obviously, I''m a dragon. Maybe you''ve already noticed it." She rubs her temples. "I think I can tell you how I''ve got here - it could help you better understand our situation. Uhh, where should I start?.." 2. Dragon tale Uhh, where should I start?.. My friend, Sai, is lost. She''s an amazing person who saved me many times. Heh, on our first meeting, she was protecting me from the raid of hunters. Sai defeated the whole group of attackers alone. It was amazing! That is how I became fond of her. I was really green and admired every display of her strength and wisdom. Sai is the best dragon I''ve ever met. After that event, she cured my wounds and started taking care of me, teaching stuff about magic, fighting... One day, I was seriously injured again, almost at death''s door ¨C I''d been fighting with strange mages and considerably misjudged their power. Apparently, they just left me without finishing me off. I''m sure that Sai found me, brought me home and went to gather some herbs. She''s a brilliant alchemist! When I woke up, my wounds were treated, but I was alone in the cave. I kept waiting for her, but she didn''t come. And the same on the next day. And after the next day. And so on... I started searching. Sadly, the weather was horrible. The rain was so heavy that I couldn''t fly to check where Sai could be. So, I decided to check a human village nearby - it''s pretty close to our cave. Luckily, they hadn''t known about us yet. Maybe I would know something about the recent conflict with a dragon. I was frightened to hear bad news, you know, dragons'' lives usually end by a human sword nowadays... But in the village, I didn''t hear any news about clashes with dragons. Instead, I heard an interesting rumor about "Dragon Finder," a mysterious artifact that can guide the owner to nearby dragons. I had no idea how to find my friend another way, so I followed the rumor. After a drainingly long travel, it took me to the ruins of an abandoned sanctuary from a bygone era. It looked like a typical place with some treasures. And traps. Unfortunately, the weather was getting worse and worse - a thunderstorm was too close. The nearby thunder scared the hell out of me, so I had no other choice than to go inside. The sanctuary mainly looked undestroyed. No water inside, thick walls dampening all noises... As if there had been some adventurers, but not many. The first floor was totally looted and empty. The lower floors seemed more interesting - some traps were still working. It took me a while to pass all of them. Some pitfalls had been hidden so well, so they managed to surprise me. After several floors, I felt that something was wrong. The traps were way more deadly than they should be in human buildings. Way stronger... Now I understand that they were made primarily for dragons - designed so you can''t avoid it even if you can fly. The whole place had been prepared as a big trap for me. I should have understood it from the start! But it was too late... When I got seriously hit by a trap and felt, several figures split from the shadow and enclosed me. Dragon hunters! Awful sneaky humans who live for hunting our kind. Uhhh, I hate them like the plague! It would be much better if they fought fairly. But they wouldn''t! Using traps, poisons, and clashing with other creatures only for making us weaker. Binding during sleep. And many more ways to ruin any dragon defense. Phew, sorry, I can''t stand them... Anyway, the hunters showed up and surrounded me, cutting off the way back to the surface. And I, ugh... I made another mistake and fought back immediately, without thinking. It was what they were waiting for. Using their advantage in numbers, knowledge of trap placement and secret doors, they guided me from one trap to another, hitting me with spells and arrows, while I was trying to reach at least someone. They used my impulsive nature against me... Crap, I still feel ashamed of how easily they managed to provoke me. And predicted all my actions! After that excruciating cat-and-mouse, I got totally lost in the maze of lower floors. My wounds became dangerous, and I had no other choice than to try to run away from them. Honestly, I don''t remember well what happened next - I''d lost plenty of blood already... I somehow managed to reach the last floor, and it seemed to be a dead end. The strange stone construction in the middle looked like a big enchantment circle. I suppose it was a portal? Apparently, a spell from the hunters running for me pushed me right into it. After that hit, I lost the rest of my consciousness. Honestly, I didn''t expect to wake up after all that. Even if dragon hunters hadn''t killed me instantly, my fate would have been really sorrowful, I''m sure. I don''t know how long I had been unconscious. A scatter of rain woke me up, and I found myself in a forest. The air was filled with a lot of unfamiliar smells and sounds. I was so confused and scared. Being hunted without any opportunity to fight back... But I had no choice and decided to walk as far as possible from that place. I didn''t know how exactly the portal worked, and hunters could appear anytime. After walking, I found a road at the edge of the forest. It''s going up the hill, and I thought it would be a better view from its top. As soon as I reached the peak, a weird monster hit me with a terrible roar at incredible speed. I fell down, but right after, another one hit me again, almost from nowhere. They''d moved so fast that I hadn''t even understood what was happening! Their lights were blinding me completely. In a panic, I ran away. All I wanted was a place to hide from that horror. Anywhere! Accidentally, I met a house without lights with an open window to the basement. I didn''t even think about hunters anymore. I was so scared...
