There was an endless field of grass, flowers, and trees in Sable's sight. Families of deers roamed through the tall grass, munching on flower buds while butterflies flapped about, hovering over prickly bushes.
"This must be Keen Valley." Muttered Sable.
She walked along a dirt road, hoping to find civilization soon, knowing she could gather some food and gear since she was starving from the lack of breakfast.
"I'm pretty lucky to be summoned here, it's one of the most peaceful places in Telltale Chronicles; there are no dragons, demons, or goblins who can rob you of your belongings."
Sighing in relief, I closed my eyes and bathed in the sun.
"It's been so long since I last felt the sun on my skin. It's always dark and gloomy back home, and I never go outside. Maybe I needed this."
Rustle…Rustle…
On second thought, maybe I didn't. My body tensed up as I heard something rustling in the bushes behind me—
"Eh?"
I turned around, anticipating danger as my survival instinct went haywire.
I know I said Keen Valley was a peaceful place, but who knows if it has other people ready to mug me in broad daylight?!
"Hello?"
I called out to the person, or animal behind the bushes, waiting for a response of some kind.
"Uhm... I'm kinda lost, can you help me?"
Assuming it was another person, maybe they were friendly, though I was taking a major risk right now.
"..."
The rustling stopped, but so did the chirping of birds.
Everything went quiet as if a predator was nearby.
Maybe it's time I run for the hills.
Staying silent, I turned around and booked it up the pathway, not wasting any time dealing with whatever was stalking me.
My fear was akin to running upstairs after you turn off all the lights in the house.
Dying right now just sounds pitiful!
"Nope, nope, nope!"
There's no way I can handle any kind of beast, especially with [Sage]. What am I gonna do? Analyze it?
Wait...
"That's it!"
I turned around and stood in place, extending my hand forward to manifest my gift.
"Sage!!"
Pointing at my desired location, I tracked the beast in the bushes and managed to pull up their information.
I could see their level, stats, and gifts in my field of vision.
"It's a... baby dragon?"
What the hell?
"What is a baby dragon doing in Keen Valley?"
I lowered my hand and removed the hub bar from my field of vision, approaching the bush with less anxiety.
There were sounds of whining as if it was in distress.
Wasting no time, I spread open the bushes to see a white and pink baby dragon with an injured leg.
"Oh shucks..."
It looked up at me with teary eyes as it curled its tail in curiosity.
"Are you okay? That's a very nasty injury you got there."
There was a large gash on its thigh, leaving it unable to walk.
"Where's your mother?"
I didn't wanna touch it, so I kept the bushes separated to speak to the little critter.
"Hmm... it's rare for baby dragons to be out without their mother, but then again, the mom is known to leave their babies whenever they're injured, considering them a burden."
At least, that's what I remember from reading Telltale Chronicles.
"Let's get you to a doctor, maybe they can fix you up, how does that sound?"
The baby dragon whined as it slowly crawled out of the bushes, standing in front of me.
I couldn't help but laugh and pat its head.
This one seemed to understand human language at such a young age, how peculiar.
"Ehehehe, you understand me, huh? Alright then, let's be on our way. Can you walk?"
It shook its head, giving me the obvious answer.
"Aw darn... it looks like I'll have to carry you."
"Carry them where?"
An unfamiliar voice reached my ears as I turned to face a group of people. One was blonde, while the other two were brunettes.
They had some decent armor and equipment that I needed more than ever.
"Huh? Who are you guys?"
To be honest, I was pretty happy to see other people, it was a breath of fresh air.
"Us? Our names don't matter, we come searching for that dragon you got there."
"The dragon? Why?" I lifted my brows in confusion, watching as the baby dragon hid behind my legs.
"It's ours for the taking, that's why! Now step away and hand it over!"
Wait a minute—these guys are responsible for the dragon's injury—there's no doubt about it.
"Yours for the taking? What do you plan on doing with it? Harvest it's scales?"
"Bwa Ha ha! Yeah, that's exactly it! You're smarter than you look, commoner!" Exclaimed the blondie.
"Commoner? Jokes on you, I'm not from this world."
They all gasped at my comment.
"Wait a second, are you an otherworlder, like us?"
"Eh? You guys are otherworlder's?"
We all widened our eyes, baffled at the revelations.
"So it wasn't only us who got sent here." Said one of the brunettes.
"Looks like it..." Said the other.
"What's your name?" Questioned the blonde.
"Hey, I asked first," I responded sarcastically.
"Touché." Said the blonde. "My name is Arnold."
"And my name is Dan." Said one of the brunettes.
"And I'm Gerald." Said the other brunette.
"Arnold, Dan, and Gerald, it's nice to meet you." I placed my hand on my chest. "My name is Sable Brawnheart! I was born and raised in Washington, and I'm currently sixteen. I'm assuming we're around the same age?"
They all nodded.
"Yeah, looks like it." Said Dan.
I may have been an introvert, but I knew how to hold a conversation at least.
