Legion is coming
The fact that someone had left a bouquet for the Head alarmed Cal. He pushed the basket of food into the room, quickly used the Detection technique, and, to his horror, discovered a poisonous flower inside the bouquet.
If you inhale its fragrance for long enough, you can lose consciousness or fall into a painful deep sleep. Calling up a spiritual fire in the palm of his hand, he burned the flowers without inhaling the smoke.
Glancing around, Cal closed the door tightly. Slowly checking the food and making sure it was in order, he set the table and transferred the Head's treats to a small tray.
While Liam was sluggishly picking at his food, Cal thought of a way to save him. Since Unner was now trapped in the room, it could be used to Liam's advantage.
Without lengthy introductions, the man spoke:
«Head, I am convinced that you will be attempted to be killed or wounded soon.»
Liam dropped his food in surprise and looked at his apprentice surprise.
«Earlier you were attacked near the Academy, knowing you would be defenseless. The enemy used your long-standing injury to inflict the most damage. A crystal was stolen from you, depriving you of some of your strength and your ability to call for help. While you were resting now, someone left a bouquet with a poisonous stem inside that caused unconsciousness and worse.»
Liam listened to the apprentice with increasing anxiety.
«I have an idea how to fool the conspirators.»
«And how?» The head was ready to trust him.
«I'll tell you in your ear.»
Liam nodded. Cal walked over and, bowing low, whispered his plan to the Head. He listened with understanding and nodded in agreement. Cal then summoned the Twelfth and the Seventh. As the man had requested, they both appeared with students who could be trusted.
Through skillful manipulation, one of the apprentices turned into the Twelfth Elder, and the man himself turned into Liam. Seven did not change his appearance. This group loaded the «Head» onto a stretcher. So the fake Liam left the Academy to recuperate.
The real Head, disguised as Unner, hid in the room of the student who had gone into seclusion. If their stratagem was successful, the assassination attempts should have stopped, at least temporarily.
***
The younger apprentice's room was rather cramped, but he modestly ceded the bed to the wounded Mentor and did not part with his egg. They had three days to come up with a further plan. Meanwhile, Cal went to the mess hall to make a supply of food.
A day later it was learned that Seventh and the "Head" had been attacked, but the attack had been repelled and the Chapter was now safe.
Every night one of the students escaped to get a dragon egg, and so far they have all been lucky.
A few more students locked themselves in their rooms to take care of the dragon egg, and it ceased to be anything out of the ordinary.
By the end of the third day, the shell began to crack; Unner, though frightened, did not let the egg out of his hands. Covered in gooseflesh and gritting his teeth, he grasped his treasure despite his terror.
The Mentor instructed him on what to do and everything went smoothly. After a couple of hours, the apprentice's room became oh-so-crowded.
The little yellow dragon was the size of a small stool. He acknowledged Unner as his master, and it was time to give him a name.
«May I call him Yolk?»
The head and the other student looked at him like he was a lunatic.
«Consider that it will grow to be a huge dragon, is it proper to call it by that name?» mildly admonished the apprentice Head.
«Then I'll sit and think again...» Unner agreed.
«Head, are you ready to move to another room?»
«Ah, where to?» asked Liam, who already seemed like a rolling field to himself.
«My place,» Cal said.
«But...» Liam wanted to object.
"I'm getting an egg tonight and I'm going into seclusion for three days, too."
«Good plan,» the Head wanted to praise him, but he held back and said nothing.
«Don't worry, I've already prepared a room, there's plenty of room, two beds, and all the amenities,» the apprentice assured the Mentor.
He had to agree.
***
Cal went to the lake and was the first to venture out that night, so the veil closed behind him, shrouding everything in fog.
Already the poisonous flowers were blooming, but the dragon did not appear.
The man paced back and forth in anticipation and suddenly realized his blunder - the cloaking technique was completely changing his personality.
Releasing his true nature, he sat down on the lake shore and concentrated.
After a few minutes, the water in the lake seemed to boil. Cal stood up, and froze expectantly, looking at the water.
At first, he didn't realize what it was, he thought a dragon with five heads had come ashore, but then he discerned that it was only a paw.
«What is that!» Cal wanted to exclaim, but he couldn't, for his voice failed him.
A huge, mountain-sized red dragon came ashore. It slowly looked around until it saw the man.
Looking long and intently into Cal's very soul, he tested him and, left satisfied, dropped its crystal tear, which became a huge egg.
The man barely had time to catch it before everything around him trembled, and the huge dragon collapsed on the shore.
Cal had not yet taken a single class at the Academy and could not even tell the difference between dragons by the elements.
