Review Responses:

So cool [Swirl] - I'm glad you like it! I actually named Ricky and Xavier typical human names on purpose, as in their timeline the amalgamation of various human and dragon cultures has resulted in dragons being named things they typically wouldn't be in the main series. There are still dragons with typical Wings of Fire names, but there are also many with average human names, like Hidden and Ricky's father Bill. Of course, the original reason I named them this, long before this story even existed, was because I wanted to go against the norm for OC creation and have average dragons with strangely average names. It's for this same reason that Lin has her name, and while the current version of the story doesn't have an explanation for why her and her brother aren't named like normal EarthWings (their timeline isn't the same cultural melting pot as Hidden's), I have been considering the idea that their village, being generally distant from mainstream EarthWing culture, has its own tradition of naming children whatever first pops into their parents' heads, that way they're named by fate rather than by another dragon's decision. As for character development, that is something I plan to heavily focus on in the rewrite.


Chapter 47: General Spottail


Alliance Storage Depot 56

10:36 A.M.

"Flounder! How's it goin'!" the red spotted SeaWing began, touching down on the landing strip a few paces away from the trio. Flounder let out a soft groan, stepping up to meet the general. Hidden attempted to follow, but Luna held him back.

The SeaWing general was rather young, looking about fifteen to sixteen years old. His scales were a light shade of blue, though not as pale as Krill's, and with odd red spots running down his sides to the end of his tail. His eyes were also strangely yellow, giving Hidden the impression that this dragon had SkyWing blood running through him.

"What is it this time Spottail?" the MudWing grunted, staring derisively at the damaged vessel taking up most of the landing strip.

"Oh, well uh...we were just flying through timeline 03-2376, and had a bit of a run in with some pirates." Spottail explained, scratching the fin on the back of his head. "Nothin' we couldn't handle, though!"

"And what were you doing in that lawless timeline in the first place?" Flounder asked, a brow raised, "The front lines aren't anywhere close to it."

"Well uh, you see. We heard there was this crazy sea monster that was spotted near the fractured continent, and we had to check it out. I mean...come on! They said that thing had like seven heads or something!" Spottail giddily explained. "Never got to see it, though…thanks to those pirates…."

Flounder didn't seem all too impressed, glancing at the damaged vessel, and back at the SeaWing disdainfully. Hidden grinned. He was already starting to like this strange hybrid general.

"So, you think you could patch her up?" the Spottail asked.

"Yeah." Flounder replied unenthusiastically. "But, you know, we're not the only outpost in this part of the multiverse. You don't need to keep coming here every time you bust up your ship."

"Come on, you've got some of the best mechanics this side of the multiverse!" Spottail exclaimed, gesturing to the dragons in the hanger, who were watching the discussion from afar. "I wouldn't trust the Resurgence with anyone else!"

Flounder let out a short yawn, wiping his tired eyes. "I'd be flattered, if you didn't say that every time you came here." he grumbled.

The MudWing turned back into the hangar, nodding to a small group of mechanics gathered near one of the smaller ships. They quickly gathered up their tools, flying out of the hangar toward the smoking vessel just outside.

Hidden and Luna suddenly felt the floor begin to shift beneath them, the two quickly stepping away as the tiles they had been standing upon slid out of the hanger. The complex conveyor network slowly worked to slide the Resurgence as far to the side of the landing strip as it could, though the massive vessel still took up much of it.

"I need a drink…." Flounder grunted, stretching out his back. The MudWing turned toward the back of the hanger, stepping away from the hybrid general, pausing briefly to turn to Luna as he passed. "I'll call an evac crew when I'm done, but the higher ups will be notified of your friend's little escapade in the process."

Luna silently nodded, watching Flounder leave, when Spottail suddenly darted past, briefly glancing at the two as he stepped up next to the MudWing. "You know, I could go for a nice cold bourbon myself!" he jovially stated, Flounder letting out an irritated sigh in response.

Hidden watched the two leave through a doorway at the back of the hangar, before turning to Luna.

"You're planning on following him, aren't you?" she knowingly guessed. Hidden nodded.

"You wanna come too?"
Luna shook her head, turning back to the Salvation. "The others need to be filled in on the situation, and I'm sure they've got their talons more than full dealing with a whole town's worth of refugees." She paused, turning back to Hidden with a sly grin. "Just don't screw this up, alright?"

"I won't!" Hidden shouted back, already halfway to the door Flounder and Spottail had left through. He watched Luna glide back up to the Salvation's bridge, entering through one of its side doors, and turned to the doorway ahead of him, the metal barrier automatically sliding away to let him through.

