[Chapter 4]
[Lair's Center]
When Sol and Edward arrived at the center of Lair, a long dormant, probably extinct volcano, Sol said, "It will take some time for the others in the Circle to arrive, so, I will go over the protocol with you.
"First, I will begin the meeting. Each member of the Circle will ask questions. While I would think that given your age that the others would see you as a peer, unless they say otherwise, you may want to avert your gaze. I will give you my permission to look upon me. You've earned that right. Don't phrase things as demands. Like you have done with me in showing proper respect, do the same with the others. This is a debate with some Dragons far older than either of us. You will have to convince them all to devote troops to the battle.
"If necessary, will you lead?"
"Absolutely," Edward replied after a moment, "I have served in many military campaigns back home. I prefer to let other strong leaders have their time to shine, but, I will lead. I think you've already sensed that about me."
"I have, Edward. I do have a question, though. How should you be addressed in our language?" Sol asked.
"Funny you should ask. Solor gave me the unofficial name of Kiinnum," Edward said.
"Born Unique," Sol said, "It is very fitting. Solor chose well. Finally, use our language, and not of the humans unless there is a word that we do not have."
"Understood," Edward replied, "I assume I should stay in my native dragon form?"
"Absolutely," Sol replied, "The others will see it as respecting and honoring tradition. It will go a long way to getting their trust. And, yes, you will have to gain their trust. They may question you about Raven's heritage. From what Solor told me, you're defensive about her. Don't take any questions or comments personally. We have to look at the big picture, and, well, Raven is part of that. Especially since there are two here, the Circle may be very concerned with that. Keep a level head in your arguments. This is a lot like a human court, I suppose."
Edward thought for a moment and said, "I understand. Some of Solor's memories were in this very chamber. One where he was named Heir of the Light. The other was his trial. For what it's worth, Sol. I would have voted to work with him to tame his anger without the banishment aspect. Maybe kept him away from the population. However, that is in the past, I know."
He sighed, "I'll admit that I was outraged seeing that. But the Raven of this universe reminded me that my anger is utterly pointless. She's right, though.
"I got to know my Raven after Trigon's invasion on my world, so, she already had freed emotions. But, the Raven here has so much potential that she has not even tapped, it's not funny.
"She's a Dark person, Grand Light, but, she uses her powers for the greater good. In both universes, she was trained by a woman named Azar and that's why she's unemotional and creepy. In my universe, she serves the same role that Starfire of Tamaran does for your son. She calms me when needed to, to prevent my anger from exploding. You need not worry about that coming into play here. I am the guest here in Lair, only invited due to necessity."
Sol replied, "You are an equal, Edward. You have earned that right. I've seen a little on Raven and it's clear that she does her best to stay away from the Dark."
"I do wish that Solor's exile could be lifted, just for today," Edward said, "But, I know Grand Death would object to that. He was, well, pissed that Solor attacked him. I can't say I blame him, but, if it's the will of the First, I will hope that he forgives Solor someday."
"Give my colleague time," Sol said, "The others will be more willing to forgive. My reports to the Circle have been well-recieved, but, we will have to rely on you alone here."
"I am ready when you are, Grand Light," Edward said.
Sol walked over to a rope and pulled on it several times, causing a deep sounding gong to sound throughout the chamber and into the land itself.
The gems lining the various caves started to glitter in the light as the other members of the Circle arrived and took up seats in front of their caves, save for Grand Earth who took in the proceedings from the side, as he was simply too large to fit anymore.
"This meeting of the Circle," Sol began in the native tongue, "is to determine the fate of not just Lair, but, of the world itself. The Circle will recall the warning passed to us from Starborn several months ago. I have received confirmation of this warning from an unlikely source who took Starborn in recently in another Universe. This source has agreed to speak to the Circle about the threat facing Dragons and mortals alike. We all know this source, though, having used a Tear of Oblivion to protect him 3,000 years ago. He has thrived since then in this alternate universe. He goes by the human name of Edward Barnes, but, was recently given the unofficial name of Kiinnum by Starborn."
