"Can you understand me?"

Hearing Bolyr's muffled question, Jake nodded.

"You are interesting. I haven't seen a mixed Kobold with the water element in ages, not since the last war of dominance for Actriset."

Mutters came from the two Archers when the one who could understand them translated for the others. The one-eyed one said something to Bolyr.

"He is right. Your awakening is somewhat more extreme then it should be. It's a good thing that you don't have the fire or earth element; otherwise, we would all be dead now."

Jake swallowed, feeling the hairs on his head rise, and he heard one of the soldiers curse under his breath. Looking around, he noticed that Emma was together with Tess again, and the little Kobold girl seemed anxious as she held the slender grey hand of the Fiend.

Bolyr walked forward until he was in front of the sphere. Tapping it with his finger caused a dull sound, and he shook his head in wonder, ignoring Jake's start. "You are lucky your friend is as strong as he is or we would have had to kill you. You owe him a great deal."

Worried, Jake look across his shoulder. Behind him was Mason, water dripping from his arms and torso. Under the water drops, Jake saw Mason had bruises all over his arms. Shocked, he looked at his friends face, but there was only a tired smile there.

"Don't worry, just some bruises. You better figure out how to control that, it could be useful in the future!"

Another soft tap came from the other side of the bubble, and Jake turned back to Bolyr. With eyes narrowed, the yellow Kobold hissed.

"Don't get distracted. You need to take control of your power now, or you will lose this chance. The first time is always the worst, but also the best chance to learn. Now, close your eyes and relax. Try and feel the tension in your muscles. Notice how tense they are. Now try to relax them and remember a moment when you were completely content and at ease. Picture the moment, feel it."

The Kobold was speaking in a calming, soothing voice and seemed practiced in what he did. A flitting thought crossed Jake's mind just before he closed his eyes. Was Bolyr perhaps a meditation guru?

Trying to relax, Jake took deep breaths wondering when he had last been relaxed and at ease. After a while, a memory began to form. It was one of the times he and Jake had been sitting at the small cafe after school. It was in the middle of the summer holidays, with nothing to do they had just sat there, looking at girls, drinking coffee and enjoying the weather. As he remembered the hot sun on his face, the strong coffee in his mouth and the soft music in the air, he felt his muscles relax. As they did, he could feel he was almost completely relaxed, but there something was off.

It felt as if a muscle was cramping deep inside his body, somewhere between his heart and stomach. Ignoring the fact that he had no idea what muscle that could even be, he tried to relax it. Surprisingly enough, it worked right away. As the unknown muscle eased up, Jake felt himself grow weary. As the tension faded away, he thought he heard a gasp, but it barely registered in his tired mind. Feeling powerless, he staggered.

"JAKE!"

Two strong arms caught him just before he crumbled, keeping him up. Opening his eyes, Jake saw small spots and lights swim and flash through his vision as if he was going to faint at any moment. A golden scaled face swam into his view, a concerned look on it.

"Jake stay awake!"

Hearing the concern is Mason's voice, Jake struggled to do as he said, but his consciousness slipped away, and then there was only darkness.

--

Vast blue skies stretched out before him with no end in sight. Underneath, an enormous island covered in forests stood out like an emerald in the sparkling blue sea that surrounded it.

Just below the waves crashing onto the shore, the shadow of his prey was quickly moving away, heading for deeper waters. Roaring in frustration, he folded his wings and plunged towards the sea. Air rushed across his eyes, blocked by the transparent blue eyelids covering them.

Almost hitting the water, he flung out his wings. Angling them to the side caused him to level out, and he raced across the waves, the white foam gently caressing the plates on his belly. Reaching out with this long and powerful hind limbs, he broke through the surface of the water. One last look down showed him the horrified expression on the dark giant sea snakes snout.

Before his pray could dodge, he plunged his claws into the tail and began flapping as hard and fast as he could. Feeling the snake go crazy while trying to get away from him, he doubled his efforts. How could he lose what he had stalked? Soon, with a good grip, he rose higher in the air, and turned around, heading back to the island. The snake curled up, trying to attack his wings, but he headbutted it.

Reaching the island took only moments, and as soon as he was above the treeline, he began flying higher. When he decided he was high enough, he dropped the snake. It hissed in panic, curling around itself trying to get away from the inevitable. A loud boom, followed by flying branches and sand showed where it hit the ground.

Flying down, a feeling of success crossed his mind, and when he dropped onto the carcass, he roared to show it was his kill. As the sound echoed around, he felt a sense of security. That should keep away the smaller ones! Wings sore from the strenuous exercise, he cursed and wished his body would grow up faster. He wanted off this rock in the middle of nowhere.

Annoyed and hungry he bit down into the sinewy flesh below, ripping off large portions. With the new rows of teeth that had grown recently, chewing took only moments, and he began gorging on the meat. He knew he had gotten a great catch, that would help him grow faster. The snake was at least thrice as long as he and weighed just as much.

As he ate, his stomach began bulging out, causing him some discomfort. In dissatisfaction, he growled, and almost immediately a thick haze of water particles appeared all around him, causing his scales to shine in the setting sun. As soon as they did, his stomach shrank, and he continued eating as his stomach alternated between growing and shrinking. He could feel as the bones in his body became thicker and longer, and although painful, he knew if someone were watching, they would see him grow.

It took him until dark to finish the entire corpse, but it was worth it. He had hunted the snake for days, and it was one of the best forms of sustenance on the island. He knew he needed to remain the largest, or he wouldn't be able to protect the others. If he showed any sign of weakness, the smaller ones would defeat and eat him. Then the others would follow shortly after.

As he relaxed from the thrill of the hunt, he thought he heard a sound, soft and vague. Raising his head in annoyance at who would dare face him now, he looked around at the trees. The voice seemed to be getting louder, and all of a sudden, a shock of recognition caused his mind to flee into the darkness.

"JAKEEE!!"