A/N: Probably should've mentioned this earlier, but should I include quotes from sources outside Sutherland, I will leave a little * at the end of their paragraph and name-drop the author at the bottom of that chapter.
And I apologise for being rather book-quote heavy in this chapter. I did try to spice things up, but I just thought Sutherland did these interactions so well, they can't be beaten.
And here is where we meet the big man himself ;) Please Enjoy!
Chapter Four
Within the next week, Jade Mountain was crowded with RainWings and all the ragtag dragons that had joined the Dragonets of Destiny in order to form the beginnings of 'The Rebellion'. The spell had worked, and only allowed in those invited. Anyone else was repelled as if they had struck an invisible wall. It was all their dreams come true!
Well, everyone except Moon.
With so many dragons in one place, Moon suddenly felt her head crowded with too many voices, too many emotions. She often couldn't stay in crowds for more than a few moments without succumbing to a vicious headache. There were plenty of spaces in Jade Mountain where she could retreat, dark caverns where it was nice and quiet. But then she was on her own, a different pain replaced it.
Over the next six months, a terrible sadness had threatened to swallow her up. The grief since losing her mother was sucking all the life out from inside her. She often cried herself to sleep remembering seeing her mother and father fighting, losing sight of her mother behind the flames. Was she alive? Captured? On more than one occasion, Moon had been tempted to slip away and go to her father, to obey all his commands so long as she got her mother back.
Fear was what held her back. Fear of her father's retribution for disobeying him in the first place, fear of what her powers would be used for. Kinkajou was the only other comfort in these trying times. All the other RainWings disliked her (as much as a RainWing could) because she resembled the ones who'd imprisoned and attacked them, who had stolen their home. Even if they didn't show it, Moon could hear the whispers in their minds when she walked past. Kinkajou was the only one who was ever happy to see her. And Moon was thankful every day to have her back.
But Kinkajou liked to be sociable - she was happiest when surrounded by dragons. And Moon found herself isolated from her only friend because of her inability to control her powers. Frustrated tears pricked the corners of her eyes as she tried to push the voices out. All the techniques her father tried to teach, she did them again. But they were just as unsuccessful as last time.
"Ow," Moon whispered, stopping in the middle of a hallway to clutch her head. She was too close to the big cavern that Clay had nicknamed 'the prey centre', where everyone decided to go get food. Moon often avoided the place until the dead of night so that she was the only one there. Even when she was tunnels away, the amount of dragons in there was enough to almost split her skull open. "Ow, ow, ow!"
Aha, there you are.
A voice unlike anything Moon had ever heard before washed through her mind. Deep and resonant, articulated and cool, with the slightest hint of music just beyond her reach. Her head snapped up and she looked around. Where had that come from? It had almost sounded like the voice was talking to her.
I am talking to you.
Instant paralyzing fear made Moon almost panic herself into a frenzy. All through those months of travelling, she'd wondered whether to tell the Dragonets of Destiny about her powers. Her father had always instructed to keep the extent of them a secret, so that she would have an extra weapon up her sleeve. But she hadn't wanted that! And yet, when she met Stonemover, and realized her new responsibilities, he'd told everyone that NightWings didn't have powers anymore. So now Moon was afraid that if she did tell someone, they would all hate her, think she was a spy for her father and send her away. She'd decided to keep it a secret a little while longer until she could figure out the best way to say it.
But had her self-isolation, her constant headaches, her behaviour, given her away? Had someone found her out and was now toying with her?!
Three moons, said the voice, you're a jumpy one.
"Who are you?!" Moon whispered. She trotted to the next cave along, ducking her head inside to see if anyone was there. Empty. She moved on to the next.
Who are you? He countered - at least, Moon thought it was a he, it sounded like a he. And then, as if he'd plucked the answer out of her brain he said, Ah, hello Moonwatcher.
"Just Moon, please," she said instantly before she could stop herself. Her father was the only one who called her Moonwatcher. Everyone else who was friendly, who was good, called her Moon.