Edward looked around and began.
"Exalted and most honorable Circle. Thank you for allowing me to return to the land of my hatching and the opportunity to speak to you today. My sincerest apologies for asking for an emergency meeting, however, the Grand Light agreed that this is of vital importance.
"I come with a warning that war is coming and it is inevitable. Starborn recently told Grand Light that 'darkness extinguish light' in order to warn you. At the time, he was not certain what his future self told Starfire of Tamaran, and I am certain that I can fill in this blank spot.
"In my universe, a being called Trigon the Terrible attempted to take over Earth and almost succeeded in that conquest, save for one reason: His daughter, Raven, gave a piece of her power to each of the Teen Titans, preventing them from being petrified along with the rest of the population of Earth. After a long battle, Robin rescued Raven from Hell and while she was reverted to a child and powerless, she discovered that not only could Trigon be injured, she rediscovered her powers and banished Trigon back to a place called Azarath. In doing so, she also restored Earth to the state it was prior to his attempt.
"After I joined the Titans, Raven and I fell in love and during that time, Trigon's sons made another play to gain power and potentially bring Trigon back. Trigon destroyed the land of Azarath before his attempt, leaving only Raven's mother alive to tell the tale.
"His sons managed to kidnap me and transport me to another dimension as well as rendering my abilities useless until I was able to outwit one of them into absorbing enough of the power from my bindings where I could escape.
"Trigon and I fought after I fought my way out of the dungeon I was held in and during that battle, the building collapsed, killing Trigon's remaining portals. I killed him there and risked Raven's life and mine in a dimensional teleport as she located me before the fight.
"Little did I know, though, is that Trigon transported part of himself into Raven's mind and almost turned her evil. The Titans and I went into her mind and we hit him with everything we had. It was futile until my then girlfriend revealed that she was corrupted. In the haze of my own anger, when she captured me in her soul-self, I thought she was gone. My anger exploded outwards and shattered her attempt to take me down. I think the shock of that freed her from her father's influence as I gave into the rage that consumed me. Trigon found out that enraging an immortal dragon can be fatal. In my universe, Trigon is supposed to be dead.
"How he managed to escape, I do not know. That doesn't matter, though. He is about to be summoned ahead of this universe's history. If that happens, he will stop at nothing to take over this world and then other sentient worlds like Tamaran. He will consume souls of mortals and dragon alike.
"I am aware that you wonder how I know this, members of the Circle. I have the unfortunate duty to tell you that there will be a Twilight dragon hatching at some point. Starborn was kidnapped about two weeks ago during a fight with Brother Blood. When he awakened, he was tricked into mating with a Dark Dragoness. He saw through the deception, but, it was too late. They mated, but, he did not mark her. That's where she slipped up as Starfire should not have known that little fact or what a dark Dragon looks like. What she did to him in the intervening week was an abomination: She raped him, repeatedly and finally shattered his will. I'm sorry, Grand Earth. You were somewhat wrong in your assessment."
That got the members of the Circle to talking before Earth said, "What do you mean? You were not here when we pronounced Starborn as the next heir."
"After Starborn was found by his mortal friends, he was catatonic," Edward explained, "As you may know, Grand Light had to go and examine his son and determined that Starborn was raped in body, mind and soul. He asked Kreinyol to contact me and my Raven. After we came to help Starborn, we went into his mind. That is, my Raven, the Raven of this universe, Kreinyol, and myself. We saw a lot of his memories in the process, including when he was a whelpling being considered to be Grand Light's heir.
"We also saw his darkest days. His overreaction to Grand Death's visit and his trial in this very chamber. Then, his rejection of Grand Light's attempt to apologize for his words.
"But, Grand Death, I have a message for you from Starborn: 'I am deeply sorry for attacking you that day and humble myself to ask for your forgiveness. I know my actions were inexcusable, and I deeply regret them.'"