The further the story moves, the more Red lowers her head. In the end, she draws her legs up, hugs them, and entirely withdraws into herself. Poor girl... It''s unbelievable how many struggles she''s got through. Her story sounds so impressive, I don''t know why, but I almost see those hunters and feel her pain: the arrows, the lights of the cars... She shudders slightly and looks blankly at me when I touch her head. Her hair feels so warm and soft. I keep petting her head, and after a few moments, she finally notices me and returns from her thoughts. "Oh, you... I..." She looks perplexed and ashamed. "I''m sorry I''ve made you go through that again." I don''t know what else I could say. It''s getting embarrassing... I try to take away my hand, but she gently grabs it. "No, don''t worry, it''s fine. I feel relieved after telling you about it." With warmth in her eyes, she holds my hand for a bit. Then, after a deep breath, she releases me and continues the story with a melancholic expression. "The rest is obvious. After some sleep, my wounds had regenerated a bit, so I could walk normally. But, I was too terrified to leave the house, and I was ravenously hungry. So I tried to find anything to eat inside the house. I found that cold box and had been eating your food for a few days. And then, you finally found me." She smiles at me with a hint of sadness. "And, I still have no idea where I am and how to find my friend. I don''t even know how to get back..." "I''m not sure, but at least we can try to find someone who knows anything about your world and all this stuff." _I suppose_... "Really? Will you help me?" She stares intently at me with hope. How can I say "no" to these eyes? It''s just a thought, and I need more information, but it looks like there''s a possibility of traveling between worlds, from what she said. And it leads us to the idea that someone else could do that before, accidentally or not. Though, I''ve never heard about such things before. But a scaly humanoid creature is sitting right in front of my eyes. So, either I''m getting crazy, or another world exists. And, I definitely need to deal with it. But how?.. I''ve promised to help her, but where to start? Hmm, Red said something about mages, but I''ve never heard anything credible about magic. I can''t just start believing that some stories about miracles and other mystical things are true. Or, perhaps, the magic is something different from what I think it is? "Hmm, Red, please, tell me more about magic. How can I recognize a mage? Our world is different - we don''t have any mages or dragons here. At least, in public..." She looks at me with hesitation. "Ehm, I don''t think that I can teach you. From what I know, a person who doesn''t have any magic talent can''t feel magic at all. Though, you have me! As a dragon, the strongest and greatest magical creature, I can feel any sort of sorcery around." Red smiles proudly for a moment but, with another thought, sorrows back immediately. "But finding mages doesn''t sound like a good idea. Any of them wants to hunt me..." Huh. So, the only person who can help her is herself? But Red can''t use the portal without some knowledge. "Hey, is it that bad? You say that all mages are actually so evil, but it can''t be true, right?" I''m sure there should be some good mages. We have a lot of fairy tales of them, after all. "I don''t know! All my encounters with mages had ended up with me being wounded. I want to go back, but I don''t want to get hurt again..." Red covers her face and lets out a muffled roar. No doubt, her powerlessness bothers her a lot. "Frankly, I can''t imagine any other way than finding help. Do we have any choice?" "Other choices than begging mages who can easily kill me now? I''d love to know!" She stands up and raises her voice, hitting the table with her claws. In a split second, it creaks and falls, broken into parts. All of the dropped dishes break into small pieces with a loud clatter. What the heck!? I jump up, shocked. Okay, calm down. Soothe her first, then anything else. Red looks confused too, so I hope there will be no more outbreaks. "Don''t worry! You''re scared and confused, I understand. We can think about it later, maybe something will come to your mind."The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. _Yeah, you''re just a dragon, so don''t worry that you keep destroying my house! What about measuring power at all?!_ But I need to calm her down, otherwise, she''ll ruin everything else here. Man, keeping her in secret doesn''t look like a good idea for me anymore. Red settles her mind and glances at me as if trying to apologize. "A-ah, I..." _Hey, don''t look so pitifully at me, I haven''t said anything wrong about you._ Do I look so angry now that even the dragon can see it? She raises and lowers her hand and shifts her weight from one foot to the other. It seems she''s really sorry and wants to apologize but can''t find the right words. Why did I even become so angry? It wasn''t like me. Yes, she broke my table. But she didn''t intend to do it. She''s in a really tough situation - totally alone, in an unknown world, without any way to go back or ask for help. "I... I promise I''ll control myself next time." Red is muttering excuses. A couple of deep breaths... And my sudden anger is gone without a trace. "Can you help me to clean this mess up at least?" "Oh, of course!" While we''re cleaning the mess, I have a chance to glance at her more. It''s impressive how she uses her long tail to maintain balance and move items. The scales on her hands protect her from cuts while she''s picking up the pieces of the dishes. The reptile skin ends at her elbows with several spikes. Hmm, reptile... "But what about other dragons? We can try to find them. Or any other magic creature who knows about portals." Even after the incident with Red, I''d like to see more of them. "Dragons don''t like each other. We are loners and individualists and, usually, can''t stand any others on our territory." She shakes her head. Huh, is there any part of dragons'' life that is easy? "But what about Sai? You met Sai, and you said that she didn''t try to kill you at first glance." She stops collecting shatters and looks up thoughtfully. "Sai is a wonderful person... You''re right! Hmm, we can try to find a friendly dragon." She smiles with relief.
