Dinner with dragons consisted of, unsurprisingly, a lot of red meat.

Jadis had never eaten whale before. While she had never had any intention of finding out, especially considering the history of whale hunting back on Earth, Jadis had to admit that she had always wondered what whales tasted like. Would they have a strong fishy taste, since they were creatures of the sea, or would they be more like a cow or maybe a pig, since they were mammals? Or would whales taste like the omni-option which encompassed all unusual proteins: chicken.

The answer was none of the above. Gamey was the word Jadis thought of as she chewed on the fatty piece of rare meat. A bit like venison, but not quite. She didn't hate the taste, but she definitely didn't think she would want to start hunting whales to put them on her regular menu, either. Maybe some more spices beyond the basic salt and pepper that they had brought with them on the airship would have made a difference, but as it was, Jadis was happy to leave eating whale as a one-time only experience.

The karkinos claw meat, on the other hand, was something she was willing to pay gold to get a steady supply of.

"This is the best tasting crab I have ever had," Syd moaned around a mouthful of the slightly purple meat. "It's so sweet and salty and just… dammit! I wish we had eaten that stupid fucking crab back in Glanum so bad right now!"

"I have never tasted anything like this before," Eir agreed, her eyes closed in bliss as she savored the bite of karkinos leg she had taken. "I could eat this every day."

"Doesn't even need butter," Bridget said around a mouthful. "I swear, I don't even like fish. But this is so good."

Thea didn't say anything at all, instead simply smiling and nodding along as she continued to feast on the succulent seafood.

"I wonder if we can set up a regular expedition to the Siren Sea to get more of this," Aila pondered aloud as she examined the cut of meat on her plate. "If we became proficient enough in the hunting of karkinos, we could sell any meat that we do not eat ourselves in the capital's market for a profit. Restaurants like Trummelton's would pay exorbitant prices for something like this, I would think."

"Look, I'm not one to turn down good coin, but if we hunt one of these fatass crabs ourselves, we're eating the whole damn thing ourselves," Kerr growled possessively as she clutched a purple chunk in two hands. "This is too good to waste on snobby nobles."

The sound of a giant crab's shell being cracked into hundreds of tiny shards interrupted their conversation. Syd looked up to see Vetraka tearing into the main body of the dead karkinos, wolfing down chunks of meat the size of boulders, shell and all. The dragon was clearly enjoying the meal with just as much passion as they were, which came as no surprise to Jadis since the beast had even taken the time to boil the massive crab in a hot spring before eating it.

"If we do hunt more of these," Syd said, eyes watching the light glint off the dragon's ivory fangs, "let's just make sure we don't deplete the bounty. I wouldn't want to make it hard for Vetraka to find her favorite pregnancy-craving meal."

Dragons were, as Jadis had learned back in Weigrun when she had met Vetregin, intelligent creatures. That didn't mean that they were the same as people; in fact, Jadis was certain that they were not. In a way, dragons reminded her of Demons, in that they had an alien way of thinking about some things due to their drastically different biology when compared to the average person, avatar or otherwise. Still, they were capable of communication, especially with Meli around to translate, so they were able to come to a peaceful understanding. The dragons were practically friendly, once they weren't trying to kill her, Jadis discovered. At least, in their own primal way.

According to draconic custom, as Meli explained during the two hours of discussion and translation that went on between the two parties, a dragon who announced themselves was welcome to travel through another dragon's territory. They were even entitled to a meal, so long as they were not a rival. Jadis sensed there were actually more intricacies to how territorial interactions worked in dragon society than Meli was explaining, but the basics were enough to get them through the encounter. The point was, a dragon who didn't announce themselves, or one who ignored the hospitality of the host, was seen as an invader and would be ruthlessly hunted until they were either driven out of the area or killed. Hence why Jadis and everyone aboard the Levithan had to accept the dinner invitation, or risk starting another fight with the mated pair. However, not announcing themselves was not why they had been attacked in the first place. The reason for the attack had instead been one of the deadliest circumstances which had ever occurred and continued to occur throughout all of time and history: an assumption had been made.

It was not only the people of Volto who had been invaded by the Demons. The magic beasts who lived across the land had also been targeted by the hostile spawn of Samleos, and dragons had been no exception to that rule. Multiple different dragons who called the mountain ranges around Volto their home had been attacked, and one of the younger beasts had even been slain and the corpse possessed, though the details of how that had been accomplished were unknown.

