Dragons Change
AN: I'm back! And as promised in the last chapter, things are about to get real! I hope you enjoy it.
Before that, though, I also want to remind everyone (again) that there's a poll on my profile for which Dragons Change universe story you want next. If you have a spare twenty seconds to vote, it would be much appreciated.
Disclaimer: I do not own Wings of Fire. My OCs Aurora and the Spirits, Flint, and Faredir belong to me. Cover art for the story belongs to beyzul on deviantart.
Chapter 31:
Winter woke up slowly the next morning. Each sense seemed to take its time waking up until his eyes finally started to crack open. What greeted him was the most beautiful pair of eyes he had ever seen. Moon was facing him, their muzzles nearly touching, and she was watching him wake up with a happy smile. "There he is," she whispered lovingly.
He smiled sleepily and blinked. "Good morning," he whispered back, his voice still a bit slurry from just waking up.
She giggled at him. "Yes it is," she said a bit sensually. Then, she closed the distance and booped his nose with her own before giving it a small lick. When she pulled away, Winter wrinkled his snout at the funny sensation and stared at her in amusement.
"Did you just boop me and then lick my nose?" he asked.
She giggled again. "Yes. Yes, I did," she responded, her expression lit up in pure joy at being with him again. She scooted a bit closer and buried her snout under his but pulled back with a wince after a moment. "I'm really starting to hate that thing," she muttered, looking at his chest.
He looked down at the steadily pulsating orb on his chest plate then kissed the top of her head between her horns. "I know. But I need it still…unless you'd like to see the gaping hole in my chest," he added somewhat somberly.
"No, I can deal with the cold, unforgiving metal," she replied. "I just can't wait for it to finally heal you so you can take it off." She traced the edge of the plate with her talons, and he sucked in a breath when she brushed a sensitive area. "Did that hurt?" she asked, concerned.
"A little," he admitted. "It's a bit sensitive still."
"Sorry," she apologized. They lay there for a long while, but her talons would always find their way back to his chest. Whenever she discovered a spot that hurt, she would take care to avoid it afterwards. He never snapped at her or told her to stop, though. The scales on a dragon's chest were harder and more durable, but that made the underlying skin more sensitive. In battle, it made chest wounds that much more painful, but in an intimate setting, applying just enough pressure could cause a wonderful, pleasurable feeling no matter the gender of the dragon.
That's no doubt what Moon wanted to do for him—to make him feel good—but his injury prevented her from doing that. He remembered that most of the damage to his chest was closer to the top of the chest-plate, so he grabbed her wandering talons and guided them to the bottom of the plate. In a show of utmost trust, he lifted the plate up ever so slightly, causing him to grit his teeth in pain. However, Moon found a small patch of relatively undamaged skin and began gently kneading it with her claws. His muscles went limp as she massaged the hypersensitive skin there, and he moaned—the feeling causing a bit of pain but more than enough pleasure to make the experience worth it. She froze, thinking she had hurt him. "Don't—Don't stop," he said, almost out of breath from those few seconds alone.
"I don't want to hurt you," she said, worried for him.
"You won't," he replied. As she hesitantly returned to doing her previous motions, he sighed in absolute contentment. "You are the only one I would ever trust to have their talons this close to my injury," he told her. They stayed like that for a while, just enjoying each other's company and the soft, loving touches here and there before Winter spoke again. "What should we do today?" he asked her.
"I'd just as soon stay here," she replied with a devious smirk, applying a little extra pressure to the spot she had been attending to on his chest. Unfortunately, it had the opposite affect to what she had hoped for. The extra pressure aggravated the injury just a little too much, causing him to tense and flinch, causing Moon's talons to slip a bit further underneath the plate.
He had to force himself not to move again in case something worse would happen, but he couldn't do anything about the pained snarl. Moon pulled her talons out quickly yet carefully, and he breathed a sigh of relief as the pain faded a bit. "By the Spirits, Winter, I am so sorry! I-I didn't mean to—" she stammered, trying to apologize.
"It's okay," he interrupted her with a slight grimace. "I know you didn't mean to."
Reassured that he wasn't mad at her, she nevertheless sighed. "Sorry for ruining the moment." There was a short pause before she asked, "Are you okay?"
He nodded. "I'm alright. A bit hungry, though," he replied with a small grin.