He only clutched his treasure tighter and prepared to attack. But nothing happened.
He waited, but the shore was empty and silent. Suddenly someone called out to him.
«Cal, where are you?» He heard Liam's voice, and he got goose bumps.
He looked around and saw his friend. He stepped around the dragon, lying on the ground, and then stooped down in front of him.
The man shook his head. «Impossible! You can't go in there!»
«Cal, I am Head of the Academy, after all. Do you think some sort of veil is going to stop me? Give me the egg, it's too big, I'll take care of it...»
The fake Head held out his hands, but Cal took a few steps back. The illusion was too real; he could hardly keep from running up to Liam.
Seeing that the trick had failed, Brigitte stepped in. Cal was sweating with fear. The bride pulled out a knife and began to run it around Liam's neck.
The Mentor sorrowfully asked Cal to protect him, to save him, to get him out of here. He promised that the two of them would live away from worries and sorrows and love each other.
«Please drop the damn egg and save me!» screamed Liam, «Isn't my life more important than some dragon?»
Cal wished he could plug his ears, but he couldn't. Brigitte did her crowning trick of plunging a knife into the Head's shoulder. Cal sank to his knees and trembled. He dreamed of the dawn.
Suddenly his first teacher appeared beside him. He walked silently toward him with a dagger in his hand. Cal ran, but his enemies soon caught up with him.
«You don't love me,» Liam pulled the dagger from his shoulder and went for the man.
«It's your fault, you cursed your father and mother,» The ritual bones fell beside Cal, and he saw the shaman's angry face.
Everyone who hated Cal, as well as those he loved, came together to drive him mad. He hadn't expected it to be this hard. Hugging the egg tighter, he felt the stab of the knife. Fake Liam plunged the blade, aiming for his heart.
«Does that feel good?» He asked, «It didn't feel good that you left me!»
«No, it's not true,» he muttered, shielding himself from his attackers.
They attacked him altogether and the lights went out...
A handsome man with white hair lay on the shore of the lake, clasping his hands tightly and protecting his dragon. Death receded under the bountiful rays of the sun... Praise the gods!
He opened his eyes and remembered. A frost chilled him to the bone. He stood up slowly, not letting the egg out of his hands, and washed his face with lake water.
Then he realized that his face and hair were not right. After assuming the right appearance, he picked up the egg, but it burned his hands violently at the same second.
«What's the matter?» Cal lamented. He sat down on the bank and stared at his strange prey for a long time.
«So the dragon in the egg is smart enough to understand my cunning? Maybe then talking to him will help me resolve the misunderstanding?» he suggested.
«Lord-dragon!» Cal began, «You're right, I am changing my appearance. But I do it to protect the man I love.»
The egg shook incredulously.
«If anyone here knew my true face and name, I would surely be chased away, and hurt the one I love the most. Tell me, dragon lord, have you ever loved?»
The egg did not move. Taking this as agreement, Cal continued:
«I give you my word as Protector that I have no malicious intent in hiding who I am. You will soon see for yourself that I am an honest and sincere man. Please don't reject me, give me a chance to take care of you and the man I love.»
Cal thought the egg snorted. He shook his head in surprise and tried to touch it-no more baking. He exhaled and gently took the egg in his hands.
«Thank you, Mr. Dragon! I hope that when you reveal your form, I will be able to find a suitable name for you.»
And then the name «Legion» appeared in Cal's mind. He was surprised, but the name came up again and again, and only when he mentally said: «Okay, Legion so Legion, did» the egg seem to stop bothering him.
Cal felt himself freeze, treading on the dew, and suddenly the egg began to warm, but not as fiercely as the last time, but with very gentle warmth, so that the man soon warmed up, touching it.
«Thank you!» he said and smiled. It seemed to him that the creature inside the egg had relaxed and was going to sleep.
«How can I feel it?» Cal thought, and his night killers flashed before his eyes. He shuddered and heard a voice in his head:
«Why do you think everyone goes through such a terrible ordeal that they even have to sacrifice their lives?»
«I don't know,» Cal muttered.
«Because a dragon is willing to die for its man and almost always does, protecting him. Only one is worthy of this honor who is willing to give his life for a dragon, even if not for real.»
That profound thought sent shivers down Cal's spine again. He gently stroked the shell and pressed the egg to his heart.
He thought of something else. Dragons don't go through this kind of journey to become human companions for nothing. In the few days that the apprentice takes care of the egg, it begins to become attached to it.
And a hatching dragon becomes even more intimate. Cal remembered the first time he'd seen a "yolk" and his heart had melted with tenderness.
Now he was carrying the dragon egg, treading slowly so he wouldn't shake.