Ascent of a Dragon

Through the eyes of a certain elf

What manner of creatures are these? Stepping out from under the heavy weight of cascading waters, the man takes in the form of the three beings approaching him. Lines of water are drawn from his pointed ears to his chiselled body, soaking his bare chest and drenching his leggings. Raising his arms he flexes every muscle in his body with enough force to eject the water coating him, like any man would given the ability. Even the drips of water tugging down at his dark-brown beard and hair are blown off, revealing his dry scruff in all of its scraggly glory.

He steps to the side, directing himself towards his gear. The ape I recognise as one of the gold-touched apes from the jungle layers above. I didn't know they explored this deep. This one reminds me of that young one in particular, the one which kept challenging me to a fight whenever we crossed paths. Given the way it's looking at me, perhaps that assessment isn't far off. His gaze drifts from the ape's reverent stare to the palm-sized spider nestled atop the obsidian beast. I know of no animal that looks like this. But I recall the stories of the blue-eyed spiders, those who remember any offence to their brethren. How did the old rhyme go? Black eyes are tame, red eyes are tender. Gold eyes are doom, but blue eyes always remember. There was also that tale of an army of white spiders who lost to divine beast Kavlaxhar. I wonder if this one is related.

His eyes shift down, green meeting violet in a direct stare, before immediately shifting down. I know better than to meet the gaze of an old beast for too long. No surprise that the one with the most unusual presence is the one with the deepest gaze. Master taught me that the presence I see is related to one's will. My will has focused my own presence to my core, below my heart. But what does that mean for this one, whose presence feels equally spread throughout its entire body? Normally it is somewhat focused in the brain, the source of one's will, but if anything this one has less in its brain than anywhere else. How strange...

A voice emanates from the dragon, spoken without movement in a tone much higher and more feminine than its form would imply. From the spider a similar voice echoes, whistled through threads wound between its pedipalps with the same tone and only slightly higher pitch than the dragon. Is that Englin? Master was right, I really should have learned it. I would have expected Aoan though, especially from such an old beast. He tilts his head, scratching the side of his messy beard as he watches them converse. The spider hops off, and the dragon steps forward, its presence pulsing as it steps.

Fight

Violet Aura presses against him, a challenge instilled into its will. Not food... Not enemy... But fight? This beast is strange in every way I can measure. Its Aura is weak yet its intent is strong. It has the form of a dragon, but with fins and webbing lazily tacked on. It sits like a bull, prowls like a cat, poises like a bird, and even has subtle mannerisms I would expect from the likes of a maolas or a human. It reminds me of my master in a way. But more than any of that... I've never seen another creature able to manipulate its presence like I can. The man reaches into his satchel, quickly rummaging through to pull out an old, worn journal. I must write this down! There is just so mu-

Fight

Ah... right. Bad habit. Putting down the journal he turns to face his challenger. I am not unfamiliar to challenges in these caverns. There was the ape tribe, those merfolk, and now this unnatural dragon. I have never had reason to decline. His own Aura billows forth, an intense green completely overwhelming the violet as he presses his own intent.

Fight

He responds, standing to his full height and taunting the dragon with a wave of his finger. The beast doesn't flinch, its gaze locked on him as its presence expands, flaring into a wide cowl to encompass them both. The elf condenses his own, focusing it into his palm to meet the oncoming charge. If this is the speed we're working with, this won't take long. His palm meets the dragon's skull, but his presence wavers. The dragon's cowl pressing into his arm to squeeze his presence where it's weak, cutting off the intent travelling from his core to his palm. What?! You can do that? He leaps back, his palm having harmlessly bounced off. Strange...

The dragon regards him, shaking its head bearing an expression he cannot parse, but the intent baked into its Aura speaks clearly.

Disappointing

It can even instil emotion into its Aura? Perhaps I have underestimated this beast. But is it really comparable to the likes of the drake queen and my master? No matter. I am physically stronger, that much is clear. One good strike should still suffice. The man takes a stance, his feet spread apart as he pulls his fist back to his hip in preparation for a strike. It doesn't charge... This is feeling more like a test than a fight. Well, I'm not one to back away from a challenge. His whole body twists, following his hind foot forward as he presses a wave of his presence through his arm like a pneumatic piston. At the very apex of his strike his palm curls into a tight fist and twists inward, his intent imbuing into the strike to form a sharp wave of air which shatters forth with a bang!

