FSE

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Part 1

The dragon's claws were sunk into the damp soil, clenched in a state of self imposed paralysis. His breathing was calming and the pain throughout his body dying down to more manageable levels. The waxing moon peeked out from behind the clouds and cast its weak light across Yogoloth's slightly shivering form. He had just shifted into the two-legged form that he both loved and loathed and the pain of the transformation only enhanced his dislike. Every time he promised he'd never do it again, every time he found reasons that required it. He still didn't know why he could do it... it wasn't even magical and no other dragon nor gryphon seemed to have the ability. It was unique.

The dragon/gryphon hybrid opened his eyes, took a deep breath, relaxed his clenched hands and pulled them from the earth. He looked at the slender digits briefly in the dim light as he picked the dirt from between his claws. It was a shame that he couldn't keep them when he was in his feral form, they were so useful and agile. Yogoloth slowly picked himself up from the ground and tested his two legs, he was pretty quick to remember how it all worked these days, it was almost second nature to walk and run on two legs now.

The transformed dragon stretched his newly shaped limbs for a time and then smiled, it had been nearly two years since he'd last had an ale. Then he frowned, it would have been the last time he and Marrus had met at the Cracked Pot and Mill. A knot formed in his stomach and he gritted his teeth. He still had no idea why this had affected him so potently. He normally put things behind him fairly quickly, but this pain just wouldn't fade away and it had been nearly a year.

Yogoloth shook his head and focused on the task at hand. He retrieved his pack from a jagged tree stump nearby and silently thanked his decision to ensure it was made from a thick water-proof leather, as it started to rain more heavily. The transformed dragon still needed to disguise himself further to pass for one of the reptilian races, his horns, head scales, stumpy wings, green hide and brown mane fur all needed to be concealed or altered.

Delving into his free magical reserves, he began forming the shapes that he'd practiced so many times before. One shape would rest in his hide, changing it from green to grey, another in his horns, shrinking them to tiny stumps. He still couldn't quite seem to get rid of them completely. Each shape reduced or removed another one of his dragon-like or gryphon-like features and he rapidly began depleting his power. He tapped into the fire opal that he had originally given to Marrus and drained that too. His gryphon-like tail lost it's fur and became grey and leathery and his mane and ears shrank away to nothing.

He had decided that without a human companion, it would be best to make his disguise as accurate as he could and by the time he had used the last scrap of power at his disposal he was done. If the worst happened and he really needed magic, he could unravel the shapes and regain most of the power within several seconds at most. The disguised dragon quickly donned a thick robe to cover his now stunted wings, a small leather cap and a leather cloak and it was complete.

Time to see how his disguise looked. He pulled out a small square of metal from his pack, one side was polished to a brilliant shine and he could easily make out his reflection. It was almost perfect. Even he would be hard pressed to spot a flaw, as long as his cap stayed in place to cover his stumpy horns. Even better, there were very few of the lizard races who visited this far from their homelands. At most he should attract the odd interested glance.

Yogoloth opened his pack, put the crude mirror back inside and swung it onto his back. The rain intensified as denser clouds gathered overhead and he pulled up the hood on his cloak. It would take him at least an hour to reach the outskirts of the town, he was going to get soaked through.

Part 2

Light forest turned to farmland and farmland soon gave way to the outskirts of the town. According to the maps, this was Stone Haven, bordered to the east by sea, hills leading to mountains to the northwest and with forests to the south. This was a busy port and probably the largest civilised settlement that Yogoloth had ever visited. Without the use of his wings, lacking the power of his feral form and having his magic tied up in a disguise, the young hybrid was left more than a little unsettled as he approached the brightly lit town.

His time with Marrus had taught the disguised dragon a huge amount about interacting with the civilised races. About laws, about physical contact, property, privacy, violence, trade, customs, entertainment and ownership. But most of the time, as long as he kept himself to himself, others did the same and even a busy town, with thousands of people living there, was just a colony of strangers simply sharing a space. It was actually rather sad, that the more people pack themselves together, the further away from each other they seemed to get.

