Much to Moon's displeasure, it looked like everything with Darkstalker the night before really had happened. She was still in the cave yet her mind-reading friend was nowhere to be seen. Light was creeping in through cracks in the ceiling; the sound of birdsong echoing softly in the distance.
It was still fairly dim inside the cave, but at least she could actually see what was around her now. And the most glaringly obvious thing she saw was that Darkstalker was gone.
It was as if he had never been there at all; merely a nightmare that had been haunting her all along. Don't be a snail-brain, she chided herself. Of course he's here... The question is: Where?
A tunnel opening was across the room, and Moon took it. To her surprise, lanterns were hung alongside the walls, all different colors. Shades of blue, green, and purple that gave off different scents such as peppermint and pine. Obviously, someone had gotten to work while she had been sleeping.
Just before she considered herself completely lost, a new tunnel appeared before her... Leading into a gigantic dome. It almost reminded her of Jade Mountain, minus the fact that a giant gaping hole lay at the top. Piles upon piles of stone and rubble were piled at the bottom of the cave floor.
Was this where he slept all this time?
Moon carefully glided over the rubble, looking around for any signs of a giant NightWing. Absolutely nothing. With a heavy sigh, Moon landed onto the ground. Had he left the mountain? Why didn't he wake her? Maybe this could be her chance to escape...
Those thoughts were halted as something dimly glinted out of the corner of her eye. Turning her head, she saw something shining beneath a small pile of rubble. She squinted and cautiously moved forward. A gasp formed in her throat when she saw it; hundreds of small corpses of lizards and rats, the bones crushed into pieces. Moon almost turned away from the gruesome sight, but the light was still there. She walked around the bones until she reached the glow, gently pushing away the rocks until she found it.
"Oh," Moon breathed softly.
She knew what it was immediately. There, on the ground, was the bracelet. Two thousand years ago, it must have looked absolutely beautiful. Now, it was nothing but rusted wire, if it could even be called that. But it was the moonstones that radiated pure beauty. Three perfect moonstones, gleaming milky white with a sheen of sky blue. It was as if time had not touched them at all.
Curiously, Moon reached out a talon to lightly graze across the surface of the gem. Moon cried out as pain shot through her, as if someone had thrust a knife into the center of her skull. She crumpled to the ground and grasped her head, choking down screams of agony. Images were flying through her skull, going so fast that she could hardly make out what they were. NightWings. IceWings. War. Death. Blood. Darkstalker.
And just like that... They stopped. The pain was gone, leaving only tears in their wake to prove to Moon that it had all been real. She blinked the tears away, bringing up a talon to lightly brush them away. What had that been about?
Looking back down at the bracelet, she was surprised to see the wires had crumbled to dust; leaving only the moonstones behind. Warily, she picked one up. No pain, no strange images going through her mind. These moonstones... They did something to me. She would keep them, she decided.
A deep, threatening growl echoed behind her. Moon froze as she felt her heart seize up in her chest. Slowly, she turned around, expecting to see a very large, very angry Darkstalker behind her.
But there was nothing. Another growl. Faint, but still there. It seemed to be coming from one of the higher ledges towards the ceiling of the dome.
Darkstalker?
No reply.
Moon flared her wings open leaped into the air, flying up until she reached a ledge; the growls more frequent and loud. She landed with a soft thump, taking a few steps forward to peer into the darkness. The was a wall not far from the ledge, but it was shrouded from the overhang; making it hard to see. Another low, dangerous growl from the back. A shadow, much larger than Moon, hunched down over something.
"Darkstalker...?"
Through the darkness, she could now see what the shapes were. Darkstalker hunched over a large elk; the sound of flesh and muscle being ripped from bone. Darkstalker went still before eerily turning his head back towards Moon, his breathing slow but heavy. Moon almost felt like running at that moment. He almost didn't look real; like something out of a horror story.
