Hello again, my friends! I hope everyone is safe during these times.
Slowly but surely we are reaching the conclusion of Part 2. Originally, however, this chapter was supposed to be the conclusion of Part 2. But because the chapter reached the 8,000 range, I needed to divide the chapter. But, because I am so close to finishing the chapter, I can confirm that I will update Finding Peace three times this month.
With all of that said, let's take flight!
"Agate Mountain? Are you sure?" When Tempest reacted to what he had revealed to her about the location of his worst nightmare, she almost seemed startled. The same way he'd be startled if a large hornet landed on his talons.
Sitting together near the underground lake below the academy, Peacemaker was thankful that it was just the two of them together. Day two into the conferences and many of the students whose parents hadn't arrived yesterday were now in conferences with the newly arrived parents. Those students waiting or, like Peacemaker and Tempest, had finished their conferences had time to study.
In their case, Peacemaker and Tempest spent time together, discussing what they should do in their next travel to the Dream World. When he had the revelation about Agate Mountain last night, he was expecting Tempest to be surprised at the sudden change in destination. He knew she was still expecting to travel to the Rainforest, but now she seemed completely mortified at the prospect of going to a different area.
Despite her reaction, he stood his ground.
"Yesterday, during my conference, I had a vision of Moon, Winter, Qibli, Peril, and Turtle. They were all near where Agate Mountain supposedly stood," Peacemaker insisted. He left out the bits of info about his mother and Winter's meeting, especially the glare the latter gave him. Sunny's co-teacher scared him, but since then he had treated him the same as he always had up until that point.
That morning, he and Alligator helped the Scavenger preserve leader with gathering books. He'd even apologized for his reaction to Peacemaker.
He wanted to ask the IceWing about how he knew his mother, but Alligator had been in a good mood and he didn't want to interfere with his friend helping his hero. Though he never mentioned this to Tempest, the image of Winter and the others staring up at him…it felt like he should remember. But he couldn't.
"But you don't have powers," Tempest pointed out, raising a brow at his explanation. "How…could you possibly see them?"
"I don't know," Peacemaker shook his head. "But it…it felt like my dream with Adder."
Two dreams of the loyal Spymaster and mate of Queen Anaconda, Tempest's very distant ancestor, as well as the first recorded Somnus. When he first mentioned Adder to Tempest, she'd gotten so excited. He hoped, by reminding her of this dream, she could be convinced to listen to him.
Even when he reminded her of his dream of Adder, Tempest still appeared reluctant.
"You said you wanted to help me," Peacemaker reminded her. He hated having to say it like that, he did not want to abuse her friendship…but the drive to learn more about what was happening to him pushed him further.
"I do, you know that," Tempest answered. Slowly she walked away from him and towards the lakeside, her talons submerged an inch below the water's surface. "But there are just some places in the Dream World that are dangerous than others, Agate Mountain is one of them."
Curiously, Peacemaker walked up beside her and sat down. The two sat in silence. He wasn't going to force her to talk…so he waited patiently.
"Just like our world," Tempest continued after a minute of silence. "There are places certain dragons avoid. Like the Ice Kingdom, only IceWings can handle the freezing temperature of the mountains and tundra. In the Dreamworld: there are places that are dangerous to even the minds of a Somnus, especially to non-Somni like you."
"And what makes Agate Mountain so dangerous?" Peacemaker asked.
"There is the risk that the mountain will put those who enter into Dark Sleep," Tempest explained. When Peacemaker rose a brow in confusion, she continued. "The Dreamworld is the realm all creatures cross in order to dream, from there: those dreams enter our minds. But a Dark Sleep is different, we enter a second sleep…asleep that is so deep, that not even my father could pull a dragon out of."
"And you're a novice…" Peacemaker realized, understanding the ramifications.
