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Chapter 5: When fear takes over oneself

After waiting for some time with the great dragoness, her presence easing his loneliness even if the interest he has in him makes him wary of her, Darkstalker can see who she was waiting for. Looking at the sky of nothingness one more time, he spots a new yellow light in the distance. Curious, he asks the dragoness, calling her and pointing at the new object in the black sky.

- "Ayirn."

- "Uthu kasarh kenib heij ajrk? Zo ajek Xamirh, u ejurh dolmukaran pacius Zy."

Once again, the nightwing is facing a sentence he can not translate, but thanks to his mind reading, he can have a picture who that light is. A great dragon like her bearing yellow scales, who seems to be associated with the name 'Xamirh'. Wanting to know more, he speaks to her of the name, though his pronunciation might be wrong.

- "Xamirh?"

- "Ko, Xamirh." Replies the dragoness in approval, making him wonder if 'ko' is a word for that concept, similar to 'yes'.

Unexpectedly, Ayirn takes a big step closer to the night dragon, curling her tail around him before unfolding her mystical wing to cover everything above his being. Facing a confused dragon, she speaks to him in a confident and serious tone.

- "Surh arhu iumin, Zy surh tsekat prita uthu Darkstalker."

New feelings are strengthen in Ayirn's mind, like her expectation, anticipation and satisfaction as he is at her side, and soon he will be with all of them, as well as his essences. The deeper will of her is also burning brighter, his inner power drawing her attention like he is the key to something too important, or something she thinks it is.

I must be careful, I hope I could get what I want from them, but it seems they are just as eager to make use of me, or at lest use my presence. And if they decide to force me to do something… I will have no other choice but to do as ordered...

Having waited for long enough, Darkstalker can now see the shape of a dragon coming faster and faster until it starts circling around them, partially creating a tornado by the sheer size and speed of his form being enhanced by magic... Slowing down at each turn, the great dragon finally does a landing that shakes the ground, blowing air at him and his giant companion one last time with the powerful movement that folds his gigantic wings.

Now in front of them, the young seer can really see Xamirh for the first time. A yellow dragon slightly bigger than Ayirn, having a chain of fins at each side from head to tail, and four large horns like her.

But what truly marks the night dragon is not his body but his expression, a display of seriousness without any flaw nor any mercy that could give to who is facing him an escape. Diving into his mind only adds to that, as for now he only seems to think in a very rigid way, focusing solely on some important points and not being distracted by anything else.

Looking at him to judge his strangeness and if he is the reason he was called out, Xamirh then to speak at Ayirn. The giant dragoness is not surprised at all by what he represents and his power, standing to him as an equal while both have respect for the other, in their own way at least.

- "Heij ajek yl ueris nestoq uthu Ayirn, lieju ajek yl kehusit ust uthutias Tyrun?"

- "Ko Xamirh, Zotias tekel ajek Darkstalker."

- "Darkstalker…"

The yellow dragon looks at the little hybrid again, but does not think that much but who he is. Curiosity for the new power and essences he could use appears in his mind as he truly focuses on him, almost like a hidden hunger for what being is standing with his very young body, but such a strong feeling dissipates as Ayirn prepares to soar again, urging both dragons to do the same.

And so the three dragons are now headed to what Darkstalker imagines is where they live together. But he can not shake off the bad feeling he has about this, the look and interest Xamirh gave him, and to a lesser extent that of Ayirn, makes him remember a bit of Vigilance's authority and Scorpion's greed. And then a question occurs to him...

Who will be at my side? Who will defend me if one of these dragons tries to do anything bad to me?

The nightwing watches patiently Ayirn and her behaviour near Xamirh, she does not seem to oppose him nor to be at odd with him, in fact, she seems to like him quite seeing how she talks with him and has a more personal tone to her voice.

Of course she wouldn't oppose him, she must know him and work with him on a daily basis, it's obvious she will take his side more often than your. I'm a complete stranger to her, and she can't really understand me.

Fear creeps in the nightwing, making him be almost too cautious as he starts to think about an escape plan. With both dragons near me, straight up fleeing would be futile as Xamirh proved to be very fast and Ayirn has shown to have far more endurance than me, and they might have others abilities I don't know about...

Watching for anything that could hide him in the distance, he finds nothing in that dull sea of gray and black rock below him. Not that he could hide for long since the great dragons can feel his aura.

Calm down Darkstalker, calm down. I will have to wait, as the closer we are from our destination, the more potential opportunities there will be. Beside, it's irrational to fear they would do anything unpleasant to me during the first moment we arrive. They would have done it here if they wanted to...

Still a bit shaken by fear and cautious for his life, the nightwing continues to fly in silence, alongside the two great dragons who talk continuously and occasionally cast him some glances…

.

The three dragons are now close enough to the great dragons' home to see its shape, a great pyramid acting as a beacon among a multitude of towers, but not all of them burn at the top. To such a sight, Darkstalker focuses on the greatest building. This may be where they live, it may be strange and different, but it has the same aura of grandeur any palace has.

Checking his foresight, the nightwing realizes the pulse is not one, it is a group of many less powerful pulses on their own coming from distinct places, though the most powerful one by far comes from the pyramid, seeming to be deep inside it.

