AN: With this chapter there will be two changes: First, any telepathic communication will have quotes around it due to a suggestion by a loyal reader; Second, the story's rating will go up to Teen because of a scene that happens in this chapter that deals with the death of a beloved character.

Chapter 63-Trial by Fire

The palest rays of sunlight broke through the bleak darkness as the hybrid clone army left the confines of Arxa's cavern and took to the sky, their forces nearly reaching two hundred and forty as they made haste to the central location of the Compound. Leading the advance, Jormundur made certain to tap into the dark powers of Corruption to keep the copies focused on their task as most were not in the best physical or mental condition. Even though he knew it was a drawback to their own creation by the fallen rider Amia Nekita, the greyling still uttered a snarl of disgust as several dropped from the formation and headed towards the ground, landing miles before they reached their target. Curving a powerful gust of wind behind him as a warning, Jormundur slowed to a halt, glancing back behind him briefly to see that many had left the air and were now on the ground in their human forme.

"Those that choose not to fight stay here, otherwise you come with me to your demise for the betterment of the dragon race," he snapped harshly before resuming the advance towards the Compound, not caring how many clones would be behind him when he arrived to complete the task the dark magic of Corruption wanted.

Uria was among the first to sense the approaching darkness that threatened to destroy them and immediately summoned Tamli to the chamber he had once shared with Makiar before she died. The old dragon was concerned when the hybrid entered in human forme, wiping blood from his hands as he walked into the darkened room. A single straw cot nestled against the western wall but the remaining space was empty as Uria gently lit a fire onto the floor itself to help give the human some light to see its way.

"Much has happened since the revelation of the clones, has it not?" Uria asked as he curled around the blazing wood, carefully keeping a check on how far the flames spread as Tamli sat down before him.

"Yes, Uria, there has been much learned. To think that Amia would stoop so low to make hundreds of copies of my very being is, at the most, terribly disturbing. Seeing my own face reflected back at me with such hate fills with horrible dread." Tamli paused, collecting his hands in his lap as he stared into the fire between them. "I've sensed it as well that the dark forces of Corruption are on the move. I fear the war Tanui spoke of when he first came here is about to occur and it will bring great suffering and pain."

"You know what you must do, Tamli," Uria instructed, fixing a single iris on the hybrid as Tamli bowed his head.

"I know but I'm worried Tanui could escape at any given point. Even the most sensible individuals become panicked during times of conflict and there are many that would like to see me suffer. It's Finca I worry the most over though . . . I've seen from visions that Tanui wouldn't hesitate to end her life in front of me."

"Think of the greater good. If Makiar were still alive, how would she approach this?"

Tamli remained silent for some time and Uria knew the hybrid was weighing the odds of his choice. There was such a love for Finca but there was also a deep fear that he could lose her and the old dragon understood that as he had felt much the same before Makiar's death. With a sigh, the hybrid got to his feet and glanced at his empty sheath before turning around to leave.

"Despite my own feelings on the matter, I must do what it right for our race to survive. Gather all those you can find and get them to meet me at the entrance to the outside. In the meantime, I will speak with my son on how best to restrain Tanui until the danger has passed."

"Good. We must be united if we are to defend the light from Corruption's darkest shadows," Uria hummed softly as Tamli left, extinguishing the low flames with a single swipe of his tail as he stood to go carry out the task the hybrid had for him.

Cobwebs hung in the dark corners as the metallic chains chafed at his skin, the painful sensation the only thing keeping him awake as time seemed to have no beginning or end in the small confounds he had been placed within. Head drooping, Tanui wearily blinked as he caught the distant sound of dragons moving along the upper floors, a sense of urgency to the claw-clicks of their taloned feet. Whatever was happening had nothing to do with him, he surmised as his gaze fell to the steel floor under him and he saw the shadow of four different chains locked onto the small silver links that were wrapped tightly around his body, their very position fixed to keep him off the ground and held in mid-air.

