Welcome back! I hope you're all having a great day!

So, a few things to say. Some good, some bad.

The good part: The story has hit 5.5k views! I would have never expected that many people checking out my story. Thank you all so much for sticking around. We also hit 20 follows and 19 Favorites! (I know this one is a little late but again, thank you so much for the support!)

The bad part: Remember back in Chapter 7 when I said this: "I currently post a new chapter every day, as I've already written a good chunk of the story. This will continue until it catches up with the writing schedule".

Well, that day has finally come. I finished writing this chapter last night, just in time to squeeze out one final daily posting. Unfortunately, that does mean that the daily postings are coming to an end (Unless I somehow manage to finish the next chapter in a day). From here on out, the chapters will be posted as I finish them (I'll still post them at the same time, around 11pm EST). I don't want to give a schedule on release dates, because I am pretty confident I will NOT be able to stick by it. But typically, It currently takes me 2-3 days to write a chapter this length, so that's what I'm aiming for. Sometimes I can do it faster, sometimes I do it slow. It depends on the content of the chapter.

Alright, enough rambling. There will be more at the end, but for now, enjoy the chapter!

POV: Harvey

When the dragons grabbed ahold of Animus Magic, they did not realize that they just got control of the strongest force in the universe.

The only thing that could resist it was…. Animus Magic itself. It had long been thought that nothing could ever resist it. Sure, the moon rocks blocked the effects of it completely, but one could still lose a rock. If any dragon figured that out, there was a high likelihood the universe would end.

The universe had trembled in fear when Darkstalker had risen from the ground once again. He had initially seemed vulnerable and could be defeated easily. Once he had finally taken over Pyrrhia, however, that was no longer the case.

To make matters worse, Harvey the Human was the key Darkstalker needed to expand. With his knowledge of human technology….. It couldn't be thought about what happened next. All Harvey needed to do was avoid being caught and escape.

That plan failed miserably when a Rainwing had fallen in love with him.

Aster… I feel bad for her. Harvey knew how love corrupted actions, made you do things that go against your morals. It was something he regretted from his past.

Once Darkstalker had him in his clutches, he used the forces of magic to distort Harvey's mind to a point of no return. The universe gave up on him when that fateful event happened. After all, nothing could defeat Animus Magic.

Or so the universe thought.

Despite all odds, however, Harvey did it. Despite being dislodged from his mind, his memories trying to haunt him to his core, he had regained control. The forces of magic were unable to defeat the strength of Human mind.

It's not over yet, Harvey had to remind himself. He had a feeling that if Darkstalker tried to enchant him again, it wouldn't end well. I need to find that moon rock ASAP and get out of here.

The sense of touch was what first returned to Harvey as he began to regain consciousness. His body still felt heavy from before he was knocked out. Oof, the effects of the spell are probably still there.

His hearing returned next, which Harvey didn't even notice at first. Everything was deathly quiet in the dome.

He risked opening his eyes, expecting to see Darkstalker standing there, waiting for his spell to work. To his surprise, however, there was no one there. I guess Aster and Darkstalker left.

Harvey tried standing up, but strangely, his hands really didn't want to leave the ground. Oh crud. Did that spell affect my WALKING?!

The good news was that, if it did affect his walking, Humans could live with it. Crawling was a thing after all. The only disadvantage was that his back wouldn't like it.

Using his eyes, Harvey tried searching for the moon rock. If he remembered correctly, it had fallen out of his pocket right before Darkstalker had taken him here. Unfortunately, he couldn't quite see the side of the walls from his spot. Which meant he had to crawl over to the walls.

While Harvey tried to figure out how to crawl like this, his mind began to nag at him. Even though he had regained control of his own mind, the magic was still there, threatening to fight back. He felt its presence, trying to wrap itself around his own mind.

I need to find the rock NOW!

After finally reteaching himself to crawl, he went over to the walls. The rock had dropped not far from the door, if he remembered correctly. The issue was, he didn't know where the door was, as every wall looked the same.

Harvey crawled around the room, trying to find anything out of the ordinary. Unfortunately for him, the walls of the dome were the same color as the moon rock. It didn't help that his eyesight was being really blurry. Jesus, my eyes were never this bad.

It was weird crawling like this. His mobility felt reduced and if he was caught like this, well, that might not end well. I hate this. Please moon rock, show up.

