As he slept and Aldara�s song began to envelope him, Ian�s mind drifted to a clearing on a lush hilltop that overlooked a small village. There he saw two figures. One was a young lady wearing a cloak as green as the vibrant grass that carpeted the clearing, over a fall colored vest and breeches. Under the vest she wore a white shirt with sleeves that hung wide and loose at the cuffs, and Ian noticed a ram�s horn hanging from her neck to her waist. The other figure was a young dragon. Ian watched as the two played together. He was almost shocked. Even though the dragon was young and relatively small by other dragons, it was still a frightfully large creature with a body shaped very much like a very large nimble bird, but all four of its legs were much more muscular than a birds. Its hide was rough and scaly. Ian couldn�t tell exactly what color it was because its shade shifted too often. It had a long, thick, muscular neck on which sat its large, snake-like head. There was one long fang hanging from each side of its upper jaw, and at the back of the head just behind the holes that served as its ears a crest would fan out a little or cling to the creature�s neck depending on what it was doing or if it was excited. All Ian knew about dragons came from what the king had told him, but that was enough for Ian to know that they must often grow to enormous proportions. While this dragon was large, it was small compared to others. He watched as it nudged the girl with its nose, and she began to chase it. When she caught it by its thick, long neck, she hopped on its back. Ian noticed the crest fold tightly to the dragon�s neck, and its wings clung to its back as it leaped high into the air. When it reached the peak of its enormous leap, it extended its massive wings and they both circled back to the ground. Ian was amazed to see someone play with such a creature and that the girl could hang on the way she did. When they returned to the ground the game continued. Eventually, the girl became tired and lay down in the soft grass. The dragon looked at her curiously then approached her slowly. It�s crest now almost completely encircling its head, the dragon nudged the girl and darted nimbly to the shelter of the nearby thicket. The girl sat up a bit and laughed as the dragon raised it�s head above the shelter of the brush waiting for his friend to chase him. The girl, however, just laid back down in the soft grass. Somewhat disappointed, the dragon walked slowly back to where the girl lay, dragging its long pointed tail through the thick grass. It lay as close to her side as it could and spread one of its massive wings over her, shading her from the sun and any harsh weather.
The girl felt a stirring next to her and woke to find herself under a wide, leathery wing. After debating for a moment whether or not she should rise, she heard a voice calling, �Alicia!�
�Oh, no,� she thought, �Not Mortimer,� and she slowly pushed aside the wing and sat up.
�Alicia!� she heard again.
This time her companion abruptly stood on all fours. He was already looking in the direction from which the voice came; considering he was coming from the village, Alicia�s uncle probably sent him to summon her. The dragon�s head was stretched low to its fullest length, and its crest was now pressed tightly against its neck behind the head. It let out a low rumbling growl.