In the middle of the Red Tomb, Varys stumbled upon a spacious area. As he arrived, he collapsed in exhaustion. He glanced behind him and realized his comrades were no longer there.
"Damn it!"
He hit his hand against the obsidian floor in frustration, and blood gushed from the cut as the sharp surface sliced his skin.
Slowly getting up from the ground, he surveyed the area, noting how different it was from everywhere else. For starters, there were various types of ores scattered about, and there was significantly more magma.
But what really caught him off guard were the oval-shaped eggs floating in the lava. The eggs were useless since he couldn't form a bond with them.
As he continued to scan the room, he spotted something else—a dragon covered in white scales.
The dragon wasn't the largest, but it wasn't small either. Its body was adorned with white scales, and it had golden-colored eyes. Varys and the white-scaled dragon locked eyes.
He could hardly believe it; after what seemed like hours of trying, his shamanic bond had worked. He dropped the weapon he had been gripping tightly and ran over to the white dragon, pressing his forehead against it.
An image, clear as day, came to his mind:
[Activate Bond]
[Tamer: Human]
[Beast: Light Dragon]
[Species: Lupus]
[Special Nickname: God of the Sky]
[Beast Rank: S]
[Cultivation Rank: D]
[Activate Bond by Giving the Beast a Name:]
"Hope."
"You will be the hope of my village."
Varys pressed his head against his dragon and wrapped his arms around it.
…
Meanwhile, Sigurd dashed through the Red Tomb, using his agility to his advantage. He scaled the obsidian walls as if they were nothing, the dragon hot on his tail, dashing on all fours.
How the hell is it keeping up with me on all fours? Its agility is as good as mine.
It felt like they were playing a game of tag. The dragon wasn't even trying to fly; it leaped on all fours.
CKCKCK!!!
The dragon cackled as if it was mocking him, as it closed the distance between them, getting right at his heels. It lunged, but Sigurd ducked at the last second and changed direction in an instant.
CKCKCK!!
He began scaling the walls in an attempt to lose the dragon, but it followed him, climbing the walls instead of flying. It was treating the hunt like a game.
CKCKCK!!
No matter how fast he ran or what tricks he tried, he couldn't shake it. Exhaustion began to set in; his body was tiring, and the moment he slowed, the dragon lunged at him, pinning him to the ground.
Sigurd looked up at the beast with a terrified expression. He closed his eyes, preparing for what was about to happen next.
SLOP!
A slimy material wiped across his face. He opened his eyes to see the dragon's pink tongue licking him. He couldn't help but think that this was the second time he'd been pinned down and licked against his will.
The dragon's big purple eyes stared at him.
"You want to form a bond or—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the dragon settled fully on top of him, eyes closed and everything.
"Are you sleeping? Get off, you're too heavy!"
He tried pushing the dragon off, but its weight was too much.
What am I supposed to do now? I guess I could try bonding with it.
He activated his shamanic bond and immediately sensed something.
No way!!
He pressed his forehead against the dragon's forehead and…
[Activate Bond]
[Tamer: Human]
[Beast: Dark Dragon]
[Species: Fiend]
[Beast Rank: S]
[Special Nickname: Playful Hunter]
[Cultivation Rank: D]
[Activate Bond by Giving the Beast a Name:]
"What should I name this little ball of life?" Sigurd thought for a moment, and the name came to him as if it were the most obvious choice ever.
"Joyrax."
Sigurd chuckled at how silly it sounded, but that was the name he chose.
"Joyrax—The Playful Hunter"
He muttered the name one more time before falling asleep. As he drifted off, a heavy thought weighed on his mind.
"Arya."
He felt an ache in his heart just saying her name.
If she died before telling me that she… I wouldn't have cared. I wouldn't have batted an eye after she died. Hah, my first kiss was from a dead girl; my last kiss…
Sigurd had never had much interest in romance before, but a part of him felt like his chance at it died along with Arya.
After lying on the ground with his eyes closed for a while, he decided to make a move.
"Joyrax."
GRRRR!
"Get up, buddy, it's time to go."
GRRR!
The dragon slowly opened its eyes and got off him. It was a relief, as his body felt like it was going numb. Without wasting any time, he got to his feet.
He then proceeded to climb onto Joyrax's back. Without a saddle, it felt like he was sitting on a pile of pointed rocks.
"Is this how the dragon tamers do it?"
Sigurd leaned into the dragon's back and grabbed hold of one of its scales. He would have to make do until he had the proper equipment to ride a dragon.
GRRRR!!
"Head for the nearest exit out of this place."
Due to their bond, the dragon understood everything he was saying. In fact, they could even communicate with each other without speaking.
Following Sigurd's instructions, Joyrax took off running and then gracefully opened its wings. Sigurd hadn't noticed it before, but Joyrax's wingspan was quite large compared to his size.
On top of the dragon, he took in every detail about it—the small spikes on its tail, the tiny bumps on its head that could hardly be considered a horn.
Joyrax's tail wasn't huge, but it was rather long. Joyrax gradually picked up speed, then smoothly began flapping its wings.
With one solid push off the ground, they were flying. Joyrax soared through one of the exits at the top of the Red Tomb, and soon they were bathed in moonlight.
The cold night air numbed his face as he soared through the sky. As he stared at the ground, seemingly miles away, he couldn't help but laugh.
"Hahaha, who's going to hunt me down now!!"
He felt like he'd obtained all he'd ever wanted—freedom.
He wrapped his arms around his companion's back.
Their bond was growing stronger with every passing second; he could feel it reverberating within him.
"We are now one, Joyrax, you and I."