Ysera had seen everything from within the Dream. She had seen her friends, the Ancients of old, live, die, and live again. She had watched the waxing and waning of the Nightmare as it claimed her closest allies and threatened to claim even herself. She had slept through thousands of mortal lifetimes, watched the rise and fall of empires from afar. But towards the end of her slumber, her dreams had become troubled. No longer were her visions of what had been, but what could be and what would be. One of the first was the Sholazar Basin omen, which she had been warned about when she was still young, that signified a turning of ages. From there, her visions only became more worrisome. She saw her fallen brother, the one once known as Neltharion, leading an army of shadows. She saw once-great cities reduced to rubble, left lifeless and corrupted. She saw scores of fallen dragons, and snow stained with their blood.
And when the visions seemed that they could not become more bleak, Ysera awakened.
It was strange to once again touch a world that for so long she had watched from afar. For the last ten thousand years, whenever she had departed the Emerald Dream, it had been as a shadow of herself, a piece of her full being. Now, she stood in Azeroth in her full, physical form in a time of crisis. It reminded her of the War of the Ancients, except that this time the enemy was someone she had once called "brother". It had been much easier to fight demons, enemies that were completely alien. But the Dragon Aspects didn't get to choose the threats that Azeroth faced.
From the moment she awoke, Ysera had been busy. Mount Hyjal was one of the first places assaulted by Deathwing and his so-called Twilight Dragonflight, and as one of the Green Dragonflight's most sacred sites, Ysera had to defend it. With Hyjal mostly secured and the Nightmare kept at bay, however, the green aspect finally had time to visit Wyrmrest Temple.
She came unannounced. Walking into the temple was amusing, in a way. All dragons could instinctively identify an Aspect, provided they were not attempting to hide it, and so even in her elven form, Ysera was greeted with stares and hasty bows from all sides. It did not faze her, and she calmly requested an audience with her sister. Her request was granted before long, and a red drake brought her up to the chamber where the Life-Binder had been holding meetings earlier in the day.
"Alexstrasza," Ysera greeted, sitting across from the red aspect. "It's good to see you again."
"Sister," Alexstrasza sighed and ran her fingers along the armrest. "I was hoping you'd find the time to stop by."
"Much has transpired in my absence," Ysera said. "And even more has happened since I awoke. It was jarring to coordinate the defense of Hyjal so soon after returning to this realm."
"I've heard stories of the battles there," Alexstrasza said. "I'm glad that the Twilight's Hammer has been repelled. Now, most of the fighting is centered on the Twilight Highlands."
Ysera nodded. "I must admit, it's odd that they were driven off so easily. I can't imagine Deathwing starting a war like this unless he was certain that he had a chance to win it. And I've... In the Dream, I saw many things that concerned me."
"Some of the things you saw in the Dream are bound to be untrue," Alexstrasza pointed out, but there was a desperation to her words.
"Oh, yes," Ysera readily agreed. "Some things are realities that will not come to pass, others perhaps even my imagination. But some of what I saw, at the very least, will come to be. And when it does..."
"It's times like this I envy Nozdormu," Alexstrasza said, gazing towards one of the walls.
"He has his own burdens to bear," Ysera pointed out. "We all do."
"Look at what happened to Malygos," Alexstrasza agreed. "I miss him."
Ysera nodded sadly. "I grieve along with his flight," she said. "It's no small task to find a successor, and indeed, he as a person can never be replaced. I understand the Blue Dragonflight managed to devise a ritual they think will work, though."
"Do you think-" Alexstrasza began to say.
Ysera shook her head immediately, already knowing what the Life-Binder was going to say. "No, sister. I've seen it, but there's nobody I can make out. I can't say who it will be yet- it could be Anachronos, for all we know."
"Right," Alexstrasza said hastily, bowing her head. "The Blue Dragonflight thinks it's possible to empower an Aspect through the flight bond. It's never been tried before- of course, there's never been a need to. We do know that it's possible to replace an Aspect, so it's not a fool's errand. Their idea is sound, and I have faith that they will be able to figure it out one way or another."
"I wish the best for them," Ysera said. "And for all of us. I fear for Azeroth, sister."
"I as well," Alexstrasza admitted. "We've suffered so much in these past years."
"Yet somehow, I fear that our darkest hours may be yet to come," Ysera's voice sounded more distant now, like she was slipping back into the Dream, and it sent chills up Alexstrasza's spine.
Alexstrasza sighed. "I hope we're wrong, sister."
Ysera nodded, and rose from her seat. "I believe it would be wise for me to take up residence in the Temple for the time being," she said. "Is my old room open?"
"Yes," Alexstrasza said. "And Anachronos has taken up residence in the next room over. I'll walk you there, and then we can talk more."
The snow was swirling all around her, but she could not feel a chill on her scales. For miles around, the bones of fallen dragons were scattered across the ground; thankfully, this vision did not seem to include the dying, like so many others had. Not so far in the distance, Wyrmrest Temple rose from the ground, a beacon of familiarity. Although the great Dragonshrines were out of sight, Ysera could tell that she was in the Dragonblight.
Ysera could see her sister on top of the temple now, in her dragon form. Alexstrasza was facing away from Ysera, looking out at something, and the green dragon followed her gaze. Almost immediately, she wished that she hadn't.
In the distance, a group of shadowy dragons, the twilight drakes that she had seen atop Mount Hyjal, were coming towards the Temple. At the front, leading them, was a massive twilight wyrm. Even from a distance, Ysera could tell that the twilight dragon radiated power that could only be equaled by an Aspect.
Alexstrasza turned around, allowing Ysera to see her face. Her expression was one of sorrow. Then the scene shattered in front of her eyes, the world twisting around her as the vision faded...
Ysera opened her eyes and gasped for breath, taking a moment to collect her bearings. She had been meditating- it helped her distinguish her visions and her imagination from reality, but it also opened her up to new visions in the process. She stood up, poured herself a glass of water, and took a moment to collect herself. She stepped outside her room onto the balcony that overlooked the Dragonblight and looked into the sky, just to assure herself that her dreams were not yet reality. Every prophetic vision she had was just one of many possible futures, after all.
Thankfully, when she looked, there was not a single twilight dragon in the sky.
A/N: I have a lot of free time at the moment, which is why I've had some much time to update. I do prefer updating more frequently and I'm hoping to have part three done and published by mid-August or sooner just so this story doesn't end up going on for years. However, some things have come up in real life with one of my cats being very sick, so more updates probably won't come until Thursday or Wednesday and then resume the schedule of a chapter or more every one or two days. Towards the end of part two (which I'm actually pretty close to finishing), 3-4 chapters will be published at once, which is worth noting.