Dragon Adventurer collection Page 5

  Way too wet for reading, though. I didn't know too much about swamps, but maybe there was a dry patch a little way in?

  As I had that thought, a blue orb of light bobbed into my field of view from behind a tree. It flickered and jumped in the morning sun, looking almost like a blue flame. Something about the way it danced was interesting. I began to walk closer, trying to see a bit better. As I did so, it moved away, farther into the swamp, forcing me to move faster to keep up.

  It was just so interesting. Why was it running? I... really wanted a... closer... look.

  Something hard slammed into my side knocking me to the muck. I shoved myself up as my tail began its beat. Something else, humanoid from the shape although it was hard to make out in the late evening light, was standing a foot or two away.

  Wait. Late evening?

  “Well that did the trick.” The figure laughed in a cheerful feminine voice. “Ya okay?”

  I felt alright... “I think so. What happened? Who are you?”

  She held out a hand, looked at the muck that covered it, wiped some off on a nearby tree, and then held it back out. “The name’s Charlotte, former back woods trail guide and geek turned adventurer! Call me Charlie.” She grinned from ear to ear. “As for what happened?” She scratched her head, rubbing mud into her hair. “Do ya know about the mythical creature called a will-o'-the-wisp? Basic is that it looks like a floating fire and lures people to their deaths. Well, as far as I can tell, you just met one.”

  Well, yikes. I winced. “What happened to it?”

  “Turns out a crossbow bolt has about the same effect on them as everything else.” She grinned wile patting a mud-covered shape hanging from her shoulder. “But I'm glad it worked. Wisps are said to be nasty little things, since it only takes a few seconds for them to entrance ya. Well, I saw ya, running through the swamp chasing the thing, and well, I couldn't just leave ya to die, so I chased ya!” She shook her head. “Ya got one hell of an endurance. I’ve been chasing ya for two hours, and with how far in we are, ya must have been going for a while before that. Lucky guy, too. I thought for sure ya would be killed by what that thing led ya into more than once, but ya always came out the other end alive. I was sure that last one got ya with how long it took ya to get out, but I'm glad ya did, and it did give me time to catch up.”

  She gestured behind us as she spoke. As far as I could tell, the spot she pointed at looked just like any other bit of the muck that surrounded us.

  “Doesn't look like much does it? But it’s a lot deeper there. Had ya up to your neck. Me? That would have been over my head, and it looked like it took ya a lot of effort to pull yourself out.” She shook her head. “’Nuff of that though. It’s too late to get ya back to the city today, so let’s get back to my camp.” She turned and, reaching into the muck, fished around for something.

  Shit. My stuff!

  Reaching back, I could feel that I was still wearing my backpack, but as I pulled it off, I could feel that it was way too light. My great sword, which I had attached to the bag, was gone! The straps were torn off.

  “Fuck!”

  I lifted the bag up to throw it in my rage before remembering that I had my daggers still in it. Or had. I lowered it down and quickly took a look. The bag was securely strapped shut, but I was still afraid to look inside. I didn't know how I would take it if I lost my knives too.

  Charlie found what she was looking for and yanked a five-foot poll out of the muck. “There we go!” She looked over at me. “Come on...umm… Hey! What’s your name?”

  “Jake.”

  “You’re a quiet one, ain’t ya,” she muttered. “Well Jake, come on this way. Just be sure to stay behind me, and if I tell ya not to step somewhere, well, don't step there.”

  We walked for about an hour. Charlie was chatting away the whole time while poking at the ground with her pole. Her background as a guide was on full display as she pointed out hidden troughs, different plants that had interesting uses, and the sounds of animals--both those that she knew from before the change and those she had only heard after.

  The ground began to firm up, becoming hard-packed earth.