After the cleaning, we decide to move into the living room since the kitchen is in ruins. I''m giggling about how Red is struggling to sit in the chair - the long tail always gets in her way. I''ve already given up on the fact that Red''s claws or thorns can damage the fabric - the sofa and the chairs are old, and I have plans to buy new ones anyway. Eventually, she lies down on the sofa, wraps her long tail around her right leg, and stares at me with a judgmental face. _I''m sorry, but I find it really amusing._ Surely, her tail is something special. It''s long, thick, spiked and ends with a massive jagged thorn. Dangerous weapon! I can imagine how she uses it to pierce shields and armors. Anyway, back to our problem. I think about returning to the portal first, but it''s too dangerous - the dragon hunters can still be there. Given that, we need to look around in the town first. But how can Red go to the city? Her appearance stands out too much. "Red, how did you talk with the villagers before? Your scales, claws and horns are too obvious. How did they not notice it?.." "Ummm. How to explain... Dragons have three main forms and can shapeshift between them. I guess the easiest way is just to show you." She exhales and closes her eyes. For a few moments, nothing happens... But then her scales start fading out, and her horns become smaller and smaller until they disappear entirely. Her legs change their shape too, and after a minute, I see a regular human in front of me. Except for the bushy red hair, which doesn''t want to change at all. What a wonder! The real magic, amazing... Red breathes out loudly and opens her eyes. "I really don''t like this form. I feel so weak and naked. And it takes too much concentration to shapeshift into..." She grins at me widely. "So, what do you think? Isn''t it a perfect imitation?" Red rolls onto her back, raising her arm and leg to show that everything looks like a human. Suddenly, I catch myself thinking that she is pretty. Eh, if she wasn''t so destructive at the same time... "Honestly, I''m impressed." I''ve already imagined Red wearing an oversized baggy raincoat. Though, I still have some questions about how they hide the color of their hair... "Seems that you''ve underestimated dragons!" She chuckles. Though, one detail catches my attention. It''s a strange stone in the middle of Red''s chest, right above the heart. At first, I thought it was a big scale, but now I clearly see a crimson crystal with rough edges. It looks like a part of her body. And it''s still there, in her ''human form.'' Strange... Red catches my glance, looks at her chest and makes a long face. "My heart stone, yeah... Sorry, I can''t hide it in any form. We usually try to cover it with clothes, but it is still the most effortless way to distinguish a dragon." She touches it gently, with a bit of sadness. Welp, the information is helpful, but we can''t just run around and check everyone''s chest trying to find a dragon. Something''s still bothering me. While we were moving to the living room, I''ve noticed that one of Red''s horns looked different from another - it had a shiny metal ring around it. And it''s gone after her transformation. "Your ring that was on the horn - where is it now? How does it work?" "Uhh, can you ask something easier to explain?" She makes an acid look, then she waves her arms around, thinking about something, and, finally, continues: "You can think about it as the second layer of the skin. We can add some clothes for the shapeshifting if we wear them for a long time. So..." Red closes her eyes again, and all her dragon attributes get back. "See! Here it is." She points at her head with a smile. And, the ring is really there, on her right horn. "Are we going to the town, right? So what are we waiting for?!" While I''m thinking about the next question, she returns into human form and jumps off the sofa, heading right to the front door. Wait a minute! "Let me, at least, explain some important things." I barely manage to catch her shoulder. Why has she suddenly become so confident about the outer world? "I don''t want to stop when we''re finally close to finding a solution! I''m sure you can explain stuff on the way." Red looks very excited. Why does she trust me so much? "Okay-okay, sure. But what about your appearance?" "What''s wrong?! It''s my favorite dress." She gently smoothes out some folds on it. "Well, it''s a bit damaged, but it''s a gift from my dear father..." I''m sure she just can''t go out in those clothes, which look like a couple rags wrapped around her body, resembling a dress from a southern country. To be exact, it''s composed of plainly decorated bands covering the chest and a long wide ribbon around her waist with a piece of cloth hanging attached to it, so it covers her crotch. They have some lovely metal decorations on them, but most of them look broken and dirty. Besides, she has no shoes except a pair of similar ribbons wrapping her feet. Obviously, it''s not an outfit you want to wear in an overcrowded city. Even if she is okay with it, what about other people''s reactions?! What if they call the police? I shake my head. "Sorry, but that dress is unacceptable." "What do you mean?... Uhh, the human culture, I forgot!" Red looks at me with visible embarrassment. "How can you even forget about clothes? You''ve said that you''d already visited the human village before." _And what do you mean by ''human culture''?_ "Of course, I was prepared - I''d borrowed a cloak from Saia''s hoard. But this time, I just forgot. Everybody makes mistakes. I''m not used to contact with humans..." She turns away irritably. But after a moment, she continues more calmly as if she understands my worry. "Okay, I can explain. We, dragons, don''t care much about clothes. In our main form, we''re already covered with tough scales and usually wear only jewelry. The clothes are made especially for meeting with other humans. Like some traders or others who don''t want to kill us on the spot. People seem to act strangely if they see us nude in our human forms." Red giggles as though she''s remembering something hilarious. "So, our clothes should be something that doesn''t bother us. That''s why they may look too simple or too odd for you." She looks at me curiously. "Anyway, do you know how to get a new outfit for me?" Actually, I do. One of the rooms on the second floor may have something that Red could wear. My ''hoard'' of old items, including some old clothes. Apparently, we can find something fitting for her. In my late teens, I had many clothes and other cool stuff related to rock music. If I remember right, some of them are oversized. I stopped being so fond of collecting those things, but the existing collection is still here. And now, I''m curious if something from it suits Red - her red hair seems to fit that style pretty well. I open the first box of clothes... Yeah, there''s a lot of sorting to do.
