It took me several moments to realize that I was dreaming when I opened my eyes. I was still within my Den. The twilight glow of the crystals in the wall and calming sound of water trickling past set me at ease. Several things were different from the waking world, however.

  I was back in the ‘hatchling’ form I’d adopted when I met Sixth. There was no treasure pile in the center of my nest. In its place, a softly glowing cloud of dust moved in a lazy spiral. Around the spiral floated a constellation of colored stars. Each pulsed with a dull heartbeat, tapping out a musical rhythm that felt familiar.

  Some stars were more vibrant than others. Five currently held a place of prominence at the center of the constellation. As I observed them, the five stars broke away from the rest and drew closer to me.

  The first was a deep forest green. When it slipped past my snout, I caught a whiff of honey and pine. Its light throbbed out of sync with the others. A connection between me and the star told me that it was in considerable pain.

  Next came a purple star. Its approach was slow and hesitant, moving forward and back. Each time, it came a little closer to me. When it was close enough I could smell jasmine and herbs.

  Of the five, the third star was the strangest. Though it shined, I could not detect a color to its light. No scent accompanied its presence. It seemed to want to dart in close to me, but held back as the other stars crowded close.

  The fourth and the fifth stars remained more distant than the first three. One glowed a subtle pink. The other reflected the ruby red of my scales. It was muted, as if obscured by smoke.

  Though I was not entirely certain, I made an educated guess on what the stars represented. To confirm my suspicion, I dismissed all of the stars except one. Those who were dismissed settled back into the constellation with some reluctance.

  Pink light reflected off of my amber eyes. The next time I blinked, Sixth was sitting in front of me.

  Sixth’s body seemed to be in a better state than the last time I’d seen her. Many of the terrible wounds she’d suffered were healed but left scars in their wake. Her eyes, unfortunately, were something that she hadn’t managed to recover. Her head looked uncertainly around the space before she caught my scent and turned towards me.

  “If you’ve changed your mind about getting rid of me, this is a poor way to do it,” Sixth remarked. I had less experience in reading other dragon’s body language than humans, but it wasn’t hard to guess that she was anxious. Her tail’s tip flicked back and forth across her feet and she surrounded her body with her wings like a cloak.

  “I wanted to see you and needed your advice,” I said with a weary sigh. Although I was probably asleep, my mind was still strained from everything I’d gone through recently. “But if you don’t want to be here, you can go back to what you were doing.”

  Sixth furrowed her brow ridges at me, her tail curling upwards.

  “I… am not busy at the moment,” she said carefully. “But inviting people into your Dream Den isn’t a great idea. There’s no telling what damage someone could do.”

  I stared at Sixth. She tilted her head in my general direction, as she was incapable of staring.

  “Let’s assume I don’t know what that is, along with many other things,” I said eventually.

  “Oh, this is going to be… a lot,” Sixth grumbled. “Did you never listen to the Dream or something?”

  “The first time we met was the first time I’d ever heard of the Dream,” I replied. “I’ve… done things in dreams before, magic even, but no one ever told me that it was… a place you could visit.”

  I approached Sixth slowly so that she wouldn’t be startled. When I got close, I sniffed at their scales. She smelled like a mixture of citrus and something sweet, like honey. She flinched backwards. When I didn’t make a move to pursue her, she hesitantly sniffed back.

  “All dragons are born with access to the Dream,” Sixth said slowly. “When you are growing inside your egg, that is called the First Dream. You’re supposed to enter the ‘proper’ Dream the first time you go to sleep afterwards.”

  “I can remember being in the egg,” I told her as I tried to recall the series of events back then. “But I didn’t experience anything like this after. Not for a long time. When I fell out of the nest, my egg broke on the cave floor. I remember crawling to the carcass of a bear and eating a little, but that’s it.”

  Sixth reared her head back in disgust. “A bear carcass? For your first meal? There can’t have been any Vitae in it at all!”

  “I don’t think there was.” I turned my head to look at the slow moving golden spiral in the center of my nest. “I didn’t know that it was called ‘Vitae’, but my body seemed to know what it needed. After I left the cave… and fell down the mountain, I spent as much of my time as possible hunting rabbits and other prey for what little Vitae I could get.”

  If Sixth had been disgusted before, telling her about hunting rabbits made her begin to wretch. “You subsisted on eating vermin? It’s no wonder that you never entered the Dream. You were practically starving yourself!”

  I resented her calling rabbits vermin. They were quite tasty! But I still needed more information.

  “How do you know these things Sixth? You… were attacked not long after hatching, weren’t you?” I asked carefully. Bringing up the topic of Sixth’s death wasn’t the kindest thing to do, but I’d learned the hard way that I desperately needed to learn more about being a dragon. Third likely wouldn’t be the only sibling I ever fought. The others would probably be far more cunning as well.

