Something was wrong. Had been wrong, now, for the last two weeks.

For "starters", the "concepts" of "arbitrary" "lengths" of "time" had "entered" his "lexicon". A "week"? A "passage" of "six" "day"-"night" "cycles"? "Two" of them, "twelve" "days"? What "value" did this have to him? Why had he suddenly started to "think" this way?

It was unnatural. His view of the world, somehow, had been [b]soiled.[/b] That he was even aware of this, that he was now putting into "words" what had before been pure "instinct"-

His tethers to the dragons of his tribe had been compromised. His connection to them, whilst untouched, could nevertheless not be repaired. "Repaired". Fixed, mended, put back together. A time when concepts had flashed through his head like bolts of lightning, known but unnamed, now seemed painfully distant, though it had been merely two weeks since-

For the first time since his arrival, he exerted his frustration outwardly, noise leaving his throat as a guttural roar of angst and fury as he broke down a great many trees, trying in vain to quiet his mind's newfound eloquence. This disgusted him. This was unwanted, this was not what he knew.

Again: it was unnatural. [i]Something[/i] had imposed it upon him, against his will or knowledge, and no matter how he demanded it, it kept slipping back in... from where? How, what, in what way could he deal with this? His dragons served no good purpose in this regard, for they too were affected, or at least so unaffected that they could not-

No. That discredited them. Since the arrival of the dragon-hawks, more had joined the pack. Drake-hounds, dragon-lions, drake-moles... and, amusingly, yet more hives of drake-termites. They seemed to be everywhere. Not to mention their dragon-wasp cousins, which had only been discovered eight days prior.

Them. They were the key. It was a wide berth, a broad area that his herd covered. The territory of the dragon-wasps ought to cover a broad spectrum. But, simply tuning into their senses, what they saw and felt... a region they should have been within was, simply put, [i]empty.[/i] And, if he was careful, and if he caught what ailed him in his thoughts, followed its thread, never touching it for what it may do it his mind...

Abruptly, he broke into a sprint, charging down the identified threat - a dragon, yes, but nothing so pleasant as those he'd known before. Not a dragon of meat, but of raw emotion, energy that threatened to infiltrate his being through its mere presence, alluring in its very nature - that was to say, unnatural.

The thing he tackled to the earth, grasped bodily in both sets of great claws, was nothing short of both erogenous and horrifying. Its shape, very roughly, matched his own, though faintly purplish and half-female in sex, as if a breeding pair had been forced into each other's space until they merged, its body ensconsed in grotesque, mismatched metal and black hide, with one manipulator replaced with... it seemed a claw, albeit rather than many distinct digits, it simply presented one overlarge, crushing appendage. A fist to his hand. And he'd been right: its very energy repulsed and aroused in equal measure, such that a mere dragon would soon be taken over by it. No wonder its territory was empty, those dragons leaving it had surely been killed to prevent its infection from spreading further.

[color=630460]"Haaaaa. Well doooooone,"[/color] it trilled at him. [i]Words.[/i] Was this what had been put into his, his, mind, these... utterances of meaning?

[color=630460]"Why are you waitiiiing? I want my rewaaaaaard."[/color]

He knew very well what that meant.

He'd not give this nightmare anything of the sort.

His claws dug into its flesh, and he ripped it in twain vertically, head-first- or attempted to, for as it perished its very form dissolved in his grasp, dissipating like air with a displeasing cackle of delight, and leaving him grasping nothing before it could be entirely bisected. But at long last, his mind stilled a ways... the discomfort of its presence faded. Alas, his thoughts remained verbal... but, at least, the threat of its intoxicating energy was erased.

[color=ed145b]'Well [i]that's[/i] a touch rude, dear.'[/color] He whirled to face the speaker. Another being, again matching his own nature - two-legged, two-armed, walking upright. This one, at least, was entirely female, judging by its features and its lengthy blonde head-fur. [color=ed145b]'Syn'veey'n took a [i]long[/i] time to [i]manifest,[/i] you know. Still, with [i]you[/i] here...'[/color]

He looked at her without expression, examining for a time. Unlike himself, she was covered, though barely - thin pink fabric draped over her in places, obscuring her body in ways that, it seemed, intended to allure much as the energy of the thing invading his head had, albeit... not so overtly. The effort here was entirely physical, or so it seemed. Nothing touching his thoughts now. Indeed, as she looked back at him with unrestricted interest, he quickly realised that she too was a physical being - dragon in truth, instead of mere presence. But... not even that?

...what was a "human"?

[color=ed145b]'Oh, my [i]apologies,[/i]'[/color] she uttered, as if realising for the first time. [color=ed145b]'This must all be [i]very[/i] confusing for you, darling.'[/color] An affectionate name. He lacked any name so far, in fact. It had been unnecessary, after all. In fact, it still was.

[color=ed145b]'Perhaps I'll explain, then,'[/color] the female- no, "woman" was the word, that was how "humans" preferred to be called. "Woman" and "man". [color=ed145b]'You see, I, and those I [i]associate[/i] with, realised not so long ago that the [i]dragons[/i] in the area were acting... [i]strangely.[/i]'[/color] They'd yet to return to the area, he acknowledged. [color=ed145b]'And lo and behold, what do we find upon seeking through the Veil? [i]You,[/i] you delightful morsel!'[/color]

Food? No, another term of affection. She wished to mate with him, no doubt.

