The Legend of Rune: Forsaken Blood

by Deeth Irteen

Four years have passed since the Malefor Ordeal has ended. Rune is enjoying life in his new home. However, things are not peaceful; new conflics have arisen across the dragon realms. The largest of which is Bergan, a purple dragon, and his daughter Tyrrany, a mysterious white dragoness. Rated M for mature themes and violence.

30. Act 3, Chapter 3

Warfang was in a state of emergency.

The Deep Shadows could barely keep up with the panic and chaos as dragon families mourned for their missing children. And even after the fires had been put out, there was still the matter of stragglers from the Sons of Culmubrae and the Extremists who'd gone into hiding.

Elenar had no choice; she needed the Northern Guardians.

After a shadowy message was sent to the Prime Temple, the Guardians were on their way post-haste. And it was good that they did; it was all the Deep Shadows could do to keep the peace on their own in these trying times. But when the citizenry saw the banners of the great and glorious Guardians making their way down the streets, there were many cheers to be heard all the way to the council meeting.

The Coliseum was just about overflowing with citizens. High Queen Elenar sat in one of the thrones in the arena, with Urobos seated at her right and Albanion at her left. The Deep Shadows stood at the ready all around.

The Guardians of the Prime Temple had arrived as soon as they could. There were six in all; one for each of the six elements of light magic. But they weren't alone, of course; King Horus was along for the ride.

"Horus!" Elenar exclaimed.

"I was already on my way to Warfang, milady," Horus said as he sat down on his assigned throne. "My sister had sent me a letter telling me of the trouble my children had gotten into."

Horus glanced in Apella's direction. She looked ready to break formation to run up to him, but she took a deep sigh. Elenar, meanwhile, felt pity for the both of them. Apella hasn't seen her niece and nephew in days… and the last meeting she had with them didn't go well.

As the Guardians sat down, the Water Guardian cleared his throat and looked directly at the queen. "Could you please explain exactly what's happened in Warfang?"

"I'll do my best to summarize…" Elenar said cautiously.

And so, she told them of everything that had happened. The series of fires had served double duty as a means to oust the two terrorist groups AND a distraction to draw attention away from The Nexus. She also explained how she'd confronted Bergan in the Pit of the Fallen, where he'd confessed to taking Warfang's children. The Guardians were quite appalled at the revelation, as were many dragons around the area.

"Why would he do such a thing?!" King Horus demanded.

"He claims that it was altruistic," Urobos said. "That he only whisked the children away to parts unknown so that they'd be safe from all the vicious drakes of Warfang who'd do them harm."

"And… I suppose that my children are among their number as we speak?" The solar king sucked in a breath.

"Quite possibly, Horus," Elenar said nervously. "I… I'm sorry."

Horus dug his talons deep into the sides of his throne as his wings shook with anger. Once again Apella looked ready to rush over to embrace her brother despite the many dragons watching. After a moment, the fury on Horus's face gave way to worry and sadness, and his limbs shook as he tried to calm himself down.

"I… We… Something must be done." Horus declared. "We need to find the children."

"Well… there IS some good news." Elenar glanced over at the Deep Shadows. "Wraith, step forward and tell them what you told me."

"Err, yes, Your Grace…" Wraith carefully made his way forward and cleared his throat.

"We've recently had some very unexpected contact from The Nexus." The crimson drake declared. "Right out of the blue, a portal opened up on the very steps of the Dragon Spire. Elza of all dragons contacted me, and she sent various white dragonlings through the portal."

The Guardian of Fire gasped. "She did?!"

"Yes…" Wraith nodded. "But while the white dragons were brought home, we, unfortunately, lost contact with Elza before she could send more kids through… thanks to BERGAN."

The Guardians exchanged various uneasy glances, while Horus slumped back on his throne. Elenar, meanwhile, felt anger flowing in her veins. She'd come so close to finding her sister again, and the chance slipped right through her talons like sand.

Why, Bergan? Why have you done this?

"The missing children is but one of several looming problems," Urobos said.

"Oh?" The lightning Guardian looked in the old drake's direction. "What else is there?"

"Well…" The elderly drake took a cautious breath. "Do you remember the last time that General Saul stood in the coliseum four years ago?"

"Of course, I remember." Horus declared. "He'd come close to declaring war on Warfang out of spite. He was forced to turn away after most of the dignitaries of the various kingdoms turned against him. But what relevancy does he have here?"

"Quite a bit…" Urobos declared.

The old black dragon brought Horus and the Guardians up to date regarding the recent incident regarding Prince Jonathan and his rowdy gang. He also described how the prince was sent to capture Rune and Cyrus, as well as the seedy details of his father's greater plans.

"…You see, my friends, Saul's preparing a march on Glenhaven."

There were quite a few gasps of alarm from Horus and the Guardians. Even the Deep Shadows were unnerved by the declaration; especially Wraith and Albanion. The crimson drake couldn't help but back out of direct view.

"As we speak," Elenar continued, "Saul is preparing to retake the desert city as part of his vendetta against the Elders who exiled him four years prior."

"Then we must help the people of Glenhaven!" Horus shouted as he leaped from his throne. "Send word! Send soldiers! Send everything we possibly can!"

"It's going to take quite a bit of effort to send help Glenhaven's way," Elenar said with a frown. "And even if we could mobilize Warfang's army to march south by nightfall, we'd never get across the central ocean in decent time."

"Can you send your shadow dragons upfront?" The Guardian of Earth asked. "With their combined power, you could all teleport straight across the ocean."

"Sure… and we'd be completely drained of our power for days," Wraith said as he tapped his talon on the ground. "That kind of grand scale of magic takes a lot out of us, you know. We'd be useless in the fight against Saul's forces."

"Then… what can we do?" Horus asked worriedly. "How do we send help to Warfang?"

As Horus slumped worriedly on his throne, a shadow fell upon him from behind. And an old voice spoke aloud; a voice that many dragons hadn't heard in a long time.

"I have a plan if you're willing to listen."

Horus's eyes widened in shock. He rose from his throne to see who'd snuck up on him, while Elenar sighed. It didn't take long for Horus to look like he'd seen a ghost… for a purple dragon with shiny golden back spikes had emerged from hiding. He stepped around the thrones and walked over to come to a stop beside Elenar. Every other dragon in the entire arena was completely stunned; the civilians, the Guardians… even the Deep Shadows. Every dragon… save for Elenar, Wraith, and Urobos, who had been expecting the drake's appearance.

"Sp… Spy… Sp…" Horus was left stammering as he looked the legendary dragon up and down. "Spyro?!"

"I apologize for not joining the meeting sooner," Spyro said as he fell back onto his haunches. "Cynder was insistent that we wait for the right moment."

Horus's ear frills pointed straight up. "C-Cynder's here, too?!"

The golden king got his response in the form of a low chuckle coming from the side. He and a few of the Guardians looked over, and nearly jumped out of their scales when they spotted the elderly black dragoness. She flapped her wings and strode forward to turn around and come to a seat beside Elenar, opposite Spyro.

"It's good to see you all again." Cynder declared. "But we do need to get the important stuff." She grinned over at the purple drake. "Care to continue with your plan of action?"

"Right…" Spyro cautiously cleared his throat.

"Now hold on a moment!" The Earth Guardian exclaimed. "I have so many questions! How are you two alive again?!" He glanced at the elderly black dragoness. "And why is Spyro in his prime, while you're… uh…"

Cynder raised an eye ridge. "Old?"

The Guardian gulped and clamped a forepaw over her mouth. That earned a snicker from Cynder, while Spyro just sighed.

"Everyone, concentrate on what's important!" Spyro fanned out his wings and stamped his forepaw. "I can understand that all of you are wondering what we're doing here. But you'll have to save your questions for later; for now, we need to concentrate on both keeping the peace here in Warfang, and sending a group of dragons as a collective envoy to Crossbolt and Glenhaven."

"Crossbolt?" Horus repeated.

"We can't get an army across the ocean… but we don't have to." Spyro declared. "Tintreon is the current ruler of Crossbolt. Who better than him to send dragons south across the desert to mobilize with Glenhaven?"

"Ah, yes…" Urobos nodded. "That could work."

"But there's more trouble brewing than just Saul's army…" Elenar said as she sat up higher. "Saul is receiving some outside help… from Bergan."

That revelation garnered even more gasps from the gathered dragons. All Elenar could do was frown as Spyro and Cynder looked at her in pity.

"Bergan is doing some kind of experimentation in the realm of Convexity." Elenar continued. "I… don't claim to fully understand what he's up to. But if he's giving some outside help to Saul… then I can't help but fear the worst. But as such…" Elenar stood up on all fours. "I've decided to head south to Crossbolt. I will be the prime envoy."

That got quite a bit of surprise and alarm from the gathered dragons… but surprisingly the Deep Shadows were the ones most horrified. Elenar expected as much: after all, she hadn't told them yet.

"I'll speak to Tintreon when I get to Crossbolt." The queen continued. "With any luck, he'll agree to gather his forces to march for Glenhaven, while I go on ahead to speak with the Elders directly via teleportation."

"WAIT!" Came a bellowing cry from the Deep Shadows. Elenar looked over in time to see General Grail marching his way up to the ring of thrones.

"You can't just leave Warfang!" Grail exclaimed. "You're the High Queen! You mustn't put your life at risk by going into danger down south!"

Elenar scowled slightly but raised her head high. "Rune is going to Glenhaven, Grail. He's the only one amongst my children that isn't missing. And I can't just sit idly by while his life is put at risk… especially considering his condition."

