The party of five began their journey to the sorcerer's hut, Darren and Brian were riding the now horse Mike, while Joe, the dragonkind and Catherine the Drow walked beside them.
"How much farther Dar?" asked Joe, who would fly but at the pace they were going it was much to bother to stay airborne.
"Just a few leagues ahead, we should be there by noon." said Dar.
"A whole day? These two idiots came and went in a single day?" said Christine.
"Elves and horses run fast. We are walking, your friend here haven't gotten a hang on the whole being in four legs since he recovered his mind. It'll be too dangerous if he breaks his leg." explained Darren.
"Well I'm a Drow, so I should be fast too right?"
"Oh no! You are not going to trick me, the last time I made a comment of those to a drow she dislocated my jaw." said Dar rubbing his chin.
"Well I'm a dragon so I'm faster." said Joe. "Why don't you give us directions and we return quicker?"
"I return quicker." said Christine.
"What? Why?" asked Joe.
"Because they are two naked children and a horse" said Christine to Brian's embarrassment. "You have to stay here and keep them safe."
"As I said I'm a dragon I'm faster." said Joe.
"Yeah, but I'm a drow, which means I have an inkling of magic stuff, so I'll know what to look out for." explained Christine, Joe didn't have a refusal to that so he complied.
Darren charted the way for Christine and she ran off. The four remaining decided to wait here near a pond, so they would have water. They made a pyre, which was easy for Joe and set off to catch some fish. Brian seemed to relax more now than Christine was gone.
"Dude, sorry she saw you like that, I know have a crush on her." said Joe, Mike neighed in response.
"Well that's done now for sure, she always thought of me as immature and this will do nothing to help my case."
"A crush?" Darren was confused by the lingo, he mostly had kept himself catching fish.
"He was in love with her." explained Joe.
"Oh! A drow and an elf? Now that I think about it, it's pretty strange for you two to be travelling together. Figures it had to be because of a forbidden love. But do not fret my friend Brian, if you were "in a crush", as you say, to leave both your tribes for each other, surely she can look past you being but a human child now. Of course that worm of yours won't be satisfying her anytime soon, I suggest you practice using your tongue, at least until you start growing hairs." said Darren.
Joe as a dragon was already red, but Brian was glowing crimson. Both were in complete silence that was only broken by Mike neighing wholeheartedly. He must have laughing his ass off.
"Wow" said Joe coming back to himself. "So how old are you exactly again?"
Before he could answer there was a whiplash sound, suddenly Joe wings and arms were bound by rope, the same as Mike's legs. From the bushes a man came running to Joe and swiftly put an iron collar around Joe's neck.
"Oh no! Enslavers" Darren grabbed Brian by the hand and made a run for it.
"You try to enslave a dragon?" Joe said angrily beginning to change to his monstrous form, but the collar on his neck would crush his throat if he tried to grow big.
"Stand still" said one of the men. The iron collar glowed and Joe was compelled to obey, he knew full well of his actions, but his body wasn't responding.
Darren and Brian didn't got far. "Well, brothers, what a great haul. A magnificent Black Shire, two slaves and a dragonkind."
"We are not slaves!" yelled Brian.
"No? Well I can see you being working hard all your life." said the man to Dar who still looked like a stableboy. "But you look soft and weak and somehow clean. "Let me guess, to soft to be slave, too clean to be a peasant... You know what? It doesn't matter, by law there's no difference between an animals and naked people."