The Eternal Night was finally over.
Elenar had all of the dark dragons line the city streets and gaze up upon the Twin Moons as their glow faded. It was a surreal spectacle to watch them fade into the darkness of the night. Many of them shifted and groaned as the last traces of their excessive fonts of power faded into nothing. Rune and Cyrus stood beside their mother on the main road, and they each grimaced as the power faded. For Rune, it wasn't so bad. But Cyrus seemed exceptionally perturbed.
"What's wrong, Cy?" Rune frowned.
"I… I'd never felt so powerful." The other prince sighed sadly as his reserves were drained. "It's going to suck being back down to normal."
"Ah, don't be like that…" Rune nudged his brother in the shoulder with his muzzle. "I'm sure you're still pretty powerful in your own right. You don't need a boost."
As the dark dragons lost their excess power, Rune looked around at the gathered dragons. The Guardians of Glenhaven were gathered to surround Elenar; Jules, Hontus and Voden were all present. The only one to stand in the crowd proper was Seraph, who was keeping an eye on the younglings. All of the light dragons (save for Voden) growled and gasped as the color in their scales returned to full glory.
"Ahh…" Hontus blew a small torch of red flames from his jaws. "Feels nice to be back in top form again."
"Indeed…" Jules let a few sparks dance across his scales and armor. He then turned and smirked curiously at Voden. "Though some among us seem unaffected."
"I really can't explain it… yet." The scholar fanned out his wings. "It must just be one of the quirky new side effects of being an artificial dark drake."
As the moons finally faded into the darkness, there came a beam of light from the sky. At first, it resembled a star, but then it began to glow much brighter for something so far away. Another beam burst through the darkness after that. And then another. And then several more. The next thing the dragons knew, the sky was engulfed in the shimmering brilliance of the sun. Everyone had to shield their eyes, and they squinted as they adjusted to the heavenly glow.
Rune looked to the air, and saw the glory of a bright blue sky. A few clouds were adrift off in the horizon. Not the thunderous storm-clouds he'd grown so used to, but the warm and fluffy clouds of a spring day. And Rune wasn't the first to look upon the clouds; many dragons chattered amongst themselves about how long it had been since they'd seen such a bright sky.
"Wow…" Rune said with a smile. "It's so beautiful."
"It's… nice, yeah." Cyrus replied as he rubbed his eyes. "I think I've gotten too used to shadows, though."
"Well, you'll be enjoying more bright days from here on out." Elenar smiled. She nuzzled Cyrus's forehead, making the youngling flinch in surprise.
"Mom!" Cyrus protested as his face flushed. "Not in front of the other dragons!"
The dragoness merely chuckled as she carefully scooted Cyrus and Rune off to the side. Rune couldn't help but laugh, making Cyrus get flustered. Meanwhile, Elenar took a steady breath and walked past the Guardians of Glenhaven, to look upon all of the gathered dragons. Light and dark drakes alike had gathered on the main road; dragons from one group cast untrusting glares at the other, and vice versa. Rune and Cyrus sat back on their haunches, the former growing increasingly worried.
"Dark dragons of Warfang…" Elenar stood up tall as she addressed the cloud. "For too long has our kind hidden ourselves away in the dark corners of the dragon realms. The Order of Culmubrae will scare us into hiding no longer. Nor will we be the harbingers of a terrible storm that engulfs the world. This is our world as much as it is the light dragons. So, let us spread our wings, and fly! Just as we used to in the days of old under the watch of Lord Spyro and Lady Cynder!"
She spread her wings for emphasis. Many dragons looked amongst themselves curiously.
"A cycle of violence begetting violence has plagued us for twenty years." Elenar continued. "This isn't the world that Spyro and Cynder wanted us to live in. Light and Dark dragons have all felt betrayed and hurt. But our world can never heal if we don't stop and show some compassion for one another. My fellow dark dragons, we must atone for our attacks on Warfang and any surrounding lands. And to the light dragons, we beg you to understand that we don't wish to fight anymore. All we want is our old homes and old lives back."
One by one, dark dragons began to lift off and take into the air. They flew through the skies and surveyed the city of Warfang. There was no pressure, no thirst for violence… only an enjoyment of the world they lived in. The light dragons took to the skies as well to fly amongst the dark ones. Many dragons on either side were cautious about approaching one another.