And after some time, I find a set of clothes that could fit Red. A pack of loose-fitting T-shirts to cover her heart stone, some stretchy shorts, and even a pair of sneakers. Red examines all that stuff with visible curiosity and enthusiasm. _Hey, don''t look at them like it''s already a part of your treasure hoard._ "Okay, now you can try them on and choose the best ones." "Suuuure~" Red gets up off the box and closes her eyes. With a soft rustle, her own clothes fade out, like her dragon attributes before. _Wait, let me go out first! No one has taught you decency?!_ What a shameless creature! Man, so embarrassing... But, wait, she said that dragons are used to being naked in their ''main form''? What does it even mean?! Ehm, is it the sound of ripping fabric? Uhh, I hope at least some of the clothes will survive it. "Ray, where are you? I was able to put on these pieces!" Red peeks out of the door. "Why have you left? I had some troubles with this..." She demonstrates to me the entirely torn shorts. As I expected, some of them haven''t fit her at all. Or these clothes just were old and fragile, I can''t tell for sure. Well, I will throw away the old stuff and finally free some space here. I step into the room. Heh, the T-shirt she chose has a print with a dragon logo. "Honestly, I don''t think your clothes are better than mine..." Red is constantly spinning around, inspecting her new clothes. "But I like them anyway! They feel so light, even lighter than the clothes I''m used to. Sadly, there''s no place for a tail..." "It suits you really well." Heh, she blushed a bit. "Maybe I can give you some accessories to complete your look." Hmm, where is it?.. One of the drawers contains my old collection of rock-themed jewelry. I liked to collect that stuff... Maybe I could be a good dragon in my next life. Oh, there it is! "What is that? Ooooh!" Red stares at the drawer over my shoulder. And in no time, she hovers above the drawer in front of me. Her eyes shine while she''s looking through the collection, picking up and rotating items. "Re-e-ed?" No reaction. I wave in front of her face. "Red!" She blinks and looks at me, puzzled. "Mm?.. Oh. Eh?" "What''s wrong? You''ve been examining that box for five minutes now." Dragons in myths are known for incredibly loving gold and other precious stuff, but I expected them to be just fairy tales. "I... I''m sorry. I can explain. Honestly, I miss playing with treasures so much. Unfortunately, when I was with Saia, she didn''t allow me to play with her treasure hoard at all. I''m really sorry..." Red looks at me pitifully. "Can I play with it for a little more? Please?" "You can, but..." Uh? Suddenly, she gives me a firm hug. "Thank you!" She looks so delighted. Her sincere smile... It''s so warm. Okay, I can forgive her anything for this smile. "...But what about the town? You wanted to go out so much, didn''t you?" Red''s face instantly switches to a confused one. Can''t decide, heh? She steps back and sorrowfully glances at the box, but after a moment, she shakes her head and confidently looks at me. "I can play with this later. So, we can go to the town now, right? Right?" Well, Red seems to go back into the "excited about the town" state. "As soon as you''re ready. Also, please, don''t do anything reckless in the city. It''s okay that you broke the table, but it will be horrible if you break someone''s house or car." Though, I still feel sorry for my new dinner table... "I understand! Don''t think I don''t care about anything around. And I''ve apologized for your table. Let''s go!" The next moment, Red grabs my hand and drags me to the exit. Hey, slower! The door creaks, and there we go. Fresh air, bright sun, the whole outer world... 3. A whole new world Uh, the sun is so bright today. Heavy showers of the last week changed to a sunny spell, and the air is clean and fresh. Looks like this August will pamper us with some pleasant days for a little more. I live at the very edge of the city, so there is a perfect row of tiny houses on the one side of the road and a bunch of trees on the other. I think there''s that road curve on the hill that Red talked about behind those trees. Yeah, living on the outskirts of the dormitory town has its pros. Like, some wandering dragon can settle in your basement... Due to all the stuff that has happened today, I feel like I wasn''t outside for, like, a week. But it''s only midday. So we have a lot of time to wander around. Will we find anything? This town is the sleepiest one of all cities that I''ve been to. Although we have a dragon girl right here already. I don''t know what else to expect... The street is absolutely empty. I see a few cars moving on the bypass road around the town. It looks like Red can hear them too - she tries to hide behind my back almost immediately. "Don''t worry, this town is not as scary as you imagine." "I''m not scared! I''m just ...trying to be extra careful." Heh, she looks pretty funny when she''s trying to hide her embarrassment. "By the way, where are we going?" It''s a good question - I have no idea. "Anywhere where dragons can be. What kinds of places do dragons, or maybe mages, prefer?" "Hmm. It actually depends on the kind of dragon. Some of them like deep dark caves, some prefer moisture... If I lived with humans, I would choose some high places to be sure I won''t miss anything important: like possible invasion or other bad things." "And what about mages?" "Uhh. I''ve heard they like towers, but I''m not sure." Red shrugs her