The Dragon’s Crypt

== Prologue ==
Cassiopeia paced across the landscape, pausing at the beach as the salted breeze whisked their wings backwards. Their brother halted next to him, his darkened tail lashing.
“Lovely isn’t it?” Cassiopeia mused as Crux nodded. Cassiopeia’s talons flexed into the sand, their eyes closing momentarily at the shuddering pain building at the back of their skull.
“Cas?” Crux nudged his sibling. Cassiopeia winced. “Headache.” They replied, with complete knowledge it was more. The darkened sky seemed to shimmer slightly and Cassiopeia jumped as a wave licked their talons. They stepped back, lashing their tail, the headache growing worse. “Ack-“ Crux released a surprised exclamation, leaping towards his sibling as Cassiopeia crumpled into the dirt. “Cas! Cas!” He shook the other, worriedly glancing back towards the forest concealing them. Crux laid the other on the sand and spread his wings preparing to take off when Cassiopeia spoke.
Find dragonets of two, one of red and one of blackened hue
Find Wings of Rain, to the false bear, for they shall have no fear
Across the ocean, a long journey, to discover something kept from me
Keeper of the crypt shall wake, pierced through the heart by an ebony stake
Alive once more, he shall burn the shore, of a new land
Unseen to man
Talons of green, talons of iron, talons of shark, and talons of fire
Shall unite to win this fight
Across the sea, unsuspecting, he lies in wait, preparing for the crimson day
Cassiopeia shuddered heavily and went limp against the moon-bathed dunes. “Cas.” Crux reached his sibling and shook them gently. Cassiopeia opened their eyes and sat up, rubbing the retreating headache from their temples.
“Was that a prophecy?” Crux demanded as his sibling rose. Cassiopeia nodded and Cruz tilted his head, most likely listening to the quiet fog from Cassiopeia’s mind. Cassiopeia shook out their wings, their tail thumping the sand. “Did you write it down?” They inquired. Crux nodded. Cassiopeia read the prophecy over Crux’s shoulder, wincing again. “Well…better get looking.” Cassiopeia spread their wings and leapt into the sky.
== Chapter One ==
Tadpole bustled around his small room in the underwater labyrinth, climbing onto the shelf of rock he slept on. Wrapping his finned tail around himself he pulled a waterproof book from his carved stone shelf and began to read. He felt a sharp prod in his side. 
  “Lily!” He exclaimed as the band looping his tail splashed into the water, snatched by unseen talons. A dark ochre AmphiWing popped her head to the surface, grinning smugly.
  
 “Better keep track of your stuff Tad.” Lilypad tossed him his band which he set on his shelf, flicking water at her with his tail fin. “Come on Tad, The Queen’s calling a meeting.” Tadpole’s eyes brightened. “Really?” He inquired tapping a talon onto the stone ledge. Lilypad nodded energetically, seizing his tail and dragging him under. The duo paddled through the underwater tunnel, keen eyes catching the view of the signs directing them where to go. “Oh my!” Lily exclaimed as she peered out of the liquid. A massive dragon was standing near Queen Leopard-Frog, his shark-like fin protruding from his head instead of horns. “That’s King Reef.” Tadpole murmured to Lilypad as they climbed out of the water and onto the carved plateau where the thrones stood. 
   “Attention! Attention!” King Dart clapped his talons as a Metallic dragon swooped down from the above-ground entrance. A few other dragons swept in after the MetalWing. King Reef stepped forward as the crowd quieted. 
    “There have been reports of unfamiliar dragons crossing the ocean in our direction.” Reef growled. “Who’s that?” Lily whispered in Tadpole’s ear. Tadpole pointed a webbed talon at the metallic dragon. “That’s Princess Zinc. The spikey one is Queen Rose, the one with the feathery mane is King Crimson, and the pink one is Queen Cherry.” Lilypad chuckled. “You are such a nerd.” An AmphiWing standing next to them smacked his tail near their spot.
 
 “Quiet.” He hissed. Tadpole and Lilypad turned their gaze back to the FinWing king. “They appear to be in a boat of sorts, so far we’ve spotted three dragons.” 
“Woah something different.” Tadpole whispered, awestruck. “Unseen species!” Lilypad snickered. “Nerd.” She murmured. 
    “They seem to be on a trajectory to our continent.” Reef’s ripped tail fin lashed. There were surprised murmurs. “We have patrols monitoring them as we speak.” The FinWing continued. “We should know of their intentions soon, the gathering is dismissed.” The Kings and Queens continued to converse in low tones, as the dragons milled about on the lower half of the plateau, only royals were permitted on the raised portion with the thrones. 
   “Tadpole.” A voice called for him from across the cave. He turned to see his mother strolling towards him. “Tadpole you and Lily need to get back to your caves, this is no place for dragonets.” The brown AmphiWing scolded. “But mother!” Tadpole protested. “We have our wings and everything! That’s uncalled for.” His mother shushed him. “Go.” She pointed to the underwater tunnel and Lilypad and Tadpole, grumbling all the while, dove in. They swam towards their caves. “I can’t believe she did that!” Lilypad growled. “We’re old enough to know about these things!” Tadpole pulled out his blank-paged book, before dipping a talon in ink. “New dragons.” He murmured. “I wonder what they’ll be like.”