She chuckled. "Well at least we can do something about that." She got up and stood near the bed in case he needed her support again. He could almost guarantee that he would as he shuffled over to her side of the bed since the pain was bad enough to make him grit his teeth. And when he finally got his feet under him, he almost collapsed. He would've if not for Moon. He sat down carefully and just breathed as the wave of pain washed through him. He knew he would be sore again this morning, but he had hoped it wouldn't be quite this bad. Though the accident a few minutes ago probably didn't help. "Let's just take things slow, alright? We'll take a break if you need to," she told him, and he nodded.
He got to his feet, feeling more than a little wobbly, and they made it to the door before he had to stop for fear his legs were about to give. "S-Sorry. I think I just need to sit for a few more minutes."
As he focused on his breathing, he was aware of Moon watching him with both sympathy. "Do you want to stay here while I go get us some food?"
He shook his head. "No. I need to get them used to being used again. The more I just sit around, the worse it's going to get," he explained. He didn't know why, but for some reason, his thoughts turned to the scrolls Moon had been reading about Icewings. "What do you know about Icewing medics and how they treat injured soldiers?" he asked her.
"Not much," she confessed. "Why? What do they do?"
"It was a trick question," he revealed quietly. "Icewings don't have medics. If you're injured and can't walk it off, you get left behind." He kept his gaze forward, not daring to look at Moon's expression.
He felt her wing drape across his back, and she rubbed his shoulder gently. "Nobody here is going to leave you behind. You know that, right?"
"I know," he gave her a small smile. "But it's how I was raised. The training I had to go through while I was young may have been just short of torture, but it's saved my life more times than I care to admit." That was true. It made him both stronger and faster. It sharpened his reflexes and made him a better fighter, and…it made his tolerance for pain a lot higher.
Moon didn't respond other than to squeeze him a bit tighter with her wing in a show of support. They tried again about ten minutes later, and though he started slow, he eventually was able to handle walking by himself again once they reached the ground floor. It still hurt, of course, but it was manageable. He was sure he had been through worse. Of course, I can't really think of an example, but I'm sure I have.
Since they had woke up so late, there weren't many dragons in the dining hall. It was that time between when the chefs were cleaning up the breakfast leftovers and getting lunch ready, but luckily, they were able to scrounge up a small plate that would tide them over until lunch. Most of the dragons that were in here with them looked to be soldiers on break between patrols, but he did notice one dragon he knew walk into the room not long after he and Moon started eating.
Hailstorm walked over to their table and sat across from them, refusing the food Winter politely offered him. "I already ate," he said. "And I have to go meet Horus in just over an hour, so…" he trailed off and sighed. "I just wanted to make sure you aren't mad at me," he confessed.
"Mad at you?" he asked, confused. The only thing he could think of that would make Hailstorm believe he was mad was when he snapped at him yesterday when they briefly argued about Faredir. Speaking of which, he didn't think Hailstorm knew how that had turned out. "Is this about Faredir?"
But, surprisingly, Hailstorm shook his head. "No, it's…about Horus." He paused for a moment and placed a familiar necklace on the table between them. "And about this."
Winter went quiet and stared at the necklace for a long time, his expression carefully neutral. On one claw, he wanted Hailstorm to be happy, but he wasn't sure Horus felt the same way about his brother as Hailstorm did about him. He honestly believed the only reason the Skywing had agreed to meet was to convince Hailstorm to become Pyrite again. And if that was the case, he didn't want to come between him and his chance at happiness if he decided to become Pyrite again. However, on the other claw…he wasn't ready to say goodbye.
Apparently realizing that Winter wasn't going to say anything, Hailstorm continued. "I can probably guess what you're thinking, and I don't want to say goodbye, either. I love Horus…but I don't know if he'll ever love me the way he loved Pyrite. I know that doesn't sound like a great start to a relationship, but I want to try at least." He gestured between the two of them. "If you two can make it work, I have a chance…right?"
Winter stayed quiet for another long stretch, but this time neither Moon nor Hailstorm spoke. After a small eternity of battle against his own thoughts, he swallowed past the lump in his throat. "Do what makes you happy," he whispered, keeping his gaze on his plate of food.
He heard Hailstorm stand a few moments later, but instead of leaving immediately, he walked over to their side of the table and sat next to him. He wrapped his wing around the younger Icewing's back and draped his arms over his shoulders, pulling him into a one-armed hug. "I can't tell you what that is yet because I myself don't know. I should, but…I don't. I want you to know that it doesn't matter where or who I am…" he trailed off and placed a small kiss on the top of his head. "I will always love you, Winter. Always."
