Tribulations of a Dragon

I never noticed that the Friendship Island is situated on top of an underwater mountain, but the submerged cliff face is quite lively. I won't be if I keep sinking, though! Swim, Kira! SWIM!

I'm not doing a great job at all, but I am getting closer to the cliff. Which is good because I can climb! With tremendous effort and sinking progress, I get closer and closer to the rocky side of the island. With the dang currents doing their best to keep me away from safety, I have to make sure to hold my breath so I don't freakin' drown.

Reaching out, I manage to snag a talon on a rock, but as I pull, it comes loose and disappears into the darkness below. But I'm getting closer! The dang movement of the water is making me instinctively unfurl my wings, and whenever I try to swim toward the rocks, the currents drag me away. Why can't I just be treated like flotsam? It would be so much easier for me if I just washed ashore.

Paddling away to get to the cliff while focusing on keeping my wings tight does work. But the real progress is wiggling! Crocodiles were right all along! Wiggling through the water is the way to go, and making sure to use my tail makes it even better!

With steady progress, I make it to the rocks and I crane my neck to avoid smacking my face into the rocks while sinking my talons as deeply into the rocks as I can. I need a firm grip to not get yanked away again by the dang currents. I have no idea how long I can hold my breath, but so far, I'm not struggling. And being able to close my nostrils is the best!

With my talons firmly secured in the underwater rock face of the island, I can finally make some progress. The ebb and flow of water does make the whole thing obnoxious, and, between the night sky above and the darkness below, visibility is terrible. I have no idea how deep I am. Or whether I'm upside down or not… Dang it, water sucks.

Focus, Kira. The surface is somewhere, and that's where we need to go. I can't feel what's up or down, though… Well, lighting things on fire has solved issues for me before, so who knows how it'll go here. Drawing on my magic, I open my mouth slightly and unleash a plume of flame against the rocks. I can see the bubbles, but more importantly, I can feel the heat being warmer on one side of my nose! Which means I'm sideways! That might have been something I should have considered when I looked up and down. Of course, up and down are gonna be dark when they're actually left and right.

I'm very appreciative of the low oceanic salinity as my mouth is still full of water and I can't spit it out. And worse, up is to my right… That's not my favored coil pattern at all, dang it! This dang ocean has it out for me. I'll swear vengeance later. Right now, I need to get out of the water before I'm forced to figure out how long I can hold my breath.

Going for a wide angle, I begin my sideways trek, clawing at the rocks to keep myself from being washed away. It's working, but these rocks aren't making it easy. They're tough as heck, and my talons are struggling to dig into them at times. Trying to melt them to soften them up seems risky; I could get stuck as it solidifies. I'd rather not get stuck to an underwater cliff.

But what else… I could use my magic to strengthen my talons. That seems like a pretty obvious solution, Kira. Maybe you should think about that, Kira. In my defense, I haven't needed to strengthen my talons in quite a while, so forgetting is forgivable.

Focusing my magic into my talons makes them cut much deeper into the stones. Geez, these things are dangerous. With how easy it is for my enhanced claws to cut through the rock, I can't deny that they are impressive weapons, not just awesome and great-looking. Dang it! I need to get to the surface before I find out what my limit is. I can't get distracted by my glorious talons!

But I can get distracted by the fact that I'm now stuck. Turns out my claws are really good at going into things, but a lot less good at being pulled out. Geez, it's a good thing I only used my arms to latch onto the cliff; otherwise, I might be in real trouble. Granted, I might be in real trouble already, given that I'm freakin' stuck underwater!

Bracing my legs against the wall, I pull with all my might. It's a struggle, but empowering my muscles helps, and I can feel the rocks begin to crack as I pull. While working on the casual destruction of the environment, it occurs to me that I should have focused on swimming from the start. I was getting the hang of it, and being able to swim is a great idea regardless of how well it works right now.

The more I pull on the rocks, the more cracks appear, and I feel that I'm getting close to being free again. A stray thought gives me pause, though... What if my talons become stuck and this slab of stone drags me down? I seem to be doing fine holding my breath so far, but what about the pressure? Who knows how tolerant to pressure dragons are? I certainly don't.

