Convincing Dulcy to allow Sally to come along was the easy part. Convincing her that the other dragons would be okay with it was another matter entirely. Apparently she wasn't just on bad terms with the others: She had been banished for her part in the Freedom Fighters and she'd been stripped of her gold nose ring, a vital key in using her Protector powers. The only reason she'd been ordered to check on the other Nests was because she was the closest one to them, or at least that's what she told Sonic and Sally. Based on the speed she was flying Sonic could tell that she was in no hurry to get to the main Nest but Sonic gently urged her to hurry. The summer solstice was only a few days away at this point and he wanted to make sure that everything was okay with the Dragons before he went charging after Gilgamesh.
"You're absolutely sure that this Gilgamesh guy is the one who's been attacking our Nests?" Dulcy asked him as they were passing over the Great Forest.
Sonic nodded. "Gilgamesh is looking for Excalibur and he knows when it'll show up," he explained, adjusting Sally's grip around his waist as she napped. "He also figured out that the Dragons are the keepers of the sword. My guess is that he figures all he needs to do is question a bunch of them to get the answers he wants. After that he just puts bits of the legend together to get the full story."
"That's a lot of work for a piece of metal," the dragon muttered. "What's so important about it?"
"Damned if I know, Dulce," Sonic admitted. "All I know is that this is supposedly one of the most powerful weapons left behind by the Magans. The last person we want to have it is a psychopath with a habit of picking fights."
The three of them made small talk until they reached the Naluvian Expanse, better known to some as the Great Desert. Before long Sonic could see the spire of the main Dragon's Nest rise on the horizon and his breath caught in his throat when Dulcy told him they were still nearly a hundred miles away from it. The dragon gained altitude as they neared it, allowing both Sonic and Sally to see the sheer size of the Nest. Around the main spire there were several artificial lakes where the dragons played and cooled off. There were several ridges where the sand had been blasted into glass to form wind barriers. Before Dulcy turned sharply upward Sonic caught a glimpse of farmland on the western side of the spire where tall leafy plants bore several large fruits.
Dulcy landed gently on the balcony and gave a loud gulp as Sonic and Sally dismounted. The two former Freedom Fighters soon saw why: three large wyverns were coming towards them looking more than a little agitated. They spoke to Dulcy in a tongue that neither of them comprehended and Dulcy responded in kind. The wyvern that had spoken to Dulcy turned his black eyes towards Sonic and Sally as the sun glinted off his golden scales.
"A Magan that smells of humans and a Mobian that bears the same stench," he rumbled as his eyes narrowed. "Why have you come here, mongrels?"
"We were invited by Dulcy," Sonic explained resisting the urge to place his hand on Kaiyō Mujō. "She felt that I might be able to lend a hand with a recent problem of yours."
"Dulcinea is in no position to invite you, Guardian or not," the wyvern replied as his companions tensed. The red scaled wyvern's claws left scorch marks on the floor as he walked around them. The black scaled wyvern stared at them hungrily as a gob of green saliva dripped from his jaws, burning a small hole in the floor. "Unless, of course, you speak for all your people."
"I'm here to try and save your scaly asses from the maniac that's been terrorizing your Nests," Sonic shot back impatiently, allowing his hand to rest on Kaiyō Mujō's tsuka. "Now I can either help you stop him or I'll just let him get to Isle Avalon and take Excalibur for himself." All three wyverns stared at him blankly.
"And how do we know that you aren't the one attacking our Nests?" the red wyvern growled as embers began to fall from his jaws. Sally quickly repositioned herself behind Dulcy who was also rapidly retreating.
The black wyvern made the first move, spraying acid where Sonic had been standing. As he touched down he felt his quills stand on end. The gold wyvern fired a blast of lightning from its mouth that soared past the hedgehog. With Kaiyō Mujō drawn Sonic slashed against the torrent of flame from the red wyvern and wrapped it around himself before throwing it at the black wyvern. A bat of its wing extinguished the flame but that was all the time Sonic needed to position himself over it. He kicked off the ceiling and flipped around to slam his right leg into the black wyvern's skull, bouncing it off the ground.
Another blast of lightning disintegrated the mist clone much to the surprise of the other two wyverns. Sonic materialized beneath the stomach of the red wyvern with wind gathering around his hand. "Wind Claw!" he shouted as he brought his hand across the scales. The attack ripped several scales free but failed to break the skin. The red wyvern roared in pain doubly as Sonic followed up with a straight punch into the exposed skin while using the wind to rip several more scales free.
