Review Responses:
Pt35 - This chapter was mostly written before the last, though I'm trying to cut down a bit on the melodrama in the next. It'll have a bit more action too, so that might help.
Pixeltoaster - I'm glad you like it!
Chapter 49: Wasteland
Somewhere in Sector 18
The shuttle was eerily silent as it hurdled through the swirling slipstream, its passengers tensely awaiting whatever unspeakable atrocities lay ahead of them. Hidden nervously fidgeted with his talons, constantly glancing at Ricky in the cockpit, who quietly watched as the shuttle guided them toward its missing twin. Lin sat beside Hidden, staring out of the tiny slit window at the back of the shuttle.
Hidden turned to Luna, sitting directly across from him on the other side of the shuttle's rectangular main chamber. It looked like all the life had been sucked out of her, her scales slightly paler than usual, her eyes focused on her clenched, quivering talons. Whoever this Dr. Walnut guy was, he seemed to have the SilkWing more terrified than what Hidden thought possible.
"Hidden…?" she suddenly asked, not lifting her eyes from the floor. "Why are we going after him again? I mean, he doesn't really seem like the nicest guy. Plus he's, well...a Darkstalker."
"And he's our Darkstalker." Hidden replied, "So we can't just let him go and get himself killed, right?" He turned to Lin, who continued to stare out the back of the window, unresponsive. Ricky gave him his best reassuring grin, but even he seemed uncertain about this plan. It had been Hidden's idea to go after the cyborg NightWing, and now even he was starting to wonder if they should turn back.
No, we're not leaving him behind. his mind scolded, remembering all the TV shows he'd grown up with as a kid. Good dragons didn't leave their comrades to die, even if they were ungrateful smoke-breathers.
"Besides." he continued, the faintest grin on his face, "It couldn't hurt to have something else to hold over his head." He briefly glanced around the shuttle, but there wasn't even the slightest sign of amusement on any of the other dragons' faces.
So much for lightening the mood….
He turned back to the cockpit, watching the slipstream swirl ahead. They had only been flying for about a half an hour, but it had felt far longer. They were likely already deep into Sector 18, possibly entering the outskirts of Dr. Walnut's domain, the place Luna had explicitly told them to avoid.
It hadn't been easy to convince Luna to help them; Hidden's tail still ached from where Luna had clawed at it. If Lin hadn't stepped to his side, they likely wouldn't have gone. Hidden couldn't quite figure out why the EarthWing had agreed to go after the aloof NightWing, though he'd been grateful for her support regardless of her intentions.
"Guys?" Ricky asked, Hidden already guessing what the SkyWing was about to say. "I think we're here."
Luna's shallow breathing instantly began to grow erratic as the words drifted through the shuttle. She quickly got up from her spot against the wall, taking the seat next to Ricky in the cockpit as the slipstream tore away. Hidden glanced over at the windshield, but was unable to make anything out due to a thick cloud of black smog that hung in the air around them.
"Take us down somewhere with cover, quickly!" Luna instructed, tightly clutching the dashboard as she struggled to control her breathing. Ricky nodded, and dove the shuttle beneath the cloud of smog, veering it down toward the darkened landscape below.
Hidden clutched the side of the shuttle as it plummeted toward the ground below, reaching a near ninety degree angle on its descent. Even with the internal gravity mechanisms of the ship, it still felt like he was riding a rollercoaster.
The shuttle quickly leveled out, its bottom thrusters blazing as it touched down just beneath an enormous rocky overhang, jutting out of the ground as if the earth itself had been shattered beneath the weight of some unimaginable force. Lin silently stood up, pulling the lever on the rear ramp, the soft hiss of its hydraulics mixing with the low crunch of black gravel.
Hidden slowly stepped down the ramp after Lin, gazing up at the rocky ceiling hanging above them. Luna hadn't given them much information about Dr. Walnut, or what they were capable of, and Hidden could only hope that they hadn't been spotted on their descent.
"Why would Darkstalker want to go to a place like…." Ricky began. The SkyWing paused, coughing for a short while as he adjusted to the dense, smog laden air around them. "A place like this?"
"I dunno...it is really dark here." Hidden suggested, "And 'Dark' is in his name." Once again, his attempt at levity fell upon deaf ears, the dreary, foreboding atmosphere that engulfed them crushing any joyful feelings the group might have.
Moons...this really is the perfect world for that guy….
Hidden noticed Luna stepping around from the other side of the shuttle, her talons trembling as she cautiously tread over the soot black gravel that paved their hiding place. She gazed up at the dark, clouded sky that hung above, the terrain rising just enough from beneath the crag that it blocked any view of the world beyond.
The group stood in silence for a moment, staring up at the dull, lifeless sky, a collective sense of dread hanging over the four dragons. Hidden was about to take the first step forward, when he heard the sound of Luna's talons crunching down on the gravel below, the SilkWing forcing herself to move forward despite the outwardly visible terror that coursed through her bulging veins.