Naturally, all of the dragons in the area were on high alert for demonic invaders, so when Korsregon had spotted a huge, unnatural thing flying through the sky in their territory, he had made a hasty, if not understandable, presumption. It was no wonder to Jadis why Meli and the dragons seemed to get along so well; they both had the bad habit of jumping to conclusions.

"Yes, she's a Demon, but she's not hostile," Jay explained again. "Not every Demon is a danger."

A growl that rumbled through the large cave answered Jay, though Jadis wasn't bothered by the noise quite as much as she had been earlier in the day. She was starting to get better at distinguishing between angry growls and the more general vocalizations that dragons used. Korsregon wasn't angry. Not anymore, at least. But he was struggling hard with the idea of Alex not being a threat. He had promised safety and hospitality, though, and dragon's took promises extremely seriously. A dragon who could not hold to their word, so to speak, was treated as a pariah by other dragons. They lived far too long as a species to mess around with those who would lie or deceive.

The familiar image of a spiky black dragon appeared in front of Jay, hovering in the air. This version of the black dragon who she had fought when after it had kidnapped Alex was far healthier looking, with a filled-out frame and no missing or rotted scales. Clearly, this was what the beast had been like before it had been possessed by a Demon.

"I'm sorry about that," Jay told Korsregon. "But you can't blame every Demon in the world for the actions that some took. Look, I'm not telling you that you shouldn't be on your guard against more Demons attacking the area. Any Demon following the Demon Lord is obviously hostile. I'm just saying that Alex isn't someone you need to worry about."

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A snort of hot breath made Jay's hair fly as the image of the black dragon faded. Korsregon turned away from her and used the same massive jaws that she had been caught inside not too long ago to rip a hunk of raw whale meat from the partially frozen corpse lying just outside of the dragon's cave. Jadis didn't know what kind of whale the beast was eating, since it didn't look like any species she was familiar with back on Earth, but it was about the size of a sperm whale. When the dragon turned back to her, he let a small chunk of the blubbery meat fall onto the ground in front of her. Knowing the drill by that point, Jay picked the meat up, brushed off some of the grit, and started cooking it over the fire.

At least Korsregon was letting her prepare the meat before eating it at that point in the night. That first bite of raw whale at the start of the dinner had been… something else.

"Thank you for being patient," Meli said from where she sat at Jay's side. "He is only being protective of his mate and his unborn brood."

"I get it," Jay sighed while her Dys self a dozen feet away hugged Alex and Hope a little tighter. "I can't even blame him, really. I just wish we hadn't gotten into a fight on sight."

"Korsregon probably does not feel the same way," Meli admitted before taking a considering bite of crispy whale fat. "He probably would have preferred to destroy the threat and then return safely to his nest without suffering grievous injury."

"Fair, I suppose…"

"He respects you now," Meli continued after a few chews. "That makes a difference. You are no longer prey."

"We can be glad for that, at least," Jay murmured as she let her gaze wander across her surroundings. "You seem to know a lot about dragons, huh? Have you ever eaten with them before? Or been to a nest like this?"

"Once," the Dryad nodded. "I was young. My grandmother took me to the lair of Korsvegal. That one's sire, actually," she pointed at the huge red dragon. "He needed healing. It was an interesting experience."

Interesting indeed. Despite the unfortunate circumstances that led up to the invitation to dine, Jadis was inwardly thrilled to be inside an actual dragon's lair. The huge cavern was truly living up to expectations, and she wished for the hundredth time that she had some kind of camera or the magical equivalent of one so that she could record the experience.

The cave was tall and wide, with unnatural pillars carved in random places to support the ceiling. While the cavern was partially natural, it had also been partly dug out and expanded by the two dragons to make room for their huge bulk. A series of hot springs bubbled up from one side of the cave, creating a huge pool of scalding water that eventually overflowed out into a steaming waterfall. They were approximately two thirds of the way up the side of the mountain, facing northeast, and more mountains and the valleys between were visible outside of the large cave mouth. The beautiful starlit vista of the towering mountain range made for a glorious backdrop to their dinner, and it was even pleasantly warm thanks to all the hot spring steam. A little smelly, but still comfortable.

Everyone who had been aboard the airship had of course been "invited" to eat, so the Hero and all of his companions, as well as Noll and Kerr's clan, had disembarked from the moored vessel and were gathered inside the mouth of the cave. Some were more… accepting of the unusual circumstances than others, but so far, they had managed to avoid doing anything to insult their hosts. Meli had made it clear to everyone that as long as they stayed near the front of the cave and away from the treasure hoard in the back of the lair, then they would all be just fine.