The voice seemed to consider that, and then said gently, As you wish, Moon.
By this time, she'd checked all the nearby rooms. No one around, not even a trace of their scent in the air. So what did that mean? Her mystery voice was being very direct, almost as if he were talking to her mind-to-mind. But then that must mean he was another telepath! How was that possible? And how was he reading anything out of her brain?
It's almost as if you've had no training at all. He chuckled. How old are you? Seven and a half? Who has mistreated you, to leave you like this for so long?
Moon tried not to think about her father, about all his failed lessons and how she was so useless. If this truly was another telepath, then he was confirming how much of a failure her training had been.
No, no, no! He said hurriedly, and Moon's mind was suddenly filled with music. She'd only heard music once, when she'd gotten too close to the RainWing village at age 3. She didn't even know what instruments were making this beautiful sound right now, but the music that her voice was thinking of was calm, slow, soothing. You are not the failure, little Moon. You just haven't been instructed. Forgive me - I meant no offense.
"Then please stop doing that," she said. "Stop taking things out of my head. Tell me who you are… please."
You really don't know? He sounded genuinely puzzled. Hmmm, fascinating.
Moon waited a moment, her tail tapping the floor. "Um, not to seem rude, but I don't like to repeat myself and sound like an idiot."
The voice laughed. My apologies, you could say I've not done this sort of thing in a while. But I'll give it a try. Nice to meet you, Moon. I... am Darkstalker.
And just like that, she felt the music vanish. She looked around her, as if her mystery voice - this Darkstalker - was suddenly right behind her. But nothing. Drawing her wings in, she couldn't help but give a slight shiver. Her emotions danced on the dividing line between fear… and hope.
"Hey, MOONY!"
Moon leapt with a shriek! She nearly tripped over her own tail to turn and face the too-bright-scales of Kinkajou. How had the little RainWing done that? Moon had been so focused on her mystery voice, she hadn't even noticed Kinkajou's brain full of bubbles and bolts of electricity. Behind her was Qibli, which was rather unusual. Qibli liked to be in the centre of things, preferably next to Sunny. He had the fastest working brain Moon had ever encountered. He often took one look at a dragon and made observations that Moon would've never guessed.
"You were doing that weird thing, where you went off into la-la-land," said Kinkajou brightly. "So I thought I'd snap you out of it, because of course you'd much rather come get some mangos with us!"
"S-Sorry," Moon stuttered, rectifying her posture. "I was just… lost in thought, I guess."
"I get that," said Qibli. "With the war and everything, I think we've all got a lot on our mind." Thinking about her father? His mind guessed. She's very shy, doesn't like crowds or talk much. Keeps to herself. Nervous or a potential leak? Was so sure I had her pegged as friendly, but after what Tsunami told me… Will need to keep an eye on this one. Could swing either way.
"Yeah," Moon mumbled, trying to block him out. What had Tsunami told him? Were they all suspicious of her?
"ANYWAY!" Kinkajou said in a loud sing-song voice. She grabbed hold of Moon's arm and she heard louder than ever the bursts of colour out of the RainWing that made Moon feel like she'd been painted all over. "You need to come with us! Someone found a mango tree growing on the edges of the valley and we have to go get some!"
"Um, maybe not," Moon tried extracting herself so that Kinkajou's thoughts weren't pressing in on her so hard. "You know how I prefer to be up at night. I'll get something later."
"But then they'll be all gone," Kinkajou pouted. Bromeliad's wrong! I know she is. Moon's just odd. She's NOT boring and she's NOT evil! I'd know, wouldn't I? Please come with me and show them all! I can handle shy, but please don't be boring and maybe-evil.
Moon didn't know what to do. Both of them were suspicious, and if she tried to slink away now, they might both begin to think everyone else was right about her. And Kinkajou was looking at her right now as if she were about to smash her favourite toy. Moon wanted to go with them. It had been forever since she'd had a mango… But the thought of going into the prey centre right now made her stomach flip with dread.
