Sun Silks and Relics

Yang and Dragunov made good progress on their trip to Temperantia. Or at least, that's what they believed since they had driven all day. But once it started to get dark, they had to stop and make camp. Not only would they need the sleep, but since there was no actual road, Yang didn't want to risk driving into a hole or something. It's not like Bumblebee didn't have headlights, but those won't help much on such treacherous grounds. Besides, the travel was already bumpy enough that she was having some problems with control. Thank goodness that when she got the upgrades way back when she thought far enough ahead to consider off-roading so the bike itself won't be damaged so easily.

Yang looked up at the stars as she sat in front of the campfire that she and Dragunov had made. Well, Dragunov did the whole lighting the fire, but Yang helped in finding the firewood.

"You're not eating?" Yang asked as she munched on the rations they had procured for the trip.

"Nah. I think I'll pass this time." Dragunov said from his spot near the campfire, "Oh, maybe just a little bit." the dragon then reached for the rations and took just a little bit.

"This is the life, am I right?" Yang asked cheerfully as she looked up at the stars, "Maybe I should have splurged on an actual tent."

"I thought you said you looked forward to sleeping under the stars?" Dragunov said with a grin as he looked around them a little. They chose an open spot in nearby woods that wasn't too far from the coast itself. Mostly in case it got windy. Yang did get a large oilcloth, just in case it started raining. But there had been no signs of that all day. The night sky above was the perfect proof of that.

"Ah shut up." Yang said, refusing to start a verbal fight right now. She was more interested in looking at the stars. This kind of reminded her of the campouts she used to do with Ruby and their dad. And Summer too when she was still alive.

"...You never told me why you wanted to control the Sun Dragon."

Dragunov's words made Yang snap her face to her Blade in surprise, "What is this all of a sudden?"

"Just crossed my mind." Dragunov said with a piercing look, "You said you would tell me when you succeeded, but you never did."

Yang had a skeptical look at this, "Our affinity was at max back then, you should already know why."

"Yet I don't." Dragunov said, his tail swishing idly. Some of the dirt turning from the heavy stone tail scraping against it. "Now are you going to tell me, or are we both liars?"

Yang scowled at her Blade, "That is so low." But then the blonde brawler sighed, "Fine, when I woke up after the first time and heard that I tried to kill everyone... Well, I felt horrible. I felt like this world would..."

"...Be better off without you." Dragunov finished, "Was this why you tried to end yourself?"

"You knew?!" Yang demanded angrily.

"Ruby let it slip on our trip to Fonsett. She thought you had told me." Dragunov said.

Yang's anger melted at hearing that. "I wasn't going to try and get pity points from you." She huffed, "Anyway, that's not important. After that I... Promise me you won't laugh." Yang looked away in shame.

"I promise I won't make fun of you." Dragunov offered.

"Not good enough this time." Yang rejected, now looking straight into Dragunov's eyes.

Dragunov duly noted that in the firelight, Yang's eyes looked like a pair of amethysts before replying, "Fine. I promise on my Core Crystal that I won't laugh." And Dragunov didn't break eye contact while making that promise.

With that, Yang took a deep breath before trying to explain herself. "I became afraid that I would hurt others. I mean... I wouldn't do that, but I just... I couldn't trust myself anymore. And I felt, that if I could control the Sun Dragon, then I might be able to trust myself not to hurt people I care about." During this speech Yang looked at her own hands before letting out a chuckle, "I know, stupid right?"

"No, it isn't." Dragunov said with a sigh, causing Yang to look at him in surprise, "You lost control because of me and were afraid of it happening again." Dragunov smiled during this before looking into the camp fire. "I should have had more faith in you, but I just left you. Thinking that I would take that threat away." Dragunov then lifted his gaze back to face Yang's own, "I'm sorry for doing that to you." Then he dipped his head.

Yang's jaw dropped at the apology. The last time Dragunov bowed his head in apology was all the way back when he accepted her as his Driver. "It's fine, I'm just... Well, I'm just glad I'm good enough for you now." Yang said with a grin.

"Good enough, you say." Dragunov chuckled and shook his head slowly, "Yangie, Yangie, Yangie. Good enough stopped describing you the moment I stayed sane as a Sun Dragon because of you."

Yang didn't want to, but she couldn't help beaming at the praise. "Well, maybe you could make some gems to-" "Don't push it." Dragunov interrupted dryly, but still smiling. "You're so cheap." Yang complained without meaning it. Then she yawned, "Which one of us is gonna take the first watch?"

"I can do that." Dragunov offered with a shrug, "I'm sure you need your beauty rest." And then he snickered.

"Well haa haa." Yang commented dryly before getting up from her spot, "Anyway, I'll get to sleep, you wake me up for my watch turn."

