"Why didn't I kill him? Um… it's complicated, I guess," Arthur answered. Currently, they seemed to be at a club, with no one there, yet the lights really were flashing instances of red, green, blue and purple. The music was quiet, but still present.
"Oh? It's complicated, huh? How so? Don't tell me it was because you were afraid of killing someone in a fight," she told him. Currently, she was having fun on the dancefloor. She had no knowledge of how to dance, yet she did it anyway, getting jiggy with it.
"No, no, it's not that. Well… no, it kind of is. Honestly, I didn't want to be a murderer, and he seemed really pathetic, whimpering in pain like that. Though, how'd you know I beat him? Does word spread quickly among dragons?" Arthur said.
She shook her head, then went for a dance move where she spun around on her head. She wasn't able to perform the move in the real world, but in dreams, she was absolutely able to do so. Arthur, watching from afar, decided to join in on the dance floor, busting a move.
Consequently, he also busted his ass.
"Owch!" He yelled, though it didn't hurt, due to being in a dream. She laughed, and helped him up, before giving her answer.
"Nah. See, as descendants of the Dream Dragon, Rem, we're allies with the descendents of Luna, the Moon Dragon. So naturally, I got the info faster than most," she said. She then went to do the robot, a move that she was pretty sure no one actually did at the club.
"Ah. Wait, does your family know about this?" He asked. "Nah. I don't like tellin' them much about my adventures in dreams. They prolly think I'm using it for evil, but nah, I just wanna talk to you sometimes. Of course, I won't always be in your dreams, since I've got a life outside of dreams, and sometimes I wanna talk to other people in their sleep."
Mentioning another person made Arthur a bit spooked, but he ignored the feeling.
"Huh. How does your ability even work? Are you sleeping right now?" Arthur asked. "Nah. See, I can jump into people's dreams pretty much any time I please. I've got a 'sense' for when someone's sleeping, all over the world, and I can just jump into their dreams when I wanna."
"Sounds like a neat ability. Is your physical body safe when you do this?"
"Yep! In fact, my physical body is technically inside this dream, which I have control over. So while it's not suited for combat, as long as someone in the world is sleeping, and I don't instantly die, I can just hop in and I'll be okay! I'm quite happy with it, as it's not combative enough for my parents to get onto me about fighting people. I'm not interested in fighting, I just wanna have a good existence, ya feel me?"
"I feel you," Arthur said, ignoring dancing altogether and just moving his body in weird ways. He grabbed his crotch occasionally, shifting his legs and feet.
This made her laugh, and she decided now was the time to vent. They appeared once more in a cafe, and she vented to him about the school week.
Once she finished, Arthur didn't have anything to vent about, and they said goodbye before leaving.
…
It was Saturday morning, and Sally, who usually slept in, had the bright idea which she texted to the group chat at a time where no one was supposed to be awake.
"Let's go to a party tonight, it's at 9. Apparently there'll be food there"
And that was that. Arthur got out of bed, showered and went on a walk.
'I've never really gone to a party before. Mostly since I was never good enough to be invited to one.'
'Well, I guess it might be fun to try tonight. As long as I'm with everyone else, I'll be okay. Plus, assuming there are no dragons there, I should be the strongest one. If anyone messes with me or my friends, I can give them a main meal of a knuckle sandwich with a side of whoopass!'
Feeling quite proud of himself, Arthur clenched his fist and smiled. Though, he himself wasn't aware of how stupid he sounded, seeing as he was in a college that was very safe. The likelihood of getting into a fight was low, so envisioning himself as a super awesome guy who could beat up anyone was an unrealistic massacre of who he actually was.
'Ah, but when it comes to that stuff, if there is a dragon, I might get my butt whooped. Hm… well, actually, can't I learn martial arts? Mrs Graves made that comparison, didn't she? I dunno why I haven't considered it up till now.'
Indeed, it wasn't a bad idea. Both sides of dragon combat were hard to develop. Of course, Martial Arts weren't going to immediately make him a master of combat, since it did take time to learn and develop his skills. But Arthur, being a person who'd never stepped into that realm, had no clue that it took time to become great at martial arts.
