Queen's note: so, rough time here, but Managed to get this chapter written.

Slight warning for big lizard puppies getting hurt. And back into the scary side of doom again next few chapters.

Garnets

Chapter Eighty Five:

Spotted

There was a low, chuffing, chuckle, the Slayer carefully pulling the wings up and then grunted as he too was grabbed and pulled into the nest. Praetor suit and all, Viola purring that she had both her rider and his hatchling- she lifted her head and grabbed the startled phantom to stuff in her nest. Curling up fully to stare at the Sentinels from under her wing. She flicked her tail as Valen came over with the egg offered before.

"Lady, you can not keep them, you have to let your rider out, so we can get your eggs up to a real nest. We need to keep them, and Lily safe in the vault while the Slayer King makes Nabad safe. He'll need you to do that once you are healed." Valen said as he reached out to offer the egg.

There was a long pause before Viola leaned over to open her jaws, taking the egg back and then shifted. She seemed to blink before lifting up to set the egg in Lily's lap. The human giggling where she was sitting with her dad. (...dads?) Viola was clearly wanting to keep nesting and wavered, about to settle back down as she did not feel pain any more. The wintherin wanted to just curl up-

The big creature grunted as she was lifted up from the chest, making a protesting growl at her rider. The Slayer just stood up and bodily lifted the witherin until she got back up on her own and seemed to glare down at her rider.

"Mm?" The Slayer stretched and then tugged on a tusk, Viola trying to pull her head away in a clear upset pout. She wanted to nest. Not do anything else-

"Big girl?" Lily called, holding her hands up, the egg in her lap while getting the wintherin's attention at once. "Let's get you and the eggs safe?"

Viola tilted her head, lifting off the nest and fanned her wings, and then froze. She seemed to notice then that though the arms of Viola's wings were healed the membrane still needed to be fixed. With a protesting groan, the wintherin stretched out around the outer edge of the nest and flopped her wings out with a demanding grumble.

The Slayer chuckled at the response as he offered a hand to his daughter and the phantom of his crucible to help. Humming as he pulled Lily up first, then the phantom before motioning for help with the wintherin's wings. Frederick wavered on his feet a moment, taking the same motion of a deep breath. Then offered the healing tool back to Lily with one hand, the other hand reached out to catch the big muzzle of the male wintherin.

"You can do it, babygirl." Frederic said, "I'm proud of you."

"I did the thing dad." Lily looked up, looking shocked at what just happened. She blinked and turned at the head pat from the Slayer.

This was not so bad.

The smaller wings rustling was covered by the fanning the larger wings of the two wintherin. The smaller male took a chance to nose into the nest, as much to check on the eggs as the little Argenta child to him. Sniffing and then gave the phantom a lick, puzzled as he smelled and tasted like his mate's rider? He chirped a question, but his mate seemed as puzzled as he was.

"Am I that fascinating being short?" Lily asked as her side was licked, trying to push the big head away. It took her and her dad's phantom working together to nudge the gray head aside.

"Apparently," Frederick grunted as he was pinned by the still massive head settling on him while the wintherin chirped a demand for attention from him now. "Good gods your heavy big boy."

The male purred in response, well able to understand. Though he was used to that phrase as a compliment. It still seemed like it-

The male wintherin froze and gave the impression of blinking. Lily had gotten up, eggs all safely back together as she stood up to grasp one of the back curving horns. The healing crystal tool clunked against the base of the horn. There was a pause before the big head slowly tilted towards Lily, letting her pull the big creature's head to the side of the nest. Then it could be seen when she realized it was the tool that helped. It helped or just made the big animals feel nice.

Did he have pain in his horns? It was possible as it looked like the silver horn did look to have a bite mark. Lily wondered how this big boy got his male out of the water, did he let her bite into him?

"You're such a good husband," Lily said softly, distracting the male as her dad was being pulled up by John. The Slayer.

Lily reminded herself to use the title-name while out in the open. She did understand that the demigod wanted to keep her safe. She smiled, still grateful for the head bump he did to reassure when under the cover of Viola's wings. The young woman blinked before Lily looked around, hugging the tool against her as the wintherin licked at it, and the young woman remembered to keep a hold on it. Bastet and Valen said not to let the dragon creatures eat it. "Does he have a name too?"