"I'll burn your butt if I have to," Dragunov said with a smirk, but Yang didn't care as she got to her bedroll. She would have gotten one for Dragunov too, but the fire Blade declined. Not like there was one for someone of his size anyway. As Yang went to sleep, Dragunov kept watch on the fire and their surroundings. The truth was, Dragunov did have an idea of why Yang wanted to control the Sun Dragon when he first stayed sane due to the affinity link, but he still felt like he needed to hear it out of Yang's mouth. And hearing the confirmation made him feel equal parts ashamed of himself and proud of Yang. Looking at Yang's back facing their campfire, Dragunov couldn't help staring at Yang's hair. In the firelight, Yang's strands looked like strands of sunlight. The comparison made Dragunov chuckle and made him wonder if Yang knew this about her hair. If she did, it would explain why she was so protective of it. Dragunov took his eyes off of Yang and looked up to the stars himself. The stars looked like countless shining diamonds to him, forming patterns and other such things. Then there was of course the unshattered moon of Alrest. Although it was now crescent-shaped. "...Was Remnant's moon always like that or did something happen to it?" Dragunov muttered to himself. Not for the first time he had to wonder why Remnant had a shattered moon. Because despite him being awakened on Remnant, all Blades had some basic knowledge about things. One of those was what the moon looked like, or at least what it should look like. Dragunov looked back to Yang whom he could now tell was fast asleep.

Then a cracking branch made Dragunov jump on his feet and look around. "...Who's there?" Dragunov growled. But there was no answer. Next, he heard rustling behind him. Turning to the direction, Dragunov instinctively swatted away something that flew at him. The thing exploded into some kind of powder. Suddenly another one hit him in the face from the side. "Yang! Wake up!" Dragunov roared, causing Yang to bolt up from her bedroll.

"Drag, what's-Umpf!" Yang's yell was cut out when something impacted her face, releasing its powdery content. Now Yang was coughing and sneezing.

Dragunov also let out a sneeze just when another thing impacted his face. "We're being attacked!"

"What's...attacking?" Yang asked, slurring as she spoke before falling back down.

"Yang!" Dragunov roared out, even as his vision was blurring. And yet somehow, he was able to duck under the next bomb with no doubt more sleep powder. The Dragon Blade was getting more desperate. He was actually ready to blast their attackers with fire. Except a tiny voice in his head yelled that they were in the middle of woods. If he could just avoid more of those bombs his body should quickly burn through whatever drug that powder was. Suddenly something hit him on the back, though not enough to knock him down. At least, if he wasn't drugged. But since he was, Dragunov fell on his stomach with a heavy thud. And when he tried to get up, someone or something was shoving more of that powder directly to his face. Try as he might, Dragunov couldn't stop the powder from getting into his nostrils and mouth, but he was able to smack whatever was doing that to him, earning a high pitched squawk.

"Huh?" Dragunov let out at the sound even as he barely saw something floating down to the ground. That was the last thing Dragunov could register before everything faded away.


In Temperantia, Nia, Dromarch, Dagas, Rex, the Aegis sisters, Roc, Wulfric and Azurda had just reached the Ardainian camp close to where the tablet that mentioned Regideria was. Nia had handed over a letter from Mòrag that the Special Inquisitor was kind enough to provide. It should grant them access to the table to examine it. Although Mòrag emphasized that if something happened to the tablet, she would pretend that the letter never existed. Azurda voiced that he doubted it was that easy for Mòrag, but they did get the point.

"Everything seems to check out." The officer said after going through the letter, "As the Special Inquisitor has requested, you will be allowed to inspect the tablet under supervision."

"Supervision?" Mythra quirked an eyebrow. During their trip, Dagas had explained that the Kingdom of Regideria disappeared over a single night. And when Mythra pointed out that such a thing shouldn't be possible. Dagas agreed, but he also wanted to dig into the truth of the matter. That was when Mythra regretted coming along and now just wants this whole thing over with.

"That's fine." Pyra quickly butted in with a smile, "We understand that it's a priceless artifact.". Of course, Pyra was also a little afraid that Mythra might snap, because when the red Aegis suggested Mythra could go back... Well, Mythra's look reminded everyone of Dragunov who was just about to go Sun Dragon.

"So can we see it yet?" Nia asked, she was really hoping that this would be Dagas' last attempt.

"Of course, right this way," The officer said, already leading them to the tablet. They didn't walk too far out of the camp before finding the tablet in question. Except it was more of a flat pillar sticking from the ground that was dug away from around it. Quite a feat considering how rocky Temperantia is. There was another soldier with what looked like a civilian examining the artifact.

The one examining the stone turned to the approaching group and scowled. "Hey! I'm still examining the stone and don't want anyone disturbing it."

The officer who led the group here was about to talk before Dagas stepped forward with a scowl on his unnaturally white face. "I have no time to argue with a peasant! This tablet may hold answers that I seek, so it's in my interest that it would stay intact. Besides, we have an introduction letter from the Special Inquisitor of Mor Ardain herself. So I have every right to examine this relic."

This took the investigator aback who then looked toward the officer. "He's telling the truth." Was the officer's simple reply.

"Well... I suppose... You would know how to handle something this fine." the investigator said, now sounding a little put off. "Please examine it to your heart's content."

"Thank you." Dagas said coldly before moving towards the stone to examine it.

"Is there anything interesting on it?" Roc asked, tilting his head. He noticed that the stone has some sort of inscription on it. As did everyone else.

Dagas didn't answer immediately, "It says that Regideria lies upon a mysterious Titan that moves about freely. Never exposing itself to human eyes. But in this place, the Titan of Regideria sank in a single night, along with its people..."

"What else does it say?" Nia asked, getting eager for a change.