The physical training of a dragon took less time, due to the ability to heal. However, it was still something which took time for them, so while physical training shouldn't be neglected, the results took time.
And when it came to the usage of his Dragon Art, it was easier to use, since it was uniquely his own. His Dragon Art was simple; if you're touching blood in any way, you can reshape it into constructs. Whether it be weapons or armor, it was useful and easy to understand.
But something that Arthur noticed in his fight was that he was completely helpless for certain parts of it. When he guarded his head in fear, he was overcome with Taylor's strength and skill. In guarding his head only, he couldn't make use of the weapons aspect of his Dragon Art.
To an outsider like Arthur, he thought of martial arts as "techniques used to help the weak overcome the strong." For someone like him, one man who wasn't entirely accustomed to the world he now found himself in, that made martial arts very appealing.
As well, if Arthur was a better combatant, he could make the best use of his own ability. That was how things should be.
So, he made his decision. Arthur would attempt to learn martial arts. In pursuit of skill, he looked up martial arts gyms near his college campus, finding an MMA gym not too far away. Though, like a good amount of humans, he was stricken with a terrible feeling, that being—
'I mean, I can always do it later, no need to do it right now.'
He procrastinated.
Arthur, in fear of going to his first ever school-related party, looked something up on his phone.
'Tips on what to do at a party, let's see… okay, so stick with people you know. Yeah, I can do that easily, there's no way I'd talk to someone new, at least in such a setting. M'kay, next…'
'Stay sober. I didn't plan on drinking, since not only would it be illegal, there's also a chance of me shooting out my tail when drunk, and that's no good.'
He read through the tips, and it quelled his anxiety a bit. And as he was walking, he bumped into someone.
"Oh, sorry! My bad, I wasn't looking where I was…" Arthur stammered, looking up from his phone and at the person quickly. To his surprise, he saw an older man, with a gray beard and of tall height, with a good build.
"Huh. So this is the Dragon?" The man asked. Arthur's eyes widened, as he put his phone in his pocket and his hands up, as if to fight. "This is a public place, you don't wanna fight," Arthur told him.
"Of course, I don't wanna fight, not at all," the man told him. "I'm just here to introduce myself. I am Todd Oppen, descendent of Oppen, the War Dragon."
"You… okay, wh-wha, what does that have to do with me?" Arthur asked. Todd laughed, pointing at the sky. Arthur didn't look up, keeping his eyes on Todd.
"Uh, you just gonna keep staring?" Todd asked. "The sun's in the sky, my glasses point the sun rays in my eyes, it'll hurt if I look up."
"Oh. Uh, well… yeah, fair enough I suppose. I was mostly pointing up so that when you looked up, I could appear behind you and it would be really cool, but I guess that won't happen," Todd said, seemingly bummed out.
"Uh, yeah, it wo—"
"OR WILL IT?!"
Todd appeared behind Arthur, who turned around and saw him just two inches from the back of his neck. Arthur immediately swung, but Todd evaded, laughing.
"Nah, I'm just fucking with ya. Anyways, I just came to see you for myself. Take care~" Todd said, walking off campus. Arthur was quite spooked by the interaction.
'Huh?'
He felt a desire. It wasn't a malicious bloodlust, more like an intrusive thought. Arthur wanted to attack him with his back turned.
It would be a cowardly move, but with someone who's supposedly part of a clan of "War Dragons," it was his best decision. This strange old man approached him in public, joked around, and was almost certainly going to be a future enemy.
Arthur's heart raced, and his knees and hands shook greatly. Terror. Afraid, vigilant, anxious.
'This feeling…'
Arthur sat down on a bench, holding his hand over his heart to check his own pulse.
Last night, he felt terror and fear of dragons. Yes, he was exhilarated. Yes, there were parts where he felt proud of himself and relieved in his victory.
But even with moments of joy, a terrifying experience had seeped into his flesh. The fear he felt, watching as that dragon came towards him, was the fear of despair itself, the fear of dying, the fear of helplessness and drowning.