Grand Death looked at Edward and said, "I cannot blithely overlook Starborn's affront to my person. An attack on a member of the Circle is an attack on us all. How do we know Starborn is not trying to reduce the sentence of the Circle?"
"Sir," Edward replied, "Starborn is merely apologizing and asking for forgiveness. He knows that he committed an offense that if another dragon did would merit execution. He is accepting of his punishment. I know he speaks truth. The inner psyche cannot lie. Before he returned home from my universe, I recorded a message for you informing you my thoughts about Starborn and how he has changed. What I said then still stands: I am not advocating for his sentence to be lessened. I have no standing in that matter at all, a fact I acknowledge to all of you. Yes, Starborn has changed for the better since he started seeing Kreinyol. If memory serves, he even volunteered to remain exiled until she dies. It's a win-win for everyone: he gets to maintain his relationship with someone he loves; the Circle does not have to reconsider his punishment for several decades; and, when he is allowed to return, the Circle can determine his mate in accordance with tradition."
Grand Death looked at Edward with a stern gaze and said, "I will not allow a breed traitor to come back to Lair. I was against allowing this pointless relationship to continue and still oppose it. There is a reason we enforce this law."
Edward took a breath to steady himself.
"I respectfully disagree, Grand Death," he said, "In the universe you placed me into, there are no other full blood dragons. During that time, I had relationships with three mortals. One was when I was about Starborn's age. She was Callisto, a Greek Warlord. During the time I knew her, I tried to her with her redemption and for a few years, her and I raised a human child. He was a precious child who died in a thunderstorm when lightning struck a tree and that tree flattened out home. Sadly, her mind was unable to cope with the loss. She snapped and went back to her dark ways while I mourned. I did not find out until late 1750 that she had become a minor goddess. But, due to circumstances beyond my control, I discovered she had killed herself with a hind's blood laced dagger. I mourned her loss for a long time. By the middle of the 18th Century, I had become engaged to a woman named Paula and we were able to have a child together. Her DNA and mine, being reptilian at the base, was compatible. She was a shapeshifter, but, limited to reptiles only.
"Finally, I am currently married to Raven: A half-human, half-demon. My universe's Kreinyol is in a recently repaired relationship with Nightwing - Robin. And Beast Boy, another shapeshifter is engaged to Terra, a geomancer. The love between these couples and my love for Raven is so strong that nothing's going to get in the way of that.
"The love between Kreinyol and Starborn is just as strong. It's what helped him come out of his catatonia earlier today. Without that, I would not be here, ready to plead the case to you that preparations must be made now. Vilea..."
The mention of that name got shocked responses from the group.
"That means that Grand Darkness never gave up his title after we banished him forever," Grand Fire said.
"Likely so," Sol replied, "But, please, let Edward finish."
"Thank you," Edward said, "Vilea is the one who repeatedly raped Starborn and shattered his will. She almost killed him in the process and she is the one who possessed the native Raven. She forced Raven to cast a Tear of Oblivion that sent him to my universe. At the time, she could not have cast that spell on her own. Grand Light will remind you that he had to help her cast it to get him home. But, she said that because Starborn actually returned, it forced Grand Darkness to move his plans up. When this happens, the planet's life will be snuffed out in an instant. Every man, woman, child, dragon, whelp, hatchling, animals and plants will be petrified as surely as if they looked at Medusa herself."
The other dragons looked at Edward and he could tell that they would debate the matter while there was still time and braced himself for a battle of wills. This time, though, it would be a debate with beings either close to his age or older than him, so, he would have to navigate some dangerous waters carefully.
Speaking of Waters, the leader of the Water spoke up first. "If this Trigon is indeed invading our world, then we must do something to stop him, should we not? He is a big fish in a little pond; he shall surely eradicate our very way of life."
"And protect humans?" said Fire, her opposite. "They are weak, and overpopulated as it is. Perhaps it is time the age of Mortals ends?"
Life snarled. "How dare you! They may be overpopulated, but it is not for us to decide whether or not Trigon is allowed to eradicate them. And from what our prodigal son says, then he shall not only kill humans, but animals, trees, every aspect of Life. This cannot be allowed."