It wasn't hard to find where the two had gotten off to. After asking a young RainWing janitor for directions, Hidden was quickly able to locate the outpost's lounge, a chamber about the size of the Salvation's dining hall, with a small bar to one side, and some cushions and table games to the other. Spottail was seated at the bar, sipping an orangish yellow drink out of a small glass, and Flounder was dozing on one of the larger cushions with an unopened can of beer in one of his foretalons.

Hidden quickly sidled up next to Spottail, the red spotted SeaWing casting him a curious glance. "Who're you?" he asked, taking another sip of his drink, "You want me to buy you a drink or somethin'?"

"Oh, no. I don't drink alcohol." Hidden explained, "You do stupid stuff when you're drunk, and I'd rather not loose control of myself and do something dumb that someone could use against me later. Plus, alcohol causes fat to build up in your liver...sooooo…."

Spottail briefly glanced down at his drink, before setting it down on the countertop, slightly pushing it away with a claw. The NightWing bartender behind the counter shot Hidden a quick glare, but the SandWing ignored her, his focus entirely on winning over the Alliance general.

"So, I heard you and your crew got into a fight with some pirates. Space pirates I'm guessing, or something like that, as I doubt the seafaring buccaneers generally associated with the term could do that much damage to a ship like yours." Hidden said. Spottail started at him silently, and Hidden quickly reminded himself not to get too off topic.

"We've been on a few crazy adventures ourselves!" he quickly continued, "You'd be amazed at some of the things we've seen!"

"Hah, you don't say?" Spottail replied, staring at his drink for a moment, before finally deciding to take another cautious sip. "Are you part of the evac crew in charge of the refugee ship back there? It's just...I heard Flounder talk to you guys about some refugees or somethin'."

"Kinda..?" Hidden replied, "We're not a registered crew or anything. We're actually from a non-interference timeline, you see. And we uh...happened...upon the Salvation in our timeline half a month ago. We've been working to find our way home since, picking up a few others along the way."

"A non-interference timeline? How'd an old refugee ship like that wind up there?"

Hidden shrugged. "All we know is that it probably crashed near our timeline's Jade Mountain about three years ago."

"Well, then I guess your timeline isn't really non-interference anymore, now is it?" Spottail replied, half grinning.

"Yeah, it certainly won't be once the Alliance finds out about what we've been doing for the past two weeks." Hidden sighed, "I gotta say, I'm not looking forward to all the paperwork and stuff…."

Spottail nodded, and the two sat in silence for a moment, the sound of the bartender washing dishes filling the chamber. The hybrid general finally spoke up, turning to Hidden.

"So what kind of 'crazy adventures' have you guys gotten yourselves into anyway?"

Hidden grinned. "Well, my bud Xavier and I had to fight this swarm of nanobots in an edgy cyberpunk arena in SkyWing territory." he explained, "And we narrowly escaped a Darkstalker, who'd apparently turned his timeline into a giant cursed sitcom. We bumped him out of there, but we ran into him again in another timeline, which is where those refugees are from." Spottail nodded along as Hidden spoke, snickering at the cursed sitcom part.

"Oh, and we also visited this weird place called the Tower of Doom." Hidden finished.

"You've been to the Tower of Doom?!" Spottail suddenly shouted, starling Flounder out of his nap and nearly causing the bartender to drop a glass she was drying.

"That place is legendary! The last recorded time it supposedly appeared was almost eleven years ago, and most dragons nowadays consider it a myth!" Spottail exclaimed excitedly, staring up at the ceiling, his yellow eyes sparkling with wonder. "I don't, of course. Moons what I wouldn't give to have a shot at it."

He turned to Hidden, grinning. "So, what'd ya win?"

"A Dubstep canon. It's really just a fancy plasma canon though." Hidden casually explained. "I guess it was more about the journey than the reward in the end. And what a journey it was!"

"Oh moons, you've gotta tell me everything!" Spottail giddily replied, almost bouncing in his seat in anticipation.

"I'd love to." Hidden replied, "Though, do you mind if I ask for a little favor in return?"

"Yeah, sure! Ask away!" Spottail eagerly stated. This was going to be easier than Hidden had thought.

"I've heard that generals like you have access to detailed info about non-interference timelines. Do you think you could find the code for mine?"

"Sure, is that it?" Spottail asked, as if he were expecting more. "I know, I can take those refugees of yours to the closest resettlement center in this sector too! There's plenty of room aboard the Resurgence. Most of its systems are automated, so it doesn't take many dragons to pilot it."

"Wait, really?!" Hidden asked, somewhat stunned at the hybrid's generosity.