The gold wyvern, now furious, fired several short concussive blasts at Sonic only to dissolve another mist clone. As he swung his head around he felt something sharp slip between his neck scales. Sonic was crouched at the base of his neck with Kaiyō Mujō placed precariously between the scales. The gold wyvern quickly realized his position when the black and red wyverns turned to him, their respective attacks forming in their jaws.
"Now what do you think happens when fire meets acid?" Sonic asked as he adjusted Kaiyō Mujō. "Something tells me that it won't be pretty."
"Killing me proves nothing," the wyvern replied defiantly. "You will only seal your fate."
"Killing you would be easy," Sonic said and the wyvern beneath him growled angrily. "Letting you live with the shame of getting beaten by a 'mongrel' is way more satisfying." Sonic removed his sword and jumped down. Before any of the wyverns could attack a low rumble filled the room. All three of them backed down, stepping away from Sonic, Dulcy and Sally before flying off into the desert. A large green scaled dragon walked out towards the balcony. He easily towered over the former Freedom Fighters even if they had been standing on each other's shoulders.
"Forgive them if you would, Guardian," he said with a small bow to Sonic. "They are young and restless. Many of the hatchlings do not appreciate our peaceful lifestyle." He turned to Sally and gave her a similar bow. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you as well, Princess Sally Alicia Acorn. You look very much like your mother." While Sally was still stammering at his appearance the dragon finally turned to Dulcy. "I did not expect you to bring the Guardian yourself, young one, considering that your exile is not yet over."
"I know, Elder Terloviir," Dulcy replied as she ducked her head, "but you know that I wouldn't come back without a very good reason."
"You should hope the other Elders trust your judgment as I do," the Elder dragon told her as he motioned for them to follow him.
Sonic couldn't help but notice the other dragons looking at them as they passed through the halls. The majority of the ones they saw were wyverns while only a handful were like Dulcy and the Elder. They would occasionally see tiny serpentine dragons flying through the air. The four of them were silent as Terloviir led them to the Great Hall where at least a dozen other dragons were gathered. They were all talking amongst themselves in the strange tongue until they saw three former Freedom Fighters.
"I suddenly have a very bad feeling about this," Sally whispered to Sonic who couldn't help but agree. "Is it just me or are they looking at us like we're appetizers?"
"Must be your imagination," Sonic replied until he saw a few of the dragons licking their chops. "On second thought if they light a fire we need to get the hell outta here."
"You are a guest, Guardian, as is the Princess. Even if it is the guest of an exile," Terloviir said causing both of them to jump. "Now if you were to overstay your welcome...well..."
"We get the drift," Sonic told him with an audible gulp. "And thanks for the warning."
"Why do you bring these creatures before us, Terloviir?" a golden wyvern asked. "Even if the Magan boy is a Guardian that does not entitle him to come to our Cradle. Not even the Dragoons of old were granted that privilege."
"Can you not see his brand, Keltovva?" a blood red dragon said. "He bears the mark of the Phoenix. This is no garden variety Guardian." At the mention of the mark Sally looked at Sonic who gave a confused shrug.
"Perhaps it would be better to let him speak for himself," Terloviir suggested as he stepped aside for Sonic. "It would be best that you start from the beginning."
Sonic nodded as he walked towards the center of the dragons. "I won't bother introducing myself since you seem to already know that," Sonic began. He then explained to them how Gilgamesh was looking for Excalibur and that he'd already discovered when the sword would appear and by now knew where. He kept it as brief as possible, knowing that their patience with him was already strained.
"You're asking us to violate our ancient oaths," a black dragon said as Sonic wrapped up, "just to stop one human? You overestimate his strength, whelpling."
"I know exactly what Gilgamesh is capable of," Sonic replied as he opened his jacket to show them the scar across his chest and the one in his gut. "He gave me both of these scars and damn near killed me both times. So don't give me this crap that I don't know what I'm up against or that I'm exaggerating his strength."
"The boy claims to have power but his only true showing of it killed him," Keltovva said as he stepped forward. "Brand or not this whelpling doesn't deserve our time let alone our respect." The wyvern stared at Sonic with a smug smile, waiting for him to retaliate.