With that, he gave Winter another tight squeeze and then left. He just stared at his half-finished plate—his appetite completely gone. It seemed like only yesterday that Hailstorm reentered his life. And now he didn't even know if he would ever see his brother again. If he chose Horus…
His head snapped up. Screw that Skywing! That's my brother he's trying to steal from me! He had a brief moment of panic when he couldn't see Hailstorm anymore, so he ran—actually ran—to the closest exit despite Moon yelling at him to slow down and saw his brother walking down the corridor, his wings and tail slumped.
"Hailstorm!" he yelled, sprinting as best he could while ignoring the pain in his chest. The startled Icewing turned around in surprise just in time for Winter to stop in front of him and jab a claw into his chest. "You once asked me what you should do since you couldn't live as two dragons forever. Do you remember that?" Hailstorm nodded, taken aback by Winter's livid expression. "I never gave you an answer, but I'm giving you one now!" He pointed at the necklace in Hailstorm's claws. "That is not who you are! That is nothing but a magic piece of scroll that Scarlet used to take you away from me! And now another Skywing is trying to do the same thing with it!
"You promised me that you wouldn't leave me again! And not once have you broken that promise no matter how bad things got! The only time you ever used this necklace after I discovered your secret was when I asked you to! So why? Why haven't you used it since?" he demanded. Hailstorm opened his mouth to answer, but he was so stunned by Winter's furious tirade that he couldn't. "Fine! I'll tell you why! It's because you know who you are, damnit! That thing was an addiction that I helped you break, and I'm not going to let you relapse!" He placed his claw palm-up between them without breaking eye contact with Hailstorm. "So give it to me," he growled.
Hailstorm glanced at the necklace in his talons before looking back at Winter uncertainly. However, when Winter didn't back down in the slightest, Hailstorm reluctantly gave his necklace to the younger Icewing. "What are you going to do with it?" he asked, dreading the answer.
In response, Winter opened the clasp, took out the piece of Darkstalker's scroll that still remained inside and passed it over to Moon, who had arrived about halfway through his tirade. She stuck it in her satchel, and then Winter gave the necklace back to Hailstorm. "That," was his simple reply. Hailstorm just stared at the now-powerless necklace in his talons as if he no longer recognized it. "And Hailstorm?" he said, his voice gentler now that he had finished what he came to do. When his brother glanced up at him, Winter continued. "I love you, too. And it's because I love you that I'm doing this. You looked after me when I needed it. Now it's my turn to look after you."
Hailstorm studied him for a moment before looking back down at the necklace. "You know what Flint told me I should do when I talked to him like you suggested?" Winter shook his head. "He told me to wait to make my decision until the answer was given to me. I didn't understand what he meant at the time, but I'm going to assume this is it." He nodded as if accepting a decision he had already known was coming. "He must have known you would react like this."
Winter chuckled. "I wouldn't doubt it. Flint knows me better than anyone." Moon cleared her throat and looked at him pointedly. "Almost anyone," he corrected himself with a grin. "Speaking of which…have you seen him?" Yes, the Mudwing had gone too far—putting it mildly—but he was beginning to worry about his adopted brother…who actually happened to be his uncle.
To his disappointment, Hailstorm shook his head. "No, but that's probably for the best. He did almost kill me, apparently." Winter nodded in understanding, and after a quick hug, the two brothers went their own way. Hailstorm left to go meet Horus, saying he preferred to get there early, while Winter and Moon started wandering the corridors.
"I don't suppose you would know where he is, would you?" he asked Moon, who shook her head. "Could you help me find him, then?"
"Find who?" a familiar voice asked from behind them. They looked behind them to see a Changewing standing in one of the doors. Since they all sounded and looked the same, Winter almost thought that he had gotten his hopes up for nothing. But when the Changewing pulled out a familiar armlet and put it on, Winter found himself staring at the dragon he had been looking for.
"Where have you been?" Winter lightly admonished him. "I was starting to get worried."
"Even after what I did?" he asked, surprised.
"It was an accident, Flint," Winter replied. "I know you wouldn't have hurt Hailstorm on purpose, and I'm sorry if I scared with my…you know…" he trailed off and summoned a light ball before letting it disappear.
