Rue looked at the tiny semi human-looking creature. It was no more than 4 feet tall and quite wide. Heavy limbs and a thick torso made it look chunky and durable. It had lots of hair and was bearing its teeth at her from inside a cavern-like opening in its hair. Its hair was a strange colour, red like fire, and didn’t seem to have any of the usual protection that humans did. She wasn’t sure if it was the same species, the smell was too different, and perhaps the most important thing. She could understand the creature.

  [Dwarf Lv??]

  Rue growled towards the creature when she failed to identify it but made no move to engage in combat. This was unlikely to be something she could fight. It growled back at her, the sound much quieter than her own sonorous reverberation but she still found her tail twitching at the sound.

  “Wah are ye, deef? I ben lookin forwad to conversation fer yeers, don’er leave mee hangin”

  Leave him hanging, from what the pillars?

  Rue tilted her head and lowered her guard just the tiniest bit. Perhaps it really was friendly, it had made no attacks and was conversing with her. It would be good not to fight it…for now.

  Rue focused on the sound coming out of his mouth, they sounded reproducible, natural even. She let out an experimental rumble that vibrated her throat followed by a higher sound. The creature's face changed and Rue twitched but he didn’t move to attack her, instead, he seemed happy.

  “Inteligent fey a kind arnt ya. Most red wada rater biten me than try ta spek. Yer young aswell, not much time ta learn.”

  The complex grunts, hisses, whines and other sounds that came out of his mouth seemed like they were designed for her dragon physiology. Rue would think and could almost grasp the sound needed to make it.

  She focused on her reply and rumbled in his direction.

  “Sspeeak I will, name you have?”

  “Lokgrod Redminer, glad ta meet ya. What do ye call ya self?”

  Rue considered his question. It felt proper to exchange full names. As she thought of her given name warmth seemed to spread across her skin along with weight. Her voice reverberated and rumbled like distant thunder as she spoke.

  “Ruebrum Ignasia”

  The dwarf didn’t respond for a few seconds as he seemed to consider her name.

  “Nah, draconic doener translate well. Me spell failed ta make nay bit of sense.”

  “Rue” She spoke and the dwarf brightened and nodded to show he understood it.

  “A fine name, greetings Rue, I welcome ye ta me humble abode. Well na technically miene but good enough. Last visitor were near 20 years ago, much les of a conversationalist. Tasted pretty good though.” He send booming laughter around the white hall, echo’s making rue swish her tail back and forth.

  “Eat me have you decided?”

  “What na, lastone were a big ol bear. Put a game of chess in front of em and ee tried ta eat me. The rug keeps ma toes warm in da winter though.” He laughed again, free and unrestrained.

  Rue relaxed somewhat. He wasn’t going to eat her, but perhaps it was time that she left. It was always possible to come back in the future. The dwarf seemed pleasant enough, but she didn’t want to risk staying with something so powerful.

  “Going I will, hunt” Rue rumbled her words and made to turn towards the entrance.

  “That’s naa gonna happen.”

  Rue paused. Was he going to stop her? She growled towards him and he raised a limb.

  “Not because I wanna arm you. The entrance is sealed ya see, not even I can get out an I bin here for over 200 years. This be the last resting place of Annorak, perhaps da greatest space mage ta walk the earth.”

  “Annorak? Sealed entrance? Trapped?”

  Rue began to use her very small amount of mana to heat her surroundings, almost subconsciously as her mood darkened. She bounded for the entrance and passed into the tunnel, she took the right turn then left, then left and…. Ahead of her as she turned the corner was a hall. The familiar white pillars and a stout dwarf all exactly where she remembered them. Rue turned around, thinking that perhaps she had taken a wrong turn or been distracted.

  She turned the corner and.. white pillars and a dwarf.

  She roared and sent a geyser of flame pouring towards the hall. Just as the flames reached a few meters from her maw the dwarf appeared next to her with a rush of wind. A set of impossibly strong hands clamped her jaws together. Her fire singing her mouth and throat before she stopped trying to spew fire. Smoke swirled from her nostrils. Even with her lack of understanding for other creature expressions, she could tell this dwarf was furious.

  A meaty fist raised above her head before the world bent dark.

  ….

  Noe looked up from the tasty morsel he had consumed. The human had eventually walked right up to the bars and allowed him to eat it. There was not much meat on the human’s bones and his flesh was tough given Noe’s low strength but the joys of having meat again after so long were well worth it.