"The inscription ends here." Dagas replied, getting the wind out of Nia's sails.

"If the whole country sank beneath the Cloud Sea way back when, then there's nothing to do about it." Rex said.

Dagas let out a short mocking laugh, "You are far too quick to give up. I will not allow our quest to end here! We know where this Kingdom met its end. We may be able to salvage some manner of relic from it."

"Umm... Dagas," Mythra said carefully as one would to a crazy person, "You do know that this happened before the Joining? And Temperantia moved away from the World Tree like every other Titan, there's no way that whatever was left of Regideria is beneath the waves here."

"Hmm...Relics of a long-lost kingdom." Rex said thoughtfully, "I like the sound of that."

"Oh for the love of... Now you got Rex started too." Nia complained.

"Rex, Mythra is right." Azurda piped up from Rex's helmet, "There is no way that Regideria would be anywhere near this location anymore."

"That's true, but some of the land on Temperantia is beneath the surface, so there's a chance that something might have gotten on before the Joining." Rex recited, "It's a long shot, but one worth taking."

"Well... You're not wrong," Azurda conceded wearily.

"Oh, great. Here we go again." Nia sighed, "Let's say we tried to find these 'relic's where would we even start?"

"The Cloud- I mean, the sea isn't that far away from here." Rex said, cheeks reddening a little at his blunder. It was still hard not to say "Cloud Sea" despite there now being water instead of clouds. "I'm sure if there's anything to be found, it would be there."

"Do you have any idea where to start from?" Dagas then asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"I'll tell you once we reach the shore." Rex said proudly with his hands on his hips, "Gramps can you take us there?"

The small titan sighed, "Very well." And then he got out of Rex's helmet and flew some ways away from the stone to make sure it wouldn't get caught up in what he was about to do. Everyone else followed him right behind. Then, with a bright flash, Azurda grew into his dragon-like Titan form. "Everyone climb on." Azurda said, lowering himself enough for everyone to do so. This, of course, surprised the Ardainians, even the officer who heard of their arrival this way but hadn't seen it himself. With that, Rex and the others climbed on so that Azurda could move to the coast to hopefully find something.


Yang woke up groggily. Her head was pounding like someone had tap danced on it. The first thing she realized was that it was morning. Then she remembered the last few moments from last night. The most important being Dragunov yelling that they were under attack. With that, Yang had gotten up and looked around in alarm. No one was at their campsite. The fire had gone out a long time ago, but then to Yang's horror, she realized a big problem. All their stuff was gone. All the food, her bedroll, and the drape that was for a rainy day. And then to Yang's further horror, she took a look at her wrists and saw that Ember Celica wasn't around them.

"We've been robbed!" Yang screamed in outrage, eyes turning red in rage at the realization.

Dragunov grumbled from his position on the ground face down. Yang finally took note of her Blade on the ground. Fury swelled in her as she picked up a rock and threw it at him. Her aim was true and Dragunov rose up, clutching his head where the rock hit him. "What the-?!" Dragunov gave a furious look to Yang who placed her hands on her hips with an angry look. "If that was your idea of a joke, then you're crazy." Dragunov said as he got up while rubbing his head.

"I don't feel like joking since we just got robbed!" Yang shouted, waving her hands around to prove her point.

"What?" Dragunov then looked around. "Oh... Now I remember, we got hit with some kind of... drug and then whoever did this ran off with our stuff. Well...Except for that." Dragunov then pointed at Bumblebee that was still here. Maybe it was too big for the thieves to move.

"Okay, I'm angry, and I want to punch something." Yang said as she stomped to her bike, "And when I find out who stole my stuff I'm gonna- No." Yang's expression turned to horror as she was searching her pockets. Then she was patting all over her clothes.

"...They took the key, didn't they?" Dragunov asked in deadpan tone.

And now Yang screamed in rage. However, what Yang didn't realize was that Dragunov noticed a small detail that almost made him laugh. But he also knew that Yang had no sense of humor right now so he held it in. So instead, while Yang started ranting about thieves and bandits, Dragunov looked around the camp to see if he could find any clues. It took him a few moments while Yang ranted about finding the culprits and beating them up until they beg for death. Now Dragunov really wanted to laugh, but his rising amusement dropped when he finally found something. on the spot he had fallen in. Dragunov knelt down and picked up some feathers that were in front of the spot he slept on. The dragon faintly remembered hearing a bird-like sound last night. Then a terrifying thought crossed his mind. Looking further around, Dragunov looked into some bushes that with daylight looked like obvious hiding spots. And now he found footprints. "Of all the buggers it had to be them!" Dragunov yelled out, cutting through Yang's rant.

"You found something?" Yang asked, now looking hopeful.

"Yup. And you're not gonna like it." Dragunov growled as he looked for more prints, even taking whiffs of air.

"I know I'm going to regret this, but how much worse can it get?" Yang asked with some dread.

"...The culprits are Tirkin." Dragunov said, sounding ashamed of himself, "Come and take a look." the fire Blade waved his Driver over. Yang did and looked over his shoulder to see the tracks that looked to be from large birds. "These tracks, and these feathers that came from something I hit, I can only think that we got robbed by freaking Tirkin!" Dragunov punched the ground hard in anger at the last part.