Earth nodded. "But the Earth shall stay, and once Trigon leaves our world to conquer another, Life will begin once again." He sounded wise, but it was differently implicated.
"You are suggesting we do nothing?" asked Death. "You suggest we allow Trigon's curse on our land run its course, and allow him to move on and destroy someone else's home while we rebuild?"
Light frowned. "That is not the way of the Circle."
"And what Kiinnum says is what we should do?" Death countered. "We do not interfere with the ways of the mortals. We suggest, we imply. We do not command or defend. They are merely a part of the First's design. Perhaps it is time that they die? Perhaps this is the will of the First?"
Light was frowning more and more. "And what of my son? What of the thousands of dragons that lie in hiding in the mortal realm? Will they die?"
"We shall call them back, of course", Life said. "My mate is correct. While I do not like letting the humans die, my children can rebuild what they have destroyed. We can start anew, and with that, make new traditions, allowing us to keep the ecosystem in balance."
Fire seemed keen on the idea, as did Water. So far, it seemed to be four against three, with Earth, Light, and Edward against the idea.
Sol snarled. "You cannot be serious?"
Earth grumbled. "This is not the way of the Circle. We do not interfere, but we do not merely do nothing."
"Silence, you rock", said Death. "Your way of punishing is to be patient. To let them wait until the mere fear of punishment makes them break and beg for forgiveness. You do not act. You only wait."
"Perhaps the time for waiting is over", said Sol. "Perhaps Earth is ready to put his strength to use; to fight Trigon the Terrible and put an end to this war with Darkness?"
"There cannot be any victory against Darkness", said Life. "So long as the Traitor keeps his title, he will never give up. He will never cease his attacks until we can no longer continue to bolster our defenses."
"Then you are saying it is pointless?" Sol roared.
"That is exactly what we are saying", said Fire.
Sol couldn't believe what he was hearing; his own friends, whom he's had the pleasure of serving the First with for thousands of years, have turned against him. Only Earth stood by his side, and without a strong enough argument, they would not be able to convince the others to go to war.
Edward was dismayed as well, but, unknown to the Circle, Edward was letting Rachael eavesdrop on the whole proceedings. And Raven was in the loop since the mind-link was on the same wavelength.
"Exalted Circle, " Edward said, "I say that dragonkind must make an exception. I have spent my entire life doing one of two things: Helping the mortals or hiding among them in plain sight. And for most of my life it was the latter. Why? Because of what mortals here did to someone's whelpling, a son or a daughter. How many dragons died because of the mortal prejudices of the past?
"And, like you, I do not tell humans what they should do on a wide scale. I suggest a course of action and hope that the advice is taken. My goal is to guide the folks into a brighter future.
"This will pale by comparison. Allow me to paint you a picture. Imagine every mortal petrified forever. Imagine every thing that lives petrified. The sky blood red, the air choked with gloom. No life anywhere and none possible as the souls trapped in stone are eventually consumed by Trigon.
"Imagine, Grand Water, the oceans, rivers, lakes, streams all turned into seas of lava. Grand Life, there would be no life at all. Nothing to rebuild because this would be Trigon's base of operations. He would send minions through his version of a Tear of Oblivion to conquer the known universe.
"Grand Fire, picture if you will fire demons, driven by Darkness to burn all that they touch, without mercy. Their sole purpose: Destroy and incinerate everything that remains burnable. To burn those souls to be devoured by Trigon.
"Grand Earth, master of the ground. Imagine every tree, every blade of grass frozen in stone.
"Grand Death, there would be nothing for you to do. You would not have any dragon here to visit and deliver the same news that caused my brother in arms Starborn to lash out in anger and disbelief. Why? Because ALL OF YOU WOULD BE PETRIFIED!
