DragonCoin Revolution

Chapter 8

Outside, the autumn air hit her face with shocking clarity. Everything seemed sharper somehow—colours more vibrant, sounds more distinct. She could smell rain coming, though the sky was still clear. When she glanced at her hands, she noticed faint golden patterns tracing themselves across her skin before fading again, like temporary tattoos made of light.

"The awakening is progressing rapidly," Xaihuang observed. "She'll need stabilisation techniques before we travel."

Marcus nodded reluctantly. "My car is in the underground garage. We can begin basic instruction there."

As they walked, Sage pulled out her phone, scrolling through DragonCoin updates with growing concern. The cryptocurrency's sudden appearance and meteoric rise had spawned dozens of conspiracy theories already—everything from government psyops to alien technology. None mentioned dragons, at least not yet, but the comment sections were filled with reports of strange sightings worldwide.

"How are we getting to Seattle?" she asked, trying to sound casual despite the panic bubbling just beneath her surface.

"Not by plane," Marcus replied grimly. "Airport security systems interact... poorly with dragons in transitional states. Especially with the Scale-Sync network compromised."

"We'll drive," Xaihuang said, his cane tapping a rhythmic pattern as they walked. "The old roads still follow the ley lines. It will help stabilise your awakening."

Sage laughed despite herself. "Drive? Seattle's over a thousand miles away!"

Both men exchanged looks that made her stomach drop.

"What?" she demanded.

"Dragons," Marcus said carefully, "travel differently when necessary."

The underground parking garage was eerily quiet compared to the chaos above. Marcus led them to a sleek black sedan parked in a corner spot marked with symbols similar to those in the underground chamber. As they approached, Sage noticed how the car seemed to shimmer slightly, as if viewed through heat waves.

"Scale-Sync enabled," Marcus explained, noticing her attention. "The vehicle is partially shielded against magical disruption."

"And if the shielding fails?" Sage asked.

Xaihuang smiled that too-sharp smile. "Then we discover whether you can maintain human form at seventy miles per hour. Exciting prospect, isn't it?"

"Not helping," she muttered.

Inside the car, Marcus activated systems that looked nothing like standard automotive electronics. The dashboard glowed with symbols similar to those on the ancient coins, and when the engine started, it didn't so much roar as purr with a sound that reminded Sage of the fountain's dual streams.

"Buckle up," Marcus advised, his hands on the wheel seeming to shift between human fingers and something more elegant and scaled. "First awakening can be... unpredictable."

"Especially with two Convergence dragons potentially resonating across distance," Xaihuang added from the backseat, settling his cane across his knees. "When was your last transformation, Marcus? The full one, not these half-measures."

Marcus's jaw tightened. "Council regulations recommend minimal transformation in human territories."

"Ah, yes, always the rule-follower," Xaihuang sighed. "No wonder your Scale-Sync is deteriorating. Technology requires adaptation, not rigid adherence to outdated protocols."

As they pulled out of the garage, Sage found herself gripping the door handle, her knuckles white. The city streets looked both familiar and alien—ordinary storefronts and pedestrians, but now she could see subtle signs of the hidden world. A flower shop whose blooms seemed too vibrant, a bookstore where the shadows moved independently of their casters, a café where several patrons had eyes that reflected light like cats'.

"They've been here all along," she whispered. "Dragons, living among humans."

"For centuries," Marcus confirmed, navigating through traffic with preternatural precision. "Though 'dragon' is an oversimplification. The ancient texts called us *Kasarith-Vos*—'those who bridge realms.'"

"Your writing captured it rather well," Xaihuang remarked. "The elemental affinities, the societal structures. Quite impressive for someone operating on subconscious memory."

Sage stared at her phone, where DragonCoin updates continued to flood in. "If I could access these memories without knowing it, then whoever created DragonCoin might be in the same position—channelling dragon knowledge through technology without understanding the consequences."

The car hummed as it accelerated onto the highway, its engine producing that strange purring sound that seemed to resonate with something deep in Sage's chest. The sensation was oddly comforting, like finding a missing piece of herself she hadn't known was gone.

"First lesson," Marcus said, glancing at her. "Breath control. Dragons don't breathe fire—that's a human misconception. What we do is manipulate elemental energies through focused respiration."

"Really starting with the basics, aren't we?" Xaihuang commented dryly.

"With respect," Marcus replied, "I'd rather she not accidentally ignite the upholstery when we hit turbulence."

"Turbulence?" Sage repeated. "On a highway?"

The answer came moments later. Nothing about this car was ordinary. As they crested a hill, the vehicle lifted smoothly from the asphalt, rising until the highway became a ribbon of light below them. Sage's stomach lurched as the world tilted sideways through her window.

"Flying car," she managed through gritted teeth. "Of course it's a flying car."

"Not flying," Marcus corrected, his hands steady on controls that had transformed into something resembling a ship's wheel crossed with a musical instrument. "Riding the thermal currents. Ancient dragon technique adapted for modern transportation."

The city spread out beneath them like a circuit board, highways pulsing with streams of headlights. From this height, Sage could see patterns she'd never noticed before—the way certain buildings seemed to cluster around invisible focal points, how some neighbourhoods glowed with subtle auroras that had nothing to do with streetlights.

"The ley line network," Xaihuang explained, following her gaze. "Your ancestors helped map these energy flows when the first human cities were just trading posts."

Sage pressed her face to the window, watching the landscape scroll by at impossible speeds. "How fast are we going?"

"Fast enough that we'll reach Seattle by dawn," Marcus replied. "The currents are strong tonight. Your awakening is affecting atmospheric magical pressure across half the continent."

Her phone buzzed again. DragonCoin had just surpassed Bitcoin in market capitalisation, and social media was exploding with reports of impossible sightings from coast to coast. Videos of shadows with wings, reflections that didn't match their owners, and electronic devices glitching in geometric patterns that matched ancient symbols.