Chapter Text
Warmth. Calm. It had been a long time since I felt warm and calm. Felt at peace. I had died, again. I had pushed my luck too far and it finally ran out, but it was my choice to be in that jungle. I knew the risks. I would have thought it would have been a bullet to finally get me, but I suppose napalm worked well enough to get through my shields. I could only block so much sticky, liquid fire.
Looking around, I realize I am not in some sort of void, but in a confined space. There is a red hue to the mostly white containment. I should be feeling claustrophobic with how little room I had to move, but I just felt calm. Relaxed. Being X had probably forgotten about me at some point and when I died, whatever System the afterlife had for reincarnation did its job, but missed removing my memories of my previous lives.
I tried to look down at my body, but the tight grip I was in prevented me from seeing anything about myself.
Singing. I could not make out the words, but I could hear a voice. It was muffled and distorted too much, but the tone was pleasing. Soft. Gentle. Feminine.
I felt a stirring sensation as I thought of femininity and all that is associated with femininity, but I pushed that feeling to the side as I enjoyed the music for a moment longer before reaching out with a hand.
I don’t know what compelled me to reach out, but doing so cracked my containment open and my eyes became inundated with colors and sights that took a moment to coalesce down to a richly appointed bedroom and a rather attractive woman.
Shaking my head I looked around and saw that I was still partially inside the egg I had apparently just hatched from looking down at my limbs, I see I have silver scales and talons, marking me as some sort of reptile. I was not very familiar with the wheel of rebirth, so I did not know how my previous life resulted in this result, if the wheel of rebirth was properly involved at all.
I can feel something stirring as I look back at the woman, my eyes lingering on her very expansive cleavage longer than is strictly polite. This body, despite being just born, appears to already be very mature in at least one manner. Tearing my eyes off her chest to her face, I notice a rather smug look on her face and a small tiara nestled in her neatly cared for blonde locks.
Taking a deep breath in, I can smell that the woman smells of turmeric and pine. There are also many other smells I cannot as easily identify.
I attempt to speak to the woman, to ask a question, but my tongue is clumsy, my mouth is the wrong shape, and only an unintelligible noise escapes.
The woman’s smile becomes gentler and she approaches, gently running her hands over my neck.
“I’m sorry, this must all be very new to you. You’ll learn quickly though, I’m sure.”
I nod before looking at her and tilting my head. I may have just been born, but introductions should be a common courtesy, I would think. Though her words bring up some interesting thoughts to me. The syllables are foreign, but the meaning is known to me. Somehow, this body knows the local language. I have learned many languages in my several lives and if I was to make a comparison, I would say her dialect sounds a bit like French if French’s parent language was German instead of Latin.
“I suppose I should introduce myself. I am Princess Adeline, last of my line. The Draconic Throne has held domain over this kingdom for hundreds of years, aided by our bonds with noble creatures, such as yourself. Our last dragon was slain in battle, alongside my mother. For all my years I have been waiting, while a regent rules in my stead.
“Those days are ended. With you, my birthright has been restored. We will make our presentation to the court, and ascend the throne. We will rule together, you and I, and restore the majesty of our kingdom.
“Now, what shall I call you?”
A spoiled princess getting in over her head. Lovely. Just what I needed for my first day as a, I suppose dragon if they are calling it the draconic throne. She could be continuing to enjoy her cushy life, but she wants to upset it and probably get murdered for her troubles. And bring my still egg covered ass down with her.
And to top it off, she just learned I haven’t gotten the hang of speaking yet and she is asking for my name.
I believe I convey some of my thoughts well enough as she bushes and coughs into her hand. “Right. I suppose I should choose a fine name for such a magnificent creature. Hmm, how about Ravager?”
I shrug my shoulders as it’ll do, though I do not know what she is thinking picking that as a name.
“I will present you to court soon. But first, I need to make some preparations.”
Take your time. I need to learn how to speak before going to court. Preferably we never go, but I have a bad feeling about this.
“Rest, and I will return soon.”
With that, the princess leaves me alone in the bed chamber.
Looking around, I notice the room is richly appointed in red silks and velvets, sturdy hardwood, and hints of gold. Something about the gold holds a great interest in my body, a craving.
