Otherworld Academy Vol. 1 Capitulo 9
Chapter 9
Their next free day saw Levi and Glint taking a trip out to the woods around the Academy. Levi’s head was aching and Glint kept looking over at him. The man finally sighed and looked at his friend. “What, Glint? Why do you keep staring at me?” he asked.
The imp’s ears waggled as he reached up and adjusted the fit of his goggles around his forehead. They had thrown calf-length leather coats over their uniforms to keep the dust off as they traveled. “You look like crap, man. Did you have a problem sleeping last night?” the imp questioned.
Levi nodded his head. He had slept rough. “Bad dreams. I don’t remember what they were, just that there was something snarling. I tossed and turned all night until Zuzan woke me up,” he said. Zuzan cheeped quietly and patted his head in sympathy, and Levi sighed. “I suppose the whole I died thing is catching up to me. It makes sense I’d have a few bad dreams.”
Glint nodded, seeming to accept that answer readily. While he had helped Levi pick out a pair of solid hiking boots, the imp was barefoot. Levi figured that was because of his clawed toes, which were also slightly webbed. When Levi thought back on it, he realized he had never seen Glint wear shoes. The hills they were walking up were steep enough that Levi was glad to have his cane; in fact, the tool had extended until it was the length of a good walking stick. He wasn’t sure why the tool adjusted, but he was glad it did. It wasn’t easy to try and store a three-foot walking cane, but a foot-long rod? That was easier. No matter how it shifted, though, the knobbed top never changed.
“Okay, so Glint, tell me about this area we’re going to and why you think the beasts there are perfect for me,” Levi said, wanting to steer the conversation away from his bad dreams.
“What do you know about dragons?” the imp asked.
Levi stumbled, the image of a huge, scaled beast breathing fire over Lake Town popping into his head. He shook the memory of the movie out of his head. “Well, on my world they’re mythological creatures who grow to huge sizes, are nearly unkillable, and collect massive piles of treasure,” he said, giving Glint a curious glance.
“That isn’t wrong, but also not quite right,” Glint said. His ears were flapping in a way that hinted he was very proud of himself. “Dragons come in a lot of different shapes and sizes. Drakes don’t have wings, wyverns only have two legs, and wyrms are huge, treasure-hoarding creatures. We’re looking for something called a dragonet. Dragonets are smaller, only a bit bigger than a cat. They’re very curious and they like people… usually. Some of them are really smart too. The best part about a dragonet, though, is that they soak up magic like a sponge; also their scales are just as hard to penetrate as the bigger dragons. Their breath isn’t as powerful, but I think if you can get one to bond with you, it’ll be a powerful ally.”
Levi couldn’t deny that the idea of even a small, flying, fire-breathing dragon was appealing. He looked at Zuzan and the squirrel on his shoulder chittered. The puffy, cream-colored animal waved its paw around as it squeaked and Levi nodded. He looked back at Glint. “Well, Zuzan thinks your idea is good, so let’s give it a shot.”
Glint nodded his head, looking smug and Levi chuckled as he watched his friend lower his goggles over his large eyes. The imp was a bit bug-eyed, and the goggles just made it look even worse. Glint had told him that swamp imps had sensitive eyes. His focus had formed into the goggles which let him study the vapor machines he loved. Glint had been proud when he said that he wasn’t made for… brute force solutions. Levi had found that amusing.
The idea that he was going to have to try and tame a dragon, even a small one, made Levi cautious. He began to review the taming process he had been learning in class. He couldn’t count on every beast he met taking to him the way Zuzan had, which meant he needed to be prepared. The first step was establishing a solid barrier to keep himself safe. Then, he had to place a lure that would draw the beast in. Assuming he didn’t trigger hostility, he needed to draw his magic out and cast it into the beast to form a bond. If everything went well, he could reinforce that bond allowing him to communicate with the creature. However, that last part depended on the beast’s intelligence. Not as simple as beating an animal in a duel and throwing a ball at it, but we’ll see how it works, he thought.
“I take it this is why you had me stock up on bacon and ham slices from the cafeteria this morning?” Levi asked his friend. Glint gave him a thumbs up.
