Disclaimer: I own nothing except my characters. Other canon characters are owned by their respective companies.

Exclaimer: To people who don't like the story, just don't read it.

Special Thanks to Alec the Dark Angel for being my beta for this story.

Special Thanks to Strigon175 for being my beta for this story.

Special thanks to Sicarius19 for providing and writing out the main story for the Terrador Social Arc.

Chapter 36

Forgotten Past

"What kind of dreams?" Flame asked.

The earth dragon looked out to the windows, and into the city outside. Flame could tell that the dragon was deep in thought. "It's dreams about my past…" he glanced back at him. "My family."

Flame blinked. This was a first. This was the first time he had ever seen Crombe mention anything about his family. "What was it about?" he inquired.

"Just some stuff from my childhood." His expression then darkened. "It makes me sad to think that…they're dead."

"Really?" Flame shook his head. "Maybe you're just being too pessimistic Crombe. I mean, look at Zaze. He found his brother."

The dragon nodded. "True, but I don't think the circumstances are the same in mine."

"Why?" Flame asked curiously.

"I was a single child, Flame. I have no one left."

Flame could feel the atmosphere around them take a dip. It must be hard to know that you're the only one left. Still, he tried to liven up the situation to make it feel a little better.

"Any relatives?"

"I had one…though I think she may be dead already…"

"Are you sure?" Flame asked.

Crombe glanced at him, and thought for a moment. Maybe she was still alive. Deep down inside him, he hoped for it to be. She was the only friend he ever had. "…No." He let out a sigh. "I'm not sure though."

"Why?" Flame asked again. "What exactly happened?"

Crombe looked downcast. "It's what happened to everyone else."
Flame blinked. He didn't understand for a moment what he meant, but when he did, he immediately recalled the memory.

"Oh…"

"Yes. I'm assuming you were living a normal life too?"

Flame nodded. "I was. My family and I…Ember and hers, we all were. Then…"

"Then Gaul's mindless apes attacked."

The dragon looked down to the floor, the memory coming back to him in full circle. "My dad immediately took the lead and got everyone out of the area. And I guess we went into hiding after that. Was it the same to you?"

"Pretty much…well, except the last part."

"What do you mean?"
That was when Crombe's stomach growled. They were talking so much, that they had neglected their hunger.

"Why don't we talk about this over breakfast?"

Flame smiled.

0

Zaze walked down the halls of the Temple and soon arrived at the Dining Hall. The Dining Hall was relatively lively, with the ambience of dragons eating and chatting with each other in the air. After grabbing his food, he immediately saw most of his friends sitting at one of the tables, and eagerly joined them. He was surprised however, to find a specific dragon already there.

"Hey guys," he greeted.

"Oh, Zaze! You're finally here!" replied Ember who was seated next to Flame.

"Your brother was just telling us stories about you," added Crombe who had a slight smirk on his face.

"He-he was?" Zaze asked, glancing at Phase, who was chatting with Latis. The dragon in question stopped talking and glanced up at him.

"Z! You're finally awake."

Zaze placed his food down and looked at his fellow twin brother. "I am." His brother then proceeded to pull him into a hug. This surprised him. He was still trying to recover from the whole 'having a brother pop up' situation. After the whole greeting, Zaze sat himself down and proceeded to eat his breakfast with his friends. As the others chatted animatedly, he immediately noticed something.

"Where are the others?" he asked to Latis.

"Oh, Draiana and Celsius said they had errands to do, so they left early. Manuel on the other paw said he was going to help the girls and took off with them," she replied.

Zaze just smiled to himself. "That's good to hear I guess." Now that he got that out of the way, it was high time he got some answers for himself. Sensing the moment, Phase turned to him.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions to ask me."

Zaze nodded. And he could feel the others equally set their attention as well. Even Crombe. They were all curious to hear his story. "I do."

"Ask away then. I am kind of obliged to explain things now."

Zaze immediately went down to business.

"Who am I?"

Multiple expressions came across Phase's face that clearly went as soon as they came. But they all saw it. First it was understanding, sadness, and then acceptance. He nodded to himself. Zaze had the right to know.

"Well, Zaze…where do I start?" he asked rhetorically. Phase seated himself on one of the empty chairs and looked up to him. "I guess I could start with our family. You and I are the only siblings there are with our mom and dad."

Hearing the mention of his parents, Zaze quickly chimed in. "Where are they?"

Everyone glanced to Phase expectantly, but quickly realized the notion when his expression dropped. "They're…they're dead, Zaze."

"Oh…" Latis managed to mumble out and took a peek at Zaze in the corner of her eye. He was frozen stiff, an unfathomable expression on his face. It was like he didn't know how to take the news he was being given.

"…H-how did they…die?" he asked, almost unsure if he wanted to know.

Phase looked at the floor before giving his answer. He still remembered all too vividly what had happened.

"T-they died…trying to protect us." He looked up at the group and scratched his chin, remembering the long forgotten dark memories. "I don't know what it was, but it came out of nowhere. We've heard news that dragons were heading back to Warfang since the fighting was over. But then, as we took a rest at one of the forest from flying, it happened. It was a huge beast that threatened to kill us all."

Phase closed his eyes, hearing the shouts and screams from memories of the past.

"Naturally, our parents told us to run and don't look back. We obediently followed as we were told. And then…" Phase sighed. "I did something stupid."

