The Dragon Crystal

by Weewoowriter

I'm not even done with this story yet, it's in desperate need of a rewrite, there are thousands of errors from typing fast, my comp makes my apostrophes and quotation marks all demented, some parts of the storyline don't make sense and yeah. Still, read!

The Dragon Crystal

By Lucy Gao

The months in this book are as follows:

January- hidden Moon: Pyron

February- fervor Moon: love/pure

March- Fate Moon: Scalene

April- soar Moon: Chamomile

May- luster Moon: Meradi

June- Crystal Moon: Blazein

July- shield Moon: tyro

August- mirror Moon: Lunine

September- Twin Moon: Solis

October- aero Moon: Sesone

November- gallant Moon: Atlan

December- midnight Moon: Murdeid/tainted

Prologue: Hatching Magic

It was the 19th night of Fate Moon. The dark cloak of night covered the sky with shadow. Only a small patch of moonlight flooded through a cloud on this inclement night. The beam settled on a small rhododendron bush. The shrub gave a wriggle and then shook violently. Then the night was still.

The next morning, birds began to sing and squirrels chattered. Some of the squirrels climbed up towering oak trees. Some leaped into tall grass and frolicked around. One jumped into the rhododendron bush-and leapt out screeching and rebuking. Other animals turned around to stare at this predicament. The shrub gave a great wiggle, and out rolled a strange, perfectly symmetrical rock. No, not a rock, an egg!

CRACK! The egg made a hole and out popped a tail! With two more splintering CRACK's, small, clawed feet stuck out, and with another two CRACK's, arms stuck out too! Finally, a little snout popped out. It sniffed the air and then burst the whole head out of the egg. It had two small, pointed ears sticking out of the top and a shiny, jewel shaped mark on its forehead. It yawned, showing lines of very small, sharp teeth! A mutant alligator? Suddenly, with a great big CRACK!, the egg exploded into smithereens as two little wings erupted from the back.

By the last 'crack', all the forest animals had run away, and the little dragon opened its eyes to a strange new world. "Where am I?" he asked. No one answered back, as the dragon was alone in the middle of a clearing.

Ch. 1 Finding a Friend

"Hello? Anyone here?" the dragon whispered into the cool, forest air. "Oh well, I'm hungry!" and with that, he went off on a search for food. He sniffed the air and smelled a tantalizing scent. He followed it, and it led him to a bush full of berries.

"Wow! For me? You shouldn't have!" He leapt for it and started munching hungrily on the sweet fruit.

Suddenly, a rope flew up towards a tree. The dragon watched it, even though he didn't know that his own foot was trapped to the end of it! He was suddenly hurtled through the air and hung there in surprise. He was caught in a hunter's trap!

"What's happening?" the dragon squealed, berry juice still smudged on his cheeks.

"Hee, hee, hee, hee!" came from the bushes.

"Oh, what is it? Who's there?" the dragon cried.

A little furry creature scrambled out of the bushes. It had short, little ears that were rounded on the top, a tuft of fur sticking out between them, and a small fluffy tail sticking out of the back.

"Hi! I'm Chamomile, and I'm a bear cub! What are you? Looks like you're stuck in a trap!" she said.

"Hello! I'm a dragon! What's a trap? Why do you look so funny? It's almost like you're upside down!"

"You're the one that's upside down, silly!" Chamomile giggled. "Here, I'll help you!" With a snap of her teeth, she bit through the rope that held the dragon. He fluttered gently to the ground using his wings.

"Wow, how'd you do that?" Chamomile asked.

"It's easy! Just open your wings and catch the air and it'll carry you softly to the ground."

"I don't think I have wings," Chamomile giggled. "By the way, what's your name?"

"Name? What's a name?" the dragon asked.

"A name is what you call yourself. Like my name is Chamomile!"

"Oh! That's a name! Well, you can call me Pyron, that's what my mother used to call me…" The dragon stopped in mid-sentence. "My mother! Where is she? Is she okay? Oh, I have to find her! Where am I?" He looked around in terror.

"You're in the Valley of Spring!" Chamomile said. "Where did you come from? Where did you live? What happened?"

Pyron took a deep breath. "Well, I used to live on the planet Dragollia," Pyron began. "It was a beautiful place! Until this horrible monster came! It had the foulest voice, like ten thousand nails scraping against rock. The thing had an ugly, squashed looking face that glares directly at you until you gulped with fear. The eyes, they're so, so…" Pyron's voice died. He shuddered and then whimpered, curling up into a little ball at Chamomile's feet. "You wouldn't know the terror… unless you see it…." His voice was barely a whisper.

"Please, I need to know what's wrong," Chamomile urged. "You have to continue your story." She gently pulled Pyron to his feet.

"It was so scary, so scary…." Pyron resumed in a small, shaky voice. "I was only a fledgling then, and I remember-cold. The monster had a huge army. They were very strong, and killed all of our defender dragons. Our clan ran away to hide in these mountains. During the days that we lived there, my mom protected me a lot. She wouldn't let me outside at all! I don't know why. But then, the monster came again! It was complete chaos! I was hiding in my bed, and dragons were running everywhere! They almost trampled me! My mom and dad were fighting the monster with many others, and dragons were hurt, screaming. It was terrible, hearing their screeching wail as they tumbled to the ground in defeat. Suddenly, I found myself wrapped up in my mom's arms. She carried me somewhere, a much more peaceful and quiet place with no violence and fighting. My mom grabbed something out of a Powder Tree and blew it onto me. She told me that she was sending me somewhere safe in an egg and that she would wait for me there. All of a sudden, the monster burst into this secret area. The last thing I saw was the creature almost attacking me with a huge lightning blast, and then I was whisked away. So now, here I am. But where's my mom?"

"Pyron," said Chamomile. "I hope your mom is alright. But I don't think she'll be coming soon."

"Well, okay. I'll wait for her with you. Is that okay?"

"Of course! I always wanted a friend!" Chamomile said, trying to cheer Pyron up as much as possible.

The next month passed without any sign of Pyron's mother. It was now Soar Moon. Chamomile taught Pyron how to fish, how to plant seeds, which berries were the best, which ones were poisonous, where the fresh water was, and many other things he would need to know for survival. "HYAH!" Pyron bellowed as he stabbed a fish right out of the water.

"Teehee!" giggled Chamomile. "Good one! Now let's smoke it for dinner." Pyron took a deep breath and let out little puffs of flame, smoldering it thoroughly. Chamomile sneezed.

"Smoky," she said. "A little too smoky." They laughed together under the big blue sky, not noticing it turn cloudy until great big gusts of wind started to blow.

"Looks like a storm!" Chamomile shouted over the breeze. With a great clap of thunder, rain came hammering down.

"Hide!" Pyron said. They ran around in circles, trying to find a hiding spot, crashing into each other blindly, jumping up whenever lightning struck or thunder rumbled. Finally, they slid into a bush, shivering in the cold.

"Wow, I've never seen a storm kick up so fast!" whispered Chamomile. "And it's so cold too!" With another strike of lightning, there was another flash, but it was a dark blue color. Shadows showed maybe twenty creatures lined up like an army on top of a hill.

"Stand straight! Hut, hut!" a commander creature screeched. They had bulging faces and big fish lips. A fin was sticking out behind each ear, and their hands were webbed. They were half fish, half human.

"Oh my goshies!" Pyron gasped. "It's them! It's the horrible monster's own troops-the Fimmins!"

"Fimmins?" Chamomile whispered. "That's weird. What are they doing here?"

"I don't know," Pyron whispered back. "Let's find out!" Together, they crawled as close as they dared to the Fimmins, darting back into a bush whenever the fish creatures looked around.

"We're supposed to find the Crystals!" the commander bellowed. "Not sit around like some lazy fish sticks! Our sensors show that the Crystals are here, very close, very close…" He looked around as he spoke and seemed to stare directly at the bush where Chamomile and Pyron were hidden.

"Technical advisor! Report up front!" the commander roared.

"Yes, sir?" he said.

"Give me the exact pinpoints of the jewels!"

"Um, left 45 degrees and then forwards 7 steps and then turn 90 degrees to the right and walk forwards another 2 steps…"

"WHERE ARE THEY!" the commander hollered.

"Um, in that bush sir…."

"That's all I needed to know you freakin' fish! Report back to your position!"

"Uh, oh!" Pyron whispered. "There's supposed to be some type of jewels in the bush that we're hiding in right now! We have to run away!"

"No! We have to find those jewels before they do! You said that they were bad! What if those jewels could do magical things that could destroy the world!"

"You're right, we have to find them! Where are they…"

Suddenly the bush was blown apart! Giant fish cheeks stared down at them!

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Pyron and Chamomile screeched. "FIMMIN FISH CHEEKS!"

They scrambled for their lives, and ran away as fast as their legs could carry them.

"Get the Crystals!" the commander Fimmin shouted. The Fimmin army reached down to look in the bush.

"The jewels aren't there you bumbling idiots! They're with the dragon!"

"What?" Pyron screamed. "I don't have a jewel!"

"Get him!" the commander boomed.

"RUN!" Pyron yelled. They kept on running and stumbled and tripped over logs and branches. The Fimmins were going to catch up any second! Pyron's legs ached from sprinting through the forest, bumbling around like a crazed ant, scurrying around nonstop.

"What'll we do?" Chamomile whispered.

"I don't know!" Pyron whimpered. "I don't know…. Oh! Get on my back! Get on my back, Chamomile!"

"Why?"

"No time to ask questions, get on!" Chamomile leaped and landed heavily on Pyron's back.

"Umph," he grunted. "Ok, I'm going to fly!" He staggered under Chamomile's weight and flapped his rain soaked wings.

"Let's go!" He leapt into the sky and pumped his wings up and down as fast as he could. They soared up over the forest, higher and higher, and the Fimmins became little specks screeching with anger. Pyron flew towards a mountain.

"Let's camp, here, tonight," Pyron gasped. He was really tired. Suddenly, there was a flash coming from his forehead, and then he plummeted straight towards the ground.

"Pyron!" Chamomile screamed. "We're falling! Pyron?"

"Oh, no!" she gasped. Pyron had fainted!

"HELP! SOMEONE HELP US!" Chamomile screamed into the night. They fell down, down, down… The last thing she saw was a big black shadow. Then the whole world turned black.

Ch. 2 The Trusted One of Air

Pyron woke with a gasp. He choked and sputtered, his mouth as dry as sand. Suddenly, cold water was forced down his throat! The liquid was cool and refreshing on his tongue. His wings ached so much as he tried to get up and another spasm of pain jolted through as he lifted his head. Someone poured a foul tasting fluid into his mouth. He almost threw up, and when he opened his eyes, the world was spinning around. He finally realized that someone was speaking to him.

"Pyron! Are you okay?" the worried voice of Chamomile peeped. He tried to mutter a faint "Yeah…" but his mouth wouldn't work for him.

"The medicine I just gave him numbs his whole body. He won't be able to talk to you just yet," a new, gruff voice said. He was a cloudy figure to Pyron's eyes, and so was Chamomile.

Pyron's thoughts swirled around in his head as he tried to stir. Suddenly, he sat bolt upright, causing Chamomile to let out a surprised squeak and back away.

"Where am I?" he finally managed to mumble.

"You're in my house," the deep voice replied with a chuckle. "I saw you falling through the sky, caught you, and brought you here." Pyron's clouded vision began to clear, and soon, he realized that he was talking to a red-tailed hawk.

"He saved our lives," Chamomile said.

"What were you doing, falling, anyways?" the hawk asked. "She was just about to tell me when you woke up."

"We, we were being chased by Fimmins!" Pyron wheezed.

"Fimmins?" the hawk raised an eyebrow. "I haven't seen one in years!"

"You know what a Fimmin is?" Pyron asked. "Oh! That must mean, you're one of the…."

"Yes, I, Alpinus, am the Trusted One of Air," the hawk said with pride. "Many years ago, a selected few that served the ancient dragons of earth were let into the planet Dragollia. They were granted with eternal life, a very rare gift, mind you. And one of those Trusted Ones was me."

"Wow," said Pyron. "I never thought that I would ever meet a Trusted One!"

"Well, now you have," Alpinus said, smugly. "Who are you, young one?"

"I'm Pyron Crystal, son of Pyranees and Blazein Crystal."

"WHAT!" Alpinus bellowed. "YOU'RE A CRYSTAL! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME IN THE FIRST PLACE?"

"I'm a what? What didn't I tell you?" Pyron whimpered.

"YOU DON'T KNOW!" he screeched. "You actually don't know…." His voice trailed off into a bunch of gibberish murmurs.

"Ok, what I'm about to tell you might frighten you a bit, but you must understand. I can't believe your parents didn't tell you!"

"Tell me what?" Pyron asked.

"Oh, just listen!"

"Ahem… Not long ago, in this pleasant planet Earth, all the dragons and humans lived in peace and harmony. (Alpinus said.) All the happiness was caused by this one jewel that hovered, glowing, day and night in the queen dragon's palace.

"This crystal was a very powerful gem. Not only did it bring tranquility and joy, but it was also very dangerous. The queen knew this and decided to create a guardian for this precious stone. She called her strongest warrior to come up, and bestowed upon him both a blessing and a curse. The crystal shrunk and then was joined with the dragon, giving him many hidden powers. But the jewel gave him a special mark on his forehead, indicating his powers. This was bad because now, he was easily identified and the queen's enemies could easily track him down and destroy him.

"There was also another problem: Humans now wanted to destroy dragons to receive the precious scaled skins, powdered claws, tongues, wings, anything useful upon them. The blessed dragon was now in danger of humans, who would fall deeply in desire for that jewel.

"This forced the queen to take drastic measures. Using all of her power, she created a new world for the dragons to live on-Dragollia-a place many light years away. After this, she was very weak. This is when the Trusted Ones came in. We gathered all the dragon kin and showed them the way to Dragollia. The queen was in deep gratitude and using her last bit of energy, gave us the gift of eternal life and swept us away to Dragollia…"

Alpinus stopped just then, hiding a sob that Pyron tried to ignore.

"Then, that blessed dragon married my mom. They had a child, me, who had the gem mark on his forehead," Pyron continued. "So this is why my mom didn't have a jewel mark. She was a normal dragon. My dad had the gem. I asked him about it before! I remember now! He said it was a surprise. He was going to tell me this year. But now, he can't, and I know…"

"There is something you should know. That mark on your head means you have powers. Powers!" Alpinus said.

"Powers?" asked Pyron. "What do you mean?"

"I mean this: Dragons have the power to breathe flame and fly. But you have those powers, and more! You can probably breathe ice, heal people, summon tornadoes! You have unbelievable powers that you would never dream of!"

"But then how come I've never done anything like that before?"

"These powers are very strong," Alpinus continued. "This is why this jewel is a curse-the power can corrupt.

"If this happens, the world is at the end as you know it. The queen told us Trusted Ones that, no matter what, we must make sure that the ones with the jewel mark must have enough inner strength. If not, she gave us each a spell that can remove the gem from the bearer and destroy it."

"But what happens when the power is corrupted?" Chamomile finally spoke up. Alpinus's eyes seemed to darken.

"Then, my dear, the bearer of the jewel will face ultimate suffering as their body slowly, one cell at a time, becomes trapped within the jewel. The possessor will not die until the last particle of its body is enclosed within the jewel, so as the cells are being removed, the owner will face all the pain as if its body is being gradually devoured. Then, (Alpinus's eyes glowed fiercely) the gem will explode, taking with it every object that the bearer ever touched."

"That's creepy." Pyron shivered, trying not to imagine himself being devoured and imploded, along with all his friends and family.

"But you don't need to worry," Alpinus said, as though he was trying to reassure himself. "You have already shown us that you have enough willpower to hold the jewel because you haven't been consumed by it yet."

"Or at least…" he mumbled to himself. "I hope so,"

"What did you say?" asked Chamomile.

"Oh, at least you're strong enough to do so, that's what I said." Alpinus didn't want them to worry.

"Now, about your powers: you haven't used them before because you haven't been in a situation important enough to unlock them. After you use it once, you gain the power to use it again, but this is a slow process."

"But our situation with the Fimmins was serious. How come he didn't release any powers then?" Chamomile asked.

"He might not have had enough power to use one, or he maybe did, but it was a small one that didn't really do much," Alpinus said. " If he didn't have enough power to use that move, he would loose all of his energy and faint."

"Hey! That must've been what happened to him-why he suddenly fainted! He must have used up all his strength running from those Fimmins!" Chamomile said.

"Probably," Alpinus shrugged. "Did his jewel glow?"

"Yes, it did! I remember now!"

"STOP!" Pyron said. "This is too much! I have powers? I can use them? Can I attack the Fimmins with it then? Can I save Dragollia? Find my parents?"

"Wait, you must get proper training first," Alpinus said. "I'll help you learn three moves, alright? We Trusted Ones are prepared for this-we have worst-case scenarios to train you. (They're also used to torture baddies)"

"I don't know. It sounds kind of dangerous. Could I die?"

"Well, this is your choice. It's obviously dangerous, but you need hard situations to gain powers."

"Well then, I'm going for it. I have nothing to lose," said Pyron.

"Can you train me too?" Chamomile blurted. She blushed, not meaning to burst out like that. But Alpinus simply laughed.

"Of course. If you're helping Pyron, you'll need some physical training too," he chuckled.

"Hooray!" said Chamomile.

"I hope," Pyron said to himself.

Ch. 3 Training Time

Luster Moon had arrived, bringing with it blossoms blooming everywhere. The land was lush and green, pretty flowers swayed gently in a breeze.

Pyron and Chamomile had a nice sleep on a huge pile of soft oak leaves.

"A good rest," Alpinus said, "helps you gain more strength. Be prepared for vigorous training tomorrow." After that, he left, probably to go hunting.

When they woke up, they found two bowls of fresh berries next to their bed. To their delight, the berries were full of sweet, tangy juice that filled them up completely. After taking a few drinks of water from a small pond full of plump fish, they set off to find Alpinus.

Slowly journeying down the steep mountainside, Pyron and Chamomile wondered about their training. What would it be like? Would it be hard? What could happen? Suddenly, Chamomile slipped.

"Pyron! Help!" she screamed, plunging down the side of the mountain. She tumbled through sharp rocks and plants that pierced her skin painfully, but luckily, shallowly. Then, she fell right off a cliff.