  I was pretty damn glad for the change in landscape. Over the course of this walk I had discovered a downside to going barefoot that my new form couldn't overcome. Mud between my toes felt nasty. As we walked, I felt an urge building up in the back of my throat. It was almost like an urge to spit, but warm not wet. Ideally, I didn't want to spit on my feet, but as we walked, feeling the mud still covering my feet, the urge grew. Eventually I just couldn't help myself. Stopping, I stretched out a foot and well... It kinda felt like spitting a watermelon seed, but the seed was about baseball sized, was made of fire and splashed on impact.

  I'll admit, seeing my foot blazing cheerfully away, well, I almost started screaming like a little girl.

  And then it started to feel good--a ‘napping under warm sheets on a cold day with no reason to get up’ level of good.

  With a hiss of steam, the mud on my foot dried almost instantly into a stiff shell. The fire only lasted a moment after that, and I, sadly, flexed the foot, watching the dry silt crack and break away.

  Fire breath. Right.

  I began eyeing my other foot as Charlie broke into my musings. “Ya know, I think that was one of the coolest things I've seen a Changed do. But you’re still lucky ya didn't light up your pants too.” She was now standing a respectable distance away and had managed to get out a large leather book and a quill and was, seemingly, taking notes. “Can ya do that again? I wasn't looking last time before your foot was already blazing.”

  “Well, since you asked…” Rolling up my pant leg this time, I was already trying to remember how it had felt to do it the first time. The sensation at the back of the neck, then, spit. And now my other foot was on fire.

  This is the only time that being on fire could be called a success.

  Charlie was now staring at me.

  I looked over at her. “What?”

  “One, most Changed can’t take control of their new racial abilities that fast. Or that well. It’s pretty impressive. And two, it’s kinda disconcerting to see a guy on fire look that happy.” Even as we talked, she was still scribbling away in her book.

  I took a moment to clean off any large pieces still sticking to my feet as Charlie kept writing.

  “Sorry about that. I'm trying to keep track of as many racial traits as I can. Figure it might help us understand all these changes a bit more.” And with that, we were on our way once again.

  As far as I could tell, it took us about another ten minutes after that to reach her camp. Her setup wasn't much to look at. In fact, I didn't even know it was there until she spoke up. “Ah, home away from home!”

  She had set up shop in a little covered corner formed by a large tree pressed up against a cliff that had a bit of an overhang. It was a cozy little spot as far as camping goes. She walked into the overhang and reached up, proceeding to untie a bundle that I hadn’t even noticed. With a quick tug, it revealed itself to be a huge strip of leather. She pulled it out and staked it down.

  From the outside, I could see that the exterior had been painted to look like the local mud. Honestly, I didn't see how that could provide much camouflage, but since I never understood how the modern stuff worked either, well, maybe I wasn't the best judge.

  Charlie popped her head out around the edge of the tarp. “Are ya coming?”

  Inside, she produced a full camp from almost nowhere. There was a fire pit in the center of the space. When I glanced back at Charlie, she was already rolling out a leather bedroll and setting it at the foot of the cloth bag I figured she was using for a pillow. There was a strange sound of running water echoing inside here too, but I couldn't see the source.

  “It ain’t much, but my home’s your home. Pull up a patch of dirt.” She gestured at a spot around the fire pit.

  As I sat, she dragged some cut logs from the base of the tree and stacked them in t
he pit. Turning to me, she gave me a meaningful look. “If ya wouldn't mind doing the honors?” She pointed at the pit. It took me a moment to realize what she meant, and then I lit the fire with a breath. Charlie yanked her feet back as a bit of the fire splashed out of the pit before quickly burning out.

  “Easier than flint, but ya might want to work on the control a little.” She shot me a look even as she began to walk towards the back of the cave. She grabbed up a fresh set of clothing as she went.

  “Sorry.”

  “Don't worry ‘bout it. I’m gonna wash up first. You’re welcome to the next if ya want it. Just warning ya, though, it’s cold.” Saying that, she stepped behind an outcropping and into a space in the wall that blended right into the rock.

  After a moment, the sound of water was broken up as a yelp echoed out.

  Huh…

  I pulled off my backpack and with a deep breath, I unstrapped it and looked inside. Actually, it didn't look too bad.