Valen paused at the air of the nest, gave the wintherin male a critical look. "I do not recognize him myself, Haco?"

"Not that we've found so far." Haco shrugged from over by the boat, seeing a second raft coming with a few supplies. Including something to move the eggs in as the hostility of the wintherins was calming down by the minute. "We've just been calling him handsome? Viola seems to think he is."

"...he is handsome." Lily smiled up at the wintherin, getting an open nuzzle back after the compliment. "Yeah, you are… you look dirty though."

"He's been turning gray with the death ash staining him," Valen noted, helping the Slayer with the healer for getting Viola to hold a wing still and start anchoring what looked like a mix of staples, and a shimmering stitch? Stitches?

"How are you doing that Pa'x?" Lily asked, watching the experienced healer making what looked like those staples with his wraith gift? This was a thing?!

"Experience," the Argenta man chuckled, Pa'x was ducking all the way under the left wing, "I'll teach you some basics when we're back in the vault my lady. Now come over here with that gifted healing tool."

Lily startled a little bit, paused to look up at her father's phantom. Frederick grinned back and pushed her back to go over. "Go help Babygirl. Finish what you started, almost done."

The young woman nodded, slowly climbing up the side of the nest to where Pa'x was under the big wing. Lily looked around with the and asked, "Where…?"

"Go to the part closer to the leading edge of the wing," Pa'x instructed, back to his task of getting the wing membrane to be held together. "Go slow, like you did on the big lady's neck. Same concept of pushing to clear the wound but binding the edges together. What you will do is strt the process of healing the wing. Enough to hopefully let her get airborne and up to the throne room. From there we can start feeding her energy to heal at a faster than natural rate, but not so fast that we can't correct the scarring."

Valen gave an approving sound from where he stood helping brace the Wing at the second joint. "We can also check those eggs in the vault. Make sure the water has not hurt them."

The Slayer nodded, holding the next two pieces together for the healer to attach together. The Demigod glanced to the side and froze, watching as what must be Pa'x living wolf was standing on the beach. The two living wolves and the phantom ones had been walking around and doing the equivalent of 'chatting' social animals would do, as well as when the living and lingering wolves just were together in non fighting.

All at once the Slayer realized the wolves were quiet and had been for a few minutes now. He turned his head to get a better look at the living wolf. She was staring straight up. Turning, the Slayer found the golden phantom wolf that attached itself to Lily doing the same, watching something straight up. So we're Valen's ghostly wolves.

The Slayer gave a warning sound, a low growl that seemed to come from lower in his belly then throat as he looked up. He was aware in some part of himself that was connected to the Last Gift, of Frederick coming fully alert in the nest. Green glowing eyes scanned above them, not seeing the underside of the throne room but a thick mist. Fog? But it was rolling and moving with the air… and staying up high instead of sinking to the ground and lake surface like fog and mist was supposed to do. The Slayer growled again as he saw just a flash of movement at the very edge of the fog.

Viola was turning her head from sniffing at Haco and the container he was bringing to the nest. Paused as she looked at her rider, then around before remembering looking up.

Valen turned to see that the phantom human was also looking upwards, standing half way up the ground nest. "Frederick, what do you see up there?"

"...light. I see lights moving."

"What kind of lights?" Valen asked as he was looking where the odd fog came from. It looked to be flowing from one side of the edge of the throne room, only the water was not in as much of a sheeting waterfall. "You're the only one who can see energy and explain. What color of light, and can you see shapes?"

"I… I see…" The phantom man stood still for a long moment as both wintherin were peering up as well. All at once Frederick's eyes flash to a solid shimmering color that reflects the opalescent blade on his back. A look that was a mix of sudden anger and hunger came to the phantom. "I remember those, from the Platform. I saw them rip boats apart- Lily! You need to get out of here!"

