The pace at which a race ages is dependent on several things, namely intelligence, environment, and lifespan. Humans have a childhood of about 15 years, orcs only 2 or 3 years, but dragons mature at about 50. For reference, a 25 year old dragon is about the same as a 10 year old human in terms of maturity and otherwise. A 50 year old dragon is equivalent to a 20 year old human. So basically, anytime you see a young dragon’s age, divide it by 2.5 to get the human equivalent.

Also, the aging of dragons it much more set than that of other races. While some humans mature earlier, and others never do, dragons follow a fairly set rate of mental and physical growth. Because of this, it is very, very rare to see a baby dragon who is more matured than they should be.

Once an adolescent dragon goes through their second coming of age ceremony (the first at 25, and second at 50), they are officially considered an adult, and are allowed to participate in other aspects of their society. Interesting, right?

Oh, one last thing, just a tidbit, really. Dragons, from the moment of conception take 5 years to be born. Some lesser dragons, like wyrms, are born like any other creature, but high dragons are much different. This world has a cycle of power every 5 years. High dragons are both born and conceived on the first month of this cycle, when the concentration of magical energy is many times higher than normal.

This also means their awakening and coming of age ceremonies are also held at this same time, and all dragons are at the optimal age for awakening their latent elemental powers. Plus, with all the extra magic in the air, the ceremonies are much more likely to be successful. I won't go into more complex detail than this, because your real story is about to begin once more.

Enjoy!

* * *

The Lord Dietrich sat in his grand office. The embossed wooden table in front of him was filled with neat stacks of paper. A large book sat open, but was ignored by its owner who was gazing out the window in contemplation. Although still slightly anxious, he was relieved that nothing was seriously wrong with his son.

At barely three months the child was far young to even be moving, much less making noise. In the week or so since his first cry, nothing else out of the ordinary had happened. Even the elders had assured him that the shrieks were a good sign, showing early maturity and a promise of power. The man smiled, hoping his son would grow into a fine warrior and an even greater ruler.

With small shake of his head he turned back to the documents on the table. He picked the book up, and flipped through it. As he was about to read, a stunning flash shot through both his consciousness and surroundings.

* * *

Ezekiel opened his eyes, feeling well rested from a long nap. He decided it was time to start doing something. He was pretty bored with just lying around. In fact, he was unsure how long he had spent in his stupor-like state. He estimated it was anytime from six months to a year.

A small shiver ran down his spine. ‘What a strange feeling, knowing myself to be a baby.’ He discarded the thought, choosing instead to focus on the task at hand. ‘I wonder if this will work.’ In the previous week and had skimmed over the memories from his previous time as a dragon. When he found what he was looking for, he immediately started to study it.

His goal; human form. He knew, both from memory and the appearances of his family, that dragons were capable of shapeshifting. The soul and mind are the core of a dragon. Their corporeal body comes second. Dragons’ bodies are created from magic energy and the elements. A dragon is born with the ability to use those same energies, and the energies of their own soul, to change their shape into that of a human. This transformation was his goal.

To his immense satisfaction, and after a week of determined practice, Ezekiel was able to move his small body at will. He pushed himself into a sitting position, and shut his eyes.

The first step for any dragon to learn to control the elements and magic was to transform into a human, and bond their mind and soul. The first step to transform into a human was to sense one's own magic power (or, as he liked to call it, mana) and to control it.

He observed the energies of the natural world. His previously dim mind’s eye slowly brightened. After a few moments of concentration, he was able to sense the luminous presence of magic power.

Returning focus to his own body he mentally grasped hold of the strands of mana in his limbs. He willed them to twist and condense. He knew that the first time he switched bodies there would be a time, less than a second, when he would be without a body. At this time his soul and mind would connect, and he would be able to form another body for himself; a human body. He took a deep breath, and forced the thin strands of power to implode.

A burst of pain, and it was over.

Time slowed.

The world around him was perfectly still, and he knew no time was passing. Compared to the rest of the world, his mind was moving at a million miles an hour. He could feel his mind and soul bonding together. He relished the feeling of completion it gave him.

Euphoric, he once more grasped the strands of power, this time shaping them into the body of a young body. He used some of his own soul’s energy this time. Since he was fairly inefficient as utilizing his soul, as he was rather new to it, a smallish portion of his power escaped.

Not enough for to make a difference in his project, but it might be enough for someone else to notice something was happening (or perhaps more than enough for someone’s attention to be drawn-- it released a wave of light and energy that spanned for miles). But he didn't have enough time to contemplate the potential repercussions.

He was busy crafting his human body. It was in a type of embryonic state. Basking in a natural radiance, it started to look human. A torso formed, as did limbs, and a head. A nose took shape, and ten fingers and toes grew. Flawless, not even a belly button. Posed like the Da Vinci drawing, the semi-human shape was nothing more than a glob of magic energy.

Ezekiel wondered if it was possible to add some of the elements to his new body. He willed them to help it take a solid shape around him.

Something unexpected ensued when he drew attention from the elements.

