In Tas, Alliance of Fate (Part 1)

The beasts in the heart of Ochre Valley had basically been eaten clean by the Dragon Hatchlings. If they wanted to find large prey now, they had to keep heading farther outward.

In Tas lacked the Chrome Dragon's agility, but his hunting instincts were excellent. He could track scents without pause, sketch maps in his mind, and calculate the prey's range of activity.

Relying on this ability, In Tas spent half the afternoon lying in wait and successfully spotted a wary rock sheep.

The Thunderclap Dragon lunged out, swift and decisive, and bit it dead against the ground.

Though the hunt had succeeded, In Tas did not immediately feast to his heart's content. Instead, he clamped the rock sheep in his jaws and trotted all the way back along the hills, leaving behind a scattered trail of blood.

Crossing the retainer shantytown, passing Bay Lake and Ironwood Forest, and circling to the other side of the foothills, one could see a nest hidden beneath the rocks at the bottom of the next gentle slope.

Xilong stood outside the nest, slowly spreading and raising his right wing before gradually lowering and folding it back against himself. He repeated the cycle again and again. His fractured bones had already knitted back together; what he was doing now was rehabilitation training.

The Thunderclap Dragon set down the rock sheep, his gray-white eyes fixed directly on him.

The gaze pricked like needles, but Xilong did not mind. He merely stilled his movements, turned toward the Thunderclap Dragon, and asked, "In Tas, why are you here?"

"I told you, my hunting instincts are good. If you are willing to guide my training, I can hunt for you."

The Thunderclap Dragon's voice carried no discernible rise or fall. "Your wing membrane is badly injured. You need more food."

In truth, they had known each other for some time.

Two months earlier, Xilong had finished climbing and was squatting in a corner, chewing on a Rust Rabbit. He had snatched the rabbit from Moqi as an extra meal after training, and somehow it tasted even more satisfying than fresh meat.

Amid a rustling sound, the Thunderclap Dragon appeared before him.

In Tas lowered his head to Xilong in greeting, then stated his purpose. He said he had observed Xilong for a long time and wished to follow Xilong's training from then on.

Ever since hatching, Xilong had been constantly roaming between Eaglebeak Cliff, Bay Lake, and Ironwood Forest. The other Dragon Hatchlings had seen plenty of him, and with dragonkind's intelligence, a little deduction was enough for them to guess what he was doing.

The Dragon Hatchlings held differing opinions about Xilong's daily training. Some discussed it in private, some turned up their noses at it, and naturally, some wanted to learn and imitate it.

Moqi, for example, initially found it novel and fun and decided to give it a try alongside Xilong. Yet after only half a day, he cried that he was exhausted and refused to persist.

The other dragons who wanted to learn from him were more or less the same.

That was simply dragon nature. Their bloodlines were noble, and they were exceptionally intelligent. From birth, they knew they were destined to stand atop the food chain. Even if they were defeated, it would only be by dragons with greater gifts and stronger bloodlines.

Thus, training like this was nothing but asking for suffering to most Dragon Hatchlings. Just like the tooth-grinding tasks assigned by their Nurturer, they were equally unwilling to stick with it.

Xilong had seen plenty of Dragon Hatchlings eagerly imitate him, only to abandon it halfway through. Therefore, In Tas's approach neither made him particularly welcoming nor prompted him to push him away. He merely said,

"What I do is all simple, shallow stuff. There is nothing much for me to teach you. Since you know how to observe, then watch from nearby for a while. Once you understand it, just follow along and do the same."

From then on, Xilong was no longer alone. Looking up from the bottom of Ochre Valley, one could often see a Thunderclap Dragon following behind him, learning by imitating the Chrome Dragon.

Stumbling and staggering.

"I told you already, I have not taught you anything, so there is no need for you to hunt for me."

Even today, Xilong still shook his head. "Take it back and eat it yourself."

The Thunderclap Dragon stood upright and motionless in silence.

Xilong glanced at him and knew that this fellow's stubborn streak had flared up again. When Moqi had called the Thunderclap Dragon "dumb," there had truly been some truth to it.

Yet if not for that stubbornness, the Thunderclap Dragon would not have been able to endure such hardship. He had kept following behind Xilong and imitating him; even when injured and bleeding, he had never cried out in pain, suffering, or exhaustion.

Among all the Dragon Hatchlings who had tried to replicate Xilong's training, only the Thunderclap Dragon had persevered the longest.