"This isn't a matter of interfering with the mortal world, this is a matter of preserving the species itself. This is a matter of maintaining the balance. Darkness has been waiting for eons to take over. Don't let it. Please understand that where I come from, the First is called God by the humans and I do not think his will is for every creation of his to be destroyed and every soul He created be devoured by Trigon. Every soul to the First is precious. All life is precious to the First, is it not? You cannot walk away because all life would cease to exist and even if you were somehow to protect yourselves from this fate, when you emerge, Trigon would still be here and there would be nothing to rebuild. Darkness would win. Darkness extinguishes Light.
"I believe that the First would not will His creation to be destroyed in such a manner. You all are here to maintain balance. Fire and Water, Light and Dark, Life and Death. Trigon would destroy this balance and that would end your very reason to be here."
Edward thought for a moment before continuing.
"Behold the face of the enemy!" he said and morphed back to Trigon's form, this time, Rachael showed him what the antlers looked like.
"Do you want the First's creation destroyed by this Abomination?" Edward said using Trigon's voice, "Because unless you act...unless you prepare. Darkness shall win."
Despite the discomfort of four eyes feeding information into a brain designed for two eyes, Edward stayed in Trigon's form for a few moments to let the Circle see the face of the enemy.
[It's going to be an uphill fight,] Rachael said over the link, [They've lost so many of their kind to humans that some of the Circle are holding grudges and see humans as something to be rid of.]
[I gathered that, my dear,] Edward replied, [Right now, it's Sol, the gigantic Earth Dragon and myself against the others. Are you keeping the others updated?]
[I am,] she replied, [Solor is the one who said you will have to really convince them.]
[I see,] he said.
He reverted back to his dragon form, thus relieving the discomfort in the process.
Life and Death looked at each other. The male Death shook his head, but Life looked convinced otherwise. "I move to vote on the matter."
"I second that motion", said Water.
"Motioned, and seconded", said Sol, smiling. He knew now there was no way Death could keep them from sending troops. "Let it be known that with the end of the voting process, we are either all in or all out. What say you, Life?"
"I vote for War", said Life, surprising. "Many lives will be lost. But so much more will be if we allow this... thing to control our world."
"What say you, Death?"
"Defend Lair", says Death. "This is not our war. This is the war of a fledgeling race that has caused so much suffering to everything else around them."
"What say you, Fire?"
"War", said Fire. "Trigon shall burn for threatening us."
"What say you, Water?"
"War." Water, a serpent-like dragon, revealed her full body as she uncoiled, standing in an aggressive stance. "To protect this world, and all others."
"What say you, Earth?" When there was no reply, Sol turned to the Earth's cave. "Grand Earth?"
All of a sudden, the mountain began to crack. The dragon broke free from his bonds of the mountain, as he stood at his full height, dwarfing the other dragons greatly. "Let there be war", he roared. "This world is ours, and no one else's!" The mountain crumbled, covering everyone in dust.
"Then it is decided", said Light, smirking. Sol took to the air, and called out in the natural tongue to all of the dragons, now that the mountain the Circle was held in for so long was destroyed.
"Dragons! For too long we have stayed hidden! Too long have we fought the desire to be seen! Too long we have laid in hiding, fearing the Darkness! Today, we take the fight to them! Let Darkness fear the combined might of the Circle! Darkness will not extinguish the First's will! Trigon, our new enemy, will have no hold over this world! We shall spread to the four corners of this world, and hunt down the Traitor and make him face justice!
"The days of hiding is done! The Dawn of the Dragons has begun!"
With that, many roars of approval were heard throughout Lair, and many dragons began to fly into the air, swirling and covering the land with shadows as they began to gather. They were soldiers, ready for the war, as they gathered at the Circle's feet (mainly Earth's).
The War on Darkness had just been declared.
Edward looked around, after brushing off the dirt and dust from Grand Earth's destruction of their volcano and said, "Grand Death, I do not expect you to agree, but, you are wrong. Withholding your troops would be a mistake. I would suggest that, with the utmost respect, that you do Defend this wonderful land. Defend Lair. Troops should always protect their homeland, and, if Grand Darkness takes part in the battle, leaving Lair defenseless would be a great loss to you all."