== Chapter Two ==
Tadpole lashed his tail against the water, creating a large splash that hit his mother. 
“Tadpole!” She snapped smacking him gently on the nose with her own tail fin. Tadpole pinned his mother’s fin. “Mother, why didn’t you let me see the other monarchs?” He asked tracing a talon along her freckled tail. “You’re too young.” She declared pulling her tail away from him. “Humph.” Tadpole grunted. “I’m going to see Lily.”
“Be safe.” His mother called as Tadpole’s tail vanished beneath the surface. He paddled along the tunnel, before emerging in Lily’s cave. “Lily?” He called, webbed talons sweeping through the liquid. Lilypad yanked him beneath the surface and dragged him to one of the entry ponds. Tadpole inhaled the warm damp rainforest air, it was so different from the colder air of the caves. Sunbeams glared down through the canopy, stabbing at his dark-accustomed eyes. He clambered onto the rocky shore and shook the liquid from his wings and ears, glancing around for Lily. Lilypad was gesturing frantically for him to approach a small bush. Tadpole peered through the branches. 
'We must gain troops, learn how they work, send in spies, then attack them from the inside!' Princess Zinc demanded, flaring her silvery-white, blue-tinted scales and pointing her gold-painted talons at them all.
King Reef snarled at her. “No! It’s dangerous, we have no idea what they’re capable of!” 
Queen Cherry tilted her head. “What if we just confronted them politely.” She reasoned. 
Queen Rose lashed her spiked tail, launching a spine off my mistake. “Are you insane?” The ThornWing spat. “That’s the literal dumbest idea I’ve ever heard!” 
King Crimson scoffed, his feathered mane fluffing. “As you would know, Mrs Queen of Bad Ideas.” Rose lunged for the VixenWing jagged talons slicing at the other. “No, Rose no!” Queen Leopard-Frog seized Rose’s spiked tail, pinning it against the forest floor.
Rose snarled and twisted around, but kept herself from attacking the AmphiWing. King Crimson’s large ears twitched and he turned towards where the dragonets were hiding. 
“Ack.” Lilypad yanked Tadpole out of the bush and shoved him in the pond, but screeched as her tail was almost seized. 
The two fled down the tunnel, vanishing into a small crevice as Queen Leopard-Frog sped past. 
Tadpole’s head broke the surface, panting heavily. “Why?!” He exclaimed glaring at Lilypad. 
Lily shrugged. “It’s always nice to eavesdrop.” She said with a shrug. 
“You will be the death of me!” Tadpole huffed paddling towards his cave. 
He spied the dappled tail of the Queen interrogating his mother. Lily, I'm gonna kill you! He thought swimming towards the entry pond and shooting out, startling the monarchs assembled on the beach. He flared his wings in the sky, looking down on the others. Queen Rose was inches behind him. Tadpole’s eyes widened as the ThornWing slammed into him, she gripped his arm with her dagger-like talons. He kicked and squirmed away, dropping into a dive before slamming into the salty water. Queen Rose, unable to follow, hovered angrily on the surface, before shooting a spine towards him. He paddled into the depths, before halting before a large stone altar. What the-?
== Chapter Three ==
Tadpole gasped, bubbles bursting from his maw. A darkened figure loomed upon a throne perched on the carved obsidian altar. He paddled a few feet closer, finding the darkened figure was a carved statue. The massive obsidian dragon looked like nothing he’d ever seen, or read about. Large carved wings, painted markings, a neat forked tongue and outstretched webbed talons. Incredible… He mused swimming in a quick circle around the sculpture. A jagged ebony spear protruded from the dragon’s chest, emerging from the back as well. Tadpole laid a talon on the  carved creature, tracing the shattered rock where the spear stabbed through the dragon’s back. A glow flashed from beneath him and he began to swim down, but a shadowed beast flung itself out of the depths, seizing Tadpole by the wings and pinning them to his sides. A searing pain erupted from his gills as he felt  claws curl into his scales. The beast  breached from the sea and flung Tadpole into the sky, before vanishing into the ocean once more. 
  Tadpole flung out his wings to slow his descent, seeing crimson drip into the liquid. He pressed a palm to his neck, and it came away stained a dark shade of red. 
  “There You are.” Strong talons seized his wings again, much more gently this time. Queen Rose’s Spined tail lashed within his field of view as she gripped his wrist, allowing him to fly again. She started back towards the continent, Tadpole in tow. Queen Rose tossed Tadpole un mercilessly into the sand, sending up a small cloud. She seized his wrist again and dragged him, stumbling and bleeding across the dunes. 
   “Leopard!” She barked as the AmphiWing emerged from the brush. “I’ve got him.” 
