15-22. Friends and Foes

“She likes you.”

Elijah opened his eyes and glanced backward to see a slim drake standing nearby. She was almost two feet taller than him, though her shoulders were much narrower than his. That, combined with her long arms and iridescent scales, put Elijah in mind of a walking snake.

“I know,” he said, his hand still resting against the ekolasas’s pebbled scales. As it turned out, his first impression of the beasts had been accurate. They were entirely content with their lives, and most had formed strong bonds with their herd as well as the people tasked with tending them.

They weren’t so different from pets, with very similar levels of intelligence. Maybe slightly smarter than a dog, but not nearly as intelligent as an orca.

“You know you’re not supposed to be in here,” the drake said.

Elijah shrugged. “I had to check.”

“Check what?”

“That this entire caravan wasn’t built on enslavement,” he answered. “From afar, it didn’t feel like it, but I needed to get closer to know for sure.”

“And if you turned out to be wrong in your assessment?”

“Nobody wants that,” he sighed. “Least of all me.”

“I suppose we passed your test, then?”

“You did. The beasts seem happy.”

The woman stepped forward and laid her hand next to Elijah’s. “She’d better be,” the drake said. “Mona here eats better than most people, and she has everything she could ever want.”

“Mona. Not a name I expected,” Elijah admitted. “But then again, I once had a dog named Fremont, so I guess I’m not in any position to judge anyone else’s naming sense.”

“You’re a Druid, aren’t you?”

“Guilty,” he answered. Then, he pulled away and extended his hand. “Elijah Hart.”

The drake took it, though her long, slender fingers engulfed his. “I notice you left off the es Vyrin.”

He shrugged. “It’s new.”

She laughed. “I am Tisk.”

“No es etcetera?”

“Not for someone like me,” she answered. “Technically, we’re cousins, if you can believe it.”

“Oh?”

“Three or four times removed,” she explained. “Most dragons are at least somewhat related. Such is the problem when you’re more worried about avoiding extinction than genetic diversity.”

Elijah nodded along. It was a subject that had been on his mind ever since he’d discovered his inability to father draconic children. It hadn’t really bothered him at the time, but the situation had brought some concerns to light. Specifically, the interbreeding that had obviously occurred throughout the history of the Empire of Scale.

It reminded him of early near-extinction events where human population had dropped dangerously low. Like the Toba Supereruption or the Bottleneck that had affected early humans. In both cases, the population had dropped as low as a thousand breeding individuals. That was one of the reasons that humanity lost much of its genetic diversity, resulting in a much more homogenous population than many other species.

However, those events had also resulted in negative effects, such as a higher mutation load or inbreeding risks.

But perhaps dragons, being creatures closely tied to magic, were different.

He didn’t want to think about those sorts of issues, though. Largely, because they didn’t really affect him. He might’ve been an adopted member of Kirlissa’s family, but to many within the Empire of Scale, he wasn’t a real dragon.

Maybe that was true.

He couldn’t propagate the species, after all. And that seemed like an important part about being a member of a species. Not the most important, but definitely not negligible.

Pushing those thoughts out of his mind, Elijah patted Mona’s leg. “Well, I’m glad to find things this way,” he said.

“It feels like there’s a threat in there.”

Elijah shrugged. “No threats necessary.”

“You realize that there are more than a few deities in this caravan, don’t you?” she asked.

“I do.”

“And you still think you’d win.”

“It’s not about winning or losing,” he stated. “It’s about doing what needs to be done. And if I’d found Tamers in charge of these animals…well, I think you can guess what would’ve needed to be done.”

“I see. You think quite a lot of yourself,” Tisk observed. “This isn’t the arena, though.”

“I’m very aware of that,” Elijah stated. “Out here, I wouldn’t hold back.”

She chuckled, and some of the tension dissipated. Not all of it, though. “Oh, you are very full of yourself. I’m certain the others just love you.”

Elijah shrugged. “I’ve never really concerned myself with what other people think of me,” he admitted.