Pyron sped through the air, pumping his aching wings vigilantly. He knew he wouldn't be able to catch Chamomile on his back again-last time it nearly broke his neck, and now, she was plummeting through the air at a speed of about 20 miles per hour! He pumped his wings harder, desperate to think of an idea before his best friend dropped to her death! The dragon strained his mind, thinking so hard, heart pumping. He flew close to Chamomile, grabbing her every once in a while to slow down her fall. But it wasn't enough. He had to think of something fast.

Time seemed to stop as they dropped together, staring at one another's faces, both minds racing. Chamomile gasped as Pyron's crystal started to glow and screamed when she saw light burst out of him like a thousand arrows. Pyron's eyes glowed deep, sapphire-like blue, and he screeched out strange, vibrating words in a stray, raspy voice. "YUNTIA NICAI RIACLO!"

The sky turned black, but only for a second. Suddenly, a swirling mist surrounded Chamomile, slowing her fall. With a soft popping noise, the mist turned into a cloud, which acted like a giant cotton puff, catching Chamomile and Pyron.

They both gasped for breath as the little cotton-cloud hovered up toward Alpinus's cave. Pyron was completely tired out and flopped down on the cloud, tongue lolling, trying to fall asleep.

"Congratulations!" Alpinus's voice boomed. "You passed you first training."

"This… was… training…?" Pyron gasped between each breath.

"Yes, and you both did well," Alpinus replied, beaming. "I set a couple of loose stones on that path, hoping one of you would slip."

"You practically murdered us!" cried Pyron, weariness forgotten.

"Well, I did tell you it wasn't going to be easy," he chuckled. Pyron and Chamomile wondered why he was in such a good mood.

"Ah, I'll tell you guys my news," the hawk said with a grin. "I've just received contact with Pacifia!" Seeing Pyron and Chamomile's confused faces, he added, "She's the Trusted One of Water. She's finally hacked into Aqueenus's computers."

"Who's Aqueenus?" Pyron and Chamomile asked in unison. Alpinus frowned.

"Aqueenus. You know, the one who tried to take over Dragollia? Honestly, the way you two are carrying on, you'd think I was talking to rocks!"

"We just didn't know her name, that's all," Pyron said in a small voice. Alpinus didn't seem to notice.

"Well, anyways, Pacifia's a computer genius! She finally figured out how to get past Aqueenus's fortress. Now we can start the offensive! All this time, we couldn't do anything at all against Aqueenus and her gang. Although we Trusted Ones have eternal life, a powerful magic prevents us from fighting for longer than half an hour. Also, pain stays for a longer time, as we can't die if our heads are chopped off, so we keep the pain of loosing a head until a new one grows in." He shuddered.

"Err, great, but then who is fighting this war?" Pyron asked, dreading the answer.

"You are!" the hawk exclaimed. "After we're finished with your training, I'm sending you to Pacifia."

"But, but, but, that's only us two!" Chamomile stuttered. "You don't seriously expect Pyron and me to single-handedly destroy Aqueenus?"

"Well, of course not! We're going to call the dragons to help us fight, you dum-dums!" Alpinus exclaimed.

"Whatever." Pyron stretched, feeling a little better. He crawled over to Chamomile, who was still recovering from shock.

"We'd better start the physical training now," Alpinus finally said. He turned. "Follow me."

"We still have more training?" cried Chamomile in dismay.

"Of course," Alpinus raised an eyebrow. "You didn't think that one little trip was all you needed?"

"Ugh," Pyron muttered. They strutted calmly down the mountain, almost as if taking a hike, but when Alpinus stopped, Pyron and Chamomile were astonished.

"Wow," they echoed. Alpinus had brought them to a large, hidden canyon. There was plenty of room for running around and even a large lake in the middle, along with a huge, rushing waterfall. Suddenly, Pyron realized Alpinus was talking.

"…step onto the grass, we will begin fighting as if we were enemies." Pyron couldn't hear a word; he was too awed by the waterfall. He took a couple of steps towards it, along with Chamomile. Suddenly, Alpinus leaped into the air, fluttering his wings, rising higher and higher until he was only a speck. Then he dived, faster than a speeding bullet, straight at Pyron and Chamomile.

"Run!" the bear cub screamed, and the two agreed, stumbling away from the hawk missile. When Alpinus missed, he took a quick swerve upwards, sending him once again into the path of the two trainees. They somehow ducked right under the hawk, his sharp beak skimming their backs so close he could have given them a haircut. He turned yet again, ready to strike.

Pyron went immediately to the offensive. "Chamomile, go over there! Wait until I say, and then jump!"

Poor Chamomile did as she was told. She crawled over to the spot, dodging Alpinus a few times, and covered her eyes, shaking with fear.

Pyron was running around, adrenaline pumping through his little dragon heart. Alpinus was hot on his trail, gaining ever so slowly. Suddenly, Pyron jumped into the air. He flapped his sinew-bound wings, almost transparent, fragile, and yet sturdy. They stretched out from his adventure with Chamomile a few minutes ago. He flew up, higher and higher, Alpinus still close by.

In three great flaps, the hawk caught up to Pyron. The little dragon spread his wings out to the limit, catching dead air, which forced him to stop. He quickly turned, shooting for the ground, leaving the hawk still speeding upwards.

Pyron continued flying down, gaining more speed per second. When he was close to Chamomile, he turned around to see Alpinus gaining. "NOW!" the dragon yelled, pulling back just before he hit the ground.

The result was so fast, you could hardly see. The little bear jumped, and somehow landed upon Alpinus's back. The hawk swerved, trying to keep balance with Chamomile hanging to his neck. He plummeted, trying to catch an updraft while shaking Chamomile off. The little bear hung on with all her might, and then tried to think of a plan. She grabbed at the hawk's wings, trying to stop them. The muscular strength of flapping could barely be stopped, but even that small change interrupted Alpinus's flight intentions. For the second time that day, Chamomile was falling towards a speeding death.

Pyron had just enough time to land, brake his sliding entry, and turn around to see Chamomile and Alpinus hurtling towards the ground. Remembering the words he had used earlier, the dragon concentrated. His eyes glowed blue and his crystal glowed, but this time no beams of light shone. Also, Pyron's voice was normal-a small squeak through the huge, open valley. "YUNTIA NICAI RIACLO!" The magic still worked as well though, and a second later, a giant, puffy cloud appeared, catching Alpinus and Chamomile. It hovered in the air for a while, and then Pyron realized he could control it with his mind. He gently brought them down, and they sat together, panting, trying to speak. At last, Alpinus cleared his throat.

"Good job. That was pretty good," he said. He turned to face Pyron. "As you probably noticed, your powers are easier to use this time. Gradually, it'll change into a simple glow of the gem to summon the magic."

Chamomile burst out. "That was the coolest thing I've ever done! Hee, hee, hee…" She jumped up and sown, unable to suppress her glee.

"Well, you've had the fun part. Now comes the serious training!"

"WHAT?" Pyron and Chamomile cried in dismay. "More training?"

"Well of course. You lazybones, just two types of training tires you?" he scoffed. "Get up, get up!" the hawk shouted, sounding like a strict, old teacher. Grumbling, Pyron stood up, along with Chamomile.

"Since you guys are so lazy, this will be the last task of the day," Alpinus chuckled. "Fetch and cook tonight's dinner and bring it to me." With a sweep of his wing, he sent Pyron and Chamomile tumbling down the mountainside once again. "Oh yeah, be back before sunset!" Alpinus added, before flying away to his cave.

Ch. 4 Survival Test

Third time. The third time Chamomile was falling that day. She was starting to get used to the sensation though-wind rippling through her fur, stomach dropping to her feet, eyes watering, and legs flopping. In fact, she was starting to like it, almost like flying.

Pyron pulled out with his wings. He flew down towards Chamomile and secreted the energy for his spell. "YUNTIA NICAI REACOLO! No-I mean RIACLO!"

But it was too late-a flash came from Pyron's forehead, and a second later, he was falling, unconscious.

"No!" Chamomile screamed, heart beating fast again. She knew she had to do something quick-the ground was rushing up at her lightning fast. She strained with willpower, wishing she had wings. Pushing her claws through the air, Chamomile leveled with Pyron and grabbed him. Then, she thrust her legs back as if she was swimming, trying to reach the side of the mountain. She felt a tickling sensation on her back as she brushed against Pyron's crystal. Suddenly, her body burst with pain, almost causing her to drop the dragon. Her back throbbed, as if something was extending from her spine. They fell with a crash into a tree, tumbling through nests, leaves, and branches, until finally landing on the ground with a loud thump. Chamomile felt a strange, icy sensation on her back, and then fainted.

It was dark when Pyron woke up. Too dark. He couldn't breathe. With natural instinct, he flamed, lighting leaves and branches on fire. He saw Chamomile lying nearby, and then the bush they were laying in exploded into flames. Pyron screamed.

"Chamomile, wake up!" He dragged her limp body away from the flames. With a cough, she woke up, sputtering and choking on the smoke.

"FIRE!" she screamed with a start. The bear struggled accidentally hitting Pyron, who dropped Chamomile, rubbing his throbbing nose. The fire was getting more intense, and the two were singed and coughing. Chamomile especially, her fur catching fire. She rolled around in pain, wailing.

"Chamomile!" Pyron cried as she rolled out of view, into the midst of flames. Back scorching, Pyron ran after her.

The little bear was in such panic; she began to suffocate. She thrashed about, spreading the fire even further, burning her paws. Pyron didn't know what to do. He leaped around Chamomile, nudging her in a general direction. Suddenly, Pyron's eyes turned purple. Blue light flooded though his hide. With "SHU IAQU ORDYH!", Pyron breathed water, as if he was breathing fire. The cold water instantly brought Chamomile to her senses, and she winced every time she took a step on her burnt paws. Pyron continued blasting water, putting out all the fires. His mouth felt funny, blasting water, which was the inverse element of the usual fire. He felt like a sprinkler, shifting every second or so to put out fires all around. After a while, the fires were extinguished, and Pyron and Chamomile collapsed, moaning in agony. They fell asleep in the dark, the great, cool blissful dark.

When Pyron and Chamomile woke up, the air was still smoggy. Their lungs ached and their burns hurt. The once beautiful trees, the once blossoming flowers were gone, only smoking stumps and shrubs remaining. The beautiful Luster Moon was ruined, smoggy air and burnt plants in its place.

"I'm sorry," Pyron coughed. Chamomile looked up. "I'm sorry I messed up the spell. I'm sorry I made a fire. I'm sorry." Pyron started to cry. "When we get back to Alpinus, I'm going to ask him to destroy my jewel. I don't deserve these powers. I can't control them. I don't deserve to be a dragon." Chamomile limped over.

"It's okay, Pyron," she said, voice gentle and timid. "All things make mistakes, it's just what happens in life. Trust me, I know." She smiled weakly. "You're not the only one who makes mistakes. I made a much bigger on before." Chamomile went quiet. Pyron coughed again. Somehow, the smoke seemed thicker, or maybe it was just fog. He couldn't see the sky. He could scarcely see ten feet. Suddenly, red eyes glowed in the smoke. Pyron didn't even have time to scream.

Far away, Alpinus paced around. The two trainees hadn't come back before sunset, nor did they come at night. Now it was morning, and Alpinus decided to go search for them.

Alpinus flew over the forest. Instantly, he smelled smoke. Thinking it was smoke from Chamomile and Pyron's cooking fire, he soared down. Then did he realize that the whole forest was burning down! Pyron might have put down some of the fire, but not all of it. The fire started again, and by the time Alpinus had arrived, the flames were stretched to the limit. Alpinus panicked, and flew back up, searching for his two trainees and hoping that they were still alive.

Meanwhile, a large pack of angry wolves had surrounded Pyron and Chamomile.

"He's the one who destroyed out forest," one growled. "He will pay!" They attacked, leaping at the already injured couple, fangs bared, claws outstretched.

Pyron reared up and flapped his wings loudly, scaring most of the wolves. "RUN!" he yelled, nudging Chamomile along. They galloped through the now dead forest, mad wolves still chasing after them.

A short distance away, Alpinus peered around. Hawks had naturally good vision, but he could see little through the smog. Finally, he spotted two dots being chased by an army of them.

"Alpinus!" Chamomile called, stumbling over her burnt paws. The air was getting thicker, the wolves getting furious. Her back itched like crazy, ever since her fall with Pyron. She felt like she was shedding or something.

Pyron leapt into the air, flapping towards Alpinus. He suddenly remembered Chamomile and hurried back, wishing she could fly. Suddenly, his jewel glowed, and he near collapsed from lack of energy. If it weren't for Alpinus dive-bombing the wolves, they may have jumped onto the dragon and eaten him alive. Around the same time, Chamomile exploded. She and Pyron screamed as a huge blast of smoke detonated from her own body, and then crumpled onto the ground, whimpering. The wolves were scared instantly and skittered away, yelping. When the dust cleared, Chamomile was huddled on the ground, paws over her head, and extruding from her back was a pair of brand new, shiny white WINGS!

Ch. 5 Preparations

Pyron gasped. Chamomile gasped. Alpinus gasped, and then flew over. "What happened?"

"Well, I… I… I… I just wished," Chamomile finally said.

"Do they work?" Pyron babbled, ecstatic that his best friends now had wings. Chamomile beat them in reply, hovering a few inches from the ground.

"I can fly!" she cried with glee.

"Well," Alpinus said. "They'll certainly help you during this quest. So, I'm guessing you feel stronger now?"

With a prod in his mind, Pyron summoned a jet of water shooting from his mouth. "SHU IAQU ORDYH!" His body was tinted blue, but the result was as effective as ever-in seconds, he put out the rest of the forest fire, and then settled back next to Chamomile, the bluish glow wearing off.

"I still don't feel very different," Chamomile replied. "Well, actually…" She wiggled her wings.

"Good, good. Now, a good night's sleep and a through wash is all you need. Then, I'll send you to Pacifia, where she'll tell you what to do. Come." Alpinus lifted off, soaring into the air. Pyron followed suit, and Chamomile, a tidbit clueless, leapt with a stumble into the air, pumping her wings up and down as fast as possible.

"No, don't waste your energy like that," Alpinus snapped, sounding once again like an old instructor. "Glide-shape the air under your wings. Let the thermals carry you…" and off it went, Alpinus giving almost every trick and tip he knew. Pyron listened in and even learned something-how to fly as silently as an owl, without so much as rustling a feather. They flew together-such a sight to see-a dragon, bear, and red-tailed hawk flying together through the afternoon sky.

When they arrived back at Alpinus's cave, they went straight to the pond. They jumped right in, soothing their burns and washing off dirt and ashes. To Chamomile's delight, her wings were waterproof, and in fact, they helped propel he through the water. Then, Pyron bumped into a loose stone in the ground. With a sudden quake, the wall opened up, and Pyron and Chamomile went sliding down a waterfall!

"Wheeee!" they yelled, splashing water back and forth. The waterfall churned and turned-in fact, it wasn't a waterfall-it was a waterslide! They zoomed down the slide with a huge SPLASH! At the bottom was a huge lake-the very one that was in the valley that they trained in. It was massive-as big as an Olympic sized swimming pool. They splashed around with glee, and then started swimming. They dived down, paddling with their legs and wings. Pyron recognized some plants that grew on his world; they were Yean Stalks, used for healing and soothing skin. He dived down and plucked a handful. With a powerful thrust of his back legs, he came shooting up, out of the water. He gave some of the medicine to Chamomile, showing her how to crush it into a salve, and then how to rub it into the burns. After, they swam around some more. This time, Chamomile dived into the lake. She found some soap sand. Taking a pawful, she swam back and forth, piling the sand on a rock by the shore. After she gathered a decent amount, they scrubbed their itchy bodies with the sand, which exfoliated and cleansed. They played around some more, and then they finally crawled out of the lake, feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.

As it was the afternoon, the sun was shining its brightest, and Chamomile and Pyron dried off very quickly. With a quick stretch, they took off, flying gently towards Alpinus's cave. Chamomile was still a little unsteady, yet she flew without much error. When they arrived, they were greeted with some fresh, cooked fish, tasty and tender. They chewed greedily, glad for a break from training. Alpinus swooped over, himself enjoying a tasty meal of-rats. (Ewww….) When he finished, he cleared his throat.

"You'll soon be off, I'm afraid. You've had all your training, and the sooner the better," he announced in his deep, deep voice.

"Gulp. So is the journey long?" Chamomile squeaked.

"Not very. A day's flight. Three if you walk. And you'll probably walk a lot. Your wings aren't very stable yet."

Pyron swallowed a chunk of fish. "How will we call the dragons?"

"Pacifia will explain. I've done enough," the hawk said. I just hope it works he thought. "Now, go to bed, and we'll pack early tomorrow morning."

"But, but, but-it's only four o'clock! How can we sleep so early?"

"Trust me, you need energy and we're waking very early. Just go to sleep." With that, Alpinus swooped out again, and flew away.

Pyron tossed and turned in the leaves, rustling them so loudly it was a wonder Chamomile didn't wake. He thought about home, about calling the dragons, getting rid of the evil creatures that still haunted his memories, about finding his parents. He finally fell asleep-evil faces swimming back and forth through his mind.

Pyron was running, running down an infinite path. A horrible face, screeching voice, ugly squashed face coming steadily forward; Pyron squealed and scurried his legs faster. He tried to summon some magic, but nothing would work. The face came closer. "Pyron," it whispered. "Come here…."

"No!" he wailed, running faster, but it was no use. He was sinking his feet into a putty-like substance, and it was like running through water-slow and restricted.

The face swooped down upon the little dragon, and with one breath, turned him into ice. Then he had to watch her laugh, coming closer and closer.

"Noooooo…" he cried. He sat bolt upright, shivering. Chamomile was still asleep, in fact, snoring. It was only midnight, and Pyron had to toss and turn some more before he could fall asleep again.

"WAKE UP!" someone hollered. Chamomile sat up so fast, she almost hit her head on a stalactite. Pyron yawned, rubbing his eyes blearily. Everything was blurry and dark; he couldn't see a thing. Then he realized that it was dark-very early in the morning.

"Alpinus, the sun's not even up yet," Chamomile moaned. The little bear stretched and slowly rolled out of bed. Her eyes adjusted to the dimness, only to find that her wings were bedraggled. She hurried to straighten them; wincing every time they cracked into a new position.

"As I said before, we must get up very early. Now come, we must get your packs." He beckoned with a wing, and grumbling, Pyron and Chamomile followed. They reached Alpinus's sleeping quarters and found small packs waiting for them. They were stuffed to the limit with nice berries and cooked food, several random, useful objects such as rope and a blanket. The packs could easily be carried, and there was even extra pockets for whatever they might need it for.