The rain was slowly running its course but still quite heavy, and apart from the muted glow of the town, there wasn't much to see. Yogoloth managed to spot a large inn through the downpour, before the town proper, and decided it was as good a place as any to see what information he could gather about Lord Tylor and his estate. Even without the light pouring from the shuttered windows, the sounds and smells would have been enough to lure him in. Laughter and the distinctive odours of cooked meats and spilled ale could have guided a blind man. The disguised dragon took a deep breath and headed inside.

It was warm and mostly dry inside, the smell of smoke, food and ale filled the air and it was busy with conversation and bad singing. The main communal area was half filled with tables and chairs and there were dozens of people here enjoying food, drink and the company of friends and strangers alike. There was a strangely dressed vixen in one corner with some sort of musical instrument, probably an entertainer plying her trade. She was busy chatting with a small group of apparent admirers. A long fire pit ran along the stone wall at the far end of the busy room, which seemed a little odd.

The air was a riot of scents and the dragon's nose was nearly overwhelmed, but as he became accustomed to it and began to warm through, Yogoloth felt more comfortable and the atmosphere was not unwelcoming even to his feral nature. Apart from a few curious glances, the lizard man's arrival went broadly unnoticed as he removed his cloak and shook off the rain that had managed seep through.

He headed for the bar which extended from the right hand wall, which forced the otherwise square room into a crude, elongated crescent shape. There were a few staff catering to the various patrons and Yogoloth managed to attract a rather buxom female human. She smiled broadly and seemed to think for a second before speaking.

"May the winds hide your scent.", she spoke awkwardly in one of the reptilian tongues. This rather old fashioned greeting was possibly the only thing she knew how to say in that language, as she continued in the common trade tongue, "We haven't had any of your kind here for a few months at least. What can I get for you?"

Yogoloth couldn't help but smile in return, his sharp teeth making a fellow patron nearby decide to move away from the bar and find a table.

"Just an ale, please.", he rummaged in his robe for a coin and placed it on the counter. The ale arrived and he took it into his clawed hand as the trade was completed. The friendly barmaid smiled and moved onto another customer and the disguised dragon took a drink from the wooden tankard. It was pale and weak, Yogoloth wasn't at all impressed. Namarian ale wasn't at all the same as the ale back in the Gretish nations, he preferred the darker stouts rather than this pale stuff. Pity.

It had taken weeks to fly this far, but would have taken many months, possibly longer, by road and ship. He might stay for a while and see what there was to see, once he'd done what he'd come here to do. The scrolls from the Bestian Society were mostly detailed enough, but these sorts of blanks were tricky for a dragon, who shouldn't officially exist, to fill in himself. Perhaps Yogoloth was a little more relaxed about certain dragonic laws, but he wasn't about to reveal himself or the existence of dragons to these people.

He surveyed the inn while leaning on the counter and took another drink of his ale. He attracted another glance and a friendly nod from a dark, rugged looking fox, which he returned. The vulpine then carried on with his meal, which quite frankly looked disgusting. Despite the quality of the ale, Marrus would probably of liked this place, Yogoloth thought to himself sadly.

Part 3

"Far east to the Gretish nations and through the mountains to the north.", Yogoloth said casually as he took another swig on his third ale. He'd struck up a conversation with the human barmaid, and now that the inn was winding down, he'd had the opportunity to build a rapport with her. She was easy to talk to, but that was probably because she was tired after a long day and seemed to enjoy listening to all the sights the disguised dragon had seen.

He just had to remember to mention boring, uneventful travelling by road and ship that he'd been forced to endure, but apart from this minor lie, most of it was the truth. Thankfully, she also seemed far more interested in the vast unknown wilderness beyond the town that she'd never been more than a day's ride from. Talk of distant cities or travel by sea wouldn't have been an easy conversation for Yogoloth as he'd had little experience of the former and none of the later.

"I can't even imagine being so far away. What makes you travel so far from home?", she asked while wiping down the polished wooden counter with a damp, slightly stained cloth. He was glad she'd asked the question.

