Elan beams. He's getting a good grade in being polite!

"That makes sense. They probably don't have dragon-sized lunch here either. Ooh, what do dragons eat? I come from a place where they can eat pretty much anything, except I think most of them like meat the best."

"Dragons mostly eat meat, yes," Sir Baumbard replies as their group—minus Glumbert—heads into the courtyard and towards the mess hall. "Someone will bring Glumbert a sheep at some point, most likely. Personally, I'm looking forward to the jello pudding!" 

"Sometimes I think you only come here for the food," Rolith jokes. He's making a conscious effort to keep the tone light, but he's clearly anxious to hear what Sir Baumbard has to say. 

"If that's true, you should say it to Sir Loin! I bet that would make him really happy."

"It's not just the food—although I will admit, it's certainly a nice side benefit!" 

Lunch today is tuskmonger kebabs; apparently someone did deal with the tuskmongers in the garden this morning. Sir Baumbard loads his plate high, claiming that dragon-riding is hungry work. In between bites, he asks Elan, "So, have you ever met a DragonLord before?" 

Yum, kebabs! Elan makes sure to also get a decent serving of whatever vegetables are on offer.

"The only other dragon I've seen so far was hanging out with Lady Celestia and Twilly. People called her a Priestess, not a Lord, though. Is that the girl word?"

"No, female DragonLords use the same word as men. Lady Celestia is...singular. She's the only non-DragonLord I know who speaks Draconic, and she has several dragon...acquaintances, although she's not bonded to any of them the way a DragonLord is with their dragon. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that she knows more about dragon lore than anyone else alive." 

"Huh, cool! I guess that's probably why she was the one trying to take the Black Dragon Box someplace safe…"

He frowns, then shakes his head. He knows that he's already doing his best to find it; feeling bad about all the dead ends won't make him do a better job.

"How do dragons and Dragonlords meet each other? Do you have to learn Draconic first?"

"It varies; every DragonLord has a different story for how they met their partner. The one thing we all have in common is that, one way or another, a Dragon Amulet found its way into our hands." 

He tugs a pendant out from under his chestplate to show Elan. "These amulets allow a DragonLord to form a magical bond with their dragon partner. They also let us speak Draconic without having to learn it the hard way!" 

The pendant is shaped like a golden dragon, wings outstretched, encircling a smooth polished gemstone. 

"Oooh, pretty! Does every dragon have their own amulet?"

"Not even close. Most dragons are wild, with no bonded human, the same way most humans aren't DragonLords. There are only a limited number of Dragon Amulets in the world, and they don't come with a particular dragon attached—you have to find a partner on your own! After I found my amulet, I went to Sunbreeze Grove to see if Lady Celestia could help me. Glumbert happened to be visiting at the same time, to see if she could find him a new partner, and that's how we met." 

"Wow! Do you think that dragons and Dragonlords are fated to find each other?"

"Many DragonLords believe so, yes. It's a common belief that fate sends Dragon Amulets to bearers who are truly worthy of joining our ranks, and guides dragons and DragonLords to each other. As for what I personally believe...I am less certain, but I do my best to be worthy of the honour regardless." 

That's exactly the kind of thing that worthy destined heroes say all the time!

"It sounds like you do your best, yeah. How do the amulets work? If someone stole an amulet would they steal the powers, too?"

"Once the bond between dragon and rider is forged, it's not quite that simple to break or transfer it, thankfully. But, yes, stealing an amulet would let the thief speak Draconic, and potentially bond with a dragon of their own, the same as if they obtained it in any other manner." 

"Wow, that's not good! Do they work even if a dragon doesn't want to make a bond, or would someone with a stolen amulet have to find a dragon who didn't know it was stolen?"

Or didn't care, maybe.

"I don't believe I know of anyone who's tried forcing a bond on a dragon against their will." He shudders in disgust. "No other DragonLord would associate with anyone who'd done something so despicable, even if they succeeded. Especially if they succeeded." 

"It seems like a pretty dangerous thing to try if you weren't sure it would work," Rolith contributes. "I certainly wouldn't want to face an angry dragon I'd just tried to make my puppet!" 

Elan nods.

"Yeah, or a whole bunch of angry dragons who found out!"

"Hah! Indeed not." The brief smile slides off his face, though, as he continues. "Speaking of danger...I should get down to the reason I'm here. King Alteon has been receiving reports of large numbers of slimes and undead amassing on the edges of Oaklore Forest. More have been seen gathering in Doomwood and slowly moving north in this direction. I am here firstly to provide warning, and secondly to organise an aerial assault to thin their numbers." 

Slimes aren't so bad! You get to be a pineapple chunk. Undead are pretty bad though.

"…Is that the same direction me and Twilly were going anyway? We're going south," he adds to Baumbard.

Twilly leans across and tugs on Elan's sleeve so he can whisper, "We's going east, Elan!" 

"Oh, we're actually going east! Thanks."

Rats, this means he can't offer to help here. Which is probably for the best, since he can't fly.

That would be really fun though. He had a really good time Wind Walking the other day.

Rolith nods. "You and Twilly need to go after the Black Dragon Box. My knights and I, with the help of Sir Baumbard and Glumbert, can easily handle a few slimes and skeletons. This sort of thing is why we're here."