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The next morning Ryonir found himself with a face full of hair as he bolted upright, breathing deeply while picking strands that he had somehow inhaled during the night out of his throat. This was enough to wake up Flynn and together the two elves got up and looked out to see if they could travel today or if they were going to spend another day there. Thankfully the sun was shining and birds were chirping, the dragon knight running down to wake up Zefrit and pack up his belongs. Within the course of the hour they were off on the muddy road once again, at least until they were outside of the town where the two elves would be able to hop on the dragon and wing it into the sky.

They got another good three days of flying, the weather holding out until grey clouds once more threatened to rain down upon them. Even though both Ryonir was keen on getting to the Frostword Vale as soon as possible they admitted that Flynn was right on wanting to stick to the roads. They were also quickly heading away from the territory that viewed dragons as friendly; the further away they got from Gildeon the worse relations between people and dragons got. At this point people were mostly neutral towards them, the towns they visited still able to recognize the difference between a good dragon and a bad dragon.

"You know once we get to Aborran we're not going to be able to fly anymore," Flynn commented as they walked through the city streets of the small town they had landed near. "With everyone on high alert waiting for Karlix to attack they will most likely shoot first and ask questions later."

"At least we can get close enough to the border that it's only a few days of walking, maybe a week to get to the Frostward Vale," Ryonir replied. "If your calculations are correct it would then be another day or two before we get to the dread dragon's lair, and since I haven't heard any news of dragon attacks yet it appears we still have time left. But the sands are running out of this hourglass quickly, I don't want to be there just in time to watch Karlix rain fire and destruction from the heavens on anyone."

Flynn just nodded and commented that he needed to make sure to stay well rested and keep up his strength, Ryonir just giving him a nod and trying not to roll his eyes. While it was sweet that the other elf wanted to make sure he was alright he wasn't made out of paper, especially since his entire purpose was to slay the evil dragons out there that would normally murder most normal knights in their sleep. Still, there was something to be said for travel fatigue and after pushing it for the last few days both he and Zefrit were starting to feel it. Though it was hard to tell with the overcast sky it was likely about to turn to night too, which meant they would likely be using this place as a stopover until morning where it hopefully won't rain and hinder their trip further.

Though Ryonir wasn't in the mood to buy anything the walk around the market stalls also helped clear his head and keep him away from Flynn and Zefrit, the former looking into what supplies they could get while here while the latter was waiting outside of town just to be safe. While the townspeople here wouldn't likely attack a dragon, there were always opportunists that see a dragon knight's mount as a means to make some extra coin. Though Ryonir felt a little lonely without his companion by his side, seeing the various wares for sale helped distract his mind as he came up to a jeweler's cart.

"I can see it in your eyes," the vendor said, causing Ryonir to look up as she gave him a smile. "I bet I can figure out the perfect piece for you to have."

"Oh, no, I wasn't-" Ryonir started to say before the lady held up a finger to stop him, then reached down and pulled something out of the bottom of the cart to hand to him.

"This necklace is perfect for a young Dragon Knight like yourself," she exclaimed as he looked down at his hand and saw a silver chain with dragon's tooth hanging from it that was cast with gold. "Normally I'd say a ring for your complexion but I know that elves tend to prefer necklaces rather than rings, don't ask me why but whenever I see those pointed ears I think to myself that I'm probably selling a necklace today. Now the chain is sterling silver in order to offset the gold of the... and the shine you... is a great deal..."

At first it sounded like the lady was skipping some of her words, but as the world started to spin Ryonir quickly realized it was him. The last thing he remembered seeing was the dragon tooth necklace in his palm before he went head first towards the dirt. He vaguely heard the scream of the jeweler before everything started to fade to black, then nothing but the sound of the wind...