shoulders. Sounds like typical fantasy mages, huh? High places, eh? Then, we should go to Adverton. It''s such a big city with several skyscrapers - it can be a good place for a dragon. Hmm, if I remember right, a few buses go to Adverton at midday. It''s not a popular time - most people go there in the morning and evening. And that''s great for us - the fewer people, the better. Suddenly, a car from nowhere rushes past us. Red gasps quietly and firmly cuddles up to me, frightened. Uhh, you promised you''d measure your strength! Oh, she''s shaking... It was naive to think that her fear of cars would disappear in a few days. Wait, are these scales on her arm? Geez, I need to soothe her fast! "Don''t worry, it''s not so dangerous." I try to make my voice as soft as possible, petting Red''s head. "I''m here. I promise they won''t hurt you. See, it''s gone already." She looks at me with doubts. Then, after a while, she releases me and scratches her head with a heavy sigh, looking guilty. The scales on her arm slowly disappear. I really hope no one has seen it. "I..." "Don''t worry - it''s okay to be scared. But I want you to trust me a bit. I swear, there''s nothing dangerous. Here, you can take my hand when you''re frightened." Perhaps it''s a bad idea to go out while Red acts like this. How can we go to the city of cars if she can''t stand even a single one? Maybe we should wait for a few days... "I''ll be fine. I trust you." Red grips my hand firmly. "I can handle it. Please, keep helping me with my search. I can''t slack anymore - Sai can be in danger..." What a determined dragon... "Okay, let''s keep going. There will be a lot of cars. But we have rules that help us walk safely along with them..." And while we are walking to the center of Wintara, I''m trying to teach Red what automobiles and traffic rules are.
It took way longer than I expected. Right when I''ve finished explaining, we reach the affluent area. More high-rise buildings, more randomly wandering people... I hope I''ve taught Red about the city well enough - it probably feels very questionable when someone explains the most basic stuff to an adult. We don''t want to look suspicious, right? Red keeps gripping my hand. It looks like it helps her stay calm, but it makes me embarrassed. We are not on a date, are we?... At least Red doesn''t shudder at any car sounds anymore. Even more, it feels like she''s enjoying the city, constantly turning her head with visible curiosity. It''s incredible how fast Red adapts to the new environment. Though, she''s still trying to stay as far as possible from the road. Suddenly, she starts sniffing the air and pulls me to the side. Oh, she already sensed a dragon nearby? "What''s happening?" I try to spot something unusual, but I don''t see anything strange around. "Do you find anything?" "What is that thing? It smells so delicious!" Red points at a hotdog stand at the entrance to the park. I can hear a quiet rumbling of her stomach... She covers her belly with her hand and looks away, embarrassed. Huh, she just wants to eat. I was worrying too much. A broad-shouldered seller with a big mustache has noticed our attention. He widely smiles at us and starts waving, calling us to come closer. "Welcome! We have hotdogs of all sizes, either with or without extras. Also, we have a discount for couples." He winks and points at the menu at the side of the stand. Uh, the prices look as if we''re already in a big city. But in fact, there''s a small discount for buying two pieces. ''For couples,'' huh? "Okay, we''ll have two big hotdogs, one spicy and one not." I suppose Red will enjoy spicy food. But if not, I''m okay with swapping and eating the other. "How spicy do you want it?" "A lot!" Red responds before I manage to answer. Whatever... Excitedly, she looks at how hotdogs are being cooked. "Got it, extra spicy. You''re a brave one! I hope you won''t regret it when you''ll breathe fire like a dragon." The seller laughs loudly. I hope she won''t! Please... Finally, our hotdogs are ready, and we go to the park to find a place to eat. Only a few people are still wandering around, so we can rest and talk here without much caution. Many benches in the shadow of the green trees combined with the excellent weather promise good rest. Mmm, so relaxing... Surprisingly, the hotdogs are actually tasty. I expected way lower quality from our city center. Oh, but what about Red? How will the dragon handle spicy food? When I look at her, she''s already eaten most of the meal. Despite my concerns, she eats it without any problem, definitely enjoying every bite. Now I''m curious about what kind of food she usually eats. Do dragons cook or not? Or maybe she just needs to recover from her injuries, which requires a lot of energy. If it''s true... I offer her half of my hotdog. "Thanks..." She glances at me with surprise but takes and consumes it in a few seconds. Wow, that''s fast. "If you want more..." "Oh, don''t worry about me. In this form, almost the same amount of food as humans is enough for me. But I still need to recover enough magic before I can fight mages without risks." "Emm, magic from food? That simple?" That sounds a bit bizarre. "Uhh, how to explain... Basically, we turn extra food into magic power, so the more I eat, the faster I recover." Red smiles and leans back on the bench. Honestly, that''s impressive. I bet everyone wants to get stronger just by eating more... "Is it the only one way?" All stories I''ve read depict mages gaining power from some element or nature. Gaining it from food makes some sense, but it''s a bit of a disappointment. "Normally, we recover our power from the mana stored in the environment, but your world doesn''t really have any strong magic streams. Actually, I don''t see any streams at all! I start believing you about no magic in your world. So, it turns out that here the only way to recover for a dragon like me is just eating more..." Red releases a slow breath.