He remembered arguing with the inferior one and then the pain that stormed through his entire body once he tried to use electricity. From that experience and from the aural blast he had received later as punishment from Tamli, he knew why the chains were fixed as they were so that every attempt he tried to make to defend himself would only come back onto his weakened body. Closing his eyes, Tanui tried to succumb back to the peaceful sleep he had enjoyed while unconscious but the sudden sound of footsteps coming in his direction broke his concentration.

From outside the dust-covered glass that served as a small opening into the world beyond his four-walled prison, he sensed a familiar presence as the footsteps became clearly audible. Lifting his head slightly, Tanui scoffed at the idea of someone coming to visit him when the upper floors still sounded full of frenzied activity.

"I knew it was only a matter of time before you returned to continue my punishment. What will you try this time, Tamli?" Tanui sneered as the footsteps came to a stop at the entrance to the cell block, the staircase just behind the familiarness he detected, although the exact identity of the individual was muddled and uncertain due to that red mist having dulled his senses.

"I never said I was Tamli," Nethial answered as Tanui forced his eyes open, only to hiss and close them again as a sudden burst of pain rippled through his skull from the back of his head. "That being established, I can leave if it proves too much for you to handle."

Fighting his way through the pain, Tanui clenched his teeth as he willed himself to look upon her despite whatever agony flowed through him. Even with the dirty glass, he could see she had changed outfits to a more outcast appearance with a dark grey robe over her black tunic and pants. The blade and sheath he had made for her hung at her right hip and, as he dimly stared at her, she shifted something she had draped over her left arm.

"Why are you here?" He rasped as he let his head hang freely, trying to remove some of the pressure from his tense neck and back. "What's going on? I sense so much movement above us . . ."

"Corruption's forces are attacking as we speak. I don't have much time but I . . . I can't bare to see you like this," Nethial addressed as she walked over and unlocked the door, slipping inside and walking up to him to place a hand on his metal leg.

Still disoriented from all that had happened, Tanui blankly stared at her as she glanced at the chains holding him above the ground. Removing her hand from his leg, Nethial gave the thick black links closest to her a pull, only to result in a scream from Tanui as the movement jostled him and pulled at wounds that had formed from the electrical surges he had tried to send at the inferior hybrid.

"What has Tamli done to you?" Nethial muttered quietly as Tanui blinked, feeling detached from his own consciousness.

"Not just him . . ."

Nethial took a step back, glancing over the entire structure as Tanui numbly ran his thumb over cracked, bleeding skin on his fingers. His tendency to use electricity had been something that had gotten him into the mess he now found himself in. Eyes glassy, he gasped as he heard the sound of metal being unsheathed, trembling as he thought the inferior one had come to end him as he had killed Rados. Instantly realizing her mistake, it took Nethial several minutes to calm him down once she realized that drawing her blade had thrown him into a panic.

"I'm going to break the chains, Tanui. That's all I'm doing," she whispered reassuringly as she lightly ran a hand over his own in comfort, his eyes going to her as the quivering faded slowly.

Quickly shattering the links that kept Tanui raised above the ground, Nethial knew the longer she had her weapon drawn the worse it would be for the clone. Once he was on the ground and the thicker chains had been broken, she unwrapped the small silver ones from around him, noticing the cracked skin and burns that signaled how much damage Tamli had caused him during the imprisonment. Throughout the procedure, Tanui lay there with his eyes half-closed as dozens of tiny half-healed lacerations on his face began to bleed. Shaking in fear as the voices returned in full volume to plague him without end, he realized the truth that he had become what so many other clones had started out being in his Master's eyes. A failure was simply a imperfect copy that had to be destroyed and he was no different now after all he had been through.

"Tamli won't be happy you're free but we need every individual to fight," Nethial commented as she gently pulled him up into a sitting position and took his hands in her own, forcing Tanui to focus on her as best he could. "You need to run, Tanui. Flee while the battle is going on and while Tamli is distracted. Go back to Tel-var or find someplace no one will find you."