“Maybe you should change that. Offending the wrong people could get you killed,” Tisk advised.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Well, while you’re thinking about it, maybe you can help me out,” she said. “Mona needs grooming, and given that she tolerates you…”

“I’d be happy to help,” Elijah said. “Just tell me what to do.”

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As it turned out, grooming the giant beast was mostly about scrubbing her pebbled scales with a stiff brush. The ekolasas loved it, and by extension, she loved Elijah. He also checked her feet for any issues and scrubbed her flat teeth. All in all, it only took about two hours, but Elijah found that he enjoyed the process. More, as he got to know Tisk, he realized that she was a much more pleasant person than their initial conversation indicated. The only issue was that she didn’t really want to talk about anything but the various beasts she’d helped raise on the ranch where she’d grown up.

So, by the time they’d finished, Elijah was more than happy to leave the paddock behind. The space abutted the warehouse where the wagons were currently being loaded, so it didn’t take Elijah long to find a few familiar faces. Some, like Imal, were expected, but others had come out of nowhere.

“Elijah!” Alrhok exclaimed, pushing himself upright. He and the others had been sitting around a hastily erected table and sharing a meal. “They told me you were here.”

Elijah clasped the big dragon’s wrist, asking, “What’re you doing here?”

“Not happy to see me?” he asked.

“No. I mean, yes. I don’t know. It’s just unexpected. What’s going on?”

After that, Alrhok explained that his parents had cut him off, which had forced him to search for his own means of advancement. “It’s what I wanted, really. Without their support, I’m free to do what I want,” he said. “The problem is that there aren’t that many people willing to take on a demigod apprentice with no real experience. So, I took the only offer available to me.”

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“I took an interview in She’evoth,” he answered. “Builder’s helper. The guy specializes in constructing temporary frontier forts, so he likes the idea of having someone with combat experience around. I fit the bill. Kind of a hybrid role. You know, half guard. Half apprentice.” He shrugged. “Best I could find. In the meantime, I’m hitching a ride with this caravan.”

Elijah glanced at the other newcomer. “What about you?”

“Bodyguard. For you. Sara hired me,” Okar stated.

“She knows I beat you, right?” Elijah asked.

“With bullshit,” the halfling said, his bare feet up on the table. He picked at his fingers with a dagger. “If we fought again, I’d win.”

“I’m sure there’s an arena or a training circle in She’evoth. We can put it to the test there,” Elijah offered. Most of the latter wouldn’t allow him to use his abilities, so his confidence was probably misplaced. So long as he had his spells available, he could beat Okar, but without them, the halfling probably had an edge.

As annoying as that was to admit, even to himself.

“Fair warning, though. There are some others on their way to She’evoth,” Okar pointed out. “That’s why your sister sent me along.”

“What others?”

“Cyran, for one,” Alrhok provided.

Imal, who’d so far remained silent, added, “A few others from the tournament, too. And some people from his clan.”

“What? Why?”

“Cyran needs to redeem his Meritorious Act Token, just like you. It’s the same with Fosch’in,” Alrhok explained. “There are a few others that got lesser tokens, too.”

Imal raised a smaller wooden coin. “Tenth Treasury,” she explained.

“How many treasuries are there?” Elijah wondered.

“Eighty-one,” Okar answered.

“It would be a multiple of nine,” Elijah muttered. “So, you’re all coming with us?”

“And about a thousand others,” Alrhok said. “Probably ten thousand when we include the other caravans.”

Then, he explained that the Coreway wasn’t entirely safe, and that the protection of a transcendent – especially a famous fighter like Mano – was too enticing to turn down. Most Merchants and other travelers had chosen to delay or move up their trips to take advantage of his presence.

Of course, Mano’s protection wasn’t free, and they’d all paid a handsome sum for the benefit of his presence.

“I sometimes forget he’s kind of a big deal,” Elijah admitted. Sure, he could feel the dragon’s power, but Mano usually kept it tightly constrained. On top of that, familiarity tended to cut through some of that.

“Kind of a big deal?” Alrhok muttered. “You can’t be serious.”

“What?”

“Mano’leth ak Vyrin is one of the most famous dragons in existence,” he said. “I grew up hearing stories about his battles.”