But Rune could see the few exceptions. Some of the older dragons from one side searched the crowds for a select few. Perhaps, eight years ago, a good number of these dragons lived in Warfang amongst the light ones. Perhaps there were lost friends who wanted to rekindle friendships. Maybe some were seeking their own personal atonement for wrongs dealt. Maybe it wasn't Rune's place to know all of the dragons' stories. But that didn't stop his curious mind from filling in the blanks.
"That was quite a speech, Lady Elenar," said a haughty voice. Elenar and her sons turned around to see King Horus stepping forward. Just to his left and right were Guardians Apella and Cerulean. Elenar cautiously stepped forward and bowed her head toward Horus, and she urged her sons to do the same with a gesture of her wing. Rune and Cyrus nervously lowered their heads toward Horus and the Guardians.
"Well no, there's no need for that, Milady." Cerulean said.
"We're the ones who should be bowing in subjugation." Apella grimaced.
Elenar stood her head up and looked nervously at Horus. "King Horus, again I must tell you how sorry I am that my late husband imprisoned you."
"Now, now, there's no need for that either, Lady Elenar." Horus said with a grimace. He stepped forward and bowed his head. "I'm just glad to that all of this fighting is behind us. Plus…" He tilted his head in such a way that his ivory crown fell into his forepaws. "I can finally pass this to the rightful ruler."
"What do you mean?" Elenar frowned.
"I am, or rather, have been, the Steward of Warfang." Horus said. "I've waited a long time for the rightful High King to make his return to the holy capital. Baneth may not be with us anymore…" He presented the crown to Elenar. "But his Queen is here nonetheless."
Elenar blinked in surprise and nearly fell backward onto her haunches. Rune and Cyrus exchanged curious glances.
"You're giving me the crown?" Elenar asked. "Just like that?"
"Just like that." Horus smiled. "Welcome home, High Queen Elenar."
Elenar stammered for a good few moments. She looked around at the gathered Guardians. "I… I don't know if I'm worthy."
"I'd say you're plenty worthy." Jules said with a slight smile. He looked toward Hontus and Voden, who nodded in agreement. The captain looked upon Elenar and bowed his head with his fellow Guardians. "On Behalf of Glenhaven, I welcome your ascension to your rightful place."
"And on behalf of the Prime Temple," Cerulean said loud and clear, "I also welcome this ascension."
Cerulean and Apella bowed their heads toward Elenar. The shadowy dragoness looked on in awe. With a slightly-flushed face, Elenar lowered her head down before Horus. "I… I accept."
Horus smiled wider. He placed the crown upon Elenar's head. The metals in the crown shifted and shimmered as it altered its shape to better conform to Elenar's head. Once the ivory crown stopped shimmering, Elenar rose up to her full height and looked around. Rune and Cyrus both smiled as they bowed their heads toward Elenar.
"People of Warfang!" Horus exclaimed loud and clear as he walked around to Elenar's side. "I present to you… High Queen Elenar!"
Many of the dragons who were in the sky immediately flew down to the road for abrupt landings. Once they joined the dragons on the ground, they bowed their heads in subjugation. Rows upon rows of dragons bowed their heads, until just about everyone in the entire city was gathered to welcome in the new High Queen.
"Long live High Queen Elenar!" A dragon cheered across the way.
"Long live High Queen Elenar!" A few more dragons yelled. The sentiment spread quickly amongst the crowd; soon it was dozens. And then it was hundreds. The streets rang with the bright and joyous voices of the people of Warfang.
Rune and Cyrus couldn't help but smile. They clapped their forepaws and smiled at their mother. "Long live High Queen Elenar!"
A few moments later, the cheering died down and the crowd began to disperce a bit. It was just in time, as a dark portal erupted forth across the garden. Elenar and the others turned to gasp as General Grail stepped forward. He grumbled irritably as he fell backward onto his haunches.
"General?" Elenar asked curiously.
"It's done…" He panted. "All of the crepsculi from here to Ninn have been cleared out…" The General looked across the way at the gathered dragons. He sneered a bit at the Guardians, and then balked upon seeing the crown atop Elenar's head. "Eh? There was a coronation?"
"Indeed…" Elenar stepped forward and looked upon Grail. "Sorry that you had to miss it."
"It's… it's fine, my queen." Grail halfheartedly bowed his head.
