-Destined Dragons-

Chapter One: "The Hidden Base in the Sky"

Filia soared through the rainy sky in her dragon form searching for what Jillis described. "Mirrors…surrounding the castle…in the sky…peninsula?" Filia muttered. "I don't understand it at all!" She cried. Suddenly, flying at a higher level, she banged into something invisible. "What the? But…there's more sky ahead here!" Filia cried angrily. "Surrounded in mirrors…aha! Maybe this is it?" She wondered with great expectation. "Light Blast!" She cried shooting a beam from her mouth blowing up a large hole. "It…is a mirror! More like a barrier mirror, I better hurry…this hole doesn't look like its going to last," Filia thought. She flew through the hole before it closed over and was surprised at her surroundings. "It really IS a floating peninsula!" She gasped.

On the floating peninsula there was a giant statue in the center from the Great Dragon War showing an Ancient Dragon with a blade through its wing and a Golden Dragon stabbing it through the Dragon and a monster in between them. The sky was dark and cloudy but surprisingly, no rain…just cold and damp. Filia landed on the ground in human form and explored the ruined wasteland. Before her stood a large black cracked castle with a white stone fountain running in front of it. "What's this?" Filia whispered. She slowly walked over toward the fountain and saw it was an angel with her hands open and through them the water came out. "This angel…has dragon wings, but one is an Ancient wing and the other is a Golden wing," Filia noticed. Suddenly, a loud crash of thunder caused her to screech and quickly recover. "Oh my gosh, I have to be quiet!" She covered her mouth with her hand. She then proceeded onto the steps of the black castle. "I wonder where this place came from…" Filia wondered.

When she made it to the front doors, she heard a loud cry of pain from inside. "Valgaav!" She realized and ran inside without any second thoughts. "Where is he?" She thought. Hurrying through the long, dark corridors, she eventually found a downstairs passage where Valgaav was lying on the ground battling his wings. "Retract dammit!" he cried. Filia noticed his wings were straining on his back, pulling the muscles tighter as if they were tearing out from his back. "Valgaav!" Filia blurted. His eyes shot up angrily at her, "What are you doing here?" He shouted in fury. Filia at first was afraid, but then shook it from her, "He needs my help…he won't hurt me," She told herself. "Valgaav…I want to help you," She said. "Stop this foolishness…how did you find this place?" He demanded. "F, from Jillis…" Filia replied. "That traitor!" Valgaav cried. "No, no! I…forced it from him," Filia shook her head. "WHY?" Valgaav demanded. Suddenly, his wings pulled harder causing him to cry out in pain. "Oh!" Filia pulled herself closer to him.

"Get back!" He warned. "Valgaav! Stop this…I want to help you!" Filia replied. "You keep saying that but you cannot!" Valgaav cried. "Maybe I can? You just won't let me," She replied. "Stay away!" Valgaav argued. Filia ignored his warnings and continued to step closer. She held her hand out to him and places it on his face, "I'm going…to help you. In exchange, I want you to tell me…everything you know about the Great War," She replied. The pain Valgaav was enduring was overpowering and he collapsed giving him no chance to respond. "Valgaav!" Filia cried. She caught him and placed him on her lap, "It's…alright," She whispered. Staring down at him, Filia felt her face grow hot…she was blushing. "What's…this?" She wondered. "N, no!" She shook her head, "Don't be stupid Filia!" She told herself.

One Day Later

Valgaav awoke on a bed in the upstairs bed chamber. "What…happened?" He grumbled. Sitting up, he noticed his wings had retracted and his arm returned to normal. "H, how…?" he wondered in shock. His back was still in pain and the scars were bleeding but he noticed he was bandaged. "How can this…" Suddenly, an image of Filia came to his mind. "That girl…Filia?" Valgaav thought. Suddenly, footsteps were heard coming up the stairs and a knock came to the door. "I'm coming in," The young woman's voice called. It was Filia; she had removed her white cape and her hat revealing her long flowing golden blonde hair and pointy elf-like ears. She wore a long pink dress with thin straps and long knee-length white boots. "So you're awake…it's about time," She smiled gently. "I brought you some more medical supplies…to change your bandages," She added. "What are you doing?" Valgaav demanded. "I'm helping you…you've been unconscious for a day, so I've been taking care of you," Filia explained while wetting a wash cloth. "A…day?" Valgaav asked. Filia only nodded and sat beside him on the bed, "Now hold still," She said. Valgaav glared at her but Filia ignored it. She gently removed the bandages and began cleaning his wounds. "Why are you…doing this?" He demanded.

