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Grandmaster dragonshadow58

Part 1: The Early Days Chapter 1 - Paladin Power Chapter 2 - Firewyrm Chapter 3 - Magic Theory Chapter 4 - Learning to Train Chapter 5 - Madness Chapter 6 - Illegal Magic Chapter 7 - The Greatest Potential Chapter 8 - To Love the Gods Chapter 9 - Shifting Futures Chapter 10 - Hurry Up and Wait Part 2: Hamerfoss Chapter 11 - Road to Hamerfoss Chapter 12 - Catching Up on Lessons Chapter 13 - Shipping New Samples Chapter 14 - Ice Ice Baby Chapter 15 - Burn Baby Burn Chapter 16 - Aftermath Chapter 17 - Until Proven Guilty Chapter 18 - A Name Chapter 19 - Friends Chapter 20 - What is a Warlock? Chapter 21 - Day With the Squires Chapter 22 - Until Proven Inocent Chapter 23 - The Talk Chapter 24 - It Doesn't Matter Chapter 25 - Attack Part 3: Time Apart Chapter 26 - Mages Guild Chapter 27 - Samples... Chapter 28 - Out on the Town Chapter 29 - Back at Hamerfoss Chapter 30 - Discoveries Chapter 31 - Solstice in the City Chapter 32 - Hamerfoss Holidays Chapter 33 - Clearance Exam Chapter 34 - Results Chapter 35 - Road Patrol Part 4: Home Is Where The Heart Is Chapter 36 - Going Back. Chapter 37 - Time to Travel Chapter 38 - Home Chapter 39 - Sparring Match Chapter 40 - Winter Solstice Chapter 41 - Student and Master Chapter 42 - Goodbye for Now Chapter 43 - Hard Work and Dedication. Chapter 44 - First Steps Chapter 45 - Seniors Part 5: The End of an Age. Chapter 46 - Next Generation Chapter 47- Chosen of the Gods Chapter 48 - Wrapped in Ice Chapter 49 - The End and Beginning

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Chapter 2 - Firewyrm

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Spring 4978, Date Unknown

They spoke to each other as if She wasn’t there, as if She couldn’t hear each word muttered only a few feet above Her head.

“Maybe we’ve been taking too much…”

“Or it could be the collar…”

“It's not like the tattoos; it shouldn’t affect her health.”

“She’s healthy, just…”

She sighed, opening Her eyes and letting them adjust to the brightness of the room. She didn’t bother to pull at the leather straps holding Her to the cold slab of a table. To either side of Her, the journeymen whispered. Ran was thin, with pale brown hair he kept long and loose to his shoulders. He stood a few inches taller than Brom, who was built stocky, with short dark hair, nearly black but with hints of chocolate in the magical light that filled the room from the hanging orb on the ceiling.

“Are you going to take me back to my room now?” She rasped, interrupting their discussion. Trying to swallow but not finding enough saliva to wet Her throat, She sighed again.

“Yeah, Red…” Ran said softly, reaching for the straps on Her left side.

Brom grunted, going for Her right side and fiddling with the lock before he stopped, resting a hand gently on Hers for a moment, then pulling away from the heat of Her skin. “Or…” he said, glancing back up at his fellow, “we could take her to see the others. Kids are supposed to like animals…”

“She isn’t a 'kid', Brom,” Ran argued, avoiding her eyes. Instead, he glanced out the door that led to the windowless hall that would take Her back to Her locked room. Maybe considering the idea?

“Animals?” She croaked the question, and Brom reached for a glass beside the vials of blood he'd drawn from Her bound arm.

“Yeah, Goldy, we got a new litter of kittens. They have red scales just like yours…” he lifted Her head just enough to pour some of the lukewarm water into Her mouth. She gulped eagerly until he was forced to let Her go, rubbing his palm on his robes.

Ran hummed again, still unsure.

“It can’t hurt.” Brom argued as he finished with the buckles on his side, “She’s hardly spoken for the last month, and the Archmage hasn’t let her outside since autumn.”

“It could hurt. Those beasts are dangerous.” Ran countered.

But Brom scoffed, “It's not like she can burn them. And they'll stay in their cages.”

Ran hummed, and She waited, unbound but still. “We’ll try, but if they snap, she’s going back to her room.”

She rolled to Her side, and Ran helped Her sit up, still dizzy from the samples they'd taken. Brom passed Ran Her dress, and he slipped it over Her head. She almost made them help Her pull Her arms through the sleeves, but in a rare wash of curious energy, She did it Herself, sliding off the table and waiting for them to open the door.

