The bastard. The absolute piece of living garbage. The waste of breath and scales. How dare he? How dare he?

Null didn't think he'd ever been this angry before.

It was only when Apex brought it up that he realized he'd been tunnel-visoned on his deadbeat father. He shook his head, resolving to at least try and find out what the council meeting was about before he did anything.

"About the matter of finding a temporary replacement for Granite -," Aurum began. He was a - quite literally - golden electricity dragon, with a reputation for making light of serious situations. From what Null knew, Aurum was popular in spite of this. Or perhaps because of it. Right now he was solemn, though.

"There's a chance that he survived and simply hasn't been able to return yet," Spyro interjected, "We shouldn't count him out without proof."

"Nonetheless, it has been over a week. If he does not return soon we should consider a temporary stand-in. If only for proper representation," Aurum said seriously.

"Must you bring this up so frequently, Aurum?" Glacia, ice dragon representative, asked. She was apparently the granddaughter of one of the Guardians. Unlike her grandfather, she presided over civil matters more often than military ones. "You have done this every day since the report returned. We can let it lie for a bit to see what happens."

"Delphi, have you seen anything?" Teneris asked.

Delphi was the representative of dragons who manifested divination magics, and was herself a dragon with the element of vision. Divination powers weren't exclusive to vision dragons, but the most powerful oracles tended to be. Legend had it that Ignitus, the now deceased fire guardian of the dragon temple, was himself an oracle. And of course Spyro was said to have the same power - though as the purple dragon there was probably no limit to what Spyro was capable of. Delphi supposedly wore a blindfold in order to keep herself sane, as simply looking at another dragon was enough to prompt intense visions of many potential futures.

As Delphi shook her head in response, Null looked at the empty seat. He hadn't noticed it earlier because he had focused on Teneris, but the seat of the earth representative was empty. Councildrake Granite was a former guard captain of Warfang, and was known to still involve himself in security matters.

What could have happened to pull Granite away for an extended period of time? Granite's combat prowess was legendary, and his strategic ability was well-noted. There had to be more to it than just a group of bandits, right?

Indeed, Null's guess was correct.

"The report we got from the only returning member of Granite's squad is consistent with records referring to the undead creature known as a revenant." That was Ida, the mind dragon on the council. Null actually didn't know much about mind dragons, aside from their ability to manipulate the thoughts of others. "Nos, you are the closest thing we have to an expert on the undead. What do you know about revenants?"

Revenant. Like the one that he and Apex had killed. Wait, could that mean…?

"Oh geez. Let me think for a moment…" Nos was a fear dragoness, one of very few Null had heard about and that was only because she was on the council. The dominion of fear dragons overlapped somewhat with mind dragons, but fear magic was oddly able to affect even inanimate objects. There was a - probably misguided - association between the fear element and many of the more dangerous types of undead. Like revenants. And banshees. Both of which were actually elementals. Nos shuffled her wings a bit, ears flicking as she gave it thought. "Very dangerous, but usually very slow and clumsy. They weaponize fear in short bursts and rely upon a dense outer layer of, well, stone according to the first group that tried to take it down. It makes them very durable, but it should also have made it easier for Granite's squad to dismantle it. The report also says that it used guerilla tactics, so perhaps it's something more dangerous that is simply posing as a mindless undead?"

"It sounds like something Malefor would do," Magnus, representative of fire dragons, said. He was something of a war hero, fighting on the front lines of the war with Malefor with the scars to prove it.

A collective shiver went around the table, proof that even now the Dark Master's name was capable of causing fear.

"No. Malefor is no more," Cynder stated firmly, "It can't be him."

"Can't, or shouldn't?" Niall, water dragon representative, asked, "I don't doubt that you saw him defeated, but there is a fine line between impossible and unlikely."

"The distinction can often be blurred by extenuating circumstances." That was the first time Jed had moved since Null and Apex had arrived. Null knew nothing about Jed. The only book he'd ever read about the dragon council was at least a decade out of date, and Jed must have joined the council after that book had been written. He clearly had some kind of telekinetic ability, based on the quill dancing across the paper in front of him.