"Go east," he pointed. "Until you reach the ocean. Look around for a group of rocks shaped like a turtle. Sit near them, and soon you'll be let in." The hawk smiled a secretive smile to himself, as if remembering something that happened before.

Although Pyron and Chamomile were puzzled, they sat quietly, listening to everything the hawk had to say.

"If you get lost, go towards the sunrise. Be careful, avoid fighting enemies, and be secretive. No one must see you."

Pyron nodded and Chamomile blinked; they were ready. A bite of breakfast, and they would leave, walking into the darkness. "Wait a second, I thought you were going to help me unlock three powers. I've only found two."

"This is your last training-make it to Pacifia's-alive." The way he said it was just creepy, and Pyron gulped hearing his voice. They said their goodbyes and started to leave, Alpinus quiet, forbidden, and forlorn. When they had reached the bottom of the mountain, Alpinus finally broke the silence. "Goodbye!" he called, voice cracking.

Pyron thought he imagined it, but a tear trickled down Alpinus's feathers.

Ch. 6 The Trusted One of Earth

When Pyron and Chamomile reached the bottom of the mountain, they spread their wings and took off. Flying was faster and easier than going through the forest. Chamomile was getting really good at flying; it was almost like she had experience before. They flew for about an hour, until their wings ached and they were too tired to flap. Then, they landed into the forest, careful to avoid trees, just as the sun was starting to rise. They walked towards it, the light almost blinding them, but it was pretty too. The sun seemed to be sleeping lazily in its bed of hills, unwilling to get up. After Pyron and Chamomile walked out the forest, the sun finally rose out of bed, bouncing into the sky, golden rays beaming. Pyron and Chamomile started to get tired.

"Should we fly?" Chamomile asked.

"No, I don't want to." Pyron stifled a yawn, almost lazily it seemed. Now they were strutting through a meadow, wild roses surrounding them, almost like a path. Chamomile yawned too, and they started a brisk jog to keep themselves awake. Finally, they reached a vast plain. Pyron's fire never reached this area, so the grass was lush, trees full, plants plentiful, and flowers in full bloom. Chamomile scampered forwards, looking for a nice patch of grass to rest on. With a soft thump, she stopped.

"What was that?" Pyron asked, ears perking up. Chamomile sat down, rubbing her nose.

"I hit something! But I don't see- oh!" She reached forwards and touched-nothing. The bear frowned. No, it wasn't nothing, it was a force field!

"Well, that's weird. What would a force field be doing around here?"

"I don't know. Let's try to find a way around. They stood up and walked a little more forwards. Suddenly-thump! They turned-thump! They went another way-thump!

"What's this?" Pyron whispered. He felt around, but there was no way out! "Oh no! What's happening?"

Chamomile double-checked, running her furry paws all over the place. "We're trapped!" she exclaimed. Pyron's heart fluttered, and he even tried to fly up and over, but it was no use. The force field extended around them in a dome.

"I know! I can try to use my powers to get us out!" the dragon announced. He concentrated, and slowly, the field began to open. The force was overwhelming-like trying to open a heavy metal door by squeezing your head between. Pyron grunted with effort, yet the opening he made began to close. He thought he heard a muffled squeal coming from somewhere in the plain. Suddenly, he was thrown back with a devastating force, which made his head pound. Stars erupted between his eyes and tears welled as he crouched over in pain.

"Stop!" a voice cried. "Who are you and what do you want?" In midair, out leapt a Bengal tiger, as if it were invisible and suddenly came into view. It was pure white, except for its black stripes and a gem shaped mark on his forehead-much like Pyron's.

"Who are you?" he repeated.

With a sniff, Pyron replied, "I'm, I'm Pyron. Pyron Crystal. And this is my friend, Chamomile. We're trying to find Pacifia, the Trusted One of Water."

"Pacifia?" May I ask why you're looking for her?" the tiger inquired.

"Alpinus, Trusted One of Air sent us!" Chamomile added. Pyron wondered if they should trust this stranger.

"Alpinus sent you? Hmm… I'll let my master decide this one." With a flick of his tail, the force field disappeared. "The name's Tyro. I serve my master, Gallerite, in protecting this forest."

"What forest?" Chamomile asked, a quizzical expression on her face. They started to walk forwards and a split second later, along with a strange ripping noise; they passed through some kind of wall that brought them face to face with unfathomable woodland.

The tiger led Chamomile and Pyron through the forest, deeper and deeper, the path getting thicker and more difficult to walk through. "This forest is a magical place. Mere creatures and stragglers don't deserve to walk through here. I expect you have some important business if you're being involved with the Trusted Ones?"

Pyron was too stunned to speak. A tiger that could make force fields and had a jewel like Pyron and worked for-who? Gallerite, he said? And what did they do, guarding this forest? Pyron merely nodded at Tyro, stumbling over roots and branches, which got more and more plentiful. Suddenly, the ground was perfectly clear. There were no stray roots or trees, except for some surrounding ones placed perfectly straight, almost like a fence or hallway. There was a pure, earthy road, leading to a thicket. There sat a male deer-a buck.

Tyro bowed. "Welcome strangers," the deer said. "I am Gallerite, the Trusted One of Earth. What business do you have in the Forest of Life?"

Chamomile gasped. Pyron understood at once.

"I am Pyron Crystal, son of Pyranees and Blazein Crystal. This is Chamomile from the Valley of Spring. We come from Alpinus, the Trusted One of Air, to get to Pacifia, of Water. There we will call the dragons and defeat Aqueenus once and for all."

Gallerite didn't so much as blink when he heard Pyron speak. "So strange that ones so young can herald the calling of the dragons and overpower Aqueenus, the one who took over Dragollia. But then again, we must have great expectations from the offspring of Blazein," he said in a clear, almost monotone voice. Tyro hadn't moved since he bowed, but looked up when he heard Blazein's name.

"Rest here tonight. You may leave tomorrow. Tyro will show you your rooms." The buck bowed. "You are now excused."

Five minutes later, they had wandered around the seemingly infinite forest until they reached a silent, colorful area. The grass was soft and flowers lined the trees in a beautiful pattern. Tyro bowed. "You are the son of Blazein. My master speaks highly of him."

"Tell your master that we're grateful for his company," Pyron said. Chamomile blinked. She had never heard Pyron talk so formally before. The bear stifled a laugh as Pyron bowed as well. Then Tyro smiled.

"I was wondering then, if you had powers," the tiger blushed.

"I was going to ask you the same thing!" Pyron laughed, and soon all were laughing, formalness forgotten.

"Well, I have two powers so far, and I can make a cloud appear and blast water. I'll probably learn more though." Pyron looked almost smug.

"I have two powers too!" squealed Tyro, his tail squirming around like a worm. A second later, he checked around to see if anyone was watching his informal behavior. Then he continued in his fun-"I can control and summon ice and I can make force fields." He and Pyron smiled at each other, already becoming the best of friends. Chamomile burst out.

"I can fly!" she said, indignant and almost hurt.

"That's cool. 'Cause I can't fly," said Tyro. He felt sorry that he had hurt the bear's feelings, and as he learned from Gallerite, "A small hurt can cause enemies."

Finally, they all laughed, feeling together and cooperative. Tyro bowed. "I'm going to go check with my master to see if I have any tasks to do. I'll come back soon!" He smiled, glad to have new friends. With another bow, he scattered away.

"Wow. Where do you think he came from?" Chamomile sighed.

"I dunno. But that's strange how he also has powers and a jewel. Hmmm…" Pyron went into deep thought. Chamomile's short attention span let her mind wander and she stared around the "room". A comfy hammock of vines and huge leaves hung from each tree, and Chamomile decided to have fun jumping back and forth from each one. It was a challenge since the landing would swing, and the takeoff was wobbly too. Mainly, she had a lot of fun.

"WHEE!" she hollered, grabbing a vine and swinging right in front of Pyron's face, narrowly missing him. Startled, Pyron's fiery instinct reared up, and with an accidental burst of flame, Chamomile's vine lit up.

"Ooooweee!" she squealed, rubbing her burnt paws and letting go of the vine. She flew through the air and if it weren't for her wings, he would've plummeted to the ground.

With a sigh, blue light aroused in Pyron. "SHU IAQU ORDYH!" He blasted water at the vine before the fire spread too far. Then he hosed Chamomile down, who was dancing around in the water, rinsing her paws. Someone was clapping. They turned around to see Tyro at the entrance.

"That was cool," he said, smiling his intimidating, sharp-toothed grin. "But I could do better. How 'bout some trainin'?" With a nod, Pyron stepped forward, beaming. Chamomile flew up into a hammock and sat down, ready to study each fighter's tactics. "Are you ready?" The tiger's eyes narrowed. "Let's go!"

Ch. 7 Something Fishy's Going Around Here

Tyro took a deep breath, and out sprayed a mist of icy particles. Immediately, Pyron was frozen in a great icy block, but the battle was far from over. With a glass-shattering CRACK, the ice exploded, sending sharp jagged chunks of ice hurtling through the air. Tyro reacted fast and put up a force field around him, which reflected the icy daggers. They dropped harmlessly onto the ground with a small clatter.

Now it was Pyron's turn. He blew fire ferociously at Tyro, who countered with an icy shield. Then Pyron flapped into the air, continuing his blast as an aerial attack. Tyro's force field powers wouldn't let him put up another shield yet, so he dodged amazingly with advanced flips and rolls. Then he went to physical attacks, tackling and clawing at the dragon. Pyron started aerial assaults to avoid being hit by Tyro, shooting up into the air and dive-bombing at the tiger, avoiding his icy bombs every now and then.

With a puff of icy air, a snowball appeared in Tyro's paws. SPLAT! It hit its target, right into Pyron's face, blinding him. The dragon brushed off the snow as fast as possible, the cold stinging his eyes.

During that spare bit of time, Tyro summoned up great icy missiles and hurled them like arrows, straight at Pyron. He ducked, and they narrowly missed, one lucky shot skimming his wings in such a motion that it burned with cold.

Tyro had the advantage now. He raised his paws slowly, as if lifting something extremely heavy. Suddenly, a giant snowball materialized out of thin air, hovering above the tiger. With a thrust of his arms, he threw the snow bomb, which landed with a satisfying plop! The snow flew everywhere, and Tyro barely had enough time to put a force field around himself.

Pyron was cold-too cold. The coldness made his movements slow and sluggish, and after a long time, he wriggled out of the pile. When he finally stuck his head out and into fresh air, he couldn't even move. Then did he realize that the snow must have some type of paralysis effect.

"STOP!" Chamomile shouted, just as Tyro was about to launch another icy bomb. "Someone's here!" She smiled.

Gallerite walked through the door. "I was wondering where you were," he said towards Tyro. "Could you gather more fizzberries? We need more gas." Tyro bowed and left.

"That was a pretty good match." Gallerite continued. He leaned towards Pyron. "Tell Tyro that he's allowed to come with you on your journey."

The little dragon nodded, puzzled. "He has served me for many years. It is time for him to live the way he has lived before. In the great big world beyond." The buck rose and strode away, after taking a small graceful bow towards Pyron. He just sat and stared.

Chamomile felt so left out-she never got to fight, and no one ever told her anything! Finally, she gathered up some courage. Sneaking up on Pyron, she launched a small head butt. The dragon was startled once again and flared, luckily not igniting anything.

"What was that?" he whined, curious.

"Um… um…" Chamomile blushed. "I was wondering if – if… if you could train me. I need to know how to fight too!" She was indignant.

"Of course!" Pyron said. "Why didn't you just ask?" Chamomile felt better instantly, and they started to wrestle a bit, Pyron shouting out tips and techniques every once in a while.

Meanwhile, Tyro dashed through the forest. In his mouth, a basket was dangling, halfway full of fizzberries. He knew this forest well, and although fizzberries were rare, he knew exactly where to find some. He scampered over to a secret area near the borders of the forest, plucking fizzberries, dropping them into his basket, and eating some too. After a while, he looked up, fur matted from the berries' juices. A storm came out of nowhere, lightning zapping through the sky. With a blue flash, shadows were seen all around the forest. Fimmins.

Tyro muffled a scream, knowing what could happen if they heard him. Luckily, the forest's invisibility field was working, so all that the Fimmins saw was a great grassy plain.

"Hut, hut!" the commander Fimmin shouted. "Is this the right area technical advisor?"

"Y-y-yes," the stuttering Fimmin sputtered. "My cal-calculations m-m-m-must be correct. The jewels are here! I've run countless experiments on this location, the Crystals are right in this area! In fact, my sensors have picked up another power source! There is definitely more than one Crystal here!"

The commander looked to the left. The commander looked to the right. Then he started to walk forwards. Soon, he would step past the wall of invisibility! With a squeal, Tyro put up a force field around the Fimmins.

THUMP! The Fimmin stopped. "What…?" He looked ready to burst with anger. Suddenly-FWAP! The Fimmins got squashed together as if an invisible wall was squeezing them in a spherical shape.

Tyro was in panic. Using his mind, he had trapped the Fimmins together, but now he couldn't move far without letting them go! Also, the field would disappear by itself in a while. Tyro needed to tell the others about the Fimmin army, but he couldn't move! But what if… Tyro concentrated as hard as he could, trying to ignore the furious cries of the fish warriors.

Far away, Pyron and Chamomile were busy training. Suddenly-

Pyron! Pyron!

"What?" Pyron said, barely dodging a blow from Chamomile. "Who said my name?"

"Hm? No one said your name," Chamomile panted, still trying to strike at Pyron with everything she had.

"Shh… Listen." Pyron held up a wing to stop Chamomile. He tilted his head. Yes, there it was again-

Pyron! Pyron, help!

"Don't you hear that?" Pyron whispered.

"Hear what?" Chamomile replied, clearly puzzled.

And again-

Pyron! Help! Get Gallerite! Get someone! Hurry! Fimmins!

"Tyro?" Pyron whispered.

"Tyro's here?" Chamomile replied, getting enraged that she had no idea what Pyron was talking about.

"No, I get it now! He can talk to me telepathically!" Hurriedly, Pyron concentrated. Tyro! Where are you?

Pyron! he replied. Here!In a flash, pictures portrayed in Pyron's mind, images showing him where to go.

"Hurry, Chamomile! Follow me!" Pyron leapt up and scampered away, Tyro telepathically leading him the right way.

Hurry! the tiger said. I can't hold them much longer!

'Them' turned out to be the Fimmins, and they were hacking away at the force field. Tyro was trained to resist attacks against his force field, but the strength of the whole army's attacks was too powerful. In a minute or so, Tyro would have to release them. After that, he wouldn't be able to generate another force field until a few minutes passed. Hurry! he cried again.

A second later, Pyron and Chamomile burst from the brush. "Look!" Tyro shouted. "Fimmins!" He pointed towards the area where they were trapped, still ramming at the wall. A split second later, they tumbled out, scrambled and laying upon one another.

"Looks like a battle," Pyron announced, rearing up.

"No! Remember what Alpinus said-avoid fights! We have to retreat!" Chamomile urged. The little bear's eyes were glazed with anxiety, and the Fimmins were rushing up at the invisibility field.

All of a sudden, Gallerite leapt from the bushes.

"Run! I'll hold them off!" He stood up straight. "Remember, I will not die."

"But, but you'll get hurt master!" Tyro almost wailed. "You can't!"

"Hush! I must. You are the ones who will save this planet and Dragollia. Save our two earths. Pain from one person is less than a group of pain and multitudes of people suffering. Now go."

With the last word, Fimmins exploded into the forest.

Ch. 8 The Great Escape

"There they are!" the fish people screeched, pointing at the trio. Their regular bruise colored scales had pink and red blotches of anger scattered around their cheeks. They charged. With a bellow, Gallerite stampeded at the fish warriors. With an upward thrust of his antlers, he sent them flying.

"Hooray!" Chamomile, Pyron, and Tyro whooped. With a ferocious glare in his eyes, Gallerite spoke.

"Go! Run! Go NOW! You too, Tyro. You must go with Pyron to Pacifia. I'll contact you there. Now go!" With a nudge, he sent the trio bumbling off. The Fimmins had gathered themselves up by then and charged at Gallerite.

"This way!" Tyro called, scampering across the roots. Already, a group of Fimmins were tailing them.

"Come on!" Tyro cried, and with that, he lifted up and started flying. Pyron and Chamomile were dumbfounded, but spread their wings and took off.

"How'd you do that? I thought you said you couldn't fly!" Pyron stuttered. Tyro sighed.

"It's the after-effects of the fizzberries. They make you fly with flatulence."

With the last word, Pyron and Chamomile covered their noses, giggling. They started to guffaw, laughing and laughing despite their situation. They jetted forward a few more meters, and then Tyro started slowly descending.

The Fimmins were still chasing them, stumbling over rocks and plants, howling their heads off. When they saw Tyro floating downwards, they gave a hoot of joy, running faster in order to catch the tiger when he arrived on the ground. Suddenly, one threw a spear.

"Watch out!" Pyron cried. He pushed Tyro out of the path of the speeding arrow, but he himself was not so lucky. With a searing pain, the spear pierced the skin of his wing and shot through. He crashed onto the ground, rolling in pain.

Cheers erupted from the Fimmins. Inspired, they started chucking their own spears at them. Tyro landed gently onto the ground, and with a glow from his crystal, he blew a gust of ice at the spears. They froze in midair and then fell to the ground, shattering. The Fimmins unsheathed their swords and ran towards Pyron, who was still laying on the ground. Chamomile zipped forwards and landed on the ground. She took Pyron's left arm and Tyro took the other. Then they scampered through the forest.

"This way!" Tyro yelped, dodging a well-aimed spear. Suddenly, his jewel lit up-he had enough power to make a force field. BAM! The Fimmins slammed against its transparent walls and raged, slashing at the field. Tyro and Chamomile scurried along, still dragging Pyron. They exploded out of the forest.

Tyro was able to find a cave hidden behind a waterfall. They had just reached an empty, grassy plain that included a river and lake. They sat down in the cool, moist cave. With a whimper, Pyron curled onto the ground, bending into strange positions in order to ease the pain. Tyro and Chamomile examined the wound.

There was a gaping hole through Pyron's right wing and from it oozed a clear colored secretion. The dragon winced when they barely touched the area and cried out when Tyro splashed it with water to cleanse it. From Chamomile's pack, they took out the blanket. With a claw, Tyro ripped a strip from it and fastened a makeshift bandage around Pyron's wing. They decided to eat dinner in this cavern and to head east when it was dark to remain undetected by the Fimmins.