It was also refreshing to know that other people were also brought into this world other than me.
"From what we know as of now, there could be millions of other people who were brought into Telltale Chronicles like us." Proclaimed Arnold.
"Yeah." Nodded Gerald. "Do you propose we go searching for them, Arnold?"
"Of course we do, but first, we have business to take care of."
Both Dan and Gerald glanced at the baby dragon behind my legs.
"You guys cannot be serious, are you still after the baby dragon? Leave it alone! Can't you see it's scared?" I shouted, standing in front of the critter.
"Huh?" Arnold mutated his expression into one of confusion. "Are you for real? You think this dragon is actually alive, and breathing?"
What was this guy on about?
"What do you mean by that?" I asked.
"Think about it for a second, we were summoned into a fictional world made up by some guy who sits in his room writing all day. What makes you think that any of this is real? It's fantasy." Proclaimed Arnold.
"Define 'real'!"
I said in boldface.
"…" Arnold went quiet, frowning at me. "I don't have time for this, just step aside, Sable, we'll make its death quick and painless if that's what you want."
These guys were monsters.
"Hell no, I'm not gonna let you kill it! Do you seriously want its mother chasing after you to avenge their child's death?!"
Dan scoffed.
"Avenge their child's death? No way in hell! The mother long left their baby after seeing it was injured."
Damn, these guys know their stuff.
"Wait a sec, this baby dragon… could it be the child of Tiamat?"
Thinking back, I saw Tiamat flying over my head when I was summoned to this world.
"Tiamat?" Arnold asked, confused.
Looks like he didn't make it far into the novel. Tiamat's character was introduced in volume 16.
Maybe I could use this to my advantage.
"Y-You never heard of Tiamat, the Dragon of Destruction?"
They all looked at me, concerned.
"She's a Legendary Dragon who will kill anyone who harms her children. If you guys injured her baby, she might've flown away to gather her family so she could hunt you three down. You guys messed up big time!"
I could see Dan and Gerald's expressions become increasingly worried, however, Arnold remained stoic as ever.
"That doesn't sound good at all…" Exclaimed Dan.
"Arnold, what should we do!?" Asked Gerald.
"Hmph. You guys honestly believe her?" He smirked. "How do we know if she's bluffing or not? I'm not gonna take her word for it."
"Bluffing?" I chuckled, trying to seem confident. "Since when did you read about there being a dragon with pink and white scales in Telltale Chronicles? They're a rare breed, different from the others."
My words seemed to make Arnold scowl.
"Oh? Quiet are we?"
A smug look arose upon my face.
"It's obvious you three haven't finished the novel, so naturally, you're unaware of Tiamat. Do you wanna risk your life by killing its baby?"
"Hmph…" Arnold crossed his arms, doubtful of my words. "I still don't believe you."
Damnit, this guy is skeptical as hell!
I was getting worried.
Looking back at the baby dragon, I cringed, trying to come up with another lie.
But then something clicked with me
"That's it…!" I whispered, turning to face them again. "Fine then, it's your funeral, but don't blame me when you get eaten. Tiamat's children are known to cry for their mother when they're in distress."
They all widened their eyes.
I looked back at the baby dragon, waiting to see if it understood my idea.
"That's right… Tiamat's children will shout to the sky and wait for their mother to come to their aid."
The baby dragon tilted its head at me, confused.
It understood human language, so maybe it would catch on to what I'm trying to put down.
"T-That's a lie!" Proclaimed Dan.
"I don't buy it for a second…" Said Gerald.
"What a terrible bluff." Said Arnold, unsheathing his sword. "Stand aside, Sable."
"Arrrgooooooo!"
All of a sudden, the baby dragon lifted its head to the sky and started shouting, amateurishly, for its mother.
Everyone froze while I widened my eyes with joy.
It worked!
The baby dragon understood my idea. This little guy was really intelligent.
"Arrrgoooooooo!"
"Hey… hey hey hey! Is it really doing what she said?!" Shouted Dan.
"Shit, Arnold, we have to go!"
Arnold gritted his teeth, staring at me with a frown.
"Damnit… we could've killed that thing before it started this nonsense, but you got in our way!"
"Yeah, I did, and what of it? I'm not gonna idly stand by and watch you slaughter a baby!"
"None of this is real, you lunatic!"
I grinned at his comment.
"If it's not real, then why are you running for your lives?"
Arnold twitched in his eye and booked it with his friends, but before they could depart, I stopped them.
"Hold on just a second!"
They all stopped in their tracks, turning to face me.
"Tiamat is a smart dragon if you didn't know, so she'll ask me where the people who attacked her baby went, and I'm obliged to tell her."
"What?! Are you gonna rat us out?" Shouted Gerald.
"Yes. I wouldn't hesitate for a second, but maybe I'll spare your lives, if…"
The atmosphere became tense as they waited for me to finish.
"—you give me everything you have."
"E-Everything?" Said Dan, disheartened.
"Yes, everything."