Tribulations of a Dragon

Having left the city walls, our flight takes us over expansive farmlands, and the crops are growing very well, it seems. Farmhands pushing carts with crops litter the small roads running between strips of grow plots.

"Kira, are you distracting yourself on purpose?"

Having climbed onto my nose, Raya looks me right in the eyes as she asks. Watching her turn her head slightly to switch between which of my eyes she focuses on is fun, but I guess I should answer her... As I tell her that I might be, she follows it up with the inevitable 'why.'

"Because if I don't, I end up thinking about how some of the people in the city wanted to kill me, and when I think about that, I want to kill them first. But we're doing so well being on friendly terms, so I need to control myself…"

Instead of replying, Raya just pats my muzzle a few times, offering nonverbal reassurances. Lauren, on the other hand, has something to add.

"I have thought about that and there's something odd about how things transpired. The people of the city recognized your help. Even the guild members who were opposed to your presence would rather have you leave than risk a confrontation. Yet certain members of the nobility called for your execution quite vehemently. Such matters tend to be deferred to the Guild, but they were insisting to the point of undermining the Branch Leader. There's only two ways it makes sense, the first being the obscene value of a Dragon your size, and..."

They're cultists. I hadn't even thought about that, but I'm gonna use the excuse of being very occupied since waking up after the first battle since we showed up. I think it would be smart to bring this topic up with the scared elf, so we can get her help pointing out the people who don't like me.

With a banking turn, we head back toward the city. I do have to come back to these farmlands, though. There's something magical going on with how they grow crops, and I want to learn more about it. If earth mages can aerate the soil by using their magic, then that could be helpful to avoid plowing. Focus, Kira! We've got nobles to... inspect.

As we aim for the square, Lauren draws my attention and describes the guild office as being part of a larger area where I should be able to land. We're following a road, and up ahead lies a gate. It looks more like a service entrance, given how much smaller it is than the other gate. It looks to be made for carts instead of wagons. As we approach, shouting can be heard from the guards as they try to get a somewhat chaotic situation under control.

Passing over the gate is Lauren's cue to give directions, and she's quick to get to it. We're passing over residential buildings, and more shouting can be heard, but this time, it sounds a lot more cheerful as it mixes with birdsong.

The place Lauren has picked out for us isn't quite big enough for a soft landing, but that's not my problem. The people underneath are quick to scatter as I hover above them and, folding up my wings, I drop, landing on my hind legs.

The area is littered with shops marked by signs corresponding to what they specialize in. They range from armor, weapons, and potions to rations and general supplies, and it makes sense that they'd set up around the guild.

And identifying the guild is as easy as watching a bunch of people rush out of a building with weapons drawn. Though when they get a look at me, they lower their weapons and calm down. From within the cluster of people, someone calls out what sounds like a command, and at hearing it, the people in the doorway relax and head back inside.

They were quick to react, but they seem even more practiced at returning to their seats. Before they're all gone, I ask someone to bring Tae'liri out here, since she's who we want to talk to. With a nod, the random adventurer I pointed out returns to the guild office. Since we're waiting, Raya takes the opportunity to fill the silence.

"How are you feeling, Kira? Hralthar said you were very hurt, but his salve would help you heal faster."

"Now that you mention it, I do feel a lot better. Not quite a hundred percent, but I'm getting there."

Drawing on my magic, I push it throughout my body to get a sense of how I'm doing and I'm not just feeling better, I am better. Most of the parts that hurt have stopped hurting and I'm-

"How is your belch sac? He said that it was the most damaged part of you."

"I have no idea what a belch sac is..."

Reveling in knowing something I don't, Raya begins explaining that dragons have three sacs inside us. A crop, the stomach, and a belch sac. The latter being where flames are formed, and mine was torn and burnt in ways Foreman hasn't ever seen before. That doesn't sound good at all, and it sounds like I could have died if not for Merciferus stepping in. How did he even know? Wait, Raya made fun of him needing a shower... I don't want to know...

Leaving that topic alone, I turn my senses inward and have a look at my magic lake. It certainly isn't as hellscapey as it was, but there are scars here and there showing that I did overexert it.

As I inspect myself, the door to the guild office swings open and Tae'liri joins us in the street. She still smells frightened and it's getting annoying. I don't know how to fix it, though, so for now, I'll focus on our purpose for coming here.

