A/N: And here we are with chapter 2! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Dungeons and Dragons, I only own my original ideas and characters.
Chapter 2: Trapped
I made my way deeper into the night, having no idea where I was going. I made the best time I could as I limped along with my injured leg. I soon came to a stream, allowing me to wash out my wounds. I could feel that all too familiar emptiness in by belly. I'd been forced to flee before father returned from the day's hunt. I started searching the forest around me for prey, but whenever I started getting close, the small animals become alerted to my presence, either by the snap of a twig I overlooked, or a sudden shift in the wind that caused them to catch my scent.
I was getting worried I'd have to go hungry, but then I smelled something: the blood of a wounded animal. I stalked towards it as silently I could, and soon came upon the source: a dead fox, lying in the middle of a clearing. If I hadn't been so desperate for food, I'd have listened to the voice nagging me from the back of my mind that this seemed too easy. Almost as soon as I started eating, I found myself hauled upwards as the net closed around me. I thrashed and clawed to try and break free, but to no avail. I only ended up tangling myself up worse. Shortly thereafter, I heard someone approaching. I looked towards the source, and saw a humanoid with pointed ears approaching, with a large shaggy dog at his side. In the elf's hand, he held a simple bow.
"Well, what do we have here boy?" said the elf, "I was expecting to catch that wolf that's been attacking livestock in the area, but instead we've bagged a little dragon".
The elf continued to appraise me, and I really didn't like his expression.
"Hmm… you're a little young to be away from the nest aren't you?" said the elf, "What happened, get kicked from the nest? Abandoned for some reason? I haven't heard of any red dragons being slain around here recently… that said, I'm certain I could find some use for you".
As he spoke, he casually pulled a small flask from his hip, and dipped an arrow into the contents. He then nocked the arrow, pointing it right at me.
"Sleep for now wyrm," said the elf coldly, "I'll figure out a way to make you worthwhile".
He fired the arrow, easily piercing my hide. Almost immediately, I felt woozy as the poison did its work. My eyelids growing heavy as I was drawn into sleep.
Sometime later I awoke, albeit still groggy from the effects of the elf's poison. I found myself in a cramped cage, with barely enough space to turn around. As I tried to lift my head, I discovered that a heavy metal contraption had been strapped around my snout, weighting me down and allowing barely enough space to move my jaws. I looked around as best as I could, and saw I was in a village, right outside a small house, likely the hunter's home. I could only watch as the villagers came past as they went about their day, often stopping to gawk at me or laugh at the 'great beast' brought low. The village's children did their own part daring each other to move closer and poke at me with sticks, or throw rocks at me. I couldn't help but feel lower and more pitiful than ever. Not even a full day out in the wider world, and it seemed my fate was already sealed.
Throughout the next few days, my jailor met with multiple others. They spoke in a variety of languages, most of which I couldn't recognize. The few I could understand left me little hope for my living much longer. One was a powerfully muscled man who smelled like smoke and ash, with a hammer hanging from his hip. He spoke of harvesting my hide for armor. Another one, a rough-looking half-orc woman, spoke of purchasing me for use in some sort of arena. Then there was the colorfully dressed man.
"Well, it seems you weren't exaggerating," said the man, "you did manage to capture red dragon wyrmling. Such a rare specimen… perfect for my menagerie. Well, it will be once I'm done with it. How much do you want for it?"
"Hmm," said the hunter, "well, as you said, this is quite a rare specimen, so I'll need to charge quite a bit for this creature. Let's say… 5,000 gold".
"Well," said the man appraising me, "it seems that this one's injured… I mean, just look at that leg! I wouldn't be surprised if it was broken! Since it's damaged goods, I'll give you 1,000 gold".
"Come now," said the Hunter, "you know that doesn't matter for you purposes. Besides, if that leg is broken, it makes the beast easier to control: 4,000 gold".
"2,000," said the man.
"3,000," said the hunter.
"2,500 gold, but you have to deliver it yourself," said the man, "as well, I'll give you a free ticket to the show".
"I'll take the offer," said the hunter, shaking the buyer's hand.
"Excellent! Excellent!" said the man, "Well then dragon, you get the honor of becoming a 'small' part of Jukeo's Magical Menagerie, the greatest travelling show this world has ever seen!"
I wasn't quite sure what this man meant, but something in his words made a chill run down my spine.
The next day, the hunter loaded my cage into a cart, and took me to whatever my fate would be. We rolled on throughout the day, and into the night. The Hunter made camp just off the road, leaving me to languish in my prison.
As the night progressed, I felt something strange. There was an odd energy in the air, and an unfamiliar scent. I couldn't quite make it out through the muzzle covering my head, but I thought it smelled vaguely like a dragon.
I caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye, followed by a tiny giggle. The Hunter suddenly looked around, quite alert. I thought I spotted a butterfly, but when I tried to focus on it, it was gone. I looked back towards the Hunter, and found a tiny creature flying in place right in front of me. It resembled a miniature dragon with light blue scales and butterfly wings. Its face was split by a mischievous grin. It raised a claw to the tip of its snout, winked, and flew towards the Hunter and his hound before vanishing from sight.
