SOMD Ch 3: Orris The Blind (Patreon)

The new dragon could not see them, but clearly sensed Iggy's fire. He stepped closer, his jaw moving slightly to the side to avoid the flames. The firelight caught the long, jagged scars running down his muzzle. Though not one of the scars intersected with his eyes—his blindness seemed to be from a different wound altogether, or perhaps old age.

"Be at peace, children," he said, "I could have easily killed you had I wanted to."

Which was not the most comforting thing he could have said.

Iggy bristled, the red and orange spines along his back flexing upward to full height. "You could not touch them without going through me, first."

The other dragon scoffed. "What level are you, child? Five? Six? You would be nothing but a puff of wind for me to walk through."

Iggy looked like he dearly wanted to test that out, even though he was only level three.

Alice put her hand out in a silent command for him to stay in place. Then she took a half step to the new dragon. "My name is Alice. Who are you?"

"My name is Orris," he replied.

"Oh," Natura said brightly, "like the root!"

He turned to look at her. She ducked her head, sheepish. "Well, it's true."

Orris chuckled a rusty sound. "Yes, my bonded did name me after the root. Her class was one of gardening. Though, as it turned out, I was more drawn to the air and water than plants."

"Bonded?" Alice asked.

"Yes... a long time ago."

Something in the way he said that made a chill of premonition run all the way up Alice's spine. "Orris, do you know what this place is? This old city?"

"You sit among an ancient city where dragons and humans once lived together," he said. "I cannot see it any longer, but I know that the elements have worn down all the structures. Now plants overgrow what had been a grand achievement. This was a place where humans and dragons bonded together and lived stronger than they were apart."

Alice flicked a glance upward and around. Maybe it was an effect of the serious tone in his speech or of the flickering firelight, but she swore that for a moment... she could almost see it.

Prim cocked her head first in one direction, then the other as if she were studying the older dragon. "If this place was so grand, and the people were so strong... what happened?"

"What happened?" Orris repeated. "What always happens when one collects too much power and then becomes certain of themselves."

A brief silence fell over them as Alice's group looked at one another, clearly not sure what Orris meant.

Orris snorted. "Another with even more power came to challenge them. It was not the first time this had happened. War is common between humans and dragonkind. But this was one who had a class that gave him domain over dragons: He of Many Dragons. Yes, I can tell that class is familiar to you, is it not?" 

"Yes," Alice agreed quietly, despite Iggy's warning hiss. 

"There were battles to retain our sovereignty," Orris continued. "But eventually many were persuaded to go over to his side." 

"Persuaded?" Alice asked, hoping for further clarification. But Orris ignored her question.

In fact, though his blind eyes did not focus, something in his stance told Alice that his gaze was not only turned inward, but turned elsewhere. 

After a moment, he spoke again in a quieter, vague voice. "They went to another land, or so it was said. I elected to stay behind, as did many others. I did not trust him." 

Then, just as abruptly, his focus seemed to snap back to the here and now. More specifically, on Alice. "And now, endless years later, I find another one of his class in my sanctuary." 

The old blind dragon looked dangerous now.

Alice trembled on the inside, but something—perhaps a bit of class wisdom—warned her not to show that she was afraid.

"I had no knowledge I was trespassing upon your home," she said calmly, and one hand skimmed briefly over Iggy, who was swimming in angry, possessive circles around her. "And I may share the same class as your former enemy, but you surely know that two people within the same class can direct their powers in different directions." 

"Yes," Orris growled. "For example, I noticed that you have not once tried to capture me under your power. It would have been a very bad decision if you had tried." 

In truth, she hadn't even been given that option by the System. She suspected that it was because her level was so low, and his so very high. 

Without his sight, he called them children. But perhaps he did not realize how very new to her class she was. 

"Alice does not capture, she befriends," Natura said unexpectedly. She stepped forward. "I am new to her group. But she asked me to join several times in the past, and when I said no, she allowed me to leave in peace until I was ready." 

This was a bit of an exaggeration. Natura had run away like her tail was on fire, but Alice had certainly not tried to stop her. 

Orris turned his milky gaze in her direction. "Yet you did join her in the end."

"At the urging of my dam and sire, who could not care for me." 

Orris reared up, slightly offended. "What scoundrels of dragon parents do not care for their own hatchling? You do not sound old enough to fledge—" He broke off as he sniffed at her. Then, abruptly, he recoiled. Suddenly his tone was much more cautious. "Ah, a nature dragon. Born of... what? Earth parents?" 

