The moment Dala realized that Cao was here, the child knew that she fucked up. It wasn't because she had gone after the dragon. It was because she didn't set up a proper explanation of where she had been. Next time she would have to create a longer time-space to be missing. Perhaps she would have to setup a fake kidnapping? Or maybe just claim that she was busy with other studies? Dala knew that Cao wouldn't trust her to go on her own, especially after tonight. But unfortunately, Cao's presence ruined the last half of Dala's plans. She knew the dragon couldn't kill her. Not as long as he was trapped in those manacles. He could have beaten the living daylights out of her but she'd been through worse. That kind of thing was normal. 

Dala could feel the dragon's grip loosening and she fell downwards. Her eyes looked at Cao and she realized…..her mentor was going to beat the shit out of this dragon. Although the little girl hadn't seen much of Cao's powers, she did know that it was better than whatever the dragon could do. But that was not her biggest concern. Her biggest concern was that she was speeding towards the ground. Luckily, Myouga caught her before she hit the ground. Instead of following Cao's instructions of leaving Myouga seemed to be going after the dragon. Relief flooded through the little girl's mind. They still had a chance! Suddenly Myouga shouted the dragon down to the ground. The dragon fell to the snow but seemed unharmed. They teleported back to the ground and Dala quickly looked over to Myouga with a smile. 

"You just saved our mission. Thanks!" She said. 

The little girl ran over to the dragon, who had just gotten back up. The dragon realized that it wasn't Myouga nor Cao who was at the center of this. It was the child who had trapped him in the first place. 

"I could easily kill you, little brat." He growled. 

"You could." Dala agreed looking him directly in the eyes, "But even if I didn't have an angry mentor or a powerful friend…..you wouldn't. I'm the only one with the key to your freedom." 

"It isn't hard to find people to pick locks. " The dragon retorted. 

"These were especially made for a dragon." Dala replied, "Do you really think I would be stupid enough to overlook that? Killing me would destroy any chance of getting those off. You'd be powerless forever. But I'll make a deal with you. If you agree to be my ally, I will not only release you but I will make you stronger than you could ever hope to be." 

"I'm already strong" The dragon insisted. 

"You got a beat down by a child and an undead young woman." Dala reminded him, "Most dragons would have put a fight against them. But there is something else that might convince you…." 

The child leaned over to the dragon's ear and whispered something to him. The icy dragon's eyes widened in surprise and looked at the child with shock. He quickly covered his expression as Dala continued. 

"So what do you say?" Dala said, offering her hand out to him. 

"As if I had a choice." The dragon muttered then gave out a sigh, "Yes. I will be your ally. I'm guessing you already thought about making our agreement a magical contract?"

"Yes." Dala said, "So those manacles won't come off until we find somebody who can create magical contracts. But first……."

She looked over to her mentor, who was probably already around at the scene. Dala could tell that the woman was pissed off. Most of it was justified, as Dala hadn't told her everything about what she was going to do. But the only regrets that Dala held was that she didn't cover her tracks better. It was possible that Cao was going to hurt her, punish her, or reject her as a student. Dala didn't realize how mad Cao would be at first but that much was clear now. Instead of saying anything, Dala just looked at her mentor, waiting for whatever rant or rejection was to come. The idea of making Cao proud was smashed the moment Cao showed up. 

"The dragon is fine now. He's not going to hurt anybody. Not the village. Not you. Not me. Not Myouga." She simply said. 

Now it was time to wait for whatever was to come. 

With Dala freed she in another's care Lixue would not have to worry about friendly fire, however, the Undead still had to be mindful of the village nearby. Preparing to ground the ice touched reptile, Lixue caught movement in the corner of her eye. Slowly closing in on the dragon was the Woman in White holding Dala in her arms. "What are you doing! I said leave not head directly for the Dragon"! It was doubtful that her words reached the duo as the air pressure from the Dragon's wing would overtake any nearby sound. With the two of them so close there was nothing she could do as it would be too risky to attack and her more beneficial magic was impossible in her current state. Growing more frustrated as all she could do was wait for an opportunity to strike or in the very least quell any attempts of a counter attack from the Dragon. As Dala and the Women came closer and closer any chance of Lixue being able to assist would be next to impossible. Feeling helpless and unable to do anything for Dala even if the main reason for it was because of her felt worse than anything the Priestess had endured since her revival.