  Sixth froze up as I’d expected. She curled in tight on herself. It took her a long time to respond.

  “It didn’t happen immediately. Perhaps three days after we all hatched. That was enough time to enter the Dream properly and learn a little. Afterwards… I was trapped in that place. There was not much else to do other than listen to whispers from the others.”

  “First had them all swear an Oath. They’re connected through the Dream, somehow. Since they had all consumed some of my Vitae, I was connected as well, but powerless.”

  “I fought Third recently and ate some of his Vitae. Does that mean he’s connected to me?” I asked urgently. Considerable relief flooded through me when Sixth shook her head.

  “Not unless you placed some kind of binding magic on him. He-”

  Sixth was interrupted when the crystals embedded in the walls of the Den began to glow. A rain of golden light began to pour from the crystals on all sides. The spiral at the center of the Dream started spinning faster. It collected the golden rain into itself, steadily growing larger. By the time the rainshower ceased, it was nearly three times its original size.

  As I watched the downpour, I was able to detect a lingering scent of death and rage in the air. Each cycle of the spiral lessened the scent, gradually cleaning the air. Soon enough my Den smelled as it should once more.

  “That-,” I started, then faltered. “That was Third’s power, wasn’t it? How could that happen?”

  “He must have died,” Sixth said grimly. “When a dragon dies, its Vitae passes on to the one who killed it, or disperses naturally into the world. I felt that you were gaining Vitae recently, but to think so much of it came from Third… he really was a monster.”

  “I can’t imagine what could have killed him,” I muttered in shock. “I fought him with everything I had. A sorcerer and a wizard used powerful magic on him as well and he still managed to escape.”

  “I’m not surprised that you failed, but it is worrying that something else succeeded,” Sixth agreed. “We are exceptionally hard to kill. Even after five of our siblings ganged up on me, I still almost managed to escape. You need to be careful. Keep a close eye out for whatever killed Third.”

  Sixth paused for a while, her head turned towards the spiral.

  “Can… I ask you for a favor, Sanguine?” she asked softly.

  “I think you’ve more than earned a favor,” I responded. “But I’m not keeping track of debts. All you need to do is ask.”

  “... Can I have the Vitae Third stole from me back?” she whispered. “I can sense it. It’s here, his part at least.”

  “Of course you can,” I told her with a shrug. “But I don’t know how to transfer it to you. As you said, most of my magic is ‘pulled out of my ass’.”

  Sixth gave a deep sigh, cursing her fate for being shackled to such an incompetent brother. I didn’t detect any real malice in her words. She folded her small pink wings onto her back and uncurled her tail. With careful steps, she closed the distance between us and settled her neck against mine.

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  “It's as simple as breathing,” Sixth told me. “You breathe out, I breathe in.”

  I closed my eyes and concentrated, attempting to regulate my breathing. I’d done something like this before, when I manipulated the life force inside of Magnus and the girl in the bandit cave. The dull twilight of the Den faded from my awareness. All that I could sense was the golden spiral, my own heartbeat, and the flickering candle that represented Sixth.

  It was not as simple as Sixth described. While I didn’t know how to play an instrument, I was able to tell that Sixth’s flame was not in sync with mine. We were operating on different rhythms. Each time I would try to match hers, she’d change her tune. With such close proximity, I could feel her frustration build. Every failed attempt made her a little more anxious and annoyed.

  “Quit fooling around,” she cursed quietly at me. I took a moment to consider my response, rather than snap back.

  “... It’s okay. I am here. As long as it takes.” My tail gently curled around Sixth, resting at her side. My wings unfolded from my back, settling around her carefully. She initially moved to withdraw, but gritted her fangs together and returned.

  “A hug isn’t going to help, idiot,” she hissed.

  “Perhaps. If you want me to stop, I will,” I said softly in return. Sixth grumbled, but did not object further. Slowly, our rhythms began to fall in sync. When I breathed out, Sixth breathed in. A small tendril of golden light separated itself from the spiral and twisted through the air. It passed through me, then curled into Sixth.

  The candle flame of her heart sucked at the golden energy like it was starving. Sixth herself gave a hiss of discomfort. Another strand of light followed the first. She absorbed it just as hungrily, but it became increasingly evident that the experience was dragging up some painful memories for her. I did not catch all of what she said, but some of the words that passed her fangs were only for her to listen to.

  Eventually, I pulled back from Sixth. The candle flame in her core had grown to a small fire. It was small, but could grow into something bigger over time.

