The Night Rising

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==Information==
This story is part of the A World of Unity AU, but you do not need to know about AWoU to read this.
This takes place around ninety years after The Flames of Hope.
==Prologue==
Every dragon was dying or dead, and the few that were not dying didn't have much time left, not if they kept fighting each other.
Midnight peeked over the side of her bed, glancing at the familiar shape of her father, Shadowstalker. She pulled herself onto the edge with all her strength, though as a very young dragonet, that strength was pretty weak.
She folded her wings back and tucked in her tail as she watched her father growl at an unknown figure, their eyes glittering in the torchlight. Midnight was sure she was supposed to be hiding, but she couldn't push back her curiosity. Plus, her bed was in the darkest corner of the room, so she blended in perfectly.
"I told you Spike," Her father growled at the mysterious dragon, "I don't have it." Her father held himself tall, imposing, hoping to scare off the other dragon. The diamond on his necklace bounced against his neck as he spoke.
"Scorch seems to disagree," Spike replied, matching Shadowstalker's tone and position as if to mock him. "Where are you hiding the dragonet?"
The dragonet? Midnight wondered, then stiffened, her heart beating fast. Am I the dragonet? Realizing that the last thing she should be doing was sitting up on the edge of her bed, Midnight quietly shifted back onto her bed, pulling the blanket over her head.
But it was too late. Spike had seen her moving, and she could hear the angry hiss, and the rattling of his tail, revealing that he was a SandWing. Peeking out, her eyes widened in horror as she saw what had happened. Spike held Shadowstalker's throat in his talons, and his venomous barb was lifting up slowly to his neck.
"You lied to me," Spike growled. "You know what happens to liars. Everyone does."
With a swift jab, Spike stabbed Shadowstalker with his tail, and Shadowstalker's body crumpled to the ground. It took all of Midnight's strength not to shout or scream. Then she realized, as he looked up, he wasn't done. He'd kill her too. Or take her.
Without a second thought, Midnight jumped off the bed, racing out into the open air. It was night-time, and no moons were full, nor close. She'd be able to use that to her advantage.
Spike followed soon after, and Midnight remembered that he was an adult, and she was a dragonet. She would not be able to outfly him, so she'd have to hide somewhere he wouldn't find her.
Swerving around one of the mountains near her home, she immediately dived into a tree, hoping her pursuer didn't watch her dive. She hid among the leaves, ignoring the pain of the branches and twigs poking into her. Thankfully, her plan worked, and Spike flew right over her without suspecting a thing. She quietly hopped out of the tree, landing on the grass and scaring off a curious rabbit.
She had to get back home.
Shadowstalker's body was still there when she got back, and Midnight bit back a wail. She walked up to his head, and gently closed his eyes, talons shaking.
"This is all my fault," She whispered in her father's ear. "If I hadn't been so curious, you would still be alive." Midnight then glanced down at the necklace her father wore. A single perfectly-cut diamond necklace, a gift. A vivid flashback to a memory she didn't know she had came, and she sat down to think about it.
Midnight batted at the diamond her father always wore. Her father laughed, making it bounce more, and she leapt up to grab at it, growling fiercely.
"Where did you get the necklace?" Midnight asked when she was tired of attacking the diamond. "Can I have it?"
Shadowstalker gently pat Midnight's head. "I got it from your mother," He said in a low voice, holding it up to the light. "She said to give it to you when you're an adult, because she couldn't."
"Can I be an adult now?" Midnight asked, batting at the diamond once more.
"I'm afraid that's not how aging works," Shadowstalker replied. "Now off to bed."
Midnight leaned over, and gently wrapped her talons around the diamond, tears still falling. "Father would want me to have this." She slid it off Shadowstalker's neck, then slid it over hers. After adjusting it to fit, she curled up next to her father, still crying.
When she woke up, a SandWing was crouched down, peering at her. At first, Midnight flinched back in alarm, thinking Spike had caught her. But this SandWing was smaller, more elegant, and clearly not Spike.
"What's your name, little dragon?" The SandWing asked, her voice soft and sweet.
"Midnight," Midnight whispered to the SandWing.
"I'm Sandstorm," The SandWing replied. "Is this your father?"
"Yes," Midnight replied, feeling the same wave of grief engulf her. "But he- he died."
Sandstorm paused for a moment, looking regretful. "You're too young to be fending for yourself. Do you want to come live with my friends and I?"
Midnight paused, before nodding. Sandstorm led her to a cave farther up ahead, where a green MudWing sat.
"Who is this?" The MudWing asked, their voice as kind as Sandstorm's.
"This is Midnight," Sandstorm replied, nodding to the MudWing. "Her father just died."
"I'm sorry to hear that," The MudWing told Midnight, dipping their head in respect. "Why don't I show you around?"
Midnight nodded, following the MudWing. The last days of her normal were gone.
Category:Fanfictions (Incomplete)
Category:Fanfictions (Fanon)
Category:Fanfictions