The dragon shifts slightly at the last second, allowing the wave of condensed air to thread the needle between its horns, across its back, and through a loop made with its tail. Passing by harmlessly the wave shoots through the air, crashing into a distant wall and bursting apart the hard stone as if made of breadcrumbs. He doesn't hide the look of shock on his face, instead allowing it to transition to a wide grin. This time, a feint! Taking stance again he prepares his next strike, only for the dragon to shift, once again holding a ring where he intends to strike.

"Gahahaha! Not impressed are you?! Fine then! Let us do this properly!" The dragon tilts its head, eyes widening in surprise of its own, before morphing back into concentration. Focus... Their eyes narrow. Breathe... They both inhale. Fight! They charge.

The distance is closed near instantaneously, bare feet and obsidian claws cracking and scraping the ground as they approach. Green coats the man's fists and violet coats the world around them, skin bearing into scales as he land the first strike. Once again, his presence is cut off, leaving his fist impotent against the tough hide. Faster then! He kicks, his leg aiming to shatter the sound barrier before being rendered mundane as well. All the while the dragon aims its own strikes, pushing away his intent to defend just enough to bruise. It presses my presence where it's weak... Then I should simply remove all the weak points!

Flaring his own presence he coats his body, attempting to imitate the dragon. No longer able to break his intent the beast switches to the defensive, nimbly backing away and weaving its large body around his every strike as it perfectly predicts each movement. Faster! Shock-waves emanate from his strikes, his fists brushing against its scales while his kicks scrape its horns. A shock-wave pulses by the beast's ear, a strike that would normally burst one's eardrum and rattle their brain, yet it shows no signs of slowing down, continuing to graze past his strikes be it by lack of or in spite of any injury.

Leaping back the dragon turns, flaring its presence and focusing it around the pair. Stepping forward to meet its retreat the man loses his footing as an intense force tugs at his presence, dragging him towards the oncoming tail as if pulling directly at his heart. Shattered debris is pulled from the ground alongside him, gravity having seemingly decided on a new point of origin, yet the force on his own body appears doubled, slamming him into the tail as it flips to an equally strong pushing force. His body rips through the air, the ground cracking under the weight of the shock-wave emanating from his rapid displacement until he crashes hard into a wall, leaving a crater within the dense rock.

I feel I am completely outclassed in skill, and I have a hunch this beast has yet to go all out either. Let's see if I can change that. Pulling himself from the pile of rubble coating him, the man hops forward unscathed. Dusting himself off, by flexing of course, he steps over to his luggage and grasps hold of the hunk of bone with a leather-wrapped handle sharpened into a long, wide blade which would make a claymore weep in envy. He lifts the blade high, every shred of his presence focusing into a single strike.

"Stop!"

A tiny voice declares, the white bundle of fur skittering between the pair. "You speak Aoan?" The elf asks the spider, lowering his blade. "Oh yea, you speak Aoan too?" The dragon asks the elf, trotting its way over. "You speak Aoan?!" The spider asks the dragon, impressively managing to show a recognisable expression of total shock without eyelids or lips. "Hoo!" The monkey yells to nobody in particular, simply wanting to be part of the fun.

"No, wait! Sorry new guy, I'll address you in a minute." The man nods, putting his sword back down and sitting by the gathering group with his bag. "There's no way you've been able to speak Aoan this whole time! Right?" "Uh, yea. It's actually one of my preferred languages. Why are you speaking like that though?" "Me? You're the one talking like a fossil!" "It would seem you both speak different dialects of Aoan. I happen to have learned both, but they're generally quite similar." The man interjects. "Ugh... Why can't people just stick with the modern way of speaking... Whatever! Beside the point! You've been able to speak Aoan this whole time?! Give me back all the effort I spent teaching you Englin!"

