Soulbound to a Dragon

by Kurtis Eckstein

  After a second of processing what he said, my eyes narrowed. “But wait, you said both your parents were strongly touched by magic. So then, what about your father?” After all, fire magic was common for them.

  He paused as he considered my question. “He could use dark magic too. I suspect it’s how I came to be born, because I have traces of his abilities…” He then hesitated. “Maybe I’ll show you sometime, but for now we should kill the last one and go. It’s too dangerous outside of a city for us right now.”

  I was surprised he said ‘us,’ but I didn’t correct him. Really, if he could leave, then it would only be dangerous for me. I quickly spun on my heels and headed for the last elderfel. I decided to try to get him to speak, holding my blade to his throat. I even sliced a few cuts on his arms, but when he just cursed at me repeatedly in their feral language, I slit his throat and moved on. He may have been trying to buy time for reinforcements anyway.

  Stupid animal.

  I sighed heavily. Stupid me.

  As we began walking again, I glanced at the blood slowly leaking from the puncture holes in Eli’s wings. I couldn’t see the wounds since his large appendages were folded up, but I could see the blood dripping at the bottom. I took a deep breath. “Do you want me to heal that?” I asked hesitantly.

  He glanced at me. “You can use healing magic?” He wondered, sounding surprised.

  I shook my head, and then stopped to pull out the vial. “If you take a sip of this, it’ll fix it.”

  He crossed his arms. “That seems pretty valuable. Why offer it to me?”

  I grimaced and looked down. “Because those arrows weren’t meant for you.” I paused, feeling my face turn red as my uneasiness transitioned to appreciation. “Thanks, by the way…”

  Eli reached out his hand towards the potion, only to gently push it closer to my chest. “I heal fairly quickly. These tears will be gone within a day or two, so you should save that for a more life-threatening wound.”

  I nodded, still unable to meet his gaze, and quietly stored it back in my pack. As I turned to begin walking again, his hand shot out to grab my arm. His touch was gentle, indicating there wasn’t a threat, but the heat from his fingers made my heart skip a beat.

  “What?” I demanded, feeling annoyed by my own reaction to him.

  He quickly let go in response to my sudden hostility. “Sorry. I just…” I looked at him finally when he couldn’t seem to get the words out. He seemed embarrassed. “I just figured if you’re offering something so valuable, then maybe you’d be willing to share some of your food. I was in the middle of hunting earlier, remember?”

  “Oh!” I exclaimed apologetically. “Of course. It’s the least I could do after you saved my life.” I hurriedly pulled out two large slabs of dried meat, having no idea how much he ate.

  He accepted them gratefully, and we began walking again. “Thanks,” he finally said, sighing in content once he was halfway done with the first piece. “Although, I didn’t just save your life.” He added. I glanced at him in confusion, prompting him to elaborate. “You helped a lot too. It would have been difficult taking on all five at once, especially when the other two could attack from a distance.”

  I nodded. “That’s why I need help staying alive,” I agreed. “I’m pretty confident I could handle two at a time, assuming I was starting off uninjured, but trying to fight that many puts me at a lethal disadvantage.”

  “Well,” he replied, swallowing another bite of meat, “your being able to even handle yourself one-on-one is impressive by itself, never mind facing multiple opponents at once.” He seemed to sense that I hadn’t reacted the way he was expecting, so he looked down at my drooping ears and flushed face. “What’s wrong?” He asked in surprise.

  I shook my head. “Nothing. I’m just not used to being complimented.”

  He scoffed in disbelief. “Seriously?”

  I nodded, both embarrassed and afraid that a retort was coming. I saw him cross his arms, a piece of the dried meat resting against his muscled side. I blushed again when I focused on his abs, quickly looking away. He didn’t seem to notice this time.

  “That’s hard to believe,” he admitted. “Although, I guess if your godmother never even told you she loved you to your face, then maybe…” He uncrossed his arms again and took another bite. “Can you tell me about it?” He wondered.