I expected tons of problems going to Adverton, but Red was okay with moving in a crowd of people. Right, she said that she''d visited the village before, so people are not frightening her. The biggest problem now is getting her on a bus. It takes quite a while to explain that sitting inside the "scary metal creature" is absolutely safe. Thankfully, her curiosity takes over her fear, and now she is just excited to see a big modern city. Adverton... It''s such a big city nowadays. But from what I''ve heard, it started as a tiny village near a small plastic factory. But it grew into a massive city in just a few decades, especially after the factory owner had been mysterious changed. If the old one was focused only on growing the factory itself, the new one started spending a lot of money on urban beautification. Obviously, it wasn''t just for being good. They also opened more small factories to find more workers. And they started to promote the city as an excellent place for a new life. It was risky, but it worked. So now there are plenty of people. Several universities. And that''s why I''d moved here - to study in one of them. After getting off the bus, Red suddenly stands still. Her mood drastically changes from what it had been minutes ago. She''s so tense now... Something is definitely wrong. Ugh, where can we talk far from without unwanted ears?Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I grab her hand and lead her to hide between buildings. I hope no one can hear us here. "What''s wrong? You don''t look like yourself." She shudders slightly and looks at me. "Remember I''ve said that your world didn''t have any strong magic sources? However, this city is overflowing with mana." "So, there are a lot of mages here?" I understand that she''s scared of mages, but at the same time, we are willing to find them. So, it is good, right? "I don''t know. There''s a lot of mana, but I can''t see any magic streams around. It feels so wrong... Like mana just appears here out of nowhere." "Is it dangerous?" I don''t know how magic works. I hope it''s not like radiation. "No, mana in itself is totally safe. I just don''t know what to expect. And the more mana is in the air, the more difficult it is to spot the magic user. Like a fog, but for mental vision." Red shakes her head and forces a weak smile. "Don''t worry, we can go on now. I just need to be extra cautious." Well, that''s already something. Anyway, where should we go? There are many different districts, each one with its own city legends. What do dragons and mages like? High places, treasures... Okay, let''s check the most affluent area first. There are many antique stores, maybe there will be some magic items, who knows. However, I don''t really want to show Red the subway. It''s scary even for ordinary people... Red is already so nervous, and we''ve just started our investigation here. Is the amount of magic still increasing? I know that I shouldn''t distract her, but being that concentrated is also harmful. Maybe some small talk could help? But what can we talk about? I can''t ask Red about the magic world right now, as so many people are around. And I still barely understand anything. It all happened out of the blue. A few days ago, I knew nothing and was just wondering who she was. But now I''m helping her find mages and return to her world. It''s all exciting and fascinating, it sounds almost like some video game plot, but it''s not. I might take Red''s story seriously - someone definitely wanted to kill her and almost managed to do it. It''s not a joke. And I''m just an average human. Can I help her for real?.. "You''re worrying about me again, aren''t you?" Red touches my shoulder. "Oh, sorry..." Wait, why am I apologizing? "Heh, do you remember that I can clearly feel your mood?" Red giggles. "I''m happy you look after me, but you shouldn''t overthink it." "But..." "You''ve already done a lot for me, let me take care of what I know, okay?" Well, she''s right. Maybe I''m really trying too much. Uhh, I want to be a hero in this situation, but it certainly won''t happen... Now I see that Red relaxed a bit now. Apparently, I''m really just overthinking it. "Have you discovered anything?" "Oh, it''s not a discovery. I''ve just come up with an idea about the nature of the magic source. I''m not sure... But if I''m right, it will be great." Oh, well. I hope Red will tell me later what came to her mind. I have so many questions! Suddenly, she freezes in her tracks again. Huh? Red? What is it now? Oh my gosh, I''ve almost forgotten that she''s a dragon. Obviously, she can''t just pass by a collection of old jewelry. "Red, it''s not the right time to do it. You need to focus, okay?" She''s just motionlessly staring through the glass. Ugh, I wonder why hunters haven''t captured all dragons using just a big pile of gold in the middle of the city... Okay, how can I return her to this reality? Yeah, her goal. "Red, you remember about Sai, right? About your hurry?" "Why do they have all that stuff almost in the street? There are no knights or guards around. What are they