A moment later, a puff of pink gas shot towards the hound. The dog started running in circles and barking at nothing, confusing the Hunter.
"What wrong boy?" said the Hunter, "do you see something?"
A moment later, a loud howl echoed out from the woods, followed by a rather large and tough-looking wolf emerging from the woods, snarling. As I watched, the 'wolf's' form wavered ever so slightly. It wasn't real… however, the hunter hadn't seemed to notice.
"You!" said the hunter, "I've got you his time, beast!"
The 'wolf' turned its head, and then started running off into the forest. The hunter set off in pursuit, his still confused dog running after him. Behind them, a ripple in the air followed, giggling all the way.
A short time later, a small figure emerged from the forest, its bright green hair leaving no doubt that it was a Gnome. The Gnome was wearing simple but finely crafted robes, and holding a staff of gnarled wood. He smiled brightly, and then spoke in Draconic.
"Well, what is this?" said the Gnome, "I heard tell that someone had captured a Wyrmling. Don't worry, young one, he won't be back for a while: Jundre will lead him on a merry chase, at least until he gets bored".
The Gnome smiled at me, an expression which closely matched the tiny dragon's. The Gnome looked at me quizzically, and then continued.
"I know you can't speak with that muzzle on you, so just nod or shake your head," said the Gnome, "do you want to be set free?"
My eye widened. Could he actually want to help me? I nodded.
"Good to hear!" said the Gnome, "If I let you free, will you attack me?"
I shook my head.
"Would you like to come with me?" said the Gnome, "I swear on my life that as long as you don't attempt to harm me or anyone of my friends, I will help you the best I can".
I nodded. I was actually feeling a pang of hope now.
"In that case, just give me a moment," said the Gnome.
He lifted his staff, and pointed at the lock on the cage. A strange glow surrounded the lock, and a moment later it clicked open. I nudged the cage door open, and slowly started unfolding myself from the cage. I could feel the pain in my stiff muscles with every motion. As my wounded back leg touched down, I winced, barely holding back a snarl of pain.
"Oh my," said the Gnome, "your leg… it's broken! Give me a moment. I can't fix it here, but I can splint it to prevent further damage".
The Gnome grabbed a few sticks and pulled out a length of rope. He bustled over and asked me to hold still for a moment, I winced again as he pulled on my leg, and then set the splint into place.
"That should hold you for now," said the Gnome, "come on, let's get that muzzle off".
He raised his staff again, and cast the same spell he'd on the cage, and the muzzle popped loose. With a bit of help from my rescuer, I got the Abyss-damned thing off. I stretched my jaw and neck, and then looked at the Gnome.
"T-thank you," I said, "Who are you?"
"I? I am Quoros Ningel," said the Gnome as he bowed deeply, "Scholar and Wizard. What of you? What is your name?"
"It's not much of a name, really, more of an insult to show what my father thought of me," I said, lowering my head, "He called me Sartplythutilsin".
"Ah, I see what you mean," said Quoros, "that's literally nothing but a string of insults. Yes: small, weak, and lizard. I can't claim to be strongly acquainted with the nesting habits of Chromatic Dragons, but I'd at least extrapolate that they are similar to other intelligent magical creatures. Why would you be given such an insulting name?"
I sighed, a few embers drifting from my mouth as the painful memories circled in my head.
"Simple," I said bitterly, "I'm just a runt… a weakling. He knew from the moment I hatched that my siblings would drive me out before long… he was right".
"Intriguing," said Quoros, "A minor premonition, or simply a deeply seated belief that ended up proving true? This bears further study. There are old stories of ancient wyrms peering through the veils of time to predict that which would come, but most of these are unsubstantiated rumors…"
Quoros continued to ramble on, seemingly without end.
"Oh, dear… you've gotten him into lecture mode," said a small voice next to me.
I glanced over, and saw that the tiny butterfly-winged dragon was right next to me. I remembered the name Quoros said.
"You are Jundre, right?" I asked.
"Yup!" said Jundre with a giggle, "nice to meet ya!"
"Does he do… this often?" I asked as Quoros continued to ramble.
"Only when some new piece of knowledge catches his interest," said Jundre, "or when he's speaking to a fellow wizard… or pretty much any day ending in 'Y'".
"So… shouldn't we be going?" I asked, "I don't want to be here when the hunter gets back".
"Oh, don't worry about that," giggled Jundre, "He'll be busy chasing shadows for while. I might have… 'Suggested' that he'd find his quarry easier if he ran through town singing loudly. The guards will probably lock him up for the night, thinking he's drunk".
After a while, Quoros reached the end of his ramblings and took notice that Jundre had returned.
"Ah, excellent!" said Quoros, "let's be on our way, we should not tarry!"
Our strange trio started on our way, Quoros leading the way and Jundre perched upon my head. Together, we set off towards whatever lay ahead.
A/N: And there we go! Next time, this young dragon discovers the kindness others can show. See you then!