No Greater Disaster

AN: And here, at last, if the resolution to last chapter. I hope everyone enjoys.

Disclaimer: I do not own Raya and the Last Dragon. Ronin and Lana are my OCs. Tarloc belongs to his owner, SpyroAndSisuFan.

Chapter 16:

At first, everyone in the square was so unprepared for the screaming that no one immediately moved, looking around into the shadows between the buildings nervously. Pengu was on his feet, moving towards where he heard the scream despite the other dragons' protests, though Lana followed, even if she was a bit tipsy from the alcohol. There was silence for several moments, the only sound being that of the roaring fire in the center of the square. And then...

"HELP US!"

Movement happened all around as many of the villagers scattered. Some went straight to where the commotion was, others hid in the nearby buildings in case of trouble, and still more stayed in the square, waiting to see or hear what would happen next.

All that was meaningless to him, however, for he recognized that voice, even if he could scarcely believe it. "Raya..." he breathed, only to begin sprinting towards the source of her call for help. "RAYA!"

He tried his best to weave his way through the others running in the same direction, but he accidentally knocked into a few here and there, such was his rush to see if his ears hadn't been deceiving him. It was dark in this part of the village, so he couldn't see very well, though as the villagers caught up to him with the torches, he saw nothing. Everyone looked around in confusion, having known the cries for help were coming from this area. A hand rested against his side, and he whirled his head around to see Lana looking at him in concern. "Pengu, are—"

"WE'RE OVER HERE!"

Pengu's gaze snapped back to the tree line just as the villagers began rushing towards them. He followed through the trees and back into the desert. A few hundred feet later, and there they were. Four dragons and a single weary human. The gathered villagers went to go help the group as they were no doubt dehydrated and exhausted beyond measure. Pengu, however, couldn't move.

His gaze was locked on Raya, who was on her knees and breathing heavily. Her head was bowed in relief, so she didn't know he was standing mere feet away. He stared at her, still fearing this was some cruel hallucination, for how else could she be here? Eventually, he reached down with a single claw, his breath held, and lifted her chin so her eyes would meet his.

And in her gaze, he saw recognition followed by many of the same emotions she could doubtless see in his own eyes: hope, joy, and perhaps a hint of uncertainty. Then, she launched forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his fur as his breath whooshed out of him in a rush. "Y-You're alive!" her muffled voice, thick with emotion, broke him out of his stunned disbelief, and he wrapped his arms and head around her, holding her tightly as if afraid she would slip away if he didn't.

"Oh my..." he heard Lana whisper somewhere off to the side. "Come on, let's get these dragons down to the river!" A flurry of movement and a lot of chatter followed, and Pengu opened his eyes to see the villagers helping the four dragons to the feet, a dozen people even having to carry one who couldn't stand.

With them being taken care of, he could focus on Raya. He pulled back to cup her face in his hands. "Next time you stay with me, okay?" A breathless laugh hinted at the sheer relief she felt as she nodded, a few tears in her eyes. He laid down, inviting her to climb onto his back so she wouldn't have to walk back to the village. Once he felt her laying on him, her arms dangling from his shoulders, he turned to make sure she was secure, only to discover she had already gone to sleep.

He smiled affectionately at her before standing, being extra careful so as to avoid having her fall off. The walk back to the village was full of unanswered questions. How did she survive? What happened in that cave? Was Ronin there? Where were the other dragons? And those were but a few. Until Raya got some rest, however, they would remain unanswered. Right now, however, he could simply be glad that she was here with him once again.

Once he arrived at the ten, he settled himself down and carefully slid Raya off of his back. Even still, she did wake up, even if he could tell she wasn't quite all there at the moment. He grabbed a cup and filled it with some water the villagers had left for them when his group arrived earlier that day and brought it over to her. "Drink this," he softly urged her. Her hands were shaking bad enough that even when she grabbed it, he still held the bottom to make sure the water didn't splash all over her. Once the entire cup was downed, he grabbed another which she also drank, and then she slumped over, asleep.

He watched her sleep for a few minutes before Lana came in. "The dragons are being taken care of," she told him quietly. "Already, they seem to be doing better."

"Good," he nodded, relieved that his rescued kin were doing well.

A pause. And then, "How is she?"

"Exhausted," he replied despite how obvious that answer seemed. "I plan on taking her back home," he revealed, glancing at the Fang mercenary to gauge her response.

"I understand," Lana nodded. "But I hope you'll stick around until she recovers and has a chance to tell her side of the story." A nod from Pengu had her sighing. "Probably not much we could do to chase down Ronin, anyway. Until he shows himself again, the trail's most likely gone cold."