"You sound stressed."
"Of course I'm stressed!" Grail snorted. "I've only been hastily undoing months of hard work in a desperate bid to keep from losing everything I've worked for!"
The burly dragon took several deep and harsh breaths. He lowered his head to the ground and sniffed a few roses in a desperate attempt to calm himself down. But clearly it wasn't enough to steady his thoughts.
"Perhaps what you need is a moment's reprieve…" Elenar turned her head to the sky, and focused upon the floating fortress. "After we've cleared up some loose ends."
"Aye?" Grail turned his eye toward the sky, and he grimaced. "Ah… of course. The children."
Rune grimaced, and he shared the feeling with Cyrus. The two princes looked upon The Nexus as it hung weightlessly over the Dragon Spire. Neither prince had spent much time considering that some of their fellow younglings had been trapped up there the whole time.
~~…~~
For the first time since its arrival in Warfang, The Nexus slowly made its way down to the ground. It came to a soft landing before Elenar and the others went to land upon the fortress grounds.
Standing before the doorway was Urobos, while Argos and Icarox were to the left and right respectively. The aged black dragon bowed his head toward Elenar as she came to a landing on the grass.
"We're ready to begin when you are, High Queen." Urobos said.
Elenar blushed a bit. "I'm guessing you heard the crowds cheering?"
"How could we not?" Argos asked. "It's something that all of us…"
"…Have only dreamed off since leaving Warfang all those years ago." Icarox finished.
"Well, thank you all." Elenar bowed her head. "But this isn't about me; it's about the children."
Urobos sighed and nodded his head. He looked toward Argos and Icarox in turn, who fanned out their wings and sat back on their haunches.
"The time has come…" Urobos said cautiously. He turned around and lightly nudged the doors open. "...for the children of Warfang to return to the world."
Urobos stepped out of the way as many uneasy eyes peered outside. Younglings carefully walked out of the doors and out into the sunlight; their eyes were shielded by their wing membranes. Rune and Cyrus sat back on their haunches and watched as dragons lined up to look upon the younglings.
A young wind dragon cautiously stepped outside. It looked left and right in worry for a good while… until it spotted a wind dragoness pushing its way through the crowd. Immediately the youngling's eyes widened and it ran forward. "Mommy!"
"My baby!" The dragoness exclaimed as she grasped her child in a hug. She nuzzled her dragonling's head as tears poured from her eyes. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"
"Mommy…" The youngling sniffled as it hugged back.
Many of the dark dragons in the crowd would soon share the same sentiment. Elenar sat back and smiled as many families were reunited. Grail stood beside her with an uneasy expression.
"Are you alright, General?" Elenar asked.
"I… Uh…" He grumbled.
Eventually a young dragon wandered out of the fortress. They looked around with their bright red eyes, and brushed wild mane hairs out of their face. They kept looking around until they spotted the General sitting across the way. Grail sucked in a breath as the youngling walked towards him.
"…Granddad?" The youngling tilted their head. "Is the war finally over?"
Grail nearly lost his composure. He squinted his eye and forced himself, in vain, not to cry. The youngling just looked up at the General in confusion, until Grail finally lowered his head to nuzzle his grandchild.
"Yes, it's over." Grail whispered. "We're free again, Chalice."
Chalice gave a soft smile and hugged Grail's foreleg. Elenar watched with her own smile. Cyrus beamed at the sight too, though Rune just looked on curiously.
"Don't you remember Chalice?" Cyrus whispered to him.
"Uh… not really." Rune grimaced. "Even with my memories back, I still don't know them."
"Well, I guess I'll just have to fill you in later." Cyrus smirked.
Rune just sighed and looked back at the younglings as they made their way out of the fortress.
Eventually, there were no more of the naturally-born dark dragons. Instead, there came a number of the children who had been transformed into dark dragons by Baneth's magic. Many of the adult dark dragons exchanged uneasy glances as the younglings emerged cautiously out into the sunlight.
Elenar looked upon the children sadly. She stepped forward, and then sat down on her haunches as they formed a small crowd.
"There are so many of them…" Elenar said. "I had no idea there were so many orphans after the war ended."
"They weren't all orphaned just after the war, Your Grace." Grail said from across the way. "I, uh… I must inform you that some of these children were orphanage quite recently, after the raid on Warfang."
