FSE

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Ok heres chapter three, same thing please leave a comment and rate, thanks.

"Don't move human!"

Dan wouldn't have moved even if he could, the ring of spears at his throat a terrifying reminder of what would happen if he did. All he could do was stare at the ones holding the weapons to his throat, a dozen, fully armoured warriors each carrying solid steel spears and a broadsword hanging from their waist, only their eyes could be seen behind their masks. Dan stared at the warrior dead ahead of him, emerald draconic eyes stared back, the vertical iris making him look more deadly than the armour ever could. There was no doubt in Dan's mind that if he made the wrong move here, then that warrior would thrust his spear through Dan with no hesitation and sleep with a sound conscience.

"Mage, why did you bring a human back through the portal? The law of Bellas, states that no interaction is to be made with their kind while in their world." A warrior hidden from Dan's view by his private 'honour guard' barked at Nathan, who Dan realised was also hidden behind the warriors surrounding him. When Dan tried to turn and look for his saviour, the warrior in front of him pressed the tip of his spear into Dan a little harder gentle shaking his head in silent warning.

"I invoke the rights of relocation and conscription. I also performed the task appointed to me and retrieving the human without notice, there will be no repercussion for my actions in the human world." Nathan said as if reading from a script, Dan was afraid of what would happen if the warrior refused. "I ask for passage to my kin and guild as set down by Bellanas to countermand the first law of Bellas"

There was a long silence after Nathan finished, which did nothing to settle Dan's nerves thankfully the warrior in front of him had moved his spear back so that Dan could breathe again.

"I, Targareus, Gatekeeper of the portal recognise the authority of Bellanas and countermand Bellas's first law. Welcome back brother." As if on cue Dan's 'honour guard' stepped back, standing their spears up again, and giving access to a black armoured warrior, easily a head and shoulders taller than the rest, carrying a monster two handed sword on his back, the blade almost as long as he was tall. "And welcome to you, our new brother. As Gatekeeper of this portal, I must inform you that by the laws of both, Bellas and Bellanas, you cannot return back to your world, our world must become your home now. I am sorry for all that you had to leave behind."

Dan was too shocked to answer properly, not to be rude he mumbled a thank you, quickly adding Gatekeeper as an afterthought. He made a quick mental note to use every ones titles until told otherwise, he had no idea how much respect was expected of him, he wished that Nathan had told him about this hold thing, or at least given him an idea of what to expect. What shocked Dan the most was that the black warrior started laughing as Dan finished talking. Confused he gave Nathan a pleading look.

"What did I say?" before the dragon could even open his mouth, the gatekeeper had stripped off his helmet, revealing himself to be a black wolf, who was grinning wildly, showing off his sharp canine teeth. So there are other species here, not just dragons. Dan thought, for the first time he was slightly eager to be here, he wondered how many other species where here.

"We have no use for titles human, only when the most respect is deserved or on formal occasions and neither are now." The wolf suddenly took Dan's hand in his paw, which was almost twice the size, the wolfs soft fur felt nice on his skin but Dan couldn't get over how the wolfs paw looked just like his own hand, aside from the fur and colour it was almost an exact match. While he thought about it a realisation hit him, they were all anthromorpic. "Call me Targareus."

"Thanks" Dan stammered, the wolf was being so nice, when Nathan had explained how his world felt about humans he had thought that they would all hate him, not welcome him with open arms.

"So what should we call you then, unless you prefer being referred to as human all the time?" The wolf chuckled lightly.

"Daniel..." Targareus was obviously expecting more but when Dan kept quiet he asked.

"Have you no other name, to signify a house or clan?"

"Not anymore." Dan said sadly the full weight of his decision coming down on him, he glanced back at the portal, a simple archway of stone, but it was the gate back to his home, his life... My old life. Was this what living here was going to be like, wishing that he could just run back through that portal, finding a way back.

Dan was broken out of his thoughts when Nathan touched his arm, the digimon looked worried, gently turning Dan away from the portal to look back at him, Dan noticed for the first time that they were the same height, and that he was looking straight into the digimons eyes.