  Sixth took a considerable length of time to recover. I didn’t rush her. When she looked back at me, she seemed annoyed.

  “There is more here than what I asked for,” she chided me irritably. “Some of your Vitae got mixed in.”

  “Consider it a gift, freely given,” I responded with a grin. “Sometimes an older brother wants to spoil his younger sister.”

  Sixth spat at me and ruffled her wings. “I don’t need your pity.”

  “I don’t pity you, Sixth. You don’t have to accept it, if you do not want it,” I said firmly. “I just want you to…” I fluttered my own wings irritably. Dealing with Sixth took a lot out of me, mentally, but I considered it worth the effort, even if she didn’t. “I can’t fix everything, but I want to do what I can for you.”

  “... Thank you, brother,” Sixth said after some hesitation. “I… appreciate it.” That was all we were likely going to be able to accomplish for the moment. Sixth wasn’t the kind to break down into tearful gratitude, based on my limited experience with her. She did seem to have warmed up to me a little.

  “I’d like it if you could answer some more questions for me, the next time I sleep,” I told her. “But I think we both need some time to let things settle… and I’m not sure how long I’ve been asleep.”

  “About seven days,” Sixth told me, helpfully.

  Now it was my turn to curse. Without further adieu, I tried to wake up.

  When I woke up, I made sure to check that I was back in my regular Den.

  A quick visual inspection suggested that I was, but certain things were different. My treasure pile had grown a little. New items that I didn’t recognize were carefully arranged on it. They seemed to primarily be rough geodes and other natural baubles.

  Over to one side of my nest, someone had set up camp. A few personal items along with a bedroll, a backpack, and a small fire pit were sheltered against a stone shelf. It wasn’t hard to guess who was responsible, since Visk was sitting on the bedroll eating some stew.

  They looked rather disheveled. I’d never seen the elf in such a ‘natural’ state of being. Even when they’d been begging for their life between my claws in the sky, there had been something vaguely ‘sleek’ about their countenance. At the moment, Visk looked more like a cat that had been put through a bath.

  I’d only ever seen cats from a distance near places humans lived, but they had featured in more than one of Cassia’s fairy tales. They were supposed to be coy and standoffish creatures, which thrived on trickery. Their only weaknesses were supposed to be water and an over-fondness of cream.

  Visk did not seem to be eating too much cream, at least. When they noticed that I was awake, they nearly dropped their stew. The elf put their bowl to the side and scampered over towards me. I could hear them apologizing as they approached.

  “Sorry-sorry-sorry-sorry-sorry!” Visk gasped as they ran to my side. “Pleasedon’tbemad!”

  “... Why would I be mad, Visk?” I asked groggily.

  “B-... because you wanted me to be here?” Visk asked, their brows furrowing. “That was part of the deal, right? To be here with you when you wake back up?”

  I thought back to Visk and my last conversation. I could remember saying something which could be interpreted that way.

  “... Visk, you do not need to be…” I searched for the right words. “Without fail, directly next to me when I wake up. I may be protective, but it has been… seven days?” Visk nodded their head to answer my query.

  “Uhm, yeah, sorry boss,” Visk apologized again. “I needed to eat and do… other stuff. I thought you might like some new things on your hoard?” They glanced over at the treasure pile, then back at me, as if to plead their case.

  “... The treasures are very nice Visk,” I said wearily. It felt like I’d not gotten any rest at all. “Please finish your stew and join me when you are ready.” I held up a claw to cut them off before they sprinted off. “Take your time, please. I appreciate your dedication, Visk, but I want you to be comfortable.”

  Visk chewed their cheek, the moonpools of their eyes staring at me for a long moment. Their ears fluttered softly. “Then… uhm… boss…”

  “Yes Visk?”

  “Can I ride on your back?” Their ears began vibrating wildly. “Ah- uhm- Not right now! When you want- At some point!”

  “... Yes Visk, you can,” I said slowly. Why did so many people want to ride my back? This was the third person who’d asked. “Now please, go relax and get ready when you’re settled. I’m expecting a busy day ahead of us.”

  Visk started to sprint away again, but settled for a middling jog when I rumbled at them.

  I needed to find Edith and Cassia. I remembered Magnus’s star in my Dream. They ought to hear that he was still alive.

  Magnus woke up in an unfamiliar bed. The mattress beneath him was hard and full of protrusions. He thought he might be sore from lying on top of such an uncomfortable bed, but as he slowly sat up he realized that his entire body ached. It felt like he’d been kicked by a horse from head to toe.

  Weak light filtered into the room through gaps in a window curtain. Magnus could see a haze of dust swirling inside of the room. The beams of light cut through the dark like shining streams of gold on a black sea. Something in that golden swirl seemed familiar, but he couldn’t place its origin.