"Hey," warm scales brushed hers. She looked up and was surprised to notice that Qibli had stepped up beside her, his wing gingerly brushing her. "If you're worried about crowds, we'll stick to the corners. Just talk to us and don't worry about anyone else." Was that too forward? Or was it comforting? If I keep being reassuring, will she like me, or think I'm coddling her?
Kinkajou fluttered her small wings. "Yeah! We'll protect you from all them frogfaces!" See? No one makes nasty whispers about my best friend!
Best-friend? Moon felt a little lighter at the thought that anyone was still her friend. And if she only had Kinkajou (and maybe Qibli) that would be enough.
And then she heard the voice say, Oh Moon, my new favourite dragon. This dragonet with her brain full of bubbles is not your only possibility. I believe you and I are destined for a great friendship.
"Lead the way," she said quickly to cover up whatever face she made when she heard him.
Maybe she shouldn't listen to this new voice, she wondered as she walked. Her mind tried to puzzle him out. If she was talking to another telepath, then that meant Darkstalker had to be another NightWing. But Stonemover had said there weren't any powers among the tribe in at least two hundred years. And her father had always told her she was the first born with powers in living memory. Was Darkstalker someone who had lived outside the tribe, just as she had? Could she take that chance? Maybe she couldn't - shouldn't - trust him. He could be a spy for all she knew, trying to get to her on the orders of her father.
She tried hard not to think about that.
As she followed Qibli and Kinkajou, she began to sense the dozens of minds up ahead. With every step she took, the louder they became. The urge to shy away from the pain of the oncoming headache was almost ingrained in her now. But no! She told herself she would carry on. For Kinkajou. For the purpose of making friends. Gritting her teeth, brow crinkled, she walked into the wall of pain.
Just focus on taking one step at a time, she told herself. Just one step…
The prey centre was one of the largest caverns in the mountain, with one wall partly open to the valley beyond. Goats and deer that naturally inhabited these lands were fair game to any who wanted to catch them, and the trees and bushes were plentiful in nuts and fruits. There was even a large lake within the mountain's borders filled with fish. And every dragon who caught their food would bring it back here to feast and chat. It made for great bonding amongst all the different dragons but it meant that all their minds were clustered together, voices overlapping and building up to the ceiling.
Focus, focus… Moon thought. One step, then another. Her mantra wasn't entirely successful in blocking out all the noise. All it was doing was waiting to pounce on her as soon as her concentration broke. Which it did when she was so absorbed in getting her feet to work that she almost stepped on Qibli's tail, before he hurriedly swept the deadly barb away from her.
"Whoa! Careful there, don't you wanna keep all your talons?" he gave her that lopsided smile that meant he was joking.
Moon winced. "Sorry,"
As promised, Kinkajou and Qibli led her over to a quiet corner where the nearest dragons were still a good twenty feet away. Kinkajou immediately hurried out to a large stone shelf where someone had left piles of fruit for others to pick from. Qibli was watching Sunny talking to Tsunami and a bunch of RainWings, his mind cataloguing potential threats. Moon just sat in the corner and tried not to look like she was in agony - which, to clarify, she absolutely was.
I could help, you know, chimed in the voice. That is, if you're done categorizing me as 'THE SINISTER STRANGER!' Oh, that sounds like a terribly trashy thriller.
Yes, Moon thought back, because I should completely trust a random voice that just pops into my head one day. Wow, thinking about it like that makes me sound insane.
I could say you're not, but as you pointed out, I'm just a voice. What do I know?
Moon thought about it a moment, and then said: I'm sorry. Do you really know how to help me? She thought of all the lessons from her father, how nothing he told her to do worked.
This time, you have a tutor who actually knows what he's talking about, said Darkstalker with not a small hint of smugness. It'll be fine, you'll see.
Alright, I'm listening.
Imagine the sound of ocean waves.
I've never heard ocean waves.
What? He demanded. Were you raised under a mountain? Fine, then - some other repetitive, soothing noise.