The wind... he could hear it howling brighter as he opened his eyes again and despite the darkness found himself able to see shadows of shapes moving about. Even though there was no lightning to illuminate the area this time he knew exactly where he was, especially when he heard the rumbling breathing that could only come from a very large dragon. "What is this?" the booming voice said, a midnight-black paw holding up what looked like a golden tooth in his palm. "Some sort of trinket to satisfy my greed, a platitude to prevent me from doing what I'm about to do?"

Karlix... even though Ryonir couldn't see anything else he knew that somehow he was in the layer of the dragon, perhaps imprisoned in the cave of the creature? If that was true then he was definitely looking at a past memory... but if somehow the magic that the dragon used on him linked them together then maybe he was in some sort of item, helpless to do anything but watch the dragon implement his plan. He tried to curse and shout but nothing seemed to respond as he lamented his lack of memory to solve this puzzle. But as he saw another form moving in the shadows of his vision he realized that it wasn't just himself and Karlix in that cave...

"Do you not understand what a gift is?" the second voice said, this one also the deep rumble that could only come from a dragon. "I got it for you as such because it was sentimental, you don't have to do anything for me back."

The first dragon, whom Ryonir believed to be Karlix, let out a cackle that practically shook the walls. "My horde is full of such things as this, why would one more piece make any difference to me?" he said mockingly. "If you are merely saying that you wish to breed again you don't have to make such gestures, all you have to do is ask. I enjoy feeling you wiggle underneath me..."

"You don't understand!" the second dragon shouted back, their voice also rattling the stone walls slightly. "It's not simply a matter of rutting!" There was a moment of pause, the silence so deafening that Ryonir could hear the wind once more outside whatever cave he happened to be in. "I... I..."

A sudden sensation of cold and Ryonir opened his eyes to find himself in the light, sputtering and gasping as he sat up in the bed he was in. Once more he found himself soaked to the bone, this time not only was Zefrit sitting at the side of his bed but also Flynn. "You need. To stop. Doing that." Flynn said to the silver dragon as he grinned down at Rynoir.

"Why?" the dragon replied. "It worked, woke him up from whatever nightmare he was-"

"Quiet!" Ryonir said loudly, causing them to both stop and look down at the wet elf who was grinning at them. "There's another dragon!" He said excitedly, the two looking at one another before going back down to him. "Don't you see, there's another dragon at the Frostward Vale!"

**************************************************************

Once Ryonir had gotten dried off again he filled in the two on what he had saw in his vision, or his memory, he still wasn't quite sure which one was which. Either way he had heard another voice that was somehow connected to Karlix, and another dragon to boot. He said all of this between bites of food as he suddenly found himself famished, which was explained by the two that after he had fainted in the market they had brought him to the nearby inn where he slept the entire night and most of the morning. It was also why both Flynn and Zefrit had continued to look at him in concern as he rattled off everything he could possibly remember about his dream.

"While it does sound like a solid lead I'm more concerned about your health Ryonir," Flynn stated as he watched the other elf practically licking the plate he had just cleaned off. "This is the second time in as many days that you've had one of these nightmares, and if it does have something to do with Karlix then it's possible the closer you get the worse your condition will deteriorate."

"What condition?" Ryonir asked as he put the cleaned plate aside. "I told you guys I'm fine, must have just been something with the heat of the day."

"I'm actually going to have to agree with Flynn on this one," Zefrit stated. "If this Karlix does have some sort of power over you and you go confront him then who knows what's going to happen? I think it might be best if we sent word back to Gildeon and tell them that they'll have to get another Dragon Knight to take care of Karlix, there'll be other dragons that we can go after."

Ryonir couldn't help but give them both a stunned look, causing the two to look down at the table and away from him. "I can't believe I'm hearing this from you guys..." the elf said accusingly. "If anything I'm more than qualified to be the one to take down Karlix! I don't know what he's done to me but whatever it is I'm possibly able to see what he's doing, which means that I might know exactly when he leaves his lair and where he goes. Plus if I really am seeing him in a vision it means there's not much time, whatever parley this other dragon is doing isn't working and he'll be out destroying villages long before we can get word back to Gildeon about what's going on!"

