Greetings.....my most honored guest. Please, do stay and read the new chapter....and, for payback for my long hibernation and aging writings, I will work my best to bring you the greatest writings I can make.....enjoy.

The Dark Brother…

…Chapter 7…

…New Arrivals and Unanswered Questions…

"Ah, excuse me, my dear Shadow, I forgot my manners. My name is Beilel. It is a pleasure to meet you once more. "

"Once more? I've never seen you before in my life, and how do you know my name!?" Shadow said in anger. But something in Beilel's words rang true, and for whatever reason, he just could not shake the gut feeling away.

"You are different from when I had last laid my eyes on you, getting frustrated so massively by stupidity, cowards who would sacrifice entire families in order to rescue their own pitiful lives, lies and the person who says them, and things that make no sense to your mind yet are seemingly obvious to others…… you still have a long way to go, my friend," Beilel replied with a genuine smile in his pale, strange face.

"How…..how did you know all that stuff about me? Just what do you want with me? Are you my friend…..or foe?" Shadow said slightly shocked; he wasn't the kind of dragon who liked being an open book. In fact, he feared it.

"What do I want? I wish nothing more than for you to be alive and well, so this would mean that I am here to aid you in your escape from the two masterminds' little game; obviously meaning that I am your ally. "

"I don't really enjoy having a "friend" who knows too much about me, but I guess it's better than nothing…..I hope," Shadow said with sigh. he didn't like this new guy, but seeing as how he knew more than any normal dragon would, he wouldn't try and do something he may later regret doing like he did so long ago……

"Oh, but I won't aid you directly; that would be too much of a hassle for you. But I will make your odyssey….easier behind the curtains, if you will," Beilel said back, who stared into Shadow's eyes with a sly grin. Shadow also stared back, but instead with a deep frown in his face. It was quite certain that they would not make the best of friends.

"Yea yea, sure…..just know that I'm more than ready if you happen to lie to me and betray me," Shadow said with caution. He always expected to be backstabbed by anyone and everyone; hell, he was even suspecting Ember of being a spy for The Dark Master and Drake. Paranoia? Maybe, but one of his sayings that most influenced his personality was that "sometimes, it pays to be paranoid."

"Oh, you can count on me, my friend. What would be in my gain if I tricked you? Why, you are important to me…without you….well, let's just say that a certain other dragon would have no chance of victory, while another would not even exist!"

Shadow thought of these words quietly with a stern look in his face, but making no idea of what he might mean, he proved Beilel's words right and grew s quickly frustrated at what these words had meant. "I hate these cryptic messages this guy's pulling out of his mouth. Why can't he make some sense? If I knew what he was talking about, than I might've actually cared a bit more," he thought to himself, hoping that he might get what Beilel was saying in the future.

"Ok, ok I get it. I'm important, but really, shouldn't we just get over this conversation already? We don't have all the time in the world to stop, and hopefully kill, at least one of those bastards," Shadow replied urgently. He also laced in a considerably amount of hate in the last part of his words.

"Of course, we haven't much time before The Dark Master and Drake learn about The Jailor's humiliating defeat. So now, I bid you adieu, until we meet once more. Oh, and give my regards to Ember." Beilel said before he disappeared as quickly and quietly as he appeared. In fact, all Shadow could see before he vanished was his golden mask and infinity sign in his belly plates glowing intensely with a white and black hue. Then the silhouette of a 10-foot tall, dragonlike body surrounded him, which was oddly standing on two legs perfectly. After that, he just vanished without a trace.

Shadow was very much shaken from what he saw, enough to go blank for five minutes before he finally snapped out and thought quietly,

"What the hell just happened? Something about that guy just isn't right….what was that huge thing that was around him? Who is this Ember? Maybe she's that girl who released me…..if so, how does he know her? Perhaps they met each other in the past when I was stuck here. Ah, maybe I shouldn't really bother right now; I've got to finish what I have to do."

Then Shadow turned around to see Ember finally coming into the room with a relieved smile on her face.

"Finally, I've found you! Do you know how creepy this place can be when you're alone, lost, and looking for a way out? I heard a lot of noise from your direction. What happened to you?"

"Oh…I just had to beat the jailor of the place; he was one of the people who caused me to be in that cage. By the way, my name's Shadow. Yours?"

"Oh, my name is Ember. I came from the other side of the portal that went to here, and when I went inside, the portal closed. How do you think I can get out?"

"Easy, get to the tower that holds the lords of this place and defeat them….at least, I think that's how we get out."

"Well, it's better than nothing. Let's go."

"Fine. I may need another person on my side if we wish to leave. You'd better be ready though; it won't be an easy ride."

"Ah, I'm not scared. I'm ready to do this," Ember said confidently with a smile.

"Right. Well, let's go," Shadow said before he released the locked door open with the keys he had been able to grab from the unconscious Jailor. They both walked away, unaware that their journey would be much different from what they would have foreseen…

I do hope you found the newest addition of the story superior to the former acts in the tale....until we meet again, stay well friends.

Editing by: Wishbone the Lover of Books