"If I were to take you there, there is no way I could pull you out," Tempest finished. Her green eyes looked at him, pleadingly. "You need to understand, Peacemaker, I swore I would help you. And I will…" Slowly, her webbed talons touched his…just now, did he notice that they felt warm, like a stream in the middle of the summer. "But I will not put you, or Cliff, in danger."
He wanted to agree with her. His mind told him to listen to her, to continue with the plan they had before: search the Rainforest, his home, for the truth behind what was happening to him. He wanted to believe that he could find the truth behind the suppressed memories in the Rainforest.
Yet, his mind wandered back to the remains of Agate Mountain.
He remembered the voice he had heard, and that he had followed a NightWing…
Then, he recalled Moon's fearful expression in his vision…
"Then let me go," Peacemaker said. His response caused Tempest's eyes to widen at his suggestion. Before she could say anything more, he continued. "You bring us all into the Dream World, we land somewhere around the remains of Agate Mountain, and I go in on foot."
"Peacemaker, the Dark Sleep!"
"Tempest," Peacemaker interrupted, wrapping his talons around hers. "Do you…trust me?"
"I do! You know I do!" She insisted, but her green eyes were filled with worry. He could feel her attempting to persuade him to do something different.
"Then…trust me to know what I'm doing," Peacemaker answered.
After he said that, she lowered her head at the water, shaking her head.
Realizing there was nothing left to be said, he stood up and walked for the tunnel that would lead back to the academy.
"Peacemaker," Tempest called out. Glancing back, he could see her gaze had hardened. "I could just not take you there."
That was true, it was ultimately her decision. He wasn't a Somnus. She was. She could continue their plan and go to the Rainforest.
In the end, he was the one who needed to convince her to make the decision.
"You said you trust me," Peacemaker answered. "Just as I trust you."
His answer must have had some effect on her. Because when he walked away, Tempest said nothing. She didn't call after him, nor did she seem angry. Whatever that effect was, he didn't know. All he could do was leave her to her thoughts. And hope that she would listen.
It would be hours until he would see Tempest again in the Common Cave that afternoon, but even then they seemed to avoid each other. Even when they were with the rest of the Quartz Winglet, she avoided him, only staying close enough when they convened with the others for a study group.
Peacemaker wanted to approach her, to see if she had changed her mind. Instead, he gave her distance.
He decided to stick with Cliff and Jaguar during their portion of the History project.
Nearing the end of the term, the project was nearing its final stages, so now all that was needed was to assign the parts of the presentation to each member of the Winglet. As everyone pieced together what would be done, Peacemaker's mind would wander back to the remains of Agate Mountain, trying to theorize why it had so much importance to these suppressed memories and why he had been seeing images of Moon and her friends when they were younger.
Let alone why he would be hearing Adder's voice speaking with him…
"To a united and stable Pyrrhia."
"To a safe world."
"See, Cliff, even Peacemaker thinks that idea is boring!"
"Hey, Peace, you good?"
Peacemaker's eyes blinked as the voices of Jaguar and Cliff rang through his ears. Blinking, he just now realized that he had lowered his head to the ground and had almost fallen asleep.
"Uhh…nothing is boring," Peacemaker muttered, looking between the RainWing and SkyWing.
"Well, you certainly seem tired, as always," Jaguar muttered, quirking his brow up. "You sure that magic Tempest is using isn't making you tired?"
From the corner of his eye, he saw Tempest look in their direction. She was speaking with Ermine and Alligator about something, and even Jaguar's words had caught her and everyone else's attention. It did not sound like an accusation, but Jaguar seemed curious, and that curiosity seemed present in everyone else.
"It's reaching the end of the term, Jaguar," Cliff interjected, pushing his talons into Jaguar's shoulder lightly, causing the RainWing to stare at the Prince. "We're all on edge…I mean, did you see how Hyena's parents reacted when they arrived?"
That was true…given how her parents scolded her for some of the trouble Hyena had caused during the term (To her credit, she just shrugged off their words, as her school work was more than enough to speak for her accomplishments.)