"But what sort of circumstances would make that sort of thing possible?" Wormwood asked. He was another mystery, a more recent addition to the council. His predecessor, Mandrake, had been a shady figure, but Null knew nothing about the two-headed, two-tailed poison dragon. "From my understanding, he was rendered bodiless. There's no way to recover from that."

There was silence for a moment, then Teneris spoke.

"Zepha, you've been awfully quiet. Do you have any input on this matter?" He asked.

Zepha, wind dragon representative, sighed. "I really don't like the idea of replacing Granite with anyone. But if he's not back yet, it's a good chance he won't be any time soon. We'll have to find someone to speak in his place soon, or people will begin to doubt the council's legitimacy."

"I can't help but notice that you haven't had anything to say, Teneris," Niall leaned forward, raising one brow. "What's your input on the matter?"

"As much as I would like to say that Granite should remain, I do not think he will return. While the surviving scout did not see his death, the fact that the revenant used guerilla tactics in combination with its command over both earth and fear is enough to lead me to believe that whatever it truly was, it was too much for Granite to handle. There was one survivor out of five well-trained guards. They should have had the elemental advantage. One survivor. Granite, if he was successful alone, would have returned by now. He brought spirit gems with him, enough to be his own medical ward. I do not think that Granite survived." Teneris paused, and Null saw his shoulders lift with a heavy breath that wasn't quite audible from this far away. "If he did, I would welcome his return at any time. But we cannot hold out on that possibility."

"Shall we put it to vote, then?" Niall asked, looking to Jed.

"Motion to officially declare Councildrake Granite's seat empty. All in favor?" Several dragons moved, raising paws or wings to indicate their approval. Jed's quill scratched against the paper. "All against?" More movement, and the quill noted it down. "All votes tallied. Let the record show: Teneris, Zepha, Aurum, Niall, Wormwood, and Delphi voted in favor. Spyro, Cynder, Magnus, and Nos voted against. Ida, Glacia, and Jed abstained. Motion passed."

Jed's papers lifted up, shuffling to a new page.

"That concludes today's docket. Are there any more matters that the council would like to present?"

Silence.

"The council is adjourned. Have a good day."

Those few others who were there to watch the council meeting began to leave, and the councilmembers did the same. Each of the dragons on the council packed up their things and began filing out of different entrances. Null really didn't care. He was tunnel-visioned on one dragon in particular.

Teneris was chatting with Nos a bit, engaging in some small talk. He looked happy, or at the very least not unhappy.

It made Null's stomach churn, though he wasn't quite sure why.

Once Nos began moving away, leaving Teneris the only councilmember still in the room, Null made his move.

He hopped down from his seat and stalked out in front of the exit closest to Teneris. There he stood, as Teneris gathered the last of his things in a side-slung pouch and started moving. Teneris stopped upon spotting Null, raising one brow ridge and walking closer.

"Hello there. Did you have a question regarding today's council meeting?" Teneris asked politely.

"I have a question, but it's not related to the council meeting," Null said, "Was this what you abandoned us for?"

"I - I'm sorry?" Teneris recoiled, confusion in his face.

"Ten years. Ten years since you left. Ten years since you abandoned Mom and I. Was it worth it?"

"What are-," Teneris stopped, eyes widening in understanding. He drew in a shuddering breath. "Null."

"Good job. Took you long enough to figure it out. Do you want a medal for recognizing your own son?" Null spat sardonically.

"Null, I…"

"You what? Thought you could leave in the middle of the night and just hang out in Warfang for ten years?"

"Please, can we take this somewhere else?" Teneris pleaded urgently, "You can rip me to shreds in just a little bit, but we need to get out of a public place first."

"Why, so you can preserve your reputation?" Null asked with a snarl, "Don't want people knowing you're a deadbeat dad, do you?"

