It had been years since Bartlett traveled as a group, which was a welcome change of pace. For the past ten years, ever since he left his last adventuring party, he had been traveling alone taking on various short, but high-paying, quests, most of which were dangerous. Only someone with enough experience like him could do it alone.

  But as time went on, he got older. Along with age, came a jaded view on life. He started his journey when he was 21 years old. Now, he was 31, though he felt like he was 40, perhaps even 50. It did not mean he had wisdom beyond his age. He was simply tired of life, yet he still pushed on, hoping that he could experience a renewed sense of joy. He had no such luck in a decade or so.

  There was a virtue for patience, though, as Bartlett's wishes came true. He was part of a new adventuring party, and he felt reinvigorated by how unusual it was. Nobody would expect a talking dragon to be part of their adventuring party, let alone one with a unique scale color. His new companions took it all in stride, simplifying matters greatly.

  Thomas, though, was more ecstatic than anyone in that group. The young mage was ecstatic to know that the dragon could speak, let alone acknowledging his kindness. He read somewhere that dragons chose their allies instead of being chosen for them. They were, in their own way, a good judge of character. Granted, it was a study on Hokinese dragons, but 'Princess' already exhibited many traits of the dragons from the far east. That did not mean the Manarithian dragons were any less different, as the dragon riders had clearly shared the fact that they had a bond with their dragons.

  The silence was not broken until they decided that they should made camp, as pointed out by Rory. The two Clydethian newcomers started to prepare their camp, with Thomas starting a fire under an iron pot while Rory prepared the food for the night. Bartlett was already finished setting up the tent before he decided to walk towards Henrietta, who sat a distance away as to not disturb them.

  Bartlett, though, knew the real reason why.

  "Hey," greeted Bartlett.

  Henrietta replied with a grunt.

  "How do you feel?" he asked. "You'll get to use your fire soon. You'll be whole again."

  "I know," she said, sounding indifferent. "It's just...."

  "Yes?"

  "I didn't think this through. Revealing my secret to Thomas, I mean."

  Bartlett did not need to be reminded of what happened in Sondheimer the previous day, when she decided to reveal that she could talk to a human. While it was a good progress on Henrietta's part, there was something she was still reluctant to say.

  "You know what they say," said Bartlett. "If you want to reveal something, you've got to go through with it."

  "Even if I want to, he wouldn't believe me," replied Henrietta. "That was a mistake. I shouldn't have told anything."

  "Henrietta, he's not going to blame you for everything wrong in his life. Besides, I doubt you're going to keep that secret forever. You must share it, especially to your brother."

  "He saw me die, Bartlett. I remembered that moment vividly. My entrails was hanging out of my stomach, for god's sake."

  "Everybody needs a miracle in their lives, princess," he said. "He won't believe you at first, but if you can explain it to him carefully, he won't laugh. Rather, I'm sure he's going to accept that the sister he thought dead survived as the creature he's fond of."

  Henrietta seemed to contemplate his words.

  "You're right," said Henrietta. "Then again, this is not your choice, Bartlett. Let me...Let me find a better moment. Hopefully, when we have finished this whole affair, I can muster enough courage to tell him everything. For now, I think it's better for him to be used to with the idea that I can talk."

  "Then I won't bother you. Take your time, and don't hesitate to ask for my help if you need it."

  "Talking about help, I need your opinion," requested Henrietta. "What do you think about Rory?"

  "Pretty reliable and unique in his own rights," answered Bartlett. "It's not easy finding someone with such mastery with unarmed combat. Most of them don't bother travelling this far west."

  "I don't mean his usefulness. What do you think of him as a person?"

  Bartlett raised an eyebrow.

  "Why ask this question?"

  "I'm not sure about it, but Rory...he doesn't seem bothered by the fact that I could talk. I don't mind his straightforwardness. It's just...it feels as if he always knew I could talk."

  "Are you suggesting that Rory might be an enemy?"

  "I don't want to believe that's the case. I want to thank him for being a friend to Thomas during trying times, but I can't shake the feeling that he's playing a long game."

  "You trusted me. Why change your mind?"

  "You don't know who I am. You were clearly surprised that I could speak, and you did not know that I was once human. Then, you decided to help me against those bastards. I had my reservations, but I was thoroughly convinced when that witch ensnared you."

  Bartlett did not want to remember what happened when Shana, the vulpine witch of the Carlesian mountain, did to him barely a week ago. Thankfully, he did not need to when Henrietta continued.

  "Rory, though...he gave me instructions as if he knew I could understand him. Then he cracked a joke when approaching me. I want to believe that he's seen things, not because he knew who I am. I don't want any more surprises. The last time that happened, my family was massacred."

