The forest felt large, to be fair almost everything felt impossibly large when one's body was barely the size of a housecat—scales, wings, tail and all combined. The newly hatched dragonling crouched near the broken eggshell and looked at the imposing forest ahead of him.
The trees rose to the sky like pillars, light filtered through their leaves and he took a step, then immediately tripped over his own tail.
"Ow…! Right—Tail…Need to keep track of it."
He shook his body and his wings flapped uselessly as he regained his balance. The forest hummed around him. He could hear chirps, rustles and a distant call he couldn't identify.
Just off to the side of the forest was a thin stream, its water shimmered and he knew why it did so.
It was because of Mana, he didn't know how he knew but he did. The air in this world was different…it was rich, thick and almost sweet.
Not far from him stood a berry bush, its fruits were plump and of a deep violet color. His stomach growled once again, loud enough to startle him. He approached the bush and stretched his neck to sniff them.
The berry smelled like the grapes he had loved back on Earth. "Food," he declared though it was only a speech bubble in his head and took a bite into the nearest berry.
The moment it burst in his mouth, something warm and electric rushed down his throat. His scales tingled and a faint pulse of energy spread through his body. The same whisper came but this time with a soft chime, like a notification on smartphones.
[Mana Absorption Detected]
[+0.01 Growth]
He blinked. "I…just leveled up by eating?" He reached for another berry and chomped on it. The warmth and the tingle returned and the whisper came back with the soft chime.
He grinned, feeling pride as he tried to inhale and swell his little chest, "I like this world." He made a mental note.
Satisfied with his berry feast, he waddled towards the sound of running water. The stream was clear and glowed due to the sunlight. When he leaned down to drink he saw his reflection in the water.
As a dragon he had the standard dragon body, with bright green and small golden scales. His eyes were playful and he had a mischievous grin. "This is…kind of amazing."
A dragon's first day should have felt overwhelming…terrifying even. But with each step his curiosity diminished any fear he had. Everything around him was new, strange and full of wonder.
He continued exploring the forest with his nose pressed to the ground as he sniffed all the different types of flowers, nibbled on glowing moss and poked at unfamiliar insects. He discovered that he enjoyed the way leaves crunched under his claws.
He also discovered that if he pressed his snout to the mushrooms too hard, they exploded into a puff of blue dust which made him sneeze…which caused a spark of fire to pop out of his mouth.
He stared at the tiny scorch mark on the ground. "...Did I do that?" He tried again as he squinted his eyes and puffed out his cheeks and inhaled but he only managed to cough out a smoke ring. "Eh…still counts."
*****
As he was indulging in playing around with his fire, he heard a faint sound which came from deep in the forest. It was a cry, a sharp and high pitched cry. He followed the cry as curiosity tugged at him and his tail flicked nervously.
The closer he got, the more the sound felt like small, pained whimpers. Through the grass he saw a girl lay on the ground. She was small—maybe six or seven years old. Fox ears peeked through her messy auburn hair, and her tail curled tightly against her small frame.
One of her legs was caught in a metal trap, its teeth clamped shut around her ankle and blood stained the dirt.
The dragon froze, it was a person…an actual person. He didn't know what a dragon was supposed to do in a situation like this but his human instincts nudged him sharply to help her.
The girl spotted him and stiffened, tears welled in her eyes. "D-Don't…eat me…"
Eat her? He was barely strong enough to eat berries. He approached her slowly and lowered his head and chirped softly in what he hoped was a non-threatening way.
The girl blinked in confusion. "You..you're small," she whispered. He puffed up defensively. Rude
But he didn't beat around and got straight to inspecting the trap. It was made up of iron, it was heavy and spring-loaded. His tiny claw pried at the mechanism but the metal was stronger.
He tried biting it, but it had no effect. He then tried pushing it with his snout but he only succeeded in bonking his own nose.
He needed something stronger. Maybe fire? He thought, he braced himself and inhaled deeply as he focused with all his might. His chest warmed up and his throat tingled.
Come on, come on…
A small flame burst out, more powerful than the last time, it jumped at the trap and heated it enough to weaken the metal and the girl yelped in surprise.
He tried again, another breath came a bit stronger than the last one and the trap creaked its metal softening. "Almost…!" With one final push, half with his claw and the rest a headbutt the trap hinge snapped open.
The girl gasped and pulled her leg free and winced. Tears spilled down her face as she hugged her injured leg. "You..saved me."
The dragon felt something warm flutter in his chest, it was soft and almost felt like pride. After all dragons are a prideful species. The chime dinged again followed by the whisper.
[Bond Initiation Detected]
[Helping Others Increases Growth Efficiency]
The girl stared at him from where she sat with wide eyes, "you're amazing!" she breathed. He puffed up again and this time it was genuine satisfaction. She leaned forward and placed her small hand on his head.
"Thank you…little dragon. My name is Lira." he blinked as the touch felt comforting and safe. She smiled.
"What should I call you? Hmm…" Her eyes sparkled suddenly, "you breathe fire…how about…Flare?"
He paused and considered it. Flare…his tail moved slower then faster…he liked it. Lira giggled softly.
"Flare it is."
Above them the forest breeze carried the scent of flowers, the world felt as mysterious as it did dangerous but it was also strangely welcoming. And for the first time since hatching…Flare didn't feel alone.