Edward reported via the link that the Circle had declared War against Trigon and against Darkness. Unlike in his universe where the Titans only ally was Deathstroke the Terminator, this time, the Teen Titans had powerful allies. Edward would always remember this day no matter how the battle played out.
He looked up at Grand Earth with respect and awe. Solor was right. Grand Earth looked a lot like Godzilla, but, dwarfed his Universe's King of the Monsters.
"Thank you, one and all," Edward said enlarging to his 150 meter full size, "For believing in me. I am humbled that you chose the hard path. I spend most of my life with the humans, and, they deserve this help. In my world, they have grown to accept me as I truly am. They know that I take War seriously. And, fellow dragons, the mortals of this world will hopefully see that Dragons will protect them when needed. There is no need to interfere in their affairs unless there is no other choice. Today, there was no other choice. We must prepare. Darkness doesn't know that they have lost the element of surprise. We must claim this element for ourselves. I offer myself to help lead this battle, but, I need strong generals by my side as well. We begin today. We begin now! Dragons...TO ARMS! May the First bless our attempts to protect His Creations!" His spinal ridges flared a brilliant white that grew in intensity until power crackled between them and with a mighty blast, he shot into the air a tremendous lightning blast that created a peal of thunder that shook the ground as much as Grand Earth's voice.
Several dragons watched the display of power, and were rather impressed. Many stepped forward. An Earth walked up, standing next to Edward. He was only a few meter's taller, so it was obvious this was a much younger Earth dragon. "I am Golmul, outsider. I see your power. You are much stronger than I, or many of the dragons of this Lair. I am stronger than many of my kind, but I have never seen the outside world. I will fight for you, if you will take me to the Realm of Mortals and allow me to bring the fight to Darkness."
As Golmul spoke, more dragons were beginning to approach Edward, both curious and somewhat afraid. They had never seen a Dragon like Edward before, and at the display of his power, they knew he would be a great leader. So, they all kneeled, averting their eyes. Sol noticed, and smiled. "I think they see you as though you are a member of the Circle, Kiinnum."
Water, noticing the crackling power in his spines, approached as well. "Kiinnum, you have difficulty with your breath weapons, do you not? You have combined the powers of Fire and Water to create Lightning... but that was not your strongest attack."
"The only time when there is major difficulty is using them at full power," Edward replied, "I'm used to it."
Sol nodded. "That is another reason Edward was brought here. As I mentioned, he is the very whelp that we have left in the other universe, the one we banished to save." He looked at Life. "I think it is time, Life, that you explain why he has our immortality, and the powers of all."
Life nodded, and approached Edward. "Well, my child... it has been a long time. You still have that glimmer in your eyes that I remember seeing when you were a whelp." She smiled lightly. "Your mother would be proud to see how strong you have become. She loved you very much."
Edward, while wanting to question how Life knew her mother, he opted to remain silent instead. There was a time to ask, and a time to listen. Something told him it was time to listen.
"Your mother was a Light dragon, that much is very true. But your father... well, that is where it gets complicated." Life sighed, looking away. "Your father... I do not know who he was. Or what dragon race he was. Your mother only ever laid one egg in her life. That was you. And that was after years of begging for an egg, praying to the First and making all sorts of bargains and sacrifices. Perhaps... you are the result of those prayers. Or perhaps... she took matters into her own hands. There are rumors that she claimed multiple mates, but no one ever came forward to claim you as theirs."
"Normally, Hybrids are impossible", said Light, continuing the story. "But it is believed, if their are enough parties involved... a true hybrid can be born as long as the distribution of genetics is even. There cannot be more Light than Darkness, or more Fire than Water, and so on. In the end, your mother began to raise you on her own, but then you breathed lightning for the first time. And it was obvious you were in pain.
"Before we could treat you, and begin to teach you how to breathe without hurting yourself, the Darkness made a bid at kidnapping you. They failed, and we had to send you to safety. But you are here... and now we can begin your training. When we are done with you... your power will rival the original Circle."
