Fissure laughed. He heard many things. "Yes, I hear plenty of small voices from various places nearby. You should be more specific..." the dragon said, glad that Shadow was conversing with him more fluently now. "Power is irrelevant, mostly. It's just an edge that gives you means of acheiving goals. Like life, it's expendable and easy to come by, yet highly valued and oh so enjoyable. Now let's see. Do I know Mark's father?" Fissure looked over at Mark. "I suppose it's possible. What was his name? Oh, and for the record, hybreds are becoming quite common nowadays. Mating with a size mismatch is negotiable. It normal involves some assimilation magic. A dragon impregnating a human woman is a different story, but not completely unheard of. I haven't seen the child for quite a long time, but I─and Diarow for that matter─had my eye on him during the whole battle during which we crossed paths. Descretely enough, we kept him alive; I don't think he noticed until Diarow deliberately spared his life in a face-to-face encounter, not that my demon friend really did show Mark his face..."