Of all the things Elegard could have expected today, a dragon bouncing up and down in excitement on the toes of his feet was not one of them. Sitting up on the couch, he cracked his back joints and moved to stand up and regard the figure who had just walked right into his home like the door wasn’t locked. It was about the principle of it.

“Whatever you want can wait until I’ve had my morning dwarven brew.” Moving over to the fridge, Elegard fished around for the strong stuff. There was a noticeable lack of coffee, tea, or anything that could be considered a morning drink. Instead, while shoving an entire box of empty bottles to the ground, he pulled out an unopened bottle and opened it with his teeth.

“Alright, let’s hear what’s got you breaking into my home at 5 in the morning.” With a bleary stare, he waited as Mylo began to speak.

“That ‘owing’ thing. I wish to cash it in. I have need of someone durable and human for my latest creation.” Motioning his arms wide, Mylo smiled brightly. “I call it...The moving metal mountain. The name needs some work, but I intend to give the first completed one to the humans. After it’s finished prototyping, of course. Don’t want to give them a faulty mountain that trips on the first step.” With his offer given, Mylo folded his arms behind his back, waiting to hear the reason behind the stare still being sent his way.

“Thought your kind didn’t do the ‘owing’.” Pointing a finger, Elegard took another long drink from his beer.

“We didn’t. But I want to try it out. Maybe we’ll make it a new thing,” he chimed in with an excited look. The idea of dragons knowing about owing unsettled Elegard, and he wished he’d never said anything. At least they didn’t know about lying...yet.

“And...you want to give the first of these...things to humans? Why?” Reaching into a pile of clothing, Elegard fished about for his armour and gear. The bottle remained held between his teeth as he began to get changed.

“Well, you gave me the idea. It seemed fitting that the first should go to you. Similar to the rune. We never considered its uses on a large scale. Now all the towns are doing it.” As a chuckle left Mylo, his gaze went around the unkempt room and settled on a picture off to one side: a red-haired man with an arm wrapped around a younger Elegard.

“Well, I said I owed you one,” he sighed as he moved over and flipped the photo around so Mylo could no longer see it. He then made an idle shooing motion toward him. “Let’s hurry this up then. Lead the way.” Following the dragon out, Elegard kicked the door closed behind him and descended the 50 flights of stairs. Neither of them minded, and soon enough they were heading for the barrier. A forlorn expression fell on his face as he tossed the bottle into the trash. Empty.

“You ever think back to the war? To those people you killed?” A small glower fell over his face as he moved to stare at the back of the figure in front of him. Their eyes met as their pace slowed, and his anger burned brightly at the answer.

“Not really? I mean, death is a natural part of that whole business. Their souls weren’t damaged, so they’ll live again.” Their walk resumed, and the silence stretched for a time. Mylo spoke up once more, this time in a softer tone.

“Ah, perhaps that’s insensitive. I don’t mean to make their loss any lesser. I lost many Munst in the war, too. Some were very dear to me. I more meant I don’t really dwell on it. Better to ignore those depressing matters. There are more fun things to think about. Like the MMM! Metal Moving Mountain. MMM for short! I like it!” A laugh left Mylo as he began to explain his plans for his creation.

“So it will have a muscular structure. But it needs to be strong to hold up all that weight and be hollow. If you know how your metal mountains are made so strong, that’d be a great help.” The walk brought them outside the barrier, and their pace quickened as both settled into a jog.

“Well...You make a crossing of...Er…Supports? And they both hold the weight?” Elegard hadn’t been paying that close attention. The moment they’d passed through the barrier, his senses had come alight and begun to scream at him. The figure before him was a mammoth giant to the magic glowing over his vision. It took everything he had to keep following.

“Of course! Muscle supports! That’s perfect!” The excitement in the dragon’s voice was the only thing that kept him from drawing his weapon, vision going dark as his mind saw 20 different ways he could die before he even swung. His breathing began to quicken as he was unable to stop himself from slowing his pace.

“Are you alright? You look tense.” Finally, Mylo had taken notice and glanced back toward him as their pace slowed to a stop. Taking in deep breaths, he flinched as Mylo approached and drew his weapon to point it, glaring at the dragon as memories flared to the forefront of his mind.

“Tell me! Do you remember burning through an entire army, including a red-haired soldier! Was that you! Tell me, you beast!” The switch had triggered, and the calm figure was gone as his anger built and fueled the runes glowing on his sword, preparing to fight against the unwinnable—as he had for 30 years.

“You mean the one in the photo? I mean, yes I have a timeless memory. But what does this have to do with anything?” A confused tone filled Mylo’s voice as he saw the figure of Elegard mirror their first meeting, then paused as his memory reminded him it hadn’t been their first meeting. Everything promptly clicked into place like a cruel puzzle.

“You killed my best friend, you monster. And you show not a single shred of guilt for it!”