As the time ticked by, Harvey began to panic more and more. He could feel the magic in his mind, stronger than before. If he wasn't fast enough, there was the possibility that he might get knocked out again.

"Agh!", Harvey said out loud in frustration. "Why did this have to happen to me?!".

He felt like curling up into a ball, staying there forever. Letting fate take him away into the whims of time.

NO! Fate is fucking stupid. Harvey had a firm belief that you could control your own futures. There was no predestined path for anyone. People could try to force you onto a path, but they can't control the future. They couldn't control what you ultimately choose.

Unless, of course, they had magic.

STUPID MAGIC. I really just want to go home. You can't have dragons trying to turn you into something you don't want to be.

As Harvey fumed over this, something caught his eye. Looking over to the wall, he saw a rock with a very slight shine to it.

He crawled over to the rock to get a closer look. It looked jagged on one side, while the other side looked like it had broken apart from something. The rock was the color of the moons above, like the one back on Earth…..

Harvey didn't hesitate a moment longer. The instant he grabbed the rock, his mind began to clear out. The constant presence of magic was finally fading away. His body didn't feel quite so heavy anymore.

The greatest part of all of this? I CAN STAND! Never again would he take standing for granted.

Harvey stood up quickly, stretching out his back. Man, did it feel great to feel like a proper Human once again. Having full control over his own mind was a feeling that he didn't even know was a thing.

He gripped the moon rock as hard as he could. Since his pockets couldn't quite be trusted anymore, Harvey would be forced to hold the rock in his hands. It will have to do for now.

Now, Harvey needed to figure out a way out of the dome. The dome…. with no windows and no doors in sight.

Perhaps he could open the door himself using the same words Darkstalker said. What were they? "Open up?".

Harvey took a deep breath in, then yelled, "Open Up!". Nothing happened, however.

That didn't work. Maybe I should try matching his voice?

"Open up", Harvey tried, putting on the best Darkstalker impression he could do. It didn't appear to work, however. He tried changing his tone a little bit, but nothing changed. The walls of the dome stayed as moon colored as ever.

After trying out a few other methods, Harvey gave up. He waited by where he found his moon rock, since the door had to be nearby. Sitting down, he fell into his own thoughts.

Where in the world is Darkstalker? Why did he leave the dome?

How long was I out for? Had to be a while, but I have no idea.

I wonder what Aster is doing.

Harvey froze at that thought. Why was he thinking about that traitor Rainwing? SHE HANDED ME OVER. LIKE THAT.

No No, whispered the logical part of his mind. She didn't even know who you really were, until Darkstalker told her.

SHE STILL HANDED ME OVER, the angry part of his mind shot back. I'm just really pissed.

He took deep breaths, calming himself down. Logically, it probably wasn't Aster's fault. There was the possibility that Darkstalker may have used his magic to convince her.

Still… the fact she fell in love with me. It's crazy….

….What do I think of her?

This was a topic Harvey couldn't really think about lately. Being on the run and then trapped in your own mind sort of left little room to think things through. Now, he had the time to kill.

Honestly, Harvey did enjoy seeing Aster around, taking interest in his little machines. It felt good seeing people be impressed or proud of his creations. It's what helped me through my darkest times.

But there was not a single thought about seeing Aster more than a friend. It would have been really weird if he did. I mean, it's really strange how a dragon thought of a scavenger like that.

He thought about this, when suddenly, a door opened up not far from him. AH SHIT. Harvey expected to see the shape of Darkstalker appear right there, ready to seize him.

But instead, a Rainwing walked in. It had yellow-green scales on, although the green seemed to be much brighter than the yellow. Harvey swore he had seen them before, but he couldn't quite place where.

"U-Uh, hello? Anyone here?", the Rainwing asked into the dome. It seemed to be shaking with fear, the green scales starting to overcome the yellow ones. And that's when Harvey remembered who it was.

"Loris!", Harvey blurted out, before realizing what he was saying. CRUD. WHY DID I BLURT OUT HIS NAME?!

Loris turned to Harvey's direction and jumped back when he noticed him. "Gah! What's a s-scavenger doing in this creepy building?", he said.

But interestingly, Loris actually stopped shaking. "Wait. I think I've s-seen you before", he observed, cautiously taking a closer look at Harvey. "You're Aster's pet, right?".

The mention of Aster's name sent Harvey's mind into a whirlwind. GAH. Can't… let this overcome me!

