485 Dec 1

Flames danced at the tips of my fingers as I thought about what to do with the half elf in front of me. A lot had happened to me in the last three years. All of it starting with that little red marble. Becoming a dragon had changed my entire life. The bleak outlook on life I'd had as a young human had been completely obliterated.

The future I now had as a dragon was unknown, but most of it seemed bright. My bonded were my closest friends, and had changed everything for me. Now that I could see the constraints of our bonds clearly I could loosen the restraints the bond placed on them. Ethan on the other hand was connected to me directly through my soul. He didn't have any restraints on his mentality anymore.

His life was now permanently linked to mine. He had mental freedom, but protecting me was a requirement for survival for him now. Now he had a piece of my soul. That aggression that came with being a dragon was something that he might have to deal with now. Becoming a dragon kin had been a painful experience for the both of us.

I'd lost a piece of my soul to him, and he'd had a piece of my soul grafted on. He'd been the one that had taken too much of my power, and damaged his own soul in the process. I kind of regretted hiding in my old human form, but at the same time it had been completely necessary for my survival, and here I was thinking of doing it again. My time in the guild had been open, but not honest. I wanted to be allowed to be myself, and still be allowed to live.

The deception was necessary, but not what I wanted. I wanted the same freedom to exist that humans had, and I wanted that freedom on my birth planet. I needed power, and respect to even stand at the table of world leaders. I had the power I needed. All I was lacking was the respect.

My time in this world had been hectic. A real mess all around. I'd spent very little of that time being completely honest with myself. All that confusion, and fear had really done a number on me at first. Regressing back to childhood in a completely different body was a good reason for my confusion, and fear.

Now that I'd matured as a dragon I'd completely accepted who I was, and what I could do. That brought me back to the boy in front of me. He was a half elf. Just barely over fifteen years old. Sent here to spy on the human army in exchange for his mother's safety.

They'd cut the tips of his ears off, and beaten him more than once. I understood his fear. I didn't understand his loyalty to his mother. Maybe it was the fact that my own mother had died before I was old enough to remember. Maybe it was that natural detachment I'd developed now that I was an adult dragon.

The important part was that this dainty young man in front of me looked like an elf, and could do what I needed. He could speak elven, and he didn't want anything to do with the elves. He was a perfect cover. He would work as my inside man if I went to the elven world. I stood up, and he startled at the movement.

"I don't intend to harm you," I spoke reflexively, "There's no need to flinch like that."

My mind was wandering while I spoke to him. Two lines of thought running through my head at the same time allowed me to organize, and go through my thoughts very quickly. To me it felt like I'd been here for an hour or more, but in reality I'd been here for less than five minutes. I had to be careful to speak slowly. If I spoke too quickly he would think I was angry with him.

This one was fragile when it came to authority figures. I was definitely an authority figure whether I wanted to appear to be one or not. I was a dragon king. I was the authority figure above all authority figures on earth. I resisted the urge to smirk or make any odd gesture at all.

I was enjoying his fear. I could smell it just as clearly as I could see it. I was halfway tempted to move further away because of the smell. I didn't have the greatest sense of smell so a half dozen steps back would be enough to take me out of range, but that would be a mistake. Fragile people needed closeness, stability, and kindness.

My muscles tensed slightly without affecting my exterior. How could I get to this kid? How could I turn him to my side? He was terrified of the elves killing his mother. I was surprised he'd submitted the way he did so far.

I wouldn't have submitted so easily. Then again he didn't have the same power or drive that I did. I sat back down in front of him. The chair of earth I'd made for both of us to sit on wasn't exactly comfortable, but it was better then standing.

"I know that the elves took your mother from you," I laced my fingers together slowly, "Would you mind helping me get her back?"

His eyes sharpened suddenly.

"What are you proposing?" His tone was far less hesitant than it had been a moment ago.

"I am thinking of a good faith gesture between my kind, and human kind," I allowed my crystals to show themselves.

My aura bursting forward with that simple act. My intent was spread throughout my aura. Right now it was mostly harmless with a small tinge of bloodlust. The smell of his fear was truthfully intoxicating.

"It's simple really," I smirked, "I'm taking the land I'm sitting on as my own, and I want those humans to leave me alone so I'll need to give them a reason." I paused as if thinking, although it was a deliberate pause, "There are two ways I can do that. One being through fear, and the other through a goodwill gesture. Bringing back the human slaves will work wonderfully for a goodwill gesture."