  I glanced up at him, feeling uneasy about sharing that part of my life. He was the only person I knew who wasn’t aware of my past, and I was afraid that telling him would keep it from remaining in the past.

  I supposed I was still waiting for him to reveal his true colors, like even the polite elves ended up doing. But from what I had seen so far, he was eerily like me in multiple ways. A perfect match almost…which kind of made sense, because I had been wishing for a friend when my blood had activated the crystal. But that would just make his rejection all the more worse compared to receiving it from some regular stranger.

  I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, causing him to glance down at me and retract his question. “Or not. That’s fine.”

  I looked up at him again, wishing desperately I could trust him. I had spent my entire life having that desire unfulfilled. “Maybe…” I paused. “Can you tell me about your life first?” I requested tentatively.

  He turned his head away, and we both fell silent. I was afraid I had shut him down by probing more into his own past, but then he surprised me by speaking. “My mother and I have lived alone all my life. Being a mage and skilled archer, she was able to provide food for the two of us by hunting and growing various vegetables around our house.”

  He sighed. “She took it upon herself to educate me as well, teaching me about the world and its history. I learned how to use a bow from her, although I have a hard time hitting small game. And I’m not that great with a sword either, but my magic makes up for it. Granted, I’ve never really had to fight.”

  He paused to glance down at me before continuing. “We lived about a mile from a human village, where my mother occasionally visited to exchange meat and hides in order to purchase supplies we couldn’t get otherwise. It’s how she managed to purchase the few books we have. She used those to teach me to read and write.” He sighed again. “Once we discovered I could hide my wings, I went occasionally to the village too, but not as often as I’d like since there was always the risk someone might accidentally touch them. But the people were friendly enough.” He then glanced at me again in expectation.

  I had been listening intently to every word, so it took me a second to realize it was my turn. “Oh, sorry,” I said, looking away embarrassed. “Umm…well…” I was still hesitant.

  He took a deep breath again. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. At least not now.”

  I stared at him in shock. “You really mean that?” I asked in disbelief.

  He crossed his arms again, having just swallowed his last bite of meat. “I mean, I would appreciate it if you shared after I told you. But yeah, if it’s too hard to tell me right now then I can wait.”

  I continued to stare at him for a few more seconds, before looking away and nodding to myself. I had made up my mind, but I couldn’t hold his gaze as I spoke. “The elves hate me. They hated me being there. And there wasn’t a single day when I didn’t get constant looks of disgust – and nothing I ever did changed that. I tried hiding my ears and tail, but it didn’t matter. I was also bullied and teased relentlessly when I was younger. And even as I got older, I still had people making degrading comments. My godmother was the only person who was sincerely nice to me, but as you already know even she never said she loved me to my face.” I sighed. “I’d pick your life over mine any day. At least you had someone who truly loved you.”

  “Sorry,” he whispered.

  I glanced up at him finally. “For what?”

  “For assuming you had a normal life by living with the elves. Other than the elderfel, they’re probably one of the most prejudic
ed races out there, so I should have known.”

  I blinked at him in response. “They are? I was told they were fairly mild compared to the other races.”

  He scoffed at me. “And who told you that?” He wondered seriously. “An elf?”

  “Oh…” I looked down, feeling stupid.

  He just shook his head. “Pantherians like you are fairly common nowadays, so no human will think twice when they see you. Most of them are half-worgron, so their ears are at least like yours. However, I’m a different story, which is why I hide my wings. Although…” He paused.

  I knew that worgrons were a race of anthropoid wolves similar to the elderfel, although much less violent and less organized as a race. Thus, I was initially hung up on the surprise that I would see others like me, even if they were wolf-like instead of cat-like, but before I could ask for more details I realized he had hesitated because he didn’t want to tell me the catch.

  “Although what?” I finally asked uneasily.

