The next few months were training. He learned to use his body. Surprisingly, walking was harder than flying, once he got the hang of wings. His time on a hang glider had taught him about shifting his weight to move through the air. Having wings that could kite, extend and fold were a major bonus. Walking? Well he sure wasn’t a biped anymore and still would trip and stagger if he was distracted. Part of the problem was he had too much power. He tended to over compensate a bit... well... a lot. There was also the problem of a tail. It tended to go the wrong way and overbalance him. He also discovered that not holding his neck centered... well... thank whatever maker there was, that his nose was armored.

After his first week he had come across a large puddle or pond. It was his first view of his own face. It was almost hypnotic. Mostly silver scales with black bands across his long narrow snout. Glowing red eyes, long tapered pointed ears and long black horns that tilted backwards with a slight upward curve. He had black eye ridges as well. While he was watching a long blood red forked tongue slithered out and touched the water. He couldn’t help but stare.

The plain he was on was surrounded by a ring of sharp mountains with a volcano in the very middle. It looked like a meteor strike with the volcano being the impact zone. It was completely desolate from the ring to the center. No other sign of life, plant, bird or animal.

Their first major trip was up to the volcano’s caldera. That was where he learned a fact that shocked him to his core. Lava was nothing more than a warm bath to a dragon such as he. The heat had accelerated his healing exponentially, while recharging his mana at the same time. He also had his first meal. Iron nuggets and few gemstones. The voice in his head assured him that he would eat better later.

The first jump off the side of the mountain took everything he had. The voice in his mind took it’s amusement as his body started dropping like a rock. He had practiced opening and closing his wings, with coaching from the voice, on bending them certain ways. It paid off as he opened them and caught air. He managed to turn the fall into a glide... with a rather unimpressive landing. Yeah, gotta work on that. The rest of the day was spent climbing up, jumping off, gliding down... and healing. That evening was spent in the lava soaking up mana.

It took almost a week to master turning, but he was starting to feel the way the air caught under his wings and how to bend them and kite them to slow down the glides. Eventually he found he could also pull himself forward in the air, almost like a swimmers butterfly stroke. Strangely, his passenger almost seemed proud the first time that he actually flew up to the caldera, rather than walk.

The next shock was magic. It worked. Boy did it work. Arienach, the name of his host, had spent much time going over the various spells and enchantments. For a time he stood with his claws and horns glowing a bright blue, while he spat fireballs that would disintegrate large boulders. His glowing claws could cut through rock like it was paper.

He also learned that magic could work like radar and if he was flying, it wasn’t confined to just one plane. He could literally track a bug through the air at over a mile away. It didn’t soak up much mana, either... or he had one shyte ton of it. He also discovered that his “sphere of detection” could work while he was asleep as well. It made him wonder just how the elf had gotten so close, so he asked.

Arienach sighed. “You remember I spoke of not having much discourse with other entities? That was the weakness she exploited. I had long had the thought of ending the eternal strife on this planet and she approached me with an offer to consolidate the elves. Ambition overrode caution and she took full advantage of it.”

“Were the other elves of the lands involved?”

“I know not. But I doubt if that sort of maliciousness was born un-nurtured. The elves are long lived, yes, but they would know if one of their own was doing the extent of research required for that type of spell.”

“Then they may know of the spell themselves.”

“Point. Mayhaps we should remove the threat.”

“Maybe once you finish with your teaching.”

“I do not know if you have realized this, but I am not fading away so much as I am merging with you. The lessons need not end.”

My eyes widened in surprise.

“I was worried at first for you. I felt myself losing my sense of self and thought I would just cease to exist, but now I find that I am not fading so much as being absorbed. I sometimes catch myself reviewing your memories of your time on your world.”

“Will this be a two way street?”

“I believe so. We will need to do something about your barriers though. You keep your mind in a cage for some reason.”

“A cage? What do you mean?”

Arienach sighed again. “You have a concept that I have yet to grasp that is called religion, along with a notion of honor and the “correct way” that limit you. Honor is a guideline, the correct way is the way that works and religion is a way to fleece the believers, from what I see of your memories. Why you would let something like that dictate your thoughts is quite beyond my understanding. The gods exist and they do what they will. Why shouldn’t you?”

“Wait... gods?”

“Yes, after we take care of you and your issues, I will introduce you to a few of them, if you wish.”

I pondered that tidbit for a moment. “Visit the gods...”

Arienach laughed. “Don’t expect too much. They are a bunch of self centered twits. If one offers you something, you can bet that they will get far more from it than you will.”

The thought crossed my mind, making Arienach laugh, that the gods here were a lot like politicians back home. Followed by the thought that this was now my home. There was a part of me that wondered if I would ever go back, then I wondered if I really wanted to. I was rather starting to like the idea of being a dragon. Then, after consideration, I wondered just how much he had picked up from me, after his amusement over the politician joke.

The elder dragon spirit worked for over a week, tweaking and tuning Michael’s mind. Over time he noticed that while his views really hadn’t changed all that much, his way of looking at them did. The concept of right and wrong were still there, but instead of just accepting that something was just so, there was more looking at the reasons why. He had come to reflect that this form of thinking was more of an “outside” view, rather than a driving force.

Reflecting on what he was taught, he came to the conclusion that the dragon’s view was more one of time and deliberation. Humans were short lived. Dragons were not. Things that would be a driving motivator for a human were nothing more than a passing fancy for a dragon. Wars were fought, kingdoms fell. Over ideas that in another century would be viewed as ridiculous. Dragons watched, remembered and learned.

Sometime in the process of his education of the mind, he started to remember. Remember things that he had never saw. The dragon and him had grown that much closer. Once it was realized, it seemed the process accelerated. It wasn’t much longer before few to no words were required to share an idea or a concept.

Shortly after, Arienach took him to the other planes. Worlds, moons, stars and space itself. There was nowhere they couldn’t travel. Then he was shown the other planes. The plane of fire, of earth, of air, of water. A plane of nothing but emptiness and a plane of pure energy. The plane of chaos and of the gods and demons. These were not just worlds, but entire universes. Then he showed the outside. The concept is not easy. Try to imagine ninety degrees from everything.

Arienach announced that I had the very basic concepts of what I was capable of at that point. Strangely enough, it didn’t bother me. Everything happened around me now and little could touch me unless I allowed it.

Then he told me about the game.