Dart walked away from his friends as the darkness swallowed him. He struggled to breathe. A deep-seated fear rumbled through his chest, and he clenched his fists in a paltry attempt to stay his own emotions. He heard Lavitz say something from behind him, but he could not focus enough to hear it. His distress carried him far away from camp, and it was almost an hour later before he stopped.

The chill night air surrounded him, but he did not mind. What was more irksome was the dew that had climbed all over his boots and seeped into them, wetting his feet. He had always hated that feeling, that squishing sensation with every step, even before he was a dragoon. But now the fire inside him burned hot in resistance. He impressed even himself as he focused his abilities on his feet to dry them out as he walked.

As he came alongside a layer of black rock jutting out into the valley, he stopped and felt it with his hand. Recoiling from the water sitting on it, he then produced a small flame and burned the water away before coming to rest on the rock, legs dangling slightly above the ground. The darkness was complete except for the ever-present moonlight filtering through the needles of the pines. Looking up, he was just able to catch a glimpse of the moon as the trees swayed in the breeze.

Sitting still, he was no longer able to focus on his own movement, and all at once all the emotions he had been avoiding came flooding back to him all at once. His walk had far from exhausted him, but he panted heavily, gripping the edges of the stone until his knuckles turned white.

Shana's voice rang in his mind: I'm not about to hide while everyone else fights for their lives. He hung his head, and a lump formed in his throat. He tried to swallow it, but to no avail. Before he could stop it, tears began to flow down his face, and he was forced to breathe between sobs. Mournful cries escaped his lips, and he was silently grateful that he had traveled so far from the others.

For several long minutes, all he knew was his weeping.

As the tears finally ebbed, his breaths came rigidly, and he sniffed. Wiping his face, he quickly burned away the liquid with an intense heat and sat, silent except for occasional sniffs, watching the water evaporate away. He felt numb, somehow a more pleasurable state than before.

He stared down at the ground before him, watching the rays of moonlight dance back and forth over the moss-covered earth. He wanted to be home. He wanted to leave this accursed forest, this mountain range, and all the danger, and go home. He mourned not having been able to spend more time in Seles before leaving for Shana, or just simply returning after delivering Lavitz safely to Bale. Effortlessly, he recalled the layout of the small town, the town hall, his old house, Shana's home, the creek where they used to play, and the nearby fields. He and Shana used to spend all day roaming the wilderness, intrigued with every frog and tree and blade of grass. Once, they had even tried to make a map of the area around Seles. He chuckled as he remembered the crude drawing, widely disproportionate and skewed.

He had hated getting a job, but as soon as he was old enough, his adopted parents had all but forced him into working the fields for one of the farmers in town. Instead of running free with Shana, he had wasted away his days tilling earth, spreading fertilizer, and hulling wheat. It had made him strong, and he had earned his keep, but not a day went by when he hadn't thought of her.

That's all he really wanted now - to go back to the days when it was just the two of them, with no worries and no danger. No virage and no dragons.

Dragons.

A sharp intake of breath broke his reverie. Was there really any hope for them? For Shana?

Propping his elbows on his knees, he rubbed his face. He was tired, partly from the virage and partly because of the intense stress weighing on him. He rolled his shoulders to alleviate it, but it did little good.

He just couldn't quite stand the idea of Shana being thrown at a dragon in the way Rose had proposed. The thought made him cringe over and over. A million scenarios ran through his mind, showing him a million different ways this battle could go awry. Although he had faced the beast before, he had only barely escaped it, and now the danger would be much greater. He tried to imagine Shana's frail human form facing off against it, but was only met with despair.

And not only Shana was at risk, but also Lavitz. This strange man that he had known for less than two weeks had become his best friend, even in so short a time. Dart had never known that closeness could spawn so quickly between two people; even his deep relationship with Shana had taken time. But there was something about a friendship forged in the fires of battle that made it tough, hardy, and strong. Their fights in Hellena, in the cave, and in Hoax had worked as a catalyst for their relationship, and now he knew that he would not trade it for anything. If Shana and Lavitz both survived the dragon, maybe everything would be okay. They could go back to Bale and live there.

He thought back to the balcony in Indels Castle, when he had gotten so angry when Lavitz's decision had put his own life in danger. Even then, Dart was able to sense their deepening friendship, and he had wanted to protect it at all costs. He swore, irritated at himself for having handled the situation so poorly. He felt the same anger now, only mingled with a sickening feeling of helplessness. Once again, Lavitz had chosen to walk into harm's way all by himself, and all Dart could hope to do was kill the dragon before it killed his friends.

Dart cursed his situation. He felt so overwhelmed by fantastic events that had sprung to life around him in the past couple weeks. A kind moment of peace had been interrupted by the very same dragon they were to fight tomorrow, and then everything else had rushed by afterward.

