Ink Forged

~A Bright Start~

When Maevus woke up, she bolted upright in a soft bed, staring wildly around at the room she was in. 

Sunlight glowed through a window to her left, gilding everything in soft gold. A desk sat in front of the window, just to the left of the bed. Across the room, there was a worn armchair beside a small table. The wall opposite the bed held a dresser and empty bookshelves. 

Another window was just above her bed, granting her a spectacular view of the city and the mountains toward the west.

She suddenly remembered where she was and slumped back into her pillows.

After his warning last night, Master Vraylor had led her up to the third floor of the guild and down a long hallway, stopping at the farthest door. With only a few words of explanation, he'd said the room was hers if she wanted it. 

Maevus had argued, saying she couldn't afford to pay for a room. To her shock, the master had waved off her worries, saying she could talk to him about it in the morning.

Exhaustion had made her take his offer, not to mention the fact that she didn't exactly have any other options.

Maevus sat up in the bed again and moved to where she was kneeling in front of the western window, staring out over the city. How exactly was she supposed to survive in this place? 

A small crackle of flame sparked into being in front of her, and she let out a soft laugh as Lox settled in her lap, his little triangular ears perked toward the city. He put his forepaws on the sill, spade-tipped tail twitching lazily against her stomach.

"What do you think?" she asked the dragon, who looked at her over his shoulder. The crimson quills along his back lifted, then lowered in the dragon equivalent of a shrug. She snorted. "Yeah. Me too."

A soft knock on her door had both of them jumping, Lox leaping from her lap to the floor. His carnelian wings flared, sparks snapping around the pearly talon protruding from the first joint of each. 

"Maevus?" The voice was high and sweet. And vaguely familiar. "It's Letya. We sort of met yesterday?"

Maevus stared blankly at the door for a moment, then peered down at Lox. His agitation melded with her blood and smoke curled on her tongue. Maevus blew out the mouthful of smoke, coughing as she gave the dragon a reprimanding look.

He only growled in response as she finally got off the bed, creeping forward. Lox flapped his wings and landed on her back, his claws latching into her shirt as he peered over her shoulder. Maevus opened the door to find the petite Encant staring down the hallway.

She was in a bright yellow sundress today. Her raven hair was up in a complicated twist, held in place by hairpins with dozens of tiny amber beads dripping from their tips, framing her pretty face with gold. They clinked together musically as she turned back to look up at Maevus.

Maevus was suddenly self-conscious of the threadbare, grey shirt she was wearing and her faded leather trousers—the only clothes she had at the moment. She ran a hand through her messy, red hair and opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off when Letya saw Lox.

She let out an excited squeal and pushed into the room, eyes glued on the little dragon. The fire-dragon let out a startled chuff, and launched off of Maevus to perch on a light fixture just above the bed. He hissed at Letya, then cocked his head, looking like an overgrown bat.

Maevus couldn't help the quiet giggle that escaped. Lox flicked an ear at her, slit-pupil, amber eyes locked on Letya, who looked a second away from combusting with glee.

"He's adorable!" she gushed. "He's one of your dragons, right? Savy said you had more than one. How many do you have? Can you really use their power for yourself? He's so pretty. What's his name? What kind of dragon is he?"