"Yeah…" he said a bit uncomfortably at the sight of the light ball but calmed when it disappeared. "Just keep that thing pointed away from me. As for where I've been…" he shrugged. "Around," was his simple answer. Winter wasn't exactly happy with such a vague answer, but before he could comment on it, Flint gestured to the anchor. "How's your chest?"
"It hurts," he confessed, not seeing the point of hiding that particular truth. "But I can manage."
Flint nodded, and a small stretch of awkward silence fell between them before Flint cleared his throat and spoke. "So…I hear you wanted to talk to me?" That brought Winter out of his thoughts, and he nodded. "You mind taking a short walk with me?"
Understanding the unspoken request for privacy, Winter looked to Moon and nodded at her, assuring her he would be fine. She gave him a chaste kiss that only left him wanting for more. "I'll wait for you in the library," she told him before heading that way.
"Where are we headed?" Winter asked the Mudwing.
Flint shrugged. "Let's go talk in the gardens," he suggested. Winter agreed and Flint waited until Winter set the pace. He was limping pretty badly—his right side hurting worse than his left—but he tried his best to keep his face from showing how much pain he was actually in as he walked. "You can lean on me if you need to," Flint offered, seeing right through his charade.
"I'm fine," Winter insisted, and indeed, he was able to make the walk to the gardens without help or stopping. Neither of them had spoken during the walk, but when they walked outside and saw the splendid, natural beauty, Winter was the first to break the silence. "Wow…" he breathed in awe.
The gardens were behind the palace, and they were absolutely massive. Beautiful didn't even begin to describe it. Thousands—perhaps even tens of thousands—of flowers of all different shapes, colors, and sizes that he couldn't even begin to name were planted in such a way that made each flower both stand out on its own and complement the group as a whole. There were a few Skywings tending to the gardens here and there, and he was momentarily surprised that they were still working despite Queen Ruby's absence. However, as he thought about it, he realized that if he were in charge of such a natural work of art, he wouldn't let it be ruined, either. He briefly wondered if Faredir felt the same way or if he had ordered these dragons to continue tending it. Maybe he would ask next time he saw his father.
He still couldn't believe what direction his life had turned. There had been ups sure, but the downs seemed to outnumber them. However, the fact he had a caring father now made everything worth it.
"It's beautiful, isn't it," Flint asked him. Winter nodded, and the Mudwing walked to a group of large, purple flowers. He sighed wistfully, the look on his face suggesting he was caught up in some old memories. "My mother had a garden like this. Not this big, obviously, but it was beautiful, too. I spent a lot of time playing in it when I was young, and she would watch me with a smile while reading a scroll." He grew quiet for a moment, and Winter sat quietly as his curiosity was piqued. Flint had told him the basic story of his past, but there was a lot he didn't know about him now he knew who he really was. "Even when I got older and fell into a bad crowd, she would always welcome me home. In those days, she spent less time in her garden—only going out there when she wanted a quiet place to calm down when she was upset."
Flint turned away suddenly, but Winter watched a solitary tear fly through the air and strike a petal on of one the flowers. The Icewing stared at him, though he never spoke, letting Flint get something off his chest he doubted he had ever told anyone else. "She was always upset after I left," he whispered. "One day we argued so badly that she was crying when I left. I never went back home after that." Flint let out a ragged breath that showed Winter just how close the Mudwing was to breaking down fully. "There was a magnolia tree in the center, and it was my favorite spot to play when I was young. S-She died there…with a flower in her talons."
He had kept his voice remarkably steady that entire time, but finally, he could take no more. Flint covered his eyes with one of his claws and cried. Winter watched the Mudwing sob heavily with sympathy. He closed the distance and wrapped a wing around the larger dragon in a show of comfort as he got this out of his system. Flint had been there to comfort him so many times…
This time he would do the same for him.
He really wanted to tell Flint what he knew, but he promised Faredir that he wouldn't tell Flint that he was his father. However, thinking further on it, he didn't really need to. Taiga was Flint's mother, and she also happened to be Winter's grandmother. Therefore, he didn't really need to mention Faredir at all. How best to bring it up, though?
However, when Flint calmed down, he stunned the Icewing into silence. "When I told you my story, I never told you who my mother was, did I?" Winter shook his head, halfway wondering if the Mudwing was reading his mind like Moon did. His ability to guess what he was thinking was uncanny. "She was an Icewing," he said, shaking his head with a thoughtful expression. "She never told me how she came to live among the Changewings…or who my father was. She did tell me about her previous family—a little bit, at least."