Moon made sure Qibli hadn't noticed her staring off into space yet. Would rain work?
Yes. Exactly. Fill your head with rain.
She cast her mind back in time, to when she was a small dragonet. Hiding in her little fern nest, in the rainforest, avoiding the detection of predators and dragons alike. The rain came down through the trees, sliding along her scales patting the leaves all around her. She waited there, sometimes for days, waiting for her mother to return.
You tragic little dragon, said Darkstalker sympathetically.
I'm not a tragic little dragon, she protested. Mother tried to save me. If it weren't for her, I'd have been raised on the volcano.
Why were the tribe on a volcano, anyway? Before Moon could puzzle on his curious response, he continued. Now, hold on to that falling rain sound, and then imagine that you're taking each voice you hear and slipping it inside one of the raindrops. After a minute, the mental howling of all these dragons will be drowned in the downpour.
Moon braced herself, closed her eyes, and imagined the rainstorm. She let in the voices and was almost crushed. The first voice she caught hold of was a rainwing yammering about how he disliked apples and pears. Going back to the sound of rain, Moon imagined the raindrop engulfing him.
Gone.
Eyes popped open in surprise, Moon was almost floored at the success. As if this were some glass treasure, she tentatively reached out for the next voice. Gone as well. Qibli was closest to her, could it work on him? Though his brain was fascinating, she put him away inside a raindrop. And even his noise left. Excited now, Moon summoned a monsoon of rain in her mind and washed away the voices around her.
The peace was so immediate, Moon thought she might shed a tear. Without her conscious thought, her wings flared open.
Wow, her mood suddenly got better, Qibli's voice returned abruptly. He smiled at her. "You look happy,"
"Just figuring something out," she said. Why did his voice come back?
It is more difficult when the thoughts are specifically about you. Darkstalker replied readily. It will take a lot of practice to get quick at it.
I will practice! She vowed. Thank you, thank you so much! This is amazing!
It is the first trick a mind reading dragonet learns, or else they might go mad. You should've had these lessons soon after hatching. It's rather a surprise you're as even tenuously sane.
Very funny.
Perhaps now you can label me as 'the funny voice', instead of the 'sinister stranger'.
Maybe, Moon smiled over as Kinkajou came trotting back with a basket full of mangos balanced on her back. And… Darkstalker? It's nice to meet you too.
A slither through damp ash, feet trampling over blackened rubble. Sodden dirt clung to scales and stuck between toes. Smoke still lingered on the wind, even after months. The cliffs were desolate and broken like the fragments of pottery, scroll, brickwork and bone on the sandy floor.
Blister surveyed the ruins of the SeaWing Summer Palace. She'd been here, at the start of every month, to see if a message had been left for her. But nothing. Coral and her bubble-breathing, idiotic tribe had vanished, the alliance Blister had created slipping through her talons like melting ice. After everything she'd promised them, all the careful manipulations she'd had in place - all gone!
Her tail twitched dangerously. She wanted to kill someone. Five someones, preferably. Those dragonets had been nothing but a thorn in her side!
But maybe not for much longer. Morrowseer had come through. He was willing to carry on their alliance, that they work together to both take over the Kingdom of Sand and hunt down some pesky dragonets.
With the NightWings and now the majority of the SandWings on her side, perhaps coming back to this burned out ruin was a waste of time. Maybe there was some comfort in thinking Coral would return. Morrowseer was the more powerful ally, but he was also unable to be manipulated. Blister didn't like the fact that he acted like he knew more than he let on. She'd always been skeptical of the claim that NightWings had mind-reading or foresight powers, but there was always that little knot of worry at the back of her brain.
Someone who could read her mind and see her future decisions was a powerful ally; and Blister knew she'd be a fool to turn down such an alliance. But still, it made her nervous - though she would never admit it.
ARGH, she hated NightWings.
