Judge was sleeping peacefully in his egg, oblivious to the destruction outside. But his mind had decided to take a little field trip. He stood in front of Clio—his own personal deity, or at least she should be, given how often they were meeting lately.
"Why am I here—uh, Cli—Clio?" Judge stammered, tripping over the name like it was a rogue piece of sidewalk.
He had never stuttered before, not even when he was alive and doing business deals with people who thought they'd outsmarted him. But here? It was a whole different story, it was like he was a completely different person when in front of the deity of stories. The place was dark, with no light anywhere, yet he could see Clio and himself as clear as day. Creepy? Maybe.
"I told you yesterday that you could achieve whatever you desire, right?" Clio's smile was starting to become less annoying, though Judge wasn't sure if that was good or just Stockholm syndrome.
"Yeah, you did. So…?" He didn't trust that smile. That was the kind of smile that people gave when they were about to hand you a contract with a lot of fine print.
"Well, you can't wake up right now. There's kind of a... situation in your city." She said it so casually, like she was talking about a mild inconvenience instead of, you know, chaos.
Judge's blood pressure (if he still had one) spiked. "And what about Mom? And Dad?!"
Clio waved off his panic with the grace of someone who's seen too many doomsdays to care. "Relax. No one's going to die. After all, if there's one thing nobody seems to grasp—despite it being painfully obvious—it's to never, ever underestimate the dragons."
Her smile morphed from "mildly irritating" to "oddly comforting." Judge hated that. Comfort wasn't exactly his vibe right now. Warmth? Bad memories of being stuffed in a flaming pouch by his mother. And he definitely never wanted to remember the warm vine.
"Okay, so why am I here then?" Judge asked, realizing he couldn't move. Great, now he was a statue.
"Oh, I just thought it'd be fun to tell you more about the world you're living in—important stuff you'll need to know once you wake up." Clio snapped her fingers, and suddenly a giant throne appeared beneath her. She sat down, looking way too regal. "I wanted you to learn it at your own pace, but, well, you know... circumstances."
"More world-building? Ugh, fine. Let's get this over with." Judge sighed, now finding himself also on a throne—still immobile though. "Can you see the future? Wait, no, you're a deity... of course, you can."
Clio chuckled like she was talking to a child who had just asked if the sky was blue. "No, no one can see the future. What I can see is more... complex."
"Great. Explain it in the simplest way possible."
Clio leaned back, her expression like someone about to drop the ultimate truth bomb. "Okay, imagine your life as a book, and I'm the author. I know what I've planned for the future, but I can always change it. But here? I don't have the power to change anything or dictate what the story will change into."
Judge blinked. "Right. Got it. Sort of. Let's just get to the world-building part, shall we?"
Clio's face shifted from amused deity to Serious Mode in 0.2 seconds. "Right. So, you know you've been born as a dragon, correct?"
"Yeah, I picked up on that."
"Well, here's the kicker: the existence of dragons is known to only a small, very specific group of people. Your city? It's hidden. Like, super hidden. Think of it as the VIP section of a club, except no one knows it even exists."
"Hidden dragons, secret city. Got it." Judge said, trying to process what sounded like a Dungeons & Dragons fan's fever dream. "So, we're in some kind of elite bubble?"
"Basically. Your family—and by extension, you—are part of a race of creatures that could obliterate civilizations if they wanted.
But they don't, mostly because they've never wanted to do something so tedious, and due to an agreement between some other existence. The downfall of all dragons is that they are the laziest creature in existence, but even the least lazy sloth is still way above your league.
"Nice. World-ending potential with a side of restraint." Judge nodded. This was starting to sound more manageable.
Clio continued, "But the city's hidden nature is more than just secrecy. It's physically cut off, protected by layers of magic, enchantments, and a network of other, more... complex defenses."
"Then how the heck did our enemies get in? If it was so secure, nobody should be able to attack it. Or did someone intentionally let them in?" Judge felt pretty smug for connecting the dots.
Clio clapped her hands. "Bingo! But I won't tell who did. There is an anti teleport barrier that's keeping you from escaping. The cultists trying to wreck the city set it up, and your mom and her merry gang of super-powered friends are working on getting rid of it. It's not easy, but let's face it—nothing involving dragons ever is."
Judge exhaled sharply. "Great. And my part in all this? Sitting in an egg?"
"Hey, someone has to stay safe! You're important, after all." Clio gave him another one of her annoyingly comforting smiles. "But don't worry, you're not going to stay in that egg forever. Once things settle down, there's a whole world for you to conquer—er, explore."
"Conquer, explore... same thing," Judge said, suddenly feeling a weird sense of anticipation. He was a dragon, after all. Time to live up to the family legacy.
Clio tilted her head, looking at him like she knew something he didn't. "Oh, you'll do just fine, Judge. Just remember, this isn't just about power. It's about knowledge, control, and timing. And trust me, you'll have plenty of all three soon enough."
"Well, that sounds... ominous," Judge muttered.
Clio grinned, "Ominous? Nah, just your usual existential life lesson. Have fun with it!" She stood up, "Oh! I almost forgot. The colleague I said you would meet later," her grin turned into a huge smile, "looks like you two are destined to meet sooner." vanishing with a final wave.
And just like that, Judge was alone in the darkness. Again. Still stuck in his throne, with way too much new information swirling in his head.
"So, secret dragon city, powerful family, world-altering powers... no pressure." He sighed, "And now I have to meet my coworker? I am not paid enough for this." He could now move, so he got up and willed to leave the place.
"Okay, time to wake up." But he forgot that he couldn't wake up since he was inside an egg.