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-Mythvale-

-ONE-

In the beginning, there was a lot of stuff. But then, on the wings of a herald, a message arrived. A message in a cacophony of jaunty music and tight pants. The Prophet arrived on the silent wings above the waves of the Calim Sea.

A foreward by the author of these holy pages. I, who had walked alongside The Prophet, The Savior, The Seven.

Kobolds are curious creatures. Alone, they are mostly nervous things, timid and meek. But when we landed on the shores of Squaretooth Island, and were met with hundreds, if not thousands of them staring down our little skiff, they seemed anything but meek. My hackles raised, alert to the danger as we approached their dock. Countless spears held in tiny clawed hands, swaths of nocked bows held along their thighs, not aimed but a clear message nonetheless: 'Strangers were not welcome here.'

"Today seems like a good day to die," Shamus Torne said beside me, pulling the bolt on his rifle. The elf had a cigarette clenched between his lips, and the hard, gray eyes searching for the first kobold he planned to shoot. He cracked his neck with a roll, and flicked a bit of his grungy hair from his face.

"Stay your hand, Specialist. Fighting will get us nowhere but into the grave," I said. "We came here for peace, so act peacefully."

Shamus gave a look at me but sat back down in a haughty huff. "Shit, don't come crying to me when they use you like a pillow." He glared at a kobold up on a small cliff and put two fingers to his eyes, then pointed to his target, momentarily breaking the little creature's resolve. The kobold disappeared from sight with a frightened squeak, earning a short bray of laughter from Shamus."

I swallowed my nerves and stepped off the boat. It was a dinghy for the air cruiser moored offshore, and I thought it wise not to let something so big and flashy be the first sight on a diplomatic mission. I got two entire steps onto the pier before a dozen spear-bearing kobolds jabbed the tips of their weapons toward my face. "Bird, be gone!" one of them said. The rest soon followed suit.

"Leave!"

"Tall folk not welcome!"

"This is our home!"

I slowly raised my arms, palms out to show my talons were empty. My wings flared out wide and low in a gesture of nonviolence, submission. If they were to be even talked to they must know they had the upper hand. I knew kobolds were emotional creatures, and agitating them with hostility could prove deadly. I remained still like that, making eye contact with the kobolds until their paranoid barks and yips had quieted down. One of them asked, "What reason do you come to us?"

"My name is Cassidy. Cassidy Oscines," I began. "I have come to talk peace with you and your clan."

"We have peace in our clan. You go now!"

"Peace between your clan, and ours. I am a Lieutenant with the Calimsea Republic. I am just a diplomat. And I humbly wish to give a message to your Chief. I bring words, nothing else."

A few of them looked at each other, confused. "What you mean? Diplomat? Lieutenant?"

It was surprising how much trouble these kobolds were causing the Republic for how little they seemed to know about the world outside their island. "A diplomat is a special speaker. I am trusted with..." I strained my mind to put this into words they would understand. "My Chief wants to ask your Chief something. A trade of sorts."

In reality, my mission was to go to Squaretooth Island, a miserably rocky and wretched slab of land in the northern Calim Sea. The kobolds here had been attacking all seafaring ships indiscriminately as they grew close to their island. Shipping routes had to add three weeks to sail around the island, if the rare transportation via air was impossible. And if they could be convinced to join the Calimsea Republic, only attacking ships of the Ry'meister Empire, it would save time, gold, and lives.

"Who is your Chief?" the lead kobold had asked, lowering his spear an inch or two.

Another question I found myself working through a filter of culture. From what I knew about kobolds, they respected power and size above position. Political or military decoration would fall on deaf ears with them, so I couldn't say my commander was Jerod Hawthorne, and have it mean anything. But technically, the lead ambassador would be the liaison they would deal with until they were given their own diplomat. We were stretched so thin that the head emissary had to split his time between liaising with the dwarves of the Goldbeard Kingdom, and onboarding new member nations.

The kobold bapped my shoulder with the flat of his spear when I spent too much time in thought. "Who?!"

"My chief is a great dragon lord," I squawked out on impulse. Shamus gaped wide enough to drop his cigarette. I surprised myself, never intending to sound so dramatic, but when the lot of them lowered their weapons and widened their eyes, I couldn't stop. I held my talon out, fingers pointed together in a point then spread them quickly, infusing a bit of will into my palm.

A glowing mote of light sprang forth, shimmering a cool silvery blue. A little more effort and I shaped it to look like a tiny ball of flame, sending the kobolds into a fearful withdrawal. They backed away from me by several feet, but I quickly dismissed the spell to show I meant no harm. In reality, it was little more than a simple spell, something most every being capable of harnessing magic can accomplish. But, either they never had seen magic before, or didn't realize this was such a simple illusion.

