Elemental dragons are as their name suggests native to the elemental planes and their sub planes. They are similar to other elementals that exist but are not as vulnerable to their opposing element due to their draconic traits. They’re elemental magics are many times stronger than the metallic or chromatic whose form they seem to be a more vibrant and extreme version of.

They do not follow the ways of the dragons of the material planes but rather the mannerisms common to other elementals of their home plane. Unlike material plane dragons, elemental dragons have no more than two or three non-conflicting affinities and cannot use magic outside of their affinities.

Lysan

Kathrine stops struggling and starts crying after she hears a gunshot from the house. I don’t know what is happening back at the house but he said other Ravnos. Are more of Adrian’s family going to try to kill us?

Discharging lightning and other noises that are no doubt from the magic being used in that fight continue to come out of the building. We move around the house through the fields to find that the fire carriage was destroyed, it is a pile of molten metal.

As soon as the building is out of sight sister nods at Abagail and me and we begin to move as quickly as we can.

Near dusk we stop on the side of a road made of black stone, I do not remember the name but it is the one Randy told us. We don’t have shelter tonight but the season is moving towards summer and there shouldn’t be too much of an issue.

“Why would he do this?” Kathrine mutters, at least she hasn’t gone running back towards her husband.

“Probably the same reasons Adrian runs off behind my back” I answer her even though her question wasn’t to me.

“Why?”

“To protect those he cares about, your son tries to hide it but almost every time we’ve stopped to rest he goes off and kills anything that would be a danger to the group” Abagail interjects.

I nod, but stop once Kathrine halfheartedly says, “I should have stayed and helped him.”

“No, none of us would have been any help at all. That’s why he sent us away” sister says.

“I could have helped I know how to use a gun.”

“Guns don’t work on Ravnos, they just make the gun not function. You have no other martial or magical skills which is why Adrian is currently hunting down a dragon.”

Kathrine glares at my sister for a moment but I know a fight won’t start between them. She takes a deep breath before an almost ask almost command of “teach me then” comes out of her mouth.

“Wouldn’t it be better to ask one of the others? They are stronger than me.”

“You’re stronger than me and they aren’t here. Please, I don’t want to do this again.”

I can tell what sister is about to say and I interrupt her, “teach her, I have enough mana to heal.”

She nods and unbuckles the sword at her waist. It won’t work as well as a training sword but it will do. I do the same to my own blade and toss it to Kathrine.

“Keep the sheath on and you will be attacking me with it. I can’t teach you much and my style will not fit you when Adrian wakes up your dragon but we’ll start with the basics.

Mirror my stance to start, it is called the ox stance and until you either get a shield or need a hand for spell slinging I will only show you two handed techniques. . .”

Sister isn’t the best teacher and opts to the method that Kythia used to teach, explaining it while demonstrating on her. I’m going to get a lot of practice with healing magic tonight. . .

Geldath Ravnos

I frown as a letter is teleported to my desk as I work on the intricacies of the ritual that should solve all my current problems, I was supposed to get an in person report. I open it up and begin to read.

Master Geldath,

The information from the Thunder Twins was inaccurate, Rynald's power was far greater than reported. He has not continued to be weakened as we all are but has completely overcome the curse. I am unsure if it was due to temporary augmentation, foresight or a permanent increase in power but I have failed in retrieving the subject.

Adrian was not with Rynald, nor any other person save for physical clones of people I did not recognize. Perfect clones that I would have never identified as such if I had not killed them with Animancy. I managed to capture Rynald but he slew both my apprentices.

I have him sedated and am moving him to my estate outside of St. Louis.

-Anath

Of course, Rynald somehow bypassed the curse, that would explain why Kathrine's blood does not react to any of the tests we have run. He should have shared the method, none of this would have been a problem if he had.

At least some good came from two more of the family being reduced to little more than nothing. I stand up and begin to pace the room, how likely is this to be a trap. If Rynald has his power back he could have been planning this all out for years, Anath could go rogue over the secret of Rynald’s renewed strength too.

I’ll have to risk everything on this. With a step, I teleport into the vast cavern where my reincarnation ritual continues to run and walk over to the soul Stones that hold those who are waiting for new bodies. So many have only the tiniest fragments left of their second souls.

I pick up the four crystals who died by Rynald’s hand in the past week. I will need what is left of their power and can blame their disappearance on Rynald.

In another cavern, I place them amongst the foci for the ritual that forced us to banish all the other magi. One to tear the second soul from a Ravnos and add it to the caster.

I can still hear the screaming of the power I took the last time I used this.

Adrian

Somehow between a quarter and a third of the shadow dragon ended up in my gut as I harvested every single piece of the creature. I wonder what shadow dragon omelets will taste like when I get around to eating the eggs?