"BOO!!! OOGABOOGA!!"

"What"?

While the attack had worked in disorienting and ground the Dragon, the method was reckless as doing such a thing so close to your target while holding another was beyond insanity as no doubt the two had received some feedback from the blast.

Once the Dragon had colluded with the ground and the Woman had teleported to a safe enough distance with Dala, Lixue prepared a litany of blacken ice harpoons chained to the very ground ready to pierce and drain the Dragons life away. Just as she was about to fire the barrage of harpoons into the Dragon her student stepped in the way halting her teacher's attack. "Dala get out of the way"! First, both of them fly directly to the Dragon, now in between her and the Dragon, enough was enough.

However, rather than the concofiny of magic ready to fire at him, the Dragon focused on Dala with a poor excuse for a threat as if he was going to kill her he would have already done so. Lixue did not care or pay attention to the conversation as she could care less. She already was aware that Dala was at the helm of this whole charade and that her and her coconspirator did everything they could do stop her from dealing with the threat endangering not only themselves but herself as well.

Holding her spell at the ready as Dala went over to the Dragon and whispered something in his ear. Whatever it was it completely changed his demeanour as he agreed to ally with someone who had just tricked him. As the crowned their newly formed alliance Dala turned to her as if she expected her to form a contract between the both of them.

Releasing her magic and dispelling the circle, Dala's response did nothing to quell the Undeads cold burning anger towards her actions. "And? Just because it all worked out it justifies your actions"? Staring coldly at Dala her grey and moonstone eye looked through the girl as Lixue was still in a combat mindset. "Instead of an apology you give me an excuse, do you know how worried I was? I thought that you might have been kidnaped or worse, though I suppose what I think does not matter to you as you went behind my back and lied to me". Lixue’s eyes soften as instead of anger they showed a deep pain.

While Dala and her mentor were having a serious, long talk about doing crazy things without approval–Myouga wasted no time in seizing the opportunity to get her long-awaited interview. "Soooo–Mr. Dragon, what brings you here all the way out in the middle of Glaciem Island?" That was what she was going to call Itjivut from now on, as the cold was the first thing she had remembered from her past visit. "I'm the great and magnificent Myouga, arcanist extraordinaire! You know, I've always wanted to ask a dragon questions. It's on my bucket list! And speaking of questions, out of all the places to start up your secret dragon stash–why here?" She took out a wooden wand and skewered a candied apple on it, taking a bite. "Mmm, frosty." The small oni then pointed the bitten candy apple on a stick towards the dragon as if she were offering it a taste. A silly grin was plastered on her face, spread from ear to ear. It was hard to imagine that this whimsical, free-wheeling individual was the one who sent him tumbling down. From behind her shoulder came a strange chimera of rabbit. deer, cat, and bird in many colors, her familiar Patchouli. It looked up at the large scaly winged lizard and made odd trilling noises, munching on a crumbly biscuit. 

Indeed, Myouga was quite magical despite her size. She was practically floating again, but stayed still enough to wait for Garelu's answer. A notebook and quill floated out next to her as if poised to write a record of their little chitchat. "Don't spare any details! I'm all ears, if ya know what I mean." She said with a wink. And bizarre behavior aside, what self-respecting dragon would resist the temptation to boast about him or herself in front of a willing audience? This was exactly what the little arcanist was hoping for; if the direct approach didn't work, she'd move on to building camaraderie through sharing food. Lots of people would comfort themselves after a bad day with a treat, and when it came to treats–Myouga had more than enough to spare. An entire pantry full to be exact. Cookies, cakes, pastries, salted nuts, dried jerky, candy…the list was only as long as your imagination. And if she didn't have it on hand, a quick portal back to Nisshoki's famous street food stalls was just a spell away.  

"I was explaining that my consequences would have only effected me. It was not an excuse." Dala responded quickly, "And Cao, weren't you the one who told me to beware of my anger? It seems you should try following your own advice." 