"Dan people have gone mad over less than what you're thinking of right now," Nathan said, there was nothing but sympathy in his eyes. "You can be happy here, I know you can, but only if you let yourself, if you only think about what you have lost, then you can never accept this as your home." He's right, he's been right all this time, I can't go back id die if I tried, and what would be the point of trying, id freeze to death on that mountain top. The more he thought about it the more Dan realised that despite the fact that he didn't have a choice, he thought that he could be happy, he just had to let himself accept the fact that this would be his new home.

"I'm home." Dan whispered, Nathans eyes didn't change, but he nodded in understanding, no one could suddenly accept losing everything in just a few hours. As they stood there, Nathan became blurred, at first Dan thought that he was crying but his eyes were dry, but he was having trouble breathing, his chest hurt, it really hurt, and suddenly his legs wouldn't hold him up anymore, he practically fell in Nathans arms.

"Dan, what's wrong?" Nathan panicked.

"My chest, it...it" Dan couldn't breathe properly, it was like his lungs wouldn't hold the air. The world was going black; he could just make out peoples voices.

"What's wrong with him?"

"One of his lungs has collapsed."

"What!?"

"We have to get him to Samantha quick!" Dan could tell that he was moving could feel the wind rushing past his head, but that was it as he passed out.

---

"Dan run!" Nathan screamed, the remnants of the magnamon's armour were charred and covered with soot, the usual golden shine hidden by a black film, the rest was scattered all over, smashed, broken, destroyed.

"Dan are you listening to me, run!" the digimon screamed again, moving in between Dan and a shadowy figure in front of them. Dan was half way into shock, he was gripping the hilt of his sword so hard that his hand was bleeding but he didn't move, he couldn't, the amount of power before him was impossible, it was close to godhood, but most of all it was terrifying.

"Dan I..."

"I'm not leaving you, you hear me?" Dan yelled back in Nathans face, snapping out of his trance, they didn't have any chance at actually wining, this guy just had too much raw magic power coming from him, and Dan didn't have a chance at running with the condition that he was in.

"Damn it I hate last stands." Dan muttered, bringing his sword around into a ready stance, he noticed Nathan doing the same.

"Dan, I..."

"I know, but say it afterwards would you, kind of busy at the moment." Dan didn't dare meet Nathans eyes; he was using all his will power to stop himself shaking with fear.

" Pathetic, DARK VOID!!!!"

A swirling mass of darkness raced towards them, the power of the attack was unreal, godlike, but before could reach them Dan glanced at Nathan, the digimon looked exactly how Dan felt, afraid, as their eyes met for the last time Nathan whispered something. The sounds were lost as an explosion erupted between them, a perfect sphere of black expanding between them.

The sounds may have been lost but not the meaning and as Dan felt the darkness engulf him, he smiled.

---

"Nathan!" Dan screamed bolting upright, his heart racing a thousand times per minute, his eyes searching for the digimon, he was expecting to see a mangled corpse, amongst a pile of rubble, not wooden walls and a soft bed.

"Dan?! Dan, what's wrong." Nathans voice shattered Dan's brief confusion; almost frantically Dan tried to stand up only to fall back down, why did he feel so weak all of a sudden?

"Whoa, Dan don't try to get up, you're not ready for that yet, what's wrong, are you in pain, I can get something to make it go away." The digimon was now standing over him, his bright blues eyes looking down at him intently, looking for any sign. I feel like I'm on fire, what's going on?! Why is Nathan not hurt and I am, that attack almost hit him square in the chest, how can he be alright? It was only then that Dan realised how hard it was for him to breath, his chest felt like a vice, he was panting like a feral dog.

"Dan, look at me, you've got to calm down, you're hyperventilating, you've got to slow down your breathing, Dan slow deep breaths." After a few frantic minutes the digimon managed to steady Dan's breathing again, making him lye back down.

"Are you alright?" Dan finally asked, still breathing rather heavily but steady enough so the digimon didn't worry. Nathan started at Dan in disbelief, his jaw looked like it was about to fall off.

