Chapter 17

Cecil crept up the mountain trail, darting from one large boulder to the next as he approached the mountaintop. Peeking over top of one of the boulders he saw his target standing on the opposite side of the small clearing. The afternoon sun illuminating the solitary tent as the flap covering the entrance was blown open from the wind allowing him to see the imprisoned beast within. This was the chance he was waiting for, the giant dragon was gone and the dragon child with it. He waved his arm behind him, as a group of individuals dressed in a similar manner as he was, walked up the trail in a more normal fashion. Giving him a strange look as they came to a stop next to him.

"Okay, now's our chance. We go in, grab the werewolf and get out before that dragon comes back." Cecil whispered, an excited look written on his face. The group exchanged glances amongst themselves before one of them spoke up.

"Why don't we just leave him? Fenrir hasn't made any attempt to escape during the two days he's been here. But he's escaped from us the first night every time."

"Shhhhh! Not so loud! What if someone hears you?" Cecil rushed to cover the woman's mouth as she rolled her eyes.

"As if there's still someone who doesn't know what we're doing with how you've been running back and forth in the middle of the afternoon." A black haired young man muttered under his breath as he crossed his arms.

"Come on." Cecil whispered as he tiptoed toward the tent.

"This is a terrible idea." The woman groaned as she walked behind him. The group made their way towards the tent with Cecil leading the way, tip-toeing with extreme caution to avoid disturbing the rocks and pebbles beneath his feet.

"Let's just get this over with before he comes back with his dragon. Last I saw him, he looked pretty angry and I don't want to be here to see how he'll react." The young man said as they approached the tent. The group pushed the flap out of the way as they stepped into the tent. The group collectively gasped as they took in the sight in front of them. Fenrir Greyback, one of the most savage and dangerous werewolves of their time was on his knees, and chained to the floor to layers of ice on his torso and limbs. The werewolf was breathing heavily and shivering as it lifted its head to growl weakly at the group of humans in the tent. The beast looked thinner than Cecil remembered from the last couple times he saw him. Its gray fur now turned dark and almost black in some parts as it struggled to turn its head to look at them.

Cecil shared a look with his group as they gripped their wands tight and turned to find a way to move the beast while keeping it restrained. Cecil had just moved to grab one of the chains when a loud roar caused everyone in the tent to freeze in place. They noticed the way Fenrir seemed to shrink and whimper as the sound of flapping wings drew closer. Everyone pushed themselves to the sides of the tent as the heard the sound of something landing outside followed by the sounds of heavy footfall.

Vesryn jumped off of Dusk's back and landed softly on the ground after the dragon came to a halt. A frown was visible on his face as he ran his hand through his hair that was still damp with seawater, causing it to remain slicked back. As he was dusting off the sand and dust that still clung to his clothes, he noticed a group of footprints in the dirt, with one particular set moving back and forth in a weird zigzagging pattern. Looking towards the tent, he narrowed his eyes for a brief moment before sighing. Continuing to dust himself, Vesryn moved and took a seat on the stone bench by the bonfire that had now burnt out.

"I know you're there, Cecil. And your squad." Vesryn's voice called out as he picked up a bundle wrapped in an old cloth and removed the book tucked within. The squad tensed inside the tent as they looked at each other, refusing to make a sound when they heard a strange growl and turned to look at Cecil, who had his hands cupped like a cone around his mouth. The group stared at the man, their eyes widening in disbelief. Vesryn raised an eyebrow as he listened to the strange sound that seemed more like someone struggling to hold in their bowel movements than an animal. Rolling his eyes, he opened the book and started to read about acromantulas in the front section of the book.

"You want to pretend you're not in there, fine. However if you are, and if you still want to take Greyback, I recommend you do it now." Vesryn called out as he started to read through the book. The group exchanged silent looks amongst themselves as they attempted to decide their next course of action without making a sound. Vesryn took a deep breath as he noticed the lack of movement in the tent that might have convinced him that no one was there if it wasn't for the fact that he could still make out their shadows through the flap of the tent.

"In thirty seconds, I will have Dusk reduce that tent and everything inside to ash." Vesryn called out again as he slowly flipped the page. Instantly the group of purple dressed individuals rushed out from within the tent, tumbling into the open ground.