Meanwhile,

While the two were arguing, the dragon was waiting for them to finish with their argument. He didn't care about whatever they were talking about. Then, somebody else approached him. It was the little person who had shouted him to the ground in the first place. The dragon looked at her in the eyes, expecting her to be bragging about her victory against him. Instead of doing that, she began to ask him a bunch of questions. The confusion rant through his mind but his pride was more powerful. This was a perfect opportunity to explain his lineage and his important past. 

"Well I come from a long line of Borealis Dragons. We are a strong and powerful line of dragons who live in some of the coldest areas in all of Rev." He began to explain in a proud manner, "I'm the youngest out of my family. I decided to choose this island because it was cold enough for me to feel comfortable. Though, I can feel comfortable anywhere I choose. Its just sometimes I prefer Itjivut over a desert."

The girl then offered the candy apple to the dragon, which he had to turn down. That was her prey not his own. There was a strange creature behind the girl, a rabbit deer cat thing. He hadn't seen anything quite like it. But whether it was impressive or not….well the eating of a crumbly biscuit didn't exactly present a strong image in the dragon's mind. Anyway, what was he talking about?

"My stash is mostly made out of furs and other materials. But that's only because the island doesn't have much treasure. Or merchants. So its been a challenge to make a real fantastic horde. But not too much of a challenge for a great and powerful dragon like me!" 

Meanwhile, 

Dala knew that this conversation wasn't going to get them anywhere. She had things to do and waiting for Cao to stop being angry was not one of them. The little girl was feeling guilty for making Cao worry so much but she didn't know how to handle it. What did a person say to somebody else who was worried? She'd never had anybody to worry about her before. Next time, she would write a letter to help get rid of those worries. But she had a feeling that Cao was already at the breaking point and was going to drop her as a student. Dala's attempt to make Cao proud had backfired in a way she wasn't expecting. 

"Cao, your anger isn't going to help this conversation." Dala said, "My words probably mean nothing to you right now. So lets stop this worthless talk and you can cool off." 

The little girl turned away from Cao and headed over to Myouga and the dragon, who were in their conversation. She was glad that their arguing hadn't scared either of them away. Their next steps were to get a magical contract built between the dragon and herself. It was clear that Cao wasn't going to be willing to help. But the inclusion of Cao was never in Dala's plans in the first place, so it wasn't that big of a deal. 

"Myouga do you know how to make a magical contract?" The little girl asked Myouga, "If not, we can go to the village and figure out where to find a mage who would be able to help us." 

She looked back to Cao, knowing she was still angry. But Dala didn't want to leave her behind. 

"You can come with us if you want." Dala offered. 

Dala figured that Cao would be too angry to want to come along. Especially after she had fought the dragon. Being included in their plans didn't to be something that Cao wanted so the little girl wasn't going to expect much. 

"At least you were paying attention, though you are incorrect about your actions only affecting you. If you did not capture the dragon, do you think the dragon would spare the village and your comrade"? Completely at a loss at how selfish and inconsiderate Dala was acting. Lixue knew that she had a bad attitude, but she had shown her that she cared for others. Was it all a lie, did she trick me into assisting her just as she had the Woman?

Speaking of the Woman who and what was she doing? Looking over and listening it appeared as if she was questioning the dragon. Introducing herself as The Great and Magnificent Myouga, Arcanist Extraordinaire made her seem more like a performer than a practitioner of magic. It was insulting to all those who gave their all to the study of magic and yet here this woman was showing off acting like an entertainer when there were plenty of mages who could barely lift a quill and would do so much more with it than simply use it for their own whims.

Ignoring the Dragon and Myouga as their calm reaction to everything that had just happened annoyed her further. How can they act so calm when they were just fighting not so long ago and how can the dragon be okay with working with someone who placed him in chains releasing them only into another set of chains. Ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous.

Looking back to Dala with a plain expression as whatever respect and trust she had placed in her former student had been destroyed by her actions and words. Even with all that was said and done, the Undead still held out for a shred of what she had seen in Dala before. Unfortunately for Lixue, the girl's next words did nothing to help reignite hope in her former student. As Dala shrug off Lixue's concerns and turned her back on her the Priestess' faith in her finally shattered.

