(Author's Note: Yeah, I'm being slow and boring. I was planning to update all my stories all at once, but it's taking a lot longer than I planned on the TR/SR and the BO2/TR story, so I'm just going to send these three to you people so you'll have something to read. :-P)
Shay'Telnira was dreaming. She was dreaming of huge mountain spires, of strong winds, of thousands of her people in the air, multicolored scales glittering in the sunlight. The mountain range was vast, spreading across the face of Nosgoth, and on top of every peak was another city, shaped by magics old even to her race.
Then, suddenly, a dragon screamed and fell from the sky, dead before it hit the ground. As if it was a warning or a sign, the sound spread like wildfire, and dragons fell in mass numbers, some with wings tattered, others with scales melting off as if acid was eating them away. The ground rumbled and cities shattered and fell to pieces of stone. The sound came closer and closer to Shay'Telnira's city, other stone fortresses collapsing in its wake, the dragons above it dying in mass numbers.
Shay'Telnira sat up abruptly, tears in her eyes. Ker'orin hugged her gently, having come into the room moments before when he heard how restless she was. She turned and hid her face in his chest, tears falling from her eyes.
"Shh," Ker'orin cooed, holding her tightly. "Was it the dream again?"
"Yes," she sniffed. "It's coming, Ker'orin. I keep seeing it in my dreams. The same rumbling that represents what killed our kind in my dreams keeps getting closer to our city."
"Shush, little one, nothing's going to happen to this city."
Neither of them believed his assurances, though. Ker'orin knew his little dracling empress had disturbingly truthful dreams, as did all of her family, and Shay'Telnira was too gripped by the dream to be assured of anything at the moment.
"Orin, don't ever leave me," Shay'Telnira whispered suddenly, holding onto him fiercely. "Something bad is coming, and I don't know how our kind is going to deal with it."
Ker'orin looked down at her, meeting her gaze squarely. "How long until this something bad?"
"I don't know. It could be a while yet, still. It didn't feel too close. But it did feel like it was there and that what's going to lead to it is going to happen soon." She snuggled tighter against Ker'orin.
"You'll stay with me tonight, right?"
"Of course, Shay, of course." He slid down into the bed so Shay'Telnira could nuzzle up against him and sleep again. He spent the rest of the night stroking her hair and making sure she slept calmly.
Sunset found Shay'Telnira standing before the building aptly named the Sanctuary of the Clans. Ker'orin stood behind her, his gaze flipping over the designs across the doors. Shay'Telnira looked up at him.
"I guess we knock."
"I guess so."
Shay'Telnira's knuckles rapped on the metal door, causing the boom of her knocks to spread out into the air and hover for a few moments before fading away. They waited a moment before the door was opened.
"Oh, hello, Raz," Shay'Telnira greeted.
"Good evening," he answered, opening both doors to allow them in. "You're here earlier than we were expecting."
"Yeah, well," she shrugged, "since you guys invited me to come visit, I thought I should pop up early enough we could finish any and all tours you people were going to put me through."
"That, and the Empress was grateful to get rid of her for a while," Ker'orin chuckled from behind her.
"Orin!"
"I could understand why," Raziel answered, grinning maliciously.
"Hey!" Shay'Telnira crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You two are mean."
Both men looked at her like she had said the most obvious thing in the world. She blushed slightly in embarrassment and looked away.
"Isn't she cute?" Ker'orin cooed, petting her head.
"She is."
"You guys suck," she sniffled.
"No," Ker'orin corrected, "he sucks. I don't."
Raziel just laughed as he led the two dragons further into the Sanctuary. He stopped at the doors to the inner room to let the two appraise the work on them. After a moment, he pushed them apart and indicated toward the inside. Both dragons carefully walked into the cylindrical room, their eyes fastened to the broken remains that now framed a throne.
"The Pillars," Shay'Telnira breathed. Ker'orin bit his bottom lip to keep any expression of horror off his face. To see the Pillars broken like this was a dire avatar of the world's health. It took both a long minute to realize the throne was empty. Shay'Telnira looked over at Raziel.
"Where is Lord Kain?"
"He is leading an invasion into the human Cathedral to rid us of the last human resistance. He bid me to extend his greeting to your mother and to you. Other than that, my brethren and I invited you here since we've spent so much time at your home, we felt it was time to show you ours."
Shay'Telnira looked around. "Where are all the other boys?"
Ker'orin moved suddenly and intercepted a water balloon. He looked toward where it had come from to see Zephon waving with an evil smile.
"There's one," the Guardian grumbled. He still hadn't forgiven the brat for dying his hair with permanent dye.
"The rest are at their homes already. Zephon hasn't found a place he likes well enough yet, so he's going to be staying with us for the tour. We'll be starting with my home and moving on from there."
"Sounds good to me," Shay'Telnira answered.
"Oh joy and rapture," Ker'orin mumbled quietly behind her.
"What?" she looked back at him.
"Nothing."