An owl hooted loudly in a nearby tree, startling him. He shook his head at his reaction, irritated that he was now jumping at bird calls. Dragged back to the physical world, he took in the sounds of the night. One of his favorite things while traveling the wilderness for five years was simply looking up at the stars and listening. Several times he had been met by a stray creature - a fox or a deer - and had watched it silently until it shuffled away into the darkness. Now, he could hear nothing but that lonely owl. The night was far too cold for any insects to be out, and maybe the other animals were avoiding him because of all the noise he had made.

Sighing heavily, he spoke aloud to himself.

"You can't change Rose's mind. Or Shana or Lavitz. So just… deal with it."

How he wished he could! But no matter how many times he told himself to ignore his fears or believe that it was for the best, he could not. Still, he was thankful for the silence and solitude. It gave him a chance to actually think. He felt as if he had been rushing through everything since he came back to Seles, never having a moment to sit and just relax. Everything had been stressful except their night in Bale with Lavitz's mother. He remembered his one moment of peace in Hoax just before they left, and wished for that moment back.

Be grateful for this one, Dart, he told himself.

Groaning in frustration, he reached up and rubbed his eyes. What if he had just stayed in Bale? Become a palace guard, found a place for him and Shana to live. Life would be simpler. He may actually be happy instead of tired and worried. But deep inside, he knew that staying would have been the wrong decision.

If he had stayed in Bale, then Lavitz would have gone to Hoax alone and faced the battle alone. Would he have been able to defeat the giganto without Dart? Rose and Dart's dragoon spirit seemed to be the only reason they had won the battle. Perhaps Lavitz would have died then and there, and the dragon would have continued its rampage throughout Serdio until it reached Bale, undoubtedly killing himself and Shana in the process. This realization startled him. Perhaps it was as Lavitz had said; perhaps there was a greater force working to make these things happen. Perhaps it was not mere chance that he met Lavitz, who would guide him into this war, awakening his dragoon spirit and leading him into battle with a dragon.

Dart's breath quickened as he considered this possibility. Maybe, just maybe, something greater really was at work here. Some sort of fate had reeled him in for a greater purpose. The implications were staggering. If this were true, it would mean that Shana, too, was meant to be here, and perhaps the outlook of tomorrow might not be so grim. It would mean that he really did have the capability to defeat the dragon, as Lavitz seemed to believe, so that he could save the people of Serdio. Maybe fate had brought him to this moment so that he could end a bloody war.

He scoffed. Fate? he scorned. Come on, Dart.

And yet, something inside him clung to that idea. The idea that whatever had led him and Shana here would get them through the battle the next day. He knew to reject this in his mind, but his heart told a different story.

What if, as Lavitz believed, this was true? His spirit rose with a sense of purpose and determination, and then crashed as the responsibility of such a thought landed squarely on his shoulders. How could it be possible that he would be the one chosen for this task? He was nothing special. He was an orphan that had inherited a dragoon spirit. If fate had guided him here, he had still made the choices to follow it. Right? Fate lay the path, and man followed it where he willed. What if he made the wrong choice now, and caused the downfall of a generation?

He cringed at the prospect, holding his head in his hands once again, struggling to fight off his fears. If something he did or failed to do caused harm to Shana or Lavitz, he would never be able to forgive himself. He cursed as tears slid down his cheeks, and he hurriedly wiped them away and breathed deeply, trying to stifle his emotions. Closing his eyes, he tried to clear his mind, but images of his friends, injured or dead, kept surfacing. His breathing became more and more labored, and he clutched his skull in an effort to block out the negative thoughts.

Suddenly he heard a strange sizzling sound, and his heart skipped a beat. Bewildered, he glanced down and saw the dew boiling on the black rock in an almost perfect circle around him. He chuckled as he realized what had happened, and he lessened the heat emanating from his chest.

He was a dragoon. Had he forgotten? He controlled fire itself. Had he not destroyed the virage with Rose's help? They had already disposed of one legendary beast. They could defeat another. As if to prove it to himself, he swung his hand up and conjured a flame, illuminated the rock and nearby trees. He watched it flicker about for several moments, trying to convince himself of its potency. At last, he let it die.

Feeling slightly more stable, he breathed slowly.

Make a decision, Dart, he told himself. Right now. You have to figure out what you're going to do.

He thought of Rose and her strange desire to help them succeed. He thought of Lavitz's high principles and his intense sense of duty toward his country and his friends. And he thought of Shana and her drive not only to be with him, but also to help him be strong. Dart was firmly confident that Shana could never fathom how much strength her mere presence brought him every day. He knew that she would never be safe when there was a dragon being used in war, no matter where she was, and he knew that Lavitz would never stop fighting to protect his country.

Standing suddenly, Dart looked intently in the direction of the camp. He wasn't sure if he could really succeed or not. But he was finally sure of one thing: he would definitely try.