Pyron opened his pack and took out three hunks of fish. Thanking them for helping him with his injury, he handed one to each of his friends. He also took a big hungry bite from his own chunk. They toddled over to the waterfall, and using their gourds, caught plenty of water to drink. For a mini-dessert, Pyron took out the sweetest berries. They dug in, enjoying the tender, juicy insides of the fruit.

Since the sun was about two hours away from setting, it wasn't dark yet. They decided to take turns napping and guarding. Pyron slept first, exhausted. Chamomile laid down, but couldn't sleep. Tyro sat nearby, staring out through the rushing waters, every once in a while looking around. "Tyro?" whispered Chamomile.

"Yeah?" he replied, still staring unblinkingly.

"Where did you come from? I mean like where were you born?"

Tyro still stared, but his fur seemed to ripple. "I don't know."

"Me neither," she replied, voice quiet. Pyron was already asleep. She snuggled up between him and Tyro and fell into deep slumber.

An hour or so later, Pyron got up. Tyro was nowhere to be seen. Pyron got a little nervous.

"Tyro?" he whimpered. The cave was quiet. Too quiet. Wait a second-where did the waterfall go?

Crickets were chirping, and Pyron could see bushes, trees, and a dried river. "What?" he cried. "Chamomile?" He turned. There wasn't a trace of her anywhere. Grabbing his backpack, Pyron scurried from the cave, a huge gap where the waterfall should've been.

"Chamomile! Tyro!" he called, but he would've been talking to a tree for all the replies he got. The sky was now dark, and the dark was a very forbidding, choking feeling. An owl swooped out of nowhere, hooting. Pyron nearly jumped out of his wits.

He tried to gather himself together-the best thing to do would be to go to Pacifia as fast as possible. But he couldn't just leave, knowing that Chamomile and Tyro were somewhere out there. And where did the water go?

Smoke was rising from over the hill. Maybe it's a sign from Chamomile or Tyro! Pyron thought. Hurriedly, he scampered over. When he neared, voices were clearly heard.

"We got these two, but we couldn't find the dragon," a nasty voice growled. A reeking, dead fish smell meant only one thing-Fimmins.

"Where is he?" snarled a voice-a voice that Pyron only knew too well, screechy and wicked.

"We couldn't find him-we searched the whole cave. Not a scale in sight."

"Well find him you idiots! You buffoons! Don't you realize that he's worth much more than a flying bear and a Bengal tiger?" Aqueenus screeched, fire exploding from her hands. She seemed to flicker, and then Pyron realized that it was a hologram.

This was the first time Pyron saw Aqueenus so close. She had a thin body with such even proportions, it could've been beautiful. She looked human, except for a long fish tail extruding from her lower back. Her face was the ugliest though, as if she ran into a brick wall- nose upturned like a pig's; puffy, fat, shapeless mounds as cheeks. Her eyes were bloodshot, but where red blood-veins should have been, there was blue.

"I expect you'll find it soon-or else!" She held up a hand that crackled with electricity. The Fimmins backed away, muttering. With a puff of smoke, she disappeared, leaving a smell of very strong perfume. Pyron almost coughed, but he gently fanned it away with his left wing.

"Well?" the commander Fimmin screeched. "START SEARCHING!" The fish people jumped and started to scurry away, grabbing nets and spears. Pyron ducked just in time, right before one saw him.

The commander sat down and lowered his head, thinking. "Our sensors showed the dragon so near, but we couldn't see him! Why?" he growled to himself, thumping a webbed hand down on a stump. He stood up and walked a distance away. Pyron had to sneak after him to see.

"I suppose it's all your fault!" he shrieked. Beyond him was a cage, where Tyro and Chamomile were struggling to get out. Tyro, it seemed, had used his force fields to try to break out. Chamomile was still biting and scratching at the cage and it's lock, while frost particles on the metal indicated that Tyro had tried his ice powers too, to make the bars more fragile.

"What did you do with your friend?" the Fimmin screeched, spit flying onto Chamomile and Tyro. The tiger turned his head in disgust and refused to speak; however, Chamomile was yelling, "I DON'T KNOW! WE DON'T KNOW! LET US GO! YOU EVIL FISHSTICK! YOU FISH FIEND! WE'LL FRY YOU AND COOK YOU IN FRICASSEE! YOU, YOU, you…" Chamomile burst out crying.

It hurt to see them in such misery. Then, Pyron realized that Tyro was calling him with his telepathy. Pyron! Where are you?

Right next to you! the dragon replied. I can see you guys and the Fimmin! What should I do?

I dunno… he answered. Just do something!

So, do you know why the Fimmins couldn't find me?

Pyron, you might not believe it, but we think you can turn invisible!

The dragon gave a shudder and looked down at his body. It was visible.

Are you sure? he inquired.

Yep! One minute you were there, the next, you were gone! Then all the water disappeared, and the Fimmins burst in! They marched over and grabbed us, but they couldn't find you. I think that's 'cause you can turn invisible!

Pyron gave another involuntary shudder.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha!" the Fimmin commander cackled, watching Chamomile's means of escape. "This cage is made of Ictite-a metal completely resistant to rocks, ice, water, fire, force, etc. The only way to get through is to unlock the door. You silly fools, there's no way you can break out!" He gave another wild cackle (This one sounded like MUAHAHAHAHAHA!) and marched down the hill, towards the Fimmin campsite.

As soon as the fish warrior was a speck, Pyron leapt out of his hiding place and scurried over to Tyro and Chamomile.

"Are you guys okay?" he whispered. They nodded.

"How will we get out?" Chamomile cried. "And this cage has an alarm-he made it especially for if you came!"

"Hmm…" Pyron sat down, tapping his head with a wing. (The injured one was drooped over his body, almost like it was dead.)

Tyro flashed his ferocious grin. "I've got and idea!"

Ch. 9 The Road to the Waters

Pyron steadied himself. The water spell's words spun through his head as he repeated them over and over again. Tyro is one smart tiger! He though, sniggering. The dragon remembered his words.

"You know when the water disappeared? Well, the Fimmins used this sucking machine to suck it all up. One drop of that water landed on a Fimmin. His scales started to foam, and he was jumping up and down, screeching his head off. Then he suddenly fainted. I think that Fimmins are weak against water or something!" Pyron grinned again. He poised himself.

With a bounding leap, he jumped out from the rocks. Fire exploded from his mouth and shot at the cage. Tyro put up a force field to protect himself and Chamomile. Instantly, an alarm sprang up. A piercing, wailing sound so disturbing that Pyron almost stopped to clap his hands over his ears.

Howling noises were heard from afar. The Fimmins were coming. Pyron closed his mind. He shielded it from all thoughts. Blank, blank, think blank! he thought urgently.

He was waking, floating, in nothing. White, a little room, a sense of perfection, roundness, a raindrop. Suddenly, a bright light was shining, brighter and brighter. It seemed that someone was whispering words into his ear, familiar words-VANES APPEA ARAT.

Pyron's eyes turned orange, he seemed to start becoming pale. His jewel shone like crazy. Color seemed to drain out of him until only a black outline remained. Then, the black dissolved, and all that remained was his glowing jewel. With a small snap, the light was gone.

A Fimmin marched up, peering around with his gaping yellow eyes. "What was that?" he sneered at Tyro and Chamomile.

"Shu Iaqu Ordyh!" Pyron whispered. Out of nowhere, it seemed, a jet of water issued out and blasted the Fimmin. The fish warrior howled in pain, scales smoking. A second later, he keeled over in faint.

The whole Fimmin army scrambled up, hearing the Fimmin's cries. They stared at the Fimmin on the ground, and then at Tyro and Chamomile, wondering what happened.

"Shu Iaqu Ordyh!" the voice whispered, and a second later, all Fimmins were sprawled on the ground.

Sniffing, Pyron located the cage's keys, attached to a Fimmin. He hurriedly unlocked it, and then whispered to Tyro and Chamomile, "Let's go!" With a soft pop, he was visible again.

It was now pitch black, the darkness unnerving. Pyron, Chamomile, and Tyro crawled warily along the path. After walking about a mile, Pyron spoke.

"It's been quite a day," he sighed. The bandage on his wing was unraveling, and the wound started to hurt again. "I'm tired. I don't want to move anymore." On the last word, he stopped, and flopped onto the ground.

"We need to move fast before the Fimmins wake up," Tyro growled. "Come on. We have no time to waste."

But I'm too-tired," the dragon yawned. Chamomile stifled a yawn too.

"Why don't you use your cloud power? It can carry us, and we can rest our feet," Chamomile muttered sleepily.

"I'll try," Pyron said. "Yuntia Nicai Riaclo!" A swirl of mist scooped up the group. It seemed to blossom and out popped a big puffy cloud. "Let's go…" Pyron barely whispered. The cloud jetted forward with a small ph-ff-btt-t-t noise.

"Can we go faster?" Chamomile sniffed, the cold winds waking her.

"Go cloud!" Pyron said. The puffy mass suddenly zipped forwards, causing Tyro and Chamomile to almost fall off. A sudden puffing noise made Pyron turn around.

"Wheeee!" cried Chamomile, fully awake. She had just spread her wings and was flying next to the cloud. Pyron grinned.

A nice cool breeze wafted between Tyro's fur. He purred, kneading the fluffy cloud.

The same breeze ruffled Pyron's wings. He watched Chamomile soar through the air and wished that his wound would heal faster so he could fly again. He closed his eyes and relaxed. His comfy old cloud was soft and squishy. Pyron fell asleep.

Scree-ee! Scree-ee! A seagull flew over Pyron's head, screeching and scolding. Where am I? The dragon thought.

Something warm and silky was piled under his back. A gentle breeze hovered over. A salty smell and taste was floating everywhere. Suddenly, cold was all over Pyron. He sputtered and coughed, a horrible salty feeling coating his tongue. He opened his eyes-and instantly regretted it. Another cold wave washed over the dragon, stinging his eyes. He stumbled away from the water; his wing injury throbbed like crazy.

When the dragon finally reached dry, warm sand, he opened his smarting eyes.

He was at the beach, Tyro and Chamomile sprawled nearby. Pyron's wing bandage was gone, showing a large, ugly gaping hole in the sinew.

"What happened?" he whispered, words drowned out by the waves and gulls.

Tyro and Chamomile started to stir. Chamomile sat up slowly, as if her body was aching. Tyro jumped up and shook sand from his fur, just like a dog shook water from his fur.

"What happened?" Pyron repeated.

"Oh, oh, phff…" Tyro burst out laughing. "When you fell asleep, the cloud suddenly disappeared. We fell. We would've died if it weren't for Chamomile. She grabbed both of us and flew us over here. Strong, huh?"

"You guys weigh a ton each!" Chamomile spat, stretching her aching joints. "I don't know how I did it!"

Pyron laughed disbelievingly and then sighed. "Does anyone know where we are?"

Chamomile stared about, whistling. Tyro however, smiled his malicious grin. "I was watching where we were the whole time. We were going east. This beach is pretty close to wherever Pacifia is."

"Yes!" Pyron muttered. "Let's go!"

"Um, hello? Remember me?" Chamomile grunted. Pyron laughed. "I can't move a muscle after carrying you guys! And I've been sleeping on rocks. I ache all over!"

"Let's eat a bit of breakfast. Then I'll carry you by cloud." At that, Pyron took out some apples and strawberries. They hungrily munched on the fruit. With a gourd of water, they felt like they ate a very satiating breakfast.

"Come on. We have to go south a bit," Tyro said. After careful consent with the sun, he pointed. "That 'a way!"

"Yuntia Nicai Riaclo," Pyron muttered, packing up his knapsack. A cloud bloomed out of nowhere, taking Chamomile with it.

They walked slowly along the shore, seagulls calling. The salty smell Pyron despised when he was laying in the sand was now a sweet, enjoyable smell. Pure peace, it was, walking by the ocean.

"By the way," Pyron said. "How'd you know where Pacifia lived?"

"Gallerite has told me much about his generation and the Trusted Ones," Tyro said in his austere voice, almost as if Gallerite was nearby, listening. "He told me the locations of all the Trusted Ones-Alpinus in the Valley of Spring, Pacifia near the Pacific Ocean, Fepine in the Artic, and there was one more Trusted One, but we don't have his name or location."

Pyron looked quizzically at Tyro. He quickly continued, "All we know is that he, or she, is a phoenix, and that he helped us with his healing powers, which have very limiting rules that he broke. We think that now he lives back with the other phoenixes in the phoenix world, but we're not sure. Anyways, if he was there, we probably wouldn't be able to find him. So he's not exactly a Trusted One, but he did help us with a big problem."

Pyron nodded, and they continued walking along the beach. It was almost pure peace.

"What else do you know?" Chamomile asked after a while.

"Oh, I know something that'll interest you," Tyro chuckled. "I know…"

BOOM! Thunder roared louder than ten lions. Lightning slapped the sky and licked the waves of the ocean. With a blue flash, shadows lined the ocean waves.

"Fimmins!" Tyro yelped. "Let's go!" They galloped across the shore, screeching figures already cursing and chasing.

"Get on the cloud!" Pyron shouted. With a powerful leap, they jumped onto the puffy thing with Chamomile.

"Go!" Pyron nudged the cloud. It zipped forward so hard that all three had to dig their claws into the billowy mass.

"Where are we going?" Tyro shouted over the hurricane that was now brewing.

"I don't know! You were the one with the directions!" Pyron shouted back. The cloud was now a roller coaster, shaking ad rocking through the wind and rain. War cries were heard, bellowing Fimmins splashing through the storm as if it were nothing.

Suddenly-pop. "Oof!"

"Ack!"

"Ow!"

The cloud abruptly disappeared, and Pyron, Tyro, and Chamomile flopped onto the ground like dead fish.

"What'll we do?" Chamomile gasped, panting away her pain.

Suddenly, the ground gave way. "Help!" Chamomile screamed.

"Ah!" Pyron yelled.

Tyro's eyes bulged with fear, but he did not make a sound.

They fell down, down, down, into complete darkness.

Ch.10 The Trusted One of Water

"Welcome, my friends," a musical voice said. Pyron opened his eyes a bit-and gasped, closing them. He was in water! He was going to suffocate! His cheeks bulged, trying to hold as much air as possible.

"It's all right. You can breathe down here. I gave you and your friends my Aquafin necklaces. They'll let you breathe underwater." Pyron wasn't so sure, but he took a small breath to check. Cool air instantly flowed through his lungs, and Pyron breathed in deeply and gratefully. He opened his eyes, feeling the strange necklace around his throat and the jewel incased, a small, hollow, round crystal with a few drops of water inside. He looked up and saw Tyro and Chamomile staring dumbfounded at something behind him. The dragon turned, and instantly saw what they were looking at. A Fimmin.

Tyro reared up, hissing like a housecat. Chamomile whimpered, but extended her claws out for defense. Pyron merely put more support on his back feet, shifting position to a good pose for action.

"No need to get worried," the Fimmin lightly replied. "I'm on your side."

Tyro narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Why should we trust you?"

"Because I'm with her." A figure moved in the shadows. From the corner of the darkness, a sea turtle swam out. Tyro started.

"It's you!"

The turtle laughed. "Of course it's me. Who else could it be?"

"Um, we don't know who you are…" Chamomile said shyly.

"I am Pacifia, the Trusted One of Water," the turtle said. "But I thought you'd know that by now!"

"Oh!" Pyron exclaimed. "I see! You saved us from the Fimmins!"

"Well, that actually was her," Pacifia replied, motioning at the Fimmin. "She saw you guys first."

"You see, we have this," the Fimmin said, pressing a button n the wall. With a buzzing noise, a huge, flat computer screen veered down. The monitor flickered to life, showing an image of the beach-angry Fimmins marching up and down the shores, searching for any trace of Pyron, Tyro, or Chamomile.

"That's how I saw you," the Fimmin continued.

"By the way, did I introduce you guys? Guess not," Pacifia said. "This is Scalene. She's a spy for us. Scalene, this is Pyron, Chamomile, and Tyro."

"Welcome," the Fimmin beamed.

"Nice to meet you," said Tyro.

"You too," the Fimmin laughed. "Well, I think I have to go now. See you soon!" With a puff of smoke, she was gone.

"What was that?" Chamomile asked.

"Fimmins have the power to teleport," answered Pacifia.

"Oh! So that's how the Fimmins kept finding us," Pyron said.

"Well, they can only teleport to places they've been before. Or they do lots of research on a specific location. Then they can get there."

"Interesting," Chamomile giggled.

"How'd you know our names?" Pyron asked.

"Alpinus told me all about you. That reminds me, I better go tell him that you've arrived safe and sound."

"Alpinus is here?" Pyron looked around.

"No, silly. We have a communicator. I made it myself, and we use it to talk to each other. Over here." The sea turtle swam over, down a hallway. Pyron and the others followed, swimming pitifully compared to the graceful movements Pacifia made.

Beep. Pacifia placed a flipper on a screen. With a humming noise, it lit up. The turtle started to type rapidly.

Pyron took this time to look around. Almost everything seemed to be made of metal, except for a few items. Strange lights and noises turned on and off at random times.

This is cool! Tyro communed to Pyron. He sent back an agreement. The rooms had automatic sliding doors, and almost everything seemed to be running mechanically.

"Done," Pacifia sighed, hitting one last button. A rising sound swooshed upwards as a small bar filled with color. Suddenly, the whole screen turned black.

"Alpinus?" Pacifia asked, tentatively.

A rustle of movement was seen from the corner of the screen. A hawk stumbled towards the center, shuffling around something. Then the bird fluttered over to the screen.

"Pacifia?" a familiar voice inquired.

"Alpinus!" Chamomile joyfully cheered.

"Chamomile? Pyron! You're all right!" the hawk said, a look of relief flooding through his face. He coughed and turned his head away, as if he was ashamed of his outburst. Seeing Tyro for the first time, he asked," Who are you, young one?"

Tyro bowed. "I am Tyro, a servant of Gallerite, the Trusted One of Earth. It is an honor to meet you, Alpinus, Trusted One of Air."

"It is an honor to meet you too," said Alpinus, raising his eyebrows at Tyro's quaintness.

"Well, we have to go now, so bye!" Pacifia said suddenly.

"Uh, bye," Alpinus said. A second later, the screen went blank.

"Whyja do that?" Pyron instantly asked.

"Uh…. Uh… Well, have you ever noticed that Alpinus is a little- well kind of… weird?" Pacifia sort of muttered. Pyron and Chamomile stifled their giggles.