"But…" Grail's glare weakened. "What about your safety, Your Grace?"

"I won't be going alone." Elenar flapped her wings. "Surely you didn't think that I wouldn't pick a select group of Deep Shadows to act as my bodyguards?"

"Fair enough…" Grail backed up a bit. "Then, who have you chosen?"

"Albanion and Wraith, for starters," Elenar said. "They know most of all of you what Bergan is capable of."

Albanion tensed up, while Wraith ran a forepaw through his mane. The two exchanged glances and held their tongues, while Grail stepped back to join them in formation.

"Well, that's that part of the plans given out," Spyro said as he cleared his throat. "But of course, there's now the matter of who will look after Warfang in the queen's stead."

"Will it be you and your wife, My Lord?" Horus asked enthusiastically.

"That will have to be a no." Spyro shook his head. "Bergan's actions have filled the air with uncertainty. There's no telling what's waiting in store for the armies that will clash in the Arcus Desert. As such, Cynder and I will be joining Elenar's entourage; in case things get wildly out of hand magic-wise."

"I… I suppose that's fair enough." Horus wiped his brow down.

"And that's why…" Cynder put on a grin. "YOU will be looking after Warfang."

Horus's crown nearly fell from his head. "Me?!"

"Who better to look after the people of Warfang, than the Steward of Warfang?" Elenar asked.

"But, But, I…" Horus clasped his forepaws together and fidgeted with his talons. "I had that title when I was serving under the traitor Richteriel. I'm unfit to look after Warfang."

Elenar felt nothing but pity for Horus; she knew all too well the feelings of regret and failure that were clear in the solar king's eyes. And self-doubt was creeping in as well… no, she had to nip it in the bud.

"Horus… You spent years doing your best to keep the peace in Warfang." Elenar said. "I know that you only have the best interests of the citizenry at heart. I ask you to take on the temporary mantle of the ruler of Warfang once again so that I might work toward returning your heirs to you…" Elenar bowed her head before Horus. "Please, Horus. You're the most reliable dragon for the job. The ivory crown is yours once again."

Horus seemed quite stunned by her words. He cautiously stepped forward and placed his forepaws upon the crown to lift it away.

"Well… I guess I accept the mantle." Horus held an uncomfortable grimace as he made to sit back down. "But only temporarily, of course."

"Of course…" Elenar stood up tall and sat on her throne. "Hopefully, I won't be away from Warfang for long."

"Indeed…" Cynder flapped her wings and cleared her throat to draw everyone's attention. "Well, if we've established all the things we need to do, let's hurry up and do them! That army could be marching this very minute! It's time to travel south to Crossbolt, youngins'!"

"Fair enough…" Elenar gave a low chortle, while Horus and the Guardians looked at Cynder incredulously.

"There's just one last thing I have to do…" Elenar looked in the direction of the Guardians. "Can I trust the four of you to aid Horus in his efforts to look after Warfang?"

"We certainly wouldn't refuse," The Lightning Guardian said, "But it might be dangerous for all four of us to stay in Warfang. Someone has to keep watch over the Prime Temple, you know."

"I suppose that's true…" Elenar sighed.

"We'll hash out the details later today." The Water Guardian said. "We wish you the best in Warfang, Lady Elenar."

The four Guardians, plus Horus, bowed their heads toward the queen. The queen bowed back, and just like that, the council was over.

Granted, the citizenry didn't leave the coliseum stands quietly. Some were still grieving, others were worried about the future… and quite a lot of them wanted a good look at Spyro and Cynder. The purple drake stood tall and proud if a bit embarrassed. Cynder, however, held a dazzling smirk as she smiled and waved at the many dragons and non-dragons.

"Is that appropriate behavior?" Apella asked Cynder. "Erm, not that I'm being judgmental, Your Grace."

"It's for them, young lady," Cynder said quietly as she continued to smile at the crowd. "Spyro and I have been symbols of peace and unity for a long time. Our appearance here, in the flesh, is going to last for ages, no doubt."

"So, we might as well use this as a chance to spark some hope," Spyro said as he waved as well. "We're here, we're alive… so we need this day to be the start of times getting better."

Many of the dragons around the two heroes seemed quite convinced; even Elenar felt just a bit more hopeful that things would go well. But the only one to frown was Urobos; the elderly drake just couldn't shake the dreadful visions from his mind…

Before long, the coliseum was mostly emptied. Horus and the Guardians had left to start work on tending to the city. Elenar, Urobos, the two heroes, and the Deep Shadows were all who remained. With a flourish of her cape, Elenar faced the Deep Shadows.

"Albanion, Wraith, say your goodbyes and step forward. But be quick about it; we have work to do."

Right away the Deep Shadows turned to speak among themselves; Cerulean in particular spoke hushed words of encouragement to the still-skittish Wraith. Meanwhile… Elenar turned toward Urobos with worried eyes.

"Should we have… mentioned what happened to Cyrus?" Elenar asked.

"No. Definitely not." Urobos shook his head. "The people of Warfang are already in a state of worry and panic with their children lost in some alternate realm. The idea that a rampaging corrupted prince is looming over them constantly would have only made things worse.

"But…" Elenar tensed up a bit. "I feel like we're lying."

"There wasn't anything we could say that would have made things better, Elenar," Spyro said softly. "It was for the best."

Despite Spyro's reassurance, a pit formed in Elenar's stomach. She'd only seen it for herself briefly… but what Cyrus had become was more than enough to scare her half to death. She'd entrusted Cyrus to protect his fellow students, and it only led him to fall under the influence of terrible corruption! It was almost enough to make her collapse and cry.

But Cynder stood by Elenar's side. The elderly dragoness draped a wing over the queen's back and looked her in the eyes.

"He can be saved," Cynder said soothingly. "If someone like me could be rescued from corruption, then it's almost a guarantee that the same can be said for Cyrus."

"Okay…" Elenar took a calming breath. "I believe you."

Once the last of the farewells, goodbyes and mutual blessings had been passed around, Albanion and Wraith stepped up to join the others in the middle of the ring. Wraith muttered under his breath to get a head start on his chanting, while Albanion held a cold, stern face.

"Albanion?" Urobos asked cautiously. "Are you ready?"

"I'm… prepared." The grey drake grumbled.

The elderly drake patted Albanion on the back. "I'm sorry that we can't search for Elza. But we all have our jobs to do; just hold faith that we'll find her."

Albanion said nothing… he simply stared forward in the most serious demeanor he could muster, despite the tell-tale signs of the tears he'd been crying every night.

Just like last time, Elenar, Wraith, and Urobos stood together to begin the collective teleportation magic. However, unlike before, they were abruptly joined by Cynder, who grasped their forepaws and almost joined in the chanting.

"What are you doing?" Urobos asked in surprise.

"You didn't think I'd just stand around and not help, do you?" Cynder snorted. "I may be an old bag, but I'm still the Grand Shadow!"

"I… I guess that's true." Urobos said awkwardly. Cynder glanced over at Spyro, who'd stood watching the entire time.

"Come on, you. Help them out a bit." Cynder prodded him in the shoulder. "I know you've got some kind of shadow magic in those purple veins."

"I was never as adept at it as you were, Cyn." Spyro sighed.

"That's no excuse, Spyro." Cynder snorted. "You've got magic to spare for a lifetime, and these three need to get across an OCEAN in seconds. So no messing around; whip up some of your power to make things easier!"

"Alright, alright…" Spyro sighed. "I'll do my best."

"Should I try it as well?" Albanion asked. "Or is poison magic just not enough?"

"Sorry, Albanion." Elenar frowned. "I'm sure your assets will be vital once we're in Crossbolt."

Albanion simply sighed and stayed close to the group… as a great, shadowy aura surrounded them all. Bit by bit, they all sank into the darkness.

Elza… Cyrus…. Hope. Elenar thought miserably. Please, be safe.

And just like that, they were gone.

~~…~~

It was rather early in the morning over Glenhaven; so early that the sun had yet to rise. Tyrrany forced herself to wake up nonetheless; she had a big day today. After slumping onto her paws, she stretched out her back like a cat. She then stood up tall and gave a hearty yawn.

Time to get to work, she thought to herself as she smacked her lips.

Tyrrany made her way over to the corner of the abandoned hovel she and the others were staying in. She was on the second floor; she kept the broken window blinds shut tight as she took a quick bath. It wasn't the most glamorous of baths; she mostly had to use her magic to fill up a big tub with water and then soaked herself in it to get as clean as she could. Then, after drying herself off with some wind-based magic, she wiped down an old mirror and gathered up her makeup supplies.

As Tyrrany put her disguise together, she went over her plans for the day. It had finally come; the scheduled arena battle between the water dragoness Nellie, and her rival Roxanne. The two would duel dramatically in the palace arena… and Tyrrany had to be sure to rig the fight in Nellie's favor.

Hmm, there's always my convexity power… Tyrrany thought as she glanced across the way at her violin case. I could simply play some tunes, give Nellie a boost, and see the battle brought to a swift end in seconds…. Tyrrany stopped to apply some purple makeup to her cheeks. Seems so easy that I'm already bored.

But as Tyrrany continued, she thought back to something her father Bergan had once told her during her combat training:

"Anything can happen in a one-on-one battle. You never know what one combatant or the other might do to achieve victory. Things only become less predictable as more combatants enter the fray. And any one action taken by any one fighter can swing the battle in one side's favor or the other. You need to be able to take any action or counter-action that keeps the battle in your favor. Running into battle wildly will only end in ruin."