"Yeah, and I'll even notify the Alliance about you when you get there, so you guys have a bit of time to get home before then. You hear that Flounder?!" Spottail continued. Flounder responded with a tired grunt, trying his best to fall back asleep amongst the two dragon's chattering.

"Th-Thanks! You've really saved our tails here!" Hidden exclaimed. He couldn't have hoped for a better outcome of this interaction.

"No prob pal!" Spottail replied, "Though, in return, you think I could try out that Dubstep cannon of yours?"

Hidden grinned, shaking the general's talon to seal the deal. "Anything for an amazing dragon like you!"


The Salvation

12:43 P.M.

Hidden glided down toward the right landing next to the Salvation's bridge, the dubstep canon held tightly in his foretalons. Most of the others were already gathered inside, Luna, Krill and the other Ricky finishing up with the refugees in the hangar.

"Alright, code's punched in!" Ricky exclaimed, "Next stop, timeline 17-3496!"
"After a couple pit stops along the way, of course." Hidden replied, stepping into the bridge and setting the canon against the wall next to the circular doorway. "We can't have the Salvation's slipdrive overheating again, now can we?"

Hidden had just gotten back from letting General Spottail try out the dubstep canon. The hybrid had been so excited sending streams of concentrated EDM flying into the sky, Hidden had worried he wouldn't want to part with it. Thankfully, things had gone over smoothly, and the general had held his end of the bargain, loading the refugees onto his ship and finding them the code to Hidden, Ricky, Xavier, and Reggie's timeline.

"You guys all ready to go?" Luna asked, stepping through the back archway of the bridge, alongside Krill and the other Ricky. The pale SeaWing cast a brief glance to his left, where Darkstalker stood gloomily, having awoken not long before in a not so jovial mood. The SeaWing briefly shuddered, before turning to the other Ricky, the two nodding to each other.

"Yeah, about that…." the other Ricky began. "Krill and I...we were thinking of headin' off with Spottail."
"N-Not that it wouldn't be nice to go with you!" Krill quickly added, as the two gained the attention of everyone in the room (except for Darkstalker, who cast them little more than a half interested glance). "It's just, I really want to make sure everyone finds a nice home. I know I've only known them for a week or so, but I still want to be sure they're alright."

He turned to the other Ricky, giving him a sad grin. "It's okay if you stay here though, and go on fun adventures with these guys."

"You kiddin'?" the other Ricky replied, wrapping a wing around Krill and pulling him to his side. "I'm not just gonna leave you, after that dome kept us apart! Besides, we can go on all sorts of adventures with this Spottail guy!"

Krill's expression began to grow warmer, as the two stepped over to the side door where Hidden had come in from, turning back to face the group one last time. "I guess this is goodbye…." Krill said sadly, gazing at the dragons that had reunited him and Ricky, and rescued him from Darkstalker's domed prison.

"For now." the other Ricky corrected. "We'll meet again, out there in the multiverse!" He turned toward their Ricky, lifting a talon to point at his doppelganger. "And when we do, you'll have to give me some more lessons on how to pilot that shuttle of yours, okay Ricky?"

"Sure Ricky." their Ricky replied, an amused grin on his face.

The two stepped through the circular doorway, waving goodbye as they glided away toward the Resurgence on the other end of the landing strip. Hidden and Ricky stepped over to the side of the window next to the doorway, watching the duo disappear from sight.

A brief moment of silence hung over the chamber, before Luna finally broke it, stepping over to the main console. "Well then" she said, pressing a few buttons and pulling up a holographic map of the multiverse, a bright display of numerous dots arranged in a wide circle, divided up into twenty equally sized portions like a pizza. Hidden stared at the map in amazement, surprised they'd never figured out how to pull it up themselves. He'd have to give it a closer look later.

"Right now, we're in sector nineteen." Luna explained, zooming in on a few neighboring slices on the map. She pointed at a tiny dot of light in one of the slices, and then motioned to an empty area a couple slices over. "Your timeline is somewhere over here, in sector seventeen. This map doesn't show non-interference timelines, but we should be able to get there with the code Spottail provided."

She then gestured to a dense gathering of lights in the slice between the two, looking like a giant, oblong pepperoni on the metaphorical multiverse pizza. "We won't be able to make a straight shot there, as there are some...not so great things lurking around here in sector eighteen." she explained, "We'll have to take a longer route around this spot, just to be safe."

Hidden briefly glanced to the side, and noticed that Darkstalker's expression had drastically changed when Luna had brought up the tight cluster of timelines. A mixture of pure rage and terror, and a slight bit of regret washed over the cybernetically enhanced NightWing's face, though he quickly shoved it away when he noticed Hidden staring at him. The SandWing quickly turned back to Luna. She'd seemed somewhat frightened by the cluster of timelines as well, though she'd done a lot better of a job of hiding it.