He didn't have to wait long as wind blasted through the hall and forced many of the Elders to dig their talons into the floor to avoid being blown away. Sonic's now-grey quills flowed in the wind as his grey eyes flashed briefly. He quickly narrowed his eyes and increased his power. Sally watched as plates began to form across Sonic's arms and legs while his quills began resembling spikes. For a brief moment Sally could see pulsing red lines down his arms but they quickly vanished.
"I can keep going if you like," Sonic stated simply as the wind died down. "By all means go ahead and let me. I haven't had the chance to show off like this in a long time and I'd be more than happy to take the lot of you on." The blood red dragon took Sonic up on the challenge, quickly inhaling to let out his fiery breath. Sonic moved his hand slightly and as the Elder let loose his breath it exploded around him.
"What did you honestly expect, Melfala?" a female dragon asked, brushing soot off her sapphire scales. "He is a Guardian of wind. You should have seen that coming from a mile away."
"I'm well aware of his abilities, Ysolda!" Melfala snapped at her as the smoke finally cleared away. There was no visible damage aside from some of his scales being marred. "I just didn't expect his instincts to be so sharp for one so young. You have been through more than I gave you credit for, Guardian."
"Would you like to keep testing me or can we get down to business?" Sonic asked as his Guardian form faded away.
"Quite." The dragons froze with shock at the soft voice. Even Dulcy was completely stunned. Sonic looked around until his eyes fell on the owner of the voice. It was a female dragon of pure white. The tips of her feathered wings were dipped in gold and she seems to almost float across the floor as she approached them. "After hearing your tale and seeing your strength I am certain that 'he' will want to meet you, Sonic Hedgehog." She beckoned for him to follow her and began to walk away from the Elders. There was a pit forming in his stomach but Sonic did his best to ignore it. This was, after all, what he had wanted even though he'd been under the impression that the Elders led the Dragons. Was there someone, or some thing, else that was pulling the strings from behind the scenes?
"You are worried," the white dragon said as they came to a large set of doors. "It is healthy to be suspicious when what you believed to be true is not. But you have nothing to fear from our Lord."
"Lord?" Sonic asked as she opened the doors for him and he walked through. He turned to get an answer from her just as she shut the doors on him. "I know you guys are dragons and all that but would it kill you to give me a straight answer just once?!" He looked around, admiring the gold dragon motif the room sported. At the far end were three dragons, the two on the outside a gleaming gold while the one in the center was made of obsidian with gold trim on the claws and fangs. It was an impressive display but Sonic was more curious to meet this 'Lord' the white dragon had mentioned.
So you are the one my daughter spoke of.
The voice stopped Sonic cold. He hadn't so much heard it as he had felt it. "Is...is someone there?" he asked as he looked around the room.
You need only fear me should you threaten my children, the voice told him. Sonic turned to the three dragon statues, his eyes locked on the obsidian one in the middle. Now that he looked at it the statue seemed almost alive. I formally greet you, Sonic Hedgehog of the In'ei. Guardian of Wind, Ward of Sylvanix, and Chosen of Kazama. I am the one you know as the Dragon Lord but you may call me Grand Elder. The obsidian statue's eyes blinked and Sonic felt the knot in his stomach tighten. It stood up, rotating its joints before falling onto all fours. With a mighty shake the Grand Elder stretched his muscles out and let his wings out.
Sonic stood in absolute awe at the massive dragon. Even on all fours he was still almost thirty feet tall and his wingspan reached to the edges of the room. The Grand Elder let out a mighty yawn that made Sonic's bones rattle. His golden eyes locked onto the hedgehog as he brought his head down to stare him in the eye. Tell me, boy. Is this fear borne of respect or simply a natural reaction? It's hard to tell with you Magans, especially the Guardians.
"Well, uh, I'd have to say it's mostly the second choice," Sonic admitted with a gulp. "If I'd been given some kind of warning then I'd go with option one." He took a moment to gather himself before speaking again. "Would I be right in saying that you want to hear my plan to stop Gilgamesh?"
You would. The dragon settled down, curling into a ball so that his head rested on his tail. But first I wish for you to tell me your story. Your birth, your life, becoming a Guardian. If I am to entrust you with our sacred duty then I must know the truth of your existence.
Sonic mentally swore but sat on the ground cross-legged all the same. "I'll do my best to keep it short," he offered and the grand dragon let out a puff of steam in agreement.