"...Are Tirkin strong?" Yang asked in worry.

Dragunov turned to look at his Driver like she was stupid. "No. Tirkin are relatively small, only dangerous in large groups..." Then Dragunov's cracks glowed with orange fury. "And are not very smart."

It took a moment for Yang to process the full meaning behind Dragunov's words. And when she did, Yang wasn't sure which was redder, her eyes or her face. "Some watch you were." Yang said now directing her ire at Dragunov. "You let us get ambushed by-" "Dont' start with me now! Because I don't know about you, but I'm going to try some roasted Tirkin for breakfast." Dragunov interrupted.

"Oh, don't you dare change the sub-" It took a moment for her to recognize the last part of Dragunov's interruption. "Wait, are you saying you know where they went?"

"I think so." Dragunov said before taking another inhale of the tracks. "The scent isn't very strong, but I should be able to track them to their nest, and then..." Dragunov picked up a rock before using his Superstrength to crush it.

"Save some for me." Yang then said, cracking her knuckles. With that, Dragunov started to track their thieves before Yang went to take Bumblebee. She may not be able to ride it without the ignition key, but she can move the bike itself manually. It was so humiliating, being robbed by stupid creatures. So, what did that make her and Dragunov? Suddenly Yang was tempted to try some roasted Tirkin herself.

Fortunately for Yang, she and Dragunov didn't get far before Yang had to leave the bike so they could take a small cliff path on the very coast they followed. The path was wide enough for Dragunov to walk comfortably, which meant more than wide enough for Yang.

"We're here." Dragunov finally said after going down the cliff path for a while. Yang reached out from behind her Blade to see a cave entrance. "...Now, let's move carefully. I don't want to get drug bombs in my face again."

"...Fair enough." Yang said, wiggling to the front and taking point.

"Yang..." "Unless the next words out of your mouth are 'let's go' I don't want to hear it." Yang interrupted her Blade and gave him her most stubborn glare. To Yang's annoyance, Dragunov was resisting a smile. "What's funny?" Yang demanded, earning a short laugh from the dragon. Yang now had a sinking feeling that she did something stupid and her ignorance was the punchline.

"Let's get this over with before those bird brains realize they're about to get toasted." Dragunov said with a small laugh.

Dragunov's joke did lift Yang's mood somewhat. So, with that, the blonde brawler was ready for action and stepped into the cave quietly. All the while Dragunov was trying not to laugh at the sight of Yang's backside. How long would it take for her to realize?

The two didn't have to wait for long before they found a large cavern with multiple tent-like shacks. Not even guards at the entrance. Sure enough, dozens of Tirkin. Bipedal birds that made Yang think of them as fat parrots with talon-like hands instead of wings. Many wore feathered bracers and wing-like decorations on their backs. They were armed with spears, and small crude-looking swords and some of them even had small bows. And the most embarrassing thing to Yang. The largest of them could barely reach her thigh judging by sight.

"I don't see anything that could have put us out." Yang whispered to her Blade. The place was lit up with multiple torches, but it wasn't good enough for Yang to tell if they had something small.

"That doesn't mean they don't have any, and if we get hit by them this time..." Dragunov visibly shivered. "I don't want to become a Blade of a Tirkin."

Yang scoffed at this, "If one of them actually awakened you, you would just finish what we started with the way our first meeting went."

"True... Still... I don't like the thought of losing my favorite blondie... Or better yet, maybe they'll-" Dragunov shut up so suddenly that Yang turned to face him with a suspicious look.

"They'll what?" Yang asked.

"...You don't want to know." Dragunov said, looking away from Yang.

"Drag." Yang whispered sternly.

"...Have you looked at yourself recently." Dragunov then said.

It took a few moments but Yang's face twisted into horror and disgust as she thought of what her Blade could mean. "Ew! Ew! Ew! Ew!" Yang shook as if something was crawling up all over her. "No! I'm gonna pummel those perverted birds into paste here and now!" Yang said with her eyes turning red.

"Perverted? Yang what are you-?" "Raargh!" Yang roared before charging into the cavern, startling the Tirkin around. Even without Ember Celica, Yang was able to send the first bird that was close enough flying with a good uppercut. The Tirkin let out a high-pitched squawk as it flew out of sight.

"Sun Silk!" One of the Tirkin screeched in delight before charging at Yang with a spear in hand.

"Sun Silk! Sun Silk! Sun Silk!" More Tirkin chanted as they were converging on Yang.

"Bring it on!" Yang roared in fury as she charged the Tirkin head-on. And as it turned out, Dragunov was right, these things aren't that strong, and not very smart, considering how they keep coming despite Yang weaving past their spears and cracking their beaks, bones or sometimes both with her fists alone. What Yang didn't notice was that out of one of the tents, three Tirkin with slings came out, winding up their weapons before launching the balls in them at Yang. But the projectiles were intercepted by a large gout of flame. The Tirkin barely had time to look into the direction of where the flames came from to see Dragunov charging at them, Talons out.

"Say your prayers!" Dragunov roared an instant before punching the first bird away right through the tent and out of the leathery back wall. Then he kicked another one right to the ceiling where it squawked pitifully before falling back down. The third one was winding up its sling with another ball no doubt containing that sleeping powder before launching it at Dragunov who ducked under it before grabbing the Tirkin and smashing its head against his own head. And judging by the crack Dragunov heard, his head was harder than the stupid bird's that he then dropped.