Though both elf and dragon didn't seem too keen on agreeing with him eventually both nodded in approval, asking him what they were going to do next. "If there's another dragon in the mix that's trying to stop Karlix from going on a rampage maybe we can use that to our advantage." Ryonir mused. "Flynn, do you have a book or any knowledge on the other dragons of the Frostward Vale?"

"None that ever made any of my books," Flynn responded quickly. "I'm sure that the Aborran kingdom has a directory of dragons that they've made over the years, both metallic and chromatic, but it's going to be at their capital. Plus since it won't be safe to fly once we cross into their borders that means we're going to be taking a large chunk of time out of our travels."

"Well... not that large," Zefrit commented, motioning for Ryonir to pull out his map before pointing at a line that ran along the Frostward Vale mountains before turning into the capital. "There's a major river that runs from the capital down along a valley near the mountains, I remember flying over it the last time we were there. If we go up and get the dragon directory on the Frostward Vale we can charter a boat and breeze our way down until we get to the likely location of Karlix's lair."

"So it's settled then," Ryonir stated as he rolled up his map and put it away. "Looks like we're off to the capital of Aborran."

Unfortunately the rain that they had hoped wouldn't hit the area did, and though they were still able to travel they had to take it slow to avoid causing any accidents. It also got darker much quicker than usual and they had to find a place to land among the trees in order to try and find some cover from the rain overhead. Flynn commented on how much he hated the rainy season as he rang out his clothes before putting them over the fire they managed to create after the rain had lightened up. Both Ryonir and Zefrit were thankful that the archivist knew some fire magic, otherwise they would have been forced to shiver in the darkness instead of cozying up to the crackling fire that had been created.

As Ryonir took off his shirt to hang up near the heat he felt something hit the skin of his chest that caused him to look down. His eyes widened when he saw the dragon tooth necklace hanging from his neck, feeling the golden metal warming with his body heat as he gently picked it up and looked at it. For a second he braced himself in case something happened like the first time he had seen it, but when nothing seemed to happen he went over and ask Zefrit and Flynn about it. The dragon hadn't even realized that he was wearing it and the other elf merely thought that he had already bought it from the jeweler before he collapsed, especially when she didn't say anything about him having it after they started to drag him off to the inn.

After a quick check to make sure it wasn't magical, which it wasn't, Ryonir felt bad about having it when he didn't pay but knew that his mission was too important to turn back now. He just made a mental note that when they were successful with their mission he would go back through and pay the jeweler. The three continued to sit around the fire and eat, looking up to see that the clouds had broken and the nearly full moon was starting to shine down upon them. It made them happy that it wouldn't be raining down on them for the entire night, though everything was still rather wet as Flynn left his books in their waterproof sacks.

"So have you regretted coming with us yet Flynn?" Ryonir asked as he noticed Flynn frowning as he looked into the fire. "Still time for you to high tail it out of here, if you catch a break you could probably be back in Gildeon before we even make it to Aborran, much less the capital."

"No..." Flynn replied softly. "I think despite the bad luck we've been having I feel like this is exactly the place where I need to be." The elf looked up at Ryonir and gave him a grin. "Plus if I was back home I'd probably just be having my nose in a book anyway, at least out here I can get some fresh air while I'm doing so."

All three of them laughed before deciding that it was time to settle in for the night, Ryonir and Flynn retiring to their tents while Zefrit found a place where he could hunker down. Even though the Dragon Knight was exhausted he found himself staring up at his tent, all the questions he hoped he would find the answers too in the Frostward Vale still swirling around in his mind. A growing part of him was itching to get there, not just to slay the dragon that threatened the land but to see if he could find out what happened to him. Between the rain and his passing out though it felt like he was being tortured... someone out there deliberately making him suffer for longer with the giant void where his past used to be.