"Back home, the largest building you'd see is a communal meeting hall. To be honest, its just a pile of smooth logs shaped like this...", Yogoloth put his ale down and interlocked his fingers to form a triangle. He moved his hands apart again and idly rubbed his palm before continuing, "But here, beyond the mountains, are cities and estates with vast homes of finely cut stone and timber! It's incredible to see."

"It seems we both want what the other sees every day.", she mused with a smile as she put away some mugs above the bar.

"Perhaps you know of any fine buildings around here? I thought I'd read about a lord Tylor who lived near Stone Haven?", his heart began to pump a little faster, he reclaimed his ale from the counter and took a swig, nearly finishing it. She looked a little puzzled but smiled anyway.

"Well now, I haven't heard of a lord Tylor since I was a little girl and even that was just gossip. After what I heard happened to his fine lady...", she quickly spat into the palm of her hand and wiped in on her apron. Yogoloth tried to hide his confusion towards the act, it might well be a very common behaviour.

"Well, they say that lord Tylor was never the same and was stripped of his title.", the barmaid had given up on her duties to focus on her brief story, "The estate itself still passed to his baby son and was held in trust by the child's grandfather. I assume he lives there still, he'd probably be in his forties by now."

"Oh, the book I read, was quite old...", Yogoloth clumsily added while inwardly kicking himself. He forgot how short lived the civilised races were and even just seventy or eighty years was a few generations for them. But at least he was getting somewhere, she knew of the estate and that was the important detail he was missing.

"I've not seen the estate myself, so I couldn't say if the manor house is much to look at. It's quite far west out of town, passed the old Gibson mine.", she added helpfully as she finished stacking mugs above the bar. Yogoloth took this as cue to finish his ale and make his excuses. He drained the tankard, held it out for her and she took it with a smile.

"Thank you for the chat. I'll possibly see you again another night?", he lied behind a toothy smile. He had what he needed and all that was left was to change back to his feral form and fly to the estate. After that? Well, no one knows what the future holds. She nodded to him as she removed the blocks securing an empty barrel and began to roll it towards the back rooms of the inn.

"I'd like that, J'darden.", she said slightly distracted by the barrel she was guiding. With that he picked up his cloak from the nearby stool and headed towards the door, it had stopped raining a couple of hours ago so he just slung it over his shoulder for now. He had that sudden, odd feeling that he sometimes got in this form, when he did something totally unferal with his body. He shivered and tried to ignore it, soon he'd be back on four legs and could spread his wings and take to the sky once again.

The night air was cool and humid and the cobbled road outside the inn was slick with rain water, but not treacherous. He decided to put his cloak on after all to ward off the sudden cold before making his way out of town. The young hybrid looked up at the sky, it was overcast and not a star could be seen. That could become a problem. But regardless, he started a brisk walk out towards the farmland he'd passed on his way to the town.

He was getting careless, someone had come up behind him and he quickly turned around, baring his teeth. But the growl he was about to release died in his throat as he looked up at the gryphon. The large avian quickly placed a strong, taloned fore leg on his shoulder and squeezed. Yogoloth winced as the talons sank slightly into his flesh and he suddenly realised what it was like to feel like helpless prey. Gryphons were very intimidating when you were this much smaller than them. He almost smiled inside at the thought of what he must seem like to others when in his feral form.

"You were careless coming here, little blood mage.", the gryphon spoke in strong, threatening tones.

Part 4

"I am not a blood mage.", the disguised dragon growled carefully. He knew it was exactly the sort of thing a blood mage would say. The gryphon tightened her grip on his shoulder and he winced again at the pain. Gryphons had so much strength to grip things, even in this form, Yogoloth had more strength in his grip than his dew claws had in his feral form. He became slightly envious.

"You're literally bathed in magic, it's covering your whole body. I wonder who you are to be disguised so.", the gryphon's words came out smoothly and confidently. But Yogoloth suspected that she was far from becoming a Blackened Eye and certainly not a Blackened Claw. There were very few dragons or gryphons who invested their time into finding or killing blood mages these days. The threat just wasn't great enough from the few amongst the civilised races who somehow found out about magic.