"Get Sun Silk!" One of the archer Tirkin said as it fired its small bow with its equally small arrow at Yang who happened to move just in time to avoid it. Dragunov shook his head before eyeing around the battlefield, trying to detect more Tirkin that had slings. Noticing a few winding up their weapons to aim at Yang, Dragunov didn't waste time and charged at them with a loud roar. The roar startled the slinger Tirkin that then let out a bird-like scream at the approaching monster. The stupid birds didn't even move from the neat line they were in when Dragunov swiped his tail and sent them flying.

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Was Yang's scream which was soon followed by a flying Tirkin. Dragunov looked to his Driver in concern. It didn't take much to figure out what happened when Yang was holding her hair protectively while still kicking more birds that were approaching. Dragunov noticed some archer Tirkin taking aim at Yang and he instantly dashed to her. Yang felt her hair was safe enough to use her fists once again by the time Dragunov got to her and put up a barrier to stop the arrows that either bounced or shattered against it.

"Yang, grab on." Dragunov said loudly before flinging his talons at Yang which she was able to slip onto her hands from midair. Then she followed it up with a Heatblast, which made the Tirkins run around in panic like headless chickens.

"Aaah! Sun Silk is angry!" the Tirkin screamed.

"Fire! Fire! Fire!" Another squawked in terror as Yang's Art managed to reach a tent.

"What the heck is this Sun Silk stuff?!" Yang roared in fury before going after the Tirkin. Dragunov was surprised that Yang hasn't figured it out yet, or was the affinity link not sharing that information from him to her? Dragunov's thoughts were cut when one Tirkin tried to stab its javelin up his rear. Fortunately, Tirkin aren't strong enough to pierce stone, which left Dragunov to literally kick back at the dumb bird.

After pummeling the Tirkin, Yang and Dragunov found some rope that they used to tie the birds into nice little bundles. Which left them to search for their missing stuff. Or more accurately, Dragunov searched, and Yang was watching the captive Tirkin. Mainly because after the fight, Yang collapsed in exhaustion. Then the girl's stomach reminded them both that Yang hadn't had breakfast yet. So here Dragunov was going through the tents in search of their missing stuff. Finally, he entered the largest tent and there he found all their missing things. Yang's bedroll, Ember Celica along with Yang's belt pouch, Bumblebee's keys and... Dragunov couldn't help laughing at what he saw on what looked like a shrine of some kind. A nice bundle of beautiful long yellow strands tied together with a strip of leather. Must be the Sun Silk these Tirkin were foaming about.

"I shouldn't do this, but I don't get golden opportunities like this often." Dragunov said evilly as he began gathering things. Then in a corner, he saw a gathering of fresh fruits. Going closer Dragunov picked one up and sniffed it. Smelled edible, and what was edible for Tirkin was also edible for a human. Picking some up, Dragunov thought that these would fill his Driver more than the rations they had.

Yang was sitting down glaring at the Tirkin that were tied up in multiple bunches and were very afraid. Her stomach growled again. "Oh, shut up." Yang held her tummy that felt like it was shriveling in on itself. She really wished Dragunov would return with some food.

"I'm back." Dragunov said with a grin as he carried what looked like all of their stuff and some fruits in hand. "Thought these would be better than the rations." Dragunov then offered the fruits which Yang immediately snatched away and started devouring like a ravenous beast.

"Mmm, sho good." Yang said in bliss through a mouthful, earning a disapproving look from her Blade. Not that she noticed or cared. Nor did she care about the Tirkin that were squawking in protest at Yang eating their food. "Shouldn' 'ave esed ith ush." Yang said, not bothering to swallow before talking.

"By the way." Dragunov then said in amusement as he put down all their things. "In case you were wondering, I found out what this... Sun Silk stuff they were blabbing about was."

Finally, Yang took a break to swallow. "Oh yeah? What is it then?"

"This." Dragunov said before taking out the bundle of yellow strands.

"Oh, those are pretty." Yang said as she took the strands and felt them, "They definitely feel silky, and the color of it reminds me of..." Yang trailed off as a look of horror came to her face. Then she slowly turned to Dragunov. "No." Dragunov gave a single slow nod in response. Yang then started using her free hand to try her hair all over.

"Ahhem." Dragunov cleared his throat and made grabbing motions next to the left side of his neck. Yang did the same with her left, and then she went pale. There were strands that ended a little too soon for her liking.

"You..." Yang said quietly, dropping the bundle down, earning tilted heads from the Tirkin.

"YOU MONSTERS!" Yang screamed, eyes red, semblance flaring up almost as dazzling as when Dragunov goes Sun Dragon. And then she rushed in and started double-beating the poor birds, not caring which one of them had the bright idea of stealing her hair.

