Sand and Night Trilogy Book Two: The Long Journey

Prologue
Shadow
“How could you let them escape?” Shadow yelled at the guards, “You had ONE objective: KEEP. THEM. IN. THE. DUNGEON!”
“Sir, we don’t know HOW they escaped,” one of the guards, Arid, said.
“WERE ANY OF YOU EVEN WATCHING THE DUNGEON?” Shadow bellowed, furious.
“We had a guard posted there. They must have fallen asleep,” Arid said, obviously pitying whoever was guarding the dungeon at the time.
“Do you have NO IDEA who you were detaining? There was an ANIMUS there! You should all have been on guard!” Shadow screamed, even more furious than before.
“We didn’t know about that!” Arid protested.
“I told you that you should have kept them locked up, and have most of your guards on duty there, because the half SandWing one was an animus, and I also told you to stay on guard in the first place! They are dangerous!”
“There were two hybrid SandWing-NightWings there!” Arid argued back.
“Oh. Well, that complicates things,” Shadow realized that he was going to have much more trouble becoming more than just a dragon than he first thought. “No matter. Capture ALL of them, and NO EXCEPTIONS. AND I EXPECT YOU TO PUT ALL OF YOUR GUARDS ON THEM THIS TIME!”
“Sir, yes, sir,” Arid and the other guards said, rather begrudgingly.
“Thank you,” he barely remembered to say. Shadow, grumbling, started heading out the door, and headed down, down, down to his room at the bottom of the stronghold, spacious and comfy, but it still felt like a prison. Impertinent guards. So unable to do anything. So idiotic. He noticed an object on his desk, and thought, What is this?
A note was underneath the object, and Shadow picked it up, lit a candle, and read it by firelight.
It said,
Shadow,
I give this to you out of utmost importance. It is a wish pendant, granting you three wishes. Choose wisely, though. You cannot wish for more wishes, so these are the only three wishes you get. No one else can use it, and if you lose it, it will teleport back onto your neck immediately. Choose wisely.
Signed,
The Reaper
This surprised Shadow, although it passed quickly. He didn’t care about who gave it to him, although the name was very strange. He whispered, “I wish to be an animus.”
A strange tingling sensation entered his palms. He grabbed a piece of paper, and whispered to it, excited, “I enchant this piece of paper to become a knife, sharp enough to cut through anything, but unable to harm me or those of my choosing. It cannot harm me, no matter what I say or do, and I must say ‘let that dragon die’ to be able to harm that dragon again using this knife, and to protect that dragon, I must say, ‘protect that dragon’. This knife cannot be used by anyone other than me, and can never be stolen.” The paper became a knife, with a blade so sharp that it surely could cut through anything, but it could not harm him or anything that he carried or wore.
Shadow turned back to the pendant. “I wish to be immortal and invulnerable,” he whispered to the pendant. He felt a tingling sensation in his entire body this time. One wish left, he thought fervently. He thought for a long while, and decided that maybe he should save it for a special moment. He unsnapped the back connectors, and put the pendant around his neck, and put the knife into a sheaf on his side. He then walked out the door, and thought, Watch out, NightWings. I’m coming for you. And I will show no mercy.
Part one
Disaster
Chapter 1
Sidewinder
Sidewinder, Nightwatcher, Clearsight, and Foresight landed about halfway to Agate Mountain, to rest.
“Should we actually be coming?” Nightwatcher asked, “Me and Foresight don't have any real powers.”
“You’re right,” Sidewinder replied, “And I don’t want you hurt.”
Clearsight said, “You should go back. Darkstalker might be suspicious if we have four dragons coming.”
“Come on, Foresight, let’s go back to the kingdom. Maybe we can catch Fathom before he leaves,” Nightwatcher said.
“Okay. I really wanted to help, though,” Foresight complained.
“You CAN help, by not coming. You would distract us, and we really want to keep you safe,” Sidewinder told her.
“Oh okay, fine,” Foresight grumbled, “Let’s go.”