  He glanced down at me and then away. “Pantherians like you are so common now because they are intentionally bred for slavery. They are stronger than humans and smarter than animals, which makes them the perfect labor beast. Of course, most humans don’t view them as equals, and since it’s exceptionally rare to see a freed pantherian…”

  “What?” I asked breathlessly, already not liking where this was going.

  He sighed. “It might be best if we pretend like you’re my slave while in towns. Otherwise, they might start asking questions.”

  I immediately crossed my arms, stopping in my tracks. “Absolutely not!”

  He seemed shocked by my reaction. “Why?” He wondered seriously.

  “Because it’s bad enough I’ve had to spend my entire life feeling inferior to everyone else. I’m not about to go waltzing through a town pretending to be someone’s slave!”

  He scoffed. “Well, I wouldn’t be pretending if your ritual had gone as planned.”

  I was too irritated to feel sympathetic right now. “I already told you that wasn’t my intention,” I hissed.

  “That may be true,” he countered, crossing his arms, “but you also admitted you were planning on enslaving a dragon, which is just as bad.”

  I humphed and turned away. “I didn’t realize they were intelligent creatures, okay? Just drop it already.”

  But he didn’t drop it. “You’re telling me you would have changed your mind had you known?”

  I felt my shoulders slump as his question broke through my anger. “I don’t know,” I whispered. “I’m just trying to stay alive.” I grimaced again. “You make it seem like I’m a horrible person for just wanting to live.”

  Eli took a deep breath and turned his head away too. After a moment, he continued to walk again, so I quietly followed after him.

  We both walked in silence while I tried to process everything. I honestly wasn’t sure if I would have changed my mind about summoning a dragon. I needed something to help me stay alive, and I didn’t know of very many creatures that could assist me in accomplishing that goal. I knew everything would just be easier if I rolled over and died, but I didn’t want to die. I wanted to live, even if my life sucked I still wanted to live. Even being a slave would be better than being murdered at the hands of the elderfel.

  “Fine,” I announced, breaking the silence. “I’ll try to go along with it.”

  “Really?” He asked surprised. He then quickly continued when I glared at him. “I’m not going to tell you to do something just to annoy you. It’s just our cover story. If someone questions it, we can just show them the marks on our bodies, and I can explain I’m a mage who needed a servant to help with my practice.”

  I shrugged. “If I can keep my ears and tail out without causing a ton of trouble for us, then I guess it’s worth it.” My eyes narrowed. “Just don’t make me regret this.”

  “Okay, seriously,” he said, stopping abruptly and facing me. “Obviously, I’m a little annoyed that I was just snatched up while hunting and tossed naked into some random forest, but I’m not inherently a horrible person. I’m not going to go out of my way to humiliate you just to do it. My mother…” His expression became pained as he averted his eyes. “…she raised me right.”

  “Sorry,” I whispered. I felt bad about being the reason why that subject had come up again.

  He quickly shook his head and continued walking. I followed after him in silence. He didn’t seem angry – only sad. After a few minutes, I decided I would remain quiet and allow him to start the conversation up again, only if he wanted. He didn’t though, so we continued to make our way through the forest, listening for any more sounds of danger on the way.

  Chapter 4: Boshra

  When we finally arrived at the edge of the trees, we saw a large human town in the distance. We were slightly uphill, giving us a better view of the overall area. Much of the surrounding land was clearly agricultural, with large patches of various crops being grown. There were also wooden fences that contained livestock.

  The actual buildings in the town looked like nothing I had ever seen before in the elven village. Here the buildings weren’t created from living trees grown by the will of magic. Instead, it appeared that trees had been cut down and flattened to form planks of wood. Although, many of the buildings were also made of stone, whereas others were a combination of stone and wood.

  I also noticed that on the far western side of the village, there was a strange metal fence that seemed out of place from the rest of the town. Eli held up his hand and pointed out a speck in the distance that I assumed was a horse-drawn cart.

  “It might be best if we try to greet someone outside the town first,” he explained. “That way we can get an idea of what kind of a place we are walking into.”