Tyrrany snorted as she imagined Nellie tripping over herself and falling flat, giving Roxanne all the opportunity in the world to light her up with a well-placed burst of lightning. The white dragoness scratched her chin.

I guess I'll have to keep my eyes peeled during the fight. Can't let anything go wrong.

Once Tyrrany finished with her makeup, she moved on to putting on her black stockings and her long black cape. She then stood up tall, looked herself over, and snorted in a mild satisfaction. As far as anyone in the palace would be concerned, Tyrrany was just some random minstrel wandering about. Nobody would need to focus too much attention on her… she hoped.

Tyrrany marched across the way, picked up her violin case, and descended the staircase to find the others. The flame was asleep atop an old couch in the corner, with Arthur the dragonfly snoozing atop the fire dragon's head; his back was propped up against the drake's horn.

Tyrrany sighed as she watched her two friends sleeping. They looked so peaceful together, despite having to put up with such a cramped space for days. And even though they didn't mention it around her, she could tell that the two of them were excited for the Day of the Bonds to get started. Tyrrany double-checked the calendar in her satchel; today was the first day of the celebration. Tyrrany sighed and turned her head out the window; even if all she saw was the alleyway beyond, the dragoness couldn't help but imagine all the fun stuff the many young dragons of the city would get getting into today.

It even got Tyrrany reminiscing on things from last year, back in Faeshrine. So many teenage drakes were making googly eyes at the fair dragonesses around her age. There were sweets and candy galore on sale, and a carnival was up and running over by the docks. Tyrrany could even remember the giddy look on Frederick's face as her brother practically dragged her down to see a puppet show for the little ones. Tyrrany sighed… that was a pretty fun time. Tyrrany had gotten so caught up in all of this important stuff, that she'd forgotten just what a special time this was supposed to be for young dragons… for her.

Maybe… maybe we could take a break from the mission. Tyrrany thought. Once this arena match is over and done with, we can just… hang out together. Walk around the town…

With a sigh, Tyrrany cautiously stepped up and rubbed Flame's shoulder. She also leaned down to nudge Arthur with a talon to the belly.

"Guys, get up," Tyrrany said softly.

"Zzzzz Five more minutes zzz" The dragonfly mumbled. Tyrrany just snorted at this and leaned in to bring her snout up to Flame's ear frill.

"WAKE UP!"

"AAAH!" Flame's head bolted upright in an instant. This catapulted Arthur from the drake's head, sending him flying across the room. The dragonfly gasped awake and struggled to right himself in midair, but he was just barely able to keep from splattering against the wall. Tyrrany backed up and grimaced; perhaps she'd yelled a bit too loud.

"Arthur?!" Flame shouted in surprise. He hopped onto his feet and trotted over to the dragonfly, who peeled himself off the wall. "What happened?!"

"Ugh…" Arthur flapped his wings and took off into the air. "You launched me at Mach speed. That's what happened."

"I did?" Flame grimaced.

"That was… kinda my fault." Tyrrany sighed. Flame and Arthur turned toward the dragoness as she made her way over to her.

"What's going on?" Flame asked. "Why'd you startle us?"

"I just wanted to wake you guys up." Tyrrany frowned as she pulled her hood over her head. "Come on: get yourselves ready, and then we'll head out for a quick breakfast from the market downtown."

"Breakfast?" Arthur asked in surprise. "That sounds nice. But, I don't exactly have my coin curse on me, if you catch my drift."

Tyrrany just rolled her eyes at that. "I'll cover it, guys. Don't worry."

"Wow…" Flame blinked in astonishment. He reached up to adjust his mane, and then pulled his goggles up over his eyes. "Thanks, Annie."

"You're welcome." Tyrrany smiled. "But don't take too long; we need to be able to get over to the market, and then back to the center of Glenhaven in time for the arena match."

"Right, right, the fight between Nellie and… whats-her-name." Arthur shrugged.

"It's Roxanne." Tyrrany clarified. "She's that yellow dragoness, with the two airheads following her around."

"Ah, right…" Arthur rubbed his head. "Well, there's no time like the present. Let's go get some grub!"

The dragonfly flew about the dragons' heads and then out through the open window beside the door. Flame and Tyrrany exchanged dubious glances and then hurried to follow their friend outside. Tyrrany kept her head pulled tightly over her head as she ventured out into the bright light of day.

~~…~~

The trio kept themselves scarce as they made their way out toward the downtown marketplace district. This would be the first time since arriving in Glenhaven that the trio would take the time to see the sights of the marketplace. Tyrrany just hoped that it wouldn't take too long; she always kept her eyes turned toward the nearest clock towers scattered here and there across the city.

And between all of that, the dragoness could feel her stomach rumbling. It had been a while since she'd been able to stop and enjoy some fine dining. Though even if she had more than enough coinage to cover whatever they were going to eat that day, she still felt this odd itch at the back of her head; that she'd be wasting her time if she got something elaborately sweet.

The mission is more important… she told herself. Don't get too distracted by food…

Tyrrany's nostrils tingled as the scent of toasted bread was escorted to her by the wind as she turned a corner. She licked her chapped lips, and her belly rumbled. Oh, she desperately needed a bite!

Oh, it's so hard to concentrate.

"Say, Annie, I've got an idea." Arthur suddenly said. Tyrrany blinked and shook her head as the dragonfly flew up to the side of her head.

"Once this arena match is over," Arthur said as he tapped her hood, "why don't you take the time to talk to this Nellie girl about your half-brother Rune?"

"Hmm?" Tyrrany blinked in surprise.

"I mean, you're trying to get on his good side, right?" The dragonfly nodded. "Maybe, if you surprise him by bringing up topics that he likes, or show him some of his favorite food, it might help get him to see you in a positive light."

"Huh… I guess that could work." Tyrrany shrugged with her wings. But then her stomach ached once more, and her desire for food strengthened. "Oh, let's hurry up!"

Tyrrany's patience ran out just before a bakery, and she quickly ran inside. She stepped right up to the counter and slammed her purse down, much to the surprise of a plump pink dragoness.

"I want three of your best tarts!" Tyrrany exclaimed as she fished for her currency. "Money is no object!"

"Alright, alright, Miss…" The dragoness said awkwardly. "Just settle down."

Flame and Arthur stepped into the bakery; the red drake sat to Tyrrany's right, while Arthur came to a landing atop his head. When the pink dragoness came back with the tarts, she was quite surprised to see the dragonfly perched atop Flame's head.

"What is THAT?" She asked incredulously.

"Hey…" The dragonfly crossed his arms. He slid back down behind Flame's head and leered at the dragoness from behind it.

"Uh, please don't mind Arthur, Miss." Flame gave a polite nod of his head. "He's just my dragonfly."

"Your… dragonfly?" The dragoness repeated curiously. "Is THAT what dragonflies look like?"

"Yes, this is what we look like…" Arthur grumbled.

"Oh my." The dragoness blinked. "They're much cuter than I expected."

Arthur flinched at that; he looked both flattered and insulted at the same time. Tyrrany just sighed and pulled out a few of her coins to distract the dragoness. "The tarts, please."

"Oh, right, of course…" The dragoness chuckled awkwardly as she accepted some of the coins and slid the tarts forward. "Here you go, Miss."

Tyrrany passed two of the tarts to Flame, who shared one with Arthur, while she focused on eating her own in silence. Oh, it was so delicious; leaps and bounds better than the trail rations that she and the guys had been eating since leaving Crossbolt. Finally, Tyrrany's rationality returned, and she sat back in her seat and rubbed her full belly. As she did so, she finally returned her thoughts to what Arthur had brought up outside: Learning about Rune.

Rune. Prince Rune. Tyrrany's half-brother, Rune. It felt so weird thinking about that concept. The last time she'd seen one of her black dragon brothers, she'd snapped and attacked him out in the open. She couldn't make that same mistake again. She had to just stop, breathe, and work hard at getting Rune to like her… and convince him that her random attack on Cyrus was a misunderstanding. Rune was the gatekeeper to getting into the House of Elenar; she couldn't mess this up.

But while Tyrrany was enjoying her meal, she didn't notice someone enter the bakery and approach from the side… not until she felt a forepaw on her shoulder, which snapped her back to reality. She tensed up and instinctively turned to growl in anger… only for her jaw to fall open upon seeing a familiar face.

"Miss Tyrrany?" Asked the bewildered voice of Flamaedelus Sr.

Tyrrany couldn't believe her eyes OR her ear frills. And neither could Flame and Arthur, for that matter. Not even when Arthur's father Richard flew around the backside of Flamaedelus's head and came to a landing on the adult drake's shoulder. Tyrrany stayed stunned into silence, while Flame and Arthur were overjoyed. Arthur flew into the air to embrace his father, while Flame stepped up and gave his dad a quick hug.

"Wh-What are you doing here?!" Flame asked incredulously.

"I could ask the same of you three." Flamaedelus raised an eye ridge. "Weren't you all supposed to be in Warfang?"

Tyrrany quickly sucked in a breath as she sprang from her seat. She fled to Flamaedelus's side and tugged on the sleeve of his overcoat.

"We can't discuss it here…" She quickly whispered.

"Excuse me…" The pink dragoness tapped her paw irritably. "But could you please explain why you're making a commotion in my bakery?"

"My apologies, Ma'am." Flamaedelus nodded his head. "I just wasn't expecting a reunion with my son; it's been a while since we parted ways."

