26: Dragon-Raised
Fanfic (YAHF-minor)
The Hellmouth is a strange place. True, it is a gap into hell, but it is also a dimensional weak point, a chaos hotspot, and a karmic randomizer. Do something good, die for it. Do something bad, die for it. Really, it was just a mess.
Still, messes can sometimes have… benefits. For example, in a place like a Hellmouth, just about anything can happen.
Once, many years ago, a group of impressively powerful adventurers from a world MOST on earth would recognize as a part of the DnD universe stumbled through a half-formed portal to the hell the Hellmouth sealed. In 999,999 out of a million worlds, they died in a second due to dimensional shear, something that can snuff even the greatest of archmages with a mere tap. In this one, however, they became gods… for some reason. Yes, the Hellmouth is THAT chaotic. Still, it made it so that the worlds of DnD and BtVS connected. Naturally, on seeing what kind of world they had lucked into, the gods and goddesses in question threw all their effort into sealing the connection and destroying Hell, going so far as to found a religion and empower paladins. Sadly, five hundred years of war with minimal gains led to the gods in question becoming weakened, especially since the PtB did their best to eliminate the interlopers as well. Thankfully, however, weakened in this case just meant 'slightly fallible', not 'nearly dead'. Their empowerment WAS due to a concentrated blast of Hell Energy, Dimensional Shear, and their own skill, after all. NOT a weak combo.
That being said, they were JUST fallible enough for all of them to miss a wounded, sneaky dragon slipping in and out over the course of a week. Less than two days later, however, they DID notice the results. The dragon in question (a Silver Chromatic, to be precise) was saved by an abused young boy by the name of Alexander 'Xander' Harris. Touched by this soul's kindness, the dragon spirited the boy away to grow up with him, as opposed to living with his drunk, abusive parents. Sadly, it took less than three weeks for the new gods to grab him and bring him home. Three LOCAL days. To the young boy, he had been gone almost five months! And, as it turned out, he was an adept at the magic of the DnD world, having been born in the wrong realm and this empowering him (he had the skills of a DnD character without the skill sheet). Sadly, when he got taken back, he lost everything he had. After all, DnD magic belongs in the DnD world. Still, the boy had a young girl he was taking care of, and so he was glad to be home. He kept up on his training, of course, but this just meant the weakest of cantrips (personal magics, those were. No matter what dimension, you could learn them) and meditation and physical training.
That is, until a certain Halloween.
In a fit of nostalgia and pique at how he was being treated by his group, he dressed himself up as himself, if he had stayed behind (more than twenty years had passed there). When everyone became their costume, Janus, pleased to be able to show his TRUE might (HE was the keeper of doors, not those new gods!), let him become… HIMSELF! Sure, when the spell ended, his BODY retracted, but his mind was filled with knowledge and skill unlike anything his world had seen, and his spirit could now run DnD magic, no matter the world! Moreover, his dimensional storage (soul-bound!) was still with him, containing all the materials and equipment he would have gained over twenty-plus YEARS of magecraft, adventuring, and trade!
Sure, he wasn't up to snuff, but that wouldn't be a problem for long!
Look out, world! Xander DRAGONSON is coming for you!