Foresight and Nightwatcher headed off back to the Night Kingdom, and Sidewinder and Clearsight continued to Agate Mountain.
When they got there, they saw Darkstalker waiting, fuming.
“Darkstalker!” Sidewinder yelled, “You have to stop this madness!”
Darkstalker looked up, and his eyes were filled with tears, and pure rage. “You betrayed me, Sidewinder, and you, Clearsight. I had hoped we would have a better future together, but it seems not.”
“Darkstalker, I miss the old you,” Clearsight said, landing. She hugged Darkstalker tight.
“This is me,” Darkstalker said, “I never changed.”
“Yes, you did. This new you scares me.”
“I only need to finish a few more things, and then we will have a happy future,” Darkstalker whispered, almost too quiet for Sidewinder to hear.
“No. I’m sorry, Darkstalker, but you have gone too far,” Clearsight said. She slipped the bracelet onto Darkstalker, and he collapsed, asleep. Sidewinder and Clearsight moved him into the mountain, together, and they moved boulders in front of him to hide him, and then they watched on a nearby mountain as Agate Mountain crumbled and fell, hiding the dragon that had given them so much happiness, and yet so much despair.
“I remember a dream I once had, about exploring the Lost Continent,” Clearsight suddenly said to Sidewinder. “Maybe we can go over there, and start a new life.”
“Maybe. We can’t stay here. We would never be able to stay away from him. He was more than a friend. He felt like family,” Sidewinder said.
“Let’s go,” Clearsight sighs.
Chapter Two
Clearsight
Halfway through the journey to the Lost Continent, disaster struck. They had been using their foresight to tell what the best possible route was, and this time they had landed on an island. It was large enough to be the Lost Continent, or at least it seemed that way, but their visions told them they were only halfway to the continent. As they set up camp, they didn’t see the creature behind them. Their foresight told them there was danger, and when they spun around to face it, they were glad they did. 
The creature stepped out into the light, revealing its grotesque body. It had a large, reptilian head, with teeth the size of a banana, and in a similar shape, with eyes glowing with a malevolent intelligence high up on the long snout. It had a thick, strong neck, which was attached to an athletic body that was thick-muscled and snakelike, with long, strong legs and arms that were long as well, with four-fingered hands and a seemingly strong grip. It’s tail was long and partially whip-like, with some spines coming from its back all the way down its neck, back, and tail. It roared, revealing a forked tongue. This was a creature of the night. But it was daytime. It lunged, screaming like a possessed beast, and jumped onto Sidewinder’s side. Roaring in pain, a breath of fire shot out of her mouth, singeing the creature’s side, but not seeming to do much to it.
Sidewinder then screams, “Get off of me!” forgetting that she was an animus. The monster was thrown off, and landed on its feet, like a cat. “Stop attacking us!” She yelled, because she didn’t know what else to do. The creature instantly became docile, and seemed to be friendly, creepily.
“Wh-what is that?” Clearsight asked, scared.
“Enchant this shell to become a scroll that holds information about this creature,” Sidewinder said.
The shell did just that, and it said,
This creature is commonly known as the Daemon Lizard. It’s forked tongue allows it to smell animals in the wind, and it can see heat. It’s whiplike tail is used for battering prey into submission, and it’s front talons are used to grasp prey. It has a bite that can obliterate bone, so be wary. It has a slightly venomous bite, but this cannot kill a dragon.
“Whoa,” Clearsight said.
“It seems scary,” Sidewinder shivered.
“We should head out,” Clearsight said.
“Yes,” Sidewinder said, “before more come.”
Sidewinder enchanted the creature to wait thirty heartbeats before returning to normal, so they had enough time to escape beforeclaw. The two then headed on towards the Lost Continent.
Chapter 3
Shadow
“Sir, the two dragons are about half a day ahead of us,” Arid informed him.
“Good. Now, I want all of you to head back to the stronghold. They won’t know I’m coming if I come alone,” Shadow announced.
“But, sir--”
“Don’t ‘but sir’ me,” Shadow said.
“Yes, sir,” Arid said. The guards started heading back towards the stronghold.