Well now this just feels awkward... Pulling out a piece of wood and a knife from his backpack, the man begins whittling away, leaving the pair to their mind-blowing revelations. "You do realise the main reason I found Englin so easy to learn is because it's derived from languages I already know right? I'm pretty sure I mentioned this at some point. I speak English, Latin, and Aoan which are the main three languages that Englin seems to be derived from." "Why didn't you tell me! We could have solved so many communication problems by now if we'd just started by talking in Aoan!" "I know dozens of languages, each from a different world. How should I know you happen to speak one of them? And the one time I started listing them off you stopped me early." "You were saying weird words! I still have nightmares from that last one!"

The ape sits next to him, peering at the carving. Handing over a fresh block of wood and a knife, the man begins showing the ape how to carve. "I'll have you know that Ahvi'sal is a lovely language, difficult to actually speak with, but very cute nonetheless." My that is unsettling. I do feel a presence watching me now. "Stop saying that! Wait... does this mean we have to teach the monkey Aoan now?" "Would've made sense to teach him Aoan in the first place. His language is very clearly derived from it." "Whyyy..." "Hey, look at it thi- ooh! Is that me?"

Shifting over to the elf, the dragon peers at the carving of herself being formed in his hands. "Just a hobby of mine. You're welcome to keep this one if you like." "I'd love to! Goldy, can you put this in my satchel? I left it over there." "Hoh!" The ape announces, thumping his chest lightly before taking the carving and packing it in her bag. Sneakily, the spider skitters over, peering down at the roughly made carving of herself before snatching it for herself and scampering away with it.

"Oh yea! Since we can speak the same language that makes things way easier! You suck at using Aether!" The dragon declares, violet eyes squinting at the elf. "You mean... my presence?" "I've never heard it called that, but sure. It's not just that you don't know how to use it, you're actively using it wrong!" The man scratches his beard, pulling at the knots weaved within the scraggle. "As much as I'm impressed by your usage of... Aether, I can't help but feel your being too critical. My master's teachings haven't failed me thus far." "Your master taught you how to use Mana. Not Aether. The way you're spinning it around and focusing it into incredibly tight points is just absurd! I bet you don't even know how to push or pull with it!"

The spider skitters back, having hidden the carving out of sight. "This guy uses yuthu? No wonder I couldn't sense anything. Why are you down here anyway?" "I forgot. It's been a number of years since I came here. I think my master asked me to do something, but I can't seem to remember what." "Wow... You two will definitely get along..." "Hey, so how deep does this place go?" The dragon asks the elf. "Well the floor we're currently on is one of the late sixties or seventies. The deepest I've made it is floor eighty-nine." "That deep?! How did you get past the big dragon on the magma floor?" "There's a dragon there?" "..." "..." "So unfair... Why does he get to skip the big fuckoff dragon?"

"Are you also trying to reach the bottom?" The dragon chimes in. "Yes, but I'm not strong enough to handle the lower floors of this place." "Wanna go with us? You're clearly strong, and I can teach you to actually use Aether!" An opportunity to observe these fascinating creatures from up close? How could I say no!

Entry 288 - Aleph Null

I don't have enough paper to justify logging every creature I've seen, but I believe this to be a notable exception. I have encountered a fascinating beast within the layer below the ocean. A dragon coated in glistening black scales, sharp claws, and violet eyes bearing a depth comparable to that of the oldest beasts I have seen.

As it turns out, what I call my presence is more than a simple extension of Aura or a vague sense of a being's state. It is a pure energy called Aether, equivalent to that of Mana, Demonic, and Angelic. I wonder if my master is aware of this, hence why they taught me so differently from the others. It would be just like them to omit critical details like this. Despite having comparatively little Aether in comparison to myself, the dragon has shown incredible skill and precision with the energy to the point of closing the gap in strength. I would not be surprised if she had a method of surviving my strongest blows. Incidentally she has offered to teach me the correct way to use Aether, something I cannot see myself refusing.

Alongside the dragon are two creatures, a white spider and a golden ape. They are fascinating creatures in their own right and I intend to dedicate pages to them as well.

- Unlabelled Journal