"Well, good afternoon. Enjoying your lunch? How's the dirt taste?" Vesryn asked as he traced his finger down the page illustrating a large snake as he read the small entry on this world's version of a basilisk. The squad of wizards and witch rushed to pick themselves up as they adjusted the helmets on their head.

"Wait. You weren't serious?" The woman asked as she looked at the boy that was calmly reading his book. Vesryn looked over his shoulder to see the black dragon having already curled up and fallen asleep.

"I'm not going to interrupt Dusk's nap to have him do something I can do myself." Vesryn answered as he calmly flipped the page.

"You said we could take Greyback. Were you serious?" The black haired young man asked as he dusted himself off. Vesryn paused for a moment as he took a deep breath before he continued to read through the book.

"He's no longer of any concern to me. So yes. Take him." Vesryn replied gradually worked his way through the book that gave him descriptions of different dark creatures and took note of how some of the creatures didn't have a lot of detailed information.

"Ahem. Thank you young man. I understand how worried you must have been to know someone sent such a savage criminal after you, but I swear, once we have any information we will let your guardians know." Cecil said loudly as he fixed his uniform. Vesryn sighed as he glanced at the man from the corner of his eyes before returning his focus to his book.

"Don't bother. It no longer matters to me. If whoever is responsible tries again, I'll handle it then." Vesryn said calmly as he flipped to a page detailing chimaeras.

'Besides there's only two people that might be responsible. If it's not them then it's someone close to them… Why do they spell it like this? Kai-May-ra? Why's there an a in chimaera? Wait, now they're spelling without the a.' Vesryn thought to himself before the expressions on his face became gradually more confused as he read through the entry. Shaking his head, he flipped the page and moved on to the next creature in the book. Vesryn continued to read in silence for a couple of seconds before looking up at the group that was still standing in place.

"What are you doing? I just said you can do your jobs. So go do it before I change my mind." Vesryn said as he looked at the group. It seemed as though it took a moment for his words to register in their minds as they suddenly rushed back into the tent.

"Don't get bit!" Vesryn called out as he turned back to his book before muttering under his breath. "Fucking hells."

A couple of minutes later Vesryn watched as the squad left the tent with the werewolf in chains. Fenrir growled weakly as he was dragged along, barely putting up any resistance as the group made their way down the trail. The squad stuffed the beast into a large iron cage that shrunk down and left the werewolf with little to no room to move as they mounted their brooms and waved their wands over the cage and themselves. Vesryn watched as what looked like a translucent veil washed over the group before they all turned semi transparent themselves. Vesryn noted how a few of the dragonologists came up the trail and nearly bumped into the squad as though they couldn't see them at all. He watched as the squad rose into the air with the cage and began flying off into the distance, avoiding a few other dragonologists that also seemed ignorant of their presence.

'Did they turn invisible? But why can I still see them?' Vesryn pondered as he watched them eventually vanish from view. Vesryn narrowed his eyes for a moment before turning his attention back down to the book in his hands. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath as he removed his right hand from the book. He held the hand in front of his face as he turned it back and forth, watching as platinum scales covered his skin before receding from view. Closing the book and setting it back down on the bench, Vesryn stood up and walked into the now vacant tent. As the flap of the tent fell behind him, he pulled his tunic over his head as he walked into the center of the tent. There he stood in the dark interior, his torso bare and illuminated by only the candles around him and the scraps of sunlight that slipped through the gaps of the tent. His muscles were clearly defined and yet his form was undoubtedly slimmer than he was used to. He had trained his entire life to achieve a body that was perfectly suited for combat, a body that he would now have to regain through training once more.

That was a problem for another day however as Vesryn turned his attention towards his skin. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath before opening them again to see the same platinum scales appearing across his torso. Not even a second had passed before his body was covered in scales of varying sizes. Larger scales covered the majority of his body, gradually becoming smaller, tighter and more numerous in their arrangement as they approached the parts of his body where the larger scales would have restricted his mobility. Even his stomach, one of the few places that appeared uncovered by the scales had in reality been covered by a layer of scales that was practically invisible to the eyes. It was as though his skin itself had turned into form fitting scale armor and yet he felt no discomfort in this state. If anything, he might even say it was more comfortable in this state, more free. Shifting back and forth, he realized that the process was seamless, he couldn't even feel it happen.