With both my claws tied up, there's really only one solution for breaking this slab of rock into smaller pieces. I have to use my head. Pulling on my magic some more, I strengthen myself, hoping it's enough as I headbutt the wall. The water is trying its dang best to make this impossible, on top of the angle being very awkward. The stone in question is directly in line with my chest, so my horns impacting the wall further up are ruining my headbutt.

I'm certain that I'm onto something, but I might have the order of operations wrong. I don't have the leverage to get a good hit in, but I can't move enough to get it. I think I have to chance it. I can't think of any other way to get out of this predicament than to pull the rocks loose and then break them apart on my way down if they're too heavy.

Going back to my pulling plan, I brace myself again, adding my head as leverage as I press my skull against the cliff further up. Pulling as hard as I can with my empowered muscles creates more cracks in the rock, and with some more effort, the slab comes loose. I was right! It is dragging me down! Crap!

Okay, focus, Kira. This was the plan. We just need to break it up some more before we find out what sort of monsters live down there. Angling myself upward, I use my tail to create as much propulsion as I can to counteract the weight of this slab. It's smaller than expected, and I'm doing a good job of not sinking.

I'm doing more than fine. Am I actually good at swimming?! I might be! Wiggling even harder results in more speed! I have to be careful, though. I don't know how my body will react to ascending too fast, and decompression sickness sounds like a very bad time.

With a slab of rock in claw, I begin to swim by wiggling some more. It turns out my blade tail makes for a great rudder! My wings are being a lot less cooperative, though, as I can't seem to stop unfolding them. I'll just have to manage as I wiggle my way closer to the surface. As I ascend, the moonlight becomes more visible and it's clear that I'm making progress, but my dang wings keep slowing me down! All this stupid water is getting on my nerves!

This dang reflex to catch the wind is getting on my nerves. My dang wings won't stop trying to fly, and it's making swimming difficult. Geez, I'm getting tired of all this water trying to slow me down. So, instead of being responsible while my wings annoy me... I'm gonna wiggle harder! I have no idea how I'm supposed to ascend while diving, but I'm keeping an angle that feels reasonable as I approach the surface.

At least I don't have to worry much more with the surface closing in so fast. And given how long I've been swimming along the cliffs, I suspect my angle is too shallow. Changing to a more upward trajectory makes the night sky come into view as I breach the surface. I need to work out how fast I can swim because breaching is the correct term as my speed sends me flying into the air. Geez! Hadn't expected that, but with my wings' unwillingness to be still for any amount of time, they unfold, offering me some flight.

With a few quick beats, I'm flying over the island and I'm definitely on the other side of it. The claw marks are very visible on the eastern side and my friends are easy to spot near them! Somehow it looks like they've already spotted me, so I can't sneak up on them and startle them... More importantly! I can swim and I can go from swimming to flying! That's incredible stuff!

I'll definitely have to go swimming more often, especially since the ocean is so close to Tuiran. Although all this talk about sea monsters and boats not being worthwhile investments sounds scary. Hopefully, I'm bigger than those monsters, but I might not be. Even if I'm not the biggest, that won't stop me from getting some delicious seafood and introducing Tuiran to some great dishes.

I need to focus. I'm sure they've been worried about how long I was in the water. Oh! And now that I'm airborne, I can deal with this rock! With a little magic funneled into my claws, all I have to do is clench them and pull. My talons cut through the rock without much difficulty as pieces drop below me. I wonder if I could sharpen their curve to get them to be more blade-like. But then I'd have to be very careful when I pick up people... That's for future Kira to worry about. I'm not gonna do anything for now.

As I circle the island, it becomes clear that the plants are living well and somehow maintain their lushness even this late in the season. The entire place is vibrant with color and, along the treeline, flowers grow in abundance. The west side of the beach is far more rocky than the lovely sand on the east, but there are glinting bits here and there that definitely warrant exploring. Maybe there are some valuable rocks!

Unfortunately, that's for later. I need to return to the giant scratch marks left on the beach on the east side, so my friends don't have to worry about me.