"Wood," Natura said shortly. 

"And you have allied yourself with a She of Many Dragons. That is a potent mix. Perhaps I should be the one apologizing to her. Yet, she has not attacked or tried to sway me to her side..."

The last part very much felt like Orris was talking to himself. It seemed that Orris did not realize that he was speaking to himself aloud. Alice got the impression that Orris had been alone for a very long time. 

And she knew how to, if not win him over to her side, at least calm some of his anxieties. He had mentioned the deer, after all. 

"Please," she extended her hand to him. “We wish to share our meal with you.”

To her surprise, Orris took a half step back. 

"Please," she said again, this time gesturing broadly to the half-butchered deer. Orris could not see, but perhaps he could sense air currents. "We could not eat all of this meat, and as I was saying before, I'd hate for it to go to waste. If you would like some, please take it."

Then she hesitated, because not all dragons ate meat. Numi, for example didn't other than the occasional bite. Neither did her sub-aspect, Fixie. 

Orris's answer was to activate a skill. The wind seemed to rush up out of nowhere, instantly. The rest of the deer carcass, including the offal that had been set to the side, rushed to the dragon who captured it within his jaws. 

Then he backed away, mumbling a thanks. Within moments, the dragon and any trace of the deer that was not roasting over the cooking fire was gone. 

"We could have saved some of that for the morning," Prim said, annoyed. 

Then they all looked at one another, all a little stunned as to what had happened. The casual display of the large dragon's strength. Each one of them had their own skills, and none were so flashy except for perhaps Iggy, but even he did not have such fine control over his fire. 

"Alice, should we leave?" Prim asked quietly, echoing Alice's inner struggle. 

She was sorely tempted, but it took just a moment of imagining them all stumbling through the wilderness in the dark to dissuade her of that idea. Besides, she was not sure how big this city was, or how long it would take to find their way out again. 

But more importantly, a gut feeling, something she suspected came from her She of Many Dragons class told her that leaving right now would be a bad idea. Orris was a meat-eater. He may very well take their leaving now as akin to prey running for their lives. 

"No," Alice said, and it was with effort that she kept her voice calm. "We will stay the night. In fact," she said, pitching her voice louder because she was certain that Orris was listening, "I would very much like to sleep indoors tonight."

They were staying, but they did not have to be stupid about it. She looked directly at Numi. "Would you be able to find a place nearby that is not in too much disrepair, love?" And then she gave her dragon the significant look. It went without saying that she wanted to return to the place that they had already cleaned out, but they were going to be making a show of not running away in terror.

Also, that building was sized for humans and small dragons, and the Orris would be much too large to follow. 

Numi was likely her most intelligent dragon, and she picked up on what was unsaid immediately. She nodded, blinking her large, slightly bulging eyes. "Yes, yes. I will find something right away."

She scuttled back through the thorns. Alice returned to the cooking meat, and by the time the venison was ready, Numi returned and made a show of guiding them back through the forest. As promised, the entrance to the building she had found earlier was not far away. 

It was dark inside, of course, though there were some gaps in the ivy and overgrown trees that let in moonlight. It was just enough to allow Alice to pick her way through without stumbling. The back of the building remained dry from all elements, and she gratefully sat down. 

"Natura," she said in a low voice, "Could you perhaps encourage the plant life to hide us?"

Natura looked surprised. "Are you afraid of that dragon?"

"I would rather be cautious," Alice said. 

"Then perhaps I could encourage the vines to grow thorns and turn them outward."

She smiled and patted her newest dragon on the head. Her scales looked like bark but felt like soft moss. "I think that would be a very good idea, indeed," she said.

Once Natura was done, they finally had their meal.

While Natura worked, Iggy and Spark set up a basic watch schedule for the night after they were done eating, taking turns to check for any danger. 

"This is a safe place," Iggy said. "I do not smell very many rats at all."

Alice could have done without hearing that last part. "If you could keep them away from me tonight, that would be appreciated."

Alice settled down against the back wall, and Prim cuddled up close as an additional watch. But neither felt like resting.

Prim's gaze flittered around the room and then back up to Alice. "A He of Many dragons," she said softly.

Alice sighed. "I wish I were not taken such by surprise. I would have asked him more questions."

"He is still around the city, I am sure," Prim said. "And if see him tomorrow, he may be in a better mood to talk."

Alice nodded at that and tried to settle herself to sleep, though she doubted she would get much that night.