ONLY READ THIS IF YOU'RE ON WATTPAD. IF YOU'RE NOT, LEAVE THE SITE YOU'RE ON IMMEDIATELY. THIS BOOK - AND PROBABLY MANY OTHERS ON THE SITE - HAVE BEEN STOLEN. IF YOU WANT TO FIND THE CORRECT VERSION OF THIS, GO TO WATTPAD AND SEARCH FOR IT THERE.

This book is inspired by D&D, BUT YOU DON'T NEED TO PLAY TO ENJOY THIS BOOK. And by 'inspired', the races and classes are from D&D, and the original inspiration for this book was the D&D movie and playing D&D myself, but if I don't know something, or can't find something from D&D that fits, I'll just make up my own stuff.

Think of it as a fantasy AU, but a lot of the fantasy elements have been taken from elsewhere

And yes, I caved in and started this with 2 books in the works

And yes, I drew the map and came up with all the place names myself (with the help of google translate)

'But it wasn't even my fault!' I insist to the elven prison guard again. 'I didn't steal it!'

'Name?'

'I was just minding my business and that other guy... dragonborn guy... he...'

'Name, please.'

'Scar. Tiefling.' I add as if my blue ears, horns and tail weren't enough of a clue. 'Innocent.'

'Cell 16 with the other one.'

'I'm innocent!' I repeat, but the guards don't seem to care, tying my hands behind my back, shoving me deeper into the prisons... 'Why would I steal the egg?!'

They don't answer. I didn't expect them too, starting to fidget against the rope around my wrists as we reach my new home and the door is unlocked. All it does is keep me too distracted to notice as I'm shoved, stumbling and almost losing balance. 

'Hey- hey! I'm innocent!' I turn, stumbling, too slow. The door closes in my face. I just glare at the elven guard... blonde hair, blue eyes, clothes typical of Pearl's guard. 'I'm just an innocent tiefling wizard, going about my life...' 

'Save that for the trial.' They snap back, walking away. I just watch them, sticking out my tongue and giving the door one last kick for good luck. 

'First time?'

I turn, one ear flicking, betraying my surprise at the sight of another prisoner, sat cross-legged on the ground. Dragonborn, I reckon, from the dark purple scales up their face and arms and the tail curled next to them. Their hair is a sort of dusty brown, tangled, clothes (probably stolen from someone richer) torn and messy.

'Of course the one time I don't actually do anything I end up arrested...' I grumble back, trying not to fall on my face as I sit down, hands still tied up. A laugh back.

'Oh, that's good... glad I didn't get someone completely innocent caught.'

'You're the guy who got me trapped here?!' My mind returns to getting arrested... going about my life on the streets... this guy running past, chased by 10-20 guards, bluffing them into thinking I'm to blame too. 

I guess the only consolidation is that they caught him first.

'Sorry... Grian, Half-dragonborn. Rogue.' He holds out a hand to shake, then realises I'm tied up.

'Oof, they tied you up too... come on. Shuffle over and I'll cut you free.'

I do, constantly glancing back as Grian severs the rope with his claws. My hands fall free.

'Thanks... Scar, tiefling. Wizard.' We shake hands, sharing a smile.

'How many times you been arrested?'

I frown at Grian's question.

'What?'

'How many times? Here or anywhere else.'

'A few times. Always managed to break out.'

'Same... where are you from?'

'Clocktower city... Cathair Cloigthuir.'

'Really? I'm from here but... I've travelled a lot.'

'Same.' 

Grian gives another smile, shuffling into a better position. I glance around the prison... it's small, empty asides from wooden boxes that must be beds, due to the grotty blankets on them. There's a window on the backwall,  but it's too small to climb out of. 

'So... you didn't steal the dragon egg?'

'Of course not.' I shoot back 'What would I even do with it?'

'Trade to the Great Empire? Sell it for a lot of money? Bribe someone? Or just because you hate Queen Pearl.'

'No one hates Queen Pearl.'

'Someone must. They just stole her most prized possession.'

'And it wasn't you?'

'Me? I just picked the wrong day to try steal something closer to the castle... guards came out, saw me, and decided I wasn't trustworthy.' A pause. 'I mean, they're not wrong, but at the same time, I'm innocent.'

I try to figure out if he's lying. But I don't know him. And I've never been good at judging people's honesty anyway. 

'How did you get into crime?' I ask instead.

Grian shrugs. I notice the gold chain and folded piece of paper he's constantly fiddling with.

'What are those?'

'Payment.'

'Payment? For- wait, those are mine!' I lunge to grab them. Grian holds them out the way.

'Payment. For me untying you... you didn't really think I'd do it for free, did you?'

'Give it back. It's important to me.'

He passes the piece of paper, keeping the chain, putting it around his neck along with another. 

'Fine... you can keep the paper... but this might get us a bit of food or money.' He holds up the chain again. I narrow my eyes.

'We're in prison.'

'Not for long... the trial will be very soon I reckon... maybe even tomorrow.'

'Tomorrow?'

'If we're found innocent, they'll need to send out guards to find the actual criminals quickly... How stealthy are you?'

'Me?' In my last prison break I set off so many security spells the guards thought the whole system was broken. 'I'm very stealthy.'

'Good. Now, we won't have long to plan this, so...' He's fiddling with the chain he stole from me still. One hand rises, almost instinctively, to hold the necklace I'm wearing. The little blue jewel the guards didn't find, or deem as valuable enough to take from me. One of my last memories of...

'Magical or memorial?' 

'What?' I glance over. 

'The necklace you're wearing. Because, as much as it suits you, I don't think it's for aesthetics. So is it magic or to remember someone.'

'Memorial. But not of someone dead. Yours?' I signal to his second necklace - a single feather tied to some string.

'Same.' He doesn't elaborate, standing. I follow, watching him start pacing.

'Now, as I was saying before you got distracted... we need to be quick about this. And you need to listen closely. I'm not repeating it.'

'We're... breaking out?'

'Of course.'

'When?'

Grian sighs. 

'At the trial! You're- you're not very intelligent, are you Scar?'

'I'm smart!'

Grian crosses his arms, raising an eyebrow. 

'I managed to steal from you within seconds of us meeting and now you're making me repeat everything I've already told you.'

I pause for a moment. 

'Not everything...' I mumble back, not looking at him or his smug face. 

'Right. We're going to escape when we're going to our trial, grab some of our stuff from our homes, and then leave this town forever.'

'Forever?'

'Well... until we find the egg and bring it back.'

I blink back, my confusion not helping the image I tried to project of me being intelligent.

'But we didn't steal it.' Is all I come up with.

'Yeah, but they think we did. And if we return with it and someone who actually stole it, we'll get a lot of money and fame. Like the NHO did.'

'The NHO weren't arrested and blamed for the problems they fixed.'

Now it's Grian's turn to fall silent.

'But still... it's better than staying here. Or being viciously executed by Pearl's guards... are you in?' He holds out his hand to shake again. I stare for a moment, before taking it.

'I'm in.'