[color=ed145b]'And when we realised it was a [i]human[/i] doing all this, well! I suppose you see how much we [i]value[/i] you, hmm?'[/color] Tentatively, he nodded, not entirely sure what she meant, before she added [color=ed145b]'Oh, perhaps I ought to [i]introduce[/i] myself, dear. I am [i]Shamhat[/i], Seer of the Most [i]Potent[/i] and [i]Luxurious[/i] City of Euphro-Uruk. It is a... [i]genuine pleasure[/i] to make your acquaintance... how should I label you... Forest Son?'[/color] This last statement was not preferable to him, he had to be frank. The word itself naturally lent far more depth than those two meanings alone, to do with knowledge of the environment, and with the emergence of man from water and knowledge where woman emerged from earth and feeling; and to do as well with the suggestion of lordship, of innate goodness no matter the locale, and therefore dominion over any land he strode upon and all within it.

Both bothered him greatly to consider. They reminded him of what he'd lost.

[color=ed145b]'I am [i]sorry,[/i] sweetling,'[/color] she continued, seeing what was on his mind through his features as she approached at a stroll. [color=ed145b]'I say again, this must all be [i]so sudden[/i] for you, to be hit with such [i]strange[/i] things after [i]so[/i] long alone... the dragons, of course, but they aren't [i]wonderful[/i] companions, are they?'[/color] True, they served as good allies, but if he thought back... well, what they presented in their own thoughts, their own perceptions, was never up to par with the way his own conception of reality came together. It was as if he were... not merely one step ahead of them, but ten, or even twenty or more. Perhaps this, then, his final cognition of language, was inevitable, for more humans than just himself existed on this... world... well, of course, there was a whole world out there, of dragons and of humans, yes, and indeed it seemed there were far more dragons than humans, enough that the humans might struggle against them.

[color=ed145b]'Oh [i]yes[/i], dear, a [i]great[/i] struggle,'[/color] Shamhat confirmed for him, smiling as she reached him. [color=ed145b]'You see [i]why[/i] you are so important? [i]You,[/i] you [i]alone[/i] love, can turn the tide of this [i]dreadful[/i] predicament we're in. Although, as long as we [i]are[/i] currently alone... I'm sure you understand [i]breeding[/i] amongst dragons, of course, but you don't know [i]exactly[/i] what you've been missing, [i]do you?[/i]'[/color] Hmm, was that important? Well, she still wished to mate. Did he want that, too? She'd laid a hand on his chest, as if confirming what her eyes told her. [color=ed145b]'Perhaps, whilst we're [i]here[/i], whilst we're [i]alone[/i], my charming young man... perhaps you'd give me the [i]honour[/i] of letting me show you [i]just[/i] how good it can be?'[/color]

Perhaps... as if seeing what was on his mind again, wanting to help him make the decision, her hand slid lower-

On his mind-

In- she was [i]in his mind-[/i]

[color=ed145b]'HURCK-!'[/color] Her advances, on both his head and his body, were swiftly interrupted by his hand through her guts, the rending claws tearing the abdominal cavity open. His arm had passed straight through like it was water. Compared to even the pithiest dragons of her size, she was as fragile as a leaf.

[color=f26522]'You have ruined my peace,'[/color] he muttered to her. Of course she had, [i]she[/i] was the master of the emotion-thing claiming dragonhood. [i]Stupid of him,[/i] to not realise after the [i]same sort of attack![/i] Was he so easily taken by these [i]corruptions?[/i] He-

[i]She was still in there![/i]

[color=ed145b]'Nnnnnugh...'[/color] And what was that [i]moan?[/i] Why was she [i]blushing?![/i] That wasn't the agony of impending death, that was [i]sexual![/i] And she'd thought-

Just as suddenly, waves of feeling flooded him. Not dissimilar to the energy of the dragon he'd just torn open, easily as vile and appealing in equal measure if not moreso. More focused, though. Her own pain and pleasure from being impaled, pressured into him in an effort to force his hand- or other aspects of him, no doubt. Was this what all other humans experienced? Was he doomed to-

No. Ironically, the more extreme sensations refocused his instinct. Instinct: his true refuge after all, for it brought him back to his truth. It acted for him.

One swift movement crushed her entire head within his jaws, and at once she went limp, her attempt on his psyche evaporating like so much mist. As if a wall broke, he felt the dragons of his pack approach once more, the threat undone now that the head behind it was gone. Even still, her body shuddered, as if- no, not that. This was the shudder of reality reasserting itself, as her true form presented from beneath the illusion, a twisted, crone-like figure with still-writhing tendrils erupting from the flesh of each limb, the hand that had touched him a half-claw unto itself, as if armoured to assemble into the form at will. Awful. And [i]that[/i] had sought to mate with him.

He reverted to instinct again, and spat up a ball of flame to burn away the body. Not just spat, though - he'd learned his fire-spitting some time ago. This was much the same as Shamhat's attack on his mind... "psychic". Though his, at least, was purer. More honest. At the very least, it helped cleanse the flavour of her brain and blood from his teeth, tainted as her meat was; nonetheless, its presence alone gave him... unexpected insight.

The city. Euphro-Uruk. He did not wish to approach it, but now at least he knew where it was. If he was to go there, he needed to define himself against its lingering, body-snaring ache. His instincts were a potent shield in a pinch, but to form true armour for himself- and indeed for every dragon in his hive- demanded will and proper understanding too.

And... another city? Qal'Asurah... not the same. Different culture, hated by Shamhat, a separation from Euphro-Uruk of over two hundred kilometers. But as close as it from his current locale... hmm...

Was it safer? Unlikely. But he could approach at least. Enter. Examine. And, if they were enemies of Euphro-Uruk as the new knowledge proposed... the attack on his senses was not to be expected, in that case.

Yes. No dragons, they'd have to wait beyond its limits for safety, but... he could learn more from this than he'd ever known before.

For the first time, he had a goal to direct himself toward.

...bah. He spat at Shamhat's melting corpse one last time, then began his trek.