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Chapter 2: The first steps in the unknown
Darkstalker lands on jade mountain, arriving not so far away from Clearsight but still having some distance left between deliberately. Walking with carefulness, he takes a few minutes to arrive right in front of his love, his face completely neutral while his mind can only think during his little walk to prepare for what is to come...
- "Do you know why I am here?" Says the dragoness coldly, her eyes looking straight into him now that not enough space separates them, showing no mercy.
- "I fear the answer…" Replies the nightwing, his body slightly tainted by ice shaking a bit despite his voice and face remaining untouched by the rising doubt.
- "Then allow me to show you the truth."
Clapping her talons in the open space, it is Fathom followed by Indigo who respond to her call by rising from the edge of the mountain.
- "No." Says Darkstalker in disbelief as his friend shares the same hatred for him as his lover. Turning his head to face them, the nightwing realizeseach hold a spear whose burning blade is pointed at him, ready to make him pay his debt in pain and suffering.
- "I think you might have forgotten your scroll. Truly a pity you lost the only thing you ever had." A grin appears on Clearsight's face as she tells him that, making him take step back at the wicked version of his mate.
Realizing that his invincibility and immortality won't save him from the three dragons wishing to torment him, from the pain they can inflict on him, Darkstalker takes another step backward, truly afraid for the first time since his mother's death.
Realizing that, Fathom and Indigo rush toward him, the nightwing barely has the time to escape into the air, but feels tremendous pain a moment later. Indigo had thrown her spear right into him, making him fall to the ground and scream in agony.
In the background, Clearsight watches the scene unfold. She doesn't seem to shed a single tear for him, instead, she seems to like the sight of him being beaten down like an animal...
Darkstalker let out a cry of despair as he wakes up from the nightmare. Coming back to his senses, he can feel tears in his eyes... Already crying? Why am I so... hurt? I shouldn't, but…
The nightwing tries to understand what is troubling him, the hole in his heart, until he finds a reasonable source after a long moment of reflection. The good memories he had with his sister Whiteout, the love of his mother, his beginning with Clearsight and his friendship with Fathom…
He misses all of them, at least the joy they gave him. And that is when he realizes he still wants to be loved, to have the best life with his loved ones more as much as any other dragon if not more, no longer able to dismiss his need of happiness for the present. That is why he wanted the throne since the beginning, because him being king was in his brightest future, and that's why I can not forgive their betrayal.
Darkstalker sighs, with his life being more and more stressful, first with Arctic, then with the war and finally with Vigilance. He needed love and comfort more than ever, but that was not what Clearsight and Fathom brought him. Instead, they gave him their worries, their fear of him.
It was the last thing he needed, as he didn't want to face that dread, so to compensate, it seems confidence and ego grow more and more with time. Since the beginning, his mind has been defending itself by glorifying the future he would get, so that their troubles in the present would be worth it. But now, with himself all alone and cut from even his own world, it appears such a belief is proven wrong, as there seems to be little to nothing he can cling to...
I should have listened to myself and decided the best decision to take was in the present. I had faith in my destined lover and friend, when I should have taken a dragon that could share joy and trust with me in the now.
The dragon lets out a false laugh as a feeling of spite grows in him...
Maybe if I was more focused on my sister and mother, I would have had a better outcome. They loved me even in the darkest of day and didn't show nearly as much fear and despair of me becoming evil, or at least their love would made them stay with me far more than anyone else, even them...
Having found resolution in his mind, Darkstalker rests on his moderately soft ground for a moment before taking flight toward the distant tower…
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Arriving near the building holding the light, the nightwing realizes such a thing is kind of like a lighthouse, with the intense light of a fire at the top. But it must be very old as it bears many cracks and some holes, however, if it is old, how is such a light still present?
Curious about it, Darkstalker goes around to check it directly by flight... Now being close enough, he can analyse the top of the tower… It is a room made of fewer walls to let the light pass, where inside burn numerous metallic rods… He can't look at the intense fire too much, or else he will be blinded.
Needing a break, the nightwing glides in circle until he lands at the tower's bottom, on a polished stone surface. Looking around, the dragon sees nothing else, no other buildings, no structure, nothing. How unexpected, it's like whoever had built on that place abandoned it once the tower was finished
Walking around the only building, Darkstalker sees no door for it, no window, no entrance. And from its holes in the stone, he can deduce there is nothing but the framing for the structure to stand. Seeing all of that, the nightwing wonders about all of this, trying to deduce the creator's intent and identity, trying to make his mind work by putting aside his recent feelings...
Why would I build such a thing? It seems to be a durable beacon, but you can't enter in it like a lighthouse. The burning rods at the top are quite huge, so the tower needs a lot of refined resources as well to be built. It's quite a feat, a structure like that could be worthy of being the beacon of the night palace.
For a desolated world, it seems to at least have seen a somewhat advanced civilization. Yes, here is the proof of resources extraction, refinement, architecture and maybe even knowledge in chemistry...
Lost in his thoughts, Darkstalker comes back to reality when he spots two lights in the distance. Likely they are others towers like this one, and maybe in better shape. But even if these ones are only half as distant as the first one, it will be too exhausting to get to them now.
Having taken his decision, the nightwing will rest here. The polished surface seems good enough, at least it is better than what I slept on the second time. Laying his body and relaxing his muscles, he simply breaths calmly. Despite his mind's tendency to panic, if the young nightwing can focus on what worthy things that realm holds instead of thinking about his past, things will be better for him…
.
What a strange situation I'm in. Did Clearsight even knew the world she had sent me to? I guess not. I've seen it in her eagerness to end me, she didn't hesitate, and I guess she didn't care that my banishment was painful.
You betrayed me Clearsight, and for that, I'll make sure my fate is split from your own, even if I come back to Pyrrhia. If our paths cross again, you'll remember that day forever.
And Fathom, that scared idiot who let me down. Well I suppose that's a good thing he wasn't using his magic, that he was scared so much of his power he hated himself, or else he would have been my biggest threat if he decided to finally betray me…
Wait a minute, when did Clearsight's bracelet got the power to banish me? A new enchantment, but from who? Fathom? Or maybe my own scroll, they fled with it after all.
Darkstalker growls, but then an idea comes to his mind.
What if my scroll was to be destroyed just now? Would I get my power back even in this world? But he quickly dismisses that hopeful thought.
Don't be foolish, you can't bet all your hope on that. Beside, who would want to destroy a scroll they've just found. And if that dragon know of its true nature, they will keep it for themselves, such a power is too good to be lost from one's perspective...
Well... Fathom is too afraid of his magic to use it, I'm confident about that. And Clearsight… Would she really use the scroll herself?
A terrible realization crashes into his mind. The most powerful seer could use it, she always complained about him becoming evil if he used too much magic, but said nothing about others dragons, not even Fathom. And since she feels she has an ever lasting duty for the greater good, she may use his magic more than he ever could...
Does it mean that if I come back to Pyrrhia, I would see a godlike Clearsight leading the kingdom, or even the entire continent? I suppose it's a possibility... But I won't give up!
Feeling himself way less tired than before, the nightwing prepares himself for a new flight. And after an exhausting moment, Darkstalker is in the sky, going as fast as he can toward the next light...