Dawn in Shadowfen is less sunrise, more threat assessment. The swamp doesn't so much brighten as it mutates: mist thickening, trees creaking awake, and the chorus of unseen predators tuning up for another round of "Who Wants To Be Breakfast?"
I woke with a start, the shadow dragon hatchling sprawled across my chest. She'd grown overnight—impossible, but there she was, twice the size she'd been at hatching, wings twitching in some dream. Her scales shimmered with ember veins, and when I shifted, she yawned, exposing a mouthful of needle teeth and a pink tongue. Cute, if you ignored the fact that she could probably bite through bone.
[COMPANION GROWTH: Shadow Dragon Hatchling – Size increased. Mana stability improved. Bond strength: +1]
The System piped up before I'd even had a chance to stretch. I brushed a hand over her head. She purred, shadows curling around my fingers. Some part of me—maybe the part that had once grieved itself numb—felt a warmth I hadn't known in years.
Breakfast was cold tuber mash and swamp mushrooms, which the hatchling devoured with alarming efficiency. I ate slower, scanning my mental checklist: water source, traps, shelter reinforcement, check for new threats. The usual. My horns caught on the lean-to's roof as I ducked out, earning a sleepy huff from my companion.
Shadowfen was awake. The air vibrated with mana and menace. I checked my traps, spearing a half-melted goldfish with legs and a fat, blue-tinted lizard that blinked at me in resignation. Calories were calories. The System identified them as "Edible, Mana-Infused: Low Risk." Good enough.
The hatchling followed, tripping over her tail and pouncing on anything that moved. When a swarm of laughter-bubbles floated by, she snapped at them, swallowing one and immediately hiccupping tiny bursts of shadow-flame. I watched, amused, as she learned that some prey bites back.
By midday, the swamp's temperature had spiked. I reinforced the lean-to, weaving mana-soaked moss and scavenged cloth into something resembling insulation. My hands worked automatically, the hatchling curled around my ankles, snoring softly. Every so often, the System pinged a new notification:
[Skill Progression: Survival Instinct Level 5] [Bond Skill Unlocked: Shadow Cloak – Companion may conceal both herself and bonded partner for up to one minute.]
Useful. I made a mental note to test it after lunch.
Lunch turned out to be the goldfish-lizard hybrid, roasted on a spit. The hatchling eyed it, then me, then tried to steal the whole thing. I flicked her nose. She bared her teeth, but relented, settling for gnawing the tail. Her eyes—ember-orange, bottomless—watched me with an intensity that bordered on unsettling.
"Yeah, yeah, you're starving. Me too."
She chirped. I think it was agreement.
The afternoon was all routine: water purification, trap resetting, mapping out new safe zones. The System offered "Quest" prompts—mostly busywork, but one caught my eye:
[QUEST: Investigate fairy disturbance. Location: 0.7 km northeast. Reward: Unknown.]
Fairies. The swamp's original chaos agents. I debated ignoring the quest, but the hatchling perked up, shadows swirling eagerly. The bond buzzed with a sense of… anticipation? Hunger? Curiosity? Hard to tell.
We set out, moving through mist and tangled roots. The hatchling darted ahead, her shadows swirling protectively. The forest grew denser, mana prickling against my skin. At the quest marker, I found a tangled mass of web and crystal—a fairy caught, wings fluttering weakly, threads tightening every time she moved.
The hatchling hissed, shadows flaring. I crouched, studying the trap. Crystal arachnid work—sticky, mana-laced, nearly invisible in the gloom. I eased my claws under one thread, snapped it, then another, working with slow precision. The hatchling circled us, keeping watch.
The fairy was tiny, all iridescent wings and sharp green eyes. She glared at me, then at my companion, then—when I freed her—flew straight into my face, cursing in a language the System politely refused to translate.
"Yeah, you're welcome," I muttered. She hovered, then zipped behind my horns, hiding in my hair. The hatchling snorted, tail flicking in annoyance. Bonded or not, she apparently didn't like sharing.
[QUEST COMPLETE: Fairy rescued. Relationship modifier: Positive. Reward: Fairy Blessing – Minor.]
A wave of warmth settled on my shoulders. The fairy tugged my hair, then zipped off into the trees, leaving a faint trail of sparks. The hatchling watched her go, then curled around my feet, satisfied.
Evening fell. The swamp's noises changed—predators waking, prey hiding, the air thick with new danger. I made camp, hatchling curled beside me, and watched the mist roll in. The System pinged one last time:
[Companion Bond: Stable. Survival Odds: Improved.]
I closed my eyes, the hatchling's breathing slow and steady beside me. For the first time since arriving, sleep came quick and easy, no nightmares. Tomorrow, the swamp would try to kill me again. But tonight, I had a shadow dragon, a fairy's blessing, and the beginnings of a real home.
That was enough.