So the power they have does not have a unique source, though there is a strong mass of it there, good to know…

Approaching the pyramid, the young one spots three stages with an entrance to each. The building in itself seeming a bit simple from the exterior, with no decoration nor anything really standing out if not for the top emitting a beam of light like, maybe the insides will be different…

A moment later, Xamirh and Ayirn land their massive body on the final stage, on the floor of the top where one can access to the beacon and its power. Darkstalker soon follows but remains cautious, staying behind the two great ones when he touches the cold and polished ground before folding his black wings.

We'll see if anyone does act on bad intentions, I won't hesitate to try to escape this time. Thinks Darkstalker, keeping in mind how easy it is to start a flight from the edge of such a place...

Taking a very short moment to recover from their flight, the two great dragons then turn to face him, with the yellow one on the left and the blue and green one on the right. Facing their focused gaze and imposing forms, the nightwing carefully lays down and relaxes a bit, still trying to stare at the both of them, but focusing more on the left one.

- "Darkstalker, konles. Lieju heij uthu moneos?"

This time, the night dragon has no choice but to stand in silence while Xamirh faces him directly, suspicion and even a bit of worry tainting his gaze. He was always confident, even in the face of the queens due to his powers, but now that most of them are gone, there is little he can do, especially when the one in front of him radiates far more power than any royal in Pyrrhia's history, expect maybe for Diamond, but such queen is not one Darkstalker met in his life...

- "Yth hefum tho surh jukin, aqerh ythe sif asurh kalup muesine"

Ayirn's words breaks the great dragon's focus, shifting his thoughts into ones that are more... pleasant to look at as her own mind seems to genuinely care for the black dragon, though that does not clashes with her interests which are still in her mind. Facing a curious and moderately confused nightwing, the great dragoness tells him an answer to his doubt.

"Zo ajek u dolmukaran owhur sif alm ust ythe. Zy tunis zikos Zotias moekani ueris, kes Zo muka olmukara, ikul tho huko."

The imposing yellow dragon takes a moment to think about what has been said. Darkstalker can see his being trying to be associated with their kind in Xamirh's mind, and that is when he get glimpses of 'normal' dragons, or at least ones of his size with somewhat familiar features.

- "Lieju uthu huko uthutias olmukara Darkstalker?"

The nightwing freezes, the dragon's words are not even harsh nor is Xamirh, but having once again his attention, his eyes on him… It makes him feel vulnerable. Choosing to not take any risk, the little seer only says two words.

- "…Huko Xamirh."

- "Lieju uthu surh misyt?"

The more serious tone of the of the great dragon makes Darkstalker understand his last question, "Is he certain?". But as he takes time to find what to reply, Xamirh raises his left paw and infuses it with essences, ready to do to unleash a bit of magic.

The bright aura around his claws, acting like a flame, scares the night dragon as the great one takes a step closer and leans his head. His yellow eyes are fully focused now, piercing through his being. With a resonating and superior voice, a deep one that echoes over the lands, the great one tells his next words.

"Dueti yihe uthu vecik yl aeistu, yth tunis somul uthutias kumista solmaw heij uthu huko."

The young one recoils in shock as the scene he is the center of unfolds. What is he thinking?! Looking around him in panic, but not for too long as he must keep an eye on Xamirh, the nightwing lets his fear take more of his mind. I-I need to escape this place, rather sooner than later!

In his urge to escape the one he feels threatened by, Darkstalker hastily turns back and stands at the edge of the floor, only a few talon steps away from leaving by flight. What remains on his face is barely controlled terror as he stares at the yellow giant with utter focus in case he makes a move against him.

Seeing that, Ayirn puts herself before her equal and looks at the frightened one with an unreadable expression. Watching her mind, the nightwing is too stressed to come to a conclusion calmly. Instead, he deduces that the dragoness fully took his side, ready to follow the plan the great dragon has for him.

- "Darkstalker, boun uthutius."

- "Step back." Replies coldly the night dragon to hide his fear and to regain what little control he can over his situation.

To such a refusal, the great dragoness is annoyed, cracking her emotionless stance as she directly tries to make herself understood.

- "Darkstal-"

- "Silence! I don't need more of your words, now you are going to listen to me! Step back and let me in peace, or I leave…"

Ayirn appears frustrated, she is fully ignorant of what Darkstalker says like he is of her words. She would gladly try to resonate with him and calm down the situation, that would be beneficial to everyone, but she can not as he will listen only to his tongue, and only to the right words.

Sighing, the great dragoness musters her strength for what she is about to do

Tho eiuf heia eltupa.

As an aura form around Ayirn's front paws, showing the power her essences give them, the nightwing turns and jumps from the entrance... A moment of falling later, he fully deploys his wings and uses his momentum to start flying very close to the ground.

Walking to the end of the room she is on as if she had all the time in the world, the mystical one stands up on two legs and extends her front talons as far as she can from each other. Watching the little black dragon flying far from her and below like her kin Xamirh who decided to follow him, she waits for the right time.

When essences are on the verge of bursting at her claws and all her talons' muscles are stretched out to their limits, the great dragon makes a single, powerful clap to join her two paws with a loud bang, unleashing a giant blast of energy and succeeding a moment later at touching Darkstalker, but not her yellow kin who dodged at the last moment, devouring the young one and all the ground below him, making him crash while even the sky becomes bright for a moment...

When the blast evaporates, Xamirh can first witness the pitiful state the nightwing is in, paralysed and unconscious as well as wounded by the cruelty of his forced landing, in the middle of a land torn apart.

Landing close to his spot, his face not a happy one, the great dragon steps forward and takes care of the burned mess...