Just a week’s journey from The Chowder Inn, nestled comfortably between the Noring Hills, laid the Dragon Village. No, not a village full of dragons. Just a village of humans who called themselves the people of the dragons. But do not let them learn of your disappointment, should you ever visit their land seeking dragons. They’re an awfully proud people and won’t stand for it.

The Dragon people, known as “Drakin,” had a reputation for being unruly and energetic. From their village came powerful leaders, cunning criminals, and incredible defenders.

Drakin lore celebrated the story of their first ancestor, a real dragon who lived thousands of years ago and gave up his immortality for the woman he loved. Nobody knew if it was true. The supposed event took place too long ago for anyone to be sure, but they felt the fire in their blood and believed it with their whole hearts.

The spirit of the dragon remained strong among the people and one thing was for certain: a Drakin could either be a fierce ally or the deadliest of enemies.

Within this village lived a young Drakin, bored out of his mind.

Penryn dragged out a sigh and ruffled his already disheveled hair. His foot found a small rock and he kicked it down the worn path as he walked.

His boredom was an irritating itch in the background of his existence, and it was starting to slowly eat away at him.

It’s not that he had nothing to do. There was always something to do in the village, whether it was work or play, but the work he did have had reached a lull, and the fun things had become so repetitive that he felt as if he'd done everything worth doing within the village a hundred times over.

He was on his way home from delivering the catch of the day to his uncle’s butcher shop, a job that kept him busy enough on its own. He’d been hunting ever since he could remember and knew the forest surrounding their village like it was his own home.

Yet despite his skill and knowledge, it had become much more difficult to catch his prey. The animals were growing scarcer and the ones he did see were always on high alert. They bolted at the slightest sign of movement, making his job infinitely more time consuming with less reward.

He spent more time crouching in the bushes than he cared for and there was only so much he could do to keep himself from going insane in the silence.

He craved an adventure, but it’s never a simple thing to leave a home, and that small corner of the kingdom had been his entire world. He held his dissatisfaction close as he continued along the moss-lined path.

It was then that a familiar head popped out from around the back of a tree ahead.

“There you are!” It was Neff. “Auntie told me to fetch you for dinner since you’re taking your dear sweet time."

It was a complaint more than a report.

Neff pulled up next to Penryn, matching his stride as they walked. Side by side, the two looked nothing alike and yet strikingly similar all at once. Where Penryn had raging red hair that was always messy, Neff had a tidy shade of black. Each facial feature a near polar opposite: Penryn had a soft curve to his nose and green eyes, while Neff had a sharp ledge of a nose and large dark eyes. The two couldn’t be further opposites.

Despite these differences, many of their mannerisms and ways of speaking were nearly identical, and they were often mistaken for brothers. They were not related in the slightest but growing up next door in a tight-knit community was the next best thing to being actual kin.

They also shared one thing that was common among all Drakin. The year they turned 15 they both received their traditional Drakin tattoo during the coming-of-age ceremony. The inked dragon scales slithered down their upper arm and gave them a permanent reminder of their origins, lest they forget to uphold the reputation of the mighty dragons they came from.

Neff continued to walk with Penryn toward his house, in hopes of snagging a bowl of Auntie Isla’s stew. Penryn hardly spoke as they went. The atmosphere felt foreign to Neff, who was used to Penryn filling in the silence for him. It wasn’t too long before he broke it.

“Girl troubles?” asked Neff with an all-knowing look, as if he were an expert on the subject.

“Wha…why? Why do you always assume I’m having girl troubles?”

Neff frowned at Penryn’s response, hoping for some entertainment on this drab Tuesday.

“Oh. It’s not money, is it? I guess I could, uh…” Neff trailed off. He really didn't want to get into the business of loaning money to friends but couldn't think of a good excuse not to on the spot.

Penryn’s eyebrows gathered together as he frowned.

“You know you could just ask me what’s wrong like a normal person, right?”

Neff made a gesture with his hand that Penryn could only assume meant “go ahead then”.

After a brief silence, Penryn asked, “is it possible to feel burnt out over nothing? Like the usual life stuff just isn’t enough anymore?”

“So, you’re saying you’re bored?”

“Well…yeah, but it feels deeper. Boredom goes away eventually. This just lingers and feels so heavy sometimes.”

“What’s wrong with the life you have right now? You’ve got a lot going for you: a family that loves you, a job that was practically handed to you, the best neighbor,” Neff pointed at himself to make sure it was obvious who he was talking about. “I see nothing worth crying about. The only thing you’re lacking is a lady, but I can’t really blame them for staying away.”

Penryn ignored Neff’s jab as he continued.

“I’ve just been thinking that maybe this isn’t what I want. It's so monotonous, and I swear the game is hiding from me. I have to spend twice as long to catch half the amount for Uncle Wiley. I mean, there’s a whole world out there, ya know? Sure I have a good life here, but if I stay stuck in the same place I think I might suffocate.”

“Well that’s a bit dramatic.”

“It’s true, is what it is. I don't think I can take it anymore.”

Penryn confirmed Neff’s claims by dramatically flopping down onto the earth. He leaned against a tree and Neff sat down next to him.

“Why are you just now thinking about the future? Your uncle’s going to be pissed if you quit now.”

“I’ve never thought that far ahead, honestly.”

“Yeah, you never do, do you?” Penryn sneered and threw a leaf at his so-called friend, but it caught mid-air and slowly sank to the earth before accomplishing its mission. “I’m just saying it like it is!”