Elenar had a brief flash of pain on her face. She then sucked in a deep breath and forced herself to wear a stoic mask. She then looked down at the dragonlings as they approached her.
"Wh… Who are you?" A young, dark blue dragon asked to Elenar.
Elenar sighed. So many of the transformed dragonlings looked so lost and confused. A few of them looked ready to cry as they remembered the families they'd lost in the battles in Warfang. She lowered her head down to the younglings and put on a warm smile.
"I'm Elenar. And I promise that you'll all be taken care of." The queen said. "You'll all be given homes and families again. I promise you."
Some of the children didn't looked convinced right away. A few of them did indeed cry. Elenar sighed; they deserved to cry. None of the destruction done to their lives could be easily swept under the rug. But that didn't mean that she couldn't do what she could to make the hurting better.
Elenar had so much planning to do. And she'd need to talk to the Deep Shadows straightaway.
~~…~~
It was the middle of the night.
After days of traveling across the dragon realms, the Deep Shadows had finally all returned to the floating fortress. They gathered in the bottommost chamber, known to all as The Crux.
It was a large, circular, stone room with no windows of any kind. It was kept illuminated via various torches that glowed with magical flames at eight points around the chamber. Between those torches were eight doors, and the floor was divided into nine sections; eight sections formed a ring around the chamber, and each one was marked with a glowing glyph that corresponded to an element of magic.
Each of the eight Deep Shadows stood on a glyph that matched the element they hailed from, though in the case of Aegis and Lilith, it was the glyph they used to hail from.
Albanion was the first to speak. "General Grail, would you care to explain why you requested this meeting?"
"There is a certain matter that needs to be brought to the Deep Shadows' attention." The Fear dragon snorted. "Something that will require our high queen's presence."
Dona gave a quick snarl. Wraith winced at that; he stood a short distance to her left as he struggled to share the Shadow glyph-space with her. "What's your problem?"
"Nothing's the matter, spooky." The dragoness snorted.
"Oh, I beg to differ." Grail replied with a raised eye ridge.
"What are you going on about?" Aegis demanded.
"As I've said; it's a matter that requires our High Queen." Grail declared. Dona snarled again, to which Grail smirked; he took an odd pleasure in seeing the shadowy dragoness react so negatively to the title.
"High Queen…" Wraith said aloud. "It's going to take a while to get used to that."
Before long, the southernmost door to The Crux opened wide. In strode Elenar, as the Deep Shadows expected. But what caught them off-guard was the arrival of three dragons: Voden, Apella, and Cerulean.
"The Guardians?" Grail was taken aback.
"Good evening, everyone." Elenar gave a warm smile. "I hope you don't mind that I included some guests tonight."
Rose, Lilith and Elza exchanged curious glances as the three Guardians looked around at the chamber.
"Fascinating…" Voden said with wide eyes as he looked around. "Does your order frequently hold meetings in such a place?"
"We're not an Order." Albanion stated coldly. "We're a gathering of the most powerful dark dragons in the realms, save for the royal family."
"In other words, you're Guardians." Cerulean said with a light smirk. He cast a glance toward Wraith, who lightly flushed and hid his muzzle with a wing. Albanion gave the icy dragon an odd look, but then sighed and looked over at the queen.
"Your Majesty, why did you invite these three into our chamber tonight?"
"Because I have a proposition for them all; one that calls for some approval from my Deep Shadows." Elenar said. "So everyone, please listen to what I have to say."
Everyone quieted down as Elenar stood in the center of the chamber. Voden, Apella and Cerulean stood together to the south, while the Deep Shadows sat back on their haunches.
"From what I understand, the ranks of the Deep Shadows have grown in the years I was… not around." Elenar shivered just trying to think of the words to say. She looked over at Aegis and Lilith in turn. "This husband and wife couple made quite an impression on my husband, and they were transformed from light to dark dragons. Is that correct?"
"Indeed it is, Your Grace." Lilith bowed her head, and Aegis did the same shortly afterward.
"Well, I wish to expand the ranks of the Deep Shadows even further." Elenar declared. She turned to address the three Guardians. "And here are the potential candidates."
A murmur spread out amongst the Deep Shadows. Grail seemed especially livid as he beheld the three Guardians. Apella balked and leaned her head back.
"I don't think your one-eyed friend here seems appreciative of the idea…" She said. "And, frankly, I'm not entirely sure I'm up for such a sudden change in career."