“Yeah, a few of the dragonets are attracted to fruit, but I think the ones you want will be the meat eaters. Canids aren’t nice, and having a tamed predator is a good way to keep Darren off your back,” the imp explained. The green-skinned figure had his own walking stick, though his was a length of bronze pipe topped with what looked like a lantern. A dull green liquid floated inside the glass panes, and there were several knobs that Glint could manipulate.
“I got to ask, man, what is with the fancy lantern?” Levi said. He’d wanted to know since they started walking.
“Lantern! This is my personal mana vapor generator. I just turn the dial to lower a small crystal into the catalyst fluid. The vapor produced gets channeled into a few of my personal inventions. I made it in the lab,” Glint explained proudly.
“Glint, didn’t you say the last mana vapor project from your class lab exploded?” Levi asked—he really didn’t want something to explode next to him. Levi resisted the temptation to take a step to the side and simply wrapped his hand tighter around his cane. He couldn’t help giving the walking stick the side-eye, just as a precaution.
“Levi, that hurts! I’m a much better engineer than that guy. Where is your faith in me?” Glint asked with his ears folding down for a second before they sprang back up in a manner Levi recognized as laughter.
“Right, so you’re saying none of your personal projects have ever exploded?” Levi pressed.
“Well, I wouldn’t say that… I’m just saying it isn’t very likely, that’s all,” Glint concluded, and then a moment later the imp cackled.
“Oh yeah… that makes me feel so much better,” Levi muttered with a snort. He shook his head as Zuzan squeaked in what could only be a sarcastic manner. The squirrel rolled her dark eyes and her rhythmic chitters inspired him to bring his hand up to scratch her along the back of her head. He spoke to her quietly under his breath. The woods were getting closer—it was time to grow silent.
Glint had warned him that there were creatures in the woods who might be more than eager to take a bite out of a pair of traveling mages. His taming professor had taught him a few spells that might keep beasts away from them; most of them required him to draw a circle on the ground though. His thumb traced some of the engraved lines in his cane while he swept his eyes through the trees. There wasn’t much undergrowth, at least not once they got past the first mile or so of trees.
The deeper they went into the woods, the bigger the trees grew. The trunks rose like giant columns, and Levi noted that the branches didn’t start less than fifty feet above the ground. There wouldn’t be any fast escapes into the trees if they were getting chased. Some of those trees tilted, and when Levi examined the roots, he saw boulders of sparkling gray stones trapped among them. As they continued to walk, those boulders seemed to push up more and the trees grew farther and farther apart. Levi figured they had gone at least ten miles before the hills expanded to the point where the spaces between the trees grew significant. The ground began to grow barren as well, the grass and underbrush fading. The domes of broken gray stone glittered in the light of the sun. Levi turned to Glint and asked, “Are we going to have time to walk back before nightfall?”
Glint turned his head to look back the way they came. The imp reached up and scratched the inside of one leathery ear as he frowned. “I am not sure, to be honest. I didn’t think it was going to take this long to get to these hills,” he admitted. Glint reached into his leather coat and drew out a slim scroll, and when he unrolled it, Levi saw an inked map on the parchment. The school had been illustrated in great detail. The round humps among the trees, however, were not nearly so well defined, and when Levi raised an eyebrow, Glint shrugged. “I got it from a Toad House student who is practicing to be a surveyor. I thought it was reliable.”
“Next time, I’m finding the map,” Levi groused. He shook his head and paused to dig into his pocket for his pouch of snacks. He opened it up and handed a few of the salted nuts to Zuzan, then he popped several into his own mouth and started to chew. These things taste like popcorn and have a kick like espresso. I understand why Zuzan is addicted, he thought. He knew better than to offer any to Glint—the last time he had the imp had literally passed out. Apparently imps had sensitive digestive systems.
After a drink of water, they started walking again, though Levi noticed a popping sound before they got too far among the rocks. When he glanced at Glint, the imp nodded. “Dragonet breath makes that sound when it hits rocks,” he whispered. Levi returned the nod, then focused on his cane to shrink it back to its normal length. He didn’t want to trip himself up with a tool that was longer than he was used to. Levi also made sure he had the bag of snacks in his pocket ready to grab. The salty meat was their best bet at getting a predator’s attention, and Levi didn’t want to waste their chance scaring an animal off with the wrong lure.