Penryn sighed again. “Yeah, well, I don’t know what to do now. I don’t even know where to go or what skills would be useful out there.”

Neff rolled his eyes. “You’re kidding me, right? You’re the best hunter in town, when there's actually something to hunt, that is. Why don’t you apply to be a bounty hunter for the Royal Bounty Guild? Use those tracking skills for something useful.”

Something about Neff’s suggestion sounded familiar.

“Didn’t you apply to that a few months ago?”

Neff gritted his teeth. The thought of a possible rejection after all his hard work tightened the knot in his stomach that he’d been working so hard to ignore.

“Yeah, well, I’m sure they’re backed up on applications. Sometimes it can take years to receive an answer.” He said this more for himself than his friend. “Just apply, then while you wait to hear back you can figure out other options. The pay per catch is unbeatable. You’d be able to provide for yourself, travel with expenses paid, and it might improve your image for the ladies,” Neff wiggled his eyebrows up and down.

Penryn laughed. “What’s the catch?”

“You just have to pledge loyalty to the king. It’s similar to a knighthood, but more under the radar. He accepts the elite into his circle and in return he provides his men with high reward targets and insider information that isn’t available to regular bounty hunters. Seems like he really values obedience and loyalty, so he rewards it well.”

“Well, if it gets me out of here it can’t hurt to try, I guess.”

“Right. And now that that’s settled: I’ll race you home!” Neff shot up and pushed Penryn down onto his back with his foot.

Using the advantage, Neff ran as fast as he could toward Penryn’s home, but as Penryn caught up, he shoved Neff into a shrub. He cackled as he took the lead, and this rather rambunctious race continued until they both loudly burst through the front door and were greeted by Penryn’s mother and a bowl of warm stew.

The more Penryn thought about Neff’s plan, the more he liked the idea of bounty hunting. He would have a chance to use his skills while apprehending criminals. Almost like the heroes from his favorite tales, but with much more money. He daydreamed about what his new life of adventure would be like as he sent his application off to the palace.

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Only two months passed and Penryn received his letter of acceptance into the guild.

His mother, Isla Dreki, was not a fan of this plan, but she knew that trying to talk him out of it would only make him more determined. She'd grown quite comfortable with the idea of him being close to home for the foreseeable future. Although she couldn't say she was surprised when he made the announcement. He'd always been a restless child.

Isla knew she could do nothing but support him when it came down to it. She acknowledged that he was old enough to make his own choices, as much as she hated to admit it. Like most mothers, Isla still saw her precious little baby in the face of her 18-year-old son.

On his last night at home, Penryn’s family threw him a farewell party with some of his friends and cousins from the village.

“I knew you’d accomplish great things. You were born with a spear in your fist!” his uncle bellowed as he slapped him on the back.

The beefy man had helped Penryn’s mother raise him since his father left. Although he wanted to protest the boy’s departure, he was afraid of what Isla would do to him if he was anything short of supportive.

Isla rolled her eyes, “Wiley, I think I’d remember a spear coming out of my…”

“MA!” Penryn interrupted before she could finish.

Neff lifted a glass in his honor. “Well done! I’ll be joining you out there, one day. Just you wait.”

Penryn could hear the slight bitterness in Neff’s voice behind his forced smile. The two had always been competitive and Penryn couldn’t help but rub it in just a little more.

He lifted his glass and cheered, “to me!” Everyone cheered “to Penryn!” and lifted their glasses in response. Neff’s displeasure overflowed and he could no longer hide it. He scowled at Penryn’s cockiness.

As much as he didn’t want to admit it, Penryn had inherited his mother’s affinity for teasing those he loved. He playfully punched Neff’s shoulder, to which Neff returned a small smirk of forgiveness.

The party continued throughout the night in the same manner as most Drakin celebrations: rowdy. Penryn stepped out the back door for a minute to take a break from the chaos. He looked up at the stars and embraced their stillness.

After a few minutes, he heard the back door creak, along with an explosion of sound as the noise from the party was set loose into the cool night air. Isla stood there with a small, wrapped parcel. She closed the door behind her, trapping the sound once again.

“Hey, Ma. What’s that?” Penryn gestured to the package.

“It’s a box.” When Penryn didn’t laugh, she continued, “…and inside the box is a gift. Open it up.”

Penryn secretly hoped it was another weapon. He always had some sort of blade strapped to him at all times. He carefully opened the box and found not a weapon inside, but an old compass. Engraved on the back was E.J., his grandfather’s initials.

“Wow, Ma, this is really neat!”

He inspected the details of the compass’ face by the light of the moon. It was framed by small metal leaves and twigs. Every mark had been carefully and intentionally made.

Isla looked pleased at his admiration of the heirloom.

“Take a closer look. It’s not a regular compass.”

Upon further inspection, Penryn saw that the top of the compass did not read “North”, but instead had a rough etching of four intersecting lines with an upside down V on top.

“I don’t get it.”

“This compass points to home. It changes depending on who’s holding it. No matter where you go in this world, you’ll always know your way back. I want you to remember how much you’re loved by all of us back home when you look at it.”

Penryn knew how valuable magical items were and gently tucked the compass into his breast pocket before giving his mom a tight hug.

“Don’t worry, I’ll come back to visit.”

Isla’s eyes burned from the tears she refused to set free.

“I wasn’t worried” she managed to croak out, unconvincingly.

It was time for her baby to go on his own journey. A mixture of grief and pride filled her chest. She knew he would be okay, yet she knew she would miss him every minute of his absence.