Shay'Telnira spent the rest of the night going from domain to domain, visiting each of the brothers' territories. While all of them were still in construction, she could easily see how each would turn out. Raziel's had been full of towers that reached up as if they were trying to touch the sky. She recognized a lot of the architecture as being based off the dragon city itself. She had remarked as such to him, and he has simply shrugged and stated the style had made sense to him.
After that had been Melchiah's territory, as it was the closest to Raziel's. His home contained tall buildings with large, spacious rooms and ornately designed hallways, flowing a person from one place to the next. The final part of his abode was a large stone elevator made to go back and forth between three floors.
Beyond that was Rahab's sunken abbey. It was a quick tour, as Raziel didn't want to stay in the area for too long, and Shay'Telnira didn't feel inclined to make her guide uncomfortable. She did promise that she would come back later when Rahab was free to show her around the area on his own.
The four made a quick trip across the Lake of the Dead, and Shay'Telnira made an aside comment to Raziel, saying, "I'm honestly surprised we haven't heard a fight break out between Zephon and Ker'orin."
Raziel leaned back as he responded, "I don't think oven duty is a punishment Zephon's soon to forget."
"Oh. True. It's too horrible to forget."
"What's so bad about it?"
"You don't want to know," she answered surely. "You just don't want to know. Hell, I don't know, and I don't want to know. My mother doesn't know, and she doesn't want to know. Is that enough not wanting to know for you?"
"No."
He grinned at her as she sighed.
They paid a visit to Dumah's mountain city after that. More than any before, his city reminded her of a fortress. The insides were bustling as quickly as any army encampment would be. Shay'Telnira paid her greetings to Dumah and wished him well before the four continued on their way.
Once they had left the fortress, Raziel turned to her.
"Well, that leaves Turel's territory. I hate to have to do this, but I'd like to request the use of your wings."
Shay'Telnira cocked a head to the side, a confused expression on her face.
"Why?"
"Although Turel can sometimes be the most sociable of all of us, he likes to live as far away from people as he can. His stronghold lies in the heart of the mountains near the smokestacks. It's a pain to get to walking, though it should be reasonably easy with flight."
"I guess I can understand that." She turned to look at Ker'orin. "That of course means we're going to have to carry them, though. We can't exactly leave our guides here while we go."
"Hm." Ker'orin rubbed his chin a moment before a malevolent grin spread across his lips. "I'm okay with that." He smiled down at Zephon, whose eyes went wide. Shay'Telnira stared at Ker'orin a second before grabbing Zephon and turning to Raziel.
"I'm sorry, but I think I'm going to carry this one. I trust you with Ker'orin more than I trust Ker'orin with Zephon."
"Where's the love and trust, Shay?" Ker'orin asked, doing his best to look innocently hurt.
"Oh, the love's there, Orin," she answered, "and the trust is there, too, but only for my life. I don't trust you with anyone else's more than I can drop kick you."
Ker'orin thought about that an instant, and then stated, "Well, you know, Shay, if you were in dragon form, you probably could drop kick me quite far."
Shay'Telnira rolled her eyes. "It was a figure of speech, Orin."
He laughed and walked over to Raziel, offering to take a hold of him so they could fly to the mountains. The wind was cool and refreshing, a nice change for both dragons who had been walking all day. There had been a time hundreds of years ago where they had ruled the skies. Those days were long over, but it was still pleasant to be reminded every once in a while.
The rocky crags of the mountain loomed toward them, its outline framed by black smoke that poured from multiple mechanical devices beyond. Shay'Telnira resisted the urge to shudder at the sheer pollution that spewed out of the columns and merely bit her lip instead. She understood why the vampires employed the smoke stacks, but it certainly wasn't healthy for an already dying planet.
They touched down on an open balcony Raziel pointed out, and Turel emerged from the large chambers beyond, laughing about their way of cheating the almost required near-death trial to get to his home. He invited them on a tour and after asked if they'd like to stay for dinner. Both Ker'orin and Shay'Telnira politely declined, sighting they would have to return home soon. They returned to the Sanctuary in silence, the cavernous halls and tunnels on both dragons' minds. Their predecessors from long before had been burrowers, even before they had been fliers, and Turel had apparently discovered one of their long-abandoned homes. The essence of the place had felt wrong to both dragons in a sense so deep they would never be able to put words to it. They knew simply that they wished to be away from it.
At the Sanctuary of the Clans, Shay'Telnira looked down at Zephon.
"You really have no idea where you want your territory to be?"
"Not yet." He shook his head. "I plan to go look at the cathedral once Kain returns from it."
A sudden tug on Shay'Telnira's magical perception made her look up quickly toward the Pillars. Her gaze went to the Pillar of Time where she could feel a slight energy coming off it, like something of it was being drawn off it or used. It ceased a moment later, leaving her scratching her head.
"Are you all right, Shay?" Raziel inquired.
"Yeah, I think so."
"Ah, you are still here," Kain's voice came from the open double doors to the large room. The four looked up and both dragons immediately bowed. Both boys nodded respectfully to him. He focused his gaze on Zephon.
"The cathedral has been emptied now. You may go inspect it if you wish to."
"Thank you, Father."
