Dragon Tongue

"There weren't always dragons in the Valley. Hell, the most we'd get down here would be Crawlings when the swamp spilled over. Oh right, you're not from here. Crawlings are spider-like creatures the size of hounds with faces resembling that of crocodiles. Their scales run around it's whole head and body but it's legs are hairy, spindly and webbed-like, like a Vampire Squid if it had spiders legs. Oh phoenix-toes, where the hell are my manners; I'm Vince. I'd say it's nice to meet ya, friend, but I'm not entirely sure you or I will survive the attack on this town here so let's forgo the pleasantries at the moment and focus on the task at hand. Getting the slippery-frog-knuckle out of here!"

"Where is here? Here is called Riddick Marsh. Stronghold to the Black Guard and exporter of the methane gas produced in the swamp which is transported all the way King Zigrete's capitol which is four days by horseback north. You can see now why having a dragon here can be a big issue, right?! Are you dense with that finger on your cheek trying to think of it?! Gas, you ass, GAS! Explosive, valuable, boom-boom, kill your whole family, blow up the whole town GAS! We need to stop that fire-spitting dragon or get it as far away from here as possible and we need to have it done, yesterday! Now put your big person pants on and let's get moving! We're heading to the weapons depot so we can at least grab some items to keep this thing off our backs and distracted. We also don't know what other forms of unsavory monsters might be roaming about in this chaos; it's better to be prepared, I'll assure you of that!"

Vince was apart of a race called the Glourians. Goblin like creatures, standing three to four feet in height. They're calm creatures whom rationalize everything; nothing is a surprise and everything makes sense to them. The race has arcane abilities given to them by birthright that allow them to see through walls, conjure mana-based animals to use for either attack or gathering intel and once a day, they can transform into a hulking beast for one hour. It's pretty scary if you ever get to see it. Apart from having these few abilities, Glourians are extremely resourceful and with enough time, can find a solution to nearly any problem.

This problem unfortunately involves a Red-Spine Dragon, native to The Valley of Corsette, also known as, The Purple Plains. Purple due to the toxic air that lingers there, said to be the work of a witch that lives in the center of the valley, although no one has ever seen her. Having a Red-Spine this far from it's hoard is rare. Something is terribly wrong. What could have brought it here?

The weapons depot was near the center of town. With that Red-Spine already burning half of the town to ashes, routes to get there have become difficult to traverse with no help from the bodies of the now deceased townsfolk. Vince and his companion need to work quickly or the town may be completely lost.

"Alright youngling: Stay on my tail and we might get you through this alive. Also, don't actually step on my tail or I'll have to bop you a good one, ya hear! It might even kill ya!"

Vince started by closing his eyes and began chanting a mumbled prayer under his breath. His body began to vibrate as a purple-green aura started emitting from around him. He levitated about two inches off the ground before finishing his prayer. A slight gust of wind dusted the ground around him as Vince's eyes opened and before him, his purple-green aura began to form an animal. It was in the shape of a cat, more specifically, the majestic Maine Coon. The animal became solid as Vince's feet lightly touched down on the dirt, his colorful aura dissipating as he regained his footing.

"Bellamore, my beauty." Vince spoke to the magical cat. "Would you do me the astute honor of finding us a path we can use? We need one as soon as we can."

The Maine Coon stood before Vince, it's eyes swirling with purple and green energy, and nodded to him. It turned around and darted toward the end of the alley, leaping on crates and window sills, leaving a trail magical dust behind as if to trace which route Vince and his companion were to use.

"Alright. Follow me and be careful!" Vince exclaimed.

As the path made of light and dusted energy hovered before Vince and his companion, ear piercing roars from the Red-Spine Dragon and sounds of liquid-swashing flames bounced off the winds accompanied by the screams and cries of the burning town's women, men and children. As Vince turned down a new alleyway the sounds of clicking and clacking hitting the ground grew louder and louder. At the edge of a building fifteen meters away, long legs edged into view as the crocodile face of a Crawling darted it's attention toward the goblin. Brandishing his pocket dagger, Vince squared his body to attack. As he did, his companion took a step out in front of him with her fist clinched. Black flames engulfed her right fist as she readied her stance to fight. The heat could be felt from three meters away. Vince stood back as his goblin instincts kicked in and a smirk curled at his lip; telling him exactly who his new companion was.