"Am I alright? Why are you asking me that? I should be asking you, not the other way around; you would have died back at the portal if it wasn't for Targareus. You're lung collapsed when we came through and all the wounds I healed seemed to reopen or the bone I reset just broke after we came through the portal." Nathan sighed, shaking his head he sat in a chair beside the bed, "Luckily Samantha was able to save you."

Dan was so confused, if he had just come through the portal, then where had his other memory come from, he was certain that it was real, it had to be real, no dream could feel like that, and it felt like he had memories of what was happening right now in his dream, but as he strained his mind to try and remember, it all slipped away, just gone. It wasn't a dream! So what if Nathans not wounded I don't know how fast he heals but I had blood on my...hands. Lifting his hands Dan couldn't help but noticed the amount of bandages on his body, his entire chest and both shoulders were covered, along with his right arm and lower left leg, his leg also had a splint attached to it as well, which explained why he couldn't stand before, but his hands were fine, no bandages, no scabs no scars not even a hint of a red mark was on his palms.

"How?" he whispered, "What was that?" suddenly Nathans hands were wrapped around his own, drawing his gaze into the digimon's eyes.

"What's wrong?" He demanded.

"I don't understand, he... he almost... how aren't you hurt? It had to be..." Dan stammered, shaking his head, trying to sort out what was happening.

"Dan," Nathan's voice was calm but his eyes looked scared, he looked worried. "Calm down and tell me what's happening, what are you talking about?"

"YOU DIED!" Dan yelled, tears streaming down his face, Nathan never broke his gaze, he seemed to hesitate a moment before pulling Dan into a tight embrace, gently whispering into his ear.

"It was a nightmare, you were tossing around in your sleep for a few hours before you woke up, it wasn't real Dan, trust me, I'm fine, no one has hurt me." The digimon reassured him.

Why am I crying? Dan wondered, I barely know this guy and yet my heart seems to break a little when I think about him getting hurt. Dan hated to admit it to himself but it was right, back in the fissure he had tried to give Nathan a few extra seconds to do something by pulling him away from the boulder, but in reality he was just trying to protect the digimon, just like he had tried to protect Charlotte, and then a few moments ago in his 'dream' when he saw Nathan get hit by that magic, it felt like his heart broke in two. Could he really have bonded with Nathan that strongly after such a short time, the digimon had saved his life but was that all it took?

"I'm sorry." Dan whispered after a few minutes, breaking their embrace wiping his tears away, only just noticing how cold they felt against his skin. Nathan just smiled back at him, and it was only then that Dan started to really take in his surroundings. The room he was in was small and simple, aside from the bed and chair that the pair were occupying, there was only a small window behind Nathan and a door on the other side of the bed. Dan also noticed for the first time that Nathan was out of his armour, dressed in a light brown pair of breeches and a white t shirt. He still wore a pair of fingerless gloves and he had a red headband tied around his forehead, Dan also noticed that unlike his friend he was completely naked and exposed on the bed.

Blushing furiously, he quickly covered himself up, ignoring Nathan's laugh, before muttering.

"Is there a blanket or something that I can have?" Still chuckling, Nathan pulled a blanket and an extra pillow from under the bed, Dan quickly took the blanket to try and restore some of his decency, while Nathan stacked the pillows against the headboard, gently pushing Dan down so he was still sat upright but leaning back for support. Again Dan noticed how weak he felt and how hot he was; he immediately regretted the blanket but refused to take it off again. As if on cue, Nathan started to explain what had happened to him.

"When Targareus brought you here, like I said before you had a collapsed lung, a broken leg, some internal injuries and that huge wound on your back, unfortunately while Samantha was dealing with your lung, the wound on your back festered and your started to run a high fever... That was three weeks ago." Dan gaped at the digimon; he had been here for three weeks? It only felt like an hour at most, how had three weeks gone by? "Good news is that your lung is healed along with the internal injuries, and your leg is almost as good as new. Bad news is that your back can't be treated until the fever breaks, something about your body cant heal the wound and fight the fever at the same time, the fever will kill you if she tries to treat your back now, I don't really know, I'm not a very good healer. What I do know is that Samantha is amazed that your fever hasn't broken yet." Nathan chuckled slightly as he felt Dan's forehead, cursing lightly, he pulled a basin of water from under the bed along with a strip of clothe, soaking the clothe, Nathan started dabbing his head as he talked, the cool water felt heavenly against Dan's boiling skin. "Sam thinks that it's a personal insult that your fever has lasted this long, she's the best healer in our guild and she barely even slowed it down, I think she healed your internal injuries just to prove that she still could."