Tanui closed his eyes, letting a small current of electricity run across his arm and into Nethial. She couldn't see what he so clearly saw in himself. Running was no option, not anymore. Tamli had been true to his promise and had destroyed the last bits of who he had once been back before the decay had truly taken hold. The clone that he was could no longer hide behind that false truth of superiority and had to admit now that he was the inferior being.

Pulling him to his feet, Nethial revealed that she had carried in a large black cloak as she put it around Tanui, leaving the hood down for a moment as she placed a hand on his cheek. The soft fabric brushed against the many wounds on his body but Tanui ignored the pain as Nethial's touch brought him back to the memory of their love-making in Tel-var. What he had on was mostly shredded anyway but the outer robe covered all of the tattered cloth and scarred skin like a mask, something he clung to even as the warmth of her flesh reminded him of how horribly he had treated her. Deciding to take the action one step further, Nethial leaned in and kissed him, trying to be as gentle as she could while showing him that she meant no harm.

Recoiling at the contact, Tanui gently pushed her back as he opened his eyes to find himself lost in the grey expanse of her irises . Still quivering, he looked away as he cupped her hand within his own, giving it a light squeeze before dropping the interaction completely and stepping towards the open cell door. Pausing at the entrance, he shakily raised the hood and cast one last glance at Nethial before leaving, his gait hurried but unsteady.

Walking up the stairs, Tanui did follow Nethial's instructions at first until he bumped into Raoul by accident as he was unfamiliar with the hallway that met him above his cell. Realizing who he had come into contact with, the hybrid grabbed him and threw him against a wall, letting the wraith's presence be known as the cracking of his face grew distorted and erratic. Many dragons going the same way stopped and watched as Raoul got up and dusted off his robe before lunging at the clone. Dodging the hit, Tanui spun around, thrusting his elbow into the face of the inferior one's son and was rewarded with a sharp crack as Raoul collapsed to the floor, hands going to the bridge of his nose. Panting from the effort, Tanui crouched as he stared down his foe, only to be roused by a commotion from within the gathered crowd.

"Nethial set you free, weakling."

The hiss alone nearly drove him to his knees but Tanui held himself together as best he could, rising to a standing position as his limbs shook terribly. Finca had been among those walking and now she knew he was free which meant there was only a matter of time before Tamli knew and killed him. Shuddering at the thought, Tanui took off in a full run down the hallway, fear overtaking reason as he heard the dragoness come after him.

Sliding into a narrow side-path, Tanui was surprised to come out into a small field of flowers and slowed to a gradual walk as he examined the scene before him. It reminded him so clearly of his early training with Amia in locations as similar as what he now found himself in that he stopped in the dead center of the field and closed his eyes, imagining things as they had once been during his time of promise. The growl of a dragon broke him from his peaceful thoughts, however, and he turned around to see Finca had caught up with him.

"I should have seen Nethial's betrayal coming but it is no matter. Tamli will be pleased to find your head ripped clear from your body when I get through with you," Finca hissed as she advanced, sinking low to the ground as Tanui backed up, frantically searching the area around him for a weapon he could use to defend himself.

A blast of Shadowfire erupted from Finca's jaws suddenly and Tanui threw himself to the ground, wanting to curl up into a ball as the torture he had received continued to echo through his mind the more he stared at the dragoness. Rolling onto his back, he freely let the wraith control his actions as he retreated deep inside himself, knowing that Amia had placed full confidence in the dark essence to let it go into his most valued asset.

Finca was uncertain at first whether to press the attack once the clone grew still but soon realized there was something unsettling as cracking lines of black stretched across the hybrid's face and his eyes turned completely black except for the very center which retained the bright crimson red of the copy's iris. Retreating a step, Finca recalled what Makiar had taught her years ago on the subject of wraiths and spirits and how they often twisted the host's persona or even body to fit how they had once existed. It was possible that there was a powerful essence within Tanui and that, from what she had seen, he had simply let it take over to fight for him.