  Reaching inside, I began to pull out my things. There was some mud crap that had made its way in, but mostly it was light enough that I could just wipe it off. The box of rings had spilled in the bag, so I had to be very careful as I went through the muck to make sure it didn't contain a ring or gem before I slopped it off to the side. In the end, I found all my knives--thank god--and my gauntlets, gems and jewelry. Even my book had survived, although the cover was toast and the page edges might be hard to flip through from now on. As for the rings, well to be honest, I never knew how many I had to begin with. They had just been something I had picked up as they caught my interest when antiquing. The twelve I had found were laid out along with everything else in front of the fire pit.

  It was about at that point that Charlie came back out, almost running, hurrying over to the fire.

  Now clean, I could now actually see a bit more about her. Blond hair hung wet down to her shoulders framing a rather average face. I would have put her at about thirty if I had to guess. The most striking thing about her was that she appeared to be a hundred percent human.

  I must have had a startled look on my face or something, because she threw me a wry grin as she put herself as close to the fire as she could stand. “Yup. I'm not a Changed. First day wakeup here.” She sighed. “Really wouldn't have minded being a second or third. Always wanted to be an elf, though your trick with the fire is kinda cool, too. Might have made it worth risking being a Day Five.”

  “Actually, I woke up yesterday.”

  “Yesterday!” she yelped. “You’re a Day Seven! Holy shit, no wonder…” She bent her head to consider what this meant and saw the firelight reflecting off of my small hoard. “Ooh!”

  She quickly scooted around the fire to get a closer look. “These all yours? Where did you pick these up?”

  “They were things from my home that I brought with me.” I tried not to sound overly possessive but my fucking tail…

  She glanced down at my rattle and then back up at me, raising an eyebrow. A look of comprehension crossed her face, and she laughed. “Horns, scales, fire breath and a treasure hoard! You’re a dragon! That’s awesome!”

  I jerked back with a start.

  “Don't worry little dragon, I'm not going to steal your shiny.”

  She was still laughing, and, while I was a little offended, I could feel my body relax once she said that. Even my tail began to slow.

  “Sorry.”

  “Don't worry about it. All Changed have their little twitches.” She got up and went to grab her book before coming back to sit next to me again. “It’s always nice to be able to label the race I run into.” She began to take notes again. “Also did ya notice that you’re already dry? Ya could probably just shake off the rest of that mud pack your wearing. Your body seems to be a lot warmer than a human’s, not uncomfortably so, but noticeable.” She began to mutter to herself.

  Seeing she was lost in her notes again, I turned back to looking at my items. I unsheathed the daggers, setting them in front of the fire to dry. As I pulled out the seventh blade, Charlie flinched back. Well, obviously, at least one of these was magic.

  This one was the third blade I had gotten. It had been a 10-inch dagger, with the blade having been etched with Celtic knots. Now, the blade glowed red, and the knots were etched into the metal in silver. It gave off an intense wave of heat, even hotter than the fire, though not nearly as bright.

  Seeing Charlie scooting back, I quickly sheathed the blade.

  “Woo…! That didn't bother you?” Charlie was sweating.

  “Not really,” I shrugged. “It was warm, but not that bad.”

  Charlie shook her head, made another note and then closed the book. “Well I, for one, need my sleep. Sorry to say there’s only one bedroll, and I brought it. A gal has to look out for herself.” And with that she got up and went to bed

  I waved goodnight before looking back at my hoard. I didn't understand why she said the thing about the bed. It was hers, after all, and I was the dummy who came out here unprepared.

  With a sigh I looked down.

  Shit!

  On the ground in front of me, where I had left twelve rings, there were now four rings and eight melted pools of silver and gold. I had pulled out the dagger right over them!

  Reaching down, I snatched up the remaining rings. They were warm but solid.

  The ones left were the ones that I had always found… strange. They had been things that caught my fancy but, well, they didn't fit the theme I had been going for.