"Do I have to repeat myself?" Filia asked calmly. Valgaav was silent. "Then you see, I simply want to help…but in exchange, I would like it if you would tell me all there is to know, the truth about the Great War, please, I would appreciate it," She pleaded. "Is this some kind of charity work? I don't do exchanges!" Valgaav hissed moving away from Filia. "Please, I'm not helping you to get information from you…even if you won't tell me, I'm still going to help you," Filia insisted. She moved closer to Valgaav and continued cleaning his wounds. "She's so…persistent," Valgaav sighed. He then let out a small growl and stared at the floor. Later on, "So, do you plan on staying here?" Valgaav asked while sitting on the throne like chair in the main hall. "Yes," Filia nodded. "For how long?" He demanded. "Until…I know you'll be alright," Filia replied. "What does that mean?" Valgaav asked. Filia remained silent and stared at the floor. "Tch, do what you want…just don't interfere," Valgaav grumbled. He pulled himself up and walked off down the hall.

"…What does he plan on doing now? He's too injured to re-challenge Xellos, and he can't summon Darkstar now in this state, nor could he risk hunting down the sword of light," Filia wondered, "Could he possibly be…hiding out here?" She thought. Filia walked down the corridors exploring the castle and came upon an old garden out back, draped by slouching trees and covered in weeds and flowers. A pond ran beneath the slumped over tree branches. "This place must have been beautiful…I wonder where it came from?" Filia wondered. She wandered out into the large garden and explored every inch. "This is amazing; I've never seen such a place before…" Filia said to herself. While exploring further, she discovered Valgaav sitting on the edge of a smaller fountain then the one out front. He was sitting with one leg up on the ledge and the other standing on the ground. He seemed as if he was in deep thought. "With injuries like the ones he has, I'm surprised he can sit like that," Filia thought. She quietly stepped forward. "What is it?" He asked. "Umm…oh, I just…" She trailed off. Valgaav drifted off again and Filia sat beside him. "Why do you bother staying here?" He asked.

"…I want to hel- Valgaav cut her off, "Help me right? Why are you really here?" He asked. Filia blushed, "I…want to make sure you'll be ok, and I, wanted to get to know you better. I saw someone…better then the person everyone else says you to be, and I saw someone in pain and in need of my help…I want to stay," Filia explained. "Fool," Valgaav growled. "I've been rejected many times for my race! Every time I walk into a town, I have to do my best to hide my ears and my tail, just so they won't torture me! I know…how you feel…in that department," Filia lowered her voice. "And that is why, I want to end everyone's pain, to restart this world…to cleanse the world of its filth and hatred and have it be reborn…in order to do so, I must let Darkstar consume me so I can rebuild a new world…let everything be consumed by chaos to make a new start, the pain will be erased, why is that so bad?" Valgaav demanded. "Val…" Filia stopped herself.

"He wants to end…everyone's pain?" She thought. "You can't answer me?" Valgaav asked. "You can't…just destroy everything, pain can be healed…many people want to live, by destroying everything doesn't make rebirth, don't you see? People are the ones that must restart, even if the world is destroyed, there will always be people that will find ways to discriminate and hurt others…pain exists and there is no way to just get rid of it…" Filia explained. "Lies!' Valgaav cried, "No one knows what I've gone through!" He shouted. Filia placed her finger on his lips, "Hush…now that anger…is something that needs to be released, increasing your anger only increases your pain, revenge does nothing, I hate the monster race for what they've done, I've despised humans for the longest time…but revenge and anger, do nothing," Filia explained.