But that line of thought wasn't much help right now. In fairness to the gryphon, he would probably have thought the same under the circumstances, and would probably have been less polite about the whole thing too. Yogoloth's thoughts were interrupted by a sharp talon prodding into his back.

"Keep on heading out of town. If you run, I'll rip your throat out.", she hissed, looking around. Probably making sure no one was overhearing their conversation.

She could easily kill him. Yogoloth had all of his magic tied up in the disguise, he was physically no match for the gryphon and it would be ten minutes of agony to change to his feral form. She'd probably just kill him out of hand if he started writhing on the floor in pain. The hybrid had idly wondered before what would happen to him if he was killed in this form. Would his carcass stay like this forever? Would he change back and leave his killer with the corpse of a dragon hybrid? Another forceful poke made him yelp out slightly in pain.

"Yes! I'm moving.", he growled and started walking. She wanted him out of town, far away from prying eyes, so she could kill him without raising suspicion.

Civilised gryphons had to follow the same laws as the true civilised races, they couldn't just go around killing people. She wouldn't be able to explain why she'd done it without breaking the combined dragon and gryphon laws either. So her plan was to lure him out, away from town, and make him "disappear". He couldn't shout for help, explaining his horns, scutes and tiny, almost useless, wings after being searched, wouldn't go down too well with any guards and they'd probably run him through anyway. This walk at least bought him some time to think about how he was going to get out of this mess.

"You're making a mis-", Yogoloth began, but was interrupted by a sharp jab to his shoulder. The force of it made him stumble forward, nearly knocking him over. He was going to end up with some lovely bruises, if he managed to get out of this alive.

"Be silent!", the gryphon hissed. The young hybrid growled under his breath but kept walking, he was beginning to dislike this gryphon very much. The light from the town was getting quite distant behind them and he was running out of time, he had to come up with an plan, and fast.

Part 5

The gryphon had prodded him down a track which branched from the main road leading south from Stone Haven. The somewhat narrow strip of packed dirt was travelled, but not heavily. There was farmland to the right and light woodland to the left, this path probably led to a farm house of some sort eventually. The fields had some sort of native wheat-like plant growing in them, they seemed fairly well tended.

Yogoloth still didn't have a plan, this secluded spot would be perfect to murder someone quietly without witnesses and the woodland would be the perfect place to hide the body for the scavengers to slowly dispose of. The evening had started out so well too.

"I'm actually a dragon.", the words just slipped from his mouth, partly through desperation and partly with the dim hope she'd believe him. The gryphon's talons suddenly gripped his shoulder and swung him around with no small amount of force. He felt his bones complain at the sudden stress as he came snout to beak with her. She didn't look convinced.

"I know magic well enough. Those kinds of shapes cannot make you any smaller or bigger than you already are.", she hissed to his face before continuing. "And if you had the extraordinary amount of magic required to permanently change your body, you wouldn't have drained yourself completely on that temporary disguise."

She was right, again. Despite the danger and the potentially fatal outcome of this whole encounter, Yogoloth had to respect her logic. The gryphon would never believe that he had some sort of non-magical ability to shape change between these two forms. He was actually beginning to get a little worried about this whole situation. Was this it? Was he actually going to die tonight?

"I don't suppose a bribe would work? I have quite a collec-", another sharp jab and he stumbled down the path.

"I said be silent.", she hissed, clearly getting annoyed at his increasingly desperate attempts at negotiation. And he was getting quite desperate now.

He ran his magical senses over his gryphon assailant, as they continued down the path, and studied her magical defenses. It was difficult to determine exactly how powerful she was, but Yogoloth could detect a pair of shapes carefully twisted together in her feathers and fur. Enough to ward off anything another gryphon would be likely to throw at her, possibly enough to ward off what he was capable of at full strength. At the very least, the first magical shape he threw would only affect her fur or feathers and penetrate no deeper. He wouldn't get a second chance at this range.