  "Wait. What kind of surprise?"

  Bartlett did not have the chance to ask. He heard a twig snapping, which prompted him to turn towards the direction of the sound, when he saw Rory.

  "What's up?" asked Bartlett.

  "Stew's ready," said Rory. He then looked up at Henrietta and said, "I roasted a chunk of meat for you, Princess."

  "A-ah. Splendid," said Henrietta. "We'll come join you soon. Thank you."

  This exchange made Bartlett tense, especially after their earlier conversation. Henrietta's suspicions towards Rory might as well be unfounded, considering her having trust issues. This fact made the human wonder what truly transpired the night both Henrietta and Thomas escaped the massacre.

  The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  The journey back from Sondheimer to Carlesi was thankfully shorter thanks to a direct route they could follow. With a certain goal, they did not need to take detours and would simply travel directly towards the mountains, which shortened their journey by several days.

  But once they reached the border crossing, everyone noticed that something was not right. The sky was dark, as if a storm was brewing, despite of the clear weather in Clydeth.

  There was a foreboding silence as they noticed that the wind had died out. While wondering if they should make haste to Carlesi to seek shelter, Thomas felt something else.

  "This cloud...it's the product of a spell," said Thomas, sensing the air. "Too much magick to be a natural occurrence."

  "You can sense that?" asked an amazed Bartlett.

  "I wouldn't be a full-fledged mage if I can't do that."

  "Where does it come from?"

  Thomas looked at the cloud, then noticed a swirling pattern that ended, or rather, originated, from a nearby town. It was at that moment he and the others noticed a flash of lightning that came from an unnatural source, that being from the town itself.

  "That's a spell cast," said Thomas. "An attack."

  "That's Carlesi," said Bartlett. He then realized that there was no reason for anyone to attack a small, mining town tucked away from the border unless they were hunting a specific person.

  Henrietta came to the same conclusion and said, "That witch is in trouble. We can't let her die yet!"

  Without delay, Bartlett climbed on top of the dragon's back, along with Thomas and Rory, before she ran towards the town with the speed she could muster. This was also the moment that she realized how having three men on her back severely impeded her.

  Thankfully, it did not have to be long. They reached the town just as some soldiers noticed their arrivals. Henrietta stopped just as one of them approached them, prompting Bartlett to climb down the dragon's back to talk with him.

  "We can't let you interfere with the fight," claimed the soldier when Bartlett asked the situation. "Our mage's battling the Sionnach. I can't guarantee your safety if you enter."

  "We, uh, we--"

  Before Bartlett could come up with an excuse, Rory dashed past them and struck a soldier in the middle of unsheathing his sword, planning to strike Bartlett when he was unaware. His kick caused the soldier to be thrown several feet away before hitting a house wall, surprising everyone present.

  "What the hell are you doing?!" exclaimed a surprised Bartlett.

  "He was drawing his sword," said Rory, then added, "Unprovoked."

  "He could've been trying to warn us!"

  "If he did, he should have done that before confronting us."

  Rory's attack was a provocation on his part, which in the end, provoked the soldiers to draw their swords. Bartlett immediately draw his round shield to shield himself while Rory dodged gracefully between the soldiers before kicking and punching them with a rather complex martial arts technique that involved disarming the weapons with a grab, a knee or a kick, then a strike to their unprotected face. The battle started to become hectic the moment Henrietta roared and started attacking the soldiers coming towards her and Thomas, who was still sitting on the saddle on her back.

  The young mage suddenly sensed danger, and was quickly alerted by a horizontal lightning, a product of a spell, coming right at them. It prompted him to quickly cast a barrier spell from his spellbook. It nullified the lightning spell in a brilliant flash of light, followed by the barrier breaking like shattered glass. It momentarily stunned and bewildered him. His barrier never broke from a spell before, even during combat spell classes. The spell cast was of a different, lethal level.

  Thomas's assist gave enough time for another person to use a spell that made use of the forest. Henrietta saw how the mage, a woman with an ashen gray complexion and white hair, was being forcibly pulled into the forest by a tree, disappearing into the thick forest.

  Henrietta recognized whose spell it was. Almost immediately, she found the fox person she was looking for, kneeling while letting out a ragged breath, her hand outstretched. The dragon quickly approached her.

  "Shana!" she exclaimed. "Are you alright?"

  Shana let out a dry chuckle, just as Thomas supported her on his shoulder. The magick fight had clearly exhausted her, evident from her disheveled fur, which was caked in blood. Henrietta wasn't sure if it was her blood or her enemy's.

  "About time you got back," said Shana. "I do appreciate the timing."

  "Who are they?" asked Henrietta.

