A Brighter Future Ahead
AN: So you know how I said I would alternate between Darkstalker's group and Cobra? Well, funny story...
So, I had taken a break from this story for a while because the more I wrote, the more I realized that I didn't really like the planned ending for it. At least until I came up with a new ending yesterday that was much better, made more sense, and was totally believable-at least to me. So, I decided that I was going to write a new chapter tonight in Cobra's point of view. About thirty minutes later, I was halfway through this chapter and realized that I was writing chapter 20 instead of chapter 19.
Instead of writing a completely new chapter tonight or tomorrow, I decided that this one time wouldn't hurt since the two chapters take place at the same time. That, and I've left you guys with a cliffhanger long enough, right?
Disclaimer: I do not own Wings of Fire.
Fathom:
There was only silence as everyone else in the room were too shocked—and a little terrified in Fathom's case—at Darkstalker's sudden change. Living shadows were writhing across the Nightwing's scales and his irises had turned from their usual silver color into a crimson red. For the first time in a long while, Fathom was actually afraid of his friend.
"You shouldn't be," the Nightwing declared as he stared straight at him. "I have no reason to harm you, Fathom." Fathom internally shivered at the deep, menacing voice that barely sounded like his friend.
Only mildly reassured by Darkstalker's previous statement, Fathom voiced his concern. "Are you…okay?"
Darkstalker raised his talons to study them. "I am well…physically," he answered after a moment, then clenched his talons. "I feel…strange," he spoke not with concern or unease, but rather in deep pondering. "This sensation seems familiar to me…yet also unknown." He looked at the Seawing in confusion. "How can that be?"
Darkstalker was quiet for a moment before shaking his head erratically. The strange shadows began dissipating off of his scales, and when he opened his eyes, they were also back to normal. He scrunched his eyes shut immediately afterward in pain and placed a talon over his eyes. "Are you well?" asked the Queen.
The Nightwing shook his head, and Fathom was taken aback by that simple action. "No, I don't…feel so good. I th—I think I need to lie down." If Fathom was concerned before, now he was downright unsettled. Darkstalker wasn't the kind of dragon to admit weakness to anyone—least of all a Queen. For him to do so was…
Something was very wrong here.
He could figure that out later, though. Right now, he should probably offer his help, at least. Fathom approached the suffering Nightwing and placed a talon on his shoulder. "I'll help you get back home…that is, if it's okay?" he addressed the Queen on the second part, to which she nodded.
"You both are dismissed. If he is still unwell tomorrow morning, let me know immediately," she ordered as she escorted the two of them out of her pavilion.
The trip back to Darkstalker and Clearsight's cave took much longer than it should have, for the Nightwing kept having dizzy spells and got sick twice before they arrived at their destination.
Clearsight, of course, was quite worried about her soulmate when she saw the condition he was in. She helped him into bed while Fathom waited by the entryway. He didn't really want to leave until he knew he would be alright, so he waited until Clearsight finally returned to the common room.
Instead of heading over to talk with him, she sat down in front of the fireplace with a sigh. Fathom decided to join her. "I can stay if you want help. Indigo will be fine, I'm sure," he offered.
She nodded, "I would appreciate that." She sighed again. "I didn't think it would be this bad," she said.
Fathom looked at her curiously. "You knew this was going to happen?" he asked.
She nodded. "I know he doesn't want me to, but I keep looking into the futures just in case," she said so quietly that Fathom had to strain to hear her.
"What else have you seen," the Seawing asked, gently.
She was quiet for several moments before he noticed that her breathing was becoming increasingly trembly. Suddenly, she began sobbing heavily, so Fathom pulled her into a hug. "Hey, hey, what's wrong?"
She shook her head, "W-we should h-have trapped him under that m-mountain."
Fathom looked at her in absolute bewilderment and pushed her away so he could look into her eyes. "Why would you say that? I know he isn't perfect, but do you think he deserves that still?"
She shook her head as she finally calmed down enough to engage in conversation. "You don't understand. I love him, Fathom. I do. But you haven't seen what I have."
"Then tell me, so I can understand," he pressed. "What did you see that would make you say that?"
She looked at him with such despair that his breath caught. "I saw death…so much death. What happened today is the beginning of the end, Fathom," she trembled at her own words. "There was a small chance that he resisted, and I hoped he was strong enough, but…" she trailed off.
Fathom was also quiet at that until he finally asked. "So what should we do?"
She sighed. "If only we knew why this happened, maybe we could stop it, but…no matter how hard I try, I can't see anything that could help us."
Fathom looked down in though for a moment before a thought struck him. "Remember that…incident…with Indigo? Darkstalker didn't say his spells, and you said he might be stronger than we thought."
She nodded, "What are you getting at?"
"Maybe he actually wasn't this strong before. What if his powers are…evolving somehow?" he speculated.
"Is that even possible?" she asked, dubious. "And besides, even if it was, why would it take this long for his powers to evolve like you're suggesting?"
He shrugged. "Animus magic isn't an exact science. There's a lot we don't know about it, and most of the stuff we do is mere speculation." She acquiesced to his point. "And maybe because he kept his powers in his scroll for so long, they didn't evolve until now. Or maybe he just needed to be a certain age."
She huffed in frustration. "This kind of speculation is as useless as it is dangerous. We can't make blind assumptions, Fathom."
"I understand that," he argued back. "But we can't just do nothing! We need to figure this out—for his sake as much as ours." Fathom sighed and rubbed his eyes with a talon. "Just when I thought my life couldn't be any more complicated," he mumbled.
AN: So what did you think? Poor Darkstalker, huh? It seems fate isn't through knocking him around yet. Tell me what you though in a review, if you're so inclined.
Before I leave, I just wanted to reply to one of the guest reviews about using real life curses. Understand that this book series was written for younger readers, so of course the author wouldn't use actual cuss words. I also don't feel like making up potential curses that have no weight in real life. Therefore, if it makes you feel better, when you see a real life curse word, think of it as using a real life equivalent of a Pyrrhian curse (ie: the F-word is the equivalent of the most vulgar Pyrrhian curse out there).
Does that make sense? It makes sense in my head, but I don't know if it makes sense when I put it in words. If it doesn't, I'm sorry, but I'm not very good at explaining things. Anyways...
Until Next Time
AdmiralCole22