The SilkWing pushed a button on the console, hiding the holographic multiverse map, and began punching a new timeline code into it. The others began to gather around, as the Salvation slowly rose up off of the landing strip. Bright sparks of light flew out of the vessel's nose, tearing open a hole in the fabric of reality before them, and before they knew it, they were back in the swirling blue vortex of the slipstream.

Hidden stared silently ahead at the slipstream before them, a wave of conflicting emotions washing over him as the fact that he was indeed going home finally set in. For the longest time (well, as long as one could consider roughly two and a half weeks), he'd hardly thought about them actually managing to make it back home, finding himself too distracted by the bizarre timelines they kept winding up in. Yet here they were, in the home stretch. With Luna's guidance, and the code provided by General Spottail, he, Ricky, Xavier and Reggie would be home in no time.

"So Luna. What exactly was that in sector eighteen anyway?" Hidden asked, breaking the silence that had hung over the chamber. "I mean, Darkstalker seemed pretty freaked out about it, right Dark...stalker…?"

Hidden turned his head, looking for the gloomy NightWing, but he was nowhere to be seen. The others turned around, equally confused as to where he had gone, save for Luna, who quietly cursed under her breath.

"No no no no...he...he wouldn't actually…." she began, her muscles tensing, as if the claw of an invisible specter had just tapped her on the shoulder. Ricky quickly hopped into the right trench, where Reggie had been knocked out when they'd first flown off in the Salvation, and booted up the ship's security network.

Hidden, Xavier and Luna hopped into the trench beside him as he flipped through the various security feeds throughout the ship. Luna slammed her foretalon down on the console in frustration when he landed on the feed from the hanger.

The rear hanger door was wide open, one of the shuttle's headlights gleaming brightly in the video feed. The shadowy form of Darkstalker could just barely be made out inside of its cockpit, as he disengaged the tether binding it to the hanger's floor. Seconds later, he was gone.

"GAH! That featherbrained idiot! What is he thinking going there!" Luna roared, pounding the console once again as she stepped up out of the trench, Ricky shrinking back timidly from her fit of rage.

"Going where?" Hidden asked, following her out of the trench.

"I should have known he'd head there!" the SilkWing continued, ignoring Hidden. "Is he in cahoots with him, or what?! Ugh...he's probably going to get himself killed either way! Or worse…."

"Luna!" Hidden shouted, finally grabbing the SilkWing's attention. He'd already started to figure out where Darkstalker had gone off to.

"What is in sector eighteen." he firmly asked, staring directly into the panicked SilkWing's eyes.

Luna paused for a moment, seemingly struggling to speak about whatever horrors lay in wait in the cluster of timelines she'd strictly told them to avoid. Hidden noticed a similar look on her face to when she'd first seen Darkstalker. A look of pure, unbridled terror; as if a dark ghost from her past had resurfaced from years of slumber. At the time, he'd assumed she was afraid of Darkstalker himself, though now he had a sinking feeling that what haunted her was something much, much worse.

"Sector eighteen…." Luna choked, struggling to let the words out of her mouth. "It's the home of...of Doctor Walnut."


AN:

Not too proud of this chapter, but I'm trying not to worry too much about all the flaws of this version of the story right now, and mainly focus on getting the main plot ironed out. I'm already thinking of things I want to change or expand upon in the rewrite, which could wind up being twice as long as this version of the story!
One of the biggest worries of the end of last episode and the beginning of this one was the massive number of refugees in the Salvation, and how exactly the team would deal with them. I'm not exactly sure about how to write that, so I danced around it instead, though I could delve into the difficulties of managing such a large number of scared, confused dragons in the rewrite. Things also seem to be happening quite quickly, with important details springing up almost out of nowhere and characters like Spottail being overly generous to speed the plot along.

I was debating putting another portion just after this one, which would bridge this chapter with the next, though I decided to make it its own short chapter instead. This episode is likely going to wind up about seven chapters long now, which is longer than I initially expected, though I think stretching it out like this could help keep the story at a somewhat consistent level of quality. This release schedule, and the fact that I'm figuring things out as I go, have been the two main factors keeping this story from being as good as it can be, and I plan on removing them for the rewrite, instead writing that version of the story in its entirety before uploading it chapter by chapter, and not releasing it until it is good and ready. There will likely be a significant amount of time between the conclusion of this version and the release of the new one, but I think that will pay off in the long run.

Who is the mysterious Dr. Walnut, and what will the team do now that Darkstalker has run off to him? Find out in the next chapter of Wings of Fire: Salvation! Stay tuned!