Levi motioned for Glint to keep back; his friend knew more about the dragonets, but Levi was the one learning to be a tamer. He shifted sideways to slip between a crack in the stones, and when he peeked his head forward, Zuzan adjusted his glasses for him. “Thanks,” he whispered. The sylvan squirrel patted the tip of his ear as Levi craned his neck to look out between the stones. The hill had a split running down the back side and most of it had washed away. The missing rock formed a fan-shaped divot in the rocks, and the whole space was a maze of vines and trickling water. Levi saw at least two springs trickling down the rocks—his attention zeroed in on the flash of wings. The dragonets were amazing. They glided and flew in flocks, chasing each other as they dove among the rocks to emerge with rodents and other small prey. Their bodies and wings tended to be monochrome. The dragonets were every color he could imagine. He didn’t see them flocking based on color, nor could he tell the males from the females. Some were larger than others, but it seemed to be a random facet of their nature. There weren’t any cues to allow him to determine what the hierarchy of the colony was.
He saw one in particular—the only one that had more than a single color—and he couldn’t take his eyes off of it. That dragonet was about the size of a bobcat, the largest one he could see, and it had ebony scales and silver wings. Levi crouched down and took his pouch out as quietly as he could. Zuzan chittered advice while he pulled sliced ham to drape across the rocks and added a few strips of bacon. Zuzan let out a squeak, tugging on his blue hair, and he grimaced. “Right, right, the barrier,” he murmured.
He used the tip of his cane to trace a half circle in front of him, and then he poked the tip into the soil. It took focus for him to push the energy down and cause a light green glow to emanate from the ground around him. With that done, Levi settled in to wait. He had no idea how long it might take for a dragonet to smell the meat and come looking. For all he knew, the creatures hated pork and would ignore him completely. On a whim, he scattered a few of Zuzan’s nuts among the bacon, then gave her a look. “Don’t even think of crossing that barrier,” he whispered. Then he lifted his hand and offered a palmful of nuts to sate the greedy little beast. Zuzan squeaked quietly and patted his head again while she stuffed the nuts into her cheeks.
Levi knelt by the rock, keeping his body behind the barrier and watching the dragonets as they flew. The beautiful reptiles had slim bodies, their necks were shorter than he’d expected, and their tails were extremely nimble. Almost all of them had wings that spread about twice as wide as their bodies were long. Again, the silver-bellied dragonet was the exception. That one’s wings were nearly three times as wide as its body was long, and the more Levi watched, the more he was sure the dragonet was female. It might have been his imagination, but he was sure he saw her looking over at him several times as she glided.
When the air started to chill and Levi was sure the sky was beginning to darken, the silver-bellied dragonet flapped several times and dropped to the boulder. Her neck arched down and she sniffed at the food. Then she rose onto her hind legs, picked up two nuts, and wrapped them in bacon. Levi stared in surprise as the beast folded a strip of ham over the bacon and popped the entire thing in her mouth before she started chewing. Did she just make a meat sandwich?
He moved very carefully to raise the knob of his cane. His eyes almost closed as he meditated on his power. For a moment, he struggled to call up the faint energy mist he needed to extend to the creature. The delicate energy cloud was supposed to show that he wasn’t attempting to coerce the beast, thus helping build trust. Levi hadn’t done this before, though, so he was pushing it out as gently as he could. When the white fog finally touched the dragonet, the animal’s head snapped up and spun to face him.
Levi thought she was going to take off. She hunched over the food, mantling like a bird of prey with her wings spread out to either side of her slim body, her tail whipping wildly. Then she dropped back on all fours and cautiously approached him. Levi lifted a hand and offered his fingertips, knowing she might choose to bite. Instead, the little dragonet produced a trilling sound as she started to rub her head against his palm. With his bonding magic connecting them, the winged beast was able to walk straight through the barrier he had cast.
Once she had climbed up his arm and settled on the shoulder opposite Zuzan, Levi began to back away from the other dragonets. He had no desire to try and tame the entire flock. Something told him his new beast was going to be a jealous one.