Dragunov finally let loose with the laughter. Took Yang long enough to realize that she had lost about a quarter of her total hair width from neck down. He wasn't sure how bad it would have been if the Tirkin had shaved her bald, or better yet capture her and use her as a "Sun Silk Farm". If Yang wasn't raging right now, she might actually feel flattered that someone thought so highly of her hair. But seeing as she was now unloading her rage onto those Tirkin, Dragunov started to feel a little sorry for those feather dusters. Enough to not want to roast them anymore anyway. He also resisted a snicker at the thought of blankets, drapes, and maybe even towels made of Yang's hair. Letting out more laughs, Dragunov decided not to add fuel to the raging inferno that was Yang's fury by not sharing his thoughts. Although the squawks and screeches of pain were getting loud enough to almost drown both his laughter and Yang's roaring. Not to mention that the Tirkin were begging for mercy. But sadly, the blonde brawler was fresh out at the moment. And Dragunov had no intention of stopping her.

Once Yang was done beating the stupid birds, her and Dragunov got back to Bumblebee and continued their journey. Although Yang's foul mood was practically radiating off her. Dragunov didn't need to see Yang's face from behind her to know that she was glaring at the road, hoping to still see the Tirkin. Because beating those Tirkin had not made Yang feel better at all. Not even using that string of leather to tie the rest of the blonde's golden locks into a tight ponytail that hid the fact that she had lost some of her hair. And Dragunov's suggestion of cutting the rest of her hair to match was met with a threat to leave him stranded. The dragon was pretty sure that the only reason Yang didn't go through with her threat was that Dragunov reminded her why they were out here in the first place. "I hope her dad exaggerated her tantrums." Dragunov thought, on Taiyang having told him the story about Yang's haircuts. For the first few years, Yang threw a violent tantrum whenever someone tried to cut her hair. As years went by, Yang became non-violent when her hair was done by a professional, but she was apparently in a foul mood that lasted from the rest of the day to an entire week. That wasn't a pleasant thought. At least the scenery was nice.


"Right here gramps!" Rex said, pointing to a small islet somewhat away from the shore. "That spot looks like it has treasure."

Azurda landed on the rocky formation that Rex was talking about. Nia looked skeptical, "This looks like a pile of rocks to me."

Rex eagerly got off as everyone else also got off. "Trust me, I know what I'm doing." Rex said proudly before looking around the island. "This looks like a good spot." Rex then said before preparing his suit for a dive.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Mythra then asked, "I mean, the Cloud Sea was as dense as water, but still..."

"I'll be fine, Mythra. Don't worry." Rex said as he closed his vest and put the helmet on with a loud clank.

"I'm not worried." Mythra complained.

"Right, and the sky isn't gray right now." said Roc as sure enough, it was cloudy right now.

"Shut up, Roc." Mythra said in annoyance.

"Here I go!" Rex then took a running start before diving in.

"Hey, wait!" Nia let out mere moments before they heard a splash. "Urgh... How is he getting back up if there are sea monsters in there?"

"Don't you worry, Nia." Azurda said confidently, lounging in his large form. Although there was barely any room for him. "Rex has done this before many times."

"I know, I know." Nia said dismissively. "What?" Nia noticed Pyra staring at her with a forlorn look.

"Nothing." Pyra said knowingly.

"What are you thinking?" Mythra asked with a suspicious look.

"What? Nothing." Pyra said, not seeming to understand what Mythra was talking about. Mythra looked like she didn't believe it but didn't say anything.

Wulfric tilted his head at the exchange. But then Roc tapped the beastly Blade and motioned him away from the female Blades. "How is our bet going on?" Roc asked in a low voice just on the off chance the Aegis sisters or Nia heard him.

"...Still no progress." Wulfric said simply.

"Are you serious?" Roc's eyes widened in disbelief. "How have neither of them made a man out of Rex yet?"

"I don't know. The most either of them does is hug him or peck him on the cheek. They seem to have some kind of agreement, but I never asked what it is." Wulfric explained.

"Why don't you ask them now?" Roc asked, glancing at Pyra and Mythra who were now talking with Nia.

"Do it yourself." Wulfric replied, "I don't know about Pyra, but I doubt Mythra would be happy about us poking their business with our Driver."

"As you said, Rex is our Driver, so that makes this our business too." Roc explained like it was something obvious.

"Then ask them yourself." Wulfric said before walking away, signaling that this conversation was over.

Roc did contemplate asking Mythra, but he remembered how the blonde Aegis reacts to those kinds of conversations so he decided to leave it. Besides, he could feel Rex approaching pretty fast.

Pyra and Mythra must have felt it too because they visibly perked up. Soon, Rex's anchor shot to the side of the small cliff he had jumped from, and the wire became taut, no doubt Rex being reeled up. Wulfric moved to the edge of the cliff and grabbed the anchor from the cliff edge and braced himself for Rex to get out of the water.

"Get ready, Rex is coming up too fast for nothing to be wrong." Mythra said, drawing out her white Aegis Sword. Pyra did the same for her own, while everyone else prepared for a fight.

Soon enough, Rex's helmet-covered head broke the surface, and at that moment, Wulfric yanked.

"Whaah!" Was Rex's muffled yell as he flew through the air with something tucked under his right arm. Wulfric then caught Rex just as a large Serprond broke the surface with its mouth wide open.

The giant white serpent didn't get far before being blasted in the face by multiple shots of energy. As the sea monster fell back into the waters, everyone turned to see Azurda on his feet, side facing the cliff and multiple glowing points fading.

