^^ Mithril Dragon ^^

— Alice —

"A little warning next time you decide to throw a Tier Nine Hellfire Swarm at your own allies?!?" I snapped at the dragon, dragging the Wizard-girl out of the molten Mithril, once again. A veritable pool of it had bubbled up from the ground, as Zara's attack had liquified all of the other millipedes as well, before they'd had the chance to break the surface.

"I did Ward you all against the flames first. You're welcome." Zara smirked, not reflecting on her actions in the slightest, and snitched the pool of hot metal into my Pocket while humming to herself happily.

I sighed and inspected the last of the creatures, a horribly disfigured and half-melted centipede that was still trying, albeit pathetically, to bite me. The HUD-Tag over its head read 'Illusion Bug: 8', which I took to mean it was Level 8, an odd thought. "I though the monsters in a dungeon couldn't be stronger than the Tier of the Dungeon?" I asked Cala, thoroughly confused.

"They... can't?" She answered slowly.

"The loophole is likely because the dungeon Created these monsters, but summoned only monsters of Tier 6 and below." Thayma sighed, explaining her theory and stepping away from the half-dead creature.

I stomped on it, shattering its head, and hummed. "So... the dragon could be a higher level if it likes?"

"That seems the case, yes. It might be better for us to forfeit; if that Dragon Boss is level 16, we can't beat it. Bosses are always twice the highest level in the dungeon, and if it goes above 8 for the normal monsters..." She sighed.

"Forfeit, an amusing prospect, Zara sarcastically opines." Zara snapped at the Wizard, stomping past us and peering down the stairs. "Begone, Pesky Little Worms!" A rolling cloud of of plasma crackled, making the air smell of Ozone as it emerged from her jaws, and bathed the entire stairway with lightning.

"I agree, forfeiting here has no point, and invalidates our progress thus far; we will proceed with caution, and should you wish, I will teleport you to the exit, for you to retreat. That goes for you as well, Cala; I wouldn't dare force you to follow me into something you aren't comfortable with." I looked at both of them, waiting for their response while Zara spat smaller bolts of lightning at the few bugs that had survived.

"I'll stick with you, love, but if it starts to get too hairy, we should both leave; clearing the dungeon isn't a requisite for passing the exam, after all." Cala sighed.

"Wait... what?" I frowned.

Zara perked up as well, looking irritated. "WHAT?!?"

The Wizard and Cala both flinched at the Dragon's Roar, but Cala answered our question after a moment. "You didn't listen to Sir Adrian's speech... did you?"

"I confess that I did not." I replied honestly, unconcerned with my actions; his speech had been long-winded and dramatic, and I couldn't be blamed for thinking of other things.

"Okay, so, the requisites for success are challenging the dungeon and impressing the professors; considering there are several hundred students in the other dungeon, did you think that only the ones who killed the boss got to pass? It's a cumulative scoring system, based on several types of performance, from teamwork to fencing, magic, dungeon knowledge, and a few other criteria they said were not our concern for now, so I imagine they're something like Scholastic Integrity, where they want to see if we adhere to certain unspoken rules without being asked." She sighed.

I looked at Zara, frowning. "I imagine that puts a damper on our plans to simply storm the bottom floor, because we want everyone to participate evenly and safely... still, my main plan continues; we proceed with caution, clear the dungeon, and secure this Mithril Processing Plant for the Academy. Zara, retreat to the back, keep an ear out for any more tunneling monsters, Cala, keep Thayma alive while she casts spells to support the forward line, which will consist of only me... I'd have liked more people for a proper formation if were fighting a dragon on equal terms, instead of simply overwhelming it with magic like I'd planned, but c'est la vie, I've made the mistake of ignoring a speech wherein all the things I didn't know were spoken about, and now I shall deal with the consequences of my arrogance. Is everyone well rested enough to continue?"

"Sigh... carry on, then, let's get this over with..." Thayma shrugged, rolling her shoulders and stretching her legs to prepare herself alongside Cala and myself.