Pengu sighed at hearing that as he knew it was the truth. Without any leads to track down, they'd be stumbling around Kumandra blindly looking for Ronin. He was gone. And so was his little sister. Almost as if she knew what he was thinking, Lana gave him a sympathetic look before leaving without a word. When Pengu looked back down at Raya, he knew the unfortunate truth. He had regained Raya at the cost of losing Amba.

And as much as he...loved Raya—for he could no longer deny it—he wasn't sure the trade was worth it. Knowing he couldn't change the past, he instead settled down next to Raya, his body surrounding her as best as possible to protect her slumbering form from the desert's night chill. Tonight, he ended up sleeping better than the last several days combined.

He awoke to the sound of his name being called. "Pengu... Pengu. Pengu!" It took three attempts, each getting louder and more insistent, before he finally woke up. He blinked and yawned sleepily before noticing a weight on his right arm. Looking down, he blushed at seeing Raya staring up at him, highly amused, as he cuddled her like a child would a doll. "Comfortable?"

His blush deepened at her teasing, and he lifted his left arm to let her out. "Sorry, Raya. I—" he began as she stood, but she cut him off with a shake of her head.

"Don't be sorry, Pengu. I was worried about you, too, so I understand." He nodded, though he was internally skeptical. Not because he thought she didn't worry about him—he knew she had been based on her reaction last night—but he didn't think she understood the true depth of his worry, his feelings. Her gaze landed on a platter of fruit left over from yesterday, and she looked to him with a silent question.

"Help yourself," he offered. She gladly did so, but as he looked around, he wondered where all the others were, both from his group and the ones rescued last night. Actually... "What happened to the rest of the dragons?" he asked, though he feared he knew the answer.

She paused before taking a bite of a date and sighed. "They...didn't make it." He remained silent, though a silent request for more had her sighing again as she sat down in front of him. "When we went down in those caves, we saw at least two dozen captured dragons. We freed them, but then Ronin showed himself. I tried to chase after him, but then the explosives went off." She paused and shook her head, suddenly appearing both guilty and furious. "After what happened in Spine, I should've known the place would be rigged, but I didn't even think..."

"Raya..." he began gently, and she looked up at him. "I doubt I would have checked, either," he admitted to her surprise. "You saw the captured dragons and went to free them as I would have done. Do not be too hard on yourself."

Once she relented to his point and nodded, he silently asked her to continue. "Eleven were killed in the initial cave in. Those who we freed that hadn't been killed in the collapse died within the first day from starvation and dehydration. All but six died from lack of oxygen over the next few days before we finally dug out Ronin's rabbit hole. But two still died on the trek through the desert." She looked close to tears at this point, and he couldn't blame her. "I went there to free them, but almost thirty dragons died in that hole."

"And...what of Lana's people?" he asked. He received his answer when she bowed her head in guilt. He stood and closed the distance between them and wrapped her in a comforting hug that she gladly fell into.

He wasn't sure how long they remained like that, but he knew it was several minutes. And they probably would have stayed there for longer if the strangest thing hadn't happened. The only warning they had of someone else being there was a voice saying, "Let me get some of that!" And then, another dragon was squeezing the both of them in a tight hug. Pengu could actually feel the wind being squeezed out of him before the stranger suddenly released him.

Laughter followed after, and both Raya and Pengu turned to see a gathered crowd of the dragons and Lana, who was gesturing at what he assumed was the hugger. "I'm really starting to like this dragon!" The dragon in question had a rather unique two-toned design. His head and shoulders being purple before fading into cyan, the color that dominated his tail. A massive smile split his muzzle, and Pengu had to find himself wondering if he was really that friendly...because he sure didn't know this strange dragon. "Pengu, this is Tarloc. He's a big fan."

"Hello there," Pengu greeted cordially, making Tarloc grin even wider—if that was even possible.

Pengu's attention was brought back to Lana when she spoke again. "Anyway, these guys told me everything that happened, so I guess you two are free to go home."

"Wait, what?" Raya looked from Lana to Pengu, hoping to see that they were joking. "What about—"

"We can do nothing more," he interrupted somberly, once again reminded of what he had lost.

"Pengu's right," Lana continued. "Ronin could be anywhere by now, and without any more leads..." She trailed off as Raya looked away in rising anger and shame. "But I can inform Namaari of everything that happened. Maybe she can figure something out."

It took several moments, but Raya eventually sighed in acceptance. "Fine...But keep me updated if you find anything."

"Of course." With that, Lana began to turn. "I'll see you guys later." Tarloc followed Lana as she walked back out of the tent, some of the other dragons going with.

Four, however, decided to stick around. "I assume you wish to come with us?" Pengu asked them, to which they nodded, muttering 'yeah' or 'yes'. He nodded in acceptance before turning to Raya. "Grab anything you might need for the journey back to Heart. And take as much time as you need. We are in no rush."