Before he could even figure out something unusual was happening, four glowing lights formed. An earthen yellow ball, a watery blue ball, a fiery red ball, and a transparent, vibrant clear-blue ball that danced like the wind. They blinked into existence at the four cardinal points around him, and started circling his body.

They went faster and faster, leaving shimmering trails in their wake. The wind picked up, carrying with it small flakes of precious metals and gems. The temperature and humidity rose sharply as all the basic elements fought to display their power. Out of the blue in front of his chest appeared another pair of entities, orbiting each other like yin and yang.

All six separate entities fought for the right to claim this marvelous child. They swerved and flew around the room, trailing behind them intense effects. If a piece of furniture was caught in the path of the red ball it would catch fire, but only for a short while because the pursuing blue ball would drench it. It might then be viciously dried off by the next pass of the wind elemental. Scenes like this happened in every corner of the huge room.

When the flashy battle reached its climax, another elemental winked into existence. Far less conspicuous than the rest, this one let off no external signs of its existence. It's body was constantly shifting forms, without releasing any light or energy. However, it's color was eye catching; like light streaming onto a dim forest floor through a thick canopy of leaves.

As soon as it appeared above Ezekiel’s head, the frantic competition ceased. The rest of the elements widened their circle, and backed down respectfully. The voice of the greenish creature echoed inside the others’ minds. “I lay claim to to this one.” The rest of the elementals visibly dimmed, dissatisfied with the proclamation, but too intimidated to say it aloud.

“But, I will share.” A confused aura spread from the other six balls of power. The wind finally worked up the courage to ask “How?” To which he got the reply “Enter his soul. You will know.”

It warily edged closer to the yet unfinished body. Steeling itself, it slipped into the chest, close to the heart, of the small boy. When a miniscule ripple spread through the air, the rest of the elementals knew the impossible was possible.

One by one they inserted themselves into the soul, until only three were left. Two of them, the pair of light and dark, asked the green one “Are you sure you know what you are doing?” Not waiting for a reply, they also went into the soul of the child.

The green one smiled slightly to itself, knowing that it could only hope everything would all work out. ‘No, that’s not right. I shall not just sit back and watch. I will do everything I can to make sure that it will not come to pass. I am sorry child, but this is all I can do for you.’

To outside eyes a strange sight would have been seen. The green ball grew, and grew. Its shape kept shifting. A night-squirrel, a boar, a razor-tailed eagle, and finally a humanoid. Around its head there was a thin circlet of gold.

It willed a part of its chest to separate. The missing part quickly reformed, but the small sphere remained floating in front of it. It raised its hands up to the small ball of energy. It siphoned some of its own power to create the new creature.

For the final touch it closed its eyes. Concentrating deeply a small drop of gold floated out from its forehead. It drifted over to the ball hovering above its hands. When the golden drop and the green ball touched, and enormous amount of elemental and magic energy was sucked in. A great light was also released.

Feeling faint, the large entity moved closer to the boy resting on the bed. It gently pressed the ball it was holding into the soul of the child. Looking down, satisfied but exhausted, the green elemental touched the chest of the child.

It called any remaining elemental partials and magic energy in the room to take shape around the body. They settled into a set of beautiful robes, into which it imbued the remaining energy it possessed. Drained, the humanoid crumbled into the wind, which gently blew the quickly dissolving pieces out the window.

The child opened his eyes, barely aware of what happened. He felt something strange had just occurred, especially when he looked down at the robes covering him, but he was unable to figure out what. He decided to the think about it later because he felt two presences rapidly approaching.

His parents sped into the room. Rather, they practically materialized. The book his father had been reading was still held tightly in his grasp. Dietrick and Isolde’s stricken faces displayed fear, relief, and surprise all at once. Dietrick’s eyes bulged and Isolde’s delicate eyebrows shot up. “Wha- wha- what is this?!” his father stuttered, breaking the momentary silence.

“Ezekiel, is that really you?” his mother questioned. Ezekiel nodded his head.

“It is I, mother.” Isolde swooned just a bit at his words; or at his ability to form them.

“He- he speaks as well.” Dietrick mumbled to no one in particular. With mouths agape, their eyes were glued to the small figure who was dwarfed by his disproportionately large bed.

* * *

Unbeknownst to any of the palace’s inhabitants, several gigantic shapes were flying towards it at breakneck speed. Twisting agilely to avoid any obstacles in their path, they were but shadows in the vast sky. Without fail, one thousand meters from the grand residence, they all dropped to the ground. Not taking the time to even pause, they shrunk to human size while racing through the forest.

After entering the clearing surrounding the estate, they slowed. Taking a moment to neaten their skewed robes and make themselves presentable to the lord. They made eye contact. Nodding at each other slightly, they leapt towards the large nursery wing. It the only place spacious enough to fit a dragon who was yet unable to turn human, and also the place from which that immense burst of energy had emanated.

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Author's Note:

Hi guys. I am so excited to see people reading my story, so I wanted to take a moment to thank you.

Also, I love and appreciate comments, positive or negative. If you find something wrong, be it poor grammar, spelling, a confusing sentence, or otherwise, please don't hesitate to point it out.

Thanks, hope to see you again!