thinking about?" Oh man, it will be hard... "Think about it as a ...trap, yeah. And please, stop acting suspiciously. People start giving you a side-eye! We need to move." "But maybe I can try to grab at least something? I can run fast, there are many people on the streets..." "Red, please, stop." A hard piercing stare. Ugh, the chills run up my back. Is it an enemy? A mage? I abruptly turn around, but all I can see are a lot of cars on the road. Who?! Where?! "We must go, now!" I grab her hand and, with all my strength, try to move her. Surprisingly, she stops peering into the store window and allows me to pull her away. The sinking feeling ends as quickly as it started, leaving me confused. What was that? We walk swiftly for a few street blocks before Red stops me. "Can you explain? You suddenly became so scared. But why? I don''t feel any threats around. The only thing I''ve noticed is the sudden change in your mood." "I was feeling like someone was intently staring at us. But... Ugh, I have no idea why I assumed that, sorry..." Actually, why? I haven''t seen anything dangerous. Was it just my imagination? Well, at least we''ve moved away from the store. "Oh, I see. It''s fine. It''s totally okay to trust your feelings." Red looks at me with doubt in her eyes. "Though, maybe I was too focused on the treasures and missed something... I''m sorry, they caught me flat-footed. I haven''t expected to see a huge amount of wealth in one place." Eh, dragons...
I''m slowly getting exhausted. We''ve been walking for two hours but still haven''t found anything. The same high presence of mana and no traces of any mages. Of course, we are not in a fantasy movie, so what have I even expected? "Red, shall we have a snack or just return home and try again later? What do you think?" "I don''t know. I remember you''ve said about no magic here at all, but I hoped to find at least something. I was too optimistic..." "Okay, so what about a food break? I know a good place - we can eat there and then rest in the park nearby." I''ve heard it''s a spot with prices surprisingly moderate for the city center and fantastic food quality. I''m not sure, but at least we can try. I can hear some rumbling from Red''s tummy. "I count it as yes, do I?" She instantly turns away and blushes. Man, I love seeing her getting embarrassed. And, what is more important, her mood begins to lift. Don''t worry, little dragon, we''ll find something, apparently. Eh, it takes us a half an hour to find a street with that cafe. It''s hidden surprisingly well - inside the "Wings of Dream" office complex. If I remember right, it''s a company that makes plastic toys and figurines. Is it just a subsidiary of the primary plastic factory? Anyway, I haven''t expected the local company to have a big complex with cafes and a whole garden. Oh, do they even have their shop there? Wait, isn''t it an anatomic model figurine?! I''ve been searching for this one, but all online stores always have it out of stock. "Oh, now _you_ seem to be excited?" Red looks at me with a grin on her face. Ugh... Everyone has their own weaknesses, okay? Anyway, let''s find the cafe and rest for a bit. We walk through the security post. Oddly, an old lean gatekeeper asks me to show him my ID card. Ugh, I''ve expected just to pass inside, given that it is a public place. Weird... Oh, just checking random people, well. Then, why only me? Do I look extra suspicious? Or just naive and easy to handle... I''ll never understand their criteria. Though I''m glad they didn''t ask Red the same, I have no idea how we would get out of it. Oh, there''s that cafe. Finally, we''ve found it! Looks like it''s not crowded, and we can find a place to quietly sit and discuss our plans... Suddenly, Red grips my hand firmly. Too firmly. Erm, what''s up now? "Do you want to eat so badly?" I try to pull a joke, but she just stands motionlessly and stares at a certain distant point. Her eyes have turned into the dragon''s ones, yellow, with vertical pupils. It''s definitely not a good sign... Then I hear an explosion. Are you kidding me... A giant column of smoke rises from a building in the next block in exactly the same direction that Red is gazing at. People around start standing up and leaving their places. Some just keep gazing, and some run away in panic. Ugh, I hope Red doesn''t want to go there. Red? "You wanted to go home, right? Now it is the right time to do it." She turns around and heads for the exit. No way it''s a manifestation of magic! But Red''s reaction is too straight. "Wait. Stop!" I barely manage to catch her hand. "You''ve just started getting used to the city. What do you expect trying to go to a new place totally alone?" "But I don''t want you to put yourself in danger. It''s way too risky. Let me go!" She''s trying to free her hand, but I hold it firmly. "No. Listen to me, please. It''s just impossible. There will be a lot of police. And maybe even the military. They will catch you anyway. And I can''t imagine how dangerous it will be in the middle of a clash between the mages and the police." Red looks completely confused. It seems that she is close to agreeing that it''s too unsafe. But at the same time, she''s finally found something related to her world. _I want to keep investigating, but I don''t want you to hurt yourself. Please, understand me..._ I firmly squeeze her hand and close my eyes, hoping for the best. Finally, after long seconds of thinking, she releases a sad breath. "Impossible, huh... Okay, let''s go home for now."