The past week or so, he'd accumulated feelings of helplessness. The night he was attacked, though he fought back, he couldn't do anything. The night he faced his mother and was initially about to be killed. And now, the night he watched in despair numerous times as he felt he was going to die.
Without knowing, they'd molded his heart.
He took out his phone, texting Rudy.
"Can you send Chad to kill—"
He typed, before stopping. Chad was not only unreliable, but getting him to kill someone would be no different than making him a murderer.
The thought of it quelled his other fears, and he refused to do it. Chad was still unreliable, getting involved with him should only be done if absolutely necessary. Chad first and foremost followed himself and the "voices," if Arthur made use of him, leading to resentment, then Chad would eventually take his life.
Arthur turned a blind eye, refusing to acknowledge any of the problems.
…
When it came time, Arthur and everyone else got into the car, being driven to the party. Arthur kept a small grin on his face, both as a way to mask his nervousness and at genuine excitement.
It was his first time being invited to a party, shamefully enough. However, with his friends, it would all be okay. They themselves didn't know anyone, and Sally was the one who was invited. She'd made sure it was okay with the person throwing the party, and they allowed them to come as well.
Upon arrival, they entered, and Arthur immediately felt a bit out of his comfort zone. It wasn't anything crazy, but there was a lot of people, as the person hosting the event was quite rich. They had a good house, and it sure was a sight to behold for the party-virgin.
And so, what did Arthur do the entire time? Well, he clung to everyone. David clung to Sarah, who clung to Emily, who clung to Tyler, who clung to Arthur, who clung to David.
They decided to hang around the couch, a fairly bold move, and they watched two people fighting on a popular basketball game. Eventually, the host went over to Sally, going over to her and looking down at her.
"Glad you could make it! So, you guys want drinks?" The host asked. He was a fairly tall man, around 6 foot 1 perhaps, and had a pretty nice build.
"Oh, uh, sure!" Sally agreed. He took her over to the drinks, and in turn, everyone followed her. His scorn was obvious, but it didn't last long. He gave them all drinks, and Arthur was hesitant to take a sip.
And then, he immediately spat it out back into the red cup.
'Oh, what was that? Was that alcohol?'
To what shouldn't be a surprise, Arthur's never touched alcohol in his life. He stammered, wanting to give someone his drink. He spotted the perfect target: David.
"Hey bro, uh, you want my drink?" Arthur asked. David happily agreed, taking Arthur's cup. Arthur breathed a sigh of relief.
"Um, guys, I'll go get some water," Arthur told them, rushing to the fridge to get water. He got some bottled water, taking a sip.
'Aaaaaaaaaaahh, this is nasty. Oh man, things aren't going too well. Nah, it'll be alright, it'll be okay. I got my friends, we'll be good.'
Arthur nodded his head as if to affirm himself, going back to his friends. Though, now, Sally was gone.
"Huh? Where'd Sally go?" Arthur asked. "Oh, she went off with that dude, um, what's his name?" Tyler told him. Arthur stared at him blankly, before looking down and letting out an "uuuuhh."
'I feel like it's not bright to not know his name. What if he does something to her? Or is that just me being paranoid? Ah, it's so messy.'
The group looked at each other, each having mutual nervousness.
"Um… soooo… you guys wanna, like… what is there to do at a party?" Tyler asked. No one had an answer. Well, except for David.
"Uh, get blasted?"
"Not helpful," Tyler rebuked. David scoffed, shaking his head.
"It is, tho'? We've been getting wasted since 'ye olden days. We haven't had video games, or drugs, or anything modern. There's three things humans have done at parties since the 'better days,' and that's talk, drink, and eat!" David exclaimed with great enthusiasm.
"Ah…" Tyler let out. It was truly hard to deny that. Arthur took another sip of water.
'Ah, this is pretty awkward. With all this extra noise, it's harder to hear.'
"I'm going to the bathroom," Arthur said, rushing away. He fled to the upstairs, careful to not bump into anyone.