Good. Now I can teleport myself there, Shadow thought. He did just that, but teleported just behind them, to not be suspicious. He then followed the two dragons to wherever they were going. But before he could go anywhere, he felt a… presence.
Greetings, Shadow. I am The Reaper. I am the one who sent you the pendant.
Let me guess. Now that you are here you are going to take over my brain, Shadow thought.
No, no, far from it. Hide yourself from the dragons you are following-quickly, The Reaper said. Thought? Whatever.
Shadow enchanted a wristband he had to hide himself from the two dragons he was following- from their future visions.
Good, The Reaper said, Now, I have a… secret to tell you. I am a very powerful animus myself, but not of any tribe you would know of. Yet. It will be thousands of years before my tribe shows themselves to the other tribes, but we are here.
What are you? Shadow asks.
I am a LightWing, a rather rare tribe of dragon.
Those aren't real. There are only seven tribes! Shadow thought.
They are very real. LightWings are rare, though, as I already stated. Don’t underestimate me though. I can do things most animus can’t do.
What should I do? Shadow asked.
Just follow the dragons for now. My first orders for you will come.
Part Two
Defeat
Chapter 4
Sidewinder
“How close are we?” Sidewinder asked Clearsight, genuinely curious.
“About an hour left until we get there. Not too long now,” Clearsight answered.
“Good. We have been flying FOREVER,” Sidewinder almost complained. But they got to the “Lost Continent” much faster than they thought. And it was barren. Trees had been pulled up, and a large gouge was in the earth. Before either of them could cry out, a massive thing reached out from the gouge and brought them both into the earth.
Chapter 5
Clearsight
Dirt and roots brushed aside Clearsight’s entire body. The grip of the creature holding them was strong, and the creature itself must be huge. Before long, they were dropped into a large cavern deep in the planet’s surface.
“Sidewinder! Are you all right?” Clearsight shouted out, worried about her friend.
“No. We were just pulled into the ground! WHY WOULD I BE FINE?” Sidewinder shouted, a tiny bit meanly.
“Jeez!” Clearsight said, a little bit hurt.
“I’m sorry, seriously,” Sidewinder said, a little bit embarrassed that she would yell at her friend.
“Welcome. We have been waiting for you for a little while now,” Something said, from the darkness. It then stepped out, but before it could do anything, Sidewinder shouted, “I enchant this rock to teleport us out of here!”
After this, Clearsight’s sight went black.
Chapter 6
Shadow
“Welcome. We have been waiting for you for a little while now,” The Reaper spoke through Shadow’s mouth. Before he could do anything, the Sand/Night hybrid enchanted a rock to teleport them out of there. But it teleported him too. Straight back to his room, in the SandWing palace. A guard was staring at him, mouth open in shock.
“S-sir. We weren’t expecting you to be back so soon,” Arid, his general, said.
“Of course not!” Shadow snapped, “I was teleported here with magic!”
“Of course. Who was this?” Arid asked, infuriatingly calm.
“That hybrid I told you to detain. The one named Sidewinder,” Shadow informed the guard.
“Of course. I will send out a team-”
“No! I must take care of this myself!” Shadow said. If only I could read minds-wait. I can enchant myself to be able to do that. So that I will. I enchant myself to be able to read the minds of any dragon. As he did this, the thoughts of Arid flooded into his mind. 
Spoiled brat of a prince, Arid was thinking, always wanting to get what he wants. At this, Shadow fumed, but knew he couldn’t expose himself, for he would be used for the queen’s bidding.
Part Three
Salvation
Chapter 7
Sidewinder
She appeared in what seemed to be her home, but… different. It was destroyed.
“Hello, Sidewinder,” A familiar voice said, “It seems like just yesterday I saw you.”
“Darkstalker. How are you awake?”
“Well, nothing lasts forever. Did you know that we are two thousand years into the future?”
“No. Tha-that isn’t possible!” Sidewinder said. I gotta get out of he-
And she appeared, in front of Clearsight.