Pacifia was about to reply to their laughter when Tyro burst out, "Can we see Gallerite on this?"

The turtle laughed. "Of course!" She started to type rapidly again. Then she pressed a button. The screen was blank, except for the little bar that filled with color. Then the screen flickered and showed the image of a forest.

"Gallerite!" Tyro called. There was no movement. "Gallerite? Master!" Still nothing but a couple of trees.

"Here, let me move the screen around," Pacifia said, a tinge of worry in her face. She took hold of a small joystick and moved it around. The screen turned, and they could see more trees, some flowers, a thicket, and-the screen moved slowly downwards-a patch of brown moving slowly up and down.

"Master!" Tyro cried, tears appearing in his eyes.

"T-t-t-Tyro?" a weak voice called. The screen widened and a deer was shown, lying on the ground. His fur was ragged, with crusty, brown splotches meaning dried blood. His antlers were chipped from use, and on his white fur were bruise marks. There were also many stab marks around his chest.

Gallerite smiled. "You made it."

"Master!" Tyro sobbed. "You're hurt! Should I come help? You need help!"

"No," Gallerite's eyes flashed sternly, even though all of their dignity was gone. "You must stay with Pyron."

"But master, you're injured!" Tyro cried.

"No." Gallerite said and then groaned, shifting his weight. A horrible red liquid was laying in a puddle beneath him.

Chamomile winced. Tyro still sobbed silently in a corner.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Pacifia asked. Her gentle voice seemed to soothe some of Gallerite's pain.

"I will be soon. After a while, I'll heal. I wish you luck on calling the dragons and defeating Aqueenus. Good luck." The deer smiled weakly, and the screen flickered off.

Tyro burst into tears. "I never should've left him in the first place." His face was a mess of ruffled fur. He sniffed twice and then sat down, tears disappearing into the water they were in.

Pyron felt terrible. Dumb old Aqueenus. If it weren't for her, none of this ever would've happened!

"Hear now," Pacifia said. "Let's go to bed. We have quite a task tomorrow."

She swam out of the room, pressing a button that opened a sliding door. Pyron and Chamomile followed, Tyro lagging behind, seemingly not crying because his tears were dissolving into the water they were in.

They splashed into a completely metallic room, the walls gleaming like silver.

"You may stay here or explore, but don't go past the first corridor. Oh yes, Pyron, come with me. I want to do something about your wing…" The turtle and dragon swam off, leaving a sobbing tiger and a small, lonely bear behind.

Ch. 11 Calling the Dragons

Chamomile snored peacefully in her seaweed bed, all of her aching joints gone.

Pyron snoozed quietly in the corner, his wing completely healed. (Pacifia was amazing with healing.)

Tyro sat in his bed, eyes glowing. Millions of thoughts swam through his head-Why did Gallerite send him with Pyron? Was he all right? What if the Fimmins came again? After all, they've been in our forest; they can teleport there now. What if they captured and tortured Gallerite until he released information about Pyron's location? Why did they want Pyron? His jewel?

The tiger glanced over at the dragon's forehead. The crystal seemed to gleam as he stared. It's no more special than mine, Tyro though bitterly, gnawing at his seaweed bed, a few more tears disintegrating into the water. Then he burst into tears as strange, unfamiliar memories suddenly flooded into his mind. Strange, painful memories. He saw much light, the shape of a dragon, more light, and strange shapes crowding around him. Tyro sobbed and sobbed, finally falling asleep.

"Wake up!" a chiming voice announced. Pyron opened his eyes to see Scalene in the doorway. "Time for breakfast! We have a big day in store for you!"

He jumped out of bed, shaking a seaweed clump off his forehead. He swam rapidly to Scalene, where Tyro and Chamomile were already waiting. "Let's go," Scalene said. They swam gracefully to the kitchen, where Pacifia was rattling pots and pans.

"Eat up!" she said, dumping a squishy, barely gray meatish substance on each of their plates.

"What is it?" Tyro snorted. His eyes were red from crying and need for sleep.

"Crab," Pacifia replied, ignoring Tyro's rudeness.

Pyron licked the unidentified food object, and then, enjoying the seafood taste, gobbled it hungrily up.

Chamomile sniffed it and then threw it into the air, catching it in her mouth.

Tyro sat soberly in his seat.

"Well, as you might know, your current mission is to go to the dragons and ask them to come help us fight and defeat Aqueenus. I've built a machine that will take you to Dragollia, but you may only stay for a limited amount of time before going back to the machine to travel back to Earth. All of you must return-we need every person we can get. Don't stay in Dragollia, no matter what. Earth depends on you," Pacifia sighed. "Simply ask a couple of dragons if they can come to Earth and help us defeat Aqueenus. Ask as many different dragons as possible."

Pyron sat up straight to make himself look brave. Inside, however, he was trembling with anxiety. Back to Dragollia! he thought. Back to home! Will my mom and dad be there?

"Are you finished with breakfast?" Scalene asked. "Let's go."

They swam through a hallway. Water seemed to flow into Scalene's mouth and out her gills.

"Wait a second-I though that Fimmins were weak against water!" Tyro said, finally being distracted from the condition of his master.

"Well, we're not exactly weak against water," Scalene replied. "We're weak against warm water. Any water that's warmer than the temperature of the water you're currently in will make us faint. But right now, this water's the perfect temperature."

Tyro's eyes flashed, and Pyron knew he was storing the info in his mind for later use.

"Here we are," Pacifia announced. "Isn't it beautiful? Took me ten years to build and test completely."

A huge machine was lying in the middle of the room. It looked like a giant heart, pulsing and throbbing. Small wires were sticking up everywhere, and giant pieces of metal were sticking out of the sides like wings.

"The X-Style Hyper-Gravity Speed-of-Light Travel Compartment. Currently only a prototype, as I haven't had the time to test it yet," Pacifia said. Seeing the trio's frightened expressions, she quickly added, "It should work just as well though. I've run many experiments on this machine. It'll work, trust me. You don't have to do anything at all. I control the whole thing from here." She pointed at a huge machine similar to the machine they used to talk to Alpinus and Gallerite.

Pyron simply shrugged. "So what do we do?"

"Here," Pacifia said, throwing a strange device at Pyron. "Use this to contact me. This also tells you how much longer you have until the XSHGSLTC takes off."

Pyron looked at the small gadget. It looked like a portable radio, with a small flashing light in the corner.

"Oookay…" Pyron said. He clipped the communicator onto his backpack. "I'm ready."

"I'd better go check out the Fimmins-see if they have any tricks up their sleeves," said Scalene. "See you guys later!" She vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Step inside, please," Pacifia said.

Tyro walked in first and sat in the very corner, which had a window. Chamomile got in second, sitting in the middle, where she had plenty of room to stretch out. Pyron climbed in last. He sat in the front seat.

"Ready?" Pacifia asked. The door of the XSHGSLTC slammed shut. "Here we go!" She flicked a few keys, pressed a couple of buttons, and pulled a lever. The XSHGSLTC shook rapidly, the trio shaking around inside. Suddenly, the machine vanished.

Pop! Tyro looked out of the window and saw black. Looking around, he saw a small planet with blue, green, and white.

Pacifia's voice crackled into the communicator. "You should be in space right now. The planet you see should be Earth, with clouds, water, and land. It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Pyron crawled over to Tyro and looked out. Chamomile leaned over Pyron's shoulder to see.

It was Earth, a small little ball compared to the vast distance of space. It looked so minute, so sweet. Before Pyron sat back down, he vowed to save that lovely planet.

"Are you ready?" Pacifia's voice crackled. "Hang on tight!" A small beep was heard from the communicator, and then Pyron found himself pressed against his seat as the XSHGSLTC sped across space. Small dots of light flashed by, and Pyron presumed they were starts or planets.

"Currently, you guys are speeding through the Milky Way," Pacifia announced. "This is only the minimum speed. Ready to go faster?"

Pyron could barely open his mouth to speak because of the force of which the ship was traveling. When he did make a noise, it was a small, muffled, helpless squeak. With a small beep!, the ship went even faster, if that was possible. Pyron felt like he was melting into his seat.

"We're still trillions of light years away from Dragollia," Pacifia said. "If we want to get there before next year, we'd better go faster. Are you ready?" Pyron couldn't talk-he couldn't even nod. "Here we go!"

Another beep. Pyron braced himself, but it wasn't enough. Instantly, he was nearly swallowed by his seat. Tyro and Chamomile weren't doing as well though: Chamomile's wings were crumpled in such a way that it looked painful, while Tyro was turning green.

"We're almost there!" Pacifia announced, and Pyron felt the ship slowing. Warm, grateful relief spread through his body. They were so close, but not close enough. A retching sound was heard, and soon, Pyron found himself covered in a warm, disgustingly liquid substance.

"Sorry," Tyro barely whispered, looking as green as ever. It was hard to believe that one who had eaten no breakfast could throw so much out. Another retching sound was heard. Chamomile was on the floor, puke spreading across the XSHGSLTC. Pyron felt nauseous. A sudden jolt, and he himself was on the ground, throwing his stomach out.

The XSHGSLTC slowly descended, hovering slightly from the ground. With a rattling noise, Pyron, Tyro, and Chamomile were dumped onto the ground, covered in barf. The ship itself landed smoothly onto the ground. With a flash, it turned invisible to be undetected by the Fimmins.

Ch. 12 Dragon Hunting

Pyron looked around. He gasped, tears welling in his eyes.

The planet he once knew as Dragollia was now a barren, ugly place. The lush, happy plants were gone, and only ashes and mud were scattered around, dry and full of death.

"Where is everyone?" he choked. Tyro and Chamomile slowly stood up, legs wobbling, disgusting throw-up covering their fur.

"Let's clean this up," Pyron mumbled, shaking himself from his shock. "Shu Iaqu Ordyh!" Water burst from his mouth, washing out the horrible barf aftertaste. The same water rinsed the puke off their bodies. "We'd better try to find someone-"

"Hello?" Pacifia's voice crackled into the communicator. "Sorry about the landing, but it was hard to control. It looks like the Fimmins put some type of field around this planet to try to keep invaders out. But it couldn't stop me! Anyways, how is it?"

"Bad," Pyron answered. "Aqueenus stole all of the planet's beauty."

"I knew she was going to do that," Pacifia sighed. "Well, start searching for survivors. We need at least ten dragons to help us fight off Aqueenus."

"Let's go," Tyro growled. His face had a look of fury on it, and Chamomile was sure he wanted revenge.

They started off through the muck, the mud sucking at their feet. Every step they took created a large SPLOP! noise.

"Any Fimmin within three miles of here would hear us stomping through the forest," Pyron laughed. "Let's travel by cloud…" His jewel gave a flash, and a cloud popped out of nowhere.

"Wow, Pyron! You finally mastered your power!" Tyro said.

"Cool!" he grinned. They jumped onto the cloud, and it glided silently through the swamp.

They had only floated for five minutes when an explosion occurred right in front of them. Mud splattered everywhere, and Pyron squeaked a "Hide!" right before a Fimmin teleported into view, stomping down the path.

"Stupid fish slaves," he growled under his breath. "Dumb dragon warriors. Doesn't anyone know how to follow directions? Now we've lost complete tracks of those Crystals and some unknown object has landed somewhere near here! And I have to investigate it myself!"

Pyron, Tyro, and Chamomile didn't even dare to breathe, huddled behind a bush on the cloud. The Fimmin was so close; Pyron could throw a pebble at it.

Pyron's jewel flashed and his cloud disappeared, dropping Tyro and Chamomile onto the ground. At the same time, water was blasted at the Fimmin. It screamed, and then laughed, standing in Pyron's spray.

"You fools!" he cackled. "We have new waterproof armor! Nothing can stop us now!" He took out a whistle, about to summon the whole Fimmin army to attack the Crystals. Suddenly, Tyro let out a spray of icy mist that incased the Fimmin in a block of ice. Its beady eyes still moved though, staring at them in such a way, Pyron could tell that he was saying, "I'm going to get you someday!"

"Whew," Pyron panted. "That was a bad idea. We'd better go before any other Fimmins find us!" The three scurried along the path-no, the mud and gunk-and waddled through strange swamps and bogs. Tyro led the way, scampering up a hill that had sparse pieces of grass growing on it. A fierce glare shone in the tiger's eyes. Suddenly, he came to a complete stop, staring at something just over the hill.

"Whoa! You guys need to see this!" he whispered franticly at them. They ran up the hill, towards Tyro.

"Creepy…" Pyron and Chamomile whispered in unison.

"I think it's a Fimmin laboratory…" Tyro said in a hushed voice.

They were staring at some type of building sitting in the middle of nowhere. It looked like a giant metal box with such mechanics, it actually challenged Pacifia's hideout. They stared stupidly at the structure. Suddenly, a ten-foot long dragon marched out, peering around. It its claws were many strange gadgets, whirring and flashing.

"Strange…" he muttered, clearly audible to Tyro, Pyron, and Chamomile. "How could a Crystal be here?" The dragon looked around, but couldn't see Pyron, Tyro, or Chamomile, who had ducked out of view. "Oh well…" The dragon turned and marched back inside.

"What should we do?" Pyron hissed after the dragon had disappeared.

"I dunno. We're supposed to talk to dragons and ask them to come help us fight Aqueenus. But it looks like they work for Aqueenus!" Tyro hissed back.

"I'm going to call Pacifia. She'll tell us what to do." Pyron unclipped the communicator from his pack. Flashing numbers were displayed on the screen-2:36. "Uh, does anyone know how this thing works?" he asked, shaking the gadget.

"You know that I can hear every word you guys say and hear, right?" Pacifia's voice flowed through the device. "Anyways… I think you guys should go into that building thing. If there are dragons in there, it's worth a shot. They were probably threatened or blackmailed into working for Aqueenus, not working for her on their own free wills. Oh yeah-you guys know that you have two hours and forty-two minutes left before the XSHGSLTC takes off. That's what those flashing numbers stand for."

"Um, okay," Pyron answered. "Then we'd better move quickly." He moved an inch forward and then stopped, hesitant, afraid of what he might find in the laboratory. Tyro didn't move either.

"Oh, you chickens! What are you afraid of?" Chamomile scampered towards the building. Pyron and Tyro walked slowly behind, lagging along. "C'mon ya slowpokes! There's nothing here but mud!"

Suddenly, the ground was shaking. Chamomile stumbled and fell. Pyron and Tyro stood still. The ground shook harder and harder. An earthquake?

A cloud of dust as rising in the distance. Pyron strained his neck to se what was coming. The first… things were rising from the dust. It was… a… an army of dragons!

"AHH!" Chamomile screamed. She huddled on the ground, waiting to be trampled. Out of nowhere, a horrible noise rang out. An alarm-the same ugly sound on the cage that Tyro and Chamomile were captured in!

A second later, Fimmins and dragons poured out of the building. They all seemed to have blue wristbands around their right arms. The stampede of dragons didn't have any wristbands at alls.

"What's this?" a Fimmin shouted, marching up to the front of the blue wristbands. The commander Fimmin. "Crystals! It's the Crystals! Get them!" he barked at the Fimmins. Then he noticed the non-wristbands, still stampeding towards the building, rushing up at alls sides. "Ack! No! Forget that! It's The Rebellion! ATTACK THEM, MY ARMY! DESTORY THEM ALL!"

The blue-wristbands charged at the non-wristbands, Fimmins unsheathing swords and dragons breathing fire. The opposing dragons stampeded forwards while blasting fireballs, attacking in a phalanx.

Pyron and Chamomile squealed. They grabbed Tyro and soared into the sky. Suddenly, a huge dragon swooped up into the air and snatched them up. They screamed, trying to break out of the dragon's rock-hard talons, but it was no use. All three of them together were scarcely as big as one of the dragon's talons. It was a cave of darkness with no exit.

Explosions were heard, distant, becoming softer and softer. Pyron felt his stomach drop-the dragon was flying into the air. Suddenly, an intensifying heat flared up near him. Pyron could feel the energy pounding at the huge dragon's scales. In fact, the heat was so strong, it was singeing even Pyron's scales. Something was shooting fire at the giant dragon.

A deep, deafening roar was heard, rumbling around Pyron's back. He realized that it was the big dragon's roar of rage at whoever was shooting fire at him. He felt heat erupt from the dragon carrying them, felt the blast leaving its mouth. Pyron could almost taste the ashy taste of fire leaving his own mouth, as if he was that dragon holding them.

The dragon flew on, away from any disturbances. It had become deathly silent, and where Pyron, Tyro, and Chamomile were, it was deathly dark.

Pyron's stomach dropped to his feet again. The dragon was descending, quietly, as if not to disturb anything. With a soft bump, it landed. IT was so dark, Pyron didn't even notice that the dragon placed them on the ground.

Fwoosh! Pyron was temporarily blinded. Next to him, Chamomile let out a whimper. He soon realized that the dragon had started a fire, lighting up the huge cave they were in. The ends of the cave were so far, Pyron couldn't even see them, and the roof of the cave went way beyond the large dragon's head.

"State you name and companions'," a very loud, deep voice rumbled, crawling out from the big dragon's throat.

"I… I… I'm Pyron Crystal…" he squeaked. "This is… is… Chamomile, and this is… Tyro…." Pyron sat meekly on the ground, staring with wide eyes at the dragon that was a thousand times larger than himself.

"I am Buryn," the huge dragon erupted, smoke snorting out of his nostrils. "What business do you have interrupting our siege? A dragon your age should be back here, at our haven. Why were you out there, accompanied by two strange Earth animals whom you call Chamomile and Tyro?" Flame was squirting out of Buryn's mouth at every word.

"I… I…" Words failed him. Pyron sat, open mouthed, staring at the enormous dragon.

"He's not from your haven. He's with us! We've come from Earth to ask you to help us fight Aqueenus!" Tyro's minute voice squeaked at the dragon. A humorous gust of smoke puffed out of Buryn's nostrils.

"Why should I trust you, then? And why would I come with you? And why would you trust me? What if I told you that I worked for Aqueenus?"

Chamomile and Pyron glared at Tyro for releasing so much information to someone who could possibly be an enemy. Tyro, however, remained unfeeling, a smug look on his face.

"You're on our side," the tiger announced boldly. "Since the dragons with blue wristbands were with Fimmins, and the dragons with no wristbands were against them, and since you have no wristband, you're against the Fimmins. Secondly, you were talking about a haven. This cave is obviously a shielded hiding place, undetectable by the blue wristbands." Tyro sat back, leaning against the wall of the cave, arms crossed.

