After grabbing a bite to eat, Harley wanted to hang out more with Ethan, however, she was stopped by Pamela.
"We can't stay out too long. We're criminals remember?" She said while whispering the last part as they walked the streets of Gotham.
"Come ooon~, can't we have a little fun?" Harley replied, wrapping her arm around Ethan's, clinging to him tightly.
A wide grin then graced her lips as she drew her face closer to his own, "You wanna have fun, right? We'll do some n-"
Pamela suddenly pulled her away, "That's enough!" She growled. 'I won't let you take her from me!' She thought as she gave Ethan a glare to which he replied with a shrug.
"I should be on my way. I have a few things I need to do." Ethan smiled, shrugging his shoulders.
"No! Don't leave me!" Harley screamed, drawing the attention of several people that walked by.
'Crazy girlfriend on the loose,' They all thought before they continued on their way. They were probably going to tell people about them later.
"You can't leave! Not yet! Please!" She said, pulling Ethan into a strong embrace, burying her face in his chest. "Don't...please..."
Pamela immediately frowned at this reaction.
She knew she had some affection for the villainess when teamed up in the past. The Joker had kicked Harley out on several occasions and she just officially broke things off him and here she was fawning over another man!
'Grrr...I'll make him my slave and work him to the bone so that he'll never see Harley again! I just need to get close to him...'
After a few minutes of talking, Pamela agreed to let Ethan come over during the night.
'I plan on seeing him much sooner though...' Pamela smirked, tossing a seed towards Ethan's back as it instantly grew into a small plant humanoid avatar that latched onto his shirt without him noticing.
"You better not forget or I'll come hunt ya down~," Harley said with an innocent smile, but somehow Ethan found it scarier than a certain plant lady glaring at him.
"I won't," Ethan answered with a wave of his hand.
Once they separated, Ethan found a shady motel to check-in at. It was decent for the price and they didn't ask questions so it was perfect for him at the moment.
Ethan gave the room a brief look before locking the door behind him, as he contacted Tydris with his mind.
'I'm ready.' He said as he mentally prepared himself to get stronger. One day he'll be strong enough to realize his idea he had just moments ago and that was to make his own group or company to make money for himself.
However, he needs to know that he can take anything the world decides to throw at him as he won't be on the side of good or evil.
He'll strive for the in-between and live how the way he wanted without anyone controlling his decisions.
("Finally, let's begin!") Tydris happily replied.
>>>><<<<
Several things were explained to Ethan over the hours he'd spoke with the dragon.
The first thing he learned was the fact that he learned he was only a small part of him was dragon. Tydris explained that his situation was the first of its kind as typically dragons only pass on their powers to other dragons, but in time when he gets stronger, he will be a full-fledged dragon.
'What happened to them?' Ethan asked.
("We were wiped out by the ones we called friends and our saviors...I'll tell you the story, but for now I do not wish to speak of it") Tydris bitterly said.
'Right...'
The second thing is that there are different stages of a dragon which are as follows:
-Fledgling Dragon
-Dragon Baron
-Dragon Viscount
-Dragon Earl
-Dragon Marquess
- Dragon Duke
-Divine Dragon Emperor
-Sacred Dragon God
Currently, Ethan was only a fledgling, but even at that stage he already several times stronger and faster than a normal human being. But each stage comes with a unique power-up along with the standard increase in strength.
At the Baron stage, Ethan would be able to use a breath attack. He didn't find that too amazing, but what he could do with that fire was what interested him. Being the successor of the golden dragon meant that he could use different elements such as ice or lightning.
And at the viscount stage is where things get even more interesting as he would be able to use Dragon Magic such as summoning Dragon Guards which were beings that serve under their master unconditionally. Dragon Guards can't use magic, but they could have strength rivaling that of a Dragon Earl which is said to be able to destroy an entire county in a night.
'Dragon Guards huh? That would help to have people to watch my back...How do I get stronger?' He asked.
("Dragon are inherently strong from the time they are born, but to get stronger, one must increase the amount of Dragonic Essence inside of their body which is stored in the heart. Dragons are able to convert the energies of the universe into their own by absorption. The air here is bad...but there are traces of energy to absorb... take a seat.")
Ethan nodded and sat down on the bed.
("Now...close your eyes and concentrate tell me what you feel...")
After closing his eyes, Ethan started to copy what he saw in old martial art movies and cleared his mind of useless thoughts. He'd slow down his breathing to a crawl, blocking out any noise that would be considered a distraction.