Wingbeats sounded behind her. She spun and crouched, tail raised and poised to strike. But it was no NightWing or SeaWing. It was another SandWing. One she didn't recognise. His cheeks were tattooed with dragon skulls - a sure sign that he was of peasant birth. He landed, staying well out of striking range, and bowed.
"Queen Blister," he said stiffly. "My grandfather sends his congratulations for winning back the Stronghold."
"Does he," Blister hissed, looking the stranger up and down. "And should I care what your grandfather thinks?"
"Maybe," the stranger shrugged. "Depends on if you can make use of his thoughts."
She made a show of turning in a frustrated circle, making sure to hide her careful step closer with a flick of her wings. "Do not bore me with riddles. Why're you here? You had your chance to pledge your loyalty to your rightful queen."
She'd given everyone in the kingdom of sand exactly two days to come to the Stronghold and bend the knee. Painful execution and public dismemberment were to be the punishments of all those who did not. Her courtyard had been flooded with dragons just hours after the proclamation had been sent out. And all those who didn't come fled to criminal pits like the Scorpion Den or any of the outlying oases. Blister had quite enjoyed seeing the looks of horror on the faces of her subjects when they'd walked through the front gate, right underneath the severed head of Burn, blackened with dragonbite-viper venom as it was.
"My grandfather sent me to offer you a proposition," said the stranger. "He knows fightin' a war on two fronts is hard work. Especially when you don't know which of your subjects to trust."
"It's better to not trust anyone," she retorted. She didn't even trust her own generals or any of her soldiers. In fact, she had gotten them all to spy on one another for her.
Another shrug. "Burn found that out the hard way. Always had insurrections among the people. Shipments disrupted, supply routes robbed, dragons she wanted dead conveniently vanishing. My grandfather knows who did all that. A little band of would-be heroes who call themselves the Outclaws."
Blister paused in her continued attempts to get close enough to strike. She had heard of such discourse in the Kingdom during Burn's occupation, but she had assumed it to be the failings of her brutish sister. If this was going to be a recurring issue for her too, then that would be annoying.
"You need someone who can play their game. They're criminals, we're criminals. They spy on you, we spy on them. They try to make things hard for you, will kill them. My grandfather can make that happen for you."
"Oh really? If your grandfather is so smart as to deliver on all these promises, then he can't want to do it for free."
"He doesn't think his demands are unreasonable. Wealth, stature. Small things compared to the service we provide."
"And so long as the gold flows, you'll stay where I need you." Blister hummed thoughtfully. "And you'll get rid of this Outclaw problem for me?"
"We won't get in the way of the guards or nothin'." he said. "We'll just rough up the little people, make sure they know who they bow to."
For the first time that night, Blister grinned. "Deal."
One would think that lying absolutely still would be the easiest thing in the world. But the urge to move just that little fraction is unconsciously irresistible. A twitch of the foot, a slight twist of the lower back, even the simplicity of tilting one's neck for a more comfortable position. All these things one didn't notice they did until they were taken away.
A familiar panic began to swell in his stomach. Darkstalker had not been one to believe he was claustrophobic before. Was a phobia something that could be learnt? Either way he didn't care for it.
He fought it back. Tried his hardest to remain calm. Rock pressed against every scale he had, to the point where he wasn't quite sure where up and down was anymore. There was only a small pocket around his face where he could puff out a plume of fire to illuminate the space in front of him. He'd learned not to do that very quickly. It was frightening to see the wall of stone and earth so close.
When he'd woken up, confused and frightened, he'd tried to move, and when he'd been restrained, he'd gone for his magic. The words had tumbled through his head, out of a voice that had croaked and cracked from disuse and dehydration. But… nothing. His magic was there, he could feel it, the near constant quiet hum through his talons. And yet, it would not obey him. How?! Several times he had tried, and every time he failed. Nothing would move this rock. A clever animus might've enchanted his prison to never yield to him, so he'd tried other spells: ones to make him shrink, a spell to instantly transport him somewhere else, even a spell to turn him yellow - just to see if SOMETHING would happen!
But the thing that made him special, the thing that he'd been made for… was no longer his to command.