"My lord gives me power," I explained. "Simply because I promised to join him in his... clan. His great task for me was to seek out your people. This island. He has taken an interest in you."

"Why us?"

"We never hurt a dragon!"

"Never!!" they all yammered.

I shook my head, "You misunderstand. He wishes to invite you to his clan. An alliance, a partnership. My lord has seen your potential, and has told me to seek out your Chief. To offer him the chance to gain the power I hold, and more, if your clan pledges yourselves to him."

"What is your lord's name?" one of them asked, his bright blue eyes shimmering as he hung onto my every word. He seemed far warier of my explanation. His voice put on the act that he didn't believe, but his eyes told another story.

I looked at him and paused dramatically, staring down at the sandy pale scaled spear wielder as if I was judging his worthiness to even hear his name. In reality, saying 'Sueasanstosueatu' would have just confused them. "My lord has promised power, treasures, and gifts, to all the good little kobolds that promise to work with him.. This was the word..." I flared out my arms and wings wide, and made my voice ring out, "of Susue Claws!"

Shamus was stifling laughter, trying not to choke on a new cigarette. When the kobolds all rushed me, it took him a moment to get his rifle up to bear, but it was too late. Tiny kobold paws patted at my legs, my waist, and my sides as I was whisked off toward their village. "You must tell the chief!" I managed to wave Shamus down, shooting hima stern look of Don't. Kill. Anybody.

"The chief!"

"Susue Claws!" They chanted, bouncing with energy as I was taken past dozens, no... hundreds of warriors, all staring at the capture they made. It was a ruckus all the way through the hilly forest, until we came to the outer gates of the kobold village.

The four guards at the wooden wall stopped the returning kobolds, and an older, scarred one barked to silence the entourage. In a gruff tone, he growled, "Outsiders not welcome here. You know this. Why bring this one back?"

The tan kobold jumped forward, pointing back at me. "He is a messenger of a Great One! He brings word to the Chief! We must let him in! To tell the Chief the word of Susue Claws!"

"Kuno, what are you yapping about?" the gate guard asked as he stared down the excitable little lizard. A flat look was on the guard's face, clearly not buying any of this.

"He speaks of a dragon Karva! A dragon who wants us as his!"

Karva swallowed nervously at that, his eyes opening a bit wider. "Are you sure?"

Kuno looked back to me, expectantly "The great Susue Claws is kind and just. He sees the potential you have on the island of Squaretooth. Please, let me speak with your Chief. I promise no harm, no trouble. I have only words to give."

Karva eyed the slim sword hanging on my belt with suspicion. When I saw his gaze, I unbuckled it and passed it over without pause. "Look at it, I have wrapped the hilt in a peace cord. Keep it with you while I enter your home. I have nothing to gain by hurting a kobold."

The sword came up to Karva's bare chest, but he held it like a staff and pounded the tip of the sheath into the dirt. "Open the gates!" he roared, and then, "Behave yourself."

"I will, thank you," I said.

Karva grunted, "I was talking to Kuno."

The village on Squaretooth was massive. Kobolds had dug out a huge portion of a rocky cliff to create hundreds of dwellings into a complex cave network. Fires lit the square-cut windows in many of the homes, and I noted the resourcefulness of these creatures as well. What they cut from the cliff they repurposed into stone blocks and built even more. These buildings may have been on the crude side, but they were elaborate. Storehouses, workshops, and everything in between was on one side of the village, their homes on the other. Too many of them to count had scurried in a hundred different directions, once I was in their village, I was an more an oddity than a threat. As we passed the market square, the Chief's home was set at the end of the main road.

Three stories tall, it looked more like a miniature castle than a village hut on some nowhere island in backwater Calimsea. Color me impressed, though. The intelligence reports we had on Squaretooth put them at little above tribal raiders, but this architecture alone was enough to prove that they were capable of incredible things.

Kuno tugged at the hem of my vest. "The Chief is in there. Wait here, I'll fetch him for you."

I was left with the other warriors as he scampered inside. There was a bit of anxiety as I tried not to think about how hopelessly outnumbered I was. Even if I could just fly away, there were too many that walked around with crossbows slung over their shoulders to make me think I could get away without being aggressively perforated. They knew how to make weapons, armor, structures, and, as I looked around the market, a decent number of crafts. Then again, if these kobolds were clever enough to avoid our intelligence gathering, that should have been a warning point.