Ch. 13 Questions and Answers

"Well," the dragon said. "That was pretty well said. But still, why should you trust me? What if I merely took of my wristband that marked me as a traitor?"

Pyron and Chamomile glared again. Tyro looked even more smug, if that was possible.

"Secondly," he continued. "My master knows you personally. Buryn the Great, Buryn the Mighty, the leader of the dragon army."

Chamomile and Pyron gaped open-mouthed at Tyro. Buryn let out a couple of deep chuckles. "Who is your master, young one?"

"Gallerite, the Trusted One of Earth," Tyro announced with pride; however, his voice wavered, remembering his master's vulnerability to attacks.

"A Trusted One, eh?" Buryn chuckled. "And not just any Trusted One, but Gallerite. Good times, good times… But anyways, why should I trust this little dragon over here?" He motioned at Pyron.

"Do you even know who he is?" Tyro burst, pointing at Pyron. "This is Pyron Crystal! The son of Pyranees Crystal and the great Blazein Crystal!" Tyro stopped there, panting.

Buryn had a very humorous look on his face. "The great Blazein Crystal?" he scoffed. "You mean the weak, cowardly Blazein Crystal!"

"What?" Pyron and Tyro cried at the same time.

"B-b-but, but…" Chamomile stuttered.

Buryn took a deep breath. "The day Aqueenus attacked, a few five years ago, Blazein led the army. I was second-in-command. That day, he was confident, proud, full of dignity. They attacked, with Blazein going straight for Aqueenus. I, myself, was standing next to him, battling off about fifty Fimmins. There was a great battle with a lot of strange, ancient dragon magic. Finally, Aqueenus knocked him down with some strange kind of lighting. While he was trying to get up, she summoned another sort of lightning to hold him down. Then she started some strange sort of spell. I remember her screeching about crystals and power… The dragon crystal that was with Blazein started to glow… Aqueenus's voice was sharp and ragged, like some sort of needles pricking her throat." Buryn shuddered at the thought.

"When she cast the spell, Blazein… I don't know how to explain it… He… erupted, and Fimmins were flying into the air. He seemed to have disappeared, but I saw the last of him. I saw his tail turning a corner about a hundred feet away. Don't ask me how he got there so fast; I don't know anything about ancient dragon magic. No one has seen him since."

The cave seemed to darken when Buryn finished his story. Tyro's eyes were filling with tears. "B-b-but, the stories I've always heard… the things he did… why… how…"

"No one knows why he left, but he hasn't been heard from since then."

Now Pyron's eyes were filling with tears. His father was gone. "M-my mother! Do you know where she is?"

Buryn's eyes turned somber. "Alas," he replied. "She was taken by Aqueenus herself."

Pyron let out a whimper-he was alone, without a family. Chamomile seemed to know what he was thinking.

"We're still with you," she whispered.

"Anyways," Buryn continued. "What did happen with you? How did you escape Aqueenus when your mother and father were scattered? Why weren't you heard from for ten years?"

"Ten years? But Aqueenus attacked only a few months ago!"

"A few months ago? That was over ten years ago! Where have you been?"

Pyron let out a yelp. "You're right. Sheesh! I haven't even noticed-I'm about ten years old now, but when I was in Dragollia, I was only a fledgling!"

"So then what happened?"

"Well, my mom took something out of a Powder Tree and blew it at me. The next thing I knew, I was in Earth," Pyron said.

"Ah… A Timeport spell… Another type of ancient dragon magic, only this one is highly dangerous… messing around with time and teleportation… but of course, your mother was a very advanced dragon spell caster. She was almost more advanced than me!" Buryn seemed to savor an old memory. "She did seem to have some knowledge for ancient dragon magic, while I only knew about regular dragon magic…"

While Buryn muttered on, Tyro's eyes flashed, and Pyron knew he was remembering the huge dragon's words. Chamomile was still confused though.

"So what you're saying is that Pyron was really young, his mom used some kind of magic you don't know much about, and now he's on Earth, ten years old? He somehow skipped ten years? How?"

"Just ancient nature magic," Buryn replied. "We dragons are very accommodating to the world that we live in, so Draconicus shared its secrets with some of our dragon ancestors. Most of that magic was forgotten, but Pyranees, Pyron's mother, always studied this sort of material."

"Oookay…." Chamomile goggled, still mystified at dragon magic.

"So, about Aqueenus and the Fimmins… They had dragons working for them. You said they were traitors?" Tyro asked.

"Ah… yes," Buryn answered. "They were traitors. Probably amazed at Aqueenus's powers. May I add that she stole those powers? Anyways, some of those dragons may have even been afraid of Aqueenus. So afraid that they joined her side to keep from harm."

"So they weren't forced to join," Tyro retorted. "They joined the evil side on their own free will."

"I'm afraid so," Buryn sighed. "Afraid or amazed, they joined her side."

"Anyways, will you come to Earth and help us defeat Aqueenus?" Pacifia's voice suddenly crackled through the communicator. Buryn jumped in panic before he realized who was talking.

"Er…" Buryn looked ashamed. "I am sorry, but no. My duty is to Draconicus, and I must help my people gain back rule over this planet. So far, we've conquered back one-fourth of the planet. Anyways," he said, lowering his voice into a whisper. "I am afraid that my dragon spell caster army and I are not powerful enough t stop Aqueenus."

"But you can't be afraid!" Tyro countered. "You're huge! You have a whole army of dragons under your command! If you're not afraid, you could easily defeat her!"

"I… I… I just can't," he sighed in defeat. He sat down, creating a small earthquake under Pyron's feet. "We can't do anything."

"Well, at least let us help you," Pyron said. He stood up. "Better to do something against Aqueenus rather than nothing at all." Tyro and Chamomile nodded in agreement.

"We'll stop at least one of Aqueenus's plans!" Chamomile announced.

"Yes," Pacifia's voice came out from the device. "You should do it."

"All right," Buryn confirmed. "I'll let you help. But what can you do?"

"We can fight!" Pyron, Chamomile, and Tyro all said at the same time.

"You have one hour and thirty-seven minutes left," Pacifia said, displaying the numbers 1:37. "When you have half an hour left, you must leave to find the XSHGSLTC."

"Okay!" Pyron said excitedly. "Let's get started!"

"Well…" Buryn exclaimed, quite surprised. "Let's see what we should do… Hmm…" He snorted out smoke, thinking hard. "Well, first, we'd better check on the siege. I don't know how well our soldiers are… Let's go see what's happening back there."

"Okay, let's go!" Chamomile squealed, ready for some type of action against Aqueenus.

They flew off, flapping their wings, and Tyro floating on the cloud. Suddenly, Pyron squealed, "Look!" He pointed towards the distance. Straining her neck, Chamomile finally saw what Pyron was pointing at. Just beyond the horizon, a patch of green was shown, full of joviality.

"It's the land we've conquered back," Buryn said, beaming happily at the sight. "Our best spell casters have created an enchantment that blocks Fimmins and those traitor dragons from entering. It was a hard spell to create, but at least it works. But we must be careful not to let in any Fimmins, or else they'll be able to teleport in once more."

They flew on, Pyron, Chamomile, and Tyro struggling to catch up with Buryn's giant wing strokes. Deciding that flying was useless, Chamomile and Pyron hopped onto the cloud with Tyro. Pyron commanded it to go the fastest speed. Eyes watering, they managed to go at Buryn's pace.

"You know, I'm actually going my slowest speed," rumbled Buryn, a waft of humorous smoke drifting out of his nostrils. "At this rate, we'll never make it in time. Climb aboard!" He motioned for the trio to hop into his hands. Cloud disappearing, Pyron, Tyro, and Chamomile scrambled in through Buryn's talons. With a heart stopping leap, Buryn flew into the air.

Pyron was in the same position he was in last time: trapped in a giant dragon's claws. Only this time, he didn't feel the least bit afraid. It was amazing-he could feel how fast Buryn was moving. It was almost like traveling in the XSHGSLTC! Glee filled Pyron's stomach, and he felt as if tiny electric jolts were sparking in his blood cells.

After a while, Pyron's stomach squirmed. Buryn was descending. With a strange fluttering movement, he dropped to the ground on two legs. Releasing Pyron, Tyro, and Chamomile, he went crashing down on all fours. Pyron was amazed that such a huge, powerful dragon could be afraid of Aqueenus, while he wasn't. Then Pyron remembered that she had chased away Blazein and captured Pyranees. The happy jolts Pyron felt when flying suddenly changed into sad and angry jolts. Suddenly, Pyron was afraid.

"It's quiet… too quiet…" Tyro whispered. They followed Buryn silently to the cliff. It was amazing to Chamomile how such a large creature could move so silently. She, Pyron, and Tyro crept silently after Buryn. When they reached the top, they stared down in horror. Chamomile muffled a small scream.

The non-wrist banded dragons were being pinned to the ground by some type of blue light that was being cast by the Fimmins. Even the leafless trees that were growing unwillingly in the muddy ground were being bent down by the blue light, cracking in its force. The dragons with wristbands were smiling triumphantly, flexing their wings with power, and talking to each other in quiet, casual voices.

"What'll we do?" Tyro hissed.

"I don't know," Buryn rumbled.

Ch. 14 Battle and Rescue

Buryn, Pyron, Tyro, and Chamomile sat together under a Powder Tree. A light wind blew some powder into Tyro's face. He sneezed a couple of times before finally clearing his throat.

"I think," the tiger said. "we should go and break up those Fimmins. Once we mess them up, they won't be able to cast their spell anymore. Then our dragons will be set free to fight off the other dragons while we take care of the Fimmins!"

"But… the Fimmins are directly in league with Aqueenus! What if she comes?" Buryn growled. "Then we'd basically be fried Yean Stalks!"

"There are times like these when the only things we can do are to be brave and have hope," Pyron announced. "With these two things, we can do anything."

"You do remind me remarkably of Blazein. Your attitude matches his exactly," Buryn sighed. "Once, Blazein was my master. He was the bravest of them all, until Aqueenus came. Suddenly, he wasn't himself anymore. Aqueenus did something to him, but I don't know what…"

"He was your master?" Tyro suddenly asked. "My master was hurt by Aqueenus too. Gallerite was also one of Blazein's friends."

Buryn held a grim expression, a knowledgeable look clouding his face. "No wonder…" he murmured.

"So…" Pyron began. Another breeze blew, flittering through the grass. "I personally think that we should go ahead and attack the Fimmins. Surprise attack. We can just burst out of nowhere and give them everything we've got!" Pyron stood up.

"Well.. maybe, since we do have the element of surprise…" Buryn muttered. "All right…"

"Yay!" squealed Tyro. "Let's go kick some Fimmin butt!"

Pyron, Tyro, Chamomile, and Buryn crept towards the cliff. Looking down, they saw Fimmins marching back and forth, as if waiting for something.

"It's like they're waiting for us!" Chamomile squeaked. "What if it's an ambush?"

"Who cares?" Tyro whispered. "They won't know exactly when we choose to attack. We still have the element of surprise!"

"Ready?" Pyron asked. "Go!"

With a ROAR!, Buryn leapt off the cliff, flames unfurling from his mouth. The Fimmins screeched wildly, probably not expecting an attack from such a huge dragon. Immediately, the wrist banded dragons leaped up, flaming at Buryn. He countered with a raging firestorm as big as a small forest fire.

Tyro attacked with an opposite element. Throwing his paralyzing snowballs, Fimmins were stopping in their tracks, glaring furiously at the tiger. He blew ice over their heads, pounding them down with hailstones.

Pyron leaped off the cliff. His eyes turned white. With "NIBE UXI CEZE!", ice like Tyro's exploded from his mouth, coating his tongue with icy particles. The Fimmins froze, just like what Tyro had done.

"Pyron!" Tyro cried, full of glee. "Let's do this!" Back to back, they spun around, creating a hurricane of ice. Fimmins were knocked over, flying around, turning into giant blocks of ice.

Chamomile soared off the cliff. She ran like fury, knocking over a whole row of Fimmins as if they were bowling pins.

"Yeah!" Tyro let out a shout of joy. "Party!"

It was like a party-They were attacking the Fimmins so hard, it was almost too easy! Fimmin after Fimmin was knocked over or frozen. Dragons were slowly getting up. But they were still on the ground. Why?

Suddenly, the sky turned darker. Strange chanting was heard. Over the closest hill, thousands of small dots were pouring over. Fimmins! Suddenly, blue light was released everywhere. Dragons were pummeled to the ground.

Before he knew it, Pyron was being forced down by some strange blue light. Wrenching his jaws apart, he somehow managed to exclaim, "NIBE UXI CEZE!"

Frosty particles exploded from his mouth, freezing his teeth, but the icy blast floated gently down, two inches in front of him like snowflakes. "No!" he managed to gasp, right before the Fimmins recast their spell. He was suddenly pressed down with such a strong force, it was like the XSHGSLTC's fastest speed-times a hundred! He could almost hear his bones cracking at the force; he willed himself not to cry out in pain.

Next to Pyron, Buryn and Chamomile lay on the ground, the strange blue light pressing them. Tears were forming in the bear's eyes, and Buryn's face had a look of helplessness in them. Pyron somehow managed to turn his head around.

On the other side, Tyro was still standing up; he had deflected the Fimmin's spells with his force field, but he was struggling to keep it up. Already, the field's walls were shrinking, Tyro panting in effort. A Fimmin marched up, unsheathing a sword. Lifting it up, he swung it down heavily onto the force field. With a sound half like a bell toll, half like an explosion, Tyro's force field completely disappeared; with a small squeal, Tyro was hurtling completely off the cliff.

"Tyro!" Chamomile choked, the force of the spell rendering her useless. Hearing her melancholy voice, Pyron threw himself forward impetuously, fighting off the spell. He somehow reached the edge of the cliff. Looking down, he saw Tyro barely hanging on to a branch, blue light still pushing him and the branch down. Pebbles and rocks tumbled down the side of the cliff, splashing into the churning, rocky river below.

"T-t-tyro!" Pyron choked. Reaching down, he tried to grab Tyro, but he was too far down. Plus, the force of the spell was precariously pushing Pyron off the cliff. He scooted a bit backwards.

"Are- you- guys- okay…?" Pacifia's voice even came out slow and muffled. "You- only- have- forty- seven- minutes- left…!"

A sudden CRACK! and the branch split cleanly in half, sending Tyro to his doom. "TYRO!" Chamomile managed to sob, gagging.

A splash! Was heard, and Chamomile closed her eyes. Anger surged through Pyron's body.

Suddenly, a strange shape sped past them, whizzing as fast as a bullet. It seemed to grasp some of the Fimmins' spell, as the object had a tinge of blue. It hurtled down the side of the cliff. A second later, the blur was back, dropping a scared, dripping wet figure next to them. A small white Bengal tiger was coughing out water, standing in the blue glow of the Fimmins' spell. "Tyro?" Pyron gaped, and then gasped, staring at the figure behind them.

A dragon was standing in front of them all, growing bigger and bigger. Soon, it was ten times the size of Buryn. Easily fighting off the Fimmins' spell, it took giant steps, creating mini-earthquakes and small canyons. The Fimmins fell over at once, quaking in fear. Even the blue-wrist banded dragons were scared stiff. The spell completely stopped, and Pyron lay on the ground for a moment, freed of the blue light.

The huge dragon gave a deafening roar. Everything stopped in fear. Then the dragon shrunk back to its original size. Sunlight bounced off its forehead, something shiny reflecting the light. Suddenly, the dragon soared into the air, instantly going faster than a jet plane. Pyron watched it until he couldn't see it anymore. He was still in his daze when everyone else stood up. Pyron was still staring at the sky when a raging war took place between the wrist banded warriors and the non-wrist banded. Finally, Pyron stood up. Still facing the sky, Pyron let out a whisper, hoping with all his might that the mysterious dragon would hear.

"Thanks, Dad."

"ROWR!" Tyro sprayed a big blast of icy wind. The remaining Fimmins froze into solid blocks of ice.

"That's all of them," Buryn happily announced. He and the other dragon spell casters quickly started a spell. Muttering mysterious words, the blue-wrist banded Fimmins and dragons were cast away into the distance. With a flash, flowers and grass bloomed from the mud, and trees sprouted full leaves. The sky turned clear and a small rainbow sported out from behind a cloud.

"That's that," Chamomile sighed. "Thanks to that dragon." She sank slowly to the ground, exhausted.

"Pyron! Tyro! Chamomile!" Pacifia's voice exploded from the communicator. "I've been trying to reach you for ages! The XSHGSLTC is going to leave in twenty minutes! I've already lifted the invisibility field!"

"Eeep!" Pyron squealed. "Come on guys, we've got to go!" Tyro and Chamomile came running over.

"Pyron," Buryn said in his deep voice. "I have to thank you and your friends. And whoever that mysterious dragon was. Now, we've conquered back more land for Draconicus." He gave a small bow to them, who returned it.

Echoes of "Bye!" were heard all around from the dragon spell caster army. Pyron held back a sniff. He was leaving Draconicus again. "Let's go," he said to Tyro and Chamomile in an unsteady voice. Waving over their shoulders and calling goodbyes, they scrambled over the hills and through the forest they had first com through. The swamps and bogs had turned back into bubbling brooks and rushing streams. The trees were at full growth again.

"Hurry!" Pacifia's voice came again. "Only fifteen minutes left now!"

Pyron felt a tinge of worry. "Hop on!" he shouted, summoning a cloud. It went full speed, dodging trees and logs.

"There it is!" Tyro cried, pointing at a glint of silver in the distance. They sped on, bursting out of the forest.

"Go, go, go!" Pyron shouted, jumping off the cloud and skirting through the grass. Tyro and Chamomile followed, cloud disappearing.

Although the XSHGSLTC looked close, it was very far away. After running an endless distance, they were finally ten steps away from the ship. Out of breath, they stopped for a while, panting and panting.

"We should've taken the cloud for the rest of the way," Chamomile wheezed. The other two nodded.

"Five minutes left," Pacifia announced from the communicator.

"Good bye!" Pyron suddenly yelled into the air of Draconicus.

"Who ya talkin' to?" Tyro inquired.

"Oh, just someone," Pyron replied. Chamomile and Tyro shrugged at each other. Then, something seemed to flash through the forest. There was something or someone there.

"Hold this," Pyron said, slipping off his knapsack and the communicator. He handed them to Tyro. "I'll be right back." Tyro had a puzzled look on his face, but took the items.

"Hey, you!" Pyron shouted. He scampered towards the forest.

"Pyron!" Chamomile cried. "The XSHGSLTC's going to leave! Come back!"