"What did you do?" asked Flame, listening intently. The whole group was quiet, paying attention to the story that was being told to them. They finally had a clear grasp of what was going on with Zaze.

"I left you," he looked at Zaze. "I told you to stay where you were because…" He bit his lip. "I wanted to see what happened with mom and dad. It…" Phase was visibly holding back his emotions. "Let's just say it wasn't…good. They were dead. Let's just leave it at that."

The air was silent as the atmosphere between the group of friends dropped to pure coldness.

"W-where did Zaze go?" asked Ember curiously.

Phase shook his head. "I don't know." The electric dragon glanced at his twin. "I looked everywhere for him. I thought for sure he followed me with the same reasons I had. But no…he was gone. I had no idea where he went, in a forest I didn't know, with a monster that was lurking around that had killed our parents. It was messed up."

Phase looked at each and everyone before continuing his story, noting everyone's expression. Zaze still had an unfathomable expression on his face, trying to digest all this information. Crombe was passive, but he could tell he was paying attention. Ember was sniffling, coming to a better understanding of her electric dragon friend. Flame and Latis looked grim.

"I looked everywhere for you," he continued. "I don't remember the last time I felt so…so nervous. And…scared; I cried a lot as I looked for you. My only family left gone. As an older brother you were my responsibility and I messed it up. And to top it off, I had no idea where Warfang was in the first place. So I was lost in an unfamiliar, dangerous area, looking for a place I didn't know where it was, and also was looking for my brother that went missing." He smiled wryly. "It was great," he added sarcastically. "On the bright side though, you could imagine the look on my face when I saw you. Who would have thought that my brother was the one who ended up saving my life?"

No one spoke for a moment, as Phase ended his tale with a rhetoric question. It sank into everyone who listened. No one could ever imagine that the bright, sprightly fellow that all of them came to know as Zaze would have such a dark beginning.

"Thank you…"

Everyone turned their heads to look at Zaze.

"Thank you for telling me," he answered. "I may not remember anything, but at least…I am glad that now…I know what happened." Zaze personally wanted to know why he had Convexity as well, but he kept it to himself for now. He'd ask his brother about it privately later. Phase smiled, and walked over to his brother and gave him a big hug.

Everyone was happy at that moment. Flame noticeably had a tear in his eye that he abruptly wiped away. As story time ended, Ember glanced at Latis and nod off to her. She bit her lip, but nodded back. Now was the right time.

"Um…Zaze?" she asked, when the atmosphere all around them went back to neutral.

"Yeah?"

"Can I talk to you?"

"Sure."

"In private."

Zaze blinked. "Uh, sure, I guess."

As the two dragons walked off discreetly outside of the Dining Hall, the others continued to chat with one another.

"I never imagined Zaze would have such a rather…dark story going for him," said Ember.

"Me too; but somehow, having amnesia—I guess—makes things better," added Flame.

"That was if it was true."

Everyone glanced to the source of the voice. It came from none other than the earth dragon Crombe.

"What did you just say?" Flame asked.

"I said: Phase just told us a blatant lie," he said flatly.

Phase blinked and glanced at the earth dragon. "Huh?"

"You were lying through your teeth. Something tells me that wasn't what really happened, was it?" Crombe said, looking at him.

Phase bit his lip, looking away from him. Ember on the other hand looked at Crombe. "How could you say that, Crombe? Why would Phase have to lie? And what's your proof?"

Crombe looked at her. "Ember, Zaze isn't stupid. He won't walk off, knowing full well how dangerous it is. And besides, you do know where I am from right?"

"We found you at the abandoned Dragon Temple near Silver River. Why?"

Crombe looked at Phase as he answered. "I've lived there for a long time. I know that area like the back of my paw. And not once was I ever disturbed by this monster that you so have that killed your parents." He shook his head. "I'm sorry, Phase. I don't believe you. I think you're lying."

Flame and Ember didn't know what to think. But they knew one thing. Crombe's argument was strong. He presented valid points that clearly contradicted what the electric dragon just told them. If they had to believe who was right, it was clear. It was Crombe. They knew Crombe far longer than Phase, and one thing they knew was that the earth dragon always thought carefully of his words. All three of them patiently waited for Phase's reply.

The electric dragon sighed. "He's right."

Flame was shocked. "What?"

"I made it all up. Everything."

"So wait, you're really not Zaze's brother!?" Ember asked.

He glanced at her and chuckled. "No! I mean the story! I made it all up."

"Oh…" Ember was relieved. "Cause if you weren't, I was going to ask you why is it that you two look the same!"

"So why did you lie?" Crombe asked nonchalantly.

Phase looked down the ground. "I did it to protect him."

"From what? His history? It's not like it's that bad, right?" Flame asked, almost unsure if he wanted to know the answer. The look on Phase's face told him it was probably better if he didn't.

The dragon looked grim. "You don't understand, Flame. Once I realized he had amnesia, it was actually a blessing in disguise."

"Really?" Ember asked. Crombe on the other paw just patiently and silently listened in.

"Do you three really want to know what happened?" Phase asked.

All three nodded.

"Do me a favor, and never mention this to anyone. Ever. Some things are better left forgotten."

Please take some time to R&R.

And favorite it, along with the author!

The OC "Pyrus" belongs to Alec the Dark Angel.

The OC "Decibele" belongs to Sicarius19

The OCs "Manuel" and "Alyssa" belong to SpyroonEarth.