"Fair point," Jaguar muttered as Cliff as the RainWing looked back at his scroll. "Just want to make sure you're doing well, Peacemaker. We all do."
In the bottom of his heart, Peacemaker felt a stab of guilt. Tempest wanted to keep their excursions into the Dream World a secret from the rest of the Winglet. But this secret, he admitted, was hard to keep. He hated keeping secret from the others, who had been supportive of him during these months.
No way did he want to worry them, but lying to the others still made him feel uneasy. What if they learned about what they were doing? Would that make them lose faith in them?
The sooner they finished what they did in the Dream World, the sooner they wouldn't have to lie to the others…
The hours continued to go by. When it was time for bed, it had almost felt like an eternity had passed for Peacemaker. During that time Tempest and Cliff had spent time with each other. In the Prey Center, he noticed that they had been speaking with each other in hushed voices, though Cliff seemed frustrated at something.
Peacemaker did not need Moon's mind-reading powers to know what they were talking about. Based on Cliff's reaction, he could already tell that his best friend had sided against him.
If Cliff had sided with Tempest, then that meant there went his chance to travel to the remains of Agate Mountain in the Dream World.
When it was time for bed in the Sleeping Caves, Peacemaker had curled up into a ball on his sleeping area. While Jaguar dozed off to sleep, Cliff remained awake, looking at Peacemaker with those red eyes that had been a source of security and comfort for him over the term. Now, they looked into his blue eyes with uncertainty…there was no doubt that he knew that Peacemaker wanted to go to a place that was dangerous.
As Cliff's eyes slowly closed, drifting into sleep, Peacemaker realized that Tempest was reaching out to him.
It wouldn't be long until Tempest did the same to him.
Taking a deep breath, Peacemaker closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep, allowing Tempest access to his mind. It would not be long until he felt the familiar ocean warmth of her presence pull him from his mind…
…And into the Dream World.
He had been expecting the pull of the Dream World. But when he opened his eyes, he was met with a dark environment. There were no features, other than a comfortable warmth that border lined a chill.
But he was not alone in this space.
Standing across from him were his friends. Cliff was facing him, while Tempest was insistent on looking away. Peacemaker looked between the two, trying to figure out what to say. Luckily, it was Cliff who had decided to speak up first.
The surprise, however, was that he spoke to Tempest.
"You know he's strong," Cliff said to her. Tempest's response was to wrap her wings in front of her, hugging herself as if she were cold. "Just take him to Agate Mountain."
His best friend's words made Peacemaker's eyes widen in shock. He had convinced himself, hours ago, that his friends were in agreement. That Cliff would be too protective of him to go to Agate Mountain after Tempest explained everything.
The way Tempest kept her back to them, how she shook her head and looked at the ground miserably, this confirmed that she and Cliff had been arguing for some time.
"I can't…" Tempest whispered, her wings tightening around herself. "I will not…"
Her voice was cracking. It sounded like she was about to cry…
Peacemaker felt his heart grow tight as she spoke. She sounded scared. Deep down, he was to…but he needed to know.
Walking forward, he wrapped his wings around her, the light of his rainbow star pattern on his wing membranes reflecting against her aqua green scales. He hugged her tightly, trying to comfort her.
"I don't want you to get hurt…" Tempest whispered into his shoulder. "I…I don't want to lose any of you."
Peacemaker said nothing. He didn't know what to say. The only thing he could do was be there beside her like how his mother was whenever he was scared.
Tempest looked at him dead in the eye, her eyes pleading with him to reconsider. To not make her take him to Agate Mountain.
But he remained resolute, his resolve did not falter. He wanted to know the truth and he knew Agate Mountain had the truth of his suppressed memories and why all of his nightmares and visions pointed there.
All he could do was convince Tempest.
"Tempest…please," He whispered. He sympathized with her and spoke to her softly. But he stood his ground, unwilling to move an inch.