Forming a sharp icicle in his hand, he pressed it against his forearm and gradually increased the pressure. A second later the icicle shattered against the scales without leaving a mark. Forming another icicle, he repeated the process on his skin without the protection of his scales. This time, the sharp piece of ice managed to push his skin in before snapping in half, leaving behind a slight scratch on his forearm where the point managed to slide against his skin before it faded away. Putting his tunic back on Vesryn walked outside and made his way toward the stone bench and sat down with a new icicle on his hand. Repeating the process one last time, Vesryn looked down at the stone bench that now possessed a clear inch deep scar on its surface.

'Even without the scales, my skin seems more resistant than stone.' Vesryn thought to himself before he turned his attention to the pouch on his waist and the magical weapons within.

'What about enchanted weapons?' Vesryn wondered for a moment before he stood up and walked back into the tent. 'I need to know what exactly my body is capable of.'

As Vesryn disappeared into the tent, far to the north at the bottom of a cliff by an ocean, several individuals dressed in red uniforms with various different weapons across their backs looked over the area. The loud sound of blades chopping through the air fell over the beach as a large helicopter landed in a nearby patch of sand that was unobstructed by the large cliff. As the blades slowed to a halt and the engine fell silent, a brown haired woman stepped out of the machine. Fixing her cream-colored suit as she went, she approached the group of red clad individuals.

"Well? What have you found?" The woman asked as she stepped into the concave opening of the cliff that had been caused by tears of erosion. A man, wearing a white robe over his red uniform and holding a black wand in his left hand, approached and bowed before falling in behind the woman.

"Reid-sama, we believe a dragon was indeed here." The man answered as they walked into the cordon created by those present.

"And?"

"I do not believe a dragon was responsible for this." The man answered as he waved his arm forward, directing the woman's attention to the shattered rock and scorched glass that dotted the sand before them. The woman turned her head, looking around at the surroundings, taking note of the destruction before falling on the nearby prints in the sand.

"I only see the prints of a dragon. If it wasn't responsible then what was?" The woman asked as she turned from the large set of prints to the man. The man walked ahead, his arm gesturing to the wall in front of him as she followed close behind. Stopping in front of the wall, she saw it. A deep hole in the stone that was soon illuminated by the man's wand to reveal the clear imprint of a fist inside.

"A person did this?" The woman asked, her eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Yes. And I believe that person was the one responsible for the damage we see around us and the dragon was likely just his method of transportation." The man answered as he pointed out the blast marks and craters that decorated the walls and sand around them. The woman went silent as her eyes narrowed, her mind processing the information in her mind.

'Did they train a new one already? No, it can't be. They'd never send them out here. And using a dragon as transportation? Unless they learned how to control them over the last couple centuries, it can't be them.' She thought to herself before she looked toward the man.

"See if you can discover who it is. Do whatever it takes. If they have the ability to turn a dragon into their mount, we must have them by any means necessary. Especially if they have this kind of strength." She ordered as she ran her hand along the edge of one of the craters. A moment later she turned away and began walking toward the helicopter, her voice echoing through the air behind her as she called out.

"And clean up the area. Leave nothing behind."

"It will be done." The man replied as he watched the woman step into the helicopter before it started up and took to the air. A sneer crossed his face as the helicopter flew into the distance, contempt replacing the look of 'respect' in his eyes as he waved his hand over his shoulder, his once youthful face morphing and changing to that of a balding old man with grey hair and a long beard.

"Takashi-sama. Your orders?" One of the red dressed individuals asked as he approached and kneeled behind the old man.

"Send someone to search for anyone that might fit the bill. Strong, can control or communicate with dragons. Young. Tell no one else of your findings. And clean up the mess." The old man ordered without turning around as several of the figures scattered among the rest burst into action, drawing their weapons and slaughtering through the rest with blades and spells. Hardly any time had passed before silence fell over the clearing and those who remained began to wave their wands and weaved hand signs to dispose of the bodies and restore the cave to a natural appearance.

"You think we don't know what you all are doing? You haven't found the key to your freedom. Only the next vessel for our master." Takashi whispered silently as his sneer turned into a sinister grin.