The scratches are in sight and I'm coming in for a landing. For some reason, Raya is the only one waving at me. Joras is standing there like some stoic guy, and Lauren seems unperturbed by my arrival. At least Raya's enthusiastic, so she gets the first nudge.

Bracing myself as my feet hit the ground results in a perfect landing! I didn't even kick up a lot of sand at them! Point to Kira.

"Hey Kira!"

"Hi Raya! You guys don't seem worried about me at all. You could at least be a little worried."

"We were when you disappeared, but then you came back almost immediately and fell into the water, so it was fine, right? What was it like to disappear like that?"

"I could have drowned! At least worry about that."

I feel entitled to some worry here. I got sucked into a weird void for hours, only to come back and disappear into the ocean.

"Raya assured us that you often stop breathing for extended periods of time while you sleep. It doesn't seem to affect you, so I'd imagine it's a quirk of your species, since Dragons have been known to live in particularly noxious lands. And we didn't have much choice in the matter. Any time we'd go near the water, Lauren would shout for us to get back, given that we didn't know what lurked below."

"I didn't shout. I told you with a firm voice not to go swimming."

She definitely shouted, and Joras might be onto something with the difficult living spaces. I did hatch on top of a mountain. Or whoever laid my egg was an irresponsible parent. Which might still be the case since I didn't have anyone around to protect me from those dang frost bears.

"Joras! Look at the quality of this bark! I could inscribe a bounty of wards upon it without the risk of breaching. We must bring back a surplus!"

Lily comes running with her arms full of bark slabs and it looks like too much for her small frame, but she's doing it well enough, even managing to run in the sand. And running in sand is freakin' exhausting, made worse with arms full of bark. She's come a long way from a sickly old lady to a spry young weirdo. At least I think she's young, but I have no idea how that works for elves.

"How does age work for elves? Are you two very old and just look young, or are you actually young?"

I think it's a very good question, but Joras doesn't seem keen on answering right now.

"Kira, I believe the more prudent question is what happened to you. What was that black portal, and where did you go?"

Okay, he might have a point, but I'm not gonna let it go forever. For now, though, I'm gonna relay what happened.

"I got sucked into the void. It was very dark, and I started spinning around uncontrollably. Then the Shae showed up and couldn't stop my spinning, so she summoned a different Kira, but it was a mean Kira. She did tell me to find you, Joras."

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"He's right there."

Raya is fantastic at this as well. It does occur to me that I don't know why, specifically, we needed to find Joras, though. He doesn't want to use his magic, so I don't think he'd make a great combatant. And I don't want to ask him to fight against his will, so that leaves having him as support back in Tuiran. I'm sure his alchemical knowledge will work wonders.

"Might I ask why my name came up during this conversation?"

"Oh, Human Kira told me to find you in some cave because Lily was even more sick than here, so she wanted me to help. Turns out in her world, you didn't get out of some cave. Instead, you made yourself a hideout and caused trouble for the adventurers. But it seems you trusted me in that world, too! Good job, Joras. You're good at trusting me."

"Thank you."

His appreciation is somewhat undermined by the chuckles as he turns his face to Lily. I just barely catch his smile fading into a frown as he looks away. Even with all the bark she's holding, he pulls her into a hug. Must be rough to remember how bad it could have been for them.

"It's sad that she's human."

I get Raya's sentiment, but it doesn't stop Lauren from smacking her, leading the two to start tussling. Utilizing her bigger human size, Lauren manages to wrestle Raya into the sand as they roughhouse with Lily and Joras spectating. They should intervene and make sure that neither Lauren nor Raya gets hurt. I have more important things to deal with, like the pile of fruits left behind by some mysterious entity.

There's a good assortment of delicious treats, and some of them are those sandy peaches that I don't remember what Lauren called! But they're delicious and a lot less sandy this time.

"Kira, I'm aware that you quite enjoy food, but might I ask what else you've learned from your excursion?"