A breeze trickled past his nose, a welcomed, if slight change in the damp, stale air. Was it raining outside? He stuck out his long forked tongue, trying to catch even the barest hint of moisture. By the Great Dragon, he was so very thirsty. By all the stars - he was so hungry! For not the first time, he cursed his short-sighted, foolish past-self for not thinking of this outcome when he'd made himself immortal. He could breathe in all the foul, stale air he wanted, could starve himself until his stomach finally ruptured, could not drink until his throat turned to dust, and he would still live.
What a curse he had put upon himself.
But was there still hope?
Willing to do anything to rid himself of the torture that was his own existence, he happily escaped into his own mind and the minds of others. Jade Mountain was crammed full of dragons, the most he'd had anywhere near him in months. After only having Stonemover's thoughts as company since he'd awoken, so much noise was a welcome change. But there was only one mind he wanted to be in right now.
Moonwatcher.
He'd known she'd come. When he'd finally accepted his current state, accepted that he was trapped, abandoned, alone, he'd flung himself into the timelines to see if there was a way out. Clearsight had always been better than him at sorting through all the possible futures. He'd only ever looked at the most likely and left it at that. Now, with nothing but time on his talons, he built up that muscle he'd underused all his life. He finally used his moon-given power to its potential. He'd looked into his possible futures.
And that's when he'd found her. His saviour, his salvation, his tenuous thread to sanity.
She was the only mindreader who could hear him. The only one who could prove to him that he wasn't dead and haunting his own corpse. She was the only one who had a shot at getting him free. He wasn't sure how, yet. There were so many possibilities, and he didn't know all the factors that had led up to this moment. Once he had those answers, he might be able to form a plan. With Moon at the centre.
But she wasn't what he'd expected. She was untrained, fragile, lost. Through her thoughts and those around her, he'd garnered that NightWings no longer had their signature abilities. She was unique, the only one. Something about it pointed to an island, a volcano, but he couldn't quite see how that fit together. Moon had been alone and miserable most of her life, teetering on the edge of madness from her abilities.
Inside of her was this fierce yearning to be loved, to be treated with kindness and care. Darkstalker had very rarely been moved to pity. But he could somewhat relate to the flashes of horrible memories he found in her head. She was funny and in his visions of the future, he saw them being great friends. And she trusted him, and though she was suspicious at first, there was no sense of judgement in her emotions. Not even his beloved Clearsight could say the same - she had always judged him by actions she could see him possibly commit. But Moon really knew nothing about him, and treated him like his own person. He felt an unexpected urge to shield her from all the wrongs that had befallen her. And that was why he had reached out today to teach her.
Darkstalker knew this child was not a natural survivor. The world would crush her under its cruel heel without compunction, never seeing the delicate petals that lay bruised and trampled in the mud. Spiteful rivals, unkind critics, ruthless leaders, and dubious suitors… He cringed at the pain that inevitably lay ahead of her. Without the protection of a stronger individual she would be destroyed body and soul by the brutal demands of a notoriously callous world.*
Right now, Moon was flying through the valley alone. From her thoughts, he gathered it was late at night. She preferred to be up at night, unlike all the other dragons around her. She was compromising, sleeping half the day and half the night, so that she could at least be awake with the others for some of the time so as to not seem odd to them. Darkstalker found it rather adorable, if a little pathetic, how far she was willing to go to please others.
It's a pity none of the other tribes are nocturnal, as we are, he chimed in her head. He caught her by surprise, and she did a little flip in the air. They don't get to revel in the beauty of the moons as we can.
Oh, what he wouldn't give to be out there now in the moonlight! To feel the wind under his wings! The pang of longing that hit him, the despair, was so great he felt the fraying rope of his sanity give a little shudder.
Why would we be any different? Moon thought back to him. At least she was getting used to the idea of these mental conversations. She adjusted quickly, could keep up, he liked that about her. I'm only awake at night because it's a habit. Easier to hide in the rainforest at night.