Bringing up the topic of nobles and cultists does spark interest and worry as the elf thinks about the matter.

"My pardons. I mean no disrespect, oh great Dragon. It is a matter we thought of days ago, yet we cannot confirm or deny the validity of such a ploy."

She's freakin' bowing to me now... Before I get a chance to reply and tell her to stand up properly, Lauren asks me to lower her to the ground. The moment I do, she climbs off me and walks to Tae'liri.

"Kira, would you mind exploring the matter with Raya? I need to talk to the branch leader about this behavior of hers."

With a nod and a nudge, I leave Lauren to it and head off toward somewhere with Raya. I'm not actually sure where the nobles live, but if I keep my nose ready for the scent of death or corruption, I'm sure we'll find something.

Part of me wants to stay to help Lauren with reassuring Tae'liri and keeping my friend safe in case something happens. But I have to trust that she knows how to stay safe. Sometimes.

We don't have much in the way of choice for which street we go down to leave the guild, and I should have taken more time to map the city from the sky. But it's too late to worry about that. We have exploring to do and cultists to scorch. If I can scorch them, if not, I'll settle for squishing them.

We're crossing into the afternoon and the streets are emptier than I would have expected. A few drunks wander out of alleys, only to turn around and disappear when they spot me. This appears to be a residential street, and the occasional window opens with a person hanging out to look at us pass by. Every single building has a slight tingle of magic to it, and each tingle feels almost exactly the same.

We definitely need to do something similar in Tuiran. Having the entire town enchanted would be amazing, even if the tingle gets a little annoying. Perhaps Foreman can do it with his runes.

That's for later, for now, I'm gonna focus on the smell of manure being replaced by the scent of flowers from flower beds hanging from the windows along this street. Not every window has the same flowers, but each and every one of them has a small, well-kept garden. It's quite enjoyable to walk through, and the mixing scent of a nearby bakery makes it even better.

As we continue down the street, one scent in particular stands out... It's familiar... With quick instructions, I ask Raya to knock on the window by the tip of my nose. Ignoring the look she gives me, which is definitely questioning, she steps onto my nose and does as I asked. Moments later, it swings open with a very confused woman peeking out, and the moment she makes eye contact with me, she freezes, but I know just how to handle this situation!

"Hello! I could smell the lovely scent of your cooking, and I would like to buy a plate for Raya and me!"

Perfect politeness! Her confused expression doesn't go away, though, but she isn't frozen anymore, so that's progress. Disappearing from the window, I hear rummaging, and combining that with the fact that she left the window open, my hopes for this soar!

The unexpected sound of wood scraping across floorboards draws my attention and, moving my eye to the window, I see that she's pulling a small table over. She has a lovely home, decorated with paintings and filled bookshelves. With the table in place, she brings over a large cooking pot and the scent of delicious food intensifies.

"Raya, do you still have some of my money?"

Sticking her hand in her pocket, Raya pulls out ten gold coins and holds them out for me to see. One of which has a five on it while the others have ones. As she pockets them again, she concludes that she has fourteen coins. It's a little odd to me that they count in coins, but coins have differing values.

Turning my attention back to the lady with the food, I find her staring at me with quite some intensity before speaking up.

"Train station. Airplane. Cellphone. You recognize those words... The common terminology is coin in our world, but you said money, not coin."

"What's she saying, Kira?"

Those are familiar words, and she is speaking in my old language instead of Raya's or Lauren's, although her pronunciation is a little odd. Explaining the words to Raya only deepens the stranger's stare, and I'm gonna go ahead and guess that this person is a traveler. I feel like I can safely make that guess. I'm just gonna ask her if she's a traveler.

"No, but my mother was. She taught me her language before she passed. Along with many recipes and secrets from her old world. She had so many tales of wondrous things and machines. It sounded like pure fantasy. Speaking of, I do have something back here."

Dang it, my guess was wrong... Turning away, she walks to a bookshelf and pulls out a leather-bound book before returning to present it to me. It's a cookbook written in my language! Ooh, and it has a few familiar recipes and some fancy restaurant dishes. I don't get much of a chance to study the book before the lady slams it shut and disappears into her home again.