It's a bit rude to interrupt me, but it's a valid question. But I didn't learn that many things. Having to return to make sure everyone was safe preoccupied my mind too much, and I might have to seek out the Shae again so we can talk properly. An important thing I did learn was that I have to be more careful talking about my old world. Given all the warnings, I suspect this knowledge god is a jerk who wouldn't hold back like Merciferus does.

I will definitely have to try to avoid antagonizing someone who's Merciferus' equal, because doing that just sounds very dangerous. I'm still gonna point Foreman in certain directions, so he can invent things for me. I'm not sure what I want invented, but I'm sure I can think of something, like a giant shower. Although me becoming tiny would greatly reduce the cost. And the water usage. And with a low water usage, I could shower for hours!

I don't know whether that's too much for this knowledge god jerk, but I need specifics. If it has to be adjacent, does that mean I can gradually share what I know, or do I have a finite budget? Frankly, this knowledge god is disappointing. I would have thought the guy known for being all about knowing things would be interested in everyone else also knowing things, like a good teacher. But this feels more like a parent living vicariously through their children.

I wonder if the other Kira still misses her parents. She's much older than me, so she must have lived more of her life in this world than where we came from. I'm definitely gonna avoid thinking about how she didn't know about Tuiran, though...

"Wait, what was your question, Joras?"

"I asked if you learned anything during your brief excursion."

At least his chuckles suggest that he finds my derailing thoughts entertaining, so that's good.

"Not a lot, and I will need to seek out the Shae again for more information and to learn how to make myself impervious to people injecting me with magic. Oh! They did talk about how we're doing a fantastic job so far, Lauren! And you're right about us needing to cause more trouble for the undead jerks. They're gonna become a much bigger problem if we don't keep it up. So, regular trips to incinerate those who oppose us, leaving naught but scorched earth in our wake as we bathe the world in flame."

"And find new things to try!"

It seems Lauren and Raya have finished their fight, with Lauren sitting on top of Raya, pinning the goblin's arms to the sandy beach. Appearing victorious, Lauren lets go as they get up and help each other brush the sand away from their clothes.

"Right you are, Raya!"

"I can tell you're just having a little fun, Kira, but remember how you're a very large Dragon? Saying things like that comes off more terrifying than amusing."

That's a fair criticism. I should be mindful of how the optics are when I say something like that. And my growing interest in burning things might be pointing toward an urge that I should keep an eye on. And I should definitely direct it toward the forces trying to kill everyone.

"Setting aside your incendiary inclinations, Kira, I must know what happened to the other iteration of myself. Why did Lily and I not make it to Tuiran? What caused us to become stranded before reaching the surface? I appreciate your attempt at sparing my emotions on the topic, but I have to know as it may illuminate what dangers lie ahead."

I don't even know what that difference is, but it's a good point to bring up. How many other things have changed for my world to be like this when the other Kira's world sounds very different?

"Joras, I must insist that you cease your inquiries into topics you know will break your heart. You and I are both aware of which measures you would take to protect me, should it become necessary. Having Kira tell you as much does naught but bring you pain."

Lily's being very reasonable, but I didn't leave that much out. The whole thing is starting to creep me out, and I think I need to find out how much has changed and how much I'm responsible for.

How would Raya have been doing? Is Lauren a different person? Joras certainly is; he's just a kind weirdo instead of a guy binding people's blood to serve him. I don't know how much the world was changed for me to be happy, but geez, that's far more responsibility than I'm ready for.

Okay, don't spiral, Kira. If the other Kira is correct, we're ahead of the curve and Merciferus seems to agree. Although if Merciferus knows so much, perhaps she should chip in some more. Or maybe I'm just rattled by the fact that I'm apparently the creation of some eldritch monster who seems unable to understand human emotions. That seems like a reasonable thing to be rattled about.

Be positive, Kira. It did a good job and you're doing well. The circumstances of how I hatched aren't who I am, so I get to decide what to do. I should go ask what the heck the deal is, though. If it involves me, I deserve to know specific details, especially when it affects the world. And I'm confident that I do affect the world, or at least this small part of the world. I need backup, though... This is a lot.

"Raya, say something good about me to cheer me up."