Xilong was not the sort to put on airs or twist himself into knots. Seeing that In Tas was unwilling to leave, he pondered for a moment and stepped forward.

With a sweep of his claw, the Chrome Dragon split the rock sheep open from end to end, dividing it into two.

"Come."

He crouched where he was and gestured to the Thunderclap Dragon. "Since you have already carried it all the way here, there is no point in my refusing. Let us divide this sheep. Half for each of us."

In Tas's eyes flickered, but he remained silent.

"You caught this prey. You should have a share of it. If you do not eat, I definitely will not be able to eat either," Xilong added.

In Tas was finally persuaded. He moved a few steps closer and sat down beside Xilong.

The Chrome Dragon crouched while the Thunderclap Dragon sat upright. Together, they shared a rock sheep, and the scene fell quiet for a time, leaving only the sound of slow chewing.

A rugged path stretched out from beneath the gentle slope, and the sun in Ochre Valley was warm.

Kobolds pushed carts along the mountain road. Dragon Hatchlings shrieked as they chased and fought one another. Tobacco leaves rustled in the drying sheds, millstones rumbled as they turned and ground, axes rang slow and heavy from the logging yard, and gray dwarf women hid at the lowest reaches of the stream, quietly washing coarse cloth.

After a long while, In Tas stared at Xilong's foreclaws and finally could not hold back any longer. "Can you... teach me Finger-Bone Rebound?"

"No wonder you carried a rock sheep here."

Xilong laughed. "So that was what was in your heart."

"I..."

Hearing Xilong say this, the Thunderclap Dragon immediately spat out the mutton in his mouth. His expression turned urgent, his claws scraped back and forth against the ground, and he shook his head while stiffly hooking his tail. He seemed to want to say something, yet could not get the words out.

"What is there to be embarrassed about? When asking someone for guidance, it is only proper to prepare a gift."

Xilong looked casual. After thinking for a moment, he continued, "This is not some great secret. I can teach you. But why do you want to learn it? Or rather, why have you been training with me all this time? Is there some reason?"

After two months together, this was the first time they had spoken frankly.

"I..."

In Tas choked up again. He struggled to organize his words, and only after a long while did he say, "I... do not want to be bullied anymore."

"I hate those Nickel Dragons. They are vicious. Every time they see us, they throw rocks at us or simply rush over to bite us. Whenever we find some fruit or food, they come straight over to snatch it away. If they cannot take it, they smash it to pieces instead. And whenever the mood takes them, they destroy our nests..."

As Xilong listened, he nodded slightly. "Nickel Dragons really are much like Chromatic Dragons."

It was as though In Tas had opened the floodgates. In one breath, he said, "And the Iron Dragons and Chrome Dragons too. Although they rarely interact with Lesser Dragons, I can understand the looks in their eyes. There is undisguised contempt in them. I cannot stand that look, like they are watching livestock."

"When we first met, you helped me stop Leijieduolei. I was grateful in my heart, but I was still unwilling to accept it. I said that if they hit me, I would definitely hit back. That was true. Even today, I still want to hit back myself."

"I climbed the mountain to find you not because you are powerful, but because I watched you for a very, very long time and discovered that you were different from the other Heavy-Metal Dragons. I thought you might speak to me, that you might be willing to guide me. I do not know why, but I simply had that feeling. I did not want to miss the chance, so I took the initiative to climb to the mountaintop and find you."

After the Thunderclap Dragon finished speaking, Xilong thought for a while and asked, "Will you eat the sheep leg?"

In Tas froze, unable to understand why he was asking, then shook his head.

Without the slightest courtesy, Xilong cut off the sheep leg from In Tas's share, took it over, stuffed it into his mouth, and crunched through the bones along with the meat before chewing slowly.

"Your reason is good. I believe you. But do not think that following me around and training every day will let you crush rocks with your claws like I do. That is unrealistic."

As he ate, Xilong said, "We Heavy-Metal Dragons are born with a unique heavy-mass body structure, and it continually mutates and reinforces itself as we grow older."

He spread his foreclaws before In Tas, allowing him to examine them.

"The Chrome Dragon's heavy-metal keratin claws, as well as our powerful high-density bones, are things other dragonkind do not possess."

"My Finger-Bone Rebound relies on the hardness of my finger bones and keratin claws. Only because they can withstand the recoil of nearly a ton can I complete the sudden dodge."

"If Lesser Dragons imitate it rigidly and exert force as I do, leaving aside whether your strength is enough, the first thing to snap will be your own clawed toes."