Once ready and limbered up, we got into position and began our descent into the fifth level, the last monster level before the boss level. Shaped not unlike a warren of goblin tunnels made of roots laced with trace amounts of Mithril, (proving irrevocably the origin of the Mithril in the fruits above,) Zara was forced to shrink herself to the size of a large dog to cover our rears, which she did in the first few moments without issue; as we passed certain side tunnels, small reptilian humanoids with Mithril skin leapt out at us from behind and were each subsequently eaten by Zara and sent to our shared Pocket.

"A goblin warren... how quaint." I sighed irritatedly, slicing my sword through one of the ones who jumped out of his little side tunnel too soon, coming out in front of me instead of behind.

"Kobolds, actually... they're infamous for their traps, and they serve their Dragon Masters faithfully, so keep an eye out for those." Cala corrected me calmly, thrusting her sword into a hidden hole and stabbing the kobold within through the heart.

"Nice form, dearest! And yes, I will remain vigilant, though I confess I would like a rogue or some such who's actually gifted at finding Traps; I can't for the life of me see which roots are different from the others!" I grumbled irritatedly at the roots touching my hair, zapping them to ash instantly and continuing forward.

"Left, up ahead... a downward draft. Stairs." Zara piped up from the back, and I realized I could hear a change in the air as well, though I hadn't dwelled on it.

"Thank you, dear one, to the left we go, then!" I stepped through a moss partition and frowned at the six Kobolds within sternly. "Well, I congratulate you quite sincerely for hiding yourselves from me, but your positioning between me and my goals is less than ideal, small ones; you may either surrender to me or I will slaughter you all without question. Choose." The Demon Queen's Scent washed through the room, and five of the six threw themselves to the ground, shivering, while the sixth passed out, so I simply sent all six to my Pocket, keeping them in a box for now until I built my own dungeon someday. "All clear, everyone, let's go down into the last Floor, yes?"

"Finally... Zara shall capture the Dragon Boss within as her own prize; Zara is without a Mate, and what better one can be found but a Mithril Dragon? Zara worried it was a Golem, but it is not, it is simply a Dragon whom has been dining on Mithril; Zara will enjoy the Challenge of making it Submit... Excitement, Anticipation... Arousal..." The young dragon grinned dangerously, her tail slowly twitching like a cat hunting birds, then paused comically. "Though, it is not an Ancient Dragon... it must be Reborn as Zara was, and then it will be a proper Mate."

"It's good to have goals, love, and yes, I agree that finding you a Mate would be quite equitable, but I don't have access to another Egg currently, so I can't yet make this dragon into an Ancient; you'll have to be patient for that, alright?" I patted my companion's neck gently, scratching under her jaw to make her purr in happiness.

"Zara will wait, of course; Zara is not a dragon whom is without Patience... though she does wish you'd expedite that process as much as possible. You are not the only one who has a demanding estrous cycle." The dragon nudged me playfully towards the stairs leading down again, and pranced in place adorably in a display of excitement.

"Oh... I'll be honest, I didn't think about that, my dear, I'm so sorry! Yes, we'll capture him right away for you, Zara, don't worry!" I pet her cheeks sympathetically, turning to the stairs and marching within with renewed purpose.

"Can I ask why the dragon has to be an Ancient Dragon to be her partner?" Cala asked quietly as we descended, likely trying to be stealthy, but it was of course pointless.

"Pedigree, Dear Cala; Zara is a Third Generation Ancient Dragon. Her Mate cannot be a Basic Dragon, as there would be no Eggs of the Union. Basic Dragons cannot Fertilize Ancients, just as Humans cannot Fertilize Reincarnated Humans. The power is too much for their frail forms to Alter." Zara's frankness was a bit jarring for Thayma the Wizard, who flinched and spent the rest of the long trip down blushing like a hot iron, but Cala showed no such embarrassment.

"Oh, I see! So once he's reincarnated as an Ancient, you can have babies with him! That's rather nice, actually, I look forward to baby Zara's running around like little hellions!" Cala laughed heartily, scratching Zara's chin obligingly when the dragon demanded attention from the woman who was essentially her mother-in-law.