"Are you okay, Rex?" Pyra and Mythra asked just when Wulfric put their Driver on his feet.

"I'm fine, thought that thing was gonna swallow me before I got back." Rex said before offering a stone tablet to Wulfric. The beastly Blade accepted the item and Rex was able to open the seals on his helmet.

"I take it you recovered something?" Dagas said as he approached Rex.

Rex got his helmet off and then started undoing the seals of his suit. "Yeah. I found that stone tablet with writing on it. I'm not sure if that's what we're looking for, but it was all I had time to get before that Serprond spotted me."

"May I see it?" Dagas said to Wulfric expectantly.

Wulfric turned to look at Rex who nodded as he opened up the zipper of his diving jacket. Wulfric then offered the tablet to Dagas who accepted it. It was still wet, but very much readable.

Dagas' eye scanned the tablet. "Due to the appearance of the terrible Arrogant Behemoth, the Kingdom of Regideria perished in a single night. Titan and all." Dagas then said, his face hardening.

"That must be one terrifying monster to kill a Titan." Nia muttered, shivering at the thought.

"The accursed beast! How dare you harm my kingdom!" Dagas snapped, "My retainers, we shall not let this stand! We will find this beast and slay it!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Mythra let out, "This happened centuries ago, how do you even know the beast is still alive?"

"Still, if we know its name, we could be able to track it down through stories in various regions." Rex said with a thoughtful look.

"Rex, are you serious?" Nia asked with an exasperated look, "Do you know how impossible that is?"

"Well yeah if it was just us, but I think it's possible if we employed Garfront for this." Rex said.

"Well, it does make sense." Roc said, crossing his arms," So, would you like me to fly back to Uraya and inform Garfront?"

"Yes, please. Oh, and could you tell Yew and Zuo that any information will do?" Rex said.

"Of course, but what will you do in the meantime?" Roc asked.

"I guess... we'll just wait here." Rex said with a smile.

"This islet?" Mythra asked in disbelief.

Rex's face flushed, "No! In Temperantia! I mean... we could probably stay in the Ardainian camp in the meantime."

Azurda chuckled at Rex's embarrassment, "That would be the smartest thing. Besides, these old bones don't like too many long trips anymore."

Mythra looked at Azurda with a suspicious look. The blonde Aegis was pretty sure Azurda was just lazy.

"Perhaps we could hold off on employing mercenaries until we have asked around the Ardainian camp?" Dromarch then suggested.

"Why is that?" Nia asked, "You don't think that monster is here, do you?"

"Probably not, but on the off chance it is. It would be better if we didn't send Roc out for nothing." Dromarch explained, "Besides, so far everything regarding Regideria was found here in Temperantia."

Everyone stared at the white tiger for a moment. "He's not wrong." Wulfric was the first to say.

"Sounds good enough to me." Roc said with a shrug.

"Then let us return to Ardainians." Dagas said, already walking to Azurda with the tablet in hand. Everyone followed Dagas on Azurda's back, none of them expecting Dromarch's prediction to come true.


"We're here." Yang informed Dragunov who was looking up the coastline where a rocky landmass that could only be Temperantia was.

"Good, we've been on the road for hours." Dragunov mock-complained. Though he would like to stretch his legs as soon as possible. But if he recalled correctly, it would still take some time driving inland of the Titan before they reached the Ardainian camp Rex is supposed to be at.

After getting on Temperantia from their contact point, Yang had some trouble on the rocky terrain. Completely bumpy to the point she had to stop going as fast as she wanted. If she had time to look back, Yang would have noticed how much Dragunov was shifting his tail or himself just to keep them upright. And that wasn't counting the local monsters. Though mostly Yang stayed away from them, no time for those right now. Besides, she didn't feel like tangling with a few Sauros that were around. Maybe the one that appeared in Vale came from here.

Soon Yang saw the camp of Ardainians. Deciding to make sure that she was completely visible, just so that she wouldn't get shot at, just in case.

Once she reached the perimeter, several Ardainian soldiers trained their weapons on her. "This is a restricted area. Leave!" One of the soldiers said.

Yang took off her aviators and gave a calm but grumpy look, "I'm looking for the Driver of the Aegis, is he still here?"

"This is a restricted area. Leave!" Another soldier repeated.

Yang sighed, "Look, I had a long day, if you could just tell us if he's here then I'll leave. But I came all this way with the impression he was coming here. Is he here or not?"

The soldiers shared a look between each other before one of them nodded in the direction of their camp. Then one of them went to the camp. As they waited, Yang crossed her arms beneath her breasts and tapped her finger against her arm impatiently.

"Yang, shouldn't you get over it al-" "Shut up, Drag." Yang said harshly. Dragunov scoffed in return, "Fine, be that way." Dragunov then looked at the ponytail Yang had. With this, you couldn't tell that someone had cut a chunk of it. Although it would seem that the only way to improve Yang's mood is for her hair to magically regrow completely.

Soon enough, the soldier returned with Rex, Pyra, Mythra and Nia in tow. "Yang? What are you doing here?" The salvager asked.

"Looking for you. Is Azurda with you?" Yang replied.

"Did someone call me?" Azurda asked, now in his smaller form, peeking from Rex's helmet.