Ryonir wasn't sure how long he laid there but a rustling of the bushes near his tent caused him to sit up slightly. Whatever had passed by his tent was too large to be some forest animal... and in the pale moonlight whatever it was cast quite the shadow. The demon knight summoned his weapons, the liquid metal forming into his gauntlets before he walked outside. The moon light gleamed against the metallic claws that had formed on his fingers as he silently stalked the creature that had somehow snuck into their camp. Was it an envoy of Karlix, the elf wondered as he moved to some bushes that had been pushed aside...

The elf breathed a sigh of relief when he looked through the shrubs and saw that it was just Zefrit, the dragon had found a small pond that glimmered in the moonlight and was bathing himself. He stood up and went over to it while dismissing his gauntlets and watching his mount splashing around. "Going for a midnight swim?" Ryonir asked, causing the dragon to stiffen for a brief second before identifying who it was. "What are you doing out here at this hour?"

"Couldn't sleep," Zefrit admitted. "You too?"

"Yeah..." the elf replied. "Here I thought I was finally going to be able to put my weapons to use, appears there will be no stabbing tonight."

"I hope not at least," the silver dragon said with a chuckle before motioning with his head. "Why don't you come in and join me? It'll be just like those hot springs that we found in those hills a couple days away from Gildeon."

Even though the pond looked the opposite of hot the elf decided to do so, stripping off the clothing he had worn to bed and going in with just his loin cloth. The water actually felt surprisingly warm and refreshing to him as he swam with his dragon companion, the two reminiscing about their time not only traveling but also in Gildeon. Ryonir found all the stress and anxiety he had with confronting his first evil dragon melted away as he swam in the moonlight with his pal, bringing back all the good feelings of the old times. Eventually the two went back up to the shore to dry off after finally growing tired of the water.

"Hey Ryonir..." the dragon said with a mischievous grin on his face, the elf looking at him in question. "You missing something?"

Ryonir wasn't sure what the dragon was getting at until he followed his gaze down and realized in shock that his loincloth had somehow gotten loose during their swimming! He looked back out over the pond but even with the light of the moon overhead he couldn't see anything, something that caused him to sigh. "Relax," Zefrit said as he nudged him with his shoulder. "It's not like it's the first time I've ever seen you like this, I believe the first time we met you were running down the slope of the mountains without anything on."

"I'm sure that's how you noticed me," Ryonir replied as he gave up the ghost on looking on the water's surface for his missing clothing. "Not every day you see an elf running bare-ass naked off a cliff."

"It did make you quite noticeable," Zefrit said as he unfurled his wings. "Not a moment too soon too, just as I turned in you had leapt right off the edge of the cliff. I dove down as fast as I could and swooped you right up before you became part of the landscape!"

The dragon mimicked the action he just described and grabbed Ryonir with his forelimbs, though with his unsteady limbs they both went down to the ground as they laughed. As the elf quieted down though he realized that the dragon hadn't let him go, instead he could feel the hard scales pressed against his chest as they looked at each other face to face. There was a moment of pause between the two, neither of them talking as the large muzzle of the dragon hovered closer to the face of the elf. Slowly their movements grew closer to one another, marked with only momentary stops of hesitation, and finally their eyes closed as their lips met in a kiss...

Ryonir practically gasped and nearly threw himself out of his bedroll, still feeling the pressure against his mouth as he looked around frantically for the dragon whose forelimbs he had been in. When he finally gathered that what he was feeling was the bedroll against his body he shook his head and realized that he had just had a particularly vivid dream about kissing his dragon. Unsurprisingly when he revealed the rest of his body he found himself hard as a rock, though with the nature of the tent being somewhat open there was little else he could do about it except wait for it to go down. As he did he took note of his surroundings and realized that day had broken, the light of the moon replaced with the sun as he slowly stood up and stretched.