I attempt to speak out loud to myself, trying to form words. I can tell I fail, but practice will speed up my ability to communicate effectively. Speaking of communication, I spot a writing desk. Stalking over I begin looking through it, finding pages with words I cannot make out. The alphabet is wholly unknown to me. I would require help figuring out how to read the local language, but that could come later. For now, I would begin to draft out plans, some in picture form to attempt to communicate with the Princess that patience is a virtue in this case to give me time to acclimate to being a dragon.
Attempting to grasp the quill failed horribly, though getting paper to the writing surface and opening the ink pot was far easier. Looking to my talon, I sighed before dipping the sharp tip into the pot. I would prefer to not dirty myself like this, but until I can either find a pen I can work with, or get dexterous enough in my hands? Paws? Forefeet? I’ll go with hands for now. Until I get dexterous enough in my hands to use a pen, my talon will have to do.
I work on drafting plans for some time, talking to myself as much as possible and being able to form some syllables, though my speech is still slow, when I hear the latch on the door opening and another young woman steps in. While plainer in appearance, there was a resemblance to my loyal adjunct during the war. For a brief moment, I am back in the Empire, going through a mountain of applications, my adjunct smiling at me as she hands me a mug of coffee.
Then the smell hits me and I am back to the present. The rich smell of raw meat making my stomach growl, tinged with a smell I am identifying somehow as fear coming from the young brown haired maid. The stirring I was beginning to feel at remembering my adjunct fades slightly.
“H-hello? Ravager?”
She inches closer with the food, her composure well maintained. I wave her in and pat a clear spot on the writing desk and try to give a friendly smile.
“It ok. No hurt you,” I say slowly, my voice rumbling out.
She does not seem comforted, but she cautiously approaches and sets the platter down.
“Thank you.”
Eating with a long muzzle turns out to be a rather messy affair. And the lack of cheeks to chew in a dignified manner is rather bothersome. It takes far more effort and focus than I would have preferred and I got meat juices all over the papers I was working on.
The Princess returned shortly after I finished eating and cleaning myself off.
“Enjoyed yourself, Ravager? You truly are already very princely,” she says, looking at me over where I was next to her writing desk. “Come, let’s give them a proper showing.”
“Now?” I grumble out.
“Yes. They are waiting for us.”
I grit my teeth in annoyance and take a deep, calming breath. I am too new to this world and the local customs to really argue, but this felt too swift. This was likely going to be a mistake. If the last dragon was killed when the Princess was young along with her mother, what hope did we have when I am newly hatched and still getting used to my new body. Following the Princess, I found my mind split between wanting to get on my hind legs to walk upright as I had for most of a century over two old lives, and the body’s desire to stalk forwards on all fours. I leaned on this body’s instincts here as I carefully maneuvered through the halls, sticking close to the Princess, my eyes wanting to linger on the sway of the Princess’s slim, but curvy hips.
Soon enough, we arrive at a vast chamber with a large balcony behind a large throne. Beautiful stonework all over the chamber. We were introduced, with myself just being ‘escort’. The smell of the perfumes of all the nobles in the room gaping in my direction bothers my nose nearly as much as the cigars of the Brass from when I was in the army last life, though it would appear in this life I was capable of closing my nostrils to block out the stench.
On the throne sat a middle aged man of no notable features. Handsome in a generic way if I was to gauge his looks. Thankfully, I felt no stirrings looking at him, so I should be able to avoid an embarrassing moment in front of the court if I focus on him.
“Princess! So good of you to come out of hiding. And you brought yourself a pet. Wherever did you find it?”
“Still your tongue Balthorne! I am Princess Adeline, heir to The Draconic Throne, and I am here to claim my birthright! Your days upon the throne are over. Now it is time to kneel.”
As I would expect from a foolish noble detached from the real world. No sense of how to go about anything. She may have a dragon, but one she has not ensured the loyalty of and we were up against a man who had an unknown number of guards at his beck and call. Even if I could survive and kill the guards, there was no guarantee I could keep the Princess alive while doing so.
“Kneel?” Balthorne laughs as he brushes a crease off of his vest. “My dear princess, the succession of your line ended with the loss of its last dragon. Do you think it was any accident that no more could be found? The days of your bloodline’s tyranny are long over. I’m sorry that the news had not reached you. Wherever it is you found this… thing… it changes nothing. The kingdom has been a republic since you were a child. That is not going to change now.”