His silvery eyes seemed to radiate their own light, the pupil nothing more than a thin slit. Blood poured openly from his own maw, face pulled back in a threatening snarl. Crimson liquid seemed like it had permanently stained his teeth a gory red. Moon touched his mind, and almost immediately regretted it.
Hunger. Rage. Betrayal.
There were no thoughts, only a swirling mass of emotions that threatened to become her own.
Darkstalker seemed to come back from his daze because his face relaxed just a bit as he ran his tongue along his lips.
Forgive me, Moon, but... Now is not the time. As you can see, I'm a little busy.
Moon took a few steps back. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you. I'll just... Come back later."
With a dark chuckle, Darkstalker responded with, "No need, I will come for you. You can have whatever is left, my dear."
"Oh, ah, it's fine. I'm not that hungry anyway."
A small growl came from her stomach.
"Your mouth says no, but your stomach says yes. Perhaps you and I can go looking for something a little 'fresher' later. For now..."
Darkstalker sank his teeth into the elk's meaty neck; snapping bones and tearing off a large chunk for himself. Dark liquid ran onto the stone floor, as he tilted his head back to swallow his meal. It wasn't a very hard decision for Moon to turn and return back to the ground below them. She jumped from the ledge, snapping her wings open as the air caught her to gently lower her down.
Trying to keep her mind clear of any thoughts, she began to look for a small hole to hide away the precious gems. They had done something to her, although she didn't know what. But for now, she wanted to keep them. Maybe over time, she would begin to understand what exactly had happened when she touched them.
Across the room, she saw a small crack in the wall. She stalked quietly over to the crack to sneak a peek inside. Sure enough, it was plenty large enough to hold the moonstones grasped in her talons. One by one she gently pushed them inside, grabbing a small rock below to hide them within the wall.
Please, please don't let him find them, Moon prayed.
She sighed and moved away, looking back towards the desolation before her as she felt her heart begin to sink. It was then that it really hit her. Loneliness.
Growing up in the rainforest had been easy. She's always been alone, nearly from the very beginning. Of course, she had the company of her mother, but she was always gone as quick as she came; only being able to stay for a few short hours at a time. The rest of it was constant hiding in fear of getting caught. Occasionally she would see the other NightWings; hunkering down into the darkness of the trees as she watched them drag another RainWing behind them. Their thin bodies, very much similar to Darkstalker, and bloodshot eyes. Her mother had often told her of NightWing kingdom on the volcano… Moon shuddered. No dragon deserved to live in such a horrible place.
But she had been lucky. Her mother had wanted a better future for her. Although now, that future wasn't looking so bright. Moon shook her head as images relayed through her mind. All of her friends bowing to Darkstalker, the look of defiance burning bright in their eyes.
She wished she hadn't left them. Darkstalker swore not to hurt them but still could have cast any other spells on them to make their lives miserable. How could she have been so stupid? Qibli's smiling face appeared in her mind. His warm scales and bright demeanor, always finding a way to make her smile.
Then there was Winter. Moon brought her talons to her chest and stared down at the ground. Her heart was so full of mixed emotions when she thought of him. One moment, he was kind; so kind that it made part of her heart melt. Yet then he could say the most hurtful things to her and not even bat an eye.
"Yes, but at least she didn't have horrible powers," Winter said.
"Horrible powers? You mean mind reading and visions of the future? You mean my horrible powers?"
Winter hadn't even apologized for that. She pretended it hadn't really bothered her, but deep down it had cut like a knife. It made her remember what Darkstalker had once said to her.
"That's what happens," Darkstalker had said with a sigh. "But don't worry. They'll come crawling back when they need you."
No, they weren't like that. All of them had already proven that they were true and loyal friends who wouldn't abuse her powers like that. Even though Winter was extremely harsh with his words, he always somehow found a way to make it up to her. She just hoped everyone was okay, and that she found Darkstalkers weakness sooner rather than later.
Hopeless. He'd been absolutely hopeless to stop was happening.
As soon as Moon's talons slipped into Darkstalker's, she began to fall; her eyes rolling into the back of her head. Winter's heart hammered against his chest as he struggled with all of his might to move, all but to no avail. Darkstalker pulled Moon into his arms, looking down at her face with an odd expression.
