Author's Note:

Hello everyone and welcome to the third chapter. This one is mostly Phorcys explaining things, so I hope it isn't too boring. Thank you those who've shown their support and I hope you enjoy the chapter.

I own nothing.

Chapter 3

There was a brief silence after his words, then…

"I'm a what!"

Tyrell stared at Phorcys in disbelief, then shook his head, "You must be crazy. There's no way that's possible."

The man seemed unperturbed, "I assure you, it's quite possible."

"But dragons are monsters!"

At this, Phorcys laughed slightly, "Oh, how little humans know." He shook his head, "No, the 'dragons' you are referring to are nothing more than lesser beings, pale imitations no doubt named after a long-forgotten memory."

"What are you talking about."

The man seemed to be even more amused, "It seems that the ancient Jenei have managed to erase us from history, unsurprising considering." He smiled, "True dragons are far more than monsters, in fact, we were a dominant power alongside the people known as Jenei, the Adapts of the past."

Tyrell frowned, "Wait, 'we'?"

Phorcys' smile grew wider, "Indeed, I myself am a true dragon, as is Hera."

"But, you're human!"

He laughed at Tyrell's outburst, "Oh I assure you, I am certainly not human, despite my appearance." He then grinned, showing a mouth full of teeth more akin to fangs, "No human could ever have these, and I'm sure my eyes are equally non-human."

Tyrell immediately looked at the man's eyes, on top of their odd golden colour, he also noticed that they were reptilian in appearance, with slits for pupils.

Phorcys nodded, "Indeed, my fangs and eyes are the give-aways as to my true nature." He leaned back with a sigh, "Now then, I think that brings us neatly onto what we want from you, though you'll have to forgive me since this could take a while. There's a bit of history and exposé to get through."

Despite himself, Tyrell was intrigued, and it wasn't like he was able to go anywhere just yet, so he simply nodded.

Phorcys grinned again, "Well then, it starts in a time before the Elemental Lighthouses, when the Jenei were at the height of their power and Alchemy was abundant. The dragons, the same as everything else, are comprised of the four elements, and like Adapts, they were each individually aligned with one element."

He pointed to himself, "Personally, I am a Sea Dragon, and thus aligned with water, whereas Hera is a Sky Dragon, and aligned with air."

He continued, "Our power is akin to psynergy, but it was also quite different, it relys more on our internal power rather than mental ability. Our abilities are instinctive whereas Adepts need concentration and focus, however, the end results were similar." He shrugged, "At that time, there was a…well, not quite a peace, but a…respect between the Jenei and Dragons. Both sides saw that fighting with each other was a futile endeavour, they were equally matched, so they came to an agreement to stay out of each other's affairs, and not go invading their respective territories." He sighed, "Of course, different human groups ended up fighting and killing each other but they left the dragons be, then things changed."

"The Jenei attacked?"

Tyrell was now more curious, and couldn't stop himself from guessing, Phorcys shook his head.

"Not quite, and if I'm perfectly honest, I think the dragons attacked them first."

"Why?"

He leaned forward, "Because, humanity started to seek a way to remove the power of Alchemy. Dragons like myself are more attuned to the more primal nature of that force, they were certain that sealing it would cause the world more harm than good in the end, so they sought to prevent that from happening." He sighed again, "Of course, the dragons starting a war only made the humans more certain that Alchemy should be sealed, both groups gained their power from that source and their goal became more than just ending the wars between humans, it also meant victory over the dragons."

He sat back in his chair, "In the end, the Jenei found another way to defeat them, using their machines and knowledge of Alchemy, they managed to seal away the greatest power the dragons held."

"And what was that power?"

Phorcys smiled again at Tyrell's question, "Our ability to take on a full draconic form, it gave us incredible power and was our answer to the Alchemy machines. Despite the limited time it could be sustained, our full form was a mighty force to be reckoned with, and our greatest pride." He shook his head, "But alas, it was taken from us, sealed away as Alchemy itself was not long after, and as the victors, the Jenei started to erase our presence from history. Without Alchemy, our full forms would remain locked away, and the dragons diminished into just the most obscure legends, as what was left of them moved onto the edge of civilisation."

He nodded at Tyrell, "Until of course, your father and the other Warriors of Vale reignited the lighthouses and returned Alchemy to the world, granting us the chance to regain our lost power."

Tyrell frowned, "Well, good for you, but where do I fit into this?"

Phorcys grinned, "Ah, yes. Well, despite Alchemy returning to the world, the seal on our power remains, and we dragons can't undo it ourselves, such is the way its constructed. In fact, not even an Adept can do it. No, the Jenei, in a stroke of what could only be called genius, made it so only one who was both the child of an Adept and a dragon could remove it."

He looked thoughtful for a moment, "You have to admire their wisdom, at the time, the thought of an Adept and a dragon ever having children was inconceivable, they had created a near perfect seal." He glanced at the boy, "But then you happened."

There was a long silence in which Phorcys stared at Tyrell intently. Then, he suddenly stood, "Well, I think that's enough storytelling for one day." He glanced back at the boy, "Now, it is getting rather late and we'll need to travel hard tomorrow." He walked over and looked down at him, "If I untie you, will you behave yourself."

Tyrell blinked and looked down at the bonds he'd almost forgotten were holding him to his chair. He considered it for a moment then nodded.

Phorcys smiled slightly, "Good." He set about untying the ropes, "Now, I'm leaving on the manacle that's blocking your powers and I'll certainly be locking the door when I leave, however, you will be able to use the bed and that'll be far more comfortable than being tied to a chair."

The ropes fell away and Tyrell stood and stretched, just realising how uncomfortable he'd been. Phorcys was already heading for the door, "As I said, it'll be a long, hard day of travel tomorrow, you should properly rest while you can."

With that, the man left, the door locking audibly behind him.

PS-So, a brief history of dragons and what happened to them. Please let me know what you thought and I'll hopefully update soon.