Pyron stopped, still facing the forest. Now there was no movement. Deciding it was useless, he turned around. Chamomile and Tyro were already boarding the XSHGSLTC.

Suddenly, the ship stared to shake. "Pyron! We're taking off!" Tyro yelled.

The little dragon spread his wings and was soon airborne, flying like fury towards the ship.

"Hurry!" Chamomile screamed; the XSHGSLTC was hovering into the air.

"Here!" Pyron cried, screeching to a stop in front of the machine. He grabbed onto the leg of the XSHGSLTC.

"Pyron, get on!" Pacifia's voice came out from the communicator that was now in Tyro's hands. "I can't control the takeoff! There's a small glitch in the program! The door's closing!"

Suddenly, the machine blasted off towards space. Chamomile and Tyro watched in horror as Pyron was forced from the ship, tumbling away to the ground with wide, scared eyes.

Ch. 15 The Trusted One of Snow

"Pyron!" Chamomile squealed. She saw the scared figure of a dragon drop slowly down, back to the ground of Draconicus. "We have to go back!"

"No, it's too late," Pacifia's voice came from the device. "I can't control the machine any longer. Come back first. Then we'll plan something."

Tyro was furious. Pyron tried everything he could to save me, but all I did was watch him fall!

"It's no use," Pacifia said, as if reading Tyro's mind. "You couldn't have done anything." There were a few minutes of pure quiet.

"Wait…" Tyro suddenly said. He perked up an ear.

Tyro! Pyron's voice echoed in Tyro's ears and mind.

Pyron! Are you all right?

Yeah, I'm okay. How 'bout you guys?

We're good. As soon as we get back to Earth, we're going to turn around and get back to Draconicus.

It's okay, Pyron sent. I've just reached Buryn and he's going to get his spell casters to make a spell that will send me back. Just wait for a while. I'll be back soon!

"Okay, forget it. Pyron's going back by himself!" Tyro felt light-hearted again. "It's okay. Buryn's spell casters are going to do it."

"What?" Pacifia practically screamed. "They can't do that! The spell that they made… that one that prevents Fimmins from entering. Well, it prevents any traveling spells from working! Tell him not to do it unless their in Fimmin territory! Something terrible could happen!"

Pyron! Tyro sent. Don't do it! That spell's not going to work! It's going to do something weird!

Too late… Pyron grimly sent. Uh, oh! Whoa! That was the last word Tyro heard.

"He's gone!" Tyro groaned. Pyron! Pyron! he sent.

There was no reply.

"Oh, no!" Tyro gasped. "He's not answering! What do you think happened to him?"

"I dunno," Chamomile dully announced. "What'll we do?"

"Come back first," Pacifia said. "I'm making the XSHGSLTC go Hyper speed." A beep was heard, and then Chamomile was pressed to her seat. This time, the feeling was worse- her worry for Pyron adding more emptiness to the feel of being pushed into her seat.

A few minutes later the XSHGSLTC landed gently into Pacifia's landing base. "Are you guys all right?" Pacifia asked, swimming out to meet them.

"Yeah," Chamomile muttered. "What should we do?"

"I've thought about it a bit. I'm going to send you guys back to Draconicus. Then you can talk to Buryn and his spell casters. If they give me the right information, I can send you guys to wherever Pyron was sent to!"

"You know how to do that?" Tyro asked disbelievingly, climbing out of the XSHGSLTC.

"I'm pretty sure I can," Pacifia indigently said.

Suddenly, a strange noise rang out. BEEP-DO-BEEP! BEEP-DO-BEEP!

"What's that?" Chamomile asked in a panicked voice.

"Noting to worry about," Pacifia gently said. "A Trusted One is trying to contact me. Come, I'll show you."

Doubtfully, Tyro swam after her. Chamomile followed, thinking. Why are we wasting time to talk to some Trusted One? Shouldn't we hurry and go save Pyron?

As if she had read Chamomile's mind, Pacifia said, "The Trusted One may have some information about Pyron's location."

Soon, they were in the room that they used to talk to Gallerite and Alpinus. BEEP-DO-BEEP! BEEP-DO-BEEP!

A small red light was flashing in the corner of the room.

"That means it's urgent," Pacifia said with a tinge of worry in her face.

Beep! The screen flashed on. A small, round head was on the screen. Its eyes were large and round, and it had a beak.

"Hello? Hello? Is this thing on?" the creature asked, tapping the screen. Tyro thought he saw a glint of silver flash on its forehead.

"That's a Trusted One?" Chamomile whispered to Pacifia.

"No…" Pacifia said with a frown. "Uh… hi?" she asked the creature on the screen. "Who are you?"

"Oh!" the animal gasped. It backed away from the screen. Now Chamomile gasped. The creature was a penguin!

"My name is Sesone!" the penguin boldly announced. "I'm representing my master, Fepine-the Trusted One of Snow. Are you Pacifia, Trusted One of Water?"

A look of understanding dawned on Pacifia's face. "Yes, that' me. How's your master? What does she want?"

The penguin frowned. "She's not so good at the moment," she said. "Here, take a look." The penguin took the screen and shifted it. Suddenly, red and white was plainly seen on a lump moving up and down.

"Fepine!" Pacifia cried. Chamomile gasped again. The red and white lump was a fox-an Artic fox-bleeding profusely onto the pure white snow.

"Pacifia?" the fox panted. She tried to get up, but fell limply to the ground. Sesone quickly rushed to her side.

"What happened?" Pacifia asked.

"Sesone, you tell them…" Fepine panted.

"Well…" she started. "A bunch of Fimmins came out of nowhere. They started to attack us. Fepine made me hide while she fought them off. They were all muttering about crystals and jewels and stuff…"

Once more, Tyro glanced at the penguin's forehead. There-a crystal. He wasn't imagining it.

"One of them almost got me, but I blasted him away like this!" Sesone rubbed her hands together, creating a transparent, whirling ball. She threw it, and snow flew everywhere.

"Air," Fepine grinned weakly. She moaned, shifting hr weight. "I was outnumbered, and they kept attacking me. I don't know when they left, but it was probably after they couldn't find Sesone. But they may come back any time!"

The fox lay still for a moment, panting heavily. More blood poured out of her wounds, and Chamomile grimaced.

"That's why I'm sending Sesone to you." Fepine finished dramatically.

"What?" Sesone practically screamed. Tyro immediately supposed that the fox hadn't told her about this yet.

"I can't leave you like this!" Sesone nearly sobbed. "Y-y-you're-"

"I'm perfectly fine by myself," Fepine snapped in a soft voice. "I have to protect you from the Fimmins." Fepine paused for a moment, taking several shallow breaths. She closed her eyes for a few moments.

Tyro had the fleeting memory of himself crying over Gallerite. He turned his head away in shame.

"The Fimmins could come back at any time. I won't let them get you." Fepine looked at Sesone with a delicate, caring look in her eyes. "Go with them to be safe."

"But what do those Fimmins even want with me?" Sesone half-sobbed.

"It's what Aqueenus wants with you," Pacifia said into the screen. "Your powers."

Sesone blinked rather dejectedly as she wiped her eyes with a wing.

"Scalene!" Pacifia suddenly called. The Fimmin glided into their room a few seconds later. "Do you know how to get to Fepine and Sesone?" The turtle pointed at the Arctic scene where the two laid. Scalene nodded.

"Bring Sesone back here." Scalene disappeared in a small wisp of smoke mixed with a bit of blue light. Chamomile watched in amazement as more smoke was appearing on the screen in the area next to Sesone. In a blue flash, the Fimmin was in plain view, but Sesone didn't look the least bit intimidated, so Chamomile assumed that she already knew that Scalene was a spy for them.

"Let's go," she whispered to Sesone, holding out a webbed hand. Although she didn't refuse, Sesone didn't look the least bit happy when she took Scalene's hand. They disappeared into more smoke and blue light and reappeared next to Tyro in another jet of light and smoke.

Sesone looked stunned-probably amazed at the feel of teleporting, but then choked, having not been ready for Pacifia's water filled home. Quickly, Scalene pulled another magical Aquafin necklace from her pocket and placed it around the penguin's neck. The look on her face turned from panic to relief, but immediately turned into a look of disgust. The penguin stared at the image of Fepine on the screen and a few tears started gathering in her eyes again. Tyro turned away, not wanting to relive his own pain.

"I'll be all right," Fepine said. "You'd better be, too." The screen flickered off.

"Argh!" Chamomile cried. "Why are all the Trusted Ones being attacked?"

"We'd better check on the other Trusted Ones," Pacifia said, a grim look on her face. "I'll check on Alpinus first." She turned and started typing on her keyboard. Chamomile sat down. She breathed in deeply, her breath fluttering the tuft of fur between her ears. Tyro wondered what she was thinking about. She turned and looked at Sesone. She was still staring nervously at the screen. I wonder… Tyro suddenly thought.

Hello? Sesone? Can you her me? Tyro sent.

The penguin jumped a clear five inches off the ground and looked around nervously. "Who's there?" she whimpered so softly that only Tyro could hear.

I guess you haven't discovered this power yet, Tyro sent back. Hi! This is Tyro, the Bengal tiger next to you. Sesone turned and gave a start, but then giggled, covering her mouth with a flipper.

Wow! she exclaimed. We can talk to each other? Can others hear us too? Is this working?

Yeah, you're doing it right, Tyro sent back, trying to cheer Sesone up as much as possible. No one else can hear us though, it's only talking between ourselves.

Can I talk to that bear over there? Sesone turned and looked at Chamomile hopefully.

No, I don't think so. It only works for Crystals, Tyro answered.

But… Sesone sent. But- oh… never mind.

So… you're a Crystal too, huh? Tyro communed.

Yeah, if you say so… does that mean that you have powers?

Yep, along with that Crystal on your forehead, Tyro sent back, motioning to the crystal on Sesone. The checkmark shaped crystal, along with a small dot in the middle, glistened. I have powers too. Somehow, that reminded him of poor Pyron, all alone, lost in some strange place. In no time at all, Tyro had told Sesone the whole story of their adventures so far.

Oh… said Sesone. She seemed to be thinking about something else. Tyro started to get impatient. He glanced at Pacifia, who was still typing at the machine with a strange ferocity. Scalene and Chamomile were also watching her.

What if Pyron's in danger? Tyro thought nervously. In his anxiety, he went up to Pacifia to ask if they could do something. But before he took two steps, she whirled around, a grim look on her face.

"I can't reach him at all…" she moaned. "And I tried Gallerite as well, but no one was there. What do you think happened? I don't like this at all…" She glanced around nervously. "Scalene, can you check and see what Aqueenus has got up her sleeves?" The Fimmins nodded and was gone.

"I'd better send you guys along," Pacifia muttered. "What if the Fimmins come?"

Tyro, Chamomile, and Sesone swam after Pacifia into the room containing the XSHGSLTC. Pacifia told Sesone what they were planning to do, even though Tyro had already told her. She nodded anyways. Sesone agreed to go with them to find Pyron. They climbed aboard. Pacifia pressed a few buttons. The XSHGSLTC started to shake.

Suddenly, Scalene appeared. She looked breathless.

"Hurry! Fimmins… coming…. Go… now!" She slammed her fist down onto the button that released the XSHGSLTC. The machine was about to disappear into space.

CRASH! Out of nowhere, a storm appeared inside of Pacifia's house, mixed with a huge flash of blue lightning. Fimmins were everywhere! They jumped… and… the XSHGSLTC disappeared!

Ch. 16 Infernia and Beyond

"Oof!" Pyron tumbled onto the ground. His head ached and the world seemed to spin. The thought Where am I? aroused from his clouded mind. Finally, he shook himself out of his daze.

He was in a very strange place. It was dark and cloudy, the landscape around him scattered with dashes of red and gray. The land was barren, except for many bare, dead trees that were taller that redwoods. The sky was a strange gray and pink color, slowly moving like a gentle stream. The ground was cracked and dry, and scorching hot winds constantly blew past Pyron's back. In the distance, smoke hovered out of tall, brown mountains that Pyron supposed were volcanoes.

Tyro? Can you hear me? Pyron tried to send to the Bengal tiger. There was no reply. Pyron mildly wondered why, already bemused by his strange surroundings. Well, in any case, I'd better find someone to help me. He decided to head towards the volcano. Feeling slightly demoralized, Pyron took a step forward with a sigh.

CRACK! The ground split beneath his foot. Inside, molten lava bubbled and frothed. Pyron let out a yelp and jumped over the pit before he could fall in. Another CRACK! and the ground beneath him opened again to reveal bubbling, hot magma. Pyron leaped again with a small cry of fear, yet the result was the same. CRACK! The ground seemed intent on sucking Pyron into the ground to boil with the lava. Even though he was a fire-breathing dragon, he knew that he wouldn't be able to survive in molten hot lava for long. He soared into the air. The ground even seemed to sense his wing strokes. It opened up again, but this time, a huge jet of magma shot into the air, missing Pyron by an inch.

"Eeep! What's happening?" Pyron cried, swerving like crazy to avoid the strange blasts of lava. They seemed to come up faster and faster as time went on.

Yuntia Nicai Riaclo! Pyron thought in his head. His crystal flashed, and he felt the familiar, slight loss of energy taken to use the power. Nothing happened.

Pyron tired again. Still nothing. "What is this place?" he cried in rage, his voice echoing slightly through the strangely empty air. Suddenly, a huge jet of magma streaked past the side of Pyron's tail. It burned right through a few of Pyron's scales, but was luckily shallow. Yet he squeezed his eyes shut in the sudden pain.

CRASH! Since he wasn't watching where he was going, Pyron slammed right into a towering dead tree. Pyron felt as if every bit of oxygen was being squeezed out of his lungs and even let out a small burst of flame from the impact. A single blast of lava shot from the ground. Pyron clung tightly to the side of the tree. He dug his claws into the bark. The magma singed his back and then collapsed back towards the ground in a burnt out, colorful burst. It disappeared completely, the ground closing back up with a small grating noise. Then all was still, except for the strange smoke unfurling from the tips of the volcanoes. Pyron let out a completely silent moan from relief and pain.

Pyron began to crawl slowly up the scratchy, dry, dead tree. He reached a branch. Slowly, Pyron put his right foreleg onto the branch. With a strange splintering noise, the branch disintegrated into small, brittle pieces. Pyron let out a mangled yelp, and the ground opened again. Magma shot out and grabbed the branch's brittle pieces. Pyron gripped the tree tightly and held his breath, getting tired of holding on to the tree in a vertical position. He made a mental note to remain silent from that point on.

The lava disappeared again, and Pyron began inching up the tree once again. Soon, he reached another branch. It looked slightly sturdier than the last one, but still brittle. Pyron put his injured tail on it. It didn't break. Slowly, he shifted his whole body onto the branch. It remained firm. Pyron then silently sighed and wrapped himself up in a comfortable position. If he wanted to survive, he had better start by resting. A bit of blood was visible on the stinging, burnt area on Pyron's tail. He wished he had the backpack Alpinus gave him. Pyron licked the wound a few times, remembering a trick sometimes used by mother dragons. It tasted horrible. He stopped and then snuggled up again. His tail stopped burning, but continued to sting, especially when a scorching hot wind blew up, gusting into Pyron's face. Pyron decided to try one of his powers again.

Shu Iaqu Ordyh! he thought in his head. Again, his jewel glowed and energy was sapped from his body. But no water came from his mouth. Nothing happened at all.

"Nibe Uxi Ceze…" he whispered hopefully. Luckily, the ground didn't open up, but this time, his jewel didn't glow at all. Worse, the spell sucked the remaining energy Pyron had in his body to stay awake. Pyron fell asleep.

"EEEK! FIMMINS!" Sesone screamed. Then, she noticed that they were no longer in Pacifia's base. "W-w-where are we?" she stuttered, looking out of the window and at the vast blackness of space as the XSHGSLTC slowly hovered along.

"Oh, no!" Chamomile wailed. She scampered over to Tyro and grabbed the communicator. "Pacifia! Are you okay?" Nothing happened. "Pacifia?"

Suddenly, the communicator crackled. It shook in Chamomile's hands, who almost dropped it in surprise. Then, Pacifia's voice was coming out in a barely comprehensible, panicked voice. "…Fimmins! …Fizz! …destroying… FITZZT! …machine! …BTZ! …Scalene… KRTZ! …she's our spy! …KRRKZ! …WATCH OUT! SCALENE! Ack! …Fzzztz! …I'm okay… Ah!…"

There was one more giant FZZZTZRK! noise, and then the communicator exploded into bits in Chamomile's paws. She squealed in pain and shock. A second later, the XSHGSLTC stopped moving altogether.

"Oh, boy," Sesone squeaked. "What's happening?"

"What'll we do?" Chamomile whimpered. Tyro blinked.

"Let's-" Suddenly, the machine went hyper speed. Tyro, Chamomile, and Sesone were pressed against their chairs. The XSHGSLTC started zooming around and around. Tyro saw stars buzzing around his head. They went faster and faster; Tyro was turning green… Then the machine started to suddenly stop and then start again. The three were crashing from wall to wall, slamming into each other, cracking their heads on glass. On more bump and Tyro was unconscious. Soon, they all lay on the floor, knocked out. The XSHGSLTC kept on going.

Pyron gasped. He sat up. The ground opened and sent a jet of magma shooting out. Pyron only felt the heat come up as a warning. He leaped out of harm's way only a second before impact and then held his breath. The magma stream disappeared, and Pyron's heart began to beat back at a normal pace again.

He was still on the tree branch. Now he knew that for some reason, he couldn't use his powers. Why? Where was he?

Pyron looked up. The volcanoes were no longer smoking, but strange chanting noises seemed to be coming from them. Someone or something's over there, Pyron thought. They'll probably help me!

But even as Pyron thought this, images of vile, barbarian-like creatures kept popping into Pyron's mind. Ferocious, devil-looking dragon creatures, strange monsters with far too many legs. There were too many possibilities. Was he still on Draconicus? Or was this some strange new planet?

Suddenly, a small red shape shot out of one of the volcanoes. It looked like scarcely more that a speck because Pyron was so far away, but it soared around and then shot back inside the volcano. What was that? Pyron wondered. But it didn't come out again. Hmm… I guess I'll find out what it was later.

Pyron slowly stood up. He inched to the trunk of the tree. Then he jumped from his branch, soaring onto the tree trunk. The he began to climb upwards. He found a long branch that almost touched the tree next to it. He climbed on. Then, with a running leap, he jumped onto the next towering, dead tree. A huge jet of lava shot at him, but missed by several feet.

