Kryptos

This is Malice the NightWing's short fanfic for the Inspired Writing contest. No idea if it will turn out well... Here goes nothing!
== Kryptos ==
15380.42 was a normal dragon.
No, not just a normal dragon. I know what you're thinking. But no. Just... No. This is not the kind of normal you are used to. She was exactly like everyone else in her normal town, in her normal province, in her normal world.
Like all other dragons, 15380.42 was sort of pretty (but not pretty enough to be noticeable), sort of smart (but not smart enough to have any horrid individualistic thoughts), and sort of pleasant (but not pleasant enough to impact anyone). She thought the thoughts she was supposed to think, did the things she was supposed to do, and was a perfect role model of an obedient, placid, average dragon in her society.
But her life wouldn't stay normal for long.
The large white building where the seven-year-old dragonets lined up to was a perfect square. Blankly, 15380.42 kept her gaze on it. She was finally old enough to take The Test. 
I wonder what I'll do.
Of course, 15380.42 didn't actually know what took place in The Test. No one did. But, of course, it was one of The Rules, so of course it must be a clever, useful, and logical thing. She only knew what it did- It separated the good dragons from the bad dragons so that their society could continue to prosper. She smiled slightly, thinking again of The Rules. How clever her Rulers were. 
No one really knew what their society used to be like, but she knew it was full of horrible things like that awful idea of individualism or separateness. 
How lucky I am to live in this society.
A stony-faced dragon walked stiffly out of the square building and approached her. "What is your number?"
"My number is 15308.42."
"It is your turn to take The Test. Follow me." The dragon abruptly turned and marched into the building. 15308.42 followed him without question, just like she had been told to do. In the building, there was a dragon waiting for her.
"Sit down." The dragon ordered. 
15308.42 obeyed, the slight, trusting smile still on her face. "What will I do?"
The dragon ignored her question and took a weird device from the table next to him. He took her arm, clasping the device around her arm. It immediately started blinking.
After what seemed to be an eternity, The dragon looked up and abruptly pressed a button on the wall. 15308.42 watched, puzzled, as guards marched into the room and grabbed her. "Did I pass The Test?" 
The dragon looked at her, no emotion on his face. "You have been classified as an Outcast. You will be executed tomorrow."
The guards roughly grabbed 15308.42, hauling her down a couple flights of stairs. Soon, she was in a massive cave that she had never seen before, with strange markings running down the sides. She didn't dare ask where she was. She knew enough that when you were classified as an Outcast, questions were forbidden. 
A heavy, sinking sensation fell on her as the dragon's words echoed in her head. For some reason, she... She didn't feel like the Rules were right this time. 
Why did she feel like this all of a sudden? 
Suddenly, 15308.42 heard the sound of scales scraping against stone. She saw a pair of glowing eyes from the darkened corner. But... The eyes were green.
She had never seen green eyes before. I thought eyes were blue... That's odd.
A dragon emerged from the corner, his scales pitch black. He was very odd-looking, and didn't look like a regular dragon at all. 15308.42 knew that because everyone looked the same. That was how it had always been. So why did this dragon look so strange?
The dragon walked towards her. "What's your name?"
She frowned. "What's a 'name'? Who are you and why do you look different?"
The dragon laughed. It was an odd sound, and sent shivers down her spine.
"A 'name' is a title you have for yourself. You know, a long time ago, things were different. Dragons lived in different tribes. They all looked different. Things were a lot different in my time."
"What do you mean?" She asked. "It's always been this way. The Rulers said so, so it must be right."
The dragon gestured to the wall, where rows of weird markings were. "Look at this. Do you know how to read?"
"What's 'reading'?"
The dragon laughed again, then turned to face her. "The Rulers lied. Get used to it. I've been locked up here for millenia, because I can blend into the shadows and something called an 'animus' enchanted me back in the day to be immortal. I'm a NightWing, and the stupid guards aren't used to that so they couldn't find me and forgot about me a long time ago. They pass me by. Do you know why you're an Outcast?"
15308.42 felt like the world was turning over and over and over. The Rulers must have lied. Why did they lie? Does that mean my society isn't perfect? I don't understand...
"They put us here because we have the potential to be different. We have a slight difference in our cells. In their quest for complete equality, they will kill anyone who is different, even on a cellular size."
15308.42 stared at the metal door. "No..." She whispered. "It can't be..."
She suddenly turned to the other dragon, a strange longing in her. "Teach me to understand those marks. I'm going to die anyway."
In a couple hours, the other dragon had taught her what the markings said. They were the writings, the journals, of every dragon who had been kept here as an Outcast before being slaughtered. 
She even learned some history. That was what the other dragon said the past was. With ever desperate journal writing she read, she knew more and more surely that something was very wrong.
When she had finished reading them, she turned to the other dragon, a pained look on her face. "I was lied to." She rasped. "When did this start?"
"The last rebel for the society was a dragon who called himself Kryptos." The other dragon said. "The word 'kryptos' means 'hidden', and that was part of what he believed. He was a great leader.
"When he was taken to be killed, his last words were, 'I believe that truth is not gone. It is merely hidden, and I will dance in the flames to find it.' He was then thrown into the Sea of Flames, where they execute all Outcasts. That's where it began."
15308.42 was stunned. "So that's what a name is. Individuality. You mean... It might be good?"
"Yes."
"And now it's gone." Everything was gone. 15308.42 had never felt so desperate and despondent. 
"No." The other dragon said. Through the shadows, 15308.42 could see the slightest glimmer of a smile on his face. "It's not gone."
15308.42 felt a tear slip down her face. They had lost so much. But she could see what the other dragon meant, like sunlight peeking over a rainy horizon. 
Maybe they couldn't keep this forever before the truth got out. 
Because the truth wasn't gone, it was just hidden. 
Maybe there was hope.
Kryptos hope.
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Content (Malice the NightWing)
Category:Genre (Short Story)
Category:Fanfictions (Fanon)
Category:Fanfictions (Completed)