“Really?” Elijah asked. It was obvious that Kirlissa considered her son a disappointment, which had given Elijah an apparently false impression of his worth. It also reminded him that relationships with family tended to be complicated.

Over the next few minutes, Alrhok recounted the tales he’d heard, most of which sounded grossly embellished. Like the one about Mano cleaving a star in two. Or the one about throwing a moon at an opponent.

Were those things possible? Maybe. But Elijah had some difficulty wrapping his mind around them. The scale of it all was too unreal.

Was that what was in store for him? Would he one day be capable of destroying stars? Would he even want to do that? The many questions that came in the wake of Alrhok’s explanation of Mano’s feats were not soon to be answered. Perhaps not ever. Or at least not until Elijah reached that stage of development, which was far from assured.

More likely, he’d end up dead in some forgotten Primal Realm.

Or of old age before he found his path to transcendence. Maybe he’d tire of searching for it altogether and settle down with a family. The reality was that, for almost everyone, transcendence was nothing more than a dream, unachievable and barely real. It took true rarity to travel that road.

And even then, a good deal of luck was involved.

No – Elijah wouldn’t bank on that. He would focus on the here and now, and if one day, transcendence came, he would take it as it came.

However, it did put Mano into perspective. After having interacted with him and Kirlissa, Elijah knew his perception of the pinnacle was a bit skewed. Most people never even met a transcendent. A good many would never find themselves on the same planet as one.

“Why are you smiling?” asked Imal.

“Just realizing that there’s an opportunity here,” Elijah said. “Anyone know where Mano is?”

No one did, which wasn’t a shock.

So, Elijah set off to find his adopted brother. He didn’t need to look far, because the second he was alone, Mano appeared. Not out of thin air or anything. Instead, he didn’t present himself until Elijah turned a corner.

Leaning against a crate, he said, “You were looking for me?”

“Have you been following me?” Elijah asked.

“After a fashion, yes,” Mano answered. “I can’t keep you safe if I don’t keep an eye on you. What did you want?”

“You’re a transcendent, right?”

“I am.”

“And you’re thousands of years old.”

“A few centuries shy of fifty thousand, yes. However, age with dragons is a bit of a sore subject. Some count only from the attainment of sapience. Others, from the moment of birth. In my case, the real number is made more complex by the duration of my transcendence, which is difficult to include. It took quite a while.”

“That means you have a lot of experience.”

“Again, that is true.”

“Care to share any of it?” Elijah asked. “I’ve been training with Birk, but…well, as you can see, he’s not around.”

Mano chuckled. “That old drake is still at it, is he? Does he still live next to Tura?”

Elijah nodded.

“I remember that training ring very fondly.”

“He trained you?” Elijah asked.

“Of course. Nearly every martial transcendent in the Empire of Scale was trained by him at one point or another,” Mano explained. “I had the benefit of spending more than a thousand years with him. Without that, I never would have survived my deity years, much less reached transcendent.”

“I only got him for a couple of years,” Elijah admitted. “But even that was enough to change everything about how I fight.”

“As expected,” Mano stated. “There was a time when I would have said that Birk is wasted as a trainer. I would have insisted that the empire would be better served with him on the front lines. Now, I know different. He is an invaluable asset, and he is responsible for countless lives.”

“You respect him.”

“More than nearly anyone else. Don’t let my words fool you. Birk has spent his time fighting the Ravener’s forces. He was a true terror on the field of battle.”

“What happened?”

Mano pushed away from the crate. “Nothing. He was tasked with training some whelp, took a liking to it, proved himself to be someone special, and he’s been doing it ever since.”

“I see.”

“So, you want me to take his place?” asked Mano.

Elijah shrugged. “You seem like the best option. I have no intention of resting.”

Mano grinned. “That is what I wanted to hear,” he said. “I will give you a few pointers, but not until we reach She’evoth. The journey through the Coreway can be very dangerous, and I will not split my attention.”

“I understand. And thank you.”

He reached out, his massive hand engulfing Elijah’s entire shoulder. He gave it a squeeze. “We are brothers, both of blood and philosophy.”

“I suppose we are,” Elijah admitted.