Shaking off her hesitation, she charged in for another attack, only to find herself thrown off course by a powerful telekinetic shove as the clone got back up, the hood now having fallen off to reveal the true extent of the dark spirit's cracking of the hybrid's face and neck. Numerous over-arching lines of black scored deep grooves into the pale skin and Finca suspected that the presence controlling its broken host had once been a dragon due to the manner of the veining.

Hissing, the clone went on the attack, running in and grabbing hold of her tail as Finca used the opportunity to throw herself into the air and spin him around, flinging him off and leaving him even more bruised and battered. Cutting his forehead on a sharp rock, Tanui briefly rose from his isolation to touch the warm blood and recoiled from it, crawling backwards as he forced himself onto his hands and knees . . .

Tamli was alone this time with nothing but a carved dagger with a jeweled handle that gleamed impressively in the dim light that managed to reach the small cell. Held with his hands above his head for this particular torture session, Tanui had no way of escape as the hybrid entered and walked around him like a predator stalking its prey.

"To even begin to make you suffer for the lives you've taken, I think we'll start with a sample of your pale flesh," Tamli remarked as he dragged a finger against Tanui's left jawbone as he passed.

Moving around behind the clone, Tamli paused at the hybrid's left shoulder blade and began to carve into the flesh, leaving crude lines that reflected the veining he had seen. Working his way over near the spinal cord, Tamli made certain to avoid directly cutting through something that would leave the copy unable to move and instead increased the ferocity of his strikes. Unable to contain himself, Tanui screamed as each cut felt as if it could be his last . . .

When he came back to reality, or as close to reality as he could figure it had to be, Finca had him pinned on his back, her jaws inches above his face as she stared him down. Letting instinct take over, he sent a stream of lightning down along her body only to scream in pain as her foreclaws dug into his shoulders. Realizing his defensive act could have cost him his metal leg, Tanui allowed the wraith to resume control and watched as Finca was thrown off his body with a powerful telekinetic shove that the she-dragon somehow managed to use to her advantage as she landed on her feet only inches away.

Limping backwards, Finca growled as Tanui got back onto his feet, sinking into a defensive crouch as an inhuman snarl rose from his throat. Snarling, she lashed out with another burst of Shadowfire before charging in and ramming him with her horns. The hot smoke that collided with his skin left it charred and blackened but Tanui ignored the pain as he jumped to avoid the sharp ivory horns coming for him. Lashing out with a kick, he heard the sound of bones cracking as he rolled to the ground, landing on his back as the she-dragon hissed in fury and retreated slightly to bide time until the next strike.

Digging a hand into the dirt under him, Tanui rolled over onto his knees as he formed the staff he had seen in the vision out of the earth itself. His unnatural ability to influence the objects he touched turned the dirt into solid wood and left patches of moss clinging to the cracked surface as he lifted up the four-and-a-half foot long weapon. Finca snarled in disgust as he looked up to see a long cut across her snout, the wound dripping blood as he suspected he had broken a bone or two.

"You chose to make a weapon from wood? The decay must have consumed you now, otherwise you would know what happens to weak materials when met by the fiercest flames," Finca screeched as she took to the air, diving at him as Tanui leapt away from the strike but was knocked to the ground by her tail.

Recovering from the hit, Tanui snarled as the wraith urged him to strike back with a blast of lightning. Gripping tightly to his new staff with his left hand, the clone did the exact opposite and sent a powerful telekinetic shove at her wings, hoping to break the bones so she couldn't fly. However quickly Finca tried to dodge his attacks, Tanui kept up the assault until he saw her spin downward and heard the sound of cracking cartilage.

With the dragoness now unable to use the air to her advantage, Tanui approached as she landed and tried to put distance between them. When Finca breathed out another stream of Shadowfire, he threw the blast off to the side and continued to advance, reaching out with his free hand as he forced her throat to constrict. Even with no metal to slice her apart as he wanted, Tanui realized he could use the staff's edges to accomplish the same thing if he strengthened them with his own energy.