It is well into the night now and more than a few hours have passed since I finished the physical healing of Ria. Bryan is trying to get his shadow to take physical form like the shadow dragon caused it to but is having about as much success as I do with my dragon powers.

I know I used some in the fight but I don’t know which or how to use them again. Asking dragon-me isn’t an option since he fell asleep somewhere during my semi-willing feast.

I yawn feeling the weight of my meal even though it doesn’t show at all which confuses me as I ate more than my own volume. Maybe it moved to my other stomach?

“I’ll keep watch, go ahead and sleep” Bryan says and I nod before sitting next to K who is already sleeping.

The Grey Dream remains the empty expanse it always was save for the man who looks over at me just after I open my eyes.

“You know what I want.”

I may have come to an arrangement about an extra with the devil but I should minimize that kind of interaction if I can.

Gain: Dragon 14(+10SP), Magus 18(+20SP)

Dragon Flesh: Dragon 16(+20SP, +50EP), +100EP, Shadow Dragons will no longer grant EP.

Name: Adrian Ravnos

Gender: Male

Age: 17

Skills

Attributes

Class

SP: 70

Traits

Magic

Languages

EP: 211+

Well, not enough SP for anything and I still need to work on what I got lost time. I open up the EP menus down to the only proper choice.

Human Transformation (Improved) 50

Increase Natural Armor 50

Increase Size 150

I purchase the Increase Size and a few new options appear while the one I chose is now discolored to mark that it is not currently available.

Dragon's Blessing 75

Human Transformation (Improved) 50

Increase Natural Armor 50

Increase Size 150

Void Step 75

Something tells me Dragon’s Blessing is what I did for the dwarf. I take it, even though Void Step is probably walking through the void; giving the trio and maybe the rest of the group a power increase is more important to me. Having dragon-me know how to use it should be better than my attempt.

This does raise the question of awakening racial powers without the Grey Dream. It should be possible even if it is harder and slower. Would it be possible to cause awakenings after adulthood? I probably should have been thinking about this before getting ingredients for my mother to awaken as a dragon.

Whatever I did to Thrane seemed to work so that may be the key for me understanding how it works. Could I duplicate it with Ravnos magic?

I exit the Grey Dream and drift in a regular semi sleep for a few hours before I wake.

When I wake up I find one of my arms being held by a still sleeping K and Ria's head in my lap. I glance over to Bryan; did he decide to mess with me or did they wake up at some point?

“Ria woke up about an hour after you went to sleep, I’m surprised you slept through her panicked yells when she woke up.

I told her you healed her and Kythia said something in that language you talk to her in sometimes. I don’t know what they said but Ria stayed away from you until she was sure Kythia had fallen asleep.”

This is going to be a problem for me, isn’t it? Even if K no longer hates Ria due to an illogical racial bias I do not think she would appreciate her laying in my lap while she sleeps. I should get Ria out of my lap before K wakes up which won’t be long if I start doing anything but she looks too peaceful and happy.

I place my hand on Ria’s head for a moment before scratching behind her ears and she shifts unconsciously to give me easier access to her ears. She saved my life, I can give her this much without breaking my word to K.

“You really need to tell me how you’re getting all these girls to like you and be okay with sharing you” Bryan comments.

“It isn’t like that.”

“Yeah sure it isn’t. It wasn’t what two weeks before Kythia was sleeping with you and the next week so were the elves. Now you have a kitsune with a crush on you resting in your lap.”

Is it really like that? Is she acting out of more than just gratitude for saving her from those demonologists? I though she liked Bryan though.

Bryan laughs, “you didn’t notice? She only ever flirted with me when you were looking or she at least thought you were looking.”

Wanting to change the subject I try to put Bryan on the defensive, “aren’t you with Abagail? Does she know you’re thinking of other girls?”

“She knows I won’t do more than that and you’re not changing the subject that easily, how are they not fighting or jealous of each other?”

“Because they are really good friends?” I say with surprisingly little confidence, I remember that being the reason they told me but it does seem like there should be more to it than that.

He just looks at me for a moment before speaking, “that’s it? Are you sure there isn’t more to it than that?”

“Their culture might have something to do with it too, but why do you care? Are you jealous?”

“No but is this really the time for this conversation? Those girls could wake up any time you know.”

“You’re the one who started it.

Anyways, did you gather the dead soldiers' weapons while everyone was asleep.”

“No.”

“I’ll work on that then during my watch.”

Bryan nods and I spend a few seconds thinking of the most efficient way to find all the firearms and ammunition. I pull a bullet out and try to sense the gunpowder within it. Every gun on the base is probably loaded right now and even if they are not I don’t need all of them anyways.

I smile once I figure out how to identify the compounds inside the metal casing. A pulse of energy created by my will later and I have the relative locations of large quantities of gunpowder. Not perfectly accurate but good for a first attempt. Now how do I get out of K's grasp without waking her?