Germ

Germathan

"You really want to talk to me?" A slimy mirror hatchling spoke uncertainly, wariness in his eyes as he stared back at the newcomer from a secluded offshoot of the caverns. Wariness faded into hope at a beckoning gesture. The small dragon inched forward slowly, before seeming to remember something and stopping a few feet away.

"I... I guess I shouldn't get too close, huh? If no one has told you yet, my name is Germ. It's short for Germathan." The mirror made a disgusted face as he uttered his full name; it was hardly a wonder why he hated it.

"I don't know why, but I make people sick. I don't mean to, and I definitely don't like it, but I do." The hatchling paused for a moment, allowing the information to sink in for the newcomer. When the other dragon did not flinch away in disgust or fear, Germ continued.

"As far as I know, some dragons found me as an egg in the Charged Barrens. As others discovered my effect on them, I got passed around from clan to clan. No one wanted to take care of a hatchling that made them and their families ill." Germ's four eyes glazed over slightly in a look of sadness.

"Later on, a few clans were determined to study me and figure out why I make dragons sick. They tried to let me just be a hatchling most of the time, but..." The little mirror shook his head, "My body never aged. So the longer I was in one place, the more dragons got tired of feeding a wayward kid that could make them sick, especially since I never got big enough to fight or to do anything helpful for anyone."

Germ seemed determined to push past the dark sadness that would be enough to swallow any dragon. After a deep breath, his eyes brightened and his mouth curved up into a small smile.

"I actually found the Caverns not too long ago, but I'm really glad I did. I have a friend, a real friend now. His name is Jelly! I don't know why, but for some reason I don't make him sick. The aberrations tried to have some of the older dragons look into it, but no one understands how Jelly could be immune."

The darkness had fully passed over the mirror, and now he almost seemed to gleam in the bioluminescent glow of the caves. Germ's tail wagged back in forth in a clear expression of his excitement.

"Jelly and I go on adventures together exploring the caves. Luster told us we have nothing to worry about if we explore together. Even if the tunnel creature got close to us, I would make it sick. She said something about it being able to smell my... condition on me." Germ made a strange face, as if he had no idea how such a creature could smell something so subtle on a dragon. At least, he hoped it was subtle.

"The aberrations let Jelly and I do pretty much whatever we want, since we both have stayed little. Don't tell them I said so, but I think they're just happy to have us out from under their feet, so to speak. They don't seem to like neediness from the other dragons in the Caverns."

There is a flicker in the lighting of the cave, as if the mushrooms all decided to blink at once. When the light returned, it was a noticeable shade darker in the surrounding area. If a dragon didn't know better, they would almost guess that the fungi were attempting to mimic a nighttime environment for its denizens.

"Is it that time already?" Germ asked as he turned to survey the glowing clusters of mushrooms lining the walls and floor of the cave. "I should let you go; I'm sure Jelly is wondering where I am. But thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me. I appreciate it more than I can say." Germ gives a soft smile goodbye before loping off into the darkness, leaving the newcomer alone once more.