  "My enemies," replied Shana short. "Which are yours, too. They disguised themselves as Manarithian soldiers. I knew who they were almost immediately when they asked for me. They knew I am a Sionnach. No Manarithian would know who I really am."

  "A Sionnach?!" exclaimed Thomas in surprise. "I thought you're a fairytale character!"

  "Who is he?" asked Shana.

  "Thomas," said Henrietta short. "Someone who helped with the cockatrice hunt."

  Shana recognized the name, while at the same time noticing the dragon subtly shaking her head. It did not take long for the Sionnach to realize the situation and decided not to say anything.

  "Did you get the ingredients, then?" asked Shana.

  "Thomas, the pouch," requested Henrietta.

  Thomas promptly took out a leatherskin pouch containing the venom sac and gave it to Shana. She, in turn, produced the rest of the ingredients: a malachite ore and a fire thistle. She immediately pulled out a knife to nick three of Henrietta's scales. She immediately throw the ingredients on the ground and started murmuring. Only Thomas understood the significance of her action.

  "I never thought I'd witness faerie magick up close," he said with a hint of excitement in his voice. "This has been quite an eventful adventure."

  "Thomas, I'd appreciate if you focus on the situation at hand," said Henrietta. "There she comes."

  She saw how the forest slowly withered with the woman slowly walking out of it. Now that her visage was clear, they both could tell that she was not human, not with a pair of long, pointy ears characteristic of a pureblood elf. Her ashen gray skin and white hair were not what both former Wyrithians recognized, however.

  What really stood out, however, was the fact that she exuded a malicious aura that kept both human and dragon on their toes, with Henrietta reflexively growling in an attempt to intimidate the unusual-looking elf. Thomas, meanwhile, realized the gravity of the situation and prepared himself for the worst, especially after he realized that the same elf managed to break his barrier.

  "A pink-scaled, talking dragon with a cursed collar," said the elf as she observed Henrietta. "She fits the description."

  Henrietta was worried that the elf would start spilling out her secret, assuming that she was allied with her enemies. When that happened, Henrietta needed to explain everything before she was ready. She mentally sighed when the elf simply scoffed.

  "No matter," commented the elf. "I'll make this quick."

  Meanwhile, both Rory and Bartlett made short work of the soldiers, all of whom were no match against Rory's agility and Bartlett's swordsmanship, which he combined with a shield. Once the last soldier standing hit the ground after passing out from Rory's concentrated strike, they both relaxed while catching their breaths.

  "You're pretty good," said Rory.

  "As do you. You do shine against a crowd, don't you?" replied Bartlett.

  "You're more impressive. I've never seen someone handling a shield as good as you are."

  "I have good teachers." Bartlett then smiled. "Right. We should--"

  He was quickly interrupted by a figure quickly dashing towards them. He couldn't do what he usually did, so he held his round shield right in front of him, hoping for some level of defense. His shield was immediately broken and the force of the impact threw him several feet away towards a nearby building's wall. His head hit the wall, blood streaming down from his forehead. He remained conscious, but was disoriented.

  "Bartlett!" exclaimed Rory, before he turned his attention to the figure attacking them. He let out a surprised gasp upon noticing the figure.

  The figure was humanoid in appearance, but there was nothing that could identify it with a human. Its appearance was more beast person-like than a human, except the person did not look like any beast person native to Manarithia. One quick glance made it clear that the beast person was reptilian, complete with a body covered in scales and a thick, meaty tail. He was bigger than most humanoids, hunching over like a beast.

  "What...is that?" asked a still disoriented Bartlett. "A monster?"

  "Far from it," said Rory, tending to Bartlett. His hand was soaked in the the man's blood.

  Bartlett struggled to get on his feet, but his disorientation, caused by the concussion he suffered from the head trauma, made him lose his balance. Rory realized that Bartlett was out of it.

  "Let me handle this," said Rory. "You can't even stand on your feet."

  "You can't fight that thing alone," insisted Bartlett.

  "I don't plan to die here. Like I said before, I know what I'm doing."

  Bartlett tried to argue, but as he noticed the reptilian monster growling and focusing its attention on Rory, he realized the man was right. Reluctantly, he nodded, letting Rory deal with the monster while Bartlett struggled to move away from the battlefield.

  "Smart man," he said, before he returned his attention to the reptilian person in front of him. "I'm sure deep down you don't want to do this, but at this point, I'm not sure if you can understand any words I said. Nod if you do, big guy."

  The reptilian replied with a roar and a charging stance. Rory's expression darkened as he prepared himself for a hard fight.

  He gazed at the reptilian kind's hollow eyes. Sadness apparent in his voice as he focused on defending himself, and to kill the reptilian monster in front of him.

  "I'm sorry," he choked. "I'm so sorry."