At the mention of a treasure hoard, Jadis had seen more than a few ears perk up, but no one had been stupid enough to risk the wrath of the two mated dragons to get a look. For her part, Jadis was also interested, though not because she thirsted after gold or jewels. She was mostly just curious about what exactly a dragon would find valuable and why. They didn't seem to have any kind of monetary system. Maybe having piles of treasure was just for aesthetics?

While Jadis had planned on broaching the subject eventually, she was beaten to the punch by another.

"Would you do me a favor, Meli?" Wilhelm asked as he left the circle where he and his companions had gathered for their shared meal of crab and whale. "Would you ask Korsregon if he would be willing to let me see his treasure hoard?"

"Why do you want to see it?" Meli asked plainly. "He will be protective."

"There are no dragons where I grew up," the Hero explained with a bashful smile. "But I have always heard stories. We even fought and slew a wild dragon who had gone mad on the eastern borders of the empire last year. That was… an experience. Ah, that aside, I mean to say, I would like to take this opportunity to see the fabled horde of a dragon. Without violence."

"I will ask," Meli replied after a moment. "Do not expect a welcome."

Wilhelm smiled and nodded in agreement as Meli walked away to catch Korsregon's attention. While she communicated with the red dragon, Jay scooted closer to the Hero to ask her own questions.

"You fought a dragon last year? What happened?"

"We did," the modest man said while raking his hand through his brown hair. "I regret that we were forced to slay the dragon. She was lashing out indiscriminately, attacking both Demons and innocent towns and villages. It was not until after we had killed her that we discovered that she had been infected with some form of parasite. It had driven her mad with unnatural pain. Jocelyn says that the parasite would have been beyond even her power to cure. We think the Demons were responsible, though it may have been cultists, looking back on it."

Jay frowned at the thought of a parasite that the powerful Oracle wouldn't be able to purge. She put that thought aside for the moment, though, in favor of a more immediate question.

"What about that dragon's hoard? You didn't get to see that one?"

"That was a female dragon," Wilhelm explained. "The females do not gather hoards. The males do so to attract the favor of a female."

"Ah," Jay nodded in understanding. "I know of some animals that do that sort of thing. Some people, too. At least you don't have to worry about gathering a hoard of gold or jewels to get the favor of your lady."

"I beg your pardon?" the Hero said, cheeks flushing bright red as he looked up at Jay with wide eyes. "I am not, ah, I have no 'lady' that is."

"Sure you don't have a lady," Jay smirked without meeting the man's gaze. "But I wouldn't let her hear you say that. Anyway, looks like Meli is coming back."

Before Wilhelm could splutter out any further response, the Dryad walked up to them and motioned with one hand towards Korsregon.

"He has agreed to let you view his hoard," Meli said with a small smile. "I explained who you are, and he is willing to let you look."

"Ah, thank you," Wilhelm bowed his head to the Dryad, still a little flustered. "And thank you for asking for me."

"You are invited as well," Meli turned to look up at Jay. "I didn't ask him to allow you, but he told me to tell you to come. It might be because you showed mercy before, when you didn't have to."

"I won't turn an invitation like that down," Jay grinned. "Let's go then!"

"Just you two," Meli moved aside to let Jay and Wilhelm pass her. "No one else. And be sure that you do not touch anything in his hoard."

"Absolutely," the Hero nodded seriously. "On my honor, we will touch nothing."

"Nothing but the ground under my feet," Jay also swore. "I promise."

Walking forward together, Jay and Wilhelm approached the massive red dragon who, after taking a moment to sniff the air around them, turned and led them deeper into the cavern. They walked further than Jadis would have expected to go, passing by the openings of multiple passages that twisted off into the darkness under the mountain. As the dragon guided them through the depths, Jadis would have used her Succubus Eyes spell just to be able to see, except that Wilhelm's armor shone with a golden light, giving them the illumination needed so that they could see where they were going. It was thanks to that divine light that she almost missed it when a new light source crept out of the dark.

"Holy dragon balls," Jay exclaimed softly, her eyes going wide at the sight that was revealed before them.

"That is disgusting, but I agree with the sentiment," Wilhelm said under his breath as he, too, gazed in wonder at the dragon's hoard.

"No, that was a ref—you know what, never mind…"