Viola let out a bellowing roar as she reared up to her hind legs. The sound echoed by her mate as the war beasts recognized the defending threat. The Slayer, Pa'x and Valen were knocked back as Viola fanned her tattered but no longer dislocated wings. The sound was added to as the phantom wolves howled their own eerie warnings, then the two living wolves picking up the warning call.

The massive wintherin matriarch snarled as she moved back over the ground nest. Her core arm brushed something warm curled up underneath her and looked down. Spotting her rider's child, Viola grasped what she saw as a child between her forepaws and crouched over the nest as the sound of warning was being overtaken by the screaming of many distorted creatures above that started to descend by way of chaos.

Not all were wings that fell, many creatures seemed to have been held and just dropped. Or they let go of the underside of the throne room, falling through the unnatural fog to fall into the water around, or above the island. Viola crouched on her hind legs, one forepaw holding her rider's baby as she filled her chest with air.

Lily had screamed, scared at the chaos starting, Argenta energy weapons were firing upwards- the sound of rifles and heavier ballista weapons of theirs. She looked up in a mix of horror and saw as a glow started to shine through the thick pale hide. Starting under Viola's wide chest and then climbing up the neck before letting out what looked like…magic. Not fire really, as even though the blue flames spilling out of the big jaws did look like some sort of chemical fire- it was cold. Not ice forming but frost was dropping on Lily from the wintherin. The male was starting to let out his own eruption of fire straight up as well, trying to make a barrier against the first… demons that were falling.

Demons.

Lily tried to twist, to look around but the wintherin's grip did not give any room. The giant creature gasped, stopping her stream of 'fire' before shifting and taking another deep breath before letting out another stream. The male was gasping for air a few moments later. The wintherin were trying to stagger their fire to make a shield.

Chunks of death char were falling through the wintherin fire like hail almost. If not for the unburned creatures hitting the ground, like the possessed falling from upper docks to the lower sections. Lily knew that sound of a body hitting the ground now. The cracking and inhuman whaling before the surviving monsters started to heal.

Lily only got glimpses of what was happening beyond the nest and wings. Sounds were turning into white noise. She saw Haco and John- the Slayer moving too fast. Faster then she had ever seen anyone move. Silver and green armored forms blurring that bit to just baffle the mind. Energy weapons discharged and there was something like scraping metal and another sound Lily recognized.

Like her altered mother eating a smaller monster. That crunch and rip in the semi dark followed by that humming. There was no humming this time, just cracking and heavy, dull thuds. The sound of the wintherin gasping for air as she shifted, protective of Lily and the eggs. The two dragon-like creatures were shifting attention from above to what was around them.

Lily caught a glimpse of Haco's massive form at the edge of the ground nest. Looking even bigger because he was standing shoulder to shoulder with her dad's phantom. Shoulder to ribs?

Wait, why was her dad holding his own crucible self?

There was a jerking motion, and Lily was thankful she really did not eat much as both of Viola's forepaws grasped around her and pulled close to the pale, though likely ash stain body. The wintherin let out a second warning sound as they looked up before letting out another spew of 'fire' around the outside of the nest. Viola reared back with the small child, as she saw Lily, screaming now in a mix of anger and alarm.

Something else was coming down from the fog.

Viola dropped down, feeling her rider's child scrambling for any sort of hold on her own chest. Holding the human there and letting go with one forepaw to brace on the ground, taking advantage of the chias to grab three of the soft eggs in her maw. Her mate diving in closer to get the other eggs while the big female backed up. She did not have a saddle on, or much of anything for the small one to hold onto on her back.

Still tattered wings fanned out as Viola turned, hearing several Argenta voices calling out but she did not fully understand them. Her mate launched up to bodily shield her from the spitting attacks if the gargoyles, twisting in the air to use his tail and hit them mutated scavengers Even with his own mouthful of eggs he was definitely proving himself the best mate to shield Viola's retreat into the water.

Lily gasp at the chill- something almost familiar though it had been several months since she was diving in the cold waters of her home platform. The 'thin' under armor provided some insolation, but thankfully the wintherin let Lily go. The big head ducking underwater to push and nudge at Lily until she grasped the big horns. Arm looped around one horn, Lily was able to trigger her mask to give the dose of medicine and breath properly again. Looking around to see that the almost dragon was swimming towards another island under the throne room building. Turning back Lily could see Haco and her father's phantom at the beach. See the sentinels forming some sort of group formation- and then Lily had to hold her breath as both she and Viola's head dropped under the surface.