Harvey took a deep breath, then nodded. "Correct", he replied.

Loris squinted at him. "You can talk now. Very interesting", he said, the green on his scales fading away.

"You don't sound very surprised", Harvey observed.

"W-Well, I had a feeling you were s-special", Loris said, chuckling a bit. "Now I do gotta wonder why you're all alone in this creepy place".

Instead of answering, Harvey asked a question of his own. "How did you get in here? I tried getting out, but I couldn't", he explained.

Loris' scales changed to a light red. "O-Oh, uhhhh. I was exploring the abandoned huts", he explained, with an embarrassed look on his face. "Saw this and I was intrigued. I yelled out 'Open up' as a joke, and boom, a door".

So it works from the outside, but not the inside?

"So now, why are you here?", Loris asked.

Harvey thought of what to say to Loris. "Let's just say I got trapped here by a few dragons", he answered.

"Huh. Guess I better get going", Loris said suddenly, turning for the door.

"WAIT!", Harvey shouted, running to Loris. There was a plan forming in his head. One that would get him out of the Rainforest. "Why are you leaving?".

"Well, I'd rather not b-be around to see the dragons who trapped you here", he replied nervously. He kept darting his eyes to the entrance, as if he was thinking of just running out.

"Can you help me out first?", Harvey asked. "I kind of need to get out of the Rainforest".

Loris gave an expression of surprise. "U-Uh, what about Aster?", he questioned.

Ignoring the whirlwind of emotions that gave off, Harvey shook his head. "She's, uh, one of the ones who trapped me here", he explained.

In response, Loris raised an… eyebrow? Let's say eyeridge. "That seems unlike her. You sure this isn't a game?", he asked suspiciously.

"No, sir. I just need to get out of here", Harvey said, hoping using 'sir' might help him out.

Loris looked out the door, squinting to see something. "Well, I can take you to the Nightwing village. I can't really go further than that", he said.

This confused Harvey. "The Nightwing village? Do you mean the kingdom?", he asked.

A laugh erupted from Loris' mouth. "Oh ho, not all Nightwings live there", he explained, once he had stopped laughing. "There's a village for some of them in the Rainforest. They didn't quite trust Darkstalker fully to live with him".

That sounds good enough to me. "That works for me. Let's get outta here", Harvey said, walking out of the dome. The sun was shining now, which meant it was daytime.

"Didn't actually expect him to say yes", Loris murmured to himself, although Harvey could overhear it. Buddy, I just need to get out of this dome.

Harvey climbed up onto Loris' back, settling himself in between the wings, like how he did with Parrot and Aster. After making sure he was firmly settled in, Loris took off into the trees.

For once, instead of closing his own eyes, Harvey decided to watch how Loris flew. He noticed how Loris would use his tail to help him maneuver between the trees, as well as using the wings to glide through the Rainforest.

As they flew through the trees, Harvey had to wonder where Darkstalker was. What kind of wizard doesn't watch his spell take form? Everytime a dragon appeared in the corner of his eye, Harvey flinched, thinking it was Darkstalker or Aster.

Finally, after 20 minutes of flying, they emerged into a clearing. Around them, dragon huts were splattered all over the place. There seemed to be little planning into the placements, which made Harvey's OCD go haywire. God damn it, who thought this was a good idea?

"Well, here we are", Loris announced, landing on the ground softly. "I'd love to stick around, but I got a tree gliding class to teach".

Didn't Aster say she also taught tree gliding?

"Alright man. Thanks for the ride here", Harvey said, giving Loris a thumbs up. "Before you go, can you tell me what these buildings are?".

Loris looked a little annoyed with the question, but he didn't say anything about it. "Most of these are Nightwing homes", he explained. "Just don't walk into them, otherwise you'd probably be eaten".

He then pointed to a group of buildings clustered together. "And over there is the healer's hut. There's a few other buildings near it, but they're not important", Loris said.

"Ok. All I gotta do is… walk…. all the way…. without being eaten…..", Harvey trailed off. I'm mildly concerned.

Behind him, Loris just laughed. "Alright scavenger, I'll lead you to the healer's hut", he said, once his laugh went away. "I wouldn't want you being eaten".

As Harvey walked towards the hut, Loris was next to him, protecting him from any possible hungry Nightwings. This is gonna sound weird, but he feels like an older brother.