None of this helped him at all, the moment he began unraveling the shapes that formed his disguise, she would notice and kill him before the magic returned to him, ready to be used against her. He would need ten seconds or so from the moment he began unraveling to the moment he'd be able to form and release a shape. The gryphon would probably notice and be able to open his throat with her talons within two seconds at most. Of course, if Yogoloth were a real blood mage, with no magic of his own, the magic wouldn't return to him at all. It would be lost to the void, unable to be used for anything at all.

"Right, this is far enough.", she said in a slightly predatory tone. Yogoloth received a sudden physical blow to the center of his back and tumbled onto the wet, dirty ground, the air driven from his lungs. He was going to die like an animal, covered in mud, the scavenged remains of his body slowly rotting in a shallow pit in the woods. The gryphon loomed over him and finally his brain formed a plan. It was about time.

"How about... a last request?", he gasped as he struggled to catch his breath.

Part 6

The gryphon let out a long sigh and stared down at her gasping victim. It wasn't as though he could get away or call for help now.

"Fine, make it quick. I want to dispose of your body before morning.", she said, clearly getting tired of all this unnecessary talking. She stepped back from over him and sat down on her rump, her tail flicking impatiently along the muddy ground.

Yogoloth finally got control of his breathing and slowly the plan started to form properly in his mind. The blow hadn't caused any serious damage, it had probably just been to make it easier to tear out his throat. She watched him carefully as he picked himself up from the dirty track.

"I don't want to die like this, at least let me take off my disguise.", he said carefully, trying his best to sound defeated and accepting of his fate. The gryphon rolled her eyes and chuckled.

"Do you really think I care who you really are? Just be quick about it."

The disguised dragon had his chance now. He quickly began to take off his robe, and as the thick, bulky garment came off, he began to unravel the shapes that formed his disguise. His hide rapidly regained it's green tones and his furry mane began to regrow. Freed from their cloth prison, his wings stretched out and their varied tones of brown filled the air between them.

The gryphon watched with sudden fascination, clearly not expecting the transformations she was witnessing. His horns elongated, pushing off the tightly fitting leather cap, and his fluffy brown ears appeared as the gryphon's beak opened slightly in shock. He needed just a few moments.

"What... are you?", she said, trying to sound strong but only managing to sound confused.

Yogoloth ignored the question as he dropped his robe to the muddy ground. He could feel the beginnings of the magic trickling into his reserves, he had to distract her, keep her busy. If she realised he was regaining the magic, blood mage or not, she'd panic and probably kill him anyway. His horns had returned to their full length as he flexed out his wings in the cool night air. He needed more time.

"I bet you've never seen any of the civilised races with horns and wings before?", he chuckled as he unravelled the last few shapes. A few more seconds...

"It- It doesn't matter... you're still-", she started to regain her composure as Yogoloth interrupted her again.

"I have a tail a bit like yours.", he said almost cheerfully as he swung the newly re-furred tail slowly off to her side. Her head turned as her eyes followed it, still slightly confused, but rapidly getting her mind back to the task at hand. She felt the stinging in her neck at the same time as she saw the movement.

Yogoloth had quickly pushed a single claw between the feathers on the blind side of her neck and into the flesh below. The gryphon staggered back briefly as she sensed the hastily formed shape slipping passed her protected feathers and directly into her body. She called upon what magic she had free and threw it at the invading magic, but it just fell apart. She couldn't stop it.

"No...", was all she could manage to whisper as the invasive magic began to take hold. She weakly swung a talon towards her opponent in a desperate attempt to defend herself, but he had backed away. His magical attack settled into her mind and she collapsed limply to the ground. Yogoloth slowly lowered himself down to his knees and let all his fears out in one big breath. He was physically, mentally and magically exhausted.

The gryphon had slumped forward awkwardly on one of her talons and her wings had spread slightly. Yogoloth climbed to his feet and walked over, her eyes watched him, the only part of her body she still had control of. The hybrid had put everything he had into the paralysis, even so, it wouldn't last more than thirty minutes or so. She was good, even for a gryphon, he'd actually been quite lucky to get the shape into her intact. He sat down in front of the paralysed gryphon, held her head in his little clawed hands and looked at her.

"Fair warning, this is going to hurt.", Yogoloth said quietly as he prepared himself for what he had to do.