Something was hitting on the surface just above them before there was a shadow that passed and several smaller things in the air erupted into bursts of burning char. Lily held tight to the horn with her left arm, reaching up to her mask to purge the vents and get a breath. The human looked and regretted it at once as she saw the diving hell creature.

A part of her recognized the hovering creatures above and almost let go of the wintherin. Those things were what Vega called Gargoyles, the things that were known for sinking ships on earth- Hells, Lily remembered an entry John had wrote in his older notebooks-

There were also glowing protrusions of green crystal-like growths along one creature's head and shoulders. Growths that Lily instantly recognized and could only scream at first at seeing here. On a full demon- not just the possessed around her once home platform. The stuff that grew around only once source Lily knew of, and she reflexively let go of Viola to kick and get away. To get far away from the memories of the singing, the crunch of bodies- the sense of mass and what would sink ships that autodocked if Lily or her dad got on them too long after a curtain point no matter how much she was burned by the salt water-

Salt water.

Lily was in freshwater.

It was panic that was forming- had formed. Lily had looked back when she knew she should never have done as she slipped under the surface. Looking with wide eyes around the hazy waters without the other half of her mask. It stung but not as much as when in the sea, letting Lily check in her panic that nothing was coming up- only the pale form was not rising up but letting out a vibration of sound from above that the human kicked off from, before realizing the under armor was making her more negatively buoyant then normal.

It was long habits that were ingrained that had Lily reaching for her chest. Not for the crystal heart but where there used to be a valve on her diving suit to add air to her suit. Only to realize half way through the fear that she was not on the platform. Not outside of it.

It was freshwater?

Almost like a crocodile in the water, Viola was twisting, diving down as acid splashed her back. Mouth full of eggs the Wintherin made use of her longer neck to hook her horns around the human. Lifting what she still saw as her rider's child- younglings were scared of the monsters and needed to be protected from them! Viola broke the surface, hearing Lily gasping for air before grabbing at the right horn and the wintherin's head while her tail lashed to swim faster. "DAD!"

There was a low, more mechanical whine before a discharge of a ballista sounded. The wave or crackling orange energy arching over head to hit one of the demons. The one without the growths. Then Haco's voice bellowed over the surface as a darker shadow passed.

"Don't touch the ones with crystal! Stay with the Wintherin Lady!"

That darker shadow proved not to be a bigger demon but Viola's mate as he kicked with hind legs at the other gargoyles in the air. Knocking some into the water away from the two on the surface before gliding ahead to the island Viola was aimming for. One with more sand than anything and no rounded glass pebbles. Or very little.

He was digging up a deep trench while landing with forelegs, dropping the eggs the male winterin was holding in his jaws, pushed some sand back over them and let out a belch of that 'fire' as a improvised protection of the eggs. He reared back up to hind legs and launched back into the air, wings beating hard to get up with his weight. To get moving back to bodily ram into the next wave of demons splitting from the main fight, attracted to what seemed like easy prey.

There was another kind of roar then, something deeper than an earthquake, like one of the many new volcanos on Earth that reared up in the invasion. But this was… this was making an echo of rage vibrate to the soul. Lily slipped on Viola's head, feeling a wall of heat rolling past them from behind and spilling out over the water. Making the scent of petrichor rise up and Lily almost looked back again. She scrambled at the wide head and pressed her own against the back of Viola's. Shaking and pretty sure she was crying but knew better to look back at the feeling. At the two not so thuds on the island they had sent a notable shockwave of vibration through the water itself and over the surface.

Something was happening.

Two somethings likely just happened at the new tones of deep bellowing roars, counterpoint to the screeching of the gargoyles. The whine and thunder of weapon fire.

Why did that give the impression of boss music?

Lily could not help that odd thought that popped up as Viola got to the other island. Lily slid off the wintherin's head and neck, gasped and scrambled under the big creature as Viola rumbled. Inadvertently Lily got a glimpse of…

Well, those were not just monsters but nightmares.