"I represent over two hundred shadow dragons throughout the city, all of whom are dealing with serious prejudice already. If something like this comes out about me, it reflects badly on all of them. I'm asking you not to do this for my reputation, but for theirs." He seemed sincere, but Null didn't trust it. "Please, Null."

Null weighed it in his mind. On the one hand, Teneris really did seem like he meant it. On the other, Teneris was the one who'd left them to deal with Dolus and the others. But he was a councilmember, and that really did mean that he had been elected to his position as a representative for all shadow dragons. Would something that affected Teneris' reputation really hurt all the shadow dragons in the city? Null didn't know. He almost didn't care. But even in his anger he didn't want to risk that.

"Fine," Null growled.

"Thank you." Teneris let out a breath of relief. "That means a lot. I am sorry to even ask anything of you, but that truly means a lot to me."

"Don't. Push. It." Null turned away from Teneris and looked at Apex. "Apex, come on."

Apex meekly descended from his seat and padded over to stand next to Null. He was very intently studying the wood grain of a nearby seat, avoiding looking at either Null or Teneris.

"Apex," Teneris said, very lightly shocked, "You've… grown. How's your father?"

"Yeah, uh. Growing like crazy lately," Apex mumbled, "Dolus is a bastard."

"Yeah that sounds… right." Teneris nodded once. "You, uh, have four wings."

"Long story."

"I figure." Teneris blinked, then shook his head. "Please, my home isn't too far from here. Follow me."

Teneris started walking. Null shot Apex a glance, then followed after him. He didn't let the scowl leave his face, even when it began hurting. He didn't want the deadbeat to think he'd even slightly forgiven him.

Teneris led the two of them out of the council hall and onto the street. The shadow dragon gave smiles and nods to everyone who passed, brushing off any questions about the two young dragons following him. Null had to admit, he was a good speaker. Manipulative, though. Always deflecting smoothly and redirecting conversation to something else. When he did give an answer, it was noncommittal and vague. Exactly the sort of conversational techniques that suited a politician.

The buildings of Warfang were big and carved out of stone, constructed centuries ago by moles as a thanks to the dragonic race - or so the stories said. Regardless of the city's origins, it was most certainly designed with dragons in mind. Enormous towers jutted up from the skyline, acting as landing pads for airborne dragons. That said, dragons were hardly the only kind of people in the city. Small groups of cheetahs had conversations on the sides of the street. Moles poked their heads out of tunnel entrances for a few moments before ducking back in. Up above were some smaller species of bug-folk, including one particular example that glowed a vibrant yellow.

They reached a rather large house with its own landing pad tower, and Teneris unlocked the front door with a key he extracted from his bag. Once the door was open, he ushered Null and Apex inside before closing the door. The first room inside was some kind of living area, with large plush cushions strewn about.

"Is there anything you would like to eat? Anything you need? Do you have anywhere to stay in Warfang?" Teneris asked.

"I could eat," Apex offered, padding over to one of the cushions and laying down, "Not really picky."

"I have some leftovers from a restaurant trip the other day. It's a delicious meal of potatoes, cheese, and ham, though it's a bit too much cheese for my liking. I'll get that out of the refrigerator and reheat it for you. Null, do you want anything?" Teneris looked at him.

Null felt anger bubbling up in his stomach. Ten years, and this was how Teneris reacted? Just… so casually? Like it was perfectly normal?

"I want you to tell me why you left us for a whole decade," Null replied with as much venom as he could bring to bear.

Apparently it was quite a lot, because Teneris flinched. "Right. We'll… get to that.I need to…"

Teneris went into another room, and Null heard a door opening and closing again. A little while later, there was another door - or possibly a container - that opened and closed, then a low humming sound was audible from the other room. Teneris returned and made his way to a brass pipe that jutted out of one wall. He shot a guilty glance at Null, then sat back on his haunches and unscrewed a valve before lifting a small bell-shaped object to his mouth.