Nathan screamed as a metal bowl flew into his forehead knocking the digimon and his chair onto the floor. Dan stared in horror as Nathan gripped his nose rolling around on the floor, at any other time it would have been funny but now Dan was worried about the wolf standing in the doorway.

The wolf was obviously a she, unless male wolves had breasts, and she wore a simple blue robe which covered most of her body.

"What was that Nathan?" She demanded, scowling at the digimon on the floor she marched over and stood on his head, grinding it against the bottom of her foot. Dan almost had a heart attack when she turned to glare at him, but her scowl turned to a smile so quickly that Dan had a hard time believing that she was scowling in the first place. "Hi there, I'm Samantha, what's your name?" she asked gently, holding out a paw. Dan hesitated before answering.

"I'm Daniel." He said shaking her paw, Sam's fur and paw pad felt lovely on his skin, so soft that it almost tickled.

"Well hello Daniel it's nice to finally meet you, as I'm sure that you are already aware I'm the one who's been looking after you for three weeks, and you'll be happy to know that most of your injuries are healed, the leg will take another few days before you can walk again, your back could be better by the end of today but your fever needs to break before that, luckily if you are awake that means that it can't be too long before that happens and I can give you something to accelerate your recovery." Samantha said, before shoving a fowl smelling concoction in his direction, "This will be the first of many I'm afraid. Now drink."

Dan was too scared to refuse as he drank the whole potion, it tasted worse than it smelled but he could feel the effects instantly, the general pain from his body was gone and he didn't feel like he was on fire anymore, just warm. Samantha looked pleased at his expression; she smiled in satisfaction, although her scowl returned with a vengeance when she looked down at her foot and the digimon under it.

"I don't want to hear another word out of you about what I do to my patients, do you hear me?" Despite the situation Nathan managed to snigger under Sam's foot, only to be silenced when she kicked him in the ribs. "Fool." She growled and left the room in quick strides not giving Dan a second look. Nathan was already getting up by the time Dan looked back at him, the digimon was holding the metal basin in his hands smiling as he looked at the dent that his head had made in it.

"Meet Samantha, the Dragon Claws master healer. She's a volcano waiting to blow at the slightest thing, like a comment about her to one of her patients." Nathan held up the basin as evidence, "Lucky I have a hard head." He grinned.

"Dragon Claws?" Dan asked staring at the basin then Nathans head, there was a dent in the metal that looked like it had been moulded around Nathans forehead but his head seemed fine.

"It's the name of our guild and that's where you are right now, the Dragon Claws headquarters, or home for me." Nathan said, glancing at the door, mumbling to himself. "Samantha will probably tell the master that you're awake so you can expect a visit from him sometime soon, but don't worry he's really nice, oh and he's a dragon." Nathan assured him sitting back down into his chair.

"How'd you get the name?"

"We were awarded the name by the king at the time of our founding." A deep voice resonated from the doorway, as Dan turned to look he couldn't help but gasp, silhouetted by the setting sun, a majestic dragon stood staring at the two of them his blazing emerald eyes seemed to look right through them, he was easily eight foot tall standing on two legs, his brilliant white scales reflecting the light of the sun perfectly, unlike Nathan he had all five digits on his hands, wicked looking claws adorning each one, his powerful tail swayed lightly behind him, holding enough strength to topple a full grown tree, the white wings folded against his back were huge, the membranes that should have been thin looked thick and heavy, Dan idly wondered if the dragon could fly, but immediately discarded the thought, there was no way that such an awe inspiring dragon couldn't fly, his powerful muscles rippled under the leather armour that covered his body, a seal of a three digit claw marked where his heart should be, Dan noticed that the same seal was on Nathan's shirt, and had been on Samantha's robe.