As she returns, she's carrying three bowls with the book nowhere in sight. Ladling up the dish, she starts handing a bowl to Raya before filling the other two. With a bowl in hand and a spoon settled into it, Raya pokes a sausage a few times, looking at the pile of deliciousness with a questioning gaze. With her first taste, it becomes obvious that she gets it.

Getting a good look at it, it's a simple last-day-of-camping dish from my old world. It was always a good day when mom made that. My dad called it Going Home, and I don't remember ever learning the actual name for it.

Spices, potatoes, milk, onion, garlic, tomatoes, and sausages for the base recipe. First, the potatoes are boiled and put to the side. Then the onions are added to the pot along with garlic until lightly golden. The sausages are cut up and added along with whatever spices the chef prefers, such as chili. Stir it well and add in the potatoes and milk. And finally, salt and pepper to taste. From the smell of it, she's quite familiar with the recipe.

It's a thick, orange mess of a dish, but it keeps well and tastes like vacation.

"My apologies, I don't know how to feed dragons..."

"That's okay. I'll just open my mouth and you can pretend I'm a large, friendly animal. Throw it in and keep your hands to yourself."

Pulling my head back a bit, I open my mouth just enough for her to throw a bowl's worth of sausage taters in. The flavor hits immediately as I'm reminded of camping trips with my parents in my old world.

With my mouth closed again, Raya ends up level with the window and shoves her bowl at the stranger, demanding another bowl. It's a little rude, but it does get a laugh as she ladles up another bowl for Raya.

"Remember to pay for it, Raya."

With an indignant look and the spoon in her mouth, she dips her hand into her pocket and pulls out her money. Jumping the small gap between my face and the window, she leaves the coins on the table, only to steal the pot and jump back onto me. Settling in with the hot meal clearly meant for a week's worth of food, Raya starts digging in. I don't think she intends to share...

Sticking out my tongue, I maneuver it up toward the pot, but as I get close, all I get is a whack of her spoon...

"I paid for it!"

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"With my money! Gimme!"

With a sigh, Raya concedes that sharing is the best and slaps a dollop of deliciousness onto my tongue before returning to her gluttony.

"This is too much money... I only paid eleven silver for those ingredients..."

Having a nose for opportunity, Raya is quick to ask for more food before even learning the name of the strange woman. Wait, did Raya give her all the money? That is too much! She overpaid by a lot! Nevertheless, we have more important things to focus on now that we've had a delicious meal, such as...

"If you want a job as a chef, come to Tuiran. I'll make sure you're paid well and kept safe."

"Yeah! Come to Tuiran and cook for us! Kira can fly you there when we're done killing rich dummies!"

"She means cultists. We aren't going around murdering people all over the place. Although the rich part is a good point, we might have to rob them a little."

Our new friend seems to be staring at me, but I don't think we have done anything to warrant that.

"We killed people in Oakhold, Plainshold, Tuiran, that cat village, you tried to kill Volly, and you probably-"

"Dang it, Raya! Shush! Those were cases of self-defense. Mostly."

The smug little goblin just smiles at me as she returns to her food. I will have my vengeance! Lowering my head a little, I flip my nose upward, flinging Raya into the air along with her pot of food. Using my natural guile, I open my mouth and catch both Raya and the pot of food.

Flavor spreads across my taste buds as the food spills from the pot. Using my tongue, I push Raya against the roof of my mouth as I swallow the delicious treat and whatever metallic debris might have found its way into my gullet. With that taken care of, the next task is to spit out Raya. Lowering my head to street level, I do just that.

She's a lot less dry than she was a while ago, and it's all her fault. Getting to work wiping the viscous fluid away, she makes sure to check her pouches of herbs and treats. It seems they weren't harmed by the ordeal, so that's fortunate. Always keep vulnerable things in appropriate storage.

"I do appreciate the offer to move to your city, but I'm afraid I can't accept it. I have responsibilities here, and I wouldn't want to move away from my mother. But if you stop by some other time, perhaps I'll cook a different dish for you."

"We haven't introduced ourselves! I'm-"

"An overgrown lizard! And I'm Raya!"

"Dang it, you shrunken cucumber! I'm not a lizard!"

Raya has almost cleared away my saliva, which makes this a perfect time to give her a thorough lick. In fact, I might as well pick her up and place her on my muzzle again. As her feet touch down on my nose, I'm left a little disappointed that she doesn't react much outside of continuing to wipe herself down.