  As much as he’d rather sleep, Magnus was unable to rest. The last thing he remembered was trying to help Sanguine in some undefined fashion. Everything after that was a void in his memory.

  The room around him was stacked high with unknown items. Everything was tucked away in boxes, bags, and any other conceivable storage device. He was pretty sure he saw a wine barrel tucked up near the ceiling. Narrow corridors ran between the stacks. It was good fortune that the bed Magnus woke up in was directly next to a window and not buried in the maze.

  Magnus pulled himself up out of the bed. It had a human shaped hole in the middle of it. The only way a mattress got that kind of divot was by the same person sleeping in it for decades. He could almost see the outline in the covers.

  He was still dressed in the clothing T’laanga had given him. It was rugged, suited to long days out in the sun and rain rather than hanging around indoors. Magnus’s hand reached out for his crook, which was supposed to always remain by his side. His fumbling fingers didn’t find it nearby.

  A deep sense of frustration rose in Magnus’s mind. He’d put blood, sweat, and a few hidden tears into making the crook. It was His. He’d be very upset if it had gotten lost.

  Magnus was distracted by a tingling in his fingers. He was just on the edge of grasping something, but needed to give it a firm tug. Without knowing how, he reached out and pulled it towards him.

  There was a loud ‘Bang!’ from within the dark maze. Several stacks of items began to topple as an object ran into them and upset their precarious balance. Magnus could hear whatever it was approaching by a series of thumps and scraping noises, which grew louder with each passing moment.

  A shape whipped out of the dark and jumped into Magnus’s waiting fingers. It was a rough hewn shepherd’s crook, the one he’d made. The tingling in his fingers slipped away.

  Mortimer appeared directly in front of Magnus a moment later, his robes fluttering in an unseen wind. A faint sizzle of magic suffused the air before dissipating.

  “Well would you look at that,” the old man said with a chuckle. “Full telekinesis from two floors down and halfway across the Tower. What a marvel!”

  Magnus squinted up at the Wizard. “I’m sorry? Tele-what now?” The collapsing stacks had made it hard to see. A deep cough rose out of Magnus’s throat, almost bending him double.

  “Tel-eh-kehn-ee-sis my boy,” the Wizard enunciated. “Moving something with the power of-” Mortimer sneezed. “Well that won’t do at all. Lets be rid of all this botherso-ACHOO! -bothersome dust.”

  Mortimer waved his staff. A gust of wind curled through the room, pulling the curtain open. Magnus was blinded as light flooded the room. He heard a twin ‘ba-bang’ as the window’s shutters flew open. The wind swirling through the room collected all the dust and sent it spewing out of the window before it finally settled. Loose papers and detritus slowly settled to the ground.

  When Magnus looked out the now open window, he saw something unbelievable. A vast city spread out before him. More people than he’d seen in his entire life swarmed through the streets. With each moment, a thousand faces passed in and out of sight. A dull noise like a roar rolled up from the streets. It was the sound of uncountable people going about their lives.

  Magnus also realized that he was very far up. The window out of the tower was a dozen stories above the ground at least. An intense sense of vertigo made the boy step back from the window and clutch his crook to his chest.

  Mortimer seemed unphased by the awe inspiring sight.

  “Welcome to the Tower of Baedain,” the Wizard said as if reading off a placard. “See the wondrous sights of Osteriath right from your own personal study. Bask in the refreshing breeze from Mirror Lake in the evening. Generally look down your nose at the peasants- et cetera, et cetera.” He dropped the ‘by rote’ tone in his voice for the last bit.

  “Wha- how- huh?” Magnus sputtered out, taken off guard by the wizard’s words.

  “That means, ‘welcome home’, Magnus,” Mortimer replied in a chipper tone. “You have been accepted as an apprentice in one of the foremost centers of magical study on the continent.”

  While that sent a flutter of excitement through Magnus, something inside of him warned that this was too good to be true. He’d dreamed of learning magic in a place other than a goat herder’s hut, but this was too sudden. Hadn’t this man just fought T’laanga the first time they met?

  As the thought entered Magnus’s head, it rapidly began to slip away. Soon enough, he’d forgotten about it entirely. The same voice of warning spoke up from inside of him, but it too was quickly dampened.

  Magnus could not see the Wizard subtly twisting his fingers into sigils behind his back.

  “Come now boy, there’s a lot to learn,” Mortimer said, smiling wide. “First things first. Every apprentice needs to learn how to clean up their messes.” The Wizard pointed at the toppled stacks deeper into the room. “This right here seems a fine place to start!”

  Magnus sighed deeply. Even with a new mentor, some things never changed.