As Edward heard the story of how he was born, the tears flowed, but, they were tears of joy. He didn't remember his early years and to hear the story moved him more than anything else ever had. To hear that he was a miracle birth to a dragoness desperate for a hatchling was more than he could bear.
But, he knew that his duty to his species and to the humans he loves came first, so, wiping his eyes, he looked at the Circle first.
"I will look forward to being able to fire my breath weapons without the backlash. Sol, you are correct, I cannot use them at full power all the time without backlash that taxes my regeneration for a while. I need to teleport back to the Tower for a short while, but, now that I know where this is, you can focus your magic into defending Lair."
He looked at the Dragon who was averting his gaze.
"Golmul, look at me, please," he said, "It's all right. I am humbled by your show of respect and I would be honored to have you fight by my side, all of you. I am at a loss for words, though. You honor me by averting your gaze, yet, as you look around, you see the members of the Circle. They made the decision to go to war not I. I do not want to see this beautiful land destroyed any more than you do. I have no memories of this land, but, it is my first home.
"Grand Life...is there any chance that my birth mother is still alive?"
"No", said Life. "She came to us many times, begging us to bring you back. Or to send her to your world. She attempted to cast the spell without our permission." Life looked down. "Her body was never found... but if she is still among us... she is weak. She may be trapped in another universe, but she would be over 5,000 years old now. It is possible, however, that she sent herself to the future by mistake. She could end up anywhere, and if she did so... then there is hope." Life smiled. "She would be very proud of you... despite the fact that you would now be older than her."
"If she is in the future, I might be able to locate her," Edward said, "If she has joined the First, I shall have to mourn her after this war ends. Life, thank you for telling me this. If she is still here, though, I might be able to give her some of my strength."
"How?" Grand Death asked.
"By donating my blood to her, Grand Death," Edward replied, "It's one of the things I can do."
The members of the Circle looked at each other and it was one of "What did the First create?!" They were far too old and experienced to be shocked by much, but, deep down, even Grand Death was realizing that maybe Kiinnum was not just Born Unique, but sent by the First just for this purpose.
Sol eventually shook out of it. "Very well. Edward, I shall send you back to the Titan's Tower. When you are ready to begin your training, ask your Rachel to focus on this location in your mind, and we shall bring you back."
"And... Bring Starborn back", said Earth, shocking the others. "He knows more of this than any of us. We will need a strategy to attack Vilea and destroy those eggs before the first can be hatched."
Death was fuming, though. "Bringing that Breed Traitor back?! Have you gone daft?! He is forbidden from entering Lair!"
"Tradition would dictate that", said Life, chastising her mate. "But these are far from traditional times. We need Starborn and any other dragon. We must summon all of our children back to begin preparations. As far as we know, we only have two weeks to be ready."
Edward's eyes started glowing, showing his annoyance.
"Grand Death," he said, "With respect: You would allow your personal anger to cloud your judgment as much as Starborn once allowed his to erupt. I saw the fight between you and him in his memories. Yet, you are just as guilty of letting anger rule! I've been there and each time, I paid the price. My Titans were frightened of me the first couple of times that happened...when my wife was threatened, my anger would erupt. You have a right to your opinion, but, do not let Kreinyol hear you calling Starborn a breed traitor when he will demand the right to fight by my side because it will take me or Starborn to keep her from making a mistake that would tear apart this new alliance. Your mate has a very valid point. Starborn has spent more time with Vilea and if he can recover his shattered memories in time, that experience is more valuable to me than the gemstones at our feet. I am honored to call Starborn, son of Sol the Light of the Circle not just my friend, but, my brother by right! A temporary lifting of his banishment will show you that he had redeemed himself. Give him that chance."
Death grumbled, but said nothing more.
Sol nodded at Life, and quickly cast the spell, opening a portal besides Edward. "Return to your mate, Kiinnum. It may be the last time you see her until this ordeal is over."
"She will be fighting by my side, Grand Light. Her and the Teen Titans," Edward replied, "We will have it no other way. And I dare ANYONE to call me a Breed Traitor." Grand Death had made a miscalculation, but, he did not know that, yet.