"Stephen, could you let Nos and Zepha know that I'm not going to be able to make it to lunch today? Something personal came up." Teneris put the bell to the side of his head for a moment, and Null could hear a tinny voice echoing from within. Then he put the bell back to his mouth. "Thank you, Stephen. Have a good day."

"So you have a butler?" Null asked.

"A secretary, and I share him with Nos, Wormwood, and Ida. The 'dark' elements aren't very popular, and he was the only one willing to work with one dragon who could read minds, one who could invoke supernatural fear, one who can produce neurotoxin with his breath, and me, who can theoretically turn invisible. Delphi has many assistants to help her and Jed… I think he lives in a broom closet or something, because I have never heard him talk about anything but work." Teneris snorted in amusement, only to sober as he glanced at Null. "So, um. Where -"

There was a beep in the other room, and Teneris grimaced for a moment, then went to tend to it. He returned with a bowl full of thinly-sliced potatoes and ham chunks, layered with cheese. It made Null's stomach rumble just from the scent, but he ignored it. Teneris set the bowl down next to Apex. "Careful, it's hot."

"You can start with why you thought it was a good idea to run off to Warfang to become a politician," Null said before Teneris could ask his question.

"I…" Teneris sighed, "I wasn't… the best father. I will admit that freely. I was… agitated. Worried about the wrong things. I love Jaya, but I was worried about you. Not for the right reasons, I realize now. It was a little after a traveling merchant wandered through the village that Dolus approached me in the dead of night with, well, I thought it was fantastic news, but now I know he was lying."

"Ah yes. Dolus. The dragon who didn't want any of us to learn that shadow, fear, and poison dragons exist. Notoriously trustworthy source," Null snarked.

"This was before he had done… that." Teneris frowned, clearly having heard about this for the first time. "He hadn't done anything - or much of anything, at least - like that when this happened. And… despite his views, he was the closest thing to a reputable source at that time. He came up to me and… told me the merchant had heard of a cure for dragons with no magic."

"A cure? I'm sure he was referring to a guillotine, knowing Dolus." Null snorted. "And you believed him."

"Well, I'm glad to see that my son has sharp wits to exceed my own," Teneris mumbled to himself before clearing his throat and continuing, "Yes. I believed him. Because I was desperate. He was insistent that there was only a tiny amount, and I'd need to tend to it immediately or miss out forever. I think, in hindsight, that he wanted me to bring you with me. Maybe he was hoping we'd both die on the trip, or never return."

"He was half right, wasn't he?"

"...Yes, I suppose he was." Teneris looked away for a little bit, and when he returned his attention to Null he wouldn't meet his gaze. "I always intended to come back. I just want to make that clear. I didn't just decide to stay on a whim."

"No, you did it to play politics."

Teneris winced. "I guess that's one way to put it. Shortly before I arrived, the previous shadow representative was assassinated. Icicle through the skull. I wound up in one of the poorer districts, and while I was there… I don't know. It just sort of happened. People started looking up to me. One march on the capitol was all it really took to cement my position as a leader. They needed a shakeup, and… I suppose that's what I provided. Shadow and all the various sub-elements that branch off of it are viewed by many people as inherently evil, and those who have such elements had such poor living conditions when I arrived… it's better now, but not as good as I would like. I couldn't just… leave when there were people relying on me."

"You left us when we relied on you," Null said quietly.

"I know." Teneris sighed. "Leaving you and Jaya was the decision I've regretted more than anything else."

"You could have sent a message. Any message just to let us know you hadn't forgotten us."

"Oh…" Teneris wrenched his eyes shut and lowered his head. "I knew I'd forgotten something…"

Teneris sat there, slowly leaning forwards until his forehead hit the stone floor. Only then did he sigh and lift his head back up, opening his eyes.

"I am… so sorry, Null. I don't expect you to forgive me. Not any time soon, if at all. All I can do is ask for it and hope." Teneris took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. "Is… is your mother here too? Or is she back at the village?"

"You're… way too late to apologize to Mom." Null swallowed. "She's… not with us anymore."