The old Chief of Squaretooth came out of his home with Kuno trailing behind him. He walked with a limp, and I noted several slashing scars over his rust-red snout, long since faded. Even though I had at least a foot of height on him, he looked like he could take me apart without thinking twice. This kobold looked like he had braided iron under his scales, and when he grunted to clear his throat, I found myself the only one not flinching out of habit. Kuno gave an excitable yip, and stood at the old kobold's side. "Honorable Chief Drovaak, this is the one who wishes your audience."

"Kuno tells me you are some sort of prophet." His voice was a guttural rasp, commanding respect.

"Uh, I wouldn't call myself so much as a prophet than a messenger." I squeezed my talons behind my back as I felt like there were hundreds of kobolds listening to our conversation rather than just a dozen or so.

"You bring the word of a Great One, yes?" the Chief asked. When I nodded, he stated, "then you are a prophet. Tell me of this... Susue Claws, and why he has sent you here." We headed inside at the Chief's invitation. His home was a little cramped by my size, but I had about a foot of height and a pair of large wings on my back to make everything feel a little more snug. For a kobold-sized creature, it was lavish.

I swallowed, but felt a little more at ease. Drovaak sounded like he had more wits than the other kobolds, so maybe I can explain it in more detail to him. "Thank you, honorable Chief," I began with a bow. "I am First Lieutenant Cassidy Oscines of the Calimsea Republic. In the course of the ongoing war between our collective nation and the Ry'Meister Empire, it has become my duty to approach your kin and negotiate an alliance. Your warriors have raided Republic and Empire vessels alike, to great results. If you agree to sign on as a fully realized member nation of Calimsea, the liaison Susue shall see to it all kobolds are welcomed into the Republic as a fully fledged member nation."

Drovaak sat in a sunken section of his main room, a conversation pit with all sorts of cushions for talking at length. "You tell me what Susue Claws wishes of us. I also asked you - who is he?"

Susue was... In all honesty, I had only just met him at the beginning of this assignment. He was a silver dragon, young by dragon standards. He had just transferred to the war capital and was tasked with both the relationship between the Goldbeard Kingdom to the north, and overseeing the process of accepting factions into the Republic as a whole.

In all reality, his position was supposed to be just a temporary ambassador. Once a permanent liaison could be assigned to the kobolds, they should be working directly with that person. But I had a sense that I couldn't explain that to them. Over the next hour, I tried running through any filter I could think of to translate a peace alliance with these people.

They were smart, but there was just a bit of a language barrier. Drovaak had a good grasp of common, but as time went on, he slipped into his native tongue. Their dialect with draconic was rusty to me, and their common went from somewhat comprehensible to completely broken. After hearing the trills, rolls, and hisses of their kobold-draconic accent for a few minutes, it felt like it started to come back to me. In my best efforts, I laid out the proposal that I was sent along with: By signing as a member nation to the Republic, Susue would take their concerns in mind and act as an interim representative on behalf of them to the Republic as a whole, as well as the High Council, the legislative branch of government. They would be able to have a vote on Republic affairs in the lower house of lawmakers, and come under the protection of the Calimsea Republic. In return, the most pressing matter that we needed the kobolds for was to stop raiding our supply ships. They were wreaking havoc on Empire and Republic ships alike, so halting the latter would be very appreciated; if they would also focus on the former it would be moreso. They didn't need to hear that they would be dealing with Susue for a year at most, before they made their switch to their own diplomat. Worst case, they throw a bitch when Susue starts to tell them goodbye, and he just pulls double duty with these scaly tribals and the Goldbeard Kingdom. Then, I'll get my ass chewed out and we can all move on. But that was Future Cassidy's problem. And to hell with that guy.

After a very long back and forth, I ended up telling it to them as a story, in this damn bayou draconic. "Susue Claws, the great-dragon-wise-wyrm sent me, Cassidy-bird as message bringer. Susue the Silver wants to take the kobolds of this island under his wing. He says he would be pleased if kobolds do what he asks, giving them love and gifts in return for their partnership. The Calimsea Republic is where Susue calls home. Calimsea ships have blue and white and silver flags, they are helping Susue Claws too, why they fly his colors. The ships with red and black are bad, he likes it when brave kobold warriors attack those. They belong to the Empire, the godslayers. Fight the godslayers for Susue, and he will smile on you. Help Susue Claws in other things he may ask, and he will look after the good little kobolds, and keep you safe."

At least, that's what I thought it was, more or less. Once I told them this, the Chief had studied me for a long time. I felt like he was right there, we were so close to an accord. If I could get Dvoraak to sign a treaty for our records, and whatever tribal rituals for their culture, I could return to the airship, and on my way back to the war capital by nightfall. A few kobold emissaries to get things going, and this bird's job was done. He leaned back in his seat, a long moment stretched uncomfortably between us, and he folded his paws in thought. "Why do you follow Susue Claws?" He asked me, in Common.