"My name is Camilla, lovely to meet both of you, ominous and murderous topics aside. You mentioned the nobles, do you believe they had something to do with the attack?"

Before I get to answer, Raya jumps in and starts explaining all sorts of things about the cultists and the undead. She even brings up tainted potions, which I might have forgotten, but she certainly hasn't. It turns out she has been inspecting alchemy shops as well, finding tainted potions here and there and getting the shopkeepers to destroy them. Geez, Raya is far more industrious than I expected.

Even with Raya being the friendliest goblin in existence, it's becoming too obvious that Camilla is quite a good actress. The scent of fear wafting off her doesn't match the calm and friendly demeanor she's showing.

That doesn't stop Raya from continuing her explanation of how we're gonna help people by defeating the bad undead. Personally, I feel somewhat indifferent to dealing with them, and mostly, I just want to do it because they taste good. It has been nowhere near as profitable as I had hoped. Which these nobles might change!

Cutting Raya's talking short, I pull my head back, aligning the tip of my nose with Camilla's window and giving her a quick lick to the face. Instead of being disgusted, she laughs, which I think is a-

"Gross!"

Okay, while being a little disgusted, she laughs as she wipes her face. The scent of fear diminishes a little as Raya jumps to her window. The two shake hands with a promise to meet up for another meal sometime. I fully support this promise! We can't stay here all day, though! We have cultists to sniff out!

"Kira, please wait! I must tell you that not all undead are evil! My mother was from another world, and she told me about those words. Words without meaning in this world. And she told me stories of a skeleton swaddled in black mist guiding her to safety. Without him, my mother would have died in the woods, confused and scared. So please, if you meet an undead like that, don't hurt him."

"You couldn't have said that before I started walking? And stop laughing, Raya! It's not funny!"

Raya doesn't stop laughing...

"I don't understand, what's so funny?"

"Kira can't walk backward!"

"I can walk backwards, it just takes a little more space than is currently available..."

I can't even turn my head to face her without slamming my horns and my nose into buildings, and I doubt the buildings could withstand that. Stupid narrow streets... It does sound like she's talking about the shadow man, though. And if that's the case, he isn't undead anymore, which means that I don't have to be all that cautious around the undead. But then there's Skelly. I'd rather not accidentally attack Skelly if I meet the weirdo again.

I'm not gonna bother with all this right now. I want to go kill some of the people who called for my death.

"Raya, go nudge her farewell, we're gonna go find out if the nobility is hiding cultists."

She does as I tell her by running across my face and up my horn to jump into the window. The impact of her feet feels odd, and I'm not accustomed to people moving on my horns.

A soft ouch, some laughter, and a comment about Raya's tiny horns being sharp later, Raya returns and we're off with a promise to return eventually. I definitely want to see what other recipes Camilla has in those books of hers.

Nevertheless, we have a goal in mind and I need to focus on that! Rearing up on my hind legs allows me to get a look above the buildings. A few blocks over, there are gabled houses with more space between them and I'm gonna assume that's the noble district. Making sure to control my wings as I lean forward to get a move on, we begin our trek! The birdsong returns as we start moving, making me want to see what the birds look like. The songs are odd and repetitive, instead of what I'd expect from birds.

Doing my best as we walk through the streets, we manage to barely cause any damage to the buildings. My tail hits a few when I turn corners, but it isn't enough to cause any significant damage. It would be helpful if I could turn my tail blade sideways, but that seems to be a thing mostly limited to when I strike.

"Do you think she was talking about the shadow man, Kira?"

"I do, but I don't know what to do with that information. I hope I haven't caused issues for future travelers by having him made alive again."

Raya doesn't seem to have much to add as she sits down on my muzzle with her back toward my eyes and lets her shoulders slump. This would be a perfect time to nudge her and ask what's wrong, but I'm not that flexible, so I'll have to settle for simply asking.

"I'm sorry for hitting you with the spoon, I didn't mean to, but I just did it before my mind figured out what I was doing."

"Sounds like you're getting greedy. It's a tough feeling to fight, and it's why I want to kidnap people all the time. It's not bad to be a little greedy, but we have to be careful. It's like how I want to kidnap Punchy and make him belong to me, but instead, it's better to be friends, and then I get almost the same thing, but better! Same with food! I could eat all the food, but if I do, then I don't get to bask in the joy of sharing with friends. And I want that, too."