Ethan would stay like this for nearly thirty minutes, but even after all that time he still couldn't feel anything.
'I feel...nothing..'
("You're not trying hard enough. Try again.")
He sighed and focused once more, trying even harder to sense something.
But still, he could not and nearly a full hour would go by.
'I still can't feel anything...Can you describe what I'm trying to sense?'"
("Absolutely-")
'Great!' Ethan smiled.
("Not.")
'What?! Why not?!' He snapped.
("Because...it feels different for every single dragon...no dragon uses the same energy to cultivate. You may be my successor, but the only thing we pass on is a minor increase in strength and the ability to hold more Dragon Essence. The only ones that are able to this are Dragon Duke's and above. Most dragons don't even make it to the 5th stage. So as a way to make our race stronger we created a way to pass part of our strength to the ones we deem worthy. )
'Is it because I'm still part human that I can't sense any energy?'
("No...where I'm from, humans were also able to cultivate with the same energy. However, their process is quite different from ours.)
'Do you know how they cultivated? maybe it would give me an idea?' Ethan thought as Tydris said that his situation was unique.
(Of course, I don't know how they cultivated! Why should I pay attention to ones that are weaker than myself? Even the strongest of their kind couldn't stand the power of one of my claws!)
'Wow.. ' Ethan thought, rolling his eyes a bit. However, honestly, he thought it was quite cool, but he wasn't going to let Tydris know.
The way the link between him and Tydris was a bit odd as the dragon can hear his thoughts only when he wants him to listen. However; this also works vice-versa, otherwise, he's sure he would have a worse time dealing with him on a daily basis.
(" You...! I was capable of bringing down the sky with just a roar. I could rip through the earth with a single swipe of my claw! I had hundreds of thousands of dragons at my beck and call!! I was even desired by other races other than my own! I ruled with....") Tydris suddenly grew silently in the middle of explaining his grandeur.
'Ruled with what-'
("DO NOT SPEAK WITH ME!!!") Tyrdis shouted before releasing a harsh sounding roar that startled Ethan and even caused a bit of pain.
("I-I...I must have some time to think...continue trying to sense the energy...do not stop for if you do then you may not be able to sense again for quite some time...")
>>>><<<<
Night finally came to Gotham.
A time where criminal activity reached its peak and when their protector known as Batman roams the city, looking to keep the city safe.
However, even he couldn't know that one of the cities known criminals was casually strolling in the open with no plans of stealing or causing chaos.
The criminal had something else on her mind and that was a man named Ethan.
"Soon you'll be under my control and I'll use you until you are worthless," Pamela whispered to herself. She had told Harley that she had something important to do, but even then the blonde wasn't paying much attention as she was waiting for Ethan to come visit them.
Earlier she had planted one of her avatars on him, and she could track it to a certain extent as something was interfering with their connection. However, after hours of searching, she finally arrived at the location which happened to be a motel which was perfect as they won't ask questions.
But as a precaution...
The man at the front desk becomes stunned by the beautiful woman that just walked in into their motel and immediately starts to straighten himself up before clearing his throat.
"W-welcome ma'am How m-may I help you?" The man stammered out as his eyes travel up and down her body.
The redhead had on a short red dress that cut off a bit before her knees, showing off her long beautiful legs that wore opaque black thigh-high stockings. On her feet were black red bottom heels that made a crisp tapping sound each step she took.
"I sure do hope you can help me~," The woman said, letting her black coat she wore hang off her shoulders as she leaned across the desk.
As soon as the woman got close to the man he started to feel nervous and a bit aroused.
The woman's eyes were piercing forest green, her skin stunningly white, and her full-lips looked almost delicious as the front desk worker couldn't help but make an audible gulp.
"Ah-...Oh.." However, before the man could speak again he felt his mind becoming fuzzy, and soon the woman in front of him became the only thing he thought about.
"I'm looking for someone...won't you tell me?" She said, blowing a kiss towards him just as a pink gas expelled from her mouth, covering his face.
"Of course I'll help...I love you so much." The man said, staring into her eyes.
"Good~"
At this moment, Ethan was still trying to sense the energy in the air, and as luck would have it, he started to feel something.
It felt strange...almost as if it was not even there.
But somehow, he could feel something warm swirl around him.
The more he focused on the feeling, the more the warmth became more prominent, and unconsciously he started to gather that warmth within him.
There was a tinge of pain, but soon it started to feel good and made him let out a great sigh of relief. He became so lost in the feeling that he couldn't hear the noise of someone in heels walking down the hallway.
*Tap*
*Tap*
*Tap*