"Master, I didn't think that you would be here so soon." Nathan stammered standing up quickly, he looked about ready to bow before the dragon idly waved a hand.

"Forget formalities Nathan, I'm here to see the new addition to our guild." Dan felt his heart sink as the dragon turned his attention towards him, that gaze seemed to bore into his very soul, "You come highly recommended friend. Tell me, what is your name?"

"Daniel, I'm called Daniel." This time there was no hesitation in his voice; Dan felt that the dragons gaze could have dug the truth out of a Navy Seal just by staring at them.

"Well, Daniel, as master of this guild I am pleased to finally meet you, and to ask you to join the Dragon Claws."

"You don't have to be a dragon?" Dan felt silly asking, after all the guilds master was the one that was asking, but it seemed weird to have a guild named so and to let anyone join.

"Usually yes we only accept dragons or dragon hybrids in accordance of our name but there are exceptions, like Samantha our master healer, we accept people with great skills or people who we think that contribute to the guild." Dan let his head sink to his chest and immediately regretted it, there was something about that dragons gaze, it was terrifying and warm at the same time and he wanted to never look away but also wished that he would never have to look into those eyes again.

As he sat there he thought about himself, he doubted that he had any valuable skills to offer the guild and he didn't see how he could be helpful either, he was only 17. Slowly he looked back up at the master, instantly captivated by his eyes again.

"I think I would just be an embarrassment, to your guild." Dan was surprised to hear the Master laugh, the dragon got down onto a knee so that his head was level with Dan's.

"Nathan hasn't told you how we view humans yet has he?" The master smiled as Dan shook his head, his sharp teeth as white as his scales. "We have been bringing humans back for as long as the portals have been discovered, at first you were looked on with suspicion, treated more like an annoyance than people, but then a blacksmith hired a human to work for him, and before long that blacksmith had the best amours and weapons in the land. Why, because that human knew how to work with a hammer and anvil better than any of our blacksmiths even with their magic, people started to take an interest in humans after that, asking what they did before and learning from them, your race has given so many gifts to us and we thank you for it. Famine was wiped out decades ago thanks to humans, so even if you think that you have nothing to offer, it doesn't matter you will be accepted no matter what."

"I'm only 17 and I don't have any magic, how can I be accepted when I would just become a burden?" Dan argued, this was a lot harder than he thought it would be, he really wanted to be a part of this guild even if it was only to fulfil and fantasy of working with dragons, but if he had nothing to offer then he would only become a burden and how could he do that to Nathan, or his master?

"There are ways around your lack of magic if that is what you are concerned about, others can put magic into items for you to use and there are things that you can do that even magic is not capable of. But I can see that you still have your doubts so, why don't you leave your final decision for later and experience what the guild has to offer and what you can offer to the guild first."

At least this way, I will only be a burden for a little while; when they see that I'm useless they'll send me away. Dan thought, nodding in agreement with the master, they were both going to regret this.

"Good, Samantha told me that your leg will take a few more days to heal, so I shall introduce you to the guild when you are well enough to walk." Dan managed a thank you as the Master walked out, giving Nathan a smile before he left. When he left Nathan put a hand on Dan's shoulder shocking him out of his trance.

"She I told you my guild would accept you, the master will make sure that you will be ok Daniel. It'll be alright, you'll see."

"How can you be so happy, how? I'm going to be useless and have to leave Nathan there's nothing that I can do! I'm still in school I've never worked properly before; I don't know anything that could help anyone!"

"Then let us teach you." Nathan smiled before walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Dan asked, he wanted nothing more than to be alone right now, but he didn't want Nathan to leave just yet.

"I have a few jobs that I have to do, plus I should probably go beg for forgiveness from Samantha, it's never a good idea to have the one who keeps you patched up angry at you, she might put me back together wrong by 'accident'" They shared a laugh before Nathan said good bye, "I'll be back in the morning, try to get some sleep, and think happy thoughts."

Dan was grateful somewhere in the back of his head, he was exhausted, even if the dragon had stayed, he didn't know how long he would have been able to stay awake for much longer.

"Hope I don't scream this time." Dan said, slowly closing his eyes