He went quiet and glanced at Winter, seeing if he understood what he was implying. "You knew…" Winter quietly accused him.
Flint raised his eye ridge at that. "That she was your grandmother? Yes, I did. When did you learn about it?"
"Faredir told me," was his answer. "You knew I was your nephew this entire time?"
Flint huffed in annoyance. "Of course he did," he muttered. "And yes," he nodded, answering Winter's question. "Why do you think my attitude changed so drastically after you told me your name for the first time? I didn't know who you were until you told me," he explained, answering his own question.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Winter asked, only slightly offended.
Flint sighed. "Please, Winter, I don't want to fight. I'm tired of fighting you. Ever since you saw who I was, it seems like we've done nothing but fight." Winter stared at him, surprised by his words, but he ultimately nodded. He was right, to a degree. Things hadn't been the same between them after that fiasco. "I just…I wish things could go back to the way they were," he said, once again seemingly reading Winter's thoughts. "And I never told you because there was no way you would believe me. Maybe if I was a hybrid you would, but you would never have believed that a full-blooded Mudwing was your uncle, of all things. And there would have been no way to prove that I was without telling you who I was, and I already told you my reasons I never did that."
Flint sighed, once again deflating into a slight depression. "My actions ended up getting my mother killed. Then, several years later, my carelessness ended up getting my adopted sisters killed. Once I knew who you were, I decided I would do everything I could to make sure you stayed safe. Protecting you…Being there for you was my way of atoning for my mistakes."
Winter was quiet for a while as he looked away. He had never told this to Flint, but if the Mudwing was getting things off his chest, he should do the same. "You have…and I don't think you realize just how much," he whispered. "Without you, I would have…"
He trailed off, and now it was Flint's turn to wrap a wing around him. "Please don't say that."
"But it's the truth," he insisted. "You saved my life without even realizing it—just by being there." A wistful smile crept onto his face, "I think your mother would be proud of you for that."
Flint gave him a sad smile in return. "Yeah…I think so, too."
They sat there for a few minutes before they decided to walk around and see the rest of the garden. Winter set the pace, but Flint never complained about how slow the going was. He was simply glad to spend time with Winter without arguing or worrying about other more important things. There were quite a few different flowers and plants, and there was even a green house structure that housed a number of plants from the Rainforest. There was even a small hedge maze in the center of the garden. And in the center of the hedge maze was a small sand garden with a few cactuses.
This place truly was absolutely breathtaking. He wondered if Moon had ever been back here before. They had both tried to think of something fun to do while he recovered, and a stroll through the gardens sounded like it would be just that. Honestly, he hoped she hadn't seen it yet because he wanted to see her expression when she did. Trying to imagine what her reaction might be brought a small smile to his face.
Speaking of which, they had been out here for an hour-and-a-half, and Moon was probably still waiting for him in the library. He knew she would understand that the two of them needed to talk, but he didn't want her to think he had forgotten about her. He looked over at Flint and took in a breath, but that was all the Mudwing needed. "Go ahead," he told him with a smile. "I'm going to stay out here for a little longer, but you can go find Moon if you want."
Winter closed his mouth and studied the Mudwing in surprise. "One of these days you're going to have to tell me how you do that," he said in jest. Regardless of how he got it, he had Flint's permission to leave. He gave the Mudwing a hug then left on his long walk to the library.
As he walked down the halls, passing the odd guard or two, he wondered how far Moon's range of detection stretched. He was still a pretty good distance away—about fifteen minutes' walk at the pace he was going—but he decided to try an experiment. Hey, Moon, can you hear me? I'm on my way, but I was wondering if you could come meet me. I want to show you something. That was the thought he broadcast, but he continued walking while simultaneously waiting for her to turn the next corner.
And he didn't have to wait too long, either. He honestly didn't expect her to hear him from so far away, but when he saw her trotting towards him from down the hall with a smile and a spring in her step, he couldn't help but smile lovingly at her. She greeted him with yet another short kiss, and he swore to himself that he would never ever take that little show of affection for granted. "You heard me," he stated warmly.
She nodded, as they walked back the way Winter had come from. She was pressed up against his side, and his wing was draped across her back to keep her there—despite the fact she had absolutely no intention of leaving in the first place. He felt her tail twine around his, so he returned her gesture with one of his own. He leaned his head down and nuzzled into her cheek and under her jaw while he gave her a pleased, happy rumble from deep in his throat.