Had he killed her?
"No, Prince Winter, I have not hurt her," Darkstalker said as he turned to lock his silvery eyes onto his. Winter felt a cold shiver run down his spine and not a pleasant one. With a flick of Darkstalkers tail, Winter felt his screaming muscles relax.
Winter reared and spread his wings, teeth bared with a snarl. "My people have legends about you. Leave her alone, she has nothing to do with you."
"Moon made her choice," Darkstalker stated calmly. "The deal is done. Don't make me break my promise. I don't think she would be all too happy with me if I broke it. Is it so wrong for me to want my life back? To use my voice, spread my wings and learn more about this new world?" He looked down at Moon's sleeping face, the smallest smirk forming in the corners of his mouth. "To find love?"
Love? Winter blinked at the two, then released a loud hiss. "You murdered your own father!"
"He was going to murder my entire tribe," Darkstalker snapped back.
"Winter, please," Turtle begged. "We can't fight him."
Qibli was suddenly at Winter's side, grazing his wing reassuringly against his. "We can't help Moon now," he pointed out. "We should fall back and return to the mountain. We'll find out what to do from there."
Winter growled but knew he was right. It might be the only way to keep Moon safe at the moment.
"She will always be safe with me," Darkstalker snorted, sounding offended. "I'm a perfectly respectable dragon. Now if you'll excuse me, I believe it's time for dinner and a date."
With Moon in his arms, Darkstalker took to the air; practically ripping Winter's heart from his chest.
I will save you, Winter vowed. Even if it kills me.
"Winter."
Qibli's voice drew him out of the memory, as Winter turned to look at him. The SandWing's cheery self seemed to wilt after Darkstalker had taken Moon; that frustratingly goofy smile was gone from his face. It seemed he was feeling her loss too.
"Queen Glory is here. She and the other Dragonets of Destiny requested to see us. We better hurry," Qibli said, turning to take off back towards Jade Mountain.
After the earthquake, Jade Mountain had been damaged. Whole tunnels collapsing on themselves, with whole winglets getting trapped inside. Clay and a few other brave dragonets had braved going back inside the mountain, and after a few hours, rescued those still inside. Thankfully there had been no casualties, only a lot of scrapes and bruises.
But until then, everyone had been gathered into a small valley not too far from Jade Mountain. Many of the younger dragonets kept crying, while many of the NightWing students kept screaming in terror how Darkstalker had returned once more to slaughter them all. All of the confusion was driving Winter insane, so he had distanced himself from the group to keep his sanity.
It had been a day since Darkstalker had emerged, and word had already been sent out to the other tribes of what happened, especially to Queen Glory. And now she was here.
Winter begrudgingly followed after him, a sense of dread beginning to pool in his stomach. It's not your fault, he reminded himself.
When he landed, he was in a mini-circle of all the Prophecy Dragons and a very vibrant, very angry Queen Glory.
"Hello, Winter. Are you okay?" A very flustered Sunny asked.
Behind her, Winter saw Peril sitting near Clay; her head hanging low with her face hidden from view. He wondered how she felt about all of this, since burning the scroll triggered Darkstalker's release. He knew he shouldn't blame her, but maybe Moon would still be with them if she hadn't touched the scroll.
"Yeah," Winter said bitterly. "I'm fine."
Qibli sighed behind him. Turtle was beside him, looking down at his talons looking as if he wanted to turn invisible. Starflight and the other female dragonet were across from Clay, a ruffled Tsunami, with Queen Glory and Deathbringer at the head of everyone.
"Prince Winter," the RainWing queen began, "please start from the beginning."
Moon had been wandering the caves when Darkstalker found her.
All of them leading to dead ends or small entrances where she could look outside. By now the sun was setting, leaving the sky a brilliant dark orange fading into indigo. She watched one by one as stars slowly began to form in the sky above her. Seeing them didn't make her feel so lonely.
