Previously

At the foot at the steps, the general halted and turned towards Yona. "I will allow you and your warriors in the throne room. They are to not touch anything. Guards are stationed inside to ensure that they don't do anything. However, I will only allow one of them to go with you in the shrine accompanied by myself." He raised a challenging eyebrow, "It that understood?"

Yona smiled kindly at him, "Thank you for your generosity and understanding. We will only be there for a short amount of time." She bowed towards him, "I apologize for the inconvenience that our presence has caused."

He narrowed his eyes at her and gestured for them to follow. Turning around, she saw her friends giving her encouraging smiles. She nodded at them and followed the general into the throne room.

-x-

Present

The dragons were wary.

They didn't like the fact that they were asked to stay in the throne room while the princess descended down into the shrine. On top of that, they were being guarded.

The moment they had stepped into the castle, each of them felt a swell of energy within them. They weren't sure what was happening, but their senses were sensitive to the atmosphere around them.

Yona turned to her dragons as the sky general went to open up the pathway to the shrine. Kija stepped forward and held her hands with his claw. "Are you sure about this princess?"

Yona smiled at him and looked over the other dragons. Turning back to Kija, determination was burning within her. "I'm sure Kija. This is something that I have to do."

He nodded, "Who do you wish to accompany you?" The others stiffened.

She sighed and took a step back slipping her hands out of Kija's claw. She held out her hand, "Zeno, will you come with me?"

Hesitation and fear flashed in his eyes. He hadn't been in that room for so long. "W-why me m-miss Yona?"

She smiled and took a step forward towards him and rested her hand on his cheek. His eyes widened as a slight blush began to appear, "I am not the only one here whose heart is heavy from the past."

He inhaled sharply.

She let her hand fall from his face and took a step back, "If you are not ready for this Zeno, I understand," She furrowed her brows, "but I think this is something that we need to do together."

Zeno absentmindedly began playing with the medallion that was hanging from his headband. He could feel it vibrating in between his fingers. Zeno could feel the presences of the first generation dragons humming along within the relic as if they were nudging him forward. He looked at the others before nodding.

Yona smiled and looked at her other dragons, "Stay safe everyone. Please wait for me here."

Jae-ha smirked and crossed his arms, "Don't worry Yona dear, we will be here waiting to see your beautiful smile again." He bent down and kissed her hand.

Kija rolled his eyes, "Call of if anything happens, okay princess?"

She nodded and turned to Shin-ha. For a moment, she lost herself staring into his eyes. They held a warm and comforting world of their own. A world that she was never afraid of. He stepped forward, "I'll… keep watch… Yona."

She nodded as she turned and grabbed Zeno's hand. Together, the two of them went to the sky general standing impatiently next to the opened passageway. "Are you ready?" He gestured to Zeno. "Which one is he?"

She smiled, "Yes sir." She looked at Zeno who lightly squeezed her hand in return, assuring her that it was okay to announce him. "This is Ouryuu Zeno, my dear friend and one who has experience in spiritual guidance."

The general studied Zeno for a minute, 'He doesn't seem particularly dangerous, or powerful for that matter.' Shaking his head, he headed down into the passage, "Follow me then."

Taking one final look at her dragons, her and Zeno descended down towards the shrine.

-x-

Yona could feel her heartbeat quicken. She could hear Zeno's breathing and assumed that he was feeling the same thing she was. They were nervous as to what they were going to find in there. The passageway was dark and the air became heavier as they neared to shrine doors.

Stopping in front of them, the general reached to open the door. "Wait!" yelled Yona. He stopped and turned to her, startled by her commanding voice. "Let me open it. Please."

He was obviously confused by her request, 'Why in the hell does it matter who opens the damn door?' He sighed and stepped aside allowing the princess to approach the door.

She slowly stepped forward and traced her hand across the patterns of the door. An image of the crimson dragon looking up at his brothers from earth as they watched him from heaven. Yona felt a hand on her shoulder, "Miss? Is there something wrong?"

She shook her head, "No, I was just remembering." Her eyes softened, "I miss them."

Zeno pulled back his hand and looked at the door, "Zeno's misses his brother's as well." He smiled to himself, "I know that they are watching us right now and are eagerly awaiting you."

She turned to look at him with an eyebrow raised. "Why do you say that Zeno?"

He chuckled and grabbed his medallion. Slowly, he took it off and handed it to Yona, "I think they want you to hold this while we are in there."

She stared at it for a second before she took it in her shaky hands, "Are you sure? I gave this to you back then to aid you in your journey. It's no longer the medallion that that was gifted to me."

He stepped forward and clasped her hands together. Slowly, he lowered the medallion and the beads that held it into her palms, "I'm sure miss. After many years of holding onto this, it always finds its way back to me."

She stared at it and clutched it to her heart, "I'll give this back to you Zeno."

He smiled and nodded at her.

The sky general was standing to the side observing their conversation, 'Who is this kid? He may seem young, but I can sense something lingering behind those eyes.' He looked over at the princess suspiciously, 'She knows something... They both do.'

She turned and placed her hands on the door. She could feel and hear a slight humming emanating from behind the dark colored wood. It was drawing her in and willed her to finally open the door.

-x-

Upstairs, the dragons stood in a circle watching the guards. They could feel a warmth spread through their chests.

Shin-ah placed his hand above his heart and closed his eyes. Kija turned and saw his brother's reaction. "Shin-ha, are you okay?"

He nodded and let his hand dropped. Without opening his eyes, he spoke, "They're inside."

Kija nodded and turned to Jae-ha, "You felt that too, didn't you?"

Jae-ha nodded while furrowing his brows. "It's as though, I can feel someone down there besides Zeno. Almost like….." His sentence trailed off.

Kija nodded and understood what Jae-ha was about to say. 'Another dragon.'

-x-

As Yona cracked open the door, she couldn't help but hold her breath. She could feel a slight breeze surround her, ushering her inside. She entered the room followed by Zeno and the sky general ready for whatever was there waiting for them.

Author's Notes

I know, I am evil for leaving you hanging. I couldn't resist. The next chapter will be a longer one!