Ran walked ahead of Her, Brom behind. She was never allowed in the hall by Herself, and though they didn’t take Her back to Her room as they usually would, that rule wouldn't change. She stared at Her bare feet as She walked, the three scaled stripes on Her right foot peaking out with each step. Brom had said the animals had red scales like Hers…

The ever-present sound of mewling and yipping grew louder as they approached the farthest door in the hall. She turned into the new room only to stop dead in Her tracks. The room was huge, almost thirty feet square, and lined with caged stalls, each holding a different animal with sparkling scales or vibrantly colored fur. A large jungle cat yowled in greeting, its red scales glistening in the steady magic light. In the cage beside it, a wolf with green fur, the color of cut emeralds, barked and danced on its front paws. Another lazy cat lounged in its stall, stretching and extending golden claws as it yawned, draping a leathery wing over its side like a blanket.

“Pretty…” She breathed, Her eyes wide, their pupils constricted to slits like the cats'. She stepped towards the nearest cage and reached towards the scarlet cat as though in a trance. It tilted its head at Her curiously, and She let Her fingers slip between the bars.

“Watch it, Goldy!” Brom called, grabbing Her shoulder to pull Her away. The cat hissed, reaching through the bars.

Brom jerked away before the cat's crimson claws could dig into his flesh, and the girl grabbed the cat by the jaw, forcing its eyes to Hers, “No. Be nice.” She bopped it lightly on the nose and the beast dropped to the floor of its cage, laying its head flat on the ground before rolling over to show Her its glittering scaled belly. For the first time in a very, very long time, She giggled, kneeling in front of the cage and scratching the cat on the chin as it purred.

Behind her, Brom laughed nervously, and Ran pat him on the back, “Well, she seems happier at least.”

“And they like her more than us…” Brom added as another cat three cages down hissed at them.

“It's like they're made of jewels…” She said, reaching into the cage with both hands to run her fingers over the scales, fluffed like feathers, on its muscular neck. The three scaled stripes on Her left hand were a near match to the ruby cat’s.

“Do you want to help us feed them, Red?” Ran asked. She spun on Her knees to tilt Her head at him, the cat rolling over enough to do the same. Something in the twin expressions made Ran laugh, and he gestured to the far corner and a crate there, “There’s cut steaks in that box, get two for each, and you can feed them.”

She scrambled on Her hands and knees before She managed to get to Her feet, sprinting to the box and straining to open the heavy lid. Her fingers squelched on cold bloody meat, and She turned around with two fist-fulls, then froze. They hadn’t followed Her… Brom and Ran still stood by the first cage, talking to each other and not even looking at Her.

Slowly, She walked to a different cage on the opposite side from the journeymen. They glanced her way but didn’t stop Her or call Her over. Was this freedom? She could go anywhere in this huge room…

Something icy brushed the back of Her hand, and She jumped, dropping the steaks. A wolf that seemed to be carved of silver tilted its head at Her, ice blue eyes looking from the steaks to Her face before it let a long blue tongue loll from its mouth full of large teeth. She retrieved the dropped meat and offered it to him, tilting Her head in equal curiosity. Gingerly it took the slab of steak with its front teeth and pulled it slowly from Her slack fingers.

“Do you like them, Goldy?” Brom whispered from behind. She jumped again, spinning fast enough that She smacked the poor wolf in the face with Her golden hair.

She took a moment to look around at all the animals again before She smiled broadly at Her two caretakers, “They're like living treasures!”

“That’s the smile I like to see…” Ran knelt beside Her, reaching out to carefully brush some of Her hair back without touching Her skin, just barely brushing the three scaled stripes on Her right cheek. “How would you like to help us take care of them once and a while, Red?”

She was too happy for words and lunged forward, wrapping Her arms around his neck in a tight but swift hug. He flinched but pat Her on the back anyway as She pulled away. She'd thought Her life wasn’t worth living, locked in Her room except when escorted to the lab to give samples, but if She could help with these treasures, even just once a week, it would give Her a purpose.

“I would love to,” She answered, not bothering to fight the tears running silently down Her cheeks, wetting skin and scales on their way to Her chin.

"Why is the Firewyrm in here?" at the sound of the Archmage's deadpan voice, She folded in on Herself, rolling Her shoulders and staring past Ran's legs as he rushed to stand. Archmage Morndancer stood in the doorway, sternly staring down his journeymen.

Brom stepped between Ran and the Archmage, pulling the man's attention to himself, "We thought she might like to see the other subjects, Archmage." he licked his lips nervously now that the Archmage was focused only on him, "We... we thought she could help us feed them... stretch her legs a bit..."

The Archmage didn't explode; he didn't even yell, "You've already gathered her samples?" he asked.

"Yes, Archmage," Ran answered quickly.

Archmage Morndancer slowly let his eyes trail past the journeymen to Her. She bit Her lip but tried to stand taller. Morndancer merely huffed, "Very well. She is not to be left unattended."

"No, Archmage." Ran and Brom confirmed in unison.

"Perhaps she is old enough now..." the Archmage muttered to himself as he turned to leave. He stopped after only one step, looking over his shoulder at Her again, "Prove you are capable of not abusing this bit of freedom, Firewyrm, and perhaps we can see about granting you more."

He left, and Brom and Ran both exhaled slow breaths as She stared after the Archmage. Freedom, this really was freedom.