Phew. Only after closing the front door I feel safe. Thankfully, our bus wasn''t canceled, though I can''t remember anything from our way home except that tormenting sense of hopelessness emanating from Red. Unfortunately, we haven''t had an opportunity to talk about the situation on the way, so I hope I can finally get an explanation now. Red walks straight into the room and falls on the sofa. While closing the front door, I can hear a muffled ''thud'' and the rustle of her clothing. When I turn back after locking the door, I find that she''s already changed to her old dragon dress and now rests on the sofa in her half-dragon form, swinging her tail left and right irritably. Her ''modern'' clothes are now lying on the floor. "Are you mad at me?" After all, it was my idea to return home and forfeit our chance. She looks at me with sorrow. "No, I''m not... I''m just angry at myself. This feeling of despair and uselessness." She turns on her back and exhales heavily, so I can see a small cloud of smoke coming out of her mouth. "You did everything right. I should thank you, I guess." I have no idea why you thank me, but I still want to confirm my suggestions: "So, that explosion was actual magic, wasn''t it?" "Yeah, it was. And if it was the work of a single mage, I can''t imagine how powerful they can be." She sighs again. "Obviously, I''m not in the right condition to challenge such a powerful person. And if it was a group of them, it''s even worse." "But why have they done it?" I thought mages wanted to keep their existence a total secret. "Who knows? I know that their groups conflict with each other. So maybe it was something like this." Hmm. If it''s a conflict, there are at least two sides in it. Maybe we can find one of them and somehow make a deal. Sounds good? Though, I still have no idea how to do it. We need more information. But where can we find it? I catch myself pacing from corner to corner. Red is looking at me with a slight smile. "I''ve already asked you, please, don''t overwhelm yourself with my problems, okay?" Hey! Red grabs my torso with her tail, forcing me to sit on the sofa next to her: "Calm down. You''re tired - it''s clear even to me." Red makes a forced smile. "I don''t blame you at all. If you hadn''t stopped me, I would be dead now. So, please, don''t worry and rest a bit." I haven''t thought about it, but now I feel that I''m dead on my feet. Resting... Maybe it''s a good idea. But how can we relax? Watch some films? Oh, TV news! An explosion in the city center is a big event. Probably, journalists have started to search for clues about the situation. Also, the authority should publish at least some statement about the event, there are too many witnesses. "You can''t rest even for a minute, huh?" Red is looking at me with visible concern. "We can gather some information about what we saw today. It''s already time for daily news." I immediately turn on my TV. Today in Adverton, a massive explosion damaged the skyscraper and nearby buildings and homes, authorities said. The explosion occurred at about 4:30 p.m. inside the building at the apartment of the PetroTech CEO, located near its child company - Wings of Dreams. Authorities believe there were no other fatalities, but eight people were injured. According to unaudited reports, the CEO of PetroTech - Priscilla Duval - was in the building at the moment of the explosion happened. At this point, her whereabouts remain unknown. The representative of the §ãorporation refused to comment on the situation. The police are urging everyone to stay calm as they have already started the investigation. Oooh... It''s way worse than I''ve imagined. I''ve believed that mages are wise, albeit strange people. But terrorism and hurting innocents are entirely beyond the bounds. I hadn''t imagined that my simple idea could be that unsafe. Red''s tail is touching me again. What? "Hey, don''t be so frightened. As I''ve said, mages are very dangerous, but you have me on your side. And, as long as we haven''t met, they don''t know where we are. We''re safe for now." "But what about the gaze that I''ve felt today?" I still can''t forget it. That feeling was so strong and real... And it was not friendly at all. "It was just a single gaze! You''re overthinking it again, there''s no way..." But the doorbell cuts her short.