#2: New World

5 Years Later…

The destruction of the known world hadn't ended everything, rather it was simply a new beginning. The dragon kingdoms had fallen when the Destroyer had done it's job of destroying everything. Now the few survivors did everything they could to stay alive and that included Cynder who had grown since the five years that had changed everything. Since then, the Dark Master had built a massive empire that had covered the whole continent. Nothing happened without the Dark Master knowing about it. There had been some resistance in the beginning, but Malefor had stomped it out without hesitation.

However Malefor's rule was not entirely unfair, the Dark Master did not bring his might down unless it was to crush any ideas of a rebellion. For the most part even his soldiers avoid many of the remaining dragons and other races. Cynder was now an adult and everything had fallen on her to help keep the last few dragons from fading away.

Cynder walked the alleyways of Vargoth City, the smell of recent rain and mildew was heavy in the air as she walked through a puddle of rainwater. Cynder blinked her green eyes and ducked under a blanket and into a building. Cynder hurried over to a group of cheetah children who were dressed in rags, she dropped a bag that had been draped over her shoulder down onto the floor and said "alright, I brought some food for you kids and your mother."

The children hurried to the bag and undid it, pulling out several loafs of bread. The oldest, a teeager with stripes and white fur looked up at her and smiled "thank you miss Cynder, this will buy our mother a few more days."

Then the girl looked away and gave a sad expression "but her sickness… it's only getting worse."

Cynder had been afraid of that, Vargoth City was an utter wasteland. It had been built out of the rubble of the former Warfang City shortly after the city had fallen. But it had also become a beckon for crime and filth. There were no laws in Vargoth City, only the local gang bosses had any true power over the citizens. Most were tyrannical and cared only for themselves. Cynder had done her best to avoid falling into such rabble.

She sighed and bowed her head to the child and said softly "sorry, but there's nothing I can do. I've done my best to find medicine or even a life gem. But there's nothing left out there."

The teen nodded in understanding and sat down while the children ate. Cynder walked to the doorway and sat down listening to the sounds of the city. Many people scavenged the ruins to the north to find anything of use. Others simply murdered those that returned from the same ruins and took whatever they had found.

"Ah, Cynder!" The dragoness glanced over her shoulder at a older cheetah woman with black fur as she stepped out of a bedroom and coughed. The teenage cheetah helped her walk with a worried expression. The woman had something draped in her arms, slowly she made her way to Cynder and held out a piece of cloth "you have done so much for my children, but you do not have to continue risking your life just for us."

Cynder glanced at the cloth and gave a slight smile "it's what an old friend of mine would have done. What's this?"

She glanced at the cloth and the cheetah woman smiled and draped it over Cynder and said "a gift, for all the help you have done for us."

Cynder blinked, unsure of what to say. Kindness was a rare thing in the world now, most people did what they had to or there was a chance that they would never wake up. Much of that meant either killing others or doing other horrid crimes. Cynder touched the fabric and smiled a bit more "thank you miss Riena. I would stay longer, but I have other matters to deal with."

The woman nodded and smiled back at her, then she started to walk back toward her bedroom "stay safe Cynder."

Cynder watched her go for a bit, then nodded and left as she walked out of the house and back onto the alleyway. It was a sad yet bitter truth that the mother was ill and dying, but death had become such a common thing that it no longer bothered Cynder anymore. It only hardened those that did survive, but that was something to think about for another time. Cynder walked out onto the main road and looked up at the sky, more grey clouds were coming in. She sighed as she looked back at the city and pulled the hood part of the cloak over her head. Then she began to set out, walking toward the broken down gate that marked the exit of the city.

She had been planning to leave the city for weeks, while she could hold her own in with her power it simply wasn't safe for her. Some of the gangs had already begun to sniff around the dwelling she had been sleeping in and now it was time to vanish.