"Because, he is good. He is just. He is...the Republic." I replied, grateful to give my tongue a rest on all those hisses and clicks in their language. It wasn't as bad as dwarvish on a beak, but it was close.

"How far would you follow Republic Susue? Will you do anything he asks?"

Technically no, since I was a specialized 'diplomat' in the military, Susue was technically civilian, he could never outright issue an order to me. But, I get what he was trying to say, so I nodded in agreement. Maybe tribal politics were superior for their simplicity.

Drovaak nodded back in agreement, and went to the treaty. I started breathing a sigh of relief, feeling this whole operation could have gone south at a half dozen different turns, when I noticed Drovaak was rolling up the parchment. "Treaty will be signed, but first, Cassidy-bird must come to agreement in kobold way. Sealiah!" he called over his shoulder.

A pale red kobold female appeared from deeper in the house. She wore a thin purple skirt that covered up to her calves, and a broad necklace made of several silver and turquoise charms. She smiled politely at me before placing a delicately manicured paw on Drovaak's arm, "Yes, father?"

He switched to draconic again to answer his daughter, "This is Lora'kh Cassidy-bird. He bears the word of Susue Claws, a Driekkaan that looks after kobolds. We shall have esschen'aal tonight." I could only smile like an idiot. Lora'kh was the word for messenger I had used to describe myself. Driekkaan was, as far as I could tell, just a description of dragon, or driek. Dragon ruler maybe, or lord. Big dragon? Good dragon? Look, it's a hard language. Important dragon guy is what I needed to say, and I said it. They seemed to have gotten the message. That last word though I was completely lost on.

"What is esschen'aal, Chief Drovaak?" That was a word that seemed completely rooted in the kobold portion of their language. I had no clue.

He smiles, watching as his daughter began clearing tables, bringing out bottles, and getting ready for something big. Apparently the mere mention of an esschen'aal was enough to get the attention and excitement of other kobolds. I saw Kuno lending a hand too as a dozen kobolds went into Drovaak's kitchen to start cooking.

Esschen'aal was a celebration. They agreed to terms of negotiation with a party, and I could dig it.

* * *

I was no stranger to waking up with a pounding headache, disoriented, or naked. But all three of those at once was a little on the rare side. Then add in 'atop a pile of kobolds, and we can upgrade that to 'never'. Well, can't say that now. I tried to delicately pick my way down Mount Scalypile without stepping on a paw or a tail. That proved a bit difficult though, and I tripped over someone absently scratching themself during their sleep and landed on my wings with a groan. What the hell happened last night? I mused. Then, I saw the smiling face of Sealiah looking down at me.

"Good morning, herald." she said, her white scales gleaming in the morning sun. White?

"Cassidy," I murmured, "Dunno who Herald is, but he isn't me. And, begging your pardon, but, weren't you a different color yesterday... Was it yesterday? Whenever I was last sober."

Sealiah giggled, and patted the side of my beak. "You bring the word of Susue Claws. Would that not make you a herald? Would you prefer 'Prophet' instead? And to answer your questions, yes I awoke to find my scales bleached clean. In my people's traditions, it is incredibly rare for a kobold to be born with white scales, it is even rarer for one of us to lose the color such as this. Both are seen as omens of great things to come." She giggled, and sighed with a teasing tone, "Yes, Cassidy, it is tomorrow. Only one night has passed, you may rest easy knowing your Republic ship has not left our waters, nor has your boat left our dock."

It took me longer to process that information, but something didn't sit right, "Prophet?!" I stood, in a mild panic, "How is that any better than herald?"

Sealiah looked at me with confusion, then her eyes flicked down and it turned to curiosity. Right. Where were my pants? "You bring us a pledge to join your Susue Claws and tell us of all the wonderful things he does and not consider you a prophet? You must be a humble one."

The treaty. The entire reason I was here. "Did your father sign it by chance?"

"He did, at the stroke of midnight, as is tradition in esschen'aal."

"Erm," I said, struggling with the one legged hop, "you wouldn't happen to know where it was, would you?"

She smiled, "Certainly, you had Kuno and the others sent down to your guard, along with our initial tribute."

"Tribute?" Something still didn't smell right. I sensed malice from Past Cassidy, that guy was a dick. He always seemed to like making me play these memory games when I forget to make memories.

"It is tradition, when being accepted under the wing of a Dreikkaan. This was all explained to you last night. Surely, this is not your first time imbibing dragongrass?"

I shook my head. It was, but I wanted her to think I was...cool. "Listen, Sealiah, we...didn't do anything last night, did we?"