Nightmares that towered three times over the Argenta and Slayer alike, and were covered with armor like green crystal growths.

"My baby?" A warped voice spoke from the side, making Lily flinch away. It was real because Viola growled at the demonic voice as she turned, baring teeth around the eggs.

That infected, or altered, gargoyle was crawling out of the water on the beach. Close enough that it's purring was audible, as well as not moving too much for the glowing eyes to be seen not as yellow, but shining bright green. An arm reached out, fingers flexing on either side of the bone blade that split out of the forearm. Making blood ooze out of the forever breaking and healing wounds on the arms. The split mandibles of the lower jaw, and some of the throat should not be making any sound but for the almost bubble-like formations forming and coming up out of its core.

"My….mine… my little gem-" the creature staggered up right, arms reaching out. Rasping sound but the words not quite coming from it's ripped apart maw but the crystals rapidly growing on it.

Lily backed away, eyes widening as Viola's forelegs moved to be a barrier between the human and demon. "Nonono…no! You can't be- you're gone!"

"I'm here," The demonic words crooned out of the creature as it stepped closer. "I found you my babygirl-!"

"No!" Lily only partly understanding it as she gripped at Viola's right foreleg, the wintherin shifting away. Taking Lily away as much as keeping a living shield over the human. Viola starting to curl her forearm to let Lily climb on and move away, snarling around her eggs.

The taken over Demon purred again, it's weird, half burned wings fanning before angling downward. As if to try and be less hostile, still crooning and an eerie humming was coming out of it and from the growths. The voice growing stronger, while at the same time it felt like the human was locking up. "My baby, my little gem… little hatchling, they will… will bring you back… trust the Brothers-"

The Last Gift hit the ground between taken over, possessed, demon and the two. Frederick's phantom flickered into view, grabbing the blade and launched at the demon. Teeth bared and eyes glowing a bright reflection of his active blade. A wordless roar of sound coming from the living weapon as he decapitated the demon before the blue sea glass overpowered the green growths.

"Get away from my daughter!" Frederick yelled, using all of what was left of his strength to make sure the demon was dead. The discharge of demonic energy and the black blood was absorbed into the blade of the Last Gift. Frederick staggered a moment, then stumbled towards Viola. "Lily!"

"Dad!" Lily felt tears burning in the sides of her eyes as she fumbled on the big pale foreleg. "Daddad- I heard, she's here-!"

"Not really here, you have to get out of here-" Frederick hurried over, wrapping his free arm around Lily. Trying to get her and Viola to move to the other side of the island. "Valen's coming, he's going to get you out of here on that other dragon."

"Valen?" Lily echoed, feeling fear shivering through her, and the strange static that came from her father's phantom. It felt almost wrong- like that charge on the skin John had sometimes.

"Deep breath Lily, time to act not to lock up, you can do it babygirl!" Frederick said, the old words jarring Lily into moving. "Keep moving, don't look back, imma keep you covered."

Frederick looked up as he got the young woman to move, the big dragon following after to protect. Spotting the shadow of the other with…wing… wither… the male dragon that had Valen climbing from a foreleg to its back and the old saddle there.

There was a warning shout from Haco, who had thrown the Last Gift ahead. Valen getting knocked off the big beastie as one of those towering living nightmares tackled the wintherin male. The creature tucked his wings and dove for the water, diving in and writhing to get free. Shaking off the elder Barron and kicking off it to swim back and get its current rider in deeper waters.

The demon stood back up, shaking itself and standing in water up to its lower chest. Looking around before spotting the glow of a living soul and phantom. The water falling off it's form, armor and thick, encrusting crystal-like growths down it's, his, back as the demon walked towards the islet.

"Well, well, the Argenta left fresh meat and eggs unattended… oh? What's this smaller thing?" He asked spotting not just the wintherin female and her eggs but… a mortal child the phantom was trying to hide behind him. "Haha! Looks like a snack too!"

Reviews!

XFireStoneX:
Purring dragon to purring...erm...monsters. O.0