She doesn't seem convinced, but it's true. I'm greedy, and I want those who belong to me to be happy.

"Tell you what, Raya. If you accidentally lash out again, we can pretend it didn't happen and not draw attention to it until you feel like you have it under control. How does that sound?"

Leaning backwards, she lies down on her back and looks me in the eye before giving me a smile to let me know that she agrees with my scheme. It's not the healthiest way to deal with it, but it's a good start.

"You ate my sword, the spoon, the cooking pot, and my bowl."

"Don't change the subject, you greedy little goblin."

As I clear a corner, we reach a tiny gate with a stone frame leading to the ornate houses with too much space. It's barely big enough to fit three people, and there's-

"Halt! No... uh, entrance without an appointment."

His halt was a lot more confident than the rest of his sentence, but this guard does deserve points for having the testicular fortitude to order a dragon to halt. His three friends don't seem to share his willingness to confront me. I am curious, though.

"What's the penalty for entering without an appointment?"

"Two days in the guardhouse jail."

"You're not gonna jump over the wall, Raya? This seems like a perfect opportunity to be a little rascal."

"I don't feel like mischief right now."

Well, I do. I'm curious what he's gonna do if I cross the threshold, since there's no way they have a jail big enough to hold me. Unfortunately, there's also no way I'll fit through that gate, so I'm gonna tell everyone to stand back! Even Raya. And she takes the opportunity to get up and move to the back of my head, almost onto my neck.

As the guards clear out, I close in on the gate and lean my head down. Time to confirm whether this skull of mine was built for ramming things! My impact with the gate is louder than I had anticipated, but one curious thing I'm learning is that... Punchy punches harder than I hit this wall.

In terms of damage, I did some. The gate's frame is cracked and shows clear signs of, well, me. Taking a few steps back, which I have told everyone I can do! Take that, doubters! With a few steps back, I have room for another charge, this time with more force, and as my head impacts the gate, it falls, leaving rubble and debris to step over. Which I do before turning around.

"Okay, I'm trespassing, you can arrest me now."

Halty's three buddies seem to be displeased by my gaze as they shuffle to get behind him. The moment they are, they push him forward, resulting in a significant spike in the scent of fear around here.

"May I ask your business, uh... lady?"

Well, color me surprised, I didn't expect him to turn more cooperative. Well, I might as well be honest, since I haven't picked up any scent of undeath or corruption so far. So I tell him that I'm here to sniff out any cultists because of my suspicions.

I sort of expected alarm bells, or fleeing, but instead he begins climbing over the rubble, making his way toward me. As he reaches me, he seems unsure of how to express himself, so he settles for motioning for me to follow as he begins to, very slowly, guide me toward a specific house. It doesn't have the tingle of magic.

The gardens here are well-kept, some with bushes to keep their privacy, but they aren't tall enough to keep their privacy from me!

"I can't say why, but this place makes my skin crawl. Is it cultists?"

There's a clear scent of rot around, so he might be onto something. I need a closer sniff to be sure, so stepping over the bush, I approach the door, giving it a knock without being gentle. The now-open door makes the scent much clearer and there's definitely death in there.

"Halty, do you mind if I investigate in a somewhat draconic fashion? And Raya, you should fetch your Kirarmor. It should offer better protection in case we need it."

Raya is quick to sprint down my spine and disappear into the city, but Halty seems unsure of whether he can allow it or not. I don't really care, I'm gonna dig up the place regardless, but watching him squirm is fun.

"If the house belongs to evil, it must be purged for the good of the city."

Ooh, consent! And this gives me an excellent opportunity for messing around...

"Lauren, I'm about to destroy a building, and there isn't anything you can do about it!"

Rearing up, I place my front claws on the gable end of the house, digging in my talons before pushing downward. In retrospect, I should have made sure that nobody was home, but a fireball to the face does make that pretty apparent. It does hurt a little, so to counteract that, I draw on my magic to empower myself. This time, I don't cause myself a bunch of pain while passing out. In fact, it feels almost like it used to.

There's some old guy in delicious robes standing on the second floor, and he looks quite upset. I'm not sure he's alive. Everyone has a lingering scent of bodily fluids, but this guy fits in with the scent of death just fine. This guy also makes it clear that I have something I have to do.