"We should take them back to the carriage, Flamaedelus." Richard declared as he wrapped an arm around Arthur's torso. "That's a better place for getting things off our chests, I'd imagine."

"Yeah…" Tyrrany sighed in relief. "What he said."

~~…~~

Once Flamaedelus and Richard had purchased their food, they escorted the trio of teenagers down the city streets toward where their caravan of FTC carriages was settled in. Along the way, Tyrrany and Flame got the two adults up to date on all the things that had happened since their departure from Faeshrine.

Despite having to reveal her failures, Tyrrany felt a bit relieved. Flamaedelus was one of the few dragons that she felt she could trust, outside of her father. He always had sound advice for her when she was growing up and would keep any secrets she had to share. Who better to help her along in her mission in Glenhaven than him?

Before long, Flamaedelus opened the doorway into his carriage, and the teenagers stepped inside. Richard and Arthur came to a landing on a little alcove in the sidewall, while the three dragons sat down around the central table. Flamaedelus put his food down upon it, before slinking back into his seat and sighing.

"In hindsight, I wish I'd recommended to Mr. Bergan that we send more scrolls back and forth…" He snorted. "It seems like there's been a real mess in Warfang."

"I know, Sir…" Tyrrany frowned. "But we're trying to make things right."

"What's happened to Prince Jonathan?" Richard asked.

"We don't know." Flame shrugged. "Probably still in Warfang or something."

"Hmm…" Flamaedelus tapped his snout. "Well, wherever he is, I sincerely doubt that Bergan would abandon him. But we'll leave the prince's face in Bergan's paws… for now, the both of us have our missions to stick to."

"What IS your mission, Sir?" Tyrrany asked.

"Did you happen to notice that airship flying around the palace this morning?" Richard asked.

"You mean that ominous structure loaded with nasty cannons that could blow holes in everything in a multi-mile radius?" Arthur asked cheekily. "No, we never spotted it."

"Hardy har har, boy…" Richard rubbed the top of Arthur's head as he rolled his eyes.

"Indeed." Flamaedelus gave a bemused snort. "To be serious for a moment, our mission is to convince the Elders to part with the airship, so that we might pilot it away from the city."

Tyrrany wracked her talons on the table. "Is that something Father told you to do?"

"Ah, you're a smart one, Miss Tyrrany…" Flamaedelus nodded and smiled. "Now, we don't have all day to get that vessel out of the city. Richard and I will be heading for the palace soon. So you three are more than welcome to use the carriage as a safe house during your mission in town."

"Well… we'll likely be going with you to the palace soon," Tyrrany replied. "My mission involves an arena match being held there today. I can't miss it."

"And why not?" Flamaedelus pursed his lips.

"Well…" Tyrrany placed a paw upon her violin case. "It involves making sure things go the right way… so I can get on Prince Rune's good side."

"If you say so, dear…" Flamaedelus reached for one of the tarts on the table. "What time is this arena match?"

"I think it's later in the afternoon." Flame said.

"Well then…" Richard clasped his hands together. "No point in standing around, then! You kids have work to do, and we adults have work to do…" He flew through the air and came to a landing atop Flamaedelus's muzzle. "So, let's get to it!"

Arthur gave a little laugh, while Flamaedelus raised an eye ridge. "You're certainly much more lively when the teenagers are around."

"Oh, I can't help it; it's been too long since I've seen my boy." Richard nudged Flamaedelus's face. "And don't act like you're not feeling the same right now."

Flamaedelus just sighed as he ate his tart. He sat up from his seat and walked over to the door to push it open. The drake then glanced back at the trio and softened his expression. "We have a bit of time, still… why don't we all stick together for now?"

"Sounds like a plan, Dad." Flame smiled as he hopped onto all fours. He trotted after his father, while Arthur flew around his head.

Tyrrany was the last one to leave the carriage; she kept her violin case snugly against her side as she stepped out. She sucked in a breath and did her best to put on a smile. And while Flame, Arthur, Flamaedelus, and Richard made idle conversation on their way down the road, Tyrrany couldn't help but feel uneasy. Everything was going well… almost too well.

Stay calm, Tyrrany… She told herself after taking a deep breath. This day is only beginning.

~~…~~

Bergan was struggling to keep his composure.

He'd been too late. After struggling to make sure all of the convexity gems were sent along to their rightful positions, Bergan did everything in his power to get the Crazy Aces back to the fortress… but he'd been TOO LATE. Just as he was arriving, just as he'd settled his paws upon the cold stone, he watched as the very last of the white dragonlings had been shipped on back to Warfang.

All his hard work to save those younglings… all of his hopes to prepare them for a brighter future… GONE before his very eyes. Surely Elenar and the Deep Shadows would be on high alert around those kids… while the remains of the extremists were still at large!

Bergan retired to the main chapel, where he'd been skulking in anger ever since. He sucked in his breath, put on a smile, and tried to vent with every meditative technique he'd learned over the years… but it was failing. He'd come close to pouring all of his frustrations out onto Elza in the form of screams and magical blasts… but rewiring that portal was the best he could do on short notice.

That damn portal… Bergan scowled as he thought about Cyrus.

How did Bergan not foresee the prince falling for his affection for Tina at the worst moment? Did Cyrus truly fail to realize the obvious deception at work? Oh, it drove Bergan to drill his talons into his cloak…

But judging from the sounds coming from the hallway, Bergan wasn't the only one fueled by anger. The howls and roars of rage echoed down every corridor of the fortress, and many of the unattended younglings were scared out of their wits. There was crashing and smashing, and yelps of a surprise coming from the Crazy Aces here and there.

Cyrus was awake… and on quite the warpath.

Speak of the demon… Bergan sighed and rolled his eyes. I'd give him a lecture, but I don't think he's in the listening mood.

Amongst the scores of frightened voices, there came one singular voice that stood out louder than the others. Bergan heard fast footfalls approaching the chapel from the side corridor and the voice of a panicked prince. Bergan grumbled and stood up; perhaps NOW the boy would finally lend Bergan an ear frill.

The purple drake stepped up to the door and pulled it open in time to see a very panicked Lantel running toward it… with a very furious Cyrus approaching from just behind.

"WHERE DID THEY GO, YOU FUCKER?!" Cyrus roared as smoke billowed from his nostrils. "ANSWER ME!"

Bergan simply slammed the door shut behind Lantel, and then spread his forepaws out on the stone surface. With a bit of chanting, the purple drake spread some of his magical power out into the door to give a nice and good reinforcement. And just in time, too: Cyrus abruptly slammed against the stone and shook a bit of dust from the roof. Lantel came to a stop beside the altar of the chapel and took heavy breaths to calm himself down.

"OPEN THIS DOOR!" Cyrus screamed as he slashed at it repeatedly.

"No.," Bergan said promptly.

"NOW!" Cyrus slammed against the wall. "HE KNOWS WHERE THEY WENT!"

Lantel gulped and backed up, while Bergan simply snorted.

"You're not going near Prince Lantel, Cyrus." Bergan declared. "Especially not when you're engulfed in a mindless rage."

Cyrus screamed furiously… but then just snorted and stomped away. Bergan sighed in relief; at least the black prince was still obedient. Bergan turned to look over at Lantel, who leaned against the alter and panted heavily. The golden prince must have had quite a terrible run around after Cyrus woke up.

"Feeling alright, lad?" Bergan asked as he stepped forward.

"Relatively… speaking…" He said between pants. "I'm still… imprisoned…"

"Well, I wouldn't necessarily say that." Bergan picked up an empty bowl. "Care for some tea?"

"I don't… drink tea," Lantel said as he calmed down. "So forget it."

"Suit yourself." Bergan shrugged.

It didn't seem like Lantel was in the mood to leave the chapel for a while. Cyrus was still roaming around, and there was nothing for him out in the courtyard. He was stuck here… with Bergan. The purple drake took a sip and grinned; perhaps it was time to strike up a conversation.

"Don't be worried about any of the apprentices, lad," Bergan said to him. "Those four are fine; they've run off into hiding, and Cyrus won't catch them."

"Very… nice, I guess," Lantel said with a huff.

"Hmm…" Bergan scratched his chin. "Perhaps you'd be more interested in continuing our discussion from before? You were quite rude to me the last time I made the offer."

"What else is there to say?" Lantel demanded. "Are you looking to give another big, haughty speech about your machinations? OR are you going to laugh manically about your evil plan?"

"Hmph. Not quite, lad." Bergan shrugged his shoulders. "Perhaps we should instead discuss some common ground. You see, Lantel, you and-"

"Oh, wait a minute…" Lantel snapped as he wracked his talons upon the table. "Let me guess what you're going to say!"

"Hmm?" Bergan raised an eye ridge. Lantel simply stood up taller and cleared his throat to sound haughtier.

"This is the part where you go 'We're not so different, you and I!'" Lantel lifted a forepaw into the air and pretended to hold a bowl of wine. "'Oh, we are just so similar in our upbringing, way of life, etc!'" Lantel put on a scowl. "Well save your breath, because I'm not going to buy it for a second, Mr. I-Can-See-The-Future-But-Only-When-I-Feel-Like-It!"

Bergan snorted; he nearly spilled his tea as he gave a little chuckle.

"Actually… I was going to compare you to Prince Rune." The drake declared as he took a sip.

Lantel balked and leaned back "What?"

"I mean… think about it." Bergan put his bowl down. "The both of you are princes in line for your respective crowns someday. You have… or, had… the respect and admiration of your peers. You both endured rough times during your early years, too. In fact…" Bergan wracked his talons upon the stone altar. "I'm quite surprised that the two of you aren't friends."