  It had taken a few days and all he had been living off of was the fear of the humans. He had briefly visited other humans locked down here but had remained relatively close to this one. Mostly to get the most effect out of his skill, but also because this was further from the surface. He could feel every time he fed of a creature's fear it grew weaker. Both in body and soul. The xp was welcome but although he was sated by the skill it did not make him feel full. This was made up for by the constant flow of xp from the skill, but the void in his stomach could only be satisfied with meat.

  As he ripped the few remaining scraps off of the yellowy bones he found himself no longer starving but certainly not full.

  Ding! Xp Gained From [Master Of Darkness] +190xp

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Ding! Xp Gained From [Master Of Darkness] +210xp

  The skill had given him the report at the end of each day and he was looking forward to today’s reward. This was a huge amount of experience for him, after killing rats and just eating food to get xp. He had finally reached a high enough level to reach the next stage of his race.

  Ding! For Slaying [Human Lv14] x1 In Combat +144xp

  Ding! For Slaying a Foe [5] Levels Above Your Own [+5%] xp +7xp

  Ding! Total Xp +151xp

  Ding! Level Up [x4]… [Stat Points] +20

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Black Dragon - Hatchling] +6 {S0 V0 D2 I4}

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Dragon - Hatchling] +5 {S1 V2 D1 I1}

  Ding! Species Maturation Point Reached [Black Dragon - Hatchling] => [Black Dragon - Wyrmling]

  Ding! Species Maturation Point Reached [Dragon - Hatchling] => [Dragon - Wyrmling]

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Black Dragon - Wyrmling] +21 {S0 V0 D6 I15}

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Dragon - Wyrmling] +18 {S6 V6 D3 I3}

  Noe decided to add his free points into strength and vitality. He had been overpowered too easily and needed to have some levels of physical strength.

  This was good, he was gaining power. He could continue to feed on the prisoners down here. As long as he kept avoiding the guards that fed the prisoners once a day, he would be safe. He had far better eyesight in the darkness and could see the light they carried long before they arrived. Noe retreated into the darkness to feed on the fear of more prisoners, he slunk along the tunnels, slipping in and out of corridors and past cells. Everywhere he went the whimpering or screams of men and women could be heard.

  ….

  One month later…

  Noe had been stalking through the tunnels and chambers of the underworld for weeks and was growing more and more accustomed to his routine. He would come up from his cave when he felt his body need sustenance and first draw nourishment from the victims in the cells. He would creep by them, swift and silent, save for a few choice scratches and whispers that were slowly driving all of the inhabitants mad. He had been eating one of the humans every few days and had been expecting a retaliation to come at some point as the guard discovered them mere skeletons.

  The extermination party never came however and now the bodies were disappearing completely, even their bones consumed. He was growing in power rapidly, his form now five and a half meters long from head too toe. As he felt his vitality and other stats growing he also started to notice an itch in the scarred stumps of his wings. He was hopeful for what this would mean. Perhaps when he had enough vitality he could regrow the limbs, and even if it took him years he hoped to one day have them back.

  He looked over the messages from his last month with satisfaction.

  Ding! Xp Gained From [Master Of Darkness] +215xp

  ….

  Ding! Xp Gained From [Master Of Darkness] +167xp

  Ding! Level Up [x10]… [Stat Points] +50

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Black Dragon - Wyrmling] +14 {S0 V0 D4 I10}

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Dragon - Wyrmling] +12 {S4 V4 D2 I2}

  Ding! Species Maturation Point Reached [Black Dragon - Wyrmling] => [Black Dragon - Youngling]

  Ding! Species Maturation Point Reached [Dragon - Wyrmling] => [Dragon - Youngling]

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Black Dragon - Youngling] +40 {S0 V0 D15 I25}

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Dragon - Youngling] +35 {S10 V10 D10 I5}

  Ding! Species Maturation Point Reached [Black Dragon - Youngling] => [Black Dragon - Juvenile]

  Ding! Species Maturation Point Reached [Dragon - Youngling] => [Dragon - Juvenile]

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Black Dragon - Juvenile] +54 {S0 V0 D18 I36}

  Ding! Stat Points Allocated For Species [Dragon - Juvenile] +48 {S12 V12 D12 I12}

  Ding! Ability Evolution [Master Of Darkness 1] => [Master Of Darkness 2]

  Ding! Ability Evolution [Mental Manipulation 1] => [Mental Manipulation 2]