"Of course I did," she purred, loving the attention he was giving her. "With how much time I've spent in your mind, I can hear you from a lot farther away than other dragons," she explained when he finally relented from his relentless nuzzling.
"Really?" he wondered. He liked that thought quite a bit. It made him feel special.
"Because you are special," she giggled. "And I don't mean that you can connect to the Spirits or that you have cool powers now. No, you're special simply because I love you," she said with a smile, leaning up to take her turn to nuzzle him.
"I love you, too," he replied, leaning into the contact.
When she stopped and looked down the corridor, she asked, "So what did you want to show me?"
He grinned. "You'll see. We're almost there."
She studied him, no doubt trying to glean the answer from his thoughts, but he purposefully avoided thinking about it by keeping his thoughts on her—her eyes, her smile, her laugh, and everything else. He saw her blush, and he smirked victoriously. "You've gotten good at hiding your thoughts," she said, clearing her throat to show that she was a bit embarrassed.
"I'm not hiding my thoughts," he told her truthfully. "In fact, I'm actually not trying to think of anything. My thoughts just always turn to you whenever I'm not thinking of anything else."
Her blush grew in intensity, but she gazed at him with pure love. She didn't say anything, but the passionate kiss they shared immediately after his declaration was enough of a reply for him.
The walk didn't take much longer. They turned a corner and headed for the door that lead to the exterior walkway and the gardens beyond. He placed a claw on the door, but before he opened it, he turned to her with an affectionate smile. "Are you ready?"
She just furrowed her eye ridges in confusion. "Ready for what?" He just smiled wider and pushed the door open. When she looked outside to see what had Winter so excited, she gasped in awe. "It's beautiful…" she breathed. He lifted his wing so she could go explore, and she just walked to the nearest groups of flowers as if in a daze. "I had no idea this was here…" She gently cupped one of the flowers and smelled it. Then she smiled and turned back to him. "Thank you for showing this to me, Winter," she said genuinely.
He walked up beside her. "I guess that means you like it?" he asked, although he already knew the answer.
"I love it. I know I already said I wished we could live here, but now I really want to live here," she answered with a smile. They spent a few minutes exploring much like he had previously when he was with Flint. He would stop and watch with a smile as she went from flower to flower, marveling at their look and smell. It looked as though the rest of the day would be spent in peace among the gardens.
But it wasn't…
They had only been exploring for around ten minutes or so when the unimaginable happened. A massive explosion—one large enough to cause the ground to quake—detonated from within the palace. Winter grabbed Moon and sheltered her with his wings as he looked up to see what happened.
The top floor of the palace had been completely leveled, and the floor below it seemed barely intact. He could see the shockwave spreading out from the epicenter, spreading ash, dust, and debris into the air before falling to the ground below. Purple flames licked at what remained of the top floors, and he could see a Skywing standing amidst the rubble. Screams of pain and terror echoed from within the palace and the surrounding area.
At first he thought it was Faredir, but he quickly realized it wasn't when a familiar, injured Icewing slammed down onto the ground nearby. Winter stared at Faredir, his fear beginning to rise as the Icewing stood with a groan. He could see his injuries were already beginning to heal, but Faredir still seemed a bit wobbly on his feet.
The Skywing launched itself into the air, and he could hear its maniacal laughter even from here. Faredir turned briefly to regard the two of them, and the blood in his veins completely froze when he saw the minute flash of fear and uncertainty in his eyes. The Skywing landed and smirked maliciously at the three of them. And then, to make things worse, Winter recognized him.
It was Stratos.
"Well, well…" he chuckled darkly. "What have we here? The two dragons I was looking for in one spot." He raised his talons to show a purple gem clutched in his grasp. "I already have this, but He told me to get the anchor, too, if I could." He held out his other talon and looked at Winter. "Give it to me, and I'll make your deaths quick."
Faredir blocked Winter's form with a wing. "That's not going to happen." He heard Stratos chuckle darkly once more as if excited to do this the hard way. "Run, Winter," Faredir spoke quietly. Stratos became consumed in a purple aura, but Winter was too stunned to move. Just before the Skywing lunged, Faredir turned to him, the first traces of panic in his voice. "RUN!"
And he did.