He himself wasn't exactly thinking too hard about his decision, and when he opened the door to the bathroom, he saw a drunk girl puking into the toilet with her girlfriends there to hold her hair behind her.
"Oh shiet!" Arthur shrieked, slamming the door shut hard on accident. Naturally, with the strength of a dragonkin, the result was—
To those on the lower floor, such as Tyler, David and Emily, who were all making a bit of awkward conversation, enough so that they laughed at themselves for it, it sounded like a gunshot went off.
The sounds of conversations, some yelling, and music didn't stop, but there was an obvious sense of unease. They weren't going to flee over what might have been a gunshot, but they were ready to leave.
Back upstairs, Arthur watched the door slam into the ground, having been blown off the hinges, destroying the framing and doing a twirl before falling onto the hard bathroom floor.
A door opened, and the host checked in, seeing the commotion. Arthur himself stood right there.
If he had the strength of a dragonkin, but the durability of a human, perhaps the force exerted would have been enough to rip his hand enough to catch him literally red handed. However, surpassing humanity, was Arthur, who yearned to disappear.
"DUDE WHAT THE FUCK?!" The host screamed at him. Arthur himself backed away, approaching the stairs. The host looked down at the door with a clear sense of anger, as was totally fair.
He didn't even invite Arthur, he tolerated his existence at the party, just because he wanted the girl he actually cared about to come. And yet, here Arthur was, breaking stuff because he was slamming doors.
"The fuck did you do to it?! Are you gonna fuckin' answer me or are you just gonna stare at me like some fucking retard?!" The host once again yelled, approaching Arthur with stomps.
"I'm sorry man! I really am, I didn't expect to do that, I'm really sorry, I can pay you back!" Arthur proclaimed, his hands jittering a bit as he kept them close to his chest, trying to de-escalate the situation.
While he did so, he looked into the hosts of an angry male. It was frightening, so Arthur looked away, peeking into the now open door and seeing Sally on the bed. She was fully clothed, and she rushed over, trying to break up the fight.
"Hey now, we don't have to do this? C'mon Dom, let's not fight, okay? C'mon, I don't—" Sally said, trying to get between the two but failing. Dom looked at her with scorn, scoffing.
"No, don't get in our way. This is between me and him. He's going around, slamming doors like he owns the place," he said, turning towards Arthur once more. "Get the fuck out. Now. Seriously, I want you fucking gone."
"Okay, okay," Arthur said. He went down the stairs, and his phone started buzzing. He saw the eyes of everyone there, and deeply wanted to fall off the face of the earth.
He noticed the buzzing more, taking his phone out to decline, when he saw that the call was from Alicia.
'What shitty timing…'
Arthur left through the front door without another word, taking the call.
"Hello?? What do you want? I'm kinda having a pretty nasty—" He was stopped.
"If you're in public, run to somewhere private, hurry!" She cried through the phone, distressed enough to make Arthur immediately even more uneasy. He looked around, seeing his friends leaving the party, as they themselves weren't exactly having much fun. Well, except for David, of course, who was working on his third cup.
"W-what the fuck do you mean? W-what? Why, what's—"
"The Assas family is coming to kill you! Don't forget, you have the Scent, they can track you down at any time!"
'Oh.'
"Shiiit man, y'know what? Fuck that place! I dunno what you did, but honestly, I don't need to know. Wait, should we go get Sally?" Tyler asked everyone.
"What… no, guys, I gotta… FUCK!" Arthur yelled, turning around and breaking out into a sprint. Well, within human standards. They saw him running quickly, each of them surprised at Arthur's speed.
He ran down the block, making a right to disappear from their line of sight. He immediately dipped into an alleyway, sprouting wings and popping into the air.
Down at ground level, they were all concerned, shocked, amazed, and worried.
"A bit of an overreaction, no?" David asked, before laughing to himself. "Damn tho', that mans can fuckin kick it… shiiiiet, he should put his ass to work on a soccer field, or a football field, or sum'..."
The night had a lot in store for Arthur.
Joy was remarkably absent from the to-do list.