"Your breath isn't as bad as it used to be."

Wait, that's not what I meant.

"Oh, we're doing this? Kira, you're very good at being considerate of others, but you have a tendency to speak very loudly. It helps to stand under your head, but if you talk directly to someone, it can be a little overwhelming."

Yeah, so this isn't what I meant at all. And Lauren shouldn't have ammunition ready to go like that.

"What the heck, you jerks?! I wanted to be cheered up, not bombarded by grievances. Save those for when I'm in a good mood, dang it."

My frustration is bringing a smile to Raya's silly face, which isn't what I expected at all. I have no idea why they don't just bring these things up so I can think about it. But it's a little rude to do so right now, geez.

"It worked, didn't it? When you get sad, it's hard to make you not sad, but it's always easy to tease you. And when you get annoyed, you forget that you're sad, and then you can see the problem properly."

Okay, yeah, it worked. I'm annoyed instead of sad or weirded out, but I'm not sure I approve of this method for changing my moods. It's very annoying. And so is the obvious difference in Lauren's and Raya's expressions. Raya is showing her pride because of her scheme working, but I suspect Lauren wasn't in on it, given how she's blushing and refusing to make eye contact with me. They definitely deserve a puff of smoke for being a couple of devious manipulators.

"Well done, Raya. I cannot say that I expected such a simplistic ploy to bear such bountiful fruit."

"Don't praise her, Lily. We don't want to encourage her to tease me."

Lily's sly grin suggests that she isn't done praising Raya... I'll have to keep an eye on that.

"But it did work, so I'm great! Now tell us what the problem is so we can solve it together."

"Fine. I'm worried that what I am is changing too many things. What if I'm not supposed to change certain things and the outcome is worse than it would have been? What if the thing that created me has evil plans for me?"

"Big thinking like that is dumb. If whatever you're talking about has evil plans, they can go hit their head on roots. It's not our problem, so we can keep finding new things. Besides, things change, so we just need to try to make things change for the better. Easy as that."

Stepping forward to meet Raya, Lily places a hand on the tiny goblin's shoulder, needing to kneel to avoid bending over in an awkward position.

"I do agree with our small philosopher. Though you are mighty, fighting the bonds of fate is not for mortal hands. Our lives have all been woven into the tapestry of destiny and, though it may appear chaotic, there is order to it. We choose our own paths as ordained by the weavers, each action bringing beauty to the weave."

Wait, so Lily doesn't believe in free will? Or does she believe in free will, but a predictable outcome? Geez, we're moving from one rough subject to another. Screw that, I wanna go home and rest a little. Before that, though, we have two quiet parties on this beach.

"Lauren and Joras, you've been suspiciously quiet. What gives?"

"I'm a champion. I don't have much to say in regard to my fate. I'm a weapon to be wielded against the enemies of the Gods."

"Okay, so screw that. You're a person, Lauren, and you deserve to have a life, and it doesn't matter what sort of champion business you have or who chose you for what. In fact, I'll make sure you get one. So that's settled, right?"

She doesn't say anything, but the soft smile suggests that she does appreciate that-

"Perhaps that's advice you should heed yourself, Kira."

"Don't use my words against me, Joras."

He does have a point, though. The bastard... And he freakin' interrupted me. Yeah, he gets a puff of smoke, too. And while he's batting away the plume, he gets a nudge to encourage his input on the whole situation.

"I'm not getting out of this, am I? Well, the discrepancies between your retelling of what the other you experienced and how our lives have turned out suggest something at play for far longer than you've been alive, Kira. Lily and I were chased through the Blighted Forests, fleeing for the surface world. Our pursuer, an extraordinarily skilled assassin, was gaining on us, leaving us with very little chance to escape, yet we did. The poison used against us was simply the first of a three-part attack, but from the sounds of it, the other Kira saw the second stage. Tainting of the blood. I would be able to counteract that with my magic, yet to do so would be risky, and I would need to focus most of my magical attention on that."