The kobold let out a jovial laugh, stirring some of the heavier sleepers in the pile. "Oh, gracious, no. My father would have plucked you if you would have tried. You dance wonderfully though." Skies above I dodged a bullet there. Wait, she liked my dancing? No, dumbass think with the other head.

I smiled back at her, the pounding in my skull regrouping under a lesser dull ache. "Well, I wouldn't want to cause any sort of-"

"Not that I wouldn't have. But for the first meeting, I enjoyed seeing a sample of the Prophet's talents. Perhaps the next time you bring news of Susue Claws, you will pass my father's criteria." Sounds like one of those 'no dating until after you're married' dads. Sealiah patted me on the leg, "You should make for the dock, if you want the tide in your favor. Farewell, Prophet. May Susue Claws bless your journey home."

She was right, I needed to get gone, now. No time to look for my shirt, I beat wings back to the landing boat. The two rowers were sleeping back to back, but Shamus looked like he hadn't moved in hours. The hooded man was squatting on the dock, rifle held in his hands, sweeping his gaze back and forth. A small mountain of crushed cigarettes lie in between his boots, and he seemed to snap to focus when I came into view.

"We--eeell, it's about damn time." Shamus said, straightening up, working the cracks out of his joints. "What in the nine hells kept ya?" He didn't seem to have minded waiting the night. Elves were the perfect wingmen, they can give you a night of vigil and to them it feels like an hour.

"Tradition," I muttered. "You wouldn't happen to have any coffee, would you?"

"Nah, don't touch the stuff," Shamus said, drawing on his smoke. "Filthy habit. Why?"

"I need to wake up... read reports, write reports, and..." I looked over to the back of the boat. Four kobolds were sleeping, all curled up, and wearing little backpacks. Like a quartet of kids on a sleepover. "What are they doing?"

"Eh?" Shamus followed my gaze, "oh the yapping ones. These insisted on waiting for you before heading back to the ship. Unlike the others."

"How many others?" I asked, still not knowing what the hell happened last night.

"Dozen or so, you sent a few here and there as the night went on." Shamus lit a new cigarette, and passed this one to me. What the hell, it's not like this will be like dragongrass. "First few had a scroll case, said that needed t'go onto the ship right away. Soon as we came back to dock, bunch of 'em were waiting with this big ass chest. Then, nothin' till sunrise, when these guys came around. Well," he boarded the boat, and I followed. He nudged the tail of one of the kobolds I recognized, Kuno. "This one wouldn't shut up about waiting for you all night. He came with the treaty, but came back to wait for you until he passed out."

Whatever Shamus smoked, didn't really do much to wake me up, save for just make my heart beat pound. Damn, I miss coffee, this was just being tired faster. "Well, lets get back to the ship. I want to get back to Lockheed."

We woke up the rowers, and made our way back onto the ship. By midmorning, we were speeding back towards the war capital of the Republic, Lockheed Bay, with a dozen kobolds, a large locked chest, with 'To: Susue Claws; From: Squaretooth Kobolds' carved hurriedly on it, and a signed treaty in the scroll case. Once my head had cleared, I flew up to the crow's nest with a piping hot tankard of coffee, and I made myself comfortable. Reaching into my bag, I pulled out some parchment and a quill I always smiled at. I took one of my own feathers, and imbued the magic to enchant it myself. White runes glowed against the blue feather, and I began to write.

This quill was a Far Scriber, a nifty little trinket that allowed me to write two messages, on two separate stacks of parchment, in two different places at the same time. On Commander Herod Lancaster's desk, an inbox drawer with my name and rank on it would start to glow bluish white words as I sent the short message before my full report in person.

Attn: Cmdr Jerod Hawthorne. Squaretooth Island successful. 12 additional enroute. I wondered if that was enough, but something kept gnawing at me about the whole thing. Biting the tip of the feather, I stared off into the sapphire sea for a long moment, and then added, Liaison Susue critical in negotiations. Kobolds sent 'thank you' gift. May have convinced them accidentally he was permanent liaison. Please forward apologies. - Lt. Oscines

When I signed my name, and drew the symbol the Republic uses for a message ending, I waited. The words glowed for a few moments, before the shimmer faded to simple black ink. Jerod had read my message. Three dancing little points of light started circling around themselves underneath my message, Jerod's response. Odd, usually he just acknowledged the receipt and that was that.

Report directly to my office upon return.

Well, shit. I guess volun-telling a dragon ambassador is a faux pas for the likes of my rank. Hopefully I can just apologize to Susue, he'll be sore at me for a while, and I can get back to the normal amount of disappointment I cause.