Breaking free of the wraith's control for a moment, Tanui came to a stop as the realization of what he was about to achieve nearly broke the fragile persona he had left. Killing Finca would set Tamli's full anger on him and lead to a fight he was not prepared for, despite the conflict going on with Corruption's forces. Hesitation caused him to shift his weapon into his right hand and he closed his eyes, loosening the telekinetic hold he had on her throat enough for her to snarl at him.

"Kill me already," she shrieked as he came to his senses and charged straight at her. "My death will only bring about your own and then Tamli will finally be able to free himself of the dreadful influence Amia has left on him."

Gripping the staff with both hands, he plunged the end of it into her, hearing her hiss as blood poured from the wound once he withdrew the reinforced wood. Slashing at her chest and neck in a frenzy, he allowed his anger at Tamli for the torture he had received to give his strikes meaning and purpose as Finca tried to fight back and clamped her jaws around one of his arms. Screaming, he dropped his weapon and raised his other hand to her snout, fingertips crackling with electricity as she slowly increased the pressure of her hold before he sent a current of lightning at her. Jerking her head back, his arm partially ripped and Tanui thrust his entire staff into her neck through telekinesis.

A low gurgle rose from within Finca as Tanui felt her jaws relax and her eyes slowly began to glass over. He cracked open her maw with his free hand and slowly withdrew his right arm, seeing the large amount of blood collected within her mouth and still oozing from his mangled skin as she had gotten him about midway above his elbow. Distancing himself from the wounded appendage, he pulled his weapon free from where it was still embedded in the dragoness and watched as she collapsed to the ground. Weakly snarling at him, she soon grew still and he felt her presence fade completely as the grass around her neck turned crimson from the amount of blood pouring from the lethal injury.

Retreating, Tanui hissed as he cradled his nearly destroyed arm, noticing that only a tiny portion of his flesh and muscle was still intact from the bite Finca had delivered. He knew it was only a matter of minutes before Tamli found out and came after him which gave him little time to consider how he would fix his arm so he could use it. In its current state, the appendage was useless to him and would only slow him down as he couldn't even let it hang by itself due to the severity of damage.

The sudden sound of flapping wings caught him off-guard and he spun around to see hundreds of dragons taking flight as thick, dark grey clouds began to roll in from the north. Corruption's forces had indeed arrived, he mused as he forced the wraith's essence to temporarily subdue itself until he needed to draw upon its power once more. It was beautiful to see so many different colors clash into each other as he stumbled forward to get a better look, loosely holding his staff in his uninjured hand as he continued to cushion his right arm.

He was unsure of what to do with his arm as even trying to look at it nearly made him sick from the sheer amount of blood coating his ghostly pale flesh. Finally ripping off a large piece of what remained from his tunic, he wrapped the wound as best he could and hoped he could fight through the pain if it came to encountering the irrate hybrid whose mate he had just killed. Moving his arm even slightly sent a wave of agony washing over him and he snarled under his breath as the back of his skull throbbed dully. The usage of telekinesis he had displayed during the fight with Finca had brought back the bursts of pain from within his damaged mind, he realized as he squeezed his eyes shut, cringing as the world around him seemed to spin.

"Monster." The deep-throated snarl from behind him signaled that he had underestimated how quickly Tamli could find him after killing Finca and he sighed, gripping his staff with both hands as he collected his thoughts and turned around, reopening his eyes even as pain pricked at the base of his skull in protest.

Seeing the inferior hybrid with its blade having been reconstructed and now pointed directly at him made Tanui uneasy as he tightened his hold on his weapon. Like himself, Tamli had on a thick black cloak but wore a dark grey tunic and black pants as he retreated a step, experimentally moving his right arm only to hiss in pain. He would have to draw upon the wraith's essence to ward off the discomfort it seemed but he put the thought from his mind as Tamli lunged for him and he lifted his staff to block the move . . .