"Hello again!"
Moonwatcher yelped and jumped back, nearly falling off the edge as her wings flailed to gain her balance. But talons caught hers and pulled her forward until Moon was nearly snout to snout with Darkstalker. They both blinked at each other before Moon pulled away, wanting to look at something, anything but those silver eyes.
"Sorry about that," Darkstalker apologized, shifting awkwardly. "I didn't mean to startle you. I meant to find you earlier, but I was hit with a sudden burst of exhaustion after my hunt."
"It's alright," Moon replied.
The both of them went quiet, just looking out over the valley below. Moon faintly wondered if everyone at Jade Mountain was okay.
"They're fine," Darkstalker said suddenly. "I saw it. No one is hurt, besides the pride of that IceWing you insist on being around."
"Will I ever get to see them again?" Moon asked, glancing over at him.
"Of course! Do I seem like a tyrant to you? I mean, it might be a little while since I must regain my strength, but I would eventually like to meet everyone at this school. The idea of all different tribes coming to one school… I'm surprised a war hasn't broken out."
"Not everyone wants that. The school is about understanding others to prevent more wars from starting in the first place."
Darkstalker gave a dark chuckle before looking off into the growing night. "Sadly, war is always inevitable. No matter how much someone may strive for peace, it cannot be done."
"You don't know that," Moon shot back.
"Oh, don't I?" Darkstalker replied, turning to look at her. Moon lifted her head and met his gaze. Darkstalker moved towards her, and Moon took a step back. He tilted his head at her with curious eyes.
"You think I'm going to hurt you."
"I think you're not going to keep your promise."
Darkstalker barked a laugh. "Oh, you remind me of someone I used to know. Why can't anyone trust me these days? I'm a perfectly honest dragon." Moon gave him a look at that. "Okay, okay, so sometimes I stretch the truth—but I am entirely honest most of the time."
He gave her a sickeningly beautiful smile. She didn't know why, but it sent her heart into flutters and she hated that she liked it. Then she saw it. On his left ear, a small silver snake weaving through his ear. She'd seen dragons with earrings before, but this one was interesting. It seemed to sparkle in the fading light.
"What is that?" Moon asked, reaching up to touch it. She hadn't seen him wearing it before.
Darkstalker pulled away just enough that her fingers missed, a stern look suddenly in his eyes. "Just… A memory. Something I use to have a long time ago." He raised up a paw and let his talon lightly graze against the silver serpent. "It appears the magic I placed on it kept it from experiencing time's harsh treatment."
So it's enchanted, Moon thought.
"Indeed it is. I enchanted it to make myself a bit more charming around the Queen," he said, turning his head to allow Moon a better look.
"It's beautiful." That wasn't a lie.
"By the way…" Darkstalker began, turning back to her. "Have you seen the bracelet?"
Moon felt a sense of dread rise over her as she tried to shield her thoughts. Don't let him see, don't let him see, don't let him see.
Darkstalker marched forward until he was looming over Moon. Moon crouched and looked up at him nervously. That mad look in his eye from earlier had returned. Darkstalker was gone.
"Where is it?" Darkstalker hissed through clenched teeth. He stared intently into her eyes, and Moon shrunk underneath him; closing her eyes and repeating the same phrase.
"So that's where they are," he breathed. With a rush of wind, Moon opened her eyes to see the end of Darkstalker's tail disappearing into the tunnels. He knew. He knew about the moonstones… And now, they would be gone.
How stupid had she been, thinking she could keep them all hidden from him. Of course, he would have found out about them sooner or later. Moon got to her feet to return to her sleeping cave when a familiar shudder began making its way back up her spine.
She gasped when the vision overtook her.
Only, this wasn't a vision…
The scene was very strange. She was in a different Kingdom, one she had never seen before. The sky was dark and filled with stars, the moons above silver and brilliant. NightWings, hundreds of them, filling the air and flying to different towers made from the stones covered in vines. It was one of the most beautiful places she had ever seen.
Was this the Lost City of Night?