It took twenty minutes for him to finally get soft enough to stick it back into the pants that he was putting on before donning his armor, effectively hiding the bulge and keeping it from forming once again as he tried not to think about Zefrit's dream kiss. While not forbidden in the Dragon Knights it was generally frowned upon to have a relationship with a dragon when you were not one yourself. Plus in all the years that they'd been together Ryonir had never felt this way before with the silver dragon, so why suddenly was he thinking about it all the time now? Was it because of being a Dragon Knight, and this was just something that they didn't tell their new recruits?

Either way it wasn't something he could really think about at the moment, Ryonir thought to himself as he went out and saw Flynn and Zefrit sitting by the fire cooking their breakfast. After he had finished the mission and gotten back to Gildeon he could ask the elders if sudden dragonlust was a temporary or permanent condition caused by becoming a dragon knight. As he sat there opposite of the two he wondered if Zefrit was having the same problems, though from the glance and smile that he got from the dragon it didn't appear to be such.

"So I think I might have some good news concerning our hunt for Karlix," Flynn announced, causing Ryonir to suddenly snap his attention towards him. "I've been sending out feelers ever since we started this trip and I finally got word that there's another archivist that is in a border city to Arborrna that may have information on the dread dragon we're hunting."

"That's great!" Ryonir replied as he took the food from the other elf. "The more information we can get on this creature the better, is it another elf or a human?"

"Actually... it's neither," Flynn stated after a moment of hesitation. "It's from a pack of werewolves that wander the border between the two kingdoms." Both elf and dragon looked at Flynn in surprise and he just gave them both a small shrug. "I was just as surprised as you that they have them, but their pack is coming back this way and if we manage to get to the town before they sweep through they'll give us all the information that they have on Karlix."

"Are you sure that's safe?" Zefrit asked. "Especially with how close it is to the full moon, won't they freak out?"

"It's all we got if we want to try and get their information," Flynn explained. "If we wait until after the full moon then the pack is going to keep heading south and won't come back up this way for another month, which I don't think I need to explain how that doesn't work for us."

Though none of them had ever met a werewolf firsthand the stories that had reached Gildeon were less then flattering; often times they were described as ruthless mercenaries that worked for whomever would pay them the most and spent their time in packs wandering in whatever territory they were paid to protect. When the full moon came out those bestial natures would come out in full force and anyone who dared to get in their way while their bloodlust was at its fullest would not leave those woods alive. They were just stories... but they were definitely convincing as they continued to weigh the potential risks involved with getting this information. Of course if they didn't reach their destination, which was still a few days away from the border, it wouldn't matter what the creatures were since they would miss them before they traveled south.

The three risked one more day of flying in order to attempt to get to their destination as quickly as possible, even though they were getting close to the border of the Arborrna kingdom. When they finally did land for the night at the last town before they reached it they could tell that word of an impending dragon attack has traveled far and wide. Even before they had gotten into the town's borders Zefrit was getting dirty looks, and that was with him being a metallic dragon and a mount for a Dragon Knight. If this was the reception they were getting before they reached Arborrna... Ryonir let the thought trail off as he watched the dragon hide over in the nearby woods.

"Sometimes I wonder if we should bring Zefrit with us," Ryonir admitted as they walked inside the small town. "People already look at him strangely when he's with us, what are they going to think if he's off on his own like that?"

"You know that these towns aren't designed to handle dragons even of Zefrit's size," Flynn replied simply. "Either he would have to be put in the barn like a horse or we would have to find some place big enough that he could squeeze through the door. Plus as I mentioned before the further away we get from Gildeon the less respect people have for their kind, even if they don't see Zefrit as a threat they could see him as a way to make some coin selling him off piece by piece."

The thought of wandering through the market and seeing various silver dragon parts being put up for sale was enough to make him shudder. "Fair point," Ryonir said in concession. "It's unfortunate that he doesn't know how to shapechange into a humanoid form, then it would be easy to bring him in to places like this. Do you know when he might be able to do such a thing?"