Lantel gave a small growl from his throat and then sneered. "There's no way I'd ever be friends with anyone in that blasted family!"

"Hmm, you're sounding a bit prejudicial right now…" Bergan said flatly. "Here's hoping that the Order of Culmubrae hasn't rubbed off on you."

"Wh-What?" Lantel blinked. He then shook his head and growled. "No! I didn't mean it like that!"

"Then what DID you mean?" Bergan raised an eye ridge. "You hate King Baneth for humiliating your father four years ago, yes? And that hatred spread to Rune. You hoped to pummel Rune's face into the dirt to get some semblance of revenge against Baneth."

Lantel's eyes widened. "H-How do you know any of that?"

"Oh, I have my ways…" Bergan picked up his bowl of tea once again. "But, challenging Rune didn't go so well, did it? You saw what he was capable of; the full power of a black dragon." He took a sip. "Luckily, Queen Elenar, the dragoness you've also hated, came and saved you from something much worse than simple humiliation."

Lantel bit his lower lip and brought a forepaw up to the scales beneath his eye. He nervously fanned out his wings and gnashed his fangs.

"But it makes me wonder: why go after Rune at all?" Bergan asked curiously. "Sure, you had your desire for bravado to defeat a black dragon… but why Rune? Of the two twins, he's the pacifist. Unless you hated him for having affection for your sister…"

"It wasn't that." The golden prince snapped. "I challenged Rune because… because…" He wracked his talons together. "N-No, I don't want to talk about it."

Bergan gave a grin; even if Lantel wasn't talking, the purple drake could see right through him.

"Because you don't want to hurt Cyrus."

Lantel flinched and then scowled. "A-Are you kidding?! Look what he's become! Look what YOU did to him!" The prince stomped on the floor. "You're crazy if you think I'm not looking to knock some sense into him!"

"Knock some sense into him…" Bergan grinned. "…to get him back to normal… to the Cyrus you like."

The prince flinched again but struggled to stay furious. "Don't get me wrong! Prince Cyrus was an arrogant prick in his normal state! He was always showing off, being obnoxious, and only thinking about himself before his subjects!"

"Hmm, it sounds like he would've made the perfect punching bag." Bergan declared. "And yet, despite the target he painted on his chest for you to vent your frustrations onto… you never once tried to throw a single punch…" Bergan grinned wider. "…because of your crush on him."

Lantel growled and backed up a bit. "N-No! It was because that's what Cyrus WANTS! He was always looking for an excuse to fight me!"

"And why was that?" Bergan asked. "Did it have anything to do with your attempts to show off around him?" He tapped his talons on his bowl. "Wherever Cyrus went, you went with him. You were always by his side, whenever you had the chance."

Lantel's anger faded a bit. "I… uh…"

"You certainly didn't do a good job of getting his behavior to die down." Bergan continued. "I can't even BEGIN to imagine what you were hoping would happen if you managed to defeat Rune in that duel… wouldn't it have made both your sister AND Cyrus angrier if you put Rune in the medical wing? And if Helianne wasn't disgusted with you, Cyrus certainly would have been…"

"It doesn't… it doesn't matter anymore." Lantel flapped his wings indignantly.

"Oh, but I think it does." Bergan continued after another sip. "Cyrus would have been clawing for a chance to get back at you to avenge his brother. And no amount of I won't give you the satisfaction would have saved you from a duel. But even with Elenar ending it as a draw, you STILL have to deal with Cyrus's anger… you've certainly gone out of your way to make Prince Cyrus hate you, Lantel, despite you not wanting to lay a TALON on him."

"St… Stop it…" Lantel shook his head. "You're trying to confuse me."

"Confuse you? But we've already spelled it out." Bergan flapped his wings. "You're infatuated with Prince Cyrus, but want him to hate you. Oh, how I wonder why…"

Lantel gnashed his fangs, and his eyes darted this way and that. He seemed convinced that members of the Crazy Aces were lurking around the columns and pews. Bergan, however, simply fell backward onto his haunches and finished off the last of his tea.

"What makes you think I have a crush on him, anyway?!" Lantel screamed. "After everything you've said, what makes you think I don't hate him back?!"

Bergan put on a serious face and clasped his forepaws together. "Because I know that LOOK, Lantel."

The prince blinked in confusion. "Wh-What look?"

"I see the way you look at Cyrus when you think nobody notices." The purple drake said. "I see the pain, the worry… the fear that he'll never be the same way again. And that's just since you've been here in Convexity… there's a whole lot more evidence suggesting your true feelings."

"Y-You're lying." Lantel snapped. "You know nothing!"

Bergan casually reached into his robes… and pulled out one of his crystal balls.

"Am I?" He asked with his eye ridge raised yet again. "Care to think otherwise?"

"N-No…" Lantel's eyes widened as the ball glistened in the light. He rose to try and swipe it out of Bergan's forepaw, but the purple drake vanished in the blink of an eye. The next thing Lantel knew, Bergan was standing behind him with his talons wracking against the ball's surface.

"Why don't we take a trip down memory lane?" Bergan asked. The ball began to glow a brilliant white.

"No, no!" Lantel covered his eyes. "Don't!"

A snarl of memories began to play before Lantel's eyes.

First, he saw himself and Helianne stepping through the front gates of the Dragon Spire, nearly four years prior. They met with Queen Elenar and the Deep Shadows and were properly introduced to Rune and Cyrus. Rune and Helianne hit it off well enough, with Cyrus taking off on his own with his friends… while Lantel stood standing with a contented sigh.

Another vision showed Lantel doing physical stretches in the gym on his own. He looked up to see Cyrus across the way, strutting and posing before the dragonesses as he prepared to do his exercise routine. But while the dragonesses simply rolled their eyes and looked away… Lantel couldn't help but watch.

Cyrus and his brother frequently visited their little spot; a garden high up beside the Palace of Kings. Lantel would sneak down to the lower garden, and he would spend his time exercising there, so he could always be close to Cyrus.

A Winter Solstice holiday arrived one year, and all of the dragons in the princes' classes gave out gifts to one another. Cyrus found a rather large gift addressed to him; a fancy grey cloak with his royal birthmarks emblazoned proudly upon it. But the gift had no sender name… which Lantel made sure of. Nobody needed to know.

And lastly… there came a vision of Lantel seated at his desk in his private bedroom. He had a quill and a scroll of parchment. Lantel drew an image of himself and Cyrus, seated together on a hill beneath a tree, with their tails curled together.

And then, just like that, the visions stopped. And Lantel was left shivering in place. Even if the two of them were alone in the room, Lantel felt like the entire realm had discovered his dirty secret.

"…And there we have it." Bergan declared. "Normally I don't like prying for private information…" He put on a scowl. "But I do hate when people LIE. I find that LIES grind conversations to a painful halt."

He put the crystal ball away and watched as Lantel quietly cried to himself. He shivered in place as he looked down at his body.

"I'm not gay…not technically," Lantel said quietly. "I… I like both drakes and dragonesses. I always have."

"And that's fine enough for me." Bergan shrugged. "Nothing to hide in this day and age, my boy. Aren't their plenty of dragons your age who are free and open about their infatuations?"

"It's not the same when you're royalty." Lantel sucked in a breath and wiped his eyes. "Especially the royalty of a place that's set in its ways."

Bergan silently nodded; he knew all too well what kind of double standards the nobility forced upon their royal peers. But now wasn't the time to reflect on his past; now was the time to get Lantel to see reason.

"Let's bring things right back around to what we initially spoke about…" Bergan put on a wide grin and patted Lantel on the back. "The final piece of common ground between you and the two black dragon princes."

Lantel shivered. "My mother."

"Indeed… in a sense…" Bergan flapped his wings and stood up taller. "I've recently opened up a way to travel to the Well of Souls…." He reached into his robes once more. "And I've got a copy of something you'll find most interesting."

Bergan pulled out a scroll and held it open before Lantel's snout. The prince read its contents, and his eyes widened in realization.

"The Revival Ritual." Lantel gulped. "But… But Queen Elenar declared necromancy to be a crime!"

"She did… and yet she was the last person revived. Doesn't seem FAIR, does it?" Bergan rolled up the scroll. "And now, because she refuses to let King Saul have his murdered father back, a big war is brewing on the horizon."

"A war that you're helping him WIN." Lantel sneered.

"Don't stray off-topic, my boy." Bergan chuckled. "The point is: you should come with me to the Well of Souls once the messy business is resolved. I'll help you bring your mother back, and you can have your family put back together again in Warfang…"

"How generous…" Lantel scowled. "And just what do you want in return?"

"Only your collaboration, and a promise not to try to sabotage anything," Bergan replied jovially. "And I'll even keep your little secret from Cyrus, whilst also keeping him from coming after you to vent his current frustration."

Lantel shivered at that. "Wh-Why don't you just return him to normal?"

"Because it's already gradually wearing off," Bergan said. "You've seen hid decreased size, right? That portal of his took out quite a bit of energy; it's only a matter of time before he returns to his original form. All it'll take on your part is a bit of patience."

The purple drake extended his forepaw toward Lantel. "So, do we have a deal?"

"Uh…" Lantel stammered; the scales on the back of his neck ached as he looked at that sardonic grin on Bergan's face. The prince had no way to shut the purple drake down; no witty comeback, no daring escape plan, and no hope of escaping Cyrus's wrath. There was only one option left…

Lantel sucked in a breath as he carefully grasped Bergan's forepaw. An enigmatic chuckle escaped Bergan's lips.