"Oh. Oh no…" Teneris took a shuddering breath. "No, no, no… Null I… I'm so sorry."

"She would have lived if you had been there," Null accused, tears in his eyes. He couldn't muster his hate anymore. It was too hard. But he was trying. "The goliath wouldn't have been able…"

"I…" Teneris reached out tentatively, only to stop with his paws hovering a short ways from Null. He pulled away. "I'm so sorry. I… I'm…"

"Null."

Null's head snapped over to Apex, who was climbing to his feet. The wind dragon approached, pushing his shoulder against Null's and wrapping his wing around Null's shoulder.

"Null, you know that's not fair," Apex said softly, "You don't know. It might have been worse. Nothing could stop the goliath, not until you managed to kill it."

"I… I just…" Null choked back a sob.

"I know." Apex rubbed his back. "It's okay."

"This…" Teneris swallowed. "This goliath. What… what was it?"

Before either Null or Apex could answer, there was a knock on the door. Null took a deep breath, managing to calm himself enough to stop sobbing. He still had tears in his eyes, but he could at least speak coherently.

He could hear a quiet conversation from the other side of the door.

"Are you sure you saw them? It could have been someone else."

"Look bro, have these eyes ever failed you?"

"On many occasions."

"It was a rhetorical question! Besides, the description you gave was very distinct. I'm about 50% sure I saw them with Teneris."

Teneris closed his eyes for a moment, probably to steady himself. When he opened them he looked askance at Null. Null shrugged.

With no other option, Teneris made his way to the front door. He took a glance through the peephole, and what he saw must have surprised him because he perked up a bit. He opened the door.

"Well. I wasn't expecting guests today, but I'll always welcome the two of you in!" Teneris chuckled.

"Three! Three of us!" A deep voice declared.

"My apologies, I didn't see you there." Teneris bowed his head. "Your radiance is blinding, and I'm afraid my eyes are adapted for the night."

"Well…" The voice seemed appeased, despite just how nonsensical Teneris' excuse was. "That's just how it is."

"Teneris," It was a familiar voice, soft-spoken but rumbling. Null knew he'd heard it recently. "Sparx says he saw a couple of young dragons with you earlier. Would you happen to know where they are? It's important."

Null looked at Apex and mouthed 'that's us'. Apex's eyes widened.

"Not that I doubt you, but may I ask why?" Teneris tilted his head.

"It's… complicated," The soft-spoken one said, "They're not in trouble, and they haven't caused any trouble. We just… need to talk to them."

Teneris didn't say anything for a little bit, then glanced back at Null and Apex. Apex shrugged, and after a moment of thought, Null nodded.

Teneris stepped wordlessly aside, pulling the door open as he did. It revealed three figures, though the third was admittedly hard to make out. The first was lithe and slender, with black scales and a crimson underbelly. The second was broad and muscular, covered in purple scales. The third was a tiny figure enshrouded in glowing golden light, hovering above the purple dragon's shoulder.

Null's jaw dropped, and he heard Apex gasp next to him.

Spyro and Cynder seemed just as shocked as they were.

"See, I told you!" The dragonfly said, putting his hands on his hips. He zipped over to Null and Apex, looking them up and down. "No, wait, maybe I got it wrong."

"No, you were right." Cynder stepped forwards, entering the house. She approached Null and Apex, looking down directly at Null. "Hi. You… probably already know who I am."

Null nodded wordlessly.

"I wanted to apologize."

Null's head spun. What? Why would Cynder need to apologize to him? Why would Cynder, need to apologize to him?!

"For dropping you out of the sky."


A/N:

And so we meet Teneris. He's not a bad person, but he definitely won't be winning any father of the year awards. Still, sometimes one finds a cause that they think is more important than their personal life, and civil rights activism could easily be that cause. Does that excuse what he's done wrong? No. But hopefully it explains it.

As for the legendary saviors of the world... well, you'll just have to wait until next chapter for a full explanation.