Darkstalker's real body snorted. Nonsense! You're behaving like a normal NightWing. Clue is in the name - we are meant to be awake at night.
Oh, but my father always said -
I have a feeling your father wouldn't know what an actual NightWing was even if it bit his nose off. From her memories of this imposing father with intense gold eyes, Darkstalker knew he would have a few choice words for him, if he were free. He'd made a mess of his daughter and blamed her for his own mistakes. It struck a little too close to home.
You're… she hesitated, you are a NightWing, aren't you? You're another telepath, like me.
No extra merits to you for solving that mystery.
She laughed a little, and he could feel the tension ease inside her. But how? I thought I was the only one. Did you grow up outside of the tribe too?
Well… What to tell her? I didn't grow up in the society our current brethren seems to have adopted. Where I come from, it was much different.
Where do you come from? How could it be so different?
Maybe that's a question to ask other NightWings. Things have definitely changed since I was around.
You aren't making any sense. She got a little angry then, Darkstalker was surprised to see. She had a little more fire in her than he'd realised. Fine. At least tell me where you are right now.
Trapped. Alone. He had to be careful to make sure his mind didn't give anything away. Of how he felt like clinging to her as if he were about to be dragged to the ocean floor and drowned and she was the only thing that could save him. I think we find ourselves on opposite sides of the same coin, my dear. You are surrounded by dragons and don't want to hear any of them. Whereas I'm starved of conversation and listen intently for any kind of stimulation. You're the only person who's been able to talk back to me.
I never thought of it like that… There was warmth in her mind, as if she'd brushed her wing with his to confirm their camaraderie. Mother always told me my powers were a curse, and they've certainly never done anything to make my life easier. She adjusted her flight pattern to return towards the mountain. Darkstalker? Why am I like this? Do you know?
She didn't? Of course. Even if the tribe has lost touch with our powers, the cause of them was a well documented fact.
Really? Because no one seems to know now.
I'll give you three guesses.
Her talons touched down on the rocky ledge. She inspected her shadow from the three moons, each in various stages of fullness. Is… Is it the Moons?
Yes! One full moon at hatching gives a dragonet either telepathy or precognition. Two full moons gives them both.
I was born under two full moons, she thought more to herself. Then: What about you?
This was a difficult situation. He immediately checked the timelines. He could only tell her things in stages or else overwhelm her. But if he kept this bit of information a secret, there was more than a probable chance she would resent it later. I… I hatched under three. Three full moons strengthens the powers tenfold. My skill at mindreading is unmatched. And I could see not just one future, as you can, but all the possible futures.
I can't imagine it being any worse that it already is.
I'll teach you, he promised. Soon you will not have to fear your gifts. Just don't wish to be ordinary, little Moon.
She was quiet, and in her mind he sensed that she was smiling, if only a little. She liked it when he liked her just as she was. And then he watched a stray thought get caught in her attention and blow up. The moons… I wonder if that is why the tribe doesn't have our powers anymore! On the volcanic island, there was no way for moonlight to get through to our eggs.
That would make sense, he agreed, but for them to be born without powers long enough to forget them… More time must've passed than I realised...
She hesitated, but her mind was coloured with concern, with a growing care for him. Are you hurt? Can I find you?
Not without leaving your precious barrier, I suspect. And I don't think you can do anything anyway.
How're you trapped? Who has you prisoner? Is it Blister?
Darkstalker's heart clenched, bitterness marred his words. Someone who I thought I could trust put me here. But I don't know where she's gone or when she's coming back.
Who is it? What did you mean by more time has passed?
He'd been dreading asking this, but he needed to know. What year is it, Moon? How many years since the scorching?
Five thousands and thirteen.
The world stopped spinning.
WHAT?! He roared.
He pulled out of her mind with such violent abruptness that even he nearly felt sick. Back into the rock he was cast, into the hell that was his own body. The calculations burned his brain. If he had any moisture in his body left to shed, he might've wept.
He really was all alone.
* - Susan Kay