“Thank the moons you’re back!” Clearsight exclaimed. “You were gone for weeks!”
“Weeks? I was gone for only a moment,” Sidewinder said, confused.
“Thus are the effects of time dilation,” A new voice said. “Do not be afraid. I am Sand Blowing on the Wind. Yes, I know, a very long name. My mother heard and saw this, so here I am. You may simply call me Sand.”
“Well, hello, Sand,” Sidewinder said, “Do you know where we are?”
“We are on Pantala, the Lost Continent.”
“Well, how are we-” Sidewinder was cut off by a massive roar. A terrible beast, twenty times the size of the original Daemon Lizard, but looking very similar, came over towards them. Sidewinder leapt onto it’s back, using her tail barb and claws and teeth and fire against it. She enchanted the beast to be docile, but it didn’t seem to work. It grabbed Sidewinder, and chomped down with a distinctive crunch.
Chapter 8
Clearsight
She was terrified by the way that the massive beast instantly crushed one of Sidewinder’s wings, and then dropped her onto the ground. Suddenly, Sidewinder was back up again, her wing magically healed.
“Stop!” Sand yelled, showing himself for the first time, “They are friends!”
The massive creature looked at him, and nodded. Sidewinder came down, and asked Sand “What tribe are you? You can’t be a NightWing, can you?”
“I am a DeathWing, one of the more… powerful tribes.”
“Ah. It has been prophesied that this would happen,” A new voice said. “I am the Reaper.” Shadow stepped out from the darkness. “Hello.”
“Wait--You’re Shadow. How can you be a different dragon?” Sidewinder asked, coming up closer to Clearsight.
“Ah. This body is Shadow, but the mind is not,” Shadow-- no, wait, Reaper-- said.
The monstrous Daemon Lizard chose this moment to pounce, leaping towards the Reaper.
“Ah-ah-ah,” the Reaper said patronizingly. The creature is thrown back, landing on its side. “Do you know how I am here? It is a little something I call the Breath of Evil.”
Clearsight stumbled at the mention of the plant. She got a terrible vision of Sidewinder, her eyes rolled back, laughing while commanding an army of buglike dragons. Sidewinder obviously had the same vision, because they both looked at each other, eyes wide in terror.
“As you can see, I created Sidewinder from the very beginning. Do you like how I made her?” he cackled maniacally.
“No. It-it can’t be true. You-you can't have made me.”
“I did, Sidewinder. It’s true.” He gestured towards Sidewinder with one claw, bringing her towards him. “Now. Don’t move a muscle-” Suddenly, Sidewinder disappeared, and Clearsight understood what happened. Sidewinder had moved herself to the future.
Chapter 9
Shadow
“Now, don’t move a muscle.” Sidewinder disappeared from sight, and then he did not know what he just did. Who was Sidewinder?
“Get. Away. From. Clearsight.” A deep voice said all around. Darkstalker! Shadow thought. A massive, dark claw flew towards him, and before he could do anything, he was knocked out. When he woke up, he was in chains.
“You have failed me, Shadow.” A white dragon stared at him. “I am the Reaper, and you are no longer mine.”
“No!” Shadow yelled before appearing in the Sand Kingdom once again. “I failed.”
“Not quite yet,” Darkstalker whispered in his ear. “You still have me.”
Epilogue
Sidewinder
She appeared on her own continent, two thousand years into the future. Two dragons stood in front of her, a SandWing and a NightWing.
“Who are you?” The SandWing asked curiously.
“I am Sidewinder, and your world is in grave danger. But first, what are your names?”
“I am Qibli, and this is Moon. If the world is in danger, we are the right dragons for the job.”
“I doubt that, but give me the details,” Sidewinder said suspiciously.
“Well, we saved the world from Darkstalker, of course,” the dragon named Moon said.
“He got out?”
“Yeah. But we saved the world anyway,”  Qibli said, grinning.
“Someone new is coming, and he will not stop until this continent is his. I need your help, and you need mine.”
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Fanfictions (Incomplete)
Category:Fanfictions (Semi-Canon)