Cynder neared the gate, once she was outside she could go wherever she pleased so long as it wasn't the Dark Master's palace. Part of Cynder often wondered, what was it Malefor actually did there. He was immortal, it wasn't like he needed to sleep or even eat. Maybe Malefor practiced magic, or researched other possible world ending golems that may have existed out in the wilds. Whatever the case Cynder wanted nothing to do with it, for all she cared Malefor could rot in a-

Cynder suddenly slowed to a stop as another female dragon was abruptly shoved out onto the street in front of the gate. Cynder frowned as the dragoness got to her feet and looked around, then she saw Cynder and started to walk toward her "your a shadow dragon."

"And your not from this world." Cynder countered as she saw the light blue feathers on the dragoness. She shook her head at Cyn and shrugged.

"Which gang forced you to come out and stall me?" Cynder asked her.

"What makes you think I work for a gang?" The blue feathery dragoness asked with a snort as she glanced Cynder over.

The shadow dragoness tilted her head and sighed "considering there are three others behind me ready to attack… I'd say you better explain yourself. Or at the very least get out of my way before this gets bloody."

The dragoness blinked at Cynder and a bolt of yellow lightning crackled across the sky as the wind began to pick up around the strange dragoness. Cynder sighed "very well…"

Cynder shifted around and fired a bolt of black lightning from her maw at one of the dragons that had appeared behind her. The bolt struck him directly in the face and his head exploded in a puff of blood and smoke. Then Cynder vanished into the shadows and reappeared in front of the next, she slashed a blue male across his throat with her claws. By then the third dragon had gotten behind her and lunged at her.

Cynder smirked and shifted at a speed that most would not have been able to do and she swiped him down with her tail. Cynder growled at the two as they both began to get to their feet. Then Cyn vanished back into the shadows and reappeared behind the dragon with the neck wound. With a flick of her tail blade she stabbed him several times in the back then lunged onto him and sank her teeth into his neck. Cynder ripped into the male and tore his throat out. Then she breathed a burst of black flames at the blue dragon who had little time to move.

The dragon shifted and fired a ball of ice at her, Cynder shifted out of the way and fired back with a ball of black fire the smacked the attack in the chest and sent him flying back into the rubble of a destroyed home. The top part of the house collapsed down on the dragon and crushed him under the rubble. Cynder turned to the dragoness who hadn't moved the entire time and glared "now out of my way."

"Your powerful, incredibly powerful. So you truly are Cynder, the Terror of the Skies."

"Some call me that, but I abandoned that path a long time ago. Who are you?" Cynder demanded.

"Call me Tempest, I'm a wind dragon." She answered as she nodded to the dead dragons behind Cynder "those were my soldiers you just killed."

"So your a gang boss then, I thought you guys didn't like coming out of your hidey holes." Cynder retorted to the female.

She smirked and tilted her head, another flash of lightning crackled across the sky "let's just say I have a vested interest in you, you seem to be everything the stories say you are."

"Get to the point Tempest."

"Now now, don't get angry. I have a business proposition for you, one of the other gang bosses. A male by the name of Novak, earth dragon. Loves to dig in the dirt! He has been kidnapping citizens that live within my section of the city." Tempest explained as she walked toward Cynder.

The wind dragoness looked Cynder in the eyes and said "kill him, and bring back the innocents he took."

"Why do you care about a few normal people?" Cynder asked with a sharp tone.

Tempest gave Cynder a look that would frighten most others "because they are innocent, they have no ties to my gang nor to any other. They need to be protected, and in the process one less gang leader lives in Vargoth City."

Cynder thought it over for a moment, she knew that she shouldn't trust Tempest. The gang leader could very well simply be sending her to die. But on the other hand if she was telling the truth, innocent people could die. Cynder quickly came to the conclusion that enough people had died on this day "alright, how do we being?"

"Right this way Cynder, come with me to my base of operations." Tempest shifted and turned down the alley she came from. Slowly Cynder followed after her.

Author's Note: Alright, another chapter down. Please tell me what you think and thanks as always for reading!