  “My lord, Tadpole, what have you been doing?!” Queen Leopard-Frog exclaimed, lashing her tail as she inspected Tadpole’s dripping gills. “Found him in the ocean.” Rose explained, her spikes clicking together as she shifted. Leopard-Frog fetched a handful of leaves from the foliage, and passed it to Tadpole to press against his wound, then she seized his wrist and began to drag him like Queen Rose had. Tadpole stumbled after her and saw his mother waiting anxiously on the banks of the entry pond. 
 “Tadpole!” She yelped and gathered him in a hug. Blood dripped over her lovely scales. “I’m so glad you’re safe.” Tadpole pressed his face into his mother’s scales, curling his wings around himself. 
 “Where exactly in the ocean did you find him?” King Reef inquired, tilting his head, voice dangerously low. “Off the east beach, about half a mile out.” Queen Rose replied. “Why?” King Reef stiffened and beckoned to the two guards behind him. “Fisher, Basking, let's go.” A slight panic edged the FinWing’s voice as the three dragons lifted off, flying towards the south in the direction of their kingdom.
== Chapter Four ==
Tadpole swam hurriedly through his tunnel, herded along by Queen Leopard-Frog. He glanced back at his mother as she vanished into her cave, she looked worried. They arrived in the massive underground throne room, and Queen Leopard-Frog emerged majestically from the pool, her large frame casting little Tadpole into shadow. 
“Everyone out.” She ordered, her tail lashing. Brown and green dragons darted into the several entrance ponds and vanished into their respective tunnels. “Except you.” She pointed a webbed talon at Lilypad who quickly stilled her ear twitching anxiously. Queen Rose dove through the skylight in the room and flung out her talons, landing in an almost battle-ready stance as she paced towards her ally. Tadpole glanced up, spying King Dart and the prince watching them from the Royal familys’ dining quarters. 
  “What did you hear?” Rose snarled, her distinctly forest scent burning his nose, he was used to the calmer aromas of earth, stone and freshwater. 
  “We heard you debating over what to do.” Lilypad said, tilting her chin up defiantly. “And that’s it…” Rose tilted her head and glanced at Leopard-Frog. Lilypad nodded slowly. There was a metallic clang as Princess Zinc landed, followed by the almost mammal-like patter of paws as King Crimson followed her. “You two go on, back home.” Leopard-Frog turned her attention to the other monarchs and the Princess. 
Tadpole seized Lilypad’s arm and dragged her to the pool where they slipped in and hovered beneath the surface, webbed claws sweeping through the almost-clear liquid. 
“[Insert Princess Zinc’s line]” The Princess tilted her head, thinking. “Yes.” King Crimson agreed. “I would still like to say we remove them quickly.” Queen Leopard-Frog pressed a talon to her temple. “No. No no no, just no!” She huffed. “We have no idea what they’re capable of, it’s a death wish at best!” Crimson’s ebony mane of feathers fluffed slightly. “Psh. Like we’re scared of a few strangers!” “King Reef obviously seemed coward enough.” Rose grunted. “Reef has nothing to do with this!” Crimson argued. “If he’s wimp enough to run after a dragonet explored his territory, let him run, run all the way back to his mama.” Queen Rose snorted a laugh as she wrapped her deadly spiked tail around herself. 
“Now, Crimson, this is no time to be divided!” Leopard-Frog argued. “We need to unite against this threat, or else it will destroy us.” A jolt of fear flared through Tadpole and he pressed himself against Lily’s side, as she glanced at him, her own dark eyes widened. 
“Where’s Queen Cherry?” Crimson inquired, glancing around before spotting the dragon waiting silently behind the others. The pink monarch stepped forward. “I’ve seen them with my own eyes, they’re a strange trio, two who don’t even look like pure-breeds.” Crimson snorted. “Hybrids?” He exclaimed incredulously. “Impossible, do they have no respect for bloodlines?” Queen Cherry ignored the VixenWing and continued. “And a third dragon, one of many, many beautiful shades, often changing colors at will.” “Extraordinary.” Leopard-Frog mused, taking to pacing around her throne. Cherry nodded and curled her wings around herself, antennae twitching. “We must attack!” Crimson exclaimed. “Retreat!” Cherry countered. “Attack!” The VixenWing shouted. “Retreat!” Cherry urged. “We can’t go into battle not knowing what we’re facing!” Crimson snarled slightly and made the telltale hissing sound in his throat. He too went pacing in a corner. A swirl of blood lurched around Tadpole and Lilypad and Tadpole clapped a talon to his still seeping gills. He tugged on Lily’s arm jerking his head in a gesture that said ‘go down the tunnel’. The other sighed, bubbles shooting from her nose as she nodded and followed him. The two swam to the safety of Tadpole’s sleeping-cave and the AmphiWings curled on his bed. “We’re gonna be destroyed?!” He exclaimed, lashing his tail so hard he knocked an inkwell to the floor. He scooped up the jar and placed it carefully on his shelf, amber eyes narrowed with worry. He slipped his band over the venomous scales on his tail and turned to Lilypad who’d, miraculously, slumped against the cave wall and fallen asleep. 
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Fanfictions (Incomplete)
Category:Fanfictions (Fanon)
Category:Content (Dragon Cat114)