Frozen by her former student's and friend's actions as the Undead saw Dala's true character. Everything that she had said and wanted was most likely a lie as such a selfish and inconsiderate being would never create a kingdom out of the meek. If anything the girl would become just like all the other so called nobility, noble in name only while serving only their own self interests.

As Dala looked back to Lixue, the Undead bore directly into the child's eyes. "No I will not be following along nor will I be teaching you any further. You say you wish to help others and create a kingdom where everyone is treated equally yet you forget the feeling of your own chains as you placed them upon another. Is that how you will lead? If they don't comply chain them and force them into submission? If that's how you wish to lead you'll never become a true leader as your rule will be enforced through fear, not respect". Looking to the Dragon, "Don't be so quick to ally with her, as who knows when you'll just be another pawn to be sacrificed for her own goals".

Turning around and making her way for the village as she had to correct her own wrongdoings to others. "Goodbye Dala".

The words Cao said hit her heard. Besides the fact that she was dropping her as a student, it was the things about the chains that really bothered her. She was right about that. Dala's mind filled with fury, only towards herself. Instead of watching people go, she stomped over to the dragon, took out the key from her bag and unlocked the manacles. The heavy chains dropped and she picked them up, stuffing them into her bag. 

"I'll offer you what I promised in exchange, you can't hurt the village or anybody near it." Dala said to him. 

"How do you know I'll keep my word?" The dragon asked. 

"I don't." Dala admitted, "But there's not much I can do about that now. Is there?" 

Instead of going into a rage or trying to kill anybody, the dragon just stared at the child. She went through all of this, only to undo everything after a few words from some random woman? The dragon stretched out his wings and took off into the air. He decided to fly away from the village, towards his own home to think things over. Dala looked over to Myouga. 

"Thanks for helping out." She said, "Bye." 

The child was in a terrible mood. But it was mostly because of what Cao had said about treating other people equally. It was her own ambition that had made her forget. There were things she wanted to run through her head. To think about. The last thing she needed right now was for anybody to talk to her. She began walking through the snow, away from the village and towards a random cave that she had seen last time she had visited. Fury overwhelmed her mind but it wasn't towards anybody. It was towards herself. The fury grew as she left the others. 

"Time to re-think all of this." She said to herself. 

She looked down at her dagger. Perhaps there was a way to ensure that she never forgot what it was like. Extreme situations counted for extreme measures. It was time to remember what it was like. 

Sometimes people disagree with each other. It's not because they're 'right' or 'wrong', they just have different ways of seeing things. And they don't always talk things out or understand before things happen. While she was busy recording what she could straight from the dragon's mouth, Myouga was picking up on some not-so-happy voice tones behind. From the way Dala told her about Cao, she seemed to expect her mentor to be more than disappointed in a breach in trust more than the surprise the girl had planned to pull. Things came to a head when Cao said she wouldn't teach the girl anymore, and it was clear nobody was happy. Then Dala did something that surprised the small oni–she ran up and unlocked the special manacles she had so meticulously planned to keep on Garelu. It was a big, awkward moment for everybody. Garelu for his size and age, was really a teenager in human terms. He was young, gutsy, ambitious–but not overtly malicious. He just wanted to make a name for himself in the world, like all people his age were wont to do. Myouga understood those feelings, or she assumed so. Dala was angry. Cao was angry. She and the dragon were just bystanders in the main miscommunication conflict. 

As Garelu took off, Myouga watched the direction where he flew to get an idea of where his lair might be. To Dala's strained thanks for helping her, despite the risks and repercussions–Myouga gave her usual smile and waved back. "No problem! Glad I could help!" Not wanting to make the girl's mood any worse, the little arcanist cut her typical silliness and quickly handed Dala a card written with magic ink. On it were some names and a location. "Today was really fun. If you wanna meet up again, here's where you can find me. Ask for Nicodemus Calliergi, he knows me. Just describe me to him and he'll let you know where I am or what I'm up to if I'm not in." This was the only hint the oni gave that she wasn't what she seemed, as an ordinary child wouldn't have a reference in Iria's Mage Academy. "I'll return the stuff you lent me later!" It was an honest to goodness promise, as it didn't seem to be the right time for that now. Opening a portal, Myouga left to parts unknown, the portal vanishing in seconds after.