"Perfect!" Yang clapped her hands, "I need your help."

"And what can I help you with?" Azurda asked, looking surprised.

Yang looked to the soldiers that had now lowered their weapons but still looked alert. "Can we talk about this somewhere more private?"

"Huh? Yeah, sure." Rex said.

It took some convincing from the commanding officer, but Yang was allowed entry to one of the spare tents that had been set up for them. Of course, Yang didn't want to park Bumblebee anywhere far, so she left it right outside their tent.

"So, what did you need me for?" Azurda asked first, seeing as it was him this was about.

"I need a lift to old Torna." Yang said simply.

"What?" Came out of everyone present. Although Dagas merely quirked an eyebrow.

"I need you to fly me to where the Titan of Torna is. More specifically to the old capital." Yang clarified.

"Why would you ever want to go there?" Mythra asked, looking at Yang like she was crazy. But then she turned to glare at Dragunov, "What are you up to?"

"Don't look at me, this was her idea." Dragunov said, pointing at Yang for emphasis. The tent was for multiple people, but for Dragunov it was still so small that he had to sit down. While everyone else had to stay low.

"Yang, why do you want to go to Old Torna?" Pyra then asked again.

"It's... a long story." Yang said with her usual grin.

"Make it short then." Dagas said rudely.

"Okay, the thing is..." And then Yang explained how Ellenora was murdered by a band of assassins who worked for the scam operation going on in Mor Ardain. This led to her deal with Yew and Zhuo about Dragunov recreating the Wind Dragunite. Everyone's eyes widened at that part, but then Yang explained that since they were Dragunov's greatest achievements and he was basically Torna's treasure, so there must be some kind of clue in Torna about them. Of course, she left out the Tirkin incident, because she didn't want anyone laughing at her getting robbed by stupid creatures.

Azurda shook his head. "Yang, Dragunov had been working on Water Dragunite alone for many years and it only took that short time because of an accident that pointed him in the right direction. How do you expect to make the Wind Dragunite within days?"

"That's why we're going to Torna to find clues." Yang said, "I mean, surely there would be some kind of record."

Mythra shook her head, "Yang, if you think Dragunov would give out his secrets when it comes to gems, you clearly don't know him."

"See! Mythra gets it." Dragunov said.

"Look, I'm not expecting to find detailed instructions, but maybe... I don't know something that could tell us what you used to make it." Yang said.

"It's still a long shot." Rex said before looking to Dragunov, "But I am curious now, how exactly do you make gems out of the materials you use."

"That's none of your business, boy." Dragunov growled. Rex wisely backed off. Then Dragunov turned his attention to Azurda, "Look, I know it would be easier to find a diamond in a beggar street, but if there's any chance I can remake Wind Dragunite, then I must take it."

"Why don't you just use the shards of the old one to remake it?" Nia asked.

Dragunov gave Nia a half-lidded stare. "It doesn't work that way, smoothbrain."

"Why you I ought to-" Nia growled out while making movements with her fingers that indicated she wanted to strangle Dragunov... Or scratch his face off.

Azurda let out a tired sigh, "Very well. I will fly you there. We are still waiting for Roc to return since yesterday."

"Awesome! When do we leave?" Yang asked eagerly.

"How about tomorrow, I don't think I'm up to flying today. So much strain on this old body from today." Azurda said, shivering as if he had trouble staying upright.

Everyone gave the fuzzy creature a look that clearly said they didn't buy it.

"You haven't done anything at all today?" Mythra said dryly.

"How could you say that?" Azurda complained, "No respect for the elderly."

"You have been staying in that helmet while the rest of us did things to help around this camp." Dagas said with his chin up. "Even I have lowered myself for some menial work."

"Dagas is right." Pyra said with a look of a disappointed mother. "I helped with the cooking for everyone."

"Yeah, and everyone loved you for it." Rex said with a proud look, which in turn made Pyra beam. It was amazing what Pyra could do with the limited ingredients of a field kitchen.

Azurda sank into the helmet where he let out a defeated sigh. "All right, all right. But I'm still not going anywhere until tomorrow morning. The journey is long, and I would like to fly in daylight."

"Fair enough." Yang shrugged with a small grin as she looked at Dragunov.

"...Don't even think about it." Dragunov growled.

"I don't know what you mean." Yang said innocently.

"You're thinking about mass-producing Dragunites for your own profit." Dragunov growled, "Over. My. Rotting. Corpse."

"Sheesh, relax." Yang complained, "But mark my words, I'm getting something out of you one day."

Dragunov wasn't sure if he should laugh or worry about the certainty in Yang's voice. Almost like she was stating a fact. Mythra also quirked an eyebrow before having the smallest of smirks. Then Yang and Mythra shared a look that made everyone else wonder what evil schemes these two were up to. But Dragunov was sure that his statement to Yang about making gems for profit would stand true: There is no plea, threat, or offer Yang can make that could change his mind.


AN: Yup... Yang and Dragunov got robbed by Tirkin which also gave Yang a haircut. Speaking of which, what do you all think about fabrics made of Yang's hair? Pretty? Gross? Demeaning?

And Dagas is just a little closer to finding his lost Kingdom, although Roc is being run ragged by acting as a courier between Rex and Garfront.