The layout of the final floor was a series of tangled tunnels that surrounded and intertwined with one another, held stable only by dragon saliva on the dirt walls to keep them stuck to one another; it was a slipshod manner of tunnel making that Alice disapproved of with gusto. "How Boorish..." She hissed irritatedly at the collection of disgusting tunnels in front of them, then backed the group up back to the stone stairs after a brief moment of thought.

"Are we retreating? What's wrong?" Cala frowned at the cavern, thoroughly confused, but backed up the steps carefully anyway with the wizard girl to her left.

"Back up, if you will? This is a bit dangerous." Once they were on the stairs and up a good twenty meters, I settled a hand against the walls with a shudder and activated an earth-attribute spell of the highest order amongst Arch-Druids. "Quake."

Thayma, being a learned woman and having no interest in dying, recognized the spell and instantly dragged Cala further up the stairs as the earth around me began to shatter, cracking the tunnels and collapsing them inward to completely and utterly decimate the Bottom Floor of the Dungeon. "WHAT IN THE GODDESS' NAME ARE YOU DOING?!?" She screeched down at me as I began to ascend the stairs towards them.

"I refuse to walk within tunnels made of Dragon Spittle. I shall call the dragon to us, instead." I shrugged carelessly, and stepped out of the way as Zara pounced past me, resuming her full form and tackling the metallic dragon that was clawing his way out of the dirt behind us.

An epic battle it was not, as she pinned him in moments and thrashed him around in what I imagined was standard draconic mating procedure, as he immediately responded and attempted to overpower her, to no avail; she thrashed him a few times more, before he eventually simply curled up under her and apparently waited for her to have her way with him. "While you are weak and unable to provide Zara a proper challenge, Zara will keep you alive as a Pet; you will be reborn as an Ancient, and then you shall be Zara's Mate. This has been Decided. Retrieve for Zara all of the Hoard-Worthy Materials within this Dungeon; they are Zara's Hoard now." The dragon slunk off demurely and dejectedly, returning several times with massive chunks of Mithril and gold coins in his mouth which she cleaned and sent into the Pocket to be counted and added to her Hoard at a later date; this process took about an hour, as the party rested and had some more restorative Tea. When it was finished, Zara sent the dragon into the pocket as well, and then waved a claw at the pile of dirt at the bottom of the stairs, clearing it to the sides and crafting proper tunnels for their party to travel through, rammed earth carved with pictograms of dragons and specifically the Dragon Queen.

"Well done, my dear Zara, this looks rather sturdy, and I appreciate your aesthetic touches as well!" I smiled and patted the large dragon as she purred and allowed my attentions, feeling quite proud of herself. "Let's reach the end and 'Clear' the Boss Room, yes?" I asked the others, and received their affirmative nods to continue forward, leading the way again. Some few monsters had survived, little mithril Kobolds and more Illusion Worms, but a casual slash of my sword killed the Worms, and the Kobolds knelt before we even confronted them, so Zara and I took those into our Pocket as we went.

"I'll be honest, the Monsters on the 4th Floor were more of a challenge than the Boss... are we sure we really fought the Boss already?" Cala sighed, eying the boss room up ahead with its massive stone doors wide open and inviting.

"Well... It's possible there's another dragon in there, but I doubt it. My attack shattered the Boss Room itself, and therefore allowed the Boss out to attack us, otherwise it would have remained stuck in there... also, Zara tackles the Boss, otherwise it would've been a difficult fight for you and Thayma." I shrugged away the doubt that she'd brought forward into my mind, peering into the darkened interior of the Boss room carefully.

"But not for you?" Cala asked archly, raising an eyebrow at me slowly.

"I slew my first Dragon when I was Four, Cala, and my first Ancient when I was Eight. When I received my Spirits in the Gifting, I received the Three Dread Queens, an Incubi, a Succubi, an Elder Bullette, and an Ancient Amphiptere. Dragons are my Favored Enemy, my dear, and this one would have been no different." I responded just as archly, raising an eyebrow back at her.

"... it is hard to argue with all that, I suppose." She sighed, then looked up as Zara pounced into the Boss room, roaring in unconfined rage.