One of the huts had a Nightwing on the roof, appearing to hold some materials. It looked like it was trying to fix it. I hope they can fix it. Most of the dragons here seem nice.

Another Nightwing walked past them, but not before staring at Harvey intently. He stared back, showing that he wasn't really scared of the dragons. Except I am. But since Loris is here, I can feel safe doing it.

Finally, they reached the healer's hut. The door was currently closed, but Harvey could hear noises coming from inside.

"Here we are", Loris said with a smile. "I assume you'll need help getting inside".

"Now hold on here, buckaroo", Harvey shot back. "I'm not injured. Why would I need to go in?".

"First of all, what kind of word is buckaroo?!", Loris said with a big laugh. "Secondly, you could get more help from these dragons here".

"I'm not quite sure, but I guess it's the best option I got", Harvey said. "And for the record, buckaroo is uh…. a cowboy".

"What's that?", Loris asked, curiously.

"I'll tell you later", Harvey replied, a bit embarrassed. He had a feeling that answering the question would lead to more questions about where he's from.

Before Loris could protest, the door opened. Peeking out was a Rainwing, who was all pink and purple. "May I help you?", she asked, a little annoyed.

"Oh, uh, this scavenger sort of needs some help", Loris replied, pointing to Harvey. "He needs to-".

Loris was cut off by the excited scream of the Rainwing. "Ooh! I've never seen one of those!", she exclaimed, running towards him. "Is this your pet?".

"Well, no. He sort of needs to get out of the Rainforest", Loris explained. "I was hoping you could find a dragon to do so".

"Hmm. Well, come in little guy!", the Rainwing called to Harvey. "And you too, uh….".

"Loris. But I can't right now", he protested. "I got a class to teach".

Harvey expected that to be the end of the conversation, before an extremely loud roar shot through the Rainforest. It was so loud that it seemed to shake the nearby trees. Many different colored birds flew out out of trees, squawking like the end of the world was here.

Loris' scales began to change more lime green. "You know… on second thought, I'll come in", he said, shaking with nervousness. Harvey himself was scared, because he recognized that roar.

Darkstalker.

"Can we speed this up?", Harvey said panickedly. He kept looking back at the trees, expecting Darkstalker to emerge from them.

"Come in!", the Rainwing shouted, gesturing to the door. Loris went first, while Harvey followed close behind. Once everyone was inside, they closed the door. "By the way, I'm Heliconia", she added.

Heliconia? What's with all of the plant names?

"Unfortunately, I can't really help you get out", Heliconia said sadly. "The nightwings need me. But feel free to ask our patients!".

"I can't really see them from down here", Harvey pointed out.

Instead of actually helping out, Heliconia stared at Harvey. "A-Amazing! You can talk!", she said excitedly. "Oh man, I can't wait to tell Kinkajou!".

Didn't Aster mention a Kinkajou too? Who the hell are they?

"That's great and all, but I sort of need a lift", Harvey said impatiently. He sort of needed to be quick, or there might be unwanted visitors.

"Then climb up me", Loris said, crouching down to let Harvey onto his back. Harvey was surprised Loris was already that comfortable doing that, but hey, it works for him.

Harvey scrambled up Loris' back, allowing him to see each of the beds laid out. There were seven of them, but only three of them were occupied.

One of them was taken by a mostly pink colored Rainwing. However, on his feet was an ugly wound that turned the scales around it white. Harvey winced at the sight, quickly turning away.

The next bed was taken by a Nightwing. They had a bunch of scratches all over their body, although nothing looked too serious. It seemed somewhat similar to a jaguar scratch, as a matter of fact. Knowing everything else about this planet, they probably got Jaguars here.

The third bed, however, was what caught Harvey's interest.

"W-Who's that?", Harvey asked Heliconia, pointing to the third bed. He was grinning now, however. If it was who he thought he was….

"Oh, that's the Seawing. I think his name is…. Cyclone?", Heliconia replied.

JUST AS I THOUGHT!

"CYCLONE!", Harvey yelled out, jumping off Loris.

Originally, I wasn't going to have Harvey and Cyclone reunite until much later, but I couldn't really think of how to pull that off in a logical way. So instead, I had them meet in the Nightwing village.

I will see you whenever the next chapter gets posted! (Maybe by some miracle, I'll get it done by tomorrow, but don't count on it)