"It doesn't have to be right away. Nor should the opinions of the current Deep Shadows sway you either way." Elenar frowned.
"But why do you want us to be Deep Shadows, at all, High Queen Elenar?" Cerulean demanded.
"Because the three of you have each defended dark dragons, even with your fellow light dragons scorned you for it." Elenar said. "More importantly, you've all played a hand in caring for, protecting, and/or looking out for my sons." She smiled. "There are no other light dragons that I would trust more than you three."
"My…" Voden scratched at his little beard. "That's quite the honor, milady."
"But… I'm not sure what skills any of us could possibly bring to your ranks." Cerulean grimaced. Apella shared his sentiment with a nervous wracking of her talons on the floor.
"Well..." Elenar looked into Cerulean's eyes. "There are some I've spoken with who've thought incredibly highly of your talents with healing magic, Cerulean. And a powerful medical practitioner is just the kind of dragon who would complement our Salve-master perfectly."
Albanion gave a slight, amused snort. "I'd have to see exactly what he can do first-paw, Your Majesty."
"Well… maybe I'll give it some thought…" Cerulean scratched his head with a wing-thumb, and then turned his gaze over toward Wraith. "If a certain someone doesn't mind having me around more often, that is."
Wraith cleared his throat and did his best to give a stoic demeanor. "Uh… Y-Yeah, sure. Let's see what you can…" He blushed again. "Do."
That seemed to be all the convincing Cerulean needed; the serpentine drake winked at Wraith and stepped back a bit. Elenar smiled in approval, and then looked at Apella.
"Guardian Apella, I've heard that you're a talented sword-wielder." She said. "Would you be interested in becoming a tutor for one of my sons?"
"You want me to teach a prince how to sword-fight?" Apella asked curiously. "My, I've had a few royal students. But never a black dragon!" Her eyes beamed. "Sure, I'd relish such an opportunity, Your Majesty."
"Thank you." Elenar bowed her head to the dragoness. Lastly, she looked upon Voden, who stepped a bit closer. "Guardian Voden, I've heard from your fellows from Glenhaven that you are a well-versed scholar, and one of Prince Rune's longest teachers."
"He was a star pupil of mine in the Glenhaven Palace." Voden smiled. "Always fascinated with our world's rich history."
"Would you be interested in continuing teaching him on the subject here, in Warfang?" Elenar asked.
"Hmm…" The dark-orange dragon grimaced. "It's not quite as simple a choice for me as it is these other two Guardians, my Queen. See, they were already here on the northern continent, whereas I hail all the way across the ocean." He wracked his talons on the floor. "I have a lot of belongings I'd need relocated. Plus, I'd have to say goodbye to my old home, and all of my other beloved students."
"It's not like you're welcome there anymore." Dona suddenly spoke up vehemently. All eyes fell upon the shadowy dragoness as she stepped a bit closer. "You're a dark dragon now, Voden. Do you honestly think they're all just going to welcome you back with outstretched wings?"
"You know what? Perhaps I do." Voden smirked. "The Glenhaven Elders are more forgiving than you might think."
"But what of King Saul?" Dona sneered. "Or any of the other scattered members of the Order of Culmubrae? All you've done is paint a big target on your back! It's not safe for you down south anymore!"
"If I didn't know any better, Dona…" He looked her in the eyes and smiled. "I'd think you wanted me to stay with you in Warfang."
Dona opened her mouth to hiss… but could only squeak as a blush painted her face. A few of the other Deep Shadows snickered at her behavior.
"Your Grace, I'm afraid that I need to give this some proper thought." Voden bowed his head. "I hope you'll permit me to take my leave to dwell on my options."
"By all means, take your time." Elenar bowed her head. "That goes for the two of you as well, Cerulean and Apella. I'm sure the Prime Temple would grow to miss you if you leave."
"Indeed." Apella nodded. She bowed her head to the queen and turned to take her leave. Cerulean was quick to follow after her, with Voden taking the rear. Elenar bowed her head to the Guardians as they left, and then resumed her regal stance.
"Your Majesty," Grail said, "There's something I wish to speak about in regards to your sons' quest to revive you."
"Hmm?" Elenar looked over the General curiously.