Hidden was quick to follow after her, Ricky and Lin taking up the rear. The air grew even fouler as they left the cover of the crag, the stench of sulfur mixing with the suffocating scent of ash. Hidden wondered if they'd landed near some kind of active volcano, though his assumptions were promptly smashed as they cleared the rise.
Spreading out before them was a landscape so devastated, it made the surface of the moons look like the rainforest by comparison. Massive chunks of land stuck out of the ground as if they had been peeled right off of the crust of the planet, creating a fractured horizon that resembled the spines on an IceWing's back. Deep gashes were haphazardly carved into the charred ground, the land melted into waterless rivers of volcanic glass. It was like a horde of mountain sized, out of control dragonets had scorched the land with their fire breath, tearing apart what was left in their wild frenzy.
"Where are we?" Hidden asked, coughing into his elbow from the horrible air quality.
"Timeline 18-2096." Ricky stated, eyes wide with disbelief. "Th-This is supposed to be just north of Jade Mountain…."
Just north of Jade Mountain?! Hidden thought, stunned. Not even the volcanic islands north of SkyWing territory were this desolate. A sudden urge crossed him to get a better look, and he quickly spread his wings, leaping up to the top of the dislodged chunk of rock that hung above them.
"Hidden! Wait…!" Luna began, quickly springing up after him.
Hidden landed atop the rocky crag, gazing out at the devastated landscape spreading out all around him. There was no grass, no trees, no recognizable bits of terrain at all. The place hardly resembled Pyrrhia, so much as it did a fiendish wasteland of eternal suffering.
There was also no Jade Mountain, or so far as Hidden could see with the dense smog preventing long range visibility, and the jagged terrain breaking up the horizon to where he doubted he'd be able to see it even if it was there. Though, another landmark on the desolate landscape quickly caught his attention, one that shone like a beacon amidst the dreary backdrop.
"Hidden! You can't just run off like that here! Do you know what will happen to us if we're caught?!" Luna hissed, her voice sounding more worried than it did annoyed. She landed beside him atop the crag, staring out at the bright beacon alongside him.
"No." Hidden replied, "Though it would be nice to have an idea as to what we're getting ourselves into."
Luna didn't respond, staring down at the ground once again, still unable to bring herself to speak about whatever atrocities lay ahead. Ricky and Lin soon arrived atop the crag, their attention quickly falling upon the ominous glowing structure in the distance.
"What is that?" Lin asked, squinting her eyes at the massive edifice.
Hidden was wondering the exact same thing. At first glance, it appeared to be some sort of city, towering skyscrapers tightly clustered together upon the barren landscape, a nebula of bright blue and white lights shining out from them. But upon closer inspection, he noticed a thick, outward slanting wall surrounding the cluster of buildings, massive spires extending even further from it like the points of a jagged crown.
"I dunno." Hidden replied, "But I'd bet a million scales that's where Dark went."
"Yep, the shuttle he took is parked somewhere in there." Ricky affirmed. Hidden frowned. That wasn't exactly a bet that he'd wanted to win.
"It's one of Walnut's citadels." Luna explained, a heavy dose of spite in her voice as she said it. "It'd be better if fewer of us went in, that way we're less likely to get caught."
Hidden sighed, scratching his frills as he considered their next move. "Ricky can stay back with the shuttle." he began, addressing the group as a whole, "Lin can stay with him as a bodyguard. Luna and I will go into the city. She seems to be the only one here who knows what this place is, and I'm the one who wanted to do this in the first place."
"Wait, hold on." Luna interrupted, "I don't remember anyone making you…."
"Hey, the sooner we get done here, the sooner we can get out of this crummy place and get back to screwing around on the Salvation, so let's go!" Hidden interrupted in return. "Plus, I can't stand to watch you being all melodramatic." He gave Luna a joking grin, but the SilkWing returned with a wounded frown. Perhaps that last bit had been a bit too much.
"Sounds reasonable enough to me." Lin commented, turning to Ricky beside her. "What do you think?"
"Well um...I am the best pilot…." Ricky mumbled, sounding slightly disappointed that he wouldn't be able to go with Hidden. He briefly glanced at the bright, ominous city in the distance, shaking his head and turning to the group with a determined look. "I mean, yeah. It sounds like a good plan to me too."
"Okay then!" Hidden finished, standing back up on all fours. "Let's go save that cyborg's sorry tail!"
AN:
I want to give a big thank you to Pt35 for helping me work out the rest of these next two episodes. Thanks to them, the finale is a lot more streamlined, and some important character moments will be a lot more impactful.
I don't have much to say about this chapter, as it's been about a week since I initially finished writing it. The next one will likely be a lot longer than this, or will have to be broken up depending upon how quickly I'm able to write it.
What dangers await Hidden and Luna within the citadel, and will they be able to find Darkstalker before it's too late? Find out in the next chapter of Wings of Fire: Salvation! Stay tuned!