"Splendid," Bergan said. "I'm glad we could come to an agreement, my boy."

As they shook, the golden prince only closed his eyes and hoped he was doing the right thing.

I hope you're okay, Sis.

~~…~~

Cyrus stormed his way down the halls of the fortress. Many young dragons yelped and ran out of the way as the drake went on the warpath. He was still fuming after Lantel slipped from his grasp. And now, even Bergan was sheltering the golden jerk from him!

Cyrus kept stomping until he'd finally tired himself out; he slammed down on the floor and howled in rage. He'd stopped just before a doorway that led outside, and he fanned his wings out in anger. Cyrus panted and snarled as he glared down at his forepaws… and a few tears formed in his eyes.

She… She tricked me! Cyrus thought miserably. She strung me along and got me to open a portal for her… just so she could have the others ambush me!

He replayed the events of what happened over and over in his mind. He got blind-sided and struck with multiple magical attacks by the apprentices.

How did they even escape?! Cyrus grasped his keychain and held it up. Sure enough, three of the keys were missing. He snarled and tossed the keys down the hallway. Damnit! They swiped my keys! How… How did they do that?!

Cyrus shook from his head to his tail tip. He fell back onto his haunches and draped his wings over his head. They… They all must have worked together. They lured him outside and got the drop on him. They… They beat him. They humiliated him. And then, while they were out cold, they fled through the portal together. And the worst part was… he was smaller. He'd spent so much of that magic that he'd lost some size.

He was getting weaker; he could feel it. His muscles didn't ripple. The storm inside him was shrinking down into a mild rain. If he ever did another great burst of magic like that portal again… he'd lose everything he'd become. What would he be after that? Just a weakling that everyone ignores.

Cyrus took a deep breath and wiped his eyes. He couldn't let himself be seen like this; he couldn't let anyone think he was a weakling.

I should head outside, Cyrus thought. I should get some fresh air… if that even is air out there.

Cyrus grasped the knob and turned it to open the door. But as the door was slightly ajar, Cyrus spotted something just barely visible out in the courtyard. It was a swath of dark blue, suddenly rising out from seemingly nowhere. Curious, Cyrus opened the door just a bit more and shut one eye to focus his other one on the courtyard…

It was Ricin, rising out of a shadowy pool. And following just behind him was Ozul. The crimson drake closed his shadow, and the two teenagers turned toward the abyss to spread their wings.

Cyrus gasped, and then snarled. He had half a mind to charge after them… but decided to remain still. He watched as the two cautiously lifted themselves to fly into the dubious air. And as they flew away from the fortress, Cyrus formulated a plan…

~~…~~

"Are you sure we should be doing this?" Ozul asked.

"I'm just going by what Brisa said." Ricin replied as he flapped his wings. "Just follow behind me, Ozie."

"Okay…" Ozul tried to focus on the distance platforms ahead… and he tried hard not to look down.

Ozul had no idea if anybody had a plan. After he hid in his shadow and watched his friends get hit by Bergan's lightning, he got to work pulling them away. It was one at a time, and he'd nearly been seen, but Ozul managed to bring Holly, Brisa, and Ricin away to the other side of the fortress. After that, he waited for them to get back up, and everyone tried to find a place to hide.

Brisa eventually decided on a place… a place that gave Ozul the creeps; the weird altar off in the distance. Brisa and Holly went on ahead; the former had guided the latter through the abyss. That meant that Ozul and Ricin had to travel on their own.

Ozul shivered from head to tail-tip as he drifted through the great expanse that was Convexity. It was bad enough looking at it all from the relative safety of The Nexus's courtyard; to be flying through it with infinite nothingness above AND below made him feel like the smallest thing in the universe. There were just so many things to give him the creeps; the weird jellyfish, the creepy sea monsters, the ominous moons… or were they planets? He had no idea.

"Don't let it get to you, Ozie!" Ricin exclaimed over his shoulder. "We can do this!"

"But I… I feel like I'm going to be sick…" Ozul's face turned a shade of green. He cast his gaze over at the dozen or so random stone hexagonal platforms that floated weightlessly in the abyss. "Couldn't we just… hop and glide our way across?"

"No way! We're dragons!" Ricin flapped his wings for emphasis. "If there's air out here for us to talk and fly, then we'll use it to safely drift toward the altar! Now come on!"

"Fine…" Ozul sighed in defeat. He tried to keep a level head… and ignore the unearthly voices that chanted just behind his ear frills. He could swear that some of them were even calling him by name...

After what felt like an agonizingly long time, Ozul and Ricin finally came to a landing in the middle of a great stone platform at the center of the realm. The floor was made of a lot more of those hexagons, and they surrounded an altar of black stone. What gave Ozul the creeps was the fact that there was a ring of open space around the altar itself; he could see down into the depths of the abyss below.

Holly and Brisa were there; they were seated on the side of the altar that faced away from the view of The Nexus across the abyss. They had their satchels at their sides, and they were quietly whispering to one another as the two boys landed.

"Hey, we're here." Ricin said as he trotted up to them. "Sorry, we're late."

"What kept you?" Holly asked worriedly. "We thought that Cyrus caught you again."

"N-No, he didn't see it…" Ozul said as he nervously looked all around. "At least, I don't think so…"

"Well, let's not worry about it," Brisa said. "Huddle up, guys. We need to work on a plan of action."

"Before we do…" Ozul put a talon in the air. "Could you PLEASE explain to me why you think it's a good idea for us to be hiding away near an ominous, freaky altar?"

"Well… isn't it obvious?" Brisa gave him a grin. "You said the reason yourself."

"Wh-what?" Ozul blinked in confusion.

"Just look at this place." The wind dragoness gestured around at the floor, the distant monsters, and the big altar. "Nobody wants to come NEAR this spooky platform. Not the students, not Cyrus, not those thugs… I don't think I've ever seen Bergan himself come near here. Everyone's just too freaked out!"

"Right…" Ozul looked around at it nervously. "So then-"

"So it's the perfect place for us to hide out," Holly said with slight enthusiasm. "And now that you've been here yourself, you should be able to teleport to The Nexus and back, right?"

"Uh…" Ozul gripped his tail nervously. "I… I haven't exactly mastered teleporting that far."

"Well, now you have plenty of time to start practicing." Brisa poked him on the muzzle. "And while we're doing that, the rest of us can sit down and try to figure out a way to escape back to Warfang."

"Uh-huh…" Ozul looked at her dubiously.

"Yeah…" Ricin turned to gaze up at the altar, and the purple magic that flowed through it. "Do you girls think that… maybe that thing can help?"

Brisa and Holly looked up at it; the both of them shivered upon watching the magic flowing through the archways.

"Well… maybe." Brisa shrugged. "I mean… that thing looks like it's designed to create portals. We just have to figure out how it works… and how to input directions, and… uh…" Her wings flopped to her sides. "Stuff."

"Ah, well that's comforting…" Ozul sighed. "You don't even know how it works. And besides, isn't messing around with this kind of ancient magical technology extremely dangerous?"

Brisa sneered. "You're not helping, Ozie."

"I'm just trying to be practical." Ozul frowned. "Even if we open up a portal, there's no telling where it would lead us."

"And that's why we need to figure out how it works." Brisa turned to walk up the steps. "Now come on: You sit down and work on teleporting back to The Nexus, while the rest of us examine this thing to get it up and running."

Ozul just sighed and fell back onto his haunches, while Ricin and Holly exchanged dubious glances.

"Do you think this will work?" Ricin asked.

"We won't know until we try." Holly gave him a soft smile. "And besides, it's better than just sitting around and waiting for something to happen on its own… right?"

"I mean… I guess so." Ricin shrugged. He made his way up the steps of the altar, while Holly trotted just beside him.

As Ozul worked on opening up his shadow to create his little portal, the other three apprentices walked up to the top of the altar. They carefully walked center-file up the stairs to avoid looking down through the gaps in the stone.

The closer they got to the altar, the creepier it got. The stone looked more ancient than anything else in the entire dragon realm. There were many cracks in the stone; as if the entire thing had been blown to pieces, and yet mysteriously pulled back together again. Brisa ran her talons along the surface and shivered; it was ice cold. There were many draconic glyphs etched into the stone's surface; it was all too numerous to read at a glance.

"So… where do we begin?" Ricin asked.

"Well…" Brisa grimaced. "I guess we'll need to decipher the words into the common tongue."

"But this could take months." Holly pointed at the various archways. "This thing's covered from top to bottom in writing!"

"Then we'll just focus on the words beneath the main archway." Brisa stamped her foot. "We've got to start somewhere, alright? It's better than doing nothing."

"Yeah, yeah…" Ricin snorted as he stepped up close and peered at the glyphs. He pulled out a piece of blank paper, a quill, and one of his textbooks. "It figures that we'd have all of our school stuff on hand; even in another dimension, we can't escape schoolwork."

"Hey, at least they'll be useful." Brisa pulled out her quill.

"Right…" The poison drake snorted in annoyance. He flipped open his book on Ancient Runes and Glyphs and flipped through the pages. "Let's see; I think there's something about decoding the alphabet in here…"

"Already found it." Holly declared as she held the page up. She then glanced at the top of the archway and focused her vision. "Okay, so… I think the first letter is A."

"Yes, that's how the alphabet starts." Ricin rolled his eye.

"No, I mean the very first glyph up there; it's an A." Holly pointed a talon toward the spot. "And next to it… That's an M."