"Now, I just want to say from the get-go that we're all very happy to have you back…" Grail cast a knowing glance toward Dona, who scowled. "However, there's a particular mystery floating around regarding Prince Cyrus's initial disappearance from our fortress."
"What do you mean?" Elenar pursed her lips.
"The magic he used… this Revival Ritual as it's called…" Grail fluttered his wings. "None of us here had ever heard of such a thing, for years and years. And it's safe to assume that, if it was a part of any dark dragon clan's culture, it would be the shadow dragons, right? After all, it involves the Well of Souls; the very hearth of the shadow dragon clans for over a century."
"Mhm…" Elenar nodded semi-suspiciously. "There was no mention of that ritual in all my years growing up there. But what are you getting at?"
"Well, we recently had a little chat with Prince Cyrus." Grail said. "He claims that the place he discovered the Revival Ritual came from a little book for his studies. And this was about a month before he ran away from home…" Grail cast his glance over at Dona. "And the book was given to him by her."
Dona flashed her fangs uneasily as the rest of the Deep Shadows looked upon her. Elenar looked at the shadow dragoness incredulously. Dona wracked her talons on the floor; a shadowy mist began to start forming around her scales.
"Oh no you don't!" Wraith exclaimed. He grasped her ankle and let his own aura merge with hers.
"Let go of me!" She hissed. "You're just as much to question as I am, Wraith!"
"What?!" He exclaimed.
"Who's the Deep Shadow who agreed to help the prince go on a realm-spanning adventure to help pull off the ritual?" Dona gnashed her fangs. "Who kept it all a secret from their companions and led them to believe they hadn't found the prince?"
Wraith gave an uneasy growl. He let go of Dona's ankle and looked around as the other Deep Shadows locked eyes with him.
"An interesting point, to be sure…" Grail gave a growl. "If anything, both of these two have done some shady things."
"Stand down, Grail." Elenar ordered. "Let me deal with this myself."
The General looked at the queen uneasily, but stepped back. Albanion and Elza exchanged curious glances and moved to approach, but the queen flapped her wings and stamped her paws.
"I said I'll talk to them myself." She snapped. "Both of you, just stand down."
Albanion and Elza immediately stopped and nervously stepped back. Elenar took a deep breath, and then looked between Wraith and Dona. "Did you two conspire to give that dark ritual to my son?"
"Absolutely NOT." Wraith declared. He ran a forepaw through his green mane. "Listen, Your Grace, I wanted to help the prince because it seemed like the right thing to do. A handful of us in the Deep Shadows became increasingly cautious about King Baneth's plans. And your son felt that you were the only one who could stop Baneth before he became completely lost to us."
"I see…" Elenar raised an eye ridge. "But did you never question where Cyrus got the ritual in the first place?"
"Of course I did." Wraith scrunched up his muzzle. "We all knew about Cyrus as he grew up; sure, he would read the books we gave him, but we never thought he'd go digging through anything to find deeper strains of magic. I thought that his finding of the Revival Ritual was a one-in-a-million fluke."
"But it wasn't." Elenar snorted as she looked over at Dona. "Where did you find the Revival Ritual, Dona? And why did you give it to my son?"
Dona exhaled a quick snort, and gave a sardonic grin to the queen. "Ah, yes. You must be so confused as to why I'd help bring you of all dragons back."
"Watch your tongue, Dona!" Elza hissed. "Don't speak to her like that!"
"Oh, stuff it, windbag." Dona cast Elza a glare. "This is a family matter."
Elza's eye twitched, and she gnashed her fangs. But Albanion sighed and held a wing up to block the dragoness. Meanwhile, Elenar clasped her forepaws together and sighed.
"Wraith, you'll be placed under a six-month probation for lying about the whereabouts of the prince."
Wraith winced, and then held his head low. "As you command, Your Grace."
"Pardon me, Your Grace?" Lilith spoke up. The queen looked over at the dark-yellow dragoness. "I accept as much responsibility as Wraith; I decided to aid him and the prince, after all."
"True, but you weren't in charge of your group: Wraith was." Elenar said. "As such, you'll be on a two-month probation. I have spoken."
"Fair enough…" Lilith cautiously bowed her head to the queen.
"Now, I want you and your Husband to meet with me tomorrow morning." Elenar said. "From what I understand, you two have had the longest experience as artificial dark dragons, along with your daughter. And I wish to put that to good use here in The Nexus."