  The first was a full-finger ring, made from copper, with an emerald disk covering the top of each joint. The nail of the finger was uncovered--weird before, useful now with my new claws. It had gone through some changes though. Where it had once been smooth, it now bore silver patterns. Looking closely in the firelight, the patterns formed boxes and chests, each with a spiral pattern inside of it.

  The second ring was a rather simple one, a single band with no adornments. Its outstanding feature was that it had been carved from a single piece of lapis lazuli. Its deep blue color had always intrigued me, but looking now, it almost felt like I saw a flicker of movement in it.

  The third ring was more of a motif thing--gold ring, the band shaped to look like fire curling around to meet itself and swirl around a ruby set at the center. This ring felt hotter than the others.

  The fourth had been the least expensive of the lot, having been steel rather than a rarer metal. It had caught my eye for one reason alone. The maker had carved it to look like it had been made from bone and sold it as a dragon-bone ring. I know. I'm a sucker for dragon trinkets. Anyway, now it seemed it was actually made of bone, although it still felt fairly metallic.

  After the change, these rings felt slightly...off. Not sure how to phrase it other than that.

  Right now, though? I was exhausted. I guess my run in with the wisp had tuckered me out. Last night’s difficult sleep didn’t help either.

  After a moment of thought, I put on the rings and attached the magic dagger to my belt. Then, with a yawn, I stowed the remaining daggers along with the gems and jewelry back in my bag, before curling up next to the fire.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Chapter 7

  I awoke to someone smacking the top of my head, not that it hurt.

  “Bad dragon!”

  I cracked an eye open. Charlie was standing over me, and, honestly, she looked a bit angry. I considered maybe going right back to sleep and seeing if she would be less angry later, but at least one braincell was awake enough to scream at me that this would be a bad idea.

  I was so warm though...

  “Jake! Get out of the fire pit!” Charlie tapped me hard with the branch she was holding.

  “Fine...I'm getting up.” I yawned and sat up. Then her last sentence registered. “Fire pit?”

  Looking around, I could now see that I was laying in the pit itself, having positioned myself to curl around the embers. “Oops.”

  “‘Oops?’ Oops is a bit light! If ya we
ren't fireproof, you'd be broiled. As it is, I don't know how your clothing survived!” Now that she saw I was okay, Charlie was torn between amusement and annoyance. “Ya put out the fire. A pretty bad thing if ya couldn't relight it with a spit.”

  I got up, stepping out of the pit, and gave myself a once over. Like she said, my clothing survived a night in the fire. In fact, it seemed better than before, since the mud had been roasted off.

  I had definitely slept better than last night, though. Maybe I needed to sleep in the fireplace?

  Anyways, Charlie was already stacking some new wood in the pit. When she was done, I lit it up without waiting for an invitation.

  “Ya hungry?” She was already pulling some foodstuffs out of her bag.

  “A little.” I stepped over. “What can I do to help?”

  She was surprised by my skill at the fire as I heated up some sausages and oatmeal. It was a hidden talent. If you put me in a kitchen, I was a mess, but when my family used to go camping, everyone would happily find reasons for me to be the one to cook. I hid it, though, because while I might be good, I didn't actually enjoy doing it. In this case, since Charlie was supplying the food, it felt right that I should at least cook.

  Charlie had a bowl. I just ate out of the pan.

  As we ate, I asked a question that was on my mind. “So, what are you doing out here?”

  “You mean other than rescuing your ass?” She grinned at me. “Well, I always wanted to explore uncharted lands, and now we have a butt load of ‘em! Why wouldn't I jump at the chance? I joined the Exploration team as soon as they set it up.” Her smile faded. “Right now, though? I'm looking for something.”

  I raised an eyebrow as my mouth was currently stuffed with sausage.

  She looked at me for a second, tapping her bowl with a spoon as she thought. “It shouldn't hurt to tell ya. Look, ya know about the Inquisitors?”

  I guess having something try to kill you counted as knowing it. I nodded.