He grabbed Moon and dashed to the nearest door just as Stratos tackled Faredir hard enough to send him flying into the wall. The Skywing growled upon seeing his prey escaping and tried chasing after them only to be blasted across the gardens by a Dark Ball. Flint had just turned the corner, and Faredir glanced at them for a moment. "Run, you three!" Stratos blasted the debris off himself with a snarl as Faredir turned to engage him once again. "AND DON'T LOOK BACK!"
The three of them made into the hallway just in time for Faredir to come flying through the wall behind them. He got up with a snarl and tackled Stratos just in time to prevent the Skywing from blasting them. They heard the sound of wing beats, and they could only assume that the battle had taken to the air.
They ran through the corridors, doing their best to dodge panicky civilians and guards alike. As the battle outside raged on, explosions and impacts to the roof caused dust to rain down on them. They were almost to the throne room when they heard the sound of shattering glass. Just before they reached the doors, they were blown apart as Stratos tackled Faredir through them. Faredir, in his natural form again, used his back legs to launch the Skywing off of him and into the ceiling. Dazed from the impact, he couldn't defend himself from the flurry of physical attacks and the close-range Dark Ball that sent him through the opposite wall. "Keep going!" Faredir yelled at them. "I'll hold him off as long as I can!"
The simplicity of that sentence was in stark contrast to the meaning behind it. The fact that Faredir doubted he could hold off the former Skywing Spirit for long was terrifying. Faredir had had thousands of years of practice and experience and had once gone tooth to claw with all seven of the Spirits, yet even he could barely match Stratos' new power.
There was absolutely no way for them to help, so they kept running. This time, they decided to head for the hospital. With the front doors blocked by the two battling titans, they needed another way out. "What about Hailstorm!?" Flint yelled as they ran. "Where is he!?"
"He's in the city with Horus!" Winter yelled back over the sounds of screams and the titanic clash outside. "I have no idea where, but we have to find him!"
He looked over to Moon, and she nodded at him. "I'll do my best to find him, but it's going to be hard over all these dragons' panic! I'm already starting to get a headache!"
They ran through the hospital towards the exit at the end, hoping to get out of the palace, find Hailstorm, and leave the city without getting caught by Stratos. They opened the door to see something reminiscent of the apocalypse. A dark, swirling vortex of clouds hung menacingly in the sky as purple-tinged lightning cracked within, lighting the figures of the two battling titans. Several stray bolts had struck the city and the dragons within killing several and collapsing a few buildings already. Thunder roared in time with the battle cries of the dragons above, easily heard despite the screams of fear and pain from all the injured or terrified dragons below.
"Three moons…" Flint whispered in fearful awe. "They're going to destroy the entire city at this rate."
"The city can be rebuilt," Winter said. "But any lives lost are permanent. Get as many out as you can," he ordered his two friends. "We'll meet at the Diamond Spray River to the south."
He turned to start off when Moon grabbed him. "Winter, no! Let's just get out of here!"
Flint seemed to nod in agreement, but he shook his head. "I'm not just going to leave them behind!"
"Then let the city guards do it," Flint argued. "It's not our job!"
"Yes, it is!" he all but yelled. "The Spirits chose us as their Champions. I know it's just a title for you, Flint, but for me it's a lot more than that. I could never face Aurora again if I ran and left these innocent dragons to die!" He studied the expressions of his two friends as they both seemed to relent.
"Alright…" Moon hesitantly agreed.
Flint nodded, too, and Winter nodded in thanks. "Moon, you take the more expensive areas to the east. Flint, take the suburbs to the west." He had his reasons for assigning them those districts. The eastern district was the farthest away from the battle and had the smallest area to cover, meaning Moon would be in less danger for less time. The area to the west had the largest area, but it still was a good distance away from the battle.
"What about you?" Flint asked, his expression indicating he probably knew the answer and definitely didn't like it.
Winter turned to look at the battle taking place directly over the center of the city. One of them had just been blasted out of the sky into the side of a building that promptly collapsed. "I'm taking the markets," he said with grim determination. They looked as if they were about to argue, but he just shook his head. "GO! I'll be fine!"
With that, he took off into the eye of the storm. Any guard he came across, he ordered them to gather the civilians and head them on foot to the southern-most gate. None even questioned him—no doubt relieved to finally have orders if their uncoordinated efforts were any clue. Any group of civilians he came across, he told them much the same thing—the only difference was for them to remain calm and help out the injured if they could.