Aegis and Lilith exchanged curious glances at that. They were about to ask what she meant, but Elenar looked away from them and cleared her throat.
"All other Deep Shadows are to leave the chamber." Elenar declared loudly. "I will be speaking with Dona on the matter of the ritual privately."
It didn't take long for the other Deep Shadows to vacate The Crux. Along the way, Grail cast Dona a triumphant gaze, while Elza gave a hateful glance. Dona scowled hatefully at both of the two, but cleared her throat as they left. Soon, Elenar and Dona were left all alone. Elenar sat back on her haunches as the other shadow dragoness fluttered her wings.
"If you think I committed treason, dear Elenar." Dona put on a sardonic grin. "Then by all means, lie down and die somewhere to fix the mistake of your revival."
Elenar's eye twitched. She had to suppress a growl as she loomed half a head over the other dragoness.
"Dona…" Elenar said clearly. "Where did you get the Revival Ritual?"
"Does it matter?" Dona asked cheekily.
"Of course it does." Elenar snapped. "From what the Deep Shadows have told me, the Order of Culmubrae has been on a massive campaign of eliminating any texts and scriptures related to dark dragon culture. There was next to no trace of the teachings of Lady Cynder anywhere on the northern continent. And the library in The Hive was destroyed in a fiery blaze all those years ago. So tell me…" She stepped forward and glared into Dona's eyes. "Who. Gave. You. The. Ritual?"
Dona's smirk vanished, and she glared at Elenar.
"Who do you think? The only other dragon that had half the motivation to want to see you again." Dona declared. "The one you gave the cold shoulder to all that time ago."
Elenar's eyes widened at first… but then she closed them and sighed. Of course; who else but HE was still the closest resemblance to an ally of the dark dragons? He'd traveled the world so much… he'd be the only one to hold onto a relic from the ancient past. And if he chose to wait years and years to pass the knowledge on…
"So, that's it, then." Elenar sighed. "He wanted you to subtly guide my son towards reviving me just in time for me to stop Baneth from going on a realms-spanning conquest."
"Check and mate." Dona said with a sneer. "But don't think that means I was happy to help; if I denied him what he wanted, he'd just make me suffer before getting what he wanted anyway."
"And now, you think I'm back to get in your way. Is that it?" Elenar asked sternly.
Dona gave a slight growl. She grasped at her dark robes and made to tear them off of herself. But instead of ripping like normal cloth, the fabric simply dissolved and flowed through the air. Dona worked to expose her dark grey scales, and she pointed a talon at her sides.
"Don't forget who I am, Elenar!" Dona shouted. She pointed as the glowing, red, möbius signs present on her sides. "I'm the oldest living heir to the shadow dragons! Nothing you say or do will ever change that!"
Elenar sighed. "There aren't even enough shadow dragons left to fight for territory. What do you hope to gain from all of this?"
"It doesn't matter how many shadow dragons there are." Dona snapped. She re-applied her shadowy robes and stood up tall. "If you're going to be the ruler of Warfang, then I demand my birthright! I am the rightful queen of the shadow dragons!"
Elenar sighed and shook her head. "Dona… fine. I'll do what I can to have you re-established as the queen of the shadow dragons. Maybe then you'll stop drawing comparisons between us."
Dona put on a suspicious look, as if Elenar was up to some cruel trick. Elenar sighed again.
"Before I get started on that, though, I have a special assignment for you." The queen said.
"Oh?" Dona raised an eye ridge. "And what would the queen of Warfang like this ever-so-humble peasant princess to do for her?"
Elenar just sighed a third time and stepped closer. "Alright, here's what you're going to do…"
~~…~~
Dona stepped through the southern doorway of The Crux and made her way forward toward the stairs. She looked down at the scroll that Elenar gave to her. Dona scrunched up her muzzle; Elenar must have known that Dona was planning on a trip to the east anyway, and took advantage of the situation.
"Dona…" Spoke the voice of Voden.
The dragoness looked up from her scroll and saw the dark-orange dragon standing across the way, those little fangs of his poking out of his smile. Dona scrunched up her face and tucked her scroll into the confines of her robes and gave Voden a good, long look.
Even after his transformation, Voden still had that same warm face. She couldn't get his visage out of her mind ever since their unexpected confrontation in the Pillar all that time ago.