"HOW DARE HE?!? ALL THAT IS WITHIN THESE HALLS IS ZARA'S PRIZE!!!" The massive dragon hissed savagely, standing over the pile of gold and silver and Refined Mithril that the dragon had apparently not given her, even though she demanded all of it be brought to her.

"Well that's simply rude of him! We shall give him the sternest of talking-to's once this exam has finished, don't you worry Zara dear!" I sent the hoard away to be examined and counted later, and then looked up as a hud tag appeared in the empty room.

"Congratulations! You have Cleared the Tier 6 Dungeon 'Tinkerer's Respite'! Rewards have been dispensed. The Teleportation Circle will return you to the Surface!"

A circle did in fact appear, though it wouldn't fit Zara in any of her forms, so I simply made my own and shattered it, using the 'Admin Permission' that it had used to open itself so my portal would work properly, waving everyone towards me. "Come on, we've finished the Dungeon, off we go to receive our grades!"

—

Adrian was amused by our performance, and the casual way in which we conquered a Tier Six Dungeon.

Victor was not.

"-Absolutely and Ridiculously, no, Flagrantly flaunting your lack of respect for the danger inherent of Dungeons, completely and astoundingly stupid in your lack of preparedness-"

"Now hold on, Victor, I prepared perfectly, and I protest most strongly whatever idiotic thinking tells you that you can call me Stupid!" I snapped back immediately, uncowed by his withering glare. "And besides, we beat that Dungeon so easily because it was Easy! It's that Simple! We treated every threat with the respect it was due! I prepared elixirs in advance, I kept bandages and spare weapons and food and water and everything we would need, and I gave Cala access to said materials in case of the highly unlikely event of both myself and Zara going unconscious! Now, I've had it up to my goddamned neck with your overprotective mama bear attitude, Victor, so let me make myself clear: MY SAFETY IS NONE OF YOUR CONCERN!!! I am not your child, I am simply an acquaintance of yours who happens to be physically younger than you; Treating me like a Child running with Scissors is only going to make me absolutely livid! So, if you'd like our acquaintance to continue, stop treating me like I'm a Trophy made of Glass to be set on a shelf and never given the light of Day!!!"

"Now, let's all-" Adrian reared back from the two pointer fingers held up in his face as Victor and I both glared at him, then turned out glares back to each other.

"Do you understand me, Victor? Treat me like a Colleague, or remove yourself from my life, because I will not be treated like a fucking damsel in distress or a pretty princess who needs a knight in shining armor to save me; I am a DEMON QUEEN and a HEROIC DRAGOON and I will be doing dangerous things my entire life: GET! WITH! THE! PROGRAM!"

Victor was as always mostly unfazed by the Fae Queen's Voice, but my words seemed to make some impact, as he looked not unlike someone who'd sucked on a lemon, a bitter expression taking his features as he attempted to respond calmly to my completely and undeniably justified rage. After a few moments, he gritted his teeth and turned tightly, stepping back away from my enraged face and sitting at his desk. "It seems we've come to an understanding, then. I shall not worry for you, as you clearly do not appreciate my affection."

"Review the difference between affection and obsession, Victor. You are obsessed with your students' safety, not their happiness. If your affection forces them to never be in danger ever again, your affection is a suffocating set of shackles, not the warm blanket and hearth you intend it to be. Reflect on your actions and their consequences, and then come apologize when you've realized exactly how stifling your actions have been on the talent of those within your care. Danger is required to teach the Fear of Danger to students: without it, they think themselves immortal, because they've never been in True Danger. By exposing them to Controlled Danger, you protect them from Uncontrolled Danger later on, when they are no longer under your care. You would leave them unprepared for what they will face, with your obsession with Safety. Call it Affection if you like, but it is nothing but Fear. Warranted Fear, surely, but no less stifling for those you impose it on." I mercilessly dug the hooks of my argument into him, leaving him with the comments as I turned and exited the room, taking my score card from Adrian as I went. My feet carried me towards my Lab, wherein I planned even greater marvels for the future. "So much to do, so much to see..." I smirked to myself at the thought of my future plans, such as my imminent revenge on the Merchant's Guild or my Dungeon.