"Good job, Halty! You found the cultists, and I didn't even have to search for them! Tell your captain that you deserve a reward because I say so."

Halty has drawn a sword and stands ready for combat, but as I get hit by another fireball, I begin to suspect that he might not be suited for this battle. Although maybe that's the only way to keep it fair, since using fireballs against a dragon is pretty dumb. With my scales empowered, the only damage they seem to do is to my hearing. Dang things are still loud.

"What do you mean you're about to destroy a building, Kira? Why? Where?"

"Too late, I already did it!"

Lauren sure does feel confused. That's what she gets for startling me.

Returning my attention to the battle at hand, I'm hit by a third fireball. For something that hits me in the face, it doesn't have much impact. A tiny shadow behind him springs into action. Latching onto his back, a blade stabs into the cultist's chest a couple of dozen times before disappearing again. I'm confident that was Raya, but I'm not sure stabbing an undead person is gonna be that effective.

The sound of breaking glass behind the cultist makes me think Raya took the opportunity of his surprise to escape. As the cultist falls to his knees, clutching his chest, I'm proven wrong as stabbing appears to be very effective. The sensation of Raya climbing up my arm draws my attention, and I have to ask what she did.

"I made a poison with your venom and some poisonous herbs."

Her explanation leaves a lot to be desired, but the hunched-over corpse person does provide compelling evidence that her concoction works.

"How do you coat the blade in the poison, though? Wouldn't it lose potency with each stab?"

"Hralthar made me a dagger for that!"

She approaches my eye, holding out the dagger, and as she squeezes the handle, a small dollop of goop oozes from a hole in the blade. So it's a dang fang! That's clever. And from the looks of it, she has to be careful with viscosity, too thick and she won't squeeze any poison out, and too thin and it'll ooze out on its own.

Unlatching a couple of straps from the guard, she unsheathes the handle from the wrap, and it appears the wrap is the container of venom. It can't have much in there, but that's okay for sneak attacks.

"What did you do to me?! My magic... I cannot use my magic!"

I'm kinda curious what other ideas Foreman might have. This one is definitely a success. We might have to look into arming the guards back in Tuiran with paralytic poisons, so they can incapacitate adventurers in case those rascals get uppity.

"Do you want to try it some more, Raya? I can leave this house to you and go look for other cultist nests while you clear it."

"No, that's okay. I just wanted to try out my new dagger."

Excellent! That means I get to break stuff! Pushing my face into the second floor where the cultist still struggles to gather his magic, I whip out my tongue and pick him up. Drawing back my head results in some destruction as my horns break through the ceiling and my chin makes a mess of the floor.

With the cultist suspended mid-air, I let go, allowing him to fall to the ground near Halty. With a generous coating of my saliva, alongside Raya's poison, the guy isn't likely to cast spells anytime soon. At least not functional ones.

I am curious what Halty might do to this guy, though. It seems more of an adventurer thing than a guard thing, so who knows. On second thought, I'm not gonna wait for the adventurers. I want to know more about what they're doing. As I ask him about their plans, all I get is cussing and promises of retribution, which is a little too predictable. So it's my turn now.

"Choice time! First, some background information. Did you know that I can't digest you cultist people? But I do love how you taste, so how much information are you worth?"

The fierce glare he sends me indicates that he doesn't believe me or isn't willing to trade. Either way, I'm not interested in standing around waiting for him to see sense. Placing my left claw on his torso, I bring my jaws to his lower body and bite him in half. These guys are so delicious. I don't think I'll swallow this time, since cultists refusing to die inside me is gross. That doesn't stop me from chewing, though!

"By the Gods, he is a dead being..."

"I don't think it's working, Kira."

Neither do I. Which makes him useless, and we have an entire the rest of this rubble to search. After ripping down the outer wall, I haven't seen any other corpses, so the smell of decay is coming from somewhere else and I suspect it's a basement. It's always a basement.

Sending my senses inward, I try focusing on my flames while pulling on my magic. The lack of a violent reaction is a very good start and, with some hesitation, I let out a small puff of smoke. That provides me with a much-needed boost in confidence when it comes to my flames!

Telling Halty to stand back, I lift my claw off the cultist's torso and, as he writhes to try to get away, I unleash my- What the heck?! Why are my flames blue?!