  I nodded in agreement. “And I’ll try to pretend like you’re my…” I couldn’t say the word ‘master’ out loud. It made me feel defeated. Still, it was better than being dead.

  Eli gently rested his hand on my shoulder, causing me to blush. “All you have to do is just try to look at me when you have a suggestion, as if you’re asking for my permission. That should be enough for them to be convinced.”

  I sighed. “Okay, I can do that.” I paused, my tail twitching. “And I’m sorry again for trying to enslave you.”

  He gently patted my arm, causing me to look at him. “It’s behind us now, so let’s move on, okay?”

  I stared at him for a moment, and then nodded, quickly looking away from his ridiculously handsome face.

  As we began walking out of the trees, we noticed another horse-drawn cart that had just recently exited the forest too, about a quarter-mile away. It wasn’t following a path, but it was obvious it was headed for the town. We decided to change course slightly and head in that direction to intercept the driver.

  Once we got closer, we saw that there were two people riding on the cart, both male – one who looked to be about our age and the other was old enough to be the guy’s father. The older human was steering the horse and was also the one who noticed us first. He slowed down the cart and waved when he saw us.

  I glanced at Eli when he waved back, only to see that his wings had already disappeared…which meant we were now officially roleplaying as a human with his pantherian slave. I gulped at the thought for multiple reasons, a few of which unexpectedly gave me a weird thrill.

  “Greetings,” the man said when we were close enough to talk. “I’m Lucius and this is my son Theo. I don’t think I’ve seen you before. Are you a traveler?”

  Lucius was a large man with graying hair, although it was apparent that his hair color had originally been light brown. His dark brown eyes still seemed to have a spark of youth, despite his overall aged appearance. Glancing at his son, Theo, I could easily imagine what the older man looked like in his youth. The younger human had the same deep brown eyes, with his hair being the lighter brown I had imagined on the older one. He was also almost just as muscular as his father, despite the a
ge gap.

  When Lucius spoke, I noticed immediately that the man neither looked at me nor referenced my existence when talking to Eli. It really was just as the half-dragon said – pantherians truly must have been common for him to not take notice of me, and they were usually slaves. Of course, no one addressed a slave in public. I tried to hide my reaction, realizing this wasn’t much different than how the elves treated me.

  “Hello,” Eli responded in a pleasant tone. “I’m Eliakim. And yes, my servant and I are just passing through. I’m a mage originally from the village of Rinshi.”

  “You’re from Rinshi?!” The man exclaimed. “That’s clear on the other side of the country!”

  I looked up at Eli just in time to see him pause to process that information. Neither of us had any idea how far away from home he was. However, he quickly recovered. “Yes, well we have been traveling for a very long time. The primary reason is for research, but we also get by with odd jobs in the various towns and cities we visit. However, it appears we’ve gotten lost. Would you be able to tell me which town this is?”

  Lucius nodded. “Sure, this is Boshra, and you couldn’t have come at a better time. My brother could really use the help of a mage right now, if you’re willing.”

  “Absolutely,” Eli agreed, “although I’m sure you understand I don’t provide my services for free.”

  Lucius grinned at him. “Of course! Once you hear about the job from my brother, Tobias Vernon, he will be happy to discuss potential compensation with you prior to your acceptance.” He then gestured to the cart, which was full of small animals that had been freshly trapped and cleaned – most of them were rabbits. “If you would like a ride, I can take you there right now.”

  Eli agreed, however the son, Theo, interrupted us before we could move to the back of the cart.

  I had been trying to stay focused on Lucius, but the younger human had been looking me up and down the whole time in a way I had never seen anyone before. I was trying to process the stare from the corner of my eye while listening. It was how I might imagine a wolf might eye a slab of meat when it was ravenously hungry. But what bothered me most about his expression was that there was a hint of something else I’d seen in elves before, when they were interested in someone. I couldn’t imagine why he would be directing such an expression towards me.