He went on this way, going faster than the lava blasts. In a tiring fifteen minutes, he was finally one tree away from the volcanoes. He stopped to rest for a moment, a stitch in his chest, aching as he breathed heavily. The air was smokier here, near the volcano, and his lungs already hurt from running and leaping all those times. The strange chanting noise was louder now. It seemed to be almost musical, like noises a bird would make, but it also sounded like many different organs playing different sounds at the same time.

"Let's go," Pyron bravely told himself, dodging the lava blast that issued out. He leapt off the tree and landed on the ground. Instantly, the ground cracked open. Pyron leapt, spun, flew, dived, and twisted, dodging all the lava blasts successfully and jumped over the large fissures in the ground that were bubbling with magma. Finally, he reached the ledge of the volcano. He leaped onto the side of the volcano. For some reason, all the lava and magma suddenly disappeared. Pyron shrugged and then started to climb up the volcano. The top was far, but he climbed on.

"Wha..?" Tyro opened his eyes. "Where am I?" His head hurt and as he sat up, he rubbed it vigorously. They were still on the XSHGSLTC, all of them sprawled on the floor. Next to him, Chamomile and Sesone stared at each other, dazed. Sesone got up first. Her legs were wobbling as she stumbled over to the window.

"Whoa!" she squeaked in her excited voice. "Look at that!" She pointed out the window, hopping up and down. Tyro and Chamomile crawled groggily over. A strange planet hung below them, pink and gray in color. A few specks of areas were red, and a strange smoke seemed to waft from the planet every now and then.

"What is it?" Chamomile mumbled. "Some type of planet? Is it Earth?"

Suddenly, the XSHGSLTC unexpectedly shot forwards, sending the three of the backwards, flung away from the single window. The machine plummeted down to the strange planet. In seconds, they would crash!

Tyro's eyes seemed to light up. He struggled over towards the window, moving at what seemed to be the speed of a snail. He created several icicles in his paw, and then threw them at the window with as much force as he could muster. With a crash, the glass shattered and then a horribly strong force pushed Tyro back, next to Chamomile and Sesone. They couldn't breathe.

"Sesone! Use your air powers!" Tyro choked. His came out muffled, but as his face started to turn purple, Sesone understood. WHOOOSH! The XSHGSLTC was slowing from the force of the air that Sesone was shooting out of the window. Also, a smooth flow of oxygen filled the small spacecraft, letting Tyro and the others breathe. But the XSHGSLTC wasn't slowing enough. A volcano full of bubbling magma neared; it grew closer and closer... Tyro put a force field around the whole ship.

BAM! They landed, protected, thanks to the force field, but the crash sent the field shattering. SPLLOOSH! The XSHGSLTC sunk deeper and deeper into the lava.

"Everyone out!" ordered Tyro. The trio squeezed out of the half opened door and jumped out of the machine, landing at the edges of the volcano. Nearby, many other volcanoes frothed and smoked. They watched sadly as the XSHGSLTC sank slowly into the lava. Then they looked around. The land was bare, gray, and cracked, several giant dead trees shooting up towards the sky.

"This is a weird place," Sesone whispered. She shivered. She felt strange, almost sick; it was too hot. "I… need… cold…" She sat down dizzily, swooning in the heat. Chamomile looked puzzled.

"I know it's hotter that usual here, but it's not that hot, is it?" she asked. Still, Sesone wavered around dizzily.

"She's a penguin. They don't usually live in this type of climate," Tyro explained. "Here…"

Tyro took a deep breath and his crystal shone brightly. He exhaled, but nothing came out except for his own breath. Plus, he was suddenly much more tired than usual. "Huh? It's not working. Let me try again." Tyro inhaled again. This time, his crystal didn't glow at all. When he exhaled, he was immediately weaker than before. His knees buckled, and he sank to the ground next to Sesone.

"Are you guys okay?" Chamomile asked in pure worry. She jumped around them nervously, once almost falling off the ledge of the volcano they were on. She managed to regain her balance with a slight squeal, still looking panicked.

"I'm all right," Tyro panted, sides heaving. "Look's like our powers don't work here." He looked around. There was no other living being in sight. "Where exactly are we?"

"I think I know…" Sesone panted. "We're-"

Suddenly, lava burst from the volcano. Sesone and Chamomile screamed. Three figures burst from the lava. They looked like huge swans with long, streaming tail feathers. Their feathers were blazing reds, crimsons, and scarlet mixed together in different patterns. Even their wings looked like they were made from fire themselves, swirling in their ruby-colored mass. They soared into the air and turned around. They dived straight at the three, each picking on up. Chamomile felt herself wrapped up in the largest bird's talons.

"Here are the intruders," the creature sang with a deep, strange, vibrating voice. "They were dim-witted enough to stay near the area they landed."

With a sudden movement, the birds burst back into the lava, clutching their prisoners. Chamomile held her breath and expected to die. But strangely enough, they traveled through the lava as easily as traveling through water wearing Aquafin necklaces. However, it was slightly hot, and Chamomile almost felt like she was cooking in a giant oven. Finally, the river of lava ended, and they burst into a huge, open cave that was settled in empty darkness. They were inside the volcano! They flew on, and it seemed like an hour as they twisted through several dark passages. However, only five minutes passed when they finally entered a huge, light-filled chamber. Chamomile was temporarily blinded. Then she heard many voices that vibrated musically. They sounded like organs playing different notes all and the same time.

Ch. 17 The Prophecy

Pyron struggled up the volcano. I just hope it doesn't blow while I'm climbing, he thought miserably. The strangely smooth surface of the volcano's side only had a few handholds, and there were several rocks that crumbled under Pyron's feet. Plus, there was always a time when Pyron had to start flying to not fall, and those times, he narrowly avoided being shot down by streams of lava or crashing into the volcano's sides.

He looked down warily. The ground was far away and seemed to shift under the volcano. Becoming dizzy, he gulped and continued climbing. Once or twice, he would slip a whole ten feet down the volcano. Pyron gritted his teeth and continued climbing, hand over hand, up the volcano. His muscles cried in agony at his every movement, getting stiffer and stiffer.

After what seemed like half a day of slow, painful climbing, he was only a few feet or so away from the top of the volcano. He climbed up inch by inch, almost reaching his goal. He couldn't wait any longer. Pyron spread his wings and flapped noisily to the edge of the volcano, dodging a couple of lava blasts. He landed, sighed, and lay down, resting his aching body. He wondered, once again, what type of strange world he was on, and how far away he was from his friends. What were they doing? Had they possibly forgot about him?

BOOM! The volcano that was only a few tail-lengths away from the volcano he was sitting next to expelled lava like a water fountain. It bubbled and frothed, flying everywhere. Pyron yelped and lost his balance. Without warning, he fell into the bubbling lava of his volcano.

Die… The word pounded in his head. Pyron sank deeper and deeper into heat… but strangely enough, he was alive!

"What?" he mumbled, opening his eyes just a crack. He was in lava, but it wasn't burning? Was it fake?

CRASH! Pyron fell onto a hard, rocky floor. Above him, a red, lava looking mass swirled around.

I fell from there? he thought in a bewildered way. What kinds of people live here? Pranksters?
The strange music rang in his body as well as his ears. He was close. Pyron started walking through the dark caves. He had only taken a few steps when he realized something. The 'music' was actually people speaking! Pyron could hear the words, although they had a strange lilt about them.

"…Earth scum! How'd they get here? And what should we do with them?" The voice was greeted with a chorus of voices so musical that all the voices were swirled together into melodious tunes. The answered resounded as gibberish, "Mrblrshrtss…" However, Pyron's heart pounded. Earth scum? Could it have something to do with Earth creatures? Could they take him back to Earth to find the Trusted Ones? He hurried through the cave. Beyond him was light, a whole chamber of it. Pyron slowed down, afraid of what he might find. He peeked around the corner and let out gasp, which disappeared into the river of musical voices.

Thousands and thousands of majestic, red birds filled the room. In the center, four red birds surrounded a pit in the ground. Tilting his head this way and that, Pyron finally managed to see that in the pit was Chamomile, Tyro, and a strange, black and white creature that he had never seen before.

"Attention, please," a bird in the center sang with its strange, musical voice. The chamber immediately quieted. "I repeat, what should we do wit these creatures? Talk reasonably please. Look-they don't belong here. That black one-" The bird motioned at the odd creature Pyron saw in the cage. "-seems to not be able to survive in our world." Another chorus of voices filled the chamber. Pyron looked at the creature and agreed. It seemed to no be able to withstand the heat that Pyron felt was so heart-warming. The creature seemed to also have one of the Aquafin necklaces Scalene had given them. And on its forehead… Pyron rubbed his eyes. No, he wasn't imagining it-it was a crystal!

"We've already agreed what to do if any Earth scum came to our world!" another red bird announced. He was backed by a murmur of assent through the crowd. "We erase part of their memories and take them to Dyhord!" The birds in the whole chamber erupted with cheers.

"But what if…" a third red bird cleared his throat. This one seemed slightly smaller than the others. "These could be…"

"Enough with you and your silly ideas, Flariex," the largest bird sang. Birds throughout the chamber laughed and cheered in agreement. "Remember what happened with the last prisoners? They tried to steal from some of out secret lava stores!"

"To Dyhord! Wiper out their memories!" the birds sang.

"No!" Pyron cried. There was a huge hush among the crowd.

"Who said that?" the largest bird sang deeply.

"I did." Pyron stepped into view without a tinge of worry. A huge gasp flew through the crowd. Whispers of "Dragon," and "Earth scum," were heard throughout the room.

"A dragon?" the large bird sang with deep humor in his voice. "Why didn't the lava traps attack you? Why are you here? How did you get here?"

A cheer of "Of with his head!" was heard through the crowd.

"SILENCE!" the largest bird boomed. Then it stepped towards Pyron. "No matter! Come here, dragon."

Pyron timidly walked up to the center of the room. However, he held his head high, determined to look brave against the strange bird creatures.

"Do you know who we are?" the bird sang. Pyron shook his head. "This… is the world of the phoenixes! This is the world of Infernia!"

"I told you!" Tyro's voice rang out. "I knew they were phoenixes, and I bet Sesone knew too!"

"Silence, Earth scum!" the largest phoenix sang. He drew himself up. "I am Kyrune, the leader of the Phoenix Council!" Pyron blinked. "Do you know these Earth creatures?" Pyron looked at Tyro and Chamomile and half-nodded.

"This makes our situation more… complicated…" Kyrune muttered. He seemed to be arguing something in his head. "Flariex!"

"Yes, sir?" the smaller looking phoenix asked.

"You are now the leader of the Unofficial Intruder Welcoming Committee. Take these intruders and lock them in the lowest chamber! I will decide what to do with them tomorrow."
Flariex nodded and spread his wings. He soared down to the pit and came back with the three clutched in his talons. Dropping them to the floor, he motioned at them to follow him. Pyron quickly scampered towards them as well.

"The Council is dismissed," Kyrune announced in a slightly defeated voice. With a sigh, he flew off.

Pyron ran up to Tyro and Chamomile, who were carrying the strange black and white creature. "I'm so glad to see you guys!" he squealed. "How'd you get here? What happened? Who's she?" He pointed at the black and white figure.

"This is Sesone!" Chamomile said with a grin. She was obviously happy that Pyron was all right. "She's a crystal too."

"Oh," Pyron said. "How-"

"I would advise you to not speak until we reach the chamber," Flariex sang. His voice was slightly more gentle than when he was speaking in the council. "Our leader, Kyrune is very short-minded, as well as short-tempered. I could barely believe he let you all go for the day."

"But-" Pyron began.

"Shh… Now's not the time for words," the phoenix interrupted. "Anything you say might be used against you tomorrow. But feel free to talk in the chamber, for it is protected by a type of magic just for the sake of privacy."

They continued to walk down the caves, Flariex soaring over their heads. Gradually, the temperature dropped. In a while, Sesone woke up.

"Wha?" she mumbled. "What happened?"

"Shh…" Flariex muttered. Sesone gave a start.

"A phoenix! What-" she started. Flariex gave another "Shh!" and she was quiet.

Soon, they reached a small chamber. It was damp and dirty. Pyron thought he saw a skull sitting between some rocks. He shivered, feeling apprehension crawling down his spine.

"I know it's not the best living conditions, but you'll survive," Flariex explained. He fluttered to the ground. "This used to be a special meeting room, but now it serves its purpose as a prison. You are to stay here tonight." He turned to go.

"Wait!" Pyron exclaimed. The phoenix turned. "I have some questions first." Flariex sighed.

"Well, I suppose you do need an explanation," he grumbled. He flew over to a corner and motioned for everyone to sit down. "Go ahead, ask a question."

"Number one," Pyron took a deep breath. "WHAT KIND OF WEIRD WORLD IS THIS?"

Flariex looked amused and relieved. "If you're talking about the lava that should've attacked and killed you, then as you should know, phoenixes and dragons don't get along. You do know that, right?" Pyron shook his head no. "Well, phoenixes can't go to the dragon world, and dragons can't go to the phoenix world. So our world has a built in security system. This planet can sense dragons. When it hears a dragon's wing strokes, feels a dragon's footsteps, or perceives a dragon's powers, it will shoot lava, which a dragon can't survive in." Pyron blinked. "But there are ways you can possibly avoid this security system, which is probably how you survived."

Pyron looked outraged. "How many worlds have built-in security systems?"

"Draconicus does the same for phoenixes," Flariex laughed. Pyron went silent, looking furious.

"How come our powers don't work here?" Sesone suddenly asked. Flariex had a purely confused expression.

"Powers?" he asked. "You have powers? Hm…" Flariex started muttering something to himself. Tyro caught the words "…emblazoned by a magic sign…"

"Aha!" The whole group gave a start when Flariex stood up. "The legendary dragon crystal! Rumors have been spreading around that the crystal was placed with a special dragon…"

"My dad?" Pyron asked.

"Your father? Well, I'm not sure, but I do happen to remember…" Flariex gave a sigh, as if he didn't want to say something. "You must all have powers, right?"

"Not me," Chamomile piped up. "I'm just a helper."

"Well, it looks like the rest of you all have crystals! So the rumors were true… the dragon crystal was divided up, and the powers were separated…"

"You still didn't answer my question…" Sesone squeaked in a timid voice.

"I'm getting to it," Flariex replied. "If you all have dragon crystals, of course the powers wouldn't work! I guess I forgot to mention that dragon powers simply don't work here on Infernia. For example, Pyron, you can't breathe fire here, although all dragons have that ability."

"Really?" Pyron took a deep breath. He exhaled fiercely, but nothing happened. He tried again.

"Yes, you see?" Flariex sang. "So if you all have dragon crystals, your powers are actually dragon powers!"

"Cool!" Sesone exclaimed.

"I believe there are still several more creatures with these crystals, so they too, will have powers much like yours. I also believe that you'll meet them soon enough," Flariex sang.

"How would you know?" Pyron asked, looking curiously.

"Er.. hem… I'm just uh… assuming. I'm not really sure…" Flariex began to look nervous. He tried to laugh, but it came out eccentric and half-heartedly.

Tyro spoke up. "So why did you guys let us go? Weren't you going to erase our memories and send us to a place called Dyhord or something?"

Flariex stopped laughing. He cleared his throat. "Uh… you were just lucky… that's all…" He muttered something incomprehensible and then turned his head.

"You're a bad liar," Chamomile commented. "I can already tell that what you said is not true! Tell us the truth."

"Yeah, I want to know, too!" Sesone squeaked.

Flariex inhaled deeply. "Well, I suppose…" he muttered. "All right, I'll show you." He suddenly made a strange slicing movement through the air with his wings, as if he were trying to cut something open. Amazingly, something did open-in midair, a small black tear appeared. Flariex fluttered through. A few heartbeats later, he was back, clutching an old scroll in his beak. He made the strange slashing movement again, and the black rip was gone. He stepped over to Pyron, Tyro, Chamomile, and Sesone. "Here…" he mumbled, handing it to Pyron.

Pyron unraveled the scroll. He read it aloud:

"When one world leads to another,

His light will start to shine,

Split apart to save four worlds,

He will agree just fine,

First the one who will stop a fight,

He shines alone in the air,

He came from the one first with power,

Who will raise this new light with care,

From the second light comes four others,

They will together bind,

For the four share the first's great powers,

And each other they will always find,

The first power's powers will also divide,

And again, four others grow,

They share this one's abilities,

And later they'll finally know

Now that storm is only sound,

Now he's without all his might,

All are emblazed by a magic sign,

A sign of hope and power by light,

Soon comes the time when dark is released,

The light holders will come together,

Through hardships and heartbreaks they go,

And then they are fighting forever,

Four worlds they will save,

Unless the shadows strike them first,

They crawl undetected,

Life is what they thirst,

When four come, the truth is free,

Enemies soon must be friends,

Destroying hate is their duty,

Then true darkness's life ends,

But soon comes a time when fifteen will fight,

Two dragons they shall hail,

The answer will be darkness or light,

Only together can light prevail."

The chamber seemed to ring with power. Then, the whole room seemed to darken.

"What does it mean?" Sesone spoke up first.

"What is it?" Chamomile asked

"That, was a prophecy," Flariex sang softly. "A prophecy concerning you four and several others. Of course, no one is ever sure exactly what a prophecy means, but this one concerns you saving four worlds and fighting evil."

All was silent. Then, Chamomile blurted out, "That sounds very… improbable… I mean, evil? Saving worlds?"

Then, Tyro said, "Why do you have this prophecy?"

"Phoenixes are the keepers of prophecies!" Flariex sang. "Of course, all real prophecies concern phoenixes in some way, so it's only natural that we keep them. But this one prophecy doesn't seem to mention phoenixes anywhere… Our council sometimes thought it could've possibly been a mistake of some sort. But since you've all arrived… There are still bits of doubt, but something important is definitely going on."

Pyron blinked. "But how can you tell that it's talking about us? I don't see us mentioned anywhere."

"It unquestionably mentions you!" Flariex exclaimed. Pyron quickly went back to scanning the prophecy. "But then again, the other phoenixes-" Flariex seemed to speak in disgust. "-do not believe all the things that I believe."

"Why?" Tyro asked. "Is there something wrong with your opinion?"

"They are… suspicious of me…" Flariex sighed. "But they do not know for sure…"

"Know what?" Sesone asked.

Flariex sighed again, rustling his feather tensely. "I am Flariex, the Trusted One of Fire," the phoenix sang softly.

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