All the while, the unnatural storm raged on while Faredir and Stratos battled like two unstoppable forces of nature. All of the running was aggravating his injury, and he almost had to force himself to keep going despite the pain. And every time he rescued a trapped dragon from under some debris or carried an injured dragon to the nearest guard, he would whisper, "Please…just let me save one more…"
He didn't know how much time had passed. It could have been twenty minutes or it could have been an hour, but it was long enough to where he actually was forcing himself to move. The waves of agony spearing from his chest was all he could feel, but he merely grit his teeth and pushed onward until he simply felt numb to everything. Sights, sounds, everything just became one big, muddled blur as he kept pushing forward.
However, everything snapped back into clarity once something slammed into the statue of the seven dragons he had marveled at the first time he had seen it. A roar of agony rang forth, and as the dust cleared, he saw Faredir in the impact crater, with his foreleg impaled by part of the statue. Worse yet, he couldn't move without potentially taking part of his leg with it due to the angle and the fact that it was connected to a piece too large and too heavy to either break or move.
Stratos landed with a malicious laugh. "Oh, how the mighty have fallen!" The purple gem still miraculously clutched in Stratos' talons pulsed with light, and the Skywing chuckled. "What a grand idea!"
Then, Stratos' claws lit up with purple flame, and the gem followed suit. It levitated into the air, and he heard Faredir growl to hide the fear Winter could see in his eyes. A hazy, purple projection of a dragon with glowing, purple eyes appeared with the gem in its center. Winter's terror mounted tenfold when he realized who this was. "You have betrayed me, Faredir,"the projection rumbled, its voice deep and demonic—completely unlike anything he had ever heard before. "You conspire against me with the power I gifted to you. Now, I shall take back what is mine…and sentence you to die along with the rest of the treacherous worms that oppose me."
A beam of purple light shot out of the gem and impacted Faredir's chest, and he screamed in absolute and utter agony—not unlike his own screams when the dark ball hit his chest. Winter watched in horror, knowing there was nothing he could do to save Faredir since Urfael's power even weakened like this was multitudes stronger than he was.
Knowing and accepting were two different things, though.
As Faredir continued to scream, Winter clenched his eyes shut and covered his ears with his claws, trying to do anything to block out what was happening. He couldn't bear to see him like this. Faredir was the strongest dragon he knew and hearing him scream like this as he lay helpless to prevent this was torture for him. All he knew was that he had to do something.
He felt something rise within him—a sensation identical to when Hailstorm almost died—and before he could even think twice about what he was doing, Winter threw himself in front of the beam, his eyes screwed shut and his arms and wings raised to protect both him and his father. He expected to be writhing in agony, but to his surprise, he wasn't.
He opened his eyes once more and lowered his wings to see a solid white shield surrounding both him and Faredir as the purple beam splashed helplessly around it. "I knew you could do it," Faredir praised, though still in very great pain.
Their enemy, however, was less than pleased. "Impossible!" he snarled, then narrowed his eyes in thought. "Wait…I recognize this magic." He studied Winter for several, long seconds and growled in utter hatred. "You…I know who you are. I don't know how you returned, but you won't survive this time!"
With that, the strength of the beam doubled. Then, it tripled. Winter cried out in effort as he used all of his strength to keep the shield up. It was all for naught, though. He couldn't compete with the power of this ancient being whose power made him akin to a god. The shield cracked once, twice, three times. He looked back at Faredir, tears in his eyes as he knew what was about to happen. Faredir locked gazes with him, his eyes soft and understanding. He nodded minutely. "Just look at me," he said softly as the cracks multiplied.
The shield shattered.
AN: Oh my god, I am so evil! As far as cliffhangers go, this has got be one of the absolute worst I have ever done. This isn't the end, though-far from it. How they survive this particular situation will take many of you by surprise, and the next chapter should hopefully be done in about two weeks.
Before I go, I wanted to ask everyone a question. Ever since this story started, I've had more than a few people saying this story was either the best fanfic they've ever read or that it was one of the best fanfics they've ever read. And I just wanted to ask: why? I've read several other stories just as deserving if not more so of the praise, yet everyone seems to love mine. What makes Dragons Change so special? What sticks out the most?
It's just been something on my mind recently, and I'd love to know why everyone loves it so much.
Until Next Time
AdmiralCole22