Sol shook his head. "Edward... the Titans will fight the war, there is no doubt about that. But if you are to lead the dragons... we will need you on our front. Rachel may lead the Titans, if Robin will allow it. I recommend to her to find more allies. But as for us..." Sol sighed. "It may be for the best to focus on this. If you are with your mate... you shall be distracted. If your rage is as great, if not greater than Solor's... then both of you will fight alongside us. And Starfire and Rachel will fight among the humans. There cannot be any distractions, despite how much you love her and wish to be with her. I know she can hear what we are saying. I know you have gotten half of your information from her. And I know it will be hard to fight if you are worrying about her safety at all times. This is an enemy that you believe should be dead. If he survived your ordeal, he WILL try to use you and Rachel again.
"Therefore, we suggest keeping you as far away from her as possible. Trigon may not recognize you right away, and may not recognize his older daughter. He may try to use... 'our' Raven alone, or this Twilight whelp. And if he does, we will have an advantage."
Edward nodded his head, "Your logic is sound, my friend. If we can keep Trigon from knowing that Rachael is here, it gives us all a chance. In my universe, he stripped her of not only her powers, but, reverted her to a child. I would still expect that to happen to the Raven of this universe. And, you are right. She was tuned into the meeting and reminded me that the Circle is not some mortals I can merely glare at to get my way. She also told me what Trigon's antlers look like, as you knew from earlier I did not know that information. She had a right to know as well. But, she will understand where my duty lies. I will talk Robin into letting Rachael lead the resistance from the Teen Titans side. I know him well enough that even if he's an ass at times, he would allow one with greater experience to lead."
Edward noticed that Sol wanted to say something else, so, stopped talking to listen.
Sol noticed how Edward stopped, and smiled. "Thank you, Kiinnum. I would speak not only to your mate, but to the other Titans. I apologize for this intrusion..." He then closed his eyes, and when they opened, they were glowing white. [But I must speak to her without interference. Do not worry, I cannot keep this connection for long. Only enough to send my message.]
[Raven... both of you. Thank you very much for keeping an eye on my son. Starborn has always been... difficult. And I must thank you for teaching him how to meditate... how to control his emotions. He has become not only a great warrior, but a great speaker as well. He has grown up in ways I never thought he would. For this act, I am honoring you with a name in our tongue. And one day, after all of this is over... I would like to invite you and your friends to visit my home. It is rare for mortals to be allowed into Lair... but you Titans... you have more than earned. But remember... this honor will only be given if you survive. So try not to fall to Darkness. I would be most disappointed. May the First guide you in the world He has made for you, Ruvaak of the Titans.]
With that, Sol's eyes faded, as Death looked in shock. "You would invite mortals to our home?"
Sol looked over to Death. "You have a problem with that, brother?"
"No... it is just that... a mortal hasn't been allowed into Lair for thousands of years. What makes them so special?"
Sol smirked. "You have not met them, my friend. But they live up to their name as the strongest teenagers on Earth. They did what we could not: Tame Starborn. They treated him with the same respect Edward has given all of us...even you, brother. They show the potential that some of us have hoped for in humans. That is what makes them so special."
Edward raised his eyebrows. Had Sol asked, Edward would have granted Sol access anyway to the link. He had certainly earned that.
[Dear,] Rachael replied, [Tell Sol that the Teen Titans accept the invitation. Don't worry about me, either. I'll be fine with you leading the Dragons. The rest of what I want to tell you, I want to tell you in person. It's nothing bad, though.]
Edward smiled hearing that reassurance, "Rachael replied. The Teen Titans would be most honored to accept your invitation, Grand Light.
"I shall return as soon as possible."
"Go with the First, Kiinnum", said Life, as the Circle bade him farewell.
Edward took his leave of not just the Circle, but, the gathered soldiers who would now follow him into battle.
He stepped through the still open Tear of Oblivion and back into Titan Tower.