Then she saw her. There, sitting under shaded pine trees was… Her?
Her eyes scanned through the crowd as if she was looking for someone. Moon moved closer to look at her, and Moon almost felt sick. This dragon looked an awful lot like her. Was she a possible ancestor? And then she heard the yelling, with her twin looking off into the distance. Three other NightWings were yelling at another but… She looked very odd.
Her wing membranes were pale white; with the most startling pale blue eyes she had ever seen. Then Darkstalker appeared behind her, giving the three NightWings a deadly look. A few words were exchanged, and Darkstalker lead the strange-looking NightWing away. Moon wouldn't deny, she was intensely beautiful.
Then she realized… They were coming straight towards her. Moon nearly fell when they got close, but she caught herself as they walked by. Her twin stepped into the moonlight, and Darkstalker froze in his path as the other continued on.
"Very impressive," her twin mused.
"What?" There it was. That charming smile that made her heart do strange flip-flops in her chest. "What'd I do?"
"I don't know how you engineered it," she began, taking a step forward with a smile. "But wow, you've covered everything, haven't you? Courage, check. Caring about his sister, check."
The other NightWing was Darkstalker's sister?! That would explain her wings and eyes.
"Defending the vulnerable, standing up to bullies, making sure everyone apologizes neatly. With a demonstration to show off your intelligence at the end, too. Did you pay those guys? Because that was just perfect."
"Do I know you?" Darkstalker teased, trying to look wounded.
The female dragon laughed, and the two carried on conversation for several minutes. The Darkstalker she was seeing here was almost… Different. His smile didn't seem as forced like he wasn't carrying the entirety of Pyrrhia on his wings.
She was drawn back in when her doppelganger giggled and Darkstalker moved a little closer. "Has anyone ever told you that you are a terrible seer?" she said. "That whole fluttery conversation sounded nothing like me."
"That's a relief," Darkstalker replied with a giant grin. He dipped his head, their foreheads almost touching as he gazed down into her eyes with a look of pure love and adoration. Moon saw the end of their tails begin to twine together. A small spark of jealousy brewed in Moon's chest at the sight, be she listened to the words Darkstalker said next.
"But couldn't we let this be a tiny more romantic? I mean, it's not every day I meet my soulmate. Just this once, in fact. Right now."
How had she not seen it?
"Clearsight," Moon choked out.
Darkstalker reached out and tenderly took Clearsight's talons in his. "Don't worry about the future," he whispered intently, a gentle smile forming on his features. "Just be with me, in this moment, when we are both happy as we've ever been in our whole lives so far."
She looked like Clearsight. Was this part of the reason why Darkstalker wanted her? Why he insisted on keeping her near?
Before she could ask any more questions, the scene began to fade and she was suddenly standing by the ledge once more; the sky a dark shade of indigo. What was that? A vision of the past? But how had that happened? An image of the moonstones appeared in her mind. Did she gain the ability to see those moments after she touched them?
She didn't know how, but one thing was clear: She needed to get back those moonstones.
A/N: Hello everyone. Thank you for all the lovely and wonderful feedback. Everyone has been so wonderful and positive. First off, yes, I DID USE SCENES FROM THE DARKSTALKER: LEGENDS BOOK. I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THESE CHARACTERS AND ALL THOSE QUOTES BELONG TO TUI. NOT ME. I was only using it for reference in a scene, and I will be doing that again in the future.
It's so beautiful. Both of them are amazing, and I am so grateful. To a few of my reviewers, I am still getting into the saddle when it comes to writing Darkstalker, so I will try my best to make him a bit more charming. I'm trying to make him a little more stern for the fact of future plot purposes. It'll all be explained in greater detail when it's written out. Or if you are curious now, just shoot me a PM.
And to MistyFeline... Yes, I am aware of Turtle and Anemone in this. I've thought of poisons and many ways for Darkstalker to (possibly) die. Trust me, I'm aware of these things, and it will all be (yet again) revealed in the future. Until then, enjoy!