I am Leo the Dragonkin, and my weapon is a flute. The songs I play can put my foes to sleep.
I write my own story, for I have written many legends before my own. "All hail the Dragonkin!" my allies in the tavern cheered. "You have saved another soul once again!"
The king assigns my team several quests, mostly to test our strength and loyalty. I am always stuck informing the king of our success.
I am not who my allies believe I am. They believe the Dragonkin slays dragons, but rather it means I was raised by one.
Grognor the Skyshredder, a dragon who found me in a basket on a mountaintop. He taught me his language and I taught him the language of humans.
The dragons who I encounter flee in fear, for they sense my father's presence. Grognor was the most feared dragon in the land. The Land of Clear Skies; Soranok.
All was well in the tavern. People danced to the music of the travelling bard, glasses clanked together with rum, and a young maiden bursted through the doors.
"My child, oh my precious child. He ran into The Withered Forest!"
The celebration came to an abrupt stop. "I'm sure your child is long gone by now. No sane human would dare step into that place." a drunk patron cried.
"I will offer a reward of 5,000 gillie!"
"Mistress, do you really have that much? You don't look the part, might I add."
"Of course. I am a personal friend of Princess Alsia. That much would be nothing to her, and she owes me a favor anyway."
The room went silent. It was clear that this forest was truly something to be feared. The reward of 5,000 gillie would be a dream to any true adventurer.
"Then, I'll volunteer!" I shouted. "Leo, you are a madman! Not even an group of high ranked soldiers could make it through that forest!" one of my allies shouted.
"Then I shall go alone!"
"That is an even crazier idea. You're going to get killed. That flute of yours can only do so much."
"I'll take some daggers as well, but I'm certain I will not die, for I fear no beast or demon that roams Soranok!"
I leave the tavern as my allies and the tavern patrons stare with a hanging jaw. The forest was only a few miles away.
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The Withered Forest, even the sight of this place gave a lonely feel. Life was extinct here, and the only thing around me was the dried out corpse of darkwood trees.
Now that I thought about it, I never even asked for the child's name. My plan to just call out for them was already in ruins.
I marked the trees I came across with a symbol. It was going to be my only means of escape. "Child!" I shouted. "If anybody is out here, follow my voice!"
There was shuffling in a nearby bush. I pulled out my flute. "Show yourself, or I will force you out." There was no response.
I played the 'Melody of Reveal'. It seemed to be nothing, but as I approached closer. It jumped out at me!
A Leaping Root Spider! I dived out of the way and crashed into a tree. It hissed and prepared for another jump. My flute wasn't enough.
As it jumped towards my chest, I drove a dagger through its belly. I had no fear for the eight-legged hairball.
It's swung its legs around, scrapping my cheek. I took another dagger from my belt and stabbed it repetitively. It's corpse curled up and dropped to the ground.
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Further and further into the woods I travelled. A dark gray mist covered my vision as shadows played in the corner of my eyes.
"Dragonkin, I have awaited your arrival." A voice shouted in the dragon's tongue. "I knew you would jump at the difficult quest offered to you. It was a foolish mistake."
"Show yourself dragon!"
"I am Skile the Mistspreader, and the only way you can save the child, is by defeating my champion!"
Several knives flew directly at me, one scrapped my arm. I dropped to my knees as the poison started to spread.
"Let me introduce my champion, Seever the Assassin!"
It was a cheap shot. It was just as I would expect from such a title. His black cloak mixed well with the mist. The only visible feature was the mask he wore.
"Destroy him assassin! We will be one step closer to defeating Grognor!"
Seever swung his cloak and vanished into the mist. I stared at my flute, knowing it would not be enough.
For once, it was a challenge worthy of using my powers. The powers I obtained through countless hours of training with my father.
Seever emerged from the mist behind me. My knives deflected every blade he threw. His foot connected with my chest, sending me spiraling through a tree.
This power was abnormal. It seems I wasn't the only human raised by dragons. Skile had this planned for who knew how long.
The assassin took flight once again. "Sko!" I shouted. My cheeks filled with air and exploded from my mouth. Seever was stopped dead in his tracks.
"Ra Sho!" His body slammed into the ground. "Get up assassin! This can't be all your mortal body is capable of!"
He tried to stand, but the bones in his body was shattered on impact. "All humans have different styles." I explained.
"His skill lied in the shadows, his body wasn't made for head to head showdowns."
"You promised... to protect me!" Seever shouted, with what little strength he had. "You said this was supposed to be easy."
"Silence!" Skile ordered. Seever threw a vial towards me. "Drink it."
"Why are you helping me?"
"This power isn't earned, it's created. The dragon he's-"
"Silence!" A dragon dropped from the sky landing directly on him. Whatever wasn't crushed before was destroyed now. I took a drink from the vial.
"I believed the power I gave him would make him much more loyal, more powerful; it seems I was mistaken to call him my champion."
"What do you hope to achieve by challenging Grognor? What makes you so confident in defeating him?"
"Why would I tell you my plans? How much of a fool do you take me for?"
Sha...
"What are you doing, Dragonkin?"
Ko...
"Using your tongue against me? Go ahead, show me what you are made of."
Rahk!
His wings folded, defending against the powerful wind pushing him back. "It's not enough, Dragonkin!"
The mist cleared and the child came into view. I raced towards the boy, lifting his unconscious body on my back.
"So, this was your plan? You plan on running away!"
The words I spoke did two things. The first was cause a powerful wind to clear the mist. The second...
"Get back here!"
A dragon dropped in front of Skile. "Grognor! How did you know of my location?"
"In our language his words only hold one meaning, but between the two of us, we gave it another."
"A cry for help, how pathetic."
"Yes, Leo knew he couldn't challenge you, but he knew that I can."
I managed to reach the exit of the forest. The boy was unconscious, but he was still breathing. As I waited for him to awaken, I took this time to write in my journal.
I closed it back up as I finished writing. "Don't worry kid, you'll be home soon." It was a short walk back to the tavern.
I left the battle like a coward. This was why I hated praise, I knew there was things out there stronger than myself, and yet I still acted as a hero.
Yeah, dragons flee in fear at the sight of me, but it's only because they know my father is one step behind me.
Now, it seems that fear is gone, for they got a new plan for overthrowing him. Keep your head up, father.
ns 15.158.61.42da2