"So… is your mind made up?" Dona asked.
"Yeah." Voden nodded. "As much as I would like to continue teaching Prince Rune, I feel that my calling is back in Glenhaven." He flapped his wings. "Now that I'm a dark dragon, I feel that this is the perfect opportunity to get the next generation used to being around your kind, Dona."
"Hmm…" Dona grimaced. "But don't you think you'll be facing opposition to that?"
"Of course I do." Voden stamped his forepaw. "But I'm still a Guardian, and it's my mission in life to spread wisdom in younger dragons. I've endured prejudice for siding with the dark dragons before, and I grinned and bore it. I'll just do the same in the coming years. I won't let anyone break my spirit."
"So, that's it, then…" Dona scowled. "You'll be leaving."
"In the coming days, yes." Voden nodded his head. "I guess this is my way of saying goodbye." He frowned. "I'll be out of your mane soon enough."
Dona winced. She watched as Voden turned to walk away… and then shadow-jumped to appear in front of him. Voden balked and stepped back.
"Now wait just a minute." Dona snapped.
"Is something wrong?" Voden frowned.
"Of course there is." Dona continued. She glared into Voden's eyes… and struggled not to break down. "You're leaving me. Again."
"Again?" Voden blinked.
Dona sighed and sat back on her haunches. "When the war started, we all up and had to leave the Silver Talon. That was the last time we'd ever seen each other. And I never expected we'd meet up again in the exact same building."
Voden frowned. "Yes… and you made it clear that you didn't want to see me again."
"Damnit, Voden…" Dona glared at him again. "I didn't want to fight you, so I tried to scare you off from finding me. But then you had to go waltzing into Warfang and right up to Baneth." She looked the scholar over. "And now, out of the blue, you've become a dark dragon. All this time later, and I STILL can't fathom you'd do this."
"It just seemed like the right thing to do." Voden said. "Sure, I've nearly bit my tongue a few times, but I've grown to like the choice I've made."
"Well I don't think I ever will…" Dona frowned. "Orange is my favorite color."
Voden blinked and gave a light flush. "And here I thought it was your favorite fruit."
"Voden… would you please walk with me?" Dona asked. She lightly brushed against him, making the scholar a lightly flustered.
"Uh, alright." Voden nodded. "Lead the way, Dona."
The two dragons made their way briskly down the corridors. They turned left and right, and ascended several staircases.
"Voden, you're all I have left of the circle of friends from the old days." Dona said. "If you leave here tonight, there's no telling when I'd be able to see you again."
"You're always welcome to come visit me in Glenhaven." Voden replied. "Just, don't go around causing trouble like you did in the past."
"Fine…" Dona sighed. She came to a stop by the door to her bedroom and took a deep breath. "I'll do anything you ask, and behave any way you please… if you would only spend a bit of time with me tonight."
Voden's eyes flashed with a surprised, if knowing look. The dragoness unlocked her door and lightly nudged it open with her head. She looked back at Voden with a particular glistening in her eyes. Voden sighed and sat back on her haunches.
"Are you really sure about this?" Voden asked. "You haven't given me any signs that you were… romantically interested in me up to this point."
"Voden… please." Dona bent her head low. "I've felt anger for a lot of dragons over the years. I don't want one of them to be you anymore." She held a forepaw up to discard of her dark robes; they turned into a dark sphere, and her scales sparkled in the feint light of the fortress. "Consider this a part of my atonement towards you for being so cruel."
Voden sighed. He rose up onto all fours, stepped forward, and lightly nuzzled her forehead. "By all means, if it'll make you happy… I'll spend time with you tonight."
Dona smiled and nuzzled back. She backed up into her bedroom and motioned for Voden to make his way inside. The scholar ventured in, and the dragoness sealed the door behind them.
Both dragons hoped that they weren't making a mistake that night.
~~…~~
Greetings, friends and loved ones.
This chapter was slightly shorter. But hey, that just means that the next two chapters will be slightly longer. I just want to make sure that I tied up as many of the loose ends as I could be bothered to remember in this huge rewrite of my original fanfic.
Say, if you like my chapter, why not give it a review? There might be some insight that I hadn't considered, or there's a huge oversight I missed. Who knows?
Well, until next time!
Oh, and Merry Christmas, circa December 2019! =D
Tenebra ecce Veritas