"Mmmm, from what I've heard learning how to change one's form isn't exactly an easy skill for any creature to have," Flynn explained. "Even though Zefrit has been an adult for a while he's going to need probably at least another fifty, maybe even a hundred years before he can muster up the power to attempt that. Some dragons can't even do it at all, and some can but are rather... repulsed by our bodies to want to."

Ryonir nodded, remembering learning during his training how to spot a dragon in human disguise and that one of them is the note of curiosity or disgust they have in everyday things. For metallic dragons it tended to be the former while chromatic dragons were the latter, and often evil dragons would only do it just to infiltrate a town and see what was worth setting on fire so they could loot it later. In all his recent life Ryonir had never met a chromatic dragon and if the stories are right he never did. As far as he can remember all the dragons that made pacts with the dragon knights were metallic as well, just like Zefrit who was off somewhere probably watching them from the edge of town as darkness began to fall.

The two elves walked around a bit before setting up in the inn for the night, making note of how the moon was almost full as they did so. From the messages sent to Flynn via magic the werewolf pack had been slightly delayed, which was just fine for them since it gave them an extra day to get to the border. Flynn was also fine with the idea and said they could walk it the rest of the way, which would help protect Zefrit and give them a better first impression than flying over a town filled with people frightened for a dragon attack. The two elves took the time to plan out their new route to the capital and back, noting the extra time and the potential pitfalls of going via river.

Once they had sufficiently exhausted all their planning they found themselves to be the last ones up in the tavern, a single flickering candle and the fireplace the only illumination as they held the drinks that they ordered. "You ever think about what it's like?" Flynn asked, Ryonir looking at him in question before the other elf clarified. "Being a dragon, like Zefrit. We were talking about how some dragons go through their whole lives without bothering to shapechange into a humanoid creature, do you think that if the tables were turned and you could become a dragon instead you would?"

"I... never really thought about it before," Ryonir replied, looking down at the liquid in his mug. "I suppose I would try it at least once, maybe fly along with Zefrit instead of having to ride on top of him." As the words left the elf's mouth he suddenly remembered the dream he had in the woods and had to turn away in order to attempt to hide the flush of embarrassment from the thought. "So I suppose I would, what about you?"

"I think... I would fly away and never look back," Flynn stated.

"Really?" Ryonir asked in slight surprise. "You would just give up everything you have in Gildeon and live like a dragon for the rest of your life?"

"A life in the city for a life in the clouds?" Flynn said wistfully, glancing off for a second before looking back at Ryonir. "I suppose I wouldn't have to give up my life in Gildeon either, in fact they would probably promote me if I had the ability to turn into a dragon. But I suppose such flights of fancy are best left to the world of dreams, and speaking of such we had better turn in if we're going to make it to the border on foot in a day. I'm sure you'll appreciate having a dry bed with no dragons around to splash water on your face to wake you up either."

Ryonir chuckled and nodded, the two of them finishing their drinks before making their way to their respective rooms. It felt strange for the dragon knight to walk in and not see a silver dragon sitting there waiting for him, though with the bizarre events that had been happening to him lately it was probably a good thing. The absence would give him a chance to clear his head and refocus on what was important, which was taking down Karlix and trying to find out clues to his past. While he doubted he would find his life story scrawled on the wall of a cave he might find some token that told him who he was and where he had come from.

An origin, that was what Ryonir hoped to find up in those mountains, a place where he had come from. While Gildeon was nice and Zefrit was a great friend he imagined that somewhere out there was a village that missed him, parents that lamented the loss of their son and others that wondered where he had gone off too. At this rate though they probably believed him to be dead, the elf thought with a frown as he shifted in his bed, killed by the dread dragon that had captured him. If that was true though he could only imagine the homecoming he would get... if that hadn't been taken from him too by that monster of a creature.

"I'm going to make you pay Karlix," Ryonir said to the darkness as his fingers fiddled with the necklace that hung from his neck. "One way or another you'll have to answer for the sins of the past..."