"And there's another A next to it," Brisa said as she focused her eyes. "There are some other glyphs beside it; they all form the same pattern several times. See?"

"Hmm…" Holly looked around at the top of the archway. "A… M… A… Then there's R… A again… N… T… and finally H."

"And that spells…" Ricin wrote the letters down. "Amaranth."

"Amaranth?" Brisa repeated. "What's an amaranth?"

"I don't know." Holly shrugged. "There are some other glyphs; I think I can decipher some more."

"Hold on, I've got it…" Ricin said as he wrote the translated alphabet down on a sheet of paper. "I think those next glyphs are: P… U… R.. P-"

"It says purple, doesn't it?" Brisa declared. "Purple dragon, right?"

Ricin gasped, and then furrowed his brow. "You could have let me keep going."

"So, Amaranth is, or was a purple dragon…" Holly flapped her wings and scrunched up her face. "But how does that help us?"

"I don't know." Ricin shrugged. "I'm just trying to translate, same as you."

"Ugh, we'll be here all day…" Brisa bit her lower lip. "Okay, I'm guessing that Amaranth was an important purple drake from way back in the whatever. Their name is on the arches, so there must be a reason for it. And that reason just might involve incredible magical chicanery."

"But we still don't know how to open a portal." Ricin frowned.

"Right…" Brisa's ear frills drooped. "But we can't keep up, so long as we-"

A growling filled the air from behind. The trio heard Ozul gasp as he backed up onto the bottom of the stairs.

"Ozul, what's…?" Ricin began to ask, only to stop and gasped. Holly and Brisa looked in Ozul's direction, and their eyes widened. A great, wide pool opened up across the floor of the platform. Ricin rushed down the stairs to stand beside Ozul as they watched the darkness spreading around.

"Ozul, what did you do?" Ricin asked.

"It wasn't me!" Ozul exclaimed as he backed up a few more stairs. "That's not my magic!"

It didn't take long to figure out whose it was; a great, black forepaw emerged from the shadows and slammed down on the stone. It was followed by another hand, and then a big, furious head emerged. The apprentices all cried out in shock as Cyrus emerged to loom before them.

"Found you…" Cyrus said triumphantly as his eyes gleamed.

Immediately Holly and Brisa hopped down a few steps and channeled their magic. Ricin did the same, with Ozul being a bit slow behind him. With Ricin at the lead, he spread his wings to shield his friends as he nervously faced down the black dragon. In response, Cyrus channeled his magic as he spread his bigger, fatter wings to form a frightening barrier.

"It's about time I pay you traitors back!" Cyrus yelled.

"Cyrus…" Ricin said nervously as he channeled his poison magic. "We… We don't want to fight you."

"I wouldn't want to fight me either!" The black dragon bellowed. His eyes glowed as he surrounded himself with a layer of convexity. The apprentices all did their best to stand their ground as Cyrus growled and snarled.

"Cyrus, this is stupid!" Brisa exclaimed. "You should be helping us find a way out of here! You should be helping the student body!"

"I AM trying to help!" Cyrus bellowed. "But you're all getting in the way! You…" He snarled as he tried not to cry. "You helped Tina to trick me!"

"We did what we had to do." Ricin said. "She didn't want to knock you out, but you'd never let any of the other kids go. That Bergan guy is messing with your head."

"Shut up, just shut up!" Cyrus slammed the ground and growled again. "You're not getting the drop on me again! The moment you try something, I'm taking you all down!"

The apprentices very quickly exchanged glances; they shivered as they watched Cyrus shift his gaze between the four of them in sequence. Eventually, Ricin very carefully stepped closer. Cyrus lifted his head and snarled; he struck the platform with his paws, sending shockwaves throughout. The apprentices stumbled around and slipped off their paws… but Cyrus still didn't attack.

Ricin grimaced; he picked himself up and descended the stairs.

"Cyrus…" The indigo dragon stood up a bit taller. "Please, buddy; we don't want to fight."

"You seemed pretty keen on knocking me out last time!" Cyrus hissed. "I didn't even get a warning!"

"We just wanted to get you back to normal." Ricin frowned. "Please, Cyrus, we just-"

"Shut up!" Cyrus slammed the ground again, knocking the apprentices over once more. Ricin stumbled down the stairs and quickly scrambled to get out of the way before Cyrus brought a forepaw down atop him. Cyrus growled at Ricin; he stepped closer to the poison drake, while also keeping a close watch on the other three.

"Don't you try anything!" Cyrus hissed as he renewed his barrier of convexity. "I'm ready for your magic this time!"

Holly, Brisa, and Ozul all shivered, while Ricin backed away. He walked around the edge of the platform and tried to get away from Cyrus as the black drake focused on him.

"Tell me where she went!" Cyrus demanded of Ricin. "Tell me where Tina's gone!"

"I-I don't know!" Ricin exclaimed. "It wasn't Warfang; that's all I can guess!"

"Tell me MORE!" Cyrus bellowed; he shook the ground as he stomped toward Ricin. Ricin looked down skittishly at the abyss near his paws; he tried to dash away to get some more room, but Cyrus slammed his forepaws and knocked him over with more shockwaves.

"Get to talking already!" Cyrus demanded.

"What does it matter?!" Ricin yelled. "She's out there, and we're still stuck here! We'll never find her if you don't help us get out of this place!"

"I'll… I'll think of something when I find her!" the black drake hissed; his eyes watered up, but he snarled through it.

"Cyrus, please…" Ricin looked up at the black dragon miserably. "We don't know where she went. All we know is that Bergan and the Crazy Aces threw her, Lady Elza, Chalice, and Helianne through a portal. Getting mad at us won't help you find them. We can't-"

Thwip.

Ricin suddenly grunted as his head was knocked back; a dart was lodged in his cheek. Cyrus blinked in confusion; he watched uneasily as Ricin suddenly stumbled around.

"Ricin?" Cyrus asked.

"I… I… uhhhh…" Ricin swayed from side to side; his eyes became heavy as his speech slurred. "I…. f-f-feel… f-f-f-funny…"

The indigo dragon stumbled around on his paws as his eyes closed… right as he tumbled backward over the side of the platform. Cyrus's jaw fell open as Ricin tumbled down into the abyss.

"RICIN!" The others screamed.

They'd spread their wings and took off… but none of them moved quite as fast as Cyrus. He leaped over the side of the platform, slamming through several platforms in the process. He grunted as he descended through the air, struggling to keep up with the falling poison dragon.

Cyrus's heart beat rapidly in his chest. He didn't even know what he was doing, or why… but he couldn't just Ricin plummet forever. Cyrus beat his wings to fly faster; he didn't even care that he was falling into nothingness.

Come on… Cyrus beat his wings harder and harder; he called upon wind magic to speed along. Come on…!

Cyrus felt blood rushing through his head, as well as whispers in his ear frills, but he kept pushing on. He continued to chase after Ricin until he just barely managed to catch up with him. Cyrus spread out his forelegs and wrapped them tightly about the indigo dragon's body. Cyrus then struggled to slow his descent… but his head throbbed with pain. Cyrus and Ricin kept falling.

Cyrus's heart began to beat rapidly, and his blood burned to ice. He clung onto Ricin for dear life as he struggled to think of what to do. He couldn't stop… he just kept going… even his wind magic was failing him.

Think, damnit, think! Cyrus thought frantically. Your lives are on the line!

After what felt like a mile-long fall, Cyrus shut his eyes. He thought about the altar above and the relatively spacious surrounding. The black drake then called upon his reserves of convexity. Cyrus willed his barrier to surround himself and Ricin, and he curled up into a tight ball. He reached within himself for shadow magic and thought entirely of the altar. The energy swirled around Cyrus and Ricin, forming a sphere of dark shadows…

WHAM!

Cyrus's back slammed down atop hard stone, filling his body with pain. He groaned as he rolled over, and quickly worked to fill himself with healing magic. Cyrus panted and groaned as his eyes watered from the pain. He felt Ricin flop around in his forelegs. Despite the pain and his frantic panting, Cyrus opened his eyes and looked around.

Cyrus was laying on the stone platform before the altar. He'd done it; he'd teleported! He almost congratulated himself for his great feat… until he felt the cold Ricin in his arms.

Cyrus's ear frills shook, and his eyes constricted. His limbs shook as he nervously picked the dragon up to look him over.

"Ricin?" Cyrus asked. His eyes teared up as he looked the indigo dragon's face over. "Please… Please, don't be…"

Cyrus could just barely see Ricin's chest moving, and little breaths left the drake's nostrils. He was breathing; he was still alive. Cyrus sighed in relief, and then he hugged Ricin to his chest. The black dragon shut his eyes and cried a little more.

"Oh, Ancestors…" Cyrus panted. "Ohh, thanks the Ancestors. I thought… I thought…"

As Cyrus was hugging Ricin, he heard footsteps across the way. Holly, Brisa, and Ozul rushed up to Cyrus, though they cautiously kept their distance. They looked Ricin over and then look at Cyrus directly. Cyrus sucked in a breath; he moved to put Ricin down and glare off into the distance so he didn't have to say anything to them. But then someone spoke; someone Cyrus wasn't expecting. And they came from the other side of the altar.

"Well, that was unexpected…" A sarcastic voice chuckled. "And here I thought you were going to just let him die."

Cyrus and the apprentices twirled around. There, standing at the edge of the platform and giving a mocking clap of his forepaws, was Bulb. The golden drake took a step forward, while Cyrus and Brisa snarled.

"You…" Cyrus said angrily. "What the fuck are YOU doing here?!"