I snort a laugh. This was like the start of a trashy fantasy novel, predictable and obvious to anyone with half a brain. Something the Princess clearly lacked. Balthorne motioned and armored guards began to approach us.
“Surrender your little pet and we will talk no more of this.”
“Not a pet,” I growl out, gaining the attention of everyone.
“Oh, it can talk?” Balthorne asks, in a mocking tone.
“Yes. I can.”
“Indeed, traitor. And you shall submit to us.”
I turn to look at the Princess. “Quiet.”
“Wha..? Ravager!” The Princess looks shocked then angry.
I ignore her and turn to Balthorne. “Parley.”
Balthorne snorts. “You wish to parley?”
I take a couple steps forwards and nod. “Yes.”
“And what could a pathetic wyrm like you seek to discuss? Guards, seize it!”
My eyes narrow and before the guards could begin moving, I am off. Though I feel clumsy, especially on the polished stone floors, I barrel towards the large open balcony. Soldiers move to intercept me and my mind begins calculating formulas, adjusting rapidly to account for my increased size. I can feel something on my back move, what I can only assume to be wings. I have no time to check if I do have such appendages and just have to trust that combined with a roughly adjusted flight formula that I would be able to fly.
With a shield spell up and running, I barrel through the soldiers in my way and jump for the window, feeling my wings flap and catch air as I shoot out into the sky. It is night out, but I take no time to look at the sky. Instead I immediately look for an area to land. If I still have my magic, and dragons exist, there is no telling what else this world may have in store for me, best to get out of sight quickly. I spot an alleyway and tuck myself tightly as I do a roll to land, cobblestones greeting my feet.
Surveying my immediate surroundings, I see I am surrounded by what tools to be tightly packed houses with windows left without glass or other methods of keeping out the weather or vagrants other than the occasional shutter. I can hear shouting in the distance behind me, along with the clattering of steel. I waste no time and bolt to the nearest building. The front door appears to be bolted, but there are no shutters on the windows above the door. Quickly I climb the white stone walls and slip in.
The room is dark and I can smell that it has been occupied for a long time. And was currently occupied. Someone was asleep in the corner. I focus my attention on the person as I listen, waiting for the commotion to pass so that I might leave without the person having any idea I was ever here.
Alas, my hopes are dashed as the person begins to stir as the commotion draws near. I have no time to think. I pounce on the person before they fully come to, my hand over their mouth. They try to scream, but my hand muffles their attempts and my body presses against them.
My body is pressing them down against the bed, and I realize it is a woman.
“Quiet, please,” I say as softly as I can, her fear hitting my nostrils even as I notice that my pounce had messed up her night clothes, her large, soft looking breasts on full display as the top of her nightwear slipped down, and a tantalizing pink pussy tempting me. I can feel myself stirring, hardening. I can feel my dragon dick pressing up against her. This body was going to cause me so many problems if it didn’t get me killed first. “Need hide.”
I am cringing at my poor communications skills internally, even as the woman is nodding her head.
“Quiet, shh.” I mime a librarian shushing before I slowly release her and back off. I crane my ear towards the window, listening for the commotion to pass as I watch the woman’s reaction. She is shivering in fear, eyes wide as she stares at me. After a bit, I can hear the commotion fading as it passes by.
“Name?” I ask.
“E-Enid,” she answers after gulping.
“Thank you Enid,” I say before heading to the window and climbing down. I would need to repay Enid some day. She may have stayed silent out of fear, but her silence might have just saved my life.
Looking around, I spot a narrow alleyway and make my way down it, the chase fading further away as it had already completely passed me by. A scruffy mugger attempted to accaust me before fleeing at realizing I am not just some civilian target, but a rather large dragon.
The rest of my trek down the alley is made in peace as I arrive at a sewer grate. Imagining the smell that would reek down below, I take a deep breath before closing my nostrils. The grate opens readily with a hook of my claw and slinking my way inside, I find that while narrow, the sewers were more than spacious enough for my form.
I make my way through the sewers till I come to some sort of antechamber down a side path. I can feel the exhaustion of having been born, the chase, and having not had much time to come to terms with having died a second time dulling my senses. It was unlikely, I hoped, for the guards to attempt to search the sewers right away. So for now, I would hopefully be safe enough to rest before I find an exit to the sewers and begin looking for somewhere safer to hide in.
Curling up, I lay down to rest.