As the Lord of Vampires spoke, Shay'Telnira's eyebrows knit together in confusion. She could sense the same power that had been emanating off the Pillar of Time falling off the vampire like a sort of exotic fragrance. She pondered asking, but decided it would be rude unless the question came up in natural conversation.
Kain turned back to the two dragons. "You'll have to excuse me, but I have some rather pressing matters to handle. Do extend my warmest greetings to the Empress. I shall be bringing up my children and coming to visit within the next week."
"Yes, my Lord," Shay'Telnira curtsied. Kain headed back out of the large room, Zephon following. Shay'Telnira turned to Raziel.
"Well, I guess that means we'll have to say our good-byes and head home. I doubt Zephon's ready for us to see his possible home."
"Do you honestly have to head back home?" the eldest asked. "It's still quite a few hours before sunrise, and I know you usually don't sleep until three or four hours after. Please, come back with me to my territory and join me for dinner."
She turned to glance back at Ker'orin. The Guardian shrugged.
"I don't see why not."
"Very well." She smiled at Raziel. "We'd be happy to, but after that we really do have to go."
The feast spiraled out around both dragons, and one of the most out-going and joyful parties either had been to before was thrown. Long before either Shay'Telnira or Ker'orin knew it, three days had come and gone, leaving both exhausted, but in immeasurably good moods. On the evening of what was quickly looking like it was going to become a forth night, Shay'Telnira found herself on her back, her head in Raziel's lap. The eldest was sitting at the edge of the main hall, his back propped up against a wall. There were nearly a hundred vampires in the hall, in varying states of drunken slumber, dancing, and conversing. Ker'orin was on the other side of the room, in the middle of telling some story of his exploits to a collection of both male and female vampires, and Shay'Telnira could see by the way he moved that he had long ago left the world of the sober. She'd have to yell at him when she wasn't quite so inebriated herself.
"You're mean," she told the vampire, trying to fight off the smile across her face. "We were supposed to have left… how long ago?"
"I'd say about four days ago," Raziel answered, a wicked grin on his face. "And you were free to go. I never forced you to stay."
"No, you just threw one hell of a party." Shay'Telnira shoved herself up slowly, keeping a hold of the vampire so she didn't fall back again. She waited till her vision stopped swimming and couldn't help the giggle that she let out as she turned to look at him.
"Remind me never to come to one of your dinner parties again."
"I'll be sure to conveniently forget you asked me to do that," he retorted, his smirk widening as he pulled her closer to hug her. She accepted the gesture and let her head drop onto his shoulder as she laughed. He moved his head slightly to look down at her.
"I'll have to try to keep in mind to get you drunk more often. You're quite adorable. It makes you look more than edible."
She pushed away from him, a throaty chuckle escaping her. "I am not edible."
"So you say."
She leaned back in close to his face and grinned. "So I say. And I'm the princess. So there."
"Pah, and I'm effectively a prince. You're point?"
"I'm the girl, therefore I win." She stuck her tongue out at him.
"Careful then, girl. Don't make any invitations you're not planning to follow through with." His smile had turned dark and secretive.
"Oh? And what would you do?"
"I just might bite that tongue of yours." He snapped his fangs together in emphasis. She stopped sticking her tongue out.
"But then you'd have cut my tongue and it'd hurt." She pouted at him.
"I promise I'll kiss it and make it better." His grin was evil.
"You're back to being mean again," she laughed and moved to push away from him. He caught hold of her and pulled her close to his face.
"I'm a vampire. What do you expect?" His voice was soft and deadly, matching the smile on his face.
"Nothing less," she breathed. There was a long moment of silence between the two as the noise from the background seemed to fade out. Shay'Telnira could almost feel the alcohol leaving her system under his serious gaze. Her hands, which had been on his chest when she had tried to move away, had been pulled forward when he brought her back close to him and were now lightly wrapped around him. She could feel the beginning of a blush rising into her cheeks and quickly let go.
"I should probably get going soon." She moved to stand, and Raziel didn't stop her. He simply pushed himself up as well.
"You know you don't have to go, right, Shay? You can stay here for as long as you want."
She smiled gently and nodded. "Thank you, but I do have to go home. I have things I have to do and Mother's going to be angry beyond belief about us having not even told her we'd be late."
"Oh, don't worry," Raziel responded, shaking his head. "I had a messenger take a note to her saying you'd be staying with me for a few days."
"Why you…" she trailed off, looking at him with an expression of amused surprise. He smiled and bowed.
"I am a host, too, Shay'Telnira, daughter of the Empress of dragons. I'm just not called to be it nearly as often as you are."
She chuckled. "Well, thank you for that, Raz. Now, I think I'm going to go extricate my Guardian from his story and we'll be out of your hair. I look forward to seeing you soon."
"And I, you." He stepped forward and kissed her cheek politely. "See you soon."
Shay'Telnira turned and collected up Ker'orin before heading out of Raziel's territory back toward home. Ker'orin slowly sobered on the trip, and the eldest watched them go until he could no longer see them. Once they were beyond his sight, he turned and began arranging for the clean up after the party.