"Keeping an eye on YOU, idiot." Bulb snorted. "You didn't think that Bergan would let his prized pet run around Convexity without being kept on a LEASH, did you?"

Cyrus growled and stepped forward to snarl. He called upon a bit of convexity… only for the pain to spring out in his forehead. Immediately the black dragon collapsed on the ground as purple lightning danced wildly across his body.

"You REALLY should have let the kid plummet to his doom, big boy." Bulb put on a gleeful smile. "After all; you hate him, don't you? You want him out of your LIFE, don't you?"

"Shut up… just shut up!" Cyrus yelled. He forced himself to stand back up, while his magic grew more erratic. Inevitably the black dragon collapsed down again…and his body writhed as he shrank.

Holly, Brisa, and Ozul all gasped in shock as Cyrus was reduced in size. His back spikes became smaller, and his sword-like tail blade faded into nothingness. When he stopped shrinking, Cyrus was still considerably taller than the apprentices, but some of his musculatures had faded, and his red underbelly turned magenta in hue.

"Damit…" Cyrus looked down at himself in a panic. "I… I lost more!"

"Well, I guess it just wasn't worth it in the slightest to save that kid." Bulb chuckled. "You didn't think things through, big boy."

"Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!" Cyrus screamed.

He tried once again to stand up tall, though his body still shook. As the prince glared at the golden drake, Brisa and Holly moved to stand before Cyrus with their wings outstretched. Meanwhile, Ozul knelt before Ricin and worked to roll him onto his back and pull him out of view of Bulb. All the while, Bulb simply pulled out his blowdart and played with it between his talons.

"I thought you wanted them out of the way." Bulb declared. "You hate them all, right? You just want them gone, right?"

"I… I didn't mean it like THAT!" Cyrus demanded. "I didn't want any of them to… to…"

"You'd better start figuring out what it is you want, Princey-poo." Bulb declared. "The moment they're all out of your sight, they'll just get right back to work trying to find their way out of Convexity. And along the way, they're going to work to knock the last bit of that power-up out of your system…" Bulb's eyes gleamed as he looked between Holly and Brisa in turn. "Isn't that right?"

Cyrus looked down at the two dragonesses as they exchanged dubious glances. Holly backed away from Ricin and turned to frown up at Cyrus.

"We just want the real you back," Holly said sadly. "We just want to be friends again."

"You…" Cyrus narrowed his eyes. "You called me a monster."

Holly flinched, while Brisa snorted and rolled her eyes.

"It's because you were being a jerk!" Brisa yelled. "Can't you just stop and think for a moment?! Did ANY of the stuff you did that day seem fair to all those other kids?! How would you like it if YOU were shoved over? Or if YOU were screamed at by someone at the top of their lungs?!"

Cyrus briefly thought back to that day; on the way, he thundered down a hallway and knocked people over. He thought of how he screamed and ranted and raved at Helianne until she broke down in tears. And for a moment… he imagined things being the other way around. Someone shoving him against a locker. Someone screaming at him and making him want to run away…

…And someone shooting a blowdart in his face. Or his friends.

Cyrus blew smoke from his nostrils, and he turned to scowl at Bulb, who still played with his blowdart.

"One thing at a time…" Cyrus said aloud. He stepped around Holly and Brisa and scowled at Bulb. "You tried to kill my…" The drake quickly shook his head. "You tried to kill Ricin!"

"Only because it seemed like you wanted him out of your life." Bulb grinned. "I've seen the way you scowl at him and these other goobers." The golden drake gestured around. "So now I've got to ask; if you don't want them killed… what DO you want to be done about them?"

"It… It doesn't concern YOU!" Cyrus hissed. "I don't even know who you are, apart from some random no-name PUNK from Prince Jonathan's gang!"

Bulb's eyes gleamed, and he chuckled again. "Well, you're right about that: I am just some no-name punk." He flipped his blowdart between his forepaws. "But at least I'm not flip-flopping on the choices I want to make in life…" He stepped a bit closer. "As for you, princey-poo? I'd suggest figuring out what you're trying to accomplish, other than getting yourself all jacked up and stupid. Because sooner or later…" He grinned wider. "You're going to run out of juice, and will be a prime target for everyone you've betrayed, to kick your arse."

Cyrus roared furiously, making Holly and Brisa leap back in surprise. Cyrus reached within himself and called upon his favorite element: Time.

In an instant, the whole world turned dark blue, and everything became frozen in time. Holly and Brisa were stiff as statues. Ozul barely looked up in time to see the magic take hold. And across the way, Bulb was frozen mid-grin. Cyrus cackled triumphantly and leaped over the dragonesses so he could charge forward at ramming speed. Cyrus barreled toward Bulb, with his eyes focused squarely on Bulb's gaze; this was going to be so satisfying…

And then Bulb blinked.

Cyrus never hit Bulb; he just kept charging forward. He nearly went toppling over the side of the platform; He gasped as he forcibly stopped himself with earth magic. He clung to the edge of the platform for dear life as he hurriedly hoisted himself up to safety.

"Too slow!" Bulb said playfully.

Cyrus looked around; Bulb wasn't in the same spot he was in before. The golden drake had somehow side-stepped his attack and was now trotting his way across the platforms. Cyrus couldn't believe it; his eyes widened in alarm as the golden dragon dashed away, moving just as fast as him.

Cyrus snarled, refusing to accept it. He charged forward and snarled as he tried to crash into Bulb. But the golden drake was more agile than he looked; he side-stepped Cyrus and dashed around him. The black drake tried to double back to slam the ground to create more shockwaves. But Bulb simply leaped into the air every time, narrowly avoiding the worst of the quakes.

And before long, Cyrus felt the back of his head begin to ache. He saw purple lightning beginning to form on his forelegs. In a panic, the prince ended the magic, restoring him to normal time. He then collapsed onto the ground and panted, Holly and Brisa dashed up to him in confusion, while Ozul carried Ricin on his back.

"What happened?" Ozul asked.

"Did they just…" Holly rubbed her eyes. "Jump all around just now?"

"I…" Cyrus said as he panted. But he was distracted by snickering in the air. Bulb reappeared across the way once more, still playing with his blowdart and looking at Cyrus with a sickeningly pleased expression.

"Surprise." Bulb declared.

"How…?" Cyrus stammered as he stood up. He stepped forward angrily… only to collapse and groan as he struggled to keep his magic under control. But his eyes never left Bulb. "How… How did you do that?! How did you use Time magic?!"

Bulb laughed as loud and as annoying as he could, and his eyes gleamed as he glared back at the prince. "Wouldn't YOU like to know?"

Bulb stood up tall and dusted himself off. He then glanced over at the altar, and then back at Cyrus and the apprentices.

"I think I'm done here." Bulb said with another annoying laugh. "None of you are going to figure out the heads or tails of that altar. I barely even know what I'm looking at…" He smirked at Cyrus again. "I'd recommend heading back to the Nexus; it's only a matter of time before Mr. Bergan starts predicting things again." He snorted. "And if you DO manage to stumble arse-backward into how that thing works, he'll just appear and nip it in the bud. So… time to give it up, kiddies." He waved to them as he spread his wings. "See you later!"

Bulb spread his wings and took off into flight across the abyss. Brisa snarled; she ran to the edge of the platform and tried to blast him with a cyclone. But as her wind magic hurtled towards Bulb… he suddenly vanished in the blink of an eye. Her magic kept going until it dissipated into the abyss.

Cyrus just dug his talons into the ground and snarled. He glanced up at the altar and bit his lower lip. He glowered as he turned to glare at Ozul.

"Put Ricin on my back." He said as he crouched down. "I can carry him."

"Are…" Ozul gulped. "Are you sure? What if you… shrank down again mid-flight?"

Cyrus's eye twitched. "Well, would you rather try teleporting across the abyss then, Ozul?"

The crimson drake flinched. "Okay, okay!" He hurriedly stepped forward. "You can carry him!"

Cyrus grunted as Ricin's weight was put upon his back. The black drake stood up tall and slowly marched toward the edge of the abyss. He spread his wings wide and reached within himself for reserves of his magic to make the poison dragon weigh less. As he did so, Holly and Brisa stepped to either side of him, and they dubiously spread their wings.

"So…" Holly began with a stammer. "Wh-where exactly do we stand right now?"

"I… I don't care right now." Cyrus snorted. "Let's just… Let's get Ricin to a bed until the poison wears off."

Ozul frowned up at Ricin as he walked over to Brisa's side. "That… that must be some powerful dart, to work on even a poison dragon."

Cyrus and the apprentices took off, and they briskly flew across the way toward the distant Nexus. Cyrus was a bit shaky in places, but he didn't stumble off course for the whole trip. And once they'd finally returned to the fortress… the altar rumbled. And Bulb peaked his head around the side, and he snickered as he watched them turn into ants in the distance.

"See you later…" He cackled, before turning his gaze up to the altar… and all of the books and papers just left lying around.

"Now that I've got some privacy…" Bulb's eyes gleamed. "Let's see if we can't figure out how this thing works."

Bulb reached into his armor, and pulled out his quill pen. He looked up at the archways over each side of the altar, and he got to work comparing them to the notes.

~~…~~

Greetings, friends and loved ones.

This was another fun chapter to add scenes to; mostly everything surrounding the apprentices and Bulb. I just really wanted to give them a meaningful subplot, even if its disconnected from the rest of the story for a while. Here's hoping the payoff is worth it for everyone.

Tenebra ecce Veritas