Even still, it only took Raya an hour before she was ready to go, her supplies packed and slung over her shoulder. With Tail being such a dry place, there wasn't enough moisture in the air for him to make it rain, so they decided to borrow a boat from the village. The village leader, however, assured them that they could keep it, that their journey and message was too important for them to be concerned with such a small thing.

It was a small craft, big enough for three humans, if that. From the looks of it, the boat wouldn't even support his weight, so he instructed Raya to tie a good length of rope to the front. She did so, though not without a question glance at him. Then, he jumped in the river, grabbed the rope, and used it to pull the boat along at a much faster pace than Raya simply rowing it.

The other four dragons followed along, sometimes playing with each other in the water. The whole trip took about a week, and pulling the boat was much easier on him than Raya riding on his back. By the time they made it back to Heart, he was pleasantly sore but not overly so.

Returning to such a peaceful place after so long away, especially after taking part in a full-scale siege and infiltrating an enemy camp was a nice change in pace. But, that peace wouldn't last long if his three siblings had anything to say. No doubt they saw him and Raya approaching, so when he and Raya stepped ashore to see Jagan, Sisu, Pranee, and Chief Benja waiting for them, he knew he was in trouble.

Chief Benja was relieved to see his daughter returned, and he immediately took Raya by his side as they returned to the palace. Already, he could hear Raya beginning her story. He watched the two humans leave for a few moments before he turned back to his siblings, all of whom looked very displeased. "A week, Pengu. You said you would be gone for a week, yet it's been over a month. We've been worried sick!" Jagan all but yelled.

"And you lied to us, Pengu," Sisu spoke, her expression showing her betrayal. "Halla returned and told us what happened in Spine, about the dragon hunters and that they captured Amba. Why didn't you tell us?"

He could tell that she wanted to yell at him, to be angry, but Sisu wasn't that kind of dragon. Even still, her crestfallen expression was enough to make him feel terrible for keeping them in the dark. "I did not want you to worry," he said, though the excuse seemed hollow to his own ears.

"But we had every right to know, dear brother," Pranee argued. "Yet here you are having gone to find our lost sister...only Amba isn't here."

"So where is she?" Jagan continued, glaring at his older brother.

Pengu sighed and bowed his head, knowing he would have to admit his failure to his remaining siblings. "I know not." The three looked between each other before Jagan walked away with a growl. "Jagan!" he called, though his younger brother ignored his calls.

"Let him be," Pranee silenced him. "He has every right to be angry with you. We all do. You handled this entire situation very poorly, brother, and now we are all paying for your mistake." Pengu closed his eyes from the verbal blow, knowing she was right. "Though, I am glad we have only lost one sibling instead of two."

The next thing he knew, his two sisters had wrapped him in a hug, and the three spent the next while there together, mourning their youngest sibling. Afterward, he followed them back to their home, though Jagan wasn't there. His brother would be angry at him for a long time, he knew.

"What happened out there, Pengu?" Sisu asked. He knew she would want to check up on Raya sooner or later, but he was grateful for her support. If kind-hearted, ever-optimistic Sisu had left like Jagan, he would have felt a hundred times worse than he currently did.

But, seeing them waiting for his story, he told them everything. He told them how he and Raya went to Spine to find Amba and instead found an organization of dragon hunters. He told them of the siege, the dragons with the broken minds. He told them of the lead they followed to Tail and meeting up with Lana, and then he told them why Lana was there in the first place. He told them of the hidden cave along the river, of being captured, of rescuing the dragons after infiltrating the camp, of setting the camp on fire, of being stabbed, of the cave in and thinking Raya and all of the dragons were killed, of his futile efforts to free them, of the walk through the desert, of finding Raya's group that night and the relief he felt at finding her alive. And then he told them of their journey back to Heart.

The only thing he didn't tell them about was his feelings for Raya.

Through it all, they sat there quietly, and by the end of his story, emotions were high once again. "How could anyone be so cruel?" Sisu whispered, her naïve way of looking at the world shattered.

"I do not know," he whispered. "But I swear to you both I will hunt Ronin down. He deserves to pay for what he has done to our kind."

"I want to come with you!" Sisu suddenly demanded, and Pengu was just about to deny her when Pranee beat him to it.

"No, Sisu. I understand wanting to go, but you are not a fighter. You will be safer here, and Pengu could focus more on his mission knowing that you, me, and Jagan are safe." Pranee only looked away from her younger sister once Sisu conceded. She would stay here. "Say the word, though, and I will do what I can to find where Ronin went."

Pengu shook his head. Pranee was a master of blending in thanks to her ability to transform into a human, but after losing Amba, he didn't want to risk losing another of his siblings. "No. Namaari is handling things," he informed them. I hope...

AN: Well, Jagan is certainly upset, not that anyone can blame him. I would be, too, if I was in his situation. Next chapter is going to be special, though, so look out for that one.

Until Next Time

AdmiralCole22