For the longest time, the three stood in the grey space. It almost seemed like they were stuck here for an eternity. All the while, Peacemaker and Tempest looked into each other's eyes.
Everything changed when Tempest's eyes closed and exhaled deeply.
At that moment, the environment began to darken as specks of light began to float around them.
Realizing that Tempest was taking them to the Dream World, Peacemaker reached out his talons and grabbed both Tempest and Cliff's, who grabbed each other's in turn. Seconds would pass, and the three would find themselves drifting down through the Dream World's skyline.
Drifting to towards the dream version of the Phyrrian continent Peacemaker saw the three of them descending towards the location of Jade Mountain rather than the Rain Forest. Excitedly, he looked up at Tempest as their protective auras glowed brightly. He could see her aqua green eyes looking at him with uncertainty. But unlike before, she nodded at him.
He had reached her. She may not have liked this idea, but she trusted him. Now, all he needed to do was prove her trust in his decision was right.
Once they had come with several hundred feet from Jade Mountain's surface Tempest guided them towards where Agate Mountain had once stood. Just like how it was in the Waking World: The area did not appear special and was one of the lowest valleys of the mountain. The only reason people knew that the mountain even existed was from the scrolls of MudWing and SandWing geographers two thousand years before.
As they drew near, however, Peacemaker noticed something peculiar about the region of the old mountain.
Whereas much of the Dream World had areas of bright light, signifying life that thrives in those regions: The remains of Agate Mountain were filled with a fog…a black fog. It covered the entire region of where Agate Mountain once stood. No light peered through the mountain.
He felt Tempest's talons squeeze his nervously as she directed their descent further from the mountain. When they reached an area where the fog did not cover the area, she allowed them to descend faster.
It did not take any questions from Peacemaker to figure out why the fog scared her.
Because she had already told him of the fog even if he didn't know what it looked like.
The fog was the Dark Sleep.
Seeing no light from within made the scales over his spine shiver. This is why she wanted to avoid this area.
But even if he felt intimidated, it would not stop him from finding the truth.
As their talons touched the surface of the Dream World, Peacemaker let go of both Cliff and Tempest and walked towards the boundaries of the dark fog…and looked through the thick curtain of darkness that hung before him. No noise resonated from within…just nothingness.
"Peacemaker," Tempest said, walking up to him. "Are you sure about this?" She asked him. Looking back, he saw the fear in her eyes as clear as day. Even if she had agreed with this, he saw how much she wanted to pull him away. "We can still go to the Rainforest."
In the back of his mind, he could feel something desperately pull him away from the fog. His mind urged him to leave. Not just this area of the mountain, but the Dream World altogether.
But then, he remembered the NightWing. The peculiar one with white scales. He saw her blue eyes, her sad gaze that bore into his soul whenever he saw her in his dreams. He felt the desire to run to her and embrace his wings around her.
The thought of this NightWing was the only thing that spurred him forward.
He needed to regain his memories…he needed to remember this dragon, and why he felt so strongly for her.
Glancing at Cliff, he saw his best friend looking at the dark fog. Even he, who had been supportive of Peacemaker, looked uncertain about this. But instead of voicing any concern he had, he only nodded at him. The Prince trusted Peacemaker to make a decision.
He had made his decision.
"I'm going," Peacemaker said, turning to the fog. "I have to do this…"
Then, he heard his friends walk up beside him, their wings brushing against both sides of him. Glancing at each of them, he still saw the doubt. But that was overshadowed by their trust in him.
"We'll pull you out if you need us," Cliff said. "I don't care what happens, I will go in there."
"I don't know if it's possible," Tempest added. For the first time in hours, he saw her give him a reassuring smile. "But we will get you out if you aren't back soon."
Hearing this made Peacemaker's heart grow warm. Even if they did not like what he had planned, they still had faith in him. If their roles were reversed, then he would support them as best he could. With their faith, he felt his resolve strengthen.
Looking at the darkness, Peacemaker closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
With one step at a time, he walked into the darkness.