Well, I know a freakin' clue when I hear one. Sometimes, at least, but I'm sure that Joras is right about this being odd. Hold on, if that would require most of his attention, how freakin' easy is it... Nope, not touching that yet.

"So what happened to the assassin?"

"We don't know. We got away and came to Tuiran and have yet to have anyone attempt to capture us."

That's a little spooky, but it's good that they're safe. Both Lily and Joras have been great supports for... Dang it! It has to have been that jerk, Nothing. Double dang it! He's not a jerk when he saves my friends. That jerk! How much of my life has been freakin' engineered by this jerk? If I find out I'm just some puppet pulled along by strings, I'm gonna be so freakin' upset. Possibly even angry.

While I'm thinking about how to defeat a puppet master, Lauren takes the time to clap her hands to draw my attention. Looking down at her, she gestures for me to lower my head, and as I do, she embraces my snout as well as she can.

"Kira, please don't attack the monster capable of altering fates."

When she puts it like that, it does sound like a bad idea. I'll have to settle for a stern talking-to. And I deserve an explanation, so I'll need to find the Shae and hear her out on the matter.

Grumbling a reply for Lauren earns me some lovely scratches on my cheek, so that's the plan for now. I won't attack the eldritch monster who might technically be my parent, but I will want some answers. And I will want to return to that void, so I can talk to the other Kira some more. She might have some great information for where the undead strongholds will pop up so I can sort them out before they become a problem. That would make Lauren's life a lot easier.

Morning is closing in and I do want to get home. Before I get a chance to nudge anyone, Raya climbs my face and she sure does know me well. She's quick to tell the others to come over as I lower my head into the sand, allowing her to help Joras and Lily up. With the group crawling all over me, they head for my horns and settle in.

With Lauren as the last passenger, she and Raya settle in atop my brow as I raise my head and get ready to take off.

Spreading my wings, we take off toward the east. The rising sun is doing a great job of making the sky take on beautiful, red and yellow colors. I do love a good sunrise, but it does feel like the night has passed very fast, and all I did was worry. I might have to consult Merciferus on the whole Nothing situation, since she might know something. It's not likely that she can say anything, but it would be stupid not to try.

Finding the Shae again is another thing to do. Given how close the Shae is to the Nothing with the whole void summoning thing, Lord Faran has to be involved, which means interacting with the abomination. I'm kinda looking forward to finding out what he's about. I get the impression that the stoic, bony-faced, brooding boy really cares about the scalefolk. Which is understandable; scalefolk are neat.

But I can't just leave immediately. I haven't been around Tuiran for a long time, and I don't want my people to think I've abandoned them. I'd never abandon them, so I need to make sure they know that. A soft knock on my scales draws my attention to my passengers as Raya leans over the side of my face to look at my eye.

"Kira, you flew too far. Tuiran is back there."

Dang it! Pivoting, we head back to Tuiran... in the west... The fact that I flew in the correct direction is a silver lining if I ever saw one. I'm not getting lost this time!

As we turn, Tuiran comes into sight and we have a clear line to follow as the sounds of soft snores from around my horns indicate that it's about time we get home. This excursion has taken longer than I intended. It was supposed to only be a quick trip for some fun treats and now we've got so many things on our plate, and they aren't even edible...

Focus, Kira. We're not flying too far twice. With the town square in sight and empty, we have plenty of time and space to land. As I slow down and prepare my feet for landing, the soft sensation of people moving makes it known that Lily and Joras have woken up again. As soon as we touch down, they mention getting home to rest properly, which is a brilliant idea.

"I thank you, Kira. It has been far too much time since I have left Tuiran and, though our trip was rife with revelations and unknowable secrets, I did very much enjoy myself. As did Joras. And should you worry about fates altered for your benefit, I am left with only gratitude that both of us are safe thanks to you. For whatever purpose it may have been, I will seek to balance the scales as we uncover our new destinies."

There isn't anything to balance. Being welcomed and befriended is enough for me, and that... Dang it! That jerk Nothing might have set this